We made it to Volcanos in Hurst, Texas for Power Events’ 2011 Dallas Holiday Classic.

The bar is massive, beer is a flowin’, and tonight should be outstanding. The handicap tournament gets underway at 7:00, and GT will be played late into the evening. The actual Classic gets underway tomorrow at noon and we will be live-blogging qualifying scores and matches after.

For details on how the weekend will shape up, check out the details here.

Stay tuned and be sure to join us for a brew if you’re in the area.

Cheers,

-ak

Cheese. Beer. Basketball.

It’s Friday night, we just made the hour or so trek north, and still have plenty o’ basketball games to take in. While there is a CTTP tournament tonight (which we will provide results for, of course), this evening is all about playing some games, watching some games and having a good time.

We won’t fire off a disclaimer message on our posts or Tweets quite yet, but there will be suds. Oh, there will be suds. Qualifier gets underway Saturday morning at noon…

Cheers,

-ak

Friday – 11: 42 AM

We’re packed and ready roll. The Golden Tee/Silver Strike crew is bringing up a truckload of swag, (GT/SSB goodies), and are ready to embark on the hour-or-so trek up to Wisconsin. It’s time for Club Lucky’s Tournament of Champions, and we are excited for the two biggest trackball tournaments of the year to get underway.

The sight you see above is the outer sign at the beautiful and luxurious Grand Geneva Resort and Spa in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Soon, this hotel will be filled with about 120 fans and players of both games and the festivities will be in full swing

The Golden Tee Blog, aka right here, will be busy throughout this tournament weekend, giving you updates and photos from the event, letting you know who’s doing what. You can also check us out on both the Facebook and Twitter pages for GT and SSB.

Alright, these t-shirts won’t pack themselves. Time to get to work. We will catch up with you once we cross enemy lines the border.

Wednesday, August 25th: 4:07 PM

The sight above (apologies for the lack o’ quality from the camera phone) comes straight from Splinters Sports Pub in Palatine and is the Players Charity Championship taking shape. By taking shape, I mean there is still @#$% everywhere, but the games are in and boys are hard at work getting everything ready for this monster weekend. By tomorrow (aka Thursday) these games will be filled with early travelers starting their weekend off early with a little Tee.

From someone who will be logging PLENTY of hours inside Splinters over the next 96 hours, I couldn’t be more excited. This weekend isn’t just one of the largest and most competitive Golden Tee tournaments of the year, it’s also a celebration for a fantastic cause.

Thus far, close to $70,000 has been raised towards Salute and the GT community has kicked the fundraising into high gear the past few weeks. Now, it’s time to celebrate the charity, the hard work, and Golden Tee in a jam-packed weekend.

If you can’t make it out to Splinters at any point throughout the event, have no fear. We, and more specifically I, plan to cover any and all PCC action right here on the Golden Tee Blog as well as the Facebook and Twitter pages. What can I say? We like our social media…

We’ll have golf outing results, Salute Friday shots, random tidbits here and there, and tournament updates that’ll keep you informed perhaps more than you need.  All PCC happenings will be available right here on the GTB, and I’ll feed all info to you as things move along. I’ll even showcase how I do in the tournament qualifier and dazzle you with my scores compared to the nation’s best players. (I’m sorry, I can’t even write that with a straight face).

Grab a beer, pull up a chair if you can’t join us in person, and stay tuned. It’s almost PCC time, folks.

-ak

“Excuse me miss, can you take these and can I have a few more please.”

The flight attendant comes over looking somewhat appalled, grabs the empty mini-bottles of Belvedere, and reaches in her cart for more.

“It’s kind of a long flight, guys,” she kindly says to Duffer Dan and I. “Perhaps you should wait until after we take off before you drink anymore?”

Hey, what can I say? We’re excited to be heading stateside for the next course excursion. Plus, with a 12-hour flight ahead of us, what the #$%^ else are we going to do?

