2013 To-Do List

[Mark Chaplin]

Scott - it's Full(ty) Towers, no vacancies, ever, sorry! 

[Kevin_D]

Trying to tack on playing Sunningdale old and/or new onto a business trip in late March as well now.  GCA has inspired me!

Kevin

[Nigel Islam]

Have my tee time booked for the Old Course in July
Hope to get to play with some GCAers this year.
Everybody seems to be going to Camargo so surely someone could take me with them

[ChipRoyce]

1. Keep working on my game and see if I can get down to a 5 (from 8 this year)
2. Get out to a GCA event for first time since playing in Matt Burrough's charity outing at NGLA back many moons ago
3. Go off reservation at some local gems: Dormie (again), Chapel Ridge (new with Jerry K), Tobacco Rd (again)
4. Pine Tree? (if we head down to FL for spring break - my inlaws are a few blocks away in Delray)

[Paul Jones]

1. Attend Dixie Cup
2. Play the following new courses:

Streamsong Resort (Red and Blue)
Cabot Links
Rock Creek Cattle

3. Play the following old courses I haven't played yet:

Highland Links
Muirfield Village
Scioto
Valley Club

[Mark Saltzman]

Let's just call Streamsong a given for everyone's lists.

I'd like to meet The Emperor, The Judge, The Redanman and Boy for the first time in their home locales.

Visit Mac at Rivermont.  Sheehy once he joins a heathland club.  I will continue to avoid JB and Cheech.  And many more.

Very happy to have met many new GCAers in 2012.. looking forward to more of the same in 2013!

Tick on Streamsong.  It'll be three visits by the end of '13.

Met the Redanman and am disappointed to have missed The Emperor even though I was in La Habra.  My bad.

I expect to meet The Judge and RedanBoy in '14, if they're interested.

Played with Mac at Rivermont.  Sheehy didn't join a heathland club.  I avoided JB but had to suffer through two days of Bandon with Cheech.

Looking forward to meeting several of the Australian GCAers in a couple of months!

[Pete_Pittock]

Decided to delay the Nova Scotia trip until the second Cabot course comes on line.

Bucket lists
Checked off Streamsong during the GCA spring training outing,
Erin Hills in a prelude to the Midwest Mashie.  Also got to see what Lawsonia love is all about and made the Midwest Mashie at Kingsley. I hadn't been there since grow-in.

Maintained my posse status at Sagebrush and remain open to hosting GCAers.
Herded a small GCA outing at Wine Valley with an appearance by Slagdoon.
Witnessed two keys locked in cars at GCA events
Ushering The King's Putter around despite its bailjumping the MW trip.

[Joe Leenheer]

I batted .500 ...which I guess is not bad.

Streamsong was a joy
Played my first Raynor....hooked.

Didn't get to meet Lady Merion due to scheduling conflicts
...and The Match got out of hand early. There's always next year (sounding like a true Cleveland area sportster)

What a great thread! Whoever started it should do so again in the new year!  

[Jud_T]

Pretty low key year:

Midwest Mashie at Kingsley with the good guys keeping the cup.
Belvedere, Briarwood and Kankakee Elks were all pleasant surprises.
Had the pleasure of touring and playing several Colt courses with old drinking buddy Frank Pont.
Rounded out my set of hickories through obsessive internet browsing and networking with other fanatics.

[Nigel Islam]

I guess I did pretty good on my wish list. Got to play The Old Course( incredible experience), and met 4 fellow golf club atlasers. Plus I talked one of my good friends to joining. I feel truly blessed that I even got to experience more than I wished for too.

[Bill McKinley]

1. Streamsong Red & Blue in January
2. Hopefully another quick winter getaway to Palm Beach area or maybe Colleton River in SC.
3. A return trip to the Vatican of Golf before the US Open.
4. Bandon. --Very remote chance, but here's hoping!!

Pretty much hit .500 according to that list, but I had a few unexpected plate appearances in Long Island, Northern Michigan and Chicago.  Amazing Year!!... Still gotta do the Bandon thing though!

[BHoover]

1. Camargo
2. Canterbury
3. The Country Club (Pepper Pike)
4. Attend at least one GCA event

Oh, and my wife and I have discussed trying to have a baby, so I should probably include that as well.   

Well, I hit .500 this year. Had the chance to play Canterbury for the first time (and meet two great guys in Bill McKinley and Jonathan Becker). Also went to Kingsley for the Midwest Mashie (and again met many great guys).

Didn't get to either Camargo or The Country Club (I'll try again next year), but I did get out to The Golf Club and Pete Dye GC along with a few other interesting courses this year. And, my wife and I are expecting our first child, a boy (and hopefully future GCA addict), in February!

