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.”

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.

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.

La Costa Resort and Spa, in Carlsbad, California, about 40 minutes north of the San Diego airport, is one of those iconic America golf destinations.

For many years, it was the epitome of PGA Tour luxury, hosting the season-opening Tournament of Champions (under various corporate sponsors) from 1969-98. An event only for winners, the TofC was a favorite with players and their families because of the resort’s other amenities, notably a world-renown spa. I remember back in the 1980s talking to Tour players who said they felt pressure to win so their wives could begin the new year with a few days of pampering. La Costa also hosted the PGA Tour’s Match Play Championships seven times between 1999 and 2006, and beginning in 2010 became the home of the LPGA Tour’s Kia Classic.

Having just indulged in a few days of La Costa pampering (with my wife, who didn’t want to leave), I’m happy to report that the resort is better than ever. Now owned by KSL and almost entirely renovated and refurbished during the past year at a cost of $50 million, it’s all brand new and as welcoming and refreshing an indulgence as you’ll find. Spa, tennis, salon, food, rooms… all great. But especially exciting is an upgrading of the two golf courses to a level exceeding the original 1965 Dick Wilson designs.

The Champions (formerly North) and South courses were reworked by the design team of Damian Pascuzzo and former Tour player Steve Pate (who won the TofC in 1988), with architect Jeff Brauer. All 18 holes on Champions were modified: Highlights include redesigned and repositioned bunkers, altered routing of fairways, new and expanded areas of native grasses, and subtle elevation changes. Four holes are entirely new, every green has been replaced, and more than 30 acres of turfgrass was eliminated. (The photograph above is of the 11^th hole on Champions.)

There also are now six sets of tees on Champions, including a wonderful short set called the Family Tees, which allow new golfers, juniors, and others to tackle the course at 4,200 yards: Holes play from 51 to 428 yards while maintaining their key strategic elements. The Family Tees are real fun, even for accomplished golfers who might never think of moving that far forward. They should.

On the South, the four holes closest to the renovated clubhouse—1, 9, 10, and 18—were reworked, while general enhancements were made throughout. Not as challenging as Champions, it’s still a good round with some tighter and tougher-than-expected holes.

A few weeks back, I interviewed Damian for LINKS Magazine. Here’s some of what he told me.

How did you get the job?

We spent 200 hours out there before we even got the job and we did our homework: This is Dick Wilson’s only public golf course in the West, something we brought to KSL’s attention, that it isn’t something you want to plow under. We educated them on Wilson and we crunched the numbers.

Describe your overall plan.

We took our cues from Wilson, bringing his course up to modern standards. The course had lost a lot of its strategic value. We wanted to make it more strategic while opening it up to a wider range of players. They knew the course had fallen behind the rest of the resort and that they had to stay competitive in the marketplace. It was important to change the orientation from business groups to a family audience. Our focus, while giving some consideration to tournament play, was to make a fun course that everyone would enjoy.

How about some specifics?

The routing generally stayed intact, but we relocated some greens and tees to create more strategic angles. The biggest changes were with the fairway bunkering, making it more dramatic while keeping the scale that Wilson had. He built really big bunkers with dramatic visual impact. We wanted to keep that but we moved some bunkers to make it much more risk-reward. Bunkers are now in places that will make players think whether they want to take an aggressive approach or a more conservative route to the green.

That thinking underscores our entire philosophy. We feel strongly that if we can make players make decisions, to think about a shot rather than routinely grab a club, we’ve done it right.

We took away turf, converting to mulched areas or native grasses. We also spent a lot of money improving drainage: The irrigation system is almost entirely new. We sand-capped the fairways, which provides a better growing medium for turfgrass. The water under the surface is salty, as is the soil, so we put in miles of pipe and thousands of tons of sand, which stays firmer and allows water to move through the soil and get into the drainage system faster.

What about the closing holes?

The last five holes on Champions are now a combination of aggressive holes you can attack and others where you must be more conservative and place shots to negotiate your way through.

We designed the finish so it could change the balance of a tournament. Get careless and you could give a couple of shots back to the field. As an elite player, Steve [Pate] was crucial in this. We made some holes, like number 15, almost drivable, while 18 is a par five you could eagle. But if you make par on 14 or 17, you’re doing well.

In a tournament, these closing stretch will be really fun to watch.

I’m sorry, but I don’t understand the problems some people have with long putters. They violate the spirit of the Rules? And driver heads the size of Volkswagens don’t? Perimeter-weighted irons don’t? Performance-enhancing shoes don’t? Tees with hair-brush bristles don’t?

