December 4, 2010 - Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course, La Quinta, California

Walking into the lobby of the clubhouse that the Jack Nicklaus and Stadium courses share takes you to a different place and time.  Dark wood surrounds you, cases with memorabilia from golfing greats beckon you at every turn, tile floors with the names of legends that have won titles on these courses are under your feet, and possibly the greatest pro shop in the world is a few steps away.  

With a sweeping vista of the course sits Ernie's, a restaurant and bar that carries on the burnished feel of the place.  Ernie's Bar & Grill  Stan and I sat down for breakfast; he ordered the Western Home Breakfast (scrambled eggs, breakfast potatoes, bacon and toast - what else?), and I had oatmeal with raisins and brown sugar, and orange juice.  Stan wasn't mad about his breakfast (he's never happy with the bacon, no matter where we are - he's on an endless search for good bacon, and, I have to hand it to him, he just keeps on trying), he didn't like the potatoes or the eggs, but he thought the coffee was delish!  My oatmeal was pretty bland, but it sticks to my ribs, which is what I was after.

Hearty breakfast fare at Ernie's at PGA West.

We saw Joe and his adorable wife, Kristi, and the soon-to-be-born Baby Dougherty at breakfast.  We warmed up a bit on the driving range (Joe wanted me to practice my chipping) and got to the first tee.   

Joe and Kristi Dougherty

The Nicklaus course is stunningly beautiful and more difficult than the Norman Course. Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course  The Greg Norman course can be forgiving in that if you miss the fairway, you usually wind up on hard dirt which can cause your ball to roll down to the fairway.  No such luck with the Nicklaus course.  The fairways are set apart by dormant grass hills and ravines (it looks like dead grass to me).  They are emerald green jewels surrounded by beige.  If you miss the fairway you are essentially screwed because the ravines snake around and through the fairways, cutting them off and making it difficult to make a shot.   

The dormant grass is deep and it seems to swallow your ball.  I had to dig out of that a number of times today, both in the ravines and on the hills.  Joe said that if he had known there were so many hills, he would have given us a hill lesson before we came.  He said that there was a quote in the clubhouse lobby about how this course was friendly to women.  I guess if you’re a female golf champion it’s friendly.  Otherwise, not so much.

Swallowed up by grass and the enormity of the hole.

I started out pretty well with a bogey on the first and third holes and a double bogey on the second.  Then, in rapid succession, came an 8, 10, 7 and 9.  Hoo boy.  Stan started out with an 8, then had a 7, 4, 7, 6, 7 and 10.  The great driving he had yesterday had somehow disappeared.  He said he lost his mojo.  But he sure had it on the 4^th hole where he had a 273 yard drive.  Amazing!  He was stoked, to say the least.  Stan is marking the scorecards with an “F” if we make the fairway.  Every time one of us would land on the fairway, we’d shout out “I get an F” which, when we were in school would not have made our parents very proud.  Today, it’s a different story.  Of course, Joe would smile at virtually every hole with a “Give me an F.”  He’s awesome!

We stopped in the clubhouse at the Market Cafe for a sandwich.  I had a turkey wrap and Stan had a hot dog.  Joe and Kristi had ordered and run off before I knew what they had for lunch.  No pictures of the food, but Stan loved his hot dog and my wrap fell apart.  I wasn't too happy with that; trying to keep myself clean and fed while bumping along the cart path and eating my sandwich.  It sure was great having Kristi along today.  Joe seemed so happy she was there, and I can see why.  She is so easy to be with and as cute as can be.

The back nine was a little better for me, but about the same for Stan.  He shot a 61 on both the front and the back for a total of 122.  I shot a 63 on the front and 60 on the back for a total of 123.  I hit 8 out of 14 fairways, but Stan hit only 3 out of 14.  Stan thought that after he had his hot dog he would get his driving mojo back, but it wasn't to be.  

We both had 43 putts today.  Even though our scores don’t tell the story, it was a very good instructional and learning day.  My chipping had improved quite a bit, although I still have a bit of trouble on my fairway shots.  My driving was so-so, and I never had more than a three-putt, so that was good.  My head is still traveling all over the place, and I have to learn to stay low, keep my head down and steady and use my legs.  Oh, I wish I could remember everything and not have my adrenaline kick in and my heart pound when I’m actually making a shot.

Happy playing golf together.

Joe, Kristi and the future Baby Dougherty.

