Anther Group Photo

Here's yet another group photo from Travis's graduation.

From the left, that's Don, Judy, Jocelyn, Michelle, Travis, Austin, Lauren, Kristi and Marc.

Having Breakfast

This is a group picture of the entire family (well, most of two generations) having breakfast the day after Travis's graduation.

From the left, that's Michelle (Travis's significant other), Marc, Kristi (Travis's step-mother), Jocelyn, Travis, Lauren (Austin's significant other), Austin, Don Carter (Travis's step-father), and Judy.

Travis's Graduation

Wow. My last child graduated from University of California, Irvine (UCI) this Sunday.

This is a great picture of my three children (Austin, Travis and Jocelyn).

Other pictures

Here are some more pictures. Double click any picture to expand the photograph.

Notice the one below of the right rear corner. The exhaust pipe was bent into the right rear wheel -- along with the rear suspension.

An amazing fact is how undamaged the front appears to be. Especially when you consider that the Nissan Altima that I was pushed in to was totaled. But the front of the Cherokee was actually damaged more that what appears here. The radiator was leaking all over the driveway.

What a dead Jeep looks like

On May 28th, I was severely rear-ended in the middle lane of Highway 85 just by the Saratoga exit (this is about 3 miles from our Cupertino home). I was stopped in rush hour traffic, and got hit by a Toyota Tundra (driver has AAA insurance) doing between 40-50MPH. My car was pushed into another car in front of me, and that car (a Nissan Altima) was totaled also.

As you can see, my Cherokee is totaled. All four doors are sprung. The body has been accordioned. The rear suspension is trashed. And the front is trashed and leaking water now.

See this picture. The Cherokee is actually folded upwards in the middle.

My insurance company came and hauled it off from the driveway last week. Amazingly, with all the damage, it would still barely run (at a top speed of 25 MPH). The tailpipe had been bent down and was rubbing against the right rear wheel, so it smoked like crazy when I drove it. But I was able to limp it home.

At first, the emergency room at Good Samaritan Hospital (Kristi came to the wreck site and drove me to the hospital) thought that I may have broken my right wrist, and strained my lower back. But now, we think the wrist was just severely jammed or strained. I'm pretty sure the impact drove me forward and my hand came off the steering wheel and smashed into the dash. I had scraped knuckles on my right hand that I could not account for. I was in a wrist cast for about 10 days, and was xray’ed by my general practitioner last week. Luckily, he says the wrist is not fractured. My right hand was noticeably swollen. I understand lower back soreness is common in automobile accidents, and I’m hoping my back heals up in the next few days.

USAA (our auto insurer) has said that they will be “buying” the Cherokee from us at Blue Book. So I guess we will be in the market soon for another car.

Pebble Beach Scorecard

In the spirit of full disclosure, here is our scorecard from Pebble Beach.

Double click the scorecard to see a larger image that is easier to read.

Something I just realized. Marc, Don and Mike all shot 52 on the backside. We got there differently, but the results were still the same.

Many thanks to the uber techie Don Rose for his converting an HTML file from Intelligolf to a JPEG file for my blog.

Video of Pebble Beach #7

We have the video proof that I was able to hit the short par 3 at Pebble Beach (#7) in regulation. You will be able to tell from the video that the tee is about 100 feet above the green. The green itself is at the furtherest point out on an incredibly scenic promontory.

Click the right arrow beneath the picture below to play the video.

After hitting this green in regulation, I proceeded to 3 putt for bogey. Don Rose, on the other hand, just missed the green, but was able to get up and down for par.

What is also apparent is how hard the wind was blowing. Look at the flag and listen to the sound.

Pebble Beach #8 - the most terrifying hole we played

Without a doubt, the most knee-knocking hole we played in the three days of The Testosterone Open was #8 at Pebble Beach. This hole plays slightly uphill, so from the tee box you are completely unaware of what lays ahead.

Double click the picture to get a better perspective of the horror.

Unbelievably, this is rated as only the third hardest hole on the front side. #6 and #9 are both rated harder.

Once you reach the Landing Area, then the lurking terror of the hole reveals itself. Your second shot must traverse over the cliffs and the Pacific Ocean to either a very narrow Lay-up Area ... or if you are very brave ... about 175 yards to a fairly small green guarded by three bunkers.

