17020 North Hayden Road Scottsdale, Az. 85255

http://www.tpc.com/scottsdale

Tee Box Options: Championship=7261 yards. Players=6614 yards. Resort=6110. Forward=5464 yards. Total Par=71.

Two weeks ago, or so, I posted a review of the TPC Champions course. I quite enjoyed playing that one and after I played I went across the street and inquired about the price of a round as they had just opened after aeration. Let’s just say it’s above what I’m willing to pay for a round. After that, I kind of put it out of my mind. A week later my dad called me and asked if I wanted to play the course. http://www.golfnow.com had a “hot deal” of $79. He said he looked ahead a couple of weeks and the rate started to go up exponentially each week. If we really wanted to play this course, this year, this was as cheap as it was going to get. I really wanted to play it before I go to the Waste Management Open (formerly the Phoenix Open) in January. So, with my dad’s $10 off golf now coupon and the hot deal, we book a 9am tee time.

Writing this is going to be tricky. After playing the round I have to admit….I see no difference between this course and the Champions course. They are extremely similar. The first thing I noticed is that this course was built for the Open. There is so much extra land to handle the 250,000 people that attend the WM Open each year. All this extra land comes in handy for errant shots and such, but it doesn’t really justify the cost. I’ve attended the WM Open the last 3 years in a row. With the stands, ropes, and concessions installed, the course looks completely different. With all of that stuff removed, it’s just another course. Now, before I go on, I do not write a review to trash a course. In addition, understand that no one is paying me to play a course and give my 2 cents. This is just something I enjoy doing. If someone reads these and it makes them play a course, I will be happy. I play courses because I love the game. By writing, this is my way of sharing golf with others. There are just some that I don’t find to be a special as they are made out to be. If they are in good shape or bad shape, etc., I will comment about it. Whether or not I had a good or bad round will never influence my review. I’ll mention my game here and there for reference, but that’s it.

First comment is that the fairways at the Champions course were in far better shape. Yes, aeration had taken place about a month before, but the same happened over at the Champions course. Second, I expected much more difficult and deeper bunkers for a course that holds a major golf tournament each year. The sand was gorgeous, but the bunkers were no deeper than knee level anywhere on the course. The design of the course is very much straight back and forth. Hole 10 is a dogleg right. Bubba Watson hit a drive over trees and concessions that surprised everyone. Speaking of the tees, the tees they set up for the Open are farther back than the tips were set at the day we played. I play from the mid tees and I’m about a 20 handicap and only have a 220 yard drive, so I have no business playing from there. It was just something I noticed as a note for all of you big hitters out there. The greens were challenging. I didn’t find them to be flat and unimaginative. There was a fair amount of subtle wave and break to make it very interesting and some greens are very large. Hole 16 is the main attraction during the open. The stadium seats are set up for the tournament and tens of thousands of people grab a seat to watch the pros play the hole. With all of the seating and fan fare gone, it’s just another par 3. I did enjoy hole 15. A par 4 with a beautiful body of water down the left side that ends up in an island green. Very picturesque. That is a plus to the Stadium course. It is quite gorgeous. Even now it looks good, but it will look amazing come Open time. Just to finish, please don’t take this as I am out to insult the Stadium course. If you have the means to play it…run, do not walk towards the opportunity. I personally don’t believe the cost is worth it. I’m happy I did get the chance to play there. I’m looking forward to the Open in 2019. I’ll be out there with my course yardage book that they provided and have a bit more info than the normal spectator. But, for my money, the Champions course across the street is a far better value and is a very similar course. Thanks for reading.

4707 W. Pinnacle Peak Rd. (623) 492-9500

http://www.the500club.com

Tee Box Options: Championship (Black)=6897 yards. Regular (White)=6202 yards. Forward (Red)=5508 yards. Total Par=72.

