Four-Ball Wrap-Up

Day-2 of the Four-Ball this past Tuesday went as well as day-1. When the weather is on your side it makes running golf tournaments a heckuva lot easier. We had our usual complement of dedicated MGA officials at both Maplegate and Franklin on Tuesday. I spent most of the day again helping out at Maplegate. MGA Championship Committee member, Peter Waldinger, was the Official-in-Charge (OIC) at Maplegate and he did a great job oraganizing the two days.

When I arrived at Maplegate at 6:15AM, not only were several officials alreading convening in the pro shop over donuts and coffee, but our official MGA photographer, Dave Colt, was also there with all his gear. No sooner was I in the door when Dave was asked about the whereabouts of the video camera. The MGA purchased a video camera recently so that we can document our tournaments in another unique way. I shot some video on Monday and Dave was hot to trot to go shoot some more before he settled in to shoot his still photos. Dave is a camera and video expert whose full-time job in managing one of the Apple stores.

Dave e-mailed the next day (Wednesday) and he had already edited the raw footage into a nice little piece that you can view through the MGA web site. You can also view Dave's great photos from the tournament. http://www.mgaphotosonline.com/MGA_Photos/2008_Events.html

Just click the video option next to the Four-Ball and check it out. It takes a minute for the video to load before you can press play so just be patient. Not that we're going to become the Golf Channel, but I think delving into video will allow us to do some cool things in the months and years ahead.

Back to the golf: After helping Scott Guild, our MGA Director of Handicapping, enter the hole-by-hole scores into the laptop I headed off to Franklin to watch the finish over there. Brian Higgins and Brad Stewart, had already posted a seven-under 64 and were leaders in the club house with a two-day total of 134. After talking to Ryan Magee, MGA Director of Rules and Competitions, and Tom Bagley, the MGA OIC for Franklin, I headed out onto the course to catch some golf. The golf course was immaculate thanks to all the work by superintendent, Mike Luccini, and his crew. I bumped into Mike out on the course who was already starting his crew on aerating greens behind the final groups.

I headed back in and first round leaders, Ray Androlewicz and Dale Smith, were posting a solid two-under 69 which put them at 134 tied with Higgins and Stewart. A play-off was looming, and sure enough, the final groups could do no better than 136 so we headed to the 1st tee in the twilight hours for a sudden-death play-off. Brian Higgins made a clutch 10-footer for par on the first to keep his team alive and after both teams made four on the next two holes, we went to the par-3 4th as the sun began to dip behind the trees. Tom Bagley and I were running the play-off and we agreed that we could probably squeeze in two more holes, and if there was no winner we'd have to suspend play until the following day - not a prospect we were relishing.

The gods of golf administration must have been looking down on us because Brian Higgin's pulled iron shot caromed off the bank to the left of the green and settled 12-feet from the hole. After his fellow-competitors had made their par, Brian surveyed his putt and proceeded to bury the 12-footer, center cut. One Tiger-esque fist pump later and the Higgins and Stewart team were the new Four-Ball champions.

Musings from Day 1 of the State Four-Ball

OK, I know that I haven’t written a blog entry for a while. It’s not like things have not been busy, but I didn’t want to write about the minutiae of getting ready for the season. I guess I could have written about the USGA Regional Affairs Meeting that I attended last month in Greenville, SC and how my plane was struck by lightning, but I suppose I was too traumatized at the time to want to put it into words. That’s a story for another day.

The championship season got off to a flying start today with some beautiful weather at Maplegate CC and Franklin CC. I knew it was the beginning of the season when my alarm went off at 3:58 a.m. I take my hat off to all the milk men of the world. Actually, I think they get up much earlier than that.

Ryan Magee, our new Director of Rules & Competitions, and I were nervous last Thursday with the long range forecast not looking too promising for this week. With this being my 17th season (hard to believe) in golf administration I knew not to get too worked up until Saturday or Sunday. Lo and behold, the forecast changed for the better which made the weekend much easier. Easier for me, but Ryan had to go out in the pouring rain on Sunday for final preparations at both courses.

