Golfgal

Hi Duffy! Thanks for such a nice comment. I'll try and come around a bit more. I have been interviewing 4 players this season - Vincent, Kevin, Blake and Tony. I'll add Mike to the mix this week as well.

Yup ;) Mike is faster than any stock car! I'd like to see that car today - but I think it's in pieces. Go Mikey!

Did you see Mike's race against the stock car? It was a pretty cool video, but he wasn't happy with what was published. Check out the video and then listen to what Mike had to say about it. He was not amused

I agree with you Saltman. Blair played very well except for a couple of holes which put her behind Derek, who was playing an A game. I asked her today in her interview if playing it "safe" on 15 was a mistake. She was very honest and talked about when her momentum changed that day. Blair is a class act. She can bomb it and she can putt (we've seen both over the last 11 weeks). She deserves to be recognized as a really good golfer - Yes, a young golfer who is still learning, but still a golfer who made it to the finals of BB PEI after 10 days of competition. For Pete's sake...give the girl a break!

I was wondering about Derek's comment about the fist pump so I asked him tonight about it . It looked like his comment was a bit "staged" for drama. Also, it was wierd showing him in two different interview sessions - one with the lockers behind and one with some nautical stuff behind him. I asked him about that too. But mostly I asked him how it felt being 100K richer! I'm very happy for my fellow Canuck!

Ah, but this is golf ;) Remember last year, Canadian Mike Weir (underdog) beat American Tiger Woods (#1 in world) at the Presidents Cup. Next week it could be American Blair O'Neal (underdog) beats Canadian Derek Gillespie (top dog). You just never know... But it will be fun watching and finally finding out!

Isnt' that funny. My husband loves her accent. But then again, our families are both from Ireland, so there you have it. One man's trash is another man's treasure ;) I think Brenda has talent and she's usually a great scrambler, so I was surprised she didn't bounce back after the first bad tee shot. I asked her about that day and why she kept coming up short so many times and it really all came down to nerves. Blair and Derek managed their nerves beautifully, so next week will be interesting to watch - will it be a test of skill or will?

I think it's 1-800-Not-for-sale :)

I agree - it was so sad to see her go. But I'm convinced that Gerina will someday be like Kristy McPherson and in contention on the LPGA. I chatted with Brenda tonight who found watching the show hard. Mike from BB X had some interesting tips on Derek's drives. Will talk to Derek in the AM and hope to connect with Gerina and Blair later in the afternoon.

Hi Duffy: Sorry for the confusion. I interview the contestants by phone after each show. Yes, it was taped last Sept. Last week I was able to play the course and talk to the staff at Rodd Mill River. That will be included in an article I'm writing for InsideGolf.ca This week, we're back to phone interviews with Brenda, Blair, Gerina, Derek and Brian for my blog. Plus, a bonus interview with BB X contestant, Mike. Cheers Gayle

Just got back from PEI and played the Rodd Mill River Course. It is a great course - much better live than on TV. You really miss a lot watching it on TV. Can't see the undulations and rolling fairways nearly as well. I played with the head pro and superintendent (Mark and Blair) - great guys! They pointed out challenge locations and provided a lot of insights into the show from their perspectives watching it live. I also played Crowbush and Dundarave - two amazing courses, but NOT for the faint of heart ;) Looking forward to getting back into the show and interviews this week!

Hey Duffy! Yes, I'd say Derek got a wakeup call :) But tonight, Aaron just couldn't keep it going. He's been one of the hardest workers on this show - playiing in so many elimination rounds. Sad to see him turn on himself - memories of Euguene came to me when I heard him say "Coward". I've heard that golf isn't about the good shots - it's about good misses. Brenda's misses seem to be better than the others' good shots. Is there a 4 leaf clover in her bag OR is she so good that even her bad shots are better than the others? Haha... But now, it's just Derek "Charlie" Gillespie and his 3 Angels left. Should make for a very interesting finale. I only did three interviews tonight (Derek, Gerina and Brenda). That's it for this week - off to PEI to play!!! I'll let you know how the course really is ;)

