I was doing my usual wandering around various Golden Tee message boards to see what was making headlines, when I came across a thread titled “Kinzler” on Let’s Talk Golf. I took a big gulp of coffee, turned up my horrid iTunes play list, and quickly read up on perhaps the most fascinating Golden Tee story ever.
I had known long before I started at IT about two-time GT World Champion Graig Kinzler and his “alleged” 35 under, but I didn’t quite know what to make of it. -20 is a great game, –25 will usually pay for your game (except maybe on Bonnie Moor), –30 is just flat out bonkers. What the hell does that make –35?
It’s like Babe Ruth’s calling his homerun or Sidd Finch and his 168 mph fastball. The difference; however, is that this actually happened! Sorry Babe, but I’m not buying it.
I saw Kinzler play for the first time back at the Midwest Regional event in 2007. I wasn’t working at IT, and this was my first taste of really good GT. I watched Graig play in a game during practice; just waiting to see his personal best finally show up after the game. Nerdy? Yup. Weird? Maybe a little. Did I find what I was looking for? You betcha.
-35.
My personal best at the time was somewhere around –21. I just couldn’t imagine someone beating my monster round (yes, I’m joking) by fourteen strokes. I’ve since gotten a lot better, (hold the applause), and yet the idea of shooting –35 still makes me want to laugh… or cry.
The feat was done on Kangaroo Trail, a Golden Tee LIVE original with one of my all-time personal favorite course logos. Sure, the setup was great, but favorable setups don’t lead to three aces, two of which were on par4s, including one on eighteen to seal the deal. If seeing his score on his game more than two years ago wasn’t enough, Kinzler posted up his hole-by-hole breakdown in the thread. Let’s see you try this!
Maybe most impressive is that he went into the eighteenth hole with a -32. This just happens to be the best round of ’09. Or the fact that he shot -18 on the front and -17 on the back, both of which are great full rounds for ninety percent of the GT public. Did I mention he had 15 eagles or better? I mean, really?
I guess it’s time for me to practice. And practice. And practice. “We’re talking about practice?” Thanks A.I.
And maybe one day that planets will align and I will hit that -30, all the while wondering where the hell I could have picked up five more shots to tie Kinz’s -35.
In the event that you haven’t heard, the rumor is true – Steven Sobe is moving on… The 3-time National Champ and Golden Tee “Help Guy” is moving back home to Mt. Airy, NC to reopen his family business – the Golden Tee palace known as the Backstreet Pavilion.
Sobe is my friend. And as a friend, I am happy for him as I know how badly he’s wanted to work side-by-side his Dad at Backstreet again. But again, Sobe is my friend and it’s more bitter than sweet for me to see his office desk get cleaned out this week. And sure, it’s not “good bye” it’s only “so long for now,” but still…
Sobe and I have a storied history and I thought the GTB is the perfect place for this homage to my pal.
The History
Sobe and I started in the same month at IT five-and-a-half years ago. He was brought on to be “Sobe.” I was brought on for other reasons – the most unique of which was to be “Duffer Dan” – Sobe’s n00b protege and communicator to the masses of virtual hacks. Before blogging was blogging, I was blogging in the GT player forums with my supposed-to-be-funny diatribes called The Bronze Tapes: Excerpts from Duffer Dan’s Diary. Clever name, huh? (That’s why I make the big bucks…)
Anyway, “Duffer Dan” was intended to be a voice for average players. It was my job to leverage learning the game from a GT champion into helpful, fun content for our player community. Did it work? Well, you tell me… The name certainly stuck and the blog made it fourteen posts deep. I may not have shaved strokes from other n00bs’ games but the Sobe/Duffer experiment was a success.
Classic Video from Houston
Our pairing became less master/protege and more Penn/Teller – sort of a comedic act ingrained in Golden Tee lore. His matter-of-fact skill and my goofy, antagonistic shtick grew into something special. We learned that just the tales of Sobe/Duffer are more fun, natural and interesting than anything else we could have done. Sure, playing Golden Tee was the underlying theme of everything but “living the Golden Tee lifestyle” became the soul of our work. And I am proud to say whether it’s our countless videos, podcasts or even this very blog post, Steven Sobe helped me forge a persona for Golden Tee and Incredible Technologies and for that, I owe him this tribute.
