Tell Us Your Best Golf Story

[B_R_A_D_Y]

I originally wanted to be a club pro when I was 20, back in the late 70s. Here r the top incidents I experienced. 

1:   Right before the start of the first tournament I worked as an assistant pro, a farmer’s cow got thru the fence at the back of the course. Pro handed me a shotgun, said it was loaded with rock salt, and told me to go shoot the damn thing in the ass, before it destroyed a green. All I could think of the entire time was the scene from Animal House where the horse has a heart attack. The cow lived. 

2.   I had to wake up / run off vagrants sleeping on the golf course.

3.  When I was 17, first golf job, the owner took me out to teach me how to ranger. After a while he pulled into a bunch of trees behind a tee & we just sat there watching. When the next group came by he asked them for a beer out of their cooler! He drank the beer, then closed his eyes & fell asleep. Later, when I told the pro, he said, “I better never catch u doing that.”

4.  At that same public course, Pro was giving his weekly lesson to a female member. We didn’t have a range, but we did have an area where staff could go to shag balls. I happened to see him drive back from that lesson, but instead of the woman sitting beside him in the cart, she was on his lap steering. And instead of him driving to the pro shop they drove back to the cart shed. I was 17. It was none of my business. Later that day I mentioned what I saw to the assistant pro & he broke out laughing. He said that had he seen them driving back, he would have loved to have gone back there. Seems while the pro was “giving” her a lesson, the zipper in his pants got stuck in the zipper in her skirt & they couldn’t get separated. I still have no idea why she rode back on his lap … I can imagine … but it seems to me that it would have been easier for one of them to remove their pants or skirt. Now that I think abt it … is this the moment I decided that I wanted to be a club pro?

[Bulldog]

My buddy and I went to play a course in the California gold rush foothills.  We were paired with a husband and wife who looked to be 60ish.  Many of the holes there are permanently cart path only because of the steepness of the the fairways.  On one of these holes, I was standing next to our cart on the cart path. The lady was about about 60 yards back on the fairway.  She hit a pulled low line drive,  about 40 yards to the left, that hit me in the lower left groin (too close for comfort ). I bent over in pain.  She freaked out and apologized profusely.  The four of us looked for her ball but couldn't find it.

I was able to walk it off and continued playing.  She and her husband continued playing, but she was a mess for the rest of the round.  Three holes later I was finishing my Pepsi and noticed something.  Her golf ball was in the bottom of my soda cup!  She had made a 'hole in one' by bouncing the ball off me into the cup.

The next day, I had a bruise the size of a lemon.  I'm really glad it was hit by an older lady and not some young buck.

[GolfSpy SAM]

6 minutes ago, Bulldog said:

My buddy and I went to play a course in the California gold rush foothills.  We were paired with a husband and wife who looked to be 60ish.  Many of the holes there are permanently cart path only because of the steepness of the the fairways.  On one of these holes, I was standing next to our cart on the cart path. The lady was about about 60 yards back on the fairway.  She hit a pulled low line drive,  about 40 yards to the left, that hit me in the lower left groin (too close for comfort ). I bent over in pain.  She freaked out and apologized profusely.  The four of us looked for her ball but couldn't find it.

I was able to walk it off and continued playing.  She and her husband continued playing, but she was a mess for the rest of the round.  Three holes later I was finishing my Pepsi and noticed something.  Her golf ball was in the bottom of my soda cup!  She had made a 'hole in one' by bouncing the ball off me into the cup.

The next day, I had a bruise the size of a lemon.  I'm really glad it was hit a an older lady and not some young buck.

Any closer to your nethers and you could have posted this in the "Snip'd" thread  

[Tom the Golf Nut]

Back in Connecticut I was on a work league, and we played at a par three course. This was a real course with the shortest hole being 100 yards and the longest being 250. We all pile out of work and rush the big 1/2-mile trip to the course and start to get ready to tee off. In front of us paying were 4 Asian guys who each paid for a round of golf and two dozen boxed new balls of some type. None of them spoke English, so we had no clue what they were saying. They head over to the first tee and each of them start smacking ball after ball at the same time to the 150-yard green with everything from wedge to driver. Someone in my group tried to talk to them to see what the heck they were doing and then all the sudden the Pro comes out and manages to talk to them and tell them the expectations. After some more lack of communication one guy pulls out a map and points to something.  The pro almost died laughing but managed to contain himself somewhat. The guy was pointing to the driving range up the road. That must have been the most expensive driving range they ever paid for. So, off they went with heads held low. Piled into a small rental car and up the road they went. 

