Golfing with the Guys- 2010
It’s not an original idea, but a couple of years ago I thought it would be fun to go on a golf trip with some guys. At the time I was living in South Ogden and had some neighbors that would be easy targets. It took me all of two seconds to talk them into a golf trip. Hence, Golf Trip 2010 was hatched. After creating the idea I ended up moving to Pleasant Grove, but that wasn’t going to stop us. The plan was still on.
Here’s who decided to come along:
Jon Dalton- Jon lived across the street from us in South Ogden. He was always up for some golf when it came time to plan a Saturday morning outing. Jon’s a good golfer, but he likes to play from the blue tees. Not my favorite thing to do.
Boyd Hunter- Boyd is somewhat of a golf fanatic. He would play a couple times a week it seems. He’s the kind of guy that would get up at 5:00 a.m. to tee off at the first ray of sunlight. He’s a lefty and my kind of golfer because he likes to play from the white tees.
Craig Umbrell- Craig is probably the most fundamentally sound golfer I’ve golfed with. I think he actually has a pro work on his swing from time to time. Craig is more of a blue tees type of guy and is pretty dang good.
From my experience golfing with these guys, I knew where my place was going to be. Jon and Craig would be fighting for gold medal honors, while Boyd and I would be fighting just to get on the medal stand. If I caught a good round I could maybe make a run at the two top dogs.
So a trip like this has to have some defined goals:
1. Play golf courses we’ve never played before- I have a goal of playing every golf course in the State of Utah. So if I’m going to do something like this then I’m going to concentrate on hitting some courses that I’ve never played. It was a little difficult finding a course that none of us had played before, but really it was more about getting out of the office and enjoying the company.
2. Golf as much as we can- This trip was going to be limited to three days. Our goal was 27 holes each day. Which is a stretch for me. Usually after 18 holes I’m done for at least a week, but in order to hit different golf courses we had to buckle down and crank it out.
3. Eat some food- We didn’t have time to find real fancy places to dine, but we were definitely going to find some places to chow down.
4. Enjoy the journey- A trip like this is more about the journey than the actual golf. The best part about this is golfing with people you enjoy being around.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
5:48 a.m. - Time to get up for the first day of golf. For some reason it’s easier to get up at this time for golf instead of work or exercise. Go figure.
6:25 a.m. - Leave the house. It’s official. The trip has started.
6:35 a.m. – Pick up my notebook. This book will serve as my journal. It came in really handy since I didn’t get around to writing this until almost a year later.
7:15 a.m. – After a McDonalds breakfast, I arrive at Riverbend Golf Course in Riverton. It’s here where I’ll rendezvous with the South Ogden boys.
Riverbend Golf Course- Riverton, Utah
Weather: Cold and windy. It is early May, but we have some colder than usual temperatures. To sum up the weather: We’re the only ones at the golf course.
Time: 7:50 a.m.
Cost: $20 9 holes with a cart
Hole #1- Par. What a great way to start a golf trip.
Of course we’re playing the blue tees which we do all trip. Thank you Jon and Craig.
Soon after starting I can’t feel my right hand. Fortunately Boyd is a lefty so he an old right-handed golf glove. Golfing with two golf gloves is a little hokey, but it saved my bacon on this cold morning.
On one of the early holes, Boyd narrowly misses hitting Jon with a long iron shot. It won’t be Boyd’s first murder attempt of the trip.
I’m cruising along with two tap in pars. In fact I par three of the first four holes. I’m feeling pretty good about myself. Unfortunately this happens to be my best stretch of golf the whole trip.
Hole #6- Craig gets the first birdie of the trip. I, on the other hand, usually can count the number of birdies I get in any given year on one hand.
Hole #7- Boyd nails a long putt. I measure it out at 30’. This turns out to be the longest putt for anyone on the whole trip. If it sounds like all the cool stuff happened on the first nine holes of the trip, it might have. I know my game didn’t improve.
Hole #8- I lose my first ball. It’s the beginning of the end for me.
Hole #9- I lose another ball. Stupid game.
Scores:
Craig- 42
Jon- 42
Scott- 46
Boyd- 57 (Good thing he nailed that long putt)
South Mountain Golf Course- Draper, Utah
Weather: It’s a little earlier in the morning so it has warmed up a touch. South Mountain is located on a bench in Draper so the elevation keeps things a little cool.
Time: 10:50 a.m.
Cost: $21 9 holes with a cart
Hole #1- I lose a ball on the first hole. I find two new ones as I’m looking for my lost one. I usually don’t get too excited when I find a ball, but both of them looked brand new so I make an exception.
