High risk move. HAHA... just giving you a hard time.
LIVE UPDATE THREAD 2020 Ben Hogan Experience with UST Mamiya
I don't know that I can ever forget it, regardless of what others say. It truly was horrible stuff. But the drinks at this Hogan experience looked great. I just looked up a recipe to try and make some of the Luxardo cherries after seeing them in that drink.
I was wondering what the AZ whiskey was that you brought.
You can buy the real deal at the store. And come I single serving size for some people.
noted.
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Guessing wrong thread
Time for the Day 2 Ocean Course recap. I've been putting this one off a little because it's going to get painful here in a few paragaphs. {Editors note - had to shut it down before it got real painful, more to follow at a later date} I'll do my best, but there are definitely some holes in the middle of the round and without the hole by hole scorecard posting I may miss something.
Start off waking up at 5:15 or so, well before my alarm. Thought about trying to get back to sleep, but that wasn't going to happen anyway so I just hung out in my room. Checked on my fantasy football teams, placed a couple wagers for the day, stuff like that. Heard @mtbloco get up and decided it was good a time as ever to put on a pot of coffee (much better than day 1
) and jump in the shower. Dress for the day, and now it's the waiting game. We'd decided to arrive for 7:30 so wasn't too long of a wait, plus we had to load up all our stuff so the time to head out came fairly quickly. While we were loading up the skies opened up, luckily @mtbloco was smart enough to close the hatch when we ran back in, that could have been bad.
All loaded up and head over to the course. Arrive right as @JB @DannyLe and @BHGtylerb roll in. Get our bags loaded up on the carts and head over to the range. Go check in and run in to the snack shack for a bite to eat. Sausage Egg and Cheese on a bagel. Tasty but not on the level of Rodies, then again what really is? Still spitting rain but not too bad. Tyler rolls in and loads his clubs on the cart and grabs some drinks for the course. I'm the driver for the day, and am starting to feel some nerves. It's one thing when you're opposed by one of the big guns (@DannyLe the day before), but being in the cart with @BHGtylerb definitely had me nervous. You always want to play well in front of someone like that, and I'd hopped aboard the struggle bus the day before so I was anxious to get to the range. I'd been thinking a lot about my poor play and had a couple of specific swing keys I wanted to work with. Head out to the range and start out with the PW. Early results are promising, not exactly pin hunting but the contact is far better. Work my way through a few more clubs and at least feel like I can pass as someone who's swung a golf club before. Head over to the putting green and roll a few putts. The new Ben Hogan <REDACTED> and I seem to be getting along well. Snap a few pictures of the view, which was stellar to say the least.
We get the word from the starter that it's go time. Hop in the cart with Tyler and head for the teebox. Right out of the gate I make a mistake that I only discovered was a mistake later that day. @BHGtylerb mentioned post round that he's not really one to offer unsolicited advice. Had I known I would have told him to PLEASE offer any tips he could think of at any time, I need all the help I can get. @BHGtylerb and I are matched up against @JDax and @chefkritter and it figures to be a good match. Being that both scores count I'm definitely feeling nervous about pulling my weight.
#1 - Dax and Kritter lead off and Dax is definitely in play with a good strike, and I think Kritter is as well. I think Tyler leads off for us and puts a good one out there. I step up and hit another good drive. As I recall we have 30-40 yards straight up the hill to the hole. I wish I could give a full recap of Tyler's shots, and will try to do what I can remember. Nothing spectacular (by his standards) here, chip, lag a putt to a couple feet and in for par. I hit what I thought was a really good pitch but it rolls out a lot more than I expected. Lag my putt to 6-8 feet still above the hole, that dreaded distance. Burn the edge coming down and have 5 feet left. @JDax and @chefkritter wander off wanting to see if I could make that putt coming back up the hill. Thankfully I do, and we go 1-up.
