2008 October-November Issue of South Central Golf by Golf Oklahoma Magazine

October-December 2008

Vol. 15, No. 5

MAGAZINE

New Mexico

ADVENTURE Land of enchantment enticing place for visitors

Oak Tree, Pinnacle undergoing major renovations

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Arr owhe ad • C E DA R C R E E K • Fo r t Co b b • G r a n d C h e r o k e e • L a k e Mu r r ay • R o m a n N os e • S eq uoyah

Ken MacLeod James Royal Derek Hillman Adam Bode Jenk Jones Jr. Mal Elliot Barry Lewis Beck Cross Adam Bode John Rohde Art Stricklin Contributing Photographers Rip Stell Mike Klemme Cover Photo By New Mexico Tourism Editor Production Manager Technical Director Expo Director Copy Editor Contributing Writers

South Central Golf, Inc. 6218 S. Lewis Ave., Suite 200 • Tulsa, Okla. 74114 918-280-0787 • Fax - 918-280-0797 www.southcentralgolf.com • ken@southcentralgolf.com South Central Golf is the official publication of the South Central Section of the PGA of America, which includes all of Oklahoma, and southern Kansas. The magazine is endorsed by 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 918280-0787 or on the website. We also welcome your letters and comments via e-mail.

Whole lot of renovation going on Big shakeup at Oak Tree Golf Club.........8 Ice Storm still a problem.........................9 Patriot Golf Club takes shape...............10 Pinnacle gets complete face lift............12 Firelake takes new grass plunge. ...........13 Emerald Falls has new clubhouse..........15 Tripp davis opens new tribute 18...........16 Sand creek station draws raves............18 Destinations Land of enchantment...........................21 Cougar Canyon..................................27 Range Finders, GPS Devices hot items. .28 Junior star chooses LSU.......................29 Billy Casper exceeds goals....................30 Columns 32 Jay Fox - ASGA 32 Barry Thompson - PGA 33 Gene Mortensen - Rules 33 Steve Eckroat - OGA 34 Kim Richey - KGA 35 Instruction Zone

Departments 6 Around the Section 38 Schedules and Results On the Cover The Black Mesa Golf Club is a must-play if you venture to New Mexico.

Our Grass is Greener. Is the grass on your course dormant? At Forest Ridge Golf Club we over-seed our fairways so we are green all winter long. Call us today to book your round on the areas premier public golf course and ranked as one of the “Best Places to Play” by Golf Digest. Monthly memberships are available. Not interested in a membership? Then our Player’s Card is just right. Pay a one time yearly fee and receive discounted green fees for the entire year.

South Central Golf Magazine

To learn more on membership opportunities visit www.forestridge.com or to book a tee time call 918-357-2443. Need a venue for your next corporate meeting? Packages are available for a day at Forest Ridge, we can accommodate 16-150 persons. Call the pro shop for more details.

www.forestridge.com

Around Tourney seeks sponsor

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ber with the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship at Tulsa Country Club. Sonja Weese and Lew Erickson did a tremendous job organizing the event on the local level and the players were appreciative of the course, staff, members and maintennce crew led by superintendent Brady Finton. Diane Lang, 53, of Jamaica, claimed her Preview at Southern Hills third Senior Women’s Amateur title in four The 2009 U.S. Amateur Preview Tourna- years beating Toni Wiesner, 61, of Fort ment will be held at Southern Hills Country Worth, Texas, 6 and 5, in the final match. Club Oct. 20. There will be morning and afLang, who also won in 2005 and 2006, took ternoon shotgun starts and the fee is $500 control of the match by winning five consecper player or $1,900 per foursome. The for- utive holes to stand 6 up after the 10th. mat will be a shamble, with two best balls With her win, Lang, who now resides in net per group. Weston, Fla., becomes the sixth woman Funds from the tournament will benefit to win the Senior Women’s Amateur three the First Tee of Tulsa as well as help South- or more times. She was also a semifinalist ern Hills with expenses associated with in 2007, making her 22-1 in four years of hosting the 2009 U.S. Amateur Aug. 24-30. matches at this championship for women For more information or to enter, contact age 50 and older. Nancy Acton at 918-477-5274. For more “I’m really, really happy,” said Lang, afinformation or advance tickets to the U.S. ter holing a 16-foot putt for par on the 13th Amateur, go to www.2009usamateur.com or hole to close the match. “This is my most call 918-794-8904. special one. This makes all the hard work worthwhile. I put in a lot of sweat and tears Senior event goes well over the last year to get my name on that Glenn takes over TGA The United States Golf Association en- trophy again. For a little girl from Jamaica, George Glenn, former director of golf for joyed a successful return to Tulsa in Septem- that ain’t half bad.” Octagon representative were still negotiating with at least one company in their search to replace SemGroup as title sponsor of the LPGA event currently scheduled for May 28-31, 2009, at Cedar Ridge Country Club in Broken Arrow, Okla. “We are still moving forward and having productive talks and remain optimistic,” said Doug Eibling, tournament director. “The process is just taking a bit longer than we had hoped, but things are still moving forward.” Cleve Stubblefield, general manager of Cedar Ridge, said he is asked constantly by members and non-members alike if the tournament will continue. “It’s definitely been the topic of conversation,” Stubblefield said. “I’m amazed at how many people have come up to me and said they sure hope it stays because it’s been great for Tulsa. Just in the last few years it’s really grown into an event that Tulsa embraces.” The LPGA had set an October deadline for finding a new title sponsor, but Eibling said the deadline is “fluid.”

Tulsa’s city courses at Page Belcher and Mohawk Park, is expected to take the reins of the Tulsa Golf Association, replacing Murph Mitchell. Glenn said he would look to add more tournaments and events for 2009. The TGA hosted five events in 2008.

Stop by for fall SpecialS A Randy Heckenkemper design, 18-hole Championship golf course with new facilities and improvements Managed by Buffalo Golf Group Lynn Blevins, Director of Golf

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South Central loses a good friend Photographer Mel Root made each assignment interesting Mel Root, a frequent contributor to South Central Golf and previously a longtime photographer for the Tulsa World, died Sept. 10 after a short battle with lung cancer. He was 57. Services were at Stanley Funeral Services in Tulsa. “I know that Mel Root loved life and loved being a newspaper photographer,” said Tulsa World executive editor Joe Worley. “He was always excited about covering those stories that were important to this community. We all enjoyed working with Mel because he was a professional. We will miss him.” For South Central Golf, Root covered a wide variety of events, from all six LPGA events held in the city to features, such as the cover of the August-September issue featuring guitar-playing golf pros. “Mel was our main photographer for local and regional events for the past seven years and always did a great job,” said South Central Golf editor Ken MacLeod. “He was a very interesting man with strong political and philosophical views. We had a good time exploring those on our travels to various events. We are saddened to lose him. Despite his often busy schedule, Mel always found time to cover our events, unless, of course, he had a sailing trip planned.” Root was born in Tulsa and graduated from Hale High School. He received his journalism degree from Oklahoma State University. There, he met his late wife Carolyn. The pair enjoyed sailing Root’s sailboat, the Margaritaville, at the lake or in the ocean. “I’ve sailed the first day of the year, the last day of the year and almost every day in between,” he told a Tulsa World reporter earlier this year. “The only month I don’t sail is November.” In June 2001, just a week before they were to celebrate their 29th anniversary, Root’s wife died in a scuba diving accident off the coast of St. Barthelemy in the Caribbean Sea at age 49. Friends say he was lost after Carolyn’s death. As a photographer for the World from September 1973 to August 1995, Root was a man who put a smile on many faces with his wry humor and who was as skilled and intensely perfectionist about photography as anyone. “I can always remember his laugh and smile. He did both often,” said Tulsa World chief photographer Tom Gilbert. “He always met his deadlines. I remember working with him during a high-school football night and he would come through the door, process

South Central Golf Magazine

his film and get a print to the desk nearly always on the first try.” In August 1995, Root took on a new challenge. He purchased his own photography business called Photoflash and expanded its photofinishing services to include commercial and portrait photography. By all accounts, it was a successful business. “His love of photography was equal to his love of sailing,” said Gilbert. “I remember he would be out the door on his weekend and tell me the exact time he would be aboard his sailboat. He loved life and loved people.”

On March 5, Root learned he had cancer. With characteristic determination, he took on the battle against this disease. He talked to friends who had survived or were surviving cancer, seeking to learn about the fight. He carried with him an image of his lungs showing the cancerous tumor, shaped like a dragon. He began his battle against what he called “the dragon” in fighting form, but soon realized it came down to living each remaining day to its fullest. In a recent e-mail to friends, Root wrote, “While I do intend to fight this dragon with every ounce of energy I can muster, on the other hand I feel compelled to cram as much life into every day that I can. Even on the bad days, if I get up in the morning, it is a good day.” Root is survived by his parents, Robert and Louise Root of Tulsa; his sister, Dorinda Mayfield of Tulsa; three nephews and a niece, all of Tulsa.

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New Courses

Oak Tree changes course

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Renovations

Assessment, higher dues pare membership, large renovation begins By John Rohde

The 18th hole at Oak Tree Golf Club in Edmond. Photo by Mike Klemme

Under the direction of new ownership, Oak Tree Golf Club in Edmond is undergoing a massive renovation on the course and within its own membership. New membership parameters were revealed in August and owner Ed Evans admitted emotions ran high during the meeting and immediately thereafter. “As you would expect, there were certainly a handful of members who were disgruntled,” said Evans, who purchased the prestigious private club from Don Mathis on May 30. “Nobody likes change. The questions come up, ‘Why are you doing this?’ Everything is just fine now. People are really excited about our plans to enhance the club.” Evans said he wants Oak Tree Golf Club to regain its once highly exclusive status, and didn’t want memberships to continue to be obtained at bargain prices. “The reality is at some point Oak Tree Golf Club had become the low-cost alternative in Oklahoma City for country clubs. Yet it has, in my opinion, possibly the best golf course in the state,” Evans said. “We’re sitting on this Pete Dye jewel and, frankly, I just felt like the right thing to do with that was to return it to what it was and get it to what it used to be. Unfortunately, those things cost money. “To be a member of that type of club is going to cost more money, so we announced a dues increase was coming. The good news is the response has been better than expected with respect to membership.” Evans did not share specific details of membership increases. Numerous sources confirmed existing members between the ages of 35 and 70 are required to pay a $15,000 assessment by Jan. 1, 2009, to remain in the club ($13,000 if it was paid by Oct. 1). Monthly dues will

increase from $450 to $650. A proposed $40 cart fee to help introduce a caddie program has been shelved for 2009. The initial fallout from the August meeting had projections of 250 members leaving the club. However, according to the club’s Sept. 23 newsletter, 361 members still remain at Oak Tree Golf Club and 120 members have turned in their resignations. “We have not lost nearly the number of members we feared,” Evans said. “The vast majority is sticking around and is really interested to see what we’re going to do with the club. We have lost members, but it’s not near the number that we anticipated to this point. Interestingly enough, there were 1020 guys who left for whatever reason. We have since been contacted by those guys who want to re-join the club.” There were slightly more than 400 members before the change in ownership, plus roughly 80 honorary memberships. Evans said he would like to cap the club’s membership at 350 total, with 250 local members plus 100 national memberships. Evans said existing members age 70 and older will be grandfathered in and allowed to remain as members with no assessments or dues increases. “We’re not touching those guys,” Evans said. “We’re leaving them alone.” Evans also instituted a junior membership for age 35 and younger that would consist of $450 monthly dues and a $10,000 assessment fee. Longtime Oak Tree Golf Club members of 20-plus years were angry they did not receive the same consideration as members who were age 70 and older. Evans said it was difficult to gauge the cost of existing membership based solely on the number of years a person had been a member.

“It’s difficult to do that because then you start discriminating against people who didn’t pay as much to become a member of the club in the first place,” he said. “Some people paid $125,000 to become an inaugural member of the club back in the Landmark days, and there are guys who paid nothing to become members. There were 12 or 13 different categories of members. Unfortunately, you couldn’t just start bringing in new guys at a higher rate when you’ve got guys at a much lower rate. There’s no value there. If I’m a guy coming in from out of town and I know everybody else is paying $125 per month, why would I pay $650 per month? “At the end of the day we looked at it and said, ‘The only thing that’s fair to do is get everybody on a level playing field.’ “ Originally opened in 1976, Oak Tree had built a strong reputation for its hospitality and laidback atmosphere. Though Evans wants the club to become more exclusive, he hopes the camaraderie will return to how it was in the early years. “That’s absolutely what we want,” he said. “It’s the members’ club. That’s absolutely the environment we’re looking for — to hang out, play golf and play cards with friends. That’s what we’re shooting for, and I think we’ll get there.” The Oak Tree Golf Club course shut down Sept. 9 so the fairways could be killed off chemically and other renovation work could begin. The driving range and putting green temporarily remain open. The clubhouse still has food and beverage available. The club plans to re-open its course on July 1, 2009. “I think that’s very realistic,” Evans said of the target date. “We hired some companies that came very highly recommended.”

