After a restless night of very little sleep (for me - Stan slept like a baby), we left the house at 5:20 a.m., it was pitch dark. We made our usual stop at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in Montecito for Stan (he gets a coffee and the cheese crumble and I got a plain yogurt), and then made a second stop at Starbucks. Sorry CBTL, I just like the lattes better at Starbucks. And they're bigger too! We ate in the car and headed north to Petaluma for our first golf stop; Adobe Creek Golf Club.
After a quick bite at Chipotle's in Palo Alto, we took the 45 minute drive to Petaluma. The weather was beautiful today in the Bay Area, crossing the Golden Gate Bridge was as clear and crisp as I'd ever seen it. Everyone was out walking or biking across the bridge, there were sailboats in the Bay; it was a picture-perfect day. Unfortunately, as I was driving and Stan was resting, we didn't take any perfect pictures.
We had originally planned to play golf at Rooster Run, but they were aerating the greens, so we opted for Adobe Creek. Adobe Creek Golf Club It turned out to be a good choice. The weather held in Petaluma, it was a lovely 82 degrees.
Adobe Creek is a links-style course. There aren't very many trees or water hazards, there is tall grass that can get you in real trouble, and the fairways are wide and forgiving. There were Canadian Geese everywhere, so we were constantly side-stepping to avoid goose poo. The course was pretty wet and muddy in places, and there was little to no water in the ball washing stations, which was rather irritating considering the mud, etc.
I was jacked up from the coffee I had for breakfast and the iced tea I had for lunch, plus I was suffering from the long drive and the lack of sleep. My hands were shaking through the 11th hole, but then I settled down and felt better. Oddly enough, my front nine was better than my back by four strokes. 50 on the front, 54 on the back (one par) for a total of 104. Not bad for my first time on the course, but maybe I should overdose on caffeine more often before playing golf.
The opposite was true for Stan. He struggled on the front and did very well on the back. He finally got his mojo back on his drives and his fairway shots were going straight and far. He had two pars and a birdie and shot a 99! The video below was taken on the 18th hole. His drive was fantastic, and he hit this 200 yard approach shot with his 3 wood. It landed just off the green.
Our scores are proof (at least here) that we're getting better. I felt like I shot a horrible game and still wound up with a 104. Not great, not perfect, not what I was hoping, but not terrible.
Checked in to Best Western Petaluma Inn. Best Western Petaluma Inn Lindsey at the front desk was just terrific. She even offered to help us drag up all of our stuff to our room (which we declined, by the way). There are no elevators here and we're on the 2-1/2 floor. Nice enough room; pretty basic but clean with a comfortable bed and enough pillows. Just what you'd expect at Best Western.
We left our luggage in the room and walked next door to Palms Grill. Palms Grill According to the hostess, they had been open only a couple of months. They certainly had their act together. I had the petite size chicken piccata covered with mushrooms and capers with a lemony sauce, white rice (I substituted this for mashed potatoes) and fresh, steamed vegetables (zucchini, carrots and broccoli, perfectly cooked). The chicken was fork tender and the portion was just perfect. Even though it was a petite sized dinner, I was very full and didn't even finish the rice.
Stan had the bacon, bleu cheese burger (shock!), and thought it was very good. He asked for the bacon on the side, and he thought it was so-so. The burger was juicy, tasty and slightly pink inside, just as he ordered it. He ordered a side salad for an additional $1.50 and loved the feta cheese vinaigrette with the crunchy greens.
Tomorrow we go to Grants Pass, Oregon. The weather forecast is rain, so I doubt that we'll be playing golf, but we may find out a thing or two about Grants Pass. Stay tuned...
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