Tri County Match Play Trophy

THREE-DAY MATCH PLAY EVENT

This weekend, May 11-13, the 32nd Annual Tri-County Match Play Championship will be held at Colonie Golf & Country Club. Last year, both final matches ended on the 15th hole.

Dan Russo beat John Vaccaro in the Championship Flight and Tom Cooper topped John Donovan in the Senior Flight, each 4 & 3.

Semifinals: Russo def. Jim Welch 2 & 1; Vaccaro def. Justin Deitz in 21 holes.

May 11, 2012 Tee Times

7:30 Robby Bigley, Dave Mooradian,
7:40 Chris Comi, Chris Lyons, Steve Owens
7:50 Chad Stoffer, Rob Leonard, Chris Braman
8:00 Jim Welch, Ryan Caponera, Jeff Pachter
8:10 Stan Moore, Bob Cooper, David Arakelian
8:20 Chris Gilbert, Bill Paulsen, John Deitz
8:30 Mark Keegan, Todd Kletter, Moe Mroczkowski
8:40 Paul Hart, Mike McCarroll, Scott Hoerning
8:50 Ken Hall, Robert Couser
9:00 Bryan Barach, James Bologna, Andrew Pludrzynski
9:10 Chris Barach, Steve Quillinan Jr, Jay Gargiulo
9:20 Don Denyse, Justin Deitz, Jim Gifford
9:30 Peter Broderick, Jake Spitalny, Tom Robinson
9:40 Brandon Haase, Dave Pallas, Brad Bentley
9:50 Bill Moll, Joe Quillinan, Chuck Connolly
10:00 John Donovan, Steve Menhennitt, Jim Gardy
10:10 Jim Mannix, Ralph Maru, Mark Russ
10:20 Mike Wheeler, Tom Salmon, Mike Stefanik
10:30 David Huestis, EJ Cardish, Eric Wasserbach
10:40 Kevin Broderick, Peter Spitalny, Jim Mueller

AL MOTTAU REMEMBERED

One of the Capital Area’s longtime golf writers, Al Mottau, died April 28. He was 85. Mottau was a good player and good writer and loved the game.

A single-digit handicap, he usually played out at McGregor Links CC and Ballston Spa CC. He also loved skiing and maintained a membership with the Metropolitan PGA Golf Writers’ Association and occasionally wrote for CapitalAreaGolf.com. Here’s a sample of his work.

Al Mottau (shorts) watches as the longball specialist "The Hitman" puts on a demonstration at McGregor Links CC. Photo by: Joan Heffler

Mottau was also a member of the Golf Travel Writers of America. On that website, it said he “is deemed the dean of golf and ski writers in the great Northeast. He has written about his two favorite sports for more than 40 years. Both sports have taken him all over the world, whether it is in Scotland on the fairways of the Old Course at St. Andrews or in Argentina on the slopes of Las Lenas.”

Mottau worked for the Gannett newspapers, worked for the “Saratogan/USA Today” covering PGA Tour events and for the Ocean State Golf Magazine in Rhode Island and the Saratoga Today newspaper.

Born on Sept. 25, 1926 in Brockton, MA, he served two years in the Navy during WWII before graduating from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, North Adams, MA in 1951. He taught in Berlin and Schenectady and was the principal at the Joseph Henry Elementary School in Galway, retiring after 32 years.

Donations may be made to Mary’s Haven in Saratoga Springs or Community Hospice of Saratoga.

If you missed our radio show, here are some clips from our discussion. Tune in each Saturday morning on 104.5FM, The Team, ESPN Radio.

Bob Kennedy 5-5-12

Dick Bogden 5-5-12

Rob Lamy 5-5-12

Frank Michael 5-5-12

BIGLEY, BRADLEY, GLOVER, WOODS, MICKELSON IN FIELD

This week the PGA Tour returns to Quail Hollow in Charlotte, NC, site of “The Green Mile.” For Capital Area Golf fans, it will be remembered as the tournament that Bryan Bigley, the Siena graduate and local pro and greenskeeper, played. He was paired with an unknown named Keegan Bradley who went on to do great things last season.

Guess what? They are BOTH back in the field this week after Bigley shot a 64 in the Monday qualifier to get in again.

It’s a tough ticket and if you haven’t bought yours yet, you will be looking for scalpers outside the tournament grounds because, for the ninth year in a row, the tournament is sold out! The organizers limit ticket sales to 35,000 per day to insure a pleasant spectator experience.

