No Hats, No Play

It’s strange the things you miss when you move away.

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NextLinks Joins “Shot in the Dark” Project at Indian Wells Golf Resort

Indian Wells, Calif. – NextLinks, one of the golf industry’s hottest trends in the effort to grow participation through fun-based accessibility at non-traditional venues, is pleased to announce its strategic involvement in the “Shot in the Dark” nighttime golf experience which recently broke ground at the award-winning Indian Wells Golf Resort (Indian Wells, Calif.).

Soon, the picturesque nine-hole Putting Course at Indian Wells will be illuminated nightly with colored lasers projecting an entertaining array of NextLinks putting games. Learning golf can be intimidating for non-golfers, so NextLinks is introducing putting games aimed at breaking down these barriers while maintaining authentic playability for serious golfers. Think of games like “Golf Horse,” “Golf Darts,” “Golf Shuffleboard,” and “Golf Corn Hole.” Click on the link to view a simulated rendition of the project.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJqF–hkF70&app=desktop

The complete “Shot in the Dark” experience at Indian Wells– which is on pace to debut with a soft opening in late April/early May — will include music, a full-service outdoor bar, a chef-curated food truck operation and a driving range adorned with 20-ft inflatable, glow-in-the-dark targets that react with lights and sound effects when struck by glow-in-the-dark golf balls.

NextLinks announced its presence as a key player in the “alternate golf experience” arena by showcasing its groundbreaking indoor/outdoor golf technology and business concepts at the recent PGA Merchandise Show. The golf experience is driven by proprietary software that seamlessly blends golf simulator play with realistic short game shots and putting on expertly-designed artificial putting greens, as well as outdoor venues on real putting surfaces.

“The golf industry is about to see Indian Wells shatter the paradigm of how and when a golf operation can give its clientele a five-star experience,” says NextLinks president and CEO Dave Shultz. “When it’s too dark to play the two top-ranked golf courses at Indian Wells, the practice area comes alive. For non-golfers, it’s a party zone that presents the game in a fun and unintimidating way. For serious golfers, it’s a cool way to enjoy real golf in a setting that’s never existed before.”

Indian Wells general manager Steve Rosen is anxious to see what expanding the concept of “golfable hours” will do for the bottom line at the famed 36-hole golf property. “We expect this new ‘entertainment zone’ to become a major nighttime attraction for the resort and the entire Coachella Valley, not just golfers and guests at Indian Wells,” Rosen says.

Rosen also sees “Shot in the Dark” as a popular venue for group business. “Large golf groups who want to continue the competition among friends or corporate meetings looking for a fun way to promote team building, will find this nighttime golf entertainment spot a truly unique and one of a kind experience.”

The NextLinks golf experience is powered by its proprietary skill differentiated games and Pinpoint Spotlight Technology. The system simultaneously tracks multiple players’ places in various games while guiding them through play with colored lasers projected on to the green. “I always pictured the prototypical NextLinks venue indoors, but this Indian Wells project, using existing infrastructure at a world-renowned golf resort is an eye-opener,” Shultz says. “The combinations and variety of games we’ll offer is vast because we’ve electronically mapped the entire nine-hole putting course, which already had awesome design features. The games will play quite differently depending where you are on the putting course.”

Players will be able to choose to play NextLinks-powered games (by the hour) from a touch-screen menu then play them on the real-grass Putting Course.

Rosen approached the NextLinks team looking to create a “Top Golf-like attraction” at Indian Wells. “We’re serious about engaging younger people who can potentially become our next generation of golfers and traditional golf programming simply isn’t enough to attract them to the game,” Rosen says. “Shot in the Dark brings the energy of a sports bar or popular lounge right to the heart of our golf resort, which is surrounded by four hotel properties (with a total of 1,500 rooms).”

While Indian Wells is the first traditional golf course operation to use NextLinks technology, Shultz does not think it will be the last. “Golf courses everywhere are looking for ways to make their venues fun and to keep golfers engaged there for longer hours. Indian Wells is about to show them exactly how it’s done,” he says. “Not every “Grow the Game” initiative has to be a loss-leader. You can bring new people to the game while growing your core revenue streams with solutions that fit your budget. I think Shot in the Dark is going to prove that in a big way.”

For more information on this project, visit www.nextlinks.com and http://www.indianwellsgolfresort.com/.

About NextLinks

In the Spring of 2015, David Shultz, a veteran technologist, followed his passion for golf and began working to realize his vision for NextLinks and REALiTEE Golf, immersive golf experiences designed to make golf accessible to beginners as well as seasoned golfers. Shultz spent more than two decades as an electrical engineer and operations executive at General Electric. As an aviation electronics technician in the United States Navy, Shultz discovered a knack for problem solving on the avionics systems of A-6 and F/A-18 aircrafts. The seasoned technologist was also a key team member on the Boeing 787 development project while at General Electric. NextLinks is a fully scalable business opportunity meaning venue owners with 850 square-feet of space up to 100,000 can license this unique golf entertainment platform and develop a fun alternative golf experience. Using proprietary software that seamlessly blends golf simulator play with realistic short game play and putting on expertly-designed putting greens, NextLinks revolutionizes indoor golf for participants of any skill level. Visit www.Nextlinks.com.

Follow Nextlinks at www.facebook.com/NextLinksGolf as well as on Twitter and Instagram: @nextlinksgolf.

