prestonwood | cga | 4 ball tournament

prestonwood is the location of the sas championship a champions tour; so of course you have high expectations of the conditions...and we were not disappointed. We were not allowed to hit from the grass on the practice tee, just mats...guess they were saving the grass for the pros. i must admit that a regular guy who has not been there would be a bit thrown off by the enormity of the place. there are three 18 hole courses that all start from one huge clubhouse, not sure about the square footage, but a small walmart could move in. absolutely beautiful building and surroundings...cant comment on the food, although there were two separate tournaments going on...the restaurant was closed?

the cow farmer and i were a team and the marine and the concrete guy were a team; and by the luck of the draw we were paired together...what are the odds? we also got to start on hole #9, so we toured the front nine on our way to the starting hole. so before we get started i need to let you know that the cow farmer broke the pinkie toe on his left foot the day before the tournament and I am still trying to get the swing changes from joe down pat, not to mention i am still with my back up driver. so my anticipation was a fun day in the sun with some buds. the marine let me know that he had packed a few pbr's for refreshments during the round...really pbr?

after both the cow farmer and myself had managed to hit some less than desirable shots on our first hole, the marine says, "hey, you guys want to play for our usual bet"? really? isn't that like kicking you while you are down?? but we still accepted. cow farmer struggled most of the day with the toe hurting and for some reason i brought my a game...thank goodness. seems cow farmer and i had each others back all day, i screw up....he would par or birdie and vice-versa. we ended up winning the thing...and that gives us an invitation to the year end tournament of champions, where we will wear our matching shirts we won at prestonwood!

                                     


winning is always good, but either way having fun is what it is all about. the next cga event i play in is at 12 oaks with the marine...we both have a special appreciation for that course, so it will be fun, with lots of refreshments! until then don't forget to golf your balls.

all square

well the last thing you want in a golf match is all square, especially if you have a substantial amount of $ to win or lose. but in this case, the way the all square came about was something that made everybody smile! so here is the rest of the story:

it was a warm but overcast morning yesterday, i did drive from rocky mount to siler city with the top down the entire way...but was very concerned about our round of golf that was about to begin at the siler city country club. most of us met up for breakfast at a local breakfast dive called brownie - lu, don't ask me how they named it? but the food was good, pretty hard to mess up eggs. of course with a bunch of anxious golfers and a fine mist coming down outside we got a bit loud and did not notice the "usual"patrons looking at us like we were being loud and probably thinking where did these guys come from? but as usual we were oblivious to our surroundings...just having a good time and loving every minute.

after a good breakfast we headed off to the course, to get warmed up and prepared for the grueling match about to happen. we had discussed teams at breakfast and knowing each golfer pretty well from past tournaments, i knew how to keep it as even as possible. our two "a" players or team captains would be the cow farmer and puddin. knowing they would be team captains they drove in from raleigh together, to discuss their picks. after a long debate it was decided that the cow farmer would get first pick...and first pick he did get! after arriving fashionably late in puddin's stylish kia they announced on the putting green the first pick...as everyone waited to see if they were worthy, the cow farmer announced..."for my first pick, i choose the air force guy...to be on the other team! i am glad i was not drinking, i would have spit it out my nose i laughed so hard. you see the air force guy is the one in the crowd who takes abuse from everyone...but only because he is such a great guy and always has a pretty good comeback. the air force guy is also our d player...although there are some of us who claim bs and he bags a bit of sand. i should also mention that our 8 turned into a 7 when the grass mower had to pull out at the last minute...something about needing to sharpen blades or something...so teams ended up as such:

puddin's team:
the marine
the air force guy
the pirate

cow farmer's team:
the sheriff
me

excuse my manners, i should introduce the pirate. the pirate is a guy i met playing the gwat tournaments, a super regular guy who will drive you crazy with his tee shots, not sure if i have ever seen one out of the fairway. well anyway, i had not seen him in quite a while and he shows up with this horrible sun burn on his face...so of course i say, what the hell happened to your face? appears he was at a pirate game and had a few cold frothy ones and forgot about the sun...now the funny part is (for everyone but him), he had on his sunglasses...so he looks like he is red with a white mask! have no fear pirate, this too shall pass.

on to the match, i was in the foursome group...cow farmer's team and puddin. so we had a good idea throughout the match where we would end up. puddin was coming off a big win at riverwood, where he decimated the field, we were hoping for an off day. it was close through the entire round and at the turn we got a glance at the rest of puddin's team score....close. both teams sat at the number 10 tee and watched the huge carp as they swam around, one was so big his dorsal fin would expose above water at times resembling a shark fin. nature is always cool on the golf course. the cow farmer's team finishes horribly and the lowest score on 18 is a 6, so as we wait at the green for puddin's team we determine that all they need is a 6 to tie the match and no money will change hands. from where i was sitting it did not look like puddin's team was finishing strong as well...he goes to meet them at the green letting them know all that is needed is a 6! which puts the weight of the match on...yes you guessed it, the air force guy. at this point i should let everyone know that the air force guy is sometimes referred to as "silky smooth" because of his putting prowess. with a tricky 4 footer left for his six, he sized up the putt and rolled it in! all square.

