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TXSooner518

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Posts posted by TXSooner518


  1. I’d say go over to Caesars it’s typically thought of as one of the best these days

    For buffet, I’d go Caesars > Wynn > Cosmo but all solid and obv Wynn furthest. I did hear someone strongly recommend the brunch buffet on weekends at Veranda at Mandalay Bay but have not tried yet.
    • Like 2
  2. If it’s a made for TV thing, yeah, some combo of appearance fees/sponsor money/brand building. But the best 9 players aren’t just sitting at a private game not streamed or televised pushing money around without a whale or 3 to feast on. Why would they?

    • Hook 'Em 1
  3. 1) Exactly even skill levels are going to be very rare, and they will often try to exploit certain weaknesses (Player A pays off too many river bets, etc.), but generally a pro isn't going to play in that game without some dead money to spice it up. Put another way, what good is it to be the 8th best player in the world, if the top 7 are at the same table? Game selection is a huge part of playing successfully.

    2) Easy easy easy easy call unless one of a few very rare situations that are exceptions apply. You simply aren't going to find a spot with more $$ equity than AA in preflop. The larger the tournament, the more pronounced this effect is, b/c the more buyins there are at stake up top. If you're playing a $2100 tourney with 1400 runners, $640k up top and a $3000 mincash, and you played the tournament 100 times, you make more than twice as much money winning once and bubbling 99 times compared to mincashing 100 times. 

    Your "top 7 make the money" is even more of a call, since to miss the money, you not only have to lose to someone that covers you, but have no one that you cover get eliminated. 

    The exceptions:

    • The tournament is a satellite where the top players all earn the same prize and you are a lock or a virtual lock to earn the prize if you fold everything.
    • You have a micro stack (2 blinds or something) where even winning the hand makes you not that much more of a favorite to get a top position, but still would probably need to be right on the stone bubble just because most hands like this don't actually have 3 or 4 people busting. 
    • Very rare situations where life utility can come up. If you win a $30 satty into the main event, the $15,000 mincash is a huge ROI and I understand decreasing your overall $EV slightly b/c of that utility (same idea as if someone offered me the choice of taking $2M straight up or flipping a coin for $5M, I'm snapcalling the 2M even though I lose $500k in EV, b/c the gap in utility from 0 to 2M is WAY greater than that from 2M to 5M.) But that only applies to tournies where you get in for WAY less than the buyin. If you buy into a $600 tourney, and are then folding AA pre to lock up $1100 mincashes, you have no business buying into $600 tournies to begin with. 
    • Hook 'Em 1
    • Like 1
  4. Old Mac & Preserve details and pics

    Spoiler


    104, 35 putts (4 one putts, 3 three putts), 0/18 GIR (LOLOLOL only the largest fucking greens on the continent), 10/14 fairways.
    Strokes gained: Driving -1.5, Approach -12.1, Short game -2.4, Putting -1.9. (As a current 21, I use strokes gained comparison to a 15 cap, since that's my current goal.)

    We drew for partners, I teamed with my buddy, we lost 2&1, pressed and press was AS. Beat my brother 4&3, lost to dad 2dn, beat my bud 1up, and I won 6 skins.
     

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    Brother teeing off with a gallery.

    I was very pleased with the first tee shot of the trip , solid driver up the right side in wind and rain, just shy of the deepest right fairway bunker, leaving a simple wedge in.
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    Result of 1st tee shot.

    Sadly, thin it over the green, but recover with a reasonable chip back to 20 feet, lag it up and tap in for bogey.

    OK, next up, easy par 3, right? I hit a pretty good 8 iron, but it draws a bit, and the tail wind skids it into the bunker over the back left of the green. NEVER GO THERE. Don't really have a backswing, take 3 to get out and make a filthy quad. Gross.

    On #3, I pipe a drive back into the wind that literally misses Ghost Tree limbs by inches. A truly fun moment!

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    Group with GT in background.
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    Walking past GT to my drive. It went a very solid 243 yards, then I hit a flushed 8 iron just over the green, chip from 40 yards with my hybrid to 5 feet and make it for the first par of the trip. This began a very enjoyable sequence where I scored well on many of the famous/signature holes.

    4 was playing into the teeth of the wind, but I nuke a drive which from the gold tees reaches the humpback speed slot and ends up 264 yards from where I struck it. I then lace a low 3w 223 yards again just over the back of the green into a fluffy rough lie, but hit a pretty good SW out of it, 2-putt bogey, which I thought into a 25mph wind was a damn good 5.

    On 5, have a 9i to the biggest green in the world and just clank it into the wispy mess right in front of me and just make a messy 6. Then head to 6, and pound a drive 277, leaving just a 6iron second into this par 5. Hit a gross shot that skids off the Hell bunker rail ties and ends up off in the right rough, but manage to scramble from there for another bogey.
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    Walking past Hell Bunker, thankful the 6iron bounced off the ties and out, not in!

    On to the next signature hole, Ocean. Hit a skanky 5w tee shot leaving me about 220 up the cliff from light rough. LACE a 5w 214 yards up to the front left corner, just off the green, then lag the puttchip to a foot and tap in for another signature hole par ha.

    On 8, the Biarritz, hit a 7i that looked/felt great in the air and then a huge gust just dropped it like a sniper, it landed right on the front edge then spun all the way down the hill in front of the green. Gross. Hit a decent little chip/pitch from there to 25 feet, but mediocre lag leads to first 3putt of the trip, and a double, and I'm now 9 over on the three par 3s so far.

    Hit a beauty drive on 9 up the left side again back into the wind. Leave a 5iron face open on approach and fan it well right. Make a short game mess, but drain a 20 footer for bogey and a front nine of 47.

    Feeling overall quite solid, step to the 10th tee and hit my first poor drive into the rough right, that goes just nowhere into the wind. I then just can't hit the ball, jankily advancing it a bit at a time, then missing a 5 footer for triple. Yeesh.

    Hit a great drive up the left on Road, and feel back in business. Hit a chippy 8 iron that comes up short right. Try to lag with my putter and blast it over the green. Then putt that one back over the green into the Road bunker. JFC. 2 to get out of that and another quad.

    Now 12, the Redan. Flare a hybrid off to the right, hit a pretty good chip up but get a bit unlucky, then another short game fiasco capped by another missed 4 footer for triple. Sweeeeeeet quad-quad-quad start to the back B.

    Get the wheels back on the Riksha with another nice drive 257 up the left on 13 leaving a 50 yard pitch in, which I hit reasonably well but rolls just off, and I miss a 10 footer for par. I hit a mediocre drive on 14, but it leaves another 60y shot in, which I putt up the hill to the fringe, then get down in 2 for my third (and final) par of the round.

