Mike, Maury and Last Minute Golfer Members

I would like to say thank you for all of the support that LastMinuteGolfer.com gave the 50 in 50 with the "Birdies for Bucks" Sponsorship. I believe the total was around 145 birdies with the majority coming in the second half of the trip. The $10,000 will go along way in our mission.

To say the least this was a trip of a lifetime. Not only as a golf professional getting the chance to travel all 50 states playing golf in each one, but having the opportunity to do something for others. When we began the trip on June 9th, I was skeptical how we would hold up.  After only a few days on the road however we met some amazing people. Cancer Survivors, who preached the message that you can't ever give up, and researchers that spoke with us and demonstrated how their efforts were getting us ever closer to the cure. At almost every stop we heard stories of survival and the message of how early detection does save lives. It made you excited to get up every morning to see where we were and to meet another extraordinary person.

The other great story of this trip was something that I suspected for many years. The U.S.A. is covered up with great "Public" golf courses. Everyday as a golf professional I hear stories of people wishing they could play at the great private tracks; but I am here to tell you that the public golf courses across this country are every bit as good as the private courses. In fact we stumbled upon Edgewood Golf Course in Fargo, ND.; now we may have caught everything at a perfect moment, but this golf course was wall to wall emerald green.  As I typed in my blog, it looked every bit as nice as Augusta National; and at around $25 a round, is a no brainer for the best golf value on the trip. The stories of great golf courses could and will eventually fill many pages.

I should not forget the press. We were interviewed by newspaper, TV News, radio, and internet media all around the country. Our final day in Hawaii was like a day with paparazzi. We started with a morning tv show on Honolulu ABC channel 4, and then we were followed around the golf course by 2 TV stations, AP news and 2 local papers.  We were even on CNN Headline News all day July 23rd!  Bill and I were laughing but we were happy to get their help to spread our message and to talk about sponsors like Last Minute Golfer that were helping us get out there. Just about all of the news coverage we received around the country is listed on our website under media schedule.

Again I want to say thanks for the support of LastMinuteGolfer.com and its members. There are some great shots of the bus and chase vehicle on the website and so many great videos on our you tube channel covering the entire trip. I hope that you all take a moment to take a look. We will be finishing our trip by having a party in the next couple weeks and drawing our raffle prize winners which include trips to Pebble Beach, Pinehurst and Whistling Straits. Check back on the website for the details!

Plenty of tickets are still available at the website.

www.the50in50.com

www.youtube.com/50in50golf

Thank you for the support,

Craig Forney

The 50 in 50

Good Morning from Hawaii

The journey is almost over. We had another spectacular golf day. We played at Presidio Golf Club at the Golden Gate Park and the course conditions were great. The weather was foggy, misty and 55 degrees, typical san fran weather. The golf was not bad, I think we must be anticipating the end of the journey  and returning home rather than golfing. We scrambled around getting everything packed for the 5 hour flight. I am happy to report I am sipping on a cold beer at the bar at the Doubletree on Waikiki Beach. Sorry if i misspelled that.

Scores

Craig 74 with 2 birdies

Bill 80 with 1 birdie

We have a pretty busy night and morning. We are doing a radio interview at 11:30 pm here for Boston Radio 5:30 am, time is all messed up. We then will be at KITV CBS at 6:30 in the morning for a live show. I hope you will watch it on the web live at 12:30ish on their site www.KITV.com. We will then head to Kapolei Golf Club for the final round of the 2008 50 in 50. Wow, the final round.

Looking forward to getting back to Atlanta and back to Fayetteville Golf Club and teaching at St Marlo.

Craig and Bill

Well we have survived the Alaskan tundra, seen aircraft carriers in Tacoma and tee off before dawn in Eugene. Three days of more great golf and stories. In my last email we were on our way to the course in Anchorage and the weather was brutal. We played at Moose Run but the only wild life we saw was a squirrel. The Creek Course that we played is ranked in the top 50 hardest in the nation. The layout was tough and the lack of sun and warm weather made the conditions a little tough. I imagine in a few weeks the course will grow in more just in time for Winter to set back in. The views were great even if the weather was a bit dreary.

The highlight of Alaska would have to be our visit to the Providence Cancer Center, a brand new state of the art treatment center. We interviewed Les Day, a 2 time prostate cancer survivor and his physician, Paul Ferrucci. Les is in his 60's and still plays competitive hockey and looks like he could take you in a fight. Les tells the story of how he found out that he had prostate cancer by chance. Following the interview we got a behind the scenes tour and visited 2 of the most interesting parts of the facility. The first is the state of the art exercise area that is used for cancer patients during and following their treatments. But the most inspiring was the Susan Butcher Family Center that helps families cope when a loved one is diagnosed with cancer. They work with many children from  2 to 17 to help them understand the disease, and how to deal with day to day life when a parent is sick. Just standing in this room you couldn't help but to feel for the children who are not only stricken with cancer but those who have parents with the disease.

