THP Bridgestone Indy invitational Pics & Recap
lightningbolt44
Well-known member
On to the golf now:
I did not get to play Friday as I had to work for a few hours Friday morning, but I was in the lobby as everyone made they way in from Purgatory, I talked to Jugger for a while (great guy) and I think I might have saved a couple dozen golf balls by missing Friday round.
Saturday morning, things start at the range and like many have said its a great site to see a range full of THP'ers. I tried to make my rounds and say hello to everyone I could (again the only bad thing is not enough time to chat with everyone) After watching people on the range you realize THP is full of some really good golfers, watching Toad and Vman (one of my favorite THP'ers, such a great guy and true gentleman) hit drivers on the range makes me very jealous, both these guys are driving machines.
I mentioned this before but must mention it again, Tweety Bird (refer to my picture from breakfast sauturday lol) aka Kang Clause walks up to me on the range and says here is I shaft I want to give to you as I think it would work great in your alpha, I can not express in words what that meant to me. Kang thank you again, and just for record United has a direct flight from Denver to Springfield, MO, get down here for a weekend of Ozarks golf
Then its onto the first tee (another great site) a few things I saw (yes I was hiding in the shade) Phillyv split the fairway with the first tee shot of the day!! I saw Canadan actually hit a bad shot, I almost had a heart attack and made me realize it can happen to even the best players.
My group was the last group off. I have learned JB is Kryptonite to me and Pete on the first tee, if some of you remember Pete and I had take a drop on first hole in LC. We this first tee was not much better, Pete hooked his way left (imagine that from a HookersRUs member) and I actually made good contact on the first tee, only problem was, someone put a damn tree on the left side of the hole and my ball dented the tree and came back at us, I almost to yell FORE for my own tee box, but I did beat my LC drive by about 29 yardsParshooter36 was my partner and like the whole day we were in great shape with his drive. Andy is a great guy and very good player. He hits every fairway and is a machine with the putter. Andy I had a great time. We fought it on the front, but really well on the back, shot a 39 which I was very happy with. If I would have helped Andy on the front we would have a had a chance. Like keegan said in his post, Andy is going to do very well in the MC. He is steady and again just a great guy, I will be cheering my tail off for Andy. Keegan and I both said more than once, dang we want Andy in every scramble we play in.
We were paired with my brother from another mother Pete and Playdough. Pete and Playdough struggled a little on the front like I did, but these guys can play. Pete is one my favorite THP'ers and he makes everything fun. This was first time interacting with Keegan and he is a great guy as well, his belt will blind you though, watch the sun when playing with keegan haha. He muders a tee ball!! It was a really fun round, I would tee it up with 3 gentlemen anywhere anytime!!!
The Fort was a perfect course for this outing, great condition and a shot makers course. You could tell The Fort was excited to have us there and I would love to play it again.
Sunday was another great day. From the moment we arrived at Prairie View we were made to feel very welcome, one of the friendliest staffs I have ever seen. I freaking love this course, great conditions and a very fun layout, at some time I will be making a return trip to Indy to play this course again!!!
My group on Sunday was Bhillin, Adam and Lightning Bolt. Another great 4 some. I had not met B before sundays round and I really enjoyed riding with him and playing with him. Really good guy and a good player. Adam is another one of the younger guys and just a flat out nice kid. He had his best round of the weekend sunday and his passion for golf shows and I know he will continue to improve. Bolt (Ron) and I played a little match play and it was a blast. Neither of us played good (neither of us could hit a wedge or Putt to save our lifes) but this proves you can have a fun match at THP even when you play bad. For the record Ron is internet long, he punishes a golf ball, and I am not exaggerating at all. When his wedge play and putter are on, he can go really low!!!
I know in both my recaps I have forgot some good moments and good people, but I am old and senile
I would like to request right now, that next year we go back to Indy and play these amazing courses again.
Thanks to Bridgestone Golf, JB, Morgan and Mike Dean, perfect weekend!!!!!!
I hope to see some THP'ers come to the Ozarks this summer, open invitation to anyone that wants to come this way
Shane it was great playing with you Sunday. Wish our wedge play would have been a bit better but still an outstanding time.
Like Shane said for his area if anyone is ever in the Raleigh/pinehurst area let me know you have an open invite.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Thanks yeah .. they're simply amazing tools ...
mikedean441
6X HOF
Shane is awesome, loved being able to hang with him Sat night, just a great guy...but stay out of my way in air hockey and trivia
tpluff
I <3 GAWLF
He claimed it was worthy of a page long rant. And I tend to agree with him.
