Recap - 2013 THP Texas Invitational by Callaway Golf

[SharkHat]

That was a pretty funny moment. I do think you hit it pretty good on that shot though didn't you?

I think I did get a hold of it on that particular shot.

 

[TRyan]

I didn't mind. I put my sunglasses on for that. Less creepy that way.

She was very nice to look at

 

[TripleBogieTim]

You combine that with Hawk's dubbing him Poison Ivy in Des Moines you have yourself Poison Peanut Ivy!!!

Poison Peanut Ivy.....I like that...hehehe

I believe the posted yardage was just shy of 6400 yards. Wind played a rather large role however.

That's an understatment...hehe

I am still trying to figure out how you build a course with 18 holes and only 1 of them really played downwind. :confused2:

I wondered that all day....when do we get to hit down wind????????

And then on top of that they said

"let's make a 560 yard par 5 where you hit off an elevated tee with a creek about 275 out cause that'll give them fits about whether or not to pull driver. Then, lets go up hill the rest of the way and put no-mans-land right in front of the elevated green and run that creek all the way down the left side."

Then some intern in the back yells "and make them play it into a 30 mph wind!"

and there you have it.. golf course design 101.

That was one brutal hole....Saturday I hit the front edge of the green and it stopped and then slowly rolled all the way down the hill and into the hazard some 30 feet below the green....I chipped up and it did the same thing....so the next shot was blasted over the green!

Well, now that I have had time to recoup a bit from this weekend, I will attempt to put into words how awesome this weekend was. First off, I would like to thank JB and GolferGal for all their hard work to make this a great place with great events. This was my first time at a THP event and let me say that this was probably the best golf event that I have attended to date. Nothing else compares. Keep up the great work you two!

Next I would like to thank Callaway for graciously providing the prizes, the "mystery ball" and for attending this event. Its was great seeing you guys tee up on your last three holes. You guys can definitely play the game. I am grateful for the opportunity to have met you guys and have given me a new respect for Callaway. Thanks again for the opportunity to have met you guys.

On Saturday my partner was Staticline and we were paired up with Bhilton and RonIn Thornton.

I would like to thank Staticline for helping me on the days leading up to the tournament. You did not have to do what you did and for that I am truly grateful. Even though you over clubbed me on hole #8 and was a little long, I was still pleased with the outcome. Long is better than short on that hole, but I needed more of a challenge and decided I was gonna try my luck from the very bottom of the green. Ha! Im sorry for blowing up on that hole. Lol. Thanks again for everything and if i could ever return the favor, dont hesitate to let me know.

Bhilton and RonInThornton, I had a blast playing with you guys. Lots of laughs! Bhilton, remember to give a birdie putt every once in awhile. Haha! Remember what they say about karma. LOL!!! Ron, thanks for the laughs! It was a pleasure meeting you. I will take you up on your offer next time I am in the area. The same goes for you if you come back to visit. Remember to watch out for those greenbriars!

On Sunday I was paired with Threeboysdad, TripleBogieTim and Jank1434. I had a great time with these gentlemen as well. Threeboysdad had a great time and I am sure we will meet up again soon. TBT, you have tremendous power as was evident in your broken driver. Next time I am down your way, which is within the next 2 months, I will let you know so we can go play Rio. I want to snap some pics of the gators that are on the course. Jank, you are a great ball striker! I will not forget the Bubba Watson snap hook that you pulled off, to get on the green! That was really impressive and I will never forget it. Hopefully you can join TBT and myself for a round when I head that way.

And last but not least, thanks to Nookie for setting all of this up. From the course to the restaurant, everything was great! I am sure this wont be our last golf outing. My next outing will be for Branson and I am looking forward to meeting some more THP'ers there. I am counting the days. Cant wait!!!

Andrew, you are a great guy and your game has really come around since the last time we played....anytime you are in my neck of the woods just give me a shout and we will tee it up somewhere.

It's taken me a couple of days to recover and collect my thoughts, but what an excellent weekend of golf and fellowship. I tend towards a little bit of shyness, and can come across as quiet in certain social settings, but this weekend I was fortunate enough to be surrounded by great people and good golfers. There were so many good people to meet and joke around with, my only regret is that I didn't have time to get to spend as much time with everybody as I would have liked. So, here are some mentions to the people that I spent the most time with.






