If Memorial Day is the official start of summer, in many areas it really kickoffs this week—certainly that’s the case in Lake Tahoe and other mountain regions such as Central Oregon where we are this week.
The sun is coming up by 5:30 and the official sunset is 8:53 p.m. although there is an extended twilight period given that all the local fireworks started at 10 p.m.
The early mornings couple with my sports world shifting to Great Britain. It’s been delightful to turn on the television whenever I awaken to see live coverage of The Championships at Wimbledon, celebrating 100 years of its famed Centre Court. Today, that’s joined by the Genesis Scottish Open Golf Tournament at the Renaissance Club, which opened in 2008. Edinburgh is the nearest major airport for both it and St. Andrews where the 150th anniversary of The Open will be held at the home of golf next week.
We were blessed to spend a few days at St. Andrews in 2019, arriving Saturday afternoon to get situated and then walk through a back alley onto the road that fronts the 18th fairway on the Old Course. It was a magical moment. The course becomes a family walking park and dog run when it’s traditionally closed on Sundays so we walked the 17th and 18th fairways and took the required photo on the Swilcan Bridge.
As a golf fan, I’ve enjoyed watching the British version of the AT&T National Pro-Am, the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, that’s played on the Old Course, Kingsbarns (owned by Art Dunkley of Pleasanton) and Carnoustie, the sister club to the Diablo Country Club. Next week will be a delight to tune in early to watch the world’s best take on the famed course.
And starting tomorrow we all can enjoy the visual highlights when NBC broadcasts the American Century Celebrity Tournament from the Edgewood Resort on the shores of Lake Tahoe. It promises to be the typical good show, perhaps better for Golden State Warrior fans because Steph Curry has picked up his clubs again and is scheduled to play. He will be joined, as usual, by his father Dell as well as his younger brother, Seth, a member of the Brooklyn Nets.
What's great is the best of the day's actions ends in the morning given the 8-hour time difference so there's plenty of time for outdoor activities here.
P.S. Intentionally, lots of sports content today because experience has shown me that when it’s a vacation week, readers aren’t looking for heavy content unless breaking news demands it. I’ll leave that to the reporters. There’s been plenty of comment on the tragic parade shooting in Highland Park, Ill and the sadly typical weekend of shootings in Chicago.