Yesterday we played just south of Seattle at the Trophy Lake Golf and Casting Club. It was once again one of the most beautiful courses we have played not to mention one of the toughest. From the first tee shot we were in awe of this pristine setting and grinding to keep our golf balls in play. The highlight however was not golf, but the American Bald Eagle that flew over us on the 18th fairway. The golf course was built on an old Christmas Tree Farm and it must be something to behold with a blanket of snow. The course is in Bremerton, WA which is a Naval port and it was quite a site to see 4 Aircraft Carriers there in port. Like the Grand Canyon, they are much larger in person than in any picture.

Today was an early one, we had a 5:30 tee time. We were in Eugene, Oregon playing at River Ridge and it didn't seem like anything special until we arrived. We were met by owner operator Ric Jeffries and his 2 border collies, Ridge and Bogie. The golf course has the feel of an old country club and was designed by Ric. The greens were perfect and the scenery was great. Ric has planted over 120 species of trees and placed several species of bird houses throughout the property which has earned the club Audubon status. But wait there's more, Ric also leads the First Tee Program, which offers classes for the University of Oregon, a local Community College, Special Olympics, and clinics for all ages. Traveling 50 states doesn't seem very hard when you meet someone with this type of work schedule. This is yet another example of how a local public golf course is very active in the community and it garners support in return from the community.

Now for the scores:

Moose Run Craig 75 Birdies 2 Bill 78 Birdies 0

Trophy Lake Craig 80 Birdies 1 Bill 80 Birdies 2

River Ridge Craig 75 Birdies 1 Bill 75 Birdies 2

We are in California on our way to San Fransisco, and then off to Hawaii after tomorrow's round. It is hard to believe we are almost done with this journey.

Thank you for your support and a special thanks to LastMinuteGolfer.com for the Birdies for Bucks sponsorship, Mizuno for the equipment, Titleist for all the golf balls, Nike for the golf shirts, and EZ GO golf cars for the cars for the raffle.

Make sure you are buying raffle tickets. The drawing is only a few weeks away.

Craig and Bill

Good Morning from Anchorage Alaska,

It is rainy and 50 degrees.  But it would take more that that to stop this crew.  Yesterday was spectacular, we were in Couer d'Alene, Idaho.  I can't put into words what a beautiful spot this was.  We played at the Circling Raven Golf Club on the Couer d'Alene Indian Reservation.  The golf course was immaculate and the views and weather only enhanced what we experienced.  If I had time I would wish to tell you about every breath I took and relive this place over and over again.  This fresh air stuff I think gives one a euphoric experience.  If you have not been to this region of the country do it now before Mastercard is making a commercial and the final phrase is not "priceless" but "maxed out".  It is still pretty inexpensive but you can see the growth is coming.

After a great golf experience we climbed in  the chase vehicle to get to Seattle to catch a plane to Alaska.   We must have been to a big hurry, because we got our first speeding ticket of trip.  The trooper went easy on Bill but he still gave him a ticket.  We landed in Anchorage around 9pm and it was like 5 in the afternoon.  When I finally dozed off it was around 12:00 (4:00 am est) and it was still light. 

We are off tho Fort Richardson and the Moose Run Golf Club.  I hope we see some moose or is it mooses or maybe meese.  I don't know but I hope we see some and a bear or two. 

I will email the update late tonight or in the morning.  Thanks to you all for supporting this journey.

Thanks Titleist for sending more golf balls.  BIG THANKS to Mike Last and LastMinuteGolfer.com for the Birdies for Bucks sponsorship.  And Thanks to Mizuno for all the equipment.

Craig and Bill

Howdy Y'all from Cheyenne,

We are pulling out from the F E Warren Air force Base and the Warren Golf Course.  We had another great day and once again we stumbled upon inspirational individuals.  We began the morning with an interview of Gretta Morrow, a lymphoma survivor who told yet another story that furthers our conviction for being out here.  Gretta survived because she was given treatments that were clinical trials, not standard treatments.  Gretta was told she would not live, but she did and now she devotes her life to helping others with cancer.  She has led the way in passing legislation at the state and national levels to aid in cancer research and awareness.  What a gift to so many in having her survive her battle with cancer.  I will let her tell the story and it will be posted tomorrow on the You Tube site. 

We were greeted at the base by Sgt. Kurt Arkenberg, who was able to pull a few strings to allow a group of misfits travelling the country playing golf and spreading the word of cancer awareness to make a visit.  We took a few minutes to interview Lt Colonel Stroebel who heads the clinic at the base.  He told us how cancer prevention is part of all soldiers annual check up, and it is required that they have a check up so there is a greater chance that they will catch cancer early.  After the interviews we donned our cowboy hats and teed it up for a round of golf.  We continued to roll in the birdies today, Bill made 2 and shot 80.  He is looking forward to having an adjustment of his handicap index.  I shot my second straight round in the 60's making 5 birdies and carding a 68.  I like the groove that I am getting in.  We saw quite a few antelope on the course and as many prairie dogs on the course as rabbits in Utah. 

