Highways and Fairways

PGA West

We arrived in Desert Hot Springs, CA on Saturday to the incredible hospitality of our dear friend Kaye who took us in from the howling wind.  Ahh, a real bedroom, a big shower, and a lovely backyard to sit and have our morning coffee.

 

With an empty lot next door for our house, we had wonderful snow capped mountain and expansive desert views.

 

Our days have been spent doing nothing but work, work, work, at least we call it that but most wouldn't.  We've been grateful for Kaye's Doggie Day Care while we spend our days with realtors and membership directors.

The furry man got to hang all day pool side with Darcy and Murphy...

 

That photo was taken moments before Peanut tried to step on the raft to fetch the tennis ball.  Kaye had to put the camera down to pull Peanut out of the water when his front paws began to sail away on the raft leaving his rear paws on the edge.  Very funny!

The kids were exhausted after their day in the pool and napped together, even with Baci the cat!

 

As you can imagine, Peanut is not excited about leaving Auntie Kaye's Doggie Day Care!

We have spent a fair amount of our time this week checking out PGA West in LaQuinta.

 

With 6 championship golf courses and three club houses, this club truly is for the golf enthusiasts who don't mind being away from the city, nightlife, and other action the desert has to offer.  We were taken well care of by the membership director who had lunch with us at the member's club and then sent us out to play a round of golf on one of the three private courses.  Home of the Bob Hope Classic, PGA West also is open to public play on three of the courses as well.  We played the Nicklaus private course which offered up plentiful mountain views with perfectly manicured greens and fairways.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see, it is mostly flat or rolling terrain, but Jack uses the rocky hills to perch tee boxes in those hills offering up "where's Waldo" moments.

 

Given we're in the desert I was surprised by how much water was on the course.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I learned that there is a fine line, or shall I say mark, between a hole in one and a double bogie.

 

That would be the imprint left by the very tippy top of the flag stick as my ball zeroed in on that hole only to end up in the sand pit of despair across the damn green!

Other than that little mishap, we both enjoyed the lay out and the well paced greens.  With six courses to choose from each day, the ability to drive our own cart with no limits to what it looks like or who can ride in it:

 

 

it seems like the perfect place for us, right?  Well, there is always a glitch, huh?  The initials are BK, yup the club is currently in Chapter 11.  There is a new buyer but the outcome is still a bit fuzzy.  Still, after another day with a realtor we came dang close to making an offer on a short sale (we are still bickering on that subject).

Instead we opted to check out Mission Hills before making a final decision.  Our timing is again interesting as Mission Hills is currently hosting the Dinah Shore LPGA event.  With three private courses and the ability to play two additional courses for free, it's another real possibility for us.  We have toured the club, checked out real estate, and our slated to play the Palmer course today while the LPGA is playing the Dinah Shore today.  They played a Pro Am on the Palmer yesterday so the condition should be tournament-like.  Should be fun!  Tomorrow more house hunting...

In the meantime we have finally checked out of Kaye's Bed and Breakfast (and dinner and dog boarding) but not before having some wonderful home cooked meals and sushi flown in from San Diego.

 

 

Kevin treated us to his mother's recipe for Kahlua cake (yum!) and Mike and Jimmy wolfed down the uni, aka baby poop.  What a great time we have had this week with Kaye, Jimmy, and Kevin!  Thanks folks!

More on Mission Hills to come...must get ready to golf!

Anthem, Arizona

Jose, can you see? Oops, that's the OTHER anthem. So sorry I haven't updated in about a week but when I started this thing up again I warned that I would not let this thing become a job again. Finding a home and a club and the due diligence involved in this is a full time job by itself.

OK, so Mike was convinced Anthem was the place. Fact, homes have fallen more than 50% since their hay day. Fact, the club meets our criteria of two courses, a trail fee for your cart, and very reasonable fees and dues. We have spent nearly everyday with our realtor, Kathleen, who has shown us nearly every home available with a three car garage. Homes range between three and four thousand square feet (too much) and mostly look like this...

with views like this...

