VSGA to celebrate 100th renewal of its Amateur Championship

Transcription

may/june 2013
$2.95 www.vsga.org
SITES IN THE
SPOTLIGHT
U.S. Amateur Public
Links visits Virginia,
two PGA Tour
events return to
the region
Official publication of the Virginia State Golf Association as a service
to its nearly 80,000 members and VIP cardholders
Old Home Week
VSGA to celebrate 100th renewal of its
Amateur Championship, honor past winners
and event’s tradition at The Homestead
TECH TRENDS
Online golf instruction
offers a quick way
to get swing feedback
NATIONAL APPEAL
Visits to the best parks
coupled with rounds
of golf make for the
perfect trip
IF
YOU L O S E
A CLUB AT ONE OF
O U R G O L F C O U R S E S,
we can always
M A K E YOU A N E W O N E .
9096369
B
~
C O U P L E S
’
S P R I N G
G E T A W A Y
~
ut please be patient, a horse or two may be in need of some footwear. In the meantime, try a Couples
Bath in the Rose Garden Suite at the spa. Or check out one of the one hundred 18th-century English
gardens in bloom. Or have a meal at one of our charming restaurants. When your club is ready, we suggest
that you be more careful. To book your stay at one of our hotels
call 1-800-447-8679 or visit colonialwilliamsburg.com/spring.
Tradition Club
Litchfield Country Club
Willbrook Plantation
Blackmoor
ON ALL
MYRTLE BEACH COURSES
Pawleys Plantation
A Jack Nicklaus signature design,
celebrating 25 years of great golf.
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Contents
Vol. 31 No. 3
DEPARTMENTS //
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
4
18
19
40
page
FEATURES //
6
8
10
The Takeaway
AT&T NATIONAL PREVIEW
Ready to Roar
Unification at VSGA member clubs,
special offer at the Golden Horseshoe
and a camp leader teaching lessons
that extend beyond the links.
22
VSGA MEMBER CLUBS
THE GREENBRIER CLASSIC
24 Uncovered and Established
The welcoming atmosphere and
accompanying appeal of The
Greenbrier Classic continues to
help the tournament flourish.
At Two Rivers, Renovations
Result in CharacterEnhancing Look
Williamsburg-based Two Rivers Country
Club has undergone some wholesale
alterations to a number of holes on the
golf course.
100TH VSGA AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP
26
A Celebration of Tradition
The centennial of the VSGA Amateur
will be conducted at The Homestead’s
Cascades Course, a site the event has
long called home.
U.S. AMATEUR PUBLIC LINKS PREVIEW
20 Publinx Primer
The U.S. Amateur Public Links, set
for Laurel Hill Golf Club in Virginia
this summer, has some notable past
winners among its all-time champions.
28
Tiger’s tournament will again draw
top names to Congressional Country
Club in late June.
Small Town Junior
With Big Dreams
We’ve Got Mail
A former VSGA Amateur champion
reflects on his victory and appreciation
for a tip from one of the LPGA’s best.
Great Holes
The par-5 16th hole at The
Homestead’s Cascades Course
presents golfers with a host
of challenges.
THE RULES
Substitute Teacher
A case of playing the wrong ball
results in a lesson learned on
how to play by the book.
MY TURN
40
33
Boston Tragedy Puts Life,
Not Sports, In Perspective
Tragedies such as the Boston
bombings remind us that sports
are just a diversion.
At Spring Creek, New
Clubhouse Pivotal to Plans
for Private Membership
Charlottesville-area Spring Creek
Golf Club is undertaking a project
to upgrade its facilities.
THE VIRGINIA EXPLORER
34 Trail Time
Covering three states, there are
diverse golf destination options along
the Raspberry Golf Trail.
YOUR GAME
ARCHITECTURE
37 The Treasure Hunter
Golf course architect Keith Foster
also specializes in collecting and
selling rare artifacts.
New technologies allow adaptability
so golfers can determine what
works for them when it comes to
online golf instruction.
EQUIPMENT
38 Made for a Friendly Trek
Lightweight and adaptable
pushcarts afford players
an enjoyable walking experience.
Unbound by circumstances, teenager
Kolton Cooper’s attitude is an ally.
Computer Lessons
WEEKENDER
30
Nature’s Calling
A variety of national parks and golf
courses in nearby regions offer a fun
and adventurous destinations getaway.
ON THE COVER: The par-4 first hole at The Homestead’s Cascades Course, Hot Springs, Va., by Fred Vuich/USGA Photo Archives
THIS PAGE: Photo from the aftermath of the Boston bombings by Charles Krupa/AP Photo
2
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3
Letters to the Editor
Rightful Recognition
I MUST COMPLIMENT the VSGA for
celebrating the 100th anniversary of its
Amateur Championship in June at The
Homestead’s Cascades Course.
I treasure the memories of my play
at the Cascades, our most beautiful and
demanding mountain course. The year
1957 was special for me. A 14-year-old
lad, Vinny Giles, took my bag after the
qualifying rounds, we made it home and
had great fun. Later that year, I played a
special event round with Tom Strange, and
met his lovely wife, Nancy, and their twins,
Curtis and Allan, who were but knee-high
at the time.
A few years later, the Navy transferred
me back to Norfolk and I returned to Hot
Springs. In the first round, I met a taller
(and less friendly) Vinny Giles. We had a
good match, but he dusted me. Memories,
memories.
We had a great life and I’ve been most
blessed. I spent 30 years as a Navy pilot and
that was great. I flew bombers in World
War II in North Africa, and on occasion,
after flying long missions, we would stand
down, and some of us would hunt antelope.
It was then that I met and hunted
with a young two-striper lieutenant
named Paul Bryant (later he became
known as ‘Bear’ Bryant). He was in a
Hedron Squadron that performed heavy
maintenance on our birds. In later years,
at a Pensacola Open Pro-Am party, the
Bear (now wearing his hounds’ tooth hat)
and I renewed our acquaintances, and I
zapped him for beating my beloved Penn
State four games in a row.
More blessings. My wife, Mary, and I
have a wonderful family of six children;
three girls and three boys. They were
still short people when I won in ’57. Golf
has been wonderful for me. In the early
days of the 1930s during the Depression,
I caddied and learned to play at the
famous Tillinghast course at Bluff Point in
northern New York on Lake Champlain.
I caddied in Babe Ruth’s foursome a
number of times. He was a fair player and
great with us kids. We never asked for an
autograph in those days. I caddied nine
holes for four-time New York Gov. Al
Smith. The fee was 50 cents for nine holes,
and he paid me five dollars. It’s a wonder I
wasn’t a forever Democrat after that.
Later, in the Jacksonville Open, I played
with Horton Smith, who won the first and
third renewal of the Masters. I also played
with Canada’s famous Moe Norman, who
Sam Snead said was the purest ball-striker
in golf. Moe would hit 50 drives without
moving the tee—incredible!
Enough sea stories. Again, I commend the
VSGA for hosting this incredible reunion.
— Bob Wallace, 1957 VSGA Amateur
champion, Pensacola, Fla.
Helpful Tip from
World No. 1
THANK YOU TO STACY LEWIS
(and co-authors Lisa Mickey and PGA
professional Joe Hallet, as well as and
photographer Scott Miller) for taking
time to do the lesson in Virginia Golfer
(‘Stacy’s Secrets,’ March/April 2013)
ahead of the Kingsmill Championship.
The ‘plane gains’ drill was exactly right
for me and has been a great help.
— Stuart Watson, Midlothian, Va.
For more fond recollections from past winners of the VSGA Amateur Championship, please
turn to page 13 of this edition of Virginia Golfer or visit the VSGA website at www.vsga.org.
Celebration is just a short drive away.
Escape to acclaimed golf, luxury accommodations, D.C.’s Wine Country and the rejuvenating
Spa Minérale. It’s all about you.
Call 877-509-8400 or visit LansdowneResort.com.
44050 Woodridge Parkway, Leesburg, VA 20176 30 miles west of Washington, D.C.
4
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Vol. 31, No. 3
May/June 2013
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VSGA-VIP
SCHOLARSHIP
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Virginia Golfer (ISSN #1094-3021) is
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The opinions and views expressed
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M ay / J u ne 2 0 1 3 | V i r g i n i a G o l f e r
5
Virginia-Based Clubs Seek
Growth Through Cooperative
Membership Models
V
by Randy King and Arthur Utley
SGA member clubs Roanoke
Country Club and Salem’s
Hidden Valley Country Club
each have picked up new
playing partners.
In deals struck this spring as the clubs
hope to lure new members, as well as
entice current members to remain onboard
amid uncertain economic times, Roanoke
Country Club has aligned itself with
McConnell Golf of Raleigh, N.C., and
Hidden Valley has landed a partnership with
Dallas-based ClubCorp of America.
Each agreement will allow members of
both Roanoke Valley clubs the added perk
of enjoying special golf playing privileges at
other existing clubs under the umbrellas of
their new national partners.
The McConnell deal allows Roanoke
Country Club members to play at eight
premier private clubs in the Carolinas. The
list is topped by Sedgefield Country Club
in Greensboro, N.C., the site of the PGA
Tour’s Wyndham Championship.
“Perception is everything, and you want
people to perceive that they are getting a
better value for their dollar,” says George
Vogel III, president of Roanoke Country
Club’s board of governors. “We think it’s a
great value added to our membership and
hope we can turn it into new members,
plus turn it into some happier members at
Roanoke Country Club. The response has
been very positive.”
Hidden Valley’s agreement allows its
members––for a fee of $50 per month––to
play two free rounds of golf and enjoy two
free meals per month at any of ClubCorp’s
150 clubs across the nation and abroad. The
list is topped by such clubs as Firestone
Country Club (Akron, Ohio), Mission Hills
Country Club (Rancho Mirage, Calif.) and
The Metropolitan Club (Chicago).
“We’re all facing this issue of declining
golf,” says Bob Babyok, general manager at
Hidden Valley Country Club. “We’ve lost
more than a million golfers in the past 10
years so we’re all kind of suffering. So we
figured this is basically a way to cooperate
to graduate.”
6
Clubs such as Roanoke Country Club are hoping to
attract more members by taking a unified approach.
It’s a win-win situation for each side,
Babyok says.
“We have 120 members involved in the
program and it’s growing steadily,” he says.
“It offers our members another bell and
whistle, another reason to belong.”
COALESCING APPROACH
These days, call the golf shop at what is
now the former Lake Chesdin Golf Club
and you learn quickly that two Richmond
area private clubs have begun the process of
becoming one.
The golf shop attendant now answers
“Meadowbrook-Chesdin Country Club.”
A group of about 50 investors consisting
of members of Meadowbrook Country
Club and Lake Chesdin Golf Club have
purchased the southern Chesterfield County
club from its Canadian owners, Club Links.
No price was disclosed.
Members at Meadowbrook, located off
Cogbill Road in northern Chesterfield,
and Lake Chesdin will have membership
privileges at both clubs. The two clubs
remain separate entities, but Meadowbrook’s
management team, led by General Manager
Rich Wolkiewicz, will run both operations.
Diane Murdock-Thorp, chairperson
of Meadowbrook’s strategic long-range
planning committee and a former president
of the club, says Meadowbrook has been
looking for a way to differentiate itself in the
marketplace for several years.
The economic recession, which took a
toll on the private club sector all over
the country, was a driving force. Like all
the private clubs in the Richmond area,
Meadowbrook and Lake Chesdin were
looking to expand their memberships.
“We’ve always felt that Meadowbrook has
been unique,” Murdock-Thorp says. “Part
of the thought was, ‘What could we do to
secure our future?’ ”
The memberships at both clubs were
given the opportunity to become part of the
investor group. Both clubs have skeptics,
but the members who are not part of the
partnership won’t see a significant change in
their monthly dues, and will reap the benefit
of having two golf courses on which to play.
“Members are getting more for their
dollar,” says Dean Evans, the PGA
professional at Meadowbrook. “It is an
opportunity to expand our membership
because we have now become marketable
to Chesterfield County…I’ve been in
the golf business for 43 years. This is the
most exciting thing I’ve ever done. The
enthusiasm I have makes me wish that I
could make the members here feel it and
really understand what it is.”
All those involved know there is a time to
adjust, which may be accelerated.
“I think what puts us ahead of the learning
curve is that we have two golf courses that
are in excellent shape, so we aren’t having
to go in and repair or rebuild golf courses,”
Evans says. “Having the golf courses and golf
shops in the hands of experienced personnel
at both locations makes the learning curve
so much faster.”
Tim White, PGA professional at
Meadowbrook-Chesdin Country Club
since the previously-known Lake Chesdin
Golf Club, which opened in 1998, is happy
to have local ownership after seeing a
representative from the previous ownership
on an infrequent basis.
“Change is never easy. We just have to get
everybody on the same page,” White says.
Renovations to the clubhouse and dining
area at Meadowbrook-Chesdin are under
way. Evans and White are working on a
logo for merchandise, and a unified club is
in the future.
As part of the marketing plan, the LLC
has initiated a membership drive that
includes a waiver of the initiation fee.
Co-author Randy King is a sports reporter
for The Roanoke Times and a regular
contributor to Virginia Golfer. Co-author
Arthur Utley is a writer from Richmond and
a regular contributor to Virginia Golfer.
ROANOKE COUNTRY CLUB
The Takeaway
A r o u n d
t h e
In conjunction with its 50th
anniversary celebration this
year, the Golden Horseshoe
in Colonial Williamsburg is
making a special offer to VSGA
members to play the resort’s
Gold and Green courses for $50
from June 17-Sept. 5 (Sundays
starting at 12 p.m. and anytime
Monday through Thursday).
Starting times may be reserved
up to five days in advance by
calling (757) 220-7696. Please
mention code ‘VSGA’ when
you call to receive this special
offer. Golfers must present their
VSGA membership card at the
time of check-in to receive this
special offer. The rate is good
for up to four people. Please
note that appropriate golf attire
is required and course operating
schedules may vary. This special
is not available to groups, and all
prices are per person.
VSGA PHOTO
Meredith Loosse helps kids of all
levels learn the basics of the game
and teaches some life lessons along
the way at the helm of the Robins
Junior Program.
Registration for Robins
Junior Program clinics and
camps at the Virginia State Golf
Association Foundation-owned
Independence Golf Club is now
available at www.independence
golfclub.com.
Meredith Loosse is determined to make an impact as
director of the program. It
wouldn’t have taken an onlooker much time to notice there’s
something special and transformative about the camps and
clinics under her careful watch.
V S G A
First and foremost, some
seemingly long-lost ideals were
at the foundation of Loosse’s
leadership. Kids sat up straight
in their chairs. They raised their
hands, said ‘please’ and ‘thank
you.’ Camp counselors moved
from one practice station to
another with a cadence-like
pace, high-fiving kids along the
way. They provided instruction
in the game, focusing less on
solid contact and more on
good conduct. Children lined
up to take their swing, but first
waited their turn in line.
The endgame is the result
of a detailed process. During
the offseason months, she did
the junior camp recruitment
equivalent of prospecting, and
hired 12 well-trained interns
from four different schools with
Professional Golf Management
programs.
By the end of a child’s
learning experience, she hopes
campers come away armed with
enough know-how to have some
measure of independence as it
relates to the sport.
“When a parent or elder
sends their son, daughter,
grandchild, niece or nephew
to our camp, they’ll get the full
golf experience in a week,” says
Loosse, who took home the
2013 Middle Atlantic Section
of the PGA of America’s Junior
Golf Award. “By the end, they
might not be playing on tour,
but they are able to go out, play
golf, know the rules, etiquette
and how to hit a golf ball.”
Loosse’s goal is to continue
to drive interest by keeping
kids engaged. New features
this year will include having
campers play out a Rules of Golf
situation. She also believes that
dedicating time to having kids
out on the course—rather than
beating golf balls all day—is a
must. A session on preparing
more advanced players for the
high school golf season is also
planned for the summer.
Par: 70
Yardage: 6,667
Rating: 72.8
Slope: 134
#1 Course in Virginia, GolfWeek, 2012
SITE OF THE
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7
VSGA Member Clubs
At Two Rivers, Renovations Result
in Character-Enhancing Look
Course redo has meant change for the better at the Williamsburg-based club
A
A well-staffed club
with loyal, spirited
members tends to
glide through a golf
season contentedly.
Add balmy weather to that pairing and
the result you get is smiles all around. But
on the horizon are always those major
capital projects, threatening high costs and
disruptions. The test of happiness for any
club lies in preparing for such endeavors and
spacing them out judiciously.
Which brings us to the somewhat
unusual renovation story of the Tom Faziodesigned Two Rivers Country Club in
Williamsburg. Members and staff recently
held a grand reopening of this rebuilt,
re-outfitted, regrassed and—while we’re
at it—“rebridged” golf course within the
Governor’s Land community. It was the
climax to a long and quirky process of
discussion, decision, midstream changes and
unrelenting hard work on the part of the
renovation crew.
It should be noted that the final outcome
of this yearlong undertaking depends on
grass growing the way everybody wants it
to grow. Therefore, it is tricky to declare
total victory on ribbon-cutting day. That
said, any golfer whose club is soon to
embark on a similar project would be
pleased to have it turn out the way this one
has in reaching its culmination.
It all began with a proposal to regrass
the greens, an idea that was debated and
discussed over a lengthy period, at times
with displeasure or even rancor. Having
opened in 1992, the Two Rivers layout
was a bit young to be suffering systemic
turf issues—even in the tricky transitional
zone of lower Virginia and even beset with
irrigation water that is more saline than
turfgrass prefers. Bermudagrass fairways,
tees and roughs had fared well, but the club’s
bentgrass greens were shaky. Discussion
of these problems led to proposals, which
finally led to action.
Buoying the club’s effort was a report
from its treasurer saying no assessment
would be needed to cover the $1.7 million
expenditure, the outcome of which would be
new grass on the putting surfaces and major
Brent Graham, the director of golf maintenance at
Two Rivers, pictured in the foreground with Christian
Warring, the head PGA professional at the club,
discuss changes during the reconstruction phase.
