Tin Cup at The Outer Banks

It’s August and we are dreaming of our upcoming vacation to the Outer Banks, NC (affectionately known as “OBX”).  If you’ve never been there, come join us!  The beaches are wide, clean, and uncrowded…and there is plenty of golf nearby! 

Here are some of our favorites places in the OBX: 

Best Outer Banks Golf

Currituck Club

Kilmarlic

Best Outer Banks Barbeque

Currituck BBQ

Delicious place to stop on the way to the beach. 

Best Attraction on the way to the Beach (with kids)

Grave Digger Monster Trucks -- http://www.gravedigger.com

Best Summer Reads

City of Thieves - David Benioff

Unbroken – Laura Hillenbrand

Best Summer Drink

Angry Orchard Hard Cider – goes great with shrimp and crab…and key lime pie!

Best Breakfast Indulgence

Duck Donuts

Best new Seafood Seasoning

J.O.’s Spice – one of the brothers of the Old Bay Franchise has tweaked his family’s recipe, and gone out on his own.  J.O.’s is “da bomb”!

Enjoy your vacation, share your stories with us on facebook, and always make time for golf!

Father's Day Gift Ideas

Yes!  It’s that time of year again.  Father’s Day rolls around and while it is lots of fun planning the festivities for Father’s Day, sometimes it’s hard to figure out what to get for that special Father in your life.  Here is a sampling of our favorite ideas, in no particular order:

Harry’s Shaving Sets

This is a great bargain!  As Harry’s says, “all you need for a great shave, in one tidy box.”  Shown here is the Truman Set, which includes a quality razor, 3 blades, and a special tube of shaving cream--for $15—and free shipping!  Such a great deal, we purchased some ourselves!    

Lee Wybranski Golf Print

If you’ve never seen Lee’s work, you really need to check out his website, www.leewybranski.com.  His paintings are modern yet retro.  If your Father has ever played one of the courses Lee has painted, get your dad a print – he will love it.  Our favorite is the 2014 Open Championship, pictured here.  The clouds are stunning.   And the print is a steal for only $50.

Cufflinks

One can never go wrong with cufflinks!  Our favorite merchant is www.cufflinks.com, where the selection and prices are unbeatable.  Shown here are the Washington Nationals cufflinks – these clever cufflinks are made from baseballs used by the Washington Nationals.  And yes they have just about every MLB team cufflinks available!  The used baseball is set in sterling silver and costs $170.00.  Kind of pricey but he will love them, if he loves baseball.  And they have all sorts of cufflinks for every man’s hobby or sport.

Photo book from Shutterfly

Don’t overlook this gift!  If you spend a little time at home making a photo book at www.shutterfly.com, you can make a fantastic and very special, one-of-a-kind gift for a very reasonable price.  Get started on your photo book soon, so you can have it in the mail to you by Sunday June 15^th! 

LLBean Camping Gear

LLBean is always coming up with some cool new gear.  Here’s one we like:  the BioLite Camp Stove charges your phone while cooking your food!  This special stove burns biomass like twigs, wood pellets, and bark.  Pretty cool. 

Of course we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention that a personalized Tin Cup is the perfect gift for golfing Dads.  But, you already knew that! 

We wish you a beautiful, restful, and meaningful Father’s Day Celebration.  Here at Tin Cup, part of our Father’s Day will be spent – you guessed it – in a blissfully chilled man cave, watching the U.S. Open.

Come Meet Tin Cup this Weekend at the Kingsmill Championship

Looking for a fun day trip in the Mid-Atlantic area this weekend?  Then come join us at the Kingsmill Championship in Williamsburg, VA!  If you’ve haven’t yet attended any LPGA events, they are so much fun – the players are appreciative of the crowd support and are genuinely personable, stopping to give autographs and interact with the fans.  You can tell they are true competitors and also truly enjoying their careers.  If you have a daughter or son who is interested in golf, you really need to come take them to this event. 