I was at Maplegate today acting as a starter on the 1st tee for both the morning and afternoon rounds. The course is owned by Lenny French and run by he and his family. They could not have been more accommodating to players and officials alike. Lenny’s son, Mike, was out putting the finishing touches on the bunker renovations that he’s been working on. (Mikes’s son , Peter, won the MGA Junior Boys Division in 2007.) Lenny’s son-in-law, Mark Winters runs the pro shop and helps out on the crew – he was great. Mark’s son, Ian, played in the tournament. He and his partner, Scott Wardner, shot even par. And Amy who works in the kitchen was at the course just about as long as we officials. She served many sandwiches and even more post-round beers with a smile. All the guys on the grounds crew were back late in the day to prepare the course for tomorrow. A big thank you to those guys, too.

The low score of the day was shot at Maplegate by Ray Androlewicz and Dale Smith who play out of Webster-Dudley GC – a seven under-par 65 to lead by one. Everyone who played at Maplegate will go over to Franklin tomorrow and vice versa. It should be an interesting finish. I’ll be at Maplegate in the morning and then make my way over to Franklin. If there’s a play-off it will be held at Franklin.

With more great weather on tap, it should be another perfect day for golfers and golf administrators alike. I may sleep in ‘til 4:15 a.m..

The Golf Season is (Almost!) Upon Us

Well it’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve checked in here. The MGA staff is hard at work preparing for the season ahead. Golfers in Mass may start posting scores next week – a sure sign of spring. The MGA staff will be making visits to clubs for our Regional Member Services Seminars. The first one is next week at Plymouth CC. If you are in the South Shore or Cape area and would like to attend there is still room. Please call the MGA office if you are interested in attending or refer to our web site for a complete list of seminars.

Our staff has also accepted invitations from several clubs to conduct Rules or Handicap seminars. Ryan Magee, our new Director of Rules and Competitions, and Scott Guild, Director of Handicapping, will be busy in April and May. Last night (March 26) four of us from the staff went to a special meeting at Braintree Municipal GC. In my 16 years in this business I have never seen a club embrace a golf association seminar like the men and women at Braintree. There were more than 100 men and women jammed into one room at the club to listen to Scott Whitcomb (master of all things Course Rating), Scott Guild, Ryan Magee and myself talk a little about the MGA and then offer some insights into Course Rating, Handicapping, Rules of Golf, The First Tee of Massachusetts and our junior golf programs. They had all sorts of snacks and drinks available and the group was attentive and asked great questions. I want to thank board member, Fred Foley, for organizing the whole evening, and to the BMCC course superintendent Daryn Brown and PGA pro Bob Beach for their attendance and support.

Earlier this week I attended the Connecticut Section PGA’s annual spring meeting at the Mystic Marriott Hotel. There were more than 180 people in attendance, mostly golf professionals. The Connecticut Section PGA Executive Director, Tom Hantke, invited me to attend along with other allied association representatives from the Connecticut State Golf Association and the Connecticut Golf Course Superintendents Association. We each gave a short presentation about our respective associations.

You might be wondering what the heck I was doing there, but you’ll be surprised to learn that 42 of our Massachusetts club professionals from the western part of the state are actually members of the Connecticut Section PGA. Connecticut is a lot closer for them than the greater Boston area. I was able to meet Peter Chapman, head pro at the Country Club of Wilbraham as well as Jim Nittoli, head pro at Longmeadow CC.

This year marks the CT section’s 75th anniversary, and to make the day more special Joe Steranka, CEO of the PGA of America, was also in attendance. He delivered a town hall style talk where he talked about the PGA’s grow-the-game initiative Play Golf America as well as their PGA McGladrey Team Championship. The PGA of America is the national body that represents the 28,000 PGA members throughout the U.S. They employ 200 people at their national headquarters in Palm Beach Gardens, FL and another 230 in the field. The PGA conducts the PGA Championship, The Ryder Cup and PGA Club Professional Championship.

One particular comment by Mr. Steranka that really stuck with had to do with golf in China. He has visited China a few times and met with the head of their golf union to try to help them grow the game there. Right now there are just 400 courses in all of China. The country expects that the game will start to take hold after the Olympics are held there. With the emergence of the middle class in China golf is expected to catch on like wild fire and predictions are that there will be a minimum of 6,000 courses and as many as 10,000 courses in the country by 2020. The game may be flat in the states right now, but the global growth is getting healthier.

