[caption id="attachment_665" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="16th green at Sun City Peachtree"]<a href="http://mikerappaport.net/onevoice/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/20101210_42.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-665" title="20101210_42" src="http://mikerappaport.net/onevoice/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/20101210_42-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a>[/caption]

I was on a golf course yesterday for the first time in nearly two months, but I didn't take my clubs.

That may sound strange, but I borrowed a cart and drove around the 18 holes at<a title="Sun City Peachtree" href="http://www.canongategolf.com/index.cfm?menu=5983"> Sun City Peachtree</a>, which will be my home golf course now and presumably for much of the rest of my life.

I had been planning to wait to join -- this isn't the best weather for golf -- but I wondered if there might be some sort of special membership deal at this time of year and decided to check it out. To my delight, there was one. I was able to join without paying the $750 membership fee and in addition get the first two months of dues for free.

There are two levels of membership. At the associate level -- the one I chose -- I'll pay $119 a month and then play golf any weekday for $8 (plus $14 for a cart) or any weekend for $10 (plus the cart) as often as I want. The full membership level is $209 a month and golf is free except for the cart fee.

If you do the math, you have to play golf 11-12 times a month just to break even on the higher fee. That's why at least for now, I'm perfectly happy with the associate membership.

The course itself is interesting. In the cold of December, the grass is a faded, washed-out shade of green, but from what I've been told, that's typical of Bermuda grass at this time of year. In the summer it'll be a deep, beautiful green. The length of 5,849 from the white tees and 6,340 from the blues isn't all that long, but remember, this is a course that was build in a retirement community. Not too many of us are booming it 300 yards off the tees (as if I ever did).

Someone told me it's a relatively friendly course from tee to green, but that putting is very difficult and it's not at all uncommon to three- or even four-putt if you aren't careful.

When I rode the course yesterday afternoon, the temperature was about 40 degrees. I'm pretty sure I've never played in temperatures that cold except for possibly the two rounds I played with Bill Madden in Virginia in January 2002. I know just from the driving yesterday -- the cart, not with my driver -- that I should plan to wear gloves to play in the cold weather.

One thing is definitely going to be interesting. This is the first time in my life I will have the opportunity to play regularly (I'm planning on twice a week). Theoretically, at least, that should give me a chance to improve my game and achieve at least some small level of consistency.

It's a pretty course.

It's going to be a nice life.