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NFL Inside Rookies are off to a solid start after week one, see Page D4.
www.bendbulletin.com/sports
THE BULLETIN • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2011
L O C A L LY
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
TEE TO GREEN
Bend parks program features PE, recess favorites for adults
Behind UO and Stanford, Pac-12 up in the air
A new Bend Park & Recreation District program is designed to turn back the clock for local adults. “Old School PE” offers participants the chance to play dodge ball, kickball, floor hockey, steal the bacon, tug of war and other PE and recess favorites, all in a social, low-key environment. The program is for men and women age 21 and older. Couples are encouraged. Sessions will take place on Tuesdays, 6:30 to 7:45 p.m., from Sept. 20 through Oct. 25 at the Bend Fieldhouse, located at Vince Genna Stadium off Southeast Roosevelt Ave. Registration fee is $35 for park district residents, $47 otherwise. Register online (Activity No. 303222.01) at www.bendparksandrec.org. —Bulletin staff report
By Bob Baum The Associated Press
RODEO Pete Erickson / The Bulletin
Pendleton event set to start today More than 20 Central Oregon contestants will be in Eastern Oregon this weekend for the Pendleton Round-Up, which officially kicks off today at 1:15 p.m. with its first main performance. Barrel racer Brenda Mays, of Terrebonne, bareback riders Jason Havens, of Prineville, and Steven Peebles, of Redmond, and team ropers Charly Crawford, of Prineville, and Russell Cardoza, of Terrebonne, are all expected to compete at the Round-Up, which will celebrate its 101st anniversary. Approximately 730 cowboys and cowgirls from across the country are expected to be in Pendleton this week for the rodeo, which runs through Saturday. — Bulletin staff report
COLLEGE FOOTBALL Texas tries to persuade Sooners to stay with Big 12 The Texas and Oklahoma athletic departments have historically been defined largely by their rivalries on the field. With the fate of conference realignment hinging on them, they are now locked in an administrative stare-down. Two Big 12 university officials who have been briefed on the matter said that Texas officials flew to Oklahoma on Sunday to attempt to dissuade the Sooners from their stated intent to explore joining the Pacific-12 Conference. It did not go well; the Texas officials returned to Austin and reported little progress. “It was not a productive meeting,” said an administrator at a Big 12 university with knowledge of the meeting. “Texas went there with the thought of beginning the process of putting back together the Big 12, and Oklahoma wasn’t as receptive as Texas had hoped. That doesn’t mean it’s the end of it.” For more than a week, the universities and conferences involved in the realignment process have been waiting for Texas A&M’s move to the Southeastern Conference, which has long been considered the first domino. —New York Times
INDEX Scoreboard ................................D2 Major League Baseball ..... D2, D3 Prep Sports .............................. D4 NFL ........................................... D4 Tee to Green....................... D5-D6
A view from behind the 14th hole on the Eagle Crest Resort Ridge Course in Redmond on Tuesday.
CENTRAL OREGON GOLF COURSE TOUR
Eagle Crest Ridge Course The 19-year-old Redmond course is a wide-open track, but it is tougher than it appears at first glance Editor’s note: This is the final story in a seasonlong series visiting each public and semiprivate golf course in Central Oregon.
ZACK HALL
REDMOND — his golf course seems so easy. Compared with many of its peers in Central Oregon, The Ridge Course at Eagle Crest Resort is a wide-open, swing-for-thefences kind of golf course. The fairways are huge, and the trees are sparse. The course offers little in the way of water hazards, either: four greens are somewhat
T
Breaking down the course
protected by small ponds. All that makes Ridge a gas to play and a great place for a golfer to build confidence, at least off the tee. Yet my threesome on a recent scorching afternoon — which included two visitors from Washington playing as singles — kept missing short putt after short putt. Two of us three-putted the seventh hole, a straightforward par 4 with a two-tier green that generally breaks from back to front. No. 7 made for my fifth consecutive bogey, three of which were caused by three-putts. See Ridge / D5
The basics General information about Eagle Crest Resort’s Ridge Course: Number of holes: 18 Status: Open year-round, weather permitting Location: 1522 Cline Falls Road, Redmond Tee times: 541-923-4653 Course stats: Par 72, 6,952 yards Green fees: Through Oct. 14, $69 daily; Oct. 15-Nov. 14, $50 daily; After Nov. 15, $35 daily Power cart: $16 Director of golf: Ron Buerger Director of instruction: Tam Bronkey Course designers: John Thronson (1992) Extras: Real-grass 18-hole putting course, two driving ranges, several practice greens, clubhouse, restaurant, golf academy Website: www.eagle-crest.com
A closer look at Eagle Crest’s Ridge Course. For more information on the items below, see Page D5.