8
V i r g i n i a G o l f e r | M aY
ay / J U
uN
ne
E 2013
TWO RIVERS COUNTRY CLUB
by David Gould
KRIS SPENCE GOLF DESIGN
renovation of greenside bunkers.
Of the six renovation bids sought and
presented, one stood out as quite reasonable
(though not the lowest-priced) and
impressive in its logic and detail. It came from
Spence Golf Design of Greensboro, N.C.,
and company principal Kris Spence. Like
the turfgrass strains now favored on modern
tracks, Spence is an impressive hybrid,
having served as a golf course superintendent
and a director of golf operations before
developing into a course design specialist.
“We feel very fortunate for Kris’s
leadership and for the quality work his
team performed on our golf course,” says
Paul Treolo, head of the Two Rivers green
committee. “From day one, the Spence
crew worked closely with our head of
maintenance, Brent Graham, who kept on
top of everything for us and was a real hero
of the effort.”
SHARED PRIORITIES
DURING RESTORATION
A vital point of agreement for Spence and
Graham concerned the new variety of grass
that would be used on Two Rivers’ greens.
Known as 007 creeping bentgrass, and
developed at Rutgers University, it had been
tested on one of the club’s practice putting
greens with extremely satisfactory results
over a two-year time frame.
Once the temporary greens were set
up and crews began making progress,
suggestions were raised about mid-stream
changes to the original scheme. Positive
changes, it turns out. Most wisdom about
planning says to get all your ducks in a row
from the start, but we should also consider
what Winston Churchill said at the Yalta
Conference in 1945: “It is a mistake to look
too far ahead. Only one link in the chain of
destiny can be handled at a time.”
Establishing a new order in post-war
Europe is more complicated than renovating
greens and bunkers, but you get the point.
Hiring a contractor and buying materials
in the midst of a slow economy, Two Rivers
gained serious advantages. At one point
in 2012, with the project on schedule and
under budget, club decision-makers decided
to redo the fairway bunkers as well as the
greenside bunkers.
When that work began to roll along
successfully, the group huddled once again
and decided to rebuild the grass tees and
target greens on their practice range. That
work went off without a hitch, so Two
Rivers again hit the reset button and decided
to proceed with bridge repair.
“We had separate capital money set aside
for the bridges, with plans to replace one
every year for four years,” Treora says.
“Then we saw we could fit that work in and
not have to create interruptions later.”
The supports beneath these waterway
crossings were solid, so only the decking and
railings had to be redone, at a total cost of
$82,000, which the club green-lighted.
SOLUTIONS ON SAND
Of all the decisions made along the way, the
most significant one involved bunker sand.
“The sand we originally had in our
bunkers the day the course opened was, by
consensus, cheap and unsatisfactory,” Treora
explains. “A few years later, fixing that error,
there was an overcompensation. We ended
up with some of the most expensive sand
found anywhere.”
That new bunker sand cost the club
about $72 a ton—which is like paying $10
a quart for skim milk. To make matters
worse, the mid- to higher-handicap golfers
disliked hitting from it, and only a portion
of the single-digit players truly preferred
it. Another change was needed, and this
renovation was the trigger for it.
To ensure that a reasonably priced
specimen of sand could be settled on and
would be satisfactory to the spectrum of
golfers at Two Rivers, a 20-man special
subcommittee caravanned over to the River
Course at nearby Kingsmill Resort.
“Kingsmill was kind enough to let the
group hit a series of shots from a set of their
One of the top priorities among club officials and
golf course architect Kris Spence was altering the
bunkers and supplying new sand, including at the
par-5 16th hole.
bunkers, until one and all agreed that their
style of sand would be fine for our club,”
Treora recalls. “The price for what the River
Course had was about $24 a ton. Paying that
small a sum for new sand opened up a lot of
possibilities for the project.”
Communication is always critical in
club makeovers of this sort. One way you
could follow the renovation saga was by
reading Brent Graham’s blog on the club
website. Many of his entries sounded like
straightforward work logs, but others read
like the tale of a storm-tossed ship on the
high seas.
Graham’s post titled, “What is going on?”
was a howl of protest against oppressive
weather conditions that wouldn’t abate.
“Wettest summer in 10 years in
Williamsburg,” the narrative exclaims, “at
least in Governor’s Land!”
A relatively placid April, with nights
that were mild enough to support a robust
emergence of the 007 bentgrass, was greeted
eagerly by all concerned. At this happy
point in the process, the picture going on in
every head is of well-draining greens, rolling
consistently at a 10-plus Stimpmeter reading
all summer, and beautiful bunkers filled with
fresh (and well-priced) sand to guard them.
Author David Gould is a writer from Sandy
Hook, Conn., and a regular contributor to
Virginia Golfer.
9
100th VSGA Amateur Championship
A Celebration
T
The Virginia State Golf
Association Amateur
Championship turns
100 years old in June,
and the VSGA is going
to celebrate.
This year’s event, one of the most
grueling in amateur golf, will be held
June 25-29 at The Homestead Resort’s
Cascades Course.
A banquet focusing the spotlight on
the 39 living past champions will be held
the night of June 24. The championship
ensues the next morning. That’s when Jake
10
Mondy, a 20-year-old from Blacksburg
who just completed his sophomore year at
Auburn University, launches defense of the
title he won for the first time last year at
Bayville Golf Club in Virginia Beach.
“It’s a huge honor to be the VSGA
Amateur champion,” Mondy says.
“Winning this title is something I’ve always
dreamed of, and it was a dream come true
to win at Bayville, a place that will forever
hold a special place in my heart.”
DEFINING EVENT
The first VSGA Amateur was conducted
in 1911. There was no championship from
1943 to 1945 because of World War II.
Throughout its history, several
champions have stamped themselves as
“the face” of the VSGA’s premier men’s
event. They were the players to beat for
a particular stretch of years before their
runs ended.
Some, like Billy Howell of Richmond
and Chandler Harper of Portsmouth,
came along at the same time.
Howell was 16 years old when he
won for the first time in 1928. He was
the medalist in 1929 but didn’t reach
the final. Then, starting in 1930, either
Harper or Howell captured the next six
championships. Harper was 16 when he
defeated Howell in 1930. Howell beat
Harper in 1931 and claimed victory again
in 1932. Harper was triumphant in 1933
TOP: FRED VUICH/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; VSGA PHOTO
The VSGA Amateur Championship returns to The Homestead for its centennial to hail former
champions and honor Virginia amateur golf’s most prestigious event | by Arthur Utley
BELOW: Blacksburg’s Jake Mondy used his ball-striking
prowess to capture last year’s VSGA Amateur.
Did You
Know?
Tidbits and historical
highlights about past
events and former
winners come and gone
Vinny Giles of Richmond, by way
of Lynchburg, holds the record for most
victories (seven) in the VSGA Amateur
Championship. He won in 1962, 1964,
1966, 1968, 1969 and 1971 at
The Homestead’s Cascades
Course, and again in 1987
at the Golden Eagle.
Mondy: THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT; Giles: USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; THE HOMESTEAD
LEFT: The par-4 12th hole is part of a challenging second nine stretch that demands precise shotmaking.
when Howell was medalist and again in
1934 as the medalist. The run ended with
Howell winning a fourth title in 1935.
Four years later in 1939, Wynsol Spencer
of Newport News won his first VSGA
Amateur crown. Twenty years later, in 1959,
Spencer earned his fifth and last title.
In response to questions sent by the
VSGA to the living champions, Spencer
said, “As I reflect, I consider it a privilege to
have won the championship five times. My
life in golf started while caddying for my
father. One day, he received a call to return
to work at the coal piers during one of his
matches, and I used his clubs and shoes to
finish the match on his behalf. I bested his
weekly nemesis, and as a result he gave me
his clubs and shoes, saying, ‘Son, you are
the golfer in this family.’ That started my
love affair with golf.”
Spencer won his second VSGA Amateur
in 1948, and it interrupted a streak by
Jack Hamilton, another champion from
Newport News.
Hamilton won for the first time in 1942.
Then when the VSGA Amateur resumed
after the war, Hamilton finished as the
runner-up in 1946. He won title No. 2 in
1947 and No. 3 in 1949.
Vinny Giles, who started out in
Lynchburg before moving to Richmond,
holds the record for the most titles with
seven. Six came in a 10-year span from
1962 to 1971. He won No. 7 in 1987.
Each decade beginning with Giles in the
1960s has produced a champion winning
back-to-back championships. Giles repeated
in 1968-69. Curtis Strange of Virginia Beach
won in 1974-75, Tom McKnight of Galax in
1984-85 (he won a third title in 1989) and
John Rollins in 1996-97. It happened twice
in a four-year period when Jay Woodson of
Powhatan won in 2002-03 and Billy Hurley
of Leesburg in 2004-05.
Then, along came Brinson Paolini of
Virginia Beach, who has been the face of
the VSGA Amateur the past five years.
Paolini became the first competitor to
win three titles in a row (2008-10). He
was 17 when he won in 2008 at Kingsmill
Resort. A 16-match winning streak came to
an end at The Virginian in 2011.
A year ago, he shot a 9-under-par 63
in the second round of on-site qualifying
to earn medalist honors for the first time.
He eventually experienced the fate of most
Giles defeated
Sam Wallace of
Williamsburg,
Charlie McDowell
of Virginia Beach,
Nelson Broach of
Richmond, Wayne
Jackson (twice)
of Hampton, Lanny
Wadkins of Richmond and
Steve Douglass of Norfolk in
the seven finals. Wallace (1967 and
1978), Broach (1963), Jackson (1956
and 1965) and Wadkins (1970) also
won VSGA Amateur titles.
The largest margin of victory in a
VSGA Amateur championship match
has been 11 and 10. Silas Newton of
Richmond defeated H. Crim Peck of
Lexington by that score in 1922 on
The Homestead’s Old Course. Skeeter
Heath of Hampton defeated John
Bruce of Danville by the same score at
Chatmoss Country Club in 1976.
The VSGA Amateur Championship
was decided by medal play from
1911-18, 1920-21, as well as in
1968. Giles won in 1968 by 15
strokes after trailing by one stroke
through 36 holes.
Thirty-four VSGA member clubs
have been the host for the VSGA
Amateur Championship. This year
marks the 43rd time that The
Homestead Resort in Hot Springs and
(continued on page 12)
11
(continued from page 11)
the 40th time the internationallyrecognized Cascades Course has
been the venue. The Old Course,
then known as The Homestead
Course, was the host from 192224. The Country Club of Virginia in
Richmond, next on the list, has been
host of the VSGA Amateur on seven
occasions. Princess Anne Country
Club in Virginia Beach has welcomed
the championship four times.
Brinson
Paolini
of Virginia
Beach is the
only player
to win
the VSGA
Amateur
three times
in a row
(2008-10). He won all three before he
turned 20 years old.
Lanny Wadkins (right) defeated
Bobby Wadkins 6 and 5 in 1970 in
the only VSGA Amateur final between
brothers. Bobby bested Curtis Strange
in the championship final in 1972.
Sixty-five players have won the
VSGA Amateur Championship, and
21 have won two or more titles.
Wynsol Spencer of Newport News
trails Giles’ seven championships
with five.
VSGA Amateur medalists: he was eliminated
by Buck Brittain in the quarterfinals.
This VSGA Amateur will be Paolini’s
last for the foreseeable future. His plan is
to turn professional before the end of the
summer and go to Q-school in the U.S.
and Europe.
“It feels a little strange as I approach
my last VSGA Amateur,” Paolini says. “I’ve
enjoyed every Amateur and every interaction
I’ve had with the participants and the VSGA.
Life changes, though, and I’m very much
looking forward to my future.
“I’ve met a lot of wonderful people in
and through the VSGA, and in the process
made lifelong friends. It has been the best
experience of my life. … The VSGA has
truly helped mold me into who I am today
and I’m eternally grateful for that.”
Paolini will go out playing the course,
the Cascades, he considers his favorite in
Virginia.
“I can’t think of a better place for
the celebration and the important
competition,” he says. “There’s no doubt
that the Cascades will require good ballstriking and a sharp short game.”
TIME-HONORED TERRITORY
This summer will mark the 43rd time The
Homestead has been the host. The hotel
12
course, now known as the Old Course,
was the venue for three years (1922-24).
The Cascades was used for the first time
in 1926, and it became the championship’s
home from 1948-73. Since then, it has
been the host four times: 1979, 1986, 1996
and 2006.
Rollins was a college standout when
he won in 1996. So was Chris McCartin
in 2006, but that doesn’t mean a college
player has an advantage at the Cascades.
“You have to really control the ball
a little better at The Homestead than
at some of these other courses,” says
Brittain, last year’s runner-up to Mondy
at the decidedly mid-amateur age of 45.
“I think it favors people with a little more
experience so I think it plays into the hands
of a mid-amateur.”
An attorney, Brittain’s first VSGA
Amateur was at the Cascades in 1986. He
didn’t play in 1996 while studying for the
bar exam. He lost in the round of 16 in 2006.
The experience of which Brittain speaks
has to do with how to play around the
Cascades’ greens.
“That course, to me, takes a lot touch,
and I think you develop that the more you
play it,” he says. “My swing isn’t anywhere
near as good as Brinson’s or Jake’s, but I
think I have a lot of touch and a lot of feel
BRITTAIN: FILE PHOTO; VSGA PHOTOS (3)
Buck Brittain’s short game acumen helped carry him to the championship final in 2012. He
and other mid-amateurs will be vying to unseat the teenagers and twenty-somethings that
have been major players at the championship in recent renewals of the event.
1933 at the age of 19. Howell defeated
Harper in 1931 at Hampton Golf Club.
Paolini was 17 when he won in 2008 at
Kingsmill Resort’s River Course to become
the VSGA Amateur’s youngest winner in
seven decades and the second-youngest
titlist in the championship’s 95-year history
at the time.
PAOLINI and baber: FILE PHOTOs; Howell: USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; VSGA photos (3)
Brinson Paolini of Virginia Beach has been one
of the icons at the Amateur, having won three
consecutive titles from 2008-10.
and can make up a lot of ground on them
around the greens.”
Brittain believes that The Homestead
is the right place for the 100th
anniversary celebration.
“When you go there to play, the
nostalgia, the history of who’s played
that course, what it’s meant to VSGA
Amateur, I think it’s really impressive,”
he says.
As of this writing, Mondy had not
played the Cascades, but he’s heard
plenty about it and has every intention of
seeing it a couple of times with someone
who knows the venerable course.
Could Mondy be the next face of the
VSGA Amateur? Like Paolini, Mondy
looks forward to the VSGA Amateur
amid the demands of college golf, and he
knows how difficult it is to win.
“Coming home for the VSGA Amateur
is like a big reunion. Going to school in
Alabama, I don’t see many people from
back home other than Evan (Beck) and
Brinson, and I only see them because
we play a few events against them every
year,” Mondy says. “It’s always nice to
catch up with people I don’t get to see
very often and see a lot of the people
who work the VSGA events who I have
become close with over the years.
“You have to bring your ‘A’ game all
week long in a match play event because
anyone can beat anyone else. I’m just
honored to be defending champion, and
I’m looking forward to defending.”
Author Arthur Utley is a writer from
Richmond and a regular contributor to
Virginia Golfer.
Billy Howell of Richmond won four
times. Chandler Harper of Portsmouth,
Jack Hamilton of Newport News, Tom
McKnight of Galax and Paolini are threetime champions. Fourteen players have
won the VSGA’s most
prestigious amateur
championship twice.
The 12 players to win back-toback VSGA Amateur titles are: James
McMenamin of Hampton (1912-13);
Matthew Paxton Jr. of Lexington (1915-16);
Jim Barron of Norfolk (1919-20); Howell
(1931-32); Harper (1933-34); Giles (196869); Curtis Strange of Virginia Beach (197475); McKnight (1984-85); John Rollins
of Richmond (1996-97); Jay Woodson
of Powhatan (2002-03); Billy Hurley of
Leesburg (2004-05); and Paolini (2008-10).
Howell (1928)
and Harper (1930)
of Portsmouth were
16 years old when
each won his first
VSGA Amateur crown.
Harper defeated
Howell in the 1930
final at The Cascades
Course. Chandler
Harper earned
his second VSGA
Amateur crown in
In Their Own Words
In preparation for the 100th VSGA Amateur Championship, the
association gathered quotes from the 39 living past winners that were
culled primarily from a series of in-person and phone interviews.
On the following pages is a sampling of memories from some former champions. For
a full list of recollections by VSGA Amateur victors, please visit the VSGA website at
www.vsga.org. | compiled by Andrew Blair
I was 23 when I won. I beat Wright
Garrett in the final, who was a freshman at
the University of Houston, which was the
big golf school in the country at the time.
We played 39 holes and it was all caddies
and walking. At 23, we were able to do that.
That was the way the game was then; now,
you get to ride a cart
for 36 holes.
It really was tremendous at that
time, especially after
moving to Richmond
from another place.
We had a great
group of players at
Hermitage [Country Club in ManakinSabot] in the early ’60s that played all the
time. We had a great golf community. It
was a tough crowd to play in. You couldn’t
let up. They sort of tuned me up, I think. It
was a big deal at the time and still is today.
–– NED BABER, 1960 VSGA AMATEUR
CHAMPION
The Amateur is
the pinnacle for
the events conducted
by the Virginia State
Golf Association. When
I talk to these young
kids today—and I play
13
Someone said to me, ‘What do you
remember the most about [the 1971 championship final against Lanny Wadkins?]’ I
said, ‘To tell you the truth, what I remember
the most is that I played reasonably fast, but
Lanny played faster than anyone I’ve ever
known.’ I mean, we teed off at 8 a.m. and
came up the
ninth fairway
at about 9:15.
We came up
over the hill
on No. 9 and
there must’ve
been between
1,000 and 2,000 people around the green.
They’d come from Richmond, Tidewater,
Roanoke, Lynchburg and you name it. Back
then, amateur golf meant something.
