Who needs the ocean anyway? This artificial lagoon and swimming pool in the San Alfonso del Mar resort in Chile is eight hectares in size and contains 250,000 cubic meters of water, equivalent in size to 6,000 standard domestic pools.

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Via Spluch

With us today is coach and trainer for the master in swimming in San Diego, California. Kevin Koskellas’ points about golf and swimming are so true. I found this out while rehabbing from back surgery. I also found the same action Kevin mentions when I began playing golf again after back surgery. I like his insight and makes great points.

Recently, I have taken up golf, and I can’t help but notice the similarities between learning golf and learning swimming. Both are finesse sports that require large amounts of concentration and practice to get right, and it is unnecessary (and ill-advised) to gain great amounts of strength to make major improvements in either sport. Let’s look at some specific ways golf is like swimming:

1. It Starts with Head Position. In golf, you must keep your head still and look straight at the ball while you swing in order to make contact. In swimming, you must keep your head still and look straight down at the bottom of the pool while you rotate in order to get the most out of your stroke.

2. Concentration is Key. The moment you start thinking about more than one thing when you are about to hit the ball is the moment that something goes wrong. If I get 2 tips on my golf swing and I think about both of them the next time I tee up, I tend to have an underwhelming result! The same goes for doing the swimming drills. As a coach, if I give a swimmer several things to think about, inevitably, nothing will go right. The idea is to concentrate on one aspect, practice it, master it, and move on.

3. The Fewer Strokes, The Better. When improving your score in golf, you want to take fewer strokes to get the ball in the hole. To improve your swim (especially open water), you want to take fewer strokes per length, in order to utilize your energy for the entire swim or triathlon.

4. Follow Through is Important. When you hit the ball, it is important that you follow through all the way with your club. In freestyle swimming, to get the most out of your stroke, you must extend your arm and glide.

5. Power Comes from the Core. Your arms and legs themselves do not need to be incredibly powerful to have success in either sport. With both sports, the power comes from the core- abdominal muscles, lower back, and hips. Legs are used more for stabilization than to propel you forward in swimming. Legs in golf are also used more for stabilization, rather than for more powerful strokes.

Both sports can also be frustrating, but with practice, patience, and persistence, swimming and golf can both present you with a meditative-like form of exercise that I have found to be both fulfilling and fun!

About the author: Kevin coaches masters and triathlete swimmers in San Diego, CA. He operates the website www.TriSwimCoach.com, a resource for future or current triathletes needing help with the swim. The site features a free email newsletter offering tips and articles on triathlon swimming. Kevin has also written an electronic book titled ‘The Complete Guide to Triathlon Swimming’ which is sold on his website www.triswimcoach.com in downloadable form.

Resort developers (Desert Falls) have an enormous undertaking bringing this premiere sports resort to Mesquite Nevada.

Making it one of the largest amateur athletic resorts in the United States.

The resort will cover a gamut of outdoor and indoor sports, primarily oriented to the amateur athlete, but with the facilities of the quality and caliber that professional athletes use.

The Mesquite sports resort package includes a wealth of amenities that include Adidas facilities: Offices; deluxe restaurant;  training facility; two Olympic size pools; two Olympic sized diving platforms and a private workout center.

You will see six flex basketball/volleyball courts, racquetball courts, indoor track and the therapy center.

Included in the amenities will be massage, saunas, spa with a sports medicine facility as well.

Just to mention a few unique facilities, we will see 12 sand beach volleyball courts and a main beach volleyball stadium with 300 to 400 seats.

A 1500 seat softball Stadium with natural turf, a softball Hall of Fame and sports memorabilia center.

A softball complex with 4:5 flex diamonds, concession stands, restrooms, scoring boxes,  boards announcing booth, and a day care facility.

A 24 field soccer complex and a 400 to 500 seat soccer stadium, plus a park area with pavilions.

A 16 court tennis complex 300 to 400 seat tennis stadium and a pickle ball court.

A golf course with 495 residential units, including condo, town-homes and single dwellings.

A 3,000 to 5,000 seat outdoor football stadium with separate track and field areas featuring: long jump, high jump and shot put/discus throw setups.

An archery range that would house archery, bow hunting and beginning range with concession and information center.

And indoor foot ball/soccer stadium with 5,000 to 10,000 seat stadium. Artificial turf would also be used as a lacrosse center.

Attached to this stadium would be a water park with a lazy river.

An open-air street mall with food courts, sport’s brands, exclusive shops with moving sidewalk and mixed-use buildings for both commercial and retail.

A resort hotel and an athletic village.

This new facility would make Mesquite Nevada, the premier location for amateur sports in the United States and the world.

We will see a tremendous economic boost during this downturn in the economy from this new sports Pavilion.