Time never stands still does it? Ran and John started this site a few years ago, and it grew, and it grew, and it grew. Then, "Golf's Most Loved Figure" has his mug in Sports Illustrated, and the site grows some more. The old gang doesn't hang out as much around here as they used to. Too bad. I have learned so much from some of you who don't frequent the site as much these days. I too am guilty of not participating as much as I once did.
What this site is (to me)-
This site is a miracle. Through this site, I've made some great friends and met some fascinating people. I've met people like Tom MacWood, Robert Huntley, Steve Smyers, Brad Miller, Khristine Januzik, Richard Mandell, Bob Harrison and of course, Tommy Nacarrato. I've shared rounds of golf with people on both coasts that I had not met (other than at this site) prior to meeting them at the 1st tee on those special days. I would NEVER had made many of these acquaintances if it were not for this site. How cool is that? This site is a place to LEARN. My mother told me when I was about 10 years old that I would have a much easier time learning with my ears open and my mouth shut. (Advice to GCA participants: There are some really smart people who are willing to help the rest of us learn more about architecture at this site. If we stop telling everyone else how much we (don't) know, and ask more questions and listen to the answers you get, you just might learn something). Have fun with it and enjoy the wealth of information this site can offer.
What this site isn't (to me)-
A general site on golf. (It's about the architecture stupid!) Please leave the non architecture topics to sites that cater to those topics. This site also isn't a place for lynchings and mean spirited posting. I know there are the occasional uninformed posters hanging out here, but who among you knew everything there was to know about architecture the day you were born (OK Ran, don't answer that question). All these fueds and wars really drag this site down (and is why, I believe, many of my favorite GCA'ers don't participate as much any more). PLEASE COME BACK! Anyway, enjoy the site for what it is (a place to make friends and learn about golf architecture) and when posting, apply the rule Ran always uses when he evaluates topics on this site: "What can we learn about architecture within this topic".
OK, I'll get off of my soap box now. Thanks for listening.
TS