All for between $400,000 and $500,000 depending on the lot,view, and upgrades. In between house hunting the Membership Director arranged for us to play both of the courses. We began with the easier of the two, Persimmon, which didn't seem to play so easily and offered up some very nice views.

A favorite of the higher handicaps, Persimmon offers vast landing areas, large greens, little crap to crawl over to reach those large greens, and yet is not without trouble.

Those large greens...full of ridges and tough to putt.

Next we played the harder of the two, Ironwood, which oddly enough I scored 8 strokes lower on than the easy Persimmon course. I guess I like crawling over crap, trouble around every corner, and very fast greens, at least I did that day.

After golf we enjoyed the 19th hole sharing the patio with a nesting mama owl the size of a bob cat. I got as close as I dared given the stink eye she was emitting in my direction.

As for the courses, we both enjoyed the challenge of the lay outs, the views, and the speed at which the Ironwood greens rolled. We were, however disappointed with the seeming acne pock marks on the bent grass greens that don't get regularly repaired by the members. The fairways and bunkers are also in need of repair. A private club, Anthem will be looking to their new owner, Club Corp, to make the necessary repairs over the coming months and years. Nothing we can't deal with in exchange for having a beautiful home on a course in a wonderful golf community. Sound too good to be true? Keep reading.

Today we said our good byes to our Anthem realtor over cappuccinos in the Winnebago before Mike and I went to Desert Ridge to play one of their two courses. Desert Ridge, part of the Marriott, is an unusual club concept located just outside of Scottsdale. We'd found it when we had gone to watch the LPGA tournament being held there last weekend. The Marriott built two championship courses with the idea that through business meetings and conventions, both courses would be bustling. Enter the economic crash. Two years ago they began offering memberships that for your dues, include as much golf (and carts) as your little heart desires, two spa treatments per week (including hair, nails, massages, etc) at the luxurious hotel, once a week entry into the VIP lounge with all you can eat and drink privileges, and so much more. It's basically a perpetual vacation and quite honestly very reasonably priced for what you get. We just weren't sure about it but agreed to play the Palmer course today and get a better feel for the place.

Although we can't drive our own carts, the free carts offer something most don't, a GPS.

The course was relatively flat, not too difficult, and had probably the best greens we've played in Arizona.

The Membership Director who knew we were also considering Anthem, slyly paired us with former members of Anthem who left there on, shall we say, less than wonderful terms. They are both very good players and seemingly calm individuals yet were twice suspended by Anthem for Jill's potty mouth. What does that mean? Neither could golf for 6 weeks each time they were suspended yet they had to continue to pay dues. Uh oh...Most of you have met Mike... They provided so much more information that really gave us pause. We are trying SO hard not to make a mistake with this decision. It just got harder.

We are off to the Palm Springs area in the morning where we will park our home in our friend Kaye's yard. For those of you following this blog from the beginning you may remember Kaye. She put us up in Destin at a retired military RV park on the water. She has since moved west and has graciously offered us electricity and Peanut babysitting while we continue this search in California, specifically at PGA West. The search itself sounds like fun to most, but if you're a couple who have been trying relentlessly for 18 months to conceive, you know that it isn't always as fun as it sounds.

I will try not to let so much time lapse, but no promises. Sorry Mom!

Search Update

First stop was Rio Verde and Tonto Verde about 8 miles just outside of nowhere.  But if golf and serenity is what you crave, and you're over 55, then the Verde's are a perfect fit.  With 72 holes of golf, an offered trail fee, affordable housing, it could be ideal.  They do let a few youngsters our age in so we may keep it in the running.  I loved the new clubhouse at Rio Tonto, especially the outdoor patio overlooking the canyons/mountains and a very active mini golf course on true putting greens.

 

 

We still haven't golfed this one because we're not sure we can handle such a remote location but we haven't completely ruled it out.

