Hello Wisconsin!

In town for a wedding on Lake Geneva, I seized the opportunity to play some of the best golf courses that Wisconsin has to offer.  A fantastic lineup of Erin Hills, Black Wolf Run, and both courses at Whistling Straits were on the agenda.    

After dropping off the wife and some friends after the wedding, I drove the hour or so to Erin Hills for my first Wisconsin golfing experience.  I was fortunate enough to join a great group of guys who were on the tail end of their 27th consecutive annual golf buddies trip.  Read the full review on Erin Hills and see all the pictures here.

The very cool par 3, 9th hole at Erin Hills.

The early morning view on the range at Erin Hills

Erin Hills will host the 2017 U.S. Open.  This will be an excellent new course for the Open and I am excited to watch the action.

Next up on the agenda was the Irish course at Whistling Straits.  Living in the shadow of it's next door neighbor, the Irish course does a great job of holding it's own.  

The course has a cool American links feel to it and served as a great warm up for it's big brother.  Read the full write up on the Irish course here.

the 16th hole at Erin Hills figures to be a pivotal hole in the 2017 U.S. Open.

Plenty of tall fescue to hunt down wayward teeshots on Whistling Straits' Irish course.

The opening hole on the Irish sets a great pace for the round.

One of the most scenic par 3's on the Irish course is the 6th hole.

The difficult 17th hole.  The superintendent cut us some slack with that pin position.

 Whistling Straits was easily the most fun I had photographing a golf course.  With all of the huge sand dunes, there are tons of places to get unique vantage shots of the course.  It was hard to narrow down the shots for the gallery.

I got up on some of the partially taken down grandstands to get this one of the 15th hole.

John Daly fired 3 balls into the lake here on the 7th and then threw his club in after it during the 2015 PGA.  A kid in a boat would later retrieve it.

Next up was the Straits course at Whistling Straits.  Playing host to the 2015 PGA Championship just weeks prior, they were still taking down some of the final grandstands.  I managed to sneak an official program from the rubble beforehand, so I was ready to go.

There are no carts allowed on the Straits course and caddies are required.  Which means none of those cart path bounces or scuffed balls.  Although that won't save you from finding Lake Michigan on the course's 8 lakeside holes.  

The difficult par 4 8th hole.  I almost hit it in the lake and made a great par save from the beach.

The par 3 3rd hole is the 1st in a series of 4 jaw dropping waterfront par 3's.

One of my favorite moments in the 2015 PGA was when Jason Day flat out chunked one 20 yards short of the green with a wedge.  Unfazed, he got up and down for par and went on to win the tournament with a record -20.  What a stud

Out of all the courses I have played Whistling Straits might just be my favorite.  It's a close call with Pebble Beach for the top spot.  Be sure to check out the full review and writeup here.

Here is the finishing 18th hole.  A great spot to watch the action.

For the final round of my Wisconsin trip, I was greeted by these swans at Black Wolf Run.  After 3 days of taking on Pete Dye designs would I finally get the best of Pete?  Be sure to read the full review here.

Black Wolf Run is a must play for any golfer visiting the Kohler area.  The course features two 18 hole tracks, the River and the Meadow Valley course.  I played the River which is the more popular option. 

A big thanks to everyone that I played with and to the courses for being such tremendous hosts.

Plenty of risk reward options at Black Wolf Run

The tough 11th hole at Black Wolf Run

The view from the tee box on the par 4, 5th hole at Black Wolf Run.  Oh yeah.

Playing Through Nick Faldo

I tell hilarious golf jokes, Nick Faldo laughs with appreciation.  Photo by Sarah Moodie

After meeting Nick, we headed out on the course to take on the Wilderness Club.  After a successful front nine, we approached the tenth tee.  We found that a foursome had jumped out in front of us.  We quickly realized that it was Nick Faldo, so we didn't put up much of a fight.

On the 12th hole and playing only as a twosome, Nick and his group waived us through from the fairway.  It was time to play through Nick Faldo.  The 12th hole is the best looking par 5 on the course and a great risk reward opportunity.  I stepped up and piped one right down the middle, just a little past Nick's ball.  My playing partner, Sarah Moodie, also knocked one down the middle.

Recently I had the privilege of meeting Nick Faldo at the Wildnerness Club in Montana.  Sir Nick was in town vacationing and spending some time at the fantastic course he created in Eureka, Montana.  What does one do when they meet Nick Faldo?  They arm wrestle Nick Faldo, of course.  It was unclear who the winner was in this contest of strength.  But since the tiebreaker was who had more major championships, he escaped with a win.  Nick Faldo: 6 major championships.  Patrick Koenig: 0 major championships.

