Rant contributor and overall good guy Alex Podlogar and his social media efforts at Pinehurst Resort leading up to the two U.S. Opens starting next week were the topic of an article — written by Rant editor Billy Liggett — in today’s Fayetteville Observer. The story begins:
PINEHURST – It took a lanky 16-year-old shooting a jaw-dropping 59 on an otherwise slow news day in the golf world for Alex Podlogar to discover the true potential of social media at Pinehurst Resort.
Just over a year into his job as content and social media manager, and less than a year from Pinehurst hosting unprecedented back-to-back U.S. Opens, Podlogar caught wind of young Will Grimmer of Cincinnati carding every golfer’s dream score at the 2013 North & South Junior Amateur. Podlogar, armed with a notepad and video camera, went out to talk to the kid.
The four-minute clip with the young golfer was a hit. After Podlogar posted it to Pinehurst’s official YouTube channel and tweeted the link, the teen’s feat instantly became a top headline at Golf.com andGolfDigest.com. The video led the Golf Channel’s 6 p.m. round-up and made several newscasts in Will’s native Ohio. Within the week, it hit 30,000-plus views.
“Back in 2010, a kid shoots a 59 and we probably talk to him and send out a press release,” said Podlogar. “This certainly opened people’s eyes to what we can do with social media and to just how fast we can get our news out there.”