Oh Fudge!

Every year, The Blogette goes to an annual cookie exchange with her gal-pals.  This year, she is taking fudge and wrote a story for her friends about it.  The director asked her to share it on the blog.  When she asked how the fudge story related to golf, he suggested that since the story proves that both males and females can master the recipe, some readers may want to make it for their spouses....some golfers may want to make it for their caddies...well, you get the drift.  We hope you are getting into the holiday spirit, and if not -just make a batch of fudge!

My mother taught me how to make this fudge, but it is my grandmother’s recipe.  It was always on our family cookie trays around the holidays, and was given to friends and neighbors as a gift.  From the time I was in high school, one of my holiday jobs was to place various cookies on a plate on Christmas Eve – not exactly a burdensome task as the fudge was always there!   As a young teacher in Indiana, I taught biology and coached volleyball.  One Christmas, I took a cookie tray in to the office staff at school.  Again, the fudge was there.  The athletic director had played high school basketball for the Cambridge City Wampus Cats, a rival team of my father’s Fountain City Little Giants.  When he asked for the fudge recipe, I questioned whether such a former foe was worthy of possessing the recipe.  Assuming it was for his wife, and softened by his culinary compliments, I decided to give him a copy.  About a week later, I was surprised to receive some peanut butter fudge from Mr. Craig.  Not only did he make the fudge himself, he added his own experimental (and delicious) twist by substituting peanut butter chips for chocolate ones!  A few years passed and I gave the recipe to Angie Karch – my good friend across the hall who taught math.  One evening, I got a call from her at about 10:00 with a question from her pre-teen daughter Natalie.  “Do you really have to stir it constantly for six minutes?” she wondered.  The answer is yes, or it will burn and stick.  Don’t turn your back on this fudge!  Natalie now has two little boys of her own to make fudge for.  When I got married, I got a bonus daughter - Brooke.  In an effort to include her in my family’s traditions, my mother transferred the job of CEO (cookie executive officer) to her.  I can just see her at Mom’s kitchen counter, eating cookies and placing them on the plate.  Every year, the fudge was there.  When my mother-in-law Virginia moved with John and me to South Carolina, she became part of the fudge heritage.  Her favorite way to eat it was with one piece stuffed into each of her 82-year-old cheeks.  Not a problem really until she tried to talk, or got tickled about something, which was often.  When John’s courier business took off here, it was not uncommon for me to make 10-14 cookie trays every year for his clients.  I still have the lists I used to figure out how many cookies it took to fill them - - that would be 21 dozen!  I wonder now how in the world I did that.  I think it was because the fudge was always there.  For me, a cookie tray is just not truly ready for Christmas unless there is fudge.

Our Family's Holiday Fudge 

2 c. sugar

10 large marshmallows

½ stick butter or margarine (1/4 cup)

1 small can (5 oz.) Carnation evaporated milk – do not use Eagle brand!

1 t. vanilla

6 oz. chocolate chips

Combine first four ingredients in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil and boil six minutes while stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and add vanilla and chips.  Stir until mixture is well-blended and pour into an 8 x 8 square buttered dish.  Leave enough in the pan so you can sample some while it is warm.  Chill until firm before cutting.

Report from Q School - Stage Two Round Four

Local PGA tour hopeful Chip Deason shot a final round 71 Saturday for a four-day total of 279 (-5) which put him in a tie for second place at the Hombre Golf Club in Panama City, FL.  Current tour player Tommy Armour led the field at this site with a 276 (-8).  Chip and his caddie, Robert Peeler, move on to Q School finals, held on Nov. 30-Dec. 5 at PGA West in LaQuinta, California.  The low 25 players plus ties earn PGA tour cards for 2012.  For more information, you can check out
http://www.pgatour.com/qschool/.  The Invitational blog will continue to follow the dream team of Chip and Robert and their further adventures.  Q School finals will be televised on The Golf Channel on Dec. 3,4 and 5.

See our original story about Robert Peeler and Chip Deason

on their road to a dream posted below on Nov 2.

