Golf is said to be the game of kings, but if you’re on a broke budget, finding ways to get your lovely walk spoiled with a round of golf can be harder than marrying into the monarchy.  Here are some ways you can practice your stroke that won’t leave you broke.

Community Courses – Many towns have community courses that are much more inexpensive than the local club and don’t require monthly membership.  Even my hometown of Redlands has a community course!  They might have a limited number of holes or not be the best course, but it’ll get you swinging that 9 iron again!

Driving Ranges – If all you need to do is keep in shape so as not to embarrass yourself for the yearly company golf tourmaent, hit your local driving range.  You can frequently find a place where you can hit a whole bucket of balls for $5-$10.  Plus- no walking!

Be Schmoozed – Many companies and charity organizations want your business and your money.  Play hard-to-get and you could easily find yourself sitting in a two-person golf cart with them picking up the green fees.  Be nice though, don’t hang them out to dry if they’ve picked up the tab, listen to their pitch.

Join a Club – Ok, so country clubs were once the prerogatives of WASPS around the would, but now they’re social organizations that many people can afford to belong to.  Get the kids some pool time, your wife some tennis lessons and yourself a discounted green fee.  Check around to see which nearby town’s club will be in your budget.

Expense it – If you’re good enough not to embarrass yourself, take clients golfing or get yourself sponsored in a charity tournament for a chance to write off your green fee.  Take these opportunities to golf such great places as Pebble Beach and PGA course close to home.

Take a class – Many pro courses and community colleges offer reasonably priced group classes that include course time during class and discounts during non-class time as part of their cost.  Remember, the larger the class, the cheaper the fee will be. Bonus- your stroke will improve as well!

So don’t let the pinch in your pocketbook interrupt your smooth follow-through with your swing.  Tee up!

* Thanks to  Shayan (USA) for the great photo!

Ok, so you’re all a little bit broke, otherwise you’d hop a plane to Las Vegas or New York and relive Sex in the City with your three best friends.  That doesn’t mean you can’t have loads of girlie time and thrill in the fun of hanging out with your posse.  Here’s the secret – go to a local hostel!

Remember sleepovers when you were little?  Remember how you’d stay up all night, sleep in late, make breakfast and giggle all the time?  Remember how much fun they were?  Local hostels are GREAT places for grownup sleepovers.

Yes, you used hostels when you backpacked EuropWritee after you graduated college.  Perhaps you even used them when you studied abroad in South America during grad school.  You may have thought you out-grew such bohemian places once you got a steady paycheck and learned to enjoy the privacy of a hotel room.  It’s time to take another look at them.

Hostels have seen a revitalization recently, including more and more springing up right here in the United States as tourism to the US becomes more popular with foreign students.  So, choose a nice place, such as Huntington Beach, where there are good restaurants, things to do, and miles of beach and book one of the local hostels for you and your friends.  The benefit of hostelling with the girls is that its not only cheap, but it is also just fine to squabble over bunk beds, cook your own breakfast and walk around the entire establishment in your PJs.  It’s a chance to return to your younger days and enjoy giggling with your best buds.

* Thanks to jetzenpolis for the great photo of a Chicago hostel!

This is a shot of Odin, a six year old tiger at Six Flags Marine World Africa.  Unlike most cats, Odin loves to swim.  This shot was taken by my ten year old daughter during her visit to the park.  Odin is about ten feet long, was taught to swim by his trainer and by watching another tiger.  He is gulping a chunk of raw meat tossed in the water in this photo, that is called motivation–tiger style.

This “Local’s Perspective” on New Orleans comes from Chris Marz. Chris is a long-time resident of New Orleans that now lives in the Dallas area. I loved reading about all there is to do in this decadent and colorful city. It was heartening to hear of the hard work being done to rebuild from Katrina. I also enjoyed Chris’s list of tasty restaurants to visit. New Orleans does food well and I am drooling over the thought of dinner at Galatoire’s or a muffaletta from Central Grocery! Enjoy!

1. Give five adjectives that you would use to describe the “feel” of New Orleans and its residents?

Warm, fun-loving, laid-back, welcoming, and food-loving

2. What is your favorite neighborhood/area of New Orleans?

French Quarter, Garden District, Lakeview, Uptown – each neighborhood is unique.  Be sure to go past the French Quarter in touring New Orleans

3. Which cuisine do you think New Orleans does best? What is the runner-up?(feel free to share your favorite restaurant)

Creole (not Cajun); Runner up: seafood; Favorite restaurant:  Liuzza’s on the Track

4. What is the best free thing to do?

People watch in the French Quarter (Best “almost” free: ride the streetcar uptown and then back to downtown)

5. What is your favorite type of entertainment?

Street festivals with food and music (these occur almost every weekend)

6. List the best family friendly activity.

Audubon Park (zoo), the Aquarium, Insectarium,  or riverboat cruise to Chalmette

7. What spot would you send a couple, looking for a romantic weekend?

The Column Hotel

8. Describe the perfect day…one that captures what your area/city is all about–  In three sentences or less.

An early morning walk/run through the French Quarter followed by breakfast at Café du Monde; lunch at Liuzza’s on the Track (even better, if the Fairgrounds racetrack is open) If not, a trip to New Orleans Museum of Art (wonderful Faberge exhibit).  Late in the afternoon, a drink on the front porch of the Column Hotel.  Dinner at Arnaud’s, Brennan’s, Broussard’s or Galatoire’s.  Nightcap at Lafitte’s Hideaway (one of the oldest buildings in the French Quarter) or the Carousel Bar at the Hotel Monteleone.

9. Tell us about a place that you love to go whether it is in the guidebooks or not.

Get a muffaletta from Central Grocery and eat on the levee, overlooking the river. Take the streetcar to the ferry landing and ride the ferry to Old Algiers.  Walk through Old Algiers and see old homes and Blaine Kern’s Mardi Gras World.  I would also recommend a drive through Lakeview to see how hard New Orleanians are working to recover from Katrina and how far they still have to go  There are good seafood restaurants in the area as well.

10. What question did we not ask that we should have (and answer it, of course!)?

“Should I take one of the buggy tours of the French Quarter?”

Yes, but don’t believe a word they tell you.  Look for the National Park tour offerered for free, if you are interested in learning the history of the city.

“Do you have to pay a lot of money to eat good food?”

NO NO NO.  If there is a line or the place is crowded, chances are the food is good.

If you’re planning a trip, check out flights to New Orleans.

Would you like to share your hometown with UpTake visitors? Send us an e-mail or comment on this post and then maybe you can be our next “local expert”!