The One and Only Ola Lola Open

"Wow!" "Holy Cow!" "Stunning! Just stunning!" Incredible!"

Those are pretty typical of the comments from golfers at the One and Only Ola Lola Open Golf Outing. And honestly, even the most over-the-top comments don't really do the course justice. It is truly spectacular.

"Oh! My! God! It was the best time ever!" (or some variant) was another frequently heard comment at the after-outing party which included lechon asada (roast pig), Marisol's wonderful arroz y gandules (rice & beans), Sarah's fabulous green banana salad and black bean and mango salsa, Caesar salad, bread and butter, cheese/meat snacks and chocolate cake for dessert.

Stanley (one of the course owners) and David (the course architect) welcomed everyone - golfer and duffer alike. Stanley (who is an amazing golfer himself) gave tips and lessons all through the outing.

When it's completed, this golf course will be a private course. This is likely the only time most of us will get to play on it. Huge thanks to Stanley, his brother Charlie, and David for sharing a beautiful day with us.

We started calling this a golf outing rather than a tournament or something else. When we started we figured we'd have six, maybe 10 people. By Saturday morning we were up to 26! We divided into two teams and all played together. Usually it's considered very bad form to have two people teeing-off or putting at the same time. Not at the Ola Lola Open! We did it pretty regularly. We gave the word "scramble" a whole new meaning!.

The after-party was amazing. After dinner Elaine had awards for everybody. She hand-customized golf-themed trinket boxes (I don't know what else to call them) for everyone. She had custom printed award certificates. Some of them were - Danny King: "Most forgetful golfer" (who shows up at a golf outing without his clubs and has to run home to get them?) Ron Smith: "Shortest Drive." Lucy Torres: "Best Rookie" (she had never played golf before Saturday). And so on. Elaine did her usual (I've come to expect it but never take it for granted) wonderful, blow-everybody-away job having the awards ready. Elaine also designed the beautiful, limited edition, now-it's-a-collector's-item T-shirt. (I hear there are already bids for one on E-Bay.)

The party was also a "farewell" to our wonderful friend, Jose, who is moving to Orlando, FL to get his certification as an airplane mechanic. We had some small gifts and a special cake decorated for him as well. He will be greatly missed by all of us here at Ola Lola's!

All told, the party ranked up there with the Everybody-with-a-birthday-in-September party and last year's Halloween party as one of the best, most memorable times at Ola Lola's.

We want to thank all the golfers who played and contributed. What started out as a little get-together to see the golf course turned into a mini-fundraiser for Save the Horses, Inc. and Rescate Playa Isabela. Contributions from golfers and the "profit" from the entrance fees add up to a modest donation to Save the Horses, Inc. (More about this in tomorrow's post.) We have a CD of pictures from the outing we're selling for $15, $10 of which is donated to Rescate Playa Isabela to help clean up and protect the beaches. So if you want to see more and help a great cause at the same time, buy a CD. On sale now in the lobby. Or e-mail us.

All in all it was a great day. Beautiful weather, beautiful course, great friends and a wonderful time. Thank you each and every one.