Welcome to the May 2026 Golf Up North Newsletter
Congratulations
Kimmy L.
You are our April newsletter winner.
You correctly answered:
What amateur golfer and lawyer who won a Grand Slam and co-founded Augusta National Golf Club provided this month’s quote?
The answer was Bobby Jones.
Kimmie, we reached out for your address and will get your swag sent out as soon as we hear back.
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A Quick Heads Up
This one is a little different.
You might read it and think, well, that was unexpected. Or maybe, yeah, I get her. Either way, I appreciate you being here.
Spring… Kind Of
I really was not sure I would have anything to write this month. The weather just was not cooperating. Snow, cold, and yes, once in a century flooding throughout Northern Michigan had me thinking we would not see a golf course up here until late May.
Then things started to shift a little. A few courses began opening a handful of holes, some front nines, some back nines, walking only. Not ideal, but it felt like a light at the end of a very long tunnel.
Then Guy had the audacity to get sick and bring a frickin virus home to me.
I do not get sick. And if I do, I usually shut it down in a couple days.
Not this time.
This one parked itself first in my chest and then gave me about 3 hours thinking I turned a corner and then went for my sinuses and made itself right at home FOR TWO WEEKS! I have not had a sinus infestion since 1992, and suddenly every inch of my face and every tooth in my mouth was in pain. And because I am allergic to NSAIDs, my options are limited. Tylenol does not do much for me, so I had to get creative.
Warm compresses and Alka Seltzer severe sinus helped. Not perfect, but manageable.
Guy went out to golf with some of his league buddies on Thursday, and I am not going to lie, I was a little jealous.
So I decided that come Sunday, I was playing. Even if I cried my way through the round.
Did the Alka plop plop fizz fizz about an hour before our tee time and hoped for the best.
It actually worked out pretty well.
So Why Was I So Determined to Play?
Besides the obvious reason of just wanting to golf, I had another reason.
This is where I share something I have not talked about outside my family and very close friends. So I am asking for a little grace here.
You may have noticed there are not many pictures of me golfing. There is a reason for that. I was embarrassed by how I looked.
For most of my adult life, I was at a weight I was comfortable with. Not perfect, but comfortable. And honestly, I carried it well.
After my first husband Steve was diagnosed with colon cancer at 49, everything changed. He lost a lot of weight after surgery and was convinced if he kept losing, he would die. And knowing him, I believed him.
So I focused on helping him get back to his normal weight. High calorie, low volume meals. It worked for him.
It also worked for me.
We had 4.5 good years after his diagnosis. Truly good years. And I would not trade that time for anything.
After he passed in 2012, I ended up joining a health club and went all in. Trainer, workouts, the whole thing. Over time, I realized just how much weight I had gained and worked my way back down and then some.
Then life shifted again. My trainer moved on, I tried doing it on my own, and things just did not respond the same way anymore. It didn’t help that I quit smoking in 2021.
No matter how much I exercised or how carefully I watched what I ate, the weight kept coming. About 10 pounds a year. Over time, that added up to over 100 pounds.
I know it is easy to assume I was not doing enough. But I was. I tracked everything. I brought spreadsheets to my doctors. Calories in, calories out. Hours of exercise. It just was not working.
At one point I was spending close to 5 hours a day exercising. That is not sustainable for anyone.
I was becoming more and more of a hermit.
Except for two things.
The golf course.
And my grandkids.
No matter what, I was going to golf.
And if the grandkids wanted me to do something, I swallowed my pride and showed up.
The Turning Point
In the fall of 2024, we were in Sarasota at an Airbnb with the Virginia kids. I had bought a couple swimsuits for the private pool, never expecting to wear them in public.
Then the grandkids wanted to go to the beach.
So Grandma went to the beach.
I was convinced everyone was looking at me. Chances are, they were not. But that is how it felt.
And it hit me. I showed up for them, but I was not showing up for myself.
My son asked why I had not tried a GLP1. I told him the cost and that it felt like cheating.
He immediately said he would cover the cost and that it was not cheating. I did not take him up on it, I pay for the medication myself.
But the fact that he offered, and that my other kids have said the same, meant more than I can really explain. I have a pretty incredible support system, and I do not take that for granted.
A couple months later, after another push from him, I signed up.
I started in February 2025.
And this part matters. I did NOT stop exercising. I just made it sustainable. About two hours a day instead of five. I cleaned up my eating a bit, especially at night.
As of April 2026, I have lost over 90 pounds.
Back to Golf
So why am I telling you all of this?