26 OF TOP 50 IN FIELD

The tournament has the strongest field competing since The Masters was played in April. Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood, Hunter Mahan, Tiger Woods, and Phil Mickelson are all in attendance and sit in the top-10 of the World Golf Rankings. In addition to the top-10, add 16 more top-50 players including Webb Simpson, Graeme McDowell, Bill Haas, Keegan Bradley, Nick Watney, Bo Van Pelt, and Mark Wilson. The winner of this year’s event will have beaten a very tough field.

The defending champion is Lucas Glover, who is currently ranked #100 in the world and 226th in FedEx Cup points. He has made three-of-five cuts this year and needs a good performance to jump start his 2012 campaign. He would definitely be a long shot pick this week.

Other former champions playing in the event include McIlroy, Sean O’Hair, Anthony Kim, Tiger Woods, Jim Furyk, Vijay Singh, and David Toms. McIlroy and Woods both finished in a tie for 40th in their last event at The Masters. O’Hair is currently ranked 41st in the FedEx Cup and has a second place finish in 2012. Kim is still struggling to find his game and has only made two cuts out of nine starts. Furyk, Singh and Toms are officially members of the “40+ older set” but all of them still have plenty of game. Of the three, Jim Furyk is enjoying the most successful 2012 campaign to date, making eight of nine cuts, earning $1.1 million to date with two top-10s (including a solo second) and ranking 45th in the world.

Returning 2011 top-10 finishers from the tournament not mentioned above include Jonathan Byrd, Rory Sabbatini, Bill Haas, Kevin Na, Bobby Gates, Zach Johnson, Pat Perez, Stewart Cink, Robert Garrigus, J.B. Holmes and Carl Pettersson. Pettersson ranks 6th on the money list this year; Haas ranks 13th, Johnson 23rd, Na 24th, Garrigus 32nd and Byrd 47th rounding out those in the top-50 of official earnings this year. The only non-winner among these top-10 finishers from last year is Bobby Gates.

WYLD’S WISHES

The selections this week for my team in Yahoo Fantasy Golf’s challenge are:

A List: Phil Mickelson sub Robert Garrigus
B List: Rory McIlroy and Lee Westwood subs Hunter Mahan and Bill Haas
C List: Henrik Stenson sub Aaron Baddeley

“The Green Mile” composed of the last three holes played is sure to play a part in determining the winner in 2012. At 7,459-yards Quail Hollow is a stiff test of golf for anyone despite last years winning score of 15-under par. Hollow defines the feeling many a player will have after traversing “The Green Mile.”

LONG LIST OF AMATEUR SUPPORT

For 31 years, the Tri-County Golf Association has been attracting the top amateur golfers in the Capital Area.
Founded in 1980 by Peter Spitalny and Mike Bayus, Tri-County boasts about 300 members – 100 active – and 75 seniors (age 50+).

“Originally, we started this as a three-county (Rensselaer, Schenectady and Albany), two-day event with 10 golfers from each county competing in a team event,” said Spitalny, president since 1982. “We have the strongest amateur contingent.”

Spitalny gets plenty of assistance operating the association from administrative assistant Mandy Dearstyne. According to Spitalny, she is the one who helps coordinate all of the scheduling and makes certain that things run smoothly.

THREE IS NOW TWO

After the first two years, the association changed its format to sponsor three yearly events – a Spring match play, the now defunct mid-Summer 54-hole stroke play and a Fall two-man partner’s event made up the TCGA calendar. For 15 years, the stroke play event was the leading individual championship conducted in the Capital Area. This event was rotated among different venues.

With the advent of other scratch events, and the difficulty in obtaining private golf courses, only the match play championship – now held at the Colonie Golf & Country Club for the last 20 years – and the partners. It was held Oct. 8-9. The championship 36-hole event took place at Olde Kinderhook, where it’s been played for the last few years after a long stay at The Sagamore Resort in Bolton Landing.

This year the Partners Championship featured 18 teams, a small field. It usually brings in 35-40 teams but a couple of tournaments held on the same weekend brought that number down.

Ben Bates and Brandon Haase won the tournament with 62-70, beating Rob Bigley and Todd Czepiel (68-66), two strokes behind.

“We’re trying to remain consistent and strive to run well organized events at first class clubs with good competition,” Spitalny said. “We like to draw golfers that live within a 30-mile radius of Albany. Our members appear to be pleased with the tournaments and are enthusiastic and very supportive. At this time, we don’t have any future plans for additional growth, but we are certainly open to suggestions and new ideas. All of the best amateurs in upstate New York have played in our tournaments.”