 And at LPGA events, they really cater to the whole family--the LPGA's foundation, Girls Golf, is sponsoring a Family Fun Zone on both Saturday and Sunday of the tournament.  The Family Fun Zone features moon bounces, face painting, exotic animals from Busch Gardens, and of course, Tin Cup doodling - where golfers of all ages can try out some new Tin Cup designs, take a break from the action, and give the little ones a chance to disperse some of their boundless energy!  If you act soon you can probably also sign your child up for some free children’s golf clinics. 

 We hope to see you there, we’d love to meet you!  The weather for this weekend looks gorgeous. 

Mother's Day Gift Ideas

It’s Mother’s Day in little over a week.  If you’re like most of us, you’re starting to panic about not having a gift for your wife or mom!  Well, never fear, the Tin Cup Gift Guru is here.  Here are a few suggestions for gifts that are sure to let her know you love her.  Any of these items will be a big hit!

1. What Makes Olga Run? The Mystery of the 90-Something Track Star and What She Can Teach Us About Living Longer, Happier Lives– This is a fantastic book about longevity and happiness that everyone should read!  (Maybe you can borrow it back from your mom once she’s done with it).  Kindle edition - $9.99, Hardcover $19.18 

2. Tunic Shirt or Dress

We love the Sail to Sable brand.  Their “Shake it all Shift” and the “Classic Top (Bright Green)” are so versatile, preppy, and fun.  Both are priced around $180 -- trust us she will wear them at least once a week!

3.  Jewelry from the Preppy Pink Pony –Cutout monogram jewelry is really in.  If you order her monogram but don’t receive it by mother’s day, then print out a photo of the necklace and wrap it up in a box - and tell her it’s on the way.   

4.  Bed and Breakfast Gift Certificate --This is for a really, really special person in your life.  One of our favorites, the Inn at Perry Cabin is the ultimate scenic relaxing getaway…. And yes, if it looks familiar, it’s where they filmed “The Wedding Crashers.” Sun, Spa, Shopping, Sailing, Seafood…..what’s not to love?!

5.  Footjoy Spectrum Golf Glove.  These are great:  they’re comfortable, affordable and colorful!  (And only $24.95) 

How are Tin Cups Made?

Don’t you love the show, “How It’s Made”?  So do we!  Here's the Tin Cup version--read on to see how stainless steel goes from “simple” to “spiffed up” Tin Cups!

As we walk into the expansive building where Tin Cups are made, we make our first stop in the computer room.  This is where the cutters use software to translate your image into computer language, so it can be “drawn” by machinery.   We want your design just right, so sometimes there are several "back-and-forths" to make sure your design will both fit on the Tin Cup and be large enough so that you can fill it in with a sharpie.  Once we’ve perfected the computerized design, the design gets sent to a laser cutter.

So now to the fun part, we venture into the warehouse where the large machinery, including the laser cutters run, and we hear the comforting clank of industry.   The staff place 64 plain round steel Tin Cups into a tray and the tray is then slid under the laser cutter.  We see sparks fly as the laser cuts each and every Tin Cup design out of the stainless steel.  The cutter cuts 64 Tin Cups in about 15 minutes.

 After the laser finishes, the Tin Cups are removed and placed in a tumbler to polish the Tin Cups and take the “burr” off.

The buffer contains ceramic pellets that polish around 300 Tin Cups for 10 minutes. Then the polished Tin Cups are placed in a bucket, like a bunch of clams.

The Tin Cups are then dunked into water to clean them of any leftover debris and soap.

The cups are then dried to 259 degrees, and then the holes are punched. 

 Here is the hole punching machine. 

Voila!  Your Tin Cup is then shipped to our main office in Falls Church, Virginia, where they are personally packed and shipped by Jack and Corey.

The Tin Cups we saw today were specially designed and approved by the PGA of America.  Here is the finished product:

Five Great Tips for the Start of the Golf Season

With the weather finally warming up, we thought you might appreciate a few reminders as you get back into the swing of things.