The fiendish course architect did not want players laying up on this hole. The fairway Lay-up Area short of the green is SO, SO narrow as to be almost unhittable. But the alternative of gunning your second shot to the bunker-infested green -- and flying over the deep ocean chasm for 90% of the shot -- is just suicidal.

I believe that Jack Nicklaus has called this the "best second shot" in golf. Or maybe he said that this was the "scariest second shot" in golf. Whatever. This is a shot that very few amateurs have.

Prudent course management (read that as my "wimpishness") had me lay up -- over the chasm but unfortunately into the rough by the Lay-up Area. I bladed my third shot -- off of a severe downhill lie -- just over the green. Took a double bogey. But I lived to write this blog!!! And I can report that no one in our group had either a wet ball or made better than double bogey.

Memories from The Testosterone Open

By far, the most memorable moment for me from The Testosterone Open was the walk up the 18th fairway at Pebble Beach. Even though we were riding in golf carts, our two forecaddies were astute enough to have us walk the entire way up this fairway. They drove our carts up for us.

But just an amazing experience. Everyone that has watched any golf is very familiar with the 18th hole at Pebble Beach, a sweeping par five that arcs left along the coastline, hugging the Pacific Ocean.

My third shot still left me about 75 yards short of the hole (yes, driver - 3 wood - 3 wood into a heavy wind). When you get close to the green, you realize how many people are watching from the balconies and patios at The Pebble Beach Lodge. And your pulse rate goes way up again as you try not to screw up. Pretty much the same pulse rate you had when teeing off on Hole #1.

BTW, my fourth shot landed on the green, and I then proceeded to three-putt for a double bogey.

Wine Totals for the Week

The final wine bottle count for The Testosterone Open was:

Thursday – 3 bottles
Friday – 6 bottles
Saturday – 5 bottles (including two purchased at different restaurants in Carmel)
Sunday – 3 bottles (consumed at Chez McGee’s in Cupertino)

Week’s Total = 17 bottles

The most notable bottles (brought by Don and Mike) were:

Joseph Phelps Insignia (Meritage)
Beringer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
Opus One Cabernet Sauvignon
Turley Vineyards "Haynes" Zinfandel

Not included in this total were the beer, champagne and mixed drinks that were also consumed.

Perhaps now the horrifically bad golf scores can be more easily understood (read that as "rationalized").

Webcam Picture at Pebble Beach

Ed Matthews was kind enough to capture webcam photos of us teeing off at #1 on Pebble Beach. This is the webcam photo he saved of our group teeing off.

Double click the picture to get a larger view. Please excuse the morning moisture on the webcam lens.

The golfer just about to hit is Don Rose (I believe). I'm standing in the middle of the picture wearing a yellow top. Mark Manley is on the far right wearing the light colored slacks. And Mike McGee is standing just to the left of Mark. The starter is standing to my left watching Don tee off.

If you look down the fairway at the dog leg, you can just barely see our two forecaddies (Maty and John) watching us tee off.

Picture on Spanish Bay - links golf

This picture gives you a real idea of what "links style" golf is all about. We're teeing off (actually that's Mike teeing off) over a waste area of sand dunes. But take a look at the scenery and the Pacific Ocean. Just unreal!!

Picture on Spanish Bay - Tarun praying

Here is a picture of Tarun praying that his putt will get remotely close to the hole. These greens belong on a miniature golf course -- not on a championship golf course.

Double click this picture (or any in this blog) to enlarge the photo.

Picture on Spanish Bay #7 Tee

This is a great picture for understanding Spanish Bay. This golf course has been built on the sand dunes along side the Pacific Ocean. This is advertised as a "links style" golf course -- but only because it has been built close to the ocean.

Still, unbelievably beautiful scenery. And lucky for us, the winds were fairly calm all day long.

Marc and his super model wife

Here is a picture of me and Kristi, who came down to The Inn at Spanish Bay and joined us for dinner Saturday night at Casanova's in Carmel.

Double click the photo to see just how pretty Kristi really is. What, you say? Looks like Vanna White -- but with an MBA?

Yes ... I know ... I've heard it a thousand times this weekend ... I don't deserve her ... and that I am the luckiest man in the world.

