Where does the time go anyway?

Hello Everyone, I can't believe I've been so negligent in my posting recently but I have a good excuse... a perfect excuse actually...GOLF!

So, settle back, relax, and let me get caught up.

NEW YEAR'S DAY -For a variety of reasons I missed the Golf Nut Slam, playing on New Year's Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day, in 2008. The Weatherman was really friendly on 1/1/2009 and Las Vegas was sunny and almost 60 degrees. I scraped a few layers of rust off my game and enjoyed 18 holes at Dragon Ridge Country Club. Even though this is my home course, I hadn't played it in awhile. Over the past three years I have served on the Board of Directors of this club. The course is a Jay Moorish/David Drusinsky design and is relatively new, having opened in 2000. The golf course is very unique. It falls somewhere between high-desert golf and mountain golf. When the course re-opened after September overseeding, some "teeth" were added to the 7,039 yard par 72 layout. A low first-cut of rough and a deep primary rough was added. Believe me, shots that miss the fairway and the first cut now leave a much more difficult shot. With a rating and slope of 73.2/138, Dragon Ridge was not exactly a lay-down before the new rough. Now, the course plays a couple of strokes harder and is really a Must-Play in Las Vegas. If you are planning to visit Las Vegas, be sure to contact me and I'll do my best to get you on this excellent track.

How'd I do? Let's not talk about that, OK? I'll just tell you that a tap-in birdie on 14 allowed me to shoot 38 on the back-nine, even after a triple-bogey on 13!

SUNDAY, JANUARY 4 - TUSCANY GOLF COURSE - 

I am a fan of this layout in Henderson. The problem ususally occurs here because the condition of the course rarely lives up to the layout.

The Ted Robinson-designed Las Vegas golf course Tuscany Golf Club has been named by Golf Magazine as your "Best Bang for your Las Vegas golf buck", and is a fun, playable layout with typical Robinson flare. Unique and intriguing par 3 holes, rolling, wide fairways, and nice water features accent the layout. On the front side, most of the tees are elevated to allow players a complete view all the way to the green. The back nine includes a few elevated tees, but most of it plays on more level ground. Both nines require few forced carries, and water comes into play on just four holes.

Yep, it's all good until somebody gets frostbite, right? Left to right, Two Docs, Chudacoff and Panuncialman, wait for a turn to "warm up." BTW... I heard each of them on their cell phones talking to patients and although they didn't say; "Take an aspirin, and call me in the morning." It was close! In their best Duffer apparel, Mark "Ballast" Stephan and "G-Money" Brenkus. (Sadly a fine performance by G-Money wasn't enough to get this two-some in-the-money!) Finally, making a grand fashion statement by wearing what I imagine were SNOWMOBILE golves, J.C. "Hawkeye" Melvin. I'm guessing that the lack of feel in those gloves didn't help his score any.

I really have trouble playing in cold weather. I guess it is because I play in it so seldom. The same thing applies to rain! Since Las Vegas maintains a climate with little cold or percipitation, I'm ill prepared for bad weather. Wind is another issue. It was only a two-club wind at Tuscany which usually means I compete quite well. Let's just chaulk this round up to "rusty." Ask me privately to tell you what I shot!

 For more information on the Desert Duffers and the day at Tuscany, go to the Golf Nut Forum - "Desert Duffers...Hey, Lag it up Close!"

SATURDAY, JANUARY 10TH - GOLF GALAXY AMATEUR TOUR at SILVERSTONE GOLF CLUB

Golf Nut member and good friend, Dan Presta is the Las Vegas Director of the Golf Galaxy Amateur Tour. For two weeks prior to this event, Dan tracked the incoming weather fronts like a first-class meteorologist. In fact, Dan sent repeated emails to all Golf Galaxy Members letting them know that the weather would be 65 degress on Saturday. Well, he never actually said WHICH Saturday because the temperature hung in the high 40s which wouldn't have been that bad except for a 3-club, bone-chilling wind whipping off the mountains! 

Silverstone Golf Club is a Robert Cupp design with three different nine-hole layouts, the Mountain, Valley and Desert. Don't let the names fool you, this is all desert, target golf. No matter which layouts you get to play, you'll find plenty to challenge your game. The Golf Galaxy group played the Valley and Mountain nines, which meant we would have to contend with #3. You see the third hole on the Mountain nine is the longest par 5 in Nevada, measuring a grueling 653 yards! Even though this hole plays slightly downhill, it still takes three good shots to reach a well protected green.

My playing partner was Golf Nut and Desert Duffer, Tom Emanuel. Together we were simply unable to avoid some big mistakes and carded a 6 over round to wind up out-of-the-money. For me, one of the high points of the day was watching Mr. Steve Cohen. Steve has been a member of the Golf Galaxy Amatuer Tour for awhile and is now our newest member of the Golf Nut Society! Under the extremely difficult conditions we faced, Steve cared seven biridies... I'll repeat that 7 BIRDIES! If not for two miserable holes, Steve might have had a chance to best the course record! As it was, it was an incredible performance by a very gifted amateur golfer.

For more information about the Golf Galaxy Amateur Tour and the day at Silverstone Golf Club, go to the Golf Nut Forum ... "Golf Galaxy Tour." 

Check out tomorrow's Front-Page story and you'll understand why I'm ending my blog right here today!