OFFICE DEPOT CHAMPIONSHIP 

TRUMP NATIONAL GOLF CLUB

RANCH PALOS VERDES, CA

My player this week is Birdie Kim.

Week Off: Back to Cleveland for a few days to visit my brother and sister and of course, pick up my new laptop. I said new and not refurbished. They sent a brand spanking new IBM and it's SWEEEEET!

Sunday: Arrived too early to check-in or walk the course. Three o'clock was the set time for both but the manager at the Vagabond Inn had the maids hustle to clean some rooms and I got in early.

Walked the course after a corporate outing was concluded and my first impression of the front nine was not especially favorable. Seemed fairly easy but the back nine was a different story. The severity of the greens increased and the prevailing wind from the West added to the difficulty factor.

We walked though a couple groups one of which included Muffin Spencer-Devlin. After a quick hello, Muffin yelled ":What are you doin' tomorrow morning"? She was obviously referring to the qualifier so I accepted the job.

Monday: We started on the back and was playing quite well until the 16th. Wrong club off the tee put us in the gunge and a double resulted. No holding back the tide after that. Don't know what we shot but it was a bundle.

• Didn't' take long for me to pick up a bag. A message on my cell, from another looper, said Birdie Kim was looking and a few minutes later I had the loop.

• Maggie Will was in the group behind us and Andy Wong, her cadero, blew out his calf muscle on the 15th hole walking off the tee. I was the only one with a cell phone and had the pro-shop number. They called in for a replacement but by the time he arrived Maggie picked up Motorcycle Fred who was walking the course. They must have made a good team cause she won the second qualifying spot in a play-off against Kris Tamulis.

• A new venue brings along a new organizational team. A bit disorganized, the caddie master was late and there was not a port-to-let to be found anywhere on the course. I know of one qualifier who had to do her business in the bushes.

• Flipper has made an appearance which surprised us all. He was club-caddying at Muirfield in Columbus but had a difference of opinion with the caddie master and sent him packing.

• "The Donald" must be enamored with waterfalls as the shots below attest. Heard they set him back six million per.

First Green

Seventeenth Green

Tuesday: It seems a five hour practice round is the norm for a new course and today was no exception. Played with Hee-Won Han and the golf teachers for both players tagged along. The greens do need extra practice to chart all the possible breaks.

• This track has some of the most spectacular vistas I've ever come across. Every hole has a view of the ocean. Just had to take a few more shots.

Catalina Island as seen from the second hole.

Another look of the first green from the second tee.

Looking back from the third tee.

• Incase you're looking for a pace to call home, "The Donald" has thought of that also. He has home sites starting at 12 million.

Trump Estates? NOT! Just some condos overlooking the course.

• I know your' getting tired of the same old same old photos so, I thought I'd mix it up a little with a menagerie form the sack of Gloria Park.

A caddie's nightmare if I ever saw one. 

• A caddie has to do what a caddie has to do; Marcy Hart did not have her best putting performance back in Tulsa so Wilksie, her caddie, took things into his own hands. While walking off their final hole, he snatched the putter out of the bag and presented it to a young female spectator. It can't cost you any shots if it ain't in the bag.

• Both Birdie and Hee-Won think I look like Dennis Hopper. Just waiting for the autograph hounds.

Wednesday: A short practice day of chipping and putting starting at 3:30. Birdie asked me if I was tired and would like the day off but I thought it would not be prudent to take her up on the offer.

• Allison Hanna was the low score in the Monday qualifier with a local on the bag and, as a token of gratitude, offered him the job for the week. But I'm sure she never thought he'd ask "Do you know anyone that would let me sleep in his car for the week"? YIKES!! Haven't heard that one for awhile. Think she's having second thoughts?

• A correction on the name of Maggie's caddie. It's Andy Chung not Wong. He made sure to point that out to me today. Just kidding Andy.

• Kathryn Marshall is always touting her homeland as THE place to go on vacation but there is a dark side to the the Land o' Scots. Read about it here.

• Trump National is a remake of the old  Ocean Trails Golf Course. The entire project racked up a 264 million dollar price tag with the eighteenth hole alone costing a whopping  31 million! Much of it slid into the ocean and was totally rebuilt. Read the interview with Donald here.