On the Road to a Dream

We all have dreams growing up.  We might dream of being a doctor, a nurse, a pro athlete or a firefighter, but how many of us are willing to start at the bottom and keep working towards that dream?  This is a story about two young men, each trying to fulfill their own dream.  You will get acquainted with Chip Deason, a golf professional striving to make his way onto the PGA tour.  You will also meet Robert Peeler, a college student with an unusual goal.  I am sure you have all heard that old saying "it takes two to tango” and it is ever so true in this case.

The Blog is doing a Q and A with Robert Peeler, a young man we got to know about 7 or 8 summers ago.  The Director and The Blogette were playing a lot of golf that summer, and got acquainted with Robert and his two golfing buddies, Jamie Mabe and Daniel Hardy.  They were all members of the Lexington High School golf team, and all 3 were about 14 years old at that time.  While playing the front nine, we would see these 3 young kids approaching fast behind us, all toting their clubs and moving at a brisk pace.  The first time this happened, they asked if they could play through.  We said “Sure guys - no problem!”  We never expected to see them again that day, and planned on continuing our round without further interruption.  When lo and behold, here they came again…on the back nine.  No need for small talk this time, we just waved them on through.  The Director spoke up and asked "How many holes today?”  The scrawniest one of the three answered, "At least 36 today, or till it gets dark…we might get in 54.”  This skinny kid weighed no more than a hundred pounds soaking wet, and the bag was nearly bigger than he was!  This was our first encounter with Robert Peeler.  We could tell that he had a future in golf - with his determined attitude, the pep in his step and his love for the game.  Just the way he carried that big bag, lined up every putt, and pulled that scorecard out reminded us of the Great Ones – Angelo Argea, Bruce Edwards, and Fluff.  Yes, this young man just might become a PGA tour caddy!!

Robert Peeler and Chip Deason
Two regular guys on the road to a dream!

 Give us some background on yourself. What is your college major, other interests, etc.?I was born in Gaffney, SC (home of the Big Peach), and moved to Lexington at age 10. I graduated from Lexington High School in 2007 and will graduate from Clemson in TBD? (laughs)…probably next summer. I am majoring in Travel and Tourism, and enjoy being anywhere outside… the beach, lake, golf course, or the mountains. I love to travel to Clemson sporting events and just any new places. One of my goals is to visit all 50 states before I die. I also probably follow the PGA Tour, and Jonathan Byrd in particular, too extremely but I enjoy keeping up with it and feel that caddying on the PGA Tour would be a dream job.

How did you meet Chip and start caddying for him? I met Chip about three years ago when I was working as a cart-boy at the Country Club of Lexington. I had on some kind of Clemson clothing (surprise, surprise) and he took a jab at me about our recent shellacking at the hands of Alabama in the opening game of the college football season that year. I went up to the range and starting talking with him. I found out that he was a professional golfer. We starting playing some and became friends. I told him that I enjoyed caddying, and he suggested that I could caddy for him at the local Hooters Tour events in Columbia and McCormick, SC when I got the chance.

Tell about your goals as a caddy.My ultimate goal is to become a caddy on the PGA Tour, and hopefully stay there for 20-25 years. I would like to caddy in each of the 4 majors at least once – especially The Masters. I would love to be at the majors on a yearly basis. As a caddy on the PGA Tour, there are several perks. These include not only walking inside the ropes, and seeing some of the greatest courses in the world, but having the opportunity to play there as well. I would like to be able to use this position in order to knock some of the world’s greatest courses off of my lifetime play list. Ultimately, I would like to caddy for Chip on the PGA Tour. Hopefully, he can not only make it but hang around for a long while. I can also use my position as a caddy to knock out several of the states I have left to visit.

What should a person do in order to pursue this goal? Caddying is all about who you know and getting your foot in the door. The more I get to caddy for Chip, even at the Hooters Tour level, the more people I meet and the more contacts I can make in regards to the professional golf business. If you are not fortunate enough to know a PGA Tour player willing to let you carry his sticks, a good starting place is the Hooters or Nationwide Tour. There are 14 spots available for Monday qualifiers on the Nationwide Tour almost every week. That gives caddies a great opportunity to find a player who needs a caddy at least for that week. It can be a very good lifestyle but not quite as glamorous when you are starting out.