–– VINNY GILES, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1968,
1969, 1971 AND 1987 VSGA AMATEUR
CHAMPION
Whenever you can win the
Amateur Championship and beat such
great players, it’s
something you cherish your entire life.
I’ve been on both
sides. I’ve lost in the
final once and won
another time. It’s a
lot better being on
the winning side, but
to go through the
whole week and come up short is very disappointing, and you never know if you’re
going to have another chance. I was lucky
enough to have another opportunity and
when I did, I took advantage of it.
–– SKEETER HEATH, 1976 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
The VSGA is a great organization that afforded me a tremendous
place to play in amateur events, as well as
experience first-class competition. Playing
in association-run championships helped
in my development as a player.
My best memory is having my brother,
Daniel, caddie for
me in both of my
wins. In 2005, when
I won for the second time, I remember playing my first
and second round
matches in a combined five or six
under par—and having to play 33 holes
in the process. Winning in 2005 was an
important victory for me to make the USA
Walker Cup team that year.
–– BILLY HURLEY, 2004 AND 2005
VSGA AMATEUR CHAMPION
It’s a nice goal to win the
Amateur Championship. It gives you a
lot of confidence in your ability and your
game. It’s not an easy
championship to win.
You have to qualify
and then there’s the
match play portion.
One of the things
about match play is
that on any given day,
anybody can win. It
really is an endurance test and you have to
be on your game every day. If you have a
bad day, there’s a good chance you’re going
to be headed home. It has definitely meant
a lot to me. I still have the [replica] trophy
M
sitting at home. It was a nice feeling to have
that accomplishment.
–– MARK LAWRENCE, 1980 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
At the time, I was teaching
mathematics and Algebra I in Virginia
Beach. I’d just graduated from Elon (N.C.)
University. I got married on June 24, 1961.
My wife and I decided
to make [Amateur]
week part of our
honeymoon. It was a
really great experience
that I’ll never forget.
It was a great way to
spend part of your honeymoon—you don’t
want to spend it all that way. [Laughs.] I
would say that I was a 4-to-1 underdog when
the day started, but as the match went on,
things changed.
–– BOBBY LOY, 1961 VSGA AMATEUR
CHAMPION
Winning was a confirmation
that the hard work I’d put in was worthwhile. I’d lost my father the year before.
He was my teacher and it was very
emotional for me
at that point. It
was an awesome
week and I made
a lot of friends. It
validated the fact
that I belonged. I worked hard to get to a
certain level.
–– GEORGE MACDONALD, 1981 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
Through the years of being part
of the VSGA, winning the Amateur and
having my name beside the other ones on the
trophy is something that I’ll always cherish.
It’s very deep in my heart. I consider Virginia
My first match IN 1958 was against Wynsol Spencer, who’d won
the tournament four times leading up to our meeting. I had a friend that came
with me and he caddied for me during the event. I can remember that once we
saw Wynsol as our opponent for the first round, we packed our bags and checked
out of the hotel. [Laughs.] I won a close match against Wynsol and, thereafter,
things seemed to come a little easier. In ’57, I tried to qualify for the VSGA Amateur
and, at that time, it was just an 18-hole qualifier. I didn’t make it. The following year, I
managed to go all the way. –– JIMMY FLIPPEN, 1958 VSGA AMATEUR CHAMPION
14
Giles: vsga photo; Hurley: JOHN MUMMERT/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; File photos (5)
with all of them—the only tournament
they talk about is the VSGA Amateur.
If those [younger] guys had to pick one
tournament to win, it would be the VSGA
Amateur. I love the Amateur. I’m a career
amateur and it has special meaning to me.
–– KEITH DECKER, 1988 AND 1991
Mcknight: USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; PAOLINI: KEN BEDFORD; PASSERELL AND STRANGE: VSGA PHOTOS; FILE PHOTOS (3)
and the VSGA my
starting point in
amateur golf. Even
though I live in
South Carolina, I
still consider myself
a Virginian.
Match play is a
roller coaster ride
because you never
know what can
happen. It’s kind of a battle against yourself
in hopes you have enough to win. Winning
the Amateur three times just feels tremendous. When I started playing back in the
mid-’80s, [winning the Amateur] opened
some doors and made me want to play on
the national level.
–– TOM McKNIGHT, 1984, 1985 AND
1989 VSGA AMATEUR CHAMPION
The VSGA has truly helped
mold me into who I am today and I’m
eternally grateful for that. I’ve met a lot
of wonderful people
in and through the
VSGA, and in the process I’ve made lifelong
friends. It has been
the best experience
of my life. Winning
the VSGA Amateur
gave me confidence to
compete on a national
level and become a better golfer.
–– BRINSON PAOLINI, 2008, 2009 AND
I was 39 years old at the time of
the 1993 championship (at James River
Country Club in Newport News). I’d had a
fair degree of success, but the Amateur was
the championship that I most wanted to win.
On the eve of the championship, someone asked me, ‘What would it mean to you
to win the VSGA
Amateur?’ Since
I knew the golf
course was wellsuited to me and
my chances were
probably growing
fewer and fewer
given my age, my
first thought was,
‘If I could just
win this championship, I wouldn’t care if I
ever won another tournament for the rest
of my life.’ I wanted that one so badly. It
I
In 1975, I came in playing
exceptionally well and kept playing
that way throughout the tournament. I think
I went 70 holes that week before I made my
first bogey. But what I remember best was
calling Chandler Harper [his teacher] the
night before the championship match. I was
telling Chandler how well I was playing, how
I was hitting one good shot after another.
He said, ‘What you’ve done so far this week
means nothing if you don’t win tomorrow.’
That slapped me upside the head and woke
me up. It was just what I needed to hear.
–– CURTIS STRANGE, 1974 AND 1975 VSGA AMATEUR CHAMPION
was the brass ring that I was always reaching for.
–– DAVID PARTRIDGE, 1993 AND 1995
My fondest memory from that
day in 2000 was hugging my father and
brother after I’d won. After the match,
we hadn’t returned back to the clubhouse
yet—and it was a good thing because I
needed a couple of
minutes to regroup
and wipe the tears of
joy away. It was an
amazing feeling to
reach a lifetime goal.
I remember calling [wife] Kim, who
was at home with
our one-month-old
daughter, and just screaming at the top of
my lungs. She didn't know if I had won—
or if I was in a wreck.
–– DAVID PASSERELL, 2000 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
I was the one who wasn’t supposed to win. I was certainly not
the best player there. What’s so funny is
that I never thought about winning. All
I thought about was the hole out there
in front of me because the Cascades is
absolutely the most beautiful golf course
in the world. It’s like being in paradise.
If I die and go to heaven, I know the
Cascades is there; I can still smell it to
this day because of the surroundings. The
Amateur was the deal back then. When
you were growing up, that’s what we lived
for every Fourth of July week—let’s get to
Hot Springs for the Amateur. They started rotating [sites]
after I won. Guess
they didn’t want
that chance of some
’ol potato farmer to
win. [Laughs.]
The feeling is
hard to explain—
what it meant back
then … the pride
that you have [chokes back tears]. There
were so many good players—you can’t
imagine.
–– CARL PETERSON, 1973 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
I’m 88 years old now and winning
the Amateur meant a lot to me then and
still does today. I feel like for one season,
winning the VSGA Amateur says that
you’re the best in the Commonwealth of
Virginia. That may not be true, but the
records say it is and that’s a good feeling.
–– CONNIE SELLERS, 1951 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
It’s an honor to be a VSGA Amateur
champion. It’s exhilarating to say the
least. I’d played in
the VSGA Amateur
for several years and
the highlight [prior
to winning in 1979]
was playing Curtis
Strange in the quarterfinals of the 1975
15
I
I think I would be very remiss if I had never won the VSGA Amateur.
As well as I played through the years and as many things as I won around the
country—the U.S. Amateur, the Western Amateur, the Southern Amateur, the
Eastern Amateur, the Dixie Amateur and I played well in college—but if I hadn’t
won the VSGA Amateur, I would’ve felt like I had a big hole in my résumé.
–– LANNY WADKINS, 1970 VSGA AMATEUR CHAMPION
later. It was like a snowball effect. I played
really well for three or four years and winning the [VSGA] Amateur was the start of it.
I’m from Roanoke and the Amateur was
at Blacksburg [Country Club] the year I
won, so it was a home-cookin’ sort of thing.
I think I was a combined 30 under for five
or six matches so I was pretty hot that week.
It felt like it didn’t matter who I was playing.
It was just a great week, a great time.
–– DAVID TOLLEY, 1983 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
Winning the VSGA Amateur
opened a lot of doors for me
because you were invited to play in numerous other events the following year. At the
time, being in
my early 20s, I
took advantage
of winning the
Amateur. I was
runner-up at the
U.S. Amateur
in 1983 and got
to play in the
Masters a year
The first time I made it to the
final was in 1962 and I lost to Vinny
Giles, the first year he won the Amateur.
At age 17, I won the city championship in
Williamsburg and I made up my mind, if
I could, that I was going to try to win the
VSGA Amateur. That was my next goal.
I was 24 years old the first time I reached
the final and the next time, I was 28 and I
M
My fondest recollection
when I won in ’86 is quite simple. My
father, whom I consider my hero, meant
everything to me and was my only golf
instructor. He caddied for me every single
round and never once complained about
walking the Cascades Course. He gave me
advice and motivated me to stay level and
focused throughout championship week.
I could not have done it without him.
Winning is something I’ll always cherish,
but the entire process showed me that if
you put the time and effort into striving
toward a positive, achievable goal, you can
be successful at just about anything in life.
–– BRETT WEST, 1986 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
16
won it in ’67. That year, I beat Vinny [Giles]
in the semifinals. He was on top of his game
then and I was playing pretty well. It was a
real thrill for me in
’67. On the way to
winning, I had to play
all my friends—Ned
Baber, Jordan Ball,
Archie McDowell,
Vinny, and I beat
Billy Deemer of
Blacksburg in the
final. It was really
exciting for me
because it was the culmination of a lot of
years of hard work and hard practice. When
I won, it was just unbelievable.
–– SAM WALLACE, 1967 AND 1978
There is no doubt that winning the
VSGA Amateur changed my life. The 2002
and 2003 Amateur victories instilled a belief
in myself that I could hit great shots under
tough situations and, more importantly,
win. It was also the first time I could see
myself competing at golf’s
highest levels.
It was certainly
a catalyst in
making golf
my profession,
and I wouldn’t
have had the
success I’ve had without playing in and
winning those Amateur titles. I still draw
on many of the great moments from those
championships while competing professionally. Thank you to the VSGA for everything—winning the Amateurs serve as two
of the best memories of my golfing life.
–– JAY WOODSON (LEFT), 2002 AND
Interviewer Andrew Blair is editor of
Virginia Golfer.
WOODSON: THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT; vsga photos (4)
VSGA Amateur.
I’d won the 1974 VSGA Junior title and
back in those days, winning a VSGA event
was huge—and it still is. It’s a great feeling
to win.
–– STEVE SMITH, 1979 VSGA
AMATEUR CHAMPION
All-Time Winners
The winner of the VSGA Amateur
Championship has his name engraved
on the Schwarzschild
Brothers Trophy.
of the VSGA Amateur Championship
trophy photo: Kenmont Design Group
Year
Champion / Hometown
1911
William H. Palmer Jr., Richmond
The CC of Virginia, Richmond
1912
James McMenamin, Hampton
Norfolk CC, Norfolk
1913
James McMenamin, Hampton
Hampton Roads GC, Hampton
1914
William H. Palmer Jr., Richmond
Hermitage CC, Richmond
1915
Matthew Paxton Jr., Lexington
Roanoke CC, Roanoke
1916
Matthew Paxton Jr., Lexington
Lexington CC, Lexington
1917
J. Pope Seals, Richmond
The CC of Virginia (Westhampton Course), Richmond
1918
Silas M. Newton, Richmond Oakwoods CC, Lynchburg
1919
J.S. “Jim” Barron, Norfolk
Norfolk CC, Norfolk
1920
J.S. “Jim” Barron, Norfolk
Old Point Comfort G&CC, Hampton
1921
H.H. Hume, Norfolk
The CC of Virginia, Richmond
1922
Silas M. Newton, Richmond
The Homestead Course, Hot Springs
1923
H. Crim Peck, Lexington
1924
Paul Jamison, Roanoke
1925
Maj. E.L. Naiden, Hampton
Lakeside CC, Richmond
1926
J. Taylor Crump, Richmond
The Homestead (Cascades Course), Hot Springs
1927
Charles Mackall, Charlottesville
Princess Anne CC, Virginia Beach
1928
Billy Howell, Richmond
1929
Pat Dillon, Virginia Beach
1930
Chandler Harper, Portsmouth
1931
Hampton GC, Hampton
1932
The CC of Virginia (James River Course), Richmond
1933
Farmington CC, Charlottesville
1934
1935
1936
Bobby Riegel, Richmond
Farmington CC, Charlottesville
1937
Dick Payne, Norfolk
1938
James O. Watts, Lynchburg
1939
Wynsol Spencer, Newport News
1940
Sam Bates, Norfolk
1941
Walter Cushman, Charlottesville
1942
Jack Hamilton, Newport News
1943-45 No championship—World War II
1946
Edmund Gravely, Richmond
Year
Champion / Hometown
Year
Champion / Hometown
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
Boonsboro CC, Lynchburg
Dick Payne, Virginia Beach
Connie Sellers, Roanoke
George Gosey, Lynchburg
George Fulton, Roanoke
Wayne Jackson, Newport News
Robert Q. Wallace, Norfolk
Jimmy Flippen, Danville
Ned Baber, Richmond
Bobby Loy, Norfolk
Vinny Giles, Lynchburg
Nelson Broach, Richmond
Wayne Jackson, Hampton
Sam Wallace, Williamsburg
Vinny Giles, Richmond
Lanny Wadkins, Richmond
Bobby Wadkins, Richmond
Carl Peterson, Virginia Beach
Curtis Strange, Virginia Beach
Roanoke CC, Richmond
Curtis Strange, Virginia Beach
Cedar Point CC, Suffolk
Skeeter Heath, Hampton
Chatmoss CC, Martinsville
Neff McClary, Springfield
Washington G&CC, Arlington
Sam Wallace, Williamsburg
James River CC, Newport News
Steve Smith, Martinsville
Mark Lawrence, Richmond
Willow Oaks CC, Richmond
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
George MacDonald, Virginia Beach
Danville GC, Danville
Jeff Horn, Richmond
David Tolley, Roanoke
Blacksburg CC, Blacksburg
Tom McKnight, Galax
CC of Petersburg, Petersburg
Tom McKnight, Galax
Fairfax CC, Fairfax
Brett West, Virginia Beach
The Golden Eagle Tides Inn, Irvington
Keith Decker, Martinsville
Danville GC, Danville
Tom McKnight, Galax
Hank Klein, Richmond
Birdwood GC, Charlottesville
Keith Decker, Martinsville
Allen Barber, Yorktown
Golden Horseshoe GC, Williamsburg
David Partridge, Richmond
James River CC, Newport News
Scott Inman, Springfield
Robert Trent Jones GC, Lake Manassas
David Partridge, Richmond
Stoney Creek at Wintergreen, Nellysford
John Rollins, Richmond
John Rollins, Richmond
The Virginian GC, Bristol
Jay Fisher, Suffolk
Steve Marino, Fairfax
Boonsboro CC, Lynchburg
David Passerell, Scottsville
Hermitage CC, Manakin-Sabot
Ross McIntosh, Lorton
Robert Trent Jones GC, Lake Manassas
Jay Woodson, Powhatan
Bayville GC, Virginia Beach
Jay Woodson, Powhatan
Kinloch GC, Manakin-Sabot
Billy Hurley, Leesburg
Roanoke CC, Roanoke
Billy Hurley, Leesburg
Chris McCartin, Arlington
Pat Tallent, Vienna
Lowes Island Club (Island Course), Potomac Falls
Brinson Paolini, Virginia Beach
Kingsmill Resort (River Course), Williamsburg
Belle Haven CC, Alexandria
Scott Shingler, Haymarket
The Virginian GC, Bristol
Jake Mondy, Blacksburg
Bayville GC, Virginia Beach
17
Great Holes
No.16
PAR 5
YARDAGES
THE HOMESTEAD (Cascades Course)
BLUE:
522 yards
HOT SPRINGS, VA. | by Bruce H. Matson
18
its holes would qualify for signature status
based on their memorability factor.
Since opening in 1923, the Cascades
has been the site of more than 200
tournaments, including a host of national
championships, as well as welcoming almost
every event organized by the VSGA. The
VSGA Amateur, the premier championship
conducted by the association, has been staged
at the Cascades on 40 occasions. Perhaps the
greatest match of all of the encounters at
the VSGA Amateur came in 1971, when
Vinny Giles faced reigning champion Lanny
Wadkins in a duel of two of the premier
amateurs in the country at the time. After
33 holes of exceptional play, Giles bested
Wadkins, 3 and 2, by making birdie on the
par-5 16th, a hole that few would dispute is
truly among the best at the Cascades.
With a near-perfect blend of options,
strategy and extraordinary physical beauty, it
may not be possible to find a more enjoyable
golf hole in the commonwealth. Golfers
standing on the tee of the par-5 16th must
immediately decide whether to challenge
the bunker complex on the right at the
inside corner of the dogleg in an effort to
reach the green in two shots. Thereafter,
only an exceptional second shot will clear
the pond guarding the putting surface.
Alternatively, the player that chooses to play
RED:
394 yards
No. 16 as a three-shot hole must avoid the
bunkers with a tee shot that favors the left
side, then lay up to a comfortable distance
and play a precise approach to the green.
Although the length of the pitch shot
is typically modest and the green surface
is generous, no matter which option one
selects, many golfers have found the water
in attempting to reach this relatively short
par 5. From a strategic standpoint, it’s almost
confounding how such a simple water
hazard can have a devastating effect on a
round of golf. Shot values aside, from an
aesthetic perspective, it’s rare for a golfer not
to pause by the bubbling pond and marvel at
the pristine clarity of the mountain waters.
