Scramble

In an hour.  Might want to bring a sweater.  The 50 degree mark isn't supposed to get around to us till around four this afternoon.

Saturday Morning Scramble Start Time

High noon for all of you who want to tell your grandchildren that you played golf on the last day of 2011 at Lakeview Golf Course!

Bits and Pieces

-The Irish go into the fourth quarter leading 14-3 and lose 18-14.  Dang.  ND qb's threw three interceptions, two of which were picked off in the end zone.  Big ouch.  Shouldn't have been a loss what with the Irish having the ball deep in Seminole territory with less than four minutes on the clock.  But then: Holding penalty and then a pick in the end zone.  So much for Irish football for the time being.

-The boys (Jack, Jack, Dick and Ken) were at the golf course today.  Saw them all par hole #15.  Jack Lents thought that was pretty special and wanted me to mention it.  He's right, btw.  Winter golf, sloppy conditions.  Good job, guys.  Btw 2:  Asked Ken Hudson if he was responsible for all this good weather.  He said yes...

-I did some practicing after finishing my walk.  Now you all know that I've been looking for that hole-in-one at #7 to get my trifecta at Lakeview (already have aces at #3 and #9).  Well, today I did get a ball to go into the hole from the tee box out there.  Only trouble was that it was my 9th ball.  Second time I've done that in a practice session, the first time being at hole #9 back in the mid 90's.

-Happy Birthday to Tiger Woods.  Today is his 36th.

-Barr-Reeve did beat North Daviess in the Graber Post Tournament last night.  Don't know the score.

-More golf weather today.

Barr-Reeve and North Daviess

Just talked with Eric (who is on his way to Williamsburg, VA with his family for a vacation): BR plays ND tonight at 7:30.  He's pretty sure of that.  Expect both the Viking fans and the Cougar fans were anticipating the two meeting in the second game...

Bits and Pieces

-Bob Karvitz and one of the reasons that you know Pacer basketball is on its way back:

The Good Looking Females Quotient. There is a direct correlation between the quality of Pacers basketball and the number of good-looking females in the joint.

Really.


-Notre Dame women rout Longwood, 92-26, yesterday afternoon up in South Bend.  The men beat #22 Pitt the night before in a game that saw them losing at halftime by a point.  Final score, 72-59, making it 28 in a row for the Irish on their home floor.

-The Irish football team makes it two bowl games in a row against a Florida team.   Last year they had no trouble at all against Miami.  Later today they go up against the Florida State Seminoles.  Prediction:  The Irish make it two wins in a row in December bowls, again in a surprisingly easy fashion.

-So, do the Colts bench their starters against Jacksonville and go for the loss to ensure the #1 pick?  The admin folk have a precedent - they sat them two years ago, going for a super healthy team for the run to the super bowl rather than continuing the possibility of a perfect season.  It didn't work out then and I don't expect their decision this time will work out any better.  Btw, what do you think their decision will be: go for the loss? or go for the win?  Will we know one way or the other?  Btw 2:  Jacksonville has good reasons to let the Colts win so they don't get that #1 pick.  What do they do?  Could end up in a tie with neither team wanting the W.

-IU men's basketball gets a dose of reality in Big Ten opener against MSU, lose 80-65.  The Spartans countered a 25-2 run by the Hoosiers with a 20-0 run of their own.  Wowzer on the runs!  This ain't 3rd grade basketball, is it?

-Barr-Reeve and North Daviess both won in the Graber Post Holiday Tournament.  BR beat Clay City, 58-47, while ND beat North Posey, 59-46.  They play each other today, don't know which game.

-Anybody watching the weather?  Looks awfully good for some golf at Lakeview.  Should see some golfers today, tomorrow and Saturday.  Hurray!  Watch for the Saturday scramble time.  Love this mild winter we're having.

-Thursday Photo:  Morning ware on the Carnival Liberty:

Bits and Pieces

-Great video recap of the 2011 LPGA season at Fairways and Forehands.  A must for the lady golfer lovers among us.

-More golfing weather: sunny and 47 today. 

-Watched the Packers run that slant left pass on the Bears last night, seemed like about ten times, several of them for touchdowns.  Bears already half in hibernation?  Packers win easily.

-NBA got started with its season yesterday.  Guess there are some folk paying attention.