South Central Golf Magazine

New Courses

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Ice storm impact lingers at many section venues By Ken MacLeod The ice storm of Dec. 10, 2007, that paralyzed much of northeastern Oklahoma for weeks is more than a memory for golf-course superintendents in the area. Although initial cleanup was lengthy and costly, a second round is underway at many courses that could prove just as ambitious. At Cedar Ridge Country Club in Broken Arrow, Okla., crews were brought in last winter to remove 165 damaged or fallen trees and trim nearly 1,200 others that had suffered some degree of ice damage. Now, after giving the survivors a summer to see which ones bounced back, a second pruning process is ongoing which will remove another 120 trees and thousands of limbs from the remaining trees in an effort to regain their shape and vitality. “These are trees that we assumed last winter were going to live,” said superintendent Mike Wooten. “Some didn’t. Some had a lot of breakage in the summer and some had a lot of die-back. We’re taking out a lot of trees that have no shot value and a lot that have no aesthetic value.” Wooten estimates that with the tree removal program he had in place before the ice storm combined with the storm, Cedar Ridge will lose some 320 trees this year, about 16 percent of the roughly 2,000 trees on the course. There were 2,800 trees on the course 22 years ago when Wooten took over. He has removed 1,200 but planted back 400 over time. The good news, Wooten said, is “every tree that goes is just helping the golf course. The turfgrass is much better with all the light and air reaching it. It’s prettier, because the trees are spaced better. We’re replacing a lot of the fescue areas with Bermuda, which will make for more consistent rough and less maintenance.” The only course in the Tulsa area hit harder than Cedar Ridge was Tulsa Country Club north of downtown Tulsa. Superintendent Brady Finton said 300 trees were removed and 1,200 trimmed during the winter cleanup. Now it is

South Central Golf Magazine

“Every tree that goes is just helping the golf course. The turfgrass is much better with all the light and air reaching it. It’s prettier, because the trees are spaced better.” Mike Wooten Cedar Ridge Country Club Superintendent evident that at least 125 more trees will need to be removed and many of the others manicured to restore some shape. He plans to resume work on the trees in November. “There were a lot of pine trees that were just not going to snap out of it,” Finton said. “And we lost two huge elms to the right of hole 16 that will change the way that hole plays for some golfers. We lost some other large trees in between 12 and 13 and between holes 4 and 5. Like Wooten, Finton is converting some previously shaded areas from fescue to Bermuda rough. He said that would lower costs of fertilizer, seed and chemicals and also make the course play harder, not easier. “This is one of the healthier stands of turfgrass we’ve ever had,” Finton said. “And that Bermuda rough will play tougher than the fescue, even if you don’t have to worry about the tree as much.” Tulsa Country Club recently hosted the USGA Senior Women’s Amateur Championship and Finton had the course in superb condition. Some of the contestants, however, were amazed by the damage still evident in the tree lines. “It’s going to take five years for the bigger trees that survived to regain their shape and look normal again,” Finton said. And that, of course, is assuming the upcoming winters are free of storms of that magnitude.

Evans said he plans to keep Steve Kimmel as director of golf, but Evans has begun searching for a new club general manager to replace A.G. Meyers. Touring pros Gil Morgan, Doug Tewell, David Edwards, Mark Hayes, Bob Tway, Scott Verplank, Willie Wood, Jim Woodward and Jim Kane will continue to represent the club and their advice will be sought throughout the course’s renovation project. Oak Tree architect Pete Dye recently visited and shared his views on what would enhance the course. The entire course will have a new irrigation system. All fairways and tree boxes will be replaced with U-3 Bermuda, as will the practice facility teeing area. Nine greens will be slightly-to-moderately modified, but none will be completely rebuilt. All bunkers will be updated with new sand and drainage, and a few new bunkers will be added. A state-of-the-art learning center with video and testing equipment will be built on the north end of the driving range. Cost of the renovation was not disclosed. “There are ton of guys getting after it right now,” Evans said of the construction crew.

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The elevated first tee box at The Patriot, golfers will tee off toward the Tulsa skyline in the distance.

Patriot emerges Chiseled from rocky terrain, a golf course replete with spectacular holes begins to show through By Ken MacLeod Paul Hahn has been the project superintendent for Landscapes Unlimited on some truly exciting projects, such as Tom Fazio’s Dallas National, rated No. 23 on Golfweek’s Top 100 Modern Course list. “That course is beautiful,” Hahn said. “But this one will far exceed it in terms of the constant elevation changes and the beauty of the terrain.” Hahn is overseeing the construction of The Patriot on rugged, rocky hills north-

east of Tulsa in Owasso. The holes are all roughed in and some will begin receiving zoysia sod as early as Oct. 20. Greens will mostly be seeded in the spring, as will areas of native grass outside the fairways and roughs. Cart trail work has begun and will continue through the winter. Hahn works closely with the ownership group, which includes his boss Bill Kubly, a team of local developers and Major Dan Rooney, who will oversee golf operations when the course opens next summer. Rooney, an F-16 fighter pilot, is currently

serving his third tour of duty with the Air National Guard in Iraq and is scheduled to return in November. “We want to really have something to show Dan when he gets back,” Hahn said. “He loves this place and I think he’s really going to be impressed with what’s happened while he was gone.” The course will begin with a dramatic tee shot from a bluff to a fairway carved from stone and hardwoods 150 feet below. From there it will wind through what project architect Jay Blasi of Robert Trent Jones II’s firm says is four different environments, each with its own design and construction challenges and ambiance for the golfer. “You’ve got the high prairie, the wooded holes, the canyon holes and the low meadow,” Blasi said. “About 13 of the 18 holes were already there and we just had to scrape them off without moving a lot of dirt. “The highlight of this golf course for the architect is we get to take the player on a journey. We tried to pay particular atten-

South Central Golf Magazine

New Courses tion to the rhythm of the round. It starts out with a bang, then on a long slow trip through the canyons. On the back nine you’ve got some thunder and lightning. And of course it ends with a dramatic shot back across the canyon on 18.” While some holes were found, others required painstaking work. The seventh hole, which has the only blind tee shot, goes over a hill then races down to a green on a plateau in front of an old rock dam, with a stream lined by a rock wall to the right of the green and a gentle shelf to the left. The fairway was lowered 10 feet through solid rock. “The most expensive hole on the course,” Hahn calls it. “And one of the best.” Each fairway is capped with six inches of loam that was dug elsewhere on the property. Much of the rock removed is being used creatively to build rock walls, borders and fences. The terrain can be severe, yet the mandate from the ownership group is to create a family-friendly, playable course. Those who have played another Jones course built on similar terrain in northwest Arkansas need have no fear that The Patriot will be anywhere near the brutal test of golf that

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similar and that traverse somewhat similar terrain, can be completely different. The owners and their mandate to us as golf course architects couldn’t be any further apart,” Blasi said. “John Tyson (owner of The Blessings) was on a mission to create an extremely difficult golf course that was a test of your physical and mental ability. He didn’t want any bailout areas. “The Patriot is going to be a member’s club that all golfers of all abilities can come out and enjoy. The fairways will be twice as wide as many courses. And if you’ve studied the greens, you’ll see that there is trouble on one side but not on all sides. Most of them have an area to bounce it in.” That won’t be the case on 18, which could provide more than a few “Tin Cup moments” as golfers try to reach a green cut high in a bluff from as far as 200 yards out. Anything short will plunk straight down into a canyon. The seventh hole utilizes an old rock wall dam The course is scheduled to open July 4 of combined with a new rock border for the creek. 2009. It seems like an ambitious date for a course that by Oct. 1 did not have a blade of is The Blessings. grass on it, but if the dormant sod responds “These two projects serve as a perfect quickly in the spring and the greens grow in example of how two projects, seemingly properly, it could be done.

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New Courses

Pinnacle swings for the fences

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Renovations

Renovation to replace greens, bunkers, tees and all fairways By Ken MacLeod

A new green at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers is ready for seeding.

What started out as an effort to solve persistent problems with greens has turned into a full-blown $6 million renovation including new fairways, greens, tees, irrigation, added shot options and improved sight lines at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers. Pinnacle is a 1990 design of the late Don Sechrest and has been owned for most of its existence by the Hudson family of Hudson Foods fame. Mike Hudson took over for his father Red Hudson when the latter passed away in 2006, some nine years after Hudson Foods was sold to Northwest Arkansas neighbor and rival Tyson Foods in 1997. In the middle of a gated community filled with beautiful and expensive homes, Pinnacle has long been home to the elite of northwest Arkansas society, a place where executives from WalMart, J.B. Hunt, Hudson, Tyson and other business leaders rub elbows and make a few wagers. John Tyson has now opened his own course (The Blessings) but Pinnacle is still thriving. It is home to the P&G Beauty Northwest Arkansas LPGA Championship and is both a social hub and golf center. The problem was, Pinnacle’s greens often did not reflect the quality of the rest of the club. And not only were the greens prone to heat stress and other ailments, the course itself needed some help to deal with modern technology. Enter Tulsa-based architect Randy Heckenkemper, along with golf construction companies Landscapes Unlimited and JonesPlan. JonesPlan is rebuilding all 18 tee boxes, while Landscapes is busy rebuilding greens,

bunkers and irrigation and stripping out all the old fairways to be replaced with Zorro zoysia grass, a very fine-bladed variety bought from sod farms in Selma, Ala. When the old greens were torn up, it was quickly discovered that a lack of drainage was responsible for much of the continuing problems. The new greens have been built to USGA specifications and will utilize Sub-Air, the subsurface cooling and heating system. The new greens will also often be in slightly different locations and present different angles of attack than their predecessors. On the first hole, for example, the green has moved back and left, with a new bunker added back right and the green now falling off in back. The hole is just 321 yards from the men’s tee, a risk-reward drivable par-4 with plenty of peril for the long hitters. The safe play will be to lay back of all the bunkers and hit a wedge in, but many will opt for a more robust option. The greens, many of which are elevated, will now be surrounded by zoysia maintained at a low height, allowing golfers the option to run the ball up or go for the riskier flop shot. Previously most of the areas surrounding the greens were fescue and bluegrass at rough height. The tees have all been enlarged and repositioned with some new tee boxes added. Superintendent Todd Towery and his crew are adding some nice touches as well, including rock walls on certain holes. Mike Hudson gave a simple mandate to Heckenkemper and Towery.

“I just want a golf course that’s in the best possible condition it can be in,” Hudson said. “We’re not in competition with anybody. We just want for our members the kind of playing conditions and playing options they would expect at the finest courses anywhere.” “We’re aiming for perfect,” said Towery, who was a first assistant at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa before moving to Pinnacle in 2006. “Mr. Hudson wants this to be the finest-conditioned golf course anywhere, one that all the members can bring their guests to and be proud.” Heckenkemper will leave the conditions to Towery. His job is making sure the members are presented with a course they will enjoy for decades to come, one that’s fun to play and presents strategic options that can change daily depending on wind, weather and how the player is striking the ball. The new greens will be seeded with Tyee creeping bentgrass, a new variety that is supposed to outperform even the A-1, A-4 blends that have been popular among the top courses in the area. With the new green locations, contours and bunker complexes, Towery should be able to make conquest of the course a difficult task if he so chooses when setting pins each morning. “I think we’re going to give the golfer more variety, more to think about than what they had previously,” Heckenkemper said. “We want to make it just as playable for the high handicapper while still keeping all the challenge there for the low handicapper and the professionals.”

South Central Golf Magazine

New Courses

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The bold and the Bermuda Firelake gets rid of bent-grass greens By Ken MacLeod With the new fine-bladed varieties of Bermuda eliminating much of the problems with grain and roll, it was only a matter of time before someone in Oklahoma gave up on the annual summer battle to keep the bent grass alive. Chris Chesser, director of golf at Firelake Golf Club in Shawnee, is the first to take the plunge, following the lead of about 400 other courses throughout the south that have installed the Champions variety of Bermuda to their greens. The greens were sprigged late this summer and should be ready for play in the spring. Chesser expects the advantages of the Bermuda greens to easily outweigh the disadvantages, and there are some of each. The greens should do fine in the heat of July and August, needing only regular watering. They will not require four employees to work the course throughout the day syringing greens to keep them from dying, as Chesser as often had to do with his bent grass greens.

He also expects to cut his chemical bill in half and reduce his fertilizer costs. The bad news is he’ll have to purchase 20 green covers for a total of $25,000 and the greens will need to be covered when temperatures go below 25 degrees to keep them from going dormant. The greens at Firelake were 27 years old and due for a renovation. Superintendent Steve Montgomery was a proponent of trying the Champions and Chesser backed him. Chesser said at least 40 superintendents from other courses have stopped by to see how the experiment is going.

Slow going at resorts

Don’t expect anything to happen too quickly at either of the big resorts taking shape around existing courses at Lake Texoma and Grand Lake. Ryan Chapman, former state parks golf director and now the director of golf and the marina for Pointe Vista, said the existing Chickasaw Pointe golf course will probably remain unchanged for five to six years while

Fountainhead Golf Course has been subleased to the Muscogee Creek Nation.

South Central Golf Magazine

other projects are built. That includes a new south course to replace the old Lake Texoma course. Pointe Vista developers are still attempting to finalize the purchase of 1,022 acres from the state and from the U.S. Corps of Engineers. Once that is done, demolition of the old lodge and cabins and dirt work on the new golf course will commence, hopefully before the end of 2008. Chapman said the architect for the South Course has not been finalized. “I know this, with the land that they’ll have to use there should be some great golf holes,” Chapman said. At Grand Lake, the Penisula Resort & Golf Club, formerly Shangri-La, has put its plans for a new resort hotel, conference center and marina on hold, even though a tax increment financing district was passed early this year which would have diverted up to $25 million in increased sales and property tax within the district for up to 25 years. Pete Boylan, the project’s developer, told the Tulsa World that everything was on hold until the nation’s financial crisis sorts itself out.