So what's your point? You obviously are unaware of a physical trait I share with a horse. Oh yeah ... I usually smell like I've been ridden hard and put up wet. What did you think I meant?

Picture on Spanish Bay #1 Tee

This is the start of Day #3 of the Testosterone Open.

Here is the group just about to tee off at Spanish Bay. Don, Mike, and Marc are all hurting cowboys from the night before. We were up until midnight drinking wine and smoking cigars and behaving untowards to anyone within speaking distance.

This will prove to be one the of worst rounds played in recent history.

That's Tarun (my adopted son from India -- Madonna has nothing on me!) on the right.

Spanish Bay Scores - OUCH!!!!

Here are the scores from round #3 of the Testosterone Open at Spanish Bay:

Marc McGee 59+58=117 39 putts
Don Rose 51+62=113 30 putts
Mike McGee 49+55=104 34 putts
Tarun Bhagwan 48+47=95 34 putts

As a point of explanation, we had stayed up drinking and partying until midnight, then had an 8:20AM tee time. Needless to say, we were all still very foggy during this entire round.

From a betting perspective, Mike was the big winner.

On one 90 yard par 3, Don and I shanked 4 shots each into the hazard.

The greens at Spanish Bay are only missing a windmill and a clown's mouth. Whoever designed this course (and the greens) is a hideous sadist.

Picture on Spyglass Hill #18 Fairway

This is taken from the 18th fairway looking slightly uphill to the 18th green. Absolutely one of the most scenic vistas on the golf course.

Double click the picture to enlarge the photo and fully appreciate this hole.

Picture on Spyglass Hill #15 Tee

This is our group taken standing on the 15th tee. This is an incredibly beautiful par 3.

Double click on the picture to enlarge the photo and get a complete appreciation for the green and the pond.

This was, for me, one of my more frustrating holes. My tee shot hit on the green, and took once bounce right into the pond. Such was the luck I experienced all throughout this round.

As you can tell, Spyglass Hill is a very different course than Pebble Beach. Spyglass Hill has fairways that have been cut into a forest, and also features a lot of "up and down".

Picture on Spyglass Hill #1 Tee

This is the start of Day #2 of The Testosterone Open.

Here we are ready to tee off at Spyglass Hill. On this day, one of the caddies from the first day ("Maty" on the far right) actually played as our fourth golfer. We had the second caddie ("John" who took this picture) also working as a regular caddie for the round.

Highlights from Day #2

We continue to have an extraordinary time in Carmel. On Saturday we

1. Had a massage at the Pebble Beach Spa
2. Played a round of golf at Spyglass Hill
3. Were joined by my wife Kristi who came down from Cupertino
4. Had dinner at Casanova's in Carmel
5. Consumed too many bottles of wine again
6. Sat outside by the fire pits at Spanish Bay until midnight

Great fun.

Spyglass Hills Scores

Here are the scores from round #2 of the Testosterone Open at Spyglass Hill:

Marc McGee 52+56=108 33 putts
Don Rose 47+49=96 31 putts
Mike McGee 51+55=106 29 putts

This course is very different than Pebble Beach. Tree-lined (but wide) fairways. The weather again was perfect.

From a betting perspective, Don was the big winner.

I spent the better part of the round trying to get out of sand bunkers. About 10 of my strokes were sand shots that never left the bunker. I also hit a tree and ended up 20 yards behind where I started. Then 4-putted from 10 feet away on a slippery par 3. Plus hit the green on another par 3 and bounced into a water hazard. Oh well. I'll quit whining.

Why Pebble Beach is so famous

Some of the views at Pebble Beach are so unforgettable. Take this one for instance.

This is taken from the #7 tee box looking downhill at this very short par 3. But the backdrop to the hole is the Pacific Ocean.

Double click this picture to get a perspective of how far above the green you are at the tee box.

For the golfers, this is only about 90 yards to a green that is probably 100 feet below you on the tee.

For the record, I was the only player in our group to hit this green from the tee. However, I then proceeded to 3-putt for my bogey. Not a huge surprise, as I had four 3-putts during the round.

Picture on Pebble Beach 7th Tee

Clearly, the shot of the day was made by Mike on #6. This is the start of probably the three most picturesque holes at Pebble Beach, and three holes which make you sweat bullets.