The ride to Billings should be around 8 hours so it will be a late night.  Thanks for tuning in and for the support.

Craig and Bill

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Good Morning from Cheyenne, Wyoming.

We have had some busy travel days so let me catch you up to speed. Sunday morning was the morning after a night in Las Vegas. Due to advertising restrictions, "What Happens in Vegas stays in Vegas," I can't really say much. The golf course we played was Bear's Best which is the sister course to the Bear's Best in Atlanta. The golf course was great and quite a challenge from the back tees. The golf course pitched a no hitter at us we didn't have a single birdie and both shot 83's. You should make sure to watch the video from Vegas, it was quite comical.

From Vegas we went to St. George, Utah and played golf among the red rocks at Coral Canyon Golf Course. The color contrasts were stunning and the golf again was tough when you are hitting into the desert often. I had 3 birdies but still struggled to a 76 and the desert took its toll on Bill only offering him an 86. The most interesting thing was that we saw what must have been 500 rabbits on this course. Granny Clampett would have been able to make up a mess of rabbit stew at this course.

We then left for Denver, Colorado and the ride was one of the most beautiful I have ever seen. We drove along the Colorado River and squeezed the bus through massive canyon walls and made a stop at the Vail Pass, 10,000 feet in elevation. It was incredible. Monday morning was Denver and the Wellshire Golf Club, a Donald Ross track that yielded plenty of birdies and more beautiful views. We were joined by both NBC and CBS local news stations and our producer Roger Herr's brother, Ray. The golf course was in perfect condition and the scores made an improvement. Bill shot 79 with one birdie and left many shots out there and I shot 69 for the second time but made 6 birdies, a lot of room for improvement.

From the golf course we headed north 2 hours to Cheyenne. We will be playing this morning at the Warren Air Force Base, can you imagine what strings had to be pulled to allow us on a military base. This should be interesting. We won't be here, but the Cheyenne Frontier Days starts on Friday and from the buzz in the air its going to be a great time.

After play today we have a long journey to Billings, Montana so I will get today's round out on the road trip.

Thanks to all of you for your support. We are almost home.

Don't forget to visit the websites and see the daily videos.

www.the50in50.com

www.youtube.com/50in50golf

www.LastMinuteGolfer.com Birdies for Bucks 107 and counting.

www.Mizunousa.com Official Equipment Company of The 50 in 50

www.Titleist.com Official ball of The 50 in 50

www.EZGOgolfcars.com Official Golf Car of the 50 in 50

Craig and Bill

July 11, 2008

State 39

What a treat to spend your birthday in the cool climate of Flagstaff, Arizona, the majestic beauty of the Grand Canyon,  the engineering marvel at the Hoover Dam and of course, Las Vegas!

When we arrived at the Continental Country Club for our 39th round, I was greeted in the clubhouse by a large Happy Birthday sign, balloons and a great chocolate cake(which was devoured very quickly after the round). Special heartfelt thanks to Suzie Hite,  at the club, who has followed our journey after a call from her brother about us. He is from Woodstock, Vermont and sent Suzie to our web site. Suzie also made a donation to our cause. Thanks again, Suzie for your kindness and consideration.

Flagstaff is a great getaway for many people tired of the intense heat of Phoenix. We enjoyed the golf course and the ego boost we get as golfers from the high elevation.(7,000 ft) The ball travels exponentially further and it took us a few holes to get acclimated!  Craig continues to play well with four more birdies. I think we have reached our initial goal of 100! Hopefully, some other sponsor will pick up where Last Minute Golfer stops and we can add more dollars to our cause.

The Grand Canyon stop was a treat and we took full advantage by filming a fun segment you all

will see very soon. Great cinematography will overcome bad acting, so it should be fun to watch! 

Vegas was fun.......and that's all I'm going to say on the subject!!! 

Finally, I want to thank all of my friends and family who called and sent birthday wishes....it means a lot to those who took the time to remember. My only regret is that we didn't get to spend it together. But, this trip and cause is worth it every minute! We comment frequently about the scenic beauty we've seen and are about to see over the final ten days. But without a purpose, without a cause, without love, and without people, it truly has no meaning. 

Now on to state number 40!

Hello from the High Desert.

We have started the long grind of driving in the southwest and it will be interesting to see how it affects us all. Wednesday was relatively subdued, we played at Comanche Trail which was the first of the municipal golf courses that seemed truly municipal. From the moment we stepped on the property the cheery employees gave off that unmistakable feel of how overjoyed they were to be there and working. The golf course layout was good and the greens were very nice. It was a bit tough playing along side the dog pound, I hope that all the yelping was because it was feeding time and they were hungry. But all in all it was a good experience. On one of the final holes we came across a local newspaper sports writer who is a recent prostate survivor and we enjoyed talking with him . After golf we stopped in a local steak house and hunkered down on some prime beef. Oh yea we played good golf, I shot 72 with 3 birdies and an eagle and Bill shot 76 with a birdie also.

