Fat Guy Golf Monthly
October 2010
This is just a spot to highlight a few pages on the site every month, based on such whims as where I've been playing lately, good seasonal destinations, where the Tour's playing, and other favorites.
October Destinations-
Fat Guy's Disney World- Orlando, FL
Some advice I got from B.S.ing with a guy on a park bench in Universal who's been taking groups of students to Disney twice a year for the last 15 years during various seasons: October is the best combo of light jacket weather and somewhat muted crowds at Disney (slow is a relative term at Disney... it's a pretty rare day when you don't have to wait in a bunch of lines). OK, so you gotta pull the kids out of school for a week, but it's early in the school year and they might learn more at Epcot than they would have at school anyway. Here's my family guy's guide to the Land Of Mickey, with a little golf thrown in for Dad and maybe even a kid-free night on the town for you and Mom.
Fat Guy's World Golf Village- St. Augustine, FL
Mid-to-late October is a great time for a golf buddy trip, to extend the golf season by a week or so (for us Northeasterners/Midwesterners) before your swing groove leaves you for the winter. Florida is great this time of year, as hurricane season winds down and the Florida heat and afternoon T-bangers start to fade away. World Golf Village is a fun destination, as much for the off-course surroundings in nearby "Old World" St. Augustine as for the WGV golf, which is a nice side dish to area Bucket List Must Play TPC Sawgrass.
I just spent a weekend on the Inner Harbor with my family, and it's still going strong despite the economic downturn. Definitely worth a boy's golf trip or a family weekend with an early morning round snuck in. Hardshell blue crabs, fun nightspots, Little Italy, Fell's Point, and good value golf scattered around the 695 Beltway.
Wolf Creek GC
A cheap shoulder-season alternative to Vegas, for guys who are more about the golf than the nightlife.
Bar / Golf Trail-
Fat Guy's Sports Bar Golf Trail- With college and pro football seasons getting into full swing, there's no better time than to hit the road in search of some of the best sports bars in the country, all paired up with a sporty course or two for a pre-game round.
Tour Spotlight- Wales
Royal Porthcawl
Euros beware... we can sit Tiger for every match if we have to. Here's Golf Digest's recent guide to the host of this month's Ryder Cup matches.
Fat Guy's Course Of The Month:
North Winds at Indian Lake- Near the Somerset exit off the PA Turnpike, halfway between Pittsburgh and State College
You remember Shanksville PA as the crash site of Flight 93 on 9/11. Pay your respects at the crash site memorial, then tee it up at this surprisingly well-conditioned woodsy layout at a great value little resort in the Appalachian mountains. My high school buddies and I just did a fun golf weekend here.
"Guy Movie" Buddy Trip-
Sideways- Santa Ynez Valley, CA (near Santa Barbara)
Sideways is more of a wine movie than a golf movie, but it's perhaps one of the best guy character studies out there. An interesting microcosm of what can happen when old friends get together for a guys' weekend, particularly when they're at differing crossroads in their lives. Here's a golf weekend in NorCal wine country, based out of the Days (formerly Windmill) Inn and Hitching Post II, by Sideways author Rex Pickett.
Why Fat Guys Pay Good Money To Play In Charity Golf Tournaments:
No, that's not me, by the way.