Good Good embarked on an ambitious 50-states-in-50-days golf trip, heading south from Wyoming as they set out to play golf and see the sights in every state.
The group aims to play a team-based match in each state, battling the elements, the road, the emotions of life on the bus, and each other. They compete in different formats for the chance to win each state’s respective coin.
For those interested in following in Good Good’s footsteps on their 50-state journey, or for golfers wanting to play the courses featured in the series, this is a comprehensive look at the first five courses they played, along with a few highlights from their journey.
Game formats and teams changed at each stop, with Garrett Clark, Blake Mullen, and Tom “Bubbie” Broders squaring off against Stephen Castaneda, Matt “Ghetti” Meneghetti, and Matt Scharff in the majority of matches.
Episode 6 — Wyoming: Kendrick Golf Club — $45
Clark stepped onto the first tee wearing a cowboy hat he had bought at a Western wear store in Sheridan. The golf course played firm, fast, and open, with drives that hit—or missed—the fairway rolling well past 350 yards. The conditions produced unexpected and exciting bounces, sending balls into the stratosphere on their first bounces.
“What is rare beef?” Scharff asked.
“Cows that are hard to find,” Bubbie responded.
The Sheridan, Wyoming, mall didn’t disappoint, either. Staying young at heart, the group hopped on wheeled, motorized stuffed animals and raced through the mall. Maximum speed, combined with some human thrust and a bit of leaning, allowed Scharff to drift his cloud-colored triceratops.
“This is some of the most spontaneous fun I have had on this trip,” Clark said.
The format was a three-versus-three shamble, pairing Clark, Bubbie, and Mullen against Ghetti, Scharff, and Castaneda.
“If I wear this cowboy hat, I can’t take a full swing all day,” Clark said. “It will mess up the brim.”
Bubbie holed out from about 95 yards on the fourth hole, recording the trip’s first hole-out and earning 10% off the Good Good website for the day. Steve, Ghetti, and Scharff stayed one back but missed their birdie chances on 18. The best-of-seven series ended 4–2 in favor of Garrett, Bubbie, and Blake.
Rating: 88.5
Episode 7 — North Dakota: Prairie West Golf Course — $37
Tensions reached a boiling point in North Dakota with the addition of a new, temporary Good Good member: Jimmy. The $40, oversized plastic screaming chicken, purchased at a novelty shop, was beloved by Clark but hated by most of the other members. Several had been harassed, awakened, or both by the obnoxious plastic bird.
“We are genuinely thankful for the courses that have hosted us along the way,” Clark said.
Jimmy was left in pieces, his head gone and his “boots” separated following a birdie celebration that featured the toy’s loud squawk. Ghetti and Clark put him back together, but the joke had run its course.
Enter Timothy, a novelty dinosaur driver headcover that Clark used as a puppet to announce the insertion point for his driver and hand. The group also stopped to explore a dinosaur museum.
“I don’t always like AI, but today it agreed with me,” Bubbie said. “Thirty to fifty Bubbies with spears could take down a T. rex.”
With the teams split, the day’s format paired Clark and Ghetti against the rest of the group in a two-versus-four scramble. The four-player team got off to a hot start, but Garrett and Ghetti, who putted like they couldn’t miss, came back to square the match after nine holes.
The playoff lasted four extra holes before Bubbie’s chip settled it. Scharff, who had joked that he needed more help to win a coin, took his third.
“We have Jimmy with us. Every time we make a birdie, we have to make him scream,” Clark said.
Rating: 72.5
Episode 8 — South Dakota: Prairie Green Golf Course — $48
The episode began with a long drive. Along the way, the group stopped at a gas station and bought a magnetic board featuring all 50 states. The purchase left them 30 seconds late for McDonald’s closing time.
The group also stopped to explore the scenic—but smelly—falls in downtown Sioux Falls. The water cascading over the red rocks near the center of town was beautiful, but when standing at the base of the falls, the Good Good guys had some choice words about the smell.
