2011: A Good Golf Year

Well, after all of my concerns about my decaying golf game. I won my flight this year in the Club Championship and pocketed $140 in first place money. I am usually right at my lowest handicap of the year coming into the Club Championship and end up playing against golfers that are just a notch ahead of my ability. This year I was the golfer in my flight that was just a notch better than my fellow competitors. I beat my three opponents by a total of 5+3, 4+3 and 5+3 today. I shot 83, 81 and 83 and was NEVER behind in any of my matches. That fact alone allowed me to relax and just play golf. I was ahead by 4, 5 and 4 after nine holes in each of my matches and had my opponents on the ropes, having to play flawless golf to beat me. I'm extremely happy and this is annually one of my goals in my golf "to do" list every year. I want to qualify for an NCGA tournament, make the Rose Cup team and win my flight in the Club Championship.

This year I couldn't play in the Rose Cup as it conflicts with Monterey, I came in second in one of the qualifiers, I had a hole in one and I won my flight in the Club Championship. I think that qualifies as a good year, eh?

My friend, Phamas, the FBI man, made it to the Club Championship finals but lost today 6+5. Boyd and Matt were both out in the first round, but my poker buddy Steve won his flight today and we shared a drink over lunch after the matches this afternoon.

I am hitting the ball very well off the tee and hopefully won't screw that up. I just bought a Tour Edge "Exotics" XCG 3 driver on EBay for $80. I was watching a few auctions and noticed that this one didn't have any bids and made the minimum bid at the last minute and won the club. I have hit this club at a Demo day and loved it, but that is range golf, so we'll see. I am playing La Contenta Golf Course up in Valley Springs next Saturday and will bring both of my drivers and try it out during the round. It is newer technology than my Callaway Big Bertha that is technology about five years old and I want to gain even more distance and try to hit drives up with Darryl. What was fun about my last two matches is that I was out-driving my opponents by 50 - 75 yards and it is a huge advantage to try to attack a green with an eight iron in your hand instead of a hybrid.

My boss will be in town on Wednesday and we will take a tour of the Roseville office space. He hasn't seen it and my CEO wants him to sign off on the location before we move forward with the build out. He just got back from the owner's meeting at the Broadmoor in Colorado with Scottsdale Insurance with Alan. Alan agreed during the meetings to allow Anthony to come out to Detroit during the Manager's meeting in October. Anthony is one of the top producers in the company and has not visited Home Office. He will speak to the management trainees, do some socializing and dinners with them, visit all of our Home Office underwriters and managers and be able to sit with me at the annual awards dinner on the Friday night of the Manager's meeting. It will be nice to have him there and Anthony more likely than not will be running this branch after I retire. Pete and I are essentially the same age and Anthony is in his mid thirties.

Darla and I leave for Vegas a week from Tuesday and we are looking forward to seeing Jennifer and Samantha. Jennifer turns 31 next Sunday. Amazing, isn't it? We will see Samantha and hopefully have her spend the night with us on Tuesday night. Jennifer now works on Wednesdays and has Thursday and Friday off.

I had an e-mail sent to me last week and I think it is important enough to add to the blog. Not that I let my political bent show at all:

"Salary of a RETIRED US President $180,000 for LIFE
Salary of a member of the House/Senate $174,000 for LIFE
Salary of the Speaker of the House $223,500 for LIFE
Salary of the Majority/Minority Leaders $193,400 for LIFE
Salary of an Average Teacher $40,065
Salary of a Soldier deployed in Afghanistan $38,000

Do you happen to see where the cuts should be made to help
with our budget deficit and debt ceiling?"

I don't care what your party affiliation is, this is obscene. Nancy Pelosi made $193,400 and her face looks like that? What is the matter with that woman? When did public service become a wealth building exercise? When they started voting for their own salaries, benefits, private health care, private retirement accounts (opting out of social security by the way), etc. This needs to be fixed and we need to find a way to get young people involved in government again. Term limits help, but you get $174,000 a year for life if you serve one term in Congress? Anthony Weiner will make $174,000 a year for life? It is a disgrace and better yet, a damn shame. Career politicians are the slimiest of life forms.

Well, this is short, but there is a Dallas Cowboy game on the tube that I am taping and I want to sit and enjoy the game with a rum and Coke. I hope all is well in your slice of the world. Have a great week. Ciao.