-Hope you all had a warm Christmas day.  Number One son Marty with Laura surprised us by showing up mid afternoon; Kayla came in later after spending some time with Shoals friends and family.  They are here for today's dinner plus at our place this afternoon.  Eric and his family will also be down from Odon. 

-Getting on with the rest of the day - will head out to the golf course for a walk around a bit later - letting that good old sun work its magic on the frosty morning.

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays to all of you out there!  And, yes, it is a golf day with temperatures getting into the 50's.  My oh my, what a difference from last year when the Christmas week was full of blizzards.  We appreciate the variety, right?

Day Before Christmas Golf Scramble

Noon today.  Might want to bring an extra sweater...

Bits and Pieces

-Lions win down in Washington in a low scoring affair, 43-33. Who pulled the plug on the scoring?

-Colts win up in Indy against the Texans with a last minute touchdown, 19-16.  That's two in a row (Colt fans are going wild!) and throws them into a tie for the #1 pick in the draft.  But then who cares - Irsey says Manning will play in Indy next year if he plays anywhere.  That's good news, right?

-Wonder if we could convince the weather goddess to pump up the temps just a little bit tomorrow.  Gonna be sunny and low 40's.  How about sunny and low 50's?  A day before Christmas scramble?

-Christmas shopping today up in Bloomington.  Son Marty was down yesterday for the Mason Read viewing over in Shoals. Diane and I had early dinner with him at Los Bravos where we saw, among others, Jeremy Wildman, who had a big smile and a wave; and Chad Wade's little sister, Leslie.  

Photo: North-of-the-Border Miami Latina with a smile for the camera:

Bits and Pieces

-In case you didn't go back and see my correction about the Lion girls playing the Cougar girls tonight...  No game tonight between those two - that actually took place on November 22.  Wouldn't mind seeing them play again - missed the first one.  The Lion boys play tonight at Washington, the Zeller-less Hatchets.  The Hatchets beat the Vikings by ten but lost to the Cougars by eighteen and have a record of 3 and 4.  Lions come in at 6 and 1.  Lions should win, right?

-Did get out to the golf course yesterday but just to walk around and bring in the tee blocks.  Dick Lemmon was also walking around.  Sun never did come out as it was supposed to. 

-Question:  Are you keeping your weight down as we head into the holiday season?  Or do you just let it go and take care of it with some serious dieting once the holidays are over?  My intention is always the former but find it almost impossible to not enjoy, usually in excess, all the goodies that magically appear during this time of the year.  (Diane just came in and asked me if I wanted pancakes and eggs for breakfast rather than the usual oatmeal.  Yes, I said yes.)

-Question 2:  Are you staying halfway in shape?  Stretching and lifting weights and walking?  You should and yes, I do, except for the lifting weights.  Sit-ups - yes - almost daily.  Walking and stretching - daily.

 -Today's south-of-the-border photo:  Cozumel women with smiles and a wave:

Bits and Pieces

-Lions and Cougars win in boys basketball last night.  The Lions routed VR, 63-38, while the Cougars had a more difficult time with Tecumseh, 43-32.  Barr Reeve also won beating NE Dubois, 78-42.  Shoals did not play.  Loogootee girls play North Daviess girls tomorrow night at JBA.  (p.s. 5:45 pm: No, Mike.  That was a month ago...)

-Mild weather today (57 degrees at midnight last night).  Sunny this afternoon - sure doesn't look like that right now.  Golf?  Maybe here in a bit.  Probably a bit wet out there with the constant drizzle we've had these last few days.

Photo:  Girls from south of the border hamming it up for the camera.  Belize City girls on the left, Cozumel girls on the right.  Lots of other photos of girls, etc., at Birdman Photos.

Bits and Pieces

-At Lakeview Sunday afternoon:  Yes, we had golfers and a game!  Jack Butcher, Ken Hudson, Frank and Susan Fee and Chuck Baker were out taking advantage of the unusually mild weather.  And then there was the game:  It was again a 6-6-6 with Dave Wininger and I winning the first event, a scramble, and the alternate shot and best ball events ending in ties.  Doug Denson paired up with Short Jeffers and Nick Wininger had Travis Brett as a partner. Always fun and we finished before dark by skipping #5 the second time and playing #6 as a par 3.  No hole-in-one's.  Dang...

