The Busy Season

Yes, we are in the throes of our busy season and we are chugging along. If it's possible to have 'blog guilt' then I have it. Despite promises to myself that I would post an entry at least weekly, here it is the end of July and I haven't chimed in since the Curtis Cup in early June.

The championship season at the MGA has been going well and we have been much more fortunate with the weather compared to the early part of last season. Wellesley Country Club did a beautiful job in hosting the 101st Mass Open in late June. I don't think it could have gone much better. And congratulations to Wellesley as the celebrate their centennial season this year.

And speaking of Wellesley, two-time club champ there, Dan Head, made it to the finals of the Mass Amateur at Myopia Hunt earlier this month. Untested at the state level, Dan got on a roll and played some beautiful golf en route to the final match. He took 2008 champ, John Hadges, to the 35th hole before John finally prevailed. It was a great final match - no one was ever more than two up the final way. I think John was waiting for Dan to fold, but he never did, giving John all he could handle.

Brian Higgins was disappointed to be knocked out of the Amateur in the quarter-finals, but these past two weeks have been quite the consolation for him. First winning the New England Amateur at Yale last week and then qualifying for the US Amateur this week at Boston Golf Club. Congrats, too, to Scott Congdon who also qualified with Brian and Harvard's Tony Grillo who captured the medal at the US Amateur qualifier in Rhode Island at Potowomut Golf Club.

The Junior Amateur is wrapping up today at Foxborough CC. The club has done a wonderful job of hosting. We really appreciate the cooperation of the membership and all the help provided by pro, Lou Rivers, and superintendent, Mike Poch.

Unfortunately I am not at Foxborough this week. As I type this I am in Redmond, WA just outside of Seattle for the US Senior Open which began this morning. I've been here since Tuesday and toured the course the past two days. It's been a welcome break from the heat and humidity back home. The weather this week is morning clouds followed b sunny and upper-70's high temps. Nice. The golf course, Sahalee CC, is a beautiful, lush layout with towering pine trees everywhere. It is without question the tightest golf course I have ever seen. Think bowling alley with 100-foot pines on either side.

All of us rules officials sat in on an hour-long rules meeting yesterday afternoon complete with PowerPoint slides to go over specific situations on the golf course. Each group today will have a walking referee and I was very fortunate to draw the group that includes Jay Haas and Hale Irwin. The third player is an alternate who got in to replace Nick Price who withdrew. Am I a little nervous? Yes, but I will stay out of the players' way and be there if they need me. And if I can't figure something out then I will call a rules rover on my trusty radio. Looking forward to my afternoon which starts at 12:50PM local time.