this day reflects what golf is all about for me. it does not matter if breakfast was good. it does not matter who is on your team. it does not matter what the course conditions are like. it does not matter what the weather is doing. a round of golf with friends is fun!

if you think this was fun, wait until our next big outing...myrtle beach - 3 nights and 4 rounds at the big cat courses. october 25 - october 28, if you want to go let me know...pretty much a guarantee that you will have a blast.

until then, don't forget to golf your balls.

northgreen country club

i moved to rocky mount in 1990 and one of the places to be was northgreen country club. i mean that place was always busy with golf, pool, tennis and restaurant. since i was a local business guy i attended several functions there and was always impressed with the quality. well not unlike a lot of smaller towns around our great country things started changing. the fist change that took place and hit northgreen hard was the hardee's buy out...a west coast company bought them (carl jr's.). this impacted the community quite a bit and mostly northgreen. the course slowly started slipping at that point; now remember i did not even play golf then, but being in the hotel business...heard quite a bit. i know it changed hands several times and basically got worse with each change. so you get the right picture the acc golf tournament was held there starting in 1980 and almost every year until i think 1994. so an extremely nice course and a very technical layout.

about 6 years ago? i think a couple of guys bought northgreen and started making these ridiculous claims that they were going to return northgreen to her former greatness...we just figures hype and watched. well the first thing they did was change all 18 greens...pretty good start, but that was about it. i know the guys were trying but we just did not see the fruits of their labor. they started losing all the greens...had the cow farmer down to play it with me...he said, "i ain't never coming back here". they lost all the grass in many fairways and i just watched, shaking my head. i knew that it was going to take a bunch of money to get this thing back to average let alone good. in fact it got so bad that i gave up...just went there to hit balls...and there was no grass on the practice tees half the time.

sometime around the first of june the guys made what i am going to call the best decision of their ownership...they hired a new super. now it just so happens that i know this guy and he is one of the most regular guys you could ever meet. since i was not playing there i had no idea...so one day i stopped over to hit a bucket and there he was...wth? long story as short as i can make it...he immediately attacked the greens with sand. those suckers were like walking on carpet with 4 inches of soft foam under it. they have already started firming up. he also has grass back in the fairways!

the marine and i went there yesterday for our second round of the day and when we pulled in around noon...there was only 4 parking spots left. i have never seen this many cars in that lot...EVER! i mean there were regular guys, regular girls, regular kids...it was crazy. they were all there to play the new and improved northgreen! i obviously don't know the business information about northgreen, but i would have to guess this was the best day they have ever had. i was so happy for them and their patrons. now these guys are father and son and both of them always have a smile on their face and take time to speak and have a conversation. yesterday, dad was on the grill cooking dogs and burgers for anyone who wanted one and son was at the desk...it was a sight to behold.

the course is not the best course on the east coast, but it has improved more than any course in nc in the last few months. i cant wait to see how it progresses...keep up the good work guys!

birchwood country club

played a round this morning at birchwood country club with the marine. i have played birchwood in the past, but they just replaced all 18 greens with some fancy new grass and had to go give them a roll. before i tell you how great the course was i need to mention the folks that run the place - randy davis (pro) and ashley leonard (asst pro) who not only do a fantastic job but take the time to give everyone who shows up a little time to make them feel welcome...i know right, when was the last time that happened at a golf course. the marine and i got there a little early and the clubhouse was closed...so we just grabbed a cart and took off, thinking that we would stop at the turn and and pay up. we made the turn and randy was standing out by the number 10 tee talking to all the members and guests, not sitting behind the counter waiting on someone to come in... last year i took a few lessons from ashley and she certainly knows the golf swing and how to convey that to her students. these folks are certainly regular!

the course was in fantastic condition and the new greens are awesome...probably the best I have played all year. the ball rolled like it was 100 lbs. no bumps at all! the course has many challenging holes with a finishing hole that you wont forget. get out and play this course it is certainly a well kept secret.

the preserve at jordan lake

just got back from a triangle seniors golf tournament at the preserve at jordan lake and had a blast. played with the cow farmer, puddin and another guy who i will just call the country western singer...if he ever reads this he will know why.

let me start by telling you about the tournament and the regular folks at triangle seniors golf and what a great job they did for all that turned out.

