After snapping off some crisp tee shots on the Arrowhead Golf Club driving range, we are introduced to our playing partners for the round, Don and Beverly Fritz.
Don and Beverly are retired, and a Monday morning tee time is likely routine.
After Beverly makes a special trip to our golf cart to tell me that "we play from the reds," we begin our round.
Don and Beverly, as could be expected, are not long hitters. Don is a leftie and puts his whole body into his swing to get the ball in the air. Beverly has a more natural approach with an impressive back-swing.
On an 80-degree South Florida morning, it's not so bad to be paired with the low-stress Fritzes.
As we weave our way around the well-maintained golf course, Beverly shares snippets about where she grew up (Lynn, Mass.) and a daughter who works in Boston.
She and Don banter a bit back and forth about ball placement but they pretty much keep to themselves, following golf etiquette (Don and Beverly like to mark their balls a foot from the cup instead of tapping in) as they navigate their way through the back nine.
At one point I refer to Beverly as "Bev" and wonder if Don thinks I'm being too casual with these folks we barely know. It's hard to tell because Don doesn't say much.
But he does mention that the Immokalee high school and middle schools have merged resources.
And he does answer yes when Beverly asks him if he wants a turkey sandwich.
So it's a well-spent four hours on a postcard Naples December morning, the sound of crisp tee shots, chirping birds and the murmur of the Fritzes providing the soundtrack.