Have you ever disappointed a parent? Oh good Lord, I have…on many occasions! But this one particular occasion involved my father. I first played the 500 Club on July 16th. I told my dad about playing the following day and he was a bit upset with me. I thought he had played the course before. I didn’t know it was on his list. So, feeling bad about it, I went back today with my dad and we played a round. The golf course is in Phoenix, Az., in the northern part of the valley.

The 500 Club has 2 courses: The main course and also the Futures course which is an executive/junior course. We’ll get to hat one in another post. In the middle of the summer, they have a rate of $30 after noon, which we took advantage of. During the winter in Phoenix, rates are at a premium. So, was a bargain. The course layout is a desert design. The course is surrounded by black hills which almost have the look of volcanic rock. The desert areas are very tidy-there’s not a bunch of scrub brush, etc. They keep the course very clean and groomed. There are 2 bodies of water. One runs the length between hole 17 & 18, which puts water in front of the 18th green. The other surrounds the green on hole 4 making it an island green. There’s a footbridge to get there from the cart path. The water also comes into play on the 12th green too. I know, it’s where I lost my only ball. Instead of the layout of most holes being straight back and forth, there are many right and left dog legs. There are also many medium sized trees lining both sides of the fairway, giving some challenge to ball position and shot choices. Hole 11 is a 135 yard (from the whites) par 3 in which you play uphill. There are a couple of bunkers that you cannot see from the tee which makes for an interesting blind shot. The tee boxes and fairways are in very good shape. The greens are a bit thin. That’s ok, though, in my opinion. The temperature today was 111 degrees. We’ve had a brutal summer that will last for another month, at least. This bakes the hell out of grass in Phoenix. They were still playable with no complaints at all.

The 500 Club is a very playable golf course for all skill levels. The bunkers are shallow and easy to play out of. The sand was, as my dad colorfully described, crispy. The greens are relatively flat, yet have some slight waves and break to make it fun, yet not get too crazy or difficult. There is a small bar & grill inside with beer, wine, etc. When you walk into the main building there is an open floor plan with the pro shop on one side and the food on the other. I saw a few people eating and the food did look tasty. The staff was very friendly. I haven’t played many courses where the staff wasn’t anything but nice and accommodating, but I feel it needs to be mentioned. I hope these reviews are informative if anyone reads them! Until the next one……..

100 N. Clubhouse Dr. Avondale, Az 85323 (623) 232-0511

http://www.coldwatergolfclub.com/

Tee Box Options: Deep End (Tips)=6758 yards, Coldwater (Blue)=6305 yards, Vintage (Middle/Teal)=5798 yards, Upstream (Forward/Red)=5147 yards. Total Par=72.

Hello! I’m the Dry Heat Hacker and welcome to another Valley of the Sun golf course review in beautiful metro Phoenix, Arizona. Today I played Coldwater golf course in Avondale, Az., which is a suburb of Phoenix, located in the west valley. I’ve played there a few times over the last 2 years and Coldwater has become my home course this summer. They advertised a summer special on Facebook 3 months ago. For $120 + tax, you get six rounds and six hotdogs. $20 for a round and food is cheaper than you will find on Golf Now. Their rack rate from 12pm-5pm ranges from $17 to $45 and decreases a few dollars at the top of each hour. I went to work early and left early so I could play today. Temperature at tee off was 109° at 4pm and I was dumb enough to be out there! During the Phoenix summer, if you can stand the heat, you can practically have most courses to yourself, with just a few golfers here and there. I tee’d off at 4pm and was done by 6:15pm. I played solo and didn’t rush, but also didn’t waste any time as I didn’t have to look for a lost ball. I played from the Vintage tees.