Well, Boo-Freakin’-Hoo
Yeah, yeah, Sobe is leaving. And now that you know why I am compelled to write this tribute, it’s time move on and start my roast of this lovable S-O-B, Sobe. I should add that everyone will be seeing Sobe off clingin’ glasses, sipping imported beer and exchanging hugs at Duffy’s in Palatine, IL on Wednesday 7/29. Yes, I’ll be there but come on, that lovey-dovey stuff is just too boring for me. There’s just so much that people need to know about Sobe to gain a full appreciation. And since only a select few can hang with us at Duffy’s, I’d rather post my roast publicly.
In the IT marketing department we always say, “it ain’t easy bein’ Sobe” – and it’s time I reveal why. So once again – like the young, wide-eyed Duffer Dan I once was – I will shed my final insight on what it’s like hangin’ with the man, the myth, the blue button, Steven Sobe, in a special piece I call the…
TOP 10 THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT STEVEN SOBE
2007 Southern Regional: Sobe dominates Duffer with a lefty-righty in the CTTP demo
#10: Sobe is Ambidextrous
Righty, lefty, who gives a rip – Sobe will probably kick your ass either way. When playing Golden Tee he pulls-back lefty and tees-off righty. Now, how in the hell are you supposed to teach a n00b how to play with an antic like that? It’s kind of like a driving instructor teaching you how to gas and brake as he steers the car with his feet! Come on, Sobe… Yeah, we get it, we’re impressed that you’re equally adept with both L and R appendages but how about putting your talent to better use like juggling chainsaws, playing classical piano, or something? Dude, it’s just a video game.
#9: Galaga, Pool, Golden Tee
Yes, in that order. Don’t forget, he grew up in a pool hall and his Dad worked on a amusement game route. Sobe had lots of time to home his skills. I learned of these skills in 2004, first it was the Galaga machine at Friday’s Front Row in Orlando, FL. Sobe said, “give me one quarter. I’ve played for 4 hours on one quarter before.” When I made him prove it, 1 quarter in, 60-minutes later – no dead lives – he quit because “the joystick was ‘laggy.’”
Pool? It was at the X-Games in Los Angeles where Sobe and I were stationed for a week. We were staying at the same hotel as all the bad-ass, biker, skater dudes. The hotel bar was packed while the Sobester and I racked up for some R&R. As Sobe was kicking my teeth in, some tattooed-skater crew threw a line of quarters on the rail to challenge “winner” for the table. No words were spoken between Sobe and the crew and I watched as Sobe won 8-games in row, giving them maybe 5 shots. No mercy… During the ninth game, Sobe scratches on the eight-ball and quietly says, “ahh… You got it.” Sheeplishy, skater-dude replies, “Dude. The table yours, man…”
#8: No, He Aint Good at Everything
For example, Steven Sobe sucks at riding mechanical bulls. See video.
Sobe shows his boss, Scott, how to eat a dog. Burnt...
#7: The Connoisseur of Mediocrity
I am known as somewhat of a foodie around the office. I don’t rub it any one’s face – hey, eat what you like – but, yes, I am particular about what I consider great. Sobe too considers himself a connoisseur. Though it’s time that he – and the world – know that prowess of his palette ends at the big, bright, neon of the restaurant franchise sign. If you need advice on the best bacon-loaded-fried-nachos platter, or chicken-fried-grease-marinara pasta bowl, Sobe is your guy. Though the local Portillo’s will miss his daily investment of “Italian beef w/cheese and bowl of chili no onions.” (yeah, I know. And I’m the fat one…)
#6: Ok, He’s Good at Everything
Sobe still thinks he can tame the X Games Big Air Jump
Whether you’re eying down the vertical incline of a 2-story half-pipe or watching a professional pitcher’s 95-mph four-seam fastball, in his quiet southern drawl, Sobe will non-shalantly reply with one of two statements: “That ain’t a big deal, Duff. I can do that” or “That ain’t a big deal, Duff. I’ve done that.” Whether it’s hitting a 7-iron 200-yards, attacking a vert ramp on a skateboard, playing bags, darts, Silver Strike, beer pong, pick-up sticks, whatever – don’t bet against him. Ever. You will lose. He can do it…
#5: “He’s a Hustler Baby and He Want’s You To Know”
Greatest business card ever.
Back in 2004, Sobe and I ventured into a bar in Santa Monica, CA. Three jabronies were teeing up on some Golden Tee Fore! 2005 talking all sorts of smack with their plus-scores. Diplomatically, Sobe and I say, “Hey, fellas. Can we get in on the next game?” In a drunken stooper, they arrogantly reply, “yeah, sure, man. But we ONLY play for money.” ”Yes. YES,” I said under my breath to Sobe. ”This is finally our day. Let’s mop up with these ya-hoos – easy pickins, man!” Sobe queitly digs into his pocket, hands the guys a business card that says, Steven Sobe, 3-Time GT National Champion, and bluntly says, “are you sure?” Their reaction was priceless. We ended up teeing-up with the guys for hours and Sobe showed them the ropes. That’s the type of guy he is. Classic.
