Michigan Golfer, July / August 2012

In This Issue

5 U.S. Senior Open at Indianwood Golf Club – a PreviewBy Jack Berry

8 Fuzzy Zoeller’s Covered Bridge Golf ClubBy Brad Shelton

12 Michigan Golf Hall of Fame Induction, 2012 By Jack Berry

16 Who is (are) the “Steve Jobs” of Modern Golf?By Bill and Brad Shelton

19 Indiana Golf . . . Deja VuBy Mike Duff

22 OBX Means “In Bounds” for GolfersBy Bill Shelton

26 Kalamazoo Golfer Marches to Historic Michigan Open WinBy Greg Johnson

28 A New Appreciation for ArtBy Brad Shelton

30 Collegiate Spotlight: Oakland UniversityBy Chris Lewis

33 Collegiate Spotlight: Saginaw ValleyState UniversityBy Chris Lewis

36 Slice of Life: Senior PGA Championship at Harbor ShoresBy Terry Moore

MICHIGAN GOLFER

Publisher/EditorArt McCafferty

[email protected]

Editor EmeritusTerry Moore

AssociatePublisher/ProducerJennie McCafferty

WritersJeff Bairley

Susan BairleyL’anse BannonMike Beckman

Jack BerryTom DoakMike Duff

Topher GogginThad Gutowski

Kelly HillJanina Parrott Jacobs

Greg JohnsonVartan Kupelian

Tom LangChris Lewis

Jim NeffBill Shelton

Brad SheltonNorm Sinclair

Michael Patrick ShielsHerschel Nathanial

Bernice PhillipsRon Whitten

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V O L U M E 30 • J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 1 2 • N U M B E R 3

Cover: Indianwood Golf Club Clubhouse. Photo courtesy ofIndianwood

2 J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 1 2 • M I C H I G A N G O L F E R M A G A Z I N E

U.S. at India

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5

. Senior Open anwood Golf Club

– a Preview

By Jack Berry

You won’t need a scorecard toidentify the players at theUnited States Senior Open at

Indianwood G&CC. They’re oldfriends, players you enjoyed watch-ing for years at the Buick Open, justa little farther up the road fromLake Orion.

Buick champions Kenny Perry,Fred Couples and Hale Irwin arejoined by John Cook, who played 20Buicks, and Tom Lehman who nearlywon the 1996 U.S. Open at OaklandHills, won a British Open, captained aRyder Cup team and now is one ofthe top guns on the Champions Tourwinning the Tradition, a senior major,two years in a row.

It’s fitting that Stan Aldridge,who brought Indianwood back to itsold glory and then some, finally hasgotten a men’s United States GolfAssociation national championship.Aldridge was virtually promised oneafter he hosted his second Women’sOpen in six years, rescuing theUSGA which had scheduled the1994 championship at Shoal Creekbut then withdrew it because of theclub’s restrictive (since changed)membership policy. AndIndianwood again put on anothervery successful tournament, won byPatty Sheehan.

But no major men’s championship.And Aldridge also pitched the PGA ofAmerica and the PGA Tour.

Unfortunately for Aldridge, there’s

Photo left: the beauty of Indianwood,photo courtesy of Indianwood.


a club over on Maple Road inBloomfield Township, Oakland Hills,which is the Big Daddy for big golf inMichigan. Oakland Hills even got twoUSGA Senior Opens, won by ArnoldPalmer and Jack Nicklaus.

Aldridge didn’t give up thoughand this year Indianwood hosts itsfirst men’s major since GeneSarazen, the Little Squire, won the1930 Western Open which at thetime was considered golf ’s thirdmajor, behind the older British andU.S. Opens. Neither the Mastersnor the PGA Championship was inexistence then.

Indianwood opened just nine yearsafter Oakland Hills and was a favoriteplayground in the 1930s for theMotor City “locals” — Walter Hagen,Tommy Armour and Al Watrous. ButSarazen won the Western by sevenshots over Al Espinosa and by 10 overfive-time champion Hagen withArmour 20 back.

No one wins by those margins inthe Senior Open. In fact, Palmerand Nicklaus had to go to playoffsto win at Oakland Hills.

The USGA started the SeniorOpen in 1980 and it has grown tobe one of the most popular of theUSGA’s 13 national championships.From an entry of 631 for the inau-gural at Winged Foot, won byRoberto DeVicenzo, the entries haveballooned to well over 2,600.

It helped when the USGA fol-lowed the PGA Tour’s lead of makingthe minimum age 50, instead of the55 it uses for the Senior Amateur.

Coincidentally, of course, Palmer was51 when the change was made.

The late Dick Taylor, then editorof Golf World, tagged the rich sen-ior league “Golf ’s greatest mulligan”and it has been more than that. Ithas helped the formerly fat andslow-moving out of rocking chairsand into physically fitness programswhich definitely are needed – thefive major championships arepacked into 10 weeks. They startedwith the Senior PGA at HarborShores in Benton Harbor, won byEnglishman Roger Chapman, thenthe Tradition won by Lehman twoweeks before the Open, the SeniorPlayers will be at Pittsburgh, andwill wind up with the Senior BritishOpen at Turnberry.

At least they’ll get a week offbetween the close at Indianwoodand first round in Scotland.

If form follows, there will be abirdie fest on Indianwood’s 6,891yards. They ate up Inverness inToledo last summer with a record128 sub-par rounds and 26 finishedunder par, also a record.

“Guys are going to have scoringclubs into the greens,” the USGA’s JeffHall said at Indianwood’s media day.But “Indianwood never has beenabout distance. It’s about shotmaking.”

Indianwood owner Aldridge wasupset when Helen Alfredssontorched the Old Course in the1994 Women’s Open with a record8-under-par 63. But the fiery red-headed Swede collapsed, spiced bysome equally fiery language. And if

the weather remains dry and somewind sweeps over the virtually tree-less, hilly course, Indianwood’s slop-ing greens (remember Olympic?)will put up a stiff defense.

The USGA’s Hall pointed out “ifwe get a firm golf course, they’d betternot make a mistake and be above thehole, even if they’re just 10 feet away.

And, like all USGA champi-onships, there is a premium on hit-ting fairways.

“It’s a special place,” said Alma’sRandy Lewis, winner of last year’sUSGA Mid-Amateur Championshipat the ripe old age of 54. “I’veplayed it a lot and I know everybodyis going to love it.”

Olin Browne, led wire-to-wirelast year at Inverness and won bythree over Mark O’Meara. Browneplayed Indianwood for the first timeon the May 29 Media Day and gaveit high praise.

“It’s a beautiful venue. It’s got abeautiful mix of holes that go oneway or the other way, that are longand short.”

Browne also pointed out that golf“is the only sport where you can seeHall of Famers who are current,whose skills haven’t diminishedmuch at all. This is a tremendousopportunity to see some of the bestplayers in the history of the game.”

In the tradition of the Haig andthe Little Squire.