We had our own Euro Trip visiting Laurel Park and Alpine Run, but our next course takes us to the Pacific coast and more specifically Cape Arago, Oregon. Water, tress, waterfalls, streams, canyon walls and more – Timber Bay is 18-holes built for the golfer that wants to see a bit of everything.

With Golden Tee 2011 test games now out, I’m not the only golfer teeing it up on the beautiful Timber Bay.

Just look at this guy taking advantage of our new YouTube feature where players can upload any shot. This includes putts that take sharp left turns off hills that you shouldn’t be on in the first place.

Or this guy, who is celebrating 2011 by slamming into the closest pin as hard as he possibly can.

Let’s get this show on the road. With 6 or so mini-bottles consumed, I think we’re ready for takeoff. Here’s a bit more on Timber Bay and what you can expect to see come launch time.

Decisions, Decisions…

More so than any other course in 2011, Timber Bay gives you options. How you play off the tee will depend greatly on a variety of things – most noticeably, your tee box and the wind for that given setup.

Unlike a lot of situations, however, you won’t just have to select a 3 or a 5-wood, you’ll be scanning the course left and right, deciding which way to play.

Some holes have multiple fairways (like the shot above) that will provide different shots with obstacles that can be avoided easier with different routes. A few of the long par-5s can be tackled by taking multiple ways, and you’ll have to adjust on the fly when you’re given certain sets of conditions. The same can be said about a few of the drivable par-4s that will also push your creativity to the outer limits.

This will take a few times through to grasp which way best serves your game, but having choices is something most virtual golfers will absolutely love.

Hello, Design-a-Hole

Chris Woody’s creation, The Lighthouse, can be found on Timber Bay and more specifically hole 6. Although the actual lighthouse doesn’t really come into play, the hole looks, feels, and plays fantastic.

The alleys to the green are tight enough where trouble can be had if you aren’t careful, and this isn’t a slam-dunk eagle by any means. Even if you get through one of the openings to drive the green, you’re still not close to being home.

The green can be tough to stick in certain situations, particularly with an out wind. Certain pin placements will call for a much finer shot to secure eagle, and there’s no doubt this hole will serve as important early on in round. I really like what I see so far on our latest player-created design.

Two Thumbs up. Well done, Chris.

Hole 16… ‘Nough Said

We’ve featured a handful of holes already in our blog endeavors, but hole 16 on Timber Bay might be the most fascinating of them all. At times, this hole setup as a casual thumb shot into or against the wind and you’re outta there with birdie. At other times, well, not so much.

You can see from the picture above that the green is separated into three distinct areas. Depending on where the pin is located, you’ll likely have to aim for one of these areas if you’re looking at a manageable birdie putt.

On top of this, there are multiple tee boxes in front of and on the side of this green. This makes for some very different and sometimes challenging shots that can result in disaster if you aren’t careful. Setups and results will vary greatly on this hole, but mark it down as one to look for.

That’s all for now, GTers! Next week we pack up the jet, rack up miles and fly back across the big blue sea once again. YOU WILL NOT WANT TO MISS IT.

In the meantime, enjoy a few more scenes from Timber Bay and get ready for GT 2011.

Cheers,

-ak

“Quick, pack up the bus and let’s get the #$%^ outta here!”

Duffer Dan and I sprint through an open field and jump into the GT bus parked directly under the Eiffel Tower. In the distance, French policeman are in pursuit yelling obscenities while sporting some of the finest hats ever made.

Pedal hits floor – and we are officially out of Laurel Park. Barely…

Well, that was fun! With course one in the books the GT bus is headed to location number two. Surprisingly enough, we’re only going to have to endure a 7-hour drive to get there.

Our next course, Alpine Run, is tucked away in the shadows of the Swiss Alps with the ginormous Matterhorn looming in the background. With mountains comes snow and elevation – more on that in a bit, but they also gives us perhaps the most glorious background we’ve ever had in Golden Tee.

