Prelude to PGA final: A hot time at Grapevine Golf Course near Dallas

GRAPEVINE, Texas – Well before Martin Kaymer’s crazy victory at the PGA Championship, we played a little survival golf of our own Sunday at the Grapevine Golf Course in Grapevine, Texas in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

It was survival in the sense that by noon the temperature was well over the century mark with hardly a breath of wind. By the time my twosome found the teebox on our final hole around 2:30 p.m., the goal had changed from shooting a good score to making it to the comfort of the clubhouse.

In a sense that was a shame, because Grapevine Golf Course was a very pleasant surprise. I had been told that it was better than your average municipal, but it exceeded all expectations. Eighteen of the 27 holes at Grapevine were originally designed by Byron Nelson and Joe Finger. D.A. Weibring and his Golf Resources Inc., performed a renovation about 10 years ago and added the newest nine holes, the Bluebonnet Nine to the mix.

The result is a course that not only doesn’t look or feel like most municipals, but matches up well with many of the private clubs in the area. Conditions at Grapevine Golf Course were excellent, especially considering the hot summer temperatures. But more than that, Grapevine is an interesting golf course on a nice rolling piece of property, with plenty of doglegs, mature trees, water hazards and compelling greens complexes.

Perhaps more intriguing, though, is that I actually saw a guy walking the course, carrying his own bag. In the fall, winter and spring, this 31-year-old course is very walkable ? just not now.

The night before, we checked out the Texas Rangers-Boston Red Sox game. It was pretty hot there, too. Most years, the heat really kills attendance. But this is year has been different as the Rangers have a commanding lead in their division.

There were 48,000 of us there during the Saturday night sellout, and there was a breeze, which made it much more bearable. Of course, winning makes almost anything bearable, although the Rangers did lose the game ? the only one they lost in the three-game series. I’m thinking this year, Ranger fans might be rewarded in October, though ? cooler temps and perhaps a World Series.