We arrived in Albuquerque last evening and checked out the local scene. We had a "New Mexico" dinner which was nothing like any Mexican dinner I had ever eaten. This morning we played at Ladera Golf Club, home of Notay Begay, the first Native American to became a member of the PGA Tour and winner of 2 tour events. This course was very busy from the moment we arrived. As we were finishing the 2nd hole a coyote walked right up on the green just a few feet from Bill. I was a bit startled, I have seen them before but never had one walk right up to me. Unfortunately, we didn't get it taped since the guys were filming the hot air balloons that fly regularly over the area. Ladera was a great golf course, the greens were quite fast and had a lot of break to them. We could only manage one birdie, which I recorded on the 17th hole, not to mention the 4 putt and 3 putt I had had earlier in the round. Oh well, there will be many more of those in my lifetime. I shot a 76 and Bill put up an 80 but his ball striking has continued to improve. As for media we were lucky enough to have ABC and NBC there along with the local newspaper all helping to get the word out about our journey and the importance of early detection and screenings.

We are now on the bus for 5 hours on our way to Flagstaff. The landscape is so unusual but beautiful also. I will probably spend the next several hours just enjoying the views and remembering how lucky I am to have the opportunities and support that I have been given.

Thank you to all of you for your support and continued emails. Thanks to Lastminutegolfer.com, Mizuno, Titleist,EZ-GO and the crew for their great work.

Craig and Bill

Well we once again had great golf experiences and better yet, we visited old friends and made many new ones.  Kansas City was such a great city, the City of Fountains, and with it being split by Missouri and Kansas it gave us and opportunity to take some time to regroup and do some extra activities. 

I spent my first night in town visiting my good friend Brian Irvine and his new wife Meagan and made myself at home by bringing over my laundry and sneaking a home cooked meal.  It was the perfect beginning to this stop.  But Sunday morning when BI, his brother-in-law, Grant, and I started on our way to Tiffany Greens I received a disturbing call.  Bill was violently ill and there was no way for him to leave his hotel room.  Roger and Darryl loaded up the chase vehicle and scrambled to meet me with my clubs at the course to tape the NBC live shot for the morning news.  Once we all arrived at the club everything went smooth.  Tiffany Greens was great, the golf course was in great shape and I rolled in 4 birdies on route to shooting a 75.  After a quick BBQ lunch we went to the Kansas City Cancer Survivors Park and I had the opportunity to meet Annette Bloch.  Mrs. Bloch's husband was Richard Bloch the founder of H&R Block.  Mr. Bloch was diagnosed with lung cancer and given 2 months to live, but his determination and and willingness to try any means necessary treatments to defeat the disease, he lived for 24 wonderful years with a passion to help others survive cancer.  The Bloch's started the R. E. Bloch Cancer Foundation and for years have been building cancer survivor parks and providing a support hotline, all at no charge.  I had the opportunity interview 2 cancer survivors also, one of them was Dennis Walker, a stage 4 melanoma survivor.  Stage 4 is usually a death sentence, but Dennis used the same type of support and knowldege to defeat the disease.  It was a great day and I felt bad for Bill missing out.  Being that we are several days ahead of schedule he will return to KC when we leave Hawaii to make sure he gets to play all 50 in 50.

Monday was day 2 in KC and we held a small outing at Dub's Dread. Dub's was designed a built by Jug McSpadden, you may not know of him but look him up.  Jugs holds the PGA tour record for the most 2nd place finishes.  The year that Byron Nelson won 13 events, guess who finished 2nd at most of those?  The golf course was built in 1965 and in its original design it was a bit over 8000 yards, the longest in the world.  Jug's plan was to host the US OPEN, but he never realized his dream.  Many great players have played there and I will tell you that if you ever get the opportunity to play it, I promise you will walk away pleased by how nice the course and layout are but licking your wounds from playing one of the hardest courses you've played.  I struggled making only 1 birdie and shooting 79 and Bill shot an 85 which in his condition was pretty darn good.  After we played we headed to the 810 Zone to do some awards and share stories.  The party was a bit smaller than the one in Atlanta but the friends old and new made it great.

One quick side note, Bill walked around the bar to sell raffle tickets. One customer told him "we are not interested", you are interrupting, now go away."  We found it amusing and Bill got over it.  The customer called back to the bar when he got home to make the manager aware that he had a panhandler begging for money there.  The manager made him aware of who and what Bill was doing and he immediately apologized and wished us luck on our endeavour.  It was pretty funny looking back.

We are on the road right now headed toward Edmond, Oklahoma to play Rose Creek this afternoon. 

I hope you all have a great day, thank you for your support and for spreading the word of what we are trying to do.

Thanks to Lastminutegolfer.com, EZ-GO Golf Cars, Mizuno, Titleist and all of you.

