Buttercuts- #6

March 12, 2024

45 Holes at The Club

50-60ish and Blue Skies

Me and May

Leave the World Behind

Approach to 9 green

What started out as a tip for a good movie turned out to be the theme for the day. May had suggested the movie, Leave the World Behind, and that’s what we did for 45 holes on an absolutely gorgeous day. We played 18 and said what the hell, let’s go for more. We went for 9 more and saw no reason to stop. That led to more golf, which led to more golf… Some days you just can’t get enough. The golf was decent but the day was a masterpiece.

May has surpassed me as the official King of the Nerds in our little golf world but I can still make him earn it. He is the #1 ranked player in the ONGR for a reason and after I missed an Augusta National 10 foot slider on the 45th hole, he beat me by 1 stroke on the day.

May getting the back 9 started right with a bomb off 10 tee

Not even the Golden Girls foursome in front of us could dampen our spirits on this day. They moved at a snail’s pace for the entire 18 holes. It was almost enjoyable to watch them labor over every shot. They would “meet at the flagstick ” and then separate to toil over their 2 foot putts and they putted everything out. No gimmes with these ladies. We picked up one of their putter covers and tried to yell at them but their hearing was somehow worse than mine and they drove off only to circle back a hole later. One of the ladies lost a club and as she asked us if we saw it, you could see the disdain in her eyes and she lamented, “I’ve had a bad day…” game respects game and I could see myself fitting in nicely with the ladies- tee off from the up tees and play the ball as it lies, purist kind of stuff.

The Golden Girls meandering off the 15th green. All pondering how they missed the 2 footer and questioning their “flagstick in at all cost” approach

I mysteriously and miraculously had 140 yard shots on about every hole. No lie, it became another joke of the day but I’ll be damned if it didn’t keep happening. Swing your swing and dance with the fat lady that brought you, I went with the trusty little hybrid from that distance and started to see better results. The game doesn’t care what club you pull from the bag, it only cares that you commit to the shot and give it all you got. My game off the tee continues to be pretty strong, just nailing fairway after fairway and today I had some pop from the vaunted white tees. My putter was off most of the day but minimized damage on the green except for a 4-putt or two.. . May turned into Scottie Scheffler and that kept me hanging around.

Top: The Par 3 165 yard 3rd hole. Bottom: Approach to #8 late in the day.

As the sun began to set and the day was winding down, we knew we stole another one at The Club. I’ll watch the movie soon enough but I left the world behind for a day and I’m not sure you can top that!

Buttercuts- #5

27 at The Club w/ May, Capt, and G-Money/Gary Playa

March 10, 2024

Daylight Savings Day

45-52 degrees w/ Carnoustie Winds… WAH (windy as hell)

Pillow Fight

We knew we had an extra hour of sunlight due to daylight savings so 27 was a given today. As I left the house, Millicent (my beautiful and golf loving wife…) asked me if I was playing 18 holes today. I squared up like a good prize fighter, owned the moment, and said, “it’s a 27 hole kind of day.” I claimed the day and the golf that awaited like a champ.

We got to the range with enough time to have a nice warm-up session and hit the putting green. I had put the old Ping irons (most of them, I’ve lost a few over the years) back in my bag. I had accepted a “newer” set of clubs from Buck via his father in law but wanted to go back to my old friend. I think I’ve had the Ping G10’s for close to 20 years. They’ve seen my game at its best and I wanted that mojo in my hands. Truth be told, I could play all day with only a driver, 4 iron, 8 iron, and a putter in my bag. Come to think of it, I might try that next time out…

We played the standard game of switching partners every 6 hole, $1 a hole, $1 birdies, par or better to win. G-Money walked the dog on us today and had 14 points, Capt had 11, May 10, and yours truly ended up with 4 points… Scores were 87-88-88-89 and then 44-44-46-46 on the extra 9. We did play most of the day having to navigate the Carnousie winds again. Well struck balls could pierce through the wind unfazed but our group didn’t hit many balls squarely on the club face. It was all fairly forgettable golf if I’m being honest- not a ton of highlights and that got me thinking that is one of the things that draws me to playing golf. The thrill of the dramatic and special is only topped by the mundane and routine. Not every shot can be historic but there is always that hope, that moment, that chance that each shot could be a memory and a story to be told or written about forever. Today was beautifully mundane and I’d do it everyday if I had the chance.

The golf was not our best but I’ve seen and played much worse. It was classic Nerds Tour golf- lots of bogeys, very few birdies- like maybe one… but it wasn’t a total disaster. The course was still a bit swampy from the rain over the last few days so the CPO was a pain in the ass but it also helped keep us moving and staying warm. We finished the 27th hole and I think we were all ready for it to be over. That doesn’t happen much with me. I’m usually always up to play more but not today. I had opened the first two holes making nifty putts for bogey and that was the standard of the day. I parred every hole when I hit the green in regulation sans one, I hit #2 green in regulation the 2nd time through and promptly 4-putted. It was special. My short game was feast or famine- I chipped one in from 10 yards off the green on 6, had some other nice chips to gimme range, but also chunked/dipped/skulled several that led to more bogeys and doubles. So when our last putt fell on the 27th hole, we all were ready for the final bell.