    On 15, hit a decent drive up the left, then have 5w in and literally cold top it 10 yards. Neat. Hit the next one solid up short of the green, then an OK chip to 15 feet, but miss a 3 foot bogey putt. Ick. On 16, Alps, hit a pretty good drive but it really doesn't go much, and I have 5i in. Draw it up onto a plateau left of green. Get up there and it's literally mowed down gorse, so I'm walking on literal gorse and have to pitch off it, and hit a BEAUTY from 40 yards to 12 feet. Miss that, but tap in bogey.

    17 I hit a big pull hook tee shot for my first lost ball of the round. Drop and mostly flub my next one. I holler across the fairway to Brownbear for a line, then lace 5w on what I think is the right line, but it's too far left and gone again. Eventually hit a sweet lag from 57 feet to 2 feet, but the 2 footer is for triple.

    18 I hit another good drive into the teeth of the wind, then a 3w just over the green. Hit what was allllllllmost a great chip, but it rolled down a ridge to about 20 feet, two putts for bogey and a back nine 57, total 104. Overall, was pretty pleased given the circumstances, course, and conditions. Didn't feel like I played that bad, minus 5 and 10-12 and just finding a death spot on 2.

    Move on to the Preserve, and there I shoot a 56, which is 17 over through 13. Approach strokes gained -3.9, short game -1.1, putting -4.3. As you can tell, had some bad putting. FIVE three putts and a four putt, with only one 1 putt. Did hit 5/13 greens, only really bad tee shot was on 2 that I fanned into the gorse. But yeah, missed a ton of short putts, then the 4 putt on 11 was an absurd hole location, where I hit a great 7i to 15 feet for birdie, then my par and bogey putts were both also 15 feet. Did hit a really good shot on 12 after a bad tee shot into the bunker, ball was just in the bunker, I had to stand outside of it, and the ball was literally probably 15-18 inches lower than my feet and I hit a great little 9i chip out choking down to the steel. As mentioned, we hit putters off the front tee at dusk on 13, and I hit mine to 30 feet and made par.

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    Couple shots from preserve, including me enjoying a tasty beverage at sunset after a 9 hour day of golf.

    This easily could have been a lot better without all the missed 2-4 footers. Next time!

    Bandon Dunes details and pics

    Spoiler

    90, 31 putts (7 one putts, 2 three putts), 5/18 GIR, 9/14 fairways.
    Strokes gained: Driving -1.5, Approach -6.7, Short game -0.9, Putting +5.1 (LOL).

    This round, I teamed with my dad, who also played over his head, we won the team match 8&6, no press. I beat my brother 4&3, leading the 90h match 4up, square with dad, trailing 90h match 2dn, beat buddy 7&6, leading 90h match 7up.

    Beauty of an opening tee shot right down the right side where I wanted, but stop me if you heard this before, slightly thinned my wedge over the green. Mediocre puttchip from back there, but great lag from 45 feet and bogey to start the day for second straight round.

    Par 3 woes continued as I donked a 6i down into the scrub, found it, then advanced it to an unplayable on my way to my second straight day of a 7 on the par 3 second hole.

    Smash a drive on the recommended line on 3 and it goes right into the left fairway bunker in an unplayable lie under the lip. Drop, then line drive a 5w into the lip of the bunker and it falls back in. THEN, blade my SW under the lip and drop again. I take 10 seconds and re-center and tell myself I'm not going to allow my emotions to spiral. I then do hit a very nice 6i onto the green with an incredibly breaking putt over a knob, which I lag pretty well, but miss the comeback for back to back quads.

    Flare my drive on 4 just a bit and I'm off in the scrubby area right of the fairway about 115 yards out. I hit a chippy little 8i up the right side and judge it perfectly. Settles to about 2.5 feet and I knock it in for a birdie on one of the best golf holes in the world. AWESOME feeling.
     

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    4 green from fairway (not my ball). The waves were big most of our trip, had multiple High Surf Advisories, which was very cool, scenery-wise.

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    My approach on 4. Had to wait about 8 minutes to putt it, def was going to have massive sads to miss it ha.

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    5 tee. Really loved this look.

    Drive up the right side of the fairway on 5, then hit a laser 4h 20 feet right of the flag and make an easy par. Back on track! Hit a pretty 9i on 6, but just misjudge the wind, and have 80 feet for bird, but cozy it right up for another kick-in par. 4-5-6 is one of the coolest stretches of golf in the world, and for this 20cap to play it in -1 was just world class experience.

    Another good drive on 7, then the short right dropoff made me favor left with my approach. Chipputt up to 18 feet, kick in bogey. Good drive up the right on 8, flush a wedge over the back, chip up to 20 feet and roll it in for par.

    First bad drive on 9, pretty far right, but really fine over there. Flush a hybrid back into position, then just chunk a 5i approach. Hit what I thought was a good bump and run, but it hit a soggy spot and died. Chipputt up to 15 feet, make it for bogey and turn in 46, not bad at all with back to back quads.

    Pull my drive on 10 but hit it well, goes just into the rough. Brownbear advised me to play it 15 yards short because of a flyer lie. Come up just short with SW, then chip up to 18 feet. Bang that one in off the flag for par. Rip drive over the bunkers on 11 then flush gap wedge just over. Very ticklish chipputt from back but I lag it up to 3 feet and make another par.

    On to the 12th and I hit a beauty of an 8i to 6 feet and roll it in for my fifth straight one putt, my second birdie of the round and continue playing great on the best holes.

    Good drive on 13, then I hit a bad 3w very close to the unplayable bush up the left, my ball is just a couple feet away and I have no line. I hit a GREAT hooking wedge to get back in position, then a solid 8i chip from 50 yards to 20 feet and two putt for bogey.

    Pound a drive up the middle on 14, easy 9i from the middle of the fairway and hit a wipey weak fade short of the bunker. Hit a very mediocre chip that rolls back off the green, then a puttchip up to 7 feet to save bogey but lip it out. Annoying double here to seemingly slow down momentum.

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    View of sunset across 16 tee box from 15 tee.

    But luckily we have a signature hole in 15 and I laser a 9i to 4 feet and roll it in for my third birdie of the round, and now -2 on the last 3 par 3s after being +17 on the first 5 par 3s.
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    View on 15 green looking north, my tee shot the orange ball.

     

     

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    Impossibly epic.

    On to 16 and the sunset and the feeling was incredible. Solid 15mph headwind and I was definitely anxious knowing this round was really going incredibly well. Pound a drive right on the recommended line, easily over the diagonal scrub, leaving 80y in from the middle of the fairway. Then chunkhosel my wedge into a fairway bunker I didn't even see or think about, because no person should. Next shot hit the top of the mound outside the bunker, popped way up, then landed and plugged in the bunker. Legit just wanted to cry. Drop out, scrape it up, make quad. GAHHHHHHH.

