Define overweight anyway you want—body-mass index, too much belly falling over the top of your pants (what a friend calls “dunlap disease”: Your stomach dun lap over your belt), or your clothes don’t fit. You know when you’re overweight and most of us are.

So says golf’s leading food and weight-loss coach Larry Jacobs (left), who offers a program aimed specifically at fellow golfers. About 35 years ago, Jacobs was suffering “incapacitating belly pain” that no doctor or ER could identify. It took two years to find a nutritionally aware physician who suggested it could simply be a particular food not agreeing with him; they soon determined that Jacobs was allergic to eggs. After his disabling pain vanished he was inspired to learn all he could about food, health, and fitness, and help others suffering similar conditions.

The original plan wasn’t specifically designed to help clients lose weight, but as they identified and eliminated problem foods, Jacobs noticed they were getting smaller and feeling better overall. So his program eventually became more about helping people with big bellies rather than bad bellies—with an important difference.

“I don’t like the word ‘diet,’” he says. “Diet means eating less, counting calories, and trying to defeat your hunger: If that worked we’d see a lot more thin people. Whatever ‘weight’ people lose that way, maybe half is fat and the other half is muscle and water, which you don’t want to lose. And eventually they get hungry again, revert to old habits, and put back some, all, or more of the weight they’d lost.”

Jacobs’ program—conducted through teleseminars that can be attended online or over the phone—begins by helping each individual identify his or her problem foods. He is very specific about what to give up temporarily and what can be eaten (as much as one likes) in the first two weeks. His information on “Eating Clean” is delivered in two-week intervals.

“I make a big promise: I can show any golfer how to go from being a fat storer to a fat burner in two weeks or less without dieting, calorie counting, or starving—guaranteed. In the first session, I temporarily take people off a handful of very common foods that statistically cause difficulties, foods like nuts, dairy, and a few others. When you go off those it’s amazing what happens to how you look and feel. And there are 50 or 60 foods that you can eat with no restrictions. It’s about eating clean, eating the right proteins, the right fats and oils, the right carbohydrates and starches, the right beverages. Since food is the foundation, when you finally get that right the results can be amazing.”

For golfers, Jacobs breaks the day into a front nine (morning) and back nine (afternoon/evening), and says that just as in a round of golf, you can make a lot of pars, birdies, even the occasional bogey or other.

“If you get a good breakfast and some physical activity early it’s like being under par. But if you screw up and don’t get your exercise, that’s a bogey. But just being a few over par isn’t going to ruin your game or your handicap, and you have the rest of the day to salvage the round. Even if you make a double-bogey you don’t give up the game; you get back to trying to make pars.”

There is much more to the program, explained in great detail at Jacobs’ website, thingolfer.com. His next series of seminars begins on February 15^th, and is being offered at half-price. They always sell out.

Larry Jacobs gives new meaning to “thin to win.”

That middle ground is also home for instructional training aids, some with more straps and buckles that a dominatrix’s guestroom. But no matter what one thinks of the products (and over the years I’ve seen many that were just silly), you have to feel compassion toward the creators who sincerely want to help the golf public play better.

Which isn’t to say it’s all hooey. As technology has improved—especially video cameras and computer software—the aids have improved as well. Every golf geek is now overloaded with data and research on the swing and desperately trying to make sense of it all, looking for the holy grail of lasting improvement.

A few days before the show began I attended an outing run by TourEdge Golf, a clubmaker that deserves closer scrutiny for its high-end Exotics line (particularly lightweight woods and hybrids, like the new XCG5, right) and more bargain-priced club lines like Bazooka. For someone new to the game, it’s hard to find a better deal in quality equipment.

Joining TourEdge was a potpourri of golf companies including Sun Mountain (terrific outerwear, carts, and bags—that’s the new superlightweight KG2 bag, bottom), Innovex and Polara balls, SkyGolf (state of the art GPS devices and clubfitting technology called Swing Labs), and Medicus. This last company made a name for itself with training clubs that featured a hinged shaft (below) that “broke” when the swing went off-plane or otherwise fouled up.

