Cold weather has slowed business down here for the last week or so but a promising forecast for this weekend should bring some golfers out. Like most courses in our area we have aerated our course. I know all golfers hate this fall ritual but it is one of those necessary evils that we must do so that we can achieve optimum turf conditions next spring. With that being said a lot of courses have dropped their rates for the fall and there are some bargains to be had.
Focus on the PGA tour now is players attempting to keep their cards and stay in the top-125 money list. Fellow Hoosier and Brickyard Crossing blogger Chad Collins is in that mix as he tries to win enough money these last 2 events to jump up to the 125.
Another Hoosier, Jeff Overton, was in the top 125 and playing really well, that is, until he went to Phoenix for the PGA Tour stop and had to have an emergency appendectomy. What a terrible break, as Jeff had played really well this fall and was well on his way to securing his card for the 2009 season. But the main thing is that Jeff recovers and gets well soon.
If you don’t get to the top 125 you then get to try Q-School. It is the most grueling tournament in golf. There are two stages and then the finals where only 25 players get their tour cards for 2009.
Our good friend and former Hoosier Jim Gallagher Jr. is going to give it a try again this fall. Jim is just about as old as I am and wants to stay competitive to give the Champions Tour a chance here in a few years. Speaking of the Champions Tour, Hal Sutton made his senior debut last week. Some interesting players are turning 50 here in the next year.
In a few weeks I head off to San Luis Obispo, Calif., for a tournament hosted by Mike Rowley, president of Straight Down Clothing Company. The tournament is a scratch Pro-Am. My partner is Joe Hillman from Wolf Run Golf Club. This tournament is one of the biggest and best tournaments I play in.
Mike invites about 40 club professionals from around the country and then has 20 or more touring pros from the PGA Tour, Champions Tour and Nationwide Tour. I have not seen the list of players yet but I know the last few years Tom Lehman, Charley Hoffman and Paul Goydos have competed. When the field is set I will let you know who is playing.
‘Til then get out and play some golf and check out the Brickyard!
Jeff Schroeder
PGA Head Professional
Brickyard Crossing
When I last wrote, I was headed up to Firestone Country Club to do some teaching and play in a two-day Pro-Am.
The event ended up being a fundraiser for Akron Children’s Hospital. One of the major sponsors was our good friends at Bridgestone. They had their ball-fitting equipment there, along with the new golf balls and their equipment.
This ball-fitting procedure is something that everyone needs to have done. It takes about 20 minutes, and when you are finished, they will tell you what ball you should be playing.
Obviously, they want you to play a Bridgestone ball, but they test you with the golf ball that you normally play. Then after they get the data, they have you try a Bridgestone model that is right for you and compare the data. The amazing thing is that most people are playing the wrong ball, one which you are giving both distance and spin. Things that are looked at during testing are the club head speed, ball speed and the spin rate. This is tested on your driver and irons.
OK, back to the event. The tournament was played on the South Course, which is where the pro tournament is played. They are in the process right now of adding and reworking some bunkers to make a little more challenging for the tour pros.
The facilities at Firestone are first class. All the pros that came in for this event stayed up in the guest rooms in the men’s locker room, which also houses the 55th hole, better known as the bar. So each night after our dinner, we would all meet at the 55th hole and talk about the latest in golf and, of course, the economy and how it is affecting our courses.
We had pros from Pinehurst, The Homestead, Shadow Creek Las Vegas, Baltrusol CC, Sea Island and many others from some of the most prestigious clubs in the country. The message was all the same: Golf is a tough business right now, and the main thing we have to do is keep providing the best service and make sure that the golf course quality remains excellent.
Back to the tournament. We got to play two days with a different group each day, and each day I got to meet some great people and have fun while teaching them a thing or two about the golf swing. All in all, it was a great time for the three days of being there.
I need to thank my friend Jay Biggs from Firestone for inviting me to such a worthwhile event. My play was OK, seeing how for the tournament the worst score the pro could make was a par!
After the Firestone trip, our Indiana PGA Section had a pro-am out in Las Vegas at the Paiute Golf Resort. There were 55 five-man teams from Indiana that converged on Vegas.
Most arrived a few days in advance and played some golf or hit the tables, a show or just relaxed around the pool. Our group went out Tuesday and played a new Jack Nicklaus course about one hour outside of Vegas called The Chase. This is going to be part of a development called Coyote Springs.
The master plan for Coyote Springs calls for like 18 courses over the next 20 years with housing, condos and basically a town. Another course is being routed as we speak, and it could be something of golf history. The course is being done together by Jack Nicklaus and Pete Dye, who designed Brickyard Crossing.
The Chase golf course is very good. Right now, the only bad thing is that it is in the middle of nowhere and the clubhouse is not built yet. It is worth the drive, though, and staff there is very accommodating and courteous.
The next day, we played one of the best and exclusive courses in Vegas called Cascata. It is in Henderson, which is a little bit of drive, but this place is five-star in my books.
There is a waterfall that runs through the course and then right into the clubhouse. The view is spectacular. The course is always in pristine condition, with the greens’ speed off the charts. The course is expensive to play and is owned by Harrah’s.
Then it was on to the tournament at Paiute golf resort, which happens to have three courses all built by Pete Dye. The courses there are all you want, seeing how they sit out in the open and it is always windy.
The first round for us was on the toughest course there, The Wolf. The winds that day started at about 30 mph and then started gusting up 45 or 50 mph. The temps were warm, which was good, but the wind was just brutal. Our team shot 8-under in the wind, which was good. The format was one net and one gross best ball of the fivesome. My group consisted of Bill McClain, Alan Shaw, Bob Lyon and Larry Sinks.
The next day, we played the Snow Mountain course. There was hardly any wind for the first part of our round, and we ended up shooting 17-under and finishing tied for third overall.
So that was the golf. Now onto the night activities of our group. We ate at all the best restaurants, and we were in bed early. Right.
Sorry – remember: “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.”
Jeff Schroeder
PGA Head Professional
Brickyard Crossing