As of March 26 there were 156 teams entered into the MGA Four-Ball Championship with two weeks to go before entries close. Obviously a lot of people are thinking golf, and after a long winter it’s about time. Hope you can get out and enjoy your first round soon if you haven’t already.

A Visit to the NE Regional Turfgrass Conference

Spring is in the air this week. We’ve been getting more and more phone calls at the office. Lots of players are signing up online for tournaments. Our Director of Handicapping, Scott Guild, has been getting a lot of phone calls and making club visits. We know we’re going to get hit with some more bad weather, but at least the season is within sight.

The recent rain and mild weather has melted the snow off many courses, but others in western Mass and northern New England still have a significant snow pack. It’ll be a while until the golf course superintendents in those areas can start their clean up work. This week, though, many superintendents from around the region gathered in Providence at the Rhode Island Convention Center for the 11th Annual New England Regional Turfgrass Conference and Show (http://www.nertf.org/). The show ran from Monday, March 3rd to Thursday, March 6th.

Golf course superintendents from all over New England (and some from other parts of the country as well) came together for this successful conference and show that is, in many ways, just a smaller version of the national show in Orlando that I attended last month. While there are other green industry professionals such as lawn care and athletic field experts who attend, the majority of the attendees are golf course superintendents.

Classes on computer training and financial skills are offered along with a host of other educational sessions where GCSAA points can be earned. There are classes with names like “Systematic Approach to Dollar Spot Management”; “Turf Insects if New England”; and “Increasing Effectiveness of Preemergence Herbicides” just to name a few. If you think your golf course superintendent is just the guy who cuts the grass, you are mistaken. There is so much more to the job.

USGA Day – March 4
I attended the conference on Tuesday which is the USGA hosted day. The USGA Regional Affairs and Green Section Departments put together a full day of education for the superintendents, and the day is also opened up to golf club and golf association officials. I think that I’ve attended every one since the conference’s inception. Unlike the above mentioned classes which would be Greek to a layman like me, the USGA day has educational offerings that appeal to a broader group.

There was a technological slant this year with presentations on how to prepare a successful PowerPoint presentation delivered by Jim Farrell, USGA Northeast Regional Director.

The USGA’s Senior Photographer, John Mummert, gave a presentation called “Golf Course Photography in the Digital Age”. He showed examples of his photographs from many championships including the U.S. Open. He gave good pointers to superintendents about the best time of day to shoot (early morning or late in the day) to document their golf courses. Being a bit of a photo buff myself, I was taking copious mental notes.

USGA Senior Agronomist, Keith Happ, who lives in the Pittsburgh area, gave a talk called “Apples to Oranges: Is It Fair To Compare?” He premise was basically how often golfers compare the conditioning of one course to another when many times it’s not a fair comparison. Mr. Happ went on to explain that everything from the age of the course, rounds played, soil types and weather are all major factors in course conditioning. And then there’s the mother of all factors – budget. According to the GCSAA, the average annual budget for a course in the U.S. is $675,000 and the average number of workers is 20. How is a course with a green budget of $1.5 million going to compare to a course with a $500,000 budget?

Perhaps the most compelling presentation of the afternoon was delivered by Herb Stevens. His talk was called “Global Warming: Palm Trees in Providence?” Herb’s premise is that global warming is a politically charged myth. He is trained meteorologist who has a syndicated television program and web site (http://www.snocountry.com/) that provides ski condition information for ski areas around the country. Herb also has a business where he provides mid to long range forecasting for golf course superintendents. [Personal disclosure: Herb is a friend of mine whom I have known for more than 15 years. He is a long-time tournament player in Rhode Island and once qualified for and played in the U.S. Amateur at Baltusrol.]

Herb provides scientific data debunking all the global warming “hysteria”, and he strongly disagrees with the assertions of Al Gore and others in the global warming community. Herb claims that what we are characterizing as global warming is nothing more than a cyclical warming trend that has occurred at other times in recorded history. With all the talk of global warming potentially affecting course golf courses - especially those in mid-Atlantic transition zones that may have to contemplate switching from bent grass to Bermuda grass in the future – Herb’s assertion was not to worry. A web site that corroborates much of his premise is http://www.icecap.us/.

