The Insomniac
As I've mentioned before, I have been a member of the Westport Golf Club for the past two years. Membership in golf clubs is quite different here. At home in Florida, one needs to choose between playing public courses - usually owned and operated by a city or county - and a private club. In Vero, there are many more private clubs than public, a reflection of the seasonal wealth of the "Treasure Coast" of Florida. In wintertime, snowbirds flock from the affluent areas of the northeast and midwest to enjoy some respite from harsh winters. It is they who fill the membership ranks of our private clubs.
Initiation fees or equity stakes in these private clubs can range from 60K to 150K, and there is usually a requirement to spend a minimum of $500 or more per month in the restaurant/bar. Additionally, most private clubs will have annual dues ranging from $3,000 to $8,000. Not really an egalitarian approach to making golf affordable and accessible.
Westport GC would be more typical of an Irish club. Full annual membership for an individual would be in the range of 1,200 Euro (approximately $1,350 with the current exchange rate). There would be no restaurant requirement and no additional annual dues. If you chose to walk the course rather than taking a "buggy" - a golf cart - you would incur no other expenses.
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| An achingly beautiful morning |
So, for me as a "overseas" member - considerably less than full membership - joining really has been of good value for our nine weeks here. Plus it gives me access to the coveted GUI card - the Golfing Union of Ireland - which allows me to play legendary Irish links courses in the area at significantly reduced rates. I get to play Enniscrone and Carne and Connemara at approximately 45 Euro rather than 120 or 150. Truly makes it reasonably affordable.
So, back to the Insomniac. Each year WGC has a fundraiser with an interesting twist. Appear at the club at 4:15 a.m., hand over your 20 Euro and wait for the shotgun start for a "scramble" competition to begin at 5:00. For the edification of non-golfers, a scramble works thusly: each player hits a tee-ball/drive and then the team goes to the best shot and everyone plays from there. You continue along like this until the ball is holed. You never have to live with your worst shot. A very good thing for me...
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| Colm creating a deceptive "putt trail" in the dew to confuse our following competitors. A man after me own heart. |
I was very fortunate to have been paired with two pleasant "lads" who were out to have fun and didn't seem to care about the competitive aspect of the day. Pat and Colm were good companions and Pat turned out to be a superb golfer. He currently plays off a seven handicap and BC (before children) had played off a two. And it was quite evident. He had every shot in the book. When Colm had to leave after nine to pick up relatives in Sligo, our "team" really became Pat. I contributed a putt or two - and a surprisingly effective wedge shot at 18 - but tee to green it was mostly Pat - and without a grumble. Lovely fellow. Thanks to tournament organizer Enda Lonergan for pairing me with these fine fellas.
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| Good morning WGC |
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| Part of the brave group. I'm fourth from the left, standing down the hill a bit. |
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| Pat on the left, Saoirse in the middle, goofy looking Yank on the right. Saoirse was representing the Golf4Girls4Life bunch. What a sweet and charming young lady. |
The Insomniac is made possible by the extraordinary quantity of sunlight this time of year. Sunrise was at 4:56 a.m. yesterday and sunset was at 9:56 p.m. An astounding seventeen hours. In contrast, in Vero Beach, sunrise was 6:25 a.m., sunset at 8:18 p.m., about three hours less. Since the gates to WGC are always open, you can pop on down and play nine holes starting as late as 8:00 p.m. to shake off the lethargy of a big dinner. You'll have no problem following your ball through the gloaming at the end of your round. Of course, you'll pay in the winter when the sunrise will be as late as 8:40 a.m. and the sunset will be as early as 4:06 p.m. - only seven and one-half hours.
This year, the beneficiary of the event was the Girls4Golf4Life program that is being held at WGC to get more young ladies involved in the game. The program has become quite successful with over 40 girls participating. The goal of the fundraiser was to supply the girls with distinctive jerseys to help create an identity for them and the sport (ok, game) to compete with the many, many other athletic pursuits available around the town such as Gaelic football and hurling, basketball, soccer, etc.
It really was a beautiful morning and I was happy to have joined in. Of course, it meant forgoing some excellent music at McGing's the night before so I could answer the call of the alarm at 3:30 a.m. Padraic said the group, the Clandestinos, was an excellent seven-piece reggae/ska band well-worth seeing and he warned me they might not play again during our visit. So, a sacrifice for the greater good... Of course, we'll be seeing a great duo at McGing's this evening, so the sacrifice has been offset by the musical richness of the town. Redemption.