At least the skies were blue and we had the extra hour of sun and the impending break this week. G-Money is headed to Hilton Head Island, May is headed to the doctor, Capt is headed to work, and I’m headed to Murfreesboro to watch basketball. As the principal at Fulton High School, our boys basketball team is a consistent source of pride. They represent the best we have to offer at Fulton and play the game so well- together, tough, coachable, and fundamentally sound. We are hoping for back to back state titles but this team could not disappoint me or Falcon Nation if they tried. I have said this to many over the last few weeks, this is my most favorite team I’ve watched in 27 years in education. I know I’m not supposed to have favorites but these young men are so good on and off the court. I will miss watching them play and will miss the impact they have on our school but we aren’t done yet and this team will rise to the occasion one more time.

I’m also hoping to squeeze in a little golf while at the state tourney… Stay tuned.

Buttercuts- #4

27 at The Club with May and A-Hole

Election Day

March 4, 2024

Cloudy and mostly calm

Election Day, 2024, provided us the rare opportunity for a midweek morning round. May and I arrived a little early and hit the range. May has some ailing virus running through his body and at my age, I just need to get loose before embarking on 6+ hours of golf.

A-Hole showed up 10 minutes before our 9:10 tee time and just like a Bamer- he spends 2 minutes on the range and then he strips one down Broadway on the 1st tee.

May is coming off a basketball season that will get sweeter with time but he’s still stinging from the last loss. He took a 7-10 team at mid-season and had them on the cusp of a state tourney berth. I watched them play throughout the year and they continued to get better, continued to work hard, and continued to gain confidence, much like May’s golf game over the last few years. He has almost graduated from the Nerds Tour and entered the world of real golf and keeping score and following all the rules but I think he likes the company on the B team. He’s like the junior that averages 20 ppg on the JV team.

May is the picture of consistency, he never gets too high, never gets too low but he is a competitor and the way this season ended will eat at him for a while. He’s got a great temperament for coaching. He’s detail oriented and organized, remains calm under pressure, and enjoys analyzing and game planning.

One story that embodies what he is about is from his 2nd or 3rd year as the head coach at Farragut High School, he had a player whose father died unexpectedly one morning and it was a morning that the family was up early to go visit a college. To say the least, it was tragic and a really tough situation. I remember telling him, “I’m sorry, I know you didn’t get into coaching to deal with something like this” and without skipping a beat he responded, “this is exactly why I got into coaching.” He’s had plenty of success, the all-time winningest coach in school history, state runner-up a couple of years ago, and countless girls playing at the next level, but it’s the opportunity to positively and eternally impact kids that calls him to coach. Love him like a brother and glad I kicked his ass today…

I did have the honor and pleasure of hiring Jason Mayfield to coach girls basketball at Farragut High School. Honestly, it’s one of the best decisions and moves I’ve ever made in my job. His interview is legendary- we drank Miller Lites on his back porch while he shared his vision and plan for building a program, chalked full of details on one of his patented spreadsheets. Sometimes it ain’t hard, he was and is the man for that job.

But today was the perfect time to kick a man while he was down and try to steal a W in the coveted “King of the Nerds” standings. When he hit his 3rd straight drive of the day dead right, I knew I had a chance. Mission accomplished- I went 86-41. May went 88-47. A-Hole 91-47, I think.

It was a fabulous day. The grouping is very comfortable and we all love playing but don’t take ourselves too seriously (when you shoot in the upper 880s and low 90s, no sense in taking anything you do on the course seriously) and we really enjoy each other’s company.

As we walked off the 18th green after 27 holes, we probably could have squeezed in a couple more holes but there was no need. We were thankful and ready for the next time we could get out and play together. We left the day thinking that a Tuesday morning tee time and all day golf was a pretty damn good idea. We had a blast.

My game continues to show slight improvements and I’m gaining confidence. I hit every FW but 2 but only managed to hit 3 GIR, that’s a problem but I kept the ball in play and in front of me. 2nd shot issues continue to plague me and put a premium on my 60 yards and in shot making. Thankfully, my short game was pretty good and I enjoyed numerous up and downs and eliminated big numbers, for the most part (maybe 3 doubles on the day). I managed to roll in a 20+ footer on the 26th hole for a birdie and walked away with $30. I’m hopeful that some much needed distance off the tee will be gained as the weather warms up and the course firms up but my biggest issue is with my approach shots- just not getting much pop on the ball.

