Tri State Golfer Spring 2022

Award-winning

Palmer’s

Renaissance Ross Bridge Golf Resort & Spa on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, Birmingham

®

You’ve worked hard for these carefree days and now it’s time to enjoy them. A day at our continuing care retirement community in Newtown Square might include a session in the floral design studio, a book discussion group, a simulcast opera in our auditorium and a seasonal dinner—not to mention outdoor yoga with new-found friends. Plus, with Philadelphia only miles away, all of the city’s cultural resources are close at hand. There’s always something interesting to do at Dunwoody Village. Contact us today to find out more.

Limited number of newly renovated 1 Bedroom Apartments available

GARO YEPREMIAN JR. GAROJRDESIGN.COM

NATE OXMAN

ANTHONY

YEPREMIAN JR.

Like Donald Ross, who spent roughly 30 years fine-tuning his work on Pinehurst No. 2, those at the helm of the Talamore Golf Resort less than five miles away in Southern Pines have spent the last three decades working tire lessly to make its all-encompassing acreage a pure oasis for golf vacationers of all sorts.

Its proof of success is in Golf Advisor’s annual Golfers’ Choice rankings of the best golf courses in the U.S. For Talamore Golf Resort, it was total domination, highlighted by its position as the No. 1 public golf course in North Carolina.

To add icing on the cake, Mid South Club, Talamore’s sister course, was just voted the Best Public/Semi-Private Course in the Sandhills. Two #1 golf courses... both under the same umbrella...both at the center of Talamore’s golf vacation paradise.

Nate Oxman, Staff Writer - Tri-State Golfer Magazine

Any opinions expressed in this magazine are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the views of Tri-State Golfer. The information in this issue was accurate at the time of publication. All should be confirmed with the golf facility before making tee times and reservations.

Talamore’s Family of Clubs

The

2022

GolfTrainingAids.com

Dates: 4/6/2022 - 5/6/2022

Weekday - $1046 per person Weekend - $1204 per person

-

Weekday

Weekend

Historic Village of Pinehurst Area of North Carolina

Talamore Golf Villas Lodges at Mid South The Palmer Cottage

New Course at Talamore Mid South Club Tobacco Road

...like teeing up for a day of golf, stepping aboard a charter boat, or cracking open a cold one as you relax on the water. Find adventure, relaxation, and camaraderie on the beautiful sugar-white sand beaches of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.

Inspired by Nature... Your Golf Adventure Awaits

Situated in Pennsylvania’s majestic Laurel Highlands, you will discover a golfer’s paradise at the always-adventurous Nemacolin. One of Golf Digest’s “Best Golf Resorts in the Mid-Atlantic,” Nemacolin presents two breathtaking and enigmatic courses designed by the legendary Pete Dye. Ideal for buddies’ trips or large group outings, the acclaimed Mystic Rock and Shepherd’s Rock courses (Golfweek’s #1 and #5 Best Courses You Can Play in Pennsylvania) showcase thrilling shot values with sweeping views of the rugged Allegheny Mountains.

Sharpen your skills at The Nemacolin Golf Academy with expert instruction, state-ofthe-art game-improvement technology (including TrackMan simulators), custom club fitting, and multi-day bootcamps. Book an ultimate getaway to this incomparable destination for golf, spa, world-class cuisine, art, wine, and all-season adventure. Your trip of a lifetime awaits!

The Talamore Family of Clubs

Membership Has More Privileges

A Unique Multi-Club Membership and Club Experience for the Greater Philadelphia Area and Beyond

World-Class Golf Incredible Amenities Club Dining Options

Championship golf at Talamore comes with a unique to the area low country feel as wetlands, graceful lakes and ponds provide a great challenge and stunning backdrop to this highly ranked track. Exceptional private club dining both indoors and outdoors, a resort pool, fitness and tennis and a complete Member’s Social and Golf Calendar of events brings it all together.

Applecross features the area’s only Nicklaus design weaving through the rolling hills of Chester county. It combines natural beauty with playability along with a stiff challenge from the tips. For amenities, there is no equal to Applecross with a state-ofthe-art fitness center, indoor and outdoor pools, tennis, basketball, a world-class yoga studio and the new Spa at Applecross.

Membership at Talamore and Applecross certainly has its privileges…but there is MORE as Talamore Family Members can enjoy a dizzying array of Clubs worldwide through special affiliations with Club Corp and Pacific Links. Firestone, Barton Creek, many TPC clubs and top dining Clubs are all part of the unique Membership offerings.

