Happy hour is a brilliant marketing too.  I don’t normally think about margaritas or mini tacos, but when I hear about 2 for 1 margaritas or $1 mini taco special, it feels fiscally irresponsible to pass them up.  At the end of a busy workday, it’s nice to get together with friends and enjoy good food, sweet drinks, and some laughs.

One evening after a particularly hectic day in the office, some friends and I decided to exchange the happy hour margaritas and mini tacos for golf clubs and a bucket of golf balls. Being at the golf course normally makes me happy, so this made perfect sense. We met up at a local driving range and everyone got a bucket of balls.  We were lucky enough to find mats next to each other.  While practicing our swings, we offered each other tips on things we observed and videotaped our swings.  We talked about life stuff - work, guys, family - and just let off steam.  Once our buckets were empty, we headed over to the putting green.  After about 20 minutes and some great putts, I felt adventurous enough to move on to the practice chipping area.  However, after a couple of balls went a bit too far and almost hit a car, I decided to practice chipping another day.

We spent a total of two hours at the golf course that night, enjoying the fresh air, getting some exercise and improving our games.  The course had a decent café and bar, but no one felt like having drinks once we were done.  The whole experience only cost a few dollars and everybody had a good time.  It’s definitely something I would like to do more often.

If you want to take happy hour to the course, gone are the days where a six-pack of beer is the only adult beverage choice.  Groups like Women On Course (more on them in another blog post) and SWING Golf Clubs (learn more about them in the Who Plays Golf section of this site) schedule fun play dates that include wine and champagne.

So ladies, what do you think about going to the golf course instead of the bar for happy hour? Have you tried it?

I recently attended the LA Golf Show.  It was my first golf show and I didn’t know what to expect.  With over 100 vendors, I was hoping to see some women's golf fashion at great discounted prices.  While I was VERY disappointed in that department, I enjoyed trying out some cool products and speaking with industry pros and entrepreneurs.

Golf is a sport where the player’s personal style can flourish. Team uniforms are an anomaly, not the norm. From the head to toe, there are many options to create the perfect individual golf fashion statement. I love high/low styling and golf is great for mixing pieces at different price points to make a chic fashion statement

Sports clothing and accessories giants Nike, Adidas, and Puma all have fashionable women's golf clothing lines. However, ladies are not limited to traditional athletic retailers for styles. The fairway often flirts with the runway to bring us some fabulous fashions that go from the fairway to the clubhouse to the club. Ok, maybe not the club, but they transition from event to event very nicely.

One glorious summer Saturday morning, some friends and I were playing a round of 18 at the local municipal course. We had a fivesome, which consisted of three girls and two guys.  There was a threesome behind us, so we (especially the ladies) were very conscience about pace of play. Around the 14th hole, we decided to let the threesome play through since they seemed to be moving quickly. As we waited for them to tee off, one of the guys from the foursome behind us asked if they could play through.  It was less of a question and more like "I'm sure you won't mind if we pass you little ladies up" because he was approaching the tee box as he asked the question. I was annoyed by the arrogance and not completely sure what I was about to say as I prepared to place hand on hip. One of the guys from our group turned around and said, in an annoyed tone, "We're waiting too. It's slowing down up there.” And - poof- just like that, Mr. My Foursome Can't Be Bothered To Wait turned around and went back to his cart.

Born and raised in southern California, my only real connection to the South was through my father’s parents.  When I was a kid, my grandfather would stop by the house on New Year’s Day and my mom would make him a plate of black eyed peas, collard greens and corn bread.  He would stay and eat, chat with everyone for a bit, then go back home.  I was never a fan of black eyed peas OR cornbread, so my NYD meal consisted of my mom’s bomb-*** greens, monkey bread, ham, and my grandmother’s fab potato salad.

One year I asked my mom why my grandfather stopped by on NYD and only ate “that stuff” when we had so much other “good stuff”.  She explained it was a southern tradition.  Eating black eyed peas on NYD was considered good luck.  Eating greens and cornbread represented money and financial prosperity in the new year.  That next new year’s day, my plate was overflowing with “that stuff”!

Aside from the prosperity thing, greens are often recommended for an overall healthy diet.  The greens of the golf course can be helpful in maintaining a healthy lifestyle and peace of mind.  Played regularly, golf provides habitual nourishment for the soul.  It’s an opportunity to slow down and enjoy nature.  It provides a break from the business of life.  It forces you to focus on the present.

So put more greens in your diet in 2014.  Get out there and play some golf!

While practicing at the driving range recently, a scene from the movie “The Shining” came to mind.  The main character, a writer named Jack Torrance, takes a winter job as the caretaker of a mountain resort which gets completely snowed in during the winter.  It seems like a great opportunity to make some money and focus on his writing.  But as winter drags on and the snow keeps falling, strange things start to happen to Jack and his family.  At one point, his wife sneaks a peek at what Jack has been working on at his typewriter for months.   “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” is typed over and over and over, on sheet after sheet of paper.  There are stacks of papers and boxes filled with sheets that say the same thing.  You could feel the crazy coming off of those sheets of paper as his wife flipped through them.

“Sport has the power to change the world.  It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than government in breaking down racial barriers.”
              ~Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
              
July 18, 1918 - December 5, 2013

This Thanksgiving, I wanted to create a list of things I’m thankful for.  Many of us give thanks for family and friends, a roof over our heads and food on our tables on Thanksgiving day.  I’m thankful for those things everyday and wanted to list things I don't regularly appreciate.  So I dug deep and came up with this list of 12 Things That I Don’t Regularly Give Thanks For But Appreciate:

1.     Modern medicine
2.     Hybrid golf clubs
3.     Documentaries
4.     James Brown music
5.     Real Husbands of Hollywood
6.     Airplanes
7.     DIY YouTube Videos
8.     Fluorescent colored golf balls
9.     Nature
10.   Converse sneakers
11.   9 hole golf courses
12.   Good Samaritans

Happy Thanksgiving to you!

Local driving range, summer, 8:23a

I woke up with the intention of exercising before work.  The snag in my plan was that I woke up late, which significantly cut down the amount of time I had available for exercise.  I decided to go to the local driving range and get in a quick practice instead.  Rather than put on my golf shoes, I wore a pair of open toe flats that I planned to wear to work.

The parking lot was packed, but I got a great parking space near the driving range.  I found an open mat on the far side of the range near the parking lot where I could have my back to the other golfers.  No distractions.  Quick exit once I finished practicing.  Perfect!  I started my mental checklist for practice: Don’t forget to straighten your wrist on the downswing, settle the “hula hips”, sit down into the shot and don’t lean too far over, turn your shoulders, follow through.  I pulled out my 5 iron and took my first shot.  It was beautiful!  Super straight, good distance.   I have an awful slice, so this was a major improvement.  Several shots in and I was 50/50 on hitting my target, but I felt great.

"If you’re not first, your last." ~Reese Bobby

I'm a fan of Will Ferrell and for a while had a passing interest in car racing (How did driving fast cars around in ovals become a sport?! Answer: Moonshining.), so when the movie "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" came out a few years back I had to see it.  In a nutshell: Ricky Bobby and his best friend Cal Naughton, Jr. are NASCAR drivers and they love to drive fast and win.  At least Ricky does.  Cal becomes content with coming in second place and helping his best friend win all of the time.