After clearing out of the clubhouse, we headed for the hotel room and a quick shower before we met Gretchen, Stan's longtime friend, at The Homestead restaurant in La Quinta.  The Homestead  Gretchen and her husband, Rollie, live in La Quinta year-round.  They are avid tennis players and have no interest in golf, but I think Gretchen is happy we play golf here so she can see her old buddy Stan.  Rollie developed a case of the flu earlier in the day and decided it best to stay home, so it was just Gretchen, Stan and me.  The Homestead has to be one of the most charming places I've seen in a long time.  It kind of reminds me of a restaurant we went to in Atlanta, Georgia, all white clapboard, brick and homey-feeling.  It was originally a ranch home, built in the 1930s.  There is a fire pit in the back of the house where you can relax and have a cocktail or roast s'mores.  I got a beautiful glass of Murphy-Goode Pinot Noir.  Stan got a white zinfandel and Gretchen was already nursing a Chardonnay when we got there.  She was bundled up in a red plaid shawl, supplied by the restaurant, and looked like she could be on a Christmas card, sitting by the fire, wrapped in red plaid and a white fluffy scarf she had knitted herself.

Stan and Gretchen.  Note the long s'mores sticks.

We were seated by the fireplace inside where it was toasty warm and ordered our dinners.  Gretchen ordered sauteed calves liver with caramelized onions, apples and bacon ($19).  Stan ordered spaghetti and meatballs with marinara sauce ($13.50) and I ordered the New York steak, a 10-ounce hand cut steak with maitre'd butter for Stan and I to share ($28).  Each entree came with soup or house salad, fries or mashed potatoes (I asked for mashed but got a baked which made me happy), fresh vegetable (a sautee of julienned carrots, green beans and squash) and homemade rice pudding.  The prices were unbelievable for all the food we got.  We all ordered salad, which was chopped, and I ordered Ranch dressing on the side.  Their dressing was very good, and Stan, who is a salad guy, adored the creamy balsamic vinaigrette that was tossed on his salad.   

A simple salad, but very good.

My New York steak on the left and Stan's spaghetti and meatballs on the right.

Gretchen and her fantastic calves liver.

My steak was very tender and flavorful, so worth what we paid for it.  The maitre'd butter was tangy and good and added just that something that elevated the steak beyond ordinary.  Stan loved his spaghetti and meatballs.  He said the only meatballs that were better were the ones I make at home from Ina Garten's cookbook.  Gretchen said her calves liver was "fantastic."  

We left The Homestead knowing that we had a 5:00 a.m. wake up call for a 7:00 tee time.  I was ready to hit the hay and dream of perfecting my swing for the most difficult golf course in California.

December 3, 2010 - Greg Norman Golf Course, La Quinta, California

A 5:45 alarm this morning got us up and ready for a trip to Starbucks (half-caf, nonfat, no foam, two raw sugar latte) and Manhattan Bagel (sesame, lightly toasted with cream cheese) and on the road to La Quinta and our noon tee time at the Greg Norman Golf Course.  Greg Norman Golf Course

PGA West - The Greg Norman Golf Course Entrance

We met up with our golf pro, Joe Dougherty, and, since we were the only twosome from the GolfTec in Oxnard, he was sort of saddled with us.  After dropping into the pro shop and scoring a pair of sunglasses for Stan and a Greg Norman ball marker for me (I’m collecting), we got a couple of sandwiches (turkey and cheese and tuna), filled up a cup with ice and water and made our way to the driving range.  We did a wee bit of warm-up and then were off to tackle the course. 

Stan, me and Joe the Pro.

We had played this course in October on our previous trip here and we were looking forward to playing it again.  It was clear and beautiful, warm and perfect with no wind.  The Santa Rosa mountains are a gorgeous backdrop to the course, and the palm trees and bright green fairways are very inviting.  Greg Norman did all of us a favor in designing this course, both in its beauty and the fact that the wide fairways are like an oasis surrounded by desert dirt and scrub brush.  On your tee shot, if you hit a ball off the fairway, 7 out of 10 times, it will bounce off the hard dirt, roll onto the grass and give you another chance to score better.

Stan has decided to keep track of how many times we hit the fairway in a game and how many putts we make.  I think it’s a good idea, and it is a good monitor of the beginning and ending of each hole.  I had done some talking to myself this week relating to my expectations of my play on this course.  I wanted to cut myself some slack on my score because the courses will be playing on are tough.  Of course, I keep forgetting that I am a competitive person, both with myself and others, so this was easier said than done.  I didn’t expect to compete with Joe – he is amazing, as he should be – but I always want to improve and have an expectation that I will do better.  It’s disappointing when I don’t.

