2010 Aug / Sept Issue of South Central Golf

MAGAZINE

www.southcentralgolf.com August-September 2010 Vol. 17, No. 4

Cool off at the Lake

Lake of the Ozarks is a favorite golf playground

Gulf Coast golf courses in excellent condition and ready for a fall visit LPGA stars to gather at P&G NW Arkansas Championship ore!

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• South Central Golf Magazine

Editor Production Manager Expo coordinator Copy Editor

Ken MacLeod Derek Hillman Craig Raguse Jenk Jones Jr.

Contributing Writers Larry Lewis Barry Lewis John Rohde Steve Habel Andrew Gilman Rip Stell Contributing Photographers Mike Klemme South Central Golf, Inc. 6218 S. Lewis Ave., Suite 200 • Tulsa, Okla. 74136 918-280-0787 • Fax - 918-280-0797 www.southcentralgolf.com • ken@southcentralgolf.com South Central Golf is distributed free at golf courses in Oklahoma, Arkansas, southern Kansas, north Texas, and southwest Missouri.

The magazine is endorsed by the PGA South Central Section, PGA Midwest Section, and the Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Kansas state golf associations. South Central Golf is published five times annually, including our annual course directory. Subscriptions are $18 and are available by calling 918-280-0787 or on the website.

We also welcome your letters and comments via e-mail.

Bo Van Pelt aims for Ryder Cup..................8 New Clubhouses and renovations Shangri-La reborn.....................................9 Mystic Creek under contsruction................9 New par-3 course at The Greens. ..............10 Forest Ridge rebuilds greens. ....................10 Destinations Gulf Coast...........................................12 Lake Charles..........................................16 Lake of the Ozarks..................................17 Murder Rock in Branson. ........................20 USGA Women’s Mid-Amateur previewed....21 NW Arkansas LPGA Championship...........22 Merchandisers get creative. ......................23 Larry Fryer survives cancer.......................24 Columns 25 Gene Mortensen - Rules 26 Instruction Zone 27 Barry Thompson - PGA 27 Dr. Bachman - Fitness 28 Mark Felder - OGA 28 Kim Richey - KGA 29 Jay Fox - ASGA

Departments 6 Around the Section 30 Schedules and Results On the Cover No. 8 green at Old Kinderhook. Photo

by Mike Klemme

The Best is Getting Better...

Forest Ridge Golf Club the area’s premier and award winning public golf course is receiving a face lift.

During the fall all greens will be resurfaced. These renovations demonstrate a strong dedication and commitment to keep Forest Ridge Golf Club your destination of choice.

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7501 E. Kenosha • 918-357-2282 • www.forestridge.com South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

AROUND THE SECTION

Farewell to Mal Elliott

By Ken MacLeod Veteran sportswriter and Kansas Golf Foundation Hall of Fame member Mal Elliott passed away July 23 at age 80 after a bout with cancer.

Elliott, who contributed a column to South Central Golf nearly every issue since its inception in 1993, was a former sports editor of both the Tulsa Tribune and the Wichita Eagle-Beacon.

He left a legacy of professionalism, wit, and helpfulness, qualities prized by his colleagues and those he covered.

“Mal was incredible,” said Kansas Golf Association Executive Director Kim Richey.

“He was the last of a bygone era of golf writers in our state who were not only good journalists but great historians.”

“To me, Mal was Mr. Golf in the state of Kansas,” said longtime Kansas sportswriter Jim Misunas. “There’s a good reason why he’s in the Kansas Golf Hall of Fame. Mal loved the history of golf and loved telling stories about the colorful characters associated with the game.”

Elliott was born in Chicasha on Aug. 9, 1949. He served in the armed forces in Korea and attended the University of Oklahoma and East Central State College. After stints at the Abilene Reporter News, Lawton Constitution and Daily Oklahoman, he became sports editor of the Tulsa Tribune

Angel Fire Resort debuts new clubhouse A new clubhouse has been completed and is open to the public at the Angel Fire Resort in the “enchanted circle” in northern New Mexico.

At 27,000 square feet, the building has new lockerrooms, an indoor swimming pool, fitness rooms offering yoga, pilates and massage, a reception area and an expanded pro shop.

The lower level has the Par and Grill for breakfast and lunch, while on the upper level the Elements lounge serves sandwiches and salads. The stunning main dining room and grand hall are called Stonewood. Through the bay windows or from the patio, the club offers great views of the course and surrounding Sangre de Cristo mountains, including Mt. Wheeler, the tallest peak in New Mexico at 13,161 feet. The club itself sits at 8,600 feet and the temperatures in August are typically in the 70s and low 80s.

in 1961 and stayed there until 1971, when he became Sports Information Director at Oral Roberts University.

He is survived by his wife Fran, sons Van, Tracy and Bill, daughter Jamal Bara. six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

While sports editor of The Tulsa Tribune, Elliott was casting about for a good golf writer for the well-respected afternoon paper.

He asked Wally Wallis, the veteran golf writer for the Oklahoma City paper, whom he should hire.

“Don’t hire anyone,” Wallis told him. “The golf beat is the best beat on the paper and you ought to cover it yourself.”

Elliott took that advice, beginning a love affair with the game - though he seldom played - that culminated with his 2008 induction in the Kansas Golf Foundation Hall of Fame.

Bill Harper of the Tulsa World was hired

by Elliott from Claremore as a sportswriter on Elliott’s staff at the Tribune.

“Mal was an awesome mentor,” Harper said. “My funny story about Mal was when I worked the desk and was responsible for getting all the stories in the paper. Mal began explaining to me one day that I had permission to cut anyone’s story if that’s what it took to get all the material in the paper, including Red Smith (a New York Times sports columnist considered one of the

Mal on the beat at Wichita Country Club. all-time best sports writers.) “You can cut anyone’s story.”

“Well, a few weeks later, I had more stories than I could get in the paper. I began cutting stories. And, as you know it would happen, I cut Mal’s column. He just happened to come by the office between editions, saw that I had taken the knife to his column.

“He was none to happy.”

I reminded him of his comment about cutting anyone’s copy.

“Yeah, I said that,” Mal said, “but I didn’t mean for you to cut mine!”

The country club is open to the public and resort guests. The building will be open year round and serve the skiers as well.

The lounge is open seven days a week and the main dining room Wednesday through Saturday. It is also available for weddings, meetings and special events.

“We could not be more pleased with the outcome of this project,” says Pat Brunstad, chief executive officer for Angel Fire Resort. “There is nothing like this in Northern New Mexico. The new Country Club reflects the best of Angel Fire’s alpine community along with all the modern and upscale features that will provide a world class facility for our visitors and members. Proving worth the wait, this clubhouse is certain to exceed any and all expectations.”

To introduce more golfers to the new facility, Angel Fire is offering a Friends Stay Free program. Through the first week of September, you can book a room and your friends room will be in a second room at View from the main dining room at the new no charge. Just go to angelfireresort.com Angel Fire Resort clubhouse. or call 1-800-633-7463 for all the details.

Courtesy of Angel Fire Resort, John Rhea 2010 www.southcentralgolf.com

• South Central Golf Magazine

AROUND THE SECTION Elliott left ORU in 1974 to be the sports editor of the Wichita Eagle-Beacon (now Wichita Eagle). He worked for the paper until his retirement in 1994.

At the Eagle as both an editor and reporter, Mal left his mark. His former colleague and long-time Eagle columist Bob Lutz remembered Mal in a column after his passing. Some excerpts: “Mal was not a big man. But he had a big presence and a nasty scowl. As someone who had trouble adapting to authority (it’s from being an only child, I swear it is), there were times I wanted to punch him. He was an in-your-face editor and I tried to preserve my territory.

“But nobody taught me more about journalism and newspapers than Mal Elliott, Mal’s infectious laugh defined him, although it was deceptive. Often, he would laugh hardest after ripping up a story. Those weren’t times, generally, that I felt like chuckling, but Mal had a disarming way.

“Mal was obstinate, there’s just no way around it. There’s no one who went into a debate with him and came out a winner, even if that person was right. There was right and there was Mal. As time went on, though, it became a charming feature, the way a pit bull can be charming.”

In addition to his contributions to South Central Golf and other publications, Elliott penned four golf books in his retirement, ably assisted by his wife and chief researcher Fran whom he married in 1954.

Elliott wrote a comprehensive history of golf in Kansas and also penned club histories of Prairie Dunes, Wichita Country Club and Rolling Hills Country Club.

There were plenty of opportunities to do more books, but Elliott declined, noting the massive time invested in research was wearing.

Although he’s covered major championships in Tulsa, at Augusta and in Kansas and was given a lifetime media badge by former USGA director Joe Dey, Elliott found the most pleasure in covering events out of the spotlight.

On a personal note, Mal was one of the first sports editors in Kansas to befriend this reporter when he was fresh out of college in 1981 and covering events at Wichita State or Kansas State for the Coffeyville Journal. He was always kind and helpful.

And the great stories he’s written on Kansas golf have been a huge benefit for me and our readers in 18 years of publishing South Central Golf. Despite his battle with cancer, Mal wrote right up to our most recent issue in June. His remembrance of former Kansas Golf Association president Lou Holland in that issue would prove to be his final story.

We’ll miss you Mal.

Forget 59, Claremore man shoots 56!

In this summer of ridiculously low scores, Jeremy Callison of Claremore has everyone beat.

You probably know that both Stuart Appleby and Paul Goydos have shot 59 on the PGA Tour this summer, that Ryo Ishikawa shot a 58 on the Japan Tour and that amateur Bobby Wyatt shot 57 in the Alabama State Boys Junior Championship.

Callison shot a 16-under-par 56 at the Broken Arrow Golf & Athletic Club on July 25, certainly one of the lowest rounds of golf ever recorded on a par 72 course of more than 6,000 yards.

Now for the caveats. Callison was playing in a member-guest tournament in a shamble format from the white or member tees, listed at 6,023 yards on the scorecard but probably playing a bit shorter that day. The ball was being played up in the fairway on the course which is still recovering from heavy winter kill like many Tulsa area courses.

Still, as Callison and his playing partners attest, Callison did not use a single shot of his partner Kevin Leaver, a Tulsa police officer. He putted out on every green. His round included 10 birdies, three eagles and five pars.

Jeremy Callison stands on the 18th green at Broken Arrow Golf & Athletic Club.

“I’ve shot some good scores in the past, but never anything like this,” Callison said.

“For whatever reason, I was able to stay in the moment that day and it just got crazy.”

To read the complete story on Jeremy Callison’s 56, go to www.southcentralgolf.com.

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Coming into his own Van Pelt binges on birdies

By JOHN ROHDE Former Oklahoma State All-American Bo Van Pelt knows what it’s like to not make a birdie. For a three-month span while playing for the Cowboys (1994-98), he quit the team and was without a set of clubs.

“I never thought I would play golf again,” Van Pelt explained the week before this year’s U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. “My heart wasn’t in it, so I went to coach (Mike) Holder and told him my spot should be given to somebody who was more deserving. I turned my golf clubs in and for about three months I didn’t even have a set. But then I started to get that itch back and I thought I was going to have to transfer. Coach Holder told me, ‘Well, I never kicked you off the team.’ He took me back and the rest is history.”

Soon, the birdies started to fly again.

Few PGA Tour players go on a birdie binge quite like Van Pelt. As of late July, Van Pelt led the tour in total birdies (292) this season and also led in greens-in-regulation from 200-plus yards.

“If you’re playing well, you’ve got to string a bunch of birdies together,” Van Pelt said.

“I don’t know, maybe it goes back to when I grew up playing in a bunch of money games.

Birdies are what counted. That’s how you put some money in your pocket. I guess I had to learn that at a young age.”

The 35-year-old Tulsa resident has been on a binge all season, pocketing a careerbest $2,095,308 in his first 20 starts, during which he had finished third twice, has five top-10s, nine top-25s and missed just three cuts.

But in order to qualify for his first Ryder Cup team, Van Pelt must do more – and quickly.

The top eight American players in points through the PGA Championship automatically make the 12-man team. Captain Corey Pavin will then pick the four remaining players. (Van Pelt was No. 17 on the U.S. Ryder Cup list heading into August.)

This year’s Ryder Cup will be held Oct. 1-3 at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, Wales, where the European team will be deemed a heavy favorite.

“I wouldn’t say I’m consumed with it,” Van Pelt said of making the Ryder Cup team. “Obviously, I would love to play on the team. It’s one of those deals where you’ve just got to play well. Those kind of things just take care of themselves. If you get worried about what you’re doing, or what other guys are doing, you might end up not playing very well. That’s one thing

coach Holder preached and my dad preached.

‘You play well, and those type things take care of themselves.’ “ Van Pelt’s teamclinching moment could come at the PGA Championship (Aug. 12-15) at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wis., where he tied for 31st in the 2004 PGA held there. Ryder Cup points are worth double at this year’s major championships.

Van Pelt and Pavin occasionally have played on tour together and recently had a casual chat.

They also share the same golf psychologist in Dick Coop.