The first group in our league got a bunch of nice new balls though.    

[chisag]

... OK, I might as well post my biggest regret when it comes to golf. It is 1997 and I am the spokesperson for a bathroom fixture commercial. Shooting in Milwaukee I was able to drive up from the Chicago suburbs. Near the end of the shoot the bathroom guy tells me he overheard me talking about golf and asked my index. I was a 5 at the time and he said he had built a course on the lake and would love for me to play it and give him my opinion. He went on to say it would not be open for play until the next year but was playable.

... For those that don't know the shores of Lake Michigan in the fall can have winds in the 30+ range. So the thought of playing a goat track owned by a bathroom guy in the wind without my clubs wasn't something I was interested in and I thanked him but said I didn't have my clubs or any golf clothes, just the suit I was wearing and the jeans and sweatshirt I drove up wearing. No problem he says we have Ping rentals and I can put you in some golf clothes. PING!?!? This just kept getting worse. Thanked him again but said I would pass as I have young kids at home and the Mrs was expecting me back that night. When we were wrapped he tried one more time and I still declined his offer. 

... Ping shovels, ill fitting clothes, windy lake conditions on some toilet sellers goat muni just wasn't something I was interested in. Now, in my defense had he once said it was a championship course and he wanted to host a Major Tournament I would had certainly taken him up on his offer. I am sure most of you know where this is going but if Herb Kohler had said any of that I could have played Whistling Straits before it opened. So I learned a valuable lesson: Never judge a Bathroom Book by Its Cover. 
 

[fixyurdivot]

55 years into my tenure playing this game and...

Spoiler

...each "close encounter" leaving me with this mental image.

[GolfSpy TCB]

3 minutes ago, chisag said:

... OK, I might as well post my biggest regret when it comes to golf. It is 1997 and I am the spokesperson for a bathroom fixture commercial. Shooting in Milwaukee I was able to drive up from the Chicago suburbs. Near the end of the shoot the bathroom guy tells me he overheard me talking about golf and asked my index. I was a 5 at the time and he said he had built a course on the lake and would love for me to play it and give him my opinion. He went on to say it would not be open for play until the next year but was playable.

... For those that don't know the shores of Lake Michigan in the fall can have winds in the 30+ range. So the thought of playing a goat track owned by a bathroom guy in the wind without my clubs wasn't something I was interested in and I thanked him but said I didn't have my clubs or any golf clothes, just the suit I was wearing and the jeans and sweatshirt I drove up wearing. No problem he says we have Ping rentals and I can put you in some golf clothes. PING!?!? This just kept getting worse. Thanked him again but said I would pass as I have young kids at home and the Mrs was expecting me back that night. When we were wrapped he tried one more time and I still declined his offer. 

... Ping shovels, ill fitting clothes, windy lake conditions on some toilet sellers goat muni just wasn't something I was interested in. Now, in my defense had he once said it was a championship course and he wanted to host a Major Tournament I would had certainly taken him up on his offer. I am sure most of you know where this is going but if Herb Kohler had said any of that I could have played Whistling Straits before it opened. So I learned a valuable lesson: Never judge a Bathroom Book by Its Cover. 
 

I want to react with all the below:

[GolfSpy SAM]

13 minutes ago, chisag said:

... OK, I might as well post my biggest regret when it comes to golf. It is 1997 and I am the spokesperson for a bathroom fixture commercial. Shooting in Milwaukee I was able to drive up from the Chicago suburbs. Near the end of the shoot the bathroom guy tells me he overheard me talking about golf and asked my index. I was a 5 at the time and he said he had built a course on the lake and would love for me to play it and give him my opinion. He went on to say it would not be open for play until the next year but was playable.

