Golf Digest blogger Geoff Shackelford suggests in his online column that Tiger Woods follow in the footsteps of Jack Nicklaus, Ben Crenshaw and other golfers turned architects.  The writer advises Woods to close down his design business and learn the craft by apprenticing with an experienced designer.

        In his “Dear Tiger” letter, Shackelford suggests that “the days of lavish ‘signature’ designs are gone,” and that Woods should “hit Control-Alt-Delete on Tiger Woods Design.”  The blogger mentions Woods’ three current design jobs, all currently delayed for economic reasons, including his project for The Cliffs at High Carolina.

        You can read the Golf Digest online article by clicking here.

        The Asheville (NC) Citizen-Times has run a story this morning confirming what we broke here last week -– that Cliffs Communities founder Jim Anthony has asked property owners to lend $60 million to his financially strapped organization.  The funds would be used primarily to complete amenities at The Cliffs High Carolina and Mountain Park communities.  The most publicized amenity at High Carolina is the barely started golf course designed by Tiger Woods.

        The Citizen-Times interviewed Mr. Anthony and a Cliffs property owner and published only one line from each.

        “’We have bankers and hedge fund guys’ and other property owners with significant resources and financial expertise,” Anthony told the Citizen-Times. “'It was their initiative.'”

        Property owner Miller Williams added, “I think the proposal is worthy of consideration by the Cliffs members because it's well understood that the Cliffs needs additional capital to complete its projects at hand.”

        A lending proposal is worthy because the money is needed?  Sophisticated Cliffs owners are going to need a more evolved rationale than that.

        You can read the Citizen-Times story by clicking here.  You can read our original story here.

        USA Today featured the Wilmington, NC, housing market in its regular “Close to Home” series today.  Sales in December in Wilmington were up 19.8% compared with an increase of 18.9% in the state and 12.7% nationwide.  Median home prices, however, were down 5.6% from a year ago.

        The Wilmington area features more than a dozen golf communities, but only one, Landfall, includes member-only golf, in Landfall's case 45 holes.   Landfall’s Jack Nicklaus course (27 holes) is considered by most golfers to be more difficult than its Pete Dye course.  Current listings in Landfall range from $290,000 to more than $4 million.

        Porters Neck, just north of the city, is also gated but the course is open the public.  However, the $100+ green fees keep the riffraff out and give the Tom Fazio course a private-club feel.  Current home prices are $300,000 to over $4 million.

        Canadian real estate prices reached record levels in 2009, and new home starts were up in December to their highest level in 14 months, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal today.  Folks who couldn’t get a nibble on their condo a year ago are today finding fevered buyers bidding against each other.

        All this positive momentum is starting to prompt fears of a bubble and

        Myrtle Beach has long been a favorite play spot for Canadian golfers, and they are welcomed in Myrtle Beach like no other group.  Hotels and

        Except for a few rare days of snow or ice, golf is year round in Myrtle Beach.  To all you Canadians who might consider a relocation to the area, think about this for an early February morning with a likely foot of snow on the ground in Toronto:  You could play Caledonia Golf Club in the morning and then take a leisurely one-hour drive to the great city of Charleston to watch the East Coast Hockey League champion Sting Rays play.  Golf in the morning, and hockey in the evening: Try that in Toronto in February.