Photo by:  Sarah Moodie

Nick Faldo checks his yardages as the Patrick Koenig Sarah Moodie twosome play through.

I would replay the Wilderness Club later that day.  On my second attempt, I flushed a 2 iron to 15 feet and made birdie.  Like they say, everything is easier when Nick Faldo isn't watching with his arms folded.

Be sure to check out the full gallery of pictures from my round at the Wilderness Club here!

Facing 230 yards to the pin while Nick Faldo looked on, I decided to go for it and show Nick Faldo my prowess as a tenacious golfer.  I probably would even earn an automatic spot on the Ryder Cup after he sees me stuff this shot, I thought to myself.  Even though my lie was questionable, I pulled out my 3 iron and took dead aim.  

I pulled back and hit one of the worst chunks right into the middle of the pond.  I chunked it big time right in front of Sir Nick.  Arguably the greatest failure of my amateur career.  It was glorious.

In an interview in 2005, Curtis Strange said: "Nick Faldo stared a lot of guys down. He had a way of folding his arms and looking at you as though he knew you were going to make a mistake."

 I thanked Nick for letting us play through as Sarah made a solid par.  I should have blamed my poor performance on our arm wrestling match earlier.  I will just have to wait until the next time that I play through a 6 time major champ to get my shot as an automatic selection on that Ryder Cup team.

#MaleModel

Golf Digest makes it's home at One World Trade Center.  Not only does the building play an important part in American history, it also photographs very well.  Above is the view from the hotel, below is street level.

The team was fortunate enough to have Carter Berg as our photographer for the shoot.  Carter is a renowned New York City photographer, along with advertising campaigns for Ralph Lauren, his work has appeared in publications such as Elle Decor, Madame Figaro, and the Wall Street Journal.  Be sure to check him out at www.carterberg.com.  Carter got things off to a hot start by keeping this amateur model comfortable and encouraging a positive vibe on set.

We had a sizable production crew and I gave my iPhone to Meredith to shoot some "B roll" footage for the golf blog.  She did an outstanding job and most of the photos you see here are her handy work.  Check her out on Instagram as she is currently in a "heated effort" to reach 1000 followers.

George Washington impedes my back swing.

Not many folks can say they swung a golf club on the same spot where George Washington took the oath as the first President of the United States of America.  I am lucky enough to have checked this one off of the to do list.

Behind the scenes work on Wall Street

A big thank you to Luan Pham and his team at Golf Digest for providing me with such a cool opportunity.  The trip was such a great experience and a fantastic welcome to the world of male modeling.  Be sure to pick up the November issue of Golf Digest to see how things turned out.  Also, it's only $12 a year!

Recently I was asked by Golf Digest to do some modeling for a client's upcoming product launch.  I jumped at the chance and jumped on a plane to NYC.  Moments later I was in town for my first big break onto the modeling scene.  Below you will find the behind the scenes action of the experience.  This wasn't just any modeling, this was male modeling.

The driver is the perfect club choice for the Hudson hole.

After a day of fitting and planning, we got things started at Brooklyn Bridge Park.  As a new model, I was eager to show of my many modeling poses, glances, and positions.

After a great shoot in Brooklyn, the team headed back to Manhattan for some photos on Wall Street.

Aspiring selfie model, Meredith Bragg, captures valuable behind the scenes documentation.  Erin Keleher keeps up critical client relations.  Man on the street ponders the FCOJ market/life.

The cobblestones on Stone Street break hard left.  

After another successful shoot on Wall Street, the team moved back to One World Trade for the final segment of the day.  

Security is tough at One World Trade and each lens must be sniffed.  Photo by: Luan Pham

As the shoot progressed, I became more comfortable with my modeling abilities.  The driver guitar was one of my favorite B roll shots but it will probably not make the final cut.  Although, if GQ and Rolling Stone ever collaborate to do a golf issue, I believe this warrants consideration for the cover.

The Boeing Classic

An on course Instagram opportunity on the 18th hole

We Spent the first part of our Saturday morning volunteering for the First Tee of Seattle.  One of the best causes in the game of golf today.  Check them out here.

The tee markers for the Boeing Classic are classic.

The flag on the 12th hole is in Seahawks fashion as an ode to the 12th man!  Cool.

After the tournament we visited the outstanding Snoqualmie Falls

With the Boeing Classic and the sister in town, there was only one thing to do this weekend... go to the Boeing Classic with the sister and cheer for Fred Couples.

Quiet Please for Fred Couples

Got a little sneaky on #13 with this shot of Fred

Wearing my newly purchased "Jordan Spieth for President" t-shirt turned out to be a dramatic success.  Over the 5-6 hours we spent at the tournament, the shirt earned upwards of 125 comments, all of them positive.  Fred Couples even gave me the thumbs up!