JeffReed - what a great partner for the road trip to Dallas. We laughed and shot the breeze all weekend. The miles flew by, even on the long and taxing ride back on Sunday. I'm glad to have made the trip with you, and look forward to us teeing it up again many times in the future.


TexasHacker - Taylor, I was so glad that everything worked out so perfectly for us to be able to swing out to Kansas City and get you. It was truly a pleasure to meet you and I'm glad that my "Eff with Jeff" music selection was effective. I look forward to seeing you again in Branson, and if you're ever making the trip to this side of Missouri, let me know. No yawning in the Shark Car!


Jman - you're a class act with an infectious good mood. Spending time around you really showcases how much you love both golf and THP. The banter in 142 was classic. I'm looking forward to hanging out again in Branson, and hopefully get to tee it up with you there.


Buckjob - from tipping back some Guinness in 142 through the round on Saturday, it was great to get to know you. You were an awesome partner for the Invitational, and made it easy for a high capper like me to enjoy the competition with no pressure at all. Having fun was the first priority, and we accomplished that.


Puttin4Bird - JAKE!!! To put it simply, you rock sir. I dig your sense of humor and enjoyed the whole time I got spend around you.


TripleBogieTim - I felt like you and I hit it off right away. As the high cappers in our foursome, it was great that we were able to prop each other up and keep spirits high in spite of the tough conditions.


RoninThornton - we had a great time man. After watching a couple people warm up on the range, Ron and I had to head to the clubhouse for consolation Screwdrivers. That really set the tone for the rest of the day. And then you broke out an incredible chip shot at Grapevine on Sunday that hit the pin and stopped right on the edge of the cup for a kick in par. I hope you do come to Branson


RoundersRob - you seemed like a really cool guy. I still can't believe you doubted my ability to mishit that 3 wood!


JJMorris - Jesse, you take a lot of ribbing, and you take it well. It was a lot of fun meeting you, and I wish I could have been on the course with you this weekend.


Nate & Cookie - Thank you both for all the work that you guys did to get this weekend put together. What a great pair of courses. Both courses were tough, but not unfairly so. I enjoyed meeting you both.


#zoocrew - Thank you for not only sponsoring the event, but also for attending. Callaway really went over and above for this event.

Dennis, thanks for the kind words, and you are right...we "clicked" right away when I met you Friday night. It was a pleasure making double pars with you on Saturday (okay not the double pars, but the company was great!) Hopefully we can get in a round in Branson!

 

[SharkHat]

Dennis, thanks for the kind words, and you are right...we "clicked" right away when I met you Friday night. It was a pleasure making double pars with you on Saturday (okay not the double pars, but the company was great!) Hopefully we can get in a round in Branson!

Twice we pulled off double pars for us while Buck and Jake made matching pars look easy.

Friday night on the BWW patio was hilarious, and I could have stayed there for a few more hours.

 

[SharkHat]

A funny thing just came to my mind that I forgot to mention.

Both Jeff and Buck mentioned my apparent uncanny ability to find cart paths.

Tangle Ridge #8 really worked me over on one particular shot that I felt I executed fairly well. I was in trouble on the left, and tried to just tap a 3H to get out and take advantage of the roll to get to the bottom of the fairway. The shot caught the very corner of the path and took a hard bounce OOB. It was unbelievable, and completely laughable.

On Sunday I pulled a PW slightly, and would have been just left of the green if not for the path there. The bounce put me behind some pine trees. Also uncanny.

 

[Nate]

I wonder what the combined average was on hole number 8 as a group?

 

[MWard]

I wonder what the combined average was on hole number 8 as a group?

Probably closer to 6 than 5!

 

[Nate]

Probably closer to 6 than 5!

Oh for sure....the max someone could take on the hole was a 10 (double par) and my guess is that it probably happened to a few. I might venture to say it would be a 6.something? There was no shame in just getting past that hole on Saturday.

