Okay...so I'm going back in forth in my decision to what I want to blog about. Golf or investing, golf or investing. Well you know what? Why not do both? So I'm gonna do both. I like both equally so why decide between the two?
I've been thinking about this all week and have realized that my posts have suffered due to this. Now that I have decided to go this direction I will continue with frequent posts.
Thank you all for your patience.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Gas Prices
Well in case you guys have not noticed, gas prices have skyrocketed in the last few weeks and days. It is $3.34 at the Shell Gas station near my house in Northern Virginia. I remember two weeks ago it was only $3.15. This is supposedly due to the crisis in Libya but in reality it is just investor overreaction. Libya only accounts for 2 % of the worlds crude oil supply. That small of an amount can be made up easily but has still cause an average of a 25 cent increase in gas prices in the United States since Feb. 20th.
What I worry about is not how much oil is left in the world but the rising costs. There comes a point in time when Americans cannot afford 6 or 7 dollar a gallon gas. This can be very crippling to the economy. I think were in a phase were gas prices will rise to levels in which we cannot afford it and this will cause a big pullback in the stock market along with gas prices. Then the trend will continue and gas will go up once again until we cannot afford it. Then another crash will come. There will be no loss of market value, however we will continue on a rather bumpy course and end up in the same place ten years down the road in the DJIA.
What I worry about is not how much oil is left in the world but the rising costs. There comes a point in time when Americans cannot afford 6 or 7 dollar a gallon gas. This can be very crippling to the economy. I think were in a phase were gas prices will rise to levels in which we cannot afford it and this will cause a big pullback in the stock market along with gas prices. Then the trend will continue and gas will go up once again until we cannot afford it. Then another crash will come. There will be no loss of market value, however we will continue on a rather bumpy course and end up in the same place ten years down the road in the DJIA.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Investing in Growing Trends
I want you to look around and think about different companies or products that have yet to reach popularity in your circle of friends. You may have one or two friends who use this product but the majority do not. Come on, think...
For the casual investor, investing should not be too focused on numbers. The casual investor, who is investing b/w 10,000 and 500,000 dollars, should really focus on growing trends. These growing trends are the things where your friend asks you if you've tried a certain new product and you say "No, I've never heard of it, what is it?" This should be your alarm to go check into this product.
Growing trends are easier to spot once they occur but after considering different trends it becomes apparent that certain companies/products are becoming growing trends. I consider Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) to be a past growing trend. I remember my English teacher telling me how cool it was to have movies sent to your house for a low monthly fee. Then, slowly, many of my friends began using Netflix and over time the stock price of NFLX grew from $6 a share in 2004 to over $200 dollars a share now.
I can think of two recent growing trends right of the bat. The first is Vera Bradley, the maker of those womens handbags or whatever. I don't know much about them but I have two sisters and I swear they have 50 different purse thingys from Vera Bradley. This is also true among many women...Vera Bradley seems to be taking off as of recently and the company just went public (VRA). It opened at $24 a share and is up $10 to $34 a share. Vera Bradley is a good example of a possible growing trend.
My favorite growing trend is a company that is not even public yet. I hope you all have heard of Groupon because I think its the next big thing. First off it is the fastest company to make a billion dollars in profit! IT has 35 million members so far and I can see a day-to-day increase in the people I meet who use groupon. Trust me, more to come on groupon as they are eyeing an IPO this year.
What do these companies have in common? Read the post!!
For the casual investor, investing should not be too focused on numbers. The casual investor, who is investing b/w 10,000 and 500,000 dollars, should really focus on growing trends. These growing trends are the things where your friend asks you if you've tried a certain new product and you say "No, I've never heard of it, what is it?" This should be your alarm to go check into this product.
Growing trends are easier to spot once they occur but after considering different trends it becomes apparent that certain companies/products are becoming growing trends. I consider Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) to be a past growing trend. I remember my English teacher telling me how cool it was to have movies sent to your house for a low monthly fee. Then, slowly, many of my friends began using Netflix and over time the stock price of NFLX grew from $6 a share in 2004 to over $200 dollars a share now.
I can think of two recent growing trends right of the bat. The first is Vera Bradley, the maker of those womens handbags or whatever. I don't know much about them but I have two sisters and I swear they have 50 different purse thingys from Vera Bradley. This is also true among many women...Vera Bradley seems to be taking off as of recently and the company just went public (VRA). It opened at $24 a share and is up $10 to $34 a share. Vera Bradley is a good example of a possible growing trend.
My favorite growing trend is a company that is not even public yet. I hope you all have heard of Groupon because I think its the next big thing. First off it is the fastest company to make a billion dollars in profit! IT has 35 million members so far and I can see a day-to-day increase in the people I meet who use groupon. Trust me, more to come on groupon as they are eyeing an IPO this year.
What do these companies have in common? Read the post!!
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Changes to be made
I'm feeling like switching up the blog. I love golf but there are other things I am interested in. I am going to start investing soon and I want to try out an investment strategy and this will be a great way to keep a log of the strategy. I will be making changes to the layout today.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Happy Gilmore
Not feeling a long post today...If any of you have seen Happy Gilmore, which by the way is my favorite comedy, you will enjoy this video.
This is Sergio Garcia and from the looks of it he kills it
This is Sergio Garcia and from the looks of it he kills it
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Accenture Match Play Championship
The Accenture Match Play Championship started yesterday and is part of the World Golf Championships which are a group of four annual events for male professional golfers representing all major professional tours. WGCs rank below the four majors but above all other competitive tournaments, in stature.