DIFFICULTY
STRATEGY
EXTRAS
Few area courses are more forgiving off the tee than Ridge. But don’t mistake the course for being easy. Mounding throughout the course, greenside bunkers and subtly difficult greens offer plenty of resistance. But the course’s wide-open layout makes it ideal for novices.
Let the driver fly at Ridge, which is a bomber’s paradise on most holes. Birdie opportunities abound for aggressive golfers on all four par 5s. Golfers should play approach shots below the hole. But be careful when reading the greens, which are rife with subtle breaks.
The area surrounding the Ridge and Challenge clubhouse also features two putting greens, a short-game practice area and a driving range. The clubhouse has a snack bar with food and drinks. And the 18-hole grass putting course is a blast for golfers and nongolfers alike.
Stanford has yet to have a real test and Oregon is on the rebound. The order for the rest of the Pac12 food chain is a long way from being determined. The early results have been either mixed or awful for most of the conference in its first season divided into two divisions after the addition of Utah and Colorado. Arizona State (2-0) has climbed into the national rankings at No. 22, but the Sun Devils needed a missed 47-yard field goal to beat Missouri at home last week in overtime. USC (2-0) got a conference home victory over Utah, but had to block a field goal to prevent overtime in that one. Washington, Washington State and California also are 2-0, but the level of competition makes judging the quality of those teams impossible. See Pac-12 / D4
Area golf courses optimistic after strong summer By Zack Hall The Bulletin
An apparently strong finish to the summer has helped Central Oregon golf courses overcome a slow start to the 2011 season. Several area courses — still far from fully recovered from the economic recession that struck the industry hard — find themselves optimistic after reporting that July and August of this year turned out more golfers than during those same months in 2010. This summer has been no record-breaker. But it has been what the courses desperately needed after unseasonably cold weather hampered play in April and May all around Central Oregon, says Ryan Whitcomb, general manager of Bend’s Lost Tracks Golf Club. See Summer / D5
PREP BOYS SOCCER
PREP VOLLEYBALL
Madras stays unbeaten with win over Sisters
Mountain View sweeps Redmond Bulletin staff report
Bulletin staff report MADRAS — Madras opened its boys soccer season with what coach Clark Jones termed “two tough games” between Junction City and Summit without a loss. In Tuesday’s Class 4A nonconference match, the White Buffaloes improved to 2-0-1 with a 42 home victory over defending Sky-Em League champion Sisters. Madras’ Carlos Garcia opened the game with a goal in the third minute, assisted by Derrick Pacheco. The Outlaws responded when Jake McAlister converted a penalty kick in the seventh minute to tie the game 1-1. Pacheco added a goal of his own in the 23rd minute with a diving header off a Michael Giron pass to give the White Buffaloes a 2-1 lead. Giron (assisted by Oved Felix) and Jose Medina (assisted by Giron) added goals in the 36th and 39th minutes to give Madras a 4-1 lead at halftime. See Madras / D4
Ryan Brennecke / The Bulletin
Mountain View’s Jill Roshak goes for a kill during the second game against Redmond in Bend Tuesday night.
Mountain View won its first Intermountain Hybrid volleyball match of the season Tuesday, topping Redmond in three games at home, 25-20, 25-16, 25-13. “The girls were in control throughout the game,” first-year Cougar coach Jill McKae said. Sophomore middle blocker Jill Roshak led the Mountain View offense with 12 kills, while junior libero Rachel Buehner highlighted the Cougar defense with 12 digs. Inside “We had some good plays, but just couldn’t • More prep get rolling,” said Redmond coach Lisa sports Pom-Arleau. coverage, Panther junior middle blocker Johanna Bailey recorded eight kills for Redmond. Panther Page D4 senior libero Jessica Nurge added 18 digs. McKae said the Cougars, who advanced to the semifinal round of their own tournament last weekend, relied on strategy instead of power. “It’s the smartest I’ve seen them play all season,” McKae said. Mountain View is off this weekend and next plays on Tuesday at Crook County. Redmond’s next opponent is also the Cowgirls, whom the Panthers will play in Prineville on Thursday.