What is your experience as a caddy in the professional ranks? I have caddied several times for buddies in amateur tournaments as well most recently caddying at the South Carolina Amateur Championship at Colleton River in Bluffton. Professionally, I have caddied in three Hooters Tour Events (2010 and 2011 Woodcreek Classic, and 2011 Savannah Lakes Village Classic) and most recently in the first stage of PGA Tour Qualifying School at Kinderlou Forest in Valdosta, GA. I got to caddy for my favorite PGA Tour player Jonathan Byrd in a practice round at the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in Charlotte. What a great experience for me being able to caddy for my idol growing up!

Tell us about caddying for Chip. What is his best finish? Chip’s best Hooters Tour finish with me on the bag was T-11 at Woodcreek in 2010. We just recently finished T-4 at First Stage of Q-School. To his credit, Chip has 2 career Hooters Tour Victories: 2009 ComSouth Classic in Hawkinsville, GA/28 under; and 2008 Kandy Waters Golf Classic in Augusta. He has played in three PGA Tour events: 2000 Buick Challenge/Pine Mountain, GA, 2007 AT&T Classic/Atlanta, and 2009 Ginn Sur Mer Classic/Palm Coast, FL (T-54)

Do you have any funny stories you can share about your friendship or golf relationship with Chip?
Probably the funniest story about our friendship happened shortly after I met Chip. We were playing the Palmetto GC in Aiken. Chip had just finished playing in the Ginn Sur Mer Classic. We had made it to the 2nd tee, and we were discussing his tournament performance. That’s when I told Chip that he had led the field in birdies for the week with 17. At this point, Chip didn’t know that my brain is an encyclopedia of useless sports stats and knowledge. Our other 2 players knew me well and just started laughing, because of course that stat is just the kind of thing that only I would commit to memory. Chip had no idea and was like “how the hell do you know that?” before saying “I probably led the field in bogeys too!” Ever since then Chip has referred to me as the “The Stats Guy” when talking to playing partners about sports.
Also, this past week, at First Stage, each day consisted of the same routine for us. Chip always gets up 3 hours before his tee time to make sure he is not rushed. We had McDonald’s for breakfast every day. Chip had an Egg McMuffin and large orange juice, while I alternated between a Sausage McMuffin or sausage biscuit, hash browns, and orange juice every morning. Our post-round meal each day consisted of Chicken Pot Pie Soup at the Club. I didn’t know there was such a thing, but it was amazing. Then we went back to the hotel to shower off, and headed to Cracker Barrel each night. Chip got the Old Timer’s Breakfast every night, with me getting the Cracker Barrel Sampler one night and the Sunrise Breakfast Sampler the next 2 nights. We always got some type of candy afterwards. For me, that meant cinnamon drops, horehound drops, and lemonade drops in that order. Neither one of us is usually superstitious about routines like this, but it seemed to be working, so we stuck with it and it helped us move on.

What are some things that are required for caddies to do that most average golfers would not know about? What is the hardest/easiest/most fun part of the job?

You do not have be a great golfer to be a caddy. You just need to have a good understanding of the game. Being a good caddy doesn’t just happen overnight. It takes time to find out the nuances involved with caddying on a regular basis at the highest levels. Knowing when to talk and when to shut up is vital, whether your player is playing good or bad. Also, I am getting more and more accustomed to how far Chip hits the ball with each club, therefore giving me the ability to give more input as time goes on. I am fairly inexperienced as a caddy, and am using the experience with Chip to better myself moving forward.