Here is the link to the newscast in KC

do/redirect?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbcactionnews.com%2Fmediacenter%2Flocal.aspx%3Fvideoid%3D375724%40kshb.dayport.com%26navCatId%3D4295http://www.nbcactionnews.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=375724@kshb.dayport.com&navCatId=4295<//a>

Take Care

Good afternoon everyone-

Well once again we are inspired. Today we teed it up at the Miracle Hill Golf Club, a golf course that to look at on a scorecard you may think is a bit short but to play it in 25 mph winds is a totally different thing. Miracle Hill is the home of the longest hole in one in American golf. In 1965 the 10 hole a 444 yard par 4 was aced. Now understand that it was dry and there was a 50 mph tail wind helping but that is still pretty incredible. This hole in one is not the only claim to fame of this golf course, it is also the home to one of the PGA's finest golf professionals, Ryan Bloomberg. Ryan is not only the Head Professional, but he is also a friend to his community. One of Ryan's closest friends is Jay Davis, last year while getting his hair cut, Jay's barber noticed a mole that looked unusual and mentioned that he should have it checked by his doctor. Unfortunately that mole turned out to be melanoma. Ryan and his close friend and owner of The Caddy Shack, Jay Johnson, stepped into action and put together a benefit tournament to help Jay since he did not have health insurance. In 3 short weeks they sold out a 144 person tournament and sold 200 tee sponsors to raise over $20,000 to help Jay. Today we met Jay, a shy person who told us he would probably not finish 18 hole because his chemo treatments had zapped his strength. But Jay surprised not only us but himself by finishing the round and shooting 79. Bill and I both notice that Jay never stopped smiling throughout the entire round. I could go on and on about this round but if you go to the you tube channel you can get more there. www.youtube.com/50in50golf

As for the match and the "Birdie for Bucks" sponsored by Lastminutegolfer.com we had a barn burner. I started off like a bull in a china store hitting the ball all over but held it together making one birdie on the back nine shooting 78 and Bill almost holed his second on the 3rd hole leaving himself a kick-in birdie on his way to shooting a 78 also. I managed to edge him out in the match play but I was glad to see him finish his second straight round in the 70's.

We finished our time in Omaha up at The Caddy Shack, knocking back a few beers, downing some hot wings and doing our daily wrap up. Once again we are inspired by others to continue our journey and get the message out about the importance of early detection and raising funds for research.

One quick side note, I got an email from a friend who said that he was inspired to by the videos and that he was going to pledge $5.00 for every birdie we make on the trip. Thanks TB. I was also approached by one of the rangers on the course today that said thanks for what we are doing and handed me a $50 bill. I found out later that he was just diagnosed with Lymes disease. Even in his time of need he wanted to do his part. Thanks S, you are great.

I hope that you are all having a good day and I will send more updates tomorrow.

visit the sites

www.the50in50.com info and for purchasing raffle tickets and head wear

www.youtube.com/50in50golf      video updates

www.lastminutegolfer.com Birdie for Bucks sponsor

www.mizunousa.com Equipment sponsor

www.titlelist.com Official golf ball of the 50 in 50

Craig and Bill

Well we are starting into America's Heartland and our great Country is celebrating its birthday.

We started celebrating this morning by playing Green Valley Golf Course in Sioux City, Iowa.  This city owned golf course was packed for the holiday and it was in great shape, the greens in this region of the country are just perfect.  Bill jumped back into action today, making a birdie and firing a greatly improved round of 74.  I was happy to have him nipping at my heels all throughout the match.  I rolled the ball well on the greens today making 3 birds but left 4 or 5 on the lips.  I must have gotten a bit weak toward the end bogeying 2 of the final 3 to shoot 73, but I am very satisfied with the game.

The highlight of the day was the visit from 40 +/- cancer survivors and staff from the June E. Nylen Cancer Center who took time out from their 4th of July plans to help energize us to continue.  We met several wonderful people including a mother of 9 that is a breast cancer survivor, what a wonderful woman, and family.  I was surprised at the age of several of the survivors, this disease just keeps coming after younger and younger people.  As I mentioned, we are in America's Heartland and it is this type of sense of community that makes me proud to be doing this and proud to be an American.  As we also saw in Slidell, LA this community cancer center has just recently purchased one of the most advanced pieces of equipment to fight the battle against cancer. Again allowing their patients to stay close to home rather than travelling great distances to seek treatment.  It was wonderful to meet the families and play with some of the children, making me think hard about my family back in Atlanta.

We are in Omaha this afternoon preparing to watch some fireworks and get ready for tomorrow's round.  Thank you all for the continued support and well wishes.  Visit the website and you tube channel often for updates.

