Junior Golf
April 1, 2020 Junior Golf Spotlight

April 2020

BELOW LEFT – The Junior Golf Association of Northern California hosted its annual Folds of Honor Junior Championship in February, raising $2000 for donation to the Folds of Honor Foundation at Rancho Murietta Country Club. The Folds of Honor provides educational scholarships to spouses and children of fallen and disabled service members.

BELOW CENTER – The annual Portland Golf Show was a big treat for junior golfers in 2020. A special kids area featured games, professional instruction, and a club swap. Saturday was the big day for kids and family with prizes and games just for young golfers throughout the hall. The main stage was dedicated to juniors with seminars and the first annual Junior Putting Championship.

BELOW RIGHT – Boys in Southwest Washington played their golf season and district tournament in October. With the coronavirus pandemic putting the state tournament in jeopardy, we’re taking our hats off to state qualifiers who may not get a chance to play later this year. Pictured are medalists/qualifiers from the 2A district championships held at Tumwater, Washington’s Capital City Golf Course.

US Hickory Open
April 1, 2020 News, Tournaments

North Oregon Coast going back in time

Gearhart Golf Links will host the 2021 US Hickory Open, a nod to the club’s historic roots.

Gearhart Golf Links, the oldest golf course west of the Mississippi River, made a big announcement in March: the North Oregon coast course will host the 2021 US Hickory Open.

Presented each year by the Society of Hickory Golfers, the US Hickory Open is the premier hickory golf tournament in the United States. 2021 will mark the event’s 14th year and only the second time a course in the western United States has played host.

“We are thrilled to return to the West Coast,” said Society President Greg Smith. “In 2020 the sold-out Open is welcoming hickory golf enthusiasts from over 22 states, and Canada, at Happy Hollow Golf Club in Omaha, Nebraska. The chance to visit the Oregon Coast and play the brilliant and historic links at Gearhart is something very special for our international members.”

The US Hickory Open is scheduled for September 12-14, 2021.

“Gearhart Golf Links is an exceptional venue for this tournament,” says Northwest Hickory Players tournament organizer Rob Ahlschwede. “David McLay-Kidd, acclaimed architect of Bandon Dunes and Mammoth Dunes, ranked Gearhart in his ‘Top 10 Favorite Places’ in the March 2020 edition of Golf Magazine. The seaside course offers a true links-style experience, perfectly suited to the original equipment used by global hickory golf collectors and enthusiasts.”

The course already has a relationship with Hickory golfers in the Pacific Northwest, having hosted a three-day event each year since 2015. Director of Golf Jason Bangild says hosting the US Hickory Open is an honor for the course and will put the club in the spotlight in a good way.

“Gearhart Golf Links is a course with a long, rich history, going back to 1892. Our clubhouse is full of pictures showcasing the earliest players in Gearhart, many playing hickory clubs and walking in coat and tie, or long dresses,” said Bangild. “The hickory game is just a great fit for the course. We have really enjoyed working with Rob and all of the Northwest Hickory Players over the last few years, and we’re thrilled to host their national Open next year. The course is located right in the center of Gearhart, so when the tournament comes to town, it’s sure to draw a crowd!”

While all USGA rules are in effect for the stroke play tournament, there are some equipment restrictions that players must follow. All golfers must use pre-1935 authentic wood-shafted clubs or Society-approved replicas. Tournament organizers may modify local rules to help players experience the game as closely as possible to the way it was played nearly 100 years ago.

Visit www.NWHickoryPlayers.org for more information about the event. Click here to read our feature story on Gearhart Golf Links!

Golfweek Amateur Tour
April 1, 2020 News, Tournaments

Amateur Hour – Golfweek Amateur Tour launching in Oregon, Seattle

The golfing community consists of many different types of golfers. There are driving range players, charity scramble players, weekend warriors, and more serious competitive players. Amateurs who enjoy playing competitively but aren’t ready for some of the bigger state or national events are always looking for opportunities and a new one is now available in Oregon and Washington.
The Golfweek Amateur Tour – already popular throughout most of the country – has launched in the Portland and Seattle/Tacoma areas with 11 and eight events, respectively.

The Tour provides amateurs with the experience of competitive stroke-play golf at courses that are both challenging and enjoyable to play. More importantly, though, is the opportunity to compete against a new group of players.