Photo by Mike Klemme

New Courses “As a result of the capital markets, our hotel partner is obviously having a challenge, notwithstanding the TIF, arranging the financing.” Boyland said. “I don’t think anybody can predict what’s ultimately going to happen. The experts in the world are mystified right now at what’s taking place. Until that settles down, we, like anybody else in the real estate business, are probably on hold.” Two other projects involve renovating existing courses to make them a quality amenity to casino projects. The Quapaw have purchased Loma Linda Resort just across the Missouri state line to go with the Downstream Resort & Casino that is being built just inside the Oklahoma state line near I-44. While the resort is scheduled open this fall, the courses at Loma Linda will take longer. The north course is currently being renovated, while the South Course will undergo an even more extensive renovation next year, with John Daly as a consultant on the design.

Creeks to run Fountainhead

The Muscogee Creek have purchased the former Fountainhead Resort from a private group and have sub-leased Fountainhead

and

Renovations

Golf Course from the state of Oklahoma Tourism Department. The old resort facility has been demolished and plans are to build a 400 to 500-room hotel and casino with a boat dock, swimming pools, shopping and restaurants over the next five years, according to Michael Wisner, the CEO of the Trade and Commerce Authority for the Muscogee Creek Nation. As for the golf course, Wisner has hired former Clary Fields superintendent Jay Lee. A new irrigation system will be installed this winter along with a general course cleanup. There are plans to rebuild the clubhouse, cart barn and maintenance building in the future. The sub-lease is through 2018, but the Creek are pursuing a direct lease with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which currently leases the land to the State of Oklahoma. That would give the Creek greater flexibility to make capital improvements without going through two entities. Kim Moyer, the director of communications and government affairs for the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department, said the state’s goal in sub-leasing Fountainhead was to find a group that would be able to improve the course and build play.

“We wanted to find a group that had a vested interest in doing a good job and improve the conditions and services. We feel the Creek have stepped up and will do a great job.” Records show rounds at the course have declined steadily over the past five years, from 20,071 in 2004 to just 8,829 through early October in 2008. There were 14,4333 rounds at Fountainhead in 2007. While the state had to subsidize the course in 2004, it was $35,925 compared to a projected $202,614 in 2008. The sub-lease to the Creek involves just a nominal fee. This is the second course in the state park system to pass from the state control this year, as Chickasaw Pointe is now run by Pointe Vista. There are still seven courses in the state park system. “We want it to work out well for them and for the golfers,” Moyer said. “We still believe Fountainhead can be a very good course.” Wisner said at this time there are no plans for a major rerouting or green renovation. “We think the layout is phenomenal,” he said. “It’s a two or three-year project to clean out the greens, dig up and fix all the old traps and really bring the course back to life.”

The Greens are fast a n d t h e b a s s h a z a r d i s a d o o z y.

One of 52 Arkansas State Parks.

14South central Golf-Aug/Sept.indd1

1-800-737-8355 • DeGray.com 7/11/07 2:53:37 PM South Central Golf Magazine

New Courses

and

Renovations

Emerald Falls shows off clubhouse Emerald Falls in Broken Arrow opened its new 11,600-square foot clubhouse with a grand opening celebration in August. The clubhouse includes a spacious pro shop, a banquet room, dining area and offices. There is a back paito and veranda where guests can sit outside with a view of the 18th green and enjoy the air. Emerald Falls opened for play in the fall of 2007 and has proven a popular destination for tournaments as well as daily fee play. For more information, call 918-2662600. Photos by Rip Stell

South Central Golf Magazine

New Courses

and

Renovations

Davis, Leonard show off second Tribute 18 Former Sooner, Longhorn an ideal design team By Art Stricklin THE COLONY, Texas â&#x20AC;&#x201C; With his first English course in the planning stages and a design partnership with a Texas PGA Tour superstar resulting in a new Dallas-area American golf tribute, Oklahoma architect Tripp Davis is riding a new career high. Davis, 40, recently showed off his work on the second golf course at The Tribute, a public resort course just north of Dallas, which he designed with former British Open champion and Dallas native Justin Leonard. While Davis designed the first 18 holes as a tribute to famous holes in Scotland,

the second 18, which will open for play in the summer of 2009, is a tribute to the great American courses of the early 1900s. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Most courses today are meant to look good, not play good,â&#x20AC;? Davis said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Justin has been very involved in this to make sure people come to play once, and then want to come back again. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m very much a traditionalist and so is Justin.â&#x20AC;? Davis, a former amateur golf star who was an All-American at Oklahoma, and Leonard, who has more than a dozen Tour titles to his credit, first worked on a course together in Colorado. This is their first collaboration in North Texas. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is such an interesting process work-

Justin Leonard, left, and Tripp Davis discuss the new 18 at The Tribute. ing with Tripp,â&#x20AC;? Leonard said in a brief break before leaving for Valhalla Golf Club and the 2008 Ryder Cup. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s challenged me to think about why I like certain holes, and then to be able to take that from paper to the field and see it come to life has been great. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just much more than moving this bunker here or moving that tree there. There is

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New Courses a lot more than I realized going into it.” Norman resident Davis, who played golf for the Sooners from 1985-89 and returned for a Master’s degree in landscape design in 1995, said the second Tribute layout was another career milestone for him. “I just like to do interesting stuff. My wife would be the first to tell you I don’t treat this enough like a business, but this is very interesting to me,” Davis said. While the first Tribute course showcased famous Scottish holes like the 17th and 18th at St. Andrews Old Course and the par-3 Postage Stamp from Royal Troon, the second Tribute, known as The New Course, honors individual courses like Maidstone, Shinnocock and National Golf Links, all on Long Island, N.Y., along with Chicago Golf Club and Prairie Dunes in Hutchinson, Kan. While Davis has traveled extensively in the United Kingdom when planning his replica courses, he has recently received his first chance to design his only English links courses in Devon, England, on the shores of the English Channel. “I’ve always thought that if I continued to work hard and keep my head down good opportunities would come my way. That’s what happened in Devon on a great piece of

and

Renovations

property 40 feet above the coast. “I’m very proud to be only the third American to design a new course in England,” he added. Davis said he’s currently in the design phase of the still-unnamed course in Devon, and will likely begin construction in the spring. “It was actually somebody over here who knew about the project and the owners and I was able to get the job. It’s exciting.” While Davis remains excited about his continued rise in his chosen golf-related profession, his work with Leonard on the new course at The Tribute has convinced him he made the right career choice after leaving OU. As part of the research for the new joint project, the pair traveled to the East Coast to play several of the famous courses and played together for three days in a row. “In three days I shot 71 twice and 77 once,” Davis recalled. “Justin never missed the fairway once in three days, not once, and never three-putted. He never shot higher than 70. I have no chance. I think I have beaten him once for 18 holes and once for nine.” “I told Justin, I just didn’t want him to put his name on this, I wanted him to be hands-

on. But I still wanted him to play well and qualify for the Ryder Cup.” While Leonard said he enjoyed learning more golf-design insight from Davis and would be open to future projects with the OU architect, he’s hoping to use his newfound appreciation of course design to help in his real job. “I have a day job and that’s something I want to keep doing. This was the right project at the right place and the right time with the right person,” Leonard added. But it didn’t taken him long to use Davis’ wisdom to aid his own golfing skills in the 2008 FedEx Cup. In the first playoff event this fall, Leonard bogeyed the par-5 13th hole at Ridgewood Country Club in the first round. Later that night, he was talking with Davis about the round and told him what an awful par-5 it was. “I told him to figure out a way to play the hole and make birdie,” Davis said. “That’s exactly what he did for the next three days.” Headed to the end of a very successful 2008 for both golfers, it’s clear both should continue to make plenty of birdies in their chosen golfing fields for years to come.

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SPOTLIGHT ON:

SAND CREEK STATION

Sand Creek on track for success Newton course draws raves, attracts big numbers By Mal Elliott Newton is a legendary railroad town. Has been for more than 100 years. Now the town of 17,000 just 20 miles north of Wichita has up a head of steam with one of the nation’s finest new golf courses. National golf publications have been tooting the horn for Sand Creek Station golf course louder than the Burlington NorthernSanta Fe trains that come rumbling through the middle of the long and luxuriant course. All the hoopla has sent the links-style course zooming out of the starting gate. “In 2007 we had huge growth and 2008 has been a banner year,” says Chris Touhey, general manager and head golf pro. “The weather has cooperated and we have had a great grow-in period.” Touhey said that has brought remarks from golfers that the course appears to be more mature than its age would indicate. He said there were 26,000 rounds of golf played in 2007 at the municipal course, and the traffic for 2008 indicates there will be 27,000 to 30,000 rounds played. Many of those golfers are from the surrounding area, including Wichita, with a population of more than 300,000. “We knew we would have to have business from outside the county,” said Touhey. “We knew we had to make that happen and we have. It’s been better than expected and we will more than break even.” The 26,000 rounds is approximately the equivalent of the number played at Wichita’s newest, upscale municipal course, Auburn Hills. Sand Creek Station is barely two years old. It was opened in July 2006. The course has received rave reviews from publications such as Golf Inc., Golf Magazine, Golf Digest and Golf Week, which ranked it the 24th best muni course in the na-

Sand Creek Station is earning praise for its condition and for being challenging yet entertaining. tion. The Golf Foundation also did a survey that showed Sand Creek to be in the nation’s top five in customer satisfaction. Sand Creek is a superior test of golfing skills. It is rated at just over 7,200 yards but Touhey said it can be stretched to 7,500 yards in length. The course record of 66 belongs to Bruce Vaughan, the newly crowned British Senior Open champion from nearby Hutchinson. Touhey said Vaughan shot 6under-par from the gold tees, the very back tees. Par is 72, but the course rating is a daunting 76.2 from the back tees. Even the PGA Tour does not ask Touhey to put its players to the macho test of playing from the back tees. They play the course at 7,000 yards. Only a couple of Kansas courses are longer than Sand Creek Station – Colbert Hills of Manhattan at 7,525 yards and Tex Consolver of Wichita at 7,361. Sand Creek already has a track record for staging competitive events of the PGA Tour and the Kansas Golf Association. For two years the course has been the site of Monday qualifying for the Wichita Open of the PGA’s Nationwide Tour. “I had a chance to talk to Ben Bates,” said Touhey, referring to the longtime figure on the PGA and Nationwide tours. “He loves the course.” The clubhouse is designed to resemble an old railroad station. Sand Creek has also been the site of the U.S. Golf Association’s qualifying for the national Public Links tournament, the KGA’s Senior and Junior team events, the Kansas Amateur qualifying and the Senior Stroke Play. Touhey said he hopes to get Sand Creek on the USGA list for other events. Sand Creek’s two most challenging holes are No. 2 and No. 10, both long holes into a prevailing south wind. No. 10, nicknamed “the beast”, is the longest hole in the state at

648 yards. No. 2 is 613 yards into the same south wind with a creek crossing the fairway on the approach to the elevated green and a tree protecting the right front corner of the green. Architect Jeffrey Brauer has also designed No. 16 to replicate the road hole at St. Andrews in Scotland and another resembles the famed “Redan” hole at North Berwick Scotland. Only one of the four par-3 holes is shorter than 200 yards. Green fees are $49 but there is special pricing for juniors, seniors and county residents. The fee includes cart and range balls. Sand Creek is a municipal course but is run by Kemper Management which handles some 70 courses.

Weather, Permit Ills Slow Yucca Ridge Another recent Kansas startup has had a different experience. Yucca Ridge is a ninehole, fly-in course which was planned in conjunction with a residential development with as many as 300 home sites in Liberal. While the eastern half of Kansas has had one of its wettest years in history with more than 40 inches of rain in some areas, Liberal and western Kansas have experienced virtual drought conditions. Add to that the fact that Seward County is haggling over issuing building permits for the housing development and you can see why developer John Smith is concerned. “There have been no sales. The county won’t issue building permits. We are optimistic,” he said, but he added that the housing development was an integral part of the total Yucca Ridge package. Despite the drought, he said the course has been watered and is receiving compliments from golfers. It is drawing players from northwest Oklahoma and Garden City and other towns in western Kansas.

South Central Golf Magazine

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insiders her Louisiana To see what ot own ur yo to create recommend and anaTravel.com si ui Lo t si vi , Louisiana tour more GT-IN-LA. For or call 1-866-A Audubon Golf e th t ou ab n informatio dubonGolf.com. Trail, visit Au

“Sink more than a putt in Lou isiana. Go to the French Market and sink a beignet into some café au lait. Down here, you can play tthe 12 courses of the Audubo n Golf Trail year ro nd–and afterwards, you can rou listen to live m sic, eat gumbo, tour a planta mu mus tion, or go fresh or saltwater ﬁshing. It’s all good, y’all.”