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http://www.lastminutegolfer.com/<//a>  Birdie for Bucks count went to 80 today.  Thanks to Mike Last for his generosity and support. $100 for each birdie with a total donation of up to $10,000

Craig and Bill

Good Afternoon to you all,

Well we have finished up playing at the Prairie Green Golf Course in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and once again we were treated to a great golf and weather experience. It would be easy for me to tell you that this was my favorite golf course so far since I made 4 birdies and shot a 3 under par 69, but that would not be fair to all of the other great courses we played. I will however say that this golf course was yet another example of how good the public golf courses in the US can be. From beginning to end this links style golf course has definately earned its reputation as South Dakota's Top Public Golf Course with perfectly manicured bent grass greens and fairways. The bunkers on the course used a dark coarse sand which made for easy playability which is nice when you are used to hitting out of soft sugar sand. Bill was shut out in the birdie count but his play has continued to improve and it is only a matter of time before he goes low on the course.

We had a visit from the ABC and CBS affiliates along with the local newspaper. It was funny at times watching the cameras jockeying for position to get a shot of two knuckleheads playing golf like Bill and I. Regardless, it was yet another opportunity to get the word out to folks about our mission and hopefully they will visit the website and get involved.

Last night we snuck over to a par 30 nine hole course with the camera guys for a little best ball match play. If they win they play golf and Bill and I have to film and do the editing. I wish I could use the NBC interview we did just prior to teeing off on what happened but I can't, no excuses. The camera guys led the match the entire time when when Bill birdied the 8th to get us even. Colin from the camera crew almost drove the 377 yard par 4 final hole but failed to make a short birdie putt leaving the match tied and allowing me the opportunity to breath a sigh of relief.

So with 31 states complete I want to again say thank you to you all. Thanks to our golf sponsors, Lastminutegolfer.com for their support, Mizuno USA, and to Titleist the official ball of the 50 in 50.

Have a happy and safe 4th of July!

Craig and Bill

Good Afternoon to you all,

I doubt that many of you have ever been to the state of North Dakota and even fewer of you have ever considered it as a great golf state; but I am here to tell you that we need to reconsider our opinions. We just finished playing the Edgewood Golf Course which is owned and operated by the City of Fargo and it may be one of the finest golf courses I have ever played. After completing the round we stood on top of the hill by the club house, enjoyed the amazing weather and looked one last time at this incredible golf course. I asked Bill during the round how did we get so lucky to continually stumble upon these great public golf courses. If you have ever walked the grounds of Augusta National Golf Club you may agree that if you took everyone off the golf course you would probably be walking through a well manicured park, and today we had the same feeling. Minus the cabins, the large clubhouse, ridiculously mounded greens and the gate that reads members only you will find a golf course that could rival the storied Augusta track. Make sure you take time to watch the you tube video that will be posted tomorrow about this stop. Thank you to Greg McCollough and his assistants, Scott and Matt for allowing us to play today.

As many of us do from time to time, I took a moment to reflect today on what we are doing and to remind myself how lucky we are to be enjoying this day while many others are suffering from cancers we are bringing awareness to, or any other type of cancer or disease. Don't forget those we are doing this for, and take a few moments today and everyday to realize that we all are very lucky to have what we have and that we can all do something for others without asking for anything in return. Even the smallest gesture can go a long way.

I was so moved by the day that I almost forgot that we did keep score today. Bill bounced back today making 2 birdies and shooting 78, with solid ball striking all day, while I could only get 1 birdie to fall, I did make 15 pars and finished with a good 72. Physically I don't look good but I am surprised that I am still able to wake up every morning at around 4:00 am eastern a get pumped up to play golf with only the slightest soreness. I credit that to all of those who get up everyday to battle cancer whether in their bodies or in the research labs.

I thank you all for the support you continue to show and I enjoy the emails and phone calls.

Craig and Bill

http://www.the50in50.com

www.youtube.com/50in50golf - Daily web videos of where we are going and who we are meeting

www.fargoparks.com visit the website of Edgewood Golf Course

Good Afternoon from the land of 10,000 lakes,

We have just finished up playing the University of Minnesota Les Bolstad golf course and once again we were treated to a great golf experience. It was an early day, we were up at 4:00 am and off to the golf course to do a live broadcast on the morning news on CBS channel 4 in Minneapolis. For a first time live broadcast I am happy to say that neither Bill nor I let any bad words fly which I think is good, no calls from the FCC. Once the interview was over we teed it up and set out on this hilly 1925 track. Measuring only a few yards over 6200 yards, this vintage course uses quick bent grass greens and the lack of a level lie to protect par. The weather was perfect for the second day in the row with temps in the high 50's to begin the round and topping out in the mid 80's at the end.

Scoring wise I struggled down the stretch bogeying 3 of the last 5 holes to shoot 74, sneaking in 2 birdies, while Bill shot an 82 but I am happy to report that his pitching has improved greatly which is a good sign for upcoming days.

Following play we did a little shopping at the local Cub Foods and we were taken off guard when an employee approached Bill and said "hey I saw you on the TV this morning and now you are here, thanks for what you guys are doing." That was not only funny but to have someone say "thanks" once again makes you feel good for what we are doing.

We are off to Fargo, ND and looking forward to continued good times and more new people and stories. Take Care and thanks for your support.