-Women's basketball:  Muffet McGraw's #3 Irish beat #7 Ky on Sunday afternoon, 92-83.  Would never guess that these two teams are among the best defensive teams this year.  Expect ND to move up a notch as #2 UCON lost to #1 Baylor, 66-61.

-Colts win their first of the season, Orlovsky wins first of his career, beat Tenn 27-13.  That was a surprise as, guess what, they were losing at halftime when we started golfing.  Nice surprise though, I guess.  What happens if they win another and lose out on the #1 pick in the draft?  Does Payton Manning then return as a viable option for the Colts?  And you did notice that that other team with a '0' in its record when the day started saw it changed to a '1' by days end:  Kansas City took it to the undefeated Green Bay Packers, 19-14.  Okay, so which was the bigger surprise, the Colt win or the Packer loss?  Packer loss would be my guess.  Who didn't think they were invincible?

Saturday Stuff:

-Lexi Thompson claims her second pro victory with a four shot win in Dubai.  The new youngest pro (there is a younger amateur who has won, Amy Yang at the 2006 ANZ Ladies Masters) to win on the LET finished at 15 under, four shots clear of Lee-Anne Pace.  The Wie Lass had an even par day and finished tied for 12th ten strokes behind the new phenom in the ladies golfing world.  She is also the longest lady at the present, hitting it around 275 yards down the fairway.  Wie, by comparison, averages 266 yards, which isn't all that shabby...

-Butler boys basketball team takes down Purdue in the last minute after not being ahead at any point during the game, 67-65 (upset).  Second game at Conseco Fieldhouse saw Cody Zeller and the Indiana Hoosiers throttle the Irish, 69-58 (not an upset).  Again, I ask, what's with the Hurrying Hoosiers?

-Another mild day in December with rain maybe later.  Golf anyone?

Bits and Pieces

-At the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters, Lexi Thompson still in the lead after three rounds.  She's one up on Sophie Gustofson at -10 and five up on Michelle Wie who is in 8th place at -5.  The Golf Channel has the final round today starting at 3pm.  Lots of photos and the scoreboard at bangkokbobby's Fairways and Forehands.

-See that the Loogootee boys stuck it to the Pike Central team last night in the homecoming game.  Final score: 59-27.  North Daviess (#1 team in 1A) and Barr Reeve also won.

-Went up to Bloomington yesterday to do some shopping.  On the way stopped in at the Donut Barn in Odon and go myself a blueberry cake donut.  Yum.  Been a while since I've had a donut so it was especially good.  Brought an apple fritter home to Diane.  She says yum, too.  Btw, it's now located next to the Odon Locker right on the highway.  Easy to get to.  Might want to get on up there this morning and get yourself a goodie or two..

-Don't know about golf today.  Did see that it's going to be in the forties and sunny.  Only trouble with that is that the forties part comes late in the afternoon.  Too bad.  Wonder it there is any football later today.  

Carnival Liberty Cruise Collage

Collage of photos from the ship, both day and night shots.  It was fun and both Diane and I would recommend a cruise.  It was our very first cruise and we did enjoy it.  Btw, even with all the food we ate, including dessert at every meal (yes, even breakfast had a sweet thing or two) and ice cream in-between, we managed to hold our weight at an even keel - Diane even lost three pounds. Go figure...

p.s.  Lexi Thompson leads in Dubai with Michelle Wie four shots back after two rounds.

Bits and Pieces

-Na Yeon Choi wears a dress for the third time ever and looks smashing!  Photo here (the girl in the maroon form fitting dress about a fifth of the way down the page) at Seoul Sisters.  Here's how she usually appears.  NYC, as she is nicknamed, was playing in the Swinging Skirts tournament, an invitational charity event played in Taiwan this past week.  Winner:  Taiwan native and current lady golfing phenom, Yani Tseng.

-Read the Loogootee Trib's write up on the boys basketball this past weekend (Dec. 2nd and 3rd).  Terrific win for the Lions in the holiday tournament and even more terrific display of basketball skills by Bryant Ackerman, the grandson of avid Lakeview golfer Skip Ackerman.  Bryant also plays golf at Lakeview but not near as much as Skip.

-Golf at Lakeview yesterday with temperatures in the 50's.  Really very nice for  a December day.  The Boys (Butcher, Lents, Hudson and Lemmon) were already playing when I got there some time after one.  Heard that Jack B. got the big prize when he picked up five flags at hole #16 (#7 the second time around).  His tee shot managed to be the first one that stayed on a par three green, and that by a mere inch.  Good neighbor Jack L.  bemoaned that fact as his shot on the concluding hole won him the last flag.