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MIMOA 2.0

If you're like me, when you travel you consult MIMOA, the user-generated website that functions as a guide to modern architecture. The website is particularly helpful with registration, which enables adding projects but also favoriting them, marking them as visited, and creating guides for particular cities or routes. For example, here is a guide I made for a trip in August 2012, going from Zurich to Venice.

If you're really like me, you also find the MIMOA page frustrating to use on mobile platforms. It's very good on a laptop, but since it's not mobile-friendly I don't even bother on a smartphone. The team at MIMOA is aware of this and trying to do something about it.

The current MIMOA homepage:

[Images courtesy of MIMOA Kickstarter campaign]

So what are they doing — more accurately, what are they trying to do? MIMOA 2.0, which will focus on two things: "A mobile-first redesign of the platform that will optimize the user experience and will provide information on the spot; and new functionalities that will make it much easier for you to add reviews, ratings and extra photos (on location) and most importantly to add new buildings."



Of course, reprogramming a huge, user-generated website isn't cheap. Hence MIMOA's Kickstarter campaign and their target of €70,000. There are fifteen days left for MIMOA to reach this hefty sum, so head on over to their Kickstarter to see the rewards (including a visit to MVRDV, video below) and make a donation toward their much-needed mobile update.



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K-MOTION Announces National Release of K-COACH

Ultimate Coaching Platform Completes Re-brand from K-VEST to K-COACH

(SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.) K-MOTION Interactive – the pioneer of innovative, wearable human motion training applications for golf, baseball, softball, fitness, physical therapy and beyond – has officially released K-COACH, a revolutionary instruction-based platform which provides coaches of all-levels with the measurement and training tools to transform their students’ games.

Since 2002, K-MOTION certified golf professionals have been helping everyone from PGA TOUR winners to high handicappers unlock their best golf by optimizing how the body functions during the golf swing. For the past three years, the company has been working to create a new, transformative coaching platform that builds on the acclaimed K-VEST. This national release officially completes the rebranding of the company’s flagship product from K-VEST to K-COACH.

Following a successful debut at the 2018 PGA Show, K-COACH empowers golf professionals of all-levels to better measure, understand, coach and train players. The system allows the coach to understand a student’s movement, so that they can prescribe precise drills designed to spark rapid improvement and ensure these drills are completed perfectly, every time. With the introduction of wrist angle measurement, coaches can understand how the clubface behaves throughout the swing, while launch monitor integration identifies how the player’s swing directly affects the distance and accuracy of the player’s ball.

“Our team could not be more excited to bring K-COACH to market,” said K-MOTION CEO Michael Chu. “This is the ultimate teaching solution for coaches who demand a complete learning system that benefits both their students and their business.”

A groundbreaking feature being introduced in K-COACH is ‘Train Shot.’ The process is both simple and revolutionary: coaches of all levels auto-capture a group of swings, pick the best one or use the average of the group and then let the automated swing fitting feature convert the data into a customized training program that helps players replicate and improve upon their best swing. All of this is delivered through the patented biofeedback training and a cloud-based coaching platform that has made K-MOTION a leader in golf instruction.

“A coach doesn’t need to look at numbers anymore to benefit from 3D and biofeedback,” said Tony Morgan, Head of Golf at K-MOTION. “All they do is find the player’s best shot, capture it and train it. We’ve built the world’s first instant camera for transferring motion to biofeedback training.”

According to Golf Digest, seven of the top-15 golf instructors in America use K-MOTION products for better training. This includes instructors to some of the biggest PGA TOUR superstars in the world. Beyond golf, Major League Baseball teams such as the Seattle Mariners, major universities and select National Hockey League teams also rely on K-MOTION’s revolutionary system to help their athletes achieve optimum movement and performance.

K-MOTION is the industry leader in wearable, motion-training technology that makes athletes better faster. The company’s products (including K-COACH and K-PLAYER) create the complete learning solution: from diagnosis, to supervised instruction, to unsupervised practice. Through patented real-time audio and visual cues, athletes can connect perception and reality and master perfect motion in seconds. K-MOTION creates a seamless connection between player and coach through its cloud-based improvement sequence of measure, assess, coach and train.

For more information: www.k-motion.com, 603.472.3519.

About K-MOTION Interactive, Inc.

K-MOTION is the industry leader in wireless, human motion learning for sports, fitness and medical (physical therapy) applications. K-MOTION’s cloud-based products provide the complete learning solution to enhance the measurement, understanding, coaching and training of athletes. Medical grade inertial sensors capture data that best-in-class software evaluates to enable deeper understanding of athletes and diagnose inefficient movement by revealing what the eye can’t see. This understanding is then applied through patented real-time audio and visual cues to coach and train athletes. K-MOTION athletes connect perception and reality to master perfect motion in seconds. According to Golf Digest, seven of the top-15 golf instructors in America use K-MOTION products for better training. In addition, Major League Baseball and National Hockey League teams apply the company’s solutions. Titleist Performance Institute and other world-renowned fitness and movement coaches and physical therapists are brand ambassadors. The company has offices in Scottsdale, Arizona, Nashua, New Hampshire and San Francisco, California.

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A Reckoning With an Imperfect Science in ‘Blue Dreams’

Lauren Slater’s new book chronicles the history of mood-regulating drugs, weaving in her own lifelong struggle to get well and stay well.

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Older Americans Are ‘Hooked’ on Vitamins

Sixty-eight percent of those 65 and older take vitamin supplements. Much of what we once believed about the benefits is wrong.

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Giving Babies Antibiotics or Antacids May Increase Allergy Risk

Infants given antibiotics, H2 blockers or proton pump inhibitors were at higher risk of asthma and food allergies.

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