Don't forget to check out the you tube site to see all the updated daily videos. www.youtube.com/50in50golf

Craig and Bill

Good Afternoon

This week I will give Bill a break from writing our blog and take over. As many of you will notice from the videos posted on the YouTube Channel we have met some incredible people recently and today was no exception.

Today we were in Madison Wisconsin and the day began beautiful, temps in the mid 50's and sunny. We played golf at The Bridges Golf Club' once again it was another very nice course with exceptional greens. I am not sure if we were attacked by large "skeeters" or a rogue band of wild turkeys but they were biting us on the 7th and 8th holes. But if that is the worst thing that happens to us we will be very lucky. But the golf was over shadowed by the people we met. While playing the back nine we were joined by 2 ladies, Ann & Anne, of Ann's Hope a foundation for melanoma research and awareness. Both of these ladies have lost family members to this horrible disease and have created this foundation to try and bring awareness to the improtance of early detection and to fund research for finding a cure. We had a great time playing golf and learned much about their foundation and their deasire to help.

After we left the club we all headed over to Choose Hope, a company that sells specialty products to cancer survivors, care givers and friends of both. These ladies and Bob were incredible. This group of people don't come to work at Choose Hope, they come to fulfill a desire to help others. I can't begin to tell you how amazing it was to feel the energy that this company is filled with. Both Bill and I were once again re-energized after spending time with them. We helped fill orders and if you could see the number of orders that were coming in to this small business you could immediately see the magnitude of the impact of cancer. Choose Hope is not an ordinary company, when the phone rings it doesn't necessarily mean they are going to get a sale, it may be someone that is looking for someone to talk to about themselves or a loved one that is dealing with cancer and talk they will do, along with listening. When you see the video tomorrow I don't know if you will be able to feel what we did today, but it was truely an amazing afternoon.

Before we loaded up the bus to head to Minnesota we stopped by a local pub called the Old Fashioned for brats and beer, Pabst Blue Ribbon and Root Beer. To say the least I cleaned my plate and it was finger licking good, sorry KFC.

The website should have and updated birdie count later today, should be around 68 +\-. Thank you to Lastminutegolfer.com for the birdies for Bucks sponsorship and Mizuno for the great clubs, Titleist for the golf balls(we will be calling for a fill in order) and thank you to all of you for your emails and for keeping us in your thoughts. Don't forget to tell all of your friends to watch us on youtube and to buy raffle tickets or make donations to help find a cure for cancer.

More to come tomorrow

Craig and Bill

State 26 & 27

We can sum up the last two rounds with one word...rain! We had some wet moments out on the courses in South Bend, Indiana and Chicago, Illinois. Of course I can't find my rain gloves so it makes playing golf even more challenging! I'm running out of clean clothes! Does anyone know of a mobile dry cleaner?

Chicago, as always, is such a great town. The people always make you feel at home! Craig, Ryan, Darryl and myself went out to dinner at the Hole In The Wall Italian restaurant near our hotel. We decided to bring our small camera and have some fun! We hope you will see the video as we had a blast! Frank, the owner couldn't have been any nicer...he bought us a great appetizer and dessert to cap off a great meal. The folks in the restaurant treated us like celebrities. One table of very nice people sent one of their party over to ask if we played for the White Sox! Of course we didn't deny or confirm anything!

After dinner, we all went back to the hotel and I ended up getting invited to a Vietnamese wedding!

I think my new name is Ferris Bueller! Of course, everyone was dressed in very formal attire and yours truly was dancing and singing in shorts and t-shirt! Thank goodness our camera crew went to bed early!

Sunday morning we met two very amazing ladies at a private country club in Highland Park. Ruth is almost 92 years young and is a true cancer survivor. She still plays golf and has a great swing! Daughter Susie, a cancer survivor as well, designed a protective hat for golf you will soon see in our daily video and on our web site. I am constantly humbled and so encouraged by the people we have met on our trip! The human spirit we are fortunate to encounter every day lifts us all, it seems, to heights I cannot fathom....and we are only halfway there!

Stay Tuned..........

We are officially through the halfway point in our journey! It seems as if we just teed it up in Vermont yesterday. How fitting that state and course 25 was in Michigan. We had a very busy day with golf in the early morning and a very informative visit to the University of Michigan Cancer Research Center to discuss melanoma. We found a great deli near campus in Ann Arbor and had some VERY large sandwiches. (Twice)  Our day was made very special by meeting two great people-Rob Snyder, a PGA apprentice and Dave Horstman,  PGA club pro. Rob's mom is an 11 year breat cancer survivor and Dave is currently battling prostate cancer. Dave is one of the most positive people we have ever met. His attitude is something we all can aspire to in our daily lives. 

Craig and I had a treat to play with two very good friends in Ohio, Ed Jenkins and David Stuhlfire. I wish we could have spent some more time with our buddies, but we had to run on to the next state.