I wanted to see what that kind of weight loss actually does to a golf game.
When I first started golfing, I was about 20-25 pounds lighter than I am today and was consistently driving the ball 150 to 175 yards.
The past few years, that dropped to about 100 to 125. I assumed it was age.
Turns out, maybe not.
After this latest round, I am seeing 150+ yard drives, longer fairway shots, better iron contact, and improvement around the greens.
Now, the scorecard is not ready to give me too much credit yet. I still posted a 108.
But the quality of the shots, the feel of them, and the distance all say something is changing.
And here is something I did not expect, having a little less up top seems to have freed up my swing a bit. I feel like I have more range and things are just smoother.
Now I just need to figure out my aim with a slightly smaller version of me.
Were the longer drives just a fluke?
Short answer, no, it was not a fluke.
We lucked out on Sunday with some decent weather, and I was pretty excited that golf season was finally underway.
Not so fast, said Mother Nature.
A cold front was moving in the next week and they were even throwing around the “S” word. We were going to get one more decent day, so it only made sense to book another tee time for Monday.
So I did.
Same pre round routine, plop plop fizz fizz and hope for the best. By Tuesday I finally gave in, saw the doctor, and sure enough, sinus infection. Antibiotics were prescribed.
This also gave me a chance to see if what I saw on Sunday was real. I was starting to get used to swinging the club in this body again, so it felt like a good time to test it out and maybe try a few things.
The Verdict
I really do think the weight loss is going to make a difference in my game.
The swing feels easier, and it seems like I have a little more control over my power. I have always had strong upper body strength. It served me well in softball and bowling, and I always assumed it would help with golf too.
Turns out, that is only true to a point.
When I first started golfing, it took me a while to learn how to not hit everything as hard as I possibly could. My natural speed is fast and all in. Golf does not always reward that, especially around the greens.
I was learning, but I think the steady weight gain over the years made it harder to find any real consistency in my swing.
Now, I am starting to feel more like myself again. And my swing is starting to come back in a way that feels not only natural, but manageable, if that makes sense.
Monday, I had some great drives and even better fairway shots.
But where I really noticed a difference this time was on the greens.
Not so much draining one putts, but consistently getting the ball close enough that I was finishing in two. For me, that is huge. And that added up to a 97. I will take that all day.
I am excited to see how this season plays out.
Whether I play great or continue to struggle, it is not going to change how much I love this game.
Did You Know?
Did you know that an unexpected bounce after your ball hits the ground is called a “rub of the green”?
It is one of those old golf terms that basically means, sometimes the course gives you a little help… and sometimes it absolutely does not.
Personally, I am a big fan when it goes my way.
You hit what you think is a questionable shot, it takes a friendly hop, avoids trouble, and suddenly you are in great shape. That is a good day.
Of course, the opposite also exists, but we do not need to focus on that right now.
For the sake of this newsletter, we are only celebrating the good bounces.
Open for the Season
More and more courses are starting to open across Northern Michigan, and it finally feels like we are turning the corner.
We are keeping a close eye on things and updating our Open for the Season pages by region as courses announce openings. Some are starting with limited holes, some are walking only, and a few are easing into full operations as conditions allow.
Honestly, at this point, we will take anything we can get.
If you are itching to get out, it is worth checking ahead before you go. Conditions are changing quickly and most courses are doing their best to accommodate golfers while protecting the course early in the season.
We will keep sharing updates as things continue to open up.
Looking forward to golfing this summer with the Up Mid kid
As the season gets going, the Up Mid kid has already reached out about Mother’s Day weekend and a Saturday in June.
Depending on how much time he ends up spending Up Mid this summer, he has been doing some major cabin renovations, will likely determine how often I meet him at some random course.
Either way, I have a feeling there will be a few rounds squeezed in.
I will keep you posted and share a few of those rounds.
Quote of the Month
Golf has been both joy and frustration for me. I have heard the comments. Some louder than they probably needed to be.
But through everything, golf has always been there.
Other than my children and grandkids, it has been one of the biggest motivators in my life.
And for that, I am grateful.
Latest Blog
This latest blog post was written mostly for me.
I have always struggled with ball position. Guy would say I hit it off the toe, and I would think, what does that even mean?
So I went down the rabbit hole and figured it out.
If you are not sure where the ball should be with each club, this will help.
The snow is almost gone.
The warm days are starting to show up more often.
I am looking forward to a season of feeling a little more like myself again.
May you hit them long, keep them in play, and enjoy every single round.
See you on the course!
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