Just returned from a golf trip to Portugal. For those of you inclined toward a golf trip, you would be hard pressed to find a better location. The courses were great. The food was excellent (who can argue with grilled meat products?). And everything was cheap.
For me, this golf trip was bitter sweet. I have been going on golf trips with a core group of guys for almost ten years and have a ton of great memories from all of them. About three weeks after I moved to Belgium, I lost one of my dearest friends and the best golfer in our little group. Understandably, we did not go on a trip last year. None of had our heart into it. Over the last year however, we decided that Chris would not want us to stop. He was the guy who always connected everyone. The glue of our team and often the comic relief on the trip. So it seemed fitting that we try to continue the tradition.
We played four rounds in four days, which is a little less golf than normal. The golf itself was our usual mix of hero shots with a solid collection of hacks and laterals. We did a lot of ball-breaking and reliving past glories, but there was a definite hole in the trip. Golf is a game for four and three isn't quite the same.
Say what you want to about golf, but it is a great opportunity for friends to get together, enjoy the outdoors, talk a little trash, and enjoy one another's company without distraction. For us, I think this trip was also a little bit of healing. We will almost certainly do the trip again next year, and I hope for many years thereafter. Our fourth will also be there in the stories we tell and in our hearts.