    Hit a good drive on 17, but catch the left bunker. Oh yay more sand! But rip a good 7i out just short of the green, but then a pretty mediocre chip to a back pin and a 3-putt double ensues.

    I know I need a par on 18 to break 90 and it's getting dark. Hit a very good drive left center, but then a mostly topped 3w. Still have 9i approach, but don't hit a great one and come up a bit short. Puttchip up to 9 feet, so I have that for par and 89. Brownbear gives me a line, but it's uphill and the delta between a 1putt and 2putt is waaayyyy bigger than between 2putt and 3putt for me in this spot, so I'm gonna give it more pace, so I play a bit less break than he says, and I lip it out on the low side. HA!

    Still, probably the absolute best stretch of golf I've played, and did it in the absolute best location for golf that I've played. Will relive the play on 16 untill I get back, for absolute certain.

    Sheep Ranch details and pics

    Spoiler

    87, 39 putts (one 1 putt, five 3 putts), 7/18 GIR, 13/14 fairways.

    No strokes gained data, since no maps site has updated to include the current map of Sheep. Also can't input it into my site that I use to track my handicap and stats, which is super annoying, esp since it was my best round. Also using the Arccos to really relive the shots and round helps so much!

    For the 2 on 2 matches, the final pairing was me with my brother, we won 2up. I defeated my brother 6&4, leading the 90h match 11up, defeated buddy 5&3, leading 90h match 13up, and beat my dad 2&1, taking a 1up lead in the 90h match.

    Dad and I scooped all the skins with him taking 10 and me the other 8.

    Really enjoyed being there before the round. The panorama from the patio is incredible, and the secluded range was really cool.
     

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    Fire pit with amazing panorama down to the ocean.

     

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    Cool shot of 11 green from the patio area.
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    Opening tee shot.

    For the 3rd straight day, smoked a drive on a good line. Hit a really good 5w second, but it slid just a bit right and into the gorse just short and right of the green. Good pitch up and 2putts for my 3rd straight opening bogey.
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    In 1st fairway.
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    1st green.

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    Beside the 1st green. LOVE the snag tree.

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    View of 17 green from 1 green.


    Pound a drive on 2, hit a good gap wedge in, routine par. Pretty good shot on 3, just off, chip up close and make another par.
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    3rd hole.

    4 was playing tough into the wind, and I pulled my drive giving me a longer way in. Hit a solid 3w approach and made an easy bogey. Hit a nice shot on 5 to about 15 feet and make another easy par.

    Then 6. It was playing into the wind and lonnnng. Hit a pretty good drive but pulled a touch, then flared my 3w a bit and it got perilously close to the cliff. Hit what I thought was a good 8i chip from there, but couldn't see the surface and it just scooted WAY long over the green. Chipped back up, couldn't save bogey.

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    The awesome 6th, including my brother hitting his tee shot.

    Kind of a wipey 9i on 7 missed the green short right for another bogey. Great drive on 8, then flew the green with a 5i, but got down in 3 for bogey. Next, a wide right approach over by the 10 tee, middling chip, and first 3putt of the round led to a double on 9, out in 42.

    10 featured an all-time crazy shot, and one of my biggest trip regrets. Hit a great drive down the left side, then hoseled my approach which bounded right and hopped into a gorse bush about 18-24 inches off the ground, 80 yards out from the green. I stepped in, with my heels on the very edge of a signficant downslope behind me, and baseball slapped it with a 7i onto the green! SOOOO annoyed that I didn't think to get a pic of the ball in the bush. Sadly, had a significant ridge to deal with and 3-putted again for double.

    11 is the Volcano hole, and I hit a middling drive in the fairway, but couldn't go in 2, so laid back with a very well struck hybrid, and then overclubbed my 3rd to the back of the green with a front pin and had my third straight 3-jack, this for bogey.

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    Volcano. Pops ended up left of that massive mound and is a very low ball hitter. Would have made him +5000 to do anything from there, but he hit a great 7i just over it to 15 feet.

    Hit another middling drive on 12 way right, but it caught the very edge of the fairway on an upslope. RIPPED a beauty of a 5w that was cutting back to a right pin, but slipped just off the green, chip up and 2 putt. Was near the green on 13 in two, but chip was just OK, then missed a 5 footer for par.

    Hit what I thought was gonna be a great drive on 14, but it caught the massssive knob and slid off to the right, leaving a longer approach than I anticipated. Hit it decent, but just off the green and another basic bogey.

    15 was my only missed fairway, pounded it but just a bit right and it caught the fluffy rough. Hit a really nice shot out of that to about 18 feet and 2putted for par.

    16, fire the signature hole alert haha! Hit a really nice pitch in there to 18 feet or so. We were trying to move fast as the rain had started and was clearly getting ready to really get going, I hit a mediocre birdie putt, left it 4 feet short, then missed that. Blleergh.
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    Gorgeous.

    POUNDED a drive right at the green on 17, and it was about 5 yards shy and just at the left edge, def no more than 20 feet or so from the cliff. Yikes! Chipped that up to 6 feet, straight putt, and pulled the damn thing.

     

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    17 green from the other side, 4 hours later. You can see my orange ball and its ill-fated short birdie effort.

    18 was playing right into a driving rain with probably 20-25 mph wind and I laced a driver, 3w, 8i to have about 20 feet for birdie and left it right beside the hole for another par, out in 45.

    Really just kept myself out of trouble this round (obv helpful that there are no death bunkers to find the HEY YOU MADE QUAD disaster button in). Reliving it here and with the pics is def improving my (already high) evaluation of this course, and I'm def excited to fire it again ASAP. The views really are just out of this world throughout.

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    pretty cool shot of the Sheep Ranch from Old Mac the day before.

    Bandon Trails details and pics

    Spoiler

    100, 41 putts (1 one putt, 6 three putts), 4/18 GIR, 8/14 fairways.
    Strokes gained: Driving -2.2, Approach -2.8, Short game -3.6, Putting -4.6.

    For the gambling, my buddy was most down and pops was most up, so they were partners for the 36 hole match for Trails/Pac. They led 4up after this round, I was up and down and my brother played the worst he's played in years.

    I lose to pops 1dn, 90h match is AS through 72 (fun!)
    I beat my brother 1up, lead the 90h match 12up
    I lost to buddy 1 dn, lead the 90h match 12up

    My first lifetime round with a caddie carrying my bag. I really enjoyed the freedom to walk the fairways fully unencumbered, especially at a place like Bandon, where you can really soak in the views and atmosphere. And of course, stuffing an approach and just strolling to the green carrying a putter is too elite!