- MG -


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SELLERSBERG, INDIANA –Frank Urban Zoeller, or Fuzzy as heis affectionately known around the

world, has incorporated his endear-ing relationship with golf fans every-where to design an enjoyable andchallenging golf course sure toendear him even more to the golferswho visit his home course. Locatedjust outside Louisville, KY in ruralSellersberg, Indiana, Covered BridgeGolf Club is Fuzzy’s 18-hole, 6,453-yard (men’s tees), par 72 layoutcommonly known to locals as ‘TheBridge’.

On our way to cover the 2012Big Ten men’s and women’s golf

tournament in French Lick, Indianamy father and I stopped at CoveredBridge to play. Having read a fewgood comments about the course wethought we would see if the positiveonline posts about Fuzzy’s designwere true; plus, we just wanted toplay a little golf.

The day exceeded our expecta-tions. From the time we passed thestatue of Fuzzy outside the frontdoor an entered the clubhouse topay greens fees through the end ofthe round when we got two sweet

Fuzzy Zoeller’s statue awaits you.

Fuzzy Zoeller’s Covered Bridge Golf Club

Golf Course Review

By Brad Shelton

Brad Shelton


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iced teas from the snack bar for theshort drive to French Lick, theentire experience was great.

Despite some popular trends, agood golf course does not have to beridiculously long or extremely diffi-cult to be good. In my opinion, agood golf course offers fair playingconditions and the opportunity forplayers of different levels to chal-lenge themselves from tee to green,and that is exactly what Fuzzy hasaccomplished at Covered Bridge.

As for the conditions, the fair-ways and tees are Zoysia, and thegreens are bent grass. Even in lateApril, the Zoysia had alreadygreened up nicely offering level liesfrom the fairway and the greens,although not too fast, had some

speed and rolled true. I am sure asthe heat of summer arrives the fair-ways and greens will be immaculate.

After the first three holes, it wasapparent that Fuzzy had built a veryplayable course. Sure, there are foursets of tees ranging from Fuzzy’syardage at 7,068 to the up tees at4,957 that allow a distance for allplayers, but more importantly, Fuzzyhas taken the natural landscape ofgently rolling plains to design atrack that gives some room for erroroff the tee and that allows the playerto recover from an errant tee orapproach shot. The bunkers arestrategically placed to both definethe holes and to catch offline shots,but none were so tough as to frus-trate the player.

Once on the green, you willnotice that the slope and undula-tions are subtle yet challenging - itmay take a round or two to trulyunderstand how each green breaks,but I never felt any putt was unfair.

From the clubhouse you will beable to see the signature 9th and18th holes. These two par-5 finish-ing holes share a green, and aredefined by a large lake and greensidebunker that protect the green from ashort fairway approach. I got homein two on both; Dad did not.

Covered Bridge’s sister course,Champions Pointe, is another FuzzyZoeller/Clyde Johnson-designedcourse just up the road inHenryville, Indiana. After ourround, the players in the clubhousehighly recommended we play thatcourse next time we are in the area.Although the web descriptionsounds similar to Covered Bridge,the locals say it a different challenge,more links style, equally as fair asCovered Bridge and in as good con-dition.

I wish we could have stayedlonger and hope I get a chance to goback. According to the web site,Covered Bridge and ChampionsPointe offer ‘Stay and Play’ packagesat great rates for accommodationsand golf. If you are in the area andjust have time for one round, don’tworry about such a good coursecharging ‘through the roof ’ rates. Iplayed for less than $60. Dad had toadmit he was a senior, but got a $20discount. At least Dad’s golf gamehas one thing in common withFuzzy.

- MG -


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The Michigan Golf Hall ofFame welcomed Rick Smith,Larry Mancour, Jack Seltzer

and Jack Van Ess on a perfect PureMichigan golf day at MichiganState’s Forest Akers Golf Course,raising Hall membership to 98.

It was the 23rd induction cere-mony that began with three of thegame’s legends, Walter Hagen,

Chuck Kocsis and Al Watrous,forming the first class.

This class too has nationalreknown with Smith, great profes-sionalism with club pros Mancourand Seltzer and veteran amateur JackVan Ess of Grand Rapids who hasno interest in shooting his age.

Smith is a gifted player butteaching and designing courses have

been his greatest talents. Hired bythe late Harry Melling at SylvanResort in Gaylord, Smith’s magicpersonality, energy and ideas fullyblossomed and turned Sylvan intonationally-famous Treetops Resort.

While an assistant in Lakeland,Fla., Smith worked with FloridaSouthern students Lee Janzen andRocco Mediate who became winners

Michigan Golf Hall of Fame Inductees ( l to r): Rick Smith, Jack Van Ess, Jack Seltzer, and Larry Mancour

Michigan Golf Hall of FameInduction, 2012

By Jack Berry

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on the PGA Tour with Janzen takingtwo U.S. Opens. In later years heworked with Jack Nicklaus and PhilMickelson. Mickelson won threemajors in that time. Now Mickelsonand Smith are partners in designand are in China, the world’s golf-building hot spot. Smith said theyhave orders for 10 courses, four areunder construction and he’s been aChina commuter.

There’s still work to do inMichigan and Smith said NBC andGolf Channel want to bring backthe Par 3 Shootout which was verypopular when televised by ESPN.

Smith also hit on a note sharedby the whole golf industry and espe-cially professionals like Flint nativesMancour and Seltzer who havespent their career teaching, organiz-ing and running tournaments. Thedemon is slow play and the resist-ance of the public to move to for-ward tees where they have an oppor-tunity to score better and finishhappy.

Mancour and Seltzer benefited

from Flint’s jun-ior programwhich was thethe state leader.They started atthe bottom rungof the ladder,working formoney to play.“It was 60 centsfor juniors and Iplayed 54 holesevery day,”Seltzer said.

Seltzer andMancour ledchampion highschool and MottCommunityCollege golfteams and thenturned profes-sional and beganthe climb tohead pro.Mancour alsoplayed on thePGA Tour, designed courses andkept the Buick Open name alivewith a Little Buick Open for eight

years untilGeneral Motorsresumed sponsor-ship of the state’sflagship profes-sional tourna-ment.

The two Flintnatives were con-sistent winners onthe state sceneand Seltzer won

all of the Michigan majors. He wonhis singles match against a topScottish player while playing for theUnited States in the PGA Cup againstGreat Britain and Ireland at Muirfield,Scotland. Seltzer birdied the first holeand said his wife, Pam, was the onlyone applauding while several hundredScots were silent as Seltzer led all theway.

Mancour and Seltzer are passingon their knowledge to young play-ers now, Mancour with a com-bined team from Alanson andPellston high schools and Seltzer atthe highly regarded Kendall

Larry Mancour

Rick Smith

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Academy in Ypsilanti.

Van Ess was the most seniormember of the four man Hall ofFame induction and fellow EgyptValley member John O’Donovan,who introduced Van Ess, said whena member asked him if he was goingto shoot his age, Van Ess responded“I hope not.” He’s 85 and has shotwell under his age hundreds oftimes. He has won numerous stateand national senior championships

despite never playing on Sunday,keeping a promise to his fatherwhen he was young.

