Category: 2010 - HOPE JOY GOLF

Tees2greens.com archived blog Posts

I remember finding a golf blog and message board site called tees2greens.com and fell in love - I commented on posts and messages and got to "know" a few other posters on the site. A while later, I got a message that if I wanted to I could have my own blog on the site...it was the most amazing offer and back in 2009 I wrote my first blog. I loved bantering with the head blogger, Sam Johnson, and I was thrilled to share my love for golf. The website had a great run, but all good things come to an end. The webmaster gave me a chance to download all my posts and here they are. A few years later I started hopejoygolf.com and restarted blogging. Life and technology created some starts and stops, but finally, 2025 is reenergizing me to blog again. I'm still a work in progress, but for now, if you're here, check out some of my thoughts back in my beginner blogging days.

As the Calendar Turns

1/3/2016

Posted Dec 30 2010, 10:43 AM by Cathy Erickson
I don't know about you, but this last week of December is a time for me to say good-bye to the current year and prepare for the next. My mental photo album gets sketchier every year (this is what happens when you get older), but I still have a pretty good slide show of great golf memories this year. And at the same time I find a part of my brain already getting ready for the season ahead, even though it's at least 5 months away. And it's that "resolution" and "goal setting" time of year, so pondering some golf goals seems appropriate, too.

Who could have predicted that? 2010 Crystal Golf Ball Results

1/3/2016

Posted Dec 16 2010, 09:52 AM by Cathy Erickson
Happy Holidays! Well, now that the Tour season is officially over, I guess it's time to dig out my "predictions" post from back in January to see how I did. I was nervous...I couldn't really remember what I said, except for that I was sure Steve Stricker and Matt Kuchar were mentioned. Okay...let's see how I did!

Surf's Up! Time for Holiday Golf Online Shopping!

1/3/2016

Posted Dec 06 2010, 10:36 AM by Cathy Erickson
Ah, the holiday season - it's that time where you may be trying to find that special golf gift for that special golf person, or you're a savvy shopper looking for some good deals for yourself!

Tees2Greens very own super fitness contributor, Mindi Boysen, shared some great suggestions for some neat gear that can help you improve your game, but sometimes you just want a new pair of shoes!!

I'm Dreaming of a PGA Tour Card

1/3/2016

Posted Nov 30 2010, 08:34 AM by Cathy Erickson
There are 216 players in Florida right now on the verge of 6-day golf marathon...at the finish line are 25 PGA Tour Cards...for the next 50 there are Nationwide Tour Cards, and for the rest, a "conditional" status on the Nationwide Tour that could get them some playing time in 2011. But you know what they all want. They want to say "I'm on the PGA Tour in 2011".

Us Against the World

1/3/2016

Posted Nov 04 2010, 06:16 PM by Cathy Erickson
I really hate it when Sam Johnson steals my topic ideas! It doesn't happen all that often since I don't eat, sleep, and dream about Tiger Woods (just kidding!), but you have to admit that the whole idea of being #1 in the world has become a realistic goal for any number of guys now that Tiger has relinquished the title after I don't know how long.

The criteria to determine the #1 player on the "Official World Golf Ranking" may possibly be one of the most complex and argubly non-relevant calculations to come along in ages. The strangest thing is, it's based on a 2-year running average - which is why Tiger held on to the number one spot for weeks, months, after his game and personal life were on the sidelines. It's crazy, in a way...should it matter what a guy did 2 years ago to deterimine that he's the best as of today? I wrote about this somewhere in the forums, but all that I remember is that a guy can win and be outside of the top 50 and another guy can go a whole year without winning and still hangout in the top 25...heck, he can be #1!!

Research & Development is a lot of pressure!

1/3/2016

Posted Oct 14 2010, 06:17 PM by Cathy Erickson
My new best friends (Sorry, Sam!) at Titleist dropped a sleeve of "test balls" in the mail to me and they arrived 2 days ago. My mission, if I so chose, was to play one of these golf balls along with the golf ball I usually play and then rate the performance from all parts of the golf course.

The golf balls came in a plain white sleeve, they were stamped with the Titliest logo (a #1 ball) and where you usually see the type (Pro-V1, NXT, So/Lo) it just said TEST. The cover seemed similar to a ProV 1x, but the dimple pattern was different.

I Can Sleep Again!