At Robin and Tommy's (Dove Mountain pals) suggestion, we also checked out the Superstition Mountain Golf and Country Club this week.  The new yet old world charming club house was splendid and would be a very comfortable place to call home.  Pulled out of BK by a Wyoming oil man, the club is now privately owned but for financial reasons is open to public play, at least for now.  Fortunately there are two courses and the members always have one to themselves.

The named for Mountain range is always in sight and it is a focal point of the driving range.

 

At the driving range we met a member and learned the men's league was heading to Marana to play at the Gallery next week.  I love the inner club arrangement already!

With two courses, gorgeous reasonably priced homes, incredible views, I was ready to write a check (nearly seventeen months living in a Winnebago may be influencing my eagerness).  Only one small glitch...no cart or trail fees.  We'd have to pony up $17 per cart or walk (fine by me) for this to work and Mike isn't ready to compromise until he's seen everything out there.  Geesh...but as a good friend reminded me, we have the rest of our lives to find the right fit.

The course we played that day, Lost Gold, was in impeccable shape, even with some resort play.  We'd been told that the greens were running at 13 but with all of our playing, we'd say it was more in the range of 10.5.  Still OK by our standards.

The views will amaze, the lush fairways surprise, and the dag nab rocky desert will frustrate you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The owner of the club lives here, on the 12th fairway:

 

Not too shabby.

The finishing hole requires great length and accuracy on your approach.

 

We both had solid tee shots yet were both left with a 3 wood in hand to get to the green on this long par 4.

 

To our astonishment we both landed our shots safely on the green and just missed our birdie putts. 

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Not a bad way to finish. I'm guessing that "superstition" mountain had something to do with our play on that last hole.  It really wants us here to stay, at least that's my take on it.

 

They invited us back to play the other course, Prospector, but we'll wait until we know if this club is in the top 3 before taking them up on their kind offer.

Back home we continue to enjoy the southwestern sunsets at our Golf and RV Park.

 

Today we're going to see an LPGA match that is going on up the road about 40 miles in Phoenix.  I'll try to pick up some pointers!  Tomorrow we again pull anchor and head to Anthem.

Until then, stay groovy!

Summer in March

Sweet!  Being that summer is my favorite season I guess the desert is a good fit, though we're already a bit whiny over how hot it is!  Can you imagine us come August?  FYI, for our friends on the east coast, we're now three hours behind you so watch those early morning phone calls please! 

Thrilled to be away from the train tracks that bordered our last RV park in Marana, imagine my chagrin when this pulled up next to us!

 

We found a golf RVer's mecca a few miles from Superstition Mountain.  Viewpoint RV Park offers 27 holes of golf (a standard 18 plus a par three 9 hole), a nice club house featuring pretty darn good food and, to Mike's delight, $6 pitchers of Amberbach.

 

Other than this rather tough finishing hole with water bordering three sides:

 

the course was a yawner but it did offer a few views of Superstition Mountain, was only a fall out of bed  from home, and quite scoreable for those who can't seem to drive their own fairways.

 

 

 

Mike's favorite feature on a course: adjoining fairways.  I guess so considering he managed to birdie that tough finishing hole from the 1st fairway!  Geesh!  The greens were in great shape for a place that gets so much play.  But we won't play it again.  4-6 carts lined up on every tee box is a bit much for us.  We just don't have that kind of patience.

I'm enjoying the pool, spa, dog parks, and many practice facilities in and around this mega park while Mike has been delving into the finer things...like a free concert on Saturday night.

 

Apparently there are enough accomplished musicians in the park that when they perform it is quite literally standing room only.

That's all there is to report.  We will be checking out the real estate and club at Superstition Mountain tomorrow, self touring the Scottsdale area today, and heading on to Anthem on Saturday.  I got an email today from the buyer of our home back in Myrtle Beach telling us how much he is enjoying our ex home.  I'm glad but ouch!  Hopefully very soon we will be back in a home and community as nice as what we gave up!

Our hearts and prayers are with our friends in Japan.  There simply are no words.