In late June, the VSGA will celebrate the
100th renewal of its Amateur Championship
by returning the event to the Cascades
Course. History will inevitably be made
at this event, and one’s ability to adroitly
negotiate the 16th hole could quite possibly
play a role in determining the outcome.
Author Bruce H. Matson is a writer and golf
historian from Richmond and serves on the
VSGA’s board of directors. He is a member
of Golfweek’s national rating panel for its
“America’s Best 100 Courses.”
THE HOMESTEAD
M
any popular expressions
of golf course architecture
focus on whether or not a
layout is a championship
course or if it has a
particularly good hole that separates itself
from the rest. If the critic’s eye were
to critique The Homestead’s Cascades
Course by these very standards, the
venerable layout might just play to mixed
reviews. After all, who’s ever heard of a
championship track that not only closes
with a par 3, but finishes with holes having
a par sequence of 3-5-5-3? Sounds a bit
odd. And it’s pretty hard to designate a
single signature hole at the Cascades.
Fortunately, golf course architect William
Flynn was not burdened with these concepts
when he marked out a routing for the
second course built at The Homestead, a
“George Washington slept here” resort. Not
only does the topography of the Cascades
take the player on an engaging tour of
the property, but does so in a manner that
permits one to walk the course comfortably.
Originally built on a mountainside with
mules and horses, today the Cascades is
routinely referred to as one of the best
mountain courses in America. Set against
the backdrop of Virginia’s Allegheny
Mountains, it’s a safe bet that at least half of
WHITE:
488 yards
TheRULES
Substitute
Teacher
A
JOHN MUMMERT/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES
by John Van der Borght
few years ago while officiating
a junior event, I encountered
an interesting rules situation.
During the final round, two
girls called an official to the
ninth green and told him that they had
accidentally played each other’s ball. The
official told them that they had played wrong
balls, were penalized two strokes and that
they must correct the mistake by playing the
correct ball. They said they had already done
that and continued on.
I later learned that the two girls had
actually hit their tee shots onto the green at
a par-3 hole and accidentally marked, lifted,
replaced and putted the other girl’s ball. This
changed the entire ruling. When you put
a ball into play that was not your original
ball by placing or dropping, it becomes a
substituted ball––not a wrong ball. It doesn’t
matter if the ball came from your bag, your
pocket or was one you picked up on the
course. The Rules of Golf do not allow you
to substitute a ball on the putting green;
therefore they had incorrectly substituted for
their original ball. Additionally, by replacing
the ball from where they had lifted it and
proceeding to play it, they had played from
a wrong place. While they believed they had
breached Rule 15-3 (Wrong Ball), they had
unknowingly breached two other rules––
Rule 15-2 (Substituted Ball) and Rule 20-7c
(Playing from a Wrong Place).
While the penalty for playing a wrong ball
is two strokes and requires that you correct
the error, the penalty for substituting a ball
under Rule 15-2 when not permitted is two
strokes and you are required to continue
playing the substituted ball. Rule 20-7c also
has an accompanying two-stroke penalty for
playing from a wrong place. But, a note to
both these rules says that if you incorrectly
substitute a ball and play from a wrong
place, you will only be penalized a total of
two strokes. As long as the breach of playing
from a wrong place was not a serious breach,
the player who is in violation of Rule 20-7c is
told to continue to play the ball.
Since the ball was played from a short
distance from where the original ball lay,
it was not a serious breach of playing from
a wrong place, so they shouldn’t have
Two players proceeded improperly after their
approach shots came to rest on a putting green in
similar spots and they played one another’s ball.
corrected their mistake. Given this, the girls
should have completed the hole with the
other player’s golf ball and added the twostroke penalty.
I don’t know if the two girls had completed
the hole before “correcting” the error. If
they discovered the error after completing
the hole, there would have been no further
penalties for attempting to “correct it.” If not,
there could have been a further two-stroke
penalty for an improper substitution and
playing from a wrong place. Fortunately, the
competition was closed and since they had
been unaware of their inappropriate action
before the event concluded, the penalties
could not be applied.
Remember, when you get any ball in
your hand, make sure it is your ball before
you put it back into play. Had the girls
realized their mistake before making a
stroke at the incorrect ball, Rule 20-6 would
have allowed them to correct their error
by playing the correct ball from the proper
place with no penalty.
Author John Van der Borght is manager of
rules communications for the United States
Golf Association.
ex·cep·tion·al:
adj.
adv.
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19
U.S. Amateur Public Links Preview
Publinx Primer
As the U.S. Amateur Public Links visits northern Virginia’s Laurel Hill
Golf Club in mid-July, former winners have used the event’s national
championship platform as a proving ground | by Ken Klavon
to host this year’s U.S. Amateur Public Links
from July 15-20, little did they know then
that they would put an indelible time stamp
on the final days of the U.S. Golf Association’s
fourth oldest championship.
That’s because in February golf’s
governing body announced it was retiring
the U.S. Amateur Public Links. The event
was inaugurated in 1922 as an opportunity
for public-course players to compete for
a national championship. And the U.S.
Women’s Amateur Public Links, started in
1977, will be discontinued after 2014. The
APL is open to amateur golfers who are bona
fide public-course players and who hold a
USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 4.4.
The U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship and U.S. Women’s Amateur FourBall Championship will take their place
beginning in 2015.
“I’m a little confused about it,” says PGA
Tour player Billy Mayfair, who won the
1986 APL. “It’s the changing of the guard.
It was one of the few [championships] that,
if you won, you could get an invitation to
the Masters.”
The Public Links offered one of six
exemptions into the Masters, which began
awarding the APL champion an invitation
when Ralph Howe III won in 1988.
“If it wasn’t for that [championship], I
20
wouldn’t be here,” last year’s champion, T.J.
Vogel, told www.masters.com. At the 87th
U.S. Amateur Public Links at Soldier Hollow
Golf Club in Midway, Utah, Vogel made
six birdies over a seven-hole stretch against
Kevin Aylwin and posted a 12-and-10 victory.
Vogel’s victory was the second-largest in
APL history. In the championship match of
the 1985 APL, Jim Sorenson defeated Jay
Cooper, 12 and 11, at Wailua Golf Course in
Lihue, Hawaii.
Brandt Snedeker, who won the event
in 2003, also told www.masters.com: “I
understand the game of golf is changing and
the USGA has to think of what can generate
the most interest in their championships and
how they can see the best turnout. But if you
ask any past champion, I’m sure they are all
disappointed that it’s going away. I’m sure
the USGA had a good reason for doing it,
but that’s kind of the way the game of golf is
going right now unfortunately.”
Other recent APL winners on the PGA
Tour are Tim Clark (1997), Trevor Immelman
(1998) and Ryan Moore (2002 and 2004).
In the 2004 APL, Moore incredibly trailed
briefly in just one of the six matches (105
holes). At the time, he said: “To have won
it once is great. The second time, that’s
just amazing. Just to be part of any USGA
championship is a lot of fun, let alone to win.
That just makes it more special.”
Immelman, who defeated Jason Dufner,
3 and 2, at Torrey Pines, told www.pga.com
in early spring: “I must say I was definitely
caught by surprise. After reading through the
release, I understand what they’re saying…
But man, there is such a great history behind
At host site Laurel Hill Golf Club, the par-3 11th is
one of the holes on the second nine to play along
the border of a former maximum-security facility.
Adjacent farm buildings recall the days when
inmates operated the Lorton dairy farm. INSET: T.J.
Vogel rolled to victory at last year’s U.S. Amateur
Public Links Championship.
that [championship].
“Maybe the casual observer doesn’t realize
how many [events] they put on between
the men’s and women’s Amateurs, the U.S.
Junior, the Mid-Amateurs. It is quite a busy
schedule, so I guess they’re trying to figure
out what to keep and what to get rid of so
they can grow. That’s the tricky part. Change
is difficult for everybody. [The Public Links]
is almost 100 years [old], so that part is tricky
because people obviously have an emotional
attachment to it.”
One of the more memorable moments of
the championship occurred when Michelle
Wie, then 15, became the first female ever
to qualify for a USGA men’s event. She
advanced to the match-play portion of the
APL but lost to eventual champion Clay
Ogden in the quarterfinals. Wie won the
WAPL in 2003 at age 13.
In 1922, the APL was created for publiccourse players because entry to the U.S.
Amateur was restricted to members of clubs
that were affiliated with the USGA. But in
1979, the USGA decided to open the U.S.
Amateur to all amateurs whether they were
club members or not.
“For the record, it just wasn’t fulfilling
why the championship was created,” says Bill
McCarthy, the USGA’s director of the U.S.
Amateur Public Links.
FRED VUICH/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; VOGEL: STEVEN GIBBONS/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES
T
Two years ago, when
general manager Kirk
Mason and Laurel Hill
Golf Club in Lorton
officially signed on
MOORE: STEVEN GIBBONS/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; SNEDEKER: SAM GREENWOOD/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; IMMELMAN: J.D. CUBAN/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES;
CLARK AND MUDD: JOHN MUMMERT/USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES; MAYFAIR: USGA PHOTO ARCHIVES
SpringBoard To Success
RYAN MOORE
2002 and 2004: In 2002
at The Orchards Golf Club in
Washington, Mich., Moore won
the first of his two APL titles by
thrashing Lee Williamson, 10
and 9. The victory put Moore
on the map as far as amateur
competitors go, but the future
PGA Tour player
had an amateur
year for the
ages in 2004.
Altogether, he
won five major
amateur events,
including the
APL and the
U.S. Amateur. Moore took
down Dayton Rose, 6 and 5, at
Rush Creek Golf Club in Maple
Grove, Minn., to win his second
U.S. Amateur Public Links
title. Moore would become the
first golfer ever to win the APL
and the U.S. Amateur in the
same year. The feat would be
equaled by Colt Knost in 2007.
Billy Mayfair was the other
player to win both, but not in
the same year.
BRANDT SNEDEKER
2003: Snedeker, riding on
the crest of 11 birdies in 27
holes, eliminated Dayton Rose,
10 and 9, at
Blue Heron
Pines Golf
Club’s East
Course in
Galloway,
N.J.
“It’s one of
those things
that I’ll look back on 40 years
from now and I’ll get goose
bumps every time I think about
it, about how I played,” said
Snedeker of his victory.
TREVOR IMMELMAN
1998: Immelman took down
Jason Dufner, 3 and 2, at
Torrey Pines Golf Club (South
Course) in San
Diego, Calif.,
before turning
professional
in 1999 and
starting a
lucrative career
on the PGA
Tour. He went on to win the
2008 Masters.
TIM CLARK
1997: At Kearney Hill Golf
Links in Lexington, Ky., Clark
used the APL as a catalyst to
HISTORIC GROUND
The abolishment of the APL, however, will
serve as a subplot to Laurel Hill’s first time
hosting a USGA championship.
The club, owned and operated by the
Fairfax County Park Authority, opened after
designer Bill Love put his personal touch
on the $13.8 million property. A portion
of the land used to serve as the District of
Columbia Lorton Correctional Facility on
600 acres whose prisoners operated a dairy
farm on the rolling terrain.
The prison closed more than a decade
ago. Remnants of the penitentiary are still
visible on the grounds, including old fences
and barbed wire. Love only needed 285
acres to complete the gem. Overall, the
property contains more than 2,000 acres. In
perspective, most courses are constructed on
about 150 to 160 acres.
“I would say what you get at Laurel Hill
is that Bill Love used the natural terrain to
design it, which is one of the beauties of
the course,” says Richard Wight, a Virginia
Beach resident who also has been an APL
committee member since 1999.
Since opening in the fall of 2005, Laurel
A host of former U.S. Amateur Public Links champions
went on to careers on the PGA Tour, including a
selection of notable former winners listed below.
a career on the PGA Tour and
the PGA European Tour when
he knocked off Ryuji Imada, 7
and 6.
“The biggest thing to me
was getting an invite to [the
Masters],”
the South
African golfer
told www.
masters.com
this year.
“That was the biggest highlight
of my amateur career.”
BILLY MAYFAIR
1986: Before going on to
win the 1987 U.S. Amateur,
Mayfair put his name on the
U.S. Amateur Public Links
Championship Trophy by
outlasting Jim Sorenson, 2
and 1, at Tanglewood Park in
Clemmons, N.C.
“At the Public Links I was
grinding so hard,” Mayfair
says. “To win a USGA event,
it’s like winning a major. They
can never
take it away
from you
and they can
never take
your name off
the trophy.”
Hill has hosted sectional qualifying for
the U.S. Amateur Public Links and the
U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links
championship, as well as welcoming the
Virginia State Golf Association Public
Links Championship from 2008-10.
All that was missing from its résumé was a
USGA event. It was academic. But how did
it come about?
In October 2005, according to Mason,
the club was approached by a former APL
committee member.
“He asked us if we’d be interested in
hosting the championship,” Mason says.
“We drafted a letter to the USGA and
expressed a willingness to do this.”
McCarthy visited the club in 2009, two
years after the modest full-service clubhouse
was constructed. He felt it was a “nice strong
golf course,” which featured five par 3s and
has “great variety.” The USGA will keep the
par 3s intact for the championship, on hole
Nos. 4, 8, 11, 14 and 16. At this point, the
course will set up to play 7,022 yards and to a
par of 70. However, that is subject to change
at the USGA’s discretion.
Just as Chambers Bay golf course in
Aside from Moore and
Knost, Mayfair is the only other
golfer to win the APL and U.S.
Amateur.
JODIE MUDD
1980 and 1981: Mudd, who
would go on to win four times
on the PGA Tour, defeated Rick
Gordon, 9 and 8, at Edgewood
Tahoe Golf
Club in
Stateline,
Nev., for
his first
APL victory.
The next
year, at Bear Creek Golf World
(Masters Course) in Houston,
Texas, Mudd would join Carl
Kauffmann (1927-29) and
Richard Sikes (1961-62) as
one of three players in the
championship’s history to win
at least two times in a row
when he defeated Billy Tuten,
3 and 2.
Other past U.S. Amateur
Public Links champions who
have gone on to play the PGA
Tour, include the likes of Colt
Knost (2007), Chez Reavie
(2001), D.J. Trahan (2000) and
Hunter Haas (1999).
University Place, Wash., offers its own unique
charm, so too does Laurel Hill. (Chambers
Bay, which opened in 2007, was formerly a
sand-and-gravel quarry and popular with offroad four-wheelers and dirt bikers).
For instance, at Laurel Hill Love designed
holes 10 through 14 near the former
maximum security complex that features
dormitories encircled by guard towers and
fences. Near the 11th tee, a 164-yard par 3, a
rusting white silo sits among farm buildings
where the inmates operated the dairy
output. These days, the sightline provides
an ambiance few other public courses could
showcase. Love crafted the booming 612yard par-5 15th hole, in particular, from the
prison guards’ shooting and tear gas practice
range. Another unique characteristic of the
course is that the tee markers are carved in
the shape of guard towers.
“When the players complete their rounds,
they will use all the clubs in their bag,”
McCarthy says of the 156-player field.
Author Ken Klavon is a writer from
Somerset, N.J., and a regular contributor
to Virginia Golfer.
21
AT&T National Preview
Ready
to ROAR
A day after the third round of last year’s event was
closed to spectators because of debris from a
violent wind storm, fans returned in full force in the
final round to see Tiger Woods win an inward nine
duel with Bo Van Pelt.
A year after weather wrought some havoc on Tiger Woods’
tournament, the PGA Tour’s top players sweep back into
the nation’s capital (this time hoping for no accompanying
direcho) | by Leonard Shapiro
early that memorable Saturday morning last
year a few hours before the third round of
the AT&T National golf tournament was
set to begin.
“Driving in and listening to the radio, I
knew it was bad,” says Lyberger, the longtime
head PGA golf professional at the storied
course. “But until you saw the magnitude of
the damage, it was just unbelievable.”
The night before, a wickedly devastating
storm had whipped through the Washington
area, leaving a trail of broken power and
telephone lines, snapped trees and wrecked
roofs. Congressional’s Blue Course took
a direct hit from a straight-line wind also
22
knows as a direcho, a word Lyberger had
never heard until that fateful day.
In its wake, more than 40 trees went down
around the course, including one that fell
across the 14th fairway. Not a single hole had
been spared, with all manner of ponderous
branches, twigs, leaves and other debris
scattered inside and outside the gallery
ropes. There was no power, no telephone
service on the club grounds, and the entire
front entrance to the property off nearby
River Road was impassable.
When spectators arrive at the golf course
for the 2013 edition of the AT&T National
from June 27-30, Tiger Woods’ signature
event on the PGA Tour, they will find
a pristine, superbly-manicured 7,500-yard,
par-71 venue of the type they are used to
seeing at every stop they make. But a year
ago, the scene players witnessed when they
showed up that Saturday had to be seen to
be believed.
“The fact that we played golf today is
a minor miracle,” said Bo Van Pelt, who
Workers helped keep the 2012 tournament on track
by carrying branches from a tree that fell onto the
14th fairway at Congressional Country Club after a
massive storm blew through the previous evening.
finished as the runner-up to the eventual
champion, none other than Woods himself.
“It’s amazing what happens when Mother
Nature rears up like that.”
CLEANING UP CONGRESSIONAL
Even more amazing was the fact that they
played at all. When the elements occasionally
do wreak havoc during a tournament, course
superintendents at other clubs in the area
usually show up to help with a small army
of their own maintenance workers. But
because all the surrounding courses suffered
Top: ROB CARR/GETTY IMAGES; ASSOCIATED PRESS
J
John Lyberger will
never forget the horrific
scene he encountered
as he tried to drive into
Congressional Country
Club in Bethesda, Md.,
THE WASHINGTON POST
Last year, following strong storms, there
might’ve been 10 people watching Tiger
Woods and Bo Van Pelt hit their opening
drives on Saturday. “Tiger, this is a Bo Van
Pelt kind of crowd,” Van Pelt said. During
Sunday’s final round, there were more than
40,000 people surrounding the first tee.
