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Two Kiwis to play golf for 365 days to help The First Tee

Image courtesy of Dunn/Getty images
 

 

May. 25, 2010
By Melanie Hauser, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent

They were simply working the room at the California Club. Meeting people. Chatting about golf and life.

 

And, of course, sharing their story -- puregolf2010. A tale of two plucky young Kiwis who put their law careers on hold to play golf every day for a year while traveling the world and raising money for The First Tee in New Zealand.

Talk about living the dream.

A few days later, they were teeing it up at Riviera Country Club with a legend -- Doors guitarist Robbie Krieger.

How did that happen?

"How,'' Michael Goldstein chuckled, "did any of this happen?"

Indeed.

It's day 143 and Goldstein is laying in the back of Dodgy -- the Dodge Ram family wagon he and Jamie Patton purchased for $2000 when they got to California -- and chatting on the phone. Patton is trying to follow directions from the Westin Hills Resort to PGA West -- their destination for the day.

"I'm just looking at my first taste of the desert,'' Goldstein said. "It's awesome. It's so cool. There's a huge mountain. I don't know what it is. I'm feeling incredibly na� at this point.''

It's been a bit of a whirlwind for Michael and Jamie -- as they're known on their blog and on Twitter -- the past few weeks. They've played their way down the coast from the Bay Area, scoring tee times at every where from Harding Park to Cypress Point, Spyglass Hill, Stanford, Bel Air Country Club, Pasatiempo and the Riv. They had the best burger ever at Olympic Club, borrowed Ben Crenshaw's locker at Bel Air, hit balls on the range next to Pete Sampras and saw Dr. Phil tee off.

A lot through the courtesy of strangers. Bel Air member Will Singleton, for example, reached out in an e-mail and asked if they wanted to play golf with him. He brought Doug Batty, a young New Zealand pro he's helping, along to caddy. Liam Doust, who lives along 17 Mile Drive offered an omelette, coffee and dinner at the Beach Club after their round at Cypress.

They've accepted random acts of kindness from friends or those friends of friends they've met. Take last night. They were all set to spend another night in Dodgy when a chap from the Westin they had met reached out and offered them a room. He had heard their story from a friend. He emailed them and they accepted.

Others have picked up lunch, dinner and those hefty greens fees. They've stayed with an estimated 50 or 60 families since they started. All of which is making this sometimes wing-and-a-prayer tour possible.

"We're not bankrolled, that's for sure,'' Goldstein said.

But they are rich in experiences.

Michael Goldstein and Jamie Patton are playing golf for 365 days. (Photo courtesy of The First Tee)

Today, it's PGA West. Tomorrow TPC Scottsdale. Later this week they'll stay in Flour Mound (Texas) with friend, sponsor and fellow Kiwi Phil Tataurangi and play both the TPC Las Colinas and the TPC Craig Ranch. Next month, TPC Sawgrass, then a slow meander up the East Coast.

"It's been pretty hectic so far,'' Goldstein said.

This all started late one night when Goldstein, Jamie Patton and a bunch of their mates were "talking crazy stuff." Goldstein tossed out the idea of playing golf every day for a year and ... call it fate. Or just time for an adventure. After all, you're only young once.

So Michael and Jamie -- both in their early 20s -- rolled up their sleeves every night after work and, when they had things pulled kinda, sorta, together they started living the dream. To put it in Kiwi terms, this is being done off "the smell of an oily rag." We'd say on the cheap. Frugal. Starbucks breakfasts, charity of friends for greens fees and lodging. And connections.

"They're by no means trust-fund babies,'' Tataurangi said. "They're by no means well funded. They're doing this by calling on friends.''

And those friends of friends.

Tataurangi, a patron of New Zealand's First Tee, heard about their dream when he was back home in the offseason, played golf with them, had them to the facility and proposed a charitable component to their journey. They liked it because, well, this journey isn't about birdies and bogeys. It's about everything you experience -- the people, the sights, the camaraderie, learning about yourself -- while playing the game.

"We thought it was pretty cool what they were doing,'' Goldstein said. " ... It was a bit of a no-brainer. We're not great golfers, we're not trying to become professionals. And The First Tee is more along those lines. It's about the other benefits that come along with golf. And it fits with us well. We're stoked to be aligned with them.''

They were also befriended by Augusta National media chairman Craig Heatley, a Kiwi businessman and philanthropist who brought the First Tee to New Zealand. And from there, things started to roll. And doors opened.

Tataurangi talked them into the idea of a road trip across the U.S. and now, he said, "People are living a little vicariously through them.'' Then, he went to David Pillsbury, the President of PGA TOUR golf properties, to help find courses for the boys to play. Friends made calls to help them get on both private and public courses. They started networking -- first across New Zealand and Australia. Now the U.S.

By the time they finish, they'll have spend four months or so in the UK -- Jamie was born in Scotland -- and Ireland, dropping by the Open Championship at St. Andrews and the Ryder Cup in Wales. That done, they'll head east across Asia and make their way home.

They're detailing their trip and rounds -- Cypress, best day ever -- on their blog http://puregolf2010.com which also keeps a running total of their strokes -- Michael has more birdies; Jamie a better stroke average -- and kilometers traveled (27,336 is what's currently posted). There's information on The First Tee, a list of hosts and supporters, a place to donate to The First Tee and a nod to girlfriends Angela and Gretta who stay in touch from back home.

They've gotten random emails offering housing and rounds of golf -- like the one Singleton sent to join him at Bel Air.

"We just say yes and go with the flow,'' Goldstein said.

They've ruled out playing Augusta because the course is closed. But everything else is in play. They're locked in at TPCs, at Pinehurst and Quaker Ridge. Their wish list includes everything from Hilton Head to Pine Valley, Bethpage Black and Winged Foot.

And their playing partner wish list?

"We'd give our left leg to play with (President Barack) Obama,'' Goldstein said.

Not far behind? Greg Norman, Donald Trump and, obviously, Tiger Woods.

"But we're going to struggle with all of them,'' he chuckled.

"You're going to print that are you?"

Why not? With all that's happened in the first 143 days, why not swing for those fences?

Tataurangi marvels at Michael and Jamie. Professional golfers want days off. These guys want none.

"They had the guts to say you're only young once,'' Tataurangi said. "What will be interesting is how they feel when they get to day 350.''

So far, so good. They're not tired. Not in the least.

In fact, Jamie has just wheeled Dodgy into the PGA West parking lot. Time to tee it up. Time to meet more people, tell more stories. Turn more strangers into friends and raise a little money for The First Tee along the way.

"New golf course, new people every day,'' Goldstein said. "We say real fresh.''

And always ready to tell the story of how this happened. And how it's still happening.

Melanie Hauser is a columnist for PGATOUR.COM. Her views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.

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