Mr. Hickory Golf REAL

Golf Writer Andy Reistetter will be continuing his exclusive “Play-Write” series on the Mississippi Gulf Coast this week. Also known as “Mr. Hickory Golf,” this week’s trip will culminate by playing in the pro-am of the Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic. Wearing knickers provided by Vecci Fashions and playing hickory-shafted clubs, he is believed to be the first to do so in a PGA TOUR-sponsored pro-am event, at least in the modern age.

Hollywood Casino Bay St. Louis

One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi…

Fore Mississippi…

Here comes Mr. Hickory Golf!

After a Monday morning flight into the Gulfport-Biloxi Airport he will head to the Hollywood Casino Bay St. Louis and tee-time it up at the Bridges Golf Club, Mississippi’s only Arnold Palmer Signature golf course.

Ranked among the Top 40 casino golf courses in the country, The Bridges is the first resort golf course in the world to obtain Audubon International’s Certified Silver Signature status showcasing Palmer’s design strengths of working in harmony with nature.

“Staying like a star” at the 14-story waterfront Hollywood Casino Bay St. Louis, the Golf Collectors Society member will have dinner at 200 North Beach, reportedly the top restaurant in Bay St. Louis with “the best pulled pork sandwich on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.”

Tuesday’s golf game will be at The Oaks in Pass Christian. Built by Landmark, The Oaks has played host to both NIKE and BUY.COM tour events as well as the first stage of Q-School.

Hooters Girls are Beverage Cart Attendants at The Oaks in Mississippi. Photo courtesy of Hooters restaurant of Gulfport, MS.

The Oaks Golf Club partners with a nearby Hooters restaurant to provide “Hooters Girls” on the beverage carts. Wearing traditional Hooters Girl uniforms, isn’t this welcomed distraction likely to slow down play? What were they thinking?

Hooters girls? Maybe John Daly will be playing the course as well?

Mr. Hickory Golf’s playing partners and golf professional for Thursday’s pro-am will be determined at the pairing party on Tuesday night in Biloxi at the Palace Casino Hotel.

Golf on Wednesday is at The Preserve designed by Jerry Pate, the 1976 U.S. Open Champion and the inaugural PLAYERS winner on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.

Dinner Wednesday night is at Mignon’s Steaks & Seafood at the Palace Casino. The Hickory Guy, as his friends in Chicago call him, is thinking all land during the round of golf and later on “Surf & Turf.”

Mr. Hickory Golf with Nick Price!

Thursday’s round in the pro-am is at Fallen Oak Golf Club, the host venue for the 2012 Gulf Coast Resort Classic. Tom Fazio, the designer, is known as “America’s Greatest Living Architect.”

Mr. Hickory is likely to tee it up from the 6,000 yard range and not from the 7,468 yard back tees.

Between Hooters cart girls, four nights at casinos, and limited ‘pigeon prospects,’ Mr. Hickory Golf is likely to come home from the Mississippi Gulf Coast a penniless man—but better for it.

Fore Mississippi!

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Spotter, Research and Broadcast Assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours—the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA TOUR headquarters and the home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it.

Friend Andy Reistetter on Facebook or contact Reistetter by e-mail at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

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Golf became a lifestyle for Andy Reistetter when at an early age his older brother ‘L.P.’ gave him the Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons book inscribed as follows:

“Golf is a lot like life, the more you learn and understand about it, the easier it is to meet its challenges.”

In 1998, “L.P.’ introduced Andy to Dick Donovan, the renowned golf book collector and bibliographer. The ‘book guy’ introduced Andy to life ‘across the pond’ in Scotland and to the Golf Collectors’ Society (GCS).

At his first GCS event in Madison, Wisconsin Andy met Joe DeWulf and Harry Horton. Horton who as a kid saw a dehydrated Ken Venturi win the U.S. Open at Congressional CC was an expert at repairing and restoring hickory golf clubs.

With Horton’s professionally renewed hickories in his hands, Reistetter caught the ‘play hickory golf’ bug and played several seasons exclusively with hickories while wearing knickers.

At last count Reistetter’s playable hickory club collection stands at 40 sets and he is ready to enhance your corporate or charitable event with a unique, inspiring and fun experience.