Much like the Golf Industry Show in Orlando, I was able to meet up and visit with many of our local superintendents – Jim Medeiros (Thorny Lea); Mike Iacono (Pine Brook); Peter Hasak (Tedesco); Steve Curry (Berkshire Hills); Bruce Packard (Stockbridge); Neil Wendell (New Bedford) – just to name a few. And that doesn’t count all my old friends from Rhode Island. I even saw Gary Sykes, Executive Director of the New England Regional Turfgrass Foundation who has been responsible for organizing and growing the show over the past 10 years. Gary was formerly the golf course superintendent at Green Valley CC in RI.

The opening of the Trade Show on the Convention Center floor was also Tuesday night where more there 150 exhibitors were on hand to demonstrate their products and services – seed companies, irrigation specialists, chemical and equipment companies. Mike Vrabel from the Patriots was the keynote speaker late Tuesday afternoon. Unfortunately I had to leave before he spoke. Actually, I probably could have stayed, but I’m just getting over the pain. I’m happy that Randy Moss was re-signed, and Sox opening day is not too far away.

Rules School Day 3 and Day 4 (Exam Day)

I didn’t chime in on day 3 or day 4 while I was in Kentucky because I was busy studying the night before the test, and then test day this past Wednesday was a blur between taking the exam and then getting to the airport.

The snow is coming down pretty heavily in this Friday storm today. (Did you know that under the Rules of Golf snow is either “casual water or a loose impediment, at the option of the player”?)

The final day of instruction (Tuesday) finished up around noon time with Mike Davis and Larry Startzel covering Rules 24-32. Rule 33 (The Committee) and Rule 34 (Disputes and Decisions) had been covered on day-one. After lunch there was an indoor review session conducted by both Mike and Larry. It was too cold to go outside.

After a dinner of scrambled eggs at the Waffle House I went back to my room to do some studying for the next day’s exam. Unlike every other year (I think I have attended six previous Rules workshops) when I hardly studied beforehand, I actually put some study time in this year prior to arriving. While my wife and daughter were in the living room watching American Idol most nights recently, I was shuttered away in the bedroom with my Decisions book open. So the night before I figured I either knew the material or I didn’t. I went online with my laptop to the USGA’s web site and took a few of their online Rules quizzes. I quit when I went 10 for 10 twice in a row. Then I settled in and read and re-read the 50+ Definitions at the front of the Rules book. As any Rules person will tell you, the Definitions are the foundation on which the Rules are built.

One definition that is among my favorites is “Move or Moved”. “A ball is deemed to have moved if it leaves its position and comes to rest in any other place.” In other words, if you are addressing your ball and it wobbles or moves slightly, as long as it returns to its original positions it is deemed not to have moved.

So I read my Definitions and then hit the hay. I slept OK but woke up early. I packed up the car and headed down the road one mile to the Marriott where the class had been held and where the exam was about to be administered.

Moment of Truth
The adrenaline started to flow as soon as I entered the big room at around 7:20. I chit chatted, drank my cup of tea and then settled into my chair as the program coordinator, PGA Master Professional Dave McAtee, passed out the exam booklets and answer sheets. I had that same nervous feeling of being on the first tee before a tournament. I had my #2 pencil and was ready to let it rip. At precisely 8:00 Dave uttered the words, “You may begin.”

The first 50 questions – multiple choice - are closed book - no materials at all. You just have to go on memory. I was nervous reading the first few questions, but then I started to relax and got into a flow. There were a few hard ones that I had to come back to but I finished the first half in 50 minutes, handed in my test sheet and then picked up the sheet and booklet for the second half – 50 more questions, this time open book. Not only can you use your Rules and Decisions books, but you can also use any notes or other printed materials.

Two and a half hours more was barely enough to finish the open book portion. The questions are more involved. Some I knew without any look-up. Others I needed to refer to the Decisions book to find the answer. Here’s an example of a typical open-book test question which is copied verbatim from the study guide that is mailed about a month prior to the workshop.