#4: Sobe is Complicated…
…but I imagine Plato confused Aristotle at times too. To fully take in Sobe’s intense, complex level of understanding of Golden Tee you need to basically forget everything you now about the game, standard vocabulary, physics and geometry. Inventor (or curator) of such complicated techniques as The Arcade Shot, The Out-and-Out, The Sobe Swerve, The Chush, The Hammer, The Pull-Back-Thumbs, The Softie, The Spinny. Or his famous, profound expressions like “That was too much funk.” “Hit down on it,” or my personal favorite, “you hit that too good.” Luckily, my secret Sobe decoder ring works pretty well.
Sobe - the consummate slacker
#3: Sobe is a Terrible Roommate
Sobe and I have shared more rooms in the past five-and-a half years than most grown men should ever have too. And whether it was the finest (or seediest) hotels in Las Vegas, to the sticks of the South, all the way to the modest means of a stateroom aboard a US Navy aircraft carrier – it didn’t matter, he’s always a celebrity at heart and likes it his way. Heat on in the summer, late for everything, no wake up calls, takes two hours to shave and primp an 1/8th inch hair. He’ll make you late for airplanes, leaves ESPN blaring at 4:00AM and don’t forget the tobacco “spitoons” on your nightstand. Sobe, I’ll miss you – but the thought that I’ll never have to share a room with you ever again is liberating. Ahhhh….. There. I said it.
#2: And the Academy Award Doesn’t Go To…
Sobe! Not counting course reviews, Sobe and I have recorded dozens and dozens of videos. I’m always the host and he’s always the *ahem* talent. But it wasn’t until the past few years when we really found our rhythm. You just have to let Sobe be him – no scripts, no teleprompter. Make him act and you won’t get Sobe. Let him be himself and you get Golden Tee video gold.
Check out the attached outtake for instance. A little known fact is that Sobe was supposed to do these videos solo. The director threw me in to loosen up the action. This was our first shot at “Sobe/Duffer” on camera and started what became our series of Odd Couple-eque media. Ballllllllzzzzz…..
#1: Steven Sobe is a Good Man.
You see celebrity-types on television or in movies and think, “that person does/doesn’t seem nice in real life.” You see Sobe during every Golden Tee game played and naturally think, “seems like a nice guy,” right? He is. The nicest. Nobody ribs Sobe harder than I do. I kid, I joke, and have busted his chops daily for five-years as if it were my duty. But I do it because he is a grade-A, true-blue good person and great friend. And anyone who works at IT or has met Sobe will agree. He takes time to listen and cares about your well being. That’s all I can ask in a friend and what I will miss most after this Friday.
Sobe, we’ve spent countless hours talking during road trips, at airports, in musty motels, afloat at sea, on the golf course, at the bar and mostly behind the trackball, and I’ll always cherish the time. Thank you for listening, being a great “partner in crime” and of course an outstanding friend. It’s been a good run so far and as I said at the start, it’s not good bye, it’s only “so long for now.”
Here are a few final parting photos from some of my favorite Sobe/Duffer moments. Enjoy -
But enough with mushy stuff. Consider this blog entry my declaration, that when you bring back the Mt. Airy Golden Tee Open at Sobe’s Backstreet Pavilion, “Duffer” Dan Schrementi will be the first person on the entry list. Why? Not because all your mentoring will carry me to victory. Or because I really miss “talkin’ shop” with you. Truly, it’s because I hear Backstreet has “the greatest fried mozzarella sticks in North Carolina.”
Every corporate boardroom on earth is full of ‘em right now. Big, important boss types pounding their scared marketing team with words like “Twitterspere” ,”Blogroll” and “Wiki.” ”We need a iPhone App!!!” they demand. Why? They have no idea. But they move forward, paying their crack R&D team to interview 12-year-olds and study the likes of “marketing genius” Ashton Kutcher for “business” research. They think they need this stuff and duh!? They want to be cool with you, dawg!
Well, well, well – here at the inner sanctum of the Golden Tee marketing universe – we are hip. We are with it. And yes, bro – we can hang with you wiki-tubey-tweety hip cats too! But damn it – we do it with some common sense and style.