The 18th. The brown area is part of what fell in along with the green.

• Before we could get onto the course Sunday, we had to wait for the conclusion of a corporate outing. By the $54 price tag for the buffet, I assume they weren't having burgers and red-hots with their Dom Perignon! 

• Cities like New York and Los Angeles have their own unique nuances one of which is graffiti. It seems even the air-ships cannot escape being tagged.

The Barrio Blimp

Thursday: Very happy to have had a morning pro-am time. The cool weather we had the first few days has been supplanted by remnants of the Santa Anna winds. Took five and a half hours to play and over six yesterday afternoon. Our highlight was the second shot on the par five second coming to rest a mere two inches from the hole just missing the rarest of all birds, an albatross. We definitely had an advantage having a lady amateur in the group that played college golf at one time. The red tees were way up and we reached a couple of the 5's quite easily.

• California burning; About an hour drive north of here fire is destroying another part of the greater L.A. area. Heard much of this location has not been ravaged by this annual dry-season pestilence for many years and has plenty of fuel ready for the flame.

• WOMEN'S GOLF BACK IN TUCSON; Unfortunately, it's not the LPGA. The Futures Tour will be playing at a course to be named later, probably our old stomping grounds at Randolph Park, in 2006. The dates are May11-16 with the sponsor also to be named later. With such a vague announcement, why didn't they just wait to later to make it?

Friday: Started our day by rinsing one on the first hole but managed to save a bogie. Added a couple more before Birdie started to turn it around. Finished +1 for the day which looks like it'll be around the cut.

Birdie getting the 3rd degree after the round.

• It took us five hours to play and that seemed like one of the faster rounds. Beth Daniel's group slugged it out for five hours and fifty minutes! RIDICULES! If this event is here next year the field will probably be less than 144 just to finish on time each day.
• The head pro said the 18th was designed by "The Donald" himself. He's is supposed to make an appearance on Sunday.
• Don't know how big the gallery will be the next two days but if it grows large, there may be a bit of a problem finding a place to put them. You see, the cart paths are the only areas designated for the gallery. On many holes we share the same space from green to tee. May need a few traffic cops.

Saturday: Major fog delay and the same is called for tomorrow. At least 2-3 hours. Have no idea what the game plan will be but doesn't look like we'll finish till Monday. 

Our original tee time was high noon but didn't put the peg in the ground till 4:20. Played eight holes and we're +1 for a total of +2. The cut number is going up. We will be playing on Monday if we don't finish. More fog is called for tomorrow.

• "The Donald" has his touch on everything it seems, even the water in the locker room.

YOUR FIRED!

Traffic jam next to the putting green. Golf carts vs. gallery.

Could this be "The Donald" making a dramatic appearance?

• Many thanks to the tireless volunteers who keep the show running smoothly.

Dave Hamada in charge of  transportation.

"The Donald" also loves his fountains. This one resides at the main entrance. 

• Definitely not a lucky number; Wonder how Dorothy Delasin took a 13 on the ninth hole in round 1?

• You don't always get what you pay for; Birdie's hotel, which was on the fact sheet, is hitting her up for $89 per night and still want $10 per day for high-speed internet and another $10 for a mini-fridge. We're paying much less, are closer to the course and have free Wi-Fi.

Sunday: The weather turned in our favor and the fog never materialized. The putts started to drop and Birdie finished with a total of -2 with one round to go. Tee times are scheduled to go off around 1:30 on both sides but we won't be able to finish. I'm driving to Auburn so the sooner I get out of here the better.

First time I was ever paired with Annika and and it was a treat. She was very professional and very enlightening how she and her caddie Terry work on the course.

We just couldn't get around fast enough to finish so we were stuck with four to play on Monday.

• What time is it?; Il Mi Chung almost whiffed her tee time. After the cut was made, she was in the first group on the tenth tee but didn't know it. While having a snack in the locker room, Heather Daley-Donofrio noticed she had only ten minutes to spare. Saved her two shots or even a DQ.

Monday: Never made a bird in our final round and finished +1 for the tournament. On to the final event.