    As we hit the first tee, we have a nice solid 25-30 mph wind in our face and it's fairly chilly. Wind is from the south, and the southern sky had looked pretty dark but the heavy rain pocket slid east of us, which we were thankful for!

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    Watching the group in front of us begin their hike into the wilderness.

    For the fourth straight round, I hit a good driver on the 1st hole down near the nets. Have about 125 in up the hill and hit a 5 iron into the wind, ha. Flare it right of the mound right of the green where it is on a huge upslope. Good - I hit a nice chip off of it to 18 feet. Bad - I run that putt 5 feet by and miss the comebacker, ending my streak of bogeying every opener.

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    My POV for my 3rd shot on 1.

    Hit 5i again on 2, and again leave it out right, the wind was quartering left and just didn't move it back. Have to hike way up on the dune right, which is like walking on a beach mountain, so soft, lot of effort! It's on a tricky lie, so just take my medicine and chip it down in front of the green rather than trying to fly the bunker onto the green. Hit a nice up with my putter from there to 8 feet and make that for a solid 4.

    Hit a hookish drive on 3, but find the 4th fairway over there, then smack two nice hybrids back to back to reach the green, giving me a 15 foot look at birdie and a tap in par.

    Pound a drive up the left on 4, starting to feel pretty good about this round! Chunk a wedge from there, then hit a pitch a bit thinny that runs over the green right. Chip back up to 18 feet, and 3-jack that for triple. Never get complacent!

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    5 tee

    Flag is right up front on 5, and not wanting to flirt with short and the death bunkers, I hit a flushed wedge too deep with the ridge making the next putt tough. Birdie look is from 67 feet, and I give myself a solid 7 foot look at par, but lip it out for the 3rd 3-putt in first 5 holes, but the first justifiable one at least.

    Another well struck drive on 6 but I find the giant bunker down the right side. Hit a solid full SW from there, but leave it out right. Chip that one up to 20 feet, routine 2-putt bogey.

    We get some light rain from roughly hole 6 through 9, but I hit another good drive into the breeze (wind once we moved into the woods on 3 was more in the 15 mph zone, very workable). Lace a 5w into the breeze up the hill from there, and it jussssst leaks right and finds the short right bunker. Leave two shots in the damn bunker, before finally hitting a solid one out that catches a bit of slope and ends up 18 feet out. 3-jack that for quad. JESUS what a waste of two solid shots!

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    7 tee. Tough hole uphill into the wind and wet, but six shots to get down from 20 yards leaves a mark.

    8 is playing driveable with the wind from my tee and I hit a well-struck but pulled drive pin-high left of the green. I have a pitch over a bunker to a not-huge green, and exasperatingly thin it over the green to the bunker on the other side, not what I needed after the adventure on 7. Hit a good bunker shot to 9 feet, but can't get that one to fall and walk off with a sweet and sour bogey.

    Hit a good drive, then hybrid on 9 to be in good position. Chunk a 7i approach, then pullthin a wedge back left over the green. Lord. Hit a GREAT chip from there to 5 feet, lip that out for double and front nine 51, which felt like it could have been 43 with no real change.

    Love love love the little tunnel path from 9 into the clearing reveal on 10. The hole transitions on Trails were just so cool, loved really everything about this track.

    Hit a great drive on 10, then semifat a hybrid up short of the green. Hit an OK chip to 20 feet, then 3-jack that one as well. Paying the piper for running so hot with the putter at Bandon Dunes! Didn't feel like I was putting poorly honestly, just being slightly off and every mistake being compounded/punished.

    Pulled my drive on 11 up the hill left, leaving a long way home with water right of course. Lace a 3w from 230 out to 41 feet, lag it up dead, tap in for par. Needed that, let's go!

    Hit 5w on 12 to 20 feet for birdie, another great shot. Lag it up dead, tap in for par, rolling!

    Annnnnnnd snap hook one into the trees left on 13 for our first lost ball/penalty of the round. Drop and hit a really good 3w up that I pull a bit and ends up at the bottom of the hill left of the green. Hit what I thought was a perfect bump and run 8i that got about 2 feet from the green then rolled basically back to my feet. Obv hit the next one through the green into death bunker on the right side, leave one in that bunker for good measure on my way to quadzilla.

    Take the truck ride up to 14 and take in the Keiser inspiration point. Just so amazing up there, incredible feeling and views. Pictures from there are awesome, but they don't truly capture the scope or just the serenity/vibe of the whole thing.

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    The scene at and around 14 tee.

    Serenity and vibe are harshed with another hook into the garbage on 14. Drop and hit a really nice 8i that just cuts a tiny bit and bounces down into the bunker right of the green. Leave the first one in, but hit a great second one to 8 feet. Run that 4 feet by, miss that one for one, back to back quads. Tilt.

    Have a self-chat, then another good drive on 15. Hit a pretty poor 8i into the greenside bunker short right, which was not exciting given my bunker play on this trip (I did work on bunker play pre-trip, and was having success right before. My weakness is getting very armsy with bunker shots with some disconnection. If I feel like my navel drives the shot back and through, good results. Holding up under pressure obv hit and miss). I do hit a good one though here, but miss the 9 foot par bid. Tap in bogeys feel good after quads though!

    Hit a great driver, then 5w up 16. I flush a wedge approach where I can't see the surface, and it had gone off the back. Damn. Hit a solid puttchip to 9 feet, but again miss, again tap in bogey.
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    16 tee. Intimidating view and walk, but 3 flushed shots help!

    What a beautiful hole 17 is! I unfortunately fat an 8i down short of the green. Pretty good putter from there to 15 feet, another tap in bogey.

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    17 tee.

    Head to 18 needing par to stay in double digits. LFG! As we walk off 17, a moderate rain begins falling. At the top of my backswing, either my buddy or one of the caddies bangs a bag, and I flare my drive into the junk right. Boooooo. I drop and just lace an 8i through the rain to 18 feet, catch the lip of it on my putt for par and 99 but it doesn't drop and I tap in for 100.

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    Getting dry and warm at Trails End after a solid rain on 18. One of those where you think, eh, one hole, hassle of getting out the rain gear isn't worth it, it will prob stop any second, then you get to be damp and cold!

    Funny how in my head I played pretty bad this round, but looking back over it, was a couple minifiascoes and putting runbad from being a pretty good round for me. It definitely didn't help to have 3 lost balls off the tee in the last 7 holes as far as take-away feelings of how I played.

    Just love this golf course. I know 14 and 16 are controversial, and maybe my opinion will change with more runs, but thought they were both fine and fair, if difficult. It's obviously less splashingly photogenic than the oceanside courses, but the scale and framing, along with the transitions, just SUNG to me, even though they weren't meaningfully capturable with a camera.

