Tanyard Creek hosts first-ever Golf Fest
Every spot on the driving range was perpetually filled during Saturday’s Golf Fest as a cacophony of thwacks filled the air when golfers took shot after shot trying new equipment.
The first-ever Golf Fest saw vendors from Callaway, Taylor Made, Adidas, Footjoy, Titleist and Cobra lining up at the Tanyard Creek practice area to show their gear to golfers from Bella Vista and elsewhere.
“The whole purpose of this event was to promote what we have out here in Bella Vista,” golf operations director Phillip Wright said. “I think we accomplished it, we have a lot of members out here and several nonmembers from outside.”
Wright said he appreciated the 25 volunteers who helped with the event.
Additionally, he said, this will become an annual event. The first year, he said, turned out nicely, but it also provides a solid base to build on for next year.
Among those who showed up was Chris Wi- ley, proprietor of Horton Farms, an event center in Bentonville.
Wiley sent ball after ball across the driving range during a club fitting. He swapped heads and shafts and made minute adjustments, including the use of slightly different weights and minor adjustments to the heads’ angles, to perfect his game and keep his balls flying fast and true.
“It’s a really big deal,” he said. “You can have the right head with the wrong angle and hit it horribly.”
Having a variety of major brands and all types of equipment to check out in a single place, he said, was a great opportunity for a seasoned golfer like himself or someone who’s still getting into the sport.
Bryan Pfeiffer, product specialist with Titleist, was helping Wiley with his fit. In addition to knowing his way around the brand’s equipment, Pfeiffer was also using a Trackman device, which uses radar to track the ball through its flight path and provide data on what it’s doing — how fast it’s traveling, how much it’s spinning, how fast the club head is moving and more.
A fitting, he said, is extremely important for anyone interested in buying clubs.
An event like this, he said, is beneficial for buyers, who can meet trained professionals from a vari- ety of equipment manufacturers, and, of course, the event helps those manufacturers advertise their goods. But it doesn’t just help sell clubs, he said.
“We get a lot of good feedback when we have all of our equipment out where people can try it,” he said.
In addition to drivers, people were given the opportunity to try out new putters as well.
Conner Guthrie, 13, was out testing and fitting putters with the help of his father, Tom Guthrie.
Tom Guthrie said the event was excellent for the local golf community. Because Northwest Arkansas lacks a golf superstore, he said, having major brands come out to show their wares is helpful for anyone who wants to shop around.
Conner Guthrie was trying different lengths of Scotty Cameron putters, he said, to find one that fits him well, and had settled on a 33-inch shaft.
He’s been golfing for six months, he said.
“I love golf so much,” Guthrie said.