From those humble beginnings Medicus has become a big player in golf training and has made a commitment to identifying what makes a good swing. Two of their teachers—and I apologize for not getting their names—presented what they called the five commonalities of great players, five best practices that Medicus will endeavor to promote with training aids.

I’m just reporting what I heard, but it should get all golfers thinking—and practicing.

1) Steady Head. Make that “basically steady,” as the head shouldn’t move more than an inch during the swing.

2) Weight Forward Coming Down. That is, the body’s weight should move to and stay on the front leg in the downswing. How much? 80-95% of the body weight should be over the front leg at impact. There’s also, they say, a direct correlation between weight forward and handicap.

3) Flat Left (Forward) Wrist at Impact. Higher-handicap players tend to break or “flip” their forward wrist toward the target at impact rather than keeping it flat. Think of it this way: The hands should lead the clubhead to and through the ball.

4) The Path of the Sweetspot Is A Diagonal. A little confusing, I know, but this is about swinging on plane and actually thinking of the clubhead moving on a diagonal path, not straight back and through. The only way to bring the sweetspot flush into the ball is from the inside coming down.

5) The Clubface Controls the Ball. This one amazed me as I’d always heard that the first part of a ball’s flight was the result of swing path and then how the ball moved (left, right, straight) was caused by the angle of the clubface at impact. According to the Medicus research, 85% of the ball’s entire flight is due to the clubface angle at impact.

Medicus is selling a simple training aid—it looks like an overly long yardstick—called Vision Track (that’s it in use at the top of the page). It helps fix numbers 4 and 5, which strike me as the most difficult elements to improve because they are the hardest to see. Hence Vision Track. I haven’t tried it yet, but I’m certainly intrigued. You may be, too.

Even if you don’t usually get excited about golf towels you will love these because they feature two terrific caricatures based on “Caddyshack”—inarguably the best golf movie and one of the funniest movies ever made.

Created by artist David O’Keefe and made by Devant Sport Towels, the towels actually have names (hey, this is fine art after all): “A Cinderella Story” and “Bushwood—A Tribute to Caddyshack.”

If I have to explain who any of the characters are then you probably shouldn’t buy them. But I’ll bet your golf-loving friends don’t need any explanations.

O’Keefe’s caricatures are as good as any I’ve seen, certainly the best Carl Spackler ever. O’Keefe has done paintings of other movies, as well—including “The Godfather,” “Dirty Harry,” and my favorite, “Animal House”—plus sports figures, TV shows, rock ‘n’ roll, and more. They’re all similarly authentic and hilarious.

Prints, sculptures, t-shirts, even puzzles of O’Keefe’s work are available from his website. That’s also where you’ll find the Caddyshack towels, or at those golf shops lucky enough to carry them. They are 16×25 inches and made with a patented high-definition digital-technology process that creates a sharp, quality image while keeping the towel functional and fluffy. Each one is $24.95.

Sometimes, even for me, a picture is worth 1,000 words. So what are two pictures worth? Priceless. As you can see.

There have been 59 PGA Merchandise Shows and I’ve been to the last 28. While I’ve obviously missed a few, I’m willing to bet that it’s rarely been more difficult after a show is over to know where the golf industry is headed.

According to the official tallies, more than 42,000 visitors looked at wares from more than 1,000 exhibitors. More than 6,000 people attended Demo Day. I shudder to think how many balls were hit.

Yet inside Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center the atmosphere was less than robust. Maybe it’s just my aging eyes, but the aisles never seemed too crowded, the booths rarely stuffed. Even the fashion section—which has grown year after year as “hard goods” has shrunk—was quieter than I remember.

I’ve been hearing for years that the show is no longer about writing orders or significant product introductions. I describe it like a high-school reunion: A chance to see how everyone looks and perhaps more important, to note who didn’t attend. It’s also a great chance to catch up with old industry friends, of which I’m happy to say I have many.

