Home Sweet
Playing golf on the road can be expensive.
Hotel rooms, rental cars, and restaurant bills for five to six nights aren't exactly cheap.
Playing golf on the road can be lonely and monotonous.
Coming back to the same hotel room each and every night after a long day on the course and overanalyzing a round of golf isn’t always the best nightcap.
However, the experiences I have had these past couple of weeks have been anything but what I have described above.
Some high-level tournaments have an option to provide host housing to any player traveling from out of town. The Monroe Invitational in New York does a great job of this, as they try to immerse the players into the community of Pittsford. Personally, I think it is an incredible way to spend a week.
The Faulks Family - Pittsford, New York
My teammate, Cameron Pero, had been linked up with the Faulks Family through the tournament director. After only being promised an air mattress (which is totally fine for me), I got on my flight to Rochester. Upon landing, Matt (the dad) picked me up from arrivals, and we headed straight back to the house to give me “the tour.” To my surprise I had an entire bedroom to myself, which, in turn, meant Matt and his wife, Liz (the mom), were the ones sleeping on the air mattress. After begging them for two straight nights, they wouldn’t budge on the sleeping arrangement. Cameron arrived later in the day, and we both spent the afternoon practicing and putting, getting a feel for Monroe Golf Club. We made our way back to the Faulks' house to be greeted by two people that would turn into the storyline of the week: their six-year-old, Piper, and her younger sister, Hazel.
Energy bounced off the walls, and while it was not ideal for rest purposes, it certainly exposed me to a new perspective of family life. Days were spent on the course, nights were spent watching Alvin and the Chipmunks and fending off the young girls who were constantly grabbing our hats and legs. We learned about Matt’s time as a Merchant Marine, his trips to Japan, and his work on the Deepwater Horizon. I got the rundown on how Matt and Liz met, her stories of teaching high school in downtown Rochester, and even got to meet some of their friends when we spent a night at the club pool! The last night turned out to be my favorite night. The fam and I watched Rise of the Guardians (a great movie for all ages!) and the following rainy morning, Matt walked with me for all 18 holes of the final round. He even got to witness a hole out from 120 from a bunker! Matt was quoted multiple times throughout the week, saying how Cam and I were “the two sons he never had.”
Although I am sure that comment was a little sarcastic, I think it shows just how cool the host family experience is.
A week or two after the Monroe Invitational was the Illinois State Amateur. When I was preparing to make the trek down to Bloomington, and knowing mutual friends lived down there, it felt like a perfect excuse to have a similar experience to my time in Rochester. This is something I hope to do more of once I turn professional while traveling to more corners of the U.S.
The Castillo Family - Bloomington, Illinois
The Illinois State Amateur is usually conveniently stationed somewhere close to my house. This year was an exception. Fortunately, my teammate, Sam Mortell, said a few of us could stay at his aunt and uncle’s house in Bloomington. Without hesitation I said yes.
I make the three-hour trip downstate Monday morning, listening to music and podcasts, with nothing but my golf clubs and a duffel bag full of clothes for the week ahead. After a successful practice round, I arrived at the Castillo home met with handshakes and smiles. Mr. and Mrs. Castillo were welcoming and warm, not a surprise knowing the Mortell family. The first night we settled in, taking our bedrooms and getting a lay of the land, only to close the night off with an episode or two of Full Swing, the Netflix series which Mr. Castillo really loved.
After playing the first two rounds of the event, we were treated to Mr. Castillo’s grilling, and Mrs. Castillo’s baking, something I am now craving as I write this. The more I look back at my week in Bloomington, I remember less and less of the golf and more of the experience under that roof. I remember riding along for 12 holes in a cart as my teammate Sam and his dad played MORE golf at the club where the Castillo’s were members. I remember diving into long conversations about my life, discussing college and professional golf, as well as learning about their lives. I now knew about Mr. Castillo’s career in medicine, and his love for the game of golf. As I walked out the door to leave for home, I was sent off with hugs and smiles from Rich and Denise, and promised the next time I was in Bloomington I would knock on their door.
Quite the two weeks of family experiences! And not to mention two Top 15 finishes to go along with the formation of true bonds.
In the end, the golf was fun. Yet, getting to know people, making connections, and diving into people’s lives; that is what I truly enjoy.