LOL! Do you think Derek woke up tonight? Hahaha...I loved the look on his face when he missed those shots. Not that I wish him poorly - he's my fellow countryman and I like him a lot. But he's had it pretty easy, so I want him to work for his money :) I loved the part of the challenge where Aaron got to pick the "all or nothing" challenger. That was a cool twist - well done GC. Aaron's comments about Derek getting first interviews peaked my interest - how do they choose who goes first? I'll ask Brian - he'll know :) Was able to chat with Brenda, Brian and Mike tonight. Tomorrow will be Derek, Gerina and Blair.

Actually Brian is a good putter and his comment about being much better was in reference to his putting talents, not his whole golf game. But still...I'd never say that out loud even if I thought it about myself. ;)

haha...I'm with you iWALK18! Brian was/is a character and I really don't think we see the "real Brian". I keep saying it, but the other contestants love him! And if you watch really really hard, you'll see that he is a card - constantly laughing and joking with the others. What I loved tonight was seeing Aaron LOL when he hit the wall. I wasn't sure if he had emotions. It was great to see and I loved tonight's show, beginning to end, except Brian leaving. That was sad and next week will be hard to top this week's show... I started my interviews with Brenda again tonight, and as always, she was a hoot... Mike Michaelides offered interesting analysis of Aaron's 13th hole.. Tomorrow I'll chat with Derek, Gerina,Blair and of course, Brian. He will be missed.

I took this from his bio on GC... "At age 28, Skatell was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis – a very painful inflammatory bowel disease – and did not pick up a golf club for five years as he fought to make a recovery. While the cause of ulcerative colitis is still unknown, some think that the smallest illness could spark the disease. In April of 2001, he underwent laparoscopic surgeries to remove his colon (proctocolectomy) at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Both the surgeries and recovery process were serious, but his body made it through the long healing process. “The doctors say I’m now a beacon of health and that I could be the poster child for anyone who’s had this disease at this level of severity,” explained Skatell, whose weight dropped to 120 pounds during the ordeal. In March 2008, just six months prior to the taping of Big Break Prince Edward Island, Skatell had another scare and found himself in emergency exploratory surgery. Air was leaking into his abdomen and doctors thought something had gone terribly wrong from his previous surgery. “No amount of morphine could touch the pain I was in,” Skatell remembers. “Doctors said I was in grave danger, and I was in fear for my life. It’s crazy to believe, but after surgery my doctor said the area where the air was leaking must have healed itself, because he couldn’t find anything wrong. My doctors said the recovery was nothing short of miraculous.” After surgery this past March, Skatell was down to 130 pounds again. In just six months time, he brought his weight back to 165 pounds, managed to get back into the golf industry as an assistant golf professional and began to train for Big Break Prince Edward Island. Now healed, Skatell maintains that he is “a 36 year-old with the body of a 27 year-old.” Brian has been through a lot! He's come out the other side of some serious health issues and is very determined to be successful in life, no matter what life throws at him. I admire him.

I want to take you to Las Vegas Awsi! I have no idea what the outcome is, but you read these episodes like a pro. So...who's going to win the US Open? ;) I feel like putting some money down. It wouldn't surprise me, after your analysis, to see Brian go home next week. But I'll miss him if he goes - he adds a lot to the show, even if some people don't like him. Off camera, I can tell you, he is really very nice. I can say the same thing about Dave from BB X and (I've heard) about Don D from Las Vegas. Brenda is, to me, like David Feherty - really funny, but some people need small doses of that humour and some people hate it. DF's recent blunder is a good example of humor gone bad. But in terms of Brenda, I still really enjoy her humor and look forward to talking to her each week as I never know what is going to come out of her mouth. With the others, I really like them, but they are so PC that I can't get anything juicy from them. With Brenda and Brian, I am excited about the unknown :)

I saw you that you listened to Brian's interview earlier - he did sound like he was exhausted on that day - not a surprise. That, with his emotions, caused him on to NOT remember to check out his partner's game (ie. Derek) and not perform to his own very high standards. Brian is very hard on himself. I couldn't wait to talk to Nicole tonight. She had a lot to say. I think the interview after she was eliminated put her over the edge - she said they asked the same questions over and over until she blew up.