Michigan State University’s TurfTeam was given a Special Award forits work in keeping courses green,researching soils, nutrients, causes,pesticides, fungicides, effects andcures for the living plants the gameis played on. Virtually every coursein the state has benefited from theTurf Team which also has been

called to help in 26 countries.

The Hall of Fame is located inthe Troy Officecenter on East BigBeaver Rd. in Troy. It containsclubs, bags, pictures and portraitsand plaques of all the members. It isopen by appointment. ContactLoretta Larkin at 248 719-0650 [email protected].

- MG -

Jack Seltzer Jack Van Ess

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16

Who is (are) the The lateSteve Jobs was describedby biographer Walter

Isaacson as the “ultimate icon ofinventiveness and imagination . . .whose passion and perfection andferocious drive revolutionized 6industries: personal computing, ani-mated movies, phones, tablet com-puting, music, and digital publish-ing. His biographer concluded that

his (Steven Jobs) unorthodox leader-ship style and “reality distortionfield” resulted in iconic inventionsthat became embedded in the cul-ture and answers to Jeopardy ques-tions decades later.

Jobs’ quirky and impulsive behav-ior resulted in multiple career highsand lows but his canny ability tobring about self-fulfilling prophecies

Who is (are) the “Steve Jobs”of Modern Golf?

By Bill and Brad Shelton

Karsten Solheim and President Ronald Reagan, 1988

Brad Shelton

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in consumer technology usage haschanged forever the way the averageperson communicates, reads, search-es for information, listens to music,and writes. The Apple computer,IPod, IPad, and IPhone areingrained without peers in Americanculture. He has no equal in con-sumer electronic technology!

Is there an individual in the golfequipment arena who might bereferred to as the “Steve Jobs” ofmodern golf? Has the game of golfbeen impacted by the technologicalinnovations of any one individual tothe level of Jobs’ cataclysmic change?Admittedly, the comparison withJobs is a difficult challenge andclearly arbitrary. Some would sug-gest that the technology in golfequipment has evolved from severalindividuals over the last half century.Limiting the impact on modern golfto the equipment sector, Bill andBrad suggest who are the best candi-dates.

Bill - In my opinion, the individualmaking the biggest equipmentimpact on golf in the modern era isKarsten Solheim. Though very dif-ferent in life style, education, andmanagement style, Solheim didshare some strikingly similar experi-ences and behaviors with Jobs. Bothstarted their companies in homegarages; both had somewhat uniqueapproaches to product development;and both were relentless in the pur-suit of perfection. And, while otherprofessionals in his field respectedJobs (often grudgingly), colleaguesadmiringly viewed Solheim as agreat pioneer in the golf industry.

Ely Callaway, founder ofCallaway Golf, said of Solheim “Hepaved the way for all of us.” Ken

Lindsay, formerpresident of thePGA of America,concluded“Perhaps noindividual hashad as profoundimpact on thegolf industry asKarstenSolheim.”

It all beganwhen he(Solheim) wasinvited to play around of golfwith some GEcoworkers. Hehad a very diffi-cult time puttingso he decided toinvent a moreuser-friendlyputter. Hemoved the shaftfrom the heel ofthe putter to thecenter of theputter head, andredistributed theputter headweight to the toe and heel. Theresult was a putter that made a dis-tinctive ping sound and the Pingputter was invented.

Professionals were reluctant to trythe strange looking concoction untilJulius Boros at age 46 won the PGATour’s Phoenix Open using an“Anser” putter in 1967. BarryMcDermott relates an incident inthe early 1960s that sounded very“Steve Jobs” like. Solheim showedup at a tour event and proceededimmediately to the practice green.“His eyebrows fluttering in thebreeze, Solheim spread graph paper

over the green as a curious, mum-bling group of pros gathered. Heattached a marking device to a play-er’s putter and showed him why hisputts wobbled.”

Solheim resigned his engineeringjob at GE and launched his ownmanufacturing company using hisperimeter weighted putter conceptto develop a full line of Ping clubs.The Ping Eye irons was the best sell-ing set of all times. He later focusedon developing a much more reliableand consistent investment cast clubas opposed to the existing forgedclub. Using a tumble finish,


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Karsten Solheim develops Ping Anser Putter in 1967.

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Solheim’s chromeless creations werenot particularly attractive but quicklyaccepted for their performance. (Jobscared almost as much about appear-ance as performance.) He later was thefirst to manufacture the L wedge andtried, unsuccessfully, to market amulti-colored golf ball. Solheim hadmore than a few run-ins with theUSGA over the use of bent shafts (toreduce torque) and the groove config-uration on his irons.

Ping putters and irons continueto be successful among amateursand professional. Bubba Watson, the2012 Masters champion, and LouisOosthuizen, the runner-up in aplay-off both carry Ping clubs.Solheim died at age 84 in 2000 buthis impact on golf at all levels con-tinues today. Sandy Jones, PGA ofEurope Chairman, summed upSolheim’s impact, “It’s unlikely therewill be another era in the golf indus-try like Karsten Solheim’s last 40years . . . (He) made the game ofgolf fun for millions.”

Brad - Arguably, this is one of thetoughest debates I have faced as agolf writer. There are so many inno-vators in golf when you considereverything from course designers toteachers to equipment developers.Fortunately we have limited this dis-

cussion to the equipment sector andmy selection for the “Steven Jobs ofgolf ” is Ely Callaway.

Although Callaway was not thefirst to introduce the metal wood togolf, he was the first to design a larg-er, easier to hit metal wood thatallowed the average player to hit alonger and straighter drive from thetee – arguably one of the toughestshots up to that point in golf ’s his-tory. Since his introduction of theBig Bertha in 1991, oversized metalwoods and irons have become thechoice for the vast majority ofgolfers, professional and amateuralike, and the model for equipmentmanufacturers in the golf industry.Today, you will find Phil Mickelson,Ernie Els, and Stuart Appleby toname a few playing his equipment.

When Callaway first developedand hit the Big Bertha, at age 72, hepredicted from his experience as asuccessful textile and wine entrepre-neur that the new driver would rev-olutionize the golf industry. “I knewthat if a 72-year old man could hitthis driver off the ground, that any-body could hit it off the tee. Wetook the fear out of it (the driver).”

Revolutionize the industry? Takethe fear out of it? Sounds a lot likeJobs approach to technology. It ishard to argue that Apple has not setthe standard for many aspects oftechnology and revolutionized ourhigh expectations for what we expectlistening to music or calling a friend.Graphical User Interface (GUI), theeasy to use Mac, the IPod, IPhone,and IPad – all took the fear out ofusing the most up-to-date and pow-erful technology to communicateand participate with the world justas Callaway did for hitting the

daunting tee shot and tight lie witha fairway wood.