[BCowan]

2013 was great

 Played my first Colt/Alison course- Plum Hollow CC
 Played my new favorite Willie Park Jr track- Battle Creek CC (in my top 5 now)
 Played Kingsley Club- Great track, every greens committee needs to play and experience how a course should be set up...
 Hosted TWGS events in Ann Arbor- turned out very nice, great fun
 Finally played Pine Needles -Awesome ross track
 Mid pines restoration was very impressive

2014 List
Camargo
the Golf club
moraine
OSU Scarlet
Kirtland
Canton Brookside
Franklin Hills
Crystal Downs
Belevedere
Orchard Lake CC
Indianwood
Oakland Hills
Look out Mountain

[David Davis]

1. 5th Major - maybe
2. Be a good host at BUDA in NL
3. England Heathland courses
4. PA - a year old invite to Oakmont I need to cash in before the statute of limitations is evoked which can hopefully be combined with some other East Coast gems since I've never golfed on the East Coast.
5. Try to figure out how to encourage my kids to join and have more fun with golf.
5.5 Have the supreme court in NL decide positively on our permits so we can start creation of our new first hole in August.
6. Meet and marry rich attractive woman who needs a young (at heart) golf, tennis and ski partner. Preferably with houses in Hamptons, Monterey Peninsula, Chamonix, St. Anton and Monaco. I want to keep it realistic but she's also a single hcp golfer - from the men's tees, and heavily into fitness and yoga. Age is irrelevant as long as she's over 29 and under 50, maybe 55. That leaves a lot of open options so should be doable.
7. Do I mention finding the genie lamp now or do I have to put that as #1?

***Note: If you could all just pray for me and visualize number 6, I promise there will be all kinds of golf invites coming around as I spread the joy.

Actually kind of funny to see this now. I didn't do half bad to be honest.

1. My maybe worked out, 5th Major check. Didn't win though and I figured with my partner I couldn't miss. Let him down but had fun.
2. Also had a great time hosting BUDA, but it's not for me to say if I was a good host. I will just judge by the amount of fun everyone had and assume I was good enough.
3. Only managed to play Woodhall Spa this year, major disappointment that course. So I did one.
4. Oakmont, check. Along with Baltusrol, Somerset Hills and Pine Valley. Nice small sampling of East Coast golf to start. Checked that oen off.
5. Failed on this one miserably, damn. In fact, now our case has been passed to the European Court and is being compared to the moving  of a major freeway in the South of The Netherlands that will affect a Natura 2000 environmentally protected area. Means at least a 2 year delay.
6. The most important part of this one I've funny enough succeeded in. Met the girl, not getting married anytime soon but she's living with me and puts up with the golf. Hmmm...and I guess you could say she's attractive (although gorgeous is a better word) and into fitness. I guess "close" counts in horseshoes, hand grenades, nearys and my point 6.
7. I suppose I didn't need 7 to get the rest.

I'd call it a success. I also got to play arguably the Sacred Nine several times, It was great but I'm more of an 18 holes kind of guy.

[Brian Finn]

I got to see some great new courses this year, many with gca friends new and old. With my season winding down (6 inches of snow and no travel plans until new year) here are my top 13 for '13...

1   The Golf Club
2   Plainfield CC
3   Course at Yale
4   Rock Creek Cattle Co.
5   Streamsong - Blue & Red
6   Kingsley Club
7   Holston Hills
8   Pete Dye GC
9   Exmoor CC
10 Lookout Mountain
11 Moraine CC
12 Paramount CC
13 Hyde Park

Honorable Mention:  Forest Creek – South, Dunes G&BC, North Shore CC

Looking forward to seeing you all out on the links again in 2014.

[Mark Chaplin]

I think I beat Brian and joined a heathland course - Worplesdon - before he did!

Now a proud member of a good links (Deal), a good parkland (Flossmoor), a great club (Outpost) as well as the heathland.

[Sean_A]

I think I beat Brian and joined a heathland course - Worplesdon - before he did!

Now a proud member of a good links (Deal), a good parkland (Flossmoor), a great club (Outpost) as well as the heathland.

And all on a copper's pension...ain't life grand?

I know its hard to believe, but Sheehy has been a bit hard done by.  I am not religious man so praying is out.  I am also not in a position to pull strings, so nepotism (in the gca.com family sense) is out.  Nonetheless, I wish him all success in obtaining heathland membership even if the bugger is being very picky!

Sheehy let me down - 0 fer

For myself

Trip to Aberdeen for Cruden Bay, R Aberdeen, Carnasty Burnside & Montrose Medal - quad tic - Burnside was my quite favourite

Maybe a trip down to Deal when S Warren is in town - Si, with a game at Royal Ashdown chucked in

Maybe Ganton with Sheehy - we need to get off our asses - a major coup with the terrific Alwoodley really stealing the show!

I must make the effort to see The Sacred 9 - I don't know what my problem has been - another major coup!!

As always, R Ashdown Forest & Pulborough are on the list - though like Ganton, I wonder if these places actually exist - push one into 2014 and the other over the cliff

Lindrick too has been pulling at my strings...  heavy sigh

Perhaps Buda, but I seriously doubt it - didn't think so


Balanced against my failures were some great unexpected successes.  Mid Pines, Dormie and especially Old Town is about as good as it gets for me.  There was also a surprise trip to Seacroft with Hunstanton and Woodhall Spa making up the trio; Hunstanton easily stole this show - a very undervalued course.

I also unexpectedly made a return visit to the Duchy of Cornwall and visited two old friends - St Enodoc and Perranporth.  Well, in the ultra firm conditions with bright sun on my back - links doesn't get any better.

Finally, I recently dropped in on Walton Heath.  This is what heathand golf is meant to at least look like.  The tranquilty of the setting only marred by the m25 - is 1986 the year of the most influential change at Walton Heath?

I hope to have a few more surprises up my sleeve - still 3.5 weeks remaining.

Ciao