#2 - I lead off for us and push one out of play to the right. Not bad contact or anything, just didn't turn it over enough. In what will definitely be a theme today, @BHGtylerb puts a solid drive out along the left side of the fairway. From here things go awry for Tyler. Driver off the deck winds up either out of play or just out of play to the right, next shot also out of play. Not sure if he maxed at Net Triple (8) or not. I decide to lay up and pull a 7-iron, literally. Pull my layup further left than I want, but it's long enough to clear the water and give me a good angle in. I don't really remember the distance to be honest, but it's a wedge and I hit GIR. 2-putts for a natural par, but Dax hits a nice putt to take the hole. Pic looking back from the green on #2 (I think lol)
#3 - Tyler hits another good drive on the left side of the fairyway, and I hit another good drive the finds the middle of the fairway. We're roughly 145-150 out I think. Tyler hits his approach and leaves it a bit short of the green but in good shape. I take 9 iron and hit a nicely struck but directionally challenged pull/draw that stays out of the bunker but is left of target. I've got a bit of a tricky chip but hit it well and leave myself 10' or so for par. Tyler just misses his birdie putt and is in for par. I miss my par and am in for bogie. We take this hole to go 1-up.
#4 - Par 3 with water all along the right. Tyler I believe comes up a little short and right, or the water, can't remember which. I hit another GIR, not exactly a dart but it finds the green off to the right so we're putting. One or both of Kritter and Dax are in the drink, so we're in good shape. Tyler and I talk it over briefly and we pick a line and I lead off. Line is a little low, and I don't give it enough pace so I'm looking at another 7 footer up the hill for par. Makeable but I haven't been killing it from that range. Tyler hits a great putt and has a tap in par. Hole is won so I don't have to putt. 2-up.
#5 - This one's pretty foggy to be honest. I think I pushed a drive out of play but Tyler again saved me with his GS53 Max. That's honestly about all I can remember, looking back at the updates from @JDax I see we halved this hole.
#6 - Tough par 5 to say the least. I lead off and overdraw my drive right into a bush on the left hand corner of the fairway. Tyler follows suit to a nearly identical spot. Never did find mine, the bush swallowed it up. We're in a waste bunker with a really soggy lie, definitely not ideal, and have I want to say 190ish as a crow flies to the green, but it's all water carry. Tyler steps up and the wet cement type lie is too much to handle and he deposits his ball in the water. Seeing that, we decide the right move is for me to lay up, so I hit one of my better shots directionally to a good position the fairway with an 8-iron. Take Tyler up to where he's going to hit his shot from which is unfortunately still in the soggy waste bunker. Soggy waste bunker again gets the win, as he puts two more balls into the water and packs it in. We head over to my shot, where I've got a wedge in. I catch the wedge really thin and it barely gets across and looks like it's hanging by a thread. @JB recommends I not putz around and get over to that before it decides to roll into the water. So I hustle over wedge in hand; and proceed to thin another wedge across the green and into the water 
Back to 1-up. Pic of view from Tyler's drop and @JDax set-up with @chefkritter and @JB looking on.
And that's where I'm shutting it down for the night. I'll continue the saga tomorrow. Who knows, maybe #5 will pop back in to my head
Start off waking up at 5:15 or so, well before my alarm. Thought about trying to get back to sleep, but that wasn't going to happen anyway so I just hung out in my room. Checked on my fantasy football teams, placed a couple wagers for the day, stuff like that. Heard @mtbloco get up and decided it was good a time as ever to put on a pot of coffee (much better than day 1
) and jump in the shower. Dress for the day, and now it's the waiting game. We'd decided to arrive for 7:30 so wasn't too long of a wait, plus we had to load up all our stuff so the time to head out came fairly quickly. While we were loading up the skies opened up, luckily @mtbloco was smart enough to close the hatch when we ran back in, that could have been bad.All loaded up and head over to the course. Arrive right as @JB @DannyLe and @BHGtylerb roll in. Get our bags loaded up on the carts and head over to the range. Go check in and run in to the snack shack for a bite to eat. Sausage Egg and Cheese on a bagel. Tasty but not on the level of Rodies, then again what really is? Still spitting rain but not too bad. Tyler rolls in and loads his clubs on the cart and grabs some drinks for the course. I'm the driver for the day, and am starting to feel some nerves. It's one thing when you're opposed by one of the big guns (@DannyLe the day before), but being in the cart with @BHGtylerb definitely had me nervous. You always want to play well in front of someone like that, and I'd hopped aboard the struggle bus the day before so I was anxious to get to the range. I'd been thinking a lot about my poor play and had a couple of specific swing keys I wanted to work with. Head out to the range and start out with the PW. Early results are promising, not exactly pin hunting but the contact is far better. Work my way through a few more clubs and at least feel like I can pass as someone who's swung a golf club before. Head over to the putting green and roll a few putts. The new Ben Hogan <REDACTED> and I seem to be getting along well. Snap a few pictures of the view, which was stellar to say the least.