Country Club

Brian Peterson - Membership Director 215.641.1300 ext. 127 brian.peterson@talamorefamily.com

www.TalamoreCC.com

Applecross Country Club

Steve Natalie - Membership Director 484-692-1010 ext. 110 steve@applecrosscc.com

www.ApplecrossCC.com

Arnold Palmer

of Pinehurst Area,

Talamore Golf Club by Rees Jones Village of Pinehurst Area, NC

42NDCURTIS CUP MATCH

Photos courtesy of Merion Golf Club (Jeff Bertch)/USGA

By Matt Ward, Contributing Writer

INTERVIEW WITH MATT WARD

OVERVIEW

The 42nd Curtis Cup Match comes to iconic Merion Golf Club for the second time June 10-12. The match will be contested between sixteen female amateurs consisting of a team from the USA versus a squad from Great Britain & Ireland.

The Curtis Cup commenced competition in 1932 and the USA leads the series 30-83. The event rotates bi-annually and was last played in 2021 in Wales at Conwy Golf Club. The match was originally to be played in 2020 but postponed because of the global pandemic. Team USA won that event by a score of 12.5 to 7.5.

BACKGROUND

Lindsay Forgash lives in Paoli, Pennsylvania and is a graduate of Colgate University and is married with two children.

Professionally works as an insurance broker specializing in complex risks. In addition to her family, her passions include golf and being a Philadelphia sports fan. She is honored to serve as the General

Lindsay Forgash General Chair Merion Golf Club / East Course Ardmore, PA, USA June 10-12, 2022

Chair of the 42nd Curtis Cup Match which will be held at Merion Golf Club in June 2022.

COMMENTS FROM THE GENERAL CHAIR

Chairing the 42nd Curtis Cup Match is a way for me to give back both to Merion and to a game that has given so much to me, and to help Merion share the sport with our players of the future.

Like many of us, I have a busy life. I wake up very early, hopefully work out, and then off to work. Even during the height of the pandemic, I would go to an almost empty office.

So as soon as the weather and daylight permit, getting to play golf after work is my reward to myself – whether it be walking just a few holes or playing a whole round, carving out time for golf is a treat.

I prefer to walk, rather than ride, and to play at a quick pace. For me, golf can be a release – providing time with myself, time with family or friends, and a fantastic way

to make new friends. I don’t think of golf as losing time, I look at it as an experience – a new experience in play, conversing with playing partners, a shot I’ve never had before, or just noticing a cool animal or bird. I recently read an article, or maybe it was a commercial on television, that showed people in different experiences, all finishing with -- “I’m so glad I did that.” Most times that’s the way I feel after getting even just a few swings or holes in --” I’m so glad I did that”.

At the Curtis Cup Match in June, we are going to see the best female amateurs from the United States, and Great Britain and Ireland. My advice to any parent with a daughter who may be interested in golf – have them learn the game early on. There are so many programs now available for girls to learn the game. Even if at one point they stray away from the game, once they have the foundation it’s easy to come back. As a woman in the business world, it’s unbelievably helpful and rewarding to be able to play business golf. Socially, it’s friends for life.

Merion is the perfect venue – a fantastic match play course, with every hole having its own distinct character. This will be the 19th USGA championship that we have hosted, and the first in nine years since the 2013 U.S. Open.

Q & A

You are the point person at Merion regarding the staging of this year’s Curtis Cup matches. What prompted your desire to take on the position?

Forgash: We have a very active membership at Merion and giving back to the game we love is a core value at the club.

I can remember my first time serving as a volunteer at the 1981 U.S. Open in providing transportation for the players coming from and going to the airport. Now as General Chair I am excited about doing even more with the matches just ahead.

How important a role do you see the matches playing in attracting women to golf overall?

Forgash: For the matches there will be no admission charge. This is the type of event perfectly set up for watching great golf where one can get close to the players. Likely, some of the LPGA players of tomorrow will be competing here and hopefully inspire others to take up golf. And even for those who can’t attend, the matches will be televised each day.

The USGA will also be staging a clinic between the morning and afternoon sessions on Saturday to help showcase the game and build long term interest.

You are an active participant in women’s golf events -- what makes such participation meaningful to you?

Forgash: The thrill of competition and the social interaction with players can mean lifetime friends.

How long have you been a member at Merion? What makes the connection so enduring?