Buttercuts- #3

Saturday, February 24, 2024

WindRiver Golf Club

48 degrees, overcast/cloudy/insane wind

May, Capt, A-Hole

Late February golf is never a picnic but today turned into the Carnoustie Open. Mostly benign, albeit cold, conditions on the front 9 turned into a British Open qualifier on the back. May saw what was coming and called it quits after 10 holes. He claimed he had a birthday party to attend but I’m calling BS on that. He wanted no part of the gauntlet on the back 9 with mother nature wreaking havoc on every hole.

Par stood no chance in the blustery weather. It became survival of the fittest and we all stood on the 18th green (except for May, he was at a “party”…) with a newfound respect for each other. We had survived the elements and were better for it, except May, he got worse today. He quit…

My game was a mix of fairway finders, up and downs, worm burners, and scud missiles with a little fade- hook to them. It all left much to be desired. I have a goal of more up and downs from 60 yards in- that’s what you do when you can’t hit a green if your life depended on it. I managed a few nice ones and I’ll take that. It seemed like we played every hole into a scene from the movie, The Perfect Storm, my golf ball trying to ride over the crashing waves, only to tumble and stumble back to my feet…

But a good time was had by all. A-Hole is such a great dude and I love playing with him. He’s really the opposite of an A-Hole which makes calling him A-Hole all the more enjoyable. Capt spits data and analytics like I throw out cuss words- plenty and often… we are in an intense battle to see who can shave strokes off their handicap. Stay tuned for the ultimate King of the Nerds contest. It was great to get May back out to the Club and the white tees threw him off a bit. Some guys can handle a curveball and some can’t…

I hit 10 FW and 2 GIR, w/ 32 putts… Strong showing but I feel things turning the corner and regardless, I’m having a blast playing again. I told Capt this week that I play golf to, “have a great time with my boys.” Mission accomplished.

Final tally:

May- DQ

Me- 88

Capt- 90

A-Hole- 97

Buttercuts- #2

Sunday, February 4, 2024

WindRiver Golf Club

50 degrees, overcast

Buck, Capt, Pat, A-Hole

February Golf… A time to set the tone for the golf year, lower your expectations, have fun, all the while longing for warm, long summer days.

It was time to get back to The Club and familiarize ourselves with the finest golfing experience in East Tennessee.

Our 1:00 tee time could not get here fast enough. We were all ready to put into practice all the instagram golfing videos we had watched over the long winter months. In January, we experienced a “30 year storm” in Knoxville and this afternoon granted us an opportunity to hit the links and forget the frigid temps.

I picked up Buck and Pat at 12:00- it’s standard to pick Buck up at least an hour before our tee time. He’s always ready and this will give us time to hit the range and get loose before we take breakfast balls, mulligans, re-do’s, and gimme’s. Buck had already broken the news to Pat- we would return to our tried and true position that Buck and I would be “cartners”. Pat took it like a champ, actually I think he was glad to not get burned, spit on, spilled on or have to deal with Buck’s BS. I embrace it- nobody I’d rather ride around with then my boy, Buck. He’s one of a kind and always has a good time. The music is blasting and he asks me far too frequently to read his putts, like I know which way the 15 foot bogey putt is breaking.

Buck’s neighborhood was all a buzz due to five police cars and the arrest of a not so friendly neighbor. Details are foggy at the moment but it’s safe to say that Gretchen will not be paying her HOA dues in 2024…

Ironically, all the videos we watched and practice swings we took in the living room and front yard, did not translate to the driving range. Buck quickly became disinterested on the range and headed to the putting green to get the flatstick rolling. I stayed back working on the numerous punch 7 irons my round would surely require. Buck moved the cart, and misplaced my driver head cover but that’s all part of playing with Buck.

The front 9 was actually pretty decent for us- Capt fired a 40, I managed a 42, Pat got hot late and came in at 43, and Buck shot the standard 45. Remind you, 90 is par (my rule) and we were all within range of a sub-par February round- not too shabby by our standards.

We picked up a 5th, A-Hole, at the turn and our 5-some whistled around the back 9 in majestic fashion. Not many dudes could join this iconic foursome and not miss a beat but A-Hole managed to fit in without any hassle or fuss. I did have some insider info to share about his daughter’s boyfriend that he was not so happy to hear about.

The final tally: Capt- 83, Me- 86, Buck-87, Pat- 91, A-Hole- no idea what he shot on the back 9 but it was gold. I had to finish par-par to beat Buck but that’s what I do. Winners win.

Capt played like he had been hitting balls all winter in his simulator at his mansion in the Fork and waxed us all pretty good. Buck will not play again until he wins his 25th state title, and I was pleasantly surprised with my driver and touch around the greens. Pat was Pat- jekyll and hyde round, per usual.

2024 will be a great year- I feel it. Stay tuned.