Summer seems to mean only one thing for me these days: road construction.

Lately, Worthington seems to be in the thick of it.

With the Globe’s Links Fore Literacy golf tournament quickly approaching, Managing Editor Ryan McGaughey and I planned a Friday morning trip to Prairie View Golf Links for a practice round.

I had learned the day before that the bridge on Interstate 90 was under construction, closing my normal route to the course. Trying to avoid a headache, I looked up an alternate route the night before.

My plan was to head out of town on U.S. 59, and take the first gravel road heading back west.

However, I found out this road was closed as well, throwing my plans off.

As our anticipated tee time approached, I decided to try my luck on the Interstate, thinking I could possibly take a quick turn off to the north. That plan failed when I saw the fence which was preventing any sort of traffic heading north.

Forced to plan ‘C,’ I made a turn back toward Worthington, trying to find any way to get to the course.

I called Ryan, hoping for some guidance. He was headed north, almost to Reading before heading back toward the golf course. This was too far out of the way, and with only a minute or two before I was supposed to meet him, I didn’t have the time.

Luckily, on my way back into Worthington, I spotted a Prairie View sign. I followed it out north of town on a gravel road. Eventually, I found my way, but in the end, what should have been a short drive turned into a long debacle.

Once we finally met at the course, we registered and hit the Links. We both played pretty well, making me even more excited for Wednesday’s tournament.

I just hope by the time it rolls around, I can find my way to the Country Club.
 

Nick Karnazes set out with a goal.

He wanted to play 96 rounds of golf in 96 days in 48 states.

Less than two weeks ago, he completed his journey. Karnazes, who passed through Worthington in late May, finished exactly on time.

“I’m 100 percent completely relieved,” Karnazes said. “It was a tough challenge. My oldest son is a long-distance runner and when he runs a 200-mile race people say, ‘After you run 50 miles you must be tired. Aren’t you completely mentally fatigued when you think that you still have 150 miles to go?’ He says, ‘I don’t look at it like that, I look at it that I have to run to that next stop sign, then I have to run to that tree, then I have to run to that red convertible car.’ He calls it baby steps. You don’t look like you have to run 200 miles when you’re 50 miles into the race. He told me just before I left way back in March. He said, ‘Dad, baby steps. Don’t look at trying to complete 96 rounds, look at trying to complete the round you’re playing and what you’re going to do tomorrow. Look at one day in advance and when you finish that round, find a place to sleep, find something to eat that’s decent and don’t think it’s so (difficult).’”

He returned home June 25. On his first full day home, he did what he’s been doing for the past 96 days — he played golf. This time it wasn’t on a course halfway across the country. It was in his own backyard on a course he’s played thousands of times.

“It was absolutely fabulous,” Karnazes said. “I walked in and Dave Cook, who is the pro at San Clemente Golf Course — I’ve known him for years — he said, ‘Nick, I haven’t seen you for a while, where have you been?’ He knew darn well where I’d been, but he was teasing me.

“He said there was a tournament going on and he could get me out in an hour. I said, ‘I’m a member of the men’s club, I can play in that tournament.’ He said, ‘I know you are, Nick. There’s a single and you are the second guy up, you can play with him and two other guys playing in the tournament.’ He kept me waiting all of seven minutes before I was able to tee off.”

Back on his home course, Karnazes finished with an 84.

“I shot 42-42,” he said. “I wasn’t putting too well; I think what happened was I got used to the putting on all the different courses I played and so I wasn’t used to my own course. That threw me a curve.”

Only a few days before, Karnazes was teeing up his last shot on his final round of his incredible journey.

“… I teed the ball up and was ready to hit the last hole on my last day,” he said. “I had a tear in my eye. I stepped away and got my handkerchief and I said, ‘I think a little bug flew in my eye.’ (My playing partner) said, ‘We know what’s going on with you, Nick.’”

On this day, in Redding, Calif., he finished with an 86, completing a trip that at times, may have seemed impossible.

Before he left, his goal was 96 rounds. He accomplished more than he anticipated.

“I ended up playing more than that,” Karnazes said. “I played 108 rounds of golf because I played 12 times on my day off. Twenty times on the entire trip, I played 36 holes in one day.”

He also estimated he would drive just more than 10,000 miles. Again, he went farther than he anticipated. In all, he drove 12,763 miles, and spent just less than $2,000 on gas.

“I was thinking I would drive less, I was thinking I would drive about 10,300,” Karnazes said. “I plotted it from city to city and you get on Google and when I added up all the cities, like Oklahoma City to Wichita, Kan., it gives you mileage. All those miles added up to 10,305. However, it doesn’t allow for you, when you’re in that city, you’re not in the golf course and you have to drive six or eight miles one way. You have to go look for a Wal-Mart to buy some groceries. Some of the courses I mapped out when I was playing two different courses in a city, I would get to the first course and I had to backtrack a little bit to get to the second course.