“Hey, Bo,” Woods laughed. “This is a Tiger
Woods crowd.”
similar damage that day, the only helping
hands available were those of Congressional
workers, tournament personnel and a few
volunteers.
By the time the sun came up, a band
of about 40 early-arriving souls literally
walked shoulder-to-shoulder down every
hole, picking up or pushing aside anything
in their way between the ropes. A local tree
service also brought a small fleet of trucks
to help clear the largest impediments, and
instead of cheering crowds, the dominant
sound that morning was that of chainsaws
roaring all around the property.
“At first, we didn’t think we could get the
round in,” Lyberger says. “But somehow all
these people came together and managed
to get the course into playable condition.
It was an incredible effort by everyone to
get it done.”
The main focus of the initial cleanup was
everything inside the ropes. Areas beyond
that were also littered with all manner of
downed trees and other pedestrian-unfriendly
obstacles. Eventually, for what was believed to
be the first time in tour history, tournament
officials decided to conduct the entire third
round without spectators when the third
round finally did start early in the afternoon.
“I don’t know when the last one was, when
there was a competitive round without fans,”
said Greg McLaughlin, the tournament
director and the CEO of The Tiger Woods
Foundation. “So it is difficult [to take that
step]. But from a safety standpoint, it made
sense because you’re talking about 25,00030,000 people, and then you’re talking
about 2,000 volunteers. You have to be so
far out in front of that.”
That led to some unusual happenings
all around the course. A player would sink
a birdie putt, raise his arms in triumph
and suddenly realize there was no one
around to cheer his effort, though some
did doff their caps in appreciation of the
phantom spectators.
“It was a different experience,” says Billy
Hurley III, a native of Leesburg, Va., who
shot 66 that day and eventually tied for
fourth place, his best ever finish on tour. “It
was sort of peaceful out there. I don’t think
I’ll ever have that kind of experience again.”
When Woods and Van Pelt teed off on
their first hole in the final group Saturday,
there might have been 10 people watching
them hit their opening drives. Van Pelt went
up to Woods and said, “Tiger, this is a Bo
Van Pelt kind of crowd.”
The next day, with more than 40,000 fans
on the grounds, many of them surrounding
the first tee, Woods walked up to Van Pelt
and said, “Hey Bo, this is a Tiger Woods
crowd.”
STRONG FIELD EXPECTED
Things got a bit more serious as the day
wore on. The players were tied going into
the 16th hole, but three straight bogeys by
Van Pelt ultimately led to a two-shot Woods
victory, the 74th of his career. It also pushed
him past Jack Nicklaus on the all-time list,
and only eight behind Sam Snead’s record
82 wins at the time.
Woods, of course, will be back to defend
his title and will be aiming for his third
career AT&T National victory. Because
the tournament is two weeks after the U.S.
Open, officials also expect to have a stellar
field on hand at Congressional, a course
that will have the event at least through the
2014 season. Club members will likely vote
after this year’s tournament on whether to
exercise an option that would keep it there
through 2017, and the conventional wisdom
is that such an agreement is expected to pass
by a narrow margin.
Players this year will find only a few subtle
changes to the course. An extra bunker has
been placed down the left side of the 402yard first hole requiring a 325-yard carry
to clear the sand. The tree that went down
a year ago at the 467-yard 14th had been
strategically placed on the right side of the
fairway to make a difficult approach to the
green for any drive wandering too far right.
It has not been replaced.
Other than that, it’s the same challenging
tree-lined, parkland-style golf course.
Assuming, of course, that another dreaded
direcho doesn’t strike again.
“I’d like to think that’s a once-in-alifetime situation,” Lyberger says. “This year,
it should definitely be a little less stressful.”
A longtime sportwriter for The Washington
Post, award-winning journalist Leonard
Shapiro is a contributor to Virginia Golfer.
AT&T National
When: Thursday-Sunday,
June 27-30, 2013
Where: Congressional Country Club,
Bethesda, Md.
Purse: $6.5 million
($1.17 million to the winner)
Tickets, Volunteer Information and
National Military ticket distribution:
Please visit the tournament’s official
website at www.attnational.org.
BELOW: Keeping with the event’s
commitment to honor the men and
women who serve our country, Woods
greeted Master Gunnery Sgt. Anthony
Russell, who announced the golfers at
the first tee during third round action at
last year's AT&T National.
23
The Greenbrier Classic
Uncovered and Established
Now entering its fourth year, players return to one of America’s grandest resorts
at a stop that has quickly become popular on the PGA Tour | by Mitch Vingle
Around the PGA Tour, it was Masters
week. Yet Greenbrier resort owner Jim
Justice was at home this particular Tuesday.
He’s a wealthy businessman. He’s a high
school basketball coach for both boys and
girls. But on this day, he was keeping busy
another way.
“I’m shelling soy beans,” Justice said.
That’s the Justice those in West Virginia
have come to love. And that’s the Justice those
around the PGA Tour have come to know
and admire. He’s a down-home man with a
soft spot for golf, especially the Greenbrier
Classic, which again will be held on the
resort’s Old White TPC from July 4-7.
As the fourth Classic approaches, it’s
worthy of reflection on its growth. In 2010,
the event’s first year, many compared the
Old White to a pin cushion or dartboard.
Australian Stuart Appleby punctuated the
action by firing a rare final-round 59, the first
such score on a par-70 course. J.B. Holmes
shot a 60, D.A. Points had a 61 and Jeff
Overton carded a 62.
Then the course was revamped. Greens
were reworked. Length was added to 7,274
yards. And some of the tour’s biggest names
began to show. In year two, Appleby was
put in a group of three with Greenbrier
professional emeritus Tom Watson and fan
favorite Phil Mickelson. The down side: all
three missed the 36-hole cut.
HOPEFUL OF STAR ATTRACTION
Still there was drama for the CBS cameras.
Rookie Scott Stallings won on the first extra
hole. Few who attended will forget him running down the hill from the clubhouse to the
18th tee to participate in the playoff against
Bill Haas and Bob Estes.
Then came last year’s coup de grace for
Justice. Tiger Woods visited the Mountain
State’s gem of a resort. Justice had not only
Woods, but Mickelson in the field. They only
played two rounds, though as neither player
made it to the weekend.
“I was speaking at a ‘Birdies for the Brave’
For Greenbrier Classic ticket and volunteer information, as well as additional
tournament facts, please visit www.greenbrierclassic.com or call (888) 598-7380.
event at [TPC] Sawgrass,” Justice says. “Phil
was there and I said, ‘You have to do three
things to be a friend. You have to tell them
a secret, make a confession and ask a favor.’
“I told him there are certifiable rednecks in
West Virginia. I confessed that getting him in
our tournament was one of the biggest things
to happen to me. And as for the favor, I told
him he’s got to make the cut!”
Still, there was drama. Ted Potter Jr. roared
through the final four holes and survived
three extra holes to triumph and again strike
a blow for PGA Tour rookies, winning
$1.098 million.
“We’re working hard again on all the bigname guys,” Justice says. “Phil [Mickelson],
Tiger [Woods], Sergio [Garcia] ... some of
the international players, like Rory [McIlroy]
have conflicts, like the Irish Open. That hurts
a little with the European players. But our
tournament was named best of its class––and
that was after one of our worst storms ever.”
MAKEOVER FROM MOTHER NATURE
Ah, yes. The storm. The weekend before last
year’s Classic, West Virginia was hit by severe
derecho winds. Around 50 trees across the
Old White grounds fell and it took 200 volunteers to restore the course’s pristine nature.
“All the damage from the storm has
been cleaned and removed,” says course
superintendent Kelly Shumate. “We lost a
64-foot sycamore tree to the left of No. 16.
Some large oaks and pine trees fell.”
The loss of one of the oaks, however,
allowed for an improvement for this year’s
event. The par-3 18th has a new teeing
ground, which provides competitors with a
different angle option.
“The hole has gone from 162 to 175
yards,” says tournament director Monte
Ortel. “If players were typically swinging
a 7- or 8-iron, they’ll have to go back to
their bags. It will be exciting to see how the
professionals handle it.”
Fans flock to the par-3 18th, a hole that has
provided late dramatics. INSET: Jim Justice, the
Greenbrier’s resort owner, has created a welcoming
atmosphere that has attracted top stars to the
rolling hills of West Virginia.
24
STEVE HELBER/AP PHOTO; INSET: SCOTT HALLERAN/GETTY IMAGES
I
It was a warm and
sunny day in White
Sulphur Springs, W.Va.,
in early April.
Concert Series
Rolls On, Adds to
Event’s Popularity
One of the most novel aspects of
the Greenbrier Classic is its Concert
Series.
And what a treat it is.
Those making the short drive
from White Sulphur Springs, W.Va.,
where the golf tournament is held,
to the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea
are treated to quite a spectacle. An
estimated 50,000 can pack a hillside
facing a stage that’s held quite an
assortment of talent.
“It adds quite a different flavor,”
says Greenbrier tournament director
Monte Ortel. “Not many PGA
[Tour] events combine golf with
international singing acts.”
In just three years, the Series
has hosted acts like the Black Eyed
Peas and Keith Urban. Last year,
Greenbrier owner Jim Justice went
the extra mile. He had country
music superstar Toby Keith in for the
Fourth of July spectacular.
But that wasn’t all. Also in for
the event were Lionel Richie, Rod
Stewart and rock bands The Fray
and Bon Jovi.
This time around, the Classic will
host country star Kenny Chesney
and rock band Aerosmith.
Chesney will perform at 8:30 p.m.
on July 4 and Aerosmith will be on
stage on Saturday, July 6 at
8:30 p.m. Admission to the Series
is included in the price of a weekly
tournament badge, which is priced
from $199 per person.
“Kenny Chesney will be the
blowout of blowouts,” Justice says.
“He is the man. We try to find the
best acts.”
The thousands that pack that
Fairlea hillside prove that Justice
usually gets it right. — Mitch Vingle
All eyes were on the likes of top-tier competitors like
Phil Mickelson and others during their starts last year.
TEST AT EVERY TURN
HOMEGROWN PRIDE
STEVE HELBER/AP PHOTOs (2)
That’s never been the case. And the PGA
Tour has taken notice. It has extended the
tournament’s contract through 2021. It
makes Justice’s chest puff.
“My whole thing is to make the everyday
West Virginian a little more proud,” says
the resort owner. “We want to show West
Virginia to the world. We’ve been beaten
down enough through the years.
“People come up to me and say, ‘Thank
you.’ That means the world to me. That’s
why I try to put on the biggest show on earth.
I love our people. I love our state. We’re
trying to continue to add new and better
things. We don’t ever want this to get stale.”
It shows not only by staging the event,
but by the charitable endeavors taken on
by Justice’s group. His ‘Badges for Charity’
program has funneled millions of dollars to
state and national causes. A Youth Day is held
on the Tuesday of the event.
Author Mitch Vingle is sports editor of
The Charleston Gazette in Charleston, W.Va.,
and a regular contributor to Virginia Golfer.
“I said to Phil [Mickelson], ‘You have to do three
things to be a friend. You have to tell them a
secret, make a confession and ask a favor.’
I told him there are certifiable rednecks in
West Virginia. I confessed that getting him in
our tournament was one of the biggest things to
happen to me. And as for the favor, I told him
he’s got to make the cut!”
— GREENBRIER RESORT OWNER JIM JUSTICE
Country music star Kenny Chesney
will be one of the featured acts leading
up to tournament time.
AP PHOTO
A determined Ted Potter Jr. finished eagle-birdie
before going on to prevail in a playoff and register his
first PGA Tour win at the 2012 Greenbrier Classic.
There is also the event’s Concert Series,
which this year will feature Kenny Chesney.
The players, however, seem to be intrigued
by the Old White.
“It’s an old, almost links-style course in a
mountain setting,” Shumate says. “We have
the dragon’s teeth and fescue. It’s similar to
Scottish links-style courses.”
The course has been through a 12-year
project in an attempt to return to the course’s
original architecture. This year, the Old
White will play 7,301 yards.
At press time it was too early to tell if
Woods, Mickelson and other “big-name”
players would attend. Ortel says the past
champions all have indicated a desire to
return. Ditto Brendan Steele and Greg
Owen. Watson is “unofficially” set to play.
“It’s his intention to play,” Ortel says.
The tournament director, by the way,
is also new. Tim McNeely moved on and
Ortel assumed the position after working
at Nemecolin, Turning Stone and all three
years at The Greenbrier.
He has his work cut out recruiting.
“We’re hopeful Phil comes back and we’re
really working on Tiger,” Justice says. “I
know both had a good time. A lot of people,
though, are now pulling at Tiger.”
If anyone, however, can get the job done,
it’s Justice. He can pull––and shell––with the
best of them.
25
Small Town Junior
With Big Dreams
Kolton Cooper is
not the presumed
prototype golfer from
The First Tee program.
He’s not an underprivileged urban kid
with an intricate understanding of city bus
routes or a sixth sense in street smarts.
In fact, if you travel to Cooper’s smalltown home in rural Franklin County,
just over the mountain from Roanoke,
you might find this slender country
boy fixing divots in his front yard after
smacking a couple dozen balls into an
adjacent cow pasture.
“What are we known for in Franklin
County?” Cooper asks, repeating a
question. “Honestly? Moonshine.”
But he hopes he can change that
reputation someday. Cooper would like to
think that the game he has used to climb
from childhood despair to eventually
earning a college degree––and maybe even
future status as a playing professional––
will give folks something to talk about
other than distilled spirits from the leafy
creeks of his native Virginia foothills.
Last fall, Cooper, 17, became the only
player from the Western Valley District to
qualify for the state’s Virginia High School
League Group AAA state tournament.
And what other teen from the dusty roads
of Franklin County can say he has played
golf with the likes of Webb Simpson, or
spent a week finding fairways at Pebble
Beach, or frequently texts Champions Tour
professional Jim Gallagher Jr. for advice?
COURAGE TO PERSEVERE
No, Kolton Cooper didn’t win the lottery; he did better than that. He walked
into The First Tee of Roanoke Valley one
day as a disillusioned, 12-year-old child
estranged from his father and emerged as
a young man firmly focused on the future.
“He was going through a lot with his
dad, and The First Tee program became
a part of what I think he was missing
from a real father,” says Cooper’s mother,
Myrandi Cooper. “He had his eyes opened
in that program, and he stood a little
taller––a little prouder.”
But it has been a process.
Cooper’s uncle, Dwayne Hodges, saw a
boy hungry for a father figure. The child’s
A Franklin County
High School student,
Cooper (right) with
friend Drew Board
of Roanoke got to
play a few holes with
Webb Simpson at
the PGA Tour’s 2010
Greenbrier Classic.
26
by Lisa D. Mickey
Kolton Cooper’s willingness to set his own course
has helped stoke his success.
father disappeared from his life when
Cooper was 11, so Hodges stepped up
and took him hunting and bowling. But
when Uncle Dwayne put a golf club in the
youngster’s hands and the family signed
him up for The First Tee program, nobody
guessed what would come next.
“Kolton just appeared one day from
Franklin County,” says Mary Beth McGirr,
director of programming and instruction at
The First Tee of Roanoke Valley. “He was
a struggling student with a golf handicap
of 25. Now, he’s getting ready to graduate
from high school with honors and has
a handicap of 1. He has turned into our
‘poster boy’ at The First Tee.”
Cooper’s mother or grandmother would
drive him 45 minutes to The First Tee
facility, where McGirr, an LPGA Master
Professional, would tweak his fundamentals
in the game. But as he moved through the
program’s various proficiency levels in
golf, McGirr was also there to reinforce
the program’s emphasis on “life skills” and
“core values.” Juniors learned about goal
setting, and were encouraged to practice
TOP: THE FRANKLIN NEWS POST; THE FIRST TEE OF ROANOKE VALLEY
K
Determined mindset buoys Roanoke Valley youth Kolton Cooper’s growth |
sound judgment, respect and responsibility.
Those principles were tested one day
when Cooper, while practicing at The
First Tee, committed a teenage blunder
that drew the ire of the golf course
superintendent at neighboring Roanoke
Country Club.
The First Tee uses the shorter-flying
Cayman balls, but Cooper, who averages
around 290 yards off the tee, wanted to
work on his driver in preparation for
a tournament. He pulled out a bag of
regulation golf balls and laced ball after
ball over a fence, not thinking about his
shots leaving ball marks on the greens at
adjacent Roanoke Country Club.
“I confronted Kolton and asked
him, ‘What do you think we should do
about this?’ ” McGirr recalls. “He was
embarrassed, but said that he would write
a letter of apology to the superintendent.
He was a kid being a kid, but it was a life
lesson that day.”
THE FIRST TEE OF ROANOKE VALLEY
ROUNDS, WORDS TO REMEMBER
Cooper’s average scores dropped from 100
to 85, to around par, and with that improvement came new opportunities in golf.
During his freshman year of high school,
he earned a one-week scholarship to attend
Hank Haney’s International Junior Golf
Academy in Hilton Head Island, S.C.
Haney worked directly with the teen and
gave him some mental golf strategies. The
next week, Cooper came home and carded
a round in the mid 60s.
He also got to play in the 2010 First
Tee Scramble portion of Youth Day
presented by Polo Golf at the PGA Tour’s
Greenbrier Classic. Representing Roanoke
Valley, Cooper was paired with Webb
Simpson for four holes.
“I saw sheer joy on Kolton’s face and he
couldn’t stop smiling,” McGirr says. “I don’t
think he wanted that day to end.”
As a high school sophomore, he qualified
to play in the 2011 Nature Valley First Tee
Open at Pebble Beach. The summer event
was held in conjunction with a Champions
Tour tournament. The juniors played
rounds at Del Monte Golf Course and at
Pebble Beach Golf Links. If they made the
36-hole cut, they would play another round
at Pebble Beach. Cooper made the cut and
spent three days playing alongside tour
veteran Jim Gallagher Jr.
“Jim made Kolton feel pretty special,”
says Cooper’s mom, Myrandi, a single mom
who works in the office of a feed company
in Franklin County.
“He hasn’t forgotten about me and I still
text him,” Cooper adds. “Jim told me to never
give up and to always give 100 percent.”