On this hole, Mike put his third shot to this par 5 way over the green, and had a shot back that he could only see the top half of the pin. He chipped his 4th shot -- amazingly -- into the hole for a birdie.

This picture memorializes that shot. See Mike holding up 4 fingers? And making the "zero" sign (for no putts) with his glove hand?

And BTW. We're standing on a steep slope, which is why I look taller than Mike.

I guess even a blind squirrel will find an occasional nut.

Picture on Pebble Beach 18th Tee

This is the view from the 18th tee box looking back at the Pebble Beach Lodge. The 18th hole runs along the beach the entire way from tee to green. This is a monster par 5 that we played into a 25MPH wind, which only made the hole even longer.

Double click the picture to enlarge it. Then look over Mark Manley's left shoulder. See the trees in the middle of the fairway? The day before, Don and I sat on the balcony of The Pebble Beach Lodge drinking champagne. We were convinced that we could reach these trees off the tee. As it turns out, into the wind, my second shot was just even with these trees.

But what a day. As you can tell, the skies were perfectly clear, and the temperature was in the mid 60's.

Picture on Pebble Beach 1st Tee

This is a group picture on the first tee before we got started. We've no idea what we're in for.

Double click the picture to enlarge the photo.

That's Mike McGee, Don Rose, Mark Manley, and me (Marc McGee).

Speaking for myself, my heart rate did not slow down to normal for the first two holes. And my breathing did not slow down to normal until the 6th hole.

This course totally messes with your head -- but in a good way. We've all seen so much television of this course, you come to know many of the holes before you ever play them.

Pebble Beach Scores

So here are the scores from round #1 of the Testosterone Open at Pebble Beach:

Marc McGee 47+52=99 36 putts
Don Rose 45+52=97 33 putts
Mike McGee 50+52=102 30 putts
Mark Manley 53+47=100 31 putts

We played the back nine in a headwind of about 25MPH. Otherwise, the weather was perfect.

From a betting perspective, Mike was the big winner. He chipped in on #6 for a birdie (an unbelievable score on that hole).

The course was everything that you would expect. Unbelievable scenery. Unbelievably perfect greens. Unbelievable fairways.

Let The Buffoonery Begin

We have successfully made it to The Inn at Spanish Bay. Don and I hit range balls at the Pebble Beach range -- into a 25 MPH headwind. Then we went to The Lodge at Pebble Beach, sat on the outdoor terrace, had two glasses of Veuve Clicquot champagne and watched the pikers hit approach shots to the 18th green. Needless to say, this was like visiting heaven. Especially since the wind was only blowing about 5 MPH on the course.

We had dinner at Roy's (Asian fusion) that was just spectacular. We managed to down three bottles of wine already, and also got into the bottle of 1985 port that Don brought. Somehow, we'll get up and play golf after all of the imbibing.

Pebble Beach Webcam

For anyone interested, you can watch groups tee off on the #1 tee at Pebble Beach by clicking this link:

http://www.pebblebeach.com/webcam/1tee_java.htm

Our tee time is at 8:50AM on Friday, April 25th. I will make sure that we all wave to the webcam when we get on the 1st tee.

Drinking wine and golfing

In preparation for The Testosterone Open, one of my brother's golf buddies got together with my brother and sent out 12 bottles of wine from Virginia. I intend to add 4 more bottles from my own cellar. And I believe that the Los Angeles golf buddy is bringing up 4 bottles of wine himself.

That gives us 20 bottles of wine to drink in 3 days. 4 golfers. You do the math. That's about 2 bottles of wine per person per day.

We have dinner reservations at Roy's at Spanish Bay, Stillwater Grill (at The Lodge at Pebble Beach), and at Casanova's in Carmel (probably the most famous restaurant in Carmel). So that should help with the wine consumption.

Preparing for Pebble Beach

As most of you know, my brother and two other golf buddies and me are staying at The Inn at Spanish Bay starting Thursday evening, April 24th. We have a tee time at Pebble Beach on Friday morning at 8:50AM. And a tee time on Saturday at Spyglass Hill. And finally a tee time at Spanish Bay on Sunday.

We've been planning this golfing weekend -- what I'm calling "The Testosterone Open" -- for about a year now. The only way we could get tee times was to actually stay down in Carmel.

I will be posting scores from each of the rounds (plus my comments) to this blog each night.