“He’s got a lot on his plate,” Van Pelt said of Pavin. “He knows that I’ve been playing well, but there’s a bunch of guys who have been Tulsan Bo Van Pelt takes aim at the 2010 Ryder Cup team. playing well.”

The PGA of America changed its qualify“My family had just gotten into Houston ing format from two captain’s pick to four that day, and I wasn’t in a very good mood,” after an 18½-9½ loss at the 2006 Ryder Cup Van Pelt said. “I said, ‘Come on. We’re going in Ireland. home.’ Literally, our kids were in Houston a “I think it’s a good change, and that was total of 14 hours. We got home Friday night, evident in how well our guys played two I hung out with them Saturday and Sunday years ago,” Van Pelt said. “With the four and all week. I just needed a little bit of picks, you can really zero in on the guys time to reflect and get my head screwed on who are playing the best right then. It gives straight. I think I just needed a week off.” you a little bit of flexibility if you want to Asked to pick one aspect of his game that match up certain guys or whatever.” has made this season more successful than Van Pelt has won more than $11.2 mil- others, Van Pelt said, “There hasn’t been lion in nine seasons on the PGA Tour, plus one distinct deal. I just try to be real conanother $552,328 on the Nationwide Tour, sistent on what I do on a day-to-day basis where he won the 2003 Omaha Classic. so it doesn’t affect me too much one way or In a span of six starts from mid-April to another whether it’s going good or bad. The early June this year, he had five top-10 fin- biggest thing I did at the beginning of the ishes, including four in the top 5, and earned year was mess around with a bunch of difjust shy of $1.5 million. Prior to that magical ferent putters. During a week off I decided stretch, Van Pelt said his struggles primarily to go with the putter I had used the last five involved putting. years. I decided, ‘Let’s stop looking behind “Tee to green, I probably hit it better the door No. 2 and door No. 3 and go with this first 10 weeks than I did during the (hot) putter, which has been working just fine.” stretch,” Van Pelt said. “I just couldn’t get Van Pelt’s lone PGA Tour victory came at the ball in the hole. I think sometimes you last year’s U.S. Bank Championship, which just have to hit a low.” was held opposite the British Open that After a season-best tie for 14th at the Ar- week. The tournament, long known as the nold Palmer Invitational in late March this Greater Milwaukee Open, no longer exists. year, Van Pelt missed the cut in Houston the “I sent that tournament right into retirefollowing week. ment,” Van Pelt said with a laugh. www.southcentralgolf.com

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New Courses and Renovations

Forest Ridge will rebuild all 18 greens this fall, sodding with Tyee bent grass.

A new Shangri-La Clubhouse, routing take shape

By Ken MacLeod New owner Eddy Gibbs is wasting no time in his plans to revitalize ShangriLa Golf Club near Grand Lake in Afton, Okla.

Gibbs has already retained the services of architect Randy Heckenkemper and course builder Dale Forrest and his company United Golf to begin the process.

Work has begun on a new 13,000-square foot clubhouse located on one of the highest elevations on the property. The new clubhouse will eliminate holes 2 and 3 on the championship course. Those two will be replaced by two new holes built on the former driving range which will become holes 16 and 17. The par-5 first hole will become 18 and the current fourth hole will now be the first hole.

Project manager Jason Sheffield said there are three phases to the project. The first phase is to complete the new holes and the clubhouse. A range will also be added on what currently hole No. 3.

Next will be to add nine holes on the site

of the former Gold Course which is now just a field. Those nine holes will allow ShangriLa to keep 18 holes open when it begins a major renovation of the Blue Course including new greens.

The final phase will be to add new condominiums and patio homes, followed by a hotel and convention center.

“We need to make this place a destination again,” Sheffield said.

Shangri-La membership had dipped to 84 golfers under the previous owner but is up to 173 and rising under Gibbs.

“A lot of those are new members,” Sheffield said. “A lot of them are property owners in the area. They know Eddy is going to do it right.”

Demolition has been completed on the old lodge. However, there are still plenty of stay and play opportunities for those interested in the golf, boating and fishing opportunities at the lake. Shangri-La works with both the Old Mark by Wyndham condos and the Woody Crest Lodge.

The target date for the completion of the clubhouse is Memorial Day 2011.

South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

Mystic Creek proceeds

The only new golf course currently under construction in the South Central Section is the Resurrection Course at Mystic Creek in El Dorado, Ark. The course is the project of Pete Parks, an El Dorado accountant and well-connected businessman and city booster who is attempting to bring an upscale course to that area of southern Arkansas.

The project was begun in 2005 and has been delayed several times by weather and other issues. The course architect is Ken Dye, who along with partner Baxter Spann has designed more than 100 courses, including such famous tracts as Paa-Ko Ridge outside of Albuquerque, N.M. Parks said the grading and rough shaping of the course should be completed in August and sodding of the fairways should commence this fall. He said the greens will use Champion Bermuda and will be planted either this fall or next spring with the goal of opening the course in late summer of 2011.

Parks said the course is built on rolling terrain with elevation changes of 15 to 50 feet on each hole. It is a core course in that the associated housing will be built around the course instead of inside it. Parks hopes the community will attract retirees who want an affordable but excellent golf course and there are plans for a second 18 holes if the development takes off.

New Courses and Renovations ate Bob Randle, who has previously worked at Prairie Dunes CC in Hutchinson, Kan., and at Pine Hills CC in northern Louisiana.

El Dorado, with about 21,500 residents, has a country club and a public course already. Parks predicts that several smaller courses in the area may choose to merge with him rather than dilute the market. He also expects the course to draw form a 50mile radius, including in northern Louisiana.

shots,” said Kendall Dye, former University of Oklahoma golfer now on the Futures Tour and a Greens CC member. “I love to come out here and work on different shots that might come up in a round.”

The holes can be played at different angles from different tees. None are longer than about 70 yards, but the most fun is not from the tee, but from the landforms between the tee and green.

Par-3 livens The Greens

Forest Ridge Golf Course is saying so long to its old greens. No more Penn Cross.

Hopefully, no more poa annua.

Director of golf Lance Allen couldn’t be more excited about the new Tyee bent grass with which all 18 greens will be sodded this fall. Particularly after a recent trip to Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers, Ark., to play in the PGA South Central Section Match Play Championship.

Allen wasn’t the only section pro who came away from that event raving about the Pinnacle greens, which opened last summer and were the first in the section to use the Tyee strain of bent grass. Tim Graves, winner of the tournament, said the greens compare favorably with those of any he’s seen across the country this year, including Merion.

“They are just beautiful,” Allen said. “I was very impressed. What’s really impressive about the new technology with the grasses is that you can now mow it at the same height and gain a foot of speed (on the stimpmeter.) The grass provides less resistance to the golf ball so you don’t have to shave the greens to get your speed up.”

Forest Ridge was to close the back nine holes on Aug. 23 and the front nine on Sept.

7. The resurfacing is scheduled to begin Oct. 1.

Forest Ridge architect Randy Heckenkemper, who also did the renovation at Pinnacle, believes the renovation will help Forest Ridge maintain its reputation of providing an extra level of course, conditioning and service in the public course sector.

“Lance is extremely excited about the Tyee as am I,” Heckenkemper said. “Combined with all the bunker work and other improvements to the green complexes, I think golfers will really be excited about the changes.”

Allen said the new greens, which will be sodden instead of seeded, allowing for a much shorter down time, will regain some square footage lost over the years to Bermuda encroachment and only minor modifications will be made to the existing grades, mostly to accommodate the greater green speeds expected with the Tyee.

Work will also commence on a pond on the par-3 15th hole that will extend in front

Golfers at The Greens Country Club in Oklahoma City are sharpening their shortgame skills on a new three-hole practice facility that affords the chance to work on every conceivable type of pitch, chip and putt.

Architect Jerry Slack of Broken Arrow made excellent use of mounds, depressions, bunkers and slopes to give golfers a maximum variety of options for shots, stances and strategies.

GM Tommy English, Kendall Dye and PGA pro You can work on everything from the lob Brent Cryer on the par-3 course at The Greens CC. shot to the chip and run. The holes are fa“We’re hoping that it will be like a mini vorites of juniors and the most skilled playHot Springs Village,” Parks said. “It will ers at the club, according to Tommy Engdepend on how successful we are with the lish, one of the ownership partners and the first phase.” club’s general manager.

The superintendent is Kansas State gradu“This lets you practice a million different

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• South Central Golf Magazine

New Courses and Renovations and behind the green, giving it a penisula green effect. This is also expected to be completed when the course reopens on Dec. 1. The pro shop, restaurant and practice facilities will remain open throughout the renovation.

Allen said Forest Ridge will use the down time to add some fescue areas in areas out of play and make sure the entire course is cleaned up and weed free for the reopening.

Like every course affected by the winter kill, Forest Ridge has had to so some sodding of the Bermuda and fight weeds that wanted to take over the affected areas.

Winter kill issues linger

The extensive winter kill that affected golf courses throughout Oklahoma and particularly in the Tulsa area continues to be dealt with even through August.

Battle Creek Golf Course in Broken Arrow brought in a machine from California that plants sprigs much deeper into the ground than traditional sprigging, allowing it to do some extensive sprigging to repair its damaged fairways with quicker recovery time. The hard-hit course was expecting fairway conditions back to normal in early August.

Scissortail Golf Course in Verdigris lost more than 60 percent of its hybrid Bermuda fairways to winter kill. Director of Golf Lynn Blevins said the course has sprigged close to 40 acres and sodded another 12 acres at a cost of more than $80,000. The course is using U3 or Astro, a selection of common Bermuda in replace of the hybrid.

Blevins is hopeful the course conditions will be back to normal by early September.

Meanwhile, however, the course owners are out the expense of repairs combined with play that is far below normal.

That’s a terrible one-two punch that has affected public courses throughout Tulsa.

One of the few courses to be spared winter kill issues – Page Belcher – was forced to deal with damage to the greens on Olde Page after a misapplication of fertilizer combined with searing heat.

Going back to the record rains in the fall of 2009, record cold over the winter resulting in winter kill, tornados, hailstorms and floods that have affected many courses, it’s been a tough year to operate a golf course.

Tulsa County courses LaFortune Park and South Lakes elected to strip sod areas rather than sprig in their affected areas.

Like many other courses, they have also had to battle the weeds nutsedge and goose grass that rush to fill in areas vacated by dead Bermuda.

“People have been very understanding,” Blevins said. “They say everyone has had problems. But they’re not playing a lot of golf.”

South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

11

Righting

a wrong

There may never be a better time to visit unaffected Gulf Coast courses and help an area rebound

“Truth is universal.

Perception of truth is not. ” - Anonymous

By Steve Habel In coastal towns along the Gulf of Mexico in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Florida, the summer is usually a time of crowded beaches, fully booked lodgings, waiting lists at restaurants and filled tee sheets at golf courses. Instead the tourist season of 2010 will be marked by many as the year of the British Petroleum Gulf Oil Spill rather than the vacation that built memories to last a lifetime.

There is no doubt that the waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the Gulf Coast’s beaches have been adversely affected by the oil pouring into the seas from the well explosion that killed 11 workers on BP’s Deepwater Horizon rig in April.

In the months since the tragedy, conditions in the coastal towns have been exaggerated and perceptions have been formed that have exacerbated the impact on the Gulf Coast’s tourist industry and – by associ-

12

ation – these areas’ golf courses.

In July – a week after the well’s leak was capped – the U.S. Travel Organization, the umbrella organization for U.S. tourism, released a statement saying it expects Gulf Coast tourism to suffer to the tune of $22.7 billion over three years because of the oil spill. The USTO asked the federal government to require that BP put as much as $500 million into a marketing campaign to bring people to the coasts hurt by the spill.

“Travel is a perception business, and the impact of disasters like the BP oil spill on the industry is actually predictable,” said Roger Dow, president and CEO of the USTO. The reality is the Gulf Coast’s tourism offerings are very diverse and many of the attractions have not been affected at all by the oil spill. The coastal cities’ pull in tourists with world-class casino resorts, restaurants, museums, art galleries and water-related attractions as well as a slew of top-rated golf courses.

“The perception created by the overwhelming media coverage that the entire Gulf Coast is covered in oil has impacted the tourism industry adversely,” said Mary Beth Wilkerson, the Mississippi Development Authority’s director of tourism. “In fact, there are many great packages and other vacation offerings available currently. For the golf and resort/gaming lover, there’s never been a more value-laden time to visit.”

Mississippi Gulf Coast golf blindsided by the spill The oil spill and its aftermath could not have come at a worst time for the Mississippi Gulf Coast – or as it likes to be called the “Golf Coast.” The area was in the midst of a celebratory week as it was hosting a Champions Tour event at Fallen Oak in Saucier the week the oil spill hit.

“During the tournament the tour players and officials alike were saying, ‘if we knew this area was this much fun, we would have come here earlier,’” said Kevin Drum, executive director of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Golf Association & Coast Golf Tourism Partnership. “That response had us very confident and gave us great momentum, so much so that we expected a nearly 25 percent increase in golf tourism this year.”

Instead, golf tourism on the Mississippi Gulf Coast was down in May and June by about 17 percent as compared with 2009.