Let’s look ahead to Second Stage… what is up next for you two?Chip got his assignment for Second Stage early this week. He is signed up for the Hombre Golf Club (Bad/Ugly) in Panama City, Florida. His high finish this week assured him of the trip to Panama City. The higher you finish in First Stage, the better chance you have of getting your preferred Second Stage site. I have a test that Thursday (Nov. 15) but I will be working with my professor to make it up either before or after the trip. As long as I can get that taken care of, I will be back on the bag at Second Stage, trying to help Chip move through to Final Stage in LaQuinta, California, and hopefully on the way to the PGA Tour.

Chip Deason Bio:

Originally from Alabama, now calls Lexington, South Carolina his home......1991 and 1992 Alabama State Junior Champion....Played at University of Alabama, and was SEC first team in 1996 and 1997.....Shot low round of 64 in the 1997 SEC Championship.....Won 1 Gateway Tour championship…….Won 2 Hooters Tour Championships, best score of 28 under at the Com South Classic in 2009.......Played in 3 PGA tour events, best finish T-54 at the Ginn Sur Mer Classic in Palm Coast, FL in 2009…..Made it to the Final Stage of PGA Tour Q-School in 2005.....Finished T-4 First Stage of PGA Tour Q-School…..Headed to Second Stage at Panama City, FL on Nov 15, 2011.

The Invitational Blog extends best wishes to Robert and Chip on their road to the dream.

We, along with all of our blog flollowers, will be watching your journey all the way to the PGA tour!

Go get 'em!!



Funny you should mention...

It is pretty ironic that Ricky Jackson would pick peanut butter cookies for his prize in our Halloween Edition of Pigskin Picks.  Our peanut butter cookie recipe comes from Tony Dorsett.  You know, the Heisman trophy winner and pro-bowler who played for the Dallas Cowboys?  No....really!  Once upon a time in 1986, The Director and The Blogette wrote a cookbook together.  I know, the story seems to get more unbelievable with every line, but it's all true.  The cookbook was called "The Coaches' Training Table" and featured favorite recipes from college and professional coaches and athletes, representing all sports and all regions of the country.  It was written to help support a basketball fundraiser for cancer.  We sent literally hundreds of letters to anyone we could find an address for.  Tony Dorsett was one of the athletes who wasn't too busy to send in a contribution for the cause, and that's how we got his favorite recipe.  The story of this cookbook circulated on the AP wire service, and was featured on the cover of a Sunday edition of The Indianapolis Star.  There are many stories to tell of our adventures in writing that cookbook, and maybe we will share them from time to time if it sparks a memory like it did this weekend.  By the way, this is the same recipe that the Blogette's mother always used.  If you would like to make your own,  just read on...

Tony's Favorite Peanut Butter Cookies:
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. white sugar
1 c. shortening
1 c. peanut butter
3 c. flour
2 eggs
2 t. soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
Sift flour and soda and set aside.  Cream together shortening and sugars, and add eggs, then peanut butter, salt and vanilla.  Add flour mixture and mix in well.  Roll into balls and mark with a fork.  Bake at 350 for 8 minutes or until golden brown.  Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

Meet Mr. Nice Guy - Dr. Brian Willard

Dr. Brian Willard represents the type of player that The Invitational is proud to have in the field.  He has participated for three years in the tournament.  When John called to ask if he would be willing to participate in Pigskin Picks, Brian said he was extremely busy due to recently being named head of the urology department at Lexington Medical Center.  John was pleased to learn that Dr. Willard has this connection, since The Invitational provided an opportunity for all players to receive prostate cancer screening via a simple blood test as a part of the 2011 tournament.  Lexington Medical Center provided the friendly staff  for the screenings.  In their conversation, Brian remarked that he plays in two fantasy football leagues, and this did sound like fun, so he was willing to be part of it.  Dr. Willard is an avid fan of the North Carolina State Wolfpack, but his background would actually allow him to root for some other teams as well.  He has a zoology degree from NC State, received his medical degree from North Carolina (Chapel Hill), and completed his residency at the University of Missouri hospitals.  In between surgeries, football research, and being an all-around nice guy,  Dr. Willard plays at Lexington Country Club. 