Hole #2- I lose two balls on this hole and I’m beginning to dislike South Mountain. I don’t like golf course where you have to hit the ball straight. Which means I should probably hate every golf course I’ve ever played. I take a 9 on the hole for a quad-bogey. Bogeys I can live with. Double-bogeys frustrate me. Anything beyond that is a total mess. I’m two holes in and I’m on pace for a 60.
While we’re on the next hole, 5 Black Hawk helicopters fly overheard. It’s awesome to live in a country with the most powerful military in the world. God Bless America.
Hole #5- I get my first bogey of the day. And that’s not implying that I had any pars or birdies on the first four holes.
Hole #7- Jon gets his first birdie of the trip with a 70’ chip off the green. Pretty shot that turns out being the shot of the round.
Hole #9- This is where it gets fun. We all tee off and Craig can’t find his tee shot. It went a little left which wasn’t good because there was a cliff on the left side. Craig drops and we all play until we get up near the green. Craig sees Jon’s ball in the sand trap and notices that it was his ball. From his original tee shot. Jon had actually lost his ball but had “accidentally” played Craig’s ball. Craig’s yells back to Jon, “Hey, Jon. You played my ball you Jack-A.” That’s a literal quote.
Scores:
Craig: 40
Jon: 45
Boyd: 52
Scott: 53 (I didn’t want to take last place, but this course killed me. I’m pretty sure I’m never coming back to check out the back nine.)
2:00 p.m.- We hit Red Iguana for lunch. Boyd keeps talking about how great the moles (pronounced moe-lays) are. I tell him I’ve never had a mole before. He reassures me that I have. Boyd, “Have you ever heard of guacamole?” Indeed I had. We share some Killer Nachos and I down the chicken and cheese enchilada. Is Mexican food a good idea on a trip like this? We find out later.
Old Mill Golf Course- Salt Lake City, Utah
Weather: It’s afternoon now, but it’s still chilly. The unseasonable cold wasn’t good timing for our trip.
Time: 3:15 p.m.
Cost: $23 for nine holes and a cart
Hole #2- Craig gets an early start with a 330 yard drive which he parlays into a birdie.
Hole #3- I’m starting to feel the effects of a long day of golf. I have to chip onto the green from behind the cart path. The cart path has a curb on it and I skull my chip shot into the curb and it ricochet’s back and almost hits me. The rest of the group is laughing too hard to inquire about my well being.
Hole #5- Boyd hits the shot of the trip when he holes out from 100 yards. The green was slightly elevated so we didn’t get to see the ball roll into the hole, but when we couldn’t find it in the green we checked the hole. And there it was. The bad news for Boyd was that shot was for bogey.
Hole #6- I get my first par in a long time. Possibly since the fourth hole at Riverbend.
Hole #8- Craig gets his second birdie of the round. Further solidifying his claim as top golfer in the group.
Scores:
Craig- 38
Jon- 41
Scott- 46
Boyd- 47
One day and 27 holes down. Our next stop is Cache Valley. We stop in South Ogden on the way through to change vehicles and pick up some more snacks. We head to Logan and as we travel over Sardine Canyon and we see plenty of snow. We’re supposed to have some moisture the next morning, but we’re hopeful it’s not going to stop the golf.
We check in at the Crystal Inn in Logan and head to Ruby Tuesdays for some dinner. Mini-burgers and some mango lemonade. We, of course, stay up a little later than we should. Jon makes sure that Boyd and Craig are up nice and early.
As we’re getting ready to hit the sack, I hear Jon on the motel phone. Jon says, “Yes, I’m calling for a wake-up call for the room next door (Boyd and Craig’s room). I’m responsible for getting them their medication and they have to take it at 5:15 in the morning. Actually, I’m looking at their medication right now and it says that they need to take it at 5:15 and again at 5:45 a.m. So if you can give them those two different wake-up calls tomorrow, that would be great. Thanks.”
I don’t know what rookie was working the front desk that night, but he totally fell for it. The wake-up calls were set. Now it was time to see how the boys were going to react to their “medication”.
Friday, May 7, 2010
There is snow on the ground in the morning and that doesn’t mix well with golf. We move our tee time back a couple hours and decide to enjoy a relaxing morning. At least Jon and I do. Apparently Boyd and Craig had an unexpected wake-up call at 5:15 a.m. As they were finally getting back to sleep they received another wake-up call at 5:45 a.m. Craig couldn’t go back to sleep after the second wake-up call and is awake for the rest of the day. Maybe Jon is a Jack-A after all.
