Chronicle Parker 8-16-2013
Parker
Douglas County, Colorado • Volume 11, Issue 42
August 16, 2013
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourparkernews.com
Time to tee it up for Solheim Cup Americans, Europeans set for match play in Parker By Jim Benton
jbenton@ourcoloradonews.com Wandering around the Colorado Golf Club trying to find the best location to watch the Solheim Cup could be as difficult as successfully getting out of one of the course’s bunkers. The Solheim Cup, matching 12 of the top women professional golfers from the United States against a dozen of Europe’s top players, will be contested Aug. 16-18 in Parker. Fans want to be sure to be on the first hole to watch the players tee off in the match-play tournament. The first tee is a raucous place to be when players are teeing off because fans from both sides will be yelling, chanting and even singing songs to inspire the respective teams. The Solheim Cup is often called foot-
ball golf because spectators can yell and scream. The par 4, 428-yard third hole is one that could be tough for the ladies. It is downhill, which results in a forced carry on the second shot off a downhill lie. Holes 14, 15 and 16 could produce a bushel of birdies that might spark comebacks for trailing players. And, any match coming down to the 435-yard, par 4 18th hole could deliver some highlight-reel memories. “The course is going to be firm and fast, which means the ball is going to spend a lot of time on the ground and do a lot of things,” said Colorado Golf Club head professional Graham Cliff. Holes on the course will have different setups from session-to-session. “The girls won’t know what to expect,” said Cliff. “They can’t go out and say `this morning I did this.’ The hole is going to be completely different than it was in the Cup continues on Page 13
The welcome sign on Parker’s western boundary proudly proclaims the town as the “Home of the 2013 Solheim Cup.” Signs will be up through the weekend to point out-of-towners to shuttle parking and the Colorado Golf Club. Photo by Chris Michlewicz
First-day jitters
Town hits No. 12 on ‘best places’ list CNN Money includes Parker for second time By Chris Michlewicz
cmichlewicz@ourcoloradonews.com The Town of Parker’s No. 12 ranking on a list naming the best places to live in America comes as no surprise to the nearly 48,000 people who call it home. The CNN Money editors who compiled the “Top 50 Best Places to Live” list considered factors like crime rates, school test scores, job growth and median home prices, the latter of which was listed as $285,500 for Parker. The selected towns are “not only thriving economically, they’ve also got all you could want in a place to raise a family: plenty of green space, good schools and a strong sense of community,” the introduction to the list says. The town of Sharon, an 18,000-resident suburb in Massachusetts, was named the best place to live, while Louisville, Colo., earned the No. 2 spot. The list ranked only towns with populations under 50,000. Kerry Flynn, the CNN Money writer who authored the brief on Parker, pointed out amenities like the Parker Arts, Culture and Events Center and H2O’Brien Pool as “local favorites.” Flynn also referred to Parker as a “young” town and noted its 1981 incorporation. The distinction might have the magazine’s readers reaching for a map, but Parker is increasingly on Colorado’s radar as one of the top places to raise a family. Mayor Mike Waid said the national ranking only confirms “something we already knew.” “It reinforces the fact that we’re doing things the way we should be doing them,”
Places continues on Page13
Race Williams, 5, of Parker, sticks close to his mom, Christy, as he arrives for his first day of kindergarten at Pioneer Elementary School Aug. 13. Most Douglas County School District students went back to school Aug. 12 and 13. Christy Williams experienced conflicting feelings, saying the first-day drop-off was easier this time because she has been through it once before. “There is something comforting about walking him in,” she said. “But it’s hard because he’s my baby, and this is it.” Photo by Chris Michlewicz
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