Tom and I love to play golf.  After watching the Masters Tournament on Sunday, I thought if would be fun to plan a date night around this theme.

It actually worked out perfectly, since Tom was playing golf with a colleague on Monday.  Here was my plan:

• I would drive to the golf course and leave a change of clothes with the Pro Shop worker to give to Tom when he finished.
• Text Tom while he was still playing telling him to stop and see [name of the employee] at the Pro Shop before he left.
• The employee was to show him to the locker room where he could get showered and dressed for our date.
• With the spare keys of Tom’s car, I was to leave Tommy Bear* (see NOTE below) on the driver’s seat, along with a cooler with one of his favorite drinks and a light snack of cheese and grapes.

• Inside Tommy Bear’s pouch I was to leave a Golf Quiz for him to fill out.  Once completed this would give him a clue as to where we were meeting for dinner.
• He was instructed at the end of the quiz to call me with his conclusion (so I’d be sure he ended up in the right place.)  🙂
• The final destination was a restaurant named after a famous golfer, Sam Snead’s, located on a beautiful golf course nearby.

It was a perfect date, and I had hopes it would all go according to plan.   It didn’t!

The plan began unraveling when I was halfway to the golf course…Tom called to tell me they had finished an hour early.  He was in the car about to head home.

I had a choice to make:  spill the beans and have him meet me at the restaurant, or tell him to stay put until I called him with instructions.  I chose to continue the date, but I needed a few minutes to rearrange my plans.

I told him I was on my way there with special plans for our date night.  However, finishing early changed everything.  He apologized for ruining my plans…I assured him he hadn’t ruined it, only rearranged it.   I needed time, so he drove to a nearby grocery store and was told to call me when he got inside.  Here’s how the rest of the date played out:

• Inside the store, go buy your favorite drink.  (It’s an Arnold Palmer, which is half lemonade, half tea).

• Take I-4 and exit on Princeton Street.  Call when you get there.
• The phone rang…I’m here!  Go to Starbucks on Edgewater Drive.  Call when you get there.

• The phone rang…I’m here! Go inside and ask for “Nick”.
• Nick handed Tom the Quiz I had made.  He was instructed to take the quiz and call when he finished.
• “I’m finished!” but he still wasn’t sure where to go.  That’s because he got the last question wrong. (see quiz below)
• I helped him figure it out, so he would come to where I was waiting – Dubsdread Golf Course – Sam Snead’s Tavern.
• I told him to call when he got there.
• The phone rang…I’m here!  Go to the hostess.
• He walked into the restaurant where the hostess handed him Tommy Bear.  Inside the pouch was a note expressing my heart.

• She escorted him to the table on the back porch overlooking the golf course, where I was waiting for him.

• We ordered Spaghetti and Meat”balls” – the closest dish on the menu to coincide with our theme – golf!

The date was so much fun, but it was a lot more work than I had planned.  I didn’t anticipate a need for a Plan B, so I had to make it up as I went along.  If you could have been a bird watching from above, I was only a few paces ahead of Tom on this “Masters Date”.   Next time, I will be sure to have a Plan B ready, just in case.

It would have been easier to simply give up on the idea and plan it another time.  But I really wanted to bless Tom.  I’m glad it worked out.  Here’s the Quiz:

DATE NIGHT QUIZ

1. Who won the green jacket yesterday?  _______________________________ (Mickelson)
2. Name of the golf course where the jacket was won?  _____________________________ (Augusta)
3. What time of year is this tournament played?   ______________________________ (Spring)
4. Who came in fourth in yesterday’s finals? _________________________ (Tiger Woods)
5. What do you call it when you score two under par?  _____________________________ (Eagle)
6. Name of your drink. _____________________ (Arnold Palmer)
7. Name of a famous golfer whose first & last names start with the letter “S” ___________________________________________________________ (Sam Snead)

Now take the first letter of each answer and fill in the blank below…except for #6, use the second letter of that answer:

_______    _______    _______    _______    _______    _______    _______  (M A S T E R S)

This is the theme of our date night!

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

*NOTE:  Tommy Bear has a six year history in our marriage.  We’ll post about him another time!  🙂

Want to join Project 52 – the Date Night Challenge.  Simply click the button below for all the details!  It’s loads of fun!