Of course, that trip to California required
Cooper to board an airliner for the first
time––an experience he called “awesome.”
It also required some new additions to his
wardrobe prior to the trip. The teen didn’t
own a coat and tie, so a member of The
First Tee’s board took Cooper to a Men’s
Warehouse store to properly outfit him for
a dinner at the Pebble Beach tournament.
“Mary Beth brought him home one
day and he had a new blazer,” Myrandi
Cooper says. “He said, ‘Mama, they took
me shopping.’ He modeled for me and was
so proud.”
He knows how
to work, and
because of golf, he
can envision good
things ahead.
LEARNING PROCESS CONTINUES
Of course, his mother felt a sense of fulfillment as the honors kept coming. He
once again represented the Roanoke Valley
First Tee at the PGA Tour’s Greenbrier
Classic and was paired with tour professional Spencer Levin on his 16th birthday.
Cooper listened closely as the professional
described his own pitfalls before finally
landing on his feet on the circuit.
“Spencer told me that he had played
college golf, had some personal issues,
dropped out of college, went back to
college and worked hard to get to the PGA
Tour,” Cooper says. “Everybody makes
mistakes. I guess life has its ups and downs
for everybody.”
Last May, Cooper earned an exemption
through The First Tee to play in the Scott
Robertson Memorial Golf Tournament––
an amateur event won by such former
competitors as Simpson and Paula Creamer.
It was the junior golfer’s first national
tournament and his first event against
players from 22 different nations. Cooper
Cooper’s connection to golf and the friendships
that developed with the likes of Champions Tour
professional Jim Gallagher Jr. have been a lifeshaping experience.
felt the pressure and carded disappointing
rounds of 84-76.
“It was a big stage for him and a great
experience,” McGirr says. “Kolton is a kid
who has never had a paid golf lesson and
whose clubs came from The First Tee.
That week, he saw what it takes to get to
the next level.”
Cooper was among 24 juniors selected
nationwide last July to attend The First
Tee Advanced Academy in Dallas. He flew
by himself to Dallas and met other juniors
on common ground to play and learn in
the searing Texas summer heat.
A PATH TO OPPORTUNITY
By December 2012, he was named as one
of America’s 100 First Tee Scholars. The
straight-A student with a 4.1 grade-point
average will graduate with honors this
spring. He plans to study engineering in
college and hopes to play college golf.
“Getting into golf and joining The First
Tee program changed my life from the
smallest to the largest aspects,” Cooper says.
“It’s taught me ways to cope with life on and
off the golf course, and hopefully it will help
me support my mom in the future when I
graduate from college.”
He has already landed a summer job
through The First Tee of Roanoke Valley.
Cooper will help run the 4-H Camp’s golf
program at Smith Mountain Lake. And
when he’s not working with younger kids
in golf or practicing, Cooper may be found
working in a local bowling center, handing
out shoes at the front desk, selling food and
unsticking lodged pins and gutter balls.
He knows how to work, and because of
golf, he can envision good things ahead.
“I started at the very bottom,” Cooper
says, “I’m from a small town. Now I just
want to make a good name for myself and
my family.”
Author Lisa D. Mickey is a Florida-based writer
27
Your Game
Computer Lessons
P
More and more golfers are turning to technology for online swing instruction |
Picture yourself
standing in the
middle of the largest
library in the world.
Now telescope it out a few football fields
and up a couple hundred stories so that
you’re just a spec in this Grand Canyon of
books and videos, but all you have to do to
reach for something is move your fingers.
That’s the Internet.
Needless to say, it’s been a huge boon for
golfers. Not only can you get telecasts like
the Masters and U.S. Open streamed right
to your desktop, but individual websites like
Apps and websites
provide substantive tips
without having to go
through much of a hassle.
by Tom Cunneff
the Virginia State Golf Association’s (www.
vsga.org) make signing up for an event,
checking your Handicap Index, or posting
a score a snap.
Then, of course, there are all the
great URLs devoted to what’s going on
in the world of golf like golfdigest.com,
golfchannel.com and golf.com.
One of the fastest-growing areas of the
game on the Web involves online instruction,
with hundreds of free video tips housed
on sites. Not surprisingly, you’ll also find
many really good ones on The PGA of
America’s pga.com, as well as on many niche
sites, like major winner Steve Elkington’s
secretinthedirt.com (the name comes from
Ben Hogan’s claim that his “secret” was in the
dirt, i.e., a lot of practice).
For a $15 monthly subscription (or $124 a
year), revolutiongolf.com offers about 1,000
videos from a number of top-100 instructors,
including many step-by-step series on all
aspects of the game, including fitness. There
are also some very good fitness videos, as well
as ones on understanding equipment and
proper clubfitting.
The good thing about Revolution Golf
is that all the instructors share a common
teaching philosophy, but generally speaking
you’re opening up a Pandora’s Box when
you go searching the Internet for a swing fix,
because what works for someone else might
not necessarily work for you.
A better solution is an online lesson based
on a video of your swing. While nothing
will ever replace the quality and success of
an in-person lesson, or better yet, a series
of lessons with a good PGA professional,
some online golf lessons are cost- and timeeffective. Two of the best are GolfTec’s
myprotogo.com (in conjunction with Golf
Magazine) and Golf Channel’s swingfix.com.
Both allow you to upload videos of your
swing and get personal analysis from a top
teacher for a very reasonable fee (starting
at $39 and $30 respectively). I opted for
SwingFix and couldn’t have been more
pleased with the outcome.
First, I downloaded the Golf Channel
Academy app to my smartphone and used the
“Capture Swing” feature to record my shots
28
EVERETT COLLECTION
SITES’ PROFILE
top: illustration by touchpoint media; TOM CUNNEFF
One of the fastest-growing areas of the game
on the Web involves online instruction, with
hundreds of free video tips housed on sites.
While nothing will ever replace the quality
and success of an in-person lesson, or
better yet, a series of lessons with a good
PGA professional, some online golf lessons
are cost- and time-effective.
on the range both from behind and headon angles. I then tapped the “Take Lesson”
button to select an instructor (there are more
than 60 highly-regarded teachers), easily
uploaded my videos, described my problem,
and paid the $30 fee through my App Store
account. I thought it was a pretty good deal
given that most top teachers charge $100 an
hour or more. (The app also contains filtered
access to more than 500 videos.)
Within a few hours, I received an e-mail
that my SwingFix lesson was ready. A few taps
later, I was watching an excellent, 10-minute
analysis from Karen Palacios-Jansen, the
PGA director of instruction at Swing Blade
Enterprises in Mooresville, N.C., (of course,
you can also watch it on your iPad or laptop,
if you prefer). I had written that I was having
trouble setting the club in the backswing and
getting my wrists to hinge properly.
Comparing my video side-by-side to a tour
professional’s, Palacios-Jansen gave an astute
voiceover analysis, starting with the fact that
my shaft at address pointed to my midsection
while the featured tour player’s shaft pointed
more to the left side of his chest. Additionally,
she drew yellow lines superimposed from
the clubhead up the shafts on the videos to
reinforce this observation.
“The butt end of the club is actually
behind the ball,” she noted, before
advancing the video ahead a few frames to
where my hands were in front of my right
thigh while the clubhead was still straight
get golf tips from top professional teachers
without being a member of an exclusive golf
club,” Palacios-Jansen says. “It has been great
for my business because people have access
to my information without having to travel
to see me.
“This 10-minute time frame doesn’t
bog down students with theory or heavy
analysis that is hard to process and
remember. With this new technology, the
student can watch their lesson several
times and have access to video tips from
the professional on their phone.”
NEW WAYS TO LEARN
Golfers can record their swing using a device’s camera
and have a professional compare your positions to
a tour player’s swing and give instant feedback.
down close to the ground. “You’re doing a
lot of work with your body.”
As my backswing continued, she dissected
my motion.
“At this point,” she pointed out, “the
clubhead should already be working up and
your right hand should have a little bit of
an angle.”
To get the clubhead moving faster than
my body, she also included a “box drill”
video tip where you start the swing by
pushing a box of a dozen balls straight back
with the clubhead. SwingFix also gives you
three days to continue a dialogue with your
instructor and ask him or her questions,
but the best part is being able to watch the
analysis over and over.
“Online video lessons are a great way to
Other good fee-based instruction websites
include jimmclean.com ($21 to $33 a
lesson), rotaryswing.com ($20 for two
lessons and access to dozens of videos,
including frame-by-frame swings of pros),
and swingsurgeon.com by Don Trahan and
his PGA Tour-winning son, D.J. Trahan
($40 to $100).
One of the brightest guys in the game,
Paul Azinger, has a golf instruction series
called Golfplan for your smartphone
that’s only $5 in the App Store. It works in
conjunction with a GPS app called GolfShot
($30), which tracks your stats (albeit with a
lot of on-course input) to identify weaknesses
that Azinger’s short, punchy videos will help
you with in the process.
Similarly, Golf Digest has partnered with
another GPS app, GolfLogix, to turn your
smartphone into a little teaching academy.
For a $20 yearly subscription (the app is also
$20), Golf Digest will deliver content to your
palm not long after you walk off the course
based on the statistical tendencies during the
round. So, after grabbing a bite to eat, you
can hit the range with purpose.
The secret will always be in the dirt, but
these days it’s also in the digital.
Author Tom Cunneff is a writer from Hilton
Head, S.C., and a regular contributor to
Virginia Golfer.
29
Weekender
Nature’s Calling
C
National park sites preserve resources, honor heritage |
Consider yourself a
history buff?
Then you’ll recognize some of these
names—Jamestown, Yorktown, George
Washington, Stonewall Jackson and
Maggie Walker.
Consider yourself a nature lover?
Then you might recognize these—Old
Rag Mountain, Humpback Rocks, the
Potomac River, Assateague Island and the
Chesapeake Bay.
Favor the performing arts? Does Wolf
Trap ring a bell?
All these names have a common tie—
they are linked to national park sites in
Virginia that honor the resources, history
and heritage of not only the Old Dominion
but the nation at large as well.
So if you buckle up your seatbelt and lace
up your hiking boots, we can take a tour of
some treasures the National Park Service
offers in the commonwealth and beyond.
by Lee Graves
(A note: Budget constraints have affected
schedules and programs at many sites. Call
or check online to plan your visits.)
Heading North
We start our journey on Afton Mountain,
where the Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge
Parkway meet. For the moment, we will set
our sights northward, but we’ll be back. If
you’re 62 or older, consider spending $10
for a lifetime pass for all National Park
Service sites.
Shenandoah National Park, though
started with no federal funding, has proved
a wise investment in natural resources
since its dedication in 1936. Spread over
196,000 acres from Rockfish Gap to Front
Royal, the park has more than 500 miles of
hiking and horse trails that showcase the
flora, fauna and vistas of the Blue Ridge
Mountains.
For motorists, the Skyline Drive has 75
overlooks along 105 miles of gentle curves
and rolling ridges. In addition to the views,
you might spy whitetail deer, black bears
or other wildlife. If you like rare plants, Big
Meadows (Milepost 51) has the highest
concentration of the 66 rare plant species
in the park.
If you prefer paths to pavement, Old
Rag Mountain is popular among hikers
as “the most spectacular mountain in
the northern Virginia Blue Ridge,” says
one booklet. The trek is not to be taken
lightly, however.
“It’s challenging,” says Karen BeckHerzog, Shenandoah National Park’s
public affairs officer. “People must be
prepared; they must have hiked before.
And people should plan on a full day of
hiking.”
Another favorite hike is to Rapidan
Camp (Milepost 52.6), a complex that
President Herbert Hoover used for trout
fishing as well as affairs of state.
MLADEN ANTONOV/GETTY IMAGES
Shenandoah National Park
offers spectacular vistas.
30
V i r g i n i a G o l f e r | M aY
ay / J U
uN
ne
E 2013
THE WASHINGTON POST/GETTY IMAGES
The Appalachian Trail also weaves
through the park on its 2,184-mile path
linking Georgia and Maine. Just follow
the white blazes painted on the trees.
Those blazes will lead you to Harpers
Ferry, home of the Appalachian Trail’s
headquarters and site of Harpers Ferry
National Historical Park. But before we
head there, let’s swing east to Manassas
National Battlefield Park.
Dedicated in 1940, the park pays homage
to the first battle in the greatest armed
struggle on our continent. The Battle of
Bull Run pitted untested and untrained
troops of both Union and Confederate
armies on a hot Sunday in July 1861.
Fierce fighting led to a Union rout and
“the end of innocence,” says a display at
the Henry Hill Visitor Center.
That’s a good place to start a tour of
the park, which also commemorates a
second conflict in 1862. Inside, a display
traces the fighting with lighted buttons,
and cases show uniforms and weapons
of the day. Outside, an imposing statue
of Confederate Gen. Thomas J. Jackson
marks ground where he earned the
nickname “Stonewall.”
If you have a smart phone or tablet, the
Bull Run Battle App is a useful tool for
the visit.
Stonewall Jackson provides a link to
Harpers Ferry. He witnessed the hanging
of John Brown, the abolitionist who
attempted to seize the armory there in
1859. Brown, his cause and his fate are
detailed at one of the town’s museums.
The park also traces the town’s
importance as a center of commerce
and industry at the confluence of the
Shenandoah and Potomac rivers. You can
ride a shuttle into town or hike trails along
the bluffs in three states; Loudoun Heights
showcases the Virginia view. Speaking of
which, one key attraction is “Jefferson’s
Rock,” where the man of Monticello
proclaimed the vista “perhaps one of the
most stupendous scenes in nature.”
The importance of the Potomac River
serves as the focal point for the Potomac
Heritage National Scenic Trail. Spread across
four states, the 830-mile network of locally
managed sections links opportunities for
biking, boating, hiking and horse riding.
Another multistate network is the StarSpangled Banner National Historic Trail,
which traces events of the War of 1812 and
the evolution of our national anthem.
Before leaving northern Virginia, check
out two other National Park Service
features. Wolf Trap National Park for the
Performing Arts in McLean is truly unique;
the only national park dedicated to the
performing arts. The music alone ranges
from country to jazz; the full repertoire
encompasses far more. The Filene Center,
13 stories tall, is a monument in itself,
and youngsters have their own Children’s
Theatre-in-the-Woods during the summer.
One of the prettiest drives in the region
is along the George Washington Memorial
Parkway, which extends from Turkey Run
Park in the north to Mount Vernon in
the south. Pack a picnic lunch and visit
sites such as the Alexandria Waterfront,
the Jones Point Lighthouse and the U.S.
Marine Corps War Memorial.
Speaking of Marines, the Quantico
base borders Prince William Forest Park,
a 17,000-acre pocket of peace and quiet
with 37 miles of trails and a diverse history.
Once the home of Algonquin Indians,
it took shape as a retreat for inner city
children, and even served as a training base
for spies in World War II.
Heading East
Before he became Father of Our Country,
Washington was the Baby of Pope’s
Creek. The George Washington Birthplace
National Monument in Westmoreland
County honors where Washington came
into the world in 1732 as well as the burial
site of five generations of his family.
The larger canvas of the country’s
birth unfolds to the south at Colonial
National Historical Park, where Yorktown
and Jamestown stand as bookends of
The scenic views of national parks throughout the
region make for a relaxing getaway.
early history. At the Yorktown Battlefield,
interpreters explain how elements of
terrain, artillery, timing and tactics played
into the hands of allied American and
French forces to isolate and besiege the
British in 1781. The victory sealed in
blood what had been written in ink.
“We told the world in 1776 that we
were independent by the Declaration of
Independence, but we weren’t independent
yet,” Park Ranger Robbie Smith told one
tour group.
At the other end of the 23-mile Colonial
Parkway—all roads should be so scenic and
civilized—Historic Jamestowne turns back
the hands of time to 1607. You can see
excavations of the original James Fort built
by the English settlers, watch re-enactors
demonstrate glass blowing and see relics
from the land’s earliest inhabitants.
Before leaving Tidewater and the
Eastern Shore, check out Assateague
Island National Seashore in Accomack
County (and into Maryland). Migratory
birds and other wildlife, including wild
horses, abound in the 48,000 acres.
The bay area is also a good starting point
on the Captain John Smith Chesapeake
National Historic Trail. You can follow
the exploits of Smith and his crew as
they explored about 3,000 miles mapping
their New World. The park service links
numerous existing trails for boaters,
geocachers, cyclists and hikers. Like Smith,
the adventurous type can navigate the
James River all the way to Richmond,
31
where more adventures await.
As the capital of the Confederacy,
Richmond was the bull’s-eye in the Union’s
target to win the Civil War. Engagements
at Seven Pines, Malvern Hill and Gaines
Mill are interpreted in the Richmond
National Battlefield Park, which embraces
13 sites with four visitor centers along
an 80-mile loop. The park documents
far more, however, than troop conflicts.
The residents’ ordeals, the industry of
Tredegar Iron Works and the suffering
of African-Americans are told in gripping
detail through podcasts, tours, interactive
media and exhibits.
The conclusion of the war is also well
represented at Appomattox Court House
National Historical Park northeast of
Appomattox. Ringed by windswept fields,
the cluster of buildings includes the
reconstructed courthouse—now a visitor
center—a general store, a tavern, and the
fabled McLean House. There, Union Gen.
Ulysses S. Grant met Confederate Gen.
Robert E. Lee to arrange surrender by
exchanging letters.
“I have people tell me that this was
where the surrender documents were
signed. There is no such thing,” park
volunteer Warren Taylor told a group of
schoolchildren on a brisk spring day. “It
was the exchange of two letters between
two commanding generals.”
After the war, black culture flourished in
places such as Richmond’s Jackson Ward.
A prime player in that scene was Maggie
Walker, whose stature as a banker and
civic leader is featured at Maggie L. Walker
National Historic Site. Her home on Leigh
Street became a center of business and
social life, and today you can still see the
original furnishings.
A friend and fellow activist of Walker’s
was Booker T. Washington, whose influence
as an author and educator made him one of
the most prominent African-Americans of
his day. The Booker T. Washington National
Monument marks his birthplace in Franklin
County as a slave in 1856, and you can walk
trails to reconstructions of farm buildings
that stood in the 19th century.