We get the word from the starter that it's go time. Hop in the cart with Tyler and head for the teebox. Right out of the gate I make a mistake that I only discovered was a mistake later that day. @BHGtylerb mentioned post round that he's not really one to offer unsolicited advice. Had I known I would have told him to PLEASE offer any tips he could think of at any time, I need all the help I can get
. @BHGtylerb and I are matched up against @JDax and @chefkritter and it figures to be a good match. Being that both scores count I'm definitely feeling nervous about pulling my weight.#1 - Dax and Kritter lead off and Dax is definitely in play with a good strike, and I think Kritter is as well. I think Tyler leads off for us and puts a good one out there. I step up and hit another good drive. As I recall we have 30-40 yards straight up the hill to the hole. I wish I could give a full recap of Tyler's shots, and will try to do what I can remember. Nothing spectacular (by his standards) here, chip, lag a putt to a couple feet and in for par. I hit what I thought was a really good pitch but it rolls out a lot more than I expected. Lag my putt to 6-8 feet still above the hole, that dreaded distance. Burn the edge coming down and have 5 feet left. @JDax and @chefkritter wander off wanting to see if I could make that putt coming back up the hill. Thankfully I do, and we go 1-up.
#2 - I lead off for us and push one out of play to the right. Not bad contact or anything, just didn't turn it over enough. In what will definitely be a theme today, @BHGtylerb puts a solid drive out along the left side of the fairway. From here things go awry for Tyler. Driver off the deck winds up either out of play or just out of play to the right, next shot also out of play. Not sure if he maxed at Net Triple (8) or not. I decide to lay up and pull a 7-iron, literally. Pull my layup further left than I want, but it's long enough to clear the water and give me a good angle in. I don't really remember the distance to be honest, but it's a wedge and I hit GIR. 2-putts for a natural par, but Dax hits a nice putt to take the hole. Pic looking back from the green on #2 (I think lol)
#3 - Tyler hits another good drive on the left side of the fairyway, and I hit another good drive the finds the middle of the fairway. We're roughly 145-150 out I think. Tyler hits his approach and leaves it a bit short of the green but in good shape. I take 9 iron and hit a nicely struck but directionally challenged pull/draw that stays out of the bunker but is left of target. I've got a bit of a tricky chip but hit it well and leave myself 10' or so for par. Tyler just misses his birdie putt and is in for par. I miss my par and am in for bogie. We take this hole to go 1-up.
#4 - Par 3 with water all along the right. Tyler I believe comes up a little short and right, or the water, can't remember which. I hit another GIR, not exactly a dart but it finds the green off to the right so we're putting. One or both of Kritter and Dax are in the drink, so we're in good shape. Tyler and I talk it over briefly and we pick a line and I lead off. Line is a little low, and I don't give it enough pace so I'm looking at another 7 footer up the hill for par. Makeable but I haven't been killing it from that range. Tyler hits a great putt and has a tap in par. Hole is won so I don't have to putt. 2-up.
#5 - This one's pretty foggy to be honest. I think I pushed a drive out of play but Tyler again saved me with his GS53 Max. That's honestly about all I can remember, looking back at the updates from @JDax I see we halved this hole.