 

 

Putin' on the Ritz

After a quick tour of the homes we just can't quite afford, this one in particular:

 

 

(disappearing glass walls lead you to an invisible edge pool overlooking the course), we were invited to a Member Mixer at the Ritz Carlton, Dove Mountain.  Held bi-monthly we were treated to cocktail hour and a lovely meal while meeting members, other prospective members, and even the developer.  Over dinner the developer announced that the Accenture Match Play will return to the club again next February, which was met with applause.  An infant club, this would be our opportunity to be part of the founding membership, likely creating friendships through our pioneering efforts.  I was thrilled to meet two of those new members, Robin and Pam, who shared a great deal of information about the Ritz as well as nearly every other club in Tucson.

 

It helps that Pam, on the right, is a retired Golf Membership Director and has served many of the local clubs during her tenure.  It is especially a treat that Robin is a self proclaimed "Golf Whore" (can I use that word in the newspaper?) so clearly we were fast friends.  They both gave great insights into the many choices Mike and I face for golf here.  Robin serves as VP for the Arizona Women's Golf Association and welcomed me to her large net of golfing buddies regardless of what part of Arizona we land. Cool, huh?  If there were a home on the course in our price range our search would be over.  Have I mentioned that the Ritz reduced their initiation fee from the $125,000 it was when we came through last year to $25,000?  That's huge and the only reason we returned for a visit and reconsideration.

Yesterday we were invited to play all 27 holes at the club, the first 18 being the holes played by the pros recently in the PGA Match play event. Upon arrival the practice range greets you replete with Titleist pyramids and forever mountain views.

 

Certainly a desert course, it was in immaculate condition from tee to bent grass green.  Good luck finding a broken tee on a tee box that appears to be more plushy carpet than grass.

 

 

Beyond impeccable conditions, a lay out that will challenge any golfer, the views will enchant those golfers more interested in a nice walk than swinging a stick while chasing a ball around.

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

I found as much trouble as our buddy, Dustin Johnson, did during Match Play.

 

There was still plenty of evidence along the course of the very recent PGA event.

 

 

 

 

We were told the greens weren't running quite as fast as they did last week, but that didn't mean these greens with sexy curves were any less dangerous.

 

 

 

 

One suggestion, if you can't get your approach shot to stick, which is a challenge, aim for one of the plentiful green side bunkers.  I found it much easier to score from the sand than chipping from the well manicured rough to those dangerous greens.

Probably the heartiest maintenance equipment we've seen on this trip of ours...

 

Getting to know the other members and playing their course was a highlight of our month in Tucson and not one we'll forget.  Our only complaint was the time it took to play the first eighteen holes.  At nearly five hours as a twosome tried our patience when you add to the fact that the temperature touched 90 at one point.  However the pace of play improved greatly on the Wild Burro nine, a far less played gem that isn't part of the Match Play event due to not having walkable conditions for a gallery.  Not sure if it was our improved one hour pace of play for nine holes, but we finished that nine with respectable scores of 37 and 38.  We won't speak of the other scores and will blame that sad part on pace as opposed to anything we did wrong.

We spent today house hunting again in the Tucson National vicinity.  We have some possibilities but no slam dunks.  Tomorrow we are checking out of our home for the last four weeks.  Not sure, but I may miss the Hobo's Lullaby that I've grown accustomed to singing me to sleep.  Those steel rails humming can be very hypnotic but I am anxious for a quiet and peaceful slumber a little further north.

One last note to Henry--I will happily take you up on the banana split offer the next time we are together.  Thank you!

Good Bye Until we meet again, Tucson.  We may very well return!  This is forever etched in my mind...

 

A Red Hat Day and a review of Quarry Pines

On Monday Mavis invited me to join her and 13 of her closest red capped friends for their monthly excursion, this time a private tour at the Tucson Zoo followed by lunch at Claimjumper (yay!).

 

Never having an opportunity to go behind the scenes at this type of a venue, we learned how these zookeepers, who wish the world had no zoos, do so much to keep boredom at bay for the kingdom they lead.  This includes spicing up the senses by spraying different environments with perfumes.

