Est. 2021 · Eight seatsSix years · 2021–2026

Eight seats.Eternal friendship.

Born on pandemic happy hours, raised on fraternity lore, and tested annually over eighteen holes. This is The Albertross.

How it started

In 2020, when the world went remote, a group of old fraternity brothers found their way back to the same table—just on a screen.

The virtual happy hours grew. So did the texts, the stories, and the sense that this reunion deserved to live somewhere beyond a laptop. The group had all graduated from the University of Florida between 1995 and 1997, brothers of Tau Epsilon Phi.

After months of reconnecting, JB made the suggestion: turn the conversations into a golf trip. In 2021, eight spots were locked in for year one—and for the years that would follow.

JB also supplied the name. The Albertross, or AR, pairs Albert the Alligator with golf’s rarest bird. A clever name for a trip built on something even rarer: old friends deciding not to drift apart.

Once the first tee opens, friendship gives way to a Ryder Cup-style showdown: Team North vs. Team South. At Briggs Ranch in 2023, Team North took the cup with a 22.5–9.5 win.

At The Concession Club in 2025, Team Blue—KJ, Stoney, CEO, and MVP—faced Team Orange—Tawd, Mr. Big Stuff, Big Red Dog, and El Jefe—across five matches in three days. Waiting for the winners: a custom Albertross mini football helmet. In 2026 at Casa de Campo, the champions raised custom Albertross championship belts.

“To you eternal friendship.”
The annual record

Six years
on the books.

One trip a year, a new course on the card, and enough material to keep the group chat employed year-round. Photos will join each chapter as the archive grows.

’21

Chechessee
Creek Club

The first Albertross20 photos
’22

Hamilton
Farm GC

The return engagement27 photos
’23

Briggs
Ranch GC

Year three40 photos
’24

Scottsdale

El Jefe joins the flight28 photos
’25

The Concession
Club

Five years strong25 photos
’26

Casa de
Campo

Year six · XXVI marks 202640 photos
Names on the card

The crew.

Nicknames are mandatory. Handicaps are negotiable. The founding eight made the first tee in 2021; the lineup shifted in 2024 when El Jefe joined the trip.

StoneyEric StoneFounding eight · 2021–
JBJosh BortnickFounder & namer · 2021–
CEOMarc GinsbergFounding eight · 2021–
Big Red DogCliff EdelmanFounding eight · 2021–
TawdTodd FiermanFounding eight · 2021–
KJKevin JonasFounding eight · 2021–
MVPStefan WallachFounding eight · 2021–
Ski DawgJeff WilenskyFounding eight · 2021–2023
El JefeCraig FaginJoined the trip · 2024–
What comes next

The scorecards fade. The stories don’t.

The Albertross began as a way to reconnect. It became a standing promise: show up, tee it up, laugh at the old stories, and make a few new ones.

The destinations will change. The legend will get longer. The friendship is the part that stays on the card.

6editions completed
8seats each year
∞stories in play