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• South Central Golf Magazine

At left, The Preserve designed by Jerry Pate and above Fallen Oak designed by Tom Fazio, both in the Mississippi Gulf Coast area. At right, The Peninsula in Gulf Shores, Ala. “A couple of weeks into the oil spill we fall and spring recognized how much golf tourism was be- – which are ing impacted,” Drum said. “It surprised us our biggest seasince there was no oil on the beach, and, if sons,” Drum exthere was, it still had no impact on the golf plained. “While courses, hotels, casino resorts or the end- those seasons less supply of southern hospitality we offer. have not been We were caught off guard about the impact impacted yet, of the misperception.” golf package Golf tourism had been growing on the quote requests Mississippi Gulf Coast in the aftermath of are down 60 percent for the year and down destruction in the area caused by Hurricane 90 percent in May and June for future bookKatrina. New hotels are being built every ings. year and a number of the region’s courses – Drum is confident that since there are no including Fallen Oaks GC, The Preserve GC, problems on the Mississippi Gulf Coast the The Oaks GC, Grand Bear GC, Shell Land- area will recover from the reduced number ing GC and the Pine course at Diamondhead of requests with a strong August, September CC – are all ranked among the best in the and October. “If we can get more requests South. than last year in the next 90 days, we can With more than 20 golf courses including overcome this misperception issue,” Drum tracks designed by Tom Fazio, Jack Nick- added. laus, Arnold Palmer, Davis Love III, Jerry Pate and many more, the Gulf Coast has Alabama Gulf Shores been welcoming golfers for over 100 years feeling the impact as well and is home to the first golf course in Mississippi in 1908.

In Alabama, substantial hard data will not How good is the golf experience in Mis- be available for many months to come, but sissippi? So good that all the past two years’ general reports from the area’s lodging partslowdown in the economy has done is de- ners and from its retail outlets, restaurants celerate the industry’s growth, not stop it. and attractions indicate that business is at “Even though last year was tough, we saw least half of last year’s numbers. no decline and were on par with the previDuncan Millar, executive director of the ous year,” Drum said. “That is why we ex- Gulf Shores Golf Association, a group that pected so much growth this year – golf tour- promotes the game in Gulf Shores, Orange ism is booming down here because of the Beach, Fairhope, Daphne and Perdido Key, quality and value of the golf courses.”

FL, said all of the lost business this summer As much as Drum is troubled over the is due to the oil. “I heard from many of our numbers from the past three months, he is lodging partners that this summer was more concerned about the immediate fu- looking to be well above forecasted based ture as a result of misperception. on reservations that were made prior to the “Our worry is the lack of golf package re- explosion on the Deepwater Horizon,” he quests we received in May, June and July for said.

South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

Gulf Shores and its neighbors to the north and east sports a variety of great golf options, highlighted by Kiva Dunes, a Pate design that is part of Alabama’s only beachfront golf resort. Other great tracks are the Palmer-designed Cotton Creek and Cypress Bend courses at Craft Farms, Jay and Carter Morrish’s cool Golf Club of The Wharf, Palmer’s redo of Lost Key GC and the Peninsula Golf and Racquet Club, a 27-hole facility fashioned by Earl Stone.

Can the area’s courses and tourist attractions survive after the third blow in five years to the area – first the wrath of Katrina, then the economic downturn and now the oil spill and its affects? Millar said they can.

“We are very hearty people down here on the Gulf Coast,” Millar said. “We are survivors. Situations like this also are ways for everyone to pull together for the good of the area and also get creative and figure out ways to stimulate business. That does nothing but help make things better

For more information Alabama Gulf Shores www.gulfshores.com

Mississippi Gulf Coast www.gulfcoast.org

13

when we return to normal.”

Coastal tourism bureaus are on the attack to dispel misperceptions The Gulf Shores Golf Association has a message for those wondering how to help the Gulf Coast: come down and play some golf. The oil will not impact the golf courses in any way, and though swim advisories are in place, the beaches are still open and still beautiful.

The Gulf Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau is acting as Alabama’s main voice to combat the misconceptions about the oil spill’s effects through a website (www. thebeachfacts.com) that communicates accurate and current conditions. The site includes a daily video update, and the CVB is conducting a strong PR campaign to counter the negative press.

Alabama Gulf Coast accommodations are offering discounts, special packages and events (such as a recent Jimmy Buffett concert in Gulf Shores) as well as incentives to get people to head south to stay and play.

“We are also working through some of our golf channels to spread a positive word,” Millar said. “Now more than ever, the Gulf Coast needs the support of its visitors, and tourists can help by keeping their reservations (or making new reservations), playing golf, and enjoying all that the Gulf Lost Key in Gulf Shores, Ala., is one of the Project4_Layout 1 10-08-05 10:39 AMgems Pageof1 Coast has to offer.” the Gulf Coast.

Although the water may still be off limits,

the Alabama Gulf Coast is safe and ready to host visitors more than ever. “The temperatures are still quite warm, the humidity is much lower, the courses are still in great condition from the summer growing season and often times the value is better than the spring season,” Millar said.

To the west, the Mississippi Gulf Coast Golf Association & Coast Golf Tourism Partnership is communicating weekly to its customers via an e-newsletter list, through social media (such as Facebook and Twitter) and talking with media outlets from regional golf publications and to the Golf Channel.

“The best way to help the Gulf is come down and play some golf on the Gulf, Drum said. “The economic impact of golf tourism goes beyond the golf course – less than 20 percent goes to golf courses with the other 80-plus percent going to hotel owners, restaurant owners and their seafood suppliers (fisherman) and attractions, shopping and to the airport.”

The MGCA hopes to have a promotion in place to spur rounds of golf but also believe that the quality and value of its golf courses speak for themselves. “When golfers give us a try we know they will be pleased and come back,” Drum added. “The locals love golf and the visitors love the golf here, so we will be fine if people will just ignore the misperceptions and come on down.”

If you like our greens... you’ll love our blues!

For more information visit www.visitmississippi.org or call 1-888-669-7662 for a FREE Golf Mississippi Guide and start planning your colorful vacation today!

14

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• South Central Golf Magazine

Alabama offers something for golfers of all abilities.

Namely, a big ol’ slice of humble pie.

When it comes to challenging public golf courses, Alabama has more than any other state. In fact, we’re the home of three of America’s 50 Toughest Courses as selected by Golf Digest. Testing your mettle is as easy as visiting Silver Lakes, The Shoals or the stunning new Ross Bridge near Birmingham.

They’re part of the mighty Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail – 24 demanding gems that are winning accolades from The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Golf Magazine to name just a few.

If you’d like to combine time spent in the beach with a little time spent relaxing on the beach, there are a half-dozen more world-class public courses on Alabama’s gorgeous Gulf Coast featuring designs by the likes of Arnold Palmer and Larry Nelson.

And more great golf finds are sprinkled throughout the entire state. Truly, if you’re looking for great golf and genuine hospitality on your next trip, you owe it to yourself to experience all Alabama has to offer.

South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

w w w. w. a l a ab b ba am a m a .t . t r av av e l

15

At left, the Contraband Bayou Course at L’Auberge du Lac Casino and Resort. Below, a hearty bowl of gumbo after a round of golf is a treat.

Lake Charles has much to offer Golf, gambling, girls, gumbo

By Ken MacLeod While my fellow scribes and I were wolfing down mounds of crawfish, crabs and boudin, it was left to a young assistant pro at Gray Plantation Golf Course to let us in on a little secret. The one thing that tops even the golf and the grub in Lake Charles specifically and southwest Louisiana in general...

“Definitely, the prettiest girls you will find anywhere,” said the transplant from the Dallas area. “No question. Not even close.”

Fellas, that’s your one hint on that subject. However, we’ll be glad to expand on the golf and Canjun food.

Lake Charles, less than a two-hour drive east of Houston, is easily accessible in a day’s drive or short flight for most South Central Section golfers. The food is beyond compare and unaffected by the gulf oil spill. The golf, nothing special at the turn of the century, has come a long ways, as you shall see.

Gray Plantation, a member of the Audubon Golf Trail, is a very enjoyable course and scenic despite having lost more than 2,000 trees to Hurricane Katrina. Their loss has not affected the fundamental challenges and strategy and has probably allowed for even better course conditions. During our visit, those were superb, by far the best in the area.

Golf Digest raters have been impressed

by Gray Plantation, ranking it as one of the top 100 public courses in the nation and the third best course in Louisiana.

The pro shop, restaurant and clubhouse are all first rate. A bowl of gumbo on the veranda after a round with a cold beer is just about heaven.

Gray Plantation has long been a must

16

stop for golfers in the area. It is no longer the only one.

The Contraband Bayou Golf Club is a Tom Fazio layout winding through marshes and bayous at the huge L’Auberge du Lac Casino Resort where our party camped out during our recent visit. The casino is a huge draw for neighboring Texans who still have no legalized gambling. The Las Vegas style resort has shops, restaurants including a Snake River Grill, pools, workout facilities, a spa, all the bells and whistles.

The golf course shut down in May to redo all the greens which had been submerged during Katrina. While closed, many other improvements were made, including redoing all the bunkers, squaring the tee boxes, reshaping fairways, new tee markers (each of which weighs 1,600 pounds) and other cosmetic touches. Since reopening on July 9, the course has been booked solid.

The new greens are Champion Ultra Dwarf Bermuda, regarded as one of the best ultra dwarfs that have revolutionized Bermuda greens.

While Contraband Bayou opened in 2005, the newest offering and the one that convinced Lake Charles it now boasted the quality and variety of courses to market itself as a golf destination is The National Golf Club of Louisiana. Opened in 2009, this course is set in a mature growth pine forest and architect David Bennett makes great use of that along with abundant water features.

There is room to land and work the ball on the front nine, but the back requires more precise play as the woods, water and approximately 90 bunkers begin to close in like a vise. It is a fun but demanding and challenging layout.

If you enjoy fast greens, the municipal Mallard Cove is your course. Located next to the former Chennault Airbase, Mallard Cove has an interesting mix of dogleg holes and greens that require the touch of a jewel thief. Or you can three-putt six or seven times as I did.

There are three other courses in the area to sample – Pine Shadows, Bayou Oaks and Frasch Park, as well as another huge casino resort course nearby in Koasati Pines at Coushatta Resort.

In addition to the golf and gambling, there is plenty to do in the area. Lake Charles is the festival capital of the state and that’s saying a lot in a state that knows how to party.

It has its own Mardi Gras celebration. The visitlakecharles.org site has all kinds of information on the festivals and their schedules.

Or you could just spend all your time eating. If you’ve never had a boudin ball, get ready, these spicy sausage and rice creations go great with fried alligator and a cold drink. Be sure to visit the Seafood Palace for crabs, crawdads and other local favorites, then for a bit more refined but no less delicious fare, go to Mazen’s Mediterranean Restaurant for oysters, redfish, good steaks and an amazing soufflé. If you need something quick, the locals drive all the way from Baton Rouge to get one of the Po Boy sandwiches from Darrell’s.

Did we say we liked the food here? Just wanted to make that crystal clear.

Lake Charles is definitely worthy of your consideration for a fun and lively golf trip.

Just get ready to go on a diet when you return.

Where to golf Nat’l Golf Club of Louisiana (866) 255-6693 www.nationalgcla.com

Mallard Cove (337) 491-1204

Gray Plantation (337) 562-1663 www.graywoodllc.com

Frasch Park (337) 527-2515

Contraband Bayou (337) 395-7220 www.ldlcasino.com

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• South Central Golf Magazine

Lake of the Ozarks Cool off at this hot golf destination Above, No. 3 green at Old Kinderhook. At right, fairway view at Lake Valley.

Photos by Mike Klemme.

By Larry Lewis Even though the Lake of the Ozarks wasn’t created with golf in mind, golfing legends Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Tom Weiskopf have made the area one of the best golfing destinations anywhere.

Finished in 1931, the Lake of the Ozarks - the largest man-made lake in the Midwestern United State, has become a major tourist destination. And leading golfers turned golf architects like Palmer, Nicklaus, and Weiskopf, along with famed golf architect Robert Trent Jones, Sr., have come to leave behind some remarkable courses.

A total of 15 public access courses and one private course exist in the Lake of the Ozarks area in Central Missouri, and you don’t have to play the headline courses to play quality golf.

Still, a main attraction like The Club at Old Kinderhook, a Weiskopf design, is going to be at or near the top of most golfers’ destinations who visit the Lake of the Ozarks.

For more information Lake of the Ozarks www.golfingmissouri.com

“We have a lot of really loyal golfers who have fallen in love with this place,” said Old Kinderhook head golf professional Chris Bueschler. “Word of mouth has really helped people find out about us.”

Even the downturn in the economy the last couple of years hasn’t hurt Old Kinderhook.

“We’re doing pretty well - we’ve actually had an increase over last year,” said Bueschler. “Our lodging is up significantly.”

With several spectacular holes, including the signature par-3 seventh hole, Old Kinderhook, opened in 1999, should not be missed.

Featuring a dramatic elevation change from tee to green with a green cut into the side of a hill, this hole alone, measuring from 113 to 152 yards, makes the course worth playing.