Craig is playing some great golf and hitting the ball as well as I've seen. My game, on the other hand, is struggling.  It's somewhat frustrating and golf seems more like work than a game. But, with Craigs help, we will work through it.

We obviously miss our family and friends, but the new friends we have made and continue to cultivate on our mission will be lifelong! 

We are in Chicago now. The days are running together and we have trouble concentrating with a lack of sleep. The demands on our time with media requests and our own film crew are becoming intrusive. But we know why we're here....I don't think we knew the magnitude of our cause and how powerful this has become.  

So we press on....

Hi everyone!

I'm going to give Craig a break and write this blog myself. Here we are on day 16. We've visited and played in 22 states, hit over 3400 shots and finished 792 holes! Craig has built such a big lead in our little match, I've lost count. But, more importantly, we are making great strides in spreading our message to the public. Our journey has taken us to some great golf courses, beautiful country and wonderful people. Of course you can see the video journey just about every day on our you tube site!

One aspect of this trip is how Craig and I are continually re-energized and inspired on a daily basis.

Every time we get down about missing our family and friends, we meet someone in a cancer treatment center, or visit a cancer survivors park and we have renewed focus forour mission.  

When we are weary from the travel or early mornings starting at 4 or 5am, someone will come into our lives to tell us their story about how cancer has affected them and thank us for our efforts. Truly amazing!

Both of us would like to thank everyone who participated in our Atlanta tournament and attended our party at Twist. I don't think there was a dry eye after the Shades of Pink Gospel Choir sang for the crowd! It was good to be home!

The Gulf Coast was a good stretch for us-the highlight had to be our visit to the Slidell Memorial Hospital Cancer Treatment Center. We will have a great video blog for you to watch shortly. Craig and I were asked for autographs by the staff at the center and we gladly obliged, but we really should have asked for autographs from the heroes who work day in and day out to help others in the treatment center! 

Last night, we had a great time on Beall Street in Memphis. As a big fans of the Blues, we were in heaven strolling along, listening to the live music at each club. It would have been fun to stay at the Peabody and watch the duck parade, but its not easy to park this big bus in any downtown area!

Now its on to Louisville and through the midwest. If we have time, we may stop by Churchill Downs and film us running around the track.....no, maybe not! 

And so day 8 has come to a close and we are getting closer to Atlanta with every passing mile. We had a very busy weekend going from Delaware to Baltimore and began this week in West Virginia and Virginia.

Saturday was a great day for golf and we found yet another great facility to play; Ed Oliver Golf Club in Wilmington Delaware. Believe it or not we were late again! Wilmington has as many streets with DuPont in them as Atlanta has Peachtree Streets! After driving through Little Italy and making several frantic calls we finally arrived at the club. It was our lucky day, we got the chance to play with the 2 chris'. I guess you have to be named Chris to be in course management here. GM Chris offered to play us in a friendly nassau with Head Golf Professional Chris. We accepted without knowing Head Pro Chris had just finished playing a few PGA and Nationwide Tour events. As we walked off the 18th we were $40.00 lighter, but had 2 great new friends and another great course was complete. They even erected a monument to Bill behind the 18th tee box.

Sunday was Father's Day and we headed into the inner city of Baltimore to Clifton Park Golf Club. Clifton Park was originally the grounds of the summer home of John Hopkins, and the mansion still stands out front. The golf course was amazing, and in incredibly good shape. We were joined on the course by several media outlets who were not versed on golf course etiquette and made a few mistakes, but we still had a wonderful experience. If you live in or plan on visiting Baltimore make it a point to play this historic 1915 track.

And now for today, Day 8 of our mission and the 12th and 13th states and courses on our schedule. We started early this morning at Cacapon State Park, the best state park course we've ever seen. Having a superb superintendent and healthy budget combined with great weather, made for a real playing treat. We were greeted on the first tee by many of the regulars who wished us well and offered course advice. Roger and his camera crew had a field day shooting the beautiful scenery. After finishing up 18 more holes we hopped back on the bus and were on our way to Winchester Va. We were playing The Rock Harbor Golf Club, and the name was very fitting! Not since Stonehenge was built have so many MASSIVE boulders been moved! This was a 7200 yard par 71 course which required us to bust every shot. We experienced our first rain of the trip which gave us a chance to watch the end of the US Open playoff between Tiger and Rocco, Wow what a finish! We finished the day said our Thank You's and were on our way to Charlotte.

We also spoke with cancer researcher, Dr. Ben Ho Park, who once again inspired us with insight into his dedication to finding a cure for cancer. Dr. Parks showed us some of the findings in the early stages of his project which focuses on breast cancer. Dr. Park also enlightened us to the fact that public funding for research has slowed; making private funding projects like ours important in continuing the search for a cure.

Thanks again for your support. Hopefully we will see you at the golf tournament at River Pines in Atlanta or at Twist Thursday night. Don't forget to buy your raffle ticket online to help support our cause!

Craig and Bill

Day 1

Day 2-3

Day 4-5