It’s been years since I’ve tried a long putter, and I didn’t like it. But that’s just me, and that’s now. I’m happy with how I’m putting with a conventional-length model. Now. But should that change for any reason I want the option of something different that might restore my enjoyment of the game.

And since my belief is that any enforcement of the Rules should flow from average players up (rather than from pros—a tiny percentage of those playing golf—down), I see no problem anchoring a longer putting shaft to one’s forearm, belly, sternum, or almost any other body part for that matter.

The long putter also could be a big boom to the golf equipment industry. Nearly all the major manufacturers are making them. TaylorMade just announced that it tripled its fourth-quarter forecast for sales of belly and long putters, predicting it will sell five times as many in 2011 as it did in 2010. “We can’t make these putters fast enough” is the official statement.

Among the TaylorMade pros already using a long putter are Retief Goosen, Martin Laird, Spencer Levin, Scott McCarron, Blake Adams, and perhaps most amazingly, Jim Furyk. If Furyk, who used to be deadly with a short putter, has decided to go long there must be something in it. As well as a warning to us all that putting is mercurial at best, maddening at worst. So why shouldn’t we have a technological cure?

It’s also hard to overlook the long-wand success this year of Adam Scott, Bernhard Langer, Webb Simpson, and Keegan Bradley. Others who’ve given it a try include Ernie Els, Vijay Singh, and Tim Clark (shown at top at the Masters!). Even Phil Mickelson tried a belly model earlier this year, while Michelle Wie (right) tested one almost as tall as she is.

Maybe you’ll be next?

If you are curious about how to use a long putter, check out this YouTube video of putting guru Dave Stockton offering some tips.

And if you still think long putters are the devil’s work, let me know. I’m curious to hear your argument against them. They certainly can’t make golf on TV any duller.

To which I say: Yes and no.

Yes, the golf has been pretty good this year. Maybe not the flashiest of winners, especially in the majors. But perhaps we are seeing the rise of Rory. And any victory by Darren Clarke is cause for celebration for those of us over 40 and/or fans of fermented liquid from a bottle.

But no, I’m not happy that Tiger hasn’t been in the mix. Hasn’t even been a factor. Because despite what I think of his off-course antics, his on-course prowess was terrific stuff for spectators, TV ratings, and raising golf in the rest-of-the-world’s consciousness. And with rounds and participation rates flat to down, golf needs all the help it can get.

(Note that I didn’t say Tiger’s presence or success do much to grow the game because I don’t think they do or ever did. He brought fans and viewers, but I’m not sure there are many active golfers playing today who were inspired to take up the game by Tiger. That’s grist for another topic, another time.)

Tiger might be cold, cruel, angry, a bad employer, a worse husband, and the poster boy for petulance. But when he was anywhere near on his game it was wonderful to watch. And I’m sorry Charl, Rory, Darren, and Keegan—good for you for what you did, but it would have been way more exciting, and much cooler, had it been Tiger. (Remember the final round of the Masters when Tiger was in it for a few holes? Tell me that wasn’t tremendous theater.)

The great days of golf have always been defined by the great players, usually one giant who rises above the field and attaches his (and occasionally even her) name to an era: Francis Ouimet, Bob Jones, Walter Hagen, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watston, Nancy Lopez, Annika Sorenstam, and to lesser extent Gene Sarazen, Lee Trevino, Nick Faldo, and so on. All players with multiple majors and the ability to bring out the crowds.

Tiger was nearly the best of them, and again, while the numbers show that he didn’t do much for getting people onto the course, he did, much like Arnold, get them to watch and wonder.

Will he ever do so again? Only time will tell. But for so many reasons, I hope so.

And you know what would be even better? If all that happened and he grew up, warmed up, and opened up. Now that might really help the game.

What’s wrong with the pros’ games as compared to ours? For the vast majority of us who play weekend, slap-it-around golf, just about everything. Because golf is their livelihood, the pros aren’t playing a game, they are working, so they must treat golf like a job: We have other jobs, so if golf isn’t fun for us we shouldn’t be wasting our time.

Furthermore, the courses the pros face are ridiculously long and hard. Plus, they constantly tweak and change their equipment (which they get for free, if you didn’t already know). And since they practice practically every day, how they swing, how they think, and how they perform are pretty much out of our range of possibility.