1/3/2016

Posted Oct 07 2010, 01:23 PM by Cathy Erickson
It's been nice to have a few good nights' sleep after getting up a 3AM three days in a row to watch the Ryder Cup last weekend. I know, I know, I didn't HAVE to get up, but the Ryder Cup is a golf event that I just don't want to miss, with the instantaneousness of the internet and social media, I knew I'd hear about it before I got a chance to watch if I waited.

The weather delays sure put a kink in the schedule, but in the end it seemed like the changes made were what needed to happen. Although, if you read some of the media and bloggers out there, if Pavin had rejected the 6 groups playing in the morning and afternoon on Sunday, team USA may have retained the cup. It's impossible to know, but Europe winning 5 of the 6 afternoon matches makes you wonder if there's something to the theory.

Good-bye September, Hello Ryder Cup!

1/3/2016

Posted Sep 30 2010, 12:42 PM by Cathy Erickson
What in the...? It's already September 30! It seems like just yesterday I was looking forward to my favorite golf month of the year and now, just like that, it's over. I had some fun days golfing this past month, and even though we had a few rainy days, I was able to get out on the course for at least 9 holes whenever I didn't have to work late (which was too often if you asked me!).

The sun setting earlier has been a total drag. By 7pm it's very hard to see the golf balls and there is a definite chill in the air by that time, too. How can daylight savings time not be until November 7??? This does not help golfers in Minnesota at all!! If we could get that extra hour NOW, I'd be a lot happier.

Don't listen to them...it's okay to like the end of the season!!

1/3/2016

Posted Sep 23 2010, 05:42 AM by Cathy Erickson
There is really nothing better than having your favorite golfers being in contention coming into a Major or an end of season event like the Tour Championship...or the FedEx Cup finale. I'm thinking back to Greg Norman's hey days...it was like an emotional roller coaster for me - the highs of seeing him winning and crushing blows of seeing a few heart breaking losses.

It's sort of hilarious that I am STILL picturing Larry Mize in the purple striped shirt jumping and running after knocking his chip in at the Masters all those years ago. But that is what being a golf fan is all about.

Bunker Schmunker

1/3/2016

Posted Aug 17 2010, 12:06 PM by Cathy Erickson
Just when you think golf is going to go all boring on us because we don't have Tiger to swoon over, you get the 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. I'm guessing anyone with at least a slight interest in professional golf is still chattering away about how things played out over the past week.

Obviously the story of the Championship is Dustin Johnson and the infamous bunker shot on the 18th. Funny thing...I wasn't even watching it! My fantasy team pegged all its hopes on Rory McIlroy and when he missed his birdie putt on 18 I knew I was sunk...already late for a family dinner, I headed to my Aunt's instead of watching the end. I walk in the front door and everyone is leaning forward in their seats staring at the TV...and there I see DJ and Nick Watney in a room and Dustin is not looking like he just won a Major...it's then that I get the full story...wow!

It's a scrambling week!!

1/3/2016

Posted Jul 06 2010, 03:07 PM by Cathy Erickson
It's golf scramble week in my little part of the world (my favorite golf day of the year!!), so my brain is going in a hundred different directions trying to make sure I remember everything I need to do before Friday. So I'm going to take a page out of Sam Johnson's repertoire and do some "scatter shooting" this week.

Right and Wrong...and Golf

1/3/2016

Posted Jun 23 2010, 04:31 PM by Cathy Erickson
This is my second version of my weekly golf ponderings. Had I posted what I wrote last night you would have read a rant about one of my favorite writers, Sam Johnson. In his blog last week, Sam was once again having one of his Tiger love-fests. The funny thing was, it wasn't even the collection of Tiger superlatives that really bugged me. It was his comment that golf being like life was "preposterous". When I read that it felt like I had just gotten punched in the gut...the foundation of my greatest passion, golf, is that life lessons are waiting for us each time we set foot on the first tee.

Needless to say, after reading his "Legends" post, Sam Johnson was in serious jeopardy of falling out of my top ten favorite list.

Where's the Finish Line?

1/3/2016

Posted Jun 17 2010, 05:10 PM by Cathy Erickson
Where I live, we're in the midst of Marathon week - thousands of runners and thousands more spectators are moving their way into to our little neck of the woods to watch people make it across a wide white line painted on the street after running 26.2 miles.

I've never been able to comprehend the idea of people "choosing" to run...I see it as two-fold, if I'm running, I'm either trying to get to something (maybe to the post office before it closes or maybe after the gal carrying the dessert tray), or I'm trying to get away from something (the rain when a down pour happens on the golf course or away from that spider crawling on the wall).