I got my paws on Alpine for a handful of rounds and took very copious notes on some of the defining aspects of the course  I also did the following…

WARNING: BRAGGING, BOASTING, AND AVERAGE SHOT MAKING BELOW

Enough of that (feeling pretty good about self) – here is Alpine Run!

Let it Snow… Again

Snow returns to Golden Tee for only the second time, and for the first time since Summit Lakes in GT 2008! Crowd pauses, looks around, slowly works itself into a muted applause.

For those that have played on the surface before, you’ll likely recall that snow was the ultimate superglue when your ball even brushed up against it. These same features make its way into 2011, and snow is once again going to stop your ball dead in its tracks if you happen to even graze it with your shot. Unlike mud, however, snow can be conquered post entry and you can still get plenty of distance when you are forced to hit from it.

The snow on Alpine is also very strategically placed and while the course isn’t covered in it, the crafty GT crew certainly knew what they were doing when they dropped it in throughout the course.

Lots o’ Elevation – It is the Alps, folks

Because Alpine Run is tucked outside the Swiss Alps, you’d imagine that there would be a decent amount of elevation seen throughout the course. You can argue that this certainly is the case, but the elevation is different from most mountain/hilly courses we’ve played over the years.

Like the snow mentioned above, the elevation on the course is selective and comes into play when shots matter most. While none of these situations come close to some of the elevation we saw on Black Hills, (you can exhale now), there is enough of it to note before you take certain shots.

I found that if I focused on where not to be, aka down the backside of a hill that slopes into a giant pond, I avoided the dreaded blowup hole. While many of us want to play for a holeout at all times, enticing but dangerous pin placements will be more of a factor on Alpine than any other hole in 2011.

Hole 18 can be a Monster

The finishing hole is supposed to provide a challenge, damn it, and hole 18 on Alpine does just that.

The closing hole is a drivable par-4, it is lengthy, has a bit of drop off in elevation, there’s water, usually a lot of wind, and the green can make this one heck of a shot to stick. While all these factors contribute to the difficulty of the hole, the green really is where this hole separates itself in terms of difficulty. Certain pin placements will be very difficult to get at and spinning your ball properly is a must if you wish to bag an eagle.

Rounds will be decided on this challenging but fair design and you’ll likely think about laying up on occasion if the situation calls for it. With that said, this hole can be very managble with the right wind/pins. You’ll have to drastically adjust your strategy from round to round, but what else is new?

Great finishing hole where the game will be won or lost…

That’s all for this edition, folks! Check back soon for our third course, which I guarantee will fascinate you beyond your wildest imagination. Here are a few more shots of Alpine Run to tide you over before launch!

-AK

STOP IT RIGHT THERE. Take all thoughts, instincts, predispositions, and any other ghastly things you might have to say about the French and toss them out the window. We’ve packed up the Golden Tee Course Bus, crossed the big blue, and are pitching our tents just under the Eiffel Tower.

That’s right. Golden Tee is putting on their finest ensemble, eating cheese that smells like feet, and taking over Bois de Boulogne. Say that ten times fast after your 17^th glass of merlot.

I, marketing man by day and GT wannabe guru by night, have finally logged some quality 2011 hours and have some interesting thoughts about each course.

No need to spin the trackball. We’re starting at the far-left of the course selection screen to get things under way. Although I don’t want to spoil your experience of testing out the new courses by unveiling all the secrets, here are just a few of things to expect on Laurel Park – the first course in Golden Tee 2011.

La Fountaine Blue

Holy water. No, not Holy Water – I mean, “Wow, that’s A LOT of water.”

Almost every single hole on Laurel has water and tons of it. And this water isn’t just for show either. Your tee shots and approaches are going to be impacted by water in almost every scenario.

This water in a lot of instances also happens to be perfectly placed, particularly on some of the well-crafted drivable par-4s. There will be some decision making when it comes to crunch time, and certain tee boxes and wind combos will drastically impact if and when you go for the gusto.

Although certain courses have their share of “distinct” hazards, there’s no doubt that Laurel will be taking thousands of virtual balls come fall.