Logan River Golf Course- Logan, Utah
Weather: The snow has melted by mid-morning and it’s cool outside. But the sun is out and it seems like a good day for golf.
Time: 10:15 a.m.
Cost: $20 for nine holes and a cart
Hole #1- 270 yard Par 4
Nice short hole to start the day, it should be easy. As a group we end up with 3 bogeys and a double bogey. I hit my first shot into the water to account for my bogey.
It becomes apparent that there is a lot of water on this course, but the greens were in great shape. The best so far.
Hole #3- Craig joins the “quad club” with a quadruple bogey 8. Boyd tries to get a picture of all of us after the hole, but Craig refuses to be in the picture. I think he was a little ticked.
Hole #4- This hole has a 90 degree dog-leg, but to cut the corner you have to shoot over water. We each play it safe and then pull out our water balls to take extra shots to see if we can cut the corner. Eventually we all do, but after we donate a couple of balls to the water hazard.
Hole #5- Three of us par the hole and Craig misses his par putt by an inch. This is the best collective hole we’ve had on the trip and is an indicator of how Craig’s round is going.
Scores:
Scott- 45 (Yes! Someone finally knocks Craig out of the top spot.)
Jon- 49
Craig- 49
Boyd- 54
As we finish the round we determine that it was a pretty cool course. We saw some wildlife (beavers, geese, deer droppings, etc.). As much as Craig struggled, Jon didn’t fare much better. Three triple bogeys in four holes will do that to a person.
We grab some barbecue at the club house, because nothing says barbecue like Logan, Utah and we head to Smithfield for our next 18.
Birch Creek Golf Course- Smithfield, Utah
Weather: By this time the sun is out and it’s mild, but actually pretty good early spring golf weather
Time: 1:52 p.m.
Cost: $38 for 18 holes and a cart
We decide to hit Birch Creek for 18 holes. It’s a nice course with a good reputation. I had golfed it once before and it ate my lunch. I was hoping for revenge. And when you golf from the blue tees it makes life so much easier (sarcasm included). Thanks Jon and Craig.
Hole #1- Quad bogey on the very first hole. Great way to start a round (sarcasm included).
Hole #2- Craig gets another birdie. Off the blue tees. I’m starting to dislike him.
Hole #4- This is a 462 yard, Par 4 off the blue tees. Have I mentioned how much I love Jon and Craig? (sarcasm included) By the way I bogey the hole. Take that Jon and Craig.
Hole #5- Jacket comes off the first time this trip. Unfortunately the golf game doesn’t magically change.
Scores after 9 holes:
Craig- 39
Jon- 52 (Blue tees, huh, Jon? Are you sure about this?)
Scott- 53
Boyd- 60
The second nine is a different story.
Hole #10- Craig birdies the hole. I think that’s four for the trip, but who’s counting. Not me, because I don’t have any birdies.
Hole #11- My good friend, the quad bogey, is back. I feel OK because Boyd got a 10. Did I mention this was a Par 3? What’s the lingo for 7 over par on a hole? Is it seventuple bogey? This might have been the hole where Boyd just picked up his ball after a while. I think we gave him a 10 out of generosity.
Hole #12- I follow up my quad bogey with a quintuple bogey. That’s a five over par. It’s at this point where I’m glad that Boyd made the trip too.
Hole #15- Boyd almost kills two guys with his drive. For almost killing someone, it was still high comedy. It must be getting late in the day.
Hole #16- All four of our drives are a decent distance and in the fairway. This is the first time this trip. Yep, we’re great golfers (sarca……oh, nevermind. You get the picture.)
Hole #18- Craig finishes the round with a birdie.
Scores on the back 9 (total for 18):
Craig- 44 (83)
Jon- 51 (103)
Scott- 62 (115) I can’t remember the last time I shot over a 60 on nine holes or a score over 105 on 18. It’s going to be a while before I make a trip back to Birch Creek.
Boyd- 64 (124) Did I mention how glad I am to have Boyd on this trip?
We end the day and have realized that we’ve played a lot of golf. Our next stop is Midway, Utah so we have a trip to make from Logan. We drop off Craig in South Ogden because we were tired of playing the blue tees. Actually it was his daughter’s birthday the next day so he was going to be in the right place. Craig is a good guy (no sarcasm included).
We travel to Heber City to stay the night. We had plans to golf 18 at Wasatch Mountain State Park and then 9 holes at Thanksgiving Point. We decide that 18 holes the next day will be plenty so we drop the tee time at Thanksgiving Point. Boyd is a little disappointed because that might be his favorite course in Utah. We remind Boyd that there is always next year.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Wasatch Mountain State Park (Lake Course)- Midway, Utah
Weather: We’re up in the mountains so it’s chilly again
Time: 8:40 a.m.
