New (Great) Memories at the Old Course

Quick top note, for those wanting to know this: it was just a f***ing great day! Sunny weather, warm enough, with just your “gentle” out of the north wind. And great company.  Some good play.  I turned to Mikey on 18 green as John tried to two putt a putt he wasn’t going to two putt, and said that I was about to cry thinking that it was over.  It was that good.

But first, the underwear story du jour: as we got in the car afterwards, Butch made it clear he was “wearing Bubba’s underwear.”  !!!! WTF!!! JP remembered that Butch took their father’s underwear when their was a redistribution of Bubba’s stuff six years ago.  When he said it both JP and I said “ewwwww.”  “What, did you think the day would come when you’d want him along like that?”  Butch, of course, said, deadpan, “Yes. I wanted to keep Bubba close to me”  It was a funny exchange on a funny day.

But we said afterwards, Bubba was with us in spirit.

Now, chronologically (and I am supposed to report this – there are more things that would be memorable to tell that I am NOT supposed to report here.  I have a list…no, you don’t REALLY want to know :))

Butch walked to Aldi’s, yes, THAT Aldi’s, shortly after they opened at 8 (they get up early here) and bought stuff, then cooked (and then did dishes!) a heart-healthy breakfast of fried eggs, bacon (the kind here is more like Canadian bacon), potatoes and “crumpets” – English muffins but the Scots are unwilling to concede the English should have their name on anything.  :)

We were to the parking lot an hour before our tee time; they didn’t let us check in till 20 mins before.  Butch wanted a hat.  This proved troubling as the best he had was “like they are wearing” to describe it.  We ended up in Tom Morris’s shop, “the oldest golf shop in the world,” and bought a very sharp “flat hat” (as the teller called it) & then putted, etc.

It was sunny, with a “bit of a breeze” (if I have them in the right order, the first picture in this link to today’s pictures and two videos, is of the beach along the course – those white caps will indicate how much breeze there was), and warm enough.

Here's the link to the pictures -- one at time sucks!



We all wore three layers, but never got cold.

JP and Butch got a caddy.  Both were named Steve.  Butch said as we did introductions “am I in a Saturday Night Live routine or what?”  The one pic is off the 3 of us together, because JP wanted to…just because.

I will keep descriptions of play to a minimum for those who don’t care.   Because I remember what David Owen opines in his wonderful book My Usual Game – “no one really cares to hear about anyone else’s golf game.”

But here are some highlights.  JP beat us like a red-headed step child most of the day (more later) with a well played round like the best golfer of the group by 10 strokes should play.  This included birdies, yes BIRDIES on the hardest and 3rd hardest holes on the course, with a 30 foot birdie with a a three foot right to left break on it.  Mike and I said that it was a hard putt before he hit it (and JP is not the world’s best putter) and he drained it like it was his job.

Highlight 2 – JP is 4 over coming to 16 tee.  He’s been hitting this left to right shot off the tee all day and the wind is the 15 mph from the left.  And there’s a fence down the right side…right down the right side.  I was about to say something as he teed up but stepped to Butch and whispered “I was going to say ‘this sets up perfectly for your mini-slice, eh? [#irony] But I thought he should have his round.’”  He hits his tee ball nowhere near the golf course, never had a chance, 40 yards right in what he called later “the St. Andrews Academy.”  Then he steps up and hits another one just like the first one.  Bing bang bong – he takes an 8, +4 on one hole after +4 for the first 15.  He said after he’d probably regret that the rest of his life. ):  Butch had a funny voice over.  ON list of things not to post.

Highlight 3 – there were struggles.  I lost only 2 balls, both on one hole.  After “losing” Mike asked “where’d that go?”  “Edinburgh” was all I could answer.  Butch spent a couple early holes trying to get out of the deep stuff after topped drives off the tee.  And as John put it about Mike on the front nine “the only time we talked to you was on the tee and on the green.”  Army golf as it’s known (left-right-left-right).  He hit the ball onto another golf course twice (I think that’s right).  But here’s the funny exchange:  JP’s Steve says “why didn’t he get a caddy?”  JP says I don’t think he wanted to spend the money.  “Well, he’d have someone to keep him company.”  LOL.