“It smells like diarrhea out here,” Ghetti said. “Oh my gosh, that is rancid, Steve. If there is something that smells worse than Bubbie’s and Scharff’s farts, that’s it right there. It’s a beautiful-looking river, but it just stinks.”
Golf was played at Prairie Green Golf Course, a local municipal course. The players described the conditions as lush and green. The group split into three two-man teams for a scramble, with Bubbie and Ghetti, Clark and Castaneda, and Scharff and Mullen competing for two coins.
Nearly every hole was halved, and all three teams finished tied at four under par. About 50 locals followed the match. In the playoff, Ghetti and Bubbie proved victorious after three additional holes, giving Bubbie a trip-leading sixth coin.
“I have no clue where the ratings are going to go,” Clark said. “I had a really good time. The golf course was really solid. What made it so fun for me were the people who came out there—the Good Good following came out there.”
Rating: 77
Episode 9 — Iowa: Whispering Creek Golf Club — $70
Scharff found his greatest foe in Iowa. At Bodega’s in Sioux City, the group started the night playing pool for $20 a game. Scharff won a few games in a row before Jessie, a local pool champion, entered the game.
“I’ll front the money,” Clark said. “Let’s figure out a way to get him in on a $100 pool game. We’re going to sandbag Scharff against Jessie.”
Scharff initially felt he was about to be sharked, calling out Clark’s plot. Eventually, however, he agreed to play. Jessie made the setup convincing by deliberately missing a few early shots before beating Scharff.
After the game, Jessie described his golf nonprofit, Cheap Golf Hastings, which provides clubs to disadvantaged kids. Scharff was visibly moved by the story.
“This is a really fun golf course,” Mullen said of Whispering Creek. “Massive shout-out to this place for having us out. Definitely a different style from what we’ve played all trip.”
The match featured a two-versus-two-versus-two alternate-shot knockout format, with Ghetti and Bubbie facing Clark and Castaneda, and Scharff and Mullen. Each team had three health-heart signs. When a team lost a hole, it lost a heart; once all three hearts were gone, the team was eliminated. You just can’t finish last.
Despite losing their first hole, Mullen and Scharff steadied the ship. Clark and Castaneda were eliminated on the fifth hole, and the match was decided on the eighth, with Mullen and Scharff winning.
“It’s just a beautiful, reminiscent little barn. That is the best coin,” Scharff said. “I love what this looks like, and this is such a sentimental win for me.”
Rating: 90.2
The green complexes at Landmand Golf Club often feature large hazards surrounding an tiered and sloped putting surface requiring precise and creative golf shots.
Break80 GolfEpisode 10 — Nebraska: Landmand Golf Club — $195
Iowa and Nebraska made up the first doubleheader day of the trip. Landmand Golf Club in Homer, Nebraska, was a short 25-minute drive from Sioux City, Iowa. With time to spare, the group stopped in “downtown” Homer for food.
The Bonanza Bar in Homer served dive-bar fare, and the group sampled a mixed bag of foods, including pizza rolls, tots, and gizzards. The course would prove to be the day’s high point—not the bar cuisine.
Landmand is considered one of the hardest public tee times to secure in the country. Ranked 23rd on Golf Digest’s public-golf rankings, the course sells out its tee times for the year within hours of releasing them, filling the tee sheet for the entire season.
Teams were divided into two groups: Clark, Bubbie, and Mullen on one side, and Ghetti, Castaneda, and Scharff on the other. The teams went head-to-head, selecting one player to represent them on each hole against the opposing team’s chosen player. The first team to reach 9.5 points would be crowned the winner.
“This is insane,” Clark said of the tee box on the fifth hole. “We must be able to see for a million miles.”
Steve, Ghetti, and Scharff led 6.5–3.5 after 10 holes, with Castaneda leading the charge by winning every one of his holes. Scharff narrowly missed the winning putt on the par-five 15th, halving the hole and securing the team victory.
“Shout-out to my team. My back decided to give out literally on hole one, and I’ve been walking like Stump Chuggins,” Scharff said.
Rating: 82
This article was originally published on Forbes.com