... For those that don't know the shores of Lake Michigan in the fall can have winds in the 30+ range. So the thought of playing a goat track owned by a bathroom guy in the wind without my clubs wasn't something I was interested in and I thanked him but said I didn't have my clubs or any golf clothes, just the suit I was wearing and the jeans and sweatshirt I drove up wearing. No problem he says we have Ping rentals and I can put you in some golf clothes. PING!?!? This just kept getting worse. Thanked him again but said I would pass as I have young kids at home and the Mrs was expecting me back that night. When we were wrapped he tried one more time and I still declined his offer. 

... Ping shovels, ill fitting clothes, windy lake conditions on some toilet sellers goat muni just wasn't something I was interested in. Now, in my defense had he once said it was a championship course and he wanted to host a Major Tournament I would had certainly taken him up on his offer. I am sure most of you know where this is going but if Herb Kohler had said any of that I could have played Whistling Straits before it opened. So I learned a valuable lesson: Never judge a Bathroom Book by Its Cover. 
 

This one hurt my soul...oof.

[chisag]

Just now, Golfspy_TCB said:

I want to react with all the below:

 

... Might as well add my second huge regret although it wasn't golf but deserves all those emoji's for a second time. I narrated a live show for Hitachi at McCormick Place in Chicago and on the last day the CEO watched my presentation and was very impressed. He told me his personal Sushi Chef was flying in from Japan with his mornings fresh catch and would be making sushi in his suite and invited me to join him and the Executives. This was the mid 80's and I had never eaten sushi and asked "sushi is raw fish right?" and he smiled broadly saying "Oh yes!" I attempted to hide my facial expression and declined.

... About 10 years later at a birthday party taking place at a premier Sushi restaurant in Chicago I had some Signature Sushi and it didn't take more than a few pieces before the memory of a personal Sushi Chef flying in from Japan with his fresh catch flashed in my head and I looked around for a dunce hat I could wear for the rest of the amazing meal. 

[Beakbryce]

1 hour ago, GolfSpy_SAM said:

There should be a military tribunal set up for all involved with this tragedy.  You hit a 1-iron for an albatross and they DELETED IT???? Monsters. 

To funny.

[JohnSmalls]

1 hour ago, chisag said:

 

... Might as well add my second huge regret although it wasn't golf but deserves all those emoji's for a second time. I narrated a live show for Hitachi at McCormick Place in Chicago and on the last day the CEO watched my presentation and was very impressed. He told me his personal Sushi Chef was flying in from Japan with his mornings fresh catch and would be making sushi in his suite and invited me to join him and the Executives. This was the mid 80's and I had never eaten sushi and asked "sushi is raw fish right?" and he smiled broadly saying "Oh yes!" I attempted to hide my facial expression and declined.

... About 10 years later at a birthday party taking place at a premier Sushi restaurant in Chicago I had some Signature Sushi and it didn't take more than a few pieces before the memory of a personal Sushi Chef flying in from Japan with his fresh catch flashed in my head and I looked around for a dunce hat I could wear for the rest of the amazing meal. 

Soooo you're coming to Pinehurst in June now, right?  

[chisag]

4 minutes ago, JohnSmalls said:

Soooo you're coming to Pinehurst in June now, right?  

 

... The problem with outings and trips is they want you to play in the ... gulp ... mornings! My last golf forum trip to Myrtle Beach in the early 2000's we had the first tee time for 4 mornings. We all put some cash in the pot and it was handed out after the round. On Friday night before our Saturday morning round there was a mutiny by my team mates. They brought it to the attention of the guys in charge that I was averaging 74 in my afternoon rounds but 87 in my morning rounds. They settled on taking an average of my 3 partners scores for the 4th so my score didn't count LOL. 

... First day playing Barefoot Landing and the DLIII course I took an 11 on the first hole. Topped my drive into rough, then smoked that shot 10 feet into the water, dropped and moved the ball another 10 feet, then topped the next shot into the fairway. I am 100yds off the tee and hitting my 6th shot. It was freezing cold, nasty dew on everything, a little windy and I didn't have the proper clothes for the first holes that started at sunrise. By the back 9 it was warm and I could play golf but those first several holes were always brutal. 