-Golf today?  Looks like we're in the middle of a great big green area that's going to be with us for a while.  Better chance tomorrow; higher temperatures as well.

-More on the trip:  One of the best things of the whole trip for me was the people watching.  People from all over the world speaking a multitude of languages and coming in every shape and size and age (lots of youngsters, apparently playing hookie with their parents consent).  And that made for lots of photo opportunities.

Back Home In Loogootee

Home again!  Rolled into Loogootee last night just before eight after starting the day out in White Springs in northern Florida (just south of the Georgia line and north of US 10).  Had dinner at the Telford Hotel in White Spings Saturday night (Diane and I felt we had slipped into a Twilight Zone segment, being set back into the 1950's, not only with the dining but also the stay at the America's Best Value Inn, an older motel which nonetheless provided a great night of rest; the dinner at the Telford, a bed and breakfast, was buffet style and also excellent).  We got off the ship, the Carnival Liberty, Saturday morning after a seven day cruise that included stops in Cozumel, Belize, Mahogany Bay and the Cayman Islands.

Photo 1: Another NFL city skyline.  We went through four of them.  Can you correctly identify the above?  Hint: It's either Tampa Bay or Atlanta.

Photo 2: The extent of the golfing experience on board the Liberty: A couple on their way up to the top most deck to get in some putt-putt golf.  I failed to take advantage of the opportunity...

Btw, did get into our motel room Saturday in time to catch the last two minutes of the IU-KY basketball game on tv.  Pretty nice ending for the Hoosiers (okay, a really great ending for the Hoosiers).  Also, did get to watch Tiger win the Chevron Challenge (hurray squared!) last Sunday afternoon as we steamed away from Miami and down toward the Yucatan Peninsula.  Great drama with TW having to catch Zach Johnson, go up two, get tied and then even go down one only to birdie the last two holes to win by one.  Good stuff to say the least.  And yes, I loved it.

It's good to be back - will have more later.  And thanks for taking care of one of our cold weeks of winter.  A little warm up this week and maybe even some golf.

Bits and Pieces: Skyline Test 2, More Tiger

Ok, should be a no brainer here what with Diane and me in Miami tonight (embark tomorrow).  Anybody not know this skyline now?  If you don't know, then go to question #2: Who's buried in James Brown's tomb?  Dave W. was correct with yesterday's photo being of Jacksonville.  (Been there Dave?)

-See that Tiger did well today and again has the lead after two rounds of golf.  No 75 tomorrow, right?  Right.  (Think the ship has internet access so should be able to see what's going on later tomorrow afternoon.  Wonder if they have tv reception?  Like NBC between 3 and 6?)

-Hope you all are getting together for a golf game tomorrow morning.  And, yes, I already miss it. And no, I haven't touched a club since we left.  Maybe some putt-putt tomorrow evening or Sunday.  Not sure that even counts.

Bits and Pieces: Skyline Test 1, Tiger

Can you identify this skyline?  Hint 1:  The city has an NFL franchise.

-See that Tiger got off to a great start today and then struggled to finish at -3.  K.J. Choi leads TW and Steve Stricker by three after the first round of the Chevron World Challenge where only six of the eighteen players finished in the red.

Bits and Pieces

-Our travels: Made it to Macon, Georgia with our first day's drive.  Dip into Florida today and head to the east coast to drive south to Miami.  Not road weary yet...

-See that the Hoosiers - men's basketball - won last night - caught a little bit of the game on espn in the motel room.  The IU team now 7 and 0.  Are they back?  The Irish men are not back; lost their senior leader (Abromaitis) for the season with an acl tear the other day and lost big to Gonzaga last night, 75-53.

-Tiger playing this week at his own tournament, the 18 player Chevron World Challenge.  But you knew that, right?  I expect him to win this one.  No excuses, TW.

-See you all got sunshine today and tomorrow, high 40's.  Would probably play golf if I was back there.  Cloudy and 53 on Saturday in Loogootee - definitely golf weather.

-Gonna go have one of those free breakfasts with Diane and then get on the road by 7.  At least that's the plan.  (In bed before 9:30 last night and up just after 4 this morning.  Expect I'll catch some shut eye in the car later today...)