well we have another event behind us, thank goodness. this was certainly a fun round, with some really regular guys! the more i play golf with groups the more i appreciate the game and friends. most of you know it was a tad bit cool yesterday morning, my mercury was right at 27 when i left the house. we already knew there was going to be a frost delay, so meeting at the farmers market restaurant was more of a leisurely breakfast than a bite to eat before the round. i had never eaten there before and was quite surprised at the size of the place as well as how busy they were. the staff was absolutely regular! great service, lots of smiles and the awesome food didn't hurt much either. during breakfast i think we solved the gun control problem along with many of the other pressing issues our country faces. we have a new regular guy who was introduced to us by the lawnmower guy, i did not get to play in his group, but look forward to the next time he gets to play...he will be know as the colonel. i do know that the colonel managed to pull in a closest to the hole, which is a great thing on your first event! meaning of course, there is now a target on his back.
the regular folks at lonnie poole had the frost delay under control; they shot gunned everyone and got us out as soon as it was safe to walk on the greens! a great group of professional guys working in the pro shop, hats off!
both of our groups started on #11 and the game was teams, front - back - overall and closest to the hole on all 5 par 3's... the closest to pins went to the colonel, the marine, the air force guy, the insurance guy and myself...we all rock! the teams were once again very fair and it was extremely close. the lawnmower guy's group managed to edge the concrete guy's group out by one hole, winning one side and the overall. the course was in great shape and the greens were rolling good, but extremely difficult to read, or at least everyone in my group had challenges. there were several 3 putts and even a few 4 putts...no names will be given...other than i think i four putted at least one.
when you play lonnie poole, you really don't even realize that you are in the middle of raleigh, except for the fact that you can see the skyline from several holes. it is a very long course and would probably be a great venue for a professional tournament. i do remember seeing 3 baby fawns on one of the holes and could hear the resident hawks screaming at us several times. i think the only way it would have been better is if the pirate would have brought some beer!
i think the group is on the grow and looking forward to our next event, which will be at chapel ridge on february 9, if you are interested, shoot me an email and i will make sure you get in on all the fun. i have played chapel ridge a couple of times in golfweek amateur tournaments and always had a good time; they boast to have the best greens in the area.
until next time, don't forget to golf your balls!
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Friday, January 11, 2013
olde liberty
well it's a rainy day here in the downeast portion of nc, so thought i would let you guys know about the round from yesterday. this was one of those hey it's going to be a nice day lets play rounds.
the marine sent me his weekend schedule and listed a few options of when he could play, thank goodness we went with yesterday, otherwise we would have ended up sitting in a clubhouse somewhere drinking cold ones...which may have been a better scenario than yesterday.
after we decided on yesterday i sent the cow farmer a text to see if he could play and since he is membered up with the fred smith courses we chose olde liberty. after some back and forth got a 0920 tee time. i totally forgot that i would be up the night before late working with my west coast clients, so not much sleep for me; while working i get a text from the cow farmer...he is sick...not his normal mental sickness, a real physical sickness. he was hoping to be better the next day but i had some concerns. unfortunately he was unable to attend this round, due to not being able to be more than about 25 - 30 feet away from a bathroom...gross details will be withheld due to some of you probably have weak stomachs and might not find it as funny as i do.
so we arrive at olde liberty, this being my first round there, found it to be like numerous courses in eastern nc. built with great plans of having a golfing community, large houses and all the amenities...but seems like the course got built and then the housing market collapsed. i can think of few others that are in the exact same situation: formerly known as fords colony...golf club of rocky mount, formerly know as innsbrook...scotch hall preserve and one of every one's favorites cutter creek.
the marine was on the practice tee whacking away at range balls when i pulled up, he told me the clubhouse had informed him that we could go when ready...i think there were 5 cars in the lot. so i hit a small $5 bag of balls and off to #1...the marine mentioned that the group of 6 gentlemen who were heading for the #1 tee box as i went into the clubhouse to get checked in were not going to let us play through and would be slow...or at least that is what the pro told him.
we pull up to the #1 tee box and 4 of the six are about 180 yards from the tee and the remaining two have not even teed off yet? seriously that was like 25 minutes from when they got to the box? after another 10 minutes of waiting we went back to the house to get permission to start on #10...permission granted...off we go again.