Cost: $42 for 18 holes and a cart
My goal for the day is to shoot under 50 on either of the nine holes. I’ve got to get my confidence back after Birch Creek decimated me as a golfer.
Hole #5- I hit the pin from about 30 yards out and par the hole. I’m coming back, baby.
Hole #6- Impossible 200 yard Par 3 with water between tee box and green. Thanks again blue tees. With Craig gone, somehow Jon keeps blue tee fever alive.
Hole #9- This turns out to be the worst hole on the trip. Jon and Boyd both get 9’s and I get an 11. Kind of hard to get under 50 when you get more than 20% of that on one hole.
Scores after 9 holes:
Jon- 51 (Glad Craig’s gone so he can be top dog for the day)
Scott- 55
Boyd- 59
Hole #12- I’m on the green in regulation. The first time in a long, long time. And I three putt for a bogey.
I’ve got two holes left and I need a bogey and double bogey to shoot under a 50. I finish with a par and bogey for a 47. I don’t know if I’m more glad to finally get a par or to be done golfing for the trip. I’ve decided that someone can get too much golf and 72 holes is a lot for 3 days. I’m sure by next year I’ll have myself convinced that 72 holes in three days is a great idea.
Scores on the back 9 (total for 18):
Scott- 47 (102)
Jon- 49 (100)
Boyd- 59 (118)
A few stats and observations:
Best Greens- Birch Creek
Best Views- Old Mill (Both South Mountain and Birch Creek had great views too)
Easiest Course- Old Mill
Hardest Course- Birch Creek
Best Overall- Birch Creek (I know I sucked on this course, but it was the best course we played)
Total Spent on Golf- $164 per person
Total Miles Traveled- 361
Birdies- Craig 6, Jon 1, Boyd 0, Scott 0
Per 9 hole rounds: (Ties count as what the higher place would be)
First Place- Craig 5, Scott 2, Jon 2, Boyd 0
Second Place- Jon 6, Scott 1, Craig 1, Boyd 0
Third Place- Scott 4, Boyd 3, Jon 0, Craig 0
Fourth Place- Boyd 5, Scott 1, Jon 0, Craig 0
Total Scores (9 hole avg.):
Craig- 252 (42)
Jon- 380 (47.5)
Scott- 407 (50.9)
Boyd- 452 (56.6)
Lessons Learned:
1. Golfing makes you sore- I didn’t think it was possible, but I was sore after day 1.
2. 27 holes, three days in a row isn’t a good idea- Great idea on paper, not such a great idea in practice
3. Check your ball before you hit- If you don’t you’re at risk of being called a Jack-A by Craig. Believe me, it’s not pleasant
4. Medicine needs to be taken as prescribed- Especially when you need to take it at 5:15 and 5:45 in the morning
5. Don’t eat Killer Nachos- That’s my warning to you. You’ll regret it hours later.
6. Don’t forget to download your E-books for Book Club before you go- While we were golfing Logan River, Boyd’s wife kept calling to ask for help in downloading his wife’s book club book. Three times for three different devices for three different people. I’m sure Boyd was the hero of week at Book Club.
7. White SOBE rules- Craig introduced me to the Pina Colada SOBE. A drink which he called “ambrosia”. I wasn’t sure what that meant so I looked it up on Wikipedia. “Ambrosia is a food or drink of the Greek Gods conferring immortality upon whoever consumes it.” I guess I’ve discovered the Fountain of Youth.
8. What good is a hot tub if it’s colder than a bath- The hot tub at the Holiday Inn Express in Heber wasn’t very warm. Which is a disappointment when you want to soak your sore muscles.
9. Speaking of hot tubs- Let’s say, hypothetically, that two guys are in a hot tub together all alone. Is there anything wrong with that? Hypothetically speaking, of course.
10. Don’t go golfing with finance people when the stock market has one of its worst days in history- Our first day golfing was met with a glitch in the stock market and the Dow Jones dropping 1000 points in a matter of minutes. Not good for those managing other people’s money.
11. Trees aren’t your friends- People love trees. I don’t get it. They tend to only make my life miserable on the golf course.
12. Playing from the blue tees isn’t a good idea. Ever.- Did I mention that we played from the blue tees the whole trip?
13. On a trip like this, always pay in cash- The last thing you want is your wife finding a paper trail.
14. Boy Scouts is AWESOME!- I used to think that Boyd was one of the biggest Scouters I knew until I met Craig Umbrell.
So there you have it. Lots of golf. Great company. And a fun time. The only question remaining: Where are we going next year?