#6 - Tough par 5 to say the least. I lead off and overdraw my drive right into a bush on the left hand corner of the fairway. Tyler follows suit to a nearly identical spot. Never did find mine, the bush swallowed it up
. We're in a waste bunker with a really soggy lie, definitely not ideal, and have I want to say 190ish as a crow flies to the green, but it's all water carry. Tyler steps up and the wet cement type lie is too much to handle and he deposits his ball in the water. Seeing that, we decide the right move is for me to lay up, so I hit one of my better shots directionally to a good position the fairway with an 8-iron. Take Tyler up to where he's going to hit his shot from which is unfortunately still in the soggy waste bunker. Soggy waste bunker again gets the win, as he puts two more balls into the water and packs it in. We head over to my shot, where I've got a wedge in. I catch the wedge really thin and it barely gets across and looks like it's hanging by a thread. @JB recommends I not putz around and get over to that before it decides to roll into the water. So I hustle over wedge in hand; and proceed to thin another wedge across the green and into the water Back to 1-up. Pic of view from Tyler's drop and @JDax set-up with @chefkritter and @JB looking on.And that's where I'm shutting it down for the night. I'll continue the saga tomorrow. Who knows, maybe #5 will pop back in to my head
You are all killin it with the recaps! It’s a lot of fun to read, so thanks guys
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Loved reading that
@mtbloco came down yesterday to play in a scramble with us. I was able to check out his new irons in person. The pics do not do them justice they are beautiful. I took 3 swings with his 9 iron and dropped all three right on the green lol. The hogans have a great feel and those shafts were fantastic. I see his HC heading down!
The Linq shaft they won for the villa crawl is just over the top also. Absolute beautiful
The Linq shaft they won for the villa crawl is just over the top also. Absolute beautiful
I got in another round today and some more thoughts on the clubs.
Irons: I still love the feel of these and never thought I’d be a graphite shaft covert. Much easier on my elbow and great ball flight and spin. The 4u is easy to hit and a go to club off the tee on short 4’s.
Wedges: Great feel and tons of spin. These are the 1st non Vokey wedges that will stay in my bag. I really like the v sole. I had a 60 yard bunker shot today I stuck inches from the pin.
Putter: It took awhile but I think this will
stay in the bag, it is just too easy to square up and much more confidence on the short putts.
Irons: I still love the feel of these and never thought I’d be a graphite shaft covert. Much easier on my elbow and great ball flight and spin. The 4u is easy to hit and a go to club off the tee on short 4’s.
Wedges: Great feel and tons of spin. These are the 1st non Vokey wedges that will stay in my bag. I really like the v sole. I had a 60 yard bunker shot today I stuck inches from the pin.
Putter: It took awhile but I think this will
stay in the bag, it is just too easy to square up and much more confidence on the short putts.
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Great stuff. Moving forward make sure to share thoughts in the threads for that equipment, this way it is so much more searchable and accessible for the masses. Thanks
And we're back, not sure how far I'll get but we'll get some more holes in tonight.
#7 - The only hole on the course that's even a slight dogleg right. I tell @BHGtylerb I'm going to try to play a cut on the tee box. I step up and decide against it, thinking I'm pretty sure I can clear the trees that create the illusion of the dogleg. Well I was right about that, problem is I also started way too far to the right and didn't come back. No sweat, Tyler stripes another one up the left side of the fairway in great shape. Kritter and Dax are in some trouble off the tee, and then Kritter puts his approach in the woods right and Dax pulls his left. I put another decent strike on the ball and am ~20 yards off the green to the left and I think Tyler finds the green. I hit another solid chip, and think I 2-putt for bogey. Meanwhile Tyler is in for par I believe so we're back to 2 up.
#8 - The ocean comes into view and it's genuinely breathtaking. I step up with either a 7 or 8 iron and put another nice strike on the ball, starts at the middle of the green and draws off to the left but comes up a bit short in the face of a pretty stiff headwind. Tyler is a bit shorter I think, and Dax and Kritter are short as well. Chip and putt for Tyler, chip and 2-putt for me takes the hole. @JB snags a group picture of us (below), having to remind Tyler that the putter isn't supposed to be in the picture Below is where my tee shot wound up with the view behind it.
#9 - Another breathtaking hole, running along the ocean. You can see from the video below that I wanted badly to throw that baby to the ocean and bring it back with the wind, needless to say the wind let me down. OK, so upon video review I am lined up WAAAAYYY too far right, but hey the wind right? You can't hear it over the wind but I turn to Tyler and say something along the lines of where's this mighty wind everyone talks about Again no big deal as Tyler pipes another one down the right side of the fairway (that GS53 Max is a deadly weapon in @BHGtylerb's hands) Team Danny is in the fairway as well, I believe @chefkritter piped one. Tyler and I step up, think I went 6 iron and he went 5 iron and we both go left. I wind up in the bunker and he has a funky sidehill lie but not in the bunker. First time hitting out of the bunker today, and I hit a great sand shot for me to 12'. You can guess what happens next, two putts for bogey. I'll take it out of the sand though. If I recall we all were in for bogey, but as the toughest hole on the course everyone is popping except Tyler so we're back to 2-up. Video of my drive and couple pics of Tyler's set-up and swing on approach.