 

Favorites include "Cupcake" and "Taboo".

We visited the kitchen where all of us two legged creatures suffered from produce envy.  These animals get only the freshest of veggies and lettuce, better than I've seen in any supermarket. The animals also get a different kind of treat every day of the week. We were taken back to the freezer section where we saw the various frozen treats the animals receive on warmer days.

For the giraffe, it was a frozen onion concoction served up on PC pipe.

 

The lions and tigers get a meat popsicle.  Yum!

 

We were all blown away by the effort the staff goes to to make the jaguars happy.  Apparently those dudes love nothing more than a coconut because crushing it most simulates crushing a skull, how they kill in their natural habitat.  However, once it's crushed the inside is rather lackluster for these carnivores.  So, using a Black and Decker drill, they fill the coconuts with everything from fish to these guys...

 

Bet you haven't seen anything like that before?  Moving on, we were taken outside to pet their 35 year old rhino and feed the giraffes.

 

Unfortunately it was nappy time for Yvonka and she wasn't real motivated in strolling over for a visit...until our guide brought out the biscuits.

 

 

Yvonka was very sweet and shares her habitat with this cutie pie...

 

Also hanging around was Tricky Dick, apparently named for our 37th president.

 

We then moved on to the darling polar bear.

 

 

More interested in us than diving into the cold water for the carrot our guide had thrown in, we were mutually enchanted.

 
 

Then it was time to feed the giraffe, who seemed to have an affinity for the red hats...

 

After an initial sniff, they opted for carrots over the red bonnets.

 

Check out those long gray tongues...

 

On our way out I spotted one of my favorite creatures that I've spent many an hour watching when in Monterey but never quite this close.

 

Then on to lunch where I introduced Mavis and a few other ladies to my favorite citrus salad.  We then all tasted some of the birthday girls' (Sharon and Mavis) red velvet cupcakes.  I think their husbands ought to seek out that cupcake perfume the zoo has because I've never heard such yummy sounds coming out of a group of ladies!  Reminded me of a certain "When Harry met Sally" moment.

 

What a group of neat ladies!  Thank you again for including me in your fabulous monthly outing!

Afterward, Mike whipped up a fresh batch of Mike-aritas back at the homestead, aka trailer park, where daughter Amy joined us! We are so lucky to have met Pete and Mechelle back in the Carolina or we would never have the pleasure of knowing Mavis, Lee, and Amy!

 

Beginning to shake from going three days sans golf, we decided to play a nearby public course, Quarry Pines.  Playing the tips, Mike had his usual walk across the street to tee off.

 

The front nine mostly bordered Interstate 10 but the back nine boasted wonderful views and elevations that come with playing golf in and around a quarry.

 

A narrow landing strip, we believe Mike hooked this drive directly into the side of that 18 wheeler you see going by because it bounced off something and landed on the left side of the fairway.  Lucky cuss.  Mine, on the other hand, landed perfectly in the middle of the green fairway and rolled and rolled until landing in the rocks out of bounds on the right.  Sheesh!  Better to be lucky than good is never more true than on a golf course.

I suppose that not all of the front nine bordered the freeway.  There were some pretty holes there too.

 
 

 

 

A painfully slow round, we eagerly raced to the 10th hole for the beginning of the magnificent views.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We're not sure how dumb they think we golfers are, but this sign was posted at the edge of a very steep cliff:

 

The greens had equally challenging undulations as many of the fairways, but were slower than we've been playing at other courses.

 

 

 

We were hooked up with John and Mary (we keep meeting these historical couples--Chuck and Diane,now John and Mary), a delightful couple from Chicago who have spent the last three YEARS doing what we're doing--looking for the right golf community in Tucson.

 

The final par five, an evil dog leg left, wiped this smile off Mike's face shortly after teeing off.

 

My experience was even more horrendous on this hole but all it does is make me want to come back and play it again!  But we'd have to find a less popular day than a Tuesday afternoon (?) because five + hour rounds kill us.  I should have brought my knitting.  Oh yeah, I don't knit.