 

[RoundersRob]

Oh for sure....the max someone could take on the hole was a 10 (double par) and my guess is that it probably happened to a few. I might venture to say it would be a 6.something? There was no shame in just getting past that hole on Saturday.

That hole was annoying. I hit three decent shots but was unlikely on the third to have the wind push the ball right and trickle down the hill a bit, just across the hazard line which meant I couldn't ground the club on the chip. Thin chip across the green + 3 putt = 7. I Re-did the shot without that restriction and at the most I would have made 6 if not save par on that hole. Them's the breaks.

 

[TripleBogieTim]

Oh for sure....the max someone could take on the hole was a 10 (double par) and my guess is that it probably happened to a few. I might venture to say it would be a 6.something? There was no shame in just getting past that hole on Saturday.

It might have been really close to 7....Lots of triples and above on that hole.

 

[Jjmorris]

I wonder what the combined average was on hole number 8 as a group?

I took a 10 one day and a 7 the next

 

[capt.dru]

I would say that the avg was 7. I shot a 10 that day. That is one tough hole!

 

[sepfeiff]

One last shout out to Seth and Cookie- it was nice having dinner together and learning more about you both! I hope we get to share a beverage and a vegan meal again in the future! Seth, find me a way to move to Dallas so I can golf on a decent course and with all you guys that live in the area!

Thanks again, THP!

Thanks, I enjoyed it also. I will admit we are pretty darn spoiled in DFW for golf courses.... no apologies there Nate might need a caddie the way he's been playing!

 

[Buckjob]

Thanks highly unlikely tyno. We basically determined that we're the 4 most awesome Callaway staffers on the planet. Morgan Cup or otherwise.

i agree 100% it truly was awesome having a 4 some of Callaway staffers at the Callaway event and playing together friday! great great round talking equipment and MC

I just met up with Jesse to return the balls he left in my vehicle and the poor SOB's face is peeling from sunburn. HAHA!

those balls were mine!

I wonder what the combined average was on hole number 8 as a group?

i bet it was 7 or above!

 

[Buckjob]

well i just realized i'm an idiot and wrote my recap in the regular thread so i'm posting it here as well. Again i really can't tell you how awesome it was to come to texas and golf really was a great time!

Well i finally got some sleep and a chance to write a proper recap... I really couldn't be happier that i made this trip, Flew into Dallas and had Bulldog and Ron pick me up in style from the airport (thanks again guys) went back and checked into the luxurious Motel 6 and grabbed my first Whattaburger and delicous spicy ketchup. So as you can tell things started off pretty good for me... Fridays Round at Tangleridge was my best round and most consistent. Started off the weekend right learning about Texas Wind and Texas Roll with my first tee shot which was a 317 yard hybrid off the tee.... i couldn't believe my eyes. It was really cool that we got 4 of the 8 Callaway Staffers Freddie,Nate,Jake and I played together and those guys were great to play with. It was such a fun round. Playing Wolf with these guys was a blast and Getting to hit the XHOT Pro irons and the XHOT 3 wood was fun i think all of us hit Callaway clubs every chance we could. and Hitting the X HOT Pro Irons close on a few of the par 3's and winning the one closes to the pin pot was nice and paid for my earlier flight fee on my way home. But was fun learning the course and talking Morgan Cup and Callaway all day with those guys. Saturdays round was a bit different for me something about a 6+hour round that makes it hard to get in a groove the good news was i still had a blast with playing with Jake again, Triple Bogey Tim and Sharkhat. just the fact that i had a good time playing golf that slow for that long shows how cool THPers are. and seeing those dumb tiger woods look alikes would normally just annoy me but i think i only yelled at them once, when i saw the lining up and looking at a 2' putt from 3 different angles. It was cool talking to everyone and seeing where they lived and how far they traveled as well to make it down to Dallas. Dinner Saturday was good and it was fun hearing JB and Morgan try to talk JMAN into buying that RV. Sunday packed up and headed over to grapevine and the golf gods smiled because it looked like it was gonna rain and the skys cleared up and the weather was just absolutely perfect one of those rounds you dream of weather wise... as for my actual round i didn't start off well but i got it together on the back and shot +2 on the back 9 and finally saw my short game come together pretty good. It was a lot of fun playing with Seth, Shane and Cookie. Even Cookie was bombing it on Sunday and he played really well and had some great holes. That was a long knockers group for sure. Seth and Shane both had really solid games and it was fun watching them tear up the course as i scrambled my @$$ of most of the day. But it was a fun round and really had a blast playing....took a quick shower at the course and Cookie was nice enough to take me to the airport after a quick road construction detour and grabbed an earlier flight after flirting with the lady at the ticket counter and lowering the cost of the fees. All in all I couldn't be happier that i made the trip down especially because its supposed to snow here again later today. It was great finally meeting so many people..... and getting to meet 2 of my Villa Mates for the outing in Jman and Jesse it looks like were gonna have a blast down in Orlando in a few months. Glad i got to meet Dennis and Jeff and man did Jeff and Jesse get burnt everytime i saw how red i was i just laughed cause those guys were about 10 shades darker. Jeff was almost glowing Saturday night drinking in Jake and Jesses room.