those of you who are familiar with this course and know its history...closed, reopened and all that mess, heard bad things, heard good things...well the layout is awesome, it is l...o...n...g! some really nice scenic holes, just enough sand to make you cuss and a little less water, did notice one interesting thing...since i did spend quite a bit of time "at the beach" there was at least 3 different types of sand? first one i was in was a red coarse sand...and plenty of it in the bunker, the second one was a white sugar like sand...like you find in florida and yet another had some nasty brown sand and was a bit scarce, nevertheless it was interesting. the marine found the bunker on the first hole (#10) and found it again and yet another time and one more time for good luck...all in the same bunker. i think he said he got a 14 on that hole, but we only play trip max, so not too bad.
fairways were in pretty good shape for this time of year, the rough was iffy. in some places the rough was just thick bermuda (dormant) and in others it was wet red clay, the later was horrible to play from.
greens were in very nice shape, again for this time of the year, apparently they had spray painted them? not sure but nice and green. the ball rolled well, no hopping or bouncing and they were not too fast and not too slow.
overall a great time on a nice course, i will certainly go back, especially since the cow farmer handled the greens fees! he is such a good guy...nothing better than free golf!
just one word of caution if you do decide to go play olde liberty, there is a square parking area behind the clubhouse (single wide trailer), well it is not a parking area, the marine got chewed out by the super for parking his cart there...apparently that is their grand ball room, you know the area for events and wine tastings...not very regular.
don't forget to check out the upcoming events, next scheduled event is at lonnie poole, but there is now an events calendar on the right side of the blog. until next time, don't forget to golf your balls!
the marine sent me his weekend schedule and listed a few options of when he could play, thank goodness we went with yesterday, otherwise we would have ended up sitting in a clubhouse somewhere drinking cold ones...which may have been a better scenario than yesterday.
after we decided on yesterday i sent the cow farmer a text to see if he could play and since he is membered up with the fred smith courses we chose olde liberty. after some back and forth got a 0920 tee time. i totally forgot that i would be up the night before late working with my west coast clients, so not much sleep for me; while working i get a text from the cow farmer...he is sick...not his normal mental sickness, a real physical sickness. he was hoping to be better the next day but i had some concerns. unfortunately he was unable to attend this round, due to not being able to be more than about 25 - 30 feet away from a bathroom...gross details will be withheld due to some of you probably have weak stomachs and might not find it as funny as i do.
so we arrive at olde liberty, this being my first round there, found it to be like numerous courses in eastern nc. built with great plans of having a golfing community, large houses and all the amenities...but seems like the course got built and then the housing market collapsed. i can think of few others that are in the exact same situation: formerly known as fords colony...golf club of rocky mount, formerly know as innsbrook...scotch hall preserve and one of every one's favorites cutter creek.
the marine was on the practice tee whacking away at range balls when i pulled up, he told me the clubhouse had informed him that we could go when ready...i think there were 5 cars in the lot. so i hit a small $5 bag of balls and off to #1...the marine mentioned that the group of 6 gentlemen who were heading for the #1 tee box as i went into the clubhouse to get checked in were not going to let us play through and would be slow...or at least that is what the pro told him.
we pull up to the #1 tee box and 4 of the six are about 180 yards from the tee and the remaining two have not even teed off yet? seriously that was like 25 minutes from when they got to the box? after another 10 minutes of waiting we went back to the house to get permission to start on #10...permission granted...off we go again.
those of you who are familiar with this course and know its history...closed, reopened and all that mess, heard bad things, heard good things...well the layout is awesome, it is l...o...n...g! some really nice scenic holes, just enough sand to make you cuss and a little less water, did notice one interesting thing...since i did spend quite a bit of time "at the beach" there was at least 3 different types of sand? first one i was in was a red coarse sand...and plenty of it in the bunker, the second one was a white sugar like sand...like you find in florida and yet another had some nasty brown sand and was a bit scarce, nevertheless it was interesting. the marine found the bunker on the first hole (#10) and found it again and yet another time and one more time for good luck...all in the same bunker. i think he said he got a 14 on that hole, but we only play trip max, so not too bad.
