Exploring my Viking Roots

I finally had some American company this week.  Tammy and Elizabeth decided Sweden was worth visiting and flew out for one week.  The trip began in Copenhagen, went through Gothenburg, north to my home at Staksund, then west to Oslo, Norway. 

We spent most of our time in Sandefjord Norway which is about and hour south of Oslo. This is the town in which my Grandmother grew up and where most of my fathers extended family is still living. 

It was a very meaningful experience for me to spend time in my family’s home town.  I would have loved to stay for another month but I am now back in Gothenburg and ready to get back to work on my golf game.  My next tournament will take place near Stockholm during the 5-7 of August.

The girls out on the sail boat for the day.  Lots of fun!

Half American half Norwegian!!  Pretty view here over Oslo.

If you live in Norway then most likely you have a sail boat.  It may not be as pretty as this on though.

Hidden Treasure

For the past three weeks I have been living near the city of Örebro, Sweden (just west of Stockholm).  Good friends of my family own an estate on about 600 acres of beautiful forestry.  After traveling down a dirt road for about 9 kilometers wondering just how lost I was, the “Staksund” estate appeared on my right.  Two beautiful houses with so much history and personality I felt as though I had landed upon a hidden treasure….and I had.  Although only three people live here full time, there have been no less then six sleeping here since I arrived. 

It is very possible that I have learned more sitting at the dinner table the last three weeks then I learned during my four years of college studies.  There have been experts in the fields of science, public relations, medicine, engineering, and music staying at Staksund.  All of whom seem to have a great appreciation for life and a desire to learn something new everyday.  Every night the dinner conversation changes and ranges from history to science to art to music to gardening.  Last night one of the guests, a computer engineer, was the head of the group which worked with the US military in designing the internet in the late 1960s.  Working under him was a young man, very bright and anxious to make some money.  His name was Bill Gates and his first pay check was signed by new friend.  Needless to say, it was a pretty neat story. 

 This is the kind of place that seems real only in novels.  It is heaven for someone who loves the outdoors.  This morning I ran about a mile to the lake, took the boat out for about an hour and ran back home. It was a perfect morning.

Last week I returned from Finland.  It was not a good week for me golf wise, but after taking a few days off I am feeling refreshed and ready to get back to work.  It is a very true that we learn much more in failure then in success.  There have been many successes so far this season…but I have certainly learned more about myself during this past week then the other three tournaments combined. . Next week the tour goes just south of Stockholm.   I will post the link to follow as the tournament approach es.  

                                                            Downtown Orebro

                                The lake and boat....good swimming spot too.

                                                One of the houses at Staksund

“There’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing”

This old Swedish saying proved very true today on the golf course.  I have never seen such drastic and sudden changes in weather as there is in Sweden.  The following was the weather today between 12 and 1 pm. 

12- Sun shining brightly…birds singing…62 degrees.

12:10- Pouring rain….Dark clouds….no singing birds…55 degrees.

12:20- Sun is back out…birds are singing. 

12:30- Clouds roll back in….small pieces of hail with rain….lots of wind.

12:40- Sun appears to be coming back out….the birds are very confused.

12:50- Sun is out and it’s back in the 60s.

1:00- Pouring rain once again. 

After today I think I may invest in some good Swedish rain gear! 

This week the tour is just north of Helsingborg, toward the south of Sweden.  I am staying with a couple who I stayed with during a previous tournament. Their home is in a quaint village which overlooks the sea.  From the dinner table I can see Denmark across the ocean.  Every evening at precisely 7:30 a ship crosses the sea in route to Copenhagen from Oslo, Norway. Beautiful place!

Regardless of the weather, the first round of the tournament came and went without any rain delays.  I shot 4 over am stand tied for 17^th.  Overall I am feeling very good about my golf game, but I have yet to put together a round below par.  Patience is a hard thing to have especially in golf, but it is the only option.  I’m working hard and waiting for everything to come together. 

Other then golf

Studying the life and culture in a foreign country is an education in itself.  Not a day passes without me learning something new.  I continue to love the people here and the mindset they have toward life.   The generosity I have been shown by so many people here is very humbling. 

The next stop for the tour is Finland!  Until then……Ha det sa bra! 

Downtown Gothenburg.  The club im playing for is

only a 5 minute drive from downtown.

Falsterbo golf course.  Right on the sea....hard to describe

how beautiful it is.

The Journey Begins

The last fifteen days of my life have been spent far away from what I would call home.  My adventure started in Washington DC, went through Frankfurt, and landed in the final destination of Gothenburg Sweden, my home for the next five months.  I will be playing on the Nordea golf tour throughout the summer, and possibly going to Spain to compete there as well.   It is a privilege for me to share this adventure with you, and hope that you enjoy being apart of my journey. 

My time in Europe thus far has been an incredible experience. I am enjoying most of all the new rhythm of life.  It is much slower here, as people seem to live more simple and less stressed lives.  In the golf community, the respect for tradition and love of the game is expressed on a much different level here then in the States. There is also more emphasis on loving the process of life rather then being overly consumed with the outcomes of work.  People here seem to enjoy life more and live from moment to moment. This mindset is one that I want to be apart of.   

 Playing professional golf has to be one of the best jobs one can have.  Last week was the Nordea tour season opener and was held in Molle Sweden, a little peninsula in the south of the country.  The sea can be seen from just about every hole on the golf course, absolutely beautiful scenery.  This was my first tournament back after coaching for 5 months so I tried not to have many expectations and just get back in the groove.  The week ended up being a good one.  I finished 11 of 78 and made a check.

This week we are playing on the little Island of St.Ibb, which is also a beautiful venue. The only way to get to the Island is by a ferry boat.  There is about 350 people living here and very few cars.  I am staying in walking distance from the golf course, so in the morning I have breakfast, lace up my spikes, and head to the course.  Not a bad way to start the day. 

The tournament at St.Ibb started today.  The link to follow is listed below!  

http://www.golfdata.se/liveEpi/res_lbo.asp?tk=ND1120X&tour=ND

Ha en bra dag!  (Have a good day ….in Swedish)