Butch will want a highlight to be that he made a putt of maybe 15 feet on the famed 18th hole for par – the only one in the group, and, of course, winning his two-ball (me being his partner) the hole.  Parring the last at the Old Course.  Priceless.

There’s a pic in the collection of us on the first tee, posed by the starter – the clubs are to make the “ST Andrews cross” (the Scottish and course symbol) – then the iconic shot from the Swilcan Bridge on 18 – these days in imitation of Watson, Palmer, Nicklaus and Player there once upon a time.  And two videos – one very mean one of me not getting out of one of their famous fecking bunkers, and one of Butch getting out and saving a stroke from the only one he was in all day.

And, finally, on the Road Hole, Mike hit one into the pond on the hotel grounds.  Explanations for those who ask.  The rest of us hit good drives.

Then we adjourned to Sheena and Jack’s.  These are people JP was supposed to look up because of someone (a customer?) from Houston, because Jack was from Houston.  Their bar and hotel is only a block from the 18th tee.  It’s their sign in the pics – I wanted to discuss “scorching” with the sign writer, but thought better of it.  But we were told it was the warmest day here since August.  Lucky us.

Jack and Sheena’s has a small patio right on the Main Street of town, near the university.  JP talked to almost everyone who walked by. :). We got too much sun.  In St. Andrews.  Who knew?

We came home and I fixed one of my favorites at home.  In the original recipe from Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman, it is Cajun chicken pasta.  I don’t know what it is WE had.  You see, the defining ingredient in Cajun chicken pasta, duh, is Cajun spices.  Do you know how hard it is to find Cajun spice mix in St. Andrews, Scotland?!?!!? Like, impossible.  So, same recipe, but the guy at Marks & Sparks came up with “Latino Rub” instead.  So we had Latino Rub chicken pasta.   Everyone liked it.  Picture in the cue.

And the funniest moment (I can share) of the evening – JP wanted dessert.  There were packages of sticky toffee “pud” (that’s what the package calls it) in the fridge.  So, he’s trying to figure it out.  It says “serve piping hot.”  We wondered about the operational definition of “piping” then…in the middle of the euchre game (the youngsters won 2-1 – we have to decide tomorrow night if Butch and I are going to be broken up or we are going to just keep being their whipping boys) JP says “hey, this is vegetarian!” Yes, he was surprised!  Laughter ensued, then Butch stuck in the dagger – “who makes sticky toffee pudding without meat?!?!?!?”  We are contacting the makers to tell them that it HAS to have bacon.  :). Because, of course, EVERYTHING is better with bacon on it.

And, finally, to go with yesterday’s curb and cone stories: first, I pulled into a parking place at the course that was sooooo tight…”how tight was it?”  No one could get out of the van. :) I had to back up and let them all out and I leaned to left (remember which side is the drivers) and was able to squeeze out.  BTW, the car on my left had its mirror popped in.  Got it?

Then we went to Marks & Sparks and Butch was in front and yelled “shotgun.” Then climbed into the drivers side.  Much **** was blown.  When we got to M&S, I stopped the van and Butch reached over to the stick and put it in park.  “You remember you’re not driving, right?”  LOL.  Then I had to go back to the store – forgot chicken broth, which no one carries here it seems – and the other 3 were watching me and talking to me as I walked up to the van and climbed into the passenger side.  Then sheepishly (there it is!) had to walk around the van and get in the driver’s side.

It was a great day.  Philosopher Butch said to me on a late hole (when we were partners) that he told people they needed to do things like this because “if you don’t do things and have memories, when you get to be our age whole years will disappear with nothing to remember them by.”  None of us is ever going to forget this great day in the Home of Golf.