CHAD JOHANSEN Inventor of the Perfect Putting Aid, and now the Guide For Golf is waiting for you at the Blackberry Oaks Golf Club in Bristol. Start making more putts, get that lesson when you need it, bring your junior golfers to the course where Kids-Rule. See blackberryoaks.com and chadjohansen.com improve your game, play the game. DO YOU need tickets for the 2017 U.S. Open at Erin Hills, visit USGA.org/tickets.          _____________________________________________________________________

THE GOG BLOG by Rory Spears, Editor and Director of Content. Follow Rory on Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter @GogBlogGuy. Looking on the 9th hole at Shepherd’s Rock at the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort.

That second 18 holes at the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Farmington PA., is inching closer to being completed. Work remains on only two holes as the final days of construction tick away.

While the golfers are enjoying the fall golf season on the resorts #1 ranked public course in Pennsylvania, Mystic Rock, the second Pete Dye course now has a name, Shepherd’s Rock.

Shepherd’s Rock will open on July 1st of 2017. Shepherd’s Rock is the latest course on the new course construction list that helps show growth in the golf industry. The opening of a second course turns Nemacolin into a major golf destination.

Nemacolin Director of Golf and Activities Mike Jones (L) with Hall of Fame course designer Pete Dye on Shepherd’s Rock.

“The course is scheduled to complete construction by October 31st,” says Nemacolin’s Director of Golf and Activities Mike Jones. “16 holes are done and the two remaining holes are nearing completion. July 1st, 2017 will be the opening date.”

With opening day for Shepherd’s Rock now less than nine months away, Jones and his team know that Nemacolin will become a destination for golfers from all over the country.

“We are very excited to get our second Pete Dye Championship Course open,” said Jones. “The new addition will make Nemacolin one of the great golf destinations in the Northeastern United States.”

The Par 3, 14th hole on Shepherd’s Rock is done, grassed and growing in.

Dye along with architect Tim Liddy are putting the Shepherd’s Rock design together.

The golf course will play to a Par of 72, and a back yardage of 7,142 yards. The first hole shows the golfer that the terrain will be rolling through the Allegheny Mountains, and leave the golfer with spectacular views through out the round.

The two nines are different and will require the golfer to create a strategy to be successful on each nine. The front nine is only 3,306 yards, and will make the golfer play a strategic game to earn the scores of success. The back nine is longer at 3,836 yards, but more wide open for the longer hitters to enjoy.

In Mid-August the par 5, 18th hole was starting to take shape.

The final hole is a Par 5, that can play around 600 yards, the tee shot will drop down into a lower section of the fairway, before requiring the golfer to play uphill shots into a green that will have scenic mountain views to one side. With the Falling Rock Golf Hotel with it’s pools and waterfalls on the other side.

“With 36 great holes of golf and over 70 different activities to do on resort property, you will never get bored at Nemacolin,” says Jones.

“Shepherd’s Rock promises to be one of the best courses in the U.S.,” says Monte Hansen, Managing Director at Nemacolin. “Thirty-six holes showcasing the creativity and genius of Pete Dye, combined with our myriad luxury amenities and accommodations, positions us at the very top of premier resort destinations in the U.S.”

In addition to Mystic Rock and Shepherd’s Rock, the Nemacolin Golf Academy offers the latest ways to improve your game at all levels. Nemacolin has added golf schools and club fitting area’s under the watchful eye of Golf Magazine’s Top 100 instructor Eric Johnson, who left Oakmont Country Club immediately after the U.S. Open to join Nemacolin. Jones left the Kapalua Resort on the island of Maui in Hawaii, earlier this year to join Nemacolin.

The first hole at Shepherd’s Rock comes into shape.

The Nemacolin Woodlands Resort is comprised of nearly 2,000 acres. The resort has 320 luxurious guestrooms, suites, townhouses, and private upscale homes.

Guests can also enjoy the resorts Spa, Casino, and Wildlife Academy. The Adventure Center has Zip Lines and a climbing wall. Take a Jeep and go Off-Road Driving.

There are 15 restaurants and lunges on the property. For meetings there is over 32,000 square feet of conference space and three ballrooms, a lecture hall and 25 meeting rooms. For more information visit Nemacolin.com or call 866-399-6957.