“I like to find places to play competitive golf,” said Oregon/SW Washington Tour Director Stotz Thoda. “Golfweek events have been very successful for the last 25 years, and I wanted to give players in the Pacific Northwest access to those great events.”

Founded in Charlotte, N.C., in 1995, the Golfweek Amateur Tour celebrates its 26th season in 2020 with more than 50 divisions across the country. This year’s Portland and Seattle Tour schedules include visits to: Chambers Bay, Heron Lakes GC, Club at Newcastle, Orchard Hills and Rock Creek CC, Hawk’s Prairie, Stone Creek GC, and Black Butte Ranch.

“Amateurs can play a Tour just like the pros, with minimal travel,” said Thoda “Our events are held locally mostly on the weekends, perfect for the average golfer. Our goal is to provide fun, fast, competitive events with affordable pricing. Our goal is 4 and half hour rounds, so slow play will be monitored and addressed. In addition, we have coordinated our tour dates with both tours so you can travel and play the neighboring tour events in either Portland or Seattle areas.”

The Golfweek Amateur Tour is for amateurs of all ages and abilities. Members are placed in one of five flights based on handicaps. Flights are: Championship (0-3.9 handicap), A Flight (4- 8.9), B Flight (9-13.9), C Flight (14-18.9) and D Flight (19 and over). Tournament format is gross stroke play, with USGA rules in effect. The Tour tracks tournament handicaps to ensure players are flighted correctly.

Entry fees for the Golfweek Tour range from $85-$180 for single day events. Those fees include cart and green fees, range balls and prizes. There will also be separate sponsored par- three contests and an optional skins game at each event. Trophies will also be awarded to the winners of each flight. Golfers who qualify receive invitations to the 2020 Golfweek Amateur Golf Tour Championship 54 hole event, Oct. 23rd – 25th on Hilton Head Island, S.C.

Dues for the 2020 season are just $63 until July 1st and then increase to $78. Those dues include a $125 Tour credit, a subscription to Golfweek Magazine, a welcome bag, and handicap through US Handicap. Guests are allowed in all local events but won’t earn points or have access to regional and national events.

The tour’s first events will be a dual event weekend May 30 and 31st at Chamber’s Bay and Heron Lakes, respectively. Events previously scheduled prior to May, have been postponed for later in the year. Visit www.AmateurGolfTour.net for schedule updates.

Coronavirus warnings
April 1, 2020 News

The Coronavirus Difference

Golfers up and down the West Coast are coming to grips with what could be months without golf to play or watch. The coronavirus pandemic has forced states to issue orders for residents to stay home to help fight the spread of the virus. Those orders have had a major impact on the golf community.

Golf courses in Washington state and California are completely shut down, including all practice areas and driving ranges. Oregon, Idaho, and Nevada are still allowing golfers to play, but with a variety of restrictions and modifications. Other states, like Utah, are still trying to decide what to do as their golf season gets ready to start.

Coronavirus AccomodationsWhat makes golf safe in those states still allowing it? In Oregon, the golf experience is a little different than under normal circumstances. Most courses are requiring online tee times and pre-payment for greens fees. Those who don’t have a restrictive check-in and payment process, allowing for social distancing (one guest at a time in the pro shop, etc) and limited interaction. On the course, cups are turned upside down or raised, and flags are to be left in the hole. Rakes and ball washers are gone and carts are restricted to single riders.

Turns out, it’s not that hard to stay away from other players on the golf course.

Handicap modifications

With much of the Pacific Northwest just starting to accept score posting – March 1st in most states – modifications had to be made. The USGA sent out a memo as to how the Rules of Golf and Rules of Handicapping apply in response to questions from golf industry officials.

The USGA had this to say:

Flagsticks – Courses may remove flagsticks as long as they provide detailed placement information to players. In most cases, the USGA recommends courses require the flagsticks be left in at all times. This has no impact on handicapping.

Bunkers and Rakes – Courses can be removed, players can smooth the sand with their feet. If rakes are removed, foursomes can be asked to take a rake out with them. Some courses are playing bunkers as ground under repair and must decide whether or not to allow scores to posted.

Not holing out – If courses place cups so that balls are not holed, players must use the ‘most likely score’ option when posting their scores for handicap purposes. This is at the players judgement.