Say Concrete in French. SAY IT

A new surface has made its way into Laurel and it’s going to play a major role – perhaps for better and worse. This new concrete/cobblestone sidewalk surrounds greens, fairways, hazards, and serves as a pathway throughout much of the course.

This concrete path is like a cart path on steroids and the bounce you get will certainly impact where your ball ends up. In one instance, the path actually propelled my ball onto the green and three feet away from the cup. In another, I went over the green by a yard or so and the path sent my ball soaring into the water. (See: hazard above)

It’s hard to say how this will impact your round this early on, but it’s safe to say that it’ll impact it one way or another. I look forward to seeing if players use this launching pad to their advantage or if it becomes a beast of burden. We shall see…

Holes 16, 17, 18 are Fantastique

This is where the magic happens, or more often than not, when the round comes crumblin’ down.

Without giving too much away, I hereby proclaim these three holes Adam Kramer approved. The round finishes up with a par-3, par-4, and a par-5 although we won’t list them in any particular order. You’ll have to be creative to succeed here and the possibility to pick up strokes is ripe for the taking. Where there’s a chance to gain strokes, however, there’s also usually plenty of room to lose them as well. (shaking head, reaching into golf bag for more golf balls).

These three holes feature a little bit of everything and this all culminates with the sure-to-be-talked-about 18^th. Oh, the 18^th hole is something that players new and old are going to love, and I dumped plenty of balls in the water just giving it a little test drive. Bring. On. The. YouTubes.

‘Nough said.

I just touched the surface on what you can expect on Laurel Park. The rest you’ll find out soon enough. Thanks for playing along with my reindeer games and be sure to tune in for the other four courses. For now, here are a few more screens to bridge the gap between now and launch day.

-AK signing off

I can’t tell you how many times someone has asked me if I can “hook them up” with the virtual paper bag hat. I even had one guy offer box seats at a Cubs game if I were to somehow get him the gorilla headwear before his buddies got it.

Come on now. I have morals. I tried to get him it but he never called back.

The point of all of this is that, for many, the clothing they wear is almost as important as what clubs they use. The fact that you can dress your golfer up like a giant disgrace, or play it cool if you so desire, is part of the fun in Golden Tee. This is your virtual freedom and millions of you take full advantage of it.

The process, however, of getting all these wacky clothing items into Golden Tee year after year is a much more complex process than you might think. We have artists at IT that are given this task and it requires months of time and thought. Have you ever thought about where that giant beekeeper headgear actually comes from? Well, I have. And if you haven’t by now than maybe the thought has just crossed your mind. Either that or you are LONG GONE from this blog.

I sat down and chatted with IT artist Mike Sanchez who was given Golden Tee clothing duties for the first time in GT 2011 just to find out much more about a process many of us really know nothing about. Here’s what Mike had to say about the design process, the clothing in GT 2011, and what promo codes you can expect to see in the coming months.

AK: Mike, thanks for taking this moment to fill in the GT public a bit more about the process of getting all the wacky clothing we all know and love into the game. So you are “the guy” when it comes to designing and implementing clothing into the game?

MS: No problem, Adam. Glad to do it. Well, in some ways I guess you could say I am the guy for 2011, but this is an enormous team effort.  The process begins when Brian (Jandula) and Jim (Zielinski) come to our team first with a list of ideas that they’d like to see in the next game. After that they pretty much give us the freedom to research and add some things we’d like to see in the next installment.

AK: For GT 2011, were there any particular ways you’ve decided to go that might be different from past years?

MS: I personally wanted to add in some shirts that kind of match the times. There are some designer tees in there along with some various clothing items that fit what people are wearing. With that being said, there still is a giant focus on adding in plenty of the crazy items people have grown to love over the years. That stuff is fun to make but also can require a lot more work on our end. Still, it’s well worth it.

AK: How long on average would you say it takes you to make a standard virtual shirt?