... So no. Not going to Pinehurst and the guys going should thank me! 

[Caddie1966]

I have a couple.

Shoes

I played in a 16 man group every Saturday and Sunday for 8 years.  We had one hole in one during that time.  We called it the Shoe Game.  $1 for every birdie, $10 for every eagle and $100 for an ace. If you made the ace, you had to buy everyone a pair of shoes.  I had the first and only ace in that group.  Shot 77 for the round with two birdies as well.  Collected $1500 plus my birdie money that day and another $1400 from the hole in one club at my club.  I took everyone’s shoe size and used the $ to order everyone a pair of Footjoys.  One of the guys was 6’8” and weighed in close to 290 and played to a 4.  He hit it a mile and a half.  He wore size 16s.  His shoes took a while to come in so I held all the other shoes until his came in.  When all arrived, we met in the back parking lot after that days round to have a beer together.  I emptied my trunk and passed out the shoes.  I saved the best for last.  When I gave the big guy his box he opened it to find a pair of my wife’s pink size 6.  We all had a good laugh.

Big Bets

As a top caddie at my club in the late 66-71 I usually made $6-$10 per bag depending on the member. More for Member Guest Tournaments and Club Championships etc,  but generally I made $80-$100 a week including working pro- am tournaments. I had a great time as a caddie.
I was asked one Friday night after looping for 36 that day, to hang around for the assistant pro to play a late 9.  This guy was on and off tour in the 60s and played the Florida winter tour every year back then.  He seemed always to be in the top 5 for the local and state pro and pro-am tournaments and would have been +3 or +4 back in 1968 when this round happened.  He told me before we got on the course that night to not say a word to his playing partners. I knew something was up when I was told to move his clubs to a nondescript bag and leave his staff bag in the bag room. Two guys show up that I have never seen.  They ride a cart with no forecaddie.  They are guests of a member who is a known mafioso.  I say nothing to anyone but the pro.  We tee off and the pro is -1 after 3.

There was a doctor, his wife and their two kids finishing on the 6th green and the doctor comes over to us on the adjacent 4th tee and asks the pro what time his lesson is the next morning.  The two guys now realize they are playing against a pro.  One takes out $1000 and says he wants to call off the bet.  The pro says he can’t as he is being bankrolled by their sponsoring member.  He finished -3 for the nine while one of the others finish even and plus 1 respectively.  The pro won $3K and split it with the member.  It got more interesting the next day.

I caddied for a regular group we called the gangsome every Saturday and Sunday which was 20 guys who were the first groups out each weekend.  The day after that 9 with the pro, I arrived at my usual 6:15 am.  I was told by the caddie master that I would forecaddie for two carts at 10 am instead of going with the gangsome.  The foursome was the Mafia guy member who played to about an 18 his two guests and the best putter in our club who carried a 12 handicap.  The 12 couldn’t get a game at our club because he could shoot 75 anytime he wanted to.  He was his nephew’s instructor and that kid won a full ride to Florida State back in the 60s when FSU, Houston, Texas and Wake Forest were the top golf programs in the country.  
Again I was instructed not to talk to the 2 guests, just locate balls, rake bunkers and tend the flag.  Help the members read putts and club them when they needed it, but ignore the other 2.  One of the guests recognized me on the second tee from the night before and handed me $100 to flash him club numbers.  I handed it back.  The members won the front, pushed the back and won the 18 and with some side bets cleaned the guests out for $14K.  The 12 handicap missed easy 2 footers on 17 and 18 to push the back 9 and still shot 77.  Needless to say, I earned my biggest tip ever.  I didn’t ask anyone for a week who those two guys were, and was told by the club pro they were two mob guys from Chicago who played to 2 handicaps.  They lost $17K in cash over 27 holes. My tip was $200 for the 9 and $500 for the forecaddie round.  Made my summer!!!