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Destinations

Exploring

New Mexico

From top to bottom, this state offers a feast for hungry golfers One of the great surprises of the trip was the unheralded Taos Country Club. By Ken MacLeod

elcome to my excellent New Mexico adventure, in which a man and his clubs traverse the state from top to bottom, fueled by green chili cheeseburgers and a desire to see the wonder beyond the next mountain pass. From the Sangre de Cristos in the Enchanted Circle, south to Taos, Santa Fe and Albuquerque, then through the Valley of Fires and on to the mysteries of the Inn of the Mountain Gods. Then a race across the White Sands from Alamagordo to Las Cruces in the shadow of the Organ Mountains, finally crossing the state border for a stroll down Tom Fazio’s Butterfield Trail just before boarding a plane in El Paso. Whew! What a trip, and what a paragraph. Not sure which took longer. We’ve always had a fondness for our western neighbor. When it’s blistering hot in Oklahoma, you can count on 80s and low humidity in Angel Fire. Rainbows frequent the sky after summer storms. The terrain is varied and often starkly beautiful. Mountains dotted with pine and pinon stretch from Colorado to Texas. There are forests in the north, extinct volcanoes all over the state, plenty of harsh desert and sage-covered scrub. We can’t even begin to describe the state’s

South Central Golf Magazine

Where to Play

Sonoma Ranch

(505) 521-1818 www.sonomaranchgolf.com

Golf in New Mexico

Taos Country Club

www.newmexicogolfdestinations.com www.golfonthesantafetrail.com

(505) 785-7300 www.taoscc.americangolf.com

Angel Fire Resort

Inn of the Mountain Gods

(575) 377-4302 www.angelfireresort.com

(888) 324-0348 www.innofthemountaingods.com

Black Mesa

Rainmakers

(505) 747-8946 www.blackmesagolfclub.com

(575) 336-7500 www.rainmakersusa.com

Butterfield Trail

University of New Mexico

(915) 772-1035 www.butterfieldtrailgolf.com

rich cultural diversity and the number of festivals you can attend, the shopping opportunities, the food (green chile is not the only treasure). Then there are the myriad outdoor sports, camping, hiking, skiing, fishing, rafting on the Rio Grande. Suffice it to say that if you go there for the golf, you’ll find plenty to see, do and experience, whether you have family in tow or a

(505) 277-4488 www.unmgolf.com

group of friends. This magazine has run features on some of the better-known golf destinations, such as Paa-Ko Ridge and Twin Warriors straddling the Sandia Mountains north of Albuquerque, Pinon Hills in Farmington and other destinations on the Santa Fe Trail (www.santafetrail.com) This most recent trip was to relate some

other courses worth your while.

Tourists treated right

New Mexico has fewer than two million full time residents. Tourism is big business and the state has to be considered one of the top emerging national golf destinations. Part of the reason for that is, just like in Oklahoma, the native Americans have the rights to operate casinos and many of them have chosen to add top-notch golf courses as an amenity. Our trip began at Angel Fire in the Enchanted Circle in New Mexicoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s far north. This is a delightful mountain course run by PGA professional Bill Baker. With great views of the Sangre de Cristos, including Baldy Mountain (12,632 feet), the course is more than 8,000 feet high itself, as I noticed when booming several shots over greens. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also very easy to have firm, fast greens at this elevation and the greens on Angel Fire give the course much of its character along with views. Course conditions have been an issue in the past but it was in great condition late this summer. In addition to the views of the surrounding hills, one might see elk, deer, black bear, mountain lion and numerous other creatures patrolling the ground. The resort hotel is undergoing numerous upgrades and construction has begun on a new clubhouse and pro shop as well. There are also plans to add a second golf course. Left, the dramatic par-3 seventh hole at Angel Fire.

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From Angel Fire we went south to the shopping, arts and food mecca of Taos, also home to the biggest surprise of the trip, the Taos Country Club. This is an excellent high-desert course. Each hole is framed by pungent sage, and hitting into this stuff is as bad as any gorse in Scotland. There are virtually no trees and only one water hazard, but the ground contours and the way the course wends and winds through the rolling terrain, the subtle breaks of the greens and the restrained bunkering more than make up for the lack of woods and water. The views from the valley of the surrounding ranges, including towering Taos Mountain, make this course an extra special treat.

Heading South

Within a few minutes of each other off Highway 84 north of Santa Fe are Black Mesa, the spectacular desert journey through a geologic wonderland, and Towa, offering three nine-hole courses designed by Hale Irwin and Bill Phillips and home to the huge new Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino. Black Mesa is a Baxter Spann creation, finished in 2003, that is beguiling and bewitching. Many shots from the tees look harder than they really are, including blind tee shots on holes 1, 5 and 14. The approach shots are just the opposite, mostly because the first-timer won’t know all the breaks and sometimes severe slopes Spann added to these greens. A little local knowledge will help you in placing your shot to the correct part of these large and playful greens. Black Mesa moved up from 85 to 73 this year in the Golfweek list of top 100 modern courses. Director of golf Tom Velarde, also a part owner, said his play is over 50 percent from tourists and that they love the course. “The high handicappers love it because there’s a lot of grass in the landing areas and some backstops that save them. The design tee to green is just phenomenal. Once you get on the greens, you’ve got some work to do.” Velarde said very little earth was moved to build the course that finds its way through precipitous sandstone rocks and hills. A little further south, Towa, also now known as the Hilton Santa Fe Golf Resort & Spa at Buffalo Thunder, offers three nines of solid desert golf, including an island green and a variety of holes that will challenge any golfer. Buffalo Thunder Resort has 395 rooms, a huge casino, spa, shopping and restaurants. One can stay there and play both Towa and Black Mesa.

Albuquerque

Once you near Albuquerque, the options increase. We’ve already mentioned Paa-Ko Ridge and the Twin Warriors course at the fabulous Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort at

South Central Golf Magazine

Rainmakers, the new Robert Trent Jones II course near Ruidoso, is beautiful and intriguing. the Santa Ana Pueblo. There is Sandia Resort at the base of the Sandia Mountains and the Isleta Resort to the south, both with full casinos. For us, however, it was more traditional golf that we had in mind and that meant a visit to the University of New Mexico Cham-

pionship Course, where so many terrific collegiate events have been held, including three men’s NCAA Division I Championships and the women’s championship in 1987 and again in 2008. The phrase “championship course” has been so overused it usually means nothing,

Comparing Ross Bridge to the great Scottish courses really isn’t fair. To Scotland.

Hole #2 at Ross Bridge

The Renaissance Ross Bridge Golf Resort & Spa just outside Birmingham is the latest masterpiece located along the famed Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. With its full-service spa, luxury resort and 18 championship holes capable of playing at a staggering 8,200 yards, you’ll be tempted to compare it to some of the ﬁnest golf destinations in the world. Until you realize there is no comparison. Call 800-alabama or log on to www.alabama.travel.

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5/23/08 4:24:55 PM

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but rings true here. After starting gently, the course begins to deal out a series of holes that keep getting longer and tougher. And due to above average rainfall, the courses is as lush as could be, which means your ball is not rolling very far, particularly in the bluegrass and fescue rough. Although itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the home of the UNM golf teams, this splendid course is open to the public, is easily walked and can be played for from $27 to $60 depending on time and cart use. George Trujeque is the director of golf and loves to show South Central Section golfers a good time.

Mountain Gods

South Central Golf Magazine

Inn of the Mountain Gods in Ruidoso. conquering this course. They say the best golf-course architects have a sense of humor and offer a few head scratchers. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s certainly the case with this Ted Robinson design from 1975, as there are two holes early in the round in which the golfer has to negotiate trees in the middle of the fairway. There is a great stretch of holes

from seven through 12 and the par-3 18th, a long shot over water, makes a fine offbeat closing hole. The course is part of the Resort & Casino with 273 luxury rooms, a large casino, 40,000 square feet of meeting space, horseback riding, clay shooting and much more.

Your shots go further here (7,000 feet)â&#x20AC;Ś

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From Albuquerque, we headed for Ruidoso, locked away in the southern Rockies. You take I-25 south to San Antonio, where you stop for green chili cheeseburgers at the Owl CafĂŠ. From there itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Highway 385 east through the Valley of Fires, a field of jumbled black lava rock. First stop was the new Rainmakers course, a Robert Trent Jones Jr. showstopper that is the centerpiece of a new housing community. Although the course will eventually be private, travelers can sample it now. Call 575-336-4653 for the pro shop. Rick Riddle, the head pro at Altus (Okla.) Country Club in 1974-75 before embarking on a long and varied career in and out of the golf business, was our guest host for the day, and fortunately he was nice enough to share the nuances of playing Rainmakers, because it has many. The greens are firm and lightning fast and the turfgrass conditions are flawless. With views to the west of the Sacramento Mountains, including the local ski mountain Sierra Blanca Peak (elevation 12,003 feet), and to the north of the Capitan Mountains, Rainmakers, at 7,000 feet itself, provides some panoramic vistas that are hard to match. The golf course should have no problem attracting homeowners as well. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a course that I myself would like to go play on a regular basis,â&#x20AC;? Jones II said of his handiwork at Rainmakers. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m an old fox and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hit it so far, but I could figure out a way to make my par or bogey there while others might not fare so well. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The charm in architecture is designing in three dimensions. These mountain courses give you scenery, exhilaration, a great variety of shots and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re able to add some illusions as well.â&#x20AC;? While on Rainmakers you might run into deer, elk, black bear, big cats and some jackrabbits you wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to meet in a dark alley. Not far away, the Inn of the Mountain Gods is a fun and challenging mountain course that was serving as the site for the New Mexico Open when we arrived. The best golfers in the state had a tough time

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The Tom Fazio-designed Butterfield Trail course in El Paso.

Las Cruces on the move

From Ruidoso we went down to Alamagordo, then shot out across the desert past the White Sands Missile Range and through the pass into Las Cruces, where Sonoma Ranch is the top daily-fee course. Built in 2000 and designed by Cal Olsen, this is a desert course but with plenty of maintained turfgrass. The course was nearly wall-to-wall turf when it opened, but they are slowly incorporating native and desert areas back into play.

Sonoma Ranch has rye grass fairways and roughs with bentgrass greens and stays green year round. Marcos Archuleta, the general manager, said the city of Las Cruces is attracting more and more “snowbirds” from Northern states as well as visitors from Arizona looking for a climate that is slightly cooler in the summer. Coming in spring 2009, the Las Cruces Country Club will reopen as a brand-new 18 designed by Ken Dye.

New, LOw wiNter rates!

Also worth your time in Las Cruces is the New Mexico State University Course, a traditional tree-lined design by none other than Floyd Fairley who laid out so many fine courses in Oklahoma. Dan Koesters, director of golf at the NMSU course, is working closely with the New Mexico Department of Tourism and Sun Country Golf publisher Dan Vukelich to form a New Mexico Golf & Tourism Alliance to begin proper promotion of the state as a golf destination. “You’ve got all these great courses throughout the state, and not just the big casino courses,” Koesters said. “You’ve got these great little tracks like Desert Lakes in Alamagordo, Silver City, Artesia Country Club, Spring River in Roswell. And guess what, these courses cost less than a third of what you would pay for similar quality in Arizona.”

A Butterfield of dreams

Come play Bailey Ranch from November to March at our low winter rate of $30 918-274-GOLF (274-4653) www.BaileyRanchGolf.com 26

El Paso, just 40 miles across the border, is, to all appearances, somewhat clueless as a golf town, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of local ignorance. In Butterfield Trail, El Paso has a fullfledged Tom Fazio course on rolling dunes land near the El Paso airport that was once part of the rugged stage route from east to west run by John Butterfield. This course has all the usual Fazio wow factor combined with extremely interesting terrain, large greens with plenty of movement, mounds of mesquite and other desert flora. Some holes are just fun, others require precision and they all look good. Superintendent Brad Wise has the course in immaculate condition. The greens fee for locals is under $45 and yet there was scarcely any traffic on a perfect golf day during a recent visit. Apparently, El Pasoans have yet to discover what’s in their backyard. Make Butterfield Trail a part of any golf trip that includes southern New Mexico.

South Central Golf Magazine

Cougar Canyon rocks southern Colorado By Ken MacLeod For years the avid golfers of Trinidad, Colo.., yearned for an 18-hole championship golf course to complement its 1915 nine-hole classic Trinidad Municipal Golf Course. With the opening of Cougar Canyon Golf Links, a Nicklaus design award-winner, that dream has been realized. Surrounded by stories of Old West legends like Kit Carson, Bat Masterson and Doc Holliday, this beautiful city, where the plains meet the Rocky Mountains, is only 20 miles north of the New Mexico border in southern Colorado. It has great weather and the scenery for folks looking for second homes and superior golf. And it has been drawing raves from national magazines. Cougar Canyon features an old-style layout by Nicklaus Design associate Chris Cochran, who said: “When we started studying Trinidad, we saw an old-time mining town with a rich history. Why not design an oldstyle golf course?” “There are only 33 bunkers -- nearly a half The 18th hole along the lake at Cougar Canyon. to a third that’s on most new courses,” Cochran explains. “They are retro – a throwback to the 1920s – and they will remind you of old Seth Raynor bunkers that are deep and penal. Still, in most of these bunkers you will be able to hit a mid- to long-iron out of them.” Distinctive black-sand bunkers pay tribute to Trinidad’s rich mining history. But you will need to bring you’re A-game to Cougar Canyon. Demanding might be the right word to describe its difficulty. Fairways are generous, but you will need to be precise on many drives in order to get a view of the contoured putting surfaces. No. 16, a natural island green playing to 163 yards, par-3, uses the nature of sinuous Gray Creek which cuts its landing area. It should be the best par-3 in Colorado. Buy a home here or come for a week. Currently under construction is a boutique hotel that will feature a spa, restaurant and lounge, shop, concierge service and a business center. Amenities will include a pool, hot tub and fitness center.

Where to Play Cougar Canyon

(877) 547-7455 www.cougarcanyonliving.com

South Central Golf Magazine

Talk about options, the sixth hole has a split fairway.

