RV Articles & Opinion
Many PGA pro golfers now travel with motorhomes
By James Raia

Many professional golfers are traveling to tournaments these days with motorhomes.

There's little disagreement that life on the PGA Tour is special. Tournaments are held on the best golf courses in picturesque locations around the globe. And while competition is fierce, the lure of the game, its ever-increasing prize money and someone named Tiger Woods have all helped catapult the sport's popularity.

The PGA Tour season traditionally begins in Hawaii in early January and progresses west to east to more than 40 events weekly events. Golf's globalization and its diverse special events will take PGA Tour players to Mexico, China, England and Canada next year.

But unlike pro teams sports whose athletes travel together in transportation provided by their employers, pro golfers make their own arrangements.

And, other than hoping to post low scores, travel is the biggest concern for PGA Tour players. Some players still fly commercially, others fly privately or have partial ownership in corporate jets.

Five seasons ago, Jeff Gove joined a small but corps of pro golfers who prefer the comforts of home while traveling. With his wife, Heather, and the couple's two small children, the Goves travel tournament to tournament in the family's motorhome.

"When I was on the Nationwide Tour full-time in the late 1990s, I was driving everywhere," says Gove. "So one day I mentioned to my wife, 'Hey, let's go look at a couple of these." Gove's wife wasn't keen on the idea, with her only reference, according to the nomadic golfer was, "Grandma's Mini-Winnie." (a small Winnebago).

Once the couple investigated new models, however, it wasn't long before they owned a 45-foot Travel Supreme.

"My wife wanted to get a dog, and traveling by motorhome just made sense," said Gove. "It's not for everybody, but it makes sense to us."

Travel by motorhome by first became en vogue for pro golfers more than 20 years ago. Larry Laoretti, the 1992 U.S. Senior Open winner, gave the RV industry a substantial boost when he began traveling to more than 20 tournaments a year in his motorhome. Laoretti, now retired, eventually became an RV industry spokesman.

Laoretti's travel preference prompted several fellow competitors, including Brian Barnes, Tom Wargo and Buzz Thomas, to also travel to tournaments via motorhomes. The foursome and their families sometimes traveled in a caravan.

John Daly, the 1995 British Open winner and controversial PGA Tour star, has a customized motorhome he currently often drives to tournaments.

For Gove, one component of motorhome travel hopes to make more consistent is knowing his week-to-week destination. Since touring pro in 1995, the former Pepperdine University standout has rotated between the Nationwide Tour and PGA Tour.

The 2007 season was Gove's fourth PGA year dating to 2000. He's finished as high as sixth twice in tournaments But in 30 events, his $526,664 in earnings in 2007 positioned him only 144th on the money list and resulted in another return to Qualifying School.

Gove has also spent three seasons primarily on the Nationwide TOUR, and for the motorhome enthusiast that meant a sustainable adjustment.

While playing on the Nationwide Tour, he towed a vehicle for local transportation during tournaments. "On the PGA TOUR," said Gove. "We're lucky enough to get a courtesy car almost every week."

Still, traveling by motorhome is his preference. "It's just a better quality of life," Gove said. "You have all your stuff, especially with kids. You don't have to pack and unpack. You've got your own germs and the kids have their own toys."

James Raia writes the syndicated car review column, The Weekly Driver. Read it on his web site, www.theweeklydriver.com.


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