Forgash: For over 40 years I have been a member and it’s where I learned to play and love the game. I also have family here in addition to the many friendships formed over the years.

The connection is so enduring because this is such a special golf course, almost

mystical, with a membership that shares and values a respect for the game and golf course.

Given the impact of the pandemic how challenging has it been from a planning perspective for the matches especially in coordinating the involvement of the team from Great Britain and Ireland?

Forgash: Generally, the gap of time between a match is two years but when the pandemic hit the UK and Ireland the match scheduled for Wales in 2020 was postponed and played in August 2021.

That narrowed some of the advance planning for this June’s matches to just ten months. Among the major challenges are supply issues in a range of areas but we are in good shape.

We are extremely fortunate with the superb team we have with Paula Kelly as General Manager, Scott Nye as Director of Golf and Paul Latshaw as Director of Golf Course Operations.

Many clubs throughout the USA saw a spike in playing. Did the pandemic increase your appetite to play?

Forgash: Absolutely -- think back when the mandated lockdowns commenced. Such relief to be outside to enjoy the game we love and to it with the people we want to share such experiences.

This year’s event marks the second time Merion will host the matches -- the initial intersection taking place in 1954. Given the club’s long-standing connection in hosting various USGA Championships how much of a turnout do you expect will take place for the event?

Forgash: Hard to say with certainty but we’re anticipating somewhere in the range of 8,000-9,000 and are prepared to handle more.

We know from being at the 2018 matches at Quaker Ridge how many people from Great Britain and Ireland made the visit to New York in support of their team. We are striving to make sure we have a good number of USA supporters present too.

You’ve got one round to play -- where would it be and who rounds-out your foursome?

Forgash: Before the pandemic hit, we had started planning a trip to Tara Iti in

New Zealand with close golf friends that live in California. I look forward to the post pandemic when we can resume the planning and travel and see long distance friends.

If you could change one thing in golf unilaterally -- what would it be and why?

Forgash: Constant work on improving pace of play - while it’s getting better, we can all do little things in everyday casual play -- ready golf, etc.

Any prediction for the matches?

Forgash: No, I don’t have any. The format of match play means anything can happen.

Every hole at Merion has its own character and momentum can switch suddenly. I’ve met both captains, Sarah Ingram and Elaine Ratcliffe, and have a great deal of respect for each of them. They are great mentors and ambassadors for golf. I’m looking forward to the event being here at Merion. TSG

Thursday, June 9

Flag Raising; Opening Ceremony

Friday, June 10

Three morning foursome

Three afternoon four-ball matches

Saturday, June 11

Three morning foursomes

Three afternoon four-ball matches

Sunday, June 12

Eight singles matches

Closing ceremony

For more information:

MERIONGOLFCLUB.COM

USGA.COM SCHEDULE

The Wicker Baskets of Merion Flags

Brand The Hand Customizes

The Golf Glove Experience

By Mike May, Contributing Writer

Ingolf, there are many products which organizations use as vehicles to deliver their marketing/advertising messages in order to establish or reinforce the presence of their brand or a new product. Historically, some of those traditional products used to deliver those marketing messages include shirts, hats, visors, golf towels, socks, golf balls, golf bags, water bottles, and caddy bibs. One of the more underutilized products, until now, is the actual golf glove. Thanks to the emergence of Clarkston, Michiganbased Brand the Hand, golf gloves are now being used to promote and publicize brands, products, charities, and destinations.

“We produce exclusive, logo-integrated designed gloves,” said Jimmy Dee (JD) Dowsett, executive chairman/founder, Brand the Hand.

What Brand the Hand produces is in a category unto itself. It’s a golf glove with a corporate logo printed on the back of the golf glove.

“We use the back of the hand to print the corporate message,” added Dowsett.

While Brand the Hand started by making golf gloves in 2019, Dowsett has branched out in other directions.

“We began with golf gloves, but now we make gloves for all seasons for other sports and physical activities,” added Dowsett.

The inventory includes all sport gloves, football receiving gloves, baseball batting gloves, boxing gloves, general purpose gloves, ranch gloves, work gloves, and winter mittens.

Dowsett admits that when golfers buy a golf glove, they buy just one. Whereas, when customer buy gloves for other activities, they purchase two, unless you are PGA Tour pro “Two Gloves” Tommy Gainey.