1. Arrive Early
Most amateur golfers arrive five minutes before their tee time. We’re not suggesting you have a 2-hour practice session like the pros, just give yourself enough time to enjoy the journey ahead…and mark your golf balls!
2. Stretch 
Don’t step onto the tee without grabbing a couple of clubs and loosening up those muscles.
3. Practice your Putting
If you only practice one element of your game before teeing off, make it the part that comprises most of your score – your putting.
4. Walk
If you have the opportunity to walk, then walk. It’s a fact that you will burn twice as many calories: exercise!
5. Enjoy the Journey
It’s a game. Enjoy it. Smell the flowers and enjoy the camaraderie of our great game. So you shank a four iron, who cares! Have fun!

Holly Sonders demonstrating key golf stretches  

Top 5 from the PGA Show

The Vibe 

The PGA Show was, as usual, a fantastic smorgasbord of all things golf. If you’ve never been, it’s in a massive convention center with over 1,000 exhibitors showcasing every type of golf product ranging from tees to range equipment; to training aids, night golf, trophies and apparel. Throw into the mix of the marketplace the vibe of live TV—Golf Channel filmed there during the entire show – and you’ve got one rockin’ convention.  Golf has truly gone “big time” and is downright hip.  Booths were jammin’ with some poppin’ bass, and as you can see here, one even looked like the entrance to a nightclub, complete with hipsters and hits. All in all, it was reassuring to see the Golf Industry is not only keeping up with the times – but setting the pace.  It’s an exciting time to be in the game.

Decisions, Decisions

Another impression from the PGA Show is that I never realized how many decisions the average golf pro must make. There are so many types of gear and gadgets.  From golf balls to belts to score boards to golf carts, it’s all within the golf pro’s purview. Pros, like all of us, are trying to balance cost versus style versus utility and quality.  The complexities of running a golf program began to dawn on me:  It might not be as idyllic as I had always imagined. Next time I see our Club Pros and Buyers, I’m going to thank them for the beautiful and smart choices they make for our Course and the Shop.  

The Top 5

Having said that, here are a few of my impressions of some of the 5 hottest products at the show:

True Links –The “IN” shoe at the show – several Tin Cuppers purchased these TrueLinks wingtips shoes, which are both attractive and comfortable!  Golf footwear has even gotten hip!  

Smartbar/Smartender– This company is going to make it big, folks!  Apart from the fact that they were giving away cocktails every day, there is another reason this product was popular:  It’s brilliant!  Basically it’s cocktails at the push of a button.  As I understand it, the Smartbar was invented by a former DJ.  Apparently while working events, he recognized a need for a mechanism to pour drinks for a crowd efficiently.  So bam!  He created the Smartbar, which allows you to order an inordinate combination of cocktails--anything from as simple as a vodka tonic to a cosmo to a Fresh Breeze (that was my choice – vodka, cranberry, orange, and a splash of lime – YUM), all at the push of a button.  The cocktails were perfect – not too watery, not too juicy, not too strong.  At $25,000 per unit, you might have to be a millionaire to have one in your house – but I highly believe you will be seeing these on golf carts and in businesses soon.  They are sure to be a bartender’s best friend.

Nead Custom Putters—several of the Tin Cup friends and family walked away from the Show grinning ear-to-ear after purchasing a new Nead Putter.  These are incredibly well-made, beautiful custom putters, hand-made by a gentleman who used to hand-make racing car engines. His metalworking skills are definitely above par.  These are costly, but durable and gorgeous--something to be proud of.  You definitely NEAD this putter. 

All for Color – Love these vibrant prints that can be found on tunic shirts, golf bags, purses, and totes. I didn’t get to purchase any at the show but I’m going to their website to see where I can buy their stylish products.  The All for Color gear really freshens up the sometimes monochromatic life we live in.  

Go Pro – What can I say?  I’m a ham.  I love this company.  When you buy a Go Pro and stick it atop your golf hat or on your golf cart, you can get some great footage of both your golf swing and your friends goofing off.  A really nice feature of Go Pro is when you buy the camera it comes with free editing software. 

by Alexis Smith ..... Thanks for reading!