Pardon the cliché, but ElyCallaway was the first club designer inyears to think outside the box when itcame to club design. While many hadintroduced new clubs to golf,Callaway introduced a new idea – thegame could be more accessible to theaverage person and, within the rules ofgolf, could be a more enjoyable experi-ence for all players if the clubs werejust easier to hit, which meant a largerclubhead.

Much like Solheim and theperimeter weighting for irons,Callaway has affected all metal wooddesigns since 1991. Look in any bagon tour or at your local club and youwill see oversized metal woods in everybag. Look at any new technology andyou will see the same influence thatJobs has had on technology.

Summary - We left out ScottyCameron, Barney Adams,Roger Cleveland, Bob Vokey,

and others from our debate, but allwere thoughtfully considered asinnovators in the golf industry. Eachof these individuals have made theirmark on today’s game developingindustry changing designs from thehybrid iron/wood to the improvedperimeter weighted club and milledfaces. We also omitted the pioneersin new shaft and material introduc-tions that have become so much apart of golf.

If you have a golf innovator youwould like us to consider, please letus know at the Michigan Golfer. Weare stubborn in our opinions, butcertainly open to your ideas.

- MG -


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By Mike Duff

Warm hospitalityand great golfawait you in the

Fort Wayne Indiana. BobMoriarity, Bob Walker, mybrother Bob and I spentthree days in the FortWayne area playing golfand enjoying the friendlyIndiana hospitality. Welike to call ourselves the“traveling golf Wilburys”and we can attest to agreat experience. This wasour second trip toNorthern Indiana in asmany years and it provedto be enjoyable as our pre-vious trip. We try to pick aspring golf destination thatis within two to threehours of Detroit whichmay offer better weatherconditions. However, thatdoesn’t always work out.

Our golf adventurestarted with an afternoontee time at Cherry HillGolf Club just outside ofFort Wayne.Unfortunately, we were unable toplay the back nine due to heavy rainand high winds but we were able toplay the front nine which was rathertight. Homes lined both sides of thefairways which made you concen-trate on ball control. The course wasdesigned by Max Robertson, PeteDye’s lead shaper for 34 years whichis a testimony to the difficult greens,water locations and sand traps. Thesignature hole was number 6 and isthe only true island hole in Indiana.

It is a beautiful hole and very chal-lenging. Our pace of play quickenedwith each hole due to the weatherconditions. The greens had beenrecently aerated and top dressed, soin all fairness to the course, we did-n’t get a chance to really make a fairassessment. However, the overallcondition of the course was great.Cherry Hill offers four sets of teesranging from 6800 from the tips to5200 yards from the reds. Seniorplayers had the option to play thewhites at 5980 yards. Our goal is to

return to Cherry Hill andplay it again. By the way, itdoes have a four-and-a-halfstar rating by Golf Digest.

Todd Chin, Pro ShopManager and RyanDelagrange, GeneralManager at Cherry Hill werefriendly and welcoming. Wehad intended on returningthe next day to complete ourround but time constraintsprohibited us.

Note: Cherry HillGolf Club. 6615 WheelockRd., (260) 485-8727,www.cherryhillgc.com, Par72, Course length-6,800yards, Slope: 132, Rating72.9

Our next day tookus to AutumnRidge Golf Club a

few miles from Cherry HillC.C. Roger Delagrange theowner of Cherry Hill,Autumn Ridge and BobCat Golf Club in Port

Charlotte Florida, happened to bethere and extended his welcome.The weather conditions hadimproved and we were eager to getstarted. From the time we enteredthe pro shop and club house weknew that the friendly customerservice that we had heard about wastrue. We were greeted by KylePearson, Head Pro and GeneralManager. Kyle is a graduate of theUniversity of Indianapolis majoringin golf management. I asked Kyle,

Cherry Hill, No. 14

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what sets AutumnRidge apart from othercourses in the area?“The challenging ter-rain and the spectacularlake holes…. in addi-tion, we have a fullservice driving rangewith target greens and ashort game practicearea. Autumn Ridge isan event golf centeroffering a full servicepro shop and banquetfacilities.” According toKyle Autumn Ridge isvery popular in the FortWayne area and has alarge private member-ship.

Autumn Ridge alsohas a four-and-a-half starrating from Golf Digest

and offers four sets of tees rangingfrom 7103 to 5273 yards with theoption for seniors at 6009. ErnieSchrock designed the course whichopened in 1993. He made the courseto accommodate the skilled golfer aswell as the beginner. “The thing Iliked about the course was the widefairways and the forgiving fairwayrough,” commented Bob Moriarity.Water comes in to play on 11 of theholes yet you don’t feel overly intimi-dated, but poor shots can get you introuble. Bob Duff, pointed out thatthe “homes along the course nevercome in to play so you don’t feelclosed in.” The course was in excellentshape even though the greens hadbeen recently aerated and top dressed.Following our round of golf we head-ed for the 19th hole, where weenjoyed talking with the staff whilehaving a bite to eat and a couple ofbeers. Bob Walker, our customer serv-Cherry Hill, No. 15

Autumn Ridge No. 9

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21ice expert of our group, was impressedwith the courteous manner andfriendly atmosphere exhibited by thewait staff. Heather, a recent graduateof Mankato State University inWisconsin, was our server. She exem-plified the hospitality we saw through-out our visit to Autumn Ridge.

Note: Autumn Ridge Golf Club.11420 Auburn Road, Fort Wayne,(260)637-8727, www.autumn-ridgegc.com, Par 72, Course length-7103 yards, Slope: 136, Rating 74.9.

Day three took us to GlendarinHills Golf Club near AngolaIndiana. We made this our

last stop on our way home. Glendarinis considered to be one of the bestcourses in Indiana. It is located off ofI-69 approximately three miles offcounty road 200N. Glendarin GolfClub is a resort-style golf course situat-ed on 485 acres of sloping terrain. Thefront nine reminds me of an up-northMichigan course with plenty of treesand a track that would suit anyMichigan golfer. The back side ismore open. There are five sets of tees.The green tees offer senior players achallenging track at 5878 yards.

Playing from the tips gives you an alltogether different look and uniquechallenge. Yardages range from 5,000to 7,000 yards. Jeff Huffman is thehead pro and can help make your visitto Glendarin one you will alwaysremember. Jeff is new to Glendarinbut not new to golf. He is widelyknown in this part of Indiana havingbeen the head pro at CobblestoneGolf Club for a number of years.

Glendarin has 18 unique holes

with elevated tees, groomed trapsand gracious landing areas for put-ting you in position for a good sec-ond shot. Shot accuracy is a must onmost holes. The tender care that thecourse receives from its groundscrew lends itself to good shot-mak-ing. We really enjoyed the naturallayout with its rolling terrain andbeautiful woods. It truly is a courseto experience.

Note: Glendarin Golf Club.3333 Glendarin Way, Angola IN.,(260) 624-3550, www.glendarin-hills.com, Par 72, Course length-7055 yards.