Coldwater is a links style course. It winds through and around a subdivision/housing development. I can have a wicked slice at times and I haven’t put a ball in anyone’s backyard/pool, yet. I say yet because I have done that on other courses! But, I don’t worry when I play here. They have wide fairways. I enjoy this course a lot. I just like the way it flows. From the elevated tees (most of them are raised above the fairway in some fashion) to the greens (more on them later), I find that there is challenge for every type of golfer. Also, I’d like to note that all 18 holes are named. I’m not going to list them, but I find this to be a nice touch. Teeing off on Hole 1, you notice the ‘theme’ if you will, of the course. As mentioned, the fairways are wide, but that doesn’t mean they are flat. There are small hills and drop offs into desert areas which can add to the fun when you slice or hook a shot. Hole 2 is a straight ahead par 5. The tee is elevated. There is a big hill on the right about 250 yards out that protrudes towards the center of the fairway. You have to go around it, but the fairway is wide enough to do so with a well-placed tee shot. Mine wasn’t. I was right behind that thing. After your second shot, it does seem you are going downhill to the green. We don’t get much rain in the valley. Coldwater looks to be built in a wash for neighborhood rain control. I’ve never heard of the course being flooded, though, and we are currently in the middle of monsoon season. I really like the greens here. There is some challenge to them. First, they are designed for multi hole placement meaning that the greens aren’t only flat and they move the cup each day. Each time they move the hole, it becomes a completely different green as it was the day before.  For example, hole 17 has a long green where the far end of it has a step up and is probably 4 feet higher than the lower end. It has waves and breaks and I had to putt about 20 feet uphill after I was on the green. Tomorrow, the hole placement may be on the other end of the green and that part is pretty flat. Hole 3, 4, 12, 14, 15, and 16 have significant drop offs on at least one side of the green, which makes the approach shot interesting.

As of right now in August, the hottest time of the year, this is the thinnest I’ve seen the fairways. I wasn’t playing off of dirt, but the grass is very thin. It is very difficult for courses to keep good grass in the fairways right now. My last few reviews have been at upper scale/resort style courses. I’m not saying that to take anything away from Coldwater. I honestly couldn’t say enough how much I enjoy this course. But, until overseed at the end of September, the fairways will be thin in places. I’ve played here during the winter and I can say the fairways are lush as any upscale course.  The only water hazard is on hole 8 between the tee and the green. It’s usually between 100-120 yards tee to pin. The last 2 rounds I have chunked my tee shot and put it in the water. Also, note that there is always a flock of geese around this hole. Lots of geese=lots of goose poop. Watch. Where. You. Walk.

I have only been playing Coldwater during the afternoons, lately. I have not played during the morning in quite some time. When I arrive, the course is self-serve. There are no cart attendants, marshals, or starters at this time…..more so during the morning when it’s busier. I walk over from the parking lot (about 30 feet), load my clubs on the cart, and go check in. The clubhouse is really nice. On one end is the pro shop with a nice selection of apparel. On the opposite end is the snack bar and kitchen. There is seating inside and outside with many tables in between to accommodate outings and tournaments. Year round, Coldwater hosts many. The staff has always been friendly and helpful. Coldwater also has a strong web presence with the website (listed above) that is always up to date and Facebook, as well. When asked by others to recommend a nice golf course, I always say Coldwater first. I just like the place. If you play I hope you do, too. Until the next review….

4415 E. Village Pkwy. Gilbert, Az. 85208 (480) 988-0004

http://www.trilogygolfclub.com/powerranch/

Tee Box Options: Black=6932 yards. Blue=6356 yards. White=5721 yards. Red=4918 yards. Total Par=71.

Hello! I’m the Dry Heat Hacker and welcome to another Valley of the Sun golf course review in beautiful metro Phoenix, Arizona. Today, I had to work overtime, but was itching to get some more golf in. I was still very happy with my 85 hit the previous day (at Longbow) and wanted to see how I would do. I found a hot deal on www.golfnow.com for just under $18. Gilbert is in the southeast valley and I live about 30 miles away, so I punched out, went home, grabbed my clubs, and was on my way. My first impression was Trilogy is a nice course, facility, and definitely well maintained. There is a big clubhouse that houses the pro shop and restaurant. There is construction being done on the parking lot. There is a temporary bag drop and they will shuttle you to/from clubhouse. It’s really not that far, though. When I made my tee time there was a ‘course alert’ listed. I called the course and they said that due to the heat and lack of rain, they didn’t feel their greens were up to their standard, yet still playable. Phoenix is in the middle of a scorching summer (like every other summer).