Coronavirus and golf
April 1, 2020 Publisher

What are you doing away from the golf course?

Coronavirus and golfHere in the Pacific Northwest, it seems like the majority of our golf courses shut down just as the weather was getting nice. Sure, we had some rain just after that, but multiple sunny days are currently in the forecast. 

Sheltering in place seems like a tougher and tougher option, especially in our house where my 16-year-old son has one of the worst cases of the golf bug I’ve ever seen.

So what can you do if a round of golf isn’t an option?

Every major golf website has been putting out tips and tricks to help improve your game at home. A quick run through their social media channels will give you drills for polishing every part of your game, as well as routines for getting both stronger and more flexible while you wait for your local course to reopen.

This may also be the time to tackle that big at-home project. We put a synthetic green in 15 years ago and it was finally time to pull the turf up and level the entire green out again. We installed the green ourselves, so I can tell you that it’s not an impossible task. You can find detailed plans and instructions on the Internet and materials are available for home delivery.

Let us know how you’re spending your quarantine time. We have some great gear to send out to our favorite responses. Reach us via email at info@nwgolfadventures.com.

GolfSuites
April 1, 2020 Business, News

GolfSuites allowing players to invest in their game

In our October 2019 issue, we wrote about the growth of driving ranges and entertainment centers, especially facilities like Topgolf. Now, a new company is positioning itself to take a piece of that alternative golf market with a chain of golf and entertainment facilities.

When Tampa-based ERC Homes founders Jerry Ellenburg and Ryan Koenig saw that a Topgolf location was being built next to their offices, the developer/builders were curious. They watched construction be completed and the facility open to massive crowds. Not long after they called in golf enthusiast and customer experience designer, John Galvin, to join them and form what was to become the GolfSuites brand.

“We’re very much a competitor to Topgolf,” said GolfSuites chairman Jerry Ellenburg. “These types of facilities make healthy amounts of money and we think we can provide a superior product that guests will really enjoy.”

GolfSuites will bring together the most realistic golf entertainment and game improvement experience, including a 250+ yard driving range, simulated green sites and hazards, professional quality golf balls and equipment, swing and golf fitness coaching, restaurants, bars, multiple types of video and live music entertainment all under one roof. The facilities will be designed with differing levels of amenities for avid and recreational golfers, as well as space for corporate and team building events, fundraisers, family celebrations, and amateur and professional events.

GolfSuites will also pair with top instructors and technologies to provide game improvement for guests both in-person and virtually. The idea behind GolfSuites is a holistic one, giving players the chance to have a great time and improve their swing and game.

 “Our first location in Tulsa, Oklahoma was taken over last fall and we’re in the process of converting it to a full GolfSuites facility. Our plan is to be a nationwide company, and we’re actively looking for the right pieces of property in the right markets,” said Ellenburg. 

How did GolfSuites develop its next-level experience? Ellenburg said the key to success is the company’s management team. Nick Flanagan (President and Chief Operating Officer) spent years in charge of operations at The Cracker Barrel Old Country Store chain and has been instrumental in developing the food and beverage program and all other senior operational aspects; Scott McCurry (Vice President of Operations) came from Topgolf and has used his expertise to fine-tune the national expansion of GolfSuites; and Kyle Morris (Golf Director) has developed the golf experience from the ground up using his experience as a professional player and teacher. John Galvin (Marketing Director) has designed overall brand concepts and Ryan Koenig (Development Director) has overseen all initial facility design and is in charge of national site selection. Larson Architects and ROWE Creative Union in Columbus have been engaged for all design aspects of the brand and facilities.

As you can probably imagine, building a GolfSuites facility isn’t cheap. Ellenburg said the company estimates the cost between $35 and $40 million each for full-sized 100-bay configurations. To get started, GolfSuites is offering investors the opportunity to buy preferred stock in a Reg A offering and is concurrently procuring institutional and private equity funding.

“We’re pleased with ongoing fund raising efforts to date,” added Ellenburg. “Now we’re just making sure we research potential markets and find the best possible locations for our facilities. We’re confident that GolfSuites will be successful in the locations in which we choose to open.”

 To learn more about GolfSuites and the company’s investment opportunities, visit www.golfsuites.com.

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