AMATEUR EFFORTS

The Capital Area also boasts two other organizations geared for amateur golfers: NENY PGA’s CRAGA – the Capital Region Amateur Golf Association – and Eastern New York Golf Association, made up of mostly seniors who play on a weekly schedule.

“We complement CRAGA,” said Spitalny. “We work with everybody else. We attempt to do whatever we can to promote amateur golf. We still want to maintain a separate identity. Our events have a history.”

Regular golfers with a handicap of six or less and seniors, whose handicap is nine or under, are eligible to participate in the Tri-County group.

Bigley, one of the area’s top golfers, feels the Tri-County organization is well-run and likes to compete in the special events.

“It (the Partners Championship) was a great tournament,” Bigley said. “I love the match play tournament. I’ve been playing in the association for 10 years and enjoy the competition.”

Bigley, a Pinehaven Country Club member, tries to hit the other Capital Area courses as much as possible.

“I play everyday,” said Bigley, a math teacher at Albany Academy. “I play a lot in New York state events. The trouble is golf has been expensive and time consuming.”

MORE PRAISE FOR TRI-COUNTY

Haase has been a longtime member of Mohawk Golf Club (1974-1989) and then 2005 to the present time. He stays busy on the golf course competing in the New York State Amateur, mid-Amateur and U.S. Amateur qualifiers along with local invitational events, both individual and partners, and some club events such as Member-Guest, 2-Man and Club Championship.

Haase competed in the Match Play Tournament in the Spring and Partners Event in the Fall. In order to join the group there is just a one time membership fee of $25.

So where does the Tri-County group fit into the amateur golfing circle?

“The CRAGA uses a point system to rank local amateurs and the ENYGA does not fit into many local amateur events that I participate in,” said Haase. “The Tri-County is its own entity, though the tournaments do get included in amateur point standings.”

Hagaman’s Dan Russo, another outstanding amateur golfer in the Capital Area, also enjoyed playing in the Tri-County tournaments. He won the event in May.

“They’ve had these tournaments forever,” Russo said. “They used to run more at one time. As time went on, CRAGA took over. It’s a good organization.”

MEATLESS MEAL THAT HAS PLENTY OF FLAVOR
By Benita Zahn

There’s a push in the country to eat a meatless dinner at least once a week. That’s easy for me as I haven’t eaten red meat since my sophomore year in college. I do, however, eat fish and chicken.

With all the locally grown produce starting to come to market it’s easy to fix a fast, delicious, meat free meal.
This is what the husband and I dined on the other evening.

Here’s what you need:

One bunch beet greens (save the beets for another time)
One head romaine lettuce
3 cups (or so) spinach
1/4 cup olive oil (approx)
2 ‘splashes’ white wine
1-2 tomatoes – rough chop
2 onions, cut in half and thinly sliced
3-4 cloves garlic, rough chop
a few shakes of pepper flakes, depending on your taste buds
salt/pepper to taste
1/2-1 can white beans, rinsed
1/2 pkg pasta – your choice – cook and set aside

Here’s How You Do It:

Trim the stems from the beet greens and toss the greens into boiling water for about two minutes. Rinse under cold water and then chop the greens.

You can boil all the greens first or just the beets greens .. the other greens – wash well and chop .. reserve the greens til you cook the onions/garlic

Heat the oil in a pan .. (use about half that 1/4 cup)

Then add the onions and sauté till they start to become translucent

Add the garlic and cook another minute

Add the prepared greens and sauté till the greens cook down.

Add the tomatoes

Cook another 2-3 minutes

Add all the spices

Add the wine to deglaze the pan ..

Add the white beans, and let simmer 2-3 minutes.

Plate the pasta – top with the greens/beans mixture

MANGIA ..

By John Cooney

Okay. It’s a Tuesday night after a long day at work. Common sense tells me to enjoy a wee bit of God’s greatest gift to man; no, not golf! Wine! But I did find a way to throw a little golf into the mix… watching the Golf Channel movie of the week, “The Greatest Game Ever Played.”