    Pacific Dunes details and pics

    Spoiler

    102, 41 putts (one 1 putt, 4 3 putts, 1 4 putt (LOL JFC)), 5/18 GIR, 9/13 fairways
    Strokes gained: Driving +0.1, Approach -10.2 (LOL JFC), Short -4.9 (LOL JFC), Putting -2

    For the 36h match, brother and I rallied to get close, before losing 4&3, brother played his best round of the trip, 84 with a back nine 39. We pressed and won the press 2&1, then we re-pressed to make the whole match on the line on 18 and halved.

    I ended up AS with dad for the day and for the 90h match
    Lost to bro 4&3, won the 90h match 9&8
    Lost to buddy 2&1, won the 90h match 10&9

    We were really excited about the forecast for us at Pac, was going to be the coolest temperature round of the trip, but no wind and no rain in the forecast. Was definitely chilly arriving at Pac at 8 for our 840a time, but the weather all day was just PHENOMENAL. Blue skies, wind under 5mph, just staggeringly beautiful. Chill wore off quickly, and would have been totally happy playing the back 9 in shorts and a polo.

    I had planned on going in and looking at all the course camera archives to check us out, but was disappointed to see it is difficult/impossible to choose what camera you want to see from in archive, and only options are regular speed and 30x. I told my wife before the Pac round that she could watch us. She sent me a pic of us on the tee from the cam, then I showed my group and she texts "are you showing everyone the pics?" hahaha. Would def love a feature of choosing any cam you wanted and picking time/date and watching at maybe 2-5x speed. Tiny nitpick!

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    Me observing Pac 1 on course cam, plus our POV.

    Piped a drive down the right side on 1, so went 5/5 on opening tee shots. Had a wedge in and just borked it right into the fairway bunker, wtf. Wedged out short of the green, then hit a 35 yard puttchip up to 5 feet. Lipped that out, FFS. Double.

    Hit a nice drive over the left bunkers on 2, then a very nice 9i into the green. Had 60 feet for birdie and had to traverse the giant knob on the back left part of the green. Hit a nice putt to 7 feet but missed that as well.

    Another good drive on 3, then a pulled 3w left over the left bunker toward the gorse. Couldn't see it down, but arrived and it had a beautiful lie just shy of the gorse and about 75 yards into the green. Hosel it into greenside bunker. Neat! Hit that shot over the green, then chip up mediocrely to 35 feet. Mediocre lag to 7 feet, run that 2 feet by, THEN lip that one out for a smoooooth quad with a down in 7 shots from 75 yards. Impossible.

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    My lucky break on 3, right before the carnage.

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    4 tee. Wow.

    Make the turn to 4, what a gorgeous setting, even in the rage afterglow haha. Playing dead into the wind, I hit another good drive, then have 3w that I pull into the bunker left. OK out short of the green, chip up to 40 feet, two putts for double.

    As we hit 5 tee, the marshal lets us know nicely that we need to move a bit faster. Obv my adventure on 3 didn't help, my brother isn't the fastest player in the world (tho the best in our group), and my dad is moving a bit slow after 85+ holes of walking. I am always super cognizant of pace, though that makes me rush sometimes. I hit a nice 6i to the fringe, which was shocking in the circumstances, and the other 3 all hit bad shots which, with the marshal watching definitely is giving me an anxiety spiral. Dad is in the bunker far short, blades it into the lip unplayable, drops out, then chips his hybrid into the greenside bunker. Come on pops haha. I putt chip up to 9 feet, but miss that one, tap in bogey.

    We never catch the group in front of us, though we are usually one shot behind (so we see them walking off par 4 greens as we tee off on that hole etc.) and the group behind us only waited on a shot or two, so it wasn't disastrous. Played it in just a shade under 4:15 and the requested pace was 4:05. Not calamity, but def hate hate hate that feeling.

    I hit what I think is my first driver miss of the day on 6, going well right, but it carries the bunker, and is actually sitting in a great spot, perfect lie, and I have a 9i straight up the angle of the green without having to carry the bunker or dropoff. Obv, thin it into the gunch over the green, drop, hit a pretty decent chip that catches a ridge and ends up 30 feet away, 3 jack that for a triple.

    7 and 8 are moderately blurry for me, definitely glad to have Arccos and the course preview on the site, I was def frustrated and feeling rushed a bit. Another good drive on 7, topped hybrid, then what I thought was a good bump and run that hit a soggy spot and died. Chip to 15 feet, two putt for double.

    Another really nice drive on 8, followed by a chunky 6i, then a pitch into the greenside bunker. Please stop! Leave two in, before a nice 3rd to 15 feet and a 2 putt quad.

    Another self-chat on 9 tee, with the idea to get the wheels back on and at least have hope of sub-100 when we are on 16 tee or so. We are playing the upper green and I hit a pretty good drive on the requested line, but miss the fairway into the rough right. Pretty dicey lie, but hit a really nice 9i just over, chip up to 25 feet and make a 2putt bogey for a front nine 56, disgusting.

    Tee shot on 10 is a slighly chunky 8i down short of the green, chip up to 50 feet, lag it nice, tap in bogey.

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    What a pair of back to back par 3s.

    Hole is way back on 11, I hit what I thought was going to be a great 8i but comes up on the front, 75 feet away. I lag that to 2 feet and tap in for par, that was fun. Buddy hit a shot that we legit thought could go in on the tee but was actually 10 feet short and he made bogey so that was a fun yoinking of a hole ha.

    Feeling back on track, hit a good drive up the left fairway on 12. Have 5w in, which I've hit well, and hit a ridiculous heely low hook off the cliff left of 4. JESUS. Drop and hit a really nice 9i to 45 feet, 3 putt that for double.

    Another good drive up the right side on 13, but it doesn't really go far. Hit a beauty of a 5w into the green and have 15 feet down the hill for bird. Roll it 7 feet by, miss the comebacker. :/.
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    13 another magnificent hole, incredible tee view, then the dune right of the green is just mammoth. Check the flagstick on the green for a sense of scale. So awesome.

    Skanky topped 8i on 14, then a really nice SW out of the mess to just over, really nice putt chip down to 5 feet, roll it in for bogey.

    On 15, manage to play another full golf hole! Nice drive up the left, good 3w to short left of green, chip up to 20 feet, two putt par. Golf is easy!

    Mediocre drive on 16 flares right into a dodgy lie. Thin a 9i out of it that rockets over the green and just buries in the mound behind it. Drop, hit a really nice puttchip from back right up to 10 feet, but can't make that. Double.

    Broken record from Trails, but 17 is another just gorgeous par 3 that gives me great feels. Hit a really nice 5i to the right part of the green, 65 feet for bird, hit a great putt that hits the flagstick dead ass center, but bounces off, tap in par.

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    17 tee, then love the view over 17 green with 18 extending in the distance. My yellow ball with 65 foot birdie putt visible in second pic.

