Small world experiences

[Brian Marion]

Ron Pritchard last Friday morning waiting in the security line at the airport.

Nice guy....

[Tim Gavrich]

Summer 2008: My father and I are in front of the clubhouse at St. Andrews and a gentleman stops us and chats us up; he's noticed my W&L Golf bag.  He's a W&L grad, as are his three sons, who are with him.

This past Sunday: I'm with the team at a tournament in Montgomery, Alabama and a woman chats me up.  Turns out she is good friends with the W&L alum I'd seen at St. Andrews in 2008.  Pretty neat.

[Carl Nichols]

Nine years ago I'm in London, having breakfast at my hotel.  I start talking to the guy at the table next to mine, who's also from the U.S.  It turns out he's a US government employee on an incredible golf trip, having flown on a private plane over to St. Andrews and then down to London with some Congressional staffers and a Congressman or two.  The whole trip strikes me as fairly extravagant given their jobs, but I don't think much of it.  Several years later, when the Jack Abramoff scandal breaks, one of the major allegations is that Abramoff paid for a $160,000 golf trip to Scotland for various staffers and Congressmen and others.  When I saw the picture below, I realized the guy I sat next to at breakfast was David Safavian -- who was recently convicted for obstruction of justice and making false statements in connection with the Abramoff investigation.   

[Ken Moum]

On my first round at TOC, we were playing late on a Tuesday, and some locals ahead of us got tired of the pace of play and jumped to the New Course.

So when we got to the Road Hole tee, there were some "new" folks ahead of us.  One of them was wearing a Jacobson 2006 jacket, and one of my fellow players commented on it. The wearer said he got it "at the trade show in Atlanta."  (He was a Scot on holiday from his greenkeeping job in Dubai [Bahrain?])  

Since I was then emplyed by GCSAA, I introduced myself and said I worked at the headquarters in Kansas.

When he heard my name, he said, "I know who you are."

There's nothing like being the editor of a weekly e-mail newsletter to spread the word.

K

[Mark Chaplin]

I met Redan Man over dinner in Dornoch and bumped into a workmate at a bus stop in rural Queensland.

Abe - was it embarrassing as she used to be filthy but is now a model of respectability??

Carl - The Irish surveillance operative watching Shane was clearly on the wrong target!

[Andrew Thomson]

I was playing cricket in England in 2001, and while I was fortunate enough to have a game at Swinley Forest I heard a rather broad Australian accent in the clubhouse at lunch (this particular gentleman was wearing a hideous blazer about 2 sizes too small!).

Turned out to be one Andrew Thomson, also from Brisbane and a former foe on the cricket fields in high school and also in the country studying and playing cricket, incredibly small world we live in!

I haven't actually spoken to him since then, nor seen him, but was surprised to discover he also visits GCA when I joined a couple of years back.  At the time, I certainly hadn't discovered this site, and I don't believe he had either.

Incredible.  I just walked down the main street of Brisbane and who was standing there at the lights chatting to a mutual friend?

His clothes seemed to fit a little better these days.

Bettsy,

I genuinely don't recall seeing you at Swinley, but the jacket is a dead giveaway.  It was actually a Radley blazer I borrowed from a former school mate at the last minute.

Good to see you and tittles today though and good luck in Detroit.

[Doug Wright]

Ron Pritchard last Friday morning waiting in the security line at the airport.

Nice guy....

Several years ago I was playing at Minikahda GC in Minneapolis as part of our firm's annual summer golf outing (alas now NLE). I came upon a gentleman standing alone by the par 3 6th hole. I walked over and introduced myself because he had that "look" of a golf course architect casing the joint. Turns out it was Ron Prichard, who was visiting in anticipation of his restoration work at Minikahda. We had a brief but nice chat. From this brief encounter, I agree that he is a very nice man. And he did a great job with the Minikahda Ross restoration too.