That's about it for now.  While I was with my red hat friends, Mike was looking at real estate at Dove Mountain.  This evening we've been invited to a member mixer at the Ritz Carlton (Accenture) and to play golf there tomorrow morning.  We are looking forward to both! 

In the meantime we continue to enjoy every imagineable type of Mexican cuisine including one offering fortune tacos!

 

The southwestern sunsets continue to dazzle us...

 

Until the next time thanks for following our ramblings.

Tucson National, Lil Abner's, and El Charro

In addition to another golf course review, we have a couple of restaurant reviews this post. As earlier mentioned, Jim and Judy have done an excellent job of convincing us to consider their home course, Tucson National for our next place to live.  Monday we played the Sonoran desert course and Friday we returned to play the Catalina course with Jim and Judy.

 

 

Named for the stunning mountain range surrounding Tucson, the course hosted the PGA Tour for many years. 

 

Full of history, the club was built in the '60's as a cooling off spot for the mob when things got a little warm in Chi town.

Sitting atop natural wells, the course also had the most water of any we've played in Arizona.

 

 

 

 

I must admit it was nice to be back on flat ground again.  The only elevations were the greens, which rolled perfectly and did a much better job of holding on to approach shots than those at Ventana. 

 

It was weird to play a tree lined course after so many cacti lined ones of late.

 

Tucson National has a nice combination of courses with their newer Sonoran desert lay out as well as the more traditional Catalina course.  Both courses were in impeccable condition and challenged us with length and lay out.

After golf we enjoyed a light lunch outside on the patio which is quite inviting and offers a fireplace for those chillier days that occasionally strike here.

 

At this point we've narrowed our search down to Tucson National and Ventana. We may have to be patient while waiting for the right home to come on the market though. Our plans have us here for another week before we head on down the road to continue our due diligence in two or three other spots before we reach a final decision.

After golf we treated our new RV friends and babysitters, Chuck and Diane, at a well known steak place, Lil Abner's.

 

They only do a few things, but they have been doing them for decades and do them well.  Steak, ribs, or chicken all cooked to order outside on the mesquite grill.

 

There's no menu, allowing the place to change prices daily if they choose to.  We all loved our steak that was truly cooked to perfection and were delighted after the on-line reviews had panned the place.

We were there on a Friday night, which meant we were in for the added treat of a live band, complete with an accordion!

 

Chuck and Diane are true road warriors, hailing from Georgia but calling the road home for the last 7 years.  They took wonderful care of our furry kid on those days we were out and about too long for the little guy.  A huge thank you from the bottom of my heart and the bottom of Peanut's bladder!

 

Yesterday we hooked up with long time friends Gene and Carolyn who live in Rio Rico.  To accomodate us, they chose a Mexican restaurant, El Charro, that was located half way between Marana and Rio Rico.

 

For those following our journey since the beginning they may remember we'd stayed with Gene and Carolyn last year where they can host up to seven coaches in and around their driveway!  We also ran into them in Niagara Falls by happenstance, the kind of thing that seems to occur often when living this vagabond lifestyle.

A full menu and a nice indoor or outdoor atmosphere, we all enjoyed our food, some plates bigger than others.

 

 

 

Although we all very much enjoyed our meals, we'd kind of wished Mike and I had driven the extra miles to have lunch and peach burritos at Wisdom's closer to Tubac.  If you're that far south in Arizona, Wisdom's is the place to go!  Regardless of the place, it was wonderful to catch up with Gene and Carolyn again.

We'll be hooking up with Lee and Mavis this evening for Hapy Hour and to be introduced to more of their friends.  Tomorrow I am joining Mavis' Red Hat group to go for lunch at Claimjumper's (YAY) and then on to the zoo. I think I have a red baseball cap somewhere in the closet. Lee and Mavis are sure working it so that we choose this place!  We love that about them.

We hope to play the RItz Carlton course (Accenture Match play course) before we leave town on Saturday.

As I type this Mike just brought a prospective buyer of this motorhome through the coach.  Hmmmm.  I just got a little giddy.