If you need any more proof of that last point, I give you Ray Romano, Charles Barkley, Rush Limbaugh, and whoever else becomes a “Haney Project.”

However, Rory McIlroy’s other-worldly performance at Congressional last weekend does offer two lessons for real-world golfers.

First, play fast (or at least faster). McIlroy moves around the course the way we’ve always heard the Brits do. No drawn-out routine, no multitude of practice swings. Step up and hit it. In fact, McIlroy was ready to go so quickly that NBC’s cameras often missed the rigamarole we’ve gotten used to seeing before pros pull the trigger.

That’s because he doesn’t have any rigamarole.

How many times have you played behind an incredibly slow foursome and joked, “I didn’t know they were playing the U.S. Open at Goat Track Muni today.” Watching Rory play ready, set, go was like watching someone move briskly—and properly—around the local publinx. Yet I’ll bet the blokes back at Holywood GC, his home course in Northern Ireland, still thought he was dawdling.

Second, it’s time for fans in this country to stop carrying a torch for American golf. McIlroy’s victory along with his youth—as well as the performances of the non-Americans who finished behind him, including Jason Day, Louis Oostehuizen, Charl Schwartzel, even Sergio Garcia (an old man at 31)—should remind us all that golf truly is an international game, perhaps the most world-wide and world-wise of them all. The leaderboard had nearly as many flags as the United Nations, something we should be applauding, not appalled by, if we want golf to rise out of the economic doldrums it’s in here at home.

While in the US private clubs and public tracks are closing faster than new ones are opening, we need the game to spread, grow, and thrive elsewhere. American golf is stuck at the halfway house having gotten fat (and a little stupid) by trying to eat too many hot dogs too fast. We have to let the rest of the world play through until we’re back in shape and back on course. In the meantime, if there’s no one else playing, the game is doomed.

So thank you, Rory, for teaching us a thing or two about golf. Now, are we smart enough to listen to and learn from some kid? I hope so.

Would you rather see this?...

With the US Open about to begin, it’s worth taking a look at these two very different views of the PGA Tour.

My favorite magazine, The Economist, looks at the current business state of the Tour and finds it far better than I would have thought, particularly given Tiger’s demise and the upcoming TV contract negotiations. There are numerous financial facts to be found in here as well as a simple explanation of how golf and TV make money from each other.

And then there is this statistic:

“Golf is now far more popular on American television than tennis, despite the latter’s explosive action (see chart). Only 1.5% of households watched Rafael Nadal and Kim Clijsters win tennis’s (men’s and women’s) US Opens last year. Fully 10.7% watched Phil Mickelson win the Masters (one of golf’s four major tournaments).”

Of course, the lack of a dominant American player along with the resurgence of European golfers are brought up, but in this case in hopeful rather than pessimistic terms.

...Or this?

For a totally different view of the Tour, check out this video in which four American golfers—Ben Crane (the happy guy, above), Hunter Mahan, Bubba Watson, and Rickie Fowler—do what they can to disprove the theory that pros are dull.

Both are worth checking out. Then let me know if you, like me, come away feeling better than ever about the future of the pro game.

Now let’s work on the “real” game, that is the one the rest of us play.

Sundog is in the news today for a couple of reasons. First, it is the official eyewear of the Palmer Cup, the Ryder Cup-equivalent for collegiate golfers from the U.S. and Europe. A great event, the Palmer Cup showcases many of tomorrow’s big-name pros, and is being held at The Stanwich Club in Greenwich, Conn., today through Saturday. (I hope those young kids don’t mind the heat. It’s going to be around 100 in the New York metro area today!)

Second, there’s an article in today’s New York Times about Mahan, who, I’m happy to hear, is a big music buff and recently held court at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, where he spoke to a group of First Tee kids. While Mahan and I might not share the same tastes in music, it’s refreshing to know that he has serious interests away from the course as well as personality. And, as you may have seen, some fashion sense, too.

Furthermore, whoever had the bright idea of having a golf “event” at the Hall of Fame deserves kudos. If the game is going to attract, and more importantly keep, kids, the usual methods must change. Music strikes me as a good place to start.

However, that doesn’t mean trotting out Hootie and the Blowfish or Kenny G.  Can someone find a rocker younger than Alice Cooper who plays golf?

Some suggestions: Justin Bieber looks like Rickie Fowler, right? And imagine what Lady Gaga might do with a hybrid. Or how Beyonce (right) would look in a skort.

By the way, they’d also look perfect in Sundog specs.