Few Shout outs...
Dennis it was great being your partner sorry i sucked it up on Saturday but it was great finally meeting you and getting in a round.

Jeff, it was great to meet you as well i truly hope you can get into the shower by weeks end without cringing. that just looks painful bro!

Bulldog thanks again for giving me those rides around town, you're a great guy and really what THP is all about.

TBT, great to meet you as well teammate it was fun getting to play with you and looking forward to taking home the morgan cup in July. Seeing you drain those putts got me excited and reminded me of your stellar play in Myrtle last year.

Jesse, it truly was great to finally meet you bro, after exchanging some PMs for a while can't wait for the outing. Thanks again for my chalice of beer and don't forget to PM me your addy so i can get that DVD to you.

James, Great to finally meet you buddy, my mentor when it comes to putters really gonna be fun talking more putter talk down in Orlando come May. looking forward to teeing it up with you for sure down there.

Freddie great to finally get a round in with ya bro, was a good time and anytime you're in Boston feel free to give me a call.

Jake, man i bet you're glad you didn't play with me Sunday since i talked your ear off the first two rounds about everything morgan cup and Callaway but it was a absolute blast playing with you and really looking forward to July.

Cookie and Nate thanks again for putting all the hard work in and putting this together i had a blast and both of you guys were really helpful in making this trip possible for me. And it was great playing with both of you and can't wait to see you both again in July even if Nates the only one that will be on the winning team!

All the Callaway Boys... it was truly awesome to see all of you guys and getting to meet all of you in person. None of you had to make the trip but you wanted to and it just shows what kind of company Callaway has become and makes me even more happy to have Callaway as a sponsor for the MC this year. Getting to hit all your clubs this weekend has pumped me up and made my decision very hard to decide whats gonna make my bag because everything i hit was impressive! Thanks again for the balls, hats and for making the trip.

JB and Morgan, Thank you for making the trip out to texas really was great to see you both and catch up. was cool getting the tour of the new tour van i love the toilet shower. Getting down to the 1st invitational really got the excitement for the AC Invitational to grow even more for me after being reminded how much fun these invitationals are. Thanks for everything that you both do to make these possible.

some pics i took

 

[niteowl03]

I wonder what the combined average was on hole number 8 as a group?

I know in our group it was an 8... 6, 6, 10, 10!!

 

[Hawk]

Pictures! You'll need to refer to the first post to see who's who. More to come...

 

[Hawk]

 

[Hawk]

 

[Hawk]

 

[Buckjob]

great pics Morgan and thanks for posting them all Hawk!

 

[JeffReedMO]

Thanks for all the pictures, Morgan! And thanks for getting them posted Hawk. My first tee swing looks decent, though the result sucked. All downhill from there. Lol.

 

[Matthew]

Great pics, thanks for posting them Hawk.
GG is pretty good with a camera, given what she had to work with. We're not a very picturesque group.

 

[afwcardinal]

Enjoyed all the pics Morgan. Thanks for posting them Hawk. It was fun going through all of them.

 

[capt.dru]

Thanks for the posting the pictures Morgan. I really enjoyed going through them.