I do shamelessly admit I’ve seen the movie at least a dozen times: lots of drama, a few scenes that really do not look like a true golfer was the technical advisor, but overall, a really great golf story. And as we often see at the beginning of most of the true crime shows out there (except, of course, “Law and Order”), this movie can boast the traditional “based on a true story” disclaimer. After seeing the original scorecard last month at USGA’s Golf House, I really can imagine that historic 1913 U.S. Open playoff between Francis Ouimet, Harry Vardon and Ted Ray.

All this sensory stimulation got me thinking, and thus the premise for today’s piece. My last article promised to “stir the pot” a little, and trust me, based upon quite a few of the private emails (rulzofgolf@aol.com) I received regarding my disdain for preferred lies, I did inspire a few thoughtful responses. The points raised therein were all well stated and very respectful. Thank you… not only for your courtesies but for your feedback. I appreciate that. But they were not all in agreement with my “play the ball as it lies, Mr. Gilmore” philosophy.

The common theme was that we play the game to feel that we can succeed; that it should be all about having fun and “winter rules” certainly helps the cause. A few readers thought that wet ground and mud would be a problem at their course; I respected that premise and, for a day or two, really started to buy into that mindset and thought I was coming around. That was, until, yesterday – a  great day at a beautiful golf course with three really great friends. Whether you turn the ball over or not, that alone is enough to guarantee a great day of golf.

And a great day it was! The weather held out, the course was magnificent and the greens were FAST! I stuck with my pledge to play the ball down (read, if you dare, “An offer you can’t refuse”; last week’s piece) and a few times my decision tried my patience. Interestingly enough, most of my bad lies were in the rough, not the fairway. The fairways, even this early in the year, were dense enough to keep the ball sitting up, and except for a few minor mud issues, it was fine. Right now, it is the rough that is still pretty sparse, and if I could, that is where I would have loved to put my hand on the ball. But, although no one noticed (and I didn’t advertise the fact), summer rules were the rule on a cold spring day.

Going back to tonight’s movie… playing in heavy rain with no relief for casual water, playing out of a puddle in a bunker… STYMIES! Never would the idea of playing in those conditions, by those rules (or lack thereof) appeal to me. Until yesterday… maybe it was fate that found the movie tonight (accidentally, via the remote) and got me thinking. Here’s what started it all… Standing on the 18th tee, the match was decided. My partner (and best friend), had dropped the front nine but made a valiant comeback on the back to win both the back nine and the match. Three dollars (sixty percent of a beer?) guaranteed; in the pocket.

Although it did take some suggestion on our part, we did receive a press on the last hole, no strokes, thus giving them a shot at even up. It also gave us a shot at winning a full pint of beer! As the hole played out, it came down to the last few shots around the green. Although my opponents both had short putts for bogey, it was I, that deserving soul who played the ball down all day, who had the ball four feet off the front of the green to a front pin with an easy (very easy!) up and down for par. Money in the bank (okay, the bar)… or so I thought.

MUD!!! Not only mud, but mud on the front of the ball. Not the side, bottom or top… ON THE FRONT! And when I say mud, I mean MUD! Enough mud to wipe out a house in a California mudslide. Time to throw out that whole summer rules crusade… lift, clean and place. Just do it… that’s the way the men have been playing all day; forget that darn golf column and CLEAN THE BALL! Needless to say, my conscience got the best of me and I figured putter from four feet off the green was a no-brainer. Easy two putt; easy money. What the heck… it’s only mud. I’m sure by now you can guess part (the first part) of what happened next.

The second part may surprise you. My putt from four feet off the green… went three feet. Still off the green; still with mud. Not only with mud, but STILL ON THE FRONT OF THE BALL! Lesson learned; hit it a lot harder and two putt for the tie (and the win). That, my friends, would be too simple. Hit the next putt WAY too hard, miss the three footer coming back and lose the press. Only three bucks out of pocket, but a much more valuable golf experience. As they say in those commercials, sometimes actually well written … “Lose the press on a mud ball, three dollars. Playing by the rules… priceless”. Although it didn’t all come together until tonight, I shook my opponent’s hand yesterday and was proud to lose that match. Francis Ouimet played with mud, water and got a taste of every other ingredient of that delicious recipe we call “Mother Nature.”

Maybe it was fate… yesterday’s drama happened on a golf course that I consider to be one of the most beautiful in the Northeast… in Massachusetts… I bet Francis would tell you the same in regards to Brookline. Golf is played on the most beautiful playing field known to man. Birds, trees, water, sand… mud, bare spots and divots… let’s appreciate all that nature has to offer and take the “Summer rules challenge.” I did, and I’ll forever be a changed person, for the better, for doing it.

