This has been a long and brutal Wisconsin winter, seemingly without end. I tried earlier this season to put together several golf trips: Scottsdale, Myrtle Beach, Palm Desert.

We were almost ready to book for eight to Scottsdale, but it fell through last minute. The logistics of getting a group trip together never seem to work out.

Walking in to work day after day in temperatures ranging from -20 to 20 degrees with no end in site, it was time I took matters in to my own hands and booked a flight, for just myself, to Tampa.

My best girl-friend since high school, Stacy, moved down to Tampa a couple years ago with her fiance, Eric, who became one of my favorite golfing buddies before they moved. I have never witnessed anyone transform their golf game the way that Eric did our one summer together. He was shooting mid-90’s at Fairways of Woodside to start the year, and through studying his swing and working on his game was consistently in the low-to-mid-70’s by the end of the season.

Eric and I will be meeting up at Tampa International Airport tomorrow morning, with plenty of time to get in some golf during the day. I haven’t heard back yet for sure, but I believe we’re playing Streamsong tomorrow. If you have not seen Streamsong in pictures yet, you really owe it to yourself to check out their website – for example:

Saturday will be an epic day of golf at World Woods – 18 in the morning on the Pine Barrens (perennially one of the top 100 courses in the country), followed by 18 in the afternoon on the Rolling Oaks, being joined by my cousin’s boyfriend/common-law husband, Dan. Dan and I played 36 at World Woods last year, and had an absolute blast there.

Sunday is open at this point. Eric has a baseball game he’s supposed to start on the mound in the morning, but if Streamsong comes back to me with Sunday tee times then it’s all up in the air. The other option is to potentially go fishing with Dan.

Monday morning will be spent at TPC Tampa Bay, followed by a flight back home to cold, wintry Wisconsin.

To say I’m excited is an understatement. I bought a new golf outfit to wear at Streamsong, five dozen balls, and already packed my bags last night. My camera’s battery is charged, and I’ve just got a couple of errands to run tonight before hopefully getting to bed early to get some rest before my early morning flight.

It’s crazy how much your outlook changes when you simply have something to look forward to. Without that, Wisconsin winters can seem nearly unbearable.

What kind of swing will I be putting on the ball this weekend? Who knows. All I know is I will enjoy the hell out of my time in the sun, away from the cold and snow, gray skies and golf-less Midwest.