as winter arrives, a fine time to give thanks....

[PThomas]

yes, the first snowflakes of the season are flying around Chicagoland this morning

but since Thanksgiving is next week, I shall keep my disgust regarding the arrival of Old Man Winter in check til then and give thanks to all the friends I have made from GCA in less than a year

I am also so thankful for some of the great architecture I have been fortunate to see this year, usually due to some of the kindness of those friends

so many memories, but for brevity's sake I shall only mention 3:

from the old school:  the magic of Cypress and Merion
from the new school:  the greatness of The Kingsley Club

Happy Thanksgiving all!

[THuckaby2]

Winter?

I don't understand.  Please explain.  It's gonna be 80 here today and I just don't get it.

 

TH

ps - smartass comment aside, it is never a bad idea to give thanks.  Highlight of 2005 for me was a return to Mullen, NE.  The man involved in making that happen, and those who shared it with me who made it so incredibly great, know of my gratitude.  But in case it's not evident, well thanks again gents for making dreams come true.

[RJ_Daley]

Well, I just watched my front lawn convert from green to white in the last hour.  So, the notion of the end is really setting in now...

I didn't get to as many places as I would have liked this year.  But, to balance that out, I played more rounds at home this year than ever, averaging about 4X a week, many 27 hole days, with a great core group of friends.  I finally got one of them from this area to accompany me to Wild Horse and meet some of my "other" wierdo internet friends.  So I had that going for me to give thanks for.

[Andy Hughes]

I don't understand.  Please explain.  It's gonna be 80 here today and I just don't get it.

Oh no, we aren't going to have to hear this from you again this year, are we??  

[THuckaby2]

Andy:

I will admit this is the earliest this has occurred in a long time.  But heck, of course you're going to hear it.  It's so freakin' expensive to live here, I need to justify it SOMEHOW.

 

[Andy Troeger]

Paul,
  Not a big fan of the snowflakes in the Valparaiso, IN area either (almost Chicagoland depending on who you talk to). Nice thoughts on thanksgiving and the year...I will try to join you by keeping my feelings toward winter to myself for at least the next 10 days or so  

[Craig Sweet]

I was giving thanks the other day for my Ping G2 driver and the bombastic drives I now hit. Oh, and I was also thankful for the Nike Platinum golf ball! Man, that baby really goes far!

[Kirk Gill]

This has been my first year on GCA.com, and I give thanks for the free exchange of knowledge available from you all. I also give thanks to you for allowing me to eavesdrop on your occasionally learned discussions, and for not flaming me out for being the GCA wannabe I truly am. I also thank Mr. Morrissett for allowing me into the club.

Forgive me if I go on to say that just over three years ago my wife and I adopted four beautiful children, a sibling group of kids who had been woefully neglected. Their entrance into my life marked at least for a while the end of my ability to travel and play golf the way I had been able to before. In many ways I now live that life vicariously through the postings and photographs you all provide. My oldest boy Jacob and I still manage to get out to the range every once in a while, and I was standing by him when he really struck a ball for the first time, a nice iron that travelled over 100 yards. He's hooked, at age 8.

Thanks, for all of that.

[A_Clay_Man]

It's highly evident to me,
that I have the most to be thankful for.
  From meeting Bill Coore, Ben Crenshaw,
 Dave Axeland, let alone Ben Dewar
(on more than one occasion)
to all the great venues I visited.
Culminating in actually moving to the Sand Hills region,
 It was a big bang of a year, surely never to be out-done.
 But, that's how I felt for the last four years,
so one never knows. All I can hope to do,
is appreciate the moment,
so I don't look back on it as if
 I had missed the greatness, as it was all happening.

Thanks Ran, and all of you who
contribute to making me better.

[ForkaB]

So what are you doing in Mullen, Adam?

[Jason Topp]

I don't know why people are giving up on the season.  I think it is still warmer than when we were at Sutton Bay.

[A_Clay_Man]

So what are you doing in Mullen, Adam?

Saving on the airfare to Scotland.

[RJ_Daley]

Nice catch Adam!

Jason, I don't know if I was ever colder than this on a golf course... about 38* with about 25-30mph wind.

[Matt MacIver]

This has been my first year on GCA.com, and I give thanks for the free exchange of knowledge available from you all. I also give thanks to you for allowing me to eavesdrop on your occasionally learned discussions, and for not flaming me out for being the GCA wannabe I truly am. I also thank Mr. Morrissett for allowing me into the club.

Ditto the above for me.  

Biggest thanks-givings this year: HarbourTown, Devil's Paintbrush.

Biggest regret: getting rained out 3 straight days at Bull's Bay.

[George Pazin]

Forgive me if I go on to say that just over three years ago my wife and I adopted four beautiful children, a sibling group of kids who had been woefully neglected. Their entrance into my life marked at least for a while the end of my ability to travel and play golf the way I had been able to before. In many ways I now live that life vicariously through the postings and photographs you all provide. My oldest boy Jacob and I still manage to get out to the range every once in a while, and I was standing by him when he really struck a ball for the first time, a nice iron that travelled over 100 yards. He's hooked, at age 8.

Thank you for sharing this. I can relate, on a smaller level - one has changed my life. I'm guessing your children are thankful as well.

[Kirk Gill]

Thank you, George.

Yes, I hope that they are thankful. Only time will tell on that score. I appreciate your kind words, and congratulate you on your own addition to your family!

[Ian Andrew]

........that I made it to Ireland with my father after 15 years, he was healthy, and we played every day. He ruined his shoulder in Cyprus two weeks later and can't play golf till next year.