There were a few players, but I really had the course to myself. I didn’t wait on anyone or didn’t hold anyone up. I played the blue/white combo at a total of 5977 yards. 6200 or so is the most I want to play, so I’ll always go for the combo if it’s available. I’ll also mention here that there is a white/red combo, as well at 5250 yards. The front 9 layout is one big area such as a traditional style course and has relatively straight holes except for #7, which is a 538 yard Par 5 Dog leg left. On the left side are houses and the right is a big desert area with some water on its right. I played a couple of shots on this fairway out of the desert. Hole #8 is a 189 yard par 3 with the aforementioned water on the right. Unless you slice it, badly, the water doesn’t really come into play. I let an old guy who caught up to me play through. He was out there puffing on a stogie without a care in the world…..he birdied the hole, too. Hole #9, which comes back up to the clubhouse has a little pond on the left which goes around the green and up by #18’s green. Yup, my second shot went right in. Once you cross behind the clubhouse, you’ll find the 10^th tee. The back 9 winds through a neighborhood and is a links-style layout. Most of the fairways on the back are relatively straight, too, like the front. #14 is notable because it’s a dog leg left. Your tee shot is blind to this and I actually was a bit confused on where to go. After you putt, take your cart through a tunnel, under a road and up to a comfort station. The 15^th tee is right after for a 157 yard par 3. There is a lot of bare, dirt here. Not desert, just dirt. I bogeyed this one. Hole 18 is a nice dog leg right, but you can see the green from the tee. The water next to #9 also comes into play. There is a small bridge that spans this pond and I thought it was a nice touch. In the end, I hit a 91. I was happy. I’m roughly a 20 handicap, so it works out.

Trilogy at Power Ranch is a very nice course. The greens have some damage, but they are playable and pin placements are nowhere near the damage. But as I mentioned at the beginning of the review, I was told this up front. Other than that, the tees were in good shape as well as the fairways. There were no bare spots or flooding from sprinklers. The staff was nice and after I turned my cart in, I was given a ride right to my vehicle in the parking lot. Don’t you just love a good golf experience?!! Until the next review……

8243 E. Bell Rd. Scottsdale, Az. 85260

www.tpc.com/scottsdale/champions-course/

Tee box options: Black-7115 yds. Blue-6653 yds. White-6127 yds. Red-5342 yds.