EQUIPMENT

Finding your

distance By Ed Travis Back in 2005 the United States Golf Association changed the Rules of Golf to allow use of “distance measuring devices” during tournament play and rounds used to calculate golfers’ handicaps. Only those measuring distance are legal, so DMDs which show changes in elevation and wind speed may not be used. But in any event sales of DMDs have taken off. DMDs fall into two general categories, those employing the ubiquitous GPS technology that gives drivers road-trip directions, and laser units that bounce a beam off a target to find the distance. Both types have strong and weak points. On the plus side lasers and GPs systems boast +/- one-yard accuracy, which is sufficient for even the most meticulous golfer. Operation of a laser range finder is simply a matter of “point and shoot,” in most cases the flagstick, and the yardage appears. Distances to course hazards can similarly be determined, but be aware depending on the terrain that “shooting” the front or rear edge of a green may be difficult if not im-

Range Finders, GPS devices make excellent gifts for Christmas

possible. When using a laser range finder it makes no difference where the flagstick is located; front, back or center, you will always have the correct distance. Prices range from $250 to more than $500 with the primary differences being the greatest distance a target can be measured and whether the model has a change in elevation measuring feature. If you are unsure a laser range finder is for you, a good suggestion is to borrow one and try it out before making a purchase. GPS systems triangulate signals from global positioning satellites meaning there is no need to bounce a beam off a target. Generally yardage is shown to the center of the green as well as the front and back but not to the exact pin location. This means some guessing on the part of the player as to the exact yardage or a calculation by referencing a pin location sheet provided by the golf course. Amateur golfers should not find this to be a problem though since their approach shot accuracy is probably not sufficient to make say, the difference between 151 and 154 yards, meaningful. Most GPS models also give distances to carry hazards and a lay-up distance should you need it. In addition to the initial purchase outlay, which is in the same range as laser range finders, GPS makers may charge a fee to download golf-course distance data. In any event if you are playing a layout that hasn’t been downloaded into your GPS device it is of no use. Some golf courses have a GPS system mounted on their golf carts and this is a good way to get an idea of what it’s like to use a handheld model. Use of cart mounted GPS is usually included in the cart rental fee.

Laser Range Finders

Two models on the market that we like are the Callaway LR 550 for about $300 and the Bushnell Tour V2 for $350. Both are lightweight, easy to use, just point and shoot. Overall yardage accuracy is for each is excellent and both have a feature that zeros in on the flagstick, which is nice, when there are trees or bushes behind the green.

The Bushnell Tour V2 is an accurate laser range finder. Bushnell is the world’s largest seller/manufacturer of golf laser range finders, while the Callaway model is made by Nikon. The change in elevation feature on more expensive models we don’t regard as a ‘musthave’ since the USGA doesn’t allow it and what’s the sense of paying money for a feature you can’t use?

GPS Devices

In this category too there are a wide variety of models and options, but the SkyCaddie SG2.5 for $260 and the uPro GPS at $400 are at the top of our list. Each comes with the software to download course information to your PC, a USB cable for transfer to the unit and rechargeable batteries. The SkyCaddie is lightweight with onehand operation and stores 10 courses in memory plus allows moving a cursor to estimate the pin location on the black and white display. With 14 hours of battery life it’s good for 36 holes according to the manufacturer. SkyCaddie charges $30 per year to download all the courses in one state, $50 for the entire United States or $60 for unlimited courses worldwide. The uPro has a 2.2-inch color display using satellite and aerial photography and generates distance markers in addition to showing hazards and the green. Pricing of course downloads is a one-time fee of $10 to $120 depending on how many you want in either a basic or “ProMode.” The bottom line is that a laser range finder or a GPS device is a good choice for a Christmas gift, either to treat yourself or for that special golfer in your life.

Left: The uPro GPS combines satellite with aerial photography. Right: The Sky Caddie SG5.

South Central Golf Magazine

COLLEGE

Maggio opts for Lady Tigers Conway star glad to end recruiting process By Beck Cross Mary Michael Maggio of Conway may not have the same name recognition as a bluechip high-school football player, but she certainly knows what it’s like to be one of the most sought-after college prospects in the nation. Maggio, 17, who is ranked as the 18th best overall junior girls golfer in the nation by Golfweek magazine and ninth among those scheduled to graduate in 2009, sorted through more than 70 Division I scholarship offers before narrowing her choices to Louisiana State, Texas and Arkansas. When she finally opted for LSU, she naturally caught her share of flak from many who had hoped she would play for the Razorbacks. “Believe me, I got an earful and I’m still getting a little bit of grief,’’ said Maggio, a senior at Conway High School. “What surprised me even more was when I went to Texas for a tournament this summer and the people down there were giving me as hard of a time that I wasn’t going to be a Longhorn.’’ Maggio, who has been a star on the national scene for three years and is the first Arkansan to qualify for the U.S. Junior Girls Championship four consecutive years, said the recruiting process was grueling. “For about a 10-month period, I’d get an average of 30 to 40 e-mails of day from coaches from around the country,’’ said Maggio, who advanced to the round of 16 for the second consecutive year at the 2008 U.S. Junior Girls Championship. “It seems like every time I’d look down at my cell phone, I’d see that I had [e-mail messages] just backed up. I was just ready for the process to be over with so I could go back to being a kid again.’’ Maggio, who has a 3.9 grade-point average, left nothing to chance when making her final selection and approached the decision

South Central Golf Magazine

Mary Michael Maggio made LSU very happy. Courtesy AJGA pragmatically. “When I narrowed it to LSU, Texas and Arkansas, I made a list of pros and cons of each and it became a process of elimination,’’ she said. “All had so many positives, but it all boiled down to me being comfortable in my own skin at LSU. I liked the coach [Karen Bahnsen], the facilities and the fact that it was close enough but far enough away from home. It just clicked.’’ Parents Mike and Emily Maggio, who have been mainstays in their daughter’s gallery since she first began competing at age 11, didn’t play favorites with one particular school. “She would come to us with questions but the decision was entirely hers,’’ said father, Mike, who recently ran successfully for reelection as circuit judge in Conway. “She’s got a good head on her shoulders and she’s

a good kid. We trust that she’s made the right decision.’’ It’s no secret why coaches around the country had Maggio at the top of their wish list. She took up golf at age 11 and won her first state title less than a year later at the 2003 Arkansas State Golf Association Junior Stroke Play Championship. She dominated the statewide ranks from age 13 to 15 before setting her sights primarily on national play in 2006. “Mary Michael has greatness just oozing out of her,’’ Conway golf coach Janet Taylor said. “She controls her own future because she has a superb work ethic, athleticism, intelligence, desire to be the best and the confidence to get it done. It’s certainly going to be fun to watch her continue to mature and get even better.’’

Billy Casper Golf raises rounds, revenue for city By Ken MacLeod Billy Casper Golf, in its first year of managing the City of Tulsa-owned courses at Page Belcher and Mohawk Park, has delivered what it promised. Play and revenue have increased more than 20 percent, costs have been cut, the city’s subsidy is expected to plummet and playing conditions have stabilized at a higher level. The first year will be viewed as a success by Billy Casper Golf and the City of Tulsa. The reaction from golfers has been positive as well, though not without some exceptions and controversy. General manager Tom Wolff, who oversees both facilities for Billy Casper Golf, said rounds at Page Belcher were up 23 percent over 2007 through September. The two courses, Stone Creek and Olde Page, had combined for 40,050 rounds through September compared to 38,989 for all of 2007.

Wolff was hopeful the two courses would combine for 55,000 rounds by the end of 2008 and more than 60,000 in 2009. That would still be well short of the 96,000 the courses averaged a decade ago, but represent solid progress in a much more competitive market and reverse a long slide in rounds played. At Mohawk Park, the numbers are up but less dramatically. Rounds through the end of September were up from 31,000 to 33,000. Mohawk Park was closed 15 days due to flooding, which has limited the rounds, but turfgrass conditions have been favorable when open. The city paid more than $1 million to subsidize the courses for the fiscal year 200708, which concluded in June. The high cost had prompted Mayor Kathy Taylor to propose closing nine holes at Page Belcher as a cost-savings measure. There is no longer any talk of closing holes. The subsidy is projected to be cut

With a view like this. The challenge is keeping your mind on the game.

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to $450,000 for the fiscal year 2008-09, according to Max Wiens of the Public Works Department and the man who works closely with Wolff to monitor progress at the courses for the city. That includes a direct payment from the city to BCG of $137,000 to cover expenses over revenue, plus the city is paying for the gas and electric bills and has agreed to provide vehicles and gas for the maintenance crews. If BCG continues to keep a tight lid on expenses while raising revenue, the city could receive a significant portion of those expenses back at the end of the fiscal year, as any revenues in excess of the budget and management fee and some negotiated working capital will go back to the city. Increased revenue is a big part of the cost savings. But Casper has also cut costs and tightened up money-draining policies at every opportunity, leading to some early rufPlease see UPDATE , 37

Brad Kershaw hangs with Ben Crenshaw.

Tulsa First Tee students reach Pebble Beach Two members of the First Tee of Tulsa under the direction of Janice Gibson earned spots in the pro-am portion of the Wal-Mart First Tee Open at Pebble Beach Aug. 29-31. Brad Kershaw of Owasso played with Dave Eichelberger, an Oklahoma State graduate, while Brandon McDade of Tulsa played with Mike Reid. The two were selected by Gibson to go to a regional qualifier at Colbert Hills in Manhattan, Kan., where they qualified based on both playing and answers to written tests on golf and life skills. Another notable accomplishment for Gibson’s students came when Jeremy Phillipo of Inola won the 16-18 division of the PGA South Central Section Junior Tournament of Champions. More than 1,200 boys and girls participated in the First Tee program in 2008. The program is based at Mohawk Park Golf Course in Tulsa.

South Central Golf Magazine

Tommy Bolt left them laughing ASGA Views Jay N. Fox

ASGA Executive Director The game of golf lost one of its most colorful characters last month when Tommy Bolt passed away at 92. Bolt won 15 PGA Tour titles and was inducted into the Arkansas Golf Hall of Fame, Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame and World Golf Hall of Fame. I am proud to say he was a friend of mine. I attended all three Hall of Fame inductions and walked up to him at the ceremony at World Golf Village in 2002 and said “Mr. Bolt, I have seen you get inducted into the Arkansas Golf Hall of Fame, Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame and now World Golf Hall of Fame.” He looked at me and said, “Well, you are a lucky son-of-a-bitch, aren’t you?” The highlight of his career was winning the 1958 U.S. Open at Southern Hills in Tulsa, in temperatures so hot it was called the “Blast Furnace Open.” Later Bolt had a pioneering hand in the start of the Champions Tour. In the second year of the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (1979) at Onion Creek Golf Club in Austin, Bolt and partner Art Wall took eventual champions Roberto de Vicenzo and Julius Boros to six playoff holes – all of them birdies in the Four-Ball format. The reaction to the playoff by fans and The South Central Section will be represented this month at the McGladrey Team Championship at Pinehurst (N.C.) Resort, Oct. 20-22, by Tim Zimmerebner of Hot Springs CC and his team, Kevin White, Gregg Alford and Al Blount. We want to thank all of the professionals and their clubs for participating this year. Congratulations to Fletcher White, who defeated George Glenn 2 and 1 in the Senior Match Play at South Lakes GC. In the Consolation Bracket Pat Jenkins defeated Mark Galloway 6 and 5. Kerry Petricek and his partner Tyler Chapman won the Pro Scratch tournament, with a 65, that was held at Emerald Falls GC. Mike Gotcher and Jim Roberson, Chad Lamb and Jason Wook and Tracy Phillips and Preston Wilkins tied for second with a 66. Rounding out the top five was the team of Lee Johnson and Erik Gress with 67. Our Senior PNC was at Willowbend GC this year. In the 50-59 divisions and winning overall was Rod Nuckolls. The 60-69 age division had a tie between Vince Bizik and

Tommy Bolt at the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. the national TV audience convinced PGA Tour Commissioner Deane Beman that a Tour for players 50 and older would work. Now, almost 30 years later, the Champions Tour has grown to 32 official events and a purse of more than $55 million. Bolt was a classy dresser and was known as one of the best ball strikers on Tour. He was tagged with the nickname “Terrible Tommy” because of a temper that didn’t surface nearly as often as the media portrayed. Also known as “Thunder Bolt,” it was an image he could not avoid, especially after he threw a driver into the pond fronting the 18th green at Cherry Hills Country Club

PGA Views Barry Thompson

SCS Executive Director George Glenn. In the 70-and-over age group Chester Butts put in the top performance. The Senior Cup Matches competition was held Sunday before the PNC at Willowbend. The Kansas Chapter team brought home the cup with a team score of 202 followed by the Eastern Chapter with a 208, Arkansas with 209, and the Western Chapter with 212. The South Central Section would like to thank Tim Mendenhall at Oakwood Country Club for hosting the PNC this year. Kyle Flinton, Quail Creek Golf & CC, put in the top performance with 197. Tim Fleming, Oklahoma City Golf & CC, was second with 207. Coming in third with 208 was Jeff Combe, Tulsa Country Club. Cary Cozby, Wichita Country Club, was fourth with 209. Greg Bray, Terradyne Country Club, Tim Graves, Coffee Creek GC, and Kyley Tetley,

in Denver during the 1960 U.S. Open. The USGA chose to put that photo on the cover of its magazine. The media created that personality – plain and simple. Tommy Bolt was one of the nicest guys you would ever meet, and his reputation went far beyond reality – even to the great Ben Hogan who said Bolt would be unbeatable with somebody else’s head on his shoulders. Since the media dubbed him with this reputation, Bolt liked to have fun with it and said in Golf Digest years ago. “The driver goes the shortest distance when you throw it. The putter goes the farthest, followed by the sand wedge.” Locally, Bolt gave his time to a local retirement home, Fountain Place in Cherokee Village. Every year the Tommy Bolt Classic was played to raise money. “He would come out and sit on the first tee and watch all the groups play, and every group would get their photo with Mr. Bolt,” David Webb, general manager at Cherokee Village, said. “Mr. Bolt was one of the classiest men I have ever known.” PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem agreed. “Today’s players owe a debt of gratitude to Tommy Bolt and his fellow pioneers,” Finchem said in a statement. “His golf prowess was matched by his formidable and colorful personality, and he helped launch in era of the game’s popularity that has continued for nearly half a century.” Golf Club of Oklahoma, tied for fifth with 210. Congratulations to the teams of Tim Fleming, Oklahoma City Golf & CC/Jon Zieske, The Alotian Club, and Rod Nuckolls/Brad Kipper, both of Willowbend Golf Club, which tied for first place with scores of 136 in the Section Team Championship. The team of Kyley Tetley/Craig Walker, both of Golf Club of Oklahoma, was third with 137. Thank you to Craig Walker and his staff at Golf Club of Oklahoma for hosting the event. The Section Pro-Assistant was held at Oak Tree Country Club this year. Peter Vitali and Jarrett Bunch, Gaillardia Country Club, came in first with 95. Tying for second were Kyle Flinton/Mike Hansen, Quail Creek Golf & CC, and Tim Zimmerebner/Kyle McAfee, Hot Springs CC, with 97. The teams of Kyle Flinton/Clay Albright, Quail Creek Golf & CC; Peter Vitali/James Christianson, Gaillardia CC, and Tim Fleming/Aaron Kristopeit, Oklahoma City Golf & CC, tied for third with 98.

