MESSAGE FROM THE PROFESSIONAL STAFF
Good Evening,
Earlier today, it was announced that Niagara will move into the Red-Control stage of the provincial reopening framework as of 12:01 am on Monday, March 1st. This decision is on the advice of the Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Williams, and our local Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Hirji. Trips outside the home are still only recommended for essential purposes (work, school, groceries/pharmacy, health care, assisting vulnerable individuals or exercise and physical activity). Families should not visit any other household or allow visitors in their homes – people who live alone can gather with one household, and all social gatherings should still be avoided.
For us here at Lookout Point, moving to the Red-Control Zone means that:
Restaurants can open with a limit of 10 patrons
Gyms and recreational sports can open with 10 indoors, 25 outdoors
Retail moves to 50% capacity
This means that we are pleased to announce that we will be re-opening the SIM room in the McInnis hall this Monday, March 1st. Hours of operation for the SIM room will be the same as in December and are outlined below. While this is great news to see that the Niagara region is beginning to see a drop in covid-19 cases, we MUST all still do our part to ensure we continue to advance in the framework and limit the spread of covid-19. As such, we will likely have some advanced screening procedures in place and our mask policy has been updated to comply with the new restrictions.
Updated Masking Policy: Masks (face coverings) must be worn at ALL times when inside the clubhouse at Lookout Point Country Club. This includes when using the Golf Simulators. The only time when a mask/face covering can be removed is when seated and eating at a designated table.
SIM ROOM HOURS OF OPERATION:
Sunday: Closed
Monday: 11:00 am - 8:00 pm
Tuesday: 11:00 am - 8:00 pm
Wednesday: 11:00 am - 8:00 pm
Thursday: 11:00 am - 10:00 pm
Friday: 11:00 am - 8:00 pm
Saturday: 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Please note that Food & Beverage opens at 12:00 am daily.
SIM room appointments can be booked under the the “Winter Academy & SIM Room” link in the member central section of the website or by clicking HERE.
This week our “Meet the Team” staff member is Ben Scapillati. Ben is our Tournament & Event Coordinator as well as an instructor and teacher at our Lookout Point Learning Center.
On behalf of the Professional Staff,
Dan Roud
Golf Shop Manager
PGA of Canada
Ben Scapillati
PGA of Canada Class A Professional
Tournament & Events Coordinator
Years at Lookout Point: Going into my 3rd year at Lookout Point Country Club. Previously was at Pen Lakes, Hunters Pointe Legends on the Niagara and Willodell (Where I began my Professional career in 2008)
Where did you grow up playing/learn to play golf?: Born and raised in St. Catharines Ontario and have resided here for 32 years. I didn’t take up the game of golf until I was 14 years old. I was big into baseball growing up and didn’t really have any interest in the game. One day my Dad asked me to come push his clubs around at his next round and immediately was attracted to the game. Throughout the round I took a few swings at the ball and smashed it right away, from there I fell in love.
The following season I gave up baseball which was a love of mine and I bought a junior membership at Willodell Golf Club and began my golfing career. Not a lot of my friends golfed so I played a lot with other members who were older and better than me which made me focus and strive to be the player.
I have been self-taught throughout my career. I naturally had the hand-eye coordination from other sports growing up. With hard work and dedication, I was able to consistently hit the golf ball early on by identifying areas of my game that needed help.
What is your favorite hole at Lookout Point & Why?: Hard to say which is my favorite because there are multiple. I’d say, #1 tee shot because of the view and the demand to drive it in play off the tee. Holes 3, 10, 16, 17 are next in line as far as tee shots and demanding second shots which make them my favorite holes on the course.
If you could play any course in the world, what would it be?: Don’t just have one, I would go with; Augusta National, Cabot Cliffs, Pebble Beach, Riviera, Spyglass Hill.
What is your most memorable personal golf moment?: I would have to say my first hole in one of my career. It was on June 22, 2017 @ Pen Lakes Hole #2 on Quarry. Playing about 178 yards, I hit my 8 iron felt a bit on the inside of the club, looked up and it never left the flag and it BOOM! Slam dunk on the fly!
Two weeks later, on Hole #6 Quarry I recorded my second ace of my career with a 6 iron from 188 yards.
What is a Golf related accomplishment you are most proud of? I would have to say securing my PGA card in 2008. We had to play 36 holes in one day at Cambridge Golf Club and had to shoot 155 or lower to get your card. I started on the back nine, and yes I was nervous. #10 is a par 5 with OB on the right and the clubhouse right next to us. I teed it up and smashed it right into the out of bounds. So teed up another ball and piped it down the fairway for my 3rd, grabbed my 6 iron for my 4th shot, hooked it right behind a huge pine tree, punched back out to the fairway for my 5th, rolled the sod over for my 6th, shanked my pitch shot short right for my 7th, then shanked it again onto the back of the green for my 8th, then two-putted from 50ft to finish my first hole of 36, with a 10 on a par 5 to start 5 over. For the second hole, my caddie made me carry my bag for the next two holes. After an adventurous start, I played the next 35 holes +7 to secure my card on the first attempt. I learned that forgetting the past and playing 1 shot at a time and staying focused on the goal ahead will make you a better player!
Who is/was your favorite golfer?: The Golden Bear.
What are you most proud of in your career so far?: I would have to say my first Professional Win on the Local Pro Circuit at Willodell Golf Club in Niagara Falls. Being familiar with the property for many years, I managed to fire my career low of 66 to get me into a playoff, where I would end up winning on the 3rdplayoff hole to record my first ever Professional win. Since then I have won two more times.
What advice would you offer to people who want to improve their game?: Set yourself goals for each part of your game. Stay positive, Be confident and be committed to the time it takes to achieve the goals you have set. If you’re struggling, don’t be afraid to get a lesson or two, or three.
What is your favorite thing on the Lookout Point menu?
Food: Toasted Turkey BLT sandwich on brown, no tomato, extra chipotle mayo
Drink: A cold pint of Rickards Red
PING Fitting Day
Sunday, MARCH 7th
With the SIM room closed the past few weeks, we reached out to a number of our equipment providers in the hopes of lining up a series of Sunday fitting days once we had the ability to reopen. We are pleased to announce that we will be starting with PING on Sunday, March 7th. Many of you will already be familiar with PING as a brand, they have a number of PGA and LPGA stars representing their brand and we are excited to have PING on board at Lookout Point in 2021. We will have fitting and demo products available this year as well as PING golf bags and some apparel.
Appointments can be booked by clicking on the button below and scrolling to the PING fitting appointment type.
Coach’s Corner
Thank you to everyone who provided feedback on what you would like to see in our weekly coach’s corner section. Among the over 50 responses, approximately 75% wanted to see some kind of weekly swing tip and/or instructional series. With that in mind, over the next 4 weeks we will share some of our thoughts on 4 fundamentals of the golf swing. Using only a mirror at home, you will be able to test and check on your fundamentals. We think that by spending some quality time ensuring you are set for success in these key areas, you will be well positioned to play your best golf in 2021.
Fundamental 1 - ALIGNMENT (March 7th)
Fundamental 2 - BALL POSITION (March 14th)
Fundamental 3 - POSTURE & STANCE (March 21st)
Fundamental 4 - GRIP (March 28th)
We will be working on these videos over the next week and look forward to sharing starting on March 7th. One of the other popular comments was around rules and golf situations. With that in mind, we thought this week we should share a fun little poll/quiz. Watch the video below in which Matt Wolff had an interesting experience on the putting green.