For those of us in the Capital Area, I’ll bet this weekend’s broadcast of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the old Bing Crosby Clam Bake, got a huge rating on CBS. I’ll be the rebroadcast of CBS’s telecast each night on the Golf Channel got a huge rating. For the snowbound and those sick of the cold, for those who won’t get to have a winter golf vacation somewhere, for three hours on a Saturday or Sunday it was great escapist television on a course we know well.

We see it every year, at least once a year. Last year, I got to see it up close and personal, under my softspikes. I played Pebble Beach three weeks before the U.S. Open. The following is my account and while I didn’t score very well, it was memorable in every other way. I can’t wait to do it again. But I feel I will have to. I hope you enjoy it.     (Click on picture to view slideshow from June 2010) – J. Craig

PLAYING PEBBLE BEACH

What’s to write about a place that has had so much written about? Where so much golf history has been made?
That’s this challenge while trying to relay my experience at a place that just may be on every golfer’s “Bucket List,” Pebble Beach Golf Links. I was fortunate enough to play it on June 1. I shot a 112. There you go.

The 110th U.S. Open will be contested there this week. Nearly two weeks ago, I got a first hand look at what fans will see this week, the venue for the 2010 National Championship.

“It’s coming fast and furious,” said Paul Spengler, Executive Vice President of Pebble Beach Company since 2004. He’s been there 20 years. “It’s going great. All of the facilities set up is ahead of schedule. The golf course is ready.”

Typically, the United States Golf Association closes its course several weeks in advance of their U.S. Open to protect it, keep it fresh for practice rounds, and make sure that every blade of grass is where it should be and, in some cases, as long as it should be. There are exceptions when the USGA comes to a public facility like last year at Bethpage Black on Long Island and this year at Pebble Beach.

The course was open for public play up until Friday. Now, it’s ready for the players.

“It has given us a good spike as far as people are curious and inquisitive and want to come and play and we have access to the golf course,” Spengler told me during an interview in his office, complete with an Arnold Palmer bobblehead doll on his desk.

I got to see Pebble and play Pebble the day after Memorial Day. First, there was work, though. I was set up with several interviews and took some photos and video too. Some of that accompanies this account. Then I was off to play.

My day began at 7:00AM with a 2 ½ hour drive from San Francisco down to the Monterey Peninsula and Carmel Bay. The highway leads to Route 1, which winds down through Pacific Grove and Monterey.

The road at the peninsula is famed 17-Mile Drive, which snakes through a spot discovered by Spanish explorers in 1602. The cost to make the drive is $9.50. It takes you past Poppy Hills Golf Course, The Links at Spanish Bay, Seal Rock, Spyglass Hill Golf Course, Cypress Point Lookout, Ghost Tree, the Peter Hay Golf Course and then Pebble Beach, which is built around Stillwater Cove.

The peninsula was fogged in a bit and it was 55 degrees, but at points you come out and can see into the sea and you just say, “Wow.” I stopped a couple of times to take in the view, including The Lone Cypress, which is the symbol for Pebble Beach – that cypress tree out on a rock.

There, I found Jeanne Smith painting her version of the Lone Cypress for her art landscape class. Most of the other students were at Seal Rock that sports “a vibrant mix of marine and bird life” according to the brochure. I would have liked to have seen that but I was on a deadline and that tree was my mission.

Up around the bend, I also stopped at Ghost Tree, which has a trunk bleached white from wind that “has a sinister silhouette.” It did.

By 10:30, I made it to the pro shop for my interviews.

“We’re excited. The electricity, it’s an 11,” said Chuck Dunbar, the Head Golf Professional, doing an English accent and paraphrasing “This is Spinal Tap” when 10 on the dial just wouldn’t do. It wouldn’t do for me either. My waiting to play was “an 11” too.

This year, 9,052 people file entries with the USGA. From exemptions and open qualifying, 156 will make it. I didn’t qualify but I felt like I had made it, sort of.

“Not some much calm but excited and enthusiastic about what’s kind of imminent here in the next two weeks,” said Golf Course Superintendent Chris Dalhamer, who has worked at Pebble for five years, but volunteered the last time the Open was held here, in 2000. Now, he’s in charge of every blade of grass and every drop of piped in water.

“We’re going to make it firm and fast and just right to the USGA specifications,” Dalhamer said. “Any golfer can understand right there that your ball’s not going to plug, stop, not roll. You’re going to have balls rolling out onto the fairways, the greens are going to have a couple bounces to them.”