fairways were in pretty good shape for this time of year, the rough was iffy. in some places the rough was just thick bermuda (dormant) and in others it was wet red clay, the later was horrible to play from.
greens were in very nice shape, again for this time of the year, apparently they had spray painted them? not sure but nice and green. the ball rolled well, no hopping or bouncing and they were not too fast and not too slow.
overall a great time on a nice course, i will certainly go back, especially since the cow farmer handled the greens fees! he is such a good guy...nothing better than free golf!
just one word of caution if you do decide to go play olde liberty, there is a square parking area behind the clubhouse (single wide trailer), well it is not a parking area, the marine got chewed out by the super for parking his cart there...apparently that is their grand ball room, you know the area for events and wine tastings...not very regular.
don't forget to check out the upcoming events, next scheduled event is at lonnie poole, but there is now an events calendar on the right side of the blog. until next time, don't forget to golf your balls!
Sunday, January 6, 2013
what a great start to the new year
well the marine and i got the new year started off with a bang! just had to go play somewhere... trying to avoid embarrassing myself at lonnie poole, so i got a good deal on golfnow.com for the river golf club in bunn, nc - not bad only $25 per player.
those of you who have read my good bad and ugly post know that i am not a fan of the service received at this course, but in their defense the guy who checked me in was a pretty nice guy! when i started to load my clubs on the cart, i remembered that i was going to add another category in the gbu, and that was carts and their condition...it would be toss up between the river and bull creek on who has the dirtiest carts...lol. it really doesn't bother me, but these things look like they were purchased brand new in 1970... and again just like bull creek, i love to get a bucket of range balls that i just paid $5 and they are all muddy...what exactly is the $5 for? picking them up? it sure isn't for cleaning them...come on guys, how long and how much could it cost to clean them off? whatever...
the course was obviously a bit wet, it has rained so much lately i was considering purchasing some gopher wood to build a large boat. even with the wet conditions the course was really not in too bad of shape, the greens look good but were deceivingly slow, as evidenced by numerous putts coming up way short for both myself and the marine.
like most rounds with the marine, we solve the majority of the countries problems and wonder how these solutions are not as evident to the folks who actually could make some changes. the conversations get a bit more in depth when the round starts to fall apart, and when you realize that this is just a practice round and not really serious golf...well that is when we usually have a few cold ones, but it was mid 40's for most of the round and bag bottle was no where to be found?
long story short...we have no way to go but up! really looking forward to then next couple of weeks, supposed to get warm and lonnie poole is coming up fast. until next time, don't forget to golf your balls.
those of you who have read my good bad and ugly post know that i am not a fan of the service received at this course, but in their defense the guy who checked me in was a pretty nice guy! when i started to load my clubs on the cart, i remembered that i was going to add another category in the gbu, and that was carts and their condition...it would be toss up between the river and bull creek on who has the dirtiest carts...lol. it really doesn't bother me, but these things look like they were purchased brand new in 1970... and again just like bull creek, i love to get a bucket of range balls that i just paid $5 and they are all muddy...what exactly is the $5 for? picking them up? it sure isn't for cleaning them...come on guys, how long and how much could it cost to clean them off? whatever...
the course was obviously a bit wet, it has rained so much lately i was considering purchasing some gopher wood to build a large boat. even with the wet conditions the course was really not in too bad of shape, the greens look good but were deceivingly slow, as evidenced by numerous putts coming up way short for both myself and the marine.
like most rounds with the marine, we solve the majority of the countries problems and wonder how these solutions are not as evident to the folks who actually could make some changes. the conversations get a bit more in depth when the round starts to fall apart, and when you realize that this is just a practice round and not really serious golf...well that is when we usually have a few cold ones, but it was mid 40's for most of the round and bag bottle was no where to be found?
long story short...we have no way to go but up! really looking forward to then next couple of weeks, supposed to get warm and lonnie poole is coming up fast. until next time, don't forget to golf your balls.