So what was there to see? I noticed a few trends, which I’ll mention here and follow up on over the next few days. There are always dozens of products worth describing: Check out the stories I’ve already posted and you’ll see what I mean. There will be more to come so please keep checking back.

The big news of the last few shows has been in technology, and that remained true last week. I love geeky products like Swingbyte, a tiny device (right) that clips to the clubshaft and sends a frightening amount of data on your swing to an iPad or smartphone. The GolfBuddy Voice is a new GPS unit, about the size of the ipod shuffle, that speaks out yardages. It will be available in the spring.

There’s also great work going on in clubfitting (perhaps the most overlooked tool in the game), nowhere more interesting that at Swing Labs, which can tell after just 15 swings if your clubs are right for you. They say the average distance gain for 90% of the golfers they work with is 10 yards.

As noted, there are few big introductions at the show in clubs and balls. My inbox receives press releases announcing new gear almost every week. But it was a chance to actually see and touch some of the new stuff like TaylorMade’s RocketBallz, Nike’s VrS, Ping’s i20, Callaway’s RAZR Fit and RAZR XF, and TourEdge’s XCG5, plus new balls from Titleist and Bridgestone among others. Among the lesser-knowns, the innovative short-game system of clubs from SCORGolf (shown at top) is fascinating, while the balls from Innovex are pretty damn good for half the price of big-name pellets.

One area of surprising change is footwear. Ever since Fred Couples began wearing what looked like skate-boarding shoes the golf-casual trend has taken off. Fred’s brand, Ecco (left), is leading the charge with new looks and technology both above and below the sole. I loved the insanely comfortable shoes from True Linkswear, while there were designs both new and retro from adidas and Nike (which I’ve already written about), and a company called Barefoot BERBS. At the more traditional end of the scale, it’s hard to make shoes that look and feel better on and off the course than those from Allen Edmonds.

Slight tangent here: Looking at the new shoes and traction systems I couldn’t help but recall the big stink that accompanied the introduction of softspikes about 15 years ago. Golfers fretted about slipping either while swinging or walking down clubhouse steps. Guess those problems slipped away.

Retro was also big in the fashion aisles. Being a child of the ‘60s I waxed reminiscent at the new Arnie line from Quagmire (below). If you fondly remember the Munsingwear penguin, small collars, real polyester, and shirt pockets with flaps (to say nothing of the cigarette packs in those pockets), then check it out. There are also some fun t-shirts there, as there are from Linksoul, a new company from fashion legend John Ashworth that further enhances his reputation for style and quality.

Another aspect of fashion, hardly contained to the soft-goods arena, is color. Everywhere I looked was color: blindingly bright, almost luminescent, an appropriate wonderful world of color in the town that Disney built.

Cobra/Puma has staked its claim to orange, thanks in part to staff player Rickie Fowler (above, in orange of course), and actually displayed its new clubs surrounded by Florida’s favorite fruit. There were brightly hued grips and balls, too. And in the fashion aisles the entire spectrum was on display, an absolute rainbow in every booth. From industry leaders like Ralph Lauren and Greg Norman to the new blood at Abacus and Sligo, it was a ‘60s Technicolor explosion tripping through the traditionally staid game, like Hunter S. Thompson and Tom Wolfe teeing it up while dropping acid.

Which begs a question: Do dynamic colors signal a coming upturn in the economy, a leading indicator of bright times ahead? Or do we turn to a pulsating palette when times are tough and we need something to stir our souls? Like when the groundhog sticks his head above ground in a few days, does effervescent color mean many more months of economic winter or can we expect a spring-like rebirth?

No matter how the golf economy does in the short term, I’m not alone in worrying about where the game will be 5, 10, 20 years down the line. As always, the PGA Show featured numerous lectures, panels, and initiative launches regarding golf’s future. I hardly heard it all, but amid all the gum-flapping and finger-wagging was one fact, stated by Jack Nicklaus, the greatest player of all time, that gave me pause: Speaking about his own family, Jack said that of his 22 grandchildren, only 1 has any real interest in golf.