Is that opportunity knocking?

1/3/2016

Posted May 24 2010, 10:00 PM by Cathy Erickson
Sunday morning rolled around and a round of golf was planned for 10am. I was up a bit earlier and pulled out a book I had started reading ages ago but hadn't picked up in a while. The name of the book is "Fearless" by Max Lucado. I opened it to the chapter I had left off on and I began reading about how the fear of not mattering or not being good enough can sabotage opportunities put in front of us. It was a great reminder on how sometimes we can be our own worst enemy with negative thoughts and second guessing. Have you been there? I think I have a reserved spot.

Ken Green is my "Funk Buster"!

1/3/2016

Posted May 19 2010, 01:50 PM by Cathy Erickson
Ever been in a funk? You know, you just get that "down" feeling? Even though golf season has finally arrived in Minnesota, and I've already had several fun rounds with friends, I've been struggling with this feeling of "funkiness" lately. I know it's real when I have the chance to play golf and I don't. And that happened last night.

A combination of golf, work, and general life issues are cluttering up my brain and my default mode is to attempt to avoid dealing with any of it in the hopes that it might go away on it's own...of course I know from experience it never does, but sometimes the funk wins out.

Pebble Beach here SHE comes!

1/3/2016

Posted May 13 2010, 09:36 AM by Cathy Erickson
Golf Digest held its third annual contest that lets one lucky winner play the US Open Course as it sets up for the players to try to break 100. This year it's the famed Pebble Beach Golf Links - what a dream! Golfers from all over sent in just short of 25,000 60-word essays on why they should be given the chance to break 100 at Pebble Beach with Mark Wahlberg, Drew Brees, and Wayne Gretzky.

The judges had a hard time narrowing down the field to just 5, but after meeting with 13 semi-finalists they felt they had five very deserving candidates. Here was the description from Golf Digest:

Tennessee Golf Adventures

1/3/2016

Posted Apr 28 2010, 10:18 AM by Cathy Erickson
I just returned home from a 6-day trip to Tennessee/Kentucky. The main purpose of the trip was to meet friends and head to a concert, but since I was travelling, I figured I might as well try to fit in some golf, too!

Even though I didn't book any tee times before I left, I was able to golf 4 courses on three different days. Day one was a Thursday trip to The Hermitage. There are 2 18-hole courses - the President's Reserve and the General's Retreat. When I called that morning to see if I could play, I was able to get in with a two-some at 10:30 on the President's Reserve, the newer and more expensive of the 2 courses.

Checking Out one of "The Little Guys"

1/3/2016

Posted Apr 20 2010, 09:07 AM by Cathy Erickson
I was browsing through some golf links last night and came across an interesting blog. The makers of Solus Wedges have created a neat web site and blog site to share their story of trying to make their mark on the Professional Tours.

I'll admit I've never heard of Solus (although I'm wondering now if they've had an infomercial?)...and if you read their blog, the Solus guys aren't all that surprised that they are still under the radar. They have some very interesting commentary on the "big guns" in the equipment world and the challenges they face as they are trying to get their wedges into Tour bags.

Golf Overload

1/3/2016

Posted Apr 15 2010, 10:39 PM by Cathy Erickson
Do you ever have a time where sometimes you're just on a golf overload? I think the Masters does that to me every year. Once again we had a fantastic tournament that not only brought out the best in players, but it also kept us on the edge of our sofas. I know that even though we weren't together, my Mom and I were both standing up and clapping for Phil as he made his putt on 18. It's what we do.

The Best Golf Week of the Year!

1/3/2016

Posted Apr 07 2010, 08:36 AM by Cathy Erickson
We're just a few short hours from getting our first live golf action from the 2010 Masters...the Par-3 contest. I don't know about you, but I'm almost giddy with anticipation. Five days of golf heaven for me - the beauty, the tradition, the drama, and the reverence for the game.

Once again, though, life is getting in the way of my happy place. If you remember last year, I had my refrigerator catastrophe elbowing into my Masters time. I was not happy! This year, it's a curling event on Saturday that requires more attention than I had hoped to give. But I promise you, I will be on my sofa on Sunday afternoon for arguably the best 5 hours of golf of the year.

Can We Get a New Ruling on a Ruling?

1/3/2016

Posted Mar 31 2010, 04:29 PM by Cathy Erickson
My mind has been struggling to comprehend the meaning and appropriateness of rules lately as I have been following the story of Ken Green. Green, a current Champions Tour player and 5-time winner on the PGA Tour was in a terrible accident last year which resulted in the amputation of his lower right leg. More tragic was the death of his brother, girlfriend, and dog in this same accident.

