I’m still traveling and I had a small problem with my brand new MacBook Pro. The power cable plug broke. That and non-existent or extremely slow internet access has made it tough for me to post from the tour. I’ll be catching up for a while.
The HOG World Tour made it’s first golf stop in the African continent at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam in Rabat, Morocco.
Royal Golf Dar Es Salam
Rabat, Morocco
Royal Golf Dar Es Salam is a Robert Trent Jones, Sr. design. “RTJ” is one of the all-time greats of golf architecture.
Above are rocks which could be found in places on the course. They had some kind of crazy erosion, producing perfect holes.
Below is a map to show you just were Royal Golf Dar Es Salam is. Stay tuned for a more in-depth review and more photos!
Greetings from Rabat, Morocco. The HOG World Tour is here discovering what a great place to visit Morocco is, and to show the world that there is some great golf to be played here. For those who aren’t quite sure where Morocco is (I wasn’t sure either), the country is located in the north west corner of the African continent.
One highlight from today was my first visit ever to a mosque.
It has been an extremely long 2.5 days. I’ve had two red-eye flights and a 13 hour layover in NYC. I’m super tired. Today was a settle in day, and touring day for the city of Rabat. Tomorrow is the first round of golf. This is a quick check-in. I will be posting much more here and on Twitter and Facebook about this Morocco trip, so tune in.
Cemetary
Greetings from New York. Here’s a shot from the One World Trade Center looking back uptown to the Empire State building and a new residential high rise on the right I haven’t seen. I dig the skinny square look.
© 2016 Tony Korologos
New York is a short stop on the way to the current HWT location, Morocco. Stay tuned for more!
Man do I have a lot of portable USB/Lightning devices: Two iPads, a 7-inch Android Tablet, a 10 inch Galaxy Tablet, iPhone, Samsung Phone. That’s not to mention all of the portable golf devices I have which charge via USB: Portable golf GPS units, GPS Watches, GameGolf, Arccos, Mobitee PIQ, TLink GPS. Woa wait a minute. I have even more devices that charge off of USB. I have two portable Sony cameras which rely on micro USB charging.
HubMax in action, charging my phone and a Golf Buddy GPS
When I’m out and about or traveling, invariably one of my zillions of devices’ battery dies. That’s where my new myCharge HubMax Portable Charger comes into play. HubMax is a great USB/Lightning charger. Let me tell you this, myCharge is in charge!
HubMax Features
HubMax is a portable charging device which has a Lightning cable for Apple devices like iPhones, Apple Watches, and iPads. It also has a built in micro-USB for standard devices like smartphones, fitness devices, tablets and so on. And in case those two cables don’t cover it, there’s a standard USB port on the side. This is perfect for some of my golf GPS watches which have a standard USB plug on one end and a bizarre proprietary charging setup on the unit.
The HubMax is one of a series of four Hub units. The HubMax is the 2nd to the top of the list in terms of the amount of power it holds, at 10,050mAh. The biggest unit, the HubUltra has a capacity of 12,000mAh while the smallest unit, the HubMini, clocks in at 3,000mAh.
The Max provides me about 6x the battery life of my phone. When I’m out on the HOG World Tour I can use a lot of battery power between GPSing golf holes, shooting pictures, and sharing photos and content from the course with my phone. Now I need not worry about having enough battery life.
The unit’s Lithium ion battery and technology allows it to charge very fast, up to 50% faster than comparable units. It also charges devices up to 65% faster. Great to plug it in during lunch, between two rounds of 18.
The footprint is about 2x as thick as a smartphone, but not as tall or wide.
The unit plugs into the wall (photo below). The charging prongs conveniently fold in for transport.
Conclusion
The myCharge Hub series runs in price from $49 for the Mini to $149 for the Ultra. My unit, the HubMax, runs $99. On and off the course this is a fantastic accessory for the golfer or the golf spectator. A portable charger like this would make a great gift for the golfer who has lots of electronic golf gadgets.
I love to walk when I golf, but with a bad back I don’t carry my bag that often. So I like to use a push cart (“trolley” for my friends in the UK). I’ve had the BIG MAX Auto-Fold FF unit in play since this summer and put it through a very rigorous test battery. Yes, being one of the world’s top golf bloggers can be rough. You know, having to play golf and “evaluate” great golf equipment, apparel, and accessories. I do it for you, the HOG patron. Now let’s take a look at the BIG MAX Auto-Fold FF cart/trolley.
Big Max Auto-Fold FF in all its glory
Construction/Design
The BIG Max Auto-Fold FF (okay that’s taking a lot of typing, so let’s call it the BMAF from this point on) is a 3-wheel push cart/trolley designed to make walking the course easy. The two rear wheels are large and wide and the front wheel a little smaller but still a wide tread. The wheels and wide wheelbase help the unit push very easy and ride very smoothly. I have a few other trolleys which shorter wheelbases and smaller wheels, and those designs seem to accentuate bumps and hills. The BMAF handles bumps and hills much better.
BIG MAX Auto-Fold FF Push Cart/Trolley
The frame of this unit is extremely solid and sturdy. Big Max makes many push carts for the rental pool of courses, and those must be tough. That knowledge and experience in design carries into the BMAF. That said, the unit is still quite light and easy to lift into the trunk of my car. When folding up, the two rear wheels can be easily removed.
The handle is big and solid with nice padding. That helps to make pushing the unit and steering it easy.
The golf bag is secured onto the cart with some nice and easy to use thick bungee cables with solid hooks. It’s a good way to secure the bag. The unit can cary bags up to the large “tour” size.
Folding
Speaking of the trunk, the unit folds for storage and transportation. Folding is very easy. In fact, no “latches” or buttons or anything else need be manipulated to fold it. Just grab the front wheel and pull up and it folds nicely.
I don’t have a large space in my trunk yet the folded unit still fits easily with my clubs (photo below).
In the trunk with the clubs
Extras
The accessory compartment (photo below) is located underneath the scorecard holder, conveniently behind the main handle. The pouch is very large. I bet it would easily hold 3-4 dozen golf balls. I put my GPS, phone, camera, sunglasses, cigars, cutter, tees, glove and small children in there.
Accessory storage, drink holder, umbrella holder
There is an umbrella mount (main photo). That’s great to have for not only when it is raining, but when it is bloody hot here in the desert. I’ll put up the umbrella to give myself shade.
A drink holder connects to the side of the handle with a “quick lock,” along with a GPS holder. Both are conveniently located for easy access.
Final Thoughts
The overall experience of using the Big Max Auto-Fold FF trolley is fantastic. It is extremely easy and enjoyable to push, despite its large footprint. It rides smoothly and provides a very solid and stable platform for my golf bag and all the rest of the stuff I bring onto the course.
On my next Scotland trip I might ship my Big Max there in advance!
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