Until the next post, thanks to all who have made this search SO enjoyable!

 

Hole in One!!!

Yepper, first one and first eagle of our now 17 month home search and golfing expedition.  More on that in a bit. Thursday was our second round of golf on Ventana's Mountain course.  Kindly invited back by Gord and Jessie to play arguably one of the most scenic courses in Arizona, we also enjoyed perfect 78 degree sunshine unlike our first time at Ventana.

 

Dopey Mike stood at the first tee and asked, "What's the action?". 

 

We went down in flames from the first hole as we watched Jesse sink her first of a few birdie putts.

 

This course is not for the faint of heart.  In fact it helps if you are part billy goat so you can climb the narrow steep paths to your tee box.

 

First hairpin turns on a cart path...

 

The cart and foot climbing led to these vistas.

 

 

 
 

 

The signature Par three hole is an innocent appearing short 107 yard elevated tee from the back.

 

Most of us had a tough time finding that large green.  While I'm on the subject of greens, allow me one rant and then I promise to drop it.  No matter how perfect of an approach shot you may have, if your ball lands on the green it will not stay there.  If this becomes my home course first order of business will be to learn how to landshort on approach and chips. According to Gord, the greens are fairly young and needto build up a solid root system to aid them in holding an approach.  OK, 'nuff said on the greens.  Poor Jesse and Gord had to listen to my whining for 17 holes.

Aside from the elevations, this course has something for everyone, including desert landscape, a little water, and even a few flat fairways (yay) surrounded by the magnificent mountains.

 

 

 

Jesse aptly dubbed this particular spot the "Men in Trees" hole...

 

 

As I mentioned earlier, my green whimpering was limited to 17 holes.  The only way to stick an approach is to fly directly into the cup as happened on this 15th par three.

 

121 yards, Jesse warned me not to use more than my 115 club.  Thankfully the hole stopped my ball or I would likely have been in the trap behind the green.

 

Note that ball mark under my hand.  Fun!  Mike was happy because in over 40 years of golf, this was the first hole in one he has ever seen.  Although I played like hell for the rest of the holes, I will immodestly say it was a very pretty hole in one with a good swing, perfect arc, and drop in the hole....Still, like most holes in one, 99% luck! 

Not a birdie, I did the eagle "dog and pony" ride.

 

It was a gorgeous, fun, and humbling round of golf that left us a few dollars poorer in the end but a couple of new friends richer too.  Thank you Gord and Jesse!

 

After golf, they graciously had us to their beautiful home for celebratory champagne, sushi (yes they have it in the desert!), lamb chops, and an incredible sunset they had on loan from God.

 

 

What a very special day and one we couldn't have had without help from other new friends back at the RV park, Chuck and Di, a couple that gave our Peanut the "royal" treatment so we could spend so much time away from home that day.  More on them in the next post...

 

You're welcome Myrtle Beach!

Sunday, if you were watching the Accenture Match Play in Tucson you may have watched as the snow was being brushed from the course.  A few short weeks ago we'd raced out of the cold Myrtle Beach climate and headed directly toward the warmth of the Arizona desert only to wake to this on Sunday.

 

We said we cause this wherever we go.  Our dear friends in Myrtle Beach, after toweling off from their 80 degree day at the beach, thanked us for taking the miserable weather with us!

Oh well, the snow didn't stop Lee and Mavis from picking us up for a funfilled day of tourism.  We began our Sunday with Dreamsicles in the motor home, something we shared with their kids back in November.

 

We then had lunch at the Starr Pass Country Club, named as it is on the famed western trail that many American pioneers traversed in something a little less comfy than our home on wheels.

 

A decent meal of barbecue, the sandwiches were the most memorable and Mavis was able to reuse her "toothpicks" today.

 

After lunch we visited Mission San Xavier, the oldest intact European structure in Arizona with a history dating back to 1692, more than 150 years before it became a part of America.