 

[Bacardi1415]

So, this really doesn't pertain to a round of golf on my own, it does explain why I became a Jack Nicklaus fan as a young child.  It so happens my father had tickets to a small tournament that Jack Nicklaus participated in western, PA with Arnold Palmer as the host.  And as luck would have it, my mom who was to attend, decided not to go.  So what is a good father to do other than take his six year old son instead.....me, who by the way, was not truly interested in golf at that age.  However, I was a pretty good trooper throughout the day, but really wanted the neat things they had to offer at the different vending stands, like one of those cool seats you carry and prop yourself up on to sit greenside, or one the those cool mirror viewers so you see over people to watch players.  But more importantly were the food vendors, a six year old can get pretty hunger while traversing an entire golf course.  Needless to say, I convinced my dad to get me a bag of potato chips relatively close to one of the greens on the course.  Well, at six years old, I was able to wiggle my way right up to the ropes at greenside greenside, just as Jack Nicklaus was standing behind the ball viewing his putting line.  As Jack settled his putter behind the ball, a certian six year old decided to open his bag of chips, needless to say I began to struggle with the darn plastic bag because I couldn't open it.  As it continued to make an awful racket, people all around me were telling me to keep quiet, but heck what did I care, I wanted a darn chip.  Now as you know, Jack can be extemely forward about noise around the green, but in this instance, instead of saying some thing negative to me, he simply looked and me and said, "Save one of those for me skip".  Well this led to laugher amongst the crowd, which led me to tears of embarrassment as I raced back to my dad for comfort.  However, it showed Jack does have a human side, as well as a fan for life.  

[GolfSpy SAM]

12 minutes ago, Bacardi1415 said:

So, this really doesn't pertain to a round of golf on my own, it does explain why I became a Jack Nicklaus fan as a young child.  It so happens my father had tickets to a small tournament that Jack Nicklaus participated in western, PA with Arnold Palmer as the host.  And as luck would have it, my mom who was to attend, decided not to go.  So what is a good father to do other than take his six year old son instead.....me, who by the way, was not truly interested in golf at that age.  However, I was a pretty good trooper throughout the day, but really wanted the neat things they had to offer at the different vending stands, like one of those cool seats you carry and prop yourself up on to sit greenside, or one the those cool mirror viewers so you see over people to watch players.  But more importantly were the food vendors, a six year old can get pretty hunger while traversing an entire golf course.  Needless to say, I convinced my dad to get me a bag of potato chips relatively close to one of the greens on the course.  Well, at six years old, I was able to wiggle my way right up to the ropes at greenside greenside, just as Jack Nicklaus was standing behind the ball viewing his putting line.  As Jack settled his putter behind the ball, a certian six year old decided to open his bag of chips, needless to say I began to struggle with the darn plastic bag because I couldn't open it.  As it continued to make an awful racket, people all around me were telling me to keep quiet, but heck what did I care, I wanted a darn chip.  Now as you know, Jack can be extemely forward about noise around the green, but in this instance, instead of saying some thing negative to me, he simply looked and me and said, "Save one of those for me skip".  Well this led to laugher amongst the crowd, which led me to tears of embarrassment as I raced back to my dad for comfort.  However, it showed Jack does have a human side, as well as a fan for life.  

What an awesome moment...thanks for sharing!  (I hope you mailed him a letter one day with one chip inside - well, the crumbs of one chip inside, anyway, and signed it "skip" )

[cycleguy55]

A few stories:

First Story:

When I was a young lad in my early 20s many years ago I worked at a department store. Back in those days retail shops were closed on Sundays and Mondays, so someone figured it would be a good idea to arrange a scramble tournament so that a few of the stores in the region could get together. There were probably 5 or 6 stores involved, and the participants travelled as much as 250 miles to get there, some perhaps a bit further. As I'm sure many would appreciate, the organizers arranged buses for transportation. My group had a nearly 4 hour drive each way, so we gathered, loaded up and started the drive pre-dawn. Most of those in our group were young males early in their careers. There were department managers, assistant department managers, manager trainees, etc. Generally a pretty good group. 