Here’s who decided to come along:
Jon Dalton- Jon lived across the street from us in South Ogden. He was always up for some golf when it came time to plan a Saturday morning outing. Jon’s a good golfer, but he likes to play from the blue tees. Not my favorite thing to do.
Boyd Hunter- Boyd is somewhat of a golf fanatic. He would play a couple times a week it seems. He’s the kind of guy that would get up at 5:00 a.m. to tee off at the first ray of sunlight. He’s a lefty and my kind of golfer because he likes to play from the white tees.
Craig Umbrell- Craig is probably the most fundamentally sound golfer I’ve golfed with. I think he actually has a pro work on his swing from time to time. Craig is more of a blue tees type of guy and is pretty dang good.
From my experience golfing with these guys, I knew where my place was going to be. Jon and Craig would be fighting for gold medal honors, while Boyd and I would be fighting just to get on the medal stand. If I caught a good round I could maybe make a run at the two top dogs.
So a trip like this has to have some defined goals:
1. Play golf courses we’ve never played before- I have a goal of playing every golf course in the State of Utah. So if I’m going to do something like this then I’m going to concentrate on hitting some courses that I’ve never played. It was a little difficult finding a course that none of us had played before, but really it was more about getting out of the office and enjoying the company.
2. Golf as much as we can- This trip was going to be limited to three days. Our goal was 27 holes each day. Which is a stretch for me. Usually after 18 holes I’m done for at least a week, but in order to hit different golf courses we had to buckle down and crank it out.
3. Eat some food- We didn’t have time to find real fancy places to dine, but we were definitely going to find some places to chow down.
4. Enjoy the journey- A trip like this is more about the journey than the actual golf. The best part about this is golfing with people you enjoy being around.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
5:48 a.m. - Time to get up for the first day of golf. For some reason it’s easier to get up at this time for golf instead of work or exercise. Go figure.
6:25 a.m. - Leave the house. It’s official. The trip has started.
6:35 a.m. – Pick up my notebook. This book will serve as my journal. It came in really handy since I didn’t get around to writing this until almost a year later.
7:15 a.m. – After a McDonalds breakfast, I arrive at Riverbend Golf Course in Riverton. It’s here where I’ll rendezvous with the South Ogden boys.
Riverbend Golf Course- Riverton, Utah
Weather: Cold and windy. It is early May, but we have some colder than usual temperatures. To sum up the weather: We’re the only ones at the golf course.
Time: 7:50 a.m.
Cost: $20 9 holes with a cart
Hole #1- Par. What a great way to start a golf trip.
Of course we’re playing the blue tees which we do all trip. Thank you Jon and Craig.
Soon after starting I can’t feel my right hand. Fortunately Boyd is a lefty so he an old right-handed golf glove. Golfing with two golf gloves is a little hokey, but it saved my bacon on this cold morning.
On one of the early holes, Boyd narrowly misses hitting Jon with a long iron shot. It won’t be Boyd’s first murder attempt of the trip.
I’m cruising along with two tap in pars. In fact I par three of the first four holes. I’m feeling pretty good about myself. Unfortunately this happens to be my best stretch of golf the whole trip.
Hole #6- Craig gets the first birdie of the trip. I, on the other hand, usually can count the number of birdies I get in any given year on one hand.
Hole #7- Boyd nails a long putt. I measure it out at 30’. This turns out to be the longest putt for anyone on the whole trip. If it sounds like all the cool stuff happened on the first nine holes of the trip, it might have. I know my game didn’t improve.
Hole #8- I lose my first ball. It’s the beginning of the end for me.
Hole #9- I lose another ball. Stupid game.
Scores:
Craig- 42
Jon- 42
Scott- 46
Boyd- 57 (Good thing he nailed that long putt)
South Mountain Golf Course- Draper, Utah
Weather: It’s a little earlier in the morning so it has warmed up a touch. South Mountain is located on a bench in Draper so the elevation keeps things a little cool.
Time: 10:50 a.m.
Cost: $21 9 holes with a cart
Hole #1- I lose a ball on the first hole. I find two new ones as I’m looking for my lost one. I usually don’t get too excited when I find a ball, but both of them looked brand new so I make an exception.
Hole #2- I lose two balls on this hole and I’m beginning to dislike South Mountain. I don’t like golf course where you have to hit the ball straight. Which means I should probably hate every golf course I’ve ever played. I take a 9 on the hole for a quad-bogey. Bogeys I can live with. Double-bogeys frustrate me. Anything beyond that is a total mess. I’m two holes in and I’m on pace for a 60.