All three of these courses havebent grass fairways and greens. Cartsare required and carts are equippedwith GPS systems. One call will doit all. Dan Flint at (260) 433-1480can handle all your golf and lodgingneeds. Partner courses in the area areBridgewater East, Bridgewater West,Cobblestone and Noble Hawk.

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Autumn Ridge Fairway

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By Bill Shelton

The OuterBanks ofNorth

Carolina (dubbedOBX) has longbeen recognizedas a prime familyvacation destina-tion. The 130-

mile stretch of barrier islands offersnatural beach settings on theAtlantic Ocean as well as theCurrituck, Albemarle, and PamlicoSounds. Unlike many other easterncoastal resorts, the island is not clut-tered with high-rise condos andresorts but rather features the moretraditional seaside weathered-woodhouses atop stilts. Known for its dis-tinctively decorated lighthouses,

sandy beaches, site of the LostColony, wild horses, oat grass sanddunes, the Wright Brothers’ firstflight, as well as varieties of freshseafood, the Outer Banks attractnearly 7 million visitors each year.But golfing may not have been con-sidered a major attraction.

The Outer Banks has been self-proclaimed as the “Ultimate CoastalGolf Destination.” Admittedly, con-sidering the golfing venues alongAmerica’s eastern shore such asHilton Head, Myrtle Beach, KiawahIsland, Georgia and Florida golfingresorts, that title seems a bit ambi-tious. There are, however, some gen-uine reasons to add OBX to one’sgolfing itinerary. Eleven courses are

available for public play including 7newer courses that are excellent testsof golf. Three of the courses are list-ed among North Carolina’s “Top100 Places to Play”: Kilmarlic GolfClub, The Currituck Club, andNags Head Golf Links.

Booking golf packages on theOuter Banks is very convenient andaffordable. Outer Banks Golf Travel(www.OBXGolfTravel.com or(800)916-6244) provides one-stoppackage quotes and bookings for theisland courses and lodgings. Pricesfor both golf play and lodgings arevery affordable especially during the“shoulder” seasons (and those non-golfers no longer are cluttering theroads). The temperatures in the fall

OBX Means “In Bounds” for Golfers

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The Pointe Golf Club

and spring average in the mid-70sand the Bermuda fairways and bent-grass greens are typically in immacu-late condition.

Being located on the northernend of coastal golf, the Outer Banksare easily accessible by car from theNortheast and Midwest. Air travelto the area is typically routedthrough Norfolk International (VA),located within 90 miles of the cours-es.

A final consideration of whyOBX should be viewed as a viableoption of an upcoming golf trip isthat it does not have the “golf facto-ry” aura of many venues. It is amore “personalized” experience withfewer courses but more individual The Carolina Club

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attention. While there are fewercourses than many coastal destina-tions, there is no shortage of qualitygolfing experiences available.

The Kilmarlic Golf Club mean-ders 6500 yards through maritimeforest and intruding wetlands.Designed by Tom Steele, Kilmarlichas twice hosted the North CarolinaOpen and has earned a Golf Digestfour-star “Best Places You Can Play”rating. Though not a long course, itcan best be described as a“risk/reward” test with can result ina birdie or double bogey. Limitedon-site cottage lodging is available.Sister venues, Carolina Club andThe Pointe, are Russell Breeden andBob Moore designs that are meticu-lously manicured and player friend-ly. Ever present sea breezes add tochallenge of mastering either course.The Pointe is the home to a favoritelocal watering hole and grille,

Keefer’s. These three courses alongwith The Pines at Elizabeth Cityand the Golf Digest 4 ½ star “BestPlaces to Play” The Sound GolfLinks are on the mainland.

The Currituck Club, a ReesJones creation, winds through islanddunes, wetlands, and along sound-side shore line. The ocean breezesseem to affect virtually every shotand club selection. The imposingclubhouse sits high atop (a relativeexpression) a ridge overlooking theCorolla community and offering aenjoyable place to enjoy somerefreshment and ocean views after achallenging round. A sister club,Nags Head Golf Links, is a trulyScottish links-style course and, dueto the coastal winds, and GolfDigest has branded it as “the longest6,126 yards you’ll ever play.” Sittingadjacent to the sound, it has stun-ning vistas but appeal to the eye but

seem to beckon golf balls to theirwatery grave. Hitting the ballstraight is a key asset on this BobMoore design. All of the bad shotscan be easily forgotten as the golferrelaxes on the sound-side deck of theclubhouse.

The Outer Banks of NorthCarolina is an alternative—and agood one—to golfers who enjoy avariety of golf venues. The fall andspring seasons are less crowded andthe weather is perfect for being out-doors. The rates are affordable andthe hospitality genuine. While sum-mer golf in Michigan is unbeatable,think about heading to OBX nextfall or spring and enjoy an islandexperience.

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Photo right: Nags Head, Hole No. 18

Currituck Club, Hole No. 15

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By Greg JohnsonWASHING-TON, Mich. – Itbecame clear toJeff Cuzzort thathe wasn’t goingto catch thebirdie-makingmachine other-wise known as

Berritt Kelpin in the 95thMichigan Open Championshippresented by DTE Energy, so hedecided to cheer him on.

“I kept telling him to ‘birdie in,birdie in,’” Cuzzort said after Kelpintied the 64-year-old all-time scoringrecord in racing away from the fieldThursday at The Orchards Golf Club.“I wasn’t going to catch him, so hemight as well birdie them all and getthe record. I was rooting for him.”

Kelpin, 22, stormed the fieldwith a course-record tying 63 in thesecond round to set the table for hisrun at history.

A recent University of Iowa gradu-ate playing in his first professionaltournament, Kelpin closed with a 4-under-par 68 for a remarkable 23-under-par 265 total. It earned him an$8,000 first-place check as well as thecoveted James D. Standish Jr. Trophy.

Cuzzort, a Nationwide Tour play-er from Grosse Ile, shot 72 for 15-under 273 and then cheeredMichigan golf history.

Kelpin’s scoring performancematched the mark set in 1948 byMichigan Golf Hall of Fame legendChick Harbert, who won theMichigan Open four times, wonseven times on the PGA Tour, wonthe 1954 PGA National

Championship and was a RyderCup captain.

“Probably a lot of it hasn’t sunkin,” Kelpin said after shocking thefield. “It was my first pro event andI played so well and managed to tiethat record. It’s kind of surreal rightnow, but it was a great week. I meanI played well the whole week.”

Andy Ruthkoski, the 2007Michigan Open champion fromMuskegon, mini-tour golfer WillieMack III of Flint and low amateurBrian Hayward, a Grand RapidsCPA, tied for third at 14-under-par274. Clark Klaasen, a mini-tourplayer from Grand Rapids, was next

Greg Johnson

Barrett Kelpin won his first professional check, $8,000.

Kalamazoo Golfer Marches toHistoric Michigan Open Win

Michigan Golfer TV:2012 Michigan Open, Orchards Golf Clubhttp://youtube.com/watch?v=lceB26XLPb0

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after shooting a 65, the low roundof the day, for 275.