The competitor’s tee shot comes to rest just within the margins of a lateral water hazard but not in the water. The competitor makes a stroke at the ball and it dribbles down the bank into the water and cannot be played. He drops another ball on the bank within the lateral water hazard as near as possible to the spot where the original ball was last played. He decides not to play again from that lie and drops a different ball within two club-lengths of and not nearer the hole than the spot where his original ball last crossed the margin of the lateral water hazard and plays on from there. How many penalty strokes has the player incurred?

A. One
B. Two
C. Three
D. Four

Give up? OK, the answer is “B”. The player incurs two penalty strokes. Rule 26-2 is Ball Played Within Water Hazard. When the player dribbled his second shot into the water he dropped another ball from where he last played – essentially taking one penalty stroke under “stroke and distance”. When he didn’t like what that gave him he had three other options: Add an additional penalty stroke and go back and drop a ball and play it from the tee; add an additional penalty stroke and drop a ball outside the hazard keeping the point where it last crossed the margin between himself and the hole.

The player chose to drop outside the hazard two club lengths from the point his original ball last crossed the margin of the hazard – another one of his options. So he incurred a total of two penalty strokes and could play on. That’s the beauty of Rule 26-2. It allows a player to regress outside a hazard. Years ago before this Rule was introduced when a player played a ball from within a water hazard farther into the hazard, he was all done. The Rules did not provide a player to regress.

The above question is actually an easy one for a seasoned official. I won’t bore you with a really hard one.

At 11:00 our coordinator, Dave, announced, “Thirty minutes to go.” He did the same at 15 minutes, ten minutes and five minutes. I had skipped six questions, but went back and finished in time. I answered them all, but my brain was fried.

After a short break we came back into the room for an optional review. We were given a sheet to jot down our answers while taking the exam so we could self-grade during the review. Mike Davis and Larry Startzel took turns going over the questions with an old-fashioned over-head projector displaying the questions and answers in groups of four onto the screen.

After all was said and done I did pretty well – my best score in seven tries at the exam. Most people bolted for the parking lot, but since my flight from Louisville wasn’t until the evening I went into the restaurant to have some lunch. Larry graciously invited me to join Mike, Dave and himself for lunch. Mike asked me about some of the courses in RI and Mass. He loves old-style New England courses. I couldn’t do much but concur since they are my favorite as well.

I learned that Larry played on the PGA Tour from 1979-80 before embarking on his club pro career. Dave is the club pro at Helfrich Hills GC in Evansville, IN. We didn’t talk too much Rules stuff. I think we were all Ruled-out at this point. After lunch I thanked the guys and headed to the parking lot. As I pulled away I cranked up my iPod – LOUD. Anything to drown out the Rules haze still simmering in my head.

Rules School... Day 2

Today was a long day. After covering 13 Rules and many of the Decisions relating to each, you start to wonder if you know anything at all about the Rules. We started at 8:00 sharp and cover Rule 10 – Order of Play, a pretty straightforward Rule. Then onto Rule 11 – Teeing Ground. More things can happen on the teeing ground than you might expect. We all know that the tee itself can be no longer than four inches in length, a relatively new modification. Not that many years ago there was nothing to prohibit you from teeing a ball on a pencil or water bottle, or even an eight inch tee if you had one.

One of the great things about having these two top-notch instructors this week – Mike Davis from the USGA and Larry Startzel from the PGA - is that they can both cite examples of Rules applied at the highest levels of competitions. And since Mike sits on the Rules of Golf Committee with both the USGA and R & A, we are privy to the philosophy behind some of the Rules changes. You were previously not allowed to identify your ball in a hazard, and there was no penalty for hitting a wrong ball out of a hazard. Under the new Rules you will be penalized for hitting a wrong ball out of a hazard.

Mike gave an example of a player hitting a ball from a water hazard or bunker that he wasn’t sure was his ball, and the ball becomes lost by either going out of bounds or into another water hazard. If you were never sure if it was yours in the first place how do you proceed? That was one example of why the Rule was changed – that and the Rules of Golf Committee wanted to apply more consistency across the Rules. Under every other situation you were allowed to identify your ball except in a hazard. Now you can identify your ball everywhere. Well, almost everywhere. If you want to play a ball that is moving in a water hazard (e.g. trickling downstream in a shallow brook), and you think it’s your ball, but you’re not sure – you may play that ball moving in the water and if it turns out not to be your ball there is no penalty. There are a lot of exceptions in the Rules.