South Central Golf Magazine

October in Oklahoma means football and the World Series. It has refreshingly cool mornings, pleasantly warm afternoons and chilly evenings. And it just happens to be the best weather for golf in our state. With Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Tulsa all having great starts to their football seasons, it is easy to forget about your golf clubs sitting in the trunk of your car, or hidden in the corner of the garage. I have even been guilty of waking up early on Saturday mornings to make sure I arrive six hours before kickoff to tailgate with the faithful and enjoy the beautiful weather that Octobers blesses Oklahoma with. Let’s all get out and enjoy a round of golf, before this great weather departs us. Here at the OGA, we take advantage of October’s blessings by closing out our championship season with our last two events, The State Club Championship and the OGA Cup Matches. Golf clubs from across the state will bring four-man (one professional + three amateurs) teams to Oak Tree Country Club to represent their respective clubs in The State Club Championship. This is a one-day, 18-hole, strokeplay event. The three low 18-hole scores from each team will be added together to come up with a team score. The final event of the year takes place the last week of October. The OGA Cup

I am going to invite you to become a volunteer and assist your state and local golf associations. You probably have never been asked to do that so you haven’t given it any thought. If the mere suggestion creates a spark of interest, I encourage you to read on. Your local golf association depends on volunteers to carry on many of its programs. This may include doing course ratings and helping conduct golf tournaments. Staff members can organize events and perform the detail work, but they need help in getting the programs run efficiently. Local associations always need help with their events. The rewards you will receive from becoming involved with the administration of this grand game will be many. Course rating is significant in that the rating and slope figures are used to create your handicap index. The index, in turn, is then used to establish the course handicap you will use for each set of tees you play. A team of four conducts the requisite examination of a course from each set of tees and it usually takes four hours to complete. Every course is rated and those numbers are kept current by re-rating every six to seven years. A volunteer at a tournament will per-

South Central Golf Magazine

OGA Views Steve Eckroat OGA Executive Director Matches is an annual Ryder Cup-like event between 12 of Oklahoma’s best PGA Professionals and 12 of the state’s best amateurs. Oak Tree Country Club has been the host site since the inception of this event seven years ago and we are very grateful to be returning to this great venue. The series stands 6-0 in favor of the professionals. The OGA Foundation is close to completion. This 501-c3 non-profit charity is a crucial addition to our vision here at the OGA. The OGA Foundation’s mission is simply “to promote and preserve the best interests and the true spirit of the game of golf in Oklahoma.” We are excited to get started raising funds to help our youth stay involved with this great game. There may not be a better way to prepare a young businessman/woman for their particular field than to introduce them to the game of golf while they’re young. Integrity, confidence and the spirit of competition are just a few characteristics acquired while learning this great game. In my 10 years in the financial/banking industry, the item most talked about on my resume was the fact that I played collegiate golf. The OGA Foundation will contribute

The Rules of Golf Gene Mortensen OGA Rules Official form many acts such as the starter, collect scorecards, work at the scoreboard and monitor pace of play. Those who have an interest and knowledge of the Rules will assist in that aspect of the game. Now that the idea has been planted, you will need to know how to get started. The United States Golf Association conducts workshops to provide the training you will need for each volunteer activity. Many state associations conduct similar training sessions that will introduce you to the programs that are conducted. A call to your state association will provide you with information as to the dates and times when training sessions are available. Another way to find out if you would like to serve as a volunteer is to go with a rating team to do one golf course or spend some time riding with a Rules official. Being involved in that fashion will clearly show what the associations do and the type of activity you will be asked to perform. For those of you who want to learn more about the Rules of Golf and serve as

funds to the First Tees of Oklahoma City and Tulsa as well as other youth golf programs teaching life skills to ensure each child has the chance to learn this game of a lifetime. The OGA Foundation will also provide an affordable avenue for our competitive youth participants. If a qualified youth has the golf skill set and the desire to compete, the OGA Foundation wants to ensure there are resources available to help offset the financial hurdles of competitive junior golf. Please call the OGA offices if you want more information or want to get involved. Please check our website www.okgolf.org for updates as well. In other happenings, Jack Steinmeyer was elected president of the Oklahoma Golf Association at the OGA’s annual board meeting held Sept. 11. His term is for one year. Other elected officers include Al Swanson of Edmond, vice president; Ron Ripley of Norman, treasurer; and Gene Mortensen of Tulsa, secretary. Jim Young of Edmond and David Thompson of Tulsa were elected to the board of directors. The term of a director is three years. They join other board members Jim Kane, Edmond; Mark Kedy, Ada; Ron Ripley, Norman; Gene Mortensen, Tulsa; Jeff Smith, Edmond; Jack Steinmeyer, Tulsa, and Al Swanson, Edmond.

a Rules official, starting in January each year the USGA and PGA conduct workshops at various sites around the country. The list for next year is available now at USGA.org. Go to the menu item “Rules and Handicapping” and scroll down to the information on workshops. They conduct a two-day workshop for those who want a quick introduction to all 34 Rules. The regular workshop runs for three full days and a test is given on the morning of the fourth day. In preparation for the workshop you will receive materials such as a study guide and The Decisions on the Rules of Golf. The most important reference is the Decisions as it contains different factual situations in the form of questions with answers that demonstrate how the Rules apply in each situation. The test is for the most part taken from the Decisions. Memorize that tome (about 500 pages) and you will do very well. Call your local and state association and express your interest in helping them with the activities they conduct. They will be glad that you called and very helpful in getting you started. Another nice benefit in helping with this grand game is that you will be spending your entire time at a golf course and meeting lots of very nice people. It doesn’t get any better than that.

Time flies doing organic chemistry KGA Views Kim Richey

KGA Executive Director Some day you may be a patient of Dr. Betsy Dower. It appears you’ll be in good hands. Dower, who has entered her junior year at the University of Kansas with a 3.4 gradepoint average in pre-med and has been deeply involved in her education and various extra-curricular activities, is amazed she’s already a third-year student at KU. “I can hardly believe that I have started my junior year of college,” Kansas Golf Foundation scholarship recipient Dower wrote in a recent letter to the Foundation. “I have no idea where all the time has gone.”

Betsy Dower, no time for golf of late.

she made the choice between tennis, a sport her older sister had played, and golf, a sport her father Tad plays frequently at Carey Park and Prairie Dunes in their hometown of Hutchinson. Dower lettered in the sport all four years in high school and helped the Salt Hawks reach a team goal of going to the Keeping busy state tourney her senior season. The squad It is little wonder time has flown for the just missed her junior year. 20-year-old Dower. When she wasn’t at“We were not the greatest golf team,” tending classes like organic chemistry with Dower says of her early experience at Hutch its lab and lecture, Dower was spending High. “But my class had a ton of girls go out Christmas break working with United Cere- for golf. We started playing better as a team bral Palsy in Dallas as part of the Alternative Breaks program. “They plan trips to places all over, where students can go and volunteer to work with people with disabilities,” Dower explained. “The best part of the trip was undoubtedly spending time with the clients and staff at UCP Dallas. I plan on applying again to be part of the Alternative Breaks program this year.” The Kappa Alpha Theta vice president of education is spending seven weeks this fall teaching a new member class for the sorority. When she’s not doing that, going to class or studying, Dower volunteers at Lawrence Memorial Hospital. “That’s been great experience as well,” says Dower, who was accepted into the leadership studies minor in the spring and chosen to be on the leadership cabinet as a social chair. Dower was one of many Jayhawks who enjoyed the university’s successes in athletics last year. She made trips to Miami to watch KU’s victory in the Orange Bowl in January and then traveled to San Antonio with her family in April to watch the Jayhawks win a national championship in men’s basketball. “It was a great year to be a Jayhawk,” she boasted. “Needless to say, those are both things that I will never forget.”

and stressed going to state our senior year. We achieved that goal.” Dower says she started playing the sport at about age 8 or 9 and her improvement took a while. “It took a little time for me to get into the swing of things,” she says. “But golf teaches you to be dedicated and about working hard at something. It took a while to hone my skills. But through hard work you get better. Like our team, it was really cool to reach our goal of qualifying for state.” As she reaches a point where she must make decisions on which direction her future will lead, Dower understands how important education is and says she appreciates the help the KGF scholarship has provided. “It’s been great, especially when I just spent $600 on books that I know I will be returning for next to nothing in just a few months,” she reported. “It’s been a huge help. My parents are putting four kids through college and it’s been a blessing to them. It’s really been amazing meeting the people (through the KGF) and talking with them.”

Salt Hawks reach state

Dower says she came to high golf when

South Central Golf Magazine

Instruction Zone by Mark Emerick What golf related topic pulls up over 3,300,000 links on Google? How about the very broad term “golf instruction”? Nope, falls about one million short. No, the hot golf topic on the internet and in the world of golf itself is three little words: “Stack and Tilt.” In case you haven’t heard, Stack and Tilt is the name given to the geometry-based golf swing model developed by instructors Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett. Plummer and Bennett currently work with more than 25 PGA tour players who have adopted their teachings. They have been bestowed the nickname “The Swing Whisperers” for their ability to help players win or dramatically improve shortly after working with them. The swing was revealed to amateurs in a big way in the June ‘07 Golf Digest article (http://www. golfdigest.com/instruction/2007/06/stackandtilt1_gd0706) that detailed the swing and its execution with Aaron Baddeley. Amateurs it appears have taken the information and run with it as positive comments abound on the web. To say Andy and Mike are very busy these days would be putting it much too mildly. Even so, they agreed to an interview for South Central Golf Magazine. After several weeks we finally connected with them deep in the Heartland – stuck at the airport in St. Louis with a broken plane and a cancelled flight. So with luggage in hand, waiting for the shuttle to return to the hotel, Andy and Mike talked to us by cell phone. SCG: Once again, thanks guys for taking the time for me and for our readers. Let’s jump right in here. The Stack and Tilt has created quite a stir. Lots of comments both pro and con. Mostly pro. It’s in virtually every golf discussion forum online. Amateurs have flocked to it. The list of tour pros that have adopted the S&T continues to grow. Has the reaction to the swing pattern that you have introduced surprised you? ANDY: We felt like we would be successful. And I wouldn’t say that the fact that players are getting better is a surprise. But one thing I do think is surprising is the resistance from some portions of the golf establishment. Because Mike and I, by our nature, are not combative at all and we mean no disrespect to anyone. We just think this is a good way to learn how to play and we think it is the fastest way to learn how to play well. SCG: I had read online some of the “resistance” you’re talking about. Most of what I

South Central Golf Magazine

A conversation with Stack and Tilt proponents

Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett had read had come from other teaching professionals, so perhaps there may be some other motivating factors at work here? MIKE: The ironic thing is that the people who have read the articles seem to get it and do better right off the bat. And it’s the coaches that are telling them it won’t work. I see that happening quite a bit.

it anything. Our friend Charlie Wi came up with the name Stack and Tilt. SCG: Golf is a 500-year-old sport. Books are still written on how to do it and they still disagree. And the average handicap seems to never go down. What is your take on the state of modern golf instruction today and what do you think the problem is, if there is one? ANDY: First thing I would say is that the barrier to entry for golf is too high. It takes too long to learn how to play and I believe a portion of that is indoctrination and the way people have been taught how to play the game. I believe that the priorities that beginners are taught are, at best, out of order. Mike and I believe in a complete paradigm shift in how the game is being interpreted, starting with how the weight works. Because our interpretation is totally different than what is generally accepted in traditional instruction.

