2025 Fried Egg Golf Events Memories

This piece started as an exercise in which I went back to discuss our 10 favorite memories from the year that was 2025 Fried Egg Golf Events. But as I kept remembering different things, it became clear that we needed a memory for each event. 

Our 2025 campaign was a full one. I took 37 flights, spent unknown hours on the golf course, met more than 1,400 people throughout the year, and made memories and friendships that will last a lifetime. It was a year I will never forget and one I cannot thank you all enough for the role you played in making it happen. Even if you didn’t make it to an event this year, your support of FEGC helps make this series possible. Hopefully one day we will get to meet in person and continue to grow the connections within Fried Egg Golf Club.

Below, you’ll find one note for each event we held in 2025. A few submissions are from Abby Liebenthal, as I did miss three events this year, but the memory holds nonetheless. Feel free to add your own memories in the comment section!

Broomsedge Preview Play

The first event of the spring is always a fun one. Getting to see FEGC members I’ve met in years past and kick off the new season is an annual treat. This year I did exactly that with Clay McCullough, Nick and Steve Buege, Dominic Fusco, Rich Henning, Scott Pintabone, Brian Gracely, Martin Beam, Peter Caldwell, and more I’m sure I’m forgetting. But I also got to meet some new folks that I now know very well, having spent a lot of time with them in 2025. I met Andy Warncke, Craig Vanderlaan, and Dave Lorberbaum throughout the day and had the pleasure of seeing them on later trips this year. Every FEGC relationship has an origin story!

Mountain Lake

The experience at a mystical place like Mountain Lake is something that is hard to describe. It’s a club that is intentionally off-the-radar, opting for privacy and understandably so. After arriving early to set up tee gifts and meet with the staff, I sat in the parking lot and met our participants as they arrived. To a man, each had a look of amazement when they showed up and laid eyes on the property. We had people travel in from all over the country, including some long hauls like Tim Bremer from Las Vegas and Coby Thompson from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was the beginning of a wonderful two-day excursion and one I’m hopeful we can offer up again once they finish their restoration work.

Lookout Mountain

For whatever reason, the Lookout Mountain trip always seems to be a family affair. And I love it. I particularly remember having fun with the pairings for this event after realizing how many sets of brothers and father/son duos we had in the field. Not only that, a bunch were pairs we had seen before. It’s always good chopping it up with the Hayeses, Marshalls, and Murphys. Adding the Whighams and Herrens to the fray was a pleasure, as well. 

Dunes Club

One of the best trips of the year is undoubtedly our Lost Dunes and Dunes Club trip in late May. Southwest Michigan is one of my favorite places in the country, and the memories we’ve made at both clubs with FEGC stick with me to this day. The format for the event is a mix of stroke and match play, with matches taking place all day at Dunes Club. The finals this year pitted Nick Michetti and James Svolos against Jim Pasichuke and Steve Schaefer. On the 36th hole of the day, Michetti stepped up with a chance to win the match:

Dunes Club is a special place to hang out, and the above joyous celebration really put an exclamation mark on a wonderful trip.

The Creek

Those who were at our FEGC Member-Guest this summer will know it was…hot. A freak heat wave made for a rather warm day, but plenty of water, cooling towels (an invention I was thrilled to find), and a breeze off the Long Island Sound made for a delightful day. Still, there were some sweaty fellas and ladies on the course. So to commemorate the day, as a part of our award ceremony, I created the “Sweaty Boy Award.” Ryan Irish and John Morris were our winners, and they were genuinely thrilled to hear their names called. Might have been the loudest cheer of the night.

Prairie Dunes

I’ve been fortunate enough to visit Prairie Dunes six times in my life, five with Fried Egg events and once for the final tournament of my collegiate career. Each trip brings a renewed excitement, regardless of whether I actually play any golf. Spending time on property is truly a pleasure in every sense of the word. A lasting memory from this trip will be walking the original nine holes at Prairie Dunes, “Perry’s Nine,” on Sunday evening. A group of 30 of us got to spend an hour walking around the property to see what the original routing felt like. It was a terrific start to yet another amazing experience at Prairie Dunes.