Cuzzort, who won $4,800 forsecond, had three bogeys to start hisround, and said he let the nervousKelpin off the hook.

“I could see he was nervous,” hesaid. “He had a double-bogey (No.5 in the hazard), but I just never gotanything going. Bogey the first threeholes – that’s not what I wanted todo. It’s kind of opposite of what Ineeded to do to put pressure on.”

Kelpin said the help of his uncle,Greg Gagie, who caddied for him,was a critical factor, and he said hetalked on the phone with histeacher, Charley Vandenberg ofThousand Oaks in Grand Rapids,each day of the week.,

“I feel like talking with (Charley)and having my uncle there to calmme down when the going got toughwas big,” he said after making 29birdies and an eagle during the fourrounds. “I knew I could win, but Idon’t think I really expected this inmy first professional event.”

Kelpin, an All-Big Ten golferwho won the national NorthernAmateur last summer and had fivesecond-place finishes in college play,had a shot at 24-under on the finalhole, but an 18-foot putt came upjust inches short.

“I putted great from start tofinish this week,” he said. “Anyputt that was on the green Ithought I could make,” he said.“Once I shot that 63 and saw allthose putts go in, my confidence

was through the roof for me theentire week.”

Kelpin plays to play mini-tourgolf and prepare for PGA TourQualifying in the fall. He also willget another shot at The Orchards,which will host the Michigan Openagain next year. Kevin Helm, theexecutive director of the PGA, andRon Dalby, owner of The Orchards,announced the Open will return in2013.

Note: Doug Joy and PhyllisBarone bring us some of the actionat the Open, with interviews withRandy Erskine and winner BarrettKelpin.http://youtube.com/watch?v=lceB26XLPb0

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A wee gallery watches the action.

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By Brad Shelton

Itook ArtAppreciation incollege because

I needed the gener-al education creditsto satisfy myundergraduaterequirements. Forsome reason, which

probably applies to many collegestudents at that age, I passed theclass and never really developed anappreciation or understanding of art– it was just a necessary evil andhopefully an easy “A” at the time.

Now some 20 plus years later art

appreciation is beginning to makesense to me. However, instead ofdeveloping an appreciation for artthrough da Vinci’s Mona Lisa orBeethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in Cminor, my comprehension comesfrom applying the principles of artappreciation to golf course designand architecture.

Art appreciation in its simplestdefinition “is being able to look at awork of art and then being able toform an opinion of the work.”

A true work of art challengesyour intellect every time you experi-

ence it. There is much more to theMona Lisa than a simple and plainlooking woman sitting for a familyportrait. Mozart’s music is muchmore than a classical simplicity piececomposed after the complexity ofthe Baroque style. The more youexperience it the more you see, hear,and understand new things.

As opposed to a painting or sym-phony, my favorite part of golfcourse art is that I actually get bepart of the art – I can become a par-ticipant in the idea and vision of theartist. I am sure nobody would everylet me add a brush stroke to a

A New Appreciation for Art

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Robert Trent Jones’ The Heather, Boyne Highlands

famous painting, but I can experi-ence a different set of tees, see newpin placements, take a divot fromthe fairway, or punch out frombehind a different tree…

The more I play the more I seethe artist’s intention.

Golf course design and architec-ture is as much a work art as anypainting, opera, ballet, symphony,song, or stage performance. Insteadof a blank canvass for the painter orstaff paper for the composer, the golfcourse architect and designer usesthe natural landscape to transform aplot of raw land into a work of art.

The famous golf course artistssuch as Ross, Dye, McKenzie, andTrent Jones all understood golfcourses as art. Today’s mastermindssuch as Fazio, Nicklaus, Player,Palmer, Hills, and Mathews havecontinued to advance artistic princi-ples in the design of courses.

If anything is disappointingabout golf course architecture/artthese days it is the liberties superin-tendents and course committees takewith the original design due to eco-nomic or maintenance reasons.Some have added or deleted a brushstroke to the Mona Lisa withoutconsulting the artist on the best wayto maintain the initial intent of theartist. As I understand the need tomeet budget and reduce theheadaches of raking another bunkeror mowing a larger green, I amafraid too many are altering thelandscape that takes away from theoriginal artists intent and this thegolfer’s enjoyment of a true work ofart.

I have been fortunate to play a

number of great golf courses in mylifetime – and a few not so great.Regardless of the course, every timeI play now I have an honest appreci-ation of the golf course artists andthe natural canvass they have trans-formed.

It is probably not the art appreci-ation my professors intended, but Ihope they know they did achievetheir objective of creating a life longstudent of art appreciation.

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Tom Fazio

Robert Trent Jones (r) with Harry Melling

Arnold Palner

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On July28,2011,

one of Michigan’smost successfulamateur golfers,RussCunningham,

was named the third men’s andwomen’s head golf coach in OaklandUniversity’s 14-year history as aDivision I college.

The 2010 Golf Association ofMichigan Amateur of the Decade,Cunningham is a former assistant

men’s golf coach at Michigan StateUniversity, as well as Buies Creek,North Carolina’s CampbellUniversity.

Aside from his successful amateurcareer, which includes a victory at the2010 Michigan Publinx Match Play

Oakland University GoldenGrizzlies Anticipate a Memorable

2012-2013 SeasonBy Chris Lewis

Collegiate Spotlight

Oakland University Men’s Golf Team, 2011 - 2012

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Championship, Cunningham is pri-marily known for his tenure at MSU,as he helped the Spartans drasticallyimprove their golfing program in the1990s. In just two-and-a-half years,the team lowered its scoring averageby 15 shots and raised its grade pointaverage from 2.3 to 2.9.

Today, Cunningham’s focus onathletics – and academics – has notwavered, as he is determined to helpthe Golden Grizzlies not onlybecome contenders on the golfcourse, but also develop a properbalance between school and golf. Indoing so, they will be more preparedto succeed in whichever career orendeavor they pursue in the future.

“I expect the entire team toalways be improving, whether theyare on the golf course, or in theclassroom,” Cunningham said. “Tobuild upon last season’s results, thatconstant desire to improve will benecessary.”

Reflections: The 2011 – 2012 OaklandUniversity Grizzlies

During the 2011 – 2012 season,the Golden Grizzlies had seven top-ten finishes in 11 appearances,including last September’s FossumInvitational, held at East Lansing’sForest Akers West.

Led by redshirt sophomore MattDomagalski’s trio of 74s, the team fin-ished in third-place among 12 teams.Forest Akers West is well-knownthroughout the state for its challeng-ing 7,013 yard-long, par-72 layout,which a majority of Oakland’s startersmanaged quite well.

“But, as it turns out, our first

round of 291was our lowestround of theyear – and thatshould not bethe case,”Cunninghamsaid.

The Grizzlieswould notrecord anothertop-five finishuntil October, atthe CSUInvitational,contested atCleveland,Ohio’sCanterbury GolfClub. Formerteam memberPhil Gieseker, aswell as freshmanAlex Turner, ledall Oakland scor-ers with a pair of71s. Giesekerand Turner fin-ished the tourna-ment in third-place on an individualbasis, while Oakland claimed afourth-place showing.

