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3 Go Golfing Love Stories that Will Make Your Heart Melt

Anniversary at Barnbougle 4 Ball

3 Go Golfing Love Stories that Will Make Your Heart Melt

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PETER MCCARTHY & MARK HAWLEY

INTERVIEW

LISTEN TO THE AUDIO HERE OR READ BELOW

 

MARK HAWLEY

Pete, we’re continuing on the countdown to Go Golfing’s 25th birthday celebration. We’re almost there and you’ve been sharing some of the fun and interesting stories that have helped shape Go Golfing.

 

Today I want to talk about LOVE.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Are you coming onto me?

 

MARK HAWLEY

No Peter, I mean there’s a lot of love in the Go Golfing community and it would be great to share those “happy” stories.

 

You know the lucky ones who have fallen in love while travelling with Go Golfing.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Seeing clients that have ‘found the one’ and continue to travel with us as a couple, well, that’s a beautiful thing Mark.

 

When you travel with Go Golfing you travel with like-minded golfers in a similar life-position to you, the majority are ‘baby boomers’ and what I do know is that the formula we have for our events and tours, the way we welcome people, the way we look after people, the way we make people feel included and welcome from the get-go, the things we do to encourage personalities to shine, it just feels good.

 

Even if you book on your own, you’ll never feel on your own. Strangers soon become friends, I promise you’ll laugh more than you ever have, you’ll find best friends and yes, you’ll feel relaxed, happy and spoilt and yes, occasionally people fall in love.

 

It does happen, more often than you might think. In fact, I know we have a better love-matching strike rate than those silly tv shows, you know Bachelor & Bachelorette!

You can't rule love out on our tours & tournaments!

You can’t rule love out on our tours & tournaments!

 

 

MARK HAWLEY

So, how does it happen? Is this you playing cupid?

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Mark, you know I’m single, clearly I’m still learning about love. But here’s what I know.

 

I know from the smiles and the laughter, when you are happy, having a good time, being social and you’ve got a spring in your step and a glint in your eye, well, I guess cupid just does his thing and really does bring golfers together for the best times of their lives.

 

In fact Mark, I reckon cupid is possibly at play before the tour even starts.

 

MARK HAWLEY

Before? Really…How’s that possible?

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Well, about a month before your Go Golfing adventure we send out a welcome pack – shirts, name tags, bag tags, packing lists, itinerary, everything people need to know but we also send a booklet with a profile on all of the people you’ll be travelling with.

 

We have a set of questions so that people can share a little about themselves.

 

MARK HAWLEY

So do you ask if they’re single?

 

PETER MCCARTHY

No, we’re not a matchmaking service. But clients share things like how they got into golf, best memories, embarrassing moments, what they like to drink, what games they play, what else, favourite books, movies, tv shows, their hobbies.

 

I catch myself smiling as I read through these tidbits of information on everyone. As a host, and I’m sure it’s the same for the travellers, it gives you some comfort and you can tell a lot about their personalities, their sense of humour, just from their responses.

 

You can kind of guess who the livewires will be.

 

So as much as people might be excited about the golf courses, the iconic attractions, the cultural experiences, food, wine… it’s the people you share all of this with that really makes our trips special.

 

MARK HAWLEY

So how many have found love while travelling with Go Golfing?

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Mark, it’s more than you might think. There are at least 20 couples I can think of straight away.

 

MARK HAWLEY

So how does it happen?

 

PETER MCCARTHY

I don’t know exactly how it happens Mark, but how about we call a few of the clients who have coupled up, found love while travelling with Go Golfing.

 

They can tell us.

 

 

MARK HAWLEY

Sounds great. Who are you going to call Peter?

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Why don’t we start with Terry Kneipp and Sherry Smith. Terry was from Tenterfield in NSW, Sherry was from the Sunshine Coast in QLD.

 

Terry and Sherry on the France and Italy tour where they first met

Hello Terry and Sherry!

 

SHERRY SMITH

Hello Peter!

 

TERRY KNEIPP

Hello Peter McCarthy.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

We’re celebrating 25 years in business and I believe what’s worth celebrating is beautiful people like you both who have been travelling with Go Golfing for some time and love has blossomed on tour.

 

TERRY KNEIPP

Yes indeed, that’s where we met on a Go Golfing tour.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

So tell me more about the chivalrous moves of the debonair, Terry Kneipp.

 

SHERRY SMITH

Oh, it wasn’t Terry. I walked up to him, threw my arms around him and said, “Hello I’ve got a big cuddle for you from somebody else!”

 

PETER MCCARTHY

And who was that cuddle from?

 

TERRY KNEIPP

That somebody else was Robert and Glenys Thatcher who said, “make sure you say g’day to Sherry Smith.”

 

SHERRY SMITH

So they all knew each other, but Terry and I didn’t know each other because Terry had been travelling a few years behind me on all the Go Golfing trips.

 

We finally did meet up on one of them.

 

TERRY KNEIPP

We found lots of things in common not just golf but each other.

