What’s it like for a normal hack golfer to play Augusta National? 2 years ago I got the unbelievable honor of playing the home of the Masters with a member. I still pinch myself. So what did I shoot? Let me take you on a hole by hole journey from the member tees:

I’ve been blessed to play so many great places. This just might be my favorite. Some places in golf are spiritual, North Berwick is one of them. A place where golf was meant to be. There may be better golf courses. But very few, if any, places I’d rather play golf.

A sad day. Phil’s legacy has taken a huge hit over the years and now is at rock bottom. Tiger was able to come back from controversy, but he was younger. And this is different. Non-consensual physical contact is something that won’t be forgiven easily if at all. Dammit. Some of our golf heroes just aren’t good people and that sucks.

We show a lot of the land. The dirt. The equipment. The construction progress. And that’s because watching something get built from nothing is genuinely exciting to us and for all our future guests to see. But over the next few weeks, I want to start highlighting the people actually making this thing happen. Because Candyroot doesn’t exist without them. First up: Carson Shaw. Carson is our Golf Course Superintendent and — more importantly — he was our very first full-time hire. A Statesville, NC kid who studied at NC State and went on to work at Quail Hollow — one of the most respected clubs in the country and host of major championships. He could have gone a lot of directions from there but chose to bet on something brand new instead. Right now, during grow-in season, his job is everything. Growing grass on a golf course is both science and patience. You’re managing soil, water, seed, weather, and time — and the margin for error is real. Carson is locked in. But that title also means something different at a startup than it does at an established club. It doesn’t mean you clock in, do your job, and go home. It means you show up every day to a place that doesn’t fully exist yet, figure out what needs to get done, and do it — whether it’s in your job description or not. For Carson, that’s meant leading media walkthroughs, being present for investor visits, handling the hundred small things that don’t have an owner yet, and he’s doing all of it with an attitude and work ethic that sets the tone for everyone who comes after him. This is what building looks like. Dirt and equipment, yes. But mostly people like Carson. 🌱

Made the drive over to North Berwick last night from Edinburgh to have dinner with @Top100Rick and Twitterless Zach. Had to wait for them to finish their 36 hole day at Muirfield and watched the storm that hit St Andrews/Fyfe roll over the firth right towards us. WOW what a storm

This was wacky. On 18 my buddy had a 5 footer for birdie. As he sets up, his Taylor Made Spyder putter head just falls off. Straight clean break. Didn’t put any weight on it or do anything weird. He’s not a club banger type of guy. I’ve never seen a putter break before without a violent action.