Advertising on the Blog

Would you like to become a sponsor of our blog and advertise your business for free??!  We have a page on our sidebar on the right of our main posts just for that purpose.  This section will feature your business, photo, logo and any brief information you would like.  You will also get coverage as a post for one week, and your business information will then be moved to our "Blog Sponsors" page.  We appreciate the many businesses and individuals who support The Invitational in so many ways.  Our goal is to provide them the chance to be recognized and supported in return.   Please contact John at johnsara@bellsouth.net or 803.606.0240 to showcase your business. 

First Team Officially Entered

Three golfers have officially entered their team in the 2012 Invitational.  Danny Booher, Wes Graves and David Aussicker (pictured L to R) play on the GolfWeek Amateur Tour.  I have played two years on this tour, which holds one-day tournaments at various clubs around the Columbia area.  Players compete for a chance to play in the national event, held at Hilton Head in October.  36 metropolitan areas around the country are represented.   I have gotten to know these players by signing up for events in Augusta, Charlotte, and Myrtle Beach.  Danny and Wes are from Augusta, and David is from Charlotte.  They were anxious to enter and said "We have heard so much about this tournnament and when we got invited, we wanted to make sure we would get in the field".  After I announced that the tournament would be held at Spring Valley, they went over the edge and jumped in!  We have played the course on the GolfWeek Amateur Tour and these guys have enjoyed competing there.  I am very pleased to have them play in The Invitational.  They are great guys and will be a fun team to play against.  David even shows up with his caddy, Vicki, pictured above.  If you would like more information about playing on the GolfWeek Amateur tour, click here:
http://www.amateurgolftour.net/

Team Marriott - The Story that Needs Telling

In April of this year, I sent out invitations to the 2011 tournament.  One went to the good people at Columbia's downtown Marriott.  Within a week, I got an email from them saying "We are in!" along with the names of 3 team members.  I was excited (as I always am) about another new team in the field.  A few weeks went by, and I got a call from the female member of their team.  Her name is being withheld at this time to protect the innocent.  She said "I'm not going to be playing." so I requested that someone call me when the third player was finalized.  When I inquired about how the remaining 2 team members play, she said "Not very good".  She indicated that she played regularly and wasn't a bad golfer, however her co-workers shoot about 110.  I am now wondering if she is bailing out on this poor team, but I let her off the phone without further questions.  I went to meet with team captain Richard Secord (pictured above in navy shirt)  to find out more about their team.  During the meeting, I popped the question:  "Well, how is your golf game?"  He put his arm around me and said "John, I haven't played in 6 months, and then I had to borrow clubs.  My teammates play about like I do."  At this point, I am thinking "What am I going to do with this team?  Who can I pair them with so both teams have fun without holding up the golf course.  Mr. Secord is a first class guy who runs a first class businesss.  How can do I right by him?"  Leaving the Marriott with what I considered a real problem on my hands, I stopped by to see Ray Carci and Barry Coates at the Special Olympics office. Ray and Barry are pictured at right in the black and white striped shirt and green shirt respectively.  I explained my dilemma, and they gave me a confused look.  Ray spoke up and said "No problem.  We would be happy to play with them.  We do business with them and know them well."  In three years of doing the tournament, those were among the sweetest words ever spoken.  I feel that a key part of my job is matching teams up so everyone will have a great day on the course - win or lose.  Whew...Crisis averted!

During the next few weeks however, a new concern began creeping into my thoughts. How was I going to keep the pace of play moving with that grouping in the field?   They were all so excited about participating in the Invitational, ...just the kind of people we are looking for.  I decided I could let Team Marriott play from the front/senior tees.  On the day of the tournament, they pulled up in their (thankfully) fully equipped carts - clubs and all!  I explained to Team Special Olympics and Team Marriott about the rules of play for the day.  When I added the part about Marriott's team playing from the senior tees as an option, I said "Ray, keep an eye on them and if they start playing too well, move them back to the tournament tees".  He responded that he could handle that.   Two hours elapsed, which is the common target time for nine holes, and the teams rolled up to the scoreboard.  I asked about their progress, and whether the tee option was helping them out.  Mr. Secord looked at me and said "What do you mean?  We're playing the tournament tees like everyone else."  Not too often am I at a loss for words, however this is one time that I was speechless.  I have learned some major life lessons from this.  Don't create big problems from small worries.  Good people can be counted on to help things run smoothly.  It's not how well you play the game of golf...it's how you play the game of life.