“I need to contact Tommy Gainey about our golf gloves,” said Dowsett. “We do work with twotime PGA Tour winner Dan Pohl. We produced Signature Hole gloves for him at his PohlCat Golf Course.”

The gloves produced by Brand the Hand are made from either cabretta leather or sublimated nylon. Dowsett, a former pro golfer on the Asian circuit and on mini tours in the U.S., knows that it’s important to have a high-performing and long-lasting golf glove. Otherwise, the marketing

message is never seen because it will never be worn.

“Our gloves have reinforced stitching and they have a higher thread count,” said Dowsett. “Quality wise, our glove compares well with other established brands on the market.”

Dowsett’s background is worth sharing. It’s fair to say that he never thought he would ever be in the customized glove-making business.

Back in the 1990s, he was in the U.S. Air Force. He served four years and rose to the rank of an E4 Senior Airman. He was also a talented and accomplished pro golfer. In fact, in 1996, he won the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Marines golf championships. And, in 1998, he shot a 63 at the Premium Bison Open, then a Nike Tour event, in Texas. He was also good enough to earn playing privileges on the Asian Tour and he played in some mini-tour events in Florida.

But, in 2001, his life changed. A visit to his medical doctor back in Michigan revealed that he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS).

“I didn’t even know what MS was and what it meant,” added Dowsett. “By 2015, I was considered 100 percent disabled. While I can still walk, I sometimes need a cane. I cannot play golf. I have been living with MS for more than 20 years. I am now a service-disabled veteran.”

While the 2001 diagnosis of MS was definitely a defining moment in his life, good things started happening to Dowsett after that. In 2002, he married his wife Whitney. On May 31, 2003, their son –James Dowsett III – was born. And, despite the MS, Dowsett continued to play professional golf.

On June 24, 2003, Dowsett recorded a holein-one while playing in the Michigan Open on the fourth hole at The Bear Club in Traverse City, Michigan.

“It’s been my only hole in one,” said Dowsett. In that tournament, he made the cut and he did it while dealing with MS.

But, soon after that, he had to give up the dream of professional golf because of the physical limitations caused by MS. So, he resorted to Plan B.

“I started The JD Group and started

representing other professional golfers as a player’s manager,” said Dowsett, who understands the needs of other professional golfers. “I also started writing a book about my journey and became preoccupied with coping and living with MS.”

And, then, he started Brand the Hand. The first project in 2019 was to produce a golf glove in support of Moving Day for MS, an initiative where pro golfers on all golf tours around the world started wearing orange on the weekends in support of MS.

“Then, other groups started asking me if I could produce a golf glove with their corporate or charity on the back of golf gloves,” said Dowsett. And, he did. The client base has expanded since then.

Despite his disability, Dowsett’s mind and sense of humor remain sharp. And, he can talk about golf, as he sells those Brand the Hand gloves.

In many respects, gloves from Brand the Hand sell themselves. And, Dowsett knows it.

When asked to recall his favorite designed glove that his company has produced, to date, he responded with a politically correct answer.

“My favorite glove is always the next one,” chuckled Dowsett.

Today, Dowsett’s clients range from golf courses like the Augusta (GA) Municipal Golf Course to companies that sell homes, such as Bayside Real Estate in Michigan, to teams that want to promote their mascot.

At Brand the Hand, the minimum order is two dozen gloves and they can be delivered in three weeks. For a surcharge, a rush order can be completed in two weeks. TSG

For more information:

BRANDTHEHANDNOW.COM 810.348.3126

jd@brandthehandnow.com

JD Dowsett and son, James Dowsett III

BoyneGolf.com

DESERVES THE PERFECT SETTING

2022 ShopRite LPGA

Classic Returns to Traditional June Dates

Final Round to be Broadcast on the CBS Television Network and Stream Live on Paramount+

Tournament officials announced today the 2022 ShopRite LPGA Classic Presented by Acer will return to its traditional dates on the LPGA Tour tournament schedule, taking place June 6-12 at the Bay Course at Seaview, A Dolce Hotel in Galloway, N.J.

Sunday’s final round in 2022 will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network and stream live on Paramount+, marking the first time in tournament history the ShopRite LPGA Classic will air on network television. GOLF Channel will air the first two rounds and the first hour of Sunday’s final round, with CBS airing the final two hours.

2022 ShopRite LPGA Classic Television Airtimes:

Friday, June 10 Noon-2:30 p.m. GOLF Channel Saturday, June 11 3-5 p.m. GOLF Channel Sunday, June 12 Noon-1 p.m. GOLF Channel Sunday, June 12 1-3 p.m. CBS

GOLF Channel’s television coverage will stream live on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app.