MS: On a good day, and we certainly have or fair share that don’t work out how we want, creating and getting a shirt ready for Golden Tee can take anywhere from a half-day to an entire day. Hats can take a lot more work, because the geometry usually has to be built into the game if it’s different from anything we’ve done before.

AK: Wow. Well, I’ll appreciate you guys much more when I wear my ridiculous gear now that I know what goes into the process. Speaking of the process, can you give us some more details of some of the ridiculous additions in 2011? What are a few of your favorites?

MS: We’ve added a mummy costume into the game this year which I have no doubt will be an absolute hit. On top of that there is some new hunting-type gear, a bunch of fun random items, and my personal favorite, a shirt with a pocket watch. I guess I’ll leave the rest of it up to the players to earn once the game comes out. We don’t want to spoil all the fun.

AK: The request I get on the Golden Tee Facebook Page more than any other is the clamoring for new giveaway clothing items. We did a handful of items a little while back, including some holiday gear. Please tell me we will be able to get some new items in Golden Tee 2011?

MS: Yes, giveaway clothing items are back in 2011. We’ve created more Christmas, Thanksgiving, and New Year’s stuff plus we’ve added Easter, Thanksgiving, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day also into the mix. This on top of the virtual Salute shirt that is being featured now for those that donate to the PCC.

AK: Mike, thank you so much for the time. Can’t wait for 2011!

Golden Tee 2011 is in the air, and the development crew is now in the thick of their most chaotic time of the year. Trees, lakes, and other new hazards are being created, courses are taking shape, and new features are finding their way into the game. As a Golden Tee junkie I truly enjoy this time and it’s hard for me to look at 2011 with my corporate face. I’d say I feel like a kid in a candy store, but that really doesn’t do my excitement justice. Perhaps the picture below does.

I was given the keys to the Golden Tee 2011 mobile only for a quick test drive, and needless to say I walked away floored. Yes, I work for the company so I suppose you would expect me to say this, but the experiences I shared in only a short time behind the wheel gave me a feeling unlike any I’ve had playing Tee.

New features certainly make a lot of noise, but the courses are what everyone’s got their eye on. It’s only June. Meaning, we still have a few months till the game hits and a lot of time to discuss what to expect in Golden Tee’s latest installment. With that said, it’s about time we get the ball rolling on the 2011 era.

Last year we unveiled the first shots of Golden Tee 2010 on the Golden Tee Blog, and we’ve decided to keep up with this building tradition. Although many loved seeing and speculating what they were witnessing, others were certainly unhappy with the fact that they couldn’t see more. As a fanboy of the game I understand this sentiment.

I would love to show you everything and tell you about all the cool new #$%^ that will be in Golden Tee 2011, but I’d likely end up in the trunk of the same GT 2011 mobile.

In the coming weeks and months we’ll showcase names, locations, features, interviews, tons of screens, the 2011 trailer, and everything in between so we’ll be providing your ’11 fix in bunches. As always, feel free to share your thoughts and fire up questions on anything you see. We can’t guarantee we will answer all questions you fire at us, but we will certainly try.

Enjoy, everyone.

-ak

We thought we’d tie a bow on The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly in 2010 by sharing the spotlight on some of last year’s best of the worst. Duffer started things off with The Good, I pinch-hit for The Bad, and now the two of us are combining forces to bring you the U-G-L-Y.

This might just be the most amazing tag team assembled since the Midnight Express and their turnbuckle-antics back in the early 80s.

But before I dive deeper into my wrestling throwback knowledge, there’s some work to take care of. Some dirty, dirty work…

You see, it’s not easy to describe the following designs, so I’ll be frank – these designs were the “Yo Mamma” jokes of last year.  They were the designs that made you want to throw up in your mouth, swallow it, then throw it up again. But you know what?

THAT’S WHY WE %^&ING LOVE ‘EM.

All of ‘em. And we appreciate all of the work that was put in, and you know why? These designs were unique, and the people took a chance to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. Hell, we practically forced you to do it when we encouraged you to try something new.