Hello! I’m the Dry Heat Hacker and welcome to another Valley of the Sun golf course review in beautiful metro Phoenix, Arizona. Today I played the Champions course at the TPC Scottsdale facility. Scottsdale, Az., is a suburb of metro Phoenix located in the Northeast valley. Champions is the sister course to the Stadium Course where the Waste Management Open (formerly the Phoenix Open) is played. The Stadium Course is located across the street. I called Champions last week instead of using an online service and was quoted the $41 rate and a scheduled a tee time before 10 am. The facility has the normal amenities for a course: bag drop, range w/a free small bag of practice balls, and a practice green. The main practice green was closed due to resurfacing. It should be noted that the course had undergone aeration within the last month….more on that in a bit. The gent at the bag drop set my cart up and I was off to the starter. Since I was a single player, I was added to a twosome (a father/son visiting from the UK) who were starting 15 minutes before me (I’m always early when I make a tee time). Handshakes and introductions all around and we were off. The starter mentioned the cart GPS and said it was accurate to the flag within a yard or two. I normally use a rangefinder and checked the first few yardages, which very accurate. The rangefinder went back in the bag for the rest of my round. We started off on the back 9 and played the white tees. First impressions: the picturesque McDowell Mountain range. It adds a backdrop to your game and it highlights the round. Conversely, Champions is next to the Scottsdale Airpark. It is a busy airstrip with frequent landings of corporate jets and small aircraft. Personally, I don’t find this distracting, but my new English friends mentioned it a couple of times. The course was in above average shape even in the heat of our Phoenix summer. Very green and well maintained. There were a few brown discoloration spots, but no dry grass patches or bare spots to alter the lie of your ball. As mentioned earlier, aeration had been performed within the last month. You could still see the marks in the greens, but they were filled in now and our golf balls rolled true. There are fairway and green bunkers aplenty. They use the white, soft sand in their bunkers and they’re not very deep. I don’t think I saw one on the entire course that was more than 4 feet deep or so. I made it the whole round until the last hole (#9) without landing in the trap. It took me 2 strokes to play out of, but I noticed after the 2^nd stroke that I grabbed my regular wedge instead of my sand wedge! Some items to mention: Holes 1, 5, 14, and 15 are cart path only. These are par 4s and in addition to the normal cart path only rule for the 5 par 3s on the course. If you violate the cart path only rule, the cart will slow down to 7 mph until you return to the cart path. The cart did it to me, once, when I drove close to a desert area. I was within 5 feet or so and the engine dropped acceleration. The course has desert as mentioned before and also its share of trees. A big body of water comes into play for hole 1 and 18. On 18, I hit my second shot with a 3 wood right off of the club hosel instead of the face and put it right in the drink. It looked like there used to be a body of water on hole 5, to the left as you tee off, but it was drained. It’s just mud now and yes, I put my ball in this, as well, yet it was still playable. Remember….hole 5 is cart path only! I had a nice hike to and from my ball back to the cart. Hole 9 also has a small pond to the left side but it didn’t seem to come much into play. Hole 15 is a true dog leg left with a yardage of 313 from our tee. But, the GPS read 266 yards from the tee if you hit across the desert and it was a clear shot. We all did and I can drive the ball about 230 on an average. I put it in front of a bunker and used my gap wedge to pop it over the sand for 2 putts and par. Most of the holes on the Champions course are relatively straight with slight elevation changes. It’s a very playable course, in my opinion.

I did like the course and facility and I enjoyed my round, but I think I was expecting a little more. I’m not trying to take anything away from Champions. The Stadium Course hosts a major PGA tournament every year. The clubhouse is decked out in ornate wood, utilizes a locker room, and has a really nice restaurant. There is a lot of money that passes through that place and I might have been expecting the same. I now understand the difference. The Champions course has a small clubhouse, a normal sized pro shop, and a snack bar. After my round, I went across the street to inquire about a tee time for next week as they are reopening from aeration. I was quoted almost $100 for a round (Golf Now has a few tee times that day for $79). When I (nicely I might add) said “Thank you, but that’s a bit more than I want to spend”. I was told that rate was much lower than they normally charge and I was welcome to go across the street to Champions. They’re cheaper. Hope you enjoyed reading. I’m still in the infant stages of writing golf course reviews. So, leave a comment, if you like. I’m learning as I go. Grip and Rip!

5601 East Longbow Pkwy. Mesa, Az. 85215

www.longbowgolf.com

Today was a good day. I hit the best round of my life. Total score was an 85 on a par 71 course…..and I beat my dad by 1 stroke!!!!!!!! My dad is my golf idol and my goal is definitely not to have a lower score than my father. I just want to ‘hang’ with him when we play. He’s been playing for 66 years. He’s 71 now and can’t hit the ball as far as he used to but he’s pretty accurate. He normally hits in the low 80s for 18 holes and plays 3 days a week. Twice with a senior group (he’s retired) and once in his league. I would like to play more, but am happy if I can get out once a week and not bomb the course.

Longbow GC is located in East Mesa, Az. It is a very nice desert style course. We had a hot deal from www.golfnow.com for $18 at a 10am tee time. 2 other gentlemen played with us and I believe we all had a good round. Longbow has a choice of 4 tee boxes: Black at a total of 7050 yards, Green at 6513 yards, White at 5830 yards, and Red at 5202 Yards. There are also 2 combos: a Green/White at 6138 yards and a Red/White at 5469 yards. When I play with my dad, I play the tees that he does. We played from the whites. If I hadn’t have been with my dad, I would have played the green/white combo.