Robman7
Active member
I'm still deciding whether I should do it or not!
mikedean441
6X HOF
Well I know Derek and I appreciate you waiting til Sunday to show up
tpluff
I <3 GAWLF
If it'll make you feel better, do it. Trust me, it killed me seeing a Dean making it into the HoF, and it not being you.
Robman7
Active member
Its all good brotha. I would just go on about what a awesome time I had
mikedean441
6X HOF
Gonna be a long ride to Myrtle bro
Michigan Slice
This Guy Cant dance...
Not only because 3 guys, gear, and such in Ricky Bobby's Impala...
You guys should take a nice new white Minivan!
dhartmann34
Well-known member
Well it's been almost a week and I'm finally caught up on my sleep so I thought I'd ramble on a little bit and give a little recap of the Indy Invitational and the greatness that was. I'm a fairly quiet person socially....but I seem to be able to get a lot out with my fingers so I apologize if this gets long. I'll try to limit myself although it should be must less time consuming than someone's video message (which I actually enjoyed and wanted to do as well)
I wish I could have been able to get down on Friday to play the Purgatory with those who were there, but I had a wedding for a great couple that night and I certainly couldn't miss that. I did limit my drinking (my g/f Becky more than made up for it) and instead filled up on food and cake!
So after getting to bed a little after one, I didn't even need to wait for the alarm to go off. I woke up about 2:45 after tossing and turning until that point anyway. I was super excited to get on the road and get down to the course for my first invitational event. So I packed up my stuff at the hotel quickly and was out the door by 3:15. Next stop was to pick up CaptainCaution (Alek). Let me tell you, Alek lives in a nice neighborhood, but the way my Waze app used to get me there was a bit scary....Let's just say the route I took was filled with groups standing on corners, police lights and bars on windows. After a few trips around the block thanks to one way streets I was finally able to find Alek and get him packed in the car.He pulled out his mug of coffee and off we went... It was the first time I had ever met Alek, but it sure seemed like we had hung out before. All the way down was golf talk, normal life talk, more golf talk and of course more golf talk. As exhausted as I was, I really enjoyed the company on the way down and certainly hope to be able to do it again!
Pulling into the golf course there were a few jitters. I'd never been to an invitational before and being on less than a couple hours of sleep had me a bit off kilter. Anyway, as we pulled into the parking lot we saw the range full of THPers. Everyone seemed to be rummaging through bags and chatting it up. We headed into the clubhouse for a quick bathroom break and to look around. After that I picked up my bag and headed over to the range. I wasn't sure if MikeDean had picked up our cart or not and I didn't mind stretching my legs a bit.
The range just seemed like a bunch of old friends. JB introduced me to Canadan (that swing is incredibly consistent) and I grabbed some balls to get warmed up with. Ran into Rambler and a few other introductions as well. Felt really good to meet folks. It truly is great to be able to meet people and have it feel like it's like you've already met. It's funny though. When I picture folks from the forum, they never turn out to be anything like what I imagine.... They turn out to be so much better. I guess my imagination has a ways to go. Anyway, after hitting a few balls on the range and sitting back by a cart listening to Rambler and a few other guys telling me how I should go get fit by a certain gentleman....in GEORGIA.....I went and grabbed our cart from the clubhouse and stopped to hit a few out of the sand.
After meeting a few more folks, it was time to get to the first tee. Now there had been a little bit of heckling having to do with the first tee shot but as others previously stated PhillyV knocked it right down the middle without a thought. It was really great. But I have to give credit to my guy MikeDean. For all the crap folks give him, he stepped up and knocked it out there giving us 104 yards left....which was great because I found out on that hole and about 4 others on the front, if I try to swing harder than normal I'm going to take a 6 inch divot behind the ball and really have a LOT of issues finding it for my next shot. But luckily Mike brought his game, especially off the tee, on the first 9 and really did carry us. He got a little upset for a few bad shots on the first hole, but I just tried to tell him not to worry and that we'd be fine. It was really a great front 9. Each of us seemed to stay pretty level headed and kept the ball in front of us. Mike actually would have been even better except for a few shots that didn't end up exactly where he wanted them to.
The back 9 really did go fairly smoothly. I hit a few tee shots that actually found the fairway and Mike put the second shots where they needed to be. Except for a little hiccup on the par 5 where a shank may or may not have occurred, we held it together pretty well. I didn't think we really had a shot at winning with all the talent on the course and the shots we gave away on a few holes, but looking back I think just relaxing and enjoying the round and the company (PhillyV and Darren K) was key. Philly hits that ball a long way...I was wishing I could just attaching my ball and a string to his. Darren got going once we straightened out his aiming. Coming off the last green we pulled up around the back and just hung out. Watching everyone finish was fun. Being able to chat afterwards was even better. I can't remember exactly who I met or what we talked about, but that honestly could have been my most favorite part of the weekend. Just fantastic!!