Atlantic City’s largest annual sporting event, the ShopRite LPGA Classic will once again host a field of 144 of the world’s best female golfers, competing for a $1.75 million purse. Tickets are now on sale for the ShopRite LPGA Classic, exclusively at www.ShopRiteLPGAClassic.com.

“We are excited to return to our traditional dates for the 2022 ShopRite LPGA Classic Presented by Acer that will serve as Atlantic City’s annual kickoff sporting event for the summer,” said Bill Hansen, tournament director for the ShopRite LPGA Classic. “We look forward to showcasing this great championship and its worldclass field to the LPGA Tour’s global audience via our television partners at GOLF Channel and CBS Sports.”

Ticket packages for the 2022 ShopRite LPGA Classic include exclusive hospitality and general admissions tickets offering a wide degree of entertainment and access. All 2022 tournament tickets will be digital and will be emailed after purchase. Tickets can be viewed on either a mobile device or be printed out where they will be scanned at the main gate.

TURTLE CREEK TURNING 25

Waltz Family Has Created The Kind Of Atmosphere That Keeps Golfers Coming Back To The Limerick Layout

By Tom McNichol, Contributing Writer Photos courtesy of Rough Coat Photography

In August it will be 25 years since the late Bill Waltz saw his dream and the dream of his father, Sandy, realized when Turtle Creek Golf Club, the popular public course on Ridge Pike in western Montgomery County, opened for play.

Playing to a par of 72 and measuring 6,375 yards from its blue tees, Turtle Creek, designed by Ed Beidel, was the natural extension of the Waltz Golf Farm that had already been providing golfers of all ages a place to play miniature golf, a driving range and a par-3 course.

That’s pretty much how 50-year-old Rob Bunting, a Harleysville graphic designer who is part of a regular Sunday foursome along with his dad and a couple of his dad’s friends, remembers it going.

“I really learned how to play at Waltzes,” said Rob Bunting, who played scholastically at Perkiomen Valley. “My dad would take us to play miniature golf when we were little, I think I was there more for the ice cream at first. I guess I was about 7 when I started to swing the club on the driving range.

“Then I graduated to the par-3 course and that’s where I really learned how to play the game.”

Bob Bunting, Rob’s dad, will be 77 years young in June and first welcomed his son into his regular foursome when Rob was in high school before Turtle Creek was open. Once the Turtle came into existence, it didn’t take long for Bob and Rob and Bob’s fellow “railroad guys,” Al Grenfell and John Luciano, to give the new course a shot to become their regular Sunday spot.

They’ve been coming back ever since.

The course conditions, under the care of superintendent John Welsh and his crew, are consistently top-notch, as good as any public course in the region. It is very much a family-run operation with Bobbie Waltz, the wife of Bill Waltz, still running a lot of the day-to-day operations from the pro shop, with Sandy Waltz, the wife of Welsh and an English teacher in the Phoenixville School District, still spending her summers involved in the food service, with Lisa Waltz, who has carved out a pretty nice career as a television actress in Hollywood, still involved in marketing and website development.

“They’re just really good people,” Rob Bunting said concerning the Waltz family. “When you come here, you can feel the pride

they have in what they do here.”

The Buntings keep coming back, too, because they just like the golf course.

“There a lot of options on a lot of holes, depending on where the tee boxes are or the weather conditions,” Rob Bunting said. “There are a lot of different ways to play the holes. There are par-5s that are reachable in two if you’re playing aggressively and some par-4s where you can drive it pretty close to the green. Other times, you might want to take an iron off the tee and just play for position.

“I play a little more of a power game than my dad does. He doesn’t hit it as far, but he’s in the fairway most of the time and hits a lot of greens in regulation. When he misses the green, he gets it up and down a lot. He’s a pretty good putter. The course forces you to make a lot of decisions.”

Bob Bunting, a Collegeville resident, didn’t take up the game until he was 27 and he’s not getting older, he’s getting better.

“I shot my age for the first time when I shot a 73 when I was 74,” said Bob Bunting, who worked for just about every name you can think of when it comes to rail service as an engineer in this area, starting at Penn Central, then Conrail and then Amtrak

before finishing up with 15 years at SEPTA before retiring. “I’ve done it a few times each of the last couple years. I think I’m up to about 15.”