Osage National Golf Resort, an Arnold Palmer design opened in 1992, is another must play in the Lake of the Ozarks area.

Featuring 27 holes with three separate ninehole course, Osage National offers lodging

South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

and many other amenities.

The “Mountain” nine offers breathtaking elevations changes, while the “River” nine has several holes along the Osage River, in the which bluffs overlook from high above.

The “Links” offers another distinct golf experience.

Tan-Tar-A Resort also offers 27 holes of golf, with the 18-hole Oaks Course, built in 1980, and the nine-hole Hidden Lakes course, built in 1971. Both are equally scenic and challenging with major elevation changes, and offer views of the Lake of the Ozarks.

“Our golf courses are terrific, and our resort offers a great environment to for the family,” said Paul Leahy, the director of golf at the

17

Osage National, left, and The Cove, above, are two great choices at Lake of the Ozarks.

Oaks. “Parents don’t have to entertain the kids - we have a great enclosed environment with top security where kids can do several activities, like bowling and swimming. The water park has been a great addition.”

With all of the new courses and hotels built in the last 20 years or so, Tan-Tar-A understandably doesn’t have the same market share it once had, but is still is going strong.

The resort offers a main hotel by the lake, and several cottages that provide a more secluded experience.

“With the economy the last couple of years there is more shopping for value with people using coupons, and the corporate groups aren’t as large, but people are still coming to play, and the hotel is doing well,” said Leahy.

The Club at Porto Cima is a Jack Nicklaus design located along the Lake of the Ozarks.

The highly acclaimed layout is owned by the Lodge of Four Seasons, but it a private

18

course.

Also owned by the Lodge of Four Seasons are two courses, The Ridge and The Cove, which are both comparable in quality to Old Kinderhook, Osage National, and Tan-Tar-A’s courses.

Elevations changes and spectacular views abound for both the Ridge, opened in 1991, and the Cove, a Robert Trent Jones, Sr. course opened in 1971. The Cove, formerly known at Witches Cove, was originally a private course but recently made the change to being opened to the public.

With not a bad course in the area, other courses in the Lake of the Ozarks area include Bay View Golf Course, Bear Creek Valley Golf Club, The Golf Club at Deer Chase, Dogwood Hills Golf Club, Eldon Golf and Country Club, Indian Rock Golf Club, Lake Valley Country Club, Rolling Hills Country Club, and Sycamore Creek Golf Club.

Attractions for the Lake of the Ozarks

area include the Bagnell Dam, which made possible the filling of the Lake of the Ozarks.

The Dam was built to provide hydroelectric power for Missouri.

The Lake of the Ozarks area includes 22 hiking trails, more than 100 restaurants with about half overlooking the water, 30 marinas and boat rental businesses, wineries, excursion yachts, helicopter rides, airplane rides, indoor and outdoor water parks, three show caves, the largest premium outlet mall in Missouri, one of the top three fisheries in the country, and over 500 fishing tournaments annually.

“Our central location has actually helped us in the down economy, and we’ve held our own in 2009 compared to previous years, and we’ve substantially outperformed our competitive set compared to other tourist destinations in the state and in our region,” said Jim Divincen, who title is Administrator, Central Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks Tri-County Lodging Association.

Divincen lists Branson as the area’s biggest competition. Both locations offer great golf along with fishing and lake activities.

“We have an outstanding variety of activities for the whole family to enjoy, wonderful accommodation units and campgrounds, all with the scenic backdrop of Missouri’s beautiful Lake of the Ozarks,” said Divincen.

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• South Central Golf Magazine

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19

Murder Rock towers over Branson

By BARRY LEWIS

HOLLISTER, Mo. – John Daly’s golf career has been filled with surprises.

Add to that list John Daly’s Murder Rock Golf and Country Club, which opened in 2007 and is located just south of Branson.

“The biggest thing for most people is when they see John Daly’s name, they think the course is going to be extraordinarily long, but it isn’t,” Murder Rock director of golf and general manager Chris Meade said.

From the back tees, Murder Rock plays at 6,727 yards. From the member tees, it is 6,189 yards, with the other tees at 5,627 and 4,914 yards.

“It’s not too long, but the course can be deceivingly difficult,” Meade said. “It can play pretty tough, but if you choose the right set of tees, you’ll have fun.”

20

One of the impressive views at Murder Rock Golf Course.

Landmark Land Company designed the semi-private course although Daly has offered advice. Accuracy, more than distance, is the key to scoring well at Murder Rock.

It’s a thinking golfer’s course.

There’s a scenic four-mile drive from the entrance of the Branson Creek Residential Community up to the Murder Rock clubhouse that has an amazing view overlooking the Ozarks. During the drive it’s easy to see how Murder Rock received its name. According to legend, it was a site where Civil

War bushwhacker Alfred Bolin’s gang had a reputation for ambushing travelers.

Golfers, however, won’t feel ambushed on a course that is challenging, but not killer tough. All skill levels can enjoy the course that has developed well in a short time. It doesn’t have the feel of a course that is only three years old. There’s enough water and sand to keep things interesting, but not too much to be intimidating for high handicappers.

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Please see M. Rock, Page 25

• South Central Golf Magazine

Wichita Country Club will be a great test for the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship.

USGA returns to WCC Women’s Mid-Am begins Sept. 25

By Jim Misunas Fifty years after Wichita Country Club was the focus of women’s golf, the USGA will return for the third time.

The 24th U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship is scheduled Sept. 25-30 at Wichita Country Club.

The Wichita Country Club offers its share of golf history. Former USGA president Judy Bell honed her game at Wichita Country Club. Wichita Country Club was the site of the 1955 U.S. Women’s Open (won by Fay Crocker) and the 1969 USGA Senior Amateur (won by Curtis Person Sr.).

Mark Massey from the USGA visited Wichita Country Club during the 2008 Kansas Amateur championship. An invitation was extended to the course, which accepted.

“It’s a privilege to host one of our national golf championships,” said Wichita Country Club PGA Head Professional and CEO Cary Cozby, a University of Oklahoma graduate.

“Our members and the Wichita community are very excited.”

The majority of the membership comprise the 250 volunteers required to make the championship run smoothly. Co-chairs Steve McKinney and Joe Cassell have coordinated 16 host committees with caddies and scorers a popular choice. Fifty caddies will be available.

Wichita Country Club will play to a par of 72 over 6,209 yards. The course is relatively flat, but requires good shotmaking skills to maneuver the tree-lined course.

The course, designed by William H. Did-

del, opened in 1950 and features Zoysia grass.

The intermediate rough will be set to 1½ inch. The primary rough cut will be set at 2½ to 3 inches. The undulating greens will be set to run at 11 to 11½ feet on the stimpmeter.

A new tee at No. 10 and several trees were removed. The only maintenance change has been installing Zoysia to replace the bluegrass intermediate rough.

“We needed no changes with any course conditioning,’ Cozby said. “The changes with the Zoysia and the tee box were already planned.”

Cozby said several back-nine holes will be interesting in match play. The converted 445-yard par 5 No. 10 hole offers the perfect risk-and-reward strategy. An accurate drive and long-iron or hybrid will be required to hit the small green in two shots. A player must avoid being left or long neat the green because the putting surface slopes severely from the back left to front right.

The picturesque 137-yard No. 11 and 156yard No. 17 holes are short, but challenging par 3s.

“No. 11 is protected by water in the front and left and requires a shot into a crosswind,” Cozby said. “No. 17 is a difficult hole that is well protected and requires accuracy.

Par will be good scores on those holes.”

Superintendent Brian White said Ty McClellan, a USGA agronomist, has evaluated the course several times.

“We’ll work on getting consistent firmness and speed in the greens,” White said.

South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

“Fall is a good time for our course.”

Defending champion Martha Leach, 47, of Hebron, Ky., won the 2009 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. She defeated Laura Coble of Augusta, Ga., 3 and 2, at the 6,173-yard, par-72 Golden Hills Golf and Turf Club in Ocala, Fla. Both players are entered for the 2010 championship.

Other featured entrants will be Sherry G. Herman of Farmingdale, N.J., the 2009 Senior Women’s Amateur champion; Meghan Stasi of Oakland Park, Fla., the 2006, 2007 Mid-Am champion; 2008 USA Curtis Cup Team; 2009 Mid-Am semifinalist; and Diane Lang of Weston Fla., the 2008 Senior Women’s Amateur champion.

Other past Mid-Amateur champions entered are Joan Higgins of Glendora, Calif.

(2008); Corey Weworski of Carsbad, Calif.

(2004); Kathy Hartwiger of Birmingham, Ala. (2002); and Ellen Port of St. Louis (2000).

A field of 130 players will play stroke play Sept. 25 and 26 to qualify the top 64 players for match play Sept. 27 to 30. The tournament is open to female amateurs 25 and older who carry a USGA handicap index not exceeding 9.4. Sectional 18-hole qualifying is scheduled from Aug. 25 through Sept. 7.

The 2010 Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship will be the 20th USGA championship conducted in Kansas. The 2007 USGA Men’s Senior Amateur was contested at Andover’s Flint Hills National Golf Club.

21

Clockwise from top left, Arkansan Stacy Lewis, defending champion Jiyai Shin, Cristie Kerr, Michelle Wie, and Paula Creamer.

By Ken MacLeod Things can change quickly on the LPGA Tour. It seems just yesterday that there was an established event in Tulsa being won regularly by the likes of Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, Cristie Kerr and Paula Creamer.

An event in northwest Arkasnsas, on the other hand, was struggling to get qualify players in the field and beset by foul weather.

Now the SemGroup Championship in Tulsa is but a memory – Creamer won the final event in 2008 – and the P&G Northwest Arkansas Championship presented by Walmart is one of the premier events on the LPGA Tour.

Of course, any LPGA event on American soil is important for the tour these days, after an ailing economy and former commissioner Carolyn Bivens combined to nearly destroy the tour. There are 13 events in the United States this year, 10 not including majors.

With a purse now at $2 million, the Northwest Arkansas Championship is now one of just three events outside the four majors to offer that lucrative a purse and the final one of the season. With its playing dates of Sept.

10-12, it has become the prime event at the end of summer.

Combine the purse, the schedule and the fact that the players love the renovations to Pinnacle Country Club that were completed just in time for last year’s event, and only injury should keep any of the top 50 from

Top of the line

only U.S. players in the top 10 at this writing were Kerr and Creamer, winners of the LPGA Championship and U.S. Open respectively.

The international flavor of the LPGA, which this year had 14 of its 27 events outside the U.S. borders, is embraced by the sponsors of the Northwest Arkansas Championship such as Proctor & Gamble and Walmart, who are global companies. Same goes for Tyson Foods, which sponsors the Pro-Am pairings party.

“The people in Northwest Arkansas just love that we have a big-time golf event in our community,” Allen said. “Our sponsors like the international flavor of the LPGA. These are all global businesses and that’s regarded as a strength here.”

Allen has been pleased with his working relationship with new LPGA commissioner Michael Whan, who has been repairing sponsor relations damaged during the tenure of Bivens. Whan has committed to attending all events in the U.S. this year and is expected in Rogers for the tournament.

The renovation of Pinnacle by Tulsa-based architect Randy Heckenkemper and the construction crews of Landscapes Unlimited and Jones Plan has been well received,

P&G Beauty is the last great LPGA event of the year

22

competing.

“With the course and the experience the girls have had here in the past, we should have everybody this year,” said tournament chairman Jay Allen. “There is some doubt with Paula Creamer and her thumb injury.

Other than that, we should have an exceptional field.”

Defending champion Jiyai Shin, who won the 2009 tournament in a playoff with Angela Stanford and Sun Young Yoo, will return to defend her title. Shin is currently the top ranked golfer in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings.

Shin should be joined by the likes of Michelle Wie, Kerr, Stanford, Morgan Pressell, Suzann Pettersen, Webb, Brittany Lincicome, Christina Kim and golfers with Arkansas ties Stacy Lewis and Tulsa transplant Stacy Prammanasudh.

In what has become an international tour, others in the top 10 on the money list who will likely be in Arkansas include Ai Miyazato of Japan, Na Yeon Choi, SongHee Kim, Inbee Park and Sun Young Yoo of South Korea and Yani Tseng of Taiwan. The

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Please see LPGA, Page 26

• South Central Golf Magazine

New measuring stick Older clubs are hot sellers too

By Andrew Gilman Combine the stagnant economy with poor weather and a game that – as addictive as it is – is still non-essential to a strapped household budget, and the result is not great for those who depend on equipment sales either for their livelihood or to supplement their business.

Two of the best merchandisers in the section are Pat McCrate at LaFortune Park in Tulsa and Alsie Hyden at Lake Hefner Golf Course in Oklahoma City. Both say 2010 has been a struggle, but better times are ahead.

“I’m an optimist,’’ Hyden said. “So, that means my opinions are swayed easily. I’ve been predicting up for the last three years, but I think we’ll be up definitely from last year.’’

But as far as the economy is concerned, Hyden has noticed golf companies doing some different things.

“While the companies have been moving less merchandise, they are moving more aggressively on the older equipment,’’ Hyden said.