After the course we headed back to the hotel. I passed out on the chair and Alek headed to the pool. That 15 minute nap was great...Although certainly not long enough. After a shower and cleaning up my clubs we headed out to Buca for some good food. I really loved coming in and going through the kitchen. I wish we all could have fit in the table right in the kitchen...I need to get that table sometime Dinner was a great time. Everyone gathered around 3 tables and just talked about the great rounds and the food and just laughed and joked around. Lots of focus was on the 'interesting' pictures hanging on the walls. At one point I think MichiganSlice was trying to get MikeDean to rub his belly. I don't know. It was just hilarity ensuing. After a big meal of spaghetti and salads and CHEESECAKE....oh how I love cheesecake.... JB announced that Mike and I had won on a tiebreaker. The tie breaker hole was a long par 4 where I hit an awful drive but Mike put one down the middle. We were 200 out and I knocked a 4 iron onto the middle of the green and Mike seemed a little unsure about what to do. I told him to just hit something solid and get it up near the green.....chip it up and make the putt. Well MikeDean listens because that's EXACTLY what he did. The putt was clutch. Just clutch! Winning was great and I was REALLY happy to get Mike out of his 2nd place finish rut.... But I have to say how appreciative I was of all the guys coming up and shaking my hand and patting me on the back saying congratulations. It was a little overwhelming and amazing all at the same time. Seemed they were genuinely all happy we had won. Just awesome.
After dinner many folks headed out to Dave and Busters. I unfortunately didn't partake due to being unable to function at more than just a sitting in a chair level....so I headed back to the hotel and sat on the lobby couch with a few other guys and watched the NBA game. I can't think of another time I enjoyed just chatting with a few folks while kicking back on a couch drinking lemon water. ha. I didn't last long out there. About 10pm I headed to bed. Alek said I had the remote in my hand across my neck when he made it in from Dave and Busters.
Sunday was Prairie View. It was supposed to be me, Rambler, tPluff and X Thor but tPluff got traded around and we got TGTT to fill in for him since he was a tad late getting to the course. The range was a bit on the wet and muddy side so I didn't hit many balls. I did watch Canadan launch balls with his driver out into the field. He was hitting that thing a MILE in the air. Anyways, the round was good. I didn't play nearly as well as I wanted, but it was a great course (I took a few pics which I've already posted) and our group had a good time. I can certainly say that we saw ALL of the course with where some of our shots were going. Besides the quad on the first hole, I think Rambler had a pretty good round. X Thor was striking the ball well and after our halfway house visit after the 5th or 6th hole THTT got in a groove. He also let me hit his R11 with black tie shaft.... That was really nice! Now I've got another shaft on my growing list. Anyway, we ended the round with a looooooooooooooong chutt from Rambler off the 18th green. I posted a video somewhere. It was a fun way to end a great weekend of golf.
Being the last group, most folks were already by their cars getting ready to leave. I tried to say hey to everyone and shake their hands. I doubt I got everyone but I tried... After that Alek and I hopped in the car (without air conditioning which we discovered on the way down) and headed back home. The drive was good. No insane traffic. It was nice to see the Chicago skyline when dropping off Alek and then to pull into my own driveway. But waking up Monday having to go to work and not getting to hang out with a group as entertaining and relaxed as this was certainly was a bit sad.Even with all the goofiness and crazy Dave and Busters stuff and small bit of insanity at dinner, I couldn't describe this group of guys better than the word 'Classy'. It was really a great time and I hope to be able to hand with and get to know more of you better next time.
A big thanks to JB and Morgan for all the hard work. I know THP is a business and has a lot of business aspects to it that most of us don't experience or see day to day....but I think we all know it certainly takes a lot of commitment and effort and time away from home and I know we all appreciate it. And MikeDean.... fantastic job on the set up of everything. Thanks for all the behind the scenes things you do....and thanks for carrying me on the front 9! And also a big thanks to everyone that is involved on THP. I think a lot of us enjoy the forums and events, but it does take a lot of time and effort and I commend all of you that post, regulate, show up to events, and keep this place a wonderful place to be.
Next stop..... PGA National
I wish I could have been able to get down on Friday to play the Purgatory with those who were there, but I had a wedding for a great couple that night and I certainly couldn't miss that. I did limit my drinking (my g/f Becky more than made up for it) and instead filled up on food and cake!