SCG: With the whirlwind this has created I’m guessing your lives have changed a bit in the last year or so? ANDY: It’s really changed in that we travel a lot more than we did years ago. But two years ago we were essentially doing the same thing, teaching golf. Now we just teach it in a different city, it seems like every day. We’re at tournaments more and working with better players than we did, but we’re still doing the same thing that we have done for years and years. MIKE: Six or seven years ago we went to some clubs where the pros were polite to us but were skeptical that we would do well because we had come from small towns SCG: In your DVD series you talk about and didn’t have much exposure. But it re- the one true fundamental. Being able to hit ally didn’t take us long to fill our books and the ground in the same spot every time. to have people from all over coming in. Nothing else matters until you can do that. MIKE: You can work on your grip all day. SCG: With the demands on your time Work on your stance and posture all day. nowadays do you strictly work with pros You can even have great tempo. But until exclusively? you can hit the ground at the same spot ANDY: No, not at all. What may make it every time you will never be a consistent seem that way is our travel time, but we still player. You can virtually track handicaps do some teaching. And we have done sev- by a player’s ability to do this. Further the eral amateur clinics this year as well. ground is hit behind the ball, the higher the handicap. Efficiently hitting the ground in SCG: How long have you guys been to- the same spot in front of the ball, the lower gether as a teaching team? the handicap. MIKE: We met around 1992 in Orlando. We both went down there to play the mini SCG: Is it the Golf Digest article that retours and we began practicing together and ally changed things for you guys and put tried to help each other get better. We never S&T on the map? once had any intention of being instructors. ANDY: We were doing really well before And what happened was as we started to then. But I would say both the article in Golf get a little better some of our friends asked World and the article in Golf Digest really us questions and when they got better their multiplied it and set up the process. friends asked questions and things just evolved. SCG: Many, many amateurs took the information laid out in the Golf Digest article, SCG: So development of the S&T was went out and hit the ball more solidly than more a natural evolution as opposed to a they ever have, myself included. Why does master plan to recreate the golf swing? the Stack and Tilt work so well, so fast? MIKE: We figured out over time that ANDY: We feel it teaches the right order there must be a better way to measure in which a person should learn how to hit someone’s game and their improvement. the ball. Keeping your weight forward, takUltimately our teaching just became more ing your hands in, keeping your knee flex refined as time went on. We never called it longer on the downswing, those are the the Stack and Tilt, by the way. It was Golf things that people need to be aware of. At Digest who insisted on naming the article. Golf Digest, when they saw what we were We really didn’t have any interest in calling doing they told us it was way too complicat-

ed and too detailed to ever have an article about. And we told them no, that it is not complicated at all. We can break the swing down into just three or four basic pieces and if a person reads these they can get better right away and what Golf Digest wanted to hear is what those pieces were. SCG: Something else you speak about that I found was so important in my own swing was the left shoulder going down on the backswing and going back longer. ANDY: You got it. One of the biggest differences between good golfers and bad golfers is the degree of freedom for that shoulder to go down. SCG: I have read comments online from several teaching pros that this swing will cause back problems. Has any doctor or specialist looked at this method and are there actually any benefits to the Stack and Tilt swing? MIKE: Yes and yes. First thing is none of our players have had back problems. And I’m talking from juniors to senior players and PGA players. None of them have hurt their backs doing this. To the contrary we’ve had some guys whose backs hurt like Steve Elkington and Mike Weir and as they practiced like this their back problems went away.

ANDY: And I have a friend Dr. Mort Bertram (http://naplestotaljoint.com/pages/ doctor.php) a very influential doctor who did Peter Jacobsen’s recent surgery. He has done a lot of surgeries on athletes and he understands the mechanics of what we teach and he said it’s the healthiest possible way to swing a club. SCG: That’s terrific. It’s well known that you both now work with quite a few tour players. Mike Weir as you mentioned, Charlie Wi, Dean Wilson, Eric Axley, Aaron Baddeley to name a few. How are your players doing now? ANDY: I think they are doing good. They could be doing better but I think they are doing good. There is a track record that a person can research if they know the dates of when they began working with us. But every single person that has done this has gotten better. Every player that has spent at least two hours with us has gotten better. Every one. SCGM: Any recent additions of tour players you’e working with that we may not have heard about yet? ANDY: Well, there is J.J. Henry. We had been working for about a month with him and he placed fourth at the Wyndham Championship, his highest finish in ‘08. He

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had been really struggling. Another one is Joe Ogilvie, another journeyman type player. After working with us he made 11 straight cuts, which is the longest streak of his career. His ball striking has improved dramatically and he is committed to our teaching. Arron Oberholser is another we have started working with. He placed 17th at the World Golf Championship, also his best finish of 2008. Dustin Johnson is another young player that just called us and we’re looking forward to working with him as well. And I just want to add to something you asked earlier about if we planned this. It became apparent to Mike and I over time that a lot of the golf axioms and pieces of golf dogma were wrong. And it also became apparent that for anybody to really listen to us on a large scale that tour players would have to do well or win tournaments for people on a national scale to listen to us. We realized there was a credibility issue when working with the best players and we had to make sure that they improved. MIKE: I’d like to add to that even our friends around us who knew we were doing well told us that no one would take notice unless we stood next to the number one player in the world. But Andy and I decided that we were going to work our way from the guys that couldn’t keep their card or couldn’t win or just the guys that nobody else could help. ANDY: We felt this way would be more of a validation of our teaching than just walking along with the world’s best player and nodding your head all the time. SCGM: When you work with juniors or beginners in general are there any drills you teach to help amateurs ingrain the swing? ANDY: There are. One of the things we will tell people just to state it simply is on the backswing turn their shoulder down, take their hands in, keep their weight forward. On the follow-though we tell them to raise their belt, tuck their butt and keep their arms straight. SCGM: Sounds simple enough. Well gentlemen, it has been a pleasure. But before you go there are a lot of people out there with questions about the future of the Stack and Tilt. Many would like to know if there is a book in the works? ANDY: The book is being written and we have an agreement in place with Gotham Books. Release date will definitely be before The Masters tournament in ‘09. There is a possibility it may even be as early as pre-Christmas this year. But definitely before The Masters. SCGM: There is also a tremendous amount of interest in a website/instructional forum. Any plans? Please see Q&A,

South Central Golf Magazine

UPDATE

do you decide who gets the special privilegContinued from 30 es? Where do you draw the line?” “It continues to amaze me how much cost fling of feathers with aspects of the Tulsa containment is in their philosophy,” Wiens golf community. For example, on cold or said. “There have been times I’ve told Tom rainy days, Casper will not staff the restau- to add a person or two on maintenance to rant (although a pro-shop employee might get some detail work done, but he has restill sell snacks). minded me that they are dedicated to stayA significant savings was realized on the ing within budget.” maintenance side, where most former emEven with limited manpower and monployees were unionized city workers guar- ey, Schurman and his crew have provided anteed full-time jobs and benefits. Superin- solid turfgrass conditions. Greens avoided tendent Scott Schurman’s crew will utilize significant heat-related damage and should more seasonal help. be good for the fall. The zoysia fairways Wolff also was willing to wait for city are in tremendous condition. There are still crews to remove the majority of the dam- areas of concern, such as a persistent leak aged tree limbs from the December ice in front of the green on Stone Creek’s 11th storm rather than using his crews and pay- hole, or the tall weeds grown up between ing overtime. That process is still ongoing holes six and nine, that need addressing, into October, as there are still hanging limbs but otherwise Schurman’s crew deserves that affect play. high marks. Groups or individuals that had previ“This year, at least on an agronomic level, ously had special privileges or access to our focus was let’s get back to the basics and the course, such as golf teams from pri- provide playing conditions that are acceptvate schools (the city allows Tulsa Public able to golfers,” Wolff said. “Next year we Schools teams to use the courses free of will start to focus on more of the details.” charge) were told they would have to begin Those details will not just be on the paying for greens fees. Some senior groups maintenance side. Wolff and BCG will conaccustomed to certain benefits for bringing sider whether to reinvigorate the Tulsa Golf consistent play were told that everyone had League, which offered a series of tournato pay. ments for members of the Page Belcher or “I had a choice to make,” Wolff said. “How Mohawk Park men’s golf associations and

Q&A

Continued from 36

MIKE: We are also working on that as we speak. It’s going to take a lot of work because what we’re planning is going to be pretty fantastic. We would like to kickoff the book and website around the same time. SCG: Well, that is just great, guys. I know there is a lot of interest out there. I want to wish you both the best of luck and thank you again for taking the time to speak with South Central Golf Magazine. MIKE & ANDY: Thank you Mark. went on hiatus this year. They will determine how involved to get in other aspects of golf, such as merchandising and lessons. Outside tournament play was strong this summer and is expected to continue to grow. Overall, the primary goals the first year – to offer consistently solid playing conditions and market the courses successfully – were achieved. “It’s a pretty strong performance on their part,” Wiens said. “I would say we’re very pleased at this point.”

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Schedules PRO NATIONWIDE WICHITA OPEN At Crestview CC, Wichita (par-71) Aug. 7-10 1, Scott Piercy 64-62-65-71 – 262 ($94,500); 2 (tie), Hunter Haas 65-65-64-70 – 264, Daniel Summerhays 65-6567-67 – 264 and Spencer Levin 66-66-65-67 – 264 ($39,200); 5, Brendon De Jonge 68-67-63-68 – 266 ($21,000); 6, Chris Anderson 64-65-68-70 – 267 ($18,900); 7 (tie), Bob May 6370-68-67 – 268, Won Jon Lee 66-69-64-69 – 268, Fabian Gomez 65-69-67-67 – 268 and Brian Smock 65-68-68-67 – 268 ($15,816); 11, Aaron Watkins 63-68-69-69 – 269 ($13,125); 12 (tie), Ian Leggett 68-68-66-68 – 270, Blake Adams 68-6668-68 – 270, Josh McCumber 66-68-66-70 – 270 and D.A. Points 68-67-67-68 – 270 ($10,631); 16 (tie), Bryce Molder 66-72-65-68 – 271, Brendon Todd 64-69-70-68 – 271, Anders Hultman 65-69-69-68 – 271, Scott Gardiner 64-6968-70 – 271 and Scott Gutschewski 67-66-68-70 – 271 ($7,875); 21 (tie), Ben Bates 67-69-65-71 – 272 and Aron Price 68-66-69-69 – 272 ($6,090). OKLAHOMA OPEN At Oak Tree (East), Edmond (par-70) Sept. 12-14 1, Brett Myers 69-68-72 – 209; 2 (tie), Jim Kane 69-6777 – 213, Tyler Thurston 69-66-78 – 213, a-Austin Bowman 65-71-77 – 213 and Kyle Flinton 68-72-73 – 213; 6, Jonathan May 71-71-72 – 214; 7 (tie), Tim O’Stasik 6970-76 – 215 and Tim Graves 69-74-72 – 215; 9 (tie), Ryan Spears 69-75-72 – 216 and a-Taylor Artman 64-75-77 – 216; 11, Doug Dixon 71-71-75 – 217; 12 (tie), Martin Maritz 6976-73 – 218, J.J. Wood 69-73-76 – 218, Mike Wendling 7469-75 – 218; Kevin Dillen 68-72-78 – 218; a-Rhein Gibson 72-68-78 – 218 and Oscar Stark 67-73-78 – 218; 18, Blake Trimble 71-75-73 – 219. SOUTH CENTRAL PGA SECTION CHAMPIONSHIP At Diamante CC, Hot Springs Village, Ark. (par-72) Sept. 29 Open Division: 1, Mark Fuller 65-70-66 – 201; 2 (tie), Kyle Flinton 67-70-70 – 207, Grant Masson 66-71-70 – 207 and Tracy Phillips 71-65-71 – 207. Senior: 1, Steve Ralston 69-74 – 143; 2 (tie), Jerry Benedict 70-82 – 152 and Freddie Forbes 77-75 – 152. COLLEGE MEN BOB HURLEY AUTO ORU SHOOTOUT At GC of Oklahoma, Broken Arrow (par-72) Sept. 29-30 Team scores: 1, Texas State 293-290-291 – 874; 2, Illinois State 292-306-296 – 894; 3 (tie), Sam Houston State 303-299-298 – 900 and Northern Illinois 299-299-302 – 900; 5, Missouri-Kansas City 310-299-302 – 911; 6, ArkansasLittle Rock 297-305-315 – 917; 7 (tie), Oral Roberts 303300-317 – 920 and North Texas 311-294-315 – 920; 9, Utah State 312-311-303 – 926; 10, Southern Utah 311-309-310 – 930; 11, Missouri State 333-315-309 – 957; 12, Centenary 320-322-326 – 968. Individual leaders: 1, Corey Roberson (Texas State) 68-69-75 – 212; 2, Scott Kelly (SHS) 74-71-72 – 217; 3 (tie), Jeff Gerlich (Texas State) 75-71-72 – 218 and Max Hosking (NI) 74-71-73 – 218; 5, Nate Page (SU) 74-71-74 – 219; 6 (tie), Austin Hannah (ORU) 74-72-74 – 220, Jeff Kellen (IS) 71-80-69 – 220 and Tommy Bliefnick (IS) 73-73-74 – 220. Other scores: Jay Whitby (UALR) 70-77-79 – 226, Arie Fauzi (Tulsa) 72-73-83 – 228, Garrett Moore (ORU) 76-7777 – 230, Chad Grimes (UALR) 76-72-83 – 231, Horacio Leon (Tulsa) 78-80-74 – 232, Felipe Velazquez (UALR) 7482-76 – 232, Brian Whittle (UALR) 77-75-82 – 234, Terance Begnel (ORU) 78-73-84 – 235, Scott Stiles (ORU) 75-78-82 – 235. PING-GOLFWEEK PREVIEW At Inverness Club, Toledo, Ohio (par-71) Sept. 28-30 Team leaders (15 teams): 1, Oklahoma State 282-277284 – 843; 2, Tennessee 284-283-292 – 859; 3, Georgia 290-285-286 – 861; 4, Southern Cal 286-291-290 – 867; 5, Alabama 294-288-286 – 868; 6, Arizona State 292-292-286 – 870; 7 (tie), Clemson 294-281-299 – 874 and Georgia Tech 296-283-295 – 874; 9, Florida 291-297-291 – 879; 10, Florida State 299-292-295 – 886.