You see, Ugly doesn’t mean Bad. Ugly is simply an easy way to say this particular drawing didn’t fit into this contest. Plus, what kind of series would The Good, The Bad, and the Not-So-On-The-Mark be?

Think of it this way – these are the designs that belong on a wall in a bar, not on a virtual golf course…

So congratulations UGLY people, cause I say your nomination is pretty fantastic.

So now that my man Duffer Dan can sink his teeth back into this fun little feature – welcome him back with open arms. As always, this is meant in good fun so keep that in mind and try and keep the hate mail to a minimum. I mean, who could possibly hate on The Midnight Express. Look at the hair. LOOK AT IT.

Take it away, DD!

Young Adam, you’ve done an eloquent job illustrating the nuances of “Ugly” and now please step aside and allow me to put a cap on it with this visual representation:

Look up “Ugly” in the dictionary and see General Larry Platt and his goofy ass grin.  Not only did this ugly diddy infest the HDTV’s in millions of households through American Idol, it also hit the billboard charts, “The View” and was copied by that ass-slapping Minnesota Viking’s quarterback.  The point here is that sometimes it’s the ugliest of ducklings that turn into swans… Or is it the dumbest of swans that we can laugh at for being ugly…  I don’t know, it’s something like that.  Anyway  HERE WE GO with the grand finale!

U-G-L-Y YOU AINT GOT NO ALIBI, YOU UGLY!

Flaming “The Finish Line” by Russ Green is the hardest UGLY ribbing I’ve ever done.  Why? Cause this design is so near and dear to my heart.  Here’s a Duffer Dan fact – I am a Indy Racing junkie, with a particular fondness for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  It is my love and my sporting sanctuary.  So the day I received a call asking permission to use the Greatest Spectacle in Racing as a DAH inspiration, I was floored and could’t wait to see it – until I did.  Russ, sadly, I need to point some things out to you 1) according to scale your fairway is 1,144 yards long and your tee boxes are upwards of 300-yards wide 2) you moved pit road, Gasoline Alley AND the pagoda and 3) you replaced the famed “yard of bricks” with checkered paint.  Sorry to say it, buddy, but there are already 4 real golf holes inside of the Brickyard and they’ve got you topped.  With all this said, it still does make me happy to see my two loves cross paths, even if it’s uglier than the 1968 Lotus turbine.

Travis Schoonover’s “Rooftop Delight” rounds out this year’s medley of monstrous masterpieces and it’s not for his lack of creativity.  Golden Tee has taken us to a variety of scary places before, but never any that would require a helicopter or Spidey senses to get from tee-to-green.  What pushed me over the edge was.. the… thought… of getting pushed over the edge!  Travis says “only the most daring players would go for the green in one” leaving out the fact that they scaled a damn building to tee-off!  OK, Schoony, next time you decide to break out Photoshop, leave the RedBull in the fridge and back down the testosterone – you’re just too damn creative to end it all like this.

So there you have it, folks – THE UGLY hole designs from the 2009 Design-a-Hole contest.  And just in case my partner, Adam “Randy Rose” Kramer didn’t include enough disclaimers, we seriously appreciate efforts put forth by today’s contestants.  You let us have a little fun with you and for that, we say thank you.  Now you sir, I’d appreciate it if you kindly remove your sniper rifle from the parking lot and give ol’ Duffer Dan a nice big bear hug in celebration of today’s display of disfigured doodles!

[Man, I am on fire with the alliterations!]

So, until next year, I bid this series farewell and look forward to showing off THE GREAT of 2010.  As you know, this year’s Design-a-Hole finalists have been announced and they are nothing short of spectacular.  So don’t forget to start voting next week, all the while remembering, that on the deep, disturbed hard drive of Duffer Dan’s computer lies the dark and dirty secret files that will be known as the 2010 The Good, The Bad and The Ugly…

Good times,

- Duffer Dan

Design-a-Hole 2010 Voting Starts April 3rd!

Goldentee.com