Later that month, the team alsoearned a sixth-place finish at theUD Invitational, held at Kettering,Ohio’s NCR Country Club.Featuring 13 teams and 95 players,Michael Coriasso (’12) led allOakland scorers with rounds of 75and 73.

The team did not competeagain until February 18th, whenfour starters competed in the FolinoInvitational. Held at Industry,California’s Industry Hills GolfClub, the longest course the

Grizzlies encountered all season, at7,211 yards, the team recordedanother top-10 finish – its fourth ofthe 2011-2012 season.

One month later, the team fin-ished seventh at the CarterPlantation Intercollegiate, an eventhosted in Springfield, Louisiana.Michael Coriasso again led allOakland scorers, with rounds of 78,73, and 76. The team would claimtwo more top-ten finishes the fol-lowing month, at the Detroit TitansInvitational and the Summit LeagueChampionship.

“Although we did not play asconsistently during the spring sea-

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son, as we had in the fall, I believeour final tournament was the mostmemorable one of the year,”Cunningham said.

Contested at Primm, Nevada’sPrimm Valley Desert Course, the2012 Summit LeagueChampionship will likely be remem-bered primarily for one individual’sperformance – Nick Cunningham’sfourth-place finish.

Upon firing an opening firstround of 68, the lowest of the sea-son, Cunningham backed up hisperformance with a 72 and 71, fin-ishing the tournament at two-under-par. Cunningham, who is not relat-ed to his coach, currently has acareer scoring average of 75.7.

If he maintains that averagethroughout the remainder of hiscareer, he will graduate from Oaklandwith one of the top-ten best careerscoring averages in the history of theprogram. The same can be said ofsophomore Trevor Rosekrans, whopresently has an average of 76.5.Another consistent member of thesquad, redshirt freshman CameronNelson finished the 2011-2012 seasonwith a scoring average of 77.4, one ofthe best averages recorded by a fresh-man in years.

Coach Cunningham LooksAhead to the Future

Such performances have led CoachCunningham to believe the Grizzliescurrently have the skill sets that arenecessary to become regularDivision I contenders.

“I believe this upcoming seasonwill be one to remember,”Cunningham said. “Each member of

the team has the ability to competefor individual titles. It is simply amatter of having all five players per-form to their best of their abilitiesevery single round.”

He continued, “It was so excitingto coach once again. And to do so as ahead coach makes the last ten years inwhich I have competed as an amateureven more rewarding. Now it’s time touse my competitive experience to helpcreate lifelong memories for each ofmy team members.”

With the team’s proper blend ofyouth and experience, raw, naturaltalent, and the resolve to succeed,there are plenty of reasons to believeOakland University will regularlycontend for tournaments through-out the 2012 – 2013 season.

For further information aboutOakland University’s wide selectionof athletic programs, please visithttp://www.ougrizzlies.com.

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Saginaw Valley State UniversityCardinals Prepare for

Upcoming Fall 2012 SeasonBy Chris Lewis

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The yearwas 1969.Orville

Moody had justshocked the golf-ing world bywinning the U.S.Open as a localand sectionalqualifier, the last

to do so in the 20th century.Raymond Floyd had recentlyearned his first of four major cham-pionship victories, defeating GaryPlayer by one stroke at the PGAChampionship. And, SaginawValley State University’s very firstmen’s golf team competed as amember of the National AthleticIntercollegiate Association (NAIA),

capturing four tournaments in theprocess.

Two years later, Joe Vogl, a for-mer high school football linebackerstandout, transferred from FerrisState University to Saginaw StateUniversity, after enduring a career-ending injury. Upon transferring,Vogl chose to pursue a collegiate

Saginaw State University Men’s Golf Team, 2011 - 2012

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career in his second favorite sport –golf.

The decision ultimately provedto be one of his best, as Vogl led theCardinals to three NAIA champi-onships and three Great LakesIntercollegiate Athletic Conference(GLIAC) titles in four years, whilealso earning individual All-GLIACand All-District honors.

Today, ashead coach of theuniversity’s men’sgolf team, Vogl isfocused on achiev-ing one singulargoal – to guide hiscurrent squad tomultiple collegiatetitles this upcom-ing season as well.

“Our goalsfor this fall andnext spring aresimple – to win theGLIACChampionship inOctober and earnat least a fifth-placeshowing at nextApril’s regionalcompetition,” Voglsaid. “A fifth-placefinish would assureus a spot at theSuper Regionals,which, hopefully,will provide uswith an opportuni-ty to compete innext May’s NCAADivision II Finals.”

Vogl’s goalsmay appear to bequite lofty at firstglance. After all,the Cardinals only

had one top-five finish last fall – atthe Northwood UniversityInvitational – and none this pastspring.

But, Vogl believes his team’s cur-rent sophomores, and incomingclass of freshmen recruits, truly havethe ability to transform his visioninto reality this fall.

A Look Back at the 2011 –2012 Saginaw Valley StateUniversity Cardinals

Last season, Coach Vogl wasshocked by the season-long perform-ances of two newcomers – red shirtfreshman Micah Skidmore andfreshman Wyatt Drost.

Skidmore, a native of Saginaw,competed in 12 events last season,including the NCAA SuperRegionals. He led the Cardinals inscoring in 10 of 11 team events andearned four individual top-five fin-ishes.

“Micah was our top scorer thispast season, with a scoring averageof 74.2 – one of the best seasonalaverages ever recorded in the historyof the university,” Vogl said. “Hewas not only named the team’sMVP, but also received All-GLIACfirst team and All-Midwest Regionteam recognitions.”

In addition, he was the firstCardinal to ever be selected as theGLIAC’s Freshman of the Year, anhonor that is even more remarkablewhen one considers the university’sextensive list of talented alumni,which includes three-time MichiganOpen and two-time Michigan PGAwinner Steve Brady, who is currentlyOakland Hills Country Club’sDirector of Instruction.

“Wyatt Drost also played consis-tently well last season, finishing witha scoring average of 76.1 – and threetop-20 finishes in nine events,” Voglsaid. “Wyatt, like Micah, will be amember of the Cardinals for anotherthree years.”

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Led by Skidmore and Drost, theCardinals recorded seven top-ten fin-ishes last season, at tournaments rang-ing from the Al Watrous Memorial tothe NCAA Regional #2.

The Al Watrous Memorial ishosted by Saginaw Valley StateUniversity on a biennial basis and iscontested at the 6,880-yard-longBay City Country Club, whichoffers golfers a variety of challenges,ranging from narrow fairways andfast, undulating greens to potbunkers and water hazards.

“The team shot a season best 584– eight-over-par for two rounds,” Voglsaid. “Although eight-over-par was notlow enough to win, it did build somepositive momentum as the team pre-pared for the rest of the fall season.”