#10 - A pretty straightforward par 5, off the tee anyway. I've been slacking with the driver the last three holes so I decide to take a more realistic line off the tee and finally put one back in the fairway. @BHGtylerb steps up with his WOMD and absolutely unloads. His comment (paraphrased) 'I hope I outdrove you that time because that's all I've got.' *Narrator's voice* and he did. He's got me by 10 yards or so, but we decide to play my ball in. The green on 10 has a bunker right, then a 10-15 yard opening to the left, followed by another bunker, creating an ally of sorts. My ball gave a straight shot through that ally to the green, whereas a straight shot from his line would have to fly the bunker. I told him I didn't care which one because for me it was about choosing the right club and making sure I clear those bunkers, I had been directionally challenged all day either way. Since he's more a straight hitter we decided to sacrifice the yardage for that ally. It didn't work out for him, as he ended up in that left side bunker anyway. I hit an 8-iron in and once again am left but clear the bunker and am up on the hill above the hole. Hit a great chip shot to ~8 ft or so, and proceed to sink the putt for a natural birdie. Definitely my best hole of the day.
#11 - Another scenic hole with water all along the left (pic below). I hit a decent drive but put it further out to the right than is ideal, and Tyler again puts us in good position. We're in that sketchy 80 yard range where I'm really hit or miss. Well unfortunately today would turn out to be more miss than hit. I kind of pull/skull my approach but get away with it and have a 20 yard chip that goes a little longer than I'd like, but lag the putt close for a 5. @JDax drops a 15 footer for birdie (@JB posted a video of it), and Tyler misses his birdie putt to halve the hole so we're now 2-up.
#12 - This will be a quick one. @JDax hits a hybrid to 20 feet and he is FIRED up. @chefkritter one ups him and stripes one to 12 feet. I step up with a 5-iron and pull my best Jon Rahm impression out of the bag. You've seen it, the one where he skips his ball across the water for a hole in one. Well I skip my ball across the water and unbelievably it skips about 8 times and pops up into the fairway 30 yards from the green. Tyler pulls his left into the water. We both hit solid wedges in, but Dax puts his tight and @chefkritter drains his (that's a theme of this day for sure). Back to 1-up.
Another solid stopping point, going 6 holes at a time. It sure is fun reliving this, but the pain is to come. Tune in next time for the remainder of the recap. A preview of me in the next segment
#7 - The only hole on the course that's even a slight dogleg right. I tell @BHGtylerb I'm going to try to play a cut on the tee box. I step up and decide against it, thinking I'm pretty sure I can clear the trees that create the illusion of the dogleg. Well I was right about that, problem is I also started way too far to the right and didn't come back. No sweat, Tyler stripes another one up the left side of the fairway in great shape. Kritter and Dax are in some trouble off the tee, and then Kritter puts his approach in the woods right and Dax pulls his left. I put another decent strike on the ball and am ~20 yards off the green to the left and I think Tyler finds the green. I hit another solid chip, and think I 2-putt for bogey. Meanwhile Tyler is in for par I believe so we're back to 2 up.