Around 1:00PM, I got to play. By myself. With limited play, all caddies had been spoken for or gone home. After finishing my work, no warm up, I was standing on the first tee. I played it from the tips, more than 6,740 yards. The first couple holes, I had a hard time keeping my heart in my chest. Maybe that’s what contributed to my combined 16. Yikes.

I took a cart but would have preferred to walk. However, with rental clubs, two cameras, a dozen balls and all the rest, a cart was easier. It was cart path only, though, so I did plenty of walking, including back to the third tee. I mean back. When I got there at the par-4, 404-yard hard dogleg left, I looked over the other tee boxes and high grass and thought, “How am I going to carry that after what I just did in the first two holes?”

Using the Callaway Diablo driver, I took a breath and a nice, easy swing and striped it, almost willing it to “just get to the edge of the fairway.” I think I actually yelled, “Go!”

It landed right where you want it to. A sigh of relief. I got to the second shot and poked a five-iron to just in front. From there, would bogey but felt like par.

The USGA’s Mike Davis, the General Chairman of the 2010 Open R.J. Harper and Arnold Palmer “have really strategically changed this golf course like it’s never been before for a U.S. Open basically by bringing in the water into play,” Spengler said. “The fairway alignments on the 4th, 6th, 8th, 9th, 10th and 18th holes are all cut to the water, close to the water and there’s no rough on the water side so any shots hit through the fairway towards the water will, most likely, go in the water.

“Pebble Beach has never been what you would call a really difficult golf course but it certainly is a challenging U.S. Open golf course because the greens are the smallest, probably, in major championship play,” Spengler said. “And when they get firm and have the four or five inch rough around the greens, that’s where the real difficulty comes in as far as scoring at Pebble, plus the fact that we do need the climate. We need the wind conditions to be there so it doesn’t play as benign.

I had a bad chip and lost another ball at the fourth. On the fifth, I took too much club and flew the green on the par-3. That’s also where my battle with the birds began. I bought a sandwich and spent more time protecting it from the birds than my ball from the sea. I lost four balls in the next three holes. A seagull did steal my banana, though.

My best hole on the front nine came at the ninth. I smacked two great shots and bogeyed, feeling pretty good for a 59.
“8, 9 and 10 are kind of the cliffs of doom,” Dalhamer said, referring to the set up that takes away any protection from land to sea so if you slice, and I do, you’re in trouble. But for whatever reason, I played 9 and 10 pretty well.

“I’ve always said it’s seven holes of offense and 11 holes of defense,” said Dunbar. “There’s a couple scoring holes on that back stretch but nonetheless, you’ve basically got to get a good start in the first seven holes…if the wind is blowing, then they are all hard.”

Maybe it was my battle with the birds, the fact that I reminded myself I was just playing golf, or that I called my parents to share a brief experience more than 3,000 miles away, but I played better.

My only par came at the 15th. I rolled in a 42-foot putt from the front of the green. As it tracked closer to the hole, I raised my putter in triumph when it dropped, but there was no one around. 16 was a disaster and then came the famed 17th. A “classic” that the USGA has not changed, it’s where Tom Watson made that jaw-dropping chipshot in 1982 to vault him to victory. With some wind, I took a five-iron from 178-yards and came up just short, but it bounced. I got some help from some tourists who were taking pictures nearby to help me locate the ball. Then, I opened up a pitching wedge and flopped a shot that skirted the edge of the hole – almost a birdie. It rolled past and I two-putted. Then came 18.

“Just don’t hit it left,” I actually said out loud just before drawing back the driver. It went right down the middle. Off in the distance there was a couple taking a stroll. As I got close, the guy said, “nice shot.” Cool.

Then I stood over that shot and hit a bullet over the two trees in the middle of the fairway to about 120-yards. For that third shot, again I talked to myself, “One good 9-iron,” I muttered, and it took a nap in the right greenside bunker. I stepped into the bunker, having had some sand trouble, but blasted it out to about six-feet and two-putted. I finished bogey-bogey for my 112.

“I can’t wait for the week to be here,” Dunbar said. “You do all the preparation stuff and all the anticipation and we all want to enjoy the fruits of our labor and see the whole thing come together.”

“It’s an honor and a privilege for us to host an Open,” said Spengler. “We look at it that way, we treat it that way.”
It was an honor and a privilege to lose seven golf balls.

It really was.