The following week, the teamsecured a fifth-place showing at theNorthwood University Invitational,held at Midland’s Currie Golf Course.Micah Skidmore, along with WyattDrost and junior Adam Hansen, ledthe Cardinals in scoring, with two-daytotals of 148, 149, and 150, respec-tively. The entire team finished with ascore of 606, the second-best total ofthe Fall 2011 season.

The Cardinals did not claimanother top-six finish until this pastspring, at the NCAA Regional #2,which was contested at CherryBlossom Golf and Country Club,located in Georgetown, Kentucky.

Skidmore once again led all scor-ers, with a two-day, two-under-partotal of 142, the second lowest scoreof the tournament. The Cardinalsfinished with a two-day total of 593,the team’s lowest score of the entirespring season.

“Our spring season scoring aver-age was 306.1 overall, which wasslightly higher than our year-longaverage of 305.1,” Vogl said. “Weactually had a much lower averagein the fall, at 302.2, but our seasonalrecord improved from the fall to thespring. Last fall, our record was 32-37-1 and this season it was 46-47, aconsiderable improvement.”

Coach Vogl Prepares for aConsistent, Successful2012-2013 Campaign

In less than three months, theCardinals will be participating intheir first event of the 2012 – 2013season, Northern MichiganUniversity’s Wildcat Invitational.

With talented sophomores likeSkidmore and Drost, as well as threenew recruits, Coach Vogl believesthis year’s Wildcat Invitational willbe the first of many strong showingsfor the Cardinals.

“I am really optimistic about thisupcoming season,” Vogl said. “I havethree incoming freshmen this yearfrom both the Lower and UpperPeninsulas – Peter Van Sprecken,Eric Hepker, and Tommy Prato –and I have one player who will berejoining the squad after taking oneyear off.”

Vogl continued, “On top of that,I also have two seniors, my sons,Dustin and Drew, and a couple ofjuniors, Adam Hansen and KregSherman. Along with Micah andWyatt, there are two other sopho-mores that have the potential tobecome future leaders of the team aswell.

“This year’s team will have such astrong mix of experience, youth, andtalent that I cannot help but to beexcited about the future of our pro-gram. This is truly an incredibletime to be a Cardinal.”

For more information aboutSaginaw Valley State University’swide selection of athletic programs,please visit http://athletics.svsu.edu.

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Kreg Sherman

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In spite of itbeing an awk-ward difficult

venue for spectatorsto get around, theSenior PGAChampionship heldat Harbor Shores inBenton Harbor was

a resounding success on many fronts.First, the weather was summer-likeand virtually void of weather delaysand rainfall. In fact, it may have beenalmost too good with hot and humidtemperatures. One observer said a year

ago on the same date, the weather wasgray, cloudy and with temperaturesonly in the mid-forties. Ah, PureMichigan. The favorable weather overthe Memorial Day weekend certainlycontributed to a strong turnout. Evenon Wednesday and Thursday, thecrowds were very respectable.

One must commend tournamentorganizers, starting with presentingsponsor KitchenAid of Whirlpooland KemperSports, for aggressivelymarketing tournament ticket salesthroughout the past year. In my

tenure in the golf industry in thestate, I’ve never seen an event pro-moted as widely as this event. In theGrand Rapids media market, televi-sion ads touting the Senior PGA ranon all of the major outlets formonths. No one could say they had-n’t heard about Harbor Shores. Andeven losing defending championTom Watson, due to an injury, did-n’t dampen the attendance.

In the pre-tournament inter-views, there were some player con-cerns about the penal nature of the

Slice of Life

By Terry Moore

Terry Moore

Senior PGA Championship at Harbor Shores

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Jack Nicklaus design, particularly inrelation to the green complexes andputting surfaces. Specifically, thetenth green came in for some validcriticism for its over-the-top mound-ing and huge “bunny hill” drop-off.Mild-mannered Fred Couples evensaid it was “a little too much.”Bernhard Langer said, “I think it’s aphenomenal golf course from tee togreen. One of the world’s best, Iwould say, but could be the mostsevere or worst green complexes I’veever seen in my life.” Fred Funksaid, “the greens I think are a littletoo busy, but they are what theyare... I don’t mind a lot of move-ment to the greens or even terraces,but give us some flat areas where

you can have theofficials go outthere and... havefive or six or fourreally good pinplacements.”

During theopening round,such criticismwas compoundedwhen the prevail-ing wind direc-tion switchedand made scor-ing particularlydifficult. In theafternoon tee-times, only one

player broke par.Pre-tournamentfavorite MichaelAllen shot 77.But on Friday,the windsswitched backand conditionswere more for-giving. Allen’sscore improvedby 13 shots.From then on,the players wereoff to the racesand birdiesarrived in

bunches. So in spite of all of theconcerns about the difficulty of thedesign, the players ate it up.Eventual champion Roger Chapmanput on a ball-striking clinic, hittingfairways and greens throughout theweek. On Sunday, Kenny Perry fireda 62, establishing a new tournamentrecord. In sum, the game’s best play-ers didn’t have any problems withHarbor Shores.

The course itself, thanks toSuperintendent Brad Fry and hisstaff which also included a host ofvolunteering superintendents, was insuperb conditions and looked spec-tacular on television. Considering

Roger Chapman with the trophy

Ron Beurman was one of five Michigan-connected people playing.

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the course only opened two yearsago over some difficult and unsight-ly terrain, this was a remarkableachievement. How this once forsak-en land, a favorite dumping groundand a site of dilapidated, vacantbuildings, was transformed into aworld-class development is really thecompelling story of Harbor Shores.With a total investment of a half-billion dollars, this 530-acre residen-tial, golf, recreational and waterfrontcommunity is a showcase for thecities of Benton Harbor and St.Joseph. More importantly it has gal-vanized the area and fostered newand strong civic alliances. In addi-tion, the development has nurtured

the Boys & Girls Club and The FirstTee of Benton Harbor. WhirlpoolCorporation and the WhirlpoolFoundation have been stalwart citi-zens in all of these endeavors.

Kudos to the Michigan PGA forits collaborative efforts with thetournament. I noticed manyMichigan pros in attendance andalso volunteering at the practicerange. Heck, one West Michiganpro even picked up a chipping les-son from guru Stan Utley.Tournament organizers smartlyimplemented a spectator trolley sys-tem which lessened the “hard walk”

posed by the vast layout (6.2 milesof cart paths.) But to get to somescenic holes—say 7-9 or the infa-mous 10th green—spectators stillneeded a long trek. And sadly therewere only a few observations standsfor spectators. More stands shouldbe planned for 2014 when the eventreturns.

All in all, a notable week for thePGA of America, Harbor Shores,southwest Michigan and golf itself.It will only get better in 2014.Count me in again.

- MG -

Benton Harbor was madly in love withthe PGA. J.R. Roth was not a happy camper after his double bogey.

Michigan Golfer TV:Senior PGA Championship, Harbor Shores, 2012http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-hEHJBo_oY

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