    So now, just need a 6 or better on 18 to rally all the way back from a front nine 56 to staying sub-100. Hit driver hard, but pull it into the sandy zone left, not the bunker, but def a sandy lie. Flub a hybrid out of that back up on the fairway level. Third shot pound a 3w, but pull it up on the hill left. We search but cannot find it despite Brownbear's guarantee "oh we'll find that" haha. Dream is dead! Hit what I thought was a great bump and run but it runs through the green. Then do that again, back off the front. DEAR GOD. Chip that up to 12 feet annnnnnnd lip it for one last quad, definitely not the way I wanted the last hole of the trip to go!

    As noted earlier, we grabbed lunch at Pac Grill (grilled cheese and seafood chowder, A++) then spent a solid 4 hours at Punchbowl, which was just a tremendous full day.
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    Chowder and grilled cheese.

    Like Trails, felt afterwards like I just forgot how to play, but revisiting here, a few mini-meltdowns and single bad occurrences away from another solid round.

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    Two pics of the exterior of the Chrome Lake lodging, plus a shot of the view from the path from our door. So serene.

    Fin.

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  5. So, as noted above, finally took the trip to Bandon January 11-17. Gonna have a long post here, with my overall review, and then a spoilered post with round by round details and pics for the obsessed ha. Definitely appreciate those here who encouraged me to just take the trip back a year or two ago when I mentioned being worried that I'd be eaten alive. For reference, my current index fluctuates from 19-21 or so, but wildly inconsistent (shot 77-108 back to back last year). 

    Went with my dad (prob a 25 cap, good short game and bump and run game, short distance now, concern over walking fatigue), brother (about a 12 cap, mainly plays short game shots by lofting with a wedge which isn't the best here), and best friend (roughly my level of game). We played skins for all 90 holes, played singles match round robin all rounds, and the first 3 rounds we did 2 v 2 best ball matches rotating partners so everyone was paired. Then after round 3, we took the person up the most and down the most and paired them vs the other two for a 36 hole match for the last two rounds (with the thought that would help for any strokes that were off or anyone playing particularly good or bad). 

    Brother played the green tees, me and buddy the gold, dad the orange. Brother was giving 5 shots to me and buddy and 10 to dad. 

    First things first, just an elite, elite trip and time. I'm pretty spoiled now on most any other golf trip and am already looking at calendars and trying to figure a return. It's like when the studio greenlights a sequel on the first day's box office returns. To me, Bandon so perfectly hits the mark on niceness/luxury without ever being snobby or pretentious or unwelcoming.

    Day 1 - Travel Day
    As noted, we started off with the crushing news of the FAA flight grounding literally 30 minutes before taking off. Buddy was already in Portland, since he had to take 3 flights to get there, he left the day before, so we had some panic moments before getting going about 2 hours late.

    We had a 330 Preserve time and we were hopeful to make it, but my brother very occasionally gets nausea from tension headaches and had an attack after we landed, and then another before we got out of Portland, then another when we arrived, so that wasn't going to work. We arrived at sunset, and I went out and stood on the 1st tee at Bandon Dunes, just in awe that the months and months of planning and prep had come to this.

    We checked into our Chrome Lake Double room, and were so pleased that they were able to finalize our reservation for the same room the entire stay without having to check in and out, would have certainly been quite the hassle. The room was ample for four guys who aren't concerned about sharing beds, but a tiny bit snug, especially when spreading clubs out to dry out, etc. Separate rooms for toilet and shower certainly helped, haha. Beds were comfortable, in-room coffee a plus, and they replenished us with unlimited (aluminum) water bottles. My dad and I also got the $20 Bandon Yeti tumblers at check-in to fill with water throughout the trip.

    Brother stayed in the room, the other 3 of us grabbed a shuttle and hit McKee's Pub for dinner. We were constantly impressed about how quick and friendly the shuttles were. Again surreal to read about and think about a place forever and find yourself there. I got the meatloaf, would recommend, 8/10. We also chopped some buffalo wings, which were tasty and large (8/10).

    Headed back to the room and dreamed of the Ghost Tree.

    Day 2 - Old Mac & Bandon Preserve
    We had a 950 tee time at Old Mac, so we grabbed a shuttle to the practice center about 800. Got a breakfast muffin sandwich and some Bandon Protein Balls at the center, along with the free coffee. Highly recommend both! Practice facility was fantastic, even though this was the only day we used it. Wish I had it to use every day.

    Got over to Mac about 920. We had a group caddie for our first 3 rounds, then full caddies for the final 2. We met our group caddie "Brownbear" and he was quite the character. Of his first 30 words to us, probably 6 were "fuck", which didn't bother any of us in the slightest, but I can imagine that some groups might be taken aback. I'll sum up my feelings overall on the caddies at the end. I will say up front that he busted his ass to make sure we all were getting what we needed on each shot even as a group caddie, which I was curious about going in.

    The wind during this round was 20-30mph gusting to 40. Rain began as we teed off, and was off and on, probably raining about 10 of the holes, almost always in the misty to light rain range. If you had told me this would be the weather beforehand, I would have been really disappointed, but I had an absolute BLAST. It helped that it was around 60 degrees, but there is just something about that weather on links courses. It just felt like a fun adventure. I bought the waterproof bucket hat ($45) and strongly, strongly recommend it. It kept my head totally dry and kept the rain out of my face and from running down my neck into my clothes. I had rain gear in the bag but actually never put it on. We used the Rikshas for our clubs, which rolled very easily, although mine did actually blow over once.

    I loved this golf course quite a bit. Ghost Tree is such an iconic figure, and the reveals on 3 fairway and 7 green were just phenomenal. Loved how it felt like the course had been there for centuries. The holes into the wind obviously played difficult, but mitigated that by playing proper tees, and taking the mindset that par is completely arbitrary, you aren't entitled to reach a hole in two just because it says "4" on the scorecard.

    After the round, the wind and rain piped down, and we decided to see if we could get out on the Preserve to make up for our missed round the day before. There was a group that had times from 245-315 blocked, but hadn't arrived or called, and they sent us out at 300. We did some impromptu skins with my dad teeing off front tees, and the rest of us teeing off the back tees. What a completely fun track! It was a bit more of a walk and time commit than I anticipated, and my dad started wearing down about the 9th hole, as did my buddy. We played the 13th from the front tee with just putters and it was pretty damn dark! Brother and I both made par with putter in the dark, and the sun setting over the last couple holes in calm weather while sipping a beer was really epic.

    Also snagged a TurtleFur beanie ($35) at the Trails clubhouse and strongly recommend it as well, really comfy and kept heat in perfectly.