I flew all the way to Kentucky and did not figure to know too many people. Surprisingly, I know quite a few people. My friend, Mark Hill, who is the Executive Director of the Kentucky Golf Association, is here. Two other executive director friends of mine, Jeff Rivard from Western Penn and Ken Tackett from West Virginia are also here. And we even have a Massachusetts connection – MGA Rules Official, Allyn Sullivan, who lives in Plymouth is here along with Jim Malone, a summer resident of Nantucket who plays in MGA senior events. Jim won the Golf Nut Society’s Golf Nut of the Year Award in 2007. You can check out the web site to see why.

There are 19 staff members of the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) in attendance. There is a former USGA Senior Amateur Champion, Jim Stahl, and USGA Vice President, Jim Hyler, also in attendance. There’s also a guy named Greg Shanks here.

Can’t believe it’s 50 degrees in Boston today and it’s 35 and windy in Lexington. Oh well, like the Rules, sometimes life just isn’t fair.

A Day In the Life of a Rules of Golf Student

OK, so here I am in Kentucky this time. Don’t worry, unlike Orlando, it’s not warm and sunny here. I didn’t write another entry because I didn’t think outlining some typical day-to-day activities at the MGA office would provide compelling reading. Although we did go live with MGA championship online registration on February 6, and we received a registration within the first five minutes, and more than 400 entries online during the first week. So it’s quite obvious that, despite the weather, many people are thinking golf in Massachusetts.

I’m here in Kentucky on a Sunday not to scout out a seat for the Kentucky Derby, but for a PGA/USGA Rules of Golf Workshop. While many of you may have been watching Phil Mickelson and Jeff Quinney battle it out at Riviera, I was in a conference room of a local Marriott here in Lexington learning about the Rules of Golf.

I flew into Louisville yesterday afternoon and made the one hour drive to Lexington. I connected in Chicago, and during the latter part of my flight the woman next to me turned and asked, “Are you a Louisville or UK fan?” Of course she was talking basketball. After a pregnant pause, I replied matter-of-factly, “Neither.” Short conversation. She did, however, help me out by confirming my driving directions from the Louisville airport to Lexington. I’m not sure what’s bigger here – college hoops or horses.

Today was nothing but the Rules from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with a couple of breaks in between. The USGA and PGA of America have been jointly running Rules workshops since 1975, and they do a great job. Each year there are several all over the country from January through March. I usually make the drive to Far Hills, NJ to attend, but I made the effort to go to Kentucky because of the instructors. Each workshop features one instructor from the PGA and one from the USGA, and this week I have two of the best. From the PGA, Larry Startzel who has been a pro at many golf clubs over the years including two in Vermont, Stowe CC and Country Club of Vermont. He is a past chairman of the PGA Rules of Golf Committee, served on the USGA Rules of Golf Committee and refereed at all four majors multiple times plus The Ryder Cup and many other USGA amateur championships. A dynamic and articulate speaker, when Larry talks, you listen.

From the USGA, this week it’s Mike Davis, the Senior Director of Rules and Competitions who is in charge of setting the golf course for the U.S. Open, Senior Open, Women’s Open, U.S. Amateur and The Walker Cup Match to name a few. Mike is more soft spoken than Larry, but no less authoritative.

Rules Rules Rules
I’ve been preparing for this week for about six weeks by reading the Decisions on the Rules of Golf each night. The Rules book which most people are familiar with is a 182-page booklet that you may even carry in your golf bag. (If you don’t, you should.) The Decisions book is a 556-page tome that I actually read cover to cover leading up to this week. The USGA mails you a study guide, but I just read the book.

After two more eight-hour days of Rules there is a 100-question exam on Wednesday morning. I’ve taken it several times and it’s a killer – three and a half hours of mind-numbing brutality. That may be a slight exaggeration, but only slightly.

The great thing about the Rules is that no matter how much you think you know, there’s always more to learn. Kind of like playing the game really, you’re always a work in progress.