What Happens In Vegas Won’t Stay In Vegas

Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada.

Hopefully, I’ll see that landmark sign across from the Bali Hai Golf Club which, according to my preliminary itinerary, I may be playing after a group of us touch down in Vegas on Sunday.

What’s intriguing about that sign, first erected in 1959 and located at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip, is that its offers a nostalgic feel to a city that constantly evolves in order to keep up with the tastes of visitors from around the world.

The Vegas sign is a nice touch to a colourful history that conjures up images of the Rat Pack, not unlike the famous Hollywood sign that was saved recently from developers offers a unique taste of that town’s past.

I’m not much of a gambler, but I’ve been visiting Vegas regularly since the 1990s, when I first started attending what is now the PGA Fall Expo. That show has changed considerably since then as has the Las Vegas Strip around it.

The last time I was there, I watched the playoff at the 2008 U.S. Open between Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate, just before Woods went in for surgery, which was the beginning of his well-documented problems that continue today.

At the time, cranes dotted the sky above the strip with the construction of CityCenter, a spectacular new shopping/spa/residential/hotel/dining complex. I had a sneak preview of some of the residences and it looks like I’ll see the final product on this trip.

As opulent as CityCenter and the entire Strip is, I always enjoy a taste of old Vegas. Last time, I was there I visited the Golden Nugget down on Fremont Street and even had a peek at Frank Sinatra’s old dressing room.

This time around, it looks as if we’re scheduled to play the Wynn course, which was part of the old Desert Inn and a favourite hangout of the Rat Pack. It has since been refurbished by hotel entrepreneur Steve Wynn and Tom Fazio.

The nice thing about the Wynn is that it and Bali Hai are the only golf courses that are actually near the strip so it will be great playing with the unique Vegas skyline around us. There’s also some great golf outside the city at places such as Lake Las Vegas and that too is on the agenda.

Other interesting highlights of the preliminary itinerary include lunch on Monday with LPGA Tour glamour girl Natalie Gulbis. I know, I know … life’s tough huh?

We’re also scheduled for a hot lather shave at the Wynn Spa. I wonder if I can convince them to also take the sparse foliage on my melon right down to the wood. We’ll see.

Bob Weeks of ScoreGolf and travel guru (I’m going by his press release) Ian Cruickshank will be accompanying me, along with Roanne Goldsman of the Aerial Communications Group. It should be fun.

That doesn’t mean GNN will shut down in my absence. I’ll be keeping an eye on things from Vegas and filing travel stories and blogs from the desert. As they always are, our crack team of bloggers will also be contributing.

It’s probably best that I stay busy in the desert with GNN. It will prevent me from losing money at the slots.

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