    We went back to McKee's, this time with pops staying back in the room (he was totally bushed and is a camel and goes forever without eating, he played poker in Tunica once for 20 hours straight with no food), and my brother getting to check it out since he missed the night before. I got the cheese board and a bowl of clam chowder. Cheese board was good (7/10), chowder I loved (9.5/10). I'm not a chowder expert, so dunno how it compares, but this was great with lots of chunks of clam.

    Day 3 - Bandon Dunes
    We had a 1240 at Bandon on this day, which I had some concerns on getting in by dark, but I knew sunset on the closing holes at Bandon was raved about. I asked Brownbear during the Old Mac round if we would finish the next day and he confidently said that we would. I would learn that one of the biggest upsides and drawbacks of the Bear was his relentless confidence in what he was saying, no matter what haha.

    We hit the Tufted Puffin Lounge breakfast buffet in the morning and, I gotta say, for $18.50 including coffee, it was one hell of a deal. Really enjoyed the Tillamook cheddar eggs, the steel cut oats bar, and the various and sundry pastries, plus really good ham/sausage/bacon.

    The weather we had for Bandon was superb, wind 10 with occasional gusts to 15-20, and probably 2-3 holes worth of light rain. Then around the 14th hole, the sun peeked through the clouds just in time for the stretch of 15-16-17, which was just indescribably cool. We played 18 in pretty close to darkness. We thought the group behind us was hollering for us on 16 to hurry up (I had an epic calamity, but we waited on the group in front of us on every shot from about 13 forward), but they came up after and apologized and said they were hollering back at the group behind them who was yelling at them.

    Going into the trip, I would have said that Bandon was the least likely to be my favorite, but as I sit here, Bandon Dunes is without question the greatest golf course I have ever played. It probably doesn't hurt that I played maybe the best stretch of golf of my life from holes 4 through 15, but 3 of the 4 of us agreed that BD is #1. It's just the absolute perfect mix of forgiveness and challenge, every hole is appealing and fun, and the way it builds and recedes, builds and recedes is just exquisite. If every round of golf I played for the rest of my life was on BD, I would die happy.

    After packing up, we went in and did dinner at the Puffin again, which allowed us to get the Forge menu, without the steakhouse vibe, especialy since we were still all golfed up. I got a filet with truffle butter, and got the crispy brussel sprouts and cauliflower off the lounge menu for my side. 9/10. Everyone else got the scallops and raved about them. The bread, including the asiago rolls, beforehand also hit the spot for sure, as did the cheesecake mousse afterward.

    Day 4 - Sheep Ranch
    We had a 950a at the Sheep Ranch, and the weather forecast was somewhere between mediocre and bad depending (I had 4 different sources for weather info haha). But I was invigorated by the Old Mac experience, knowing that I would enjoy the day in all but the very worst of conditions. We arrived at SR around 830 and got some breakfast. My brother and I split the corned beef burrito and black forest ham and gouda on telera roll so we could try both. Really enjoyed both, prob 8/10 on burrito and 8.5/10 on the ham. Brother and I went to hit a few at the SR range, and I really loved the secluded vibe there. Dad and buddy saved energy and just putted ha.

    As we teed off, it was basically pure calm, dry, and about 52. Uh, yes, please? The sun completely emerged for much of the front nine. Wind picked up late in the front nine, and kept a steady 15-20 for most of the rest of the time. As we hit the 13-14 range, we could see rain in the south, with the south wind carrying it our way. It began sprinkling around 15 tee, and raining pretty hard on 16 green and pelted us throughout 17 and 18. Was pretty pleased to finish par-par on those holes in the heaviest rain we played in with the wind bouncing it off our faces.

    The scenery at Sheep Ranch was beyond compare. Just a constant buffet of cotton candy views. I liked the golf the least of the five here, a few of the holes felt "standard" and the par 3s felt more "view" than "golf" to me. The greens were the bumpiest of the 5 courses that we played also. It was my 5th-ranked course for the week, but that's not to disparage it, it is also the 5th best golf course I've played in my life. My buddy said it's the one he would play if he could just have one perfect weather round, and I would definitely choose it to bring a non-golfer to stroll along on.

    After the round, we had hoped to do Shorty's or Punchbowl, but 30mph wind and solid sheets of rain wasn't appealing. Was also wanting to sit by the fire pit at Sheep and eat lunch but it isn't covered, so we ate standing in the golf shop. Got the pastrami hoagie as recommended and holy fuck, 10/10. So good. My dad got the BLT and also raved about it.

    Got a shuttle back to the room and just dozed a bit and watched the playoff games while the rain poured. It subsided some and we went back to McKee's. Had originally planned on doing Bandon Town but it never worked out either due to weather, energy level, or the place we wanted to go closing early. I got the Popper burger (8/10) with a cup of the chowder instead of fries. When we left it was freezing, howling, and pouring, which was the only moment of the trip I was physically uncomfortable due to weather. It was BRUTAL in the moment, got the shivers and couldn't stop (it didn't help that I casually threw on golf pants and a long sleeve polo rather than layering up like I would if I was going to be playing).

    Day 5 - Punchbowl & Bandon Trails
    We had an 1130 at Trails, which was going to be our first round with full caddies (both for the trip and lifetime). We hit the Puffin buffet again, then my brother and I hit the Punchbowl while dad and buddy chilled in the room. The routing wasn't up, but we had the whole thing literally to ourselves. We spent a few minutes just hitting putts as hard as we could and watching them fly up and down the incredibly undulating mounds. Then we started doing 3-ball contests, picking our own tee boxes and holes, and seeing who could get 3 balls down in the least strokes. It was our own version of the old Sheep Ranch ha.

    We met at Trails at 11 and hooked up with Brownbear and Joe who would be our caddies. The weather system was moving on, though we teed off into the teeth of a 30mph wind. The wind eased as we moved into the woods on 3 (in addition to the shelter from the trees) down to a standard 10mph or so. We got light rain off and on for 5 holes or so, and then a pretty moderate cool rain as we played 18.

    I also love love loved this golf course. The feeling on the reveals as you go through the trail tunnels and then open into these standalone ampitheaters is something I hadn't ever had before. The spot of Keiser's inspiration near 14 tee, then 14 tee itself is also truly spectacular, even if you dropkicksnaphook your drive into the garbage.

    I really enjoyed being able to just walk the course completely unencumbered by the clubs. I didn't find the walk to be as long/difficult as many mention, though obviously the caddie takes some of the effort. I can also imagine pushing the Riksha on some of those mulchy trails is a bitch. I did get pretty winded hiking up the giant dune right of 2 hunting down my tee shot as the sand is soooo soft you just sink into it.