If that’s the future of golf then color me blue.

Shirts, pants, rainwear, sweaters, ruggers, accessories—Abacus offers a full line for both men and women that is especially notable for its bright colors, visible in the images on this page. Most of the clothing is appropriate off the course as well as on, including a new line of trousers they call Putter Stretch: Light and comfortable, Putter Stretch pants are waterproof and breathable.

There are also new jackets and vests for keeping out the wind, and many items using the company’s Coolmax extreme fabric, which wicks moisture away from the body. The mix of function, form, and flexibility has made Abacus a favorite of European golfers, including the last three Solheim Cup teams, which were fully fitted in the company’s finest.

During the PGA Show, Abacus announced that it has become a licensed supplier to Ryder Cup Europe, which means it can brand the clothing with Ryder Cup logos and perhaps create special garments incorporating the European Ryder Cup branding leading up to the matches later this year. Also, Abacus is now the official clothier to the European Tour, outfitting its officials. It will be a very stylish step up for both organizations.

It’s getting easier and easier to find Abacus golfwear in the U.S. Check the website for more information, views of the garments, and more.

A few new things caught my eye today, and here’s a fast look at three of them.

TRUE Linkswear. I can’t wait to try these shoes on the course, having slipped on a pair and walked around the booth of this company committed to making shoes that are comfortable and promote a better game. A wee bit funky looking and worn by PGA Tour pro Ryan Moore (who is also known for sporting cardigan sweaters and ties with his golf shirts), TRUE Linkswear shoes let your feet feel the ground. Referred to as a “slipper with traction,” they are wide and soft like the best bedroom slippers, and very low to the ground. I’m especially fond of the wide toe box (having rather long and large feet, as I’m written before): Just walking in the booth I could tell my feet will be secure yet comfortable, with no squeezing of the sides. Here are two models, the Stealth (left) and the phx (right), which like all their shoes have leather uppers (models are waterproof or water resistant), a flexible rubber sole, ergo-fit insole, and the company’s proprietary “TRUE barefoot” platform. Women’s models are also available, with pricing from about $100-$200 a pair. Truelinkswear.com.

JumboMax Grips. I’d always heard that playing with overly large grips restricts the player’s hand rotation, leading to slicing. Not so, according to JumboMax, which makes grips for all clubs that are significantly larger than standard (just look at the photograph for a comparison). Again, I haven’t had a chance to try them on the course, but some practice swings in the booth reveal that the hands aren’t stopped from rotating; in fact, just the opposite as the hands feel more natural and relaxed. The larger size means more of the hands actually is on the grip, and relaxed hands are less tense, which means more speed and distance. Company tests say the JumboMax generates 38% more turning power, actually increasing consistency and accuracy. It’s a good story, one that I look forward to testing for myself. JumboMax.com.

Innovex Golf Balls. Here is a product I did try on the course, new golf balls from Innovex. The V-Motion is a Tour-quality, urethane ball that is being compared to Titleist’s Pro-V1 ball for its high spin and feel. However unlike the bigger-name balls, the cost is only $32.95 a dozen. The E-Motion is a three-piece ball designed to fly farther, spin faster, and feel softer than comparable balls, and costs only about $20 a dozen. I preferred the E-Motion (I saw a little more distance and preferred the feel even if it was a little harder than the other ball), but at those prices it’s easy—and smart—to compare for yourself. Both balls also come with a money-back guarantee. Innovexgolf.com.

Golf’s biggest trade show opened this morning in Orlando with Demo Day, a huge, outdoor, beat-balls-till-you-drop fest at the Orange County National Golf Course, which is somewhere the other side of Mickey Mouse.