As they often did when gathering in groups, it didn't take long before the wobble pops and other adult beverages were flowing freely. By the time the bus rolled in, we were primed to roll off the bus. This was more than a golf game, this was a party!

Anyway, as the day wore on the partying continued. There were a few incidents of people rolling or falling out of power carts and many wayward shots but, to the best of my knowledge, nobody was seriously injured.

One of the incidents I still recall was more pathetic than funny, though to those of us who witnessed it the event was funny at the time. The General Manager of the store in the host city was actually a member at the course where the tournament was taking place. He had apparently pulled a number of strings in order to the course to allow a tournament like this to take place and was somewhat displeased at the various antics he observed that day. Suffice to say he was in a somewhat foul mood when an errant shot landed his ball just off the fairway and nestled in the trees on a dogleg par 5. I'm sure that didn't help his demeanour. After carefully assessing his lie and intended direction of play he took a mighty swing - and bent the shaft of his iron around the tree in front of him. Those nearby had a chuckle or two at his expense, but the one bearing the brunt of his wrath was his son as he was pursued across the fairway by his middle-aged father carrying the bent iron. Thankfully the young lad was quicker than his father and no damage was done. Well, at least not while witnesses were present.

Second Story:

This was at a corporate / customer golf event, where I was one of the customers invited by one of our suppliers. The supplier's local branch manager was on a par 3 and decided to allow the group behind to play up before his group putted out. Whether emboldened by alcohol or stupidity, he decided to stand by the flagstick, telling everyone in earshot that "it's the safest place to stand." Perhaps not, as he lost sight of one of the tee shots and the ball hit his cap right where the brim meets the upper portion, right above one of his eyes. He dropped like he'd been shot and has vision impairment in that ey to this day, probably 25 years later. Lesson learned.

Third Story:

My wife and I were paired up at a semi-private golf course with a May-October couple - he was easily mid-50s and she was probably late 20s - about 1/2 his age. Turns out she worked for him at his firm and was also his main squeeze. She seemed to be learning the game, but it clearly wasn't her first round as she was probably going to shoot about 110. He probably carried about a 20 handicap, so certainly no pro. Regardless, it appeared he fancied himself as the great keeper of wisdom of all things golf when it came to the play of his girl friend. 

I understand advice, but I don't recall her ever asking. Further, whenever he spoke to her he was incredibly condescending. You could tell she wasn't too pleased with how she was being treated, but was tolerating it for the sake of their relationship. My wife, on the other hand, was LIVID at how this young woman was being treated. It was all I could do to calm her down, hole after hole, and keep reminding her that killing the smarmy a**hole with a 7-iron wasn't worth it. 

To this day she gets revved up at the mere mention of his behaviour. Yikes.

Edited January 30 by cycleguy55
added content

[GolfSpy SAM]

18 minutes ago, cycleguy55 said:

A couple of stories:

First Story:

When I was a young lad in my early 20s many years ago I worked at a department store. Back in those days retail shops were closed on Sundays and Mondays, so someone figured it would be a good idea to arrange a scramble tournament so that a few of the stores in the region could get together. There were probably 5 or 6 stores involved, and the participants travelled as much as 250 miles to get there, some perhaps a bit further. As I'm sure many would appreciate, the organizers arranged buses for transportation. My group had a nearly 4 hour drive each way, so we gathered, loaded up and started the drive pre-dawn. Most of those in our group were young males early in their careers. There were department managers, assistant department managers, manager trainees, etc. Generally a pretty good group. 

As they often did when gathering in groups, it didn't take long before the wobble pops and other adult beverages were flowing freely. By the time the bus rolled in, we were primed to roll off the bus. This was more than a golf game, this was a party!

Anyway, as the day wore on the partying continued. There were a few incidents of people rolling or falling out of power carts and many wayward shots but, to the best of my knowledge, nobody was seriously injured.