This tournament is different than any other tournament in the PGA Tour schedule as it is match play whereas every other event is stroke play. Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponent. In case of a tie on a hole it is considered a halve. This is the basic description of the scoring system and it gets a little complicated at times but I will explain it further in later posts.
I was able to watch a majority of the coverage yesterday and this is a round-up of what happened
-Tiger lost on the 19th hole. He was a number one seed and lost to the 16th seed. This has happened before and is not as rare as say a number 1 losing to a 16 in the NCAA tourny, but still he should have won and this is pretty disappointing for Tiger fans.
-The other number one seeds (Phil Mickleson, Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer) all won big.
-My second favorite player, Ian Poulter also lost.
-There was a record 9 matches that went to extra holes.
All in all it was good day to watch golf. It is kind of like the first round of the NCAA tourny, just a lot of matches going on and a lot of action.
The tournament took place at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Dove Mountain in Marana, AZ. Anyone live near here? It is just outside of Tuscon. Here's a few pictures of the desert course.
This tournament is different than any other tournament in the PGA Tour schedule as it is match play whereas every other event is stroke play. Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponent. In case of a tie on a hole it is considered a halve. This is the basic description of the scoring system and it gets a little complicated at times but I will explain it further in later posts.
I was able to watch a majority of the coverage yesterday and this is a round-up of what happened
-Tiger lost on the 19th hole. He was a number one seed and lost to the 16th seed. This has happened before and is not as rare as say a number 1 losing to a 16 in the NCAA tourny, but still he should have won and this is pretty disappointing for Tiger fans.
-The other number one seeds (Phil Mickleson, Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer) all won big.
-My second favorite player, Ian Poulter also lost.
-There was a record 9 matches that went to extra holes.
All in all it was good day to watch golf. It is kind of like the first round of the NCAA tourny, just a lot of matches going on and a lot of action.
The tournament took place at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Dove Mountain in Marana, AZ. Anyone live near here? It is just outside of Tuscon. Here's a few pictures of the desert course.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Proper Golf Attire
Nothing else in this world brings me as much pain as seeing someone show up to the golf course in cargo shorts. Actually, I lied, seeing someone in an American Eagle collared shirt is equally painful, however I refuse to believe people still where those. Stick with me and you will find out what to wear to the golf course so you will not be stuck looking unqualified for the task at hand.
Shorts/Pants-
I'll tell you what, shorts and pants are the most important aspect to the proper golf attire because there is only one type that you can wear. The only option for golf pants are the cotton material, with only two pockets on the side and two pockets in the back. No other pockets are necessary. Extra pockets on the side= cargo pants and this is no good. It looks cheap, golf is an expensive game, you cannot look cheap.
The type of cotton pants/shorts have been popularized by Polo Ralph Lauren and my favorite are the Andrew Chino. These are not pleated and come in many sizes and colors. I have 6 pairs of pants; gray, blue, khaki, red, yellow and green. A little variety helps.
The best shorts are made by Polo as well and they are called chinos. I have them in gray, red, green, orange, khaki, blue, yellow, and black. It is very important to have many different colors so that you can switch it up.
Shirts-
The next step for a crucial golf outfit is the shirt. My favorite shirts are actually the Nike Dry-fit because it can get hot as shit out there on the course and these shirts are the best for that. They are very light and come in many different colors. When the weather is not as hot, I like to wear a polo shirt, made by either ralph lauren, Vineyard Vines or Brooks Brothers. These are the only shirts I will wear to golf in. Notice how I did not say American Eagle or Abercrombie. Please never wear these to a golf course!
Belt-
Always wear a belt because a well dressed golfer ALWAYS tucks his shirt in
Shoes-
The best shoes to golf in are the new footjoy Icons. They are the top of the line golf shoes.
Hat-
Always wear a hat. I prefer the Titleist Mesh hats
If you follow these guidelines you will be able to roll up to any course in American and fit in.
Shorts/Pants-
I'll tell you what, shorts and pants are the most important aspect to the proper golf attire because there is only one type that you can wear. The only option for golf pants are the cotton material, with only two pockets on the side and two pockets in the back. No other pockets are necessary. Extra pockets on the side= cargo pants and this is no good. It looks cheap, golf is an expensive game, you cannot look cheap.
The type of cotton pants/shorts have been popularized by Polo Ralph Lauren and my favorite are the Andrew Chino. These are not pleated and come in many sizes and colors. I have 6 pairs of pants; gray, blue, khaki, red, yellow and green. A little variety helps.
The best shorts are made by Polo as well and they are called chinos. I have them in gray, red, green, orange, khaki, blue, yellow, and black. It is very important to have many different colors so that you can switch it up.
Shirts-
The next step for a crucial golf outfit is the shirt. My favorite shirts are actually the Nike Dry-fit because it can get hot as shit out there on the course and these shirts are the best for that. They are very light and come in many different colors. When the weather is not as hot, I like to wear a polo shirt, made by either ralph lauren, Vineyard Vines or Brooks Brothers. These are the only shirts I will wear to golf in. Notice how I did not say American Eagle or Abercrombie. Please never wear these to a golf course!
Belt-
Always wear a belt because a well dressed golfer ALWAYS tucks his shirt in
Shoes-
The best shoes to golf in are the new footjoy Icons. They are the top of the line golf shoes.
Hat-
Always wear a hat. I prefer the Titleist Mesh hats
If you follow these guidelines you will be able to roll up to any course in American and fit in.
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