Tomorrow will be my first foray into golf. I have the priveledge of living in a beautiful area that also happens to host the biggest PGA tournament of the year that’s not a major…and some would argue that it’s bigger, better, and more important than the PGA Championship.
Whatever, I don’t know anything about that, or much about golf in general. I’ve never played anything other than miniature golf, and concerning the PGA, I’m what some would call a casual fan. But, that implies that on some level, I’m a fan, right? Well, I wouldn’t consider myself a casual fan, more of a casual follower since I only pay attention to the highlights and to any compelling stories (i.e. Tiger/Phil stuff).
Mrs. Mizerle06 and I decided that since we live here and it’s such a big event, we should take the opportunity to check it out. So, we obtained a pair of tickets and will be heading over to Sawgrass for tomorrow’s first round.
Spencer, of Tuna Golf fame, was nice enough to give me a little rundown of must-do stuff tomorrow. We’re by no means planning on following one golfer all day, but we’re definitely going to check out the big names: Tiger, Phil, Sergio, Vijay, etc. At some point we’ll be parking ourselves at the 17th island green to watch the hysterics unfold as the pros drop a few shots in the drink (that’s the right lingo, right?).
Here’s the problem…as you all may know from the previous S&F Field trip to the Old Spice Classic, I like to have photographic evidence to reminisce with in the future…oh, and to share with you all. Check out the list of prohibited items posted on the TPC site:
NO Cell Phones – including any cell phones with photographic capabilities
NO PDAs and/or other Portable E-mail Devices
NO Noise producing Electronic Devices
NO Cameras and/or Camcorders (other than Monday-Wednesday for personal photographic use only and without their cases)
NO Bags larger than 6″x6″x6″ in their natural state
NO Cases and/or Covers (such as chair or umbrella covers)
NO Signs, Posters and/or Banners
NO Televisions and/or Radios
NO Food and/or Beverage
NO Containers and/or Coolers
NO Pets
NO Bicycles
NO Ladders
NO Weapons (regardless of permit, including but not limited to firearms or knives)
I’m ok with leaving my ladder, television, cage, and knives at home…but really? No cell phones, cameras, or firearms!? I can actually live without the celly and not packing heat for the day…but I can’t take my camera? That sucks.
Any of you that have attended PGA events before, especially this one, holler back and let me know your take on how strict security is. If I show up with a camera, will they really not let me in?
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I think the no camera rule is in place purely for the noise factor (think at how many times Tiger and Stevie snapped at people taking pictures at the wrong time) Johnny(Quote)
the PGA is run by nazis! sparty(Quote)
actually for golf these kind of make sense Johnny(Quote)
that’s a good point, johnny. people take pics all the time so maybe they’re not that strict. mizerle06(Quote)
when was the last time a ladder made noise in someone’s backswing, johnny? I think some of these are there for comedic value. mizerle06(Quote)
Practice rounds you can bring cameras, after that…major no no….TPC Sawgrass is unbelievably beautiful. You’ll like it, GatorTrey(Quote)
I’ve seen aerial photos, trey. looks really nice. mizerle06(Quote)
by the way, anybody know when tee times are announced? mizerle06(Quote)
How do you get your bag into an unnatural state miz? Do you apply the GITC expectorant to it and it morphs into some type of polymer? knightwhosaysni(Quote)
what about heckling?
sae(Quote)
kwsn – I was thinking more along the lines of that being a bag placed in some sort of body cavity…that would be pretty unnatural. mizerle06(Quote)
The ladder rule is there so that it’s not in the way of other spectators. Johnny(Quote)
miz – I think tee times are up on the PGA tour website right now. HawkEye19(Quote)
color me jealous. spencer096(Quote)
thanks HawkEye…I missed those earlier.
http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/r011/tee-times.html mizerle06(Quote)
green? mizerle06(Quote)
I’ve been to three golf events – the Buick Open in Connecticut five years ago, the Deutsche Bank Open in Massachusetts three years ago, and the US Open at Oakmont two years ago. Never had a problem with having a cell phone (including cameraphone) or a camera on me. And I’ve got a pretty big camera with a bag for taking professional shots -as long as the camera doesn’t make noise (and with most digitals, you can kill the sound effects), you’re fine. Just don’t stand three feet away from someone on the tee box and expect to be allowed to shoot – bring a good zoom lens and stand 50 yards away. Big D(Quote)
Big D – we’ve got a really good camera with a great zoom and it will take photos without any sound. I think I’m gonna try to take it in. mizerle06(Quote)
in the WGC Bridgestone in akron, they searched everyone before they got onto the shuttle to make sure nobody had a camera or cell phone.