Congratulations to Billy Andrade on his victory at the 2015 Boeing Classic.  Until next time Snoqualmie!

Golfing up a Storm

Recently I took a trip to visit my parents new home in Paradise, CA.  Naturally, this provided the perfect excuse for me to take a trip from Seattle down to CA and golf my little heart out along the way.  I booked a ton of tee times, packed a bag, and threw my clubs in the car.  This was going to be a monster of a trip covering 13 golf courses, with multiple 36 hole days, and walking every one of the courses.  Feel free to click on the link of the courses to check out the full galleries and write-ups.

The Oregon Courses:  On my way down to CA I took on 3 courses in the Bend area.

• Aspen Lakes Golf Club - I started the trip off with a bang visiting the #15 Best in State on Golf Digest's rankings.  The cinder red bunkers gave this course a unique look and feel.
• Black Butte Ranch Golf Club - An early morning tee time for a day of 36 started off at this classic Oregon staple.
• Tetherow - Teeing it up with the club champion was a definite advantage in helping to navigate this challenging Kidd design.  I managed only 4 pars, but rolled in 5 birdies.

The view from the 10th tee at Black Butte Ranch 

The 15th hole at Aspen Lakes Golf Club

California Courses:  During my stay in CA, I hit up some local gems with my Dad and friends.

• Table Mountain Golf Course - A local Paradise municipal track.  The Dad and I had fun whacking it around the local layout.
• Sevillano Links -  This John Daly signature course plays just under 8000 yards from the back tees.  Like an idiot, I played the tips and had a blast grinding it out.
• Bidwell Park Golf Course - We teed it up with the local city champion who showed us how to properly strike a golf ball.  The course features many friendly deer that you can walk right up to.  They don't cheer for birdies though and seemed relatively uninterested in that 6 footer you missed for par.
• Bailey Creek Golf Course - One of the local favorites.  This course came highly recommended and did not disappoint.

The 8th hole at Sevillano Links

The 18th hole at Bidwell Park

Complimentary Scoring Pie Chart

The 600 yard par 5 12th hole at Crosswater

The Home Stretch:  With the end in sight I crossed the finish line in style

• Pronghorn Fazio Course - My favorite course of the trip.  For a guy who likes to take pictures, Fazio makes it fun.  Also there is a lava tube hole!!
• Bend Golf & Country Club -  A classic country club experience and a fun course to play.  I managed to make 16 pars for the second 18 on a day of 36.
• Pumpkin Ridge Witch Hollow - For the final round of the trip I teed it up with Sean Ogle of breakingeighty.com.  Sean was a fantastic host and helped me to conclude the trip with finesse.

The 6th hole at Fazio's course at Pronghorn

Awards & Accolades:

• Best Par 3 - The 8th hole at Pronghorn's Fazio Course.  Nicknamed the "Lava tube" hole, this was an easy victory for #8.  Honorable mention goes to #5 at Running Y.
• Best Par 4 - With 130 contenders this one was tough but #6 at Tetherow takes home the honors.  Honorable mentions to #6 at Pronghorn, #18 at Crosswater, and #6 at Pumpkin Ridge. The 6th hole cleaning up in this category.
• Best Par 5 - #12 at Crosswater wins the award here.  I also enjoyed #2 at Running Y, #17 at Widgi Creek and #14 at Pumpkin Ridge.
• Best Photo:  #18 at Pronghorn.
• Best Course:  Pronghorn with a close runner up in Crosswater.

A big thanks to everyone that I played with and who invited me onto their courses.  Until next time!!

The 18th hole at Tetherow

Bidwell Park has more deer per hole than I had strokes. 

By the Numbers:

• 13 rounds of golf played
• 234 holes of golf played
• Average score: 75.1
• Pars: 137
• Birdies: 34
• Bogies: 54
• Double Bogies: 9
• Eagle putts missed: 5

The 3rd hole at Table Mountain 

Oregon Courses:  The trip back to Seattle.  This would be the meat of the golf trip with 2 back to back 36 hole days.

• Running Y Ranch - Definitely the best value on the trip.  The Arnold Palmer design was definitely the best surprise on the trip.
• Crosswater Club -  Considered by every golfer that I played with as one of their favorite courses in Oregon.  Cross water is one of the state's best coming in at #9 in the state on Golf Digest's list.
• Widgi Creek Golf Club -  One of the higher end public courses in the Bend area.  I finished up the day of 36 with a nice twilight round.

The par 4, 4th hole at Running Y Ranch

The tough par 5 17th at Widgi Creek

The par 3, 3rd hole at Bend Golf & Country Club

The par 4, 6th hole at Pumpkin Ridge.

