P R ESENTED BY
Thanks For The Memories — You Always Remember Your First
W
hile I certainly can’t remember the first time I ever picked up a golf club — my Dad used to love showing off a picture of me swaddled in baby clothes, no older than a year, with a tiny plastic golf club in my hands and a (mercifully unlit) cigar in my mouth — I can definitely remember plenty of my other golfing firsts. At nine, I won my club junior putting championship — my first (and, other than a repeat victory the following year, last) taste of golf glory. At 11, I made my first birdie. At 31, I finally broke 90 on a par-72 (thank you, Cedars at Dungeness). At 33, I birdied four holes in the same round for the first and only time — and still shot 91. And, of course, I’ll never forget my first eagle … actually, wait, that last one never happened. Oh, well … there’s a first to look forward to still. And I vividly remember my very first issue of Cascade Golfer. It wasn’t Issue No. 1 — no, I arrived in time for Issue No. 3, in April 2008, which included features on Chambers Bay being awarded the U.S. Open, junior golf opportunities in the region, and a profile of golf business mogul Scott Oki. It had a few good reads, but the impression it left on me at the time was, “People are counting on you; you need to get better at this.” Hopefully, I did. Yes, firsts are easy to appreciate. Lasts, though … lasts you sometimes don’t see coming. My Dad flew out to visit in May of 2013, and I took him to Snohomish Golf Course. I didn’t swing the club particularly well, but he gave me a few tips (as he, a former ASU Sun Devil and single-digit handicapper into his late 70s, was apt to do) and then flew back to his home in Sacramento a day later. It was the last round we’d ever play together. And, last November, I edited my last issue of Cascade Golfer. It wasn’t totally out of the blue. I’ve been pursuing a Master’s in elementary education for the past couple of years. The most influential person in my life was a teacher — Janet Wendt of Monument, Colo. — who fostered in me a love of writing and a dedication to the craft that has
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APRIL 2021
By Brian Beaky • CG Editor • 2008-20 shaped everything I have accomplished since. For almost 15 years, I’ve felt a pull to pass on that gift. In November — about 10 months earlier than expected — that opportunity finally arose. To pursue that dream, though, meant leaving behind this one. It would be easy if Cascade Golfer were just a magazine to me, but it’s not. It’s Dick Stephens, whose relentless energy and vision brought it to life, and who gave me the chance to be its caretaker for the last 12 years. Dick’s faith and trust carried me for over a decade, and I’m sure they will for whomever is lucky enough to take over this role. It’s Kirk Tourtillotte, whose steady hand on the tiller has helped Cascade Golfer succeed where so many other print publications have failed. Kirk has the heart of a lion, and everyone who is around him feels his love. It’s Rob Becker, whose graphic art and creative design skills bring the words we write and pictures we collect to life. Rob is the most talented art director I’ve had the privilege to work with, and I am glad the magazine remains in his hands. It’s Bobbi Kramer and Pam Titland, whose business acumen keeps the lights on, and whose wise counsel in difficult times meant more than they’ll ever know. It’s Simon Dubiel with whom I planned almost every single editorial piece, big and small, that has appeared in this magazine for the past 12 years — often while waiting on a tee box somewhere in Western Washington. More than any of us, Simon has made this community what it is. And, he made this a place I wanted to come to every day. I’ll miss our camaraderie most of all. It’s also incredible writers like Tony Dear, Bob Sherwin, Steve Kelley, Jim Moore, Craig Smith and others who have lent their byline to Cascade Golfer over the years, and photographers like Rob Perry, who provided so many of the images we’ve used. It’s the hundreds of golf course staff members manning pro shops and caddyshacks, operating lawnmowers, and leading offices around the state, who have worked alongside us
to help grow the game in our corner of the world. It’s the PGA and LPGA Tour pros, golf course architects and other local celebrities who are always willing to pick up the phone and contribute their thoughts on our local golf scene. It’s the CG Cup regulars whose faces I look forward to seeing each spring at the golf show and tournament series. You are all more than just clients or customers — you are our friends. And, it’s the thousands who write us letters, comment on our social media pages, call our office, or say hello out in public and let us know what you think of the magazine. Every time someone told me they used the magazine to plan a golf trip, or found a new favorite course from one of our recommendations, or fell in love with a product we featured, or saved a few bucks, or even just played a little more, or a little better, thanks to our advice, it truly made my day. When I look at an issue of Cascade Golfer, I see all of that — all of you — in every page. And, that’s why it so hard to walk away. Cascade Golfer has brought me some of the best memories of my professional life — interviewing my childhood idol, Edgar Martinez; sharing mai tais and poetry in a Kauai dive bar with Robert Trent Jones, Jr.; playing 88 holes in one day at Avalon; epic (some might say idiotic) one-day road trips to Wine Valley, Palouse Ridge, Gamble Sands and other far-flung locales; being among the first to play Rope Rider and Gamble Sands, months before they opened; spreading my dad’s ashes on the ninth tee box at Chambers Bay in May 2015; and, thinking of him a month later as I traversed the course’s hills and slopes for four epic days as the entire golf world looked on. I will never be able to say thank you enough to everyone, so instead I will say that to be this magazine’s editor, and to see it thriving as the centerpiece of this incredible community, has been an absolute joy. Every single person reading this has helped make that possible, and I will be forever grateful for all that you have given me. I still would have liked to have made an eagle, though. cascadegolfer.com