dunno if every tourney is different tho, but im surprised you could get into the US Open with a camera, big D. spencer096(Quote)
we live close enough that it’s an easy bike ride so I thought we would originally ride our bikes up there and park at the bike rack at the neighboring Publix but I’m not sure if that’s gonna work now. mizerle06(Quote)
I remember using my disposable camera at the 96 US Open at Oakland Hills. sparty(Quote)
@spencer
It surprised me too, I had to park like 15 miles away and take a bus, and everybody got searched before boarding. But the dude who checked me just said “make sure it’s on silent” and waved me through.
Got some pretty good shots too. If I think about it, I’ll link them at the end of this comment thread when I get home tonight. Big D(Quote)
this is why i go to the practice rounds at tigers tourney at sherwood mikeychx(Quote)
Meh, I’ll just link them here while I’m thinking about it. Some are from the tourney itself, some are from the Wednesday practice round.
Album 1
Album 2
My favorite photo of the group Big D(Quote)
damn…those pics rock. spencer096(Quote)
good pics, Big D. mizerle06(Quote)
Thanks. That “favorite photo” was my desktop background on like five computers for months. Big D(Quote)
awesome. i intend to go into photography in the future. jpmanahan(Quote)
This bodes will for the PGA come August then. Now I just need to track down an inexpensive couple of zoom lenses Hawkeye19(Quote)
hawk – just get you a good SLR (Sony, Canon, Nikkon) and a 75-300 mm zoom lens. it’s like looking through a pair of binoculars and if you’ve got a high megapixel camera (10+ mp’s), you can blow up and crop the pic to unbelievable sizes and detail. mizerle06(Quote)
I’ve a Canon Rebel XT that I bought when Circuit City was having it end of life sale. I’ve heard middling things about Canon’s 75-300 (at least their baseline one), so I’ve been keeping my eyes open for a slightly higher quality one. Hawkeye19(Quote)
i am among those some. spencer096(Quote)
Miz,
My guess is every tournament might be different. The camera I brought into the Buick & Deustche Bank were just small pocket-sized digitals so there was no problem with them. The one I brought into the US Open I was able to silence, so again, no issues.
Just be prepared – depending on who you run into, they might make you take your electronics back to a car and leave them there. So if you’re thinking of biking, just know that some jerk might make you bike all the way back home to return your stuff. I think it’s all in who you run into.
Or, you can just put everything in Mrs. Miz’s purse and have her act all PMS’ey when they start searching it. Big D(Quote)
Bay Hill > TPC GatorTrey(Quote)
our camera junk wouldn’t fit in mrs. miz’s 6×6x6 purse in its natural state. if we bike, there’s no way we take the big camera. if we drive though, I’m gonna make an attempt. mizerle06(Quote)
Easy solution. Put it in your pants. When they ask to search just say…”Ya…It’s that big.” Then nod over towards the misses. GatorTrey(Quote)
Trey, he’s saving that line for when he’s wearing jorts this fall. knightwhosaysni(Quote)
Excellent photos, Big D. I’ve got a question about album 2, page 4. (Full disclosure…I’m probably as old or older than most of your fathers, but S&F is my first read in the morning and I’ve been following you guys since the Shanoff days.) Who is the dude in the blue shirt/cap riding in the golf cart? His name is on the tip of my tongue but I can’t quite spit it out. badgerfan(Quote)
Ditto Trey’s idea, Miz. Talk it over with Mrs. Miz beforehand and if you’re asked that question, she starts smiling with a little drool running down the corner of her mouth. The guy will be to embarrassed not to let you in. badgerfan(Quote)
This was a nice piece,Miz. BrianBridgePro(Quote)
@ Badgerfan
My bad – didn’t see this comment when you posted it. That’s Johnny Miller. He drove up behind me and I got a few photos. He stuck around for about five minutes, shaking hands and doing photos, autographs. Pretty nice guy. Oakmont was his “conquering hero” course back thirty years ago or so. Big D(Quote)