#18 at Crosswater.  A runner up in the par 4 contest

The 8th hole at Pronghorn takes the cake in Best Par 3.

#6 at Tetherow takes home the victory in the par 4 competition

My favorite photo from the trip comes from #18 at Pronghorn.  This photo pretty much took itself.

Matty 18 Unda Par - "Make Dem Birdies Pop"

Sporting probably the best rap game / golf game combination to ever exist in the world is Matty, an 11 year from Cape Town, Vermont.  From what I have gathered, Matty has pledged 90% of his free time to the game of golf in a quest to birdie every single hole in a single round of golf.  This challenging goal has Matty reaching for the stars and meeting several in the process.  Not only has he taken selfies with Blair O Neal, Lexi Thompson, Bubba Watson, Lydia Ko, and Dave Stockton, he has also appeared on the Golf Channel as an "11 year old rapper"

Matty's selfie game is almost as strong as his rap/golf game

Which brings me to what Matty must spend the other 10% of his free time on.... bringing mad raps to the golf tubes.  This past week Matty released the #1 golf rap smash hit "Make Dem Birdies Pop" on his youtube channel.  Historically, fans of dope golf raps have had little to listen to beyond the GolfBoy's smash hit "Oh Oh Oh."  Matty brings a fresh and youthful energy to the game of golf and to the rap game as well.

A good pair of shoes clearly states ones goals, while allowing a simple transition from rap to golf.

Matty poses strong with the World #1, Lydia Ko

Please check out Matty's video Make Dem Birdies Pop and give him a follow on Instagram and Twitter.  Rap on and golf on!

UPDATE: 1-4-2015

Since this post has aired in August, Mr Matty has expanded his game from a simple rap and golf combination to include interviewing the games most elite players at the PGA Championship and an expansive array of trick shots.  Check out the latest from this young superstar below.

Let's chat on Social Media -- Hola @ ya boi, PEACE! INSTAGRAM: https://instagram.com/md_18undapar/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/Md_18undapar FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/md18undapar VINE: https://vine.co/md_18undapar Check out my SHOP and grab a lid: https://www.Shop18UndaPar.com Learn more about what I do and the 18undapar brand: http://www.18undapar.com/ I am going to shoot 18undapar in 1 round of golf.

The Short Par 4

Without question, my favorite type of hole to see on the score card is the short par 4.  If done correctly, it rewards the sensible and aggressive players while punishing the foolish and poorly struck golf shots.  It gives course designers the ability to get creative with challenging green complexes.  It challenges the player to make a smart decision based on a number of factors.  If your course doesn't have one, you are missing the boat...  The birdie boat to fun golf land.  Here are my top 10 short par 4's in no particular order.

• The 14th at  Southern Dunes - A drivable option with sand everywhere.  I went for it and found the sand twice and ended up with a round crushing 6.

• The 4th hole at Pebble Beach - 2 options off the tee.  Driver leaving a short chip or iron leaving a fuller shot.  Most tour players go with an iron, I go with driver.

• The 14th hole at TPC Snoqualmie Ridge - With great views of Mount Si in the background this short par 4 urges you to hit driver over the wooded abyss to find a tight and challenging green.  Or you can just bail out right and wedge in.  Great fun!

• The 16th hole at Bandon Dunes -  One of the most photographed holes on the property.  With a strong tail wind usually in play, the player can go for the green.  Although, truly evil bunkers lurk short and the Pacific Ocean on the right.  Awesome!

• The 4th hole at Spyglass Hill -  Although some players hate it, this is possibly my favorite golf hole in existence.  The more you decide to carry the hazard off the tee, the shorter your second shot will be.  A uniquely designed green complex awaits.  Probably the skinniest green in the world.

• The 12th hole at Chambers Bay - Featured prominently at the US Open, the 12th is a very real chance to make an easy eagle by driving the green.  The green offers all sorts of unique putts if you don't put it in the right space.

• The 2nd hole at Gamble Sands - Probably the best scoring chance on the list, offering a beautiful view and only a 3 wood into the green it's a real chance for the double eagle!!  My buddy John thought he had one here until he find his ball in the bunker over the green.

• The 6th hole at Desert Willow's Firecliff Course - An iron layup or a driver to a well protected green?  A well designed option on my favorite course in the Palm Springs area.

• The 10th hole at PGA West -  Pete Dye continues to keep the water in play here requiring a solid iron and a wedge to this scenic back nine opener.

• The 7th hole at Wolf Creek -  Only an idiot would hit driver at this green.  Fortunately I hit my driver so poorly I missed all of the obvious trouble and managed a sneaky pitch and putt for a birdie.  A real tough green complex to hit in real life and in the video game.

The 14th at Southern Dunes in Maricopa, AZ, a great short par 4.

The 10th at PGA West