Sunday, December 11, 2016

3rd Annual PGAPappas 12 Days of Christmas Golf Giveaway

I'm watching the clock writing this, as I rush to get ready for my 3rd Annual PGAPappas 12 Days of Christmas Golf Giveaway, but I have to share a quick story with you first.  Because I gave unsolicited advice to a Tour player earlier this summer, and am chuckling now thinking how ironic it is that maybe I should have given similar advice to myself. 

 
 

Many of you know I'm a huge Rory fan.  You probably saw my 1Rory17 license plates.  And I watched Rory closely at a number of tournaments early on this year.  I wasn't concentrating on his mechanics so much as his demeanor while he was struggling.  A few times Rory looked so angry you'd have sworn his head was about to explode.  Other times he looked so sad you might have mistaken him for the last player picked in high school for dodgeball.

So I wrote Rory a letter after the U.S. Open.  I won't go into detail about what I wrote, but will say this much.  I basically told Rory I knew he was going to turn it around.  And I thought that would happen when he stopped fighting himself.  Presumptuous I know, thinking I might know something about his personality or how he's wired.  But, it was sincere. 

Rory went on to win twice in his next six events, including three top-5 finishes.  And no, I'm not saying there's something cause and effect going on here with my letter.  But as a Rory fan I was pretty jacked to see him just "be Rory." 

So, with all that said, how does that relate to giving myself similar advice?  Well in many respects, this year has been flat out awesome, from testing new equipment, to traveling various places on Tour.  I had a blast.  But there was also an aspect that really wasn't a blast at all.  And honestly I didn't do nearly as much as I had planned about 12 months ago. 

Many of you know my pooch got sick last December.  He weighed 21 pounds this time last year, but was down to 14 pounds by May.  A buddy of mine in Chicago told me once, "Petey, when you have kids, if you love them half as much as you do Bugzy, you'll be an insanely awesome dad."  And that about sums it up. 




Bugzy's almost back up to 20 pounds now after a lot of trial and error in treatment, tons of intensive physical therapy, and more than a few scares in between.  As you saw in the giveaway video, he's still a rascal, super curious, and happy about just about everything.  But getting him better took an inordinate amount time, and even more energy. 

Unfortunately, he wasn't the only one battling serious health issues.  And when people you love, family, are also fighting life and death illnesses, well, everything else really just stops, and your only job is to take care of them and hope that helps in their battle.

Everyone today is better.  A lot better actually.  And for that I can't even begin to tell you how grateful I am.  But during the year, instead of just "being me," I was angry, I was sad, and was honestly looking for answers to the whys, that sometimes really don't have answers.  And it wasn't until I went back to "being me," that everything fell back in its place, where it should be.  And so there's the Rory connection so to speak. 

OK.  Now with that out of the way, let's get some of that holiday spirit flowing.  I have these PGAPappas 12 Days of Christmas Golf Giveaways, because as you know, I'm extremely thankful to be able to do what I do, meet and talk with fellow golf addicts, and giving back is what it's all about. 

I've tried to make each year bigger and better than the last, and I think this year will excite you

I have a brand new set of Wilson FG Tour F5 irons to give away (RH, pick regular or stiff flex).  Best new irons of 2016 by the way.  And a brand new Wilson FG Tour F5 3-Wood too (same thing, RH, pick regular or stiff flex).  Someone is going to get a full iron set of Lamkin UTx grips.  I love those so much I actually have them on two different sets.  And something I'm really excited about, a driver, wood, and hybrid headcover set from CRU Golf's Reserve Collection.  Stealth and Italian black.  Trust me, absolutely wicked

 
 
 
 

I'll also be giving away Wilson DUO Urethane balls (these were my go-to balls for the year), Titleist balls and caps, Bridgestone balls and caps, and TaylorMade balls.  And some of these will be packaged with other gifts, like a signed Jason Day M1 driver headcover, and a signed Justin Thomas U.S. Open Titleist ball as examples. 

 
 

I really didn't realize how much you loved signed swag until this year, so I've thrown in signed gear from Jordan Spieth, Bubba Watson, and Mr. 58 Jim Furyk as giveaway gifts as well.  You can find a complete list of everything I'm giving away this year below. 

 
 
 

Each day one new person wins, 12 winners, for 12 straight days.  There are two ways to win

On twitter, make sure you're following me, watch for my daily giveaway tweet, and then just retweet it to enter.  It's open to everyone worldwide, and we'll do it like we have the last few years.  An evening tweet, an afternoon tweet, and then each day's new winners will be announced 7:45 p.m (EST).  The next day's giveaway will begin minutes after that.  

On instagram it's similar.  Watch for my daily giveaway post, be sure you're following me, and then just like the post and tag a friend



I'm looking forward to 2017 maybe more than any year to date honestly.  And no, not just because Rory will ascend back to the No. 1 Player in the World as I predicted with my plates.  It's because of you.  Wanting to give you better content, more content, and better and more Tour coverage than I ever have before.  And it's all going to start really fast at the 2017 PGA Merchandise Show in January. 

So good luck to everyone.  And to you and your families and loved ones, I hope this Christmas and holiday season is the absolute best you've ever had

Pete

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