Green's journey from his Tour beginnings until now make for an interesting read. From being called golf's "bad boy" or "Daly before there was a Daly", Green admits that although he may have been controversial, he wouldn't change much from back then.

Visions of Golf Season

1/3/2016

Posted Mar 24 2010, 02:31 PM by Cathy Erickson
I took a walk on our golf course yesterday afternoon. While visions of dull yellow dormant grass and creamy colored straw covering the greens catch my eye first, when I took a moment to look closer I could see a few blades of fresh green grass popping through the mix of soil and clay.

My spirits rose and it didn't take long for my mind to recapture memories of sunny skies, carpets of green, and a warm breeze on my cheeks. As I slowly released the deep breath I had just taken, I felt the golf course welcoming me back for another season.

I know it's still a bit too early to get excited, but aside from a few water logged areas on a few holes (which I assume are from plugged drains), the course is as dry as I can ever remember for March. I remember a few years back we had no snow on the ground at the end of February and my face lit up just thinking that if it got just a little warmer we could be playing in March!! It was just a week later when we got a storm that dumped 2ft of snow. It was a crushing blow to my spirit, and would be another month and a half before my clubs made to the back of my car that year.

This year though, having a few streaks of unseasonably warm weather, the only snow that remains are scattered patches under the shadows of trees or along a few creek banks. As I was walking along yesterday I could hear water racing through the woods, so I made my way into the trees to catch a look. Leafless branches and brush exposed the meandering creek bed, and I found myself awed by the strong current. I hardly give this creek a second thought during the golf season, but I'm glad I did today.

As I worked my way out of the brush and back onto the course I noticed that some of the dead birch trees had been cut down. The landscape looks different, but I'm sure there was some fear that they might just fall over. I don't know much about trees, but birch seem very fragile. As I wandered along I picked up some birch debris that had made its way to the rough and tossed it back in the woods.

I was surprised to see that some of the stationary ponds are still trying to melt their coating of ice, but I wasn't surprised to see sand traps full of animal tracks. I only saw 1 deer, but the "evidence" that they are around is all over the place. I also appreciated the chirping birds and 2 squirrels I saw racing around.

As I walked a couple of holes backwards I was reminded about how different something can appear when you look at it from a different perspective. Walking back up #12, I didn't realize how downhill it was going forward...I mean I knew it was, but seeing it, and walking it, I'm really glad we don't have to play it backwards! And it was as I was walking up that last fairway I decided to renew my goal of trying to break par for 18 holes this year.

Before I got back in my car I took a few deep breaths and then took a moment to be grateful that in just a few weeks I'll be able to bring my clubs with me to the course. Yellow or green, warm or cool, the golf course is where everything is beautiful to me. I can't wait!

PS...Two weeks until the Masters...woo HOO!!

Filed under: Spring, goals, Golf

It's no Fantasy, it's a Nightmare!

1/3/2016

Posted Mar 17 2010, 07:45 AM by Cathy Erickson
My fantasy leagues are ruining my joy of watching golf. Oh sure, everything would be great if I could pick the winners each week, but I'm in the same pattern I get in every year...the first week I do great, then comes the slow and painful decent down the leader board, never to be seen again.

I battle the urge to pick my favorite players and instead I study stats, streaks, and past tournament performance. Usually I end up with a little of both in my final selections, but I'm usually picking the wrong guys in each category.

How do you rate?

1/3/2016

Posted Mar 10 2010, 06:37 PM by Cathy Erickson
In last week's post, Sam Johnson talked about the 10 best golf courses in the world and in the US, and it was full of good information. I'm embarrassed to say that I didn't know a thing about the Pine Valley Golf Course...which has been ranked number 1 for several years. After a bit of searching I now know why...it's a private facility, has really not ever been used for professional golf events, and only guests of members can play. I googled the price and it's no where to be found.

Happy Birthday to my Blog!

1/3/2016

Posted Mar 03 2010, 08:59 AM by Cathy Erickson
I remember it like it was yesterday...a note came in my inbox from the super cool Tees2Greens Webmaster inviting me to have my own blog right here at T2G. A spot in the internet world where I can share my love for golf to my heart's content...how could I pass up an opportunity like that??!! I'm sure he didn't know it, but that note meant more to me than I can explain.