Our driving today was pretty darn good, if I do say so myself.  I was on the fairway 12 out of 14 times.  Stan was on the fairway 13 out of 14 times.  Sometimes the distances were pretty good, too.  Once I got on the fairway, however, I was having some trouble.  I did have some good shots using my 5 wood, but I was frequently topping the ball, and Joe was trying to figure out what I was doing wrong.  He thought it was my legs; he told me to especially use my left leg to drive the ball.  I tried that and had some success, but the topping continued.  He finally figured out that I was moving my head around during my swing and told me to try and keep it steady.  Well, when you try and correct one thing, something else suffers, and I became stiff on my drives which caused me to either chunk the ball or miss the fairway completely.  Towards the end of the day, I believe I was loosening up a bit which was helping my tee shots, and I felt I was getting back on track.  One thing I was sure of though, I needed to practice my fairway shots, especially using my 5 wood.

Our putting today was also pretty darned good.  I had 41 putts, 2.27 per hole and Stan had 40 putts, 2.22 per hole.  PGA rules states that if you use your putter off the green (from the first cut), it is not counted as a putt (even if it is just an inch).  Since the pros do it this way, we thought we would act professional and not count those few we each made from the first cut.

The 8^th hole, a par 5, was a nightmare for me.  After losing a ball in the water and not even making it to the green after 7 strokes, I picked up the ball.  The 9^th and 10^th holes were equally awful, and I was trying hard to get out of the funk I was in.  Even playing with Joe, with his and Stan’s encouragement, wasn’t helping.  I had to drag myself out of it.  A par always helps your attitude, and I managed to do just that on the 13^th hole.  Later in the game, I was able to be content with solid contact, even if it didn’t go exactly where I wanted it to go, even into the sand.  Speaking of the sand, I was at the beach a lot today, but I managed to get out every time in one stroke.  I am pretty happy with that, considering that some of these bunkers were very high.  Luckily, I did have a good lie every time.  Even Joe got in the sand - he and Stan had a gettin'-out competition.

Watching Joe is absolutely inspirational.  We loved watching his tee shots, his form, his confidence.  It is absolutely great.  Joe has a way of teaching that is low-key and uplifting.  His instruction is always positive, and when you do something right, he is a great cheerleader!  Joe is on the green each and every hole in regulation.  Somehow he makes the ball go just where he wants it to.  I’m so jealous! 

Joe is a young guy, about to become a father for the first time, and is a lot of fun to play with.  The little boy in him came out in a big way today with some golf cart antics:

We finished up at dusk; I had made par on the 17^th and double-bogeyed the 18^th, so not a terrible way to end.  I shot a 58 on the front and 59 on the back for a total of 117 (41 putts, which isn’t too bad).  Stan shot a 53 on the front and a 55 on the back for a total of 108 (40 putts).  He was very happy with his game today and with good reason.  He did very well; he only got into trouble a few times and managed to keep his scores pretty low.  I’m impressed with his getting 108 on a course of this caliber.  Joe shot a 79 from the Black Tournament tees.  It is awesome watching him strike the ball.

Not too bad for a tough course.

  We drove back to the resort, unpacked and made our way over to Adobe Grill for dinner, right on the property.  La Quinta Resort La Quinta is dressed for the holidays with beautiful Christmas trees sitting in the lobby, wreaths, lights and decorations everywhere.   

The gorgeous La Quinta resort.

The resort at night.

At night the trees are adorned with white lights and “It’s a Wonderful Life” is being projected on the side of a building near the restaurant.  We munched on warm tortilla chips with a trio of salsas; pico de gallo, a medium chipotle salsa and a hot green salsa, and we each got a GRANDE Cadillac margarita ($18) that was oh-so-good and oh-so-needed, made with El Jimador Reposado Tequila, Grand Marnier and fresh-squeezed lemon and lime juice.  Both were on the rocks, mine with salt and Stan’s without, and they were very, very refreshing, even though it was pretty chilly outside with a Christmas tree and man-made snow in the plaza near the lobby to accent the holidays.  Adobe Grill

Three kinds of salsas, warm chips and Cadillac margaritas - muy bueno.

Add some guacamole . . .

And a Casesar salad and quesadilla and you have a perfect dinner.