Instead of purchasing new drivers, new irons or the newest gadgets, some folks are being more frugal and embracing the “New to you” philosophy.

“The PING G15 is the No. 1 selling driver in the industry,’’ said Rick Bell, a PING field representative in Oklahoma. “But we’ve been in an 18-month cycle where old models are being introduced at lower costs. And that’s selling well. That’s what’s going on.

“For example, the PING G5 offering has been great for us. It reaches people we haven’t before. It’s half the price, and it’s being bought by a guy in his 20s making his first big golf purchase. Yeah, you have guys who will buy anything brand new, but there are a lot of others who are cautious and hold on to their dollars.’’

At LaFortune Park in Tulsa, Pat McCrate would definitely agree. The director of golf for Tulsa County courses LaFortune Park and South Lakes has had his numbers reduced the past two years by construction of a new clubhouse at LaFortune and by the horrendous weather of 2010, but he can also see a reluctance among golfers for the big ticket items.

“Sure, sales are well below what we expected,’’ McCrate said. “But we were under construction last year and we had a pro shop that was jammed into a trailer that was smaller than we had. That was last year.

“This year, we thought we’d have an enormous year because of the new pro shop. It wasn’t the case. The first thing people cut

out are the new set of irons or the new driver. The shirts are still pretty good, they’ll need gloves and some things like that, but for the expensive stuff, we’re falling short of expectations. We have the new shop and we have the state of the art equipment, but we’re not selling the same amount of expensive stuff like we used to.’’

That kind of concern has led Hyden to look to other ways to generate revenue, until the economy shifts again.

“We have been working on the fact that we want to be known as the place to be fitted,’’ Hyden said. “A high percentage of our sales are done through club fitting. We emphasize our custom fitting and we have the equipment. The golfer has finally realized that fitting makes a difference. They want the technology that’s out there to tell them what’s right and what’s wrong.

“We’re trying to be aggressive as we can, related to rounds, but if a guy only has so many dollars, he’ll make a choice. Golf is still healthy around here.’’

“Pro shop sales are the first thing to go usually,’’ McCrate said. “We still do okay with

specialty stuff, but you really have to make sure people are getting a bargain. I’m looking harder this year for bargains, harder than I have ever looked before.’’

Those bargains are being manifested in older equipment being discounted as well as a number of other things – anything to help counteract a stretch of poor weather dating to last October.

“I’m also seeing weather as a huge issue,’’ Bell said. “I don’t use weather as an excuse, but this winter was one we haven’t seen before. We expected to up on sales in 2010 at PING. I attribute that to the bad weather.’’

The good news for those in golf sales is that hopefully both the economy and weather will soon get better. When people are feeling more confident, they will be more likely to invest in a new set of clubs.

Hyden says his goal is not to worry about expectations, the market, or the weather.

“I’m not trying to get the guy who is interested in spending more time with his kids or family,’’ he said. “I’m just trying to create more players. If we can do that, things will be fine.’’

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South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

23

Living large again

ProCure helps Fryer whip cancer

By Ken MacLeod

Above, cancer survivor, Larry Fryer, and the fixed beam treatment room in the ProCure Proton Therapy Center in Oklahoma City. The fixed beam is appropriate for most of the tumors that can be treated with proton therapy.

Photo courtesy of ProCure Treatment Centers, Inc. MILLIONS

OF

Larry Fryer can be found at Quail Creek Golf & Country Club on a given morning, swapping stories and knocking the ball around with fellow retired PGA professionals such as Art Proctor and Pat Jenkins.

One story that Fryer is not shy of retelling is how he came to still be playing the game he loves and which provided his livelihood since 1964, including nearly two decades as the head professional at Quail Creek (198199).

Fryer was diagnosed with an aggressive case of prostate cancer in March of 2009.

While researching possible treatment options, he learned that a new center employing proton therapy treatment was due to open by August in Oklahoma City. The center, ProCure Proton Therapy, accepted Fryer as one of its first patients.

“There were only five places that offered this therapy and I was all set to go to California,” Fryer said. “I found out from an oncologist here in Oklahoma City that they were building one right here and I was for-

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tunate enough to get in quickly.

Proton therapy is an alternative to traditional radiation therapy that uses x-rays to destroy cancer cells. Dr. Sameer Keole, who worked on Fryer at ProCure, compared the difference to the use of a bullet versus a firecracker.

“X-rays are light and protons are charged particles,” he said. “With the proton therapy, you can put a very precise amount of energy into a specific area and the explosion destroys the cancer. If Larry would have been treated with X-rays, he would have received three times as much radiation.”

Instead, Fryer received 44 treatments near his home. He has been cancer free for more than six months and now just reports back for checkups every three months.

“The first thing they do is put three gold bars in your prostate, they serve to guide the equipment so they hit the exact same spot every time,” Fryer said. “With the treatments, you go in, get undressed, it takes two minutes and you go on about your life.

There is no pain, no invasive procedures.

It’s just a wonderful deal.

“I haven’t had any pain or symptoms since this started. It’s just a wonderful treatment. I would recommend it to anyone who has prostate cancer and I would be happy to talk to anybody about it.”

Fryer, 69, is retired from the golf business but still manages some rental properties in the area and plays fairly often, including occasional rounds with sons Don and Kirk.

The ProCure Center is a 60,000 squarefoot building that can treat up to 50 patients daily with plans to expand it to house 150 patients.

“We get patients from all over the country,” Keole said. “Right now we’re treating patients from New York, Georgia, Texas and other states.

Anyone who wants to learn more about Pro-Cure can call 1-405-773-6700 or go to www.procure.com. Other centers are in Chicago, Virginia, New Jersey, San Diego, Seattle, Michigan and Miami.

Get the latest golf news and results online at www.southcentralgolf.com!

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• South Central Golf Magazine

M. Rock

for that designation along with the wellContinued from page 20 bunkered, 173-yard, par-3 No. 9. The No. 1 handicap hole is No. 18, a 457-yard, par-4.

My wife, Deanna, who would be clasThe front side is played in a valley, but sified as a 36-plus handicapper who plays the back nine is elevated higher than any once or twice a year, said after her recent other stretch of holes in the Branson area. round there that the course was “real invitAfter the round, golfers can enjoy a meal ing to play,” with holes that were “beautiful” there in the restaurant where the most popand a view that was “gorgeous.” ular sandwich is the “Daly Special” a thinThe only intimidating tee shot comes sliced ribeye topped with melted provolone on the par-5, 14th hole that plays 524 yards cheese and soft fried onions. The blackened from the back tees. Meade said that could tilapia also is excellent as is Glenn’s burger, be considered the course’s signature hole named after the club’s founder, Glenn E. although the very scenic, 215-yard par-3 No. Patch. There is also a full breakfast menu.

7 hole would be another prime candidate Fees for a round of golf are seasonal,

Rules of Golf Gene Mortensen

OGA Rules Official There are 34 Rules of Golf and they are the creation of the United States Golf Association, in coordination with the Royal and Ancient. Of the 34 there are six that apply to so many common situations that, very often, one or more might come into play on a single hole. You will greatly improve your enjoyment of the game when you have a working knowledge of the six basic Rules.

Rule 23 pertains to Loose Impediments which are all of those natural objects which are the creation of The Almighty. The definition includes twigs, leaves, stones and everything of a similar nature. As the name implies, they are not fixed, growing or solidly embedded. Sand and loose soil are loose impediments on the putting green, but not elsewhere. If your ball and a loose impediment are in the same hazard, you may not touch or move it. If your ball lies through the green, you may remove the loose impediment by any means but be careful not to move the ball in the process as this results in one penalty stroke. If your ball lies on the putting green and it is accidentally moved in the process of removing a loose impediment, there is no penalty and the ball must be replaced.

One of the questions usually asked is whether you may remove Loose Impediments from the area in which you intend to properly drop or replace a ball and the answer is “yes”.

Rule 24 deals with Obstructions and those are artificial objects which have been created by man. A cart path is, perhaps, the most common Obstruction. The definition includes rakes in bunkers, sprinkler heads and hoses, irrigation control boxes and those signs and ropes used to control cart traffic. When an Obstruction interferes with the lie of the ball or your stance, and you can remove it, you may do so without penalty. If the ball moves in that process, replace it without penalty. If the Obstruction is im-

moveable, you may take relief without penalty, in two steps; (1) establish the nearest point of relief; and, (2) drop the ball within one club length of that point. If your ball comes to rest in a water hazard you are not entitled to free relief under this Rule so you play the ball as it lies or take relief under the Water Hazard Rule.

Rule 25 tells us how to proceed from Abnormal Ground Conditions. The definition includes casual water, ground under repair and holes and casts made by burrowing animals. When your ball lies in or touches the condition or if it interferes with your stance or swing, free relief is available using the same two steps; (1) establish the nearest point for relief; and, (2) drop the ball within one club length of that point. One of the tricky aspects of taking relief under this Rule is finding that “nearest point”. Remember there is only one such spot. It cannot be nearer the hole than where the ball lies and it is where the shot can be made without interference from the condition.

Rule 26 applies when your ball is in a Water Hazard. A Water Hazard is marked by yellow lines and/or stakes. You may play the ball as it lies or, under penalty of one stroke; (1) play a ball at the spot from where you last played; or (2) imagine a line from the flagstick through the spot where your ball crossed the margin of that hazard and drop a ball anywhere on the extension of that line. Remember to keep the hazard between the hole and the place where you take the drop.

If your ball is in a Lateral Water Hazard (marked by red lines and/or stakes) you have the first two options and, in addition, you may drop a ball within two club lengths of the point where your ball crossed the margin of that hazard. Remember that the point of reference is the spot where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard. There is no “line of flight” relief so do not attempt to imagine how the ball made its way into the hazard so you can drop on that line.

Rule 27 deals with a Ball Lost or Out of Bounds. In either case, under penalty of one stroke, return to the spot where you played the last stroke with the original

South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

ranging from $42-$80. That includes range balls and a cart.

A round at Murder Rock also may include a glimpse of a celebrity. The club’s allstar list of charter members includes entertainers such as Moe Bandy, Glen Campbell, Fabian, the Gatlin brothers, Mickey Gilley, Johnny Lee, Bill Medley, Tony Orlando, Paul Revere, Ray Stevens, Jim Stafford, Shoji Tabuchi, Mel Tillis and Bobby Vee. “We see the Gatlins here when they are in town and Johnny Lee is here a lot,” Meade said. “And Shoji, too -- he’s a good golfer.”

For tee times and other information, call 417-332-3259 (DALY). ball and play again. If this is at the teeing ground, you may tee the ball. You have five minutes to search for your ball and that period begins when you arrive at the place where the original ball is likely to be. One of the situations an official often sees is the player who is searching near a water hazard and almost always making the assumption that the ball is in the hazard because it was not found. Under the standard of “known or virtually certain”, a player must have evidence the ball is in the hazard (see it splash down) or it is lost.

When you play a shot in which the ball may be lost or out of bounds, this Rule provides for a Provisional Ball and that will save you from making a trip back to play the shot over again. When in doubt announce to your marker or others in your group that, “I am going to play a Provisional Ball in case the first one is lost” and then proceed to play the ball before going forward to search. If you find the original ball; good. Pick up the provisional . If you don’t find the first one of find it OB, play the provisional.

Rule 28 pertains to a Ball Unplayable.

The player, as the sole judge, may declare his ball unplayable anywhere on the course except when the ball is in a water hazard.

Two of the common situations which require that a player follow this Rule is when the ball is in tree roots or so close to a boundary fence that it is difficult to make a stroke.

When a player declares a ball to be unplayable there are three options, all under penalty of one stroke: (1) play from the spot where you played the last stroke with the original ball; (2) imagine a line between the hole and the ball and drop on an extension of that line; or, (3) drop a ball within two club lengths of the spot where the ball lay. If the ball is in a bunker, using options 2 and 3 require that the ball be dropped in that bunker. In the third option you do not establish the nearest point to drop, it is two club lengths from the spot on which the ball lies. Select the relief option which will work for you as you will start over with an additional penalty of one stroke if you drop a ball and it rolls back to where it is unplayable again.

25

Instruction Zone

wisdom, ìkeep your head stillî while you swing the club.

Well, if you view the modern tour player Joe Hassler GolfTEC, Tulsa from face on as they make their swing you will generally see that their head will have BODY POSITION—TOP OF moved slightly further behind the ball at the top of their swing than where it was at BACKSWING address. I would rather see someone move As a PGA Teaching Professional, I have their head too far behind the ball at the top seen my share of good and not-so-good golf as opposed to seeing their head tilting toswings. wards the target.

In this article I would like to focus on the DRILL: position of the body at the top of the golf Facing a mirror, take your address posiswing, with emphasis on four body parts: tion, note the position of your head. While head, knees, hips and shoulders. Quoting a facing the mirror, swing the club to the top leading golf teacher, David Leadbetter, “You of your backswing. Where is your head must know what your body does during the now? Done correctly, your head should swing before learning the roles played by have moved slightly behind the ball. your arms, hands and the club.”