Essex County CC

After 36 holes at New Jersey's oldest country club, it was a delight to watch the sun set while sitting on ECCC's back patio. Everyone had a chance to meet the most-liked Fried Egg Golf staff member (PJ) and pick Garrett’s mind. We may need to have a security team follow PJ around in future years if his rocketship of popularity continues on this trajectory. 

Bermuda Trip

At the end of our Bermuda trip, we gathered the entire group and some plus-ones at the Beach Club at Mid Ocean Club for a sunset dinner overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. With a light breeze coming off the water and golden hour upon us, it was a magical time. We sat around for hours with a full dinner, Dark and Stormys, and truly got to know each other in a way that isn’t always possible.

Colorado Golf Club

The beginning of the trip launched with a bang, literally. As is tradition at Colorado Golf Club, players are sent to their starting holes with the strike of a cannon from the driving range. Nothing like a sudden boom to kick start your round.

(Editor's note: Abby was too afraid to light it off herself despite much effort on behalf of the pro shop staff. There is always next year!)

Lawsonia

Returning to Lawsonia every year brings me so much joy. The people and the course are something that everyone should experience, and it really is a pleasure getting to host with them every year. The unlimited Spotted Cow helps, too. This year was particularly exciting as we implemented our first-ever Fish Fry Derby, an alternate-shot competition that had more than 20 teams at the start. 

Minneapolis Trip

My favorite part of the growth of FEGC is the number of multi-day trips we’ve been able to take together. This year, the longest such trip was a four-day journey around Minneapolis. Every course on the trip was an amazing experience and the preferences amongst the group varied greatly. One particular highlight was our opening night dinner at White Bear Yacht Club, a private experience in their Commodore Room overlooking White Bear Lake. What a spot to kick off the journey.

Essex

One of my favorite things about guys is that we always want photos taken of us, but we never want to ask for them. At Essex, I make it a point to stand on the 18th tee, one of the most dramatic tee shots I’ve ever seen, and ask if friends and family members want photos taken with the amazing backdrop. Nearly everyone takes me up on it. I won’t name names, but you know who you are.

Kingsley Club & Belvedere Golf Club

Any time you can infuse some pressure into an event, however serious, it always adds a fun element. Our now-annual event in Northern Michigan features a four-team competition in which representatives from the top two teams compete in a playoff in front of the rest of the field. It’s not often you have to hit shots in front of 80 people or get to cheer on representatives of your own squad.

Skokie

Andy and the team returned to their Chicago roots, sadly without a meetup at Lottie's. New and old friends convened, we introduced a new putting contest that got heated in a good-natured way, and our fearless leader held court during our only rain delay of the season. Consider it a successful homecoming.

Old Barnwell

This was our third time hosting with Old Barnwell and it was without a doubt my favorite so far. Not only does the course continue to get better with age, but the club has its full staff and infrastructure in place. And they’re absolutely humming. The food and beverage offerings, new clubhouse, Kids Course, and lodging are so great. To that end, my favorite memory of the event was undoubtedly watching FEGC member Matt Ricks bring his kids out to play the Kids Course in the afternoon with their dad and grandfather. It was a family experience in the midst of our event and it couldn’t have been better. 

Broomsedge

We’ve had the honor of hosting three visits to Broomsedge in the club’s short history. Hell, this is the second time you’re reading about it in this piece. Being the last full-field event of our season, our fall trip brought a lot of friends together and plenty of new faces, as well. This event came two days after our Old Barnwell event, which made it easier for some groups to travel in together. I’ll highlight two foursomes of gents in particular, as Brandon Kibler, Sharbee Hoskins, JJ Svac, and Max Bohon flew in from all over the place to play together, and John Sica, Duncan MacKenzie, Jason Vincent, and Will Preston all traveled in from New York to see us. Always fun to see groups travel with us!

Brambles

Arguably my favorite memory of the year was one of the last. After the first day of matches at Brambles for The Vintage, I was talking to a Tree Farm member and Lido member who were sitting on the Adirondack chairs overlooking the course. They were college friends who hadn’t seen each other in 20 years and didn’t know the other was playing in the event until they saw the pairings sheet. Yet here they were, across the country from their homes, catching up like old times. It was the most appropriate way to end a Fried Egg Golf Events season. Well, that and an FEGC victory!