King's Putter May 3-5

[Dan King]

The date and place has been finalized, all that is left is the exact courses and participants.

This years King's Putter (XIII?) will be May 3-5 on the central coast of California and will commemorate the Battle of Chancellorsville's 150 anniversary. Again it will feature north versus south. I've been preparing my beard for months.

I have a piece of a beach house in Cayucos, California -- just north of Morro Bay, and about a half hour north of San Luis Obispo. The plan is to make this King's Putter more geared toward people who have tighter money issues.  If you aren't picky about your sleepy arraignments you can stay at the beach house in Cayucos for free. It is a four bedroom, so if you wan to reserve one of the bedrooms you'll have to kick in on the cleaning fees ($180).  Otherwise there is plenty of futons and floor space to crash.

The course will also be reasonably cheep (as cheep as California ever gets.) I haven't made any tee times yet (hoping to get a decent head count first) but we will probably play the Links as Paso Robles on Friday (on Highway 46, almost half way point between the L.A. area and the Bay Area) with some playing San Luis CC in the afternoon. I figured Saturday would be a good day to play Dairy Creek or Morro Bay -- hopefully early enough to get in 36. On Sunday we might play one of the newer courses just south of SLO.

I'd like to get an idea of how many people might be showing up. Either respond here or send me a message if you think you might be able to make it. If you want to play San Luis CC on Friday message  Neal Meagher to let him know asap. Gib and Neal did some work at SLCC, and he has arraigned a limited number of tee times for Friday.

More than likely we will have plenty of drinking, card playing and maybe some beach golf between rounds, so all the money you are going to save on lodging, bring it along for some poker and other gambling.  There are also some nice lodging choices in and around Cayucos, so let me know if you want to find more traditional lodging.

Cheers,
Dan King

Splosh! One of the finest sights in the world: the other man's ball dropping in the water - preferably so that he can see it but cannot quite reach it and has therefore to leave it there, thus rendering himself so mad that he loses the next hole as well.
 --Henry Longhurst, 1959

[Pete_Pittock]

IN

Link to old thread http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,54375.0.html

[astavrides]

.

[Joe_Tucholski]

Is it a problem if we are unable to attend Friday?  I'd like to come but can't really get there until Friday late afternoon.

[Mike Sweeney]

Dan,

In order to help the tax situation of California, The Sweeney's are doing Year II of Surf Camp in California in San Diego over July 4th. I love the spirit of this King's Putter and I regret that I will have to miss it. The Central Coast of California is very underrated in golf, wine and life in general.

Cheers.

[JLahrman]

This date will make it harder for me attend, put me down as unlikely but hopefully attendance is still high...

[Tom Yost]

I am tentative for the KP2013.  I will actually be returning to work on Mon Apr 29 following a two week vacation.  To immediately take off a couple more days may be sketchy.  Not impossible however, it largely depends on what's waiting for me when I get back.

For anyone considering attending, I highly recommend it.  Great group of guys.  If Mr. Pittock attends, count on him sharing some excellent Oregon Pinot.

[Neal_Meagher]

As Dan said we have between 3 and 4 tee times available to us the afternoon of Friday May 3 at San Luis Obispo CC, for a total of up to 16 players.  The tee times will be around 1:30 to 2:00 pm, although we may want to make it more like 2:00 - 2:30 pm as the golf course is at the southern end of SLO and about a half hour drive from the morning course which is just north of Paso Robles.

I would imagine that some may wish to simply play the Links course in the morning and then Hunter Ranch which is across the street in the afternoon, but the following are confirmed to play at SLO CC so far:

Garland Bailey
Dan King
Tim Leahy
Bob McGhie

Alex Miller
Gib Papazian
Pete Pittock
A. Stavrides

Listed as maybe's at this point:

Lou Duran
Tom Huckaby

I have sent messages to all these folks so far but if I have missed someone let me know.  And yours truly will be in attendance to facilitate hosting duties.

The course at SLO CC is a late 1950's number by the fairly prolific old California golf pro Bert Stamps.  It has a fairly interesting routing although it is a bit hilly in spots, but the views of the surrounding vineyards and hills make the setting a very good one.  In 2011 Gib was instrumental in working with me to renovate all of the bunkers which were very steep-faced and prone to washing out in storms, thus very contaminated and nasty to play from.  No more.  

Additionally, we rationalized quite a few mowing lines to the consternation (at the time) of more than a few members but our goal was to cut the fairways directly to the bunker edges, especially in regard to fairway bunkers so we could eliminate that pesky, ridiculous, wasteful, unneeded band of superfluous rough between fairway cut and fairway bunker.  So at SLO CC most of the bunkers no longer are wading knee deep in a mournful lost land of rough with no connection to any other parts of the course.  It is all now more "connected".   Some spots remain but that is only temporary until the kikuyu sod placed over the new work fully heals in and can be mowed to true fairway height.  There was a thread last year showing a few of the before and after shots of the course but I posses not the knowledge of how to link to that.  Perhaps one of the smarter members of this august body can do that.

[Garland Bayley]

Neal,

You can put me and my friend Bob McGhie down for San Luis Obispo for Friday afternoon.

All,

Bob will take guests to Santa Maria CC Sunday afternoon if anyone is interested. Right now I don't know how many he can take. Obviously at least three.

[Garland Bayley]

... If Mr. Pittock attends, count on him sharing some excellent Oregon Pinot.

My intention is to show that Oregon is not a one trick pony, and will bring some Oregon Gamay Noir. Don't confuse this with California Gamay, as Californians can't even figure out what grape is in their wine. I forget what is grape they use, but it is not the Burgundian gamay grape that is used in the Oregon wine.