Heading west and south
On the westward trail, you can pass
through the Green Springs National
Historic Landmark District in Louisa
County. Privately owned, the territory
includes no public facilities, but motorists
on State Route 15 can look for the sites
of Green Springs Plantation, Ionia and
Prospect Hill.
The perfect drive: Those travelling along the Blue
Ridge Parkway are treated to an abundance of
breathtaking foliage.
Climbing Afton Mountain, we return to
our starting point, only this time we head
southwest on the venerable Blue Ridge
Parkway. Now in its 77th year, the parkway
encompasses more than 80,000 acres along
its 469 miles, about 217 of which are in
Virginia.
A popular spot just 5.8 miles from the
northern entrance is Humpback Rocks.
Visitors can clamber up to the promontory
for a sweeping view, then explore the
outdoor farm museum and visitor center.
To the south, you’ll find the twin Peaks of
Otter, Flat Top and Sharp Top, overlooking
Bedford County.
Just this side of the North Carolina line,
the Blue Ridge Music Center stands as a
top-notch performing venue, as well as a
showcase for the fiddle-and-banjo heritage
of the mountains’ musical culture.
You can download a mobile app, “The
Blue Ridge Parkway Travel Planner,” to
guide your travels, plus the National Park
Service website, www.nps.gov, links to a
virtual experience with “Driving Through
Time—the Digital Blue Ridge Parkway.”
For our final stop, head west to where
the toe of Virginia tickles Tennessee and
Amphitheaters at the world-class Filene Center at
Wolf Trap play host to a variety of performances
throughout the year.
32
LEFT: THE WASHINGTON POST/GETTY IMAGES; CHICAGO TRIBUNE/GETTY IMAGES
Weekender
At Spring Creek, New
Clubhouse Pivotal to Plans
for Private Membership
I
n late March, Spring Creek Golf
Club near Charlottesville unveiled
plans for a long-awaited clubhouse.
Among the amenities in the proposed
13,000-square-foot structure will be
a fully-furnished golf shop, men’s and
women’s locker rooms, as well as a bar, tap
room, member lounge and event space to
accommodate seating of 150 individuals.
Spring Creek officials plan to have
everything finalized by the time the club
hosts next year’s VSGA Amateur.
“The goal is to break ground in June to
mid-summer, with hopes of completion
in the spring of 2014 prior to hosting the
Amateur,” says Brian Vincel, the club’s
general manager.
It’s a safe bet that the sightlines will be
terrific. New and expansive restaurant patio
seating will provide a visual connection with
the surrounding landscape that includes
rock wall terraces overlooking the lake
abutting the dramatic 18th hole.
“We want to create a relaxing environment
for club members,” Vincel says.
Opened in 2006 as a semiprivate, allbentgrass facility, the layout was hailed by
Golf Digest as the Best New Public Course
Under $75. Spring Creek hosted the 2009
VSGA Mid-Amateur and the 2011 VSGA
Senior Four-Ball championships. These
days, the proposed clubhouse expects
to hasten the Gordonsville-based club’s
trek to private membership. Since 2008,
the transition to private status has been
sidetracked by an uncooperative economy
Don’t forget your clubs: Enjoy a play day at Colonial
Williamsburg’s Golden Horseshoe Golf Club.
Kentucky. The Cumberland Gap National
Historical Park celebrates the region’s
pivotal gateway to the west with exhibits
of hand-hewn cabins, extensive trails,
expansive overlooks and guided cave tours
(a disease plaguing bats has necessitated
some restrictions).
Author Lee Graves is a writer from Richmond
and its lethargic recovery. With the
introduction of a 2010 alliance with The
Federal Club in Hanover County, the
economic rebound has accelerated both
clubs’ ability to draw members.
“The good news is that membership has
nearly doubled in the past two years, and
we are optimistic that this spring we will
meet our targeted goal of 350 members,”
Vincel says. “Once we have reached that
threshold, we will implement the first tier
of our initiation fees, set at $5,000.”
With a warming economy, 350 occupied
homes on site and a 1,200-lot capacity,
Spring Creek is positioned to leverage its
superlative course to something bigger.
Gordonsville’s Jerry Burton, a VSGA
member at Spring Creek, is bullish on the
club’s long-term private prospects.
“Given that Spring Creek has been
operating out of a double-wide [trailer]
since it opened, the new clubhouse will have
a positive effect on every aspect of the club,
including driving memberships, welcoming
outside guests, hosting tournaments and
events and providing first-class food
service,” Burton says.
Author Michael J. Stott is a writer from
Richmond and a regular contributor to
Virginia Golfer.
With plans for a new clubhouse at Spring Creek
Golf Club, golfers will have a clear view of the
breathtaking 18th hole at the course.
STEPHEN SZURLEJ/GOLF DIGEST; © CONDÉ NAST
GOLDEN HORSESHOE GOLF CLUB
Heading to the tees
Chances abound to sprinkle in a few rounds
of golf while you’re visiting national park
sites. Just outside Appomattox, you’ll find
Falling River Country Club, an 18-hole
rolling layout dating to 1965.
Meanwhile, across the street from Prince
William Forest Park is Forest Greens Golf
Club, a Clyde Johnston-designed course
awarded four of five stars in Golf Digest’s
“Best Places to Play” rankings.
In Gainesville, Stonewall Golf Club,
which abuts Lake Manassas, offers dramatic
views and has been hailed as one of the
“Top 50 Courses for Women” by Golf for
Women magazine.
In the Yorktown-Jamestown area,
opportunities range from the awardwinning Golden Horseshoe Golf Club in
the heart of Colonial Williamsburg to the
luxurious Kingsmill Resort, as well as the
Arthur Hills-designed layout at Colonial
Heritage Golf Club. And in Richmond, walk
in the footsteps of where Sam Snead won
the 1949 PGA Championship at Belmont
Golf Course, or visit the home of the
Virginia State Golf Association Foundation
at Independence Golf Club.
by Michael J. Stott
33
TheVirginia Explorer
Springtime is the right time to play the many excellent
courses on the Raspberry Golf Trail | by Michael Rand
T
To hear Bob Swiger
talk about how he
created the Raspberry
Golf Trail five years
ago, the concept
almost sounds too easy.
“My whole idea was that, in my business,
we are limited in how much we can spend
on marketing,” Swiger says. “In order to get
more bang for our buck, I thought about
bringing in other courses.”
Simple, right? Start with a few great
layouts, including the trail’s namesake
track, Raspberry Falls Golf and Hunt Club
in Leesburg, Va., and find some additional
partners willing to come together under
a unified vision. And presto: What exists
now is a trail of more than a dozen
destinations spanning Virginia, Maryland
and Pennsylvania. All the Maryland
courses are recent additions, as is one in
Pennsylvania.
Golfers can buy trail cards and earn
“points” toward free rounds at other courses
on the trail. Courses trade paying rounds
with others on the trail.
“It has grown beyond my imagination,”
Swiger says.
Steve Clark, the PGA director of golf
operations for Old Hickory Golf Club
and a principal partner at Raspberry Golf
Management along with Swiger, echoes
34
those sentiments. Clark, an ex-New Yorker,
says the trail courses attract lots of different
players, from local day-trippers looking
to stop someplace new to East Coasters
searching for courses to play on a drive
further south.
“It’s good for the local person. It’s good
for the individual who wants to travel a little.
And it’s good from a destination standpoint,”
Clark explains. “It doesn’t cater to just one
type of golfer.”
A full index of the 13 courses—five in
Virginia, as well as four each in Maryland
and Pennsylvania—can be found at
raspberrygolftrail.com.
Virginia
Augustine Golf Club
Stafford, Va.
Rolling hills and countless tall pines
mark this Rick Jacobson-designed course,
which sits just a short drive from the
Washington Beltway.
Any sense of security gained from a dualfairway and generous green on the first hole
is quickly erased on the next hole, a 456-yard
par 4 guarded down its left side by a water
hazard. If you’re able to manage the first 17
holes, the finisher can be a large determiner
of your score. It’s a classic risk-reward par 5,
with a distance (a little over 500 yards at its
longest) just short enough to entice going
for eagle, but with plenty of bunkers to
Captivating views abound amid
the rolling topography at northern
Virginia’s Old Hickory Golf Club.
ensnare even the most well-intended shots.
augustinegolf.com, (540) 720-7374
Blue Ridge Shadows
Golf Club Resort
Front Royal, Va.
It’s hard for a course to offer something
for everyone and still maintain excellence,
but that’s the mark of Blue Ridge Shadows
Golf Club Resort. From the shortest tees
the layout measures barely 5,000 yards, but
from the longest set of markers it offers all
the challenges any low-handicapper could
want, spanning more than 7,300 yards.
Nestled in the Shenandoah Valley and
Blue Ridge Mountains, golfers need to
plan their shots wisely at nearly every turn
in order to score well. No. 18 starts with
great views and doesn’t let up, finishing
with a stunning, 60-foot waterfall as the
backdrop for the final green. Travelers
should also note that with a Holiday Inn &
Suites located on site, it’s ideal for stayand-play getaways. blueridgeshadows.com,
(540) 631-9661
Bull Run Golf Club
Haymarket, Va.
Don’t even think about topping your drive
on the first hole at Bull Run because, if you
do, it will likely skip right into a pond. No
OLD HICKORY GOLF CLUB
Trail Time
In this and future issues, Virginia Golfer will be featuring in-state and out-of-state destinations to help you get the most out of your travel opportunities.
matter your start, you are off on an adventure
at this course, situated in Virginia’s horse
country. Set on more than 450 acres and
unencumbered by encroaching real estate,
Bull Run has wide fairways, clear sightlines
and run-up options.
Playing nearly 7,000 yards from the black
tees, the opportunity to score is there—but
you’ll have to earn it. This trait is most
evident at the par-5 finishing hole, reachable
in two shots but punishes those who find the
water hazard guarding the green. Do you
really want to start and end with one in the
drink? golfbullrun.com, (703) 753-7777
Old Hickory Golf Club
TOp: RASPBERRY FALLS GOLF AND HUNT CLUB; Scott K. brown
Woodbridge, Va.
Taking a nod from Raspberry Falls, Old
Hickory is bentgrass from tee to green.
Additionally, given the course’s notable
level of service and some forgiving early
holes, golfers might think they are in for
a gentle stroll. Complacency could be a
round-ruiner at this course.
“The first six holes lull you into a false
sense of security, the next six get your
attention, and the last six are like ‘let me hold
on for dear life,’ ” Clark says with a laugh.
With trees and bunkers, the par-4 16th
requires precision. At the penultimate
hole, a water hazard must be negotiated
and No. 18 is a beast of a par 5.
“If you’re an avid golfer and you’re
with buddies, you are probably playing
a match,” Clark says. “If you are 1-up or
RIGHT: At Raspberry Falls Golf and Hunt Club,
shot placement is at a premium. BELOW: Alternate
playing routes at Augustine Golf Club require a
thinking-person’s approach.
1-down going into 16, it’s ‘game on.’ ”
golfoldhickory.com, (703) 580-9000
Raspberry Falls
Golf and Hunt Club
Leesburg, Va.
Many courses on the trail pride themselves
on the customer experience, but few demand
it quite like Raspberry Falls.
“Like everybody else, we want to think
we have the best service of anybody,” Swiger
says. “The key is day after day, year after year,
we work at that.”
This Gary Player-designed course has
racked up plenty of accolades, including a
top-50 national ranking in customer service
by Golf Digest. It’s a links-style course built on
an old raspberry farm—hence the name—
and the layout features strategic bunkering.
Bubbling streams, stone walls and rolling
topography add to its eye-catching appeal.
Asked about his favorite hole, Swiger
doesn’t hesitate to single out the par-5 11th.
“There’s a huge bunker in front [of the
green],” Swiger says. “I watched Gary Player
come out of that bunker with a 4-iron.
It’s probably 10 feet tall. I just want to
get out consistently with a sand wedge.”
raspberryfalls.com, (703) 779-2555
maryland
Blue Mash Golf Course
Laytonsville, Md.
Be forewarned: If you’re driving into
Maryland, don’t forget your, well, driver at
Blue Mash, a layout with a links feel that is
located 15 minutes from the Beltway. Blue
Mash starts out with a flurry of long par 4s on
the first three holes, measuring between 390
and 430 yards from the white tee markers
and more than 400 yards from the tips. That
said, the demand relents, there are no forced
carries and it is manageable for beginners
and golfers with a higher Handicap Index. A
number of tree-lined holes and well-guarded
greens require accuracy and distance control
off the tee and on approach shots.
One of the more historically significant
stops on the trail, freed slaves from the
Civil War era occupied the land upon
which the course now sits. bluemash.com,
(301) 670-1966
Lake Presidential Golf Club
Greater Upper Marlboro, Md.
Clark says that part of the reason behind the
trail concept was to change the perception of
golf in the region, which he says has always
been a “drive-through area” for destination
golfers. Lake Presidential is one of the showstoppers changing that perception. Since
opening in 2008, the course has played to
rave reviews, including being named one
of the ‘Top 10 New Courses in the United
States’ by Golf Magazine.
Five sets of tees range from 4,960 to
7,230 on this immaculately-groomed
layout. Plenty of holes offer challenges
and beauty, but like any excellent course,
the final holes on each nine are among
the best that test both a player’s skill and
nerve. No. 9 is a demanding par 3 that
requires a significant carry over a lake
onto a deep green. Find the water hazard
there, and you’ll surely be thinking about
it when you step to the tee at No. 18, a
par 5 that likewise requires a tee shot over
water; clear it and a birdie opportunity is
within reach.
Lake Presidential is also home to ‘The
Institute,’ a top-notch training facility
intended to help golfers take their game
to the next level through instructional
programs and custom clubfitting, among
its other features. lakepresidential.com,
(301) 627-8577
35
TheVirginia Explorer
Queenstown, Md.
Located between Baltimore and Washington,
D.C., Queenstown Harbor is among the best
options for golfers looking for a course along
the trail to settle into for a weekend. Not only
does the facility offer two different 18-hole
courses, The River and The Lakes, but also
boasts historic on-site accommodations at
the turn-of-the-century River House.
The River course is the more robust of the
two and reopened in 2011 following extensive
renovations that help the layout complement
the surrounding landscape and riverfront
views. The Lakes course underwent a very
successful renovation of the fairways and
teeing grounds in the 2011 season. The
fairways were all planted with new Patriot
bermudagrass, making for a smooth playing
surface. Both offer a nice mix of challenges
for the experienced golfer and comforts for
the novice. John R. Anderes III, Queenstown
Harbor’s director of golf and grounds, also
adds that the Queenstown Prime Outlets are
located nearby for those in the mood to go
shopping. qhgolf.com, (410) 827-6611
Waverly Woods Golf Club
Marriottsville, Md.
Located a short drive from Baltimore’s Inner
Harbor, this is another course along the trail
where you may feel at ease and let up before
the challenging layout snaps you back to
reality. Like Blue Mash, Waverly Woods is
an Arthur Hills-designed course and features
rolling, wooded terrain. There are plenty
of elevation changes to add to the scenic
splendor, and the par 5s generally afford
scoring opportunities to golfers of all skill
levels. waverlywoods.com, (410) 313-9182
pennsylvania
Inniscrone Golf Club
Avondale, Pa.
Inniscrone joins the Raspberry Trail this
year, an opportunity that has folks at the
course-in-transition excited, says head PGA
professional Andy Watters. Once a private
club, the course is now available for public
play. Gil Hanse, the designer on the 2016
Olympic course in Rio de Janeiro, laid out
Inniscrone with high-end serious golfers in
36
mind. Over the past few years, the overall
aesthetics of the course have been enhanced
thanks to better agronomic practices. While
maintaining the integrity of the original
design, some of its demand has been reduced
as the result of the club’s commitment to
improved conditioning.
Eight bunkers and 10 trees were recently
eliminated to “open up shotmaking
opportunities,” according to Watters.
inniscronegolfclub.com, (484) 720-8442
The Links at Gettysburg
Gettysburg, Pa.
Near hallowed ground where Union and
Confederate soldiers marched and camped
during the defining battle of America’s Civil
War lies The Links at Gettysburg. Today,
tee markers are in the shape of tiny Civil
War cannons.
It’s not every course that features a par 3
that starts from an elevated tee and then
drops to a green guarded by a creek in
front and a red rock cliff and bunker at the
rear. Holes 13 through 15 are The Links
at Gettyburg’s version of ‘Amen Corner.’
Golfers must avoid water at the long par-4
13th and stay out of even more wet stuff at
the ensuing two holes comprised of a par 5
and a par 3. The layout has received four and
a half stars from Golf Digest in its ‘Best Places
to Play’ rankings. thelinksatgettysburg.com,
(717) 359-8000
Penn National
Golf Club & Inn
Fayetteville, Pa.
With two different courses and on-site
lodging all within a 90-minute drive of both
Baltimore and Washington, D.C. beltways,
it’s no wonder Penn National bills itself as
“the home of the buddy golf trip.”
At the Founder’s Course, laid out by Ed
Ault and opened in 1968, players are treated
to secluded corridors. The course rewards
control and proper placement of shots into
smallish greens. The more modern of the
two tracks, the Iron Forge Course, an Ault,
Clark & Associates design opened in 1997,
is virtually treeless. Partly defined by thick
rough and bordering fescue areas, Iron
Forge is known for its elevation changes
and smallish landing areas. Seemingly
constant prevailing breezes make proper
TOP: Lakes, creeks and dramatic red rock cliffs at
The Links at Gettysburg provide a memorable golf
experience. BELOW: The scenic par-5 18th at Lake
Presidential Golf Club requires that players first carry
a water hazard in order to set up a scoring chance.
club selection paramount.
If you’re in the mood for a post-round
cocktail, be aware that the club is located in a
township where alcohol sales are prohibited.
However, you can bring your own adult
beverages onto the course and into the inn.
penngolf.com, (717) 352-3000
Royal Manchester
Golf Links
Mount Wolfe, Pa.
