I hope to find adequate and adaptable software to restore redanman.com. Alas my sarcastic site bunkerfetish.com is not any closer to ever seeing the light of day, but lovers of bunker appearance DO NOT GIVE UP HOPE! I do intend to put some updated nuggets here and if necessary, this will continue to take the place of the website.
COVID-19 has not been good to any of us, personally having it 4-5 times and withstanding another direct exposure very recently. Personally my old friend Arthur (Arthur-ritis - more commonly spelled Arthritis) courtesy of my gene pool has limited my morning golf to only the most desirable and desperate (Only a dozen rounds in 2022, but some spectacular ones) and the days of 36 are far and few ... they must almost certainly include transportation as well.
I have had a few good trips and have several in various stages of planning on the books although it looks like Australia will likely become a regret. I am combing the western USA again with great results have a long-awaited trip to Sand Hills on the books and have already broken the Nebraska duck.
For those that know me well, I never went to Sand Hills from Denver when it was new and required little more than a phone call. I didn't want to drive all that way and my trip a few years ago to the sublime Ballyneal did little to encourage me to get out past Sterling, CO. I remember my attorney who went anywhere for golf, as long as it was exclusive to play and/or expensive to join. Coming back from Sand Hills his opinion was "The most boring course I've ever played, all the holes looked the same." So this year, determined to make it all the way to Valentine, I loved my isolation-drive. I was unable to tack Mullen on the trip as no spots were available with the friend I have most wanted to have show me his pride and joy - but it will be reality in May of 2023.
Thanks to my first (And one of the overall very first) internet golf date the inimitable Thomas Naccarato, I have been saddled with the "Coore & Crenshaw Hater" label. This because I dared criticize their designs as anyone else's. I have always considered them one of the three most talented modern design firms in existence today, but they are #3 - so I guess that makes me a hater. I have met and talked to both the members of the duo, I have sought out and played Proctor and Axtel course design/build in NE, I have nearly joined not one but two C&C courses - one back and forth on the fence a mere five times (I do not take joint clubs lightly), I like courses to have more quirk, pain and less repetition - so much fuss to not be fussy. Again ...
The point being that I have played every possible C&C so far available (Meeting for a second time Gentle Ben at AGC) to me and enjoyed them but I have - since I didn't go out there early - basically saved Sand Hills for last to give a full circle presentation and I cannot wait. I thoroughly enjoyed Bayside, The Prairie Club and CapRock Ranch and driving the utter wilds of Nebraska to get to them. (WAY! more fun to drive rural NE than eastern CO) Dismal was also unavailable so it's on next year's agenda if the greens re-grow.
I must admit that I prefer to have towns and culture adjacent to where I play golf - such as Scotland and honest-to-God links rather than Bandon (GOLF as it was MEANT to BE) with just enough USA around it to make me wish for shepherd's pie and a Tennants. Silvies Ranch is another smoke, it is more than 150,000 acres brought to you by the Vet who created rent-a-pet and bought the ranch when he converted his marker. Silvies is the least-visited of the great American escapes by those self-labeled cognoscenti.
Bill and Arnie
Golf includes the Fazio and the inimitable Shark and their interpretations of a mountainous site but not newly departed Tom W's ridiculous bunkering, well no more than a tele-shot.
Please stay tuned and encourage me, Cheers,
-r-
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