I dropped my clubs off at the bag drop and parked. Dad was already there. As you’re walking up from the parking lot, the clubhouse is on the left. The cart barn is on the right. There also is a range and a nice big putting green to use. Included on your cart is a free range book with your scorecard. This gives course yardages to the fairway sand traps, front/back of the greens, and tee yardages, etc. Longbow also has free bottled drinking water all over the course. There were 4 big coolers with dozens of 16oz bottles in ice on the course. At the 2 restrooms on the course, there are drinking fountains that have a filtered water dispenser. Right by the range and putting green there is also-what looks like an old time ice cream push cart- that has ice and bottled water, too.

I can’t think of a course where you start out with a par 5. There is a lot of desert you can land in to the left (I did) from the tee, but it’s easy to get out of. The Hole 5 fairway runs along the right side of the fairway. I have to comment that all of the fairways are wide open. Longbow is a very playable course. Playable in that if you have a bad shot, it’s not hard to recover from. There are a lot of bunkers, but they aren’t that deep and easy to play around. There is one large pond on the course and it does come into play on the #4 and #6 holes. Most of the holes on Longbow are relatively straight. However, #1, #4, #10, #12, and #18 are all doglegs and you can’t see the green from any of the tees. This was fun to play position golf on. Some of the greens were wavy and some were relatively flat with a bit of a break. I enjoyed putting on all 18 greens. They weren’t too hard, but they weren’t flat, either. A side note: what nice is that there was no one in front of us or behind us during the front 9. The back 9 was a different story. Longbow currently has a 9 hole special for $15 and all of those taking advantage of this special must tee off on the back 9. Luckily, we never waited on anyone and we let one single play through.

We played our round in 4 hours. That’s normal for a foursome. Longbow is a very nice facility. The tees, fairways, and greens were in exceptional shape, given the hot summer in the Phoenix Metro Valley. I did not eat at the grille, so I can’t comment on the food. The drink cart girl passed us 3 times. With so much free water available We didn’t really need anything. I finally bought a Powerade because she looked bored. All in all, a 5 star course and facility. I look forward to playing here again. But…so many courses, so little time!

I absolutely love to play golf and I want to write about it. I don’t consider myself to be good. My best score ever for a par 72 course is 88. My average has been in the low 90s, lately, which I am tickled pink about. But, I would imagine that people who write for golf magazines and websites have to be much better than that….right? I am writing for the fun of it. I have a couple of days off during the week, instead of the weekend. This allows me to get out and play while others are at work. Have you ever played a course where there are no groups ahead or behind you? It’s heaven! If no one is holding me up, I can play 18 holes in just over 2 hours. I do like to play with others. My father is retired and we try to get a round in every other week. But during the summer in Phoenix, I play as much as possible. There aren’t many people teeing off at 1pm on a Tuesday. The heat is worth it for the rates and the solitude. Trust me: sunblock, ice water, and a good sun hat is all you need to beat the heat.

My blog will be about playing golf and reviews of courses here in Phoenix and beyond. I have played golf in other places (Texas and England in the last couple of years) and plan on traveling to do so again. I originally intended to do a golf ‘vlog’ and post them on YouTube. The idea was to film myself playing on various courses and review each course. There have been times when I was interested in a course, but couldn’t find any content on YouTube regarding what I was looking for. I thought it would be a good idea to show 3 holes on the course: 1 par 3, one par 4, and one par 5.  I did some test footage but I ran into a few problems:

1. I’m not much of an ‘attention’ person. I’m personable and enjoy life, but I’m not the one to be having their picture taken or having the focus towards me. Also, I hate my voice! I cannot stand the sound of my recorded voice. It’s like fingernails on a chalkboard to my ears! That should kill the idea right there, but there’s more……………
2. Capturing video by yourself isn’t easy when there are others playing behind you. I am a very courteous golfer. I let people play through and I wouldn’t think of holding anyone up that is playing behind me. Even during the summer when I have the course to myself, filming seemed to interrupt the flow of my game. Also, every score card has the rule of ‘keeping pace with the group in front of you’. When you have the course to yourself, this isn’t an issue, but you get the idea of how difficult this could be during the fall, winter, or spring.
3. I was using my cell phone as a video camera. It took good quality video, but you had to be very close to the phone for the video to sound good.
4. I. Am. Not. Good. At. Video. Editing!!!!!!! I became frustrated and gave up on the video idea.

But, I still want to review courses and write about the sport I love! I want to have a web presence and blog about golf. If maybe a couple of people decide to play a course because of something I’ve written, this will be 100% worth the time it took to write it.

So who is this ‘Dry Heat Hacker’ character? I grew up in a small city/large town in the Midwest. A place where people could leave their homes unlocked and not worry. As a kid, I played golf. My dad played and would take me to walk along when I was 6. He would put my kids clubs in his bag and if we weren’t going to hold anyone up, he’d let me play along. I loved playing in my young teens, we used to sling our junior sets over our shoulders and ride our bikes to the local course which had an 18 hole course, a 9 hole course, and a par 3 course. We were there most days during summer break from school. After I graduated I still played. Keep in mind, when I said Midwest that also means winter. I wasn’t much of a cold weather person. I didn’t do much during the winter months. I didn’t hunt, fish, ski, snow mobile, etc., so winters weren’t that much fun. I went to college during the fall and winter. I had a small pickup truck with a camper shell that locked. From spring to late fall, I kept my golf clubs back there. I remember taking an Algebra class that went winter to spring. Right outside of my class was a practice Par 3 hole that the golf team and golf class used. I took night classes. When the days started to get longer and the snow melted, I was always looking at this golf hole. We had a 20 minute break during class and I would tell myself I am going to go chip a few or putt a few then come back. Next thing I knew I’d see people leaving class for the night and realize I was lost in the moment and had forgotten to go back to class. Yes, I failed algebra that semester. Fast forward a couple of years and I moved to Arizona. Remember-I’m not a cold weather person. I brought my clubs with me and played here and there. I got a job that I really enjoyed, though, and worked a lot. Then I went back to school, seriously this time, and focused. Next was work and a girlfriend and I got away from golf for many years except for the occasional round.

Let’s fast forward to 2014. My career was going well. I had been dating for 2 years. What I mean is I had been on 18 first dates in 24 months! And…it wasn’t going well. I have always preferred to work odd shifts like graveyard shift or a weekend shift with days off during the week. This does not gel with 90% of the working public. Most people work Monday through Friday 8-5 and love having a 2 day weekend. If you’re still reading, understand that bankers hours=a living hell for me. I met many nice people while dating, but my schedule was a hindrance to facilitating a relationship. I just gave up. Around this time, my dad asked me if I had any interest in going to the Waste Management Open. It’s one of the biggest golf tournaments held each January in Scottsdale, Az. I said yes and the following Wednesday we were at the pro/am day of the open. Right there and then I fell for the sport again. The feelings of playing 15 years before came back to me and a part of me was rekindled. The next day, I dusted off my clubs and headed to the local driving range. I’ve never been a great golfer. I’m on the low spectrum of good, in my opinion. I want a lower final score and handicap. I want to drive the ball further. I want my irons to be more accurate. I do enjoy every round. I honestly believe golf is a game against yourself and the course.

After a few range sessions and getting used to hitting the ball again, I played my local par 3 course. Why would I do that, you ask? As I’ve mentioned a couple of times, I don’t want to waste anyone’s time. I do not want to delay anyone’s round. I played the par 3 a few times then moved on to executive courses. After a few more rounds, I was back to a full course. Now almost 4 years later, here we are. My game might improve, my handicap may drop, or it may not. All I know is I never want to stop playing and I want to write about it. I hope you keep reading.