Make it 16 after Bob Bunting bettered his age in an early March round.

“I think the holes I like the best at Turtle Creek are eight and 18. They’re both riskreward par-5s. You’re tempted to try to reach them in two if you hit a good drive. But you can end up in the water if the second shot isn’t hit well. You can make a good score at either hole, but you can make a big number if you’re not careful.”

The Sunday foursome has been a Bunting family tradition for 30 years. It isn’t a coincidence that their family feels so comfortable in the atmosphere promoted by the Waltz family at Turtle Creek.

“It’s really nice to get to play with my dad every week,” Rob Bunting said. “Over the years, he’s become more than just my dad, he’s my friend and a playing partner who I enjoy playing a round of golf with.”

Bill Waltz also saw Turtle Creek as a place that could help with the development of the golfers of tomorrow. Being an advocate for junior golf, in his mind, just made sense because a junior golfer could easily become a Turtle Creek customer a decade or two later.

Turtle Creek has been the home for the District One Championship since 2002, which means a generation or two of really good high school players have competed there, not just for district gold, but also as a step on the road to the PIAA Championship.

Turtle Creek also hosts a two-day

Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour event each summer, which always draws a competitive field with youngsters with designs on success in the high school season making sure they familiarize themselves with the home of the District One tournament.

YEARS

he always said that junior golfers were our future customers,” Sandy Waltz said. “With Kate and Kayley, we just want to make sure they know we’ll give them the opportunity in golf and that we support them.”

Putting two of the things she is most passionate about, education and golf, Sandy Waltz started a girls golf program at Phoenixville. Last fall she got to watch one of her girls, sophomore Kate Roberts, become the first Phoenixville golfer, male or female, to qualify for the PIAA Class AAA Championship with a solid sixth-place finish in the district tournament at Turtle Creek.

Kate Roberts will be joined by younger sister Kayley on the Phoenixville roster this fall. Kate Roberts and Kayley Roberts were the Philadelphia Junior Tour’s respective 16to-18 and 13-to-15 division Players of the Year in 2021 with their best scores of the summer coming in the Junior Tour stop at Turtle Creek.

“They just love playing golf,” Sandy Waltz said of the Roberts sisters. “And they’re serious. They’re in it to win it.”

Sandy Waltz is happy she’s involved with a place like the Waltz Golf Farm and Turtle Creek and can give Kate and Kayley Roberts a place to develop their games. The Pioneer Athletic Conference, which the Phantoms compete in, will hold its conference championship, which doubles as a district qualifier, at Turtle Creek next fall.

“I believe so much in my dad’s vision,

Team Waltz is making plans for a 25th anniversary celebration this summer. New carts have been added to the cart fleet and there have been repaving projects for the cart paths and the upper parking lot at Turtle Creek.

Welsh and the greenkeeping crew have upgraded many of the sand traps for improved drainage after heavy rainstorms. The grass areas of the Waltz Golf Farm driving range have been redesigned for easier access for players trying to get in a few swings before a round at Turtle Creek.

Many outings that have been on hiatus during the coronavirus pandemic will be returning. Turtle Creek’s relaxed 19th hole with its large tented area that includes couches and a barbecue that can churn out grilled hot dogs and hamburgers is a perfect area to gather, whether it’s a group having an outing or a foursome winding down from a round.

Lisa Waltz and the rest of the Waltz family have learned what works over the first 25 years of Turtle Creek. Like many public courses, Turtle Creek benefited the last couple of years when it quickly became apparent that golf was one of the few activities you could do safely in the midst of the pandemic.

“We had a lot of people who came back to golf or who took up the game for the first time,” Lisa Waltz said. “Our challenge is to make sure they keep coming back.”

For Rob Bunting, the well-manicured greens and fairways at Turtle Creek have been bringing him back for more than two decades and will continue to be the reason the Turtle is his home course.

“The conditions definitely make a difference,” Rob Bunting said. “You’ll travel an extra 10 miles to play a course that’s in good shape. If you have a 10-foot putt, you want to count on the ball staying on line, you want to have a chance to make the putt. It’s the kind of thing that keeps you coming back.” TSG

For more information: 610 489 5133

TURTLECREEKGOLF.COM

World Amateur Handicap Championship to Begin Accepting Entries March 22

The 39th annual PlayGolfMyrtleBeach.com World Amateur Handicap Championship will begin accepting entries March 22. A 72-hole, net stroke play tournament, the World Am will be played Aug. 29 – Sept. 2 on over 50 of Myrtle Beach’s best courses, and 3,500 players from across the world are again expected to participate in golf’s largest single-site event.