Assuming a good address position, which KNEE WIDTH is a key to allowing your body to fulfill their Viewed from facing the player, their knees integrated assignments correctly, let’s ex- should be over the top of their shoes. There plore the body position at the top of the is a gap/distance between your knees, that back swing. gap/distance should be maintained during Please realize that if your body is in the your back swing. correct position at the top of your back If that distance decreases significantly swing, there is a great probability it will ful- during your back swing the foundation of fill its role in your forward swing. Here are your swing will be compromised and will a few keys that all good club singers have in lead to errors with other body parts. common at the top of the backswing.

DRILL Again, facing a mirror take your address HEAD position, note the distance between your You have all heard as a pearl of golfing knees. Swing the club to the completion of your back swing, what is the gap/distance between your knees now? The gap should Golf course be close to the same as it was at address.

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26

HIPS

The responsibility of your hips during the back swing is to rotate in the same direction that the club is traveling. Ideal rotation of the hips is around 50-55 degrees during your back swing.

LPGA

Continued from page 22

boosting membership rolls and the image of the club in the section and nationally.

Allen, a member and a 16 handicap, said the course is several shots harder than it was previous to all new greens being built along with some adjustments to the strategy in terms of bunker and tee placements along with moving green complexes. The new Tyee bent grass has performed well and allows superintendent Todd Towery to regularly provide green speeds in excess of 10 on the stimpmeter even in hot conditions.

“We had a good country club amenity type course, now we have a true championship golf course,” Allen said.

“The girls really like the quality of the greens in particular. Of course, they never hit it in the rough so the greens are much more of a factor for them.”

To check your hip rotation try this drill.

DRILL At address, your belt buckle should be facing the ball, or zero degrees. Upon completion of your back swing, your belt buckle should be over your right foot, or 45 degrees.

If your belt buckle is facing away from the target, 90 degrees, you have rotated way too much.

SHOULDERS

Ideally, your shoulders should rotate between 80-90 degrees on your back swing. To check shoulder rotation at the top of your backswing, swing your club to completion of your back swing. Is your left shoulder under your chin? If so, it is likely that your shoulder rotation is correct.

DRILL Take your address position, place a club inside the foot that is furthest away from your target, 90 degrees to your target line.

Place a club across your shoulders with the grip end of the club pointing to your target. From your address position, rotate shoulders so the club on your shoulder line is directly over the club on the inside of your back foot. When you have done this, you will have rotated your shoulders 80-90 degrees.

In making corrections in your golf swing motion you need to see what you are actually doing, not what you “Feel” you are doing.

That is where video can be the greatest asset you can use in perfecting your swing motion. Perception and reality in a golf swing can be two different things. Remember that ìa picture can be worth a thousand wordsî when it comes to assisting you in making a better swing motion. Practice the above drills, and you will be in a better position at the top of your back swing.

Notes

Tickets for the event are on sale. Fans can purchase tickets online at www.nwachampionship.com or by calling 479-715-6100. Daily tickets are $25 and weekly passes $50. Admissions is free to the practice rounds and the pro-ams Monday through Thursday.

There are eight charities selling tickets and benefiting from the proceeds. Information on that program is on the tournament website.

More volunteers are needed for the event to reach its quote of 500.

Those interested in volunteering can sign-up online at www.NWAChampionship. com/volunteers. The volunteer fee is $45 and includes an official tournament golf shirt, jacket and hat, as well as a volunteer badge valid for week-long tournament access, four weekly grounds badges for guests, an invitation to the annual volunteer appreciation party and meals and beverages during assigned shifts.

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• South Central Golf Magazine

The Real Cause of Low Back Pain: a look at the effect of hip immobility Fitness Zone Dr. Tyler Bachman

Huskey Chiropractic

You are on the sixth hole when suddenly the back tightens, tempo gets quick, turn gets short, shoulders overcompensate, and we get the pull, straight left into the river.

We make bogey or double but it should have been another par.

Sometimes the mind is able, but the back is unable. Back pain of some sort is a very common ailment. There are many reasons for this including weak back muscles, weak abdominals, tight hamstrings and the list goes on.

In this article I am going to address the importance of hip mobility. Immobile hips are a major contributor to low back pain in many people. One of the biggest reasons for this is that a lot of people spend their days sitting on their butts. Whether it is on an airplane, in a car, at a computer, or in the lazyboy, people like to sit around.

Unfortunately when in the seated position, the hip muscles are contracted or shortened. When in this position for a long period of time the hips become stiff and wants to stay that position, making it harder for them to return to their correct position and thus leading to improper motion.

The most current treatment protocol for low back pain is a schedule of anti-inflammatory meds, muscle relaxers, possible epidural steroid injections, and then an archaic exercise regiment emphasizing the restoration of spinal range of motion. If these methods fail, surgery is often performed.

Failure to address biomechanical-based causes of back pain combined with the status quo treatment protocols have led to a new developing philosophy that relates the effect of hip mobility and its influence on the function of the spine. This model considers the history and mechanism of injury and couples that with the correlation between hip and lumbar spine mobility, stability and biomechanics.

Basically, this model follows a simple rule that the hips and lumbar spine must be somewhat balanced in their strength and movement. Specifically, if the hips are too tight, the lumbar spine will compensate with excessive movement and decreased stability, often leading to pain. Conversely, if the hips have excessive movement, this could lead to decreased mobility in the spine, creating an imbalance. By using this knowledge, one can predict instability and injury by using mobility limitations. Compensation in the lumbar spine as a result of hip immobility is the main cause of low back instability and

will eventually lead to injury.

The presence of severe low back instability without symptomatic pain is very common in our society but even more prevalent in golfers and is the primary cause of back injury in people who have no previous experience with low back pain.

These injuries can occur with the most benign of tasks such as bending over to pick up a tee or ball. The fact is, very few back injuries occur from a single event, but rather a history of excessive improper loading of the low back with compensatory motion resulting in weakened soft tissue over time and eventually to failure.

So why do hips become immobile? As I mentioned above, we as a society spend a majority of our time sitting. Prolonged sitting leads to muscle imbalances in the body, specifically tight and shortened hip flexors and external hip rotators.

Neurologically, the brain inhibits the antagonistic muscle groups that act to balance the body, which are the gluteal muscles and trunk extensors. This imbalance leads to an altered posture and an altered distribution of load in the lower lumbar spine. The most common synergistic muscle that is recruited is the hamstring. If the hamstring is continually contracted, even in cases when it should be relaxing, it will result in chronic tight hamstrings. Chronic tight hamstrings contribute to excessive stress loads in the lumbar spine.

The ultimate outcome of this is compensatory motion in the low back during the golf swing, increased mobility within the individual segments of the low back, leading to pain, and injury.

Ben Franklin said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” A significant number of low back cases could be avoided by simply performing a daily routine of exercises and stretches that focus on lumbar stabilization and hip mobility.

Active Release Technique is a manual soft tissue technique using the examiners hands to apply the technique. The main concept is to re-establish motion between muscles thus reducing adhesions and reestablishing proper glide between tissues. The technique utilizes patient active motion when ever possible. Tension contact is used as opposed to compressive contacts used in other soft tissue techniques. The results to both golfers and the general public are phenomenal.

Tyler Bachman is a Chiropractor at Huskey Chiropractic Clinic (918-747-0939).

He has also been trained and certified by the Titleist Performance Institute to work with golf specific injuries.

South Central Golf Magazine • www.southcentralgolf.com

PGA Views Barry Thompson

SCS Executive Director The SCS Junior Tour has more than 700 members registered this year and participating in the 50 tournaments scheduled throughout Oklahoma and southern Kansas. We had 138 youngsters participate in our Tour Championship that was held at Owasso Golf & Athletic Club at the end of July. Thank you to all of the courses and our golf professionals that helped with another successful Junior Tour.

The section just had a Nationwide Monday Qualifier in Wichita and had 187 participants.

Thank you to Sand Creek Station and Auburn Hills for hosting the qualifier at their courses. Fourteen players qualified to play at Crestview Country Club in the Preferred Health Systems Wichita Open. Greg Bray, Terradyne CC, Jim Woodward, Oak Tree National, and James Kane, Oklahoma Golf Association represented the Section in the tournament.

Lance Allen and his great staff at Forest Ridge Golf Club hosted our Team Championship this year. Winners were George Glenn of Tulsa and Tim Graves of Edmond at 132, edging the team of Mark Fuller of Oak Tree Country Club and Mike Gowens of Brent Bruhel Memorial Golf Course in Purcell at 133.

The Senior Match Play was held at Clary Fields this year. Tim Zimmerebner, Hot Springs Country Club, defeated Gowens 2 and 1.

Graves won the Section Match Play Championship at Pinnacle Country Club in Arkansas with a 2 and 1 victory over Bob Ralston. It was Graves’ third victory in the event which Ralston has also won numerous times. Vince Bizik of Cherokee Grove won the consolation bracket with a 1 up victory over Michael Stewart. Thanks to our sponsors, Yamaha, PGA Tour, Nestle Pure Life, and CCF Brands.

Kyle Flinton of Quail Creek Golf & Country Club cruised to an eight-shot victory over Shannon Friday of Lincoln Park in the Section Professional National Championship on the spectacular Bear Den Course at Chenal Country Club. Flinton shot 14-under 202 for 54 holes and will also represent the section in the PGA Championship at Whistling Straights.

The Assistants Association Championship was held at Rose Creek Golf Club in Oklaoma City. Jim Young, River Oaks Country Club, put in the top performance that day with a 69 , followed by Casey Harbour of The Territory, Brent Wilcoxen of South Lakes Golf Course and Ian Anthony of The Greens Country Club.

27

OGA Views

KGA Views

OGA Executive Director

KGA Executive Director

Mark Felder

Oklahoma Open History

This is the 100th anniversary of the Oklahoma Golf Association and the 100th anniversary of the Oklahoma Open. The first championship was held in 1910 and William Nichols captured first place. Nichols went on to win the championship five times in his career. Many well-recognized golf professionals and amateurs have won the championship over the past 100 years.

Oak Tree Country Club will once again host this year’s open championship on the recently renovated East Course. The 2010 championship will have a total purse of $60,000 with the winner receiving the first prize of $10,000. The purse is significantly higher than it has been over the last eight years. We feel the increase in purse size will draw a stronger field of professionals from across the country, and give our better amateurs in the state a chance to test their skills.

To enter go to our website, www.okgolf.org.

Here are the champions of the event since it moved to Oak Tree in 1986. A complete list can be found at www.okgolf.org.

Previous Champions 1986, Lindy Miller 1987, Bob Tway 1988, Mark Hayes 1989, Doug Martin 1990, Willie Wood 1991, Jim Kane 1992, Bryan Norton 1993, Mark Hayes 1994, David Edwards 1995, Willie Wood 1996, David Edwards 1997, Gil Morgan 1998, Kevin Dillen 1999, Todd Hamilton 2000, John Bizik 2001, Lucas Glover 2002, Chris Noel 2003, Cody Freeman 2004, Rocky Walcher 2005, Kyle Wilmann 2006, Kyle Flinton 2007, Rocky Walcher 2008, Brett Myers 2009, Robert Streb

New Amateur Champions

In July we crowned two first-time amateur champions in Stephen Carney and Jay Lavender. Carney defeated Andrew Green to win the State Amateur at Cedar Ridge Country Club in Broken Arrow and Lavender defeated Ricky Lutz to capture the Senior Amateur at Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club.

28

Kim Richey

KGA Champions Dinner a Night to Remember Dave Dennis has been making an impact on the Kansas Golf Association for 60 years. The 1951 Kansas Amateur champion and Independence native was one of 20 former winners who attended the annual Champions Dinner on Monday night of Championship week at Hutchinson’s Prairie Dunes Country Club. The July event kicked off the 100th anniversary of the biggest amateur golf championship in the Sunflower State.

Several months ago Dennis, who won his title at Manhattan Country Club with a 5 and 3 triumph over Topeka’s Willie White, came to me wanting to help the Association he is so fond of and his donation led to the new Kansas Amateur Match Play Championship trophy on display this year at Prairie Dunes.

“I’ve played in the Kansas Amateur so many years and I met so many great people and they’ve been so good to me,” said Dennis, who is recognized on the trophy which features a bronze replica of the statue Ad Astra which sits on the capitol dome in Topeka. “It was my pleasure and I wanted to do something for them. I think it’s a beautiful trophy…my goodness. I don’t think they could have done a better job. I’m just real pleased with it.”

Each of the twenty former Kansas Amateur champions attending had a chance to contribute to the post dinner program which included informal interviews with the winners in front of a captive audience of 2010 championship competitors, family members and KGA staff and committee members. Each champion spoke of their experiences in winning their Amateur title and the relationships they formed through the KGA. Kansas Amateur champions in attendance and the year they won their title included Matt Ewald (2009), Kevin Ward (2004), Casey Harbour (2003), Bryan Norton (1980 and 2002), Sean Thayer (1999), Marty Sallaz (1995), John Loomis (1991), Darren Copp (1987), John Sinovic (1985), John Sherman (1983), Bill Hess (1979), Jack Stevens (1974), Bob Dare (1969), Grier Jones (1966), Jim Colbert (1965), Jim Vickers (1964), Duke Evans (1963), Johnny Stevens (1961) and Jim English (1956). The group posed for a photo on Prairie Dunes’ 10th tee prior to the evening’s festivities.