“I was in Minnesota, I believe, when I passed 10,300 and I still had quite a bit of driving to do.”

After a stop in Sioux Falls, S.D., he was off to North Dakota. That provided another adventure for the “Happy Golfer.”

“There’s a city on the border between North Dakota and Montana and it’s called Beach,” Karnazes explained. “I live in San Clemente, which is a beach community. I know if you look in Webster’s Dictionary for the definition of a beach, ‘A large body of water mostly ocean, sometimes a lake or a river, it has sand, it has a whole bunch of people, men and women and children in bathing suits. You put on sunscreen and play with a Frisbee and you play with the waves.’

“Well, I Stayed at Beach, N.D., and that night it snowed 1 ½ inches on my windshield. I wake up in the morning to go to Montana and I don’t have an ice scraper or a snow scraper, so how am I going to get the snow off the windshield? I got a spatula that two days earlier I was making scrambled eggs in my camper and I used the spatula to get the snow off. I said, ‘I better get out of here. These North Dakota winters are very rough. So are the summers.’”

Living in San Clemente, Calif., Karnazes can golf all year round. On his trip, he encountered snow on three separate occasions.

“So much of the time, especially in the New England states, I played golf and people said that they were a little rusty because it was only their second or third round this season,” Karnazes said. “I said, ‘What do you mean this season? Because in California you play every day of the year.’

“If it gets colder than 52 degrees we fire the mayor and the city council and we get new people.”

A few days after completing his trip, Karnazes was already joking about his next adventure.

“I was telling the gal that does the Web site that I’ve been driving by, on the entire trip seeing all 48 states, I drove by courses that looked quite nice and I never had time to play them, I had to keep moving,” Karnazes said. “I said, when we set up the trip next year, we’ll play 10 courses in every state instead of two in all 48 states. It will take 480 days.”

After a laugh, he then added, “I don’t plan on taking a long trip like this.”

He was away from his house so long he almost forgot what it looked like.

“We pulled in Tuesday, and I looked at the house and I looked at the walls, and I said, ‘Did I paint these this yellow in the kitchen?’” he said. “(My wife) Fran says, ‘Yes.’ We remodeled our kitchen about two years ago and I did some painting… I said, ‘I don’t remember the yellow being this bright.’”

But Karnazes was happy to be home.

“I enjoy our camper and the driving and the aspect of camping out, but you’re kind of in a little small cage,” Karnazes said. “It’s not like you’re in a 45-foot camper, it’s a 24-footer. We live close to the beach and we have a golf course view and a beach view from our home. I just sat on our deck upstairs by the master bedroom. My wife said, ‘What are you doing?’ I said, ‘I’m just having a soft drink and looking at the ocean and remembering about how nice our place is here in San Clemente and how fortunate we are to live in southern California where you can play golf year round.’”

After all the places he saw, the people he met and the course he played, Karnazes sat down and started working on a memoir to tell of his experience.

“I wrote two chapters and I gave it to my wife — she’s a retired English teacher,” Karnazes said. “She said, ‘It really doesn’t look too bad. Who helped you with this?’ I said, ‘I did it on my own.’ She couldn’t believe it. I’m still trying to put it together and I’ve got some time now. I’m not that good of a writer, but I remember it quite well and I kept some pretty good notes on the trip of the courses and what I shot. But I also want to talk about some of the folks that I met.”

Because, for Karnazes, the trip was about more than playing golf and seeing the country. It was also about the people he met along the way. 

Padriag Harrington likes the length at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska.

I wasn’t crazy about it.

Playing as part of the media day for the 91st PGA Championship, Hazeltine tested every bit of length I could muster.

“I think I personally like to see a golf course with length to it, and let the tournament committee adjust the golf course how they see fit during the week, rather than a course that’s too short and leaves for options, to go extreme on the rough or the pin positions,” Harrington said during the press conference.

“In major golf nowadays the best majors are played on golf courses that have options,” he later said. “If the golf course is too short or something like that, it tends to get tricky with pin positions, because that’s the only way of defending it. When you have a bigger, stronger golf course, you can settle for a big golf course, a tough course, but you can set a very fair course.”

Last year, the course was still under some construction. Some tees were being lengthened, and some bunkers were made deeper and bigger.I

found myself in a lot of those bunkers last week. And, on a few occasions, we tested the length.

By August, Hazeltine could play longer than 7,600 yards. That won’t be a problem for the pros.

“Basically you can make the golf course as long as you want, and we’re still capable of getting out there, as long as the weather is good for it,” Harrington said. “I think you wouldn’t want to play that length of golf course, certainly not in Ireland, anyway, where it’s 240 yards, not 300 yards.”