The course aims to pattern itself after
classic, Scottish links-style layouts. Located
just off the banks of the Susquehanna River
and tucked into the rolling hills of northern
York County, players are treated to British
Isles-type golf.
Featuring generous bentgrass fairways
and greens, Royal Manchester has two
par 5s that are reachable in two for long
hitters who strike a precise drive. No. 15,
the longest par 3 on the course, is the only
hole set among the few trees that dot the
landscape. Top-notch practice facilities at
the club help players of all levels sharpen
their game. royalmanchestergolflinks.com,
(717) 268-0490
Author Michael Rand is a sportswriter from
Minneapolis, Minn., and a contributor to
Virginia Golfer.
TOP: THE LINKS AT GETTYSBURG; LAKE PRESIDENTIAL GOLF CLUB
Queenstown Harbor
Architecture
The
Treasure
Hunter
A prominent golf architect sets
up shop in Middleburg, Va.
F
by Thomas Dunne
BRAD HOWELL/MAD MANTIS STUDIO
Following a crazy 2012,
Keith Foster, it’s safe to
say, is looking to dial it
down a notch.
Last year, as he has for the past decade, the
golf architect specializing in classic course
restoration, took on three projects––Orchard
Hills near Detroit, Pittsburgh Field Club and
Sands Point on Long Island, plus a practice
facility at Iowa State University. (Here in
Virginia, his portfolio at the moment is
limited to renovations to Hermitage Country
Club near Richmond and River Bend Golf
and Country Club in the D.C. suburbs.) He
also completed a move from a Tennessee
farm to Loudoun County and––most
exhausting of all––opened a new shop called
The Outpost, which debuted last fall on a
side street in downtown Middleburg, Va.
The Outpost is where Foster and his
wife, Pam, display (and sell) their favorite
finds from the globetrotting adventures they
embark upon each winter. Earlier this year,
the couple spent the week of their 20th
anniversary ‘lost’ on the Kenya-Tanzania
border, and also made side trips to Spain,
France and Istanbul. It was part relaxing
vacation and part epic buying spree. Foster
took all his profits from Year 1––despite only
opening last September, he sold through 85
percent of his stock in four months––and
poured them right back into the store.
The Outpost is the kind of place one
doesn’t ‘shop’ so much as explore. The
feel is like that of one of those stuck-intime London men’s clubs––full of curious
objects that evoke exotic cultures and dimlyremembered episodes of history. It’s the
furniture that truly stands out, though.
“I love British campaign furniture,” says
Foster, referring to the officer’s gear that
was designed for pack-and-carry transport
all over the world during the days of Queen
Victoria’s empire. “It’s got a great aesthetic
and functionality. It’s authentic, inspiring, and
it’s had a past life.”
Indeed, some items––chests, trunks and
the like––are even emblazoned with the
names of their previous owners, in keeping
with military custom.
“I picked out every piece in here,” Foster
says. “And I can tell you everything about the
people I bought them from.”
TRANSFERABLE TRAITS
On the surface, the golf architect and the
antique hunter might not seem to have
much in common, but Foster sees plenty
of connections.
“In truth,” he says, “it’s very similar to golf.
The only way to learn is to make mistakes
and pay your dues. But both businesses are
based on relationships, and you have to have
a great eye.”
There’s a rush to be had from acquisition
and the art of the deal, too.
Keith Foster, a course designer by trade, is also
proprietor of The Outpost in northern Virginia. Full of
fascinating and rare pieces, his collection includes
paintings, antiques, British campaign furniture and
Zulu war clubs, among other items.
“You don’t know what you’re going to find
and you have to make decisions on the fly––a
lot of times in less than a minute.”
But on other occasions, he adds, “Part
of the game is convincing people I’m not
stealing from them. I don’t talk bad about
a piece to get the price down. I want to sell
it untouched. Just as in golf, my goal is that
when I’m finished it doesn’t even look like
I’ve been there.”
That said, Foster is also beginning to apply
his eye for restoration to the pieces themselves. For the new season, the architect has
developed a relationship with the Landmark
Trust, which preserves and operates a collection of beautiful and historic manor houses
37
Equipment
Made for a Friendly Trek
New lightweight and diverse push carts allow
golfers a burden-free walk | by John Holmes
T
he benefits of walking the golf course are well known to all of us
by now, and the latest generation of push carts makes strolling the
fairways even more appealing. These new three- and four-wheeled
wonders are lighter, stronger, steadier and more versatile than ever.
So park that electric cart and enjoy the game one step at a time.
When the product designers at Bag
Boy began dreaming up the new
TriSwivel Push Cart, they started
right up front—they gave the nine
and a half-inch front wheel the
ability to swivel a complete 360
degrees. This extra maneuverability
makes the cart feel like it has power
steering, according to Bag Boy,
while also pointing out that the
wheel can easily be locked into a
standard straight-ahead position.
The TriSwivel cart is made of
lightweight, weather-resistant
aluminum, and includes a bracket
that makes it compatible with
small carry bags and larger cart
bags, as well as a one-step handle
adjustment, a handle-mounted
parking brake and an oversized
storage bag. It also features
a holder for scorecards,
pencils, a separate storage
area for tees, balls, a place
for your umbrella,
and an integrated
beverage holder.
It folds down to
22x14x18 inches
and comes in four
colors. ($269.95;
bagboycompany.com)
Bag Boy
TriSwivel
Push Cart
38
V i r g i n i a G o l f e r | M aY / J u ne 2 0 1 3
Callaway RAZR
Push Cart
Callaway RAZR Push Cart
Callaway Golf has been earning raves for such
new clubs as the RAZR Fit Xtreme driver and
X-Hot irons. Its new RAZR push cart seems
destined to earn its share of plaudits, too.
Made of ultra-lightweight tubing, the threewheeled RAZR push cart weighs in at a mere 14
pounds, and its front wheel folds up to make it
extremely compact. The never-flat tires sit on a
wide wheelbase for stability and are controlled by
an easy push-on/pull-off foot brake system.
The RAZR roller also includes an adjustable
multi-position handle, a wheel cover storage
bag, and a scorecard holder with an internal
storage compartment and drink holder.
($199.95; callawaygolf.com)
Callaway RAZR
Push Cart II
Clicgear 3.5+ Cart
In software, a 0.5 upgrade usually isn’t a
big deal. For Clicgear, the upgrade to its
3.5+ cart from the previous 3.0 version is
quite significant.
The three-wheeled 3.5+ features an
80 percent larger storage net, a new
adjustable cup holder, upgraded Easy
Clip bag straps and an improved Positive
Lock brake system. The 3.5+ models are
also available in eight new colors, all with
a flat-finished powder coating to resist
scratching.
Carried over from previous versions is
its fabulous folding system that allows
golfers to fold it down into a compact
24x13x15 inches. The new one also is
made of aircraft-grade aluminum tubing,
and has an oversized console and a front
wheel alignment system that ensures
straight tracking on virtually all types
of terrain. ($219; clicgearusa.com)
PHOTOS BY THE MANUFACTURERS (7)
Bag Boy
TriSwivel Push Cart
Clicgear
3.5+ Cart
The Treasure Hunter
Orlimar EZR 15.5
Push Cart
Orlimar EZR 15.5 Push Cart
The new EZR 15.5 pushcart from Orlimar sets up and breaks
down in one simple step and it costs less than many of its
competitors. And those are just two reasons to like it.
The EZR 15.5 weighs in at only 15.5 pounds—hence the
name—and folds down to 16x16x31 inches. It boasts
anti-slide tires on each of its three 10-inch wheels, a handlemounted hand brake, and a handle that can be easily adjusted
to help any size of golfer avoid strain of the hands and back.
Also on board are a drink caddie, several accessory holders
and a storage compartment. ($179.99; orlimar.com)
Ogio X4 Synergy Sport Cart
Ogio has forged a sterling reputation among golfers
for its stylistic golf bags and travel gear. Now the
company is breaking into the push cart market with the
debut of its X4 Synergy Sport Cart.
Its usefulness, however, is evident even before you get
to the course—Ogio says the X4’s single-fold point allows
you to keep your bag attached to the cart even
while you’re folding and unfolding it, and the cart
and bag can even be stored in a standing position.
The X4 Synergy Sport Cart is made of a
reinforced aluminum frame, and contains four
wheels in a wide-track stance for extra stability and
easy maneuverability over uneven terrain. The foam
handle is easy to grip no matter the weather, while the
center-mounted thumb-operated brake lever can be easily
operated with either hand. And it is rounded out by a storage
tray for balls, tees, cellphones and holders for GPS devices,
umbrellas, beverages and more. ($239.99; ogio.com)
FINDING SOLACE IN DISCOVERY
Ogio X4
Synergy
Sport Cart
Sun Mountain Combo Push Cart
The new Combo Push Cart from Sun Mountain is one of the most expensive
walking buddies around. Don’t worry, though—you’ll get what you pay for.
The Combo isn’t just a cart—it’s a breakthrough. Why? Because it also has a Sun
Mountain golf bag built right into it. This gives it extreme stability, and allows you to
keep your clubs in the bag and ready
to go. With your clubs out of the bag,
the Combo cart can fold up or be
Sun Mountain
stored vertically.
Combo
Push Cart
The Combo cart weighs in at only 18
pounds—less than the weight of any standard
cart bag and push cart—and includes fulllength club dividers. It also has a built-in seat
for those times when there’s a delay on the
course, and includes ample storage for extra
clothes and raingear. A handle-mounted
tray holds your wallet, extra golf balls and
more. The Combo comes in a white/pink/
black color scheme or a black/orange/black
lime motif. ($399.99; sunmountain.com)
Author John Holmes is a writer from Austin, Texas,
throughout the United Kingdom.
“We’ve gained access to buying their old
furniture as they change it out,” Foster says.
“What we then do is take it and rework it, put
new fabric on it. So we’ve got this great old
pedigree but then we restyle it. It’s a variation of
what I do in golf…restoration.”
Foster has found that experience in the trade
has opened some new doors. Last year, he said,
“A lot of people looked at us like, ‘Oh, here’s
this guy and his wife, doing some cute little
thing.’ But vendors take us more seriously now,
and that allows us to buy differently. We’ve
gained access to some stuff we wouldn’t have
obtained last year.”
Indeed, not everyone can sell an enormous
bed from a turn-of-the-century luxury ocean
liner––but that’s exactly the kind of thing Foster’s
affluent clientele will snap up in a heartbeat.
One of the architect’s touchstones––he even
licensed the artwork to reproduce on cards––is
“The Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog,” an
1818 painting by the German Romantic artist
Caspar David Friedrich. Its dramatic depiction
of a young gentleman scanning a mist-shrouded
landscape from a craggy peak appeals to Foster
in a fundamental way (he’s an avid mountain
climber), but the painting also evokes the vastness
of our world––both externally and internally.
Speaking of that sense of the infinite, fly
fishing is a pursuit that holds a near-mystical
appeal for some, and Foster hopes to spend
more time in the water this year.
“It’s very much what golf used to be for
me––a great escape,” he says. “Because I’m in
the business, I don’t see golf that way anymore.
I can never entirely lose myself on a golf
course, because I’m always looking at features
or something other than the simple charm of
the game.”
In rediscovering his love for the fly rod and
reel, Foster says, “I initially thought I’d have to
find a creek and put a cabin on it and say, ‘This
is my little Walden.’ ”
Then a friend arranged for him to gain access
to a stream in a “secluded, restricted area” in the
Maryland mountains––a place well known in
political circles.
“I got up there and said, ‘You’ve got to be
kidding me!’ I took last Monday off, and it was
so good.”
As The Outpost heats up along with Foster’s
design schedule––this year he’ll be working at
three new clubs in New York, Philadelphia and
Detroit––those days of peaceful casting may be
harder to come by.
Author Thomas Dunne is a writer living in New
York. This is his first piece for Virginia Golfer.
M aY / J u ne 2 0 1 3 | V i r g i n i a G o l f e r
39
MyTurn
Boston Tragedy Puts Life,
Not Sports, In Perspective
H
ow easy it must have been
the night of April 15 for
anyone with an opinion
and a computer to post on
Facebook or tweet that the
bombings near the finish line of the Boston
Marathon should, once and for all, force us
to put sports in proper perspective.
After all, innocent people were dead,
including a vibrant 8-year-old boy whose
tragic misfortune it was to be standing
at the finish line, mom and sister in tow,
to congratulate his father for an amazing
accomplishment. The number of injured
people being carted off to hospitals was
rising like the water level in New Orleans
during a hurricane. The running everyone
would remember from the 2013 race was
of panic-stricken people fleeing for their
lives or back toward the carnage to tend to
hundreds of mangled bodies.
It was a sobering, staggering affront
to everything this nation stands for, and
it happened right in front of our eyes
on one of the world’s grandest sporting
stages. I got that.
But what’s it mean, exactly, to “put sports
in proper perspective?”
Boston Marathon bombing victim Steven Bryne, who
received shrapnel in his face and neck on the day of
the attacks and needed emergency surgery, received
a hug from David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox on an
emotional day at Fenway Park on April 20.
40
Does it mean that we were wrong to
feel utterly euphoric after watching that
magnificent exhibition of golf by Adam
Scott and Angel Cabrera on Masters
Sunday? It was extraordinary theatre, from
Scott’s putt on 18 to Cabrera’s approach
to the same hole a few moments later.
There was Scott’s quest to shake whatever
humiliation remained from his British Open
collapse, and there was Cabrera walking side
by side with his son.
More contrived, perhaps, but still a vital
part of the Sunday script was Scott trying
to become the first Aussie to win a Masters
and Cabrera trying to become the first
grandfather to win a major. Plotlines and
birdie putts were weaved together like a
spider’s web––and it was captivating. I even
phoned a couple of people when it was over
to rehash what transpired.
That’s completely out of character for me.
I’ve been taking a more balanced view of the
role of sports in my life. It consumed me
professionally for 30 years and when I left
the newspaper business I vowed not to let
that happen again.
So, for the third year in a row, I didn’t turn
on the Super Bowl until 15 minutes before
kickoff. Until the championship game, I
hadn’t seen one minute of the most recent
NCAA basketball tournament––and my
graduate alma mater was in the Sweet 16.
I caught opening day in the major leagues
but have no intention to pay any mind to
baseball until July 4, and after that not until
October. I follow the Washington Capitals
and only the Caps, which translates into an
eternal early end to every hockey season.
I can’t compute why men rush into
stores to buy replica jerseys of the latest
phenomenon. I can’t fathom how otherwise
good people throw haymakers at each other
just because a guy in a red ball cap runs
his big mouth at a guy in a blue one. Why
do grown men and women rush home the
night a television network announces the
upcoming NFL schedule or, worse, remain
glued to the sofa during the four days pro
teams restock their rosters with untested
college kids? I could go on.
That day in Boston, once the elite
runners passed through, the Marathon
morphed into ordinary men and women
testing their bodies, their wills and their
spirit to achieve something beyond the
ordinary. That attempt was made all the
more special because those who don’t or
won’t dream that big stood on the sidelines
ready to feed them, hydrate them, cheer
them on.
Some would say that 23,000 people
risking their health on such a journey––and
hundreds of thousands more egging them
on––shows a complete lack of perspective.
But don’t all of our lives lack perspective?
People are hooked on the television
shopping channel QVC. Some won’t shop
anywhere but Costco, even if it means
going miles out of their way. Religion. Food.
Alcohol. Automobiles. Boats. Money. Other
men. Other women.
My goodness, golf equipment, apparel
and vacations.
For whatever reason, people judge that
these things add meaning to their lives. I
don’t know why. I’m no psychologist.
Besides, had we never picked up a bat
and ball, aimed at the flag, donned jogging
shoes and shorts, would our lives be any
safer? Of course not.
We live in a crazy age where politicians
are lauded when they announce that they’re
going to spend the next four years making
sure the person on the other side of the aisle
accomplishes nothing. Unlike them, sports
build communities. They have the unique
power to bring people together.
The intelligentsia label us shallow.
Maybe. But it’s the best we’ve got. Without
grief, there is no joy. Without evil, we don’t
recognize good. Without hate, we wouldn’t
know love.
Columnist Jim Ducibella retired in 2008
after 27 years at The Virginian-Pilot in
Norfolk. A 2010 inductee into the Virginia
Sports Hall of Fame, his second book, King of
Clubs: The Great Golf Marathon of 1938,
is now available in bookstores or by ordering
online at www.potomacbooksinc.com.
Top: The virginian-pilot; MICHAEL IVINS/BOSTON RED SOX/GETTY IMAGES
by Jim Ducibella
GET YOUR
SHOULDER
BACK INTO
FULL SWING
SHOULDER PAIN can really hold
back your golf game. However, issues
and symptoms caused by overuse of
the shoulder joint can be effectively
treated and managed.
Possible symptoms include:
pain and
tenderness in the
shoulder joint
restricted
movement
burning sensation
around the
shoulder
See a physician for
an accurate diagnosis
to get you back in
the game.
A nationally-recognized orthopaedic
surgeon, Dr. Douglas Boardman specializes
in elbow and shoulder reconstruction.
He also serves on the board of directors
of the Virginia Orthopaedic Society.
Call Dr. Boardman at (804) 828-5567
to help you get back in the game.
Because of the high expectations of physicians like
Dr. Boardman, the staff at Medarva Stony Point Surgery
Center strives for excellence—providing exceptional
patient care and service.
N. Douglas
M.D. / VCU Medical Center, Dept. of Orthopaedic Surgery / M(804)
ay / J u828-5567
ne 2 0 1 3 | /V iwww.vcu-boardman.com
rginia Golfer
w w w. v sBoardman,
ga.org
41
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links and take on Kingsmill’s three
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Pursue your perfect game!
GOLF PACK AGES FROM $179 *
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*Per person/nt based on double occupancy. Available thru 11/30/13.
©2013 Xanterra Kingsmill, LLC. All rights reserved.

VSGA to celebrate 100th renewal of its Amateur Championship

Transcription

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