    We sat at Trails End afterward to watch the end of Giants-Vikings and dry off and have a beverage or 3, then back to the room to chill for a bit. We ended up once again at McKee's for the second half of Jags-Chargers (WOW) and the TAP burger (8.5/10), with chili (6/10) as the side. I liked McKee's just fine and was happy with it, but the group seemed to prefer it a bit more than I did, would have prob done Puffin an extra time or two, but all good!

    Day 6 - Pacific Dunes & Punchbowl
    We had an early 840 time, and the forecast was for chilly temps, but no wind and no rain. Grabbed a ham and cheese on everything bagel sandwich (6.5/10) and headed to the tee. Was about 40 when we teed off and it ended up a dead solid perfect bluebird "Bandiego" day. Sun was out and the wind never got to 5mph. I played terribly on the front, which was disappointing, but ended up playing pretty well on the back until I botched the 18th, which leaves a bad taste borking the last hole of a trip like this.

    Again, just a truly phenomenal golf course, visually and architecturally. The greens were perfect and by far the fastest of the trip. I can imagine what a bitch that course can be when firm and a solid 20-30 mph wind going.

    Headed back up to Pac Grill and got the recommended grilled bacon and cheese and it lived up to the hype, along with a cup of seafood chowder ( both 10/10). We then debated on what to do. Brother and I were down to replay one of the big courses and get maybe 12 holes in, but dad and buddy were pretty cashed and we didn't really wanna ditch them, so we hit the Punchbowl since it was there, and free, and they hadn't seen it the day before. Routing was up, and we had skins carried over from Preserve and from Pac, so we put them all on the line on an 18 hole stroke play comp. We then went around again doing some more skins. Beer and whiskey were flowing, and we were behind a huge group that was pretty slow, so we got to 17 in dark. 18 pushed, and we played it 4 more times in the pure dark to break the tie.

    Just a truly world-class day of fun with perfect weather to wrap up. For departure day, we just hit the Puffin buffet again, and grabbed some merch at the various shops and rolled north back to PDX, with no travel shenanigans, reliving some life-changing moments from the trip.

    Final Rankings
    1. Bandon Dunes
    2. Bandon Trails
    3. Pacific Dunes
    4. Old Mac
    5. Sheep Ranch

    I love all of these courses and would do anything to play any of them tomorrow, but I feel very solid on these ranks, except Trails/Pac are suuuuuuper close.

    Caddie Review
    Our caddies were super nice, and fun to be around. They definitely helped a ton with pace, knowing where to go next, etc. I also really enjoyed just strolling down the fairway, and of course the boss feel of sticking a par 3 and just walking from tee to green with putter in hand.

    I think I should perhaps be a bit more forceful in trying to get the information that I want rather than what is good for most golfers. I am very data-oriented and would rather know things like "actual distance is 137, I'd say two club wind, and half-club uphill" vs. "play a 150 shot" since then my brain is wondering how that number was reached. I also went in planning to go one club up on most shots and aim for the middle of the green after reading Jon Sherman's book, and felt like I didn't do that as much as I wanted. I think I got a little cruise control mentally, and found it a bit harder to get back on track when things went sideways.

    I also think Brownbear was mainly giving approach lines to give the best putt rather than to skew away from the worst miss, if that makes sense. I did start asking more questions and choosing lines to avoid death misses.

    I would be on the fence on using caddies the next time, especially given that for the last two rounds, the caddies were 60% of the total cost of the round, with the green fee only 40%. Would I rather have a caddie or play another round on Bandon AND another on Preserve?

    Overall Thoughts
    As said, best trip ever, so good, 17/10 overall. Can't wait to get back. I would have loved to have a day in between each big course to let each one marinate, but that's not realistic. I got a bit on "fast forward" at times, especially kind of being the one responsible to corral our group, make our plans, make sure our slow guys stayed on pace (a warning from the marshal at Pac about pace directly preceded my worst golf stretch of the trip), and it felt like the whole thing went so fast. Definitely must hit up the town next time, and work more on my fkn sand game before I go back! Looking at the stretch from Nov 2024 to Feb 2025, though God knows I don't wanna wait that long!

    Golf deets and pics to come soon, for any interested.

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  6. Was watching some Bandon videos with dad and brother to get even more hyped (Tourist Sauce and Fore Play) and Bandon called with the great news that they got our room totally ironed out with no room changes. Even more stoked!!
    Flight leaves in 31 hours, L F G!!!!
    • Like 1
  7. Flying out to Bandon in 10 days and CAN NOT FUCKING WAIT.

    Plan and participants:
    Me, currently a 19, wildly inconsistent (shot 77-108 back to back last year).
    Brother RT, currently about a 12, gets frustrated when it starts going south, short game is wedge-based, two factors that may be rough.
    Dad DT, currently about a 25, good hybrid bump and run short game, just no distance. Fatigue is a factor and concern.
    Best friend JK, currently about a 17, pretty weak short game and putting.

    Jan 11 - 330 Bandon Preserve
    Jan 12 - 950 Old Mac - group caddie
    Jan 13 - 1240 Bandon Dunes - group caddie
    Jan 14 - 950 Sheep Ranch - group caddie
    Jan 15 - 1130 Bandon Trails - regular caddies
    Jan 16 - 840 Pacific Dunes - regular caddies
    Jan 17 - 900 Bandon Preserve, then drive to Portland and fly home

    We are playing skins on every hole, 18 hole round robin matches each main round, 90 hole round robin matches also, and playing 2 v 2 best ball the first 3 rounds rotating partners. Then for the last two rounds, the guy who is up the most will team with the guy who is down the most to play the other two in a 36 hole best ball, with the double bag caddies each assigned to one of the teams.

    RT is playing green, JK and I are playing gold (tho will prob hit a few of the epic tee shots (like Bandon 16, Sheep 6) from the green tees where appropriate), and DT is playing orange, and JK and I get 5 strokes from RT and DT gets 10 (and 5 from JK and I obv).

     

    Also, got Arccos in December, have played 2 rounds with it so far and love all the data etc. It doesn't do great detecting putts, so still working on that aspect just a bit. But as a supreme stats nerd, worth it just for the info, any actual benefit to my game is a huge plus. 

    • Hook 'Em 4
    • Like 1
    • Drool 2
  8. Definitely going to be too late once the river is dealt bc obv if it’s an A or 9 you aren’t gonna say “oh hey I actually didn’t know about the extra $175 so he can keep that”. So you’d be freerolling. But definitely the big chips need to be up front/visible. If they were hidden behind stacks of red or actually sitting on the rail, I would def argue it. If it’s just his “gorilla arms and monster hands” it’s not going anywhere.

  9. And if not second Saturday of October, the second Saturday of the fair. State Fair Classic is always the first Saturday of the fair. 

    Yeah I’ve been burned before counting on second Sat in October, it’s the second Sat of the fair which is USUALLY the second Sat in Oct, but not always
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