[Pete_Pittock]

I'll discuss wine and tequila on the old thread (linked at reply #1) and leave this to golf

[David_Tepper]

I will not be able to attend May 3-5. However, I am hoping to spend a long weekend in the Paso Robles/SLO area in mid-February and play at least a couple of the King's Putter courses. If I have any worthwhile insights, I will pass them along.

[Pete_Pittock]

There are two threads on the King's Putter. That is my fault since the other was veering to tequila and pinot. This is the official one.
Brent Hutto, Alex Miller and Joe Tucholski are trying to coordinate on the other thread.

[Dan King]

It probably is my fault.  The other one the dates wasn't set in stone and I thought I new thread with the specific date was warranted.

I'm a little concerned. There has only been less than a dozen people expressing interest in the King's Putter.

Cheers,
Dan King

A tournament goes on for days. It is played at a dangerously high mental pressure. Golf makes its demands on the mind. A golfer is terribly exposed in almost every way. The responsibility is his and there is no way to camouflage this, no hope of jettisoning it.
  --Peter Alliss

[Brent Hutto]

You can put me on the "expressed interest" list. I'm on the yes side of 50/50 but still ciphering on it at the moment...

[Pete Lavallee]

I'm a little concerned. There has only been less than a dozen people expressing interest in the King's Putter.

Dan,

We know where  and when we are going to get drunk, eat and sleep, but where the hell are we going to play golf! Perhaps people would like a little more information on that part of the trip before they commit. You seem to want to play 36 on Sat at a public course, with another public lined up for Sun. Has anyone tried to figure out if this is even doable? Hell, just getting one tee time for one foursome on the weekend is like pulling teeth here in sunny SD.  Line up the courses, block out the tee times, make an announcement and I'm sure they'll be coming out of the woodwork to sign up.

[Joe_Tucholski]

I'm a little concerned. There has only been less than a dozen people expressing interest in the King's Putter.

Dan good news is going through the threads I came up with about 20.  Not sure how accurate the list is as some expressed interest in the other dates and did not revise their interest (there were a few people who indicated they had to back out of the May date and they aren't listed below).

Dan King   
Pete_Pittock   
astavrides   
Joe_Tucholski - weekend (maybe afternoon Friday).
JLahrman - unlikely
Tom Yost - tentative
Neal_Meagher - not sure if he's just in for SLO CC
GJ Bailey   
Brent Hutto   Maybe
Tim Leahy
Bob McGhie - not sure if he's just in for SLO CC
Alex Miller - Friday afternoon on
Gib Papazian   
Lou Duran maybe
Tom Huckaby maybe
David_Tepper maybe edit: sorry I did see your earlier post saying you couldn't make the may date but for whatever reason didn't delete your name
Ted Cahill   
Patrick Kiser   
ed_getka   
??other non GCA particpants????unsure on numbers

[David_Tepper]

Joe T.  and Dan K. -

I will definitely not be able to make it to the KP on May 3-5.

I am hoping to make it down to the SLO area over the 3-day holiday weekend in February and play some of the nearby courses. If I have any keen insights or worthwhile observations  to share, I will certainly do so.

DT

[JLahrman]

Please downgrade me from likely to unlikely.

[Garland Bayley]

Bob McGhie probably will be in for all the competition as he was last year. I say probably, because I have not asked him that specific question.
He is checking on how many he can get on Santa Maria CC Sunday afternoon. Right now we have Bob, me, and Tim L for what I assume will be a casual round, as my guess was that competition would be over after a Sunday morning round at Monarch Dunes.

If Bob can only have himself + 3 at SMCC, I will caddy for Bob, and give up my place in the foursome.

[Garland Bayley]

I'm a little concerned. There has only been less than a dozen people expressing interest in the King's Putter.

Dan,

We know where  and when we are going to get drunk, eat and sleep, but where the hell are we going to play golf! Perhaps people would like a little more information on that part of the trip before they commit. You seem to want to play 36 on Sat at a public course, with another public lined up for Sun. Has anyone tried to figure out if this is even doable? Hell, just getting one tee time for one foursome on the weekend is like pulling teeth here in sunny SD.  Line up the courses, block out the tee times, make an announcement and I'm sure they'll be coming out of the woodwork to sign up.

Don't know how golf is doing in the central coast now. Two years ago when I was there, it was overabundant compared to the number of golfers. I played Rancho Maria, Santa Maria CC, Rancho San Marcos, and Monarch Dunes tues-fri with few golfers in sight.

[Dan King]

I was hoping to get a number before I started calling courses, but I guess I should get on it. My experience in that area is the same as GJ. Many more tee times than golfers. Nothing like San Diego.

I will start lining up courses next week. The plan is to play Paso Robles links on Friday morning. Some are playing SLCC Friday afternoon. I'd like to play 36 at Dairy Creek on Saturday, and then not clear where we will play Sunday morning. More than likely somewhere that would let us out as a group reasonably early so people can head home early.

Ideally we could also fit in some time for some beach golf. This doesn't not have the spectacular factor of many of the past King Putters, but hopefully we can make up for that with fun, drinking, smoking, card playing, and general hijinx.

Cheers,
Dan King

Golf is a dumb game. Hitting the ball is the fun part of it, but the fewer times you hit the ball the more fun you have. Does that make any sense?
 --Lou Graham

[Tim Leahy]

Monarch Dunes as a finisher Sunday morning would be great and it is on the way to Santa Maria for those of us headed that way.

[Garland Bayley]

Bob has reserved tee times for 8 for Sunday afternoon at Santa Maria CC.

I really enjoy the back 9 at SMCC.

PM me any queries.

[David Ober]

God I'd love to join you guys, but my May is just absolutely packed. I'll be on my way to Houston for the Carlton Woods Invitational that weekend, darn it.....