The Pleasure of Awaiting a Golf Trip

Shane Bacon chose “anticipation” as his Word of the Week for our newsletter on Monday of Masters week. Three weeks later, I found myself rereading Shane’s piece as I prepared for an upcoming trip, brimming with anticipation.

As much as we all enjoy watching professional golf, nothing compares to playing it yourself. At the peak of the recreational-golf pyramid is the golf trip. Days filled with golf and nights with cold beers and discussions of the game that was played. It’s an experience rivaled only by a top-notch vacation. But let me be clear, golf trips are not vacations; they are golf trips and should be anticipated as such.

Most of my golf is played on the road these days as we travel for The Fried Egg. Living in Chicago makes it a tall order to get to and from golf courses on a regular basis, especially on coveted summer weekend days. Last year, seven of the 42 rounds I played took place in Illinois. I play a few times on a trip, hang up the clubs for a while at home, and wait for the next trip to start. It’s a unique existence, and one I doubt many can relate to, but it’s one that I appreciate. There are very few people who get to say that some form of golf is their profession, and I consider myself lucky to be able to travel and see the world one fairway at a time.

On Thursday, four Fried Egg team members are heading to Southern California for our event at Soule Park in Ojai. This will be the third time we’ve held the event, and every visit makes me more excited to return. Travel is tough and definitely takes a toll on you, but when travel means golf, those with the sickness run to the airport.