and

Results

Individual leaders: 1 (tie), Morgan Hoffman (OSU) 6966-72 – 207 and Robin Wingardh (Tenn.) 69-67-71 – 207; 3, Trent Leon (OSU) 70-73-66 – 209; 4, Rickie Taylor (OSU) 68-69-73 – 210. Other OSU scores: Kevin Tway 77-71-73 – 221, Trent Whitekiller 75-71-78 – 224. WOMEN MASON RUDOLPH At Vanderbilt Legends Club, Franklin, Tenn. (par72) Sept. 26-28 Team leaders (17 teams): 1, UCLA 287-277-286 – 850; 2, Southern Cal 288-285-283 – 856; 3, Oklahoma State 286282-295 – 863; 4, Vanderbilt 291-281-296 – 868; 5, Arizona State 289-291-293 – 873; 6, Duke 292-287-293 – 873; 7, Alabama 298-292-293 – 883; 8, Purdue 302-294-294 – 890; 9, Auburn 298-306-287 – 891; 10, Florida 292-296-306 – 894; 11, Arizona 297-306-293 – 896; 12, Arkansas 298-299-300 – 897. Individual leaders: 1, Sydnee Michaels (UCLA) 68-7067 – 205; 2, Candace Schepperle (Aub.) 67-70-72 – 209; 3 (tie), Pernilla Lindberg (OSU) 71-68-71 – 210, Jennifer Song (USC) 71-68-71 – 210 and Stefanie Endstrasser (USC) 71-70-69 -- 210 Other scores: Caroline Masson (OSU) 71-75-72 – 218, Caroline Hedwall (OSU) 73-72-75 – 220, Karin Kinnerud (OSU) 71-69-81 – 221, Lucy Nunn (Ark.) 73-75-73 – 221, Alex Schulte (Ark.) 69-77-78 – 224, Jaclyn Sweeney (OSU) 76-73-77 – 226. RON MOORE At Highlands RanMARILYNN SMITH SUNFLOWER INVITATIONAL At Alvamar GC, Lawrence, Kan. (par-72) Sept. 23-24 Team leaders (16 teams): 1, Oral Roberts 307-308-311 – 926 (won playoff); 2, Nebraska 307-312-307 – 926; 3, Illinois State 302-315-313 – 930; 4, South Florida 318-310303 – 931; 5, Kansas 318-308-308 – 934; 6, Oklahoma City 317-315-311 – 943; 7 (tie), Kansas State 318-321-316 – 955 and Coastal Carolina 324-324-307 – 955; 9, Nebraska 326312-330 – 968; 10, Wichita State 318-323-328 – 969. Individual leaders: 1, Emily Powers (KU) 77-75-71 – 223; 2, Jennifer Clark (KU) 74-75-76 – 225; 3, Eva Santillan (ORU) 77-73-76 – 226. Other scores: Christy Carter (ORU) 76-78-76 – 230, Amber Mensley (ORU) 76-79-77 – 232, Ashley Sholer (OCU) 77-80-75 – 232, Sydney Cox (OCU) 81-76-78 – 235. MISSOURI STATE/PAYNE STEWART MEMORIAL At Rivercut GC, Springfield (par-72) Sept. 15-16 Team scores: 1, Oral Roberts 307-302 – 609; 2, McNeese State 304-310 – 614; 3, Missouri State 311-304 – 615; 4, Bradley 309-307 – 616; 5, Southern Illinois 310-312 – 622; 6, Arkansas State 316-314 – 630; 7, Wichita State 323-309 – 632; 8, Northern Iowa 335-322 – 657; 9, Drury 335-334 – 669; 10, SIU-Edwardsville 346-331 – 677; 11, South Dakota 350-360 – 710. Individual leaders: 1 (tie), Bari Erais (Bradley) 75-71 – 146 and Maggie Welch (McNeese State) 73-73 – 146; 3, Catherine Dolan (MSU) 73-74 – 147; 4 (tie), Christy Carter (ORU) 75-73 – 148 and Eva Santillan (ORU) 75-73 – 148; 6 (tie), Cassie Huffer (ASU) 75-77 – 152 and Alisha Matthews (SIU) 78-74 – 152. Other scores: Adrian Sportsman (ASU) 75-79 – 154, Kristie Hrdlicka (WSU) 78-76 – 154, Kylie Bollenbach (ORU) 77-78 – 155, Amber Hensley (ORU) 80-78 – 158, Kristin Kosch (WSU) 80-78 – 158, Courtney Blevins (ASU) 82-78 – 160, Megan Bartlett (WSU) 83-77 – 160, Abby Bartlett (WSU) 83-78 – 161, Rachel Romack (ORU) 78-83 – 161. DURAMED FALL PREVIEW At Caves Valley GC, Owings Mills, Md. (par-72) Sept, 7-8 Team leaders (16 teams): 1, Arizona State 295-291-286 – 872; 2, Southern Cal 298-297-285 – 880; 3, Virginia 289294-300 – 893; 4, Georgia 293-286-305 – 884; 5, Alabama 294-302-290 – 886; 6, Oklahoma State 302-297-296 – 895; 7, Auburn 303-286-308 – 897; 8, Duke 300-297-301 – 898; 9, Wake Forest 304-305-299 – 908; 10, Denver 309-311-292 – 913; 11, Arkansas 310-306-308 – 924. Individual leaders: 1, Caroline Hedvall (OSU) 73-70-69

– 212; 2, Anna Nordqvist (ASU) 69-76-69 – 214; 3, Lizette Salas (USC) 73-74-68 – 215; 4 (tie), Azahara Munoz (ASU) 75-70-71 – 216, Candace Schepperle (Aub.) 73-66-77 – 216 and Krystle Caithness (Ga.) 70-72-74 – 216. Other scores: Pernilla Lindberg (OSU) 77-74-74 – 225, Amanda Johnson (OSU) 72-77-77 – 226, Lucy Nunn (Ark.) 75-75-78 – 226, Kelli Shean (Ark.) 80-78-72 – 230, Karin Kinnerud (OSU) 82-76-76 – 234, Caroline Masson (OSU) 80-77-77 – 234, Kristin Ingram (Ark.) 76-78-81 – 235, Katy Nugent (Ark.) 82-76-77 – 235, Alex Schulte (Ark.) 80-7884 – 242. AMATEUR U.S. WOMEN’S SENIOR AMATEUR At Tulsa CC Sept. 21-25 Quarterfinals Diane Lang def. Joan Higgins 3 and 2; Claudia Pilot def. Tanna Lee Richard 1-up (19); Carolyn Creekmore def. Carol Semple Thompson 7 and 6; Toni Wiesner def. Boodie McGurn 3 and 2. Semifinals Lang def. Pilot 2-up; Wisner def. Creekmore 2 and 1. Final Lang def. Wiesner 6 and 5. ARKANSAS STATE GOLF ASSOCIATION WOMEN’S CLUB TEAM At Pine Bluff CC Sept. 29-30 Championship and Overall Gross: 1, Jean Mowry/Cindy Hopfensperger; 2, Katie Speir/Pat Elliott. SENIOR STROKE PLAY At Hurricane G&CC, Bryant (par-72) Sept. 26-28 1, Bruce Dickey 68-71-64 – 203; 2, John Mayes 69-70-73 – 212; 3, Roger Clement 70-71-71 – 212; 4, Mike Hale 7076-75 – 221; 5, Ken Golden 73-78-72 – 223; 6, John Vinson 74-75-77 – 226; 7, Clark Fitts 75-78-74 – 227; 8, Oscar Taylor 82-75-72 – 229. SUPER SENIOR STROKE PLAY At Hurricane G&CC, Bryant (par-72) Sept. 26-28 1, Glenn Hickey 70-74-74 – 218; 2, Ralph Williams 7476-74 – 224; 3, Jack Jordan 75-75-75 – 225; 4, Sam McAllister 75-77-78 – 230; 5, Chuck Veregge 79-78-76 – 233. MID-SENIOR At Hurricane G&CC, Bryant Sept. 27-28 Gross: 1, John Siratt 17-23 – 40; 2, Tracy Harris 21-17 – 38; 3, Todd Martin 17-18 – 35; 4, Jay Fox 17-17 – 34; 5, Mark Bartlett 17-14 – 31; 6 (tie), Greg Dunseath 11-16 – 27 and Dennis Young 15-12 – 27; 8, Ron Bruton 13-13 – 26; 9, David Baxley 11-14 – 25; 10, Scott Bowen 13-11 – 24. KANSAS GOLF ASSOCIATION SENIOR SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP At Salina CC Sept. 18-19 50-64 Gross: 1, Mike Grosdidier 66-75 – 141; 2, Andy Smith 70-72 – 142; 3, John Bailey 72-74 – 146; 4 (tie), Bob Vidricksen 74-74 – 148, Tim Clemons 75-73 – 148, Curt Kitson 76-72 – 148 and Dave Harris 74-74 – 148; 9, Rick Hastings 75-74 – 149; 10, Ron Eilers 73-77 – 150. 65-over Gross: 1, Hal Taylor 73-74 – 147; 2, Lee Danyluk 81-71 – 152; 3, Don Wasson 79-78 – 157; 4 (tie), Bill Morse 78-84 – 162 and Jim Copp 75-87 – 162. SENIOR AMATEUR At Flint Hills National GC, Andover Aug. 3-5 1, Johnny Stevens 72-69 – 141; 2, Tom Bachelor 76-68 – 144; 3 (tie), Mike Grosdidier 72-73 – 145 and Andy Smith 72-73 – 145; 5 (tie), Bo Dennis 74-74 – 148 and Randy Vautravers 81-67 – 148; 7 (tie), Gary Roles 75-74 – 149 and Chad Renn 73-76 – 149; 9 (tie), Randy Apgar 73-77 – 150, Ron Eilers 71-79 – 150, Bob Vidricksen 75-75 – 150, Corliss Nelson 72-78 - -150 and Fred Rowland 78-72 – 150; 14, Don Cox 77-74 – 151. HIGH PLAINS AMATEUR At Southwind CC, Garden City

South Central Golf Magazine

Aug. 23-24 1, Joe Ida 73-67 –- 140; 2, Sean Thayer 72-70 – 142; 3, Spencer Alefs 72-74 – 146; 4 (tie), Mark Terranova 69-78 – 147, Joe Kinney 71-76 – 147 and Mitchell Gregson 68-79 – 147; 7, Ross Geubelle 74-74 – 148; 8 (tie), Tyler Cummins 75-75 – 150 and Arnold Hoy 69-81 – 150; 10 (tie), Jason Schulte 75-78 – 153 and Pete Krsnich 73-80 – 153; 12, Jeff Jarvis 72-82 – 154. OKLAHOMA GOLF ASSOCIATION STROKE PLAY At Golf Club of Okla., Broken Arrow (par-72) Aug. 4-6 1, Trent Whitekiller 66-72-68 – 206; 2, Robert Streb 7070-70 – 210; 3 (tie), Terence Begnel 71-68-73 – 212, Tyler Trout 69-67-76 – 212 and Blake Trimble 73-70-69 – 212; 6 (tie), Chris Noel 76-71-66 –- 213 and Tyler Hunt 74-68-71 – 213; 8, Garrett Moore 73-72-69 – 214; 9, Colton Staggs 72-70-73 – 215; 10, Chris Wilson 72-73-72 – 217; 11 (tie), Parker Foster 77-70-71 – 218, Rob Laird 74-75-69 – 218 and Ryan Brooks 69-74-75 – 218; 14, Draegen Majors 7673-71 – 220; 15, Nathan Chambers 73-76-72 – 221. MID-AMATEUR At Ponca City CC (par-72) Aug. 25-26 1, Mike Hughett 74-67 – 141; 2, Brad Christianson 7073 – 143; 3, Jon Valuck 72-72 – 144; 4 (tie), Christopher Lee 72-73 – 145 and Jim Young 74-71 – 145; 6 (tie), Rick Bell 71-75 – 146 and Blake Trimble 69-77 – 146; 8 (tie), Tyler McDonald 76-71 – 147 and Bruce Newman 68-79 – 147; 10 (tie), Andre Metzger 76-72 – 148, Ronny Baker 73-75 – 148, Troy Keller 73-75 – 148, Jay Smith 74-74 – 148 and Dan Cochran 74-74 – 148; 15, Jay Betchen 75-74 – 149. OAK TREE JUNIOR CLASSIC At Oak Tree CC (East), Edmond, Okla. (par-70) Aug. 13-14 1, Austen Fuller 72-72 – 144; 2 (tie), Jordan Domek 71-74 – 145, Clark Collier 73-72 – 145 and Jackson Ogle 73-72 – 145; 5 (tie), Jackson Dean 74-75 – 149 and Clayton Hooper 76-73 – 149; 7, Taylor Williams 76-75 – 151; 8 (tie), Logan Herbst 78-74 – 152, Cole Wiederkehr 72-80 – 152 and David McMurry 76-76 – 152.

Two Great Ways to Promote Your Course in 2009! Untitled-1 1

2009 South Central Golf & Travel Expos

10/9/08 12:48:00 PM

2009 South Central Golf Directory

Reach out to golfers in every pro shop in Oklahoma, Blow out merchandise, build anticipation for next season, Arkansas and Southern Kansas and get them to your sign up new students for lessons, sign up new members. course with an ad in this year’s directory. The directory Do it all in one weekend at any of our 2009 Golf Expos! is distributed at every pro shop in the section as well as select hotels and restaurants and at our golf expos in Tulsa and Oklahoma City. Golfers pick it up and keep it around all year, an advertisers dream.

Heartland Golf & Travel Expo: February 13-15, 2009 Centennial Building at State Fair Park • Oklahoma City Tulsa Golf & Travel Expo: Febraury 20-22, 2009 Central Park Hall at Expo Square. • Tulsa, Okla. Omaha Golf & Travel Expo: Febraury 27- March 1, 2009 Mid-America Center • Council Bluffs, Iowa For more booth information or advertising rates call Adam or Ken at (918)280-0787 or visit www.southcentralgolf.com

South Central Golf Magazine