Playing from more conservative tees, we decided to play 6,720 yards on that day.

But on a few holes, we went back.

No. 12 has the potential to be the longest par 4 in championship history. Our tees were supposed to be 420 yards. We played 518. I didn’t fare well.

No. 13 has the potential to be the longest par 3 in championship history. We were supposed to be 195. We played 248. I wasn’t even close.

We played No. 15 at 642 — the longest par 5 in championship history. Our tees were 538. I’ve never experienced anything like it.

By the time it was all said and done, our 6,700-yard round turned into a 7,049-yard round. By adjusting just a few holes, we added more than 300 yards to our round.

According to Jim Remy, the president of the PGA of America, the length is needed.“First of all, I thought it was truly a major championship venue and a venue that really meets the needs of the athletes of 2009,” Remy said. “You know, as we look at this venue today and the athletes that are playing this game of golf in 2009, lengthening the course was certainly the right thing to do. And as we look out and we see that the average length of the par 5s for our championship here at Hazeltine will be about 615 yards, with the longest par 5 being 642 yards. There will be three par 4s over 475 yards, including No. 1 at 490 yards, and I believe No. 12 at 518 yards, and what may be the longest par 3 ever to be played in a major championship or event. So this venue meets the needs of the athletes of really today and this generation in 2009.”

Despite playing ridiculously long, Hazeltine is a true championship venue. The course was challenging, but a solid tee shot leaves the green approachable on most holes.The par 3s aren’t too bad (minus No. 13), and provided some excitement.

Playing No. 8, a 144-yard Par 3, the first player in our group hit a solid shot in the center of the green. With water on the right-hand side and the pin tucked dangerously close to the front right portion of the green, our forecaddie suggested I do the same.

I thanked him for the advice and said I was going for the pin.How many times do you get to play a course like this? Not often. I didn’t step on the course to play it safe.

Instead, I unleashed a shot that flew directly over the pin, coming within 18 inches of acing the hole. Of course, I lipped out the putt and settled for a par.

While the good shots were few and far between, I experienced everything Hazeltine had to offer. I was in the sand, I was in the trees, and I was in the water. My goal was to finish somewhere in the 80s. I’ll just say I missed my goal.

I doubt we’ll see many scores that high come August.

We had just teed off on No. 18 at Prairie View Golf Links in Worthington Friday as we hopped in our cart in an attempt to locate our golf balls.

His was in the fairway with a perfect approach to the green. Mine was off to the right, no doubt in trouble.

“What a beautiful finishing hole,” my partner said to me as we approached the crest of the fairway.

After he decided to go around the water which comes between the fairway and the No. 18 green, I found my ball, and hit one of the better shots of the day to the green.

We both bogeyed the hole, ending what has been one of the more memorable rounds of my life.

My partner for the day? Nick Karnazes, or “The Happy Golfer.”

Nick made a quick stop in Worthington on the tail end of his trip of a lifetime.

The Happy Golfer, who resides in San Clemente, Calif. is playing 96 rounds of golf in 96 days in the lower 48 states, and allowed me to tag along Friday afternoon.

At 73 years young, Nick is a very good golfer.

“I used to be a four handicap, but now I’m a 14,” he explained.

Friday, he was much better than a 14.

On a course he had never played, Nick finished with a 40 on each side for a 9-over 80.

“I’m so happy with an 80,” he said. “I’m probably going to go to the next course and shoot a 90.”

The Happy Golfer is playing two 18-hole rounds in each state in 96 days. Playing both his Minnesota rounds Friday, he started at Rose Lake Golf Club in Fairmont with a 7:30 a.m. tee time.

He then packed up and headed to Worthington, hitting the course a little after 1 p.m.

By sure luck, I had heard of Nick’s travels the night before, and decided I would try to see The Happy Golfer, even if it was for a few minutes.

I arrived at the course around the same time was about to hit his first shot. After a quick introduction, an invitation soon followed for me to join him. He already had a cart, so it was just a matter of being able to grab my clubs out of my car and hit the Links.

With virtually no warm-up, I was a little rusty. With 18 holes already under his belt, Nick was coming out swinging.

While neither of us had a great first hole, his game soon picked up.

Mine then followed, and by the time we were on the back nine, we were both playing pretty well.

But not only was the golf great, hearing his stories were even better.

Nick told of his wife, Fran, who he met on a Friday night, and by Saturday, had proposed. They have been married 47 years and renewed their vows five times.

He talked of his children. His son, Dean, had once run 50 marathons in 50 days in 50 states and is the “Ultramarathon Man.” He’s made appearances on many television shows, including the likes of David Letterman. He’s been on numerous magazine covers, and countless other articles and appearances in media outlets.