#8 - The ocean comes into view and it's genuinely breathtaking. I step up with either a 7 or 8 iron and put another nice strike on the ball, starts at the middle of the green and draws off to the left but comes up a bit short in the face of a pretty stiff headwind. Tyler is a bit shorter I think, and Dax and Kritter are short as well. Chip and putt for Tyler, chip and 2-putt for me takes the hole. @JB snags a group picture of us (below), having to remind Tyler that the putter isn't supposed to be in the picture
Below is where my tee shot wound up with the view behind it.#9 - Another breathtaking hole, running along the ocean. You can see from the video below that I wanted badly to throw that baby to the ocean and bring it back with the wind, needless to say the wind let me down. OK, so upon video review I am lined up WAAAAYYY too far right, but hey the wind right? You can't hear it over the wind but I turn to Tyler and say something along the lines of where's this mighty wind everyone talks about
Again no big deal as Tyler pipes another one down the right side of the fairway (that GS53 Max is a deadly weapon in @BHGtylerb's hands) Team Danny is in the fairway as well, I believe @chefkritter piped one. Tyler and I step up, think I went 6 iron and he went 5 iron and we both go left. I wind up in the bunker and he has a funky sidehill lie but not in the bunker. First time hitting out of the bunker today, and I hit a great sand shot for me to 12'. You can guess what happens next, two putts for bogey. I'll take it out of the sand though. If I recall we all were in for bogey, but as the toughest hole on the course everyone is popping except Tyler so we're back to 2-up. Video of my drive and couple pics of Tyler's set-up and swing on approach.#10 - A pretty straightforward par 5, off the tee anyway. I've been slacking with the driver the last three holes so I decide to take a more realistic line off the tee and finally put one back in the fairway. @BHGtylerb steps up with his WOMD and absolutely unloads. His comment (paraphrased) 'I hope I outdrove you that time because that's all I've got.' *Narrator's voice* and he did. He's got me by 10 yards or so, but we decide to play my ball in. The green on 10 has a bunker right, then a 10-15 yard opening to the left, followed by another bunker, creating an ally of sorts. My ball gave a straight shot through that ally to the green, whereas a straight shot from his line would have to fly the bunker. I told him I didn't care which one because for me it was about choosing the right club and making sure I clear those bunkers, I had been directionally challenged all day either way. Since he's more a straight hitter we decided to sacrifice the yardage for that ally. It didn't work out for him, as he ended up in that left side bunker anyway. I hit an 8-iron in and once again am left but clear the bunker and am up on the hill above the hole. Hit a great chip shot to ~8 ft or so, and proceed to sink the putt for a natural birdie. Definitely my best hole of the day.
#11 - Another scenic hole with water all along the left (pic below). I hit a decent drive but put it further out to the right than is ideal, and Tyler again puts us in good position. We're in that sketchy 80 yard range where I'm really hit or miss. Well unfortunately today would turn out to be more miss than hit. I kind of pull/skull my approach but get away with it and have a 20 yard chip that goes a little longer than I'd like, but lag the putt close for a 5. @JDax drops a 15 footer for birdie (@JB posted a video of it), and Tyler misses his birdie putt to halve the hole so we're now 2-up.
#12 - This will be a quick one. @JDax hits a hybrid to 20 feet and he is FIRED up. @chefkritter one ups him and stripes one to 12 feet. I step up with a 5-iron and pull my best Jon Rahm impression out of the bag. You've seen it, the one where he skips his ball across the water for a hole in one. Well I skip my ball across the water and unbelievably it skips about 8 times and pops up into the fairway 30 yards from the green. Tyler pulls his left into the water. We both hit solid wedges in, but Dax puts his tight and @chefkritter drains his (that's a theme of this day for sure). Back to 1-up.
Another solid stopping point, going 6 holes at a time. It sure is fun reliving this, but the pain is to come. Tune in next time for the remainder of the recap. A preview of me in the next segment
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Really enjoyed that. Love reliving these.
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To the victor, go the spoils...
The winning team (Team Danny) got a new Ben Hogan GS53 Max Driver w/ our choice of a UST Mamiya Driver shaft. Mine has arrived.
I chose a 9° Ben Hogan GS53 Max w/ a LINQ Purple shaft. The UST Mamiya Helium does come as a stock option for this driver.
Looking forward to making some adjustments (length & grip) & getting it out on the course to provide some feedback.
I know that those of us that hit this driver at the event walked away impressed, as it showed that it was a high launch/ low spin bomber.
The winning team (Team Danny) got a new Ben Hogan GS53 Max Driver w/ our choice of a UST Mamiya Driver shaft. Mine has arrived.
I chose a 9° Ben Hogan GS53 Max w/ a LINQ Purple shaft. The UST Mamiya Helium does come as a stock option for this driver.
Looking forward to making some adjustments (length & grip) & getting it out on the course to provide some feedback.
I know that those of us that hit this driver at the event walked away impressed, as it showed that it was a high launch/ low spin bomber.
OITW
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Looking forward to hearing more about that.