Former KGA President Jerry Waugh introduced Jerry Goforth of Lawrence as the latest winner of the Virgil Parker Award giv-

en for outstanding long-term volunteer service to the KGA. The late Parker of Wichita was the 1958 Kansas Amateur champion, a KGA president and long-time contributor to the Association.

“I rode out here and I had no idea this was going to happen,” Goforth admitted.

“When I first started out as a volunteer I was approached by Jerry Waugh and Brent Marshall to be a ‘course’ rater and I said, ‘Wait a minute, I’m a 20 handicapper.’ But that’s kind of how we all got our start. I’m really surprised and really don know what to say, but thank you all.”

The KGA acknowledged Norton, Dodge Kemmer and Jon Troutman who played as the Kansas squad for the USGA State Team Championship last fall at The Country Club at St. Albans in St. Louis. The threesome turned in a best-ever Kansas performance at the event, finishing in second place overall. The squad had team record low scoring for the championship in both the first and third rounds.

We ended up with a really good team this year and I had my fingers crossed. I looked at the newspaper after the first day and we were in first place. I couldn’t believe it. We finished second and I don’t think a Kansas team had ever finished in the top half… what a great finish and we’re so proud of them.

Norton passed the praise to his teammates.

“I’d like to say they counted one of my scores the three days, but it was really Dodge and Jon,” he said. “I had some great partners. I had the eighth-best score of the third round and they threw my score out.”

We also recognized the 2009 KGA Player of the Year winners, including Player of the Year Ewald, Senior Player of the Year Norton and Junior Player of the Year Michael Gellerman of Sterling. Gellerman was not in attendance at the dinner and could not participate in the Kansas Amateur this year having qualified for the USGA Junior Amateur Championship held the same week in Michigan.

Norton, one of six past champions playing the Amateur this year at Prairie Dunes and one of two making match play, said the former champions in attendance were an inspiration for him as a young player and hoped his generation could have the same impact on KGA juniors today.

“It’s such an honor to be here tonight and to celebrate 100 great years of the Kansas Golf Association. It’s so inspiring to be in the presence of a group of guys that are not only legends in the state of Kansas but are known worldwide for their golf accomplishments,” Norton said. “I was playing in a group with two 16-year-olds today and it dawned on me, what I hope is that we inspire them to be in this room some day and to have accomplished a lot.”

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• South Central Golf Magazine

ASGA Views Jay N. Fox

ASGA Executive Director “If you are going to play this game, you have to know the rules.� – Roger Maltbie Well, maybe Roger wasn’t the first to say it, but it was the way he ended every rules segment he presented on television. I enjoyed those two-minute videos, as most of the time I got to see old footage from the television archives.

Recently, the Maumelle Classic ended in what some would call a bizarre ending, when a spectator pointed out a rules violation on the next-to-last hole.

Alex Carpenter, the defending champion, hit his tee shot into a greenside bunker on the par-3 17th hole at Maumelle Country Club. Prior to playing his stroke from the bunker, he walked in and picked up the rake. Then he raked his footprints and went a few yards forward to play his bunker shot – and what an amazing shot it was – he holed it for a birdie.

From what I read in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, after walking off the 17th green, a spectator informed Carpenter he had violated a rule and must take a penalty.

(Jeff Slatton, Golf Writer for the DemocratGazette wrote about “one� spectator, but

when I got in touch with Cary Maddox, PGA Golf Professional at Maumelle C.C., he said “several spectators� witnessed the act.

Rule 13-4, “Ball in Hazard; Prohibited Actions� tells us before making a stroke at a ball that is in the hazard, whether a bunker or water hazard, the player must not: a) test the condition of the hazard or any similar hazard; b) touch the ground in the hazard, or water in the water hazard with his hand or club; or c) touch or move a loose impediment lying in or touching the hazard.

Most of us that have played golf for any period of time should know “b� because when we are in a bunker we know we cannot touch the sand prior to the stroke.

Did Alex learn anything about the bunker by raking his footprints prior to making the stroke? Probably not, in fact the sand could have been varying depths near the rake and near his ball. He was simply trying to be courteous.

But the rule is cut and dried – there is no gray area here. In fact, USGA Decision 134/0.5 covers a lot of scenarios from what does not constitute testing the condition such as digging in with the feet for a stance, placing an object such as a rake in the hazard, or marking the position of the ball when proceeding under a rule. Examples of actions that constitute testing the condition of the hazard: touching the sand with a club when making a practice swing and

SMOOTHING A BUNKER WITH A RAKE. Exception 2 to Rule 13-4 tells us after making the stroke from a hazard, we are allowed to smooth sand in the hazard.

The tough part of the bizarre ending was Alex Carpenter lost the Maumelle Classic by one stroke – after receiving the two stroke penalty for breach of Rule 13-4 on his next to last hole. Some may have felt the ruling was unfair, since it was called by a spectator as neither of Carpenter’s fellow competitors witnessed the act. Alex admitted that he raked the bunker prior to the stroke and he also admitted he did not know the rule.

Roger Maltbie is right – if we are going to play this game, we have to know the rules and Rule 13-4 is one that Alex Carpenter will never forget. Remember, there are only 34 Rules in golf, but more than 1,200 decisions that cover these rules on golf situations.

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Schedules and Results PRO NATIONWIDE FORT SMITH CLASSIC At Hardscrabble CC, Fort Smith, Ark. (par-70) June 17-20 1, Chris Kirk 65-69-66-64 – 264 ($94,500); 2, Kyle Thompson 66-70-66-63 – 265 ($56,700); 3 (tie), Zach Miller 66-66-69-67 – 268, Josh Broadaway 69-65-65-69 – 268, Garrett Osborn 70-67-67-64 – 268 and Michael Putnam 66-70-66-66 – 268 ($25,200); 7 (tie), Chris Parra 65-70-67-67 – 269, Ty Harris 69-69-66-65 – 269, Matt Davidson 64-69-70-66 – 269, Kevin Kisner 67-70-6666 – 269, Camilo Benedetti 69-65-70-65 – 269 and David Mathis 70-67-69-63 – 269 ($14,744); 13 (tie), Tag Ridings 67-68-68-67 – 270, Brendan Pappas 65-72-66-67 – 270 and Jon Mills 71-66-65-68 – 270 ($10,150).

16 (tie), Tommy Gainey 67-71-70-63 – 271, Scott Gutschewski 68-67-70-66 – 271, Jhonathan Vegas 67-70-68-66 – 271, Nathan Smith 61-70-69-71 – 271, Matthew Borchert 67-67-67-70 – 271 and Justin Smith 67-6868-68 – 271 ($7,613); 22 (tie), John Daly 66-68-69-69 – 272, Tom Byrum 69-67-69-67 – 272, Gary Christian 69-68-71-64 – 272, Scott Sterling 68-70-68-66 – 272 and Doug LaBelle II 66-70-68-68 – 272 ($5,082); 27 (tie), Jason Enloe 69-67-66-71 – 273, Jonas Blixt 68-69-68-68 – 273, Peter Tomasulo 6970-67-67 – 273 and Paul Claxton 69-68-6967 – 273 ($3,885); 31 (tie), Ken Duke 67-7267-68 – 274, Jay Delsing 66-68-69-71 – 274, Brendan Steele 71-66-70-67 – 274, David McKenzie 69-64-67-74 – 274 and John Riegger 69-70-68-67 – 274 ($3,255).

SECTION CHAMPIONSHIP At Chenal CC, Little Rock, Ark. (par-72) August 2-3 1, Kyle Flinton 66-69-67 – 202; 2, Shannon Friday 72-68-70 – 210; 3 (tie), Tim Fleming 72-71-71 – 214, Tracy Phillips 7271-71 – 214; 5, Greg Bray 70-77-69 – 216; 6, Grant Masson 75-71-71 – 217; 7 (tie), Jim Woodward 73-71-74 – 218, Tim Graves 7370-75 – 218; 9, Mark Fuller 70-79-70 – 219; 10 (tie), Bob Ralston 77-72-71 – 220, Pat McTigue 74-72-74 – 220, Tim Zimmerebner 70-76-74 – 220; 13, Craig Walker 70-70-81 – 221; 14 (tie), Brian Sorensen 70-75-77 – 222, Tom Cannarozzo 73-73-76 – 222; 16, Jon Zieske 75-71-77 – 223; 17 (tie), Judson Choate 74-80-70 – 224, Patrick Bates 77-7473 – 224; 19, Cary Cozby 72-78-77 – 227; 20, Adam Carney 79-73-76 – 228; 21 (tie), Don Farquhar 79-75-75 – 229, Kurtis Gibson 7674-79 – 229, Mike Hansen 77-76-76 – 229; 24 (tie), Donovan Grahn 72-81-77 – 230, Peter Vitali 78-79-73 – 230; AMATEUR KANSAS GOLF ASSOCIATION AMATEUR MATCH PLAY At Prairie Dunes CC, Hutchinson July 19-25 Third round Hunter Sparks def. Kit Grove 3 and 2; Bryan Norton def. Tyler Cummins 7 and 6; Mark Joliffe def. Myles Miller 2 and 1; Charlie Stevens def. David Auer 5 and 4; Andrew Storm def. Sam Wempe 1-up; Matthew Helms def. Steve Newman 1-up; Thomas Birdsey def. Joe Ida 5 and 3; Ben Juffer def. Jack Courington 1-up.

Quarterfinals Norton def. Sparks 1-up; Stevens def.

Joliffe 5 and 3; Storm def. Helms 7 and 5; Birdsey def. Juffer 1-up.

Semifinals Stevens def. Norton 3 and 2; Storm def.

Birdsey 5 and 3.

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Final Stevens def. Storm 4 and 3.

JUNIOR AMATEUR At Crestwood CC, Pittsburg (par72) June 14-17 1, Thane Ringler 73-69-72 – 214; 2, Joseph Winslow 70-74-73 – 217; 3, Chase Hanna 73-69-76 – 218; 4 (tie), Colby Yates 73-73-74 – 220, Logan Coffman 78-70-72 – 220, David Auer 74-73-73 – 220, Joseph Valdivia 77-69-74 – 220, Michael Kreamer 77-72-72 – 220 and Ryder Haas 74-71-75 – 220; 10 (tie), Myles Miller 72-77-73 – 222 and Michael Gellerman 70-75-77 – 222.

FOUR-BALL At Alvamar GC, Lawrence June 7-11 Open Second round: Zach Clelan/Chris Muriana def. Kyle Smell/Korbin Kuehn 1-up; Chris Reecht/Scott Katstra def. Randy Herbison/Brandon Herbison 4 and 3; Chase Chamberlin/Curtis Yonke def. Conrad Roberts/Chad Roesler 1-up (19); Kit Grove/Jason Seeman def. Harry Higgs/Park Ulrich 1-up (21); Benjamin Moser/Tyler Harper def. Elliot Soyez/Michael Gellerman 3 and 1; Ben Kimminau/Craig Johnston def. Scott Kramer/Brian Lawson 1-up (19); Zechariah Potter/Jordan Smith def. Aaron Sheaks/ Mike Holloway 2 and 1; Joe Ida/Spencer Alefs def. Chris Gilbert/Jeff Bell 3 and 1.

Quarterfinals: Cleland/Muriana def. Reecht/Katstra 2 and 1; Chamberlin/Yonke def. Grove/Seeman 3 and 2; Kimminau/ Johnston def. Moser/Harper 3 and 2; Potter/Smith def. Ida/Alefs 2-up.

Semifinals Chamberlin/Yonke def. Cleland/Muriana 2 and 1; Potter/Smith def. Kimminau/ Johnston 4 and 3.

Final Chamberlin/Yonke def. Potter/Smith 4 and 3.

At Okla. City G&CC July 19-22 Third round Michael Hughett def. Carl Anderson 3 and 2; Ronny Roberts def. Stephen Carroll 2 and 1; Mark Kedy def. Craig Collins 2 and 1; William Lavender def. Mark Allert 2 and 1; Ricky Lutz def. Brent Taylor 4 and 3; James Reid def. Michael Lusnak 5 and 4; Nick Sidorakis def. Scott Ward 5 and 3; Windy Miller def. Bob Fouke 4 and 2.

Quarterfinals Hughett def. Roberts 7 and 5; Lavender def. Kedy 5 and 4; Lutz def. Reid 4 and 3; Sidorakis def. Miller 5 and 4.

Semifinals Lavender def. Hughett 2 and 1; Lutz def.

Sidorakis 6 and 5.

Final Lavender def. Lutz 2 and 1.

STATE AMATEUR At Cedar Ridge CC, Broken Arrow July 12-14 Third round Ian Davis def. Heath Myers 3 and 2; Colton Staggs def. Taylor Williams 1-up; Stephen Carney def. Jack Kasting 1-up; Nathan Chambers def. Cade McCracken 3 and 1; Cole Wiederkehr def. Hunter Sparks 3 and 2; Robbe Trout def. Josh Creel 1-up; Alan Bratton def. Max McGreevy 6 and 5; Andrew Green def. Garrett Moore 3 and 2.