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
the good | the bad | the ugly
well we have 2012 safely behind us now, don't think we are falling off any cliffs and the mayan calendar was incorrect...phew! seems like we are always having some end of the earth threat, wonder what is next.
thought i would put together a list of the highs and lows of the past year in regards to golf...my favorite subject.
last year i played a lot of regular courses with regular people running them, but a few tend to stand out in my memory...and many of you know i don't usually remember a whole lot about courses or rounds. for instance the cow farmer can tell you what club he hit on an approach shot into the 17th green at any given course last year...seriously. i couldn't tell you what club i hit the last hole. for some reason i can remember who has the best hot dogs, coldest beer and the friendliest staff...probably has something to do with my background?
so on to the awards...
golf courses -
*** the good - tobacco road
** the bad - preserve @ jordan lake
* the ugly - riverwood
food -
*** the good - duke
** the bad - riverwood
* the ugly - tigers eye
staff -
*** the good - siler city country club
** the bad - prestonwood country club
* the ugly - the river golf club
with the format i have chosen, unfortunately a lot get left out, but it was either sink or swim.
tobacco road was in the best shape, has the most demanding holes and it is just awesome.
the preserve @ jordan lake is not too bad, but we played in some really crappy conditions and they should have not even let us out.
riverwood is just ridiculous, the greens are too fast for the undulations...used to be good, but now it is on the bottom of the list.
duke has the most awesome chicken salad sandwich on the planet.
riverwood serves you cold buns with a hot dog...really? and now if you want chili you get a little paper ramekin with a spoonful of chili.
tigers eye...you have to wait like 45 minutes to get the special...which was a hamburger?
siler city country club is run by regular folks, good course, good hot dogs and just a pleasure to play.
prestonwood is run by non regular people, don't think i saw one smile or had one person be polite the entire time i was there.
river golf club, not sure if i just catch them on bad days, but the dude behind the counter should be a taxi dispatcher...not someone in the hospitality industry.
well there you have it, my take on the entire year... this list would not be complete without mentioning the absolutely awesome regular guys i have had the pleasure of meeting playing golf with and becoming friends. as you know everyone has a nick name based on their job and or life...some may not sense to you, but once you meet them you will begin to understand how they acquired the nick name.
i encourage everyone reading this to come out and play a round or two with us, you will have a ton of fun and meet some really great folks...2013 will be better than 2012 and until the next time, don't forget to golf your balls!
thought i would put together a list of the highs and lows of the past year in regards to golf...my favorite subject.
last year i played a lot of regular courses with regular people running them, but a few tend to stand out in my memory...and many of you know i don't usually remember a whole lot about courses or rounds. for instance the cow farmer can tell you what club he hit on an approach shot into the 17th green at any given course last year...seriously. i couldn't tell you what club i hit the last hole. for some reason i can remember who has the best hot dogs, coldest beer and the friendliest staff...probably has something to do with my background?
so on to the awards...
golf courses -
*** the good - tobacco road
** the bad - preserve @ jordan lake
* the ugly - riverwood
food -
*** the good - duke
** the bad - riverwood
* the ugly - tigers eye
staff -
*** the good - siler city country club
** the bad - prestonwood country club
* the ugly - the river golf club
with the format i have chosen, unfortunately a lot get left out, but it was either sink or swim.
tobacco road was in the best shape, has the most demanding holes and it is just awesome.
the preserve @ jordan lake is not too bad, but we played in some really crappy conditions and they should have not even let us out.
riverwood is just ridiculous, the greens are too fast for the undulations...used to be good, but now it is on the bottom of the list.
duke has the most awesome chicken salad sandwich on the planet.
riverwood serves you cold buns with a hot dog...really? and now if you want chili you get a little paper ramekin with a spoonful of chili.
tigers eye...you have to wait like 45 minutes to get the special...which was a hamburger?
siler city country club is run by regular folks, good course, good hot dogs and just a pleasure to play.
prestonwood is run by non regular people, don't think i saw one smile or had one person be polite the entire time i was there.
river golf club, not sure if i just catch them on bad days, but the dude behind the counter should be a taxi dispatcher...not someone in the hospitality industry.
well there you have it, my take on the entire year... this list would not be complete without mentioning the absolutely awesome regular guys i have had the pleasure of meeting playing golf with and becoming friends. as you know everyone has a nick name based on their job and or life...some may not sense to you, but once you meet them you will begin to understand how they acquired the nick name.
i encourage everyone reading this to come out and play a round or two with us, you will have a ton of fun and meet some really great folks...2013 will be better than 2012 and until the next time, don't forget to golf your balls!
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