Orlando, Florida… 5pm Tuesday – PGA Trade Show Demo Day!!!

I must really love golf because getting here was not easy! Traffic delays, missed buses, more traffic delays and a near miss of luggage loss! But I arrived in Orlando around midnight and looked forward to a full day at the Orange County National Golf Course for the PGA Merchandise Show Demo Day! (OCNGC operate the nation’s largest driving range!) It’s a great opportunity to see hundreds of golf vendors demonstrate their products.

My focus for the trade show is to discover what’s new in the world of golf putters for women golfers. Most women who play at the recreational level will never be able to lower their handicap by consistently driving the ball two hundred yards… but great things do happen if a golfer perfects her putting skills. “The money is in the short game,” after all. I’m hoping to discover some of the world’s perfect putters and share the information with you.

In the fist hour at Demo Day I interviewed three or four golf putter vendors and designers, and discovered one putting aid that I think could be a real winner! But before I had a chance to keep looking, the heavens opened up, the winds began to blow, and my Demo Day was done.

A weather front of cold, harsh wind and rain appeared on the horizon, putting an end to my Demo Day.

Now, back at my hotel, I am sitting at my desk writing this in my pajamas. When Demo Day was dramatically cut short, hundreds of golfers, vendors and visitors, myself included, scrambled for any shelter we could find. The tents vendors had set up to protect equipment from the sunshine gave little protection against driving rain and wind. Within just a few minutes the crowds jammed the exits to line up in the pouring rain, waiting for buses to take the 45 minute ride back to the Convention Center. I could have stayed and hoped the sun would return, (in fact it did come back an hour or so later) but I chose the drier option. I will be at the trade show for a couple more days and promise to gather lots of information to share. Stay tuned.

Right now, I’m going to pour myself a glass of wine and put my feet up. 🙂