 

 

 

Still an active Catholic church, we watched as many people filed through and took turns lifting up the wooden body of St Francis which is lying in an open casket.  Curious, we had to inquire of this practice.  It is believed that only the faithful have the strength to lift him.  I like the idea of a church that encourages touching and the spirited folks coming through.

Given my interest in cemetaries (not sure where that came from but it started thanks to the book, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil") Lee drove us by a very interesting burial ground where plastic flowers, wreaths, and other meaningful trinkets adorn the desert to honor the departed.

 

To satisfy Mike Lee made a stop at the Hotel Congress where we'd heard the Dillinger gang was finally captured after evading the FBI and other state agencies for years.

 

A fire in the basement of the hotel had caused the low laying gang to flee their room.  After being well tipped to retrieve some heavy baggage carrying thousands of dollars and weapons, a fireman recognized the gang from his True Detective Magazine which led to their quiet arrest in Tucson.

An interesting hotel with small modest rooms, no TV's, and a charming sundeck for warmer days than this one...

 

The consummate hosts, we were then invited to dinner back at Lee and Mavis' home...More than a light supper we enjoyed the lasagna and the company of Jim and Judy, Mavis' brother and sis in law.

 

Hospitality apparently runs in the family so Monday Jim gave us a tour of his home course, Tucson National which led to a better feel for this community we'd initially crossed off our list, and an unexpected round of golf.  We made a stop by their home, which thanks to Judy's artistic gift, is a warm inviting home.

 

We loved the open feel and view from their backyard.

 

 

With trail fees and two golf courses we decided we were too quick to eliminate this club.  We accepted the membership director's offer to play the Sonoran course on Monday and will be back to play the other, Catalina, with Jim and Judy on Friday.  The Catalina course was home to the PGA tour for many years and is very well respected in Arizona.  More on that course after we play it.

Less than 24 hours after Tucson's snow day, the new Sonoran course and the 70 degree temps kindly welcomed us to Tucson National.

 

 

From tee to green, this course impressed us as being the course in the best condition of any we've played.  We're told from everyone even members from other clubs, that this is the norm for Tucson National.  With the two courses you have both a desert lay out and a more traditional to choose from   The Sonoran is the more deserty of the two.

 

 

 

Picturesque cart paths...

 

 

We joined up with members, John and Lori, and were introduced to a perfect addition to a golf cart when you live in the sun, a UV protected shade.

 

After our round I must admit that Tucson National is growing on me...

Continuing on...did I mention we've been busy?  So far I've only covered Sunday and Monday, sheesh.  Tuesday I was invited by the ladies league at El Conquistador to play with their group.  I had a nice morning and the ladies couldn't have been nicer but I have ruled out this club so I won't go into any details.  The course gets too much play and I'm not a big fan of the tight and uneven fairways.  Mike likes it, but that's not enough.  Like back at Barefoot, the ladies play fast so I was home in plenty of time to take Mr. Peanut to the vet for his follow up visit.  The drugs have worked their magic and he is back to his happy self again!

Today Lee and Mavis invited us to play their home course, Heritage Highlands, an over 50 community (we qualify).  It was a beautiful day and much nicer to play than the "brrrrr" round we'd had a year ago on our trip through Arizona.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Playing the tips, Mike usually had a long cart ride to his tees.

 

At least we could wave to Lee and Mavis at his tee box across the canyon!

 

Ahhh, to be back in sleeveless tops and skorts again!  Good bye long underwear (I really hope)!

 

We really like the lay out, affordability, and the ability to drive your own carts at Heritage.  The condition was not the best probably due to the amount of play so at this point this won't be our club.  Beyond a doubt, the best part of this club would be Lee and Mavis!  Lee even wore his Charlotte, NC clothing (Quail Hollow) in honor of our Carolina roots!

 

Tomorrow we are back to play the Mountain course at Ventana with Jesse and Gord who have kindly invited us to dinner at their home afterward.  We are unsure how we will ever repay the kindness we've been receiving since arriving here, but we will give it our best effort!

With all of the golf there's been no time to house hunt. Will continue to update you as we go...