 

But it wasn’t until the tour to France and Italy, led by the Falcon (Graeme Thomas) who was looking after the tour.

 

SHERRY SMITH

Yes, Graeme took us on that trip. He was sitting downstairs in the airport and said you better come upstairs to the lounge with me, and that’s where Terry was.

 

So that’s how it started and it went on from there.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

That’s fantastic. You’ve guys have done a number of trips, as you have mentioned, both of you just hadn’t crossed paths and France & Italy was where you guys finally met, and you have travelled extensively with Go Golfing since then.

 

Anyway, I will let you guys get back to holding hands and skipping stones. Thanks for sharing your story.

 

MARK HAWLEY

Know anyone else Peter?

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Merv and Lesley Tappenden. They call me ‘son’, I call them ‘Mum and Dad’. Merv was from Victoria, and Lesley was from Mount Tamborine, up here on the Gold Coast.

 

Merv and Lesley Tappenden are another Go Golfing love story

Merv and Lesley Tappenden are another Go Golfing love story

They are on the line, hello Merv and Lesley.

 

LESLEY TAPPENDEN

Hello Peter!

 

MERV TAPPENDEN

Hello Peter!

 

PETER MCCARTHY

How did it all come to happen that you guys met up?

 

MERV TAPPENDEN

We met on a Go Golfing trip to New Zealand.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

So love blossomed between you two in New Zealand.

 

Lesley, was it love at first sight?

 

LESLEY TAPPENDEN

No Peter definitely not!

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Alright, we’ve all learnt that Merv is an acquired taste. How long did it take?

 

LESLEY TAPPENDEN

A couple of months I suppose.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

How did it all unfold? Were there any sparks in New Zealand?

 

MERV TAPPENDEN

For me, there was!

 

LESLEY TAPPENDEN

Definitely for Merv, and probably one night when I had a couple of scotches too many!

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Well, it doesn’t matter how it all started! So you went back home, Lesley you went back to Mount Tamborine and Merv you went down to Victoria.

 

How was that going to work out?

 

MERV TAPPENDEN

A lot of phone calls, and a lot of plane trips…

 

PETER MCCARTHY

So, what about right now?

 

MERV TAPPENDEN

Well, I don’t have to make any phone calls or plane trips now!

 

LESLEY TAPPENDEN

It’s our 4-year wedding anniversary today, Peter!

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Congratulations guys! Look it’s unlikely I would rack up 4 years of anything really… no, it’s always fun catching up and thanks for having chat!

 

MARK HAWLEY

Is that it Peter, or do you have another one?

 

PETER MCCARTHY

How about one last one. Kevin MacDougal, he was from Sydney, and Kristin Griffiths, from New Zealand.

 

They now live together in neither of their places. They’ve compromised and are now living on the sunshine coast.

 

Welcome, Kevin and Kristin.

 

KRISTIN GRIFFITHS

Thank you for having us!

 

PETER MCCARTHY

You guys met at the Gold Coast World Masters event and Kristin I believe you were there with your mother?

 

KRISTIN GRIFFITHS

Yes, yes, that year I was. I managed to come across to the tournament once by myself, and then with my mother who was a very keen golfer she came to after.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

And Kevin did you come up by yourself down from Sydney?

 

KEVIN MACDOUGALL

I actually came up with Serg Nogarato. He was coming to the event and he talked me into coming up.

 

That was my first event.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

So how did you come to meet Kristin?

 

KEVIN MACDOUGALL

On the 4th tee at Robina Woods. Kristin was playing with her mum, Di at the 2-ball ambrose.

 

Di, Serg, Kevin & Kristin at the 2-ball ambrose

Di, Serg, Kevin & Kristin at the 2-ball ambrose, Gold Coast World Masters

 

She said, “this is my mum, Di”, and I said “this is my dad, Serg!”

 

PETER MCCARTHY

So who made the first move?

 

KEVIN MACDOUGALL

Oh, Kristin, I think haha. No, we met up a couple of times at 19th hole and then hit it off at the closing dinner.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

So Kristin was in New Zealand, and Kevin you were in Sydney at the time. So how did the long-distance thing work out?

 

KRISTIN GRIFFITHS

Pretty good. I think the following year I moved to Brisbane and live there for a couple of years.

 

So we went back to the tournament again, and Kevin and Serg went again too. So we all hooked up.

 

Mum and I played the 2-ball ambrose with them like the previous year and from there, there was no looking back!

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Thanks for having a chat with us, all the best and I will reduce my fees to MC your wedding.

 

I just loved listening to clients share these stories. I get a warm feeling. I think it’s pride, knowing that we helped love blossom for these couples who are so happy together.

 

MARK HAWLEY

Pete, I know we’ve been talking about those who have found love on tour, but there’s also so many great friendships, lifelong friendships formed while travelling with us.

 

Pete, next week can I get you to talk about the amazing friendships as we count down to Go Golfing’s 25th-anniversary celebrations.

 

PETER MCCARTHY

Love to Mark.