I'm with you Iacas. I can't figure out what happened to Nicole. She was even saying nasty things about all the ladies, not just Brenda. There has to be something else going on that we don't know about. I hope to find out tomorrow when I talk to her . Meanwhile, I chatted with Micheal from BB X tonight and he's all over Brian - haha...Don't forget Mike is friends with Dave from BB X and everyone had something to say about Dave :)

Isn't it funny...everyone hated Derek in the first 20 seconds of the first show because he said he would bring the ladies to the show And then everyone hated Brian because he said things that made us groan. But after 4 shows, we see them both in a different light - they are really funny. In fact, with them, Robert and Football, I think the guys were picked because they are all comedians. And the ladies are all "b's" (if you listen to Nicole and Brenda) LOL! Anyway, I talk to Brian more before his interviews than what I share (Yessss...we have looong conversations sometimes ;), and he's always really nice. He just comes off on TV a bit "intense". I'm happy Derek is bringing out the comedian in him and we're seeing more of the real Brian. But now...it's hard to figure out who to hope for

LOL! If you think Nicole is a wierdo, I hope you and I never meet. I can only imagine what you'd think of me. haha... I understand your point, however, about the circles. I too am getting a little tired of those. I think more glass breaking and less circles would have been good last night. Mike from BB X made a good point in his interview. He said he thought they should have to putt more, especially in elminination challenges - take it right to the cup. Then it would be more like real golf. I tend to agree with him. Maybe they should make them hit a bizarre shot like Tiger did on the weekend - put a ball in a place where they have to hit it with a club upside down and opposite handed. Most would say that was crazy and gimmicky, but Tiger just did that on the weekend, so that's "real golf" :) They could call it the "impossible shot" and see how the different players handle it.

What's a tard???? I like them both - Brenda is funny and Nicole is bubbly. Very different ladies, but both seem really nice when I talk to them. So I'm not picking sides. But Nicole was pretty talkative today about last night's show. I wonder if she and Brenda are "txting" each other ;) I'm surprised you don't like the show. I think it's better than some of the others (not naming any names).

I think Derek's comments about Brian really showed Brian in a different light tonight. You can see Brian's face (grin) after he says stuff like he said about Kim. I have heard from so many players that Brian will say stuff that you think is crazy and then he'll laugh out loud. I think we've missed the LOL parts and are just starting to see a bit of those now. I hope it continues. I know some of the contests are getting repetitive, but I'm still amazed at how these professionals struggle under the BB pressure. Those first two bunker shots didn't look that hard (easy to say from my easy chair). Brenda said in her interview tonight that there was a ton of soft sand in them, but you'd think they would have practiced some of those shots during practice rounds and on the range. The glass breaking "race" looked like fun, but it was over too fast. I would have rather seen more of that. Next week looks like more drama - BB Ka'anapli style almost. Is that a good thing or bad?

It was Sept 2008 and yes it can be chilly - I expect in the mid 40's. I know they had frost delays on some days while taping. I took at look at the score card for Rodd Mill River and for those holes, it seems that the yardages (for the men) were: 12: 363 15: 423 16: 355 18: 405 Now this may not be exact as I didn't write down each yardage posted on TV, but I know I got 12 right in my notes and according to their score card online, that was from the yellow tees (1 short of the tips). Gayle

Awsi, you are right. But don't you think it is strange, that as much as Brian really peeves many viewers off, the other contestants go out of their way to build him up. This is a new one for me on a BB. Most times, when a contestant is considered a "problem child", the rest of the contestants gang up on him or her. That was certainly the case with Kaanapali and BB X, but not this time. They may chuckle at him, but I think they genuinely like him. What's with that???? Gayle