We ordered a table-side made order of guacamole with onions, tomatoes, Serrano chiles and cilantro ($11).  Stan likes it mild and I like it medium, so we compromised.  Stan thought it was a bit spicy and I thought it needed salt which I added.  Stan said he wasn’t very hungry, and I hadn’t eaten lunch, so I ordered a Caesar salad with pumpkin seeds, hearts of romaine and Southwestern Caesar dressing ($9) served in a tortilla-like container made from what seemed like fried cheese.  The “cheese” didn’t taste very good, though, so I was content to leave it alone.  The Caesar, however, tasted great.  Stan said it could have been one of the best ones he’d ever had.  The pumpkin seeds and small croutons added just the right crunch and texture to the romaine hearts with a perfect amount of dressing.  I also ordered a chicken machaca quesadilla which was served with guacamole and sour cream ($12).  The quesadilla was pretty good, but I have to say I was stuffed by the end of the meal.  Before tax and tip, we spent $68 on dinner, mostly, it seemed, on margaritas.  We waddled back to our room, where Stan promptly fell asleep.  I plan on doing the same.

Tomorrow it’s the Nicklaus course.  Rumor has it that it has a lot of undulating fairways and greens.  It punishes you for a missed shot.  That sounds like fun.

December 1, 2010 - Buenaventura Golf Course, Ventura, California

Oh hell.  The day started with such promise.  The weather was nice, we were playing with our golf buddies Mike Mahr and Bill Switzky, and then all kinds of mayhem broke loose.  But I digress . . .

Back at Buenaventura, I felt that I was ready to better my score from Monday.  Here I am, playing about twice a week, trying to go to the driving range at least once a week, taking lessons, and getting ready for a wonderful weekend in La Quinta where we'll play gorgeous and tough courses.  I love watching The Golf Channel, in fact Stan and I are somewhat obsessed with it.  We'd rather watch golf than football.  That's a switch, believe me.  So, to say that golf is a big part of our life right now would be something of an understatement.  Our friend Michael Lauber told me that he thinks Stan is taking the game a little too far.  Well, if he is, then so am I.  But we're loving it . . . at least until we get on the course.

My sweetheart - on the first fairway.

 
I started out fine.  I double-bogeyed the first three holes and felt pretty darn good.  Stan started keeping track of whether our drives hit the fairways, and out of 18 holes, we both made the fairway 11 times.  I also drove to the green on a par 3.  Not too bad.   And, you'd think that you'd probably play better on a golf course that you're pretty familiar with.  That was the case for Mike today, and Bill played pretty well too, but it wasn't to be for Stan and me. 

Teeing off for a good drive.  Really!

Although I hit a downhill slide, shooting two 9s and a 7 on the front nine, I bogeyed one hole and made par on two for a 55 on the front.  Stan was pretty consistent with my play - we shot the same; he had five 7s and two bogeys.  Mike shot two 8s, bogeyed five holes and made par on one.  Bill made par on one hole and bogeyed one, but had a bunch of sixes which kept his front nine at 51.  

I couldn't stay out of the sand today.  On one hole I had four sand shots - two to get out of one trap only to get stuck in another.  I shot a 9 on that hole, whichever one it was.  I choose to forget.  I can say one thing with certainty:  my sand wedge saw a lot of action and got very dirty. 

I'm wondering how much of my trouble is that I'm trying to change things.  The very thing that helped me on Monday seemed to hurt me today.  I am trying to keep my legs bent.  I tend to straighten them on my downswing which makes me top the ball.  I topped the ball today more than a few times, and tried to correct my leg position, but that may have created other problems.  Who really knows?

The boys - Mike, Bill and Stan.

The back nine is where I came undone.  The crazy part is that I bogeyed three holes, but still couldn't turn my game around and shot a 61, with two 9s and two 8s.  Stan shot very well except for two 8s and a 7, and he bogeyed four holes for a 54.  Bill bogeyed two holes but, for the most part, kept his scores in the 5s and 6s for a 53 on the back.  I saw a club "drop" after a chunk shot, but Little Billy didn't come out to play today.  He had no reason to!  Mike shot 6s on six of the back nine holes and bogeyed two holes for an outstanding 44.  He had a personal best of 93 today.  Congratulations Mike!  You are steady and solid; we are watching your game improve right before our eyes!  It's a wonderful thing!  

On to La Quinta where we have no business playing this caliber of course, but we're locked in.  Unfortunately, we won't have Susan and Jerry to play best ball with us this time.  We'll keep our fingers crossed!