When looking for lodging, dinner and hospitality, please call the Columbia Marriott or the Columbia Courtyard at USC.  Thanks to this team of quality folks that we will be honored to have in the field for next year's tournament:

Richard Secord, area director of sales and marketing

Jason Reader, area general manager

Mr. President (alternate 3rd player...not THE president)

Kacy Glowienka, business travel manager  

Three Years of 11 Under

As tournament director, I hear a lot of comments on tournament day.  Here are the top five reasons I have heard about why teams say they can't seem to beat that elusive 11 under par, which has been the winning score for each year that the Invitiational has been played at Golden Hills CC.  These are my thoughts on actual remarks that I heard on the day of the tournament. 

5.  We missed some easy putts or we would have easily beat 11 under.
John:  Next year, I predict an increase in belly-putters.  Maybe THAT will do the trick!

4.  Our third player was awful...he's gone next year!!  He never helped one shot.  If we would have had ANYbody else, we would have destroyed 11 under.
John:  Your third player said that if you two would have played a little better, you would have beaten 11 under.  He said he is the one who hit all the shots. 

3. Where John puts the tees and pins, he makes Golden Hills too hard!
John:  Six holes are fair, six easy, and six hard.  I'm sure some people think I detemine the tee and pin placements after a really bad day.  The 6-6-6 rule is actually used for course set-up in major tournaments and competitive golf events.  The course yardage is only 6200 yards...Sometimes that is a long trip around the links.  

2.  Man, we drank 12 beers each.  What we needed was more liquor out here, and we would have relaxed enough to shoot some low numbers.
John:  I agree.  I'm sure if you would have had more to drink, you would have  won!

...and Number ONE:
If we would have been playing by ourselves - like we do in other tournaments - we would have had 18 under for sure.  We don't like someone else keeping our score.  Next year, we are going to request getting paired with our buddies, so we can finish 1st and 2nd and break the tournament scoring record.
John:  Because teams record each other's scores, we eliminate the "buddy system" of scoring - which we all know isn't always the most accurate account of what actually happened between the first tee and the eighteenth green. 

Chance of a Lifetime

Jamie Mabe is a three-year Invitational player, and will be a senior at Clemson University this fall.  He was fortunate to have the priviledge to work the scoreboard at the 2011 PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club this past weekend.  He had duties on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and just completed his 3-hour shift at 3:00 today.  When asked to comment, Jamie responded "It was good...hard work, but I enjoyed it.  This taught me that running or working a golf tournament is hard work."  Jamie admitted the stress level is high when errors occur and or the action on the course changes rapidly.  Congratulations are in order to Jamie as the club champion at Golden Hills Country Club in Lexington.  GHCC has been the site of The Invitational for the past three years.  He is pictured here flanked by golf buddies Gavin Gillespie (L) and Mike Evans (R)

Road Warriors

Congratulations to Jim Beckman's team who travelled the farthest from Sebring, Florida to join us this year.  This is their second appearance in The Invitational.  All three of these players are from Effingham, Illinois originally.  Dave Martin (in blue shirt) is the PGA pro at WildeWood CC in Columbia.  Jim and Dick Sutton reside in Sebring and were hosted by brother John Beckman, who is also the tournament director.  This team tied for 19th in 2009 with a score of 72.  This past year, they improved their standing to 9th in their division by shooting a 73.  Nice play for 3 seniors!!
It must also be mentioned that Jim and Dick have added a lot of their own time and energy to the preparations needed to get this event off the ground.  Their carpentry skills and hole-digging ability help you keep track of the many scoreboards and leaderboard displayed during play.  John builds them, but these guys put them in place.  Thanks for your blood, swearing and tears (of laughter!).