I’m proud (or maybe deluded) to say that this is my 28^th consecutive PGA Show, which means 1) I’ve seen a lot of change in the golf industry, 2) I’ve made a lot of good friends in the business, and 3) I’m old. Old enough to wisely allow others to try the clubs, grips, and other gadgets featured at Demo Day, which wrapped around the gargantuan range at OCN. All the big companies were there—TaylorMade, Nike, Ping, Cleveland, Titleist, etc.—along with numerous smaller guys trying to break in with unusual putter designs, oversized grips, training aids, GPS devices, gloves, cleats, hitting mats, and more.

Probably the most telling moment of Demo Day occurred while walking in when, along with the hats, tees, and booklets, we were handed bottles of 5 Hour Energy Drink. And 5 hours was about how long I lasted looking at stuff, bumping into old friends, and feeling cautiously optimistic that maybe this will be the year, at last, that the golf business rebounds.

My plan is to write about what I see at the show—which moves indoors tomorrow through Saturday—while here and especially once I’m back home and able to digest it all. So please keep checking in at my site (jimgolfrank.com) for reports.

Let me begin with one of the more intriguing invitations I received, the chance to see Sir Nick Faldo (and it’s always “Sir Nick” now) in his only PGA Show appearance. It was for something that the invite listed only as Faldo ProCare, which I thought could have been a training aid, a health product, or a nursing home for pros past.

Faldo ProCare actually is a line of skin-care products for men who spend time outdoors abusing their bodies. The initial six (and much was made of it being six products from the man with six major championships) are an SPF30 sun lotion, SPF15 lip balm, an insect protector that won’t harm the golf course, a roll-on muscle protector, a foot protector to relieve itching and burning, and a hand protector to care for what Sir Nick called “the tools of my trade.” All six were described as non-greasy and lightly scented, with the ability to keep skin from cracking and drying. And they are made in the U.S. by Kyoku, a company with seven years’ experience in men’s personal products.

Individual products, in generous travel-sized tubes and vials, will cost from $3 to $12 each. Or they can be purchased as a set, in a carry bag that attaches to the golf bag—although I strongly doubt anyone actually will—for $40 retail. They will be sold in pro shops, department stores, and the like.

Sir Nick called his newest venture “essential for golfers,” and I agree. In my experience, too many golfers ignore their skin, even forgoing sunscreens. Yet we all know horror stories of melanomas and other serious problems. Of course, you don’t have to buy these products to do yourself some good, but I doubt there’s anything wrong with them. And even if you don’t quickly win six majors of your own, Sir Nick is quite right when he says, “the message is to use them.” At least use something!

For more information, check out the website at faldoprocare.com.

Back in October, a contingent from Nike Golf came to New York, where I was given a sneak peak at what’s new. The new golfwear for 2012 is very colorful and graphic (below), featuring performance fabrics like DriFit and a choice of lines from sporty to sophisticated, plus a new, “elevated” look for Tiger. (Watch for the laser-perforated collar on some of his new shirts.)

In clubs, Nike is trying to simplify things for the consumer with two club lines—Vr and VrS (for Speed: more to come on that soon)—and Method putters. It is from this last category that the mad scientists have thrown the kind of wonderful curveball we’ve come to expect from Nike.

Introducing the new Method Concept Putter (above and bottom). Like a concept car in the automotive industry, the Concept is meant to push the boundaries by combining what they know about science with what they know about art.

The results on the science side, according to the engineers, are a smoother stroke, truer roll, and less skid of the ball on the green. As to the shape, it’s like nothing you’ve seen.

The face, which looks like a blade, is made of lightweight aluminum. The stainless-steel backweight is heavy and its design unusual, sort of an asymmetrical mallet. (No one is sure whether to call it a blade or a mallet. Is “blallet” a word?) It plays like a much bigger putterhead—characterized by less twisting and more stability—but in a much smaller size.

I haven’t put it to an on-course test, but even on a lumpy rug in a corporate conference room contact was solid and the roll true. Like all the Method putters, the Concept uses the company’s polymetal groove technology, which gets the ball rolling faster at impact and leads to better accuracy.