Ya know, the Golden Tee marketing team is small, but we are MIGHTY! And you’ve probably noticed an equal amount of Golden Tee Goodness on and off the game this past year. We kicked it off with YouTube Great Shot Replays in last year’s 2009 update. The simple idea of replaying holes-in-one has always been around, but when our team first eyed YouTube the drool starting forming. It was a way to make everyone happy – YOU, the player, are happy because you can show off your off-the-ubrella-stick-nothin-but-cup. And I, the marketing geek, am happy because we’ve uploaded 30,000 videos and are approaching 1,000,000 advertisements, errr, views! User generated content at it’s best, baby.
Here's My Incredible Stat Card, Where's Yours?!
But we didn’t stop there. And likely by now you’ve seen our killer new Facebook Applications. The addition of dynamic stats cards for Golden Tee and Silver Strike Bowling, along with our new “Dress Your Golfer” app for Goldentee.com/Facebook – this stuff’s just the tip of your 2.0 iceberg.
Yesterday, we launched a fun project for those millions of iGoogle users out there – our very first Golden Tee iGoogle theme! (insert applause here) So whether searching for important items like dogs on skateboards, celebrity smut or, aaaa , “private entertainment” – we here at Golden Tee Central hope you git’r done within your fun Golden Tee frame!
So, are you left wondering, “Duffer, how is this any different than those big-time-poser corporate fat cats you speak of?” Well, my friends, I can proudly say that social media is only as good as the community that’s powering it and YOU GUYS ROCK! Whether it’s through our presence on Twitter, Facebook or YouTube, you – THOUSANDS OF YOU – were there first and greased the IT social media marketing machine. We came along merely to add a little more insight and legitimacy into your already existing communities and thanks dudes – we’ve learned a ton along the way.
To end this post, I propose the challenge for you to challenge us…
HOW CAN INCREDIBLE TECHNOLOGIES HELP FURTHER YOUR ENTERTAINMENT EXPERIENCE THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA?
An easy question, with no right or wrong answers. We’ve already heard many great suggestions like “blog about course creation” or ” exclusive contests for Facebook and Twitter users” – whatever your suggestion is, now is your chance to voice it! And maybe, just maybe, your suggestion will help shape the future of Golden Tee Golf! And that, my friends, if anything else, would be an AWESOME acheivment on your ol’ resume…
Hanging with celebs isn’t exactly a normal occurrence in my everyday life, so when I found out I was going to Brian Urlacher’s house to install and play some IT games, I was excited and nervous to say the least.
We actually arrived at his house hours before he did and with his permission we let ourselves in. He arrived shortly thereafter, (working out, duh) and almost instantly offered Sobe and I a Corona and a sandwich? I mean, really? That’s a story in itself! Needless to say, we took him up on the offer.
From there it only got better. He played Golden Tee, Lawn Darts, Carnival King, talked about the Bears and their new quarterback, and even gave Sobe a beating in actual bags – Sorry Sobe. He was friendly, and more impressive, down to earth. It’s hard to anticipate what someone of his fame and status will be like out of his element and in person, and Brian proved to be just a normal “dude.” It was also amazing to see that he has a genuine love for all of our games and a real soft spot for Golden Tee.
We hung out for a few hours when he finally looked at his watch and said he had a plane to catch. Brian was jetting off to Cleveland to watch LeBron and company beat up on the Atlanta Hawks. Apparently he made it, because at the end of the game LeBron signed his shoes and then gave them and a bear hug to Urlacher at his seat in the front row. Just another day in the life of Mr. Urlacher.
Meanwhile I sat on my couch and watched him, still reliving the tale to my buddies throughout the evening. Five hours earlier we were discussing our favorite Raw Talk™ phrases in Target Toss and Golden Tee strategy – now he was courtside with LeBron!
And while I may never sit courtside, and I will certainly never get a bear hug from LeBron (unless there is some jail involved), I will always share one thing with Brian Urlacher. The enjoyment and passion of Golden Tee.
And hopefully at some point, a neck as big as his.
-Adam at IT
Here is a little snippet from Mouthpiece Sports who was there to capture the day. I’m the one in the background looking rather confused and mesmerized by the entire situation.
I saw Kinzler play for the first time back at the Midwest Regional event in 2007. I wasn’t working at IT, and this was my first taste of really good GT. I watched Graig play in a game during practice; just waiting to see his personal best finally show up after the game. Nerdy? Yup. Weird? Maybe a little. Did I find what I was looking for? You betcha.