While we’re on the next hole, 5 Black Hawk helicopters fly overheard. It’s awesome to live in a country with the most powerful military in the world. God Bless America.
Hole #5- I get my first bogey of the day. And that’s not implying that I had any pars or birdies on the first four holes.
Hole #7- Jon gets his first birdie of the trip with a 70’ chip off the green. Pretty shot that turns out being the shot of the round.
Hole #9- This is where it gets fun. We all tee off and Craig can’t find his tee shot. It went a little left which wasn’t good because there was a cliff on the left side. Craig drops and we all play until we get up near the green. Craig sees Jon’s ball in the sand trap and notices that it was his ball. From his original tee shot. Jon had actually lost his ball but had “accidentally” played Craig’s ball. Craig’s yells back to Jon, “Hey, Jon. You played my ball you Jack-A.” That’s a literal quote.
Scores:
Craig: 40
Jon: 45
Boyd: 52
Scott: 53 (I didn’t want to take last place, but this course killed me. I’m pretty sure I’m never coming back to check out the back nine.)
2:00 p.m.- We hit Red Iguana for lunch. Boyd keeps talking about how great the moles (pronounced moe-lays) are. I tell him I’ve never had a mole before. He reassures me that I have. Boyd, “Have you ever heard of guacamole?” Indeed I had. We share some Killer Nachos and I down the chicken and cheese enchilada. Is Mexican food a good idea on a trip like this? We find out later.
Old Mill Golf Course- Salt Lake City, Utah
Weather: It’s afternoon now, but it’s still chilly. The unseasonable cold wasn’t good timing for our trip.
Time: 3:15 p.m.
Cost: $23 for nine holes and a cart
Hole #2- Craig gets an early start with a 330 yard drive which he parlays into a birdie.
Hole #3- I’m starting to feel the effects of a long day of golf. I have to chip onto the green from behind the cart path. The cart path has a curb on it and I skull my chip shot into the curb and it ricochet’s back and almost hits me. The rest of the group is laughing too hard to inquire about my well being.
Hole #5- Boyd hits the shot of the trip when he holes out from 100 yards. The green was slightly elevated so we didn’t get to see the ball roll into the hole, but when we couldn’t find it in the green we checked the hole. And there it was. The bad news for Boyd was that shot was for bogey.
Hole #6- I get my first par in a long time. Possibly since the fourth hole at Riverbend.
Hole #8- Craig gets his second birdie of the round. Further solidifying his claim as top golfer in the group.
Scores:
Craig- 38
Jon- 41
Scott- 46
Boyd- 47
One day and 27 holes down. Our next stop is Cache Valley. We stop in South Ogden on the way through to change vehicles and pick up some more snacks. We head to Logan and as we travel over Sardine Canyon and we see plenty of snow. We’re supposed to have some moisture the next morning, but we’re hopeful it’s not going to stop the golf.
We check in at the Crystal Inn in Logan and head to Ruby Tuesdays for some dinner. Mini-burgers and some mango lemonade. We, of course, stay up a little later than we should. Jon makes sure that Boyd and Craig are up nice and early.
As we’re getting ready to hit the sack, I hear Jon on the motel phone. Jon says, “Yes, I’m calling for a wake-up call for the room next door (Boyd and Craig’s room). I’m responsible for getting them their medication and they have to take it at 5:15 in the morning. Actually, I’m looking at their medication right now and it says that they need to take it at 5:15 and again at 5:45 a.m. So if you can give them those two different wake-up calls tomorrow, that would be great. Thanks.”
I don’t know what rookie was working the front desk that night, but he totally fell for it. The wake-up calls were set. Now it was time to see how the boys were going to react to their “medication”.
Friday, May 7, 2010
There is snow on the ground in the morning and that doesn’t mix well with golf. We move our tee time back a couple hours and decide to enjoy a relaxing morning. At least Jon and I do. Apparently Boyd and Craig had an unexpected wake-up call at 5:15 a.m. As they were finally getting back to sleep they received another wake-up call at 5:45 a.m. Craig couldn’t go back to sleep after the second wake-up call and is awake for the rest of the day. Maybe Jon is a Jack-A after all.
Logan River Golf Course- Logan, Utah
Weather: The snow has melted by mid-morning and it’s cool outside. But the sun is out and it seems like a good day for golf.
Time: 10:15 a.m.
Cost: $20 for nine holes and a cart
Hole #1- 270 yard Par 4
Nice short hole to start the day, it should be easy. As a group we end up with 3 bogeys and a double bogey. I hit my first shot into the water to account for my bogey.