It’s too early to know if this look will have the sort of long-term effect that other innovations have had on the golf industry: Think metalwoods, perimeter-weighted irons, even the first heel-toe-weighted putter. But golfers likely will say the same thing that greeted all those products: “I know it looks weird, but it will be beautiful once you start using it.”

The Concept, available in mid-February, will be available in standards lengths (32, 33, and 34 inches) for right and left handers, for $199. “Mid-length” versions of 41 and 42 inches, will be available in right-hand only for $229.

In our consumer-driven culture, the emphasis is always on new, new, new. The “what have you done for me lately” dilemma. While I’m as interested in technological advancements as the next guy, our desire for the next big thing can cause us to overlook the tried and true, the old reliables, those products and services that might need a tweak every now and then but certainly not an overhaul.

Case in point: The Boulders, in Scottsdale, Arizona. It is one of those wonderful, dependable, no-need-to-worry golf resorts that grace the U.S. from coast to coast. There are probably another dozen or so resorts at the same exalted level of quality that we want to revisit year after year to wallow in luxury that rarely needs reworking.

But you know these pinnacles of hospitality truly deserve their status when they make those tweaks, and keep improving the product while staying up with the times, without making a big deal about it. Their pride is based on proof.

I stayed at The Boulders a few weeks ago after having visited at roughly the same time last year. And while I was just as comfortable and just as happy 12 months later, I also was impressed with the little changes I noticed.

For example, all the guest rooms have been redone, repainted and refurnished. They are still what I call classically spartan, that is, they have everything you need and no more: There’s a big bed and comfortable easy chairs plus a big-screen on the wall over the wood-burning fireplace. (The Boulders is the only resort in Arizona allowed wood-burning fireplaces; all others must use gas. I’ll take the smell of real juniper wood over chemicals any day.) But there’s also lots of room to pad around. The lovely tiled bath is connected to the spacious walk-in closet—bigger than my first apartment—which just makes sense. The rooms are smart, a word that applies in numerous ways.

The main restaurant, Latilla, has a new chef and a new menu of New American fare with a Southwestern zing. The Grill at the Club has been redone, as well, offering another fine-dining choice on property. And it’s still hard to beat Bogey’s for exactly what you want after a round, be it drink or dish.

That haven’t been many changes to the two golf courses, not that they need improvement (which isn’t something I can say about my game). But there is, in fact, a new set of tees on both the North and South courses: Nine holes on each layout are now marked with what they call “Pebble tees” (Boulders/Pebbles, get it?). From the new tees, holes play between 100 and 200 yards, making them ideal for families, new golfers, and those who only have an hour or so to spend on the course. They’ll miss some of the best golf and most beautiful scenery in the desert, but hey, nine shortened holes are better than nothing. (Pebble tees are only open for play in afternoons, with rates beginning at $65 in peak season.)

With luck, I’ll be back at The Boulders in a few months. I’m sure there will be another tweak or two, nothing outrageous mind you, just little things that make the best even better. Which is just the way it’s supposed to be.

I’m jealous. Just a little, not a lot. But a foursome of my golf-writing brethren is in Scottsdale, Arizona, right now, playing a week’s worth of courses and no doubt eating and drinking two weeks’ worth of food and booze. (If you know golf writers, you know what I mean!)

My jealousy is limited because I actually was in Scottsdale myself a few weeks ago—a post on that trip will appear soon—but in the meantime, you can follow the exploits of the “Golf Road Warriors” as the intrepid band tackles some of the best courses (like the South Course at The Boulders, above), resorts, and restaurants in one of the country’s most spectacular golf regions. Just click here to follow their “progress.”

Another really good reason to check in with the Warriors is your own chance to win a $6,000 golf trip to Scottsdale—plus cool gifts provided by our sponsors, including Callaway Golf, Travelpro Luggage, and CertiFresh Cigars. Everything you need to know is on the website.

But if you’ve never played in the Arizona desert, or if you have and know how great it is, check in and look at the great photos, read the blogs, watch the videos, and so on coming out of the trip. Because you will be jealous. Guaranteed.