JTOG Day 33: Playing the Mayan Golf Club in Guatemala City!

The Ultimate Host of Guatemala City, Pepe Rolz, came round the Hotel Bresciani to pick me up and take me out to the Mayan Golf Club for a round of golf. It was a day out of my childhood when Dad and I would swing by to pick up Uncle George and head out to Chenango Valley State Park for a memorable round of golf. Anytime at least two of the four primary golfing Reistetter brothers got together it was a memorable experience if not for the golf, then for the entertainment value alone.  As I would learn State Park had its twin lakes but the Mayan Golf Club has its Lake Amatitlán and its view! I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation during the 45-minute, 15-mile ride through Guatemala City out to the town of San Miguel Petapa. Like a lot of great golf courses in metropolitan areas, this was the club's third location and technically it was still part of Zone 1 and Guatemala City. The growth of Guatemala and its capital city has made its way to the golf course once again. Pepe is a fascinating person. He tells the history of golf in Guatemala like he is telling his family story. Incidentally, Florencia and Pepe have four children and the youngest Jose Pablo is quite the golfer. Having just graduated from Texas Wesleyan in May 2015 he has his sights set on becoming a professional golfer after a distinguished collegiate career. Pepe is also the defacto club historian at Mayan and even has done a bit of golf course architecture converting a laborious par-5 hole into the exciting and dodgy par-4 19th and par-3 11th present on a bluff overlooking Lake  today. He got hooked on the game at age eight when his Dad pulled him out of school to go see the Ben Hogan movie 'Follow the Sun.' Like me, he sees a lot of similarities between golf and life. CLICK here for a Video Interview with Pepe Rolz on the Mayan Golf Club. The Mayan Golf Club was spectacular and so was our golf. I got off to a fast start with a deuce on the par-3 second hole. Pepe showed his expertise with consecutive birdies on the 5th and 6th holes. He endured long enough to show me the spectacular views of Lake Amatitlán, the deepest lake in Central America, and witness my brilliant par 4 on the 10th hole before he had to leave for a greens committee meeting. Where better, I thought, to have a greens committee meeting than on the 10th green at the Mayan Golf Club with its breathtaking view overlooking the watery vastness to the not-too-distant and active Volcán de Agua? In 2010 another nearby volcano Pacaya erupted and coated the course with three inches of rocks and ashes. Former club GM Alberto Boj joined playing partners Nory Colindres and Carl Bloomfield and me for the second nine. It was a memorable round and a memorable course for sure. After touring the grounds and clubhouse some more my day ended in the men's locker room with Matt Ginella on the Golf Channel on the television with Spanish subtitles. Golf is golf, friendship is friendship, no matter where you are in the world. As Paulina de Labra, niece to the organizer of the Cultural Olympics, said to me back in Mexico City—"we are all just human beings." She was right as far as I could tell on the 'Journey to Olympic Golf.' On the ride home Pepe gave me a contact to look up in San Salvador, El Salvador, the next country as I made my way down through Central America to South America and Rio De Janeiro in Brazil. I was beginning to realize that the amateur golfers of Central America were very tightly associated with one another both for competition and camaraderie. I also began to sense the transition from Central to South America may not be so easy for Torch. The land that connects the North and South America continents is known as the Darién Gap.  Reportedly, the Darién Gap is subject to the presence and activities of the Marxist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), an insurgent group against the Colombian government. FARC rebels are present on both the Colombian and Panamanian sides of the border. I found it odd and realized that it was the first time in my life that I would be coming across a road that I could not travel. I had a thought that it would be a great humanitarian and golf story if Torch and I were able to navigate our way through the Darien Gap. If we didn't make it through safely then well it would be a devastating ending to the 'Journey to Olympic Golf.' Maybe a boat ride to South America, even though Torch doesn't like water as it puts out her flame, would be the prudent thing to do. It was a full day with Pepe out at the Mayan Golf Club. I enjoyed the hospitality and culinary delights of the Hotel Bresciani later in the evening. Word from Olaf was that Torch needed a new brake pump, it was hard to find and with any luck she will will be ready to go late tomorrow afternoon. I was invited to come out and stay at La Reunion Golf Resort and Residences in Antigua which was out in the same direction of Lake Amatitlán and the Mayan Golf Club but about another thirty miles further. I was planning to do a walking tour of Guatemala City in the morning, pick up Torch and get out to La Reunion before dark but there were two surprises waiting for me tomorrow- one in the morning that almost had me arrested and the other in the evening which quite frankly shook me to my roots like never before in my life! There are some more stories in the pictures below this request to make a donation to The First Tee... please make a donation today. Much appreciated. I am looking for 100 new friends in the next 100 days to make a $100 donation (or any amount that you are able to make) to The First Tee. Each day I will be reliving the original “Journey to Olympic Golf” and hope to find a new friend in golf. Is that you? Please join me in giving back to the game we all love. CLICK here to make a donation to The First Tee. Please select ‘Andy Reistetter’s Journey to Olympic Golf’ on the drop-down menu for the question ‘What inspired you to make a gift today? This is for tracking purposes only, Andy does not receive any part of your donation or anything financially from The First Tee organization. There are interesting incentives for making your donation to the First Tee… PLEASE click here to make a donation to The First Tee.

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