Quarterfinals I.Davis def. Staggs 2 and 1; Carney def.

Chambers 6 and 4; Trout def. Wiederkehr 1-up; Green def. Bratton 4 and 2.

Semifinals Carney def. I. Davis 1-up; Green def.

Trout 2 and 1.

Final Carney def. Green 5 and 4.

KANSAS WOMEN’S GOLF ASSOCIATION STATE AMATEUR At MacDonald Park GC, Wichita (par-71) July 6-8 1, Katy Nugent 74-76-72 – 222; 2 (tie), Glenna Misenhelter 76-77-72 – 225 and Hannah Martin 77-74-74 – 225; 4, Adin Stromgren 77-75-74 – 226; 5, Emily Houtz 78-70-79 – 227; 6, Jennifer Clark 78-77-75 – 230; 7, Krista Hrdlicka 81-74-76 – 231; 8, Audrey Yowell 76-77-80 – 233; 9 (tie), Stephanie Mingos 77-81-78 – 236 and Emily McDonald 76-80-80 – 236; 11 (tie), Elise Houtz 79-78-81 – 238 and Becky Tetrick 7878-82 – 238.

STATE JUNIOR AMATEUR At Kickingbird GC, Edmond (par70) June 7-10 Stroke Play 1. Austen Fuller 66-68 – 134; 2, Charlie Saxon 62-73 – 135; 3, Ian Davis 66-71 – 137; 4 (tie), Alec Heinen 71-67 – 138 and Davis Rison 69-69 – 138; 6 (tie), Taylor Williams 71-68 – 139 and Drew Wright 69-70 – 139; 8 (tie), Taylor Moore 69-73 – 142 and Zach Myers 66-76 – 142; 10 (tie), John Cassidy 73-71 – 144, Aaron Davis 70-74 – 144, Drew Posada 69-75 – 144 and Jackson Ogle 6876 – 144.

Match Play 16-18 Quarterfinals Taylor Moore def. Austen Fuller 7 and 6; Davis Rison def. Alec Heinen 2 and 1; John Cassidy def. Alexander Hall 2 and 1; Ian Davis def. Aaron Davis 6 and 5; Semifinals Moore def. Rison 2 and 1; I. Davis def.

Cassidy 6 and 4.

Final I. Davis def. Moore 5 and 4.

14-15 Quarterfinals Sam Humphreys def. Hayden Wood 3 and 1; Brendon Jelley def. Carson Yates 5 and 3; Max McGreevy def. Eli Armstrong 3 and 2; Quade Cummins def. Tate Williamson 4 and 3.

Semifinals Jelley def. Humphreys 2 and 1; McGreevy def. Cummins 3 and 1.

Final Jelley def. McGreevy 4 and 2.

OKLAHOMA GOLF ASSOCIATION SENIOR STATE AMATEUR

TWIN HILLS JUNIOR CLASSIC At Twin Hills G&CC (par-72)

Masters Quarterfinals Craig Colboch/Mark Elliott def. Rob Gleissner/Lynn Dickey 2 and 1; Mike Cutshall/David Byrne def. Dave Harris/Don Cox 3 and 2; Randy Vautravers/Tim Tyner def. Tom Rainbolt/Mike Rack 1-up (19); Grosdidier/Lucas def. Bailey/Robbins 4 and 3.

Semifinals Colboch/Elliott def. Cutshall/Byrne 1up; Grosdider/Lucas def. Vautravers/Tyner 1-up (19).

Final Grosdidier/Lucas def. Colboch/Elliott 3 and 2.

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June 29-30 Boys 15-18: 1, Alec Heinen 70-72 – 142; 2 (tie), Austen Fuller 74-71 – 145, Trent Mewbourn 73-72 – 145 and Taylor Williams 71-74 – 145; 5 (tie), Hayden Wood 74-72 – 146 and Alexander Hall 73-73 – 146; 7, Connor Kurtz 76-71 – 147; 8, Jordan O’Dell 72-76 – 148; 9 (tie), Hunter Wade 75-74 – 149 and Gabe Rogers 73-76 – 149.

12-14: 1, Hayden Wood 74-72 – 146; 2, Nick Heinen 77-76 – 153; 3, Zac Schaefer 78-76 – 154.

Girls 15-18: 1, June Tigert 82-77 – 159; 2, Alexis Sadeghy 79-83 – 162; 3, McCandren Lewis 86-83 – 169; 4, Ashton Gores 76-87 – 173; 5, Katie Bensch 87-87 – 174.

STROKE PLAY At Quail Creek G&CC (par-72) August 2-4 1, Josh Creel 72-65-69 – 206; 2 (tie), Ben Klaus 67-72-70 – 209, Colby Shrum 67-6577 – 209; 4 (tie), Andre Tourinho 75-69-66 – 210, Ian Davis 66-70-74 – 210; 6 (tie), Robbe Trout 73-69-69 – 211, Hunter Sparks 73-6870 – 211, Nathan Chambers 68-72-71 – 211; 9 (tie), Dillon Rust 74-69-71 – 214, Austin Quinten 72-70-72 – 214; 11, Drew Dorsey 75-69-71 – 215; 12 (tie), Brad Christianson 70-78-68 – 216, Cameron Meyers 76-70-70 – 216, Andrew Green 74-71-71 – 216; 15 (tie), Cole Wiederkehr 75-70-72 – 217, Logan McCracken 76-68-73 – 217; 17 (tie), Taylor Artman 67-76-75 – 218, Jeb Blacketer 7170-77 – 218; 19 (tie) Talor Gooch 73-73-73 – 219, Jeff Coffman 72-74-73 – 219, Michael Lee 75-70-74 – 219; Arie Ahmad Fauzi 7570-74 – 219, Landon Morgan 67-76-76 – 219; 24, Jacob Simon 73-74-73 – 220; 25, Logan Waresback 76-71-74 – 221; 26 (tie), Zac Pool 75-71-76 – 222, Austen Fuller 72-72-78 – 222; 28 (tie), Brady Porter 76-72-75 – 223, Kregg Wood 72-73-78 – 223; 30, Kyle Hudelson 74-74-76 – 224; 32, Chris Muriana 74-7281 – 227; 33, Chad Arnold 74-74-81 – 229 WOMEN’S OKLAHOMA GOLF ASSOCIATION STROKE PLAY At Quail Creek G&CC (par-72) July 19-20 1, Ellen Mueller 69-68 – 137; 2, Amber Hensley 78-67 – 145; 3, Ali Seng 77-73 – 150; 4 (tie), Kamryn Ruffin 75-77 – 152 and Kendra Mann 74-78 – 152; 6, Lauren Michael 73-80 – 153; 7, Kylie Bollenbach 78-76 – 154; 8, Whitney McAteer 80-75 – 155; 9, Aubree Vaughan 79-77 – 156; 10, June Tigert 80-78 – 158; 11, Michelle Miron 77-82 – 159; 12, Mary Larsh 83-82 – 165.

Mid-Amateur Championship: 1, Katy Treadwell 76-80 – 156; 2, Janet Miller 7980 – 159; 3, Chrissy Bagwell 81-79 – 160; 4, Ann Cowan 83-81 – 164; 5, Patty Coatney 86-79 – 165.

JUNIOR GIRLS At Willow Creek CC, Oklahoma City (par-72) July 11-13 16-17: 1, Katy Bensch 76-79 – 155; 2, Alexandra Koch 81-77 – 158; 3 (tie), Kendra Mann 77-82 – 159 and Whitney Manley 85-74 – 159; 5, Charter Lawson 84-81 – 165; 6 (tie), Ashton Collier 83-83 – 166, Karlyn Willis 86-80 – 166 and McCandren Lewis 85-81 – 166.

14-15: 1, Megan Blonien 74-72 – 146; 2, Anna Kim 77-75 – 152; 3, Caitlin Farris 8073 – 153; 4 (tie), Alexis Sadeghy 80-78 – 158 and Caroline Goodin 82-76 – 158; 6, Maci Arrington 76-84 – 160 and Nadia Majidi 8080 – 160; 8, Emma Allen 79-82 – 161.

• South Central Golf Magazine

Schedules and Results 12-13: 1, Brinlee Denison 75-78 – 153; 2, Taylor Dobson 81-93 – 174; 3, Madison Luitweiler 85-90 – 175.

11-under: 1, Baylee Brewer 51-50 – 101; 2, Madison Smith 48-61 – 109; 33, Faith Stewart 59-56 – 115.

MATCH PLAY At Emerald Falls GC June 21-24 Final Whitney McAteer def. Kamryn Ruffin 1-up (19).

Consolation Final Lauren Michael def. Michelle Miron 7 and 5.

TULSA GOLF ASSOCIATION FOUR-BALL STROKE PLAY At Clary Fields GC (par-71) July 24-25 Championship: 1, Troy Keller/Skip Sagerhausen 69-66 – 135; 2, Mike Alsup/Chris Haggard 71-65 – 136; 3, Shawn Barker/A.J. Gebert 72-65 – 137; 4, Spencer King/Jeff Rude 70-67 –- 137; 5, Tanner Owens/Taylor Owens 70-70 – 140.

Open: 1, Dick Gulley/Jason Gulley 73-67 – 140; 2, Bob Karlovich/Chris Karlovich 74-68 – 142; 3, John Blackmon/ Mike Blackmon 71-764 – 145; 4 (tie), Andy Garrett/Joe Tuttle 75-72 – 147 and Brett Robison/Bill Walker 73-74 – 147.

Senior: 1, Bill Heldmar/Eric Mueller 69-67 – 136; 2, Tim Wilson/Tom Wilson 70-67 – 137; 3, Bruce Lisooey/Nick Sidorakis 69-68 – 137; 4, Lloyd Gilliam/Richard Koenig 69-69 – 138; 5, Jim Arnold/Joe Arnold 73-67 – 140.

STROKE PLAY At LaFortune GC (par-72) June 26-27 Championship: 1, Brady Wood 69-70 – 139; 2, Chris Wilson 69-71 – 140; 3, Bill Brafford 69-72 – 141; 4, Andre Tourinho 70-71 – 141; 5, Ben Harris 70-72 – 142; 6, Nathan Hughes 73-71 – 144; 7, Darrell Landry 74-72 – 146; 8, Brian Emanuel 76-70 – 146; 9, Andy Lucas 71-75 – 146; 10, Brian Jones 73-74 – 147; 11, Spencer King 77-70 – 147.

Seniors: 1, Roger Andrews 74-70 – 144; 2, Richard Koe-

nig 73-73 – 146; 3, Ken Kee 72-75 – 147; 4 (tie), Mike Lusnak 76-72 – 148, Randy Crews 74-74 – 148, Nick Sidorakis 74-74 – 148 and Tom Wilson 73-75 – 148.

AJGA ROLEX TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS At Blessings GC, Johnson, Ark. (par-72) June 29-July 2 Boys 1, Anthony Paolucci 71-74-70-72 – 287; 2, Patrick Rodgers 71-74-69-75 – 289; 3, David Lee 75-74-72-73 – 294; 4 (tie), Shun Yat Hak 70-72-80-73 – 295 and Drew Czuchry 70-70-76-79 – 295; 6, Shugo Imahira 74-75-74-73 – 296; 7 (tie), Tanner Kesterson 73-74-76-75 – 298 and Gavin Hall 75-73-73-77 – 298.

Girls 1, Kristen Park 73-73-73-71 – 290; 2, Emily Tubert 7472-75-73 –- 294; 3, Marijosse Navarro 77-75-71-73 --- 296; 4, Morija Jutanugarn 75-80-67-75 – 297; 5, Gabriela Then 73-76-78-73 – 300; 6, Victoria Tanco 83-66-75-77 – 301; 7, Rachel Morris 74-74-73-81 – 302.

OKLAHOMA HIGH SCHOOL ALL-STATE MATCHES At Emerald Falls GC, Broken Arrow (par-72) July 26 Boys 1, Ian Davis (Edmond Deer Creek) 67; 2, Zach Tucker (Putnam North) 72; 3, Matt Helms (Edmond Santa Fe) 73; 4, Daniel McMurry (Ardmore) 74; 5 (tie), Jack Fiscus (Bixby), Garrett Hagood (Union) and Zach Novasad (Cimarron-Ringwood) 76; 8, Kyle Lewis (Bethel) 77; 9 (tie), Tyler Grantham (Stillwater) and Sam O’Brien (OKC McGuinness) 78.

Girls 1, Lauren Michael (Jenks) 72; 2 (tie), Bethany Darrough (Kingfisher) and Jade Staggs (Westmoore) 77; 4, Brooke Allison (Broken Arrow) 81; 5 (tie), Tressa Brumley (Chouteau) and Aleesha Holden (Fletcher) 82; 7, Julia Wynn (McAlester) 83; 8, Carley Yates (Edmond North) 84; 9, Macy Douglas (Broken Arrow) 85; 10 (tie), Karson Bizzell (Mustang) and Sarah Codner (Madill) 86.

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