So after getting to bed a little after one, I didn't even need to wait for the alarm to go off. I woke up about 2:45 after tossing and turning until that point anyway. I was super excited to get on the road and get down to the course for my first invitational event. So I packed up my stuff at the hotel quickly and was out the door by 3:15. Next stop was to pick up CaptainCaution (Alek). Let me tell you, Alek lives in a nice neighborhood, but the way my Waze app used to get me there was a bit scary....Let's just say the route I took was filled with groups standing on corners, police lights and bars on windows. After a few trips around the block thanks to one way streets I was finally able to find Alek and get him packed in the car.He pulled out his mug of coffee and off we went... It was the first time I had ever met Alek, but it sure seemed like we had hung out before. All the way down was golf talk, normal life talk, more golf talk and of course more golf talk. As exhausted as I was, I really enjoyed the company on the way down and certainly hope to be able to do it again!
Pulling into the golf course there were a few jitters. I'd never been to an invitational before and being on less than a couple hours of sleep had me a bit off kilter. Anyway, as we pulled into the parking lot we saw the range full of THPers. Everyone seemed to be rummaging through bags and chatting it up. We headed into the clubhouse for a quick bathroom break and to look around. After that I picked up my bag and headed over to the range. I wasn't sure if MikeDean had picked up our cart or not and I didn't mind stretching my legs a bit.
The range just seemed like a bunch of old friends. JB introduced me to Canadan (that swing is incredibly consistent) and I grabbed some balls to get warmed up with. Ran into Rambler and a few other introductions as well. Felt really good to meet folks. It truly is great to be able to meet people and have it feel like it's like you've already met. It's funny though. When I picture folks from the forum, they never turn out to be anything like what I imagine.... They turn out to be so much better. I guess my imagination has a ways to go. Anyway, after hitting a few balls on the range and sitting back by a cart listening to Rambler and a few other guys telling me how I should go get fit by a certain gentleman....in GEORGIA.....I went and grabbed our cart from the clubhouse and stopped to hit a few out of the sand.
After meeting a few more folks, it was time to get to the first tee. Now there had been a little bit of heckling having to do with the first tee shot but as others previously stated PhillyV knocked it right down the middle without a thought. It was really great. But I have to give credit to my guy MikeDean. For all the crap folks give him, he stepped up and knocked it out there giving us 104 yards left....which was great because I found out on that hole and about 4 others on the front, if I try to swing harder than normal I'm going to take a 6 inch divot behind the ball and really have a LOT of issues finding it for my next shot. But luckily Mike brought his game, especially off the tee, on the first 9 and really did carry us. He got a little upset for a few bad shots on the first hole, but I just tried to tell him not to worry and that we'd be fine. It was really a great front 9. Each of us seemed to stay pretty level headed and kept the ball in front of us. Mike actually would have been even better except for a few shots that didn't end up exactly where he wanted them to.
The back 9 really did go fairly smoothly. I hit a few tee shots that actually found the fairway and Mike put the second shots where they needed to be. Except for a little hiccup on the par 5 where a shank may or may not have occurred, we held it together pretty well. I didn't think we really had a shot at winning with all the talent on the course and the shots we gave away on a few holes, but looking back I think just relaxing and enjoying the round and the company (PhillyV and Darren K) was key. Philly hits that ball a long way...I was wishing I could just attaching my ball and a string to his. Darren got going once we straightened out his aiming. Coming off the last green we pulled up around the back and just hung out. Watching everyone finish was fun. Being able to chat afterwards was even better. I can't remember exactly who I met or what we talked about, but that honestly could have been my most favorite part of the weekend. Just fantastic!!
After the course we headed back to the hotel. I passed out on the chair and Alek headed to the pool. That 15 minute nap was great...Although certainly not long enough. After a shower and cleaning up my clubs we headed out to Buca for some good food. I really loved coming in and going through the kitchen. I wish we all could have fit in the table right in the kitchen...I need to get that table sometime
Dinner was a great time. Everyone gathered around 3 tables and just talked about the great rounds and the food and just laughed and joked around. Lots of focus was on the 'interesting' pictures hanging on the walls. At one point I think MichiganSlice was trying to get MikeDean to rub his belly. I don't know. It was just hilarity ensuing. After a big meal of spaghetti and salads and CHEESECAKE....oh how I love cheesecake.... JB announced that Mike and I had won on a tiebreaker. The tie breaker hole was a long par 4 where I hit an awful drive but Mike put one down the middle. We were 200 out and I knocked a 4 iron onto the middle of the green and Mike seemed a little unsure about what to do. I told him to just hit something solid and get it up near the green.....chip it up and make the putt. Well MikeDean listens because that's EXACTLY what he did. The putt was clutch. Just clutch! Winning was great and I was REALLY happy to get Mike out of his 2nd place finish rut.... But I have to say how appreciative I was of all the guys coming up and shaking my hand and patting me on the back saying congratulations. It was a little overwhelming and amazing all at the same time. Seemed they were genuinely all happy we had won. Just awesome. After dinner many folks headed out to Dave and Busters. I unfortunately didn't partake due to being unable to function at more than just a sitting in a chair level....so I headed back to the hotel and sat on the lobby couch with a few other guys and watched the NBA game. I can't think of another time I enjoyed just chatting with a few folks while kicking back on a couch drinking lemon water. ha. I didn't last long out there. About 10pm I headed to bed. Alek said I had the remote in my hand across my neck when he made it in from Dave and Busters.