One of the incidents I still recall was more pathetic than funny, though to those of us who witnessed it the event was funny at the time. The General Manager of the store in the host city was actually a member at the course where the tournament was taking place. He had apparently pulled a number of strings in order to the course to allow a tournament like this to take place and was somewhat displeased at the various antics he observed that day. Suffice to say he was in a somewhat foul mood when an errant shot landed his ball just off the fairway and nestled in the trees on a dogleg par 5. I'm sure that didn't help his demeanour. After carefully assessing his lie and intended direction of play he took a mighty swing - and bent the shaft of his iron around the tree in front of him. Those nearby had a chuckle or two at his expense, but the one bearing the brunt of his wrath was his son as he was pursued across the fairway by his middle-aged father carrying the bent iron. Thankfully the young lad was quicker than his father and no damage was done. Well, at least not while witnesses were present.

Second Story:

This was at a corporate / customer golf event, where I was one of the customers invited by one of our suppliers. The supplier's local branch manager was on a par 3 and decided to allow the group behind to play up before his group putted out. Whether emboldened by alcohol or stupidity, he decided to stand by the flagstick, telling everyone in earshot that "it's the safest place to stand." Perhaps not, as he lost sight of one of the tee shots and the ball hit his cap right where the brim meets the upper portion, right above one of his eyes. He dropped like he'd been shot and has vision impairment in that ey to this day, probably 25 years later. Lesson learned.

"It's the safest place to sta--" clunk.  That's incredible (obviously, not for him, but good god...that's funny.)

[chisag]

36 minutes ago, Bacardi1415 said:

However, it showed Jack does have a human side, as well as a fan for life.  

 

... Newton's Third Law: when my LA acting friend and I went to Riviera to watch a practice round in the late 90's. Nick was a huge Nicklaus fan and we found him and followed him for a few holes. He hit his patented fade that started right and went more right so we got right next to his ball in the eucalyptus trees. Jack had 2 body guards on either side of him that moved us back and after hitting it back into the fairway my friend Nick, eager to just have an exchange with his idol said "How do you like the course Jack?" and Nicklaus about 5 steps in front of us turned and said "What a stupid question"  shaking his head he walked off. Couple fans laughed and needless to say Jack lost a fan for life. 

... I figured Jack was just in a bad mood, maybe because of the poor drive but he could have just kept walking without comment or said someone like "I always enjoy Riveira". 

[ForwardTee40]

About twenty years ago my wife and I were playing with a tall, athletic, beautiful lady of 80 years at her club in Santa Barbara, standing on the 14th tee and waiting to hit. It was a gorgeous day, the course on a hillside overlooking the Pacific, the cheapest car in the club parking lot a medium sized Mercedes. We were there at her invitation. She was the donor of several million dollars to our college. The waiters (three for a table of four) at breakfast hovered to brush crumbs off the linen and refill our bloody Marys. As we were waiting on the tee, this wonderful lady said, idly, with a smile on her face, "I wonder what the poor people are doing today?"  My wife, without a second's hesitation, said, "Well, two of them are playing golf with you!" This magnificent lady told that story at public events for almost another ten years.

[JohnSmalls]

1 hour ago, chisag said:

 

... The problem with outings and trips is they want you to play in the ... gulp ... mornings! My last golf forum trip to Myrtle Beach in the early 2000's we had the first tee time for 4 mornings. We all put some cash in the pot and it was handed out after the round. On Friday night before our Saturday morning round there was a mutiny by my team mates. They brought it to the attention of the guys in charge that I was averaging 74 in my afternoon rounds but 87 in my morning rounds. They settled on taking an average of my 3 partners scores for the 4th so my score didn't count LOL. 

... First day playing Barefoot Landing and the DLIII course I took an 11 on the first hole. Topped my drive into rough, then smoked that shot 10 feet into the water, dropped and moved the ball another 10 feet, then topped the next shot into the fairway. I am 100yds off the tee and hitting my 6th shot. It was freezing cold, nasty dew on everything, a little windy and I didn't have the proper clothes for the first holes that started at sunrise. By the back 9 it was warm and I could play golf but those first several holes were always brutal. 

... So no. Not going to Pinehurst and the guys going should thank me! 

I hear you on the morning rounds.  It takes a little bit to get the body moving early and especially when it is cooler.  We'll miss the in person stories and comradery!