It becomes apparent that there is a lot of water on this course, but the greens were in great shape. The best so far.
Hole #3- Craig joins the “quad club” with a quadruple bogey 8. Boyd tries to get a picture of all of us after the hole, but Craig refuses to be in the picture. I think he was a little ticked.
Hole #4- This hole has a 90 degree dog-leg, but to cut the corner you have to shoot over water. We each play it safe and then pull out our water balls to take extra shots to see if we can cut the corner. Eventually we all do, but after we donate a couple of balls to the water hazard.
Hole #5- Three of us par the hole and Craig misses his par putt by an inch. This is the best collective hole we’ve had on the trip and is an indicator of how Craig’s round is going.
Scores:
Scott- 45 (Yes! Someone finally knocks Craig out of the top spot.)
Jon- 49
Craig- 49
Boyd- 54
As we finish the round we determine that it was a pretty cool course. We saw some wildlife (beavers, geese, deer droppings, etc.). As much as Craig struggled, Jon didn’t fare much better. Three triple bogeys in four holes will do that to a person.
We grab some barbecue at the club house, because nothing says barbecue like Logan, Utah and we head to Smithfield for our next 18.
Birch Creek Golf Course- Smithfield, Utah
Weather: By this time the sun is out and it’s mild, but actually pretty good early spring golf weather
Time: 1:52 p.m.
Cost: $38 for 18 holes and a cart
We decide to hit Birch Creek for 18 holes. It’s a nice course with a good reputation. I had golfed it once before and it ate my lunch. I was hoping for revenge. And when you golf from the blue tees it makes life so much easier (sarcasm included). Thanks Jon and Craig.
Hole #1- Quad bogey on the very first hole. Great way to start a round (sarcasm included).
Hole #2- Craig gets another birdie. Off the blue tees. I’m starting to dislike him.
Hole #4- This is a 462 yard, Par 4 off the blue tees. Have I mentioned how much I love Jon and Craig? (sarcasm included) By the way I bogey the hole. Take that Jon and Craig.
Hole #5- Jacket comes off the first time this trip. Unfortunately the golf game doesn’t magically change.
Scores after 9 holes:
Craig- 39
Jon- 52 (Blue tees, huh, Jon? Are you sure about this?)
Scott- 53
Boyd- 60
The second nine is a different story.
Hole #10- Craig birdies the hole. I think that’s four for the trip, but who’s counting. Not me, because I don’t have any birdies.
Hole #11- My good friend, the quad bogey, is back. I feel OK because Boyd got a 10. Did I mention this was a Par 3? What’s the lingo for 7 over par on a hole? Is it seventuple bogey? This might have been the hole where Boyd just picked up his ball after a while. I think we gave him a 10 out of generosity.
Hole #12- I follow up my quad bogey with a quintuple bogey. That’s a five over par. It’s at this point where I’m glad that Boyd made the trip too.
Hole #15- Boyd almost kills two guys with his drive. For almost killing someone, it was still high comedy. It must be getting late in the day.
Hole #16- All four of our drives are a decent distance and in the fairway. This is the first time this trip. Yep, we’re great golfers (sarca……oh, nevermind. You get the picture.)
Hole #18- Craig finishes the round with a birdie.
Scores on the back 9 (total for 18):
Craig- 44 (83)
Jon- 51 (103)
Scott- 62 (115) I can’t remember the last time I shot over a 60 on nine holes or a score over 105 on 18. It’s going to be a while before I make a trip back to Birch Creek.
Boyd- 64 (124) Did I mention how glad I am to have Boyd on this trip?
We end the day and have realized that we’ve played a lot of golf. Our next stop is Midway, Utah so we have a trip to make from Logan. We drop off Craig in South Ogden because we were tired of playing the blue tees. Actually it was his daughter’s birthday the next day so he was going to be in the right place. Craig is a good guy (no sarcasm included).
We travel to Heber City to stay the night. We had plans to golf 18 at Wasatch Mountain State Park and then 9 holes at Thanksgiving Point. We decide that 18 holes the next day will be plenty so we drop the tee time at Thanksgiving Point. Boyd is a little disappointed because that might be his favorite course in Utah. We remind Boyd that there is always next year.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Wasatch Mountain State Park (Lake Course)- Midway, Utah
Weather: We’re up in the mountains so it’s chilly again
Time: 8:40 a.m.
Cost: $42 for 18 holes and a cart
My goal for the day is to shoot under 50 on either of the nine holes. I’ve got to get my confidence back after Birch Creek decimated me as a golfer.