Sunday was Prairie View. It was supposed to be me, Rambler, tPluff and X Thor but tPluff got traded around and we got TGTT to fill in for him since he was a tad late getting to the course. The range was a bit on the wet and muddy side so I didn't hit many balls. I did watch Canadan launch balls with his driver out into the field. He was hitting that thing a MILE in the air. Anyways, the round was good. I didn't play nearly as well as I wanted, but it was a great course (I took a few pics which I've already posted) and our group had a good time. I can certainly say that we saw ALL of the course with where some of our shots were going. Besides the quad on the first hole, I think Rambler had a pretty good round. X Thor was striking the ball well and after our halfway house visit after the 5th or 6th hole THTT got in a groove. He also let me hit his R11 with black tie shaft.... That was really nice! Now I've got another shaft on my growing list. Anyway, we ended the round with a looooooooooooooong chutt from Rambler off the 18th green. I posted a video somewhere. It was a fun way to end a great weekend of golf.
Being the last group, most folks were already by their cars getting ready to leave. I tried to say hey to everyone and shake their hands. I doubt I got everyone but I tried... After that Alek and I hopped in the car (without air conditioning which we discovered on the way down) and headed back home. The drive was good. No insane traffic. It was nice to see the Chicago skyline when dropping off Alek and then to pull into my own driveway. But waking up Monday having to go to work and not getting to hang out with a group as entertaining and relaxed as this was certainly was a bit sad.Even with all the goofiness and crazy Dave and Busters stuff and small bit of insanity at dinner, I couldn't describe this group of guys better than the word 'Classy'. It was really a great time and I hope to be able to hand with and get to know more of you better next time.
A big thanks to JB and Morgan for all the hard work. I know THP is a business and has a lot of business aspects to it that most of us don't experience or see day to day....but I think we all know it certainly takes a lot of commitment and effort and time away from home and I know we all appreciate it. And MikeDean.... fantastic job on the set up of everything. Thanks for all the behind the scenes things you do....and thanks for carrying me on the front 9! And also a big thanks to everyone that is involved on THP. I think a lot of us enjoy the forums and events, but it does take a lot of time and effort and I commend all of you that post, regulate, show up to events, and keep this place a wonderful place to be.
Next stop..... PGA National
dhartmann34
Well-known member
No doubt!! I wanna use that sweet new rangefinder I hear u may have.....
and have u teach me how to hit the long ball! Sent from my HTC6500LVW using Tapatalk
mikedean441
6X HOF
Awesome recap and it was a pleasure meeting ya. After a few whoopsies on the tee u dialed it in
I had a great day playing the round with you and we really did keep things kinda even keel and went about our business.
See ya at the bear trap
I had a great day playing the round with you and we really did keep things kinda even keel and went about our business.
See ya at the bear trap
mikedean441
6X HOF
Hmm it appears a nice little box from THP HQ is headed my way....
Excited to see what it is. Personally I hope it's an SLDR towel for you
mikedean441
6X HOF
Hmm I don't want to spoil it but it rhymes with rutter and rophy
Ruh roh Raggy
dhartmann34
Well-known member
Love that rophy part especially
Sent from my HTC6500LVW using Tapatalk
Sent from my HTC6500LVW using Tapatalk
TripleBogieTim
Long lost sheep
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2010
- Messages
- 22,240
- Reaction score
- 47
- Location
- Houston, Texas, United States
- Handicap
- my swing
Sounds like this was a fantastic event....No surprise at all!!
By the way 441, I am taking partial credit for the win for sending you the lucky black THP towel....LOL
Congrats dude.
By the way 441, I am taking partial credit for the win for sending you the lucky black THP towel....LOL
Congrats dude.
Iowa was a bit of a reunion, and made me miss Indy as well!