quite a few old dudes at this event and all were treated with some great hospitality. the tour director bill stone knows how to make you feel right at home and welcome. we even saw him on the course as he was driving around to all the golfers offering water and snacks...i was impressed.

i managed to leave my golf game at home for this event but was treated to some spectacular golf by the cow farmer, who shot a 75 to tie for first, only to be beaten by a score card playoff...pretty sure the cow farmer would have rather gone head to head with the other dude. puddin played but i think he was more concerned with his phone and text messages today...oh wait, that would be any day...if you ever get puddin as a partner you should take his  phone and make him play golf...cause the littler dude can play. but today was not his day as the cow farmer played 16 holes very well...the last two are the reason he did not win outright...which he certainly should have.

all this on a course that was probably not in its best shape. i know if they knew i was playing and relaying this information on to all my readers they would have tidied up a bit. in their defense they have received quite a bit of water over the last few days; so the fairways were soft and you got carry only, with lots of casual water...casual versus formal? i never did understand that term. how about water in a place where it is not supposed to be...guess casual is shorter...moving on! the greens had been punched recently so they are not rolling...more like dribbling, they also have quite a bit of common bermuda encroaching on the bent grass. to make a birdie today you had to be real good. Oh wait, I got a birdie...cow farmer got 3 and puddin got 1...birdie count out of the way.

                                                     cow farmer in purple.

                                                 lots of "junk" on this course

with all the issues, still pretty course

the course has lots of elevation changes and lots of uneven lies, it will certainly test your ability to hit shots. i think most of the par 4's were normal but two of them stretched out over 400 yds...and that is from the white tees. i think if the greens had more time to grow back in and the course had some time to dry out...it would be better.

i like the fact that the triangle seniors golf plays on monday's and tuesday's...i like to spend my weekends with the family, besides there are too many non regular guys on the course on weekends.

one last thing, we say this guy almost eat one of the cow farmers golf balls, then he just sat in the tree looking at us. if you look close it looks like he is wearing a checkered thong?

until next time! don't forget to golf your balls.





                                                   

bull creek

i don't think i have reviewed bull creek, but it certainly time... i play bull creek frequently because it is a pretty good layout and usually have good greens. it is a reasonable price and the folks that work there are just as regular as they get. brian and david are the two guys that you will probably meet the most...seems like they are always working. never hard to find a pick up game, usually quite a few guys just waiting for the opportunity.

i played there this past week and broke 90 for the first time in a while, i'm telling you that joe bernat knows what he is doing. if i could have putted i would have broke 80...but at least it is all coming together now.

here are some of the interesting things about bull creek...i don't think they have cleaned a cart in...well...maybe never and the range balls are about the same. does not bother me or any of the guys i play with, but if you have some sort of dirt phobia, be prepared.

i don't remember what the price was...but it was around $20 during the week...and you know that is the best time to play, less golfers and less money!

have fun at bull creek and get a dog...not bad. until next time, golf your balls.

2 day golf school

most of the time i would think that a school or clinic that is conducted by someone or a club that you will probably never go to again would be a waste of time and money; so i was very hesitant to sign up for one. first i thought i would do one at pinehurst, but then i thought it would be good to combine a golf school for me and a vacation for the rest of the family...so i started looking in myrtle beach.

i did find many and since i am about 3.5 hours away...it was a little hard to do some research. i went through a national company that "hosts" schools in different locations all over the us, they hooked me up with the joe bernat golf academy which is located at tpc myrtle beach. since the national company did not tell me who the instructor was or anything about the process i did not have the opportunity to do any research...they just told me to show up and the instructor would be expecting me...so i did.

i showed up a little early (as usual) and after a while got hooked up with joe, who was a fabulous host as well as instructor. joe has the personality and patience that makes it hard to not really like him. he is a real regular guy who really wants you to improve. most of you know that i am a little on the hard headed side and changes in the golf swing come a bit slow, so joe's patience was tested. i spent two days from 8am to 3 pm with joe and another student. i cant begin to tell you all the different things that i learned that will certainly help me lower my handicap. joe helped me make some slight changes to my swing that will help with accuracy, distance and consistency. nothing major, no swing rebuild, or something crazy that would be hard to remember or groove. joe's classes are limited to 2 or 3 students, so the amount of time you get with the instructor is great, you can ask all the questions you like and get more than enough attention. after the morning session, working on the range or putting green its out to the course, to work on bringing it to the course.

i cant wait to get to the driving range to work on the things i learned, want to get them grooved in so they start to become natural. i can't relate to you how beneficial these 2 days were, so much that i will be visiting joe again this winter and if you think about it, anyone who could put up with me for 2 days has got to be a regular guy!

you can check out joe at his web site, just clck HERE


Don't forget to golf your balls.