Nick is just beginning.

At last count, he had been in the newspaper 22 times on his trip, with numerous TV and radio appearances. Someday, he may also be on Letterman or with Jay Leno.

But for now, it’s on to South Dakota, were 36 holes of golf await him.

“I have nine states to finish,” Nick said. “I’ve done 39 states and I have nine more states. I’ve actually finished this state, Minnesota, in one day. I played two rounds, 36 holes. This is the 16th time I’ve played 36 holes. So by playing 36 holes, what that does is allow you to have days off where you don’t have to play at all. Of these 16 times I’ve played 36, I’ve taken seven days off.”

He figures he is about three days ahead of schedule, but he will still finish June 25, when the schedule dictates.

In all, he will travel more than 13,000 miles in his 24-foot Winnebago View. He first began his trip March 22, leaving from San Clemente, Calif.

“I left March 22 at 4:33 from my home in San Clemente, Calif. I drove for seven hours to Kingman, Ariz. and that was my first round,” Nick said. “It was 40 degrees with a 40 mile-per-hour wind, which combined the wind and the cold, it made the wind chill factor of 35. Normally, you don’t hear wind chill. You do in Minnesota and you do big time in Chicago. But in California, you just say the temperature, you never hear the words ‘wind chill’ because you never have a wind chill.

“In San Clemente, the bumper sticker says, ‘Best climate in the world.’ I love the best climate in the world because you play golf every day.”

When winds normally howl through Prairie View, Friday was calm. A slight breeze on a sunny, warm day provided a great day for golf.

“It was fabulous; absolutely beautiful,” Nick said of PVGL. “If you rate them one star, two star, three, four and five, with five being the top, this is a five-star course.”

While he enjoyed his time on the course, he was able to see all aspects of the Links.

On No. 14, he was in a bad spot on the green. On the upper level of the elevated green, Nick had a tough downhill putt.

After Nick, our photographer Brian Korthals and I all took a look at the putt, he finally approached his shot.

“This is so cool,” he said, rolling his ball toward the hole. He missed the putt, but not by much.

This was not a theme of the day. He had 33 putts in 18 holes, and perhaps none better than on No. 11.

Practically laying on the green, Nick had a good read on the putting surface.

“It’s downright embarrassing if you miss a putt after doing that,” Nick said as he arose and picked up his Odyssey putter.

He didn’t need to worry. Nick, who changed putters every time he putts poorly and owns 17, rolled in a beautiful putt as we moved to the next hole.

But Friday wasn’t about the score for either of us. It was about sharing his stories, hearing about his adventures, and most of all, enjoying the course.

“This might be the prettiest course I’ve played on this whole trip,” he said during our round.

Nick picked his courses randomly based on the route he wanted to take. Taking a map out of the U.S. out of “The Mother Ship,” he pointed out where he’s been, and where he’s going. There is a line which cuts the map in half. If the name of the state was written below the line, he played those courses heading East. If it’s above the line, he’ll hit in on the way back home.

So far, The Happy Golfer hasn’t had a negative experience, but that doesn’t mean it’s been all smooth sailing.

“I’ve had to do my laundry on five different occasions,” Nick said. “The first time I did my laundry, I was in hurry and I threw everything in a giant washer instead of the smaller ones. I neglected to think there’s white with reds and the red shirt bled on my white T-shirt. I had a long sleeve T-shirt I liked, it was from one of the races. Two days later I’m wearing the long-sleeve white T-shirt and I’m at a restaurant having a beer and watching sports on TV, and the waitress said to me, ‘Do you do your own laundry?’ It was pink.”

Other than having a few pink clothes, Nick has more stories than could fit into a few hours on the golf course. He told of his experience in Los Alamos, N.M., where there was so much snow on the ground he couldn’t play. A course he was going to play in Mississippi was no longer open in the aftermath of Katrina. He met a 10-year-old boy who only three weeks before, hit a hole-in-one. In Durango, Colo., he was offered elk jerky which his playing partner had shot and cured himself. Recently, in Ohio, Nick helped with a War Veterans golf outing. In all, he has seen and experienced more in the past 69 days than some do in a lifetime.

But that’s what the trip is about for The Happy Golfer. It’s about meeting people and experiencing new things, and for a few hours Friday, I was a part of his special journey.

It was finally time for Nick to leaving Worthington in his rearview mirror and head for the next state. We said our good-byes, and I wished him luck for the remaining part of his trip.

“Eat, Sleep, Drive, Play Golf, Repeat,” he said to me as he climbed into his camper.

And there’s no doubt he will. 

To follow Nick’s journey, visit his Web site, www.callawaygolf.com/96rounds