Hole #5- I hit the pin from about 30 yards out and par the hole. I’m coming back, baby.
Hole #6- Impossible 200 yard Par 3 with water between tee box and green. Thanks again blue tees. With Craig gone, somehow Jon keeps blue tee fever alive.
Hole #9- This turns out to be the worst hole on the trip. Jon and Boyd both get 9’s and I get an 11. Kind of hard to get under 50 when you get more than 20% of that on one hole.
Scores after 9 holes:
Jon- 51 (Glad Craig’s gone so he can be top dog for the day)
Scott- 55
Boyd- 59
Hole #12- I’m on the green in regulation. The first time in a long, long time. And I three putt for a bogey.
I’ve got two holes left and I need a bogey and double bogey to shoot under a 50. I finish with a par and bogey for a 47. I don’t know if I’m more glad to finally get a par or to be done golfing for the trip. I’ve decided that someone can get too much golf and 72 holes is a lot for 3 days. I’m sure by next year I’ll have myself convinced that 72 holes in three days is a great idea.
Scores on the back 9 (total for 18):
Scott- 47 (102)
Jon- 49 (100)
Boyd- 59 (118)
A few stats and observations:
Best Greens- Birch Creek
Best Views- Old Mill (Both South Mountain and Birch Creek had great views too)
Easiest Course- Old Mill
Hardest Course- Birch Creek
Best Overall- Birch Creek (I know I sucked on this course, but it was the best course we played)
Total Spent on Golf- $164 per person
Total Miles Traveled- 361
Birdies- Craig 6, Jon 1, Boyd 0, Scott 0
Per 9 hole rounds: (Ties count as what the higher place would be)
First Place- Craig 5, Scott 2, Jon 2, Boyd 0
Second Place- Jon 6, Scott 1, Craig 1, Boyd 0
Third Place- Scott 4, Boyd 3, Jon 0, Craig 0
Fourth Place- Boyd 5, Scott 1, Jon 0, Craig 0
Total Scores (9 hole avg.):
Craig- 252 (42)
Jon- 380 (47.5)
Scott- 407 (50.9)
Boyd- 452 (56.6)
Lessons Learned:
1. Golfing makes you sore- I didn’t think it was possible, but I was sore after day 1.
2. 27 holes, three days in a row isn’t a good idea- Great idea on paper, not such a great idea in practice
3. Check your ball before you hit- If you don’t you’re at risk of being called a Jack-A by Craig. Believe me, it’s not pleasant
4. Medicine needs to be taken as prescribed- Especially when you need to take it at 5:15 and 5:45 in the morning
5. Don’t eat Killer Nachos- That’s my warning to you. You’ll regret it hours later.
6. Don’t forget to download your E-books for Book Club before you go- While we were golfing Logan River, Boyd’s wife kept calling to ask for help in downloading his wife’s book club book. Three times for three different devices for three different people. I’m sure Boyd was the hero of week at Book Club.
7. White SOBE rules- Craig introduced me to the Pina Colada SOBE. A drink which he called “ambrosia”. I wasn’t sure what that meant so I looked it up on Wikipedia. “Ambrosia is a food or drink of the Greek Gods conferring immortality upon whoever consumes it.” I guess I’ve discovered the Fountain of Youth.
8. What good is a hot tub if it’s colder than a bath- The hot tub at the Holiday Inn Express in Heber wasn’t very warm. Which is a disappointment when you want to soak your sore muscles.
9. Speaking of hot tubs- Let’s say, hypothetically, that two guys are in a hot tub together all alone. Is there anything wrong with that? Hypothetically speaking, of course.
10. Don’t go golfing with finance people when the stock market has one of its worst days in history- Our first day golfing was met with a glitch in the stock market and the Dow Jones dropping 1000 points in a matter of minutes. Not good for those managing other people’s money.
11. Trees aren’t your friends- People love trees. I don’t get it. They tend to only make my life miserable on the golf course.
12. Playing from the blue tees isn’t a good idea. Ever.- Did I mention that we played from the blue tees the whole trip?
13. On a trip like this, always pay in cash- The last thing you want is your wife finding a paper trail.
14. Boy Scouts is AWESOME!- I used to think that Boyd was one of the biggest Scouters I knew until I met Craig Umbrell.
So there you have it. Lots of golf. Great company. And a fun time. The only question remaining: Where are we going next year?
posted by Scott's Blog at Monday, May 02, 2011
1 Comments:
That may have been one of the finest accounts of a golf outing that I have ever read. Beautiful. Have fun on your trip this year. Watch out for Boyd's new snap hook.
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