Early entry into the tournament, which includes at least four rounds of golf, nightly admission to the World’s Largest 19th Hole and a gift bag, is $599 through May 18, a $100 savings off the regular cost.

Players that register by April 20 will also be eligible to win one of over 50 random drawing prizes collectively valued at $10,000, including offerings from Taylormade, Srixon and Cleveland.

Nearly 3,500 players from all 50 states flocked to the 2021 World Am, and with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic hopefully waning, tournament officials are optimistic

international players will be able to return in significant numbers to the “Every Man’s Major.”

“We can’t wait to open entries and begin welcoming people to the 2022 Play Golf Myrtle Beach World Amateur Handicap Championship,” said tournament director Scott Tomasello. “The energy surrounding the game has continued to grow and that’s certainly been reflected in the interest the World Am is generating. The return of international players will bring even more excitement to what we believe will be the best World Am yet.”

The World Am, which flights players based on age, gender and handicap, is open to all golfers 17 years of age and older wishing to compete in a net division.

The World Am flights players into nine divisions – men 49 and under, senior men (5059), mid-senior men (60-69), super senior men (70-79), seasoned seniors (80+), women (59 and under), senior women (60+), the gross division, senior (50+) gross division, mid-senior gross

division (60+) and women’s gross division. There is also a “Just For Fun” flight, created for players who want to enjoy the World Am experience without the pressure of competition.

After four days of tournament play, all flight winners and ties advance to the World Championship Playoff, an 18-hole shootout that crowns the event’s winner.

Each night of the event, the 19th Hole overtakes all 120,000-square feet of the Myrtle Beach Convention Center, providing participants with free food and drinks, live entertainment, celebrity guest appearances, a golf expo and more. Among the big names that have appeared at the 19th Hole in recent years are David Feherty, Brandel Chamblee, Charlie Rymer and John Daly.

Players also receive a gift bag that includes a polo, rain jacket, golf towel, logo’d hat, PGA Tour Superstore gift card and an assortment of other goodies valued cumulatively at $250.

For more information, please visit

www.MyrtleBeachWorldAmateur.com.

Landis Creek Is On The Right Path

By Tom McNichol, Contributing Writer

It’sbeen two years since the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic shut down golf courses for six weeks or so.

But as spring gave way to summer in 2020, there was a realization that golf was an activity people could do safely and the pandemic, which seems finally to be slowing down in the spring of 2022, created an unlikely boom for the game at every level.

“I’ve said it before, but the pandemic may have saved the game of golf,” Jason Hilz, the director of golf and club operations at Landis Creek Golf Club in Limerick, said as his team prepared for a new season. “There was a Tiger Boom in 1997, but that was more about the building of new golf courses. This has been different, this boom has created a lot of new golfers.”

The 43-year-old Hilz has been involved in the golf business for more than two decades and he has never seen anything like it.

“We’ve had days already when the temperature barely got out of the 30s and we have people coming out to play,” Hilz on a rainy mid-March day. “It’s insane. We had a couple of 100-plus round days in February. We had a day when it got up in the 70s earlier this week and we were mobbed.”

Hilz is in his ninth year at Landis Creek, having started there when it was still Limerick Golf Club. Brian Lutz came along in 2014, renamed it Landis Creek, turned the course’s 19th hole into the Creekside Sports Bar & Grille, a thriving bar that features live music on weekends, and started a catering service along with his wife Jean at The Loft at Landis Creek, building on the business that had first flourished as Marjeane Caterers in Lansdale.

The team of Lutz, Hilz and superintendent Brett Cuthbertson has continued to tweak a Landis Creek layout that plays to a par of 70 and measures 6,068 yards from the tips. The major goal for the 2022 season was repaving the cart paths and parts of the parking lot.

“The back nine is done and the front nine is all prepped, we’re just waiting for the blacktop material,” Hilz said.

Cuthbertson has overseen the removal of 106 trees on the golf course and another 26 on the edges of the parking lot. Hilz says the

net effect has been to make Landis Creek more visually appealing.

“The golf course just looks better, the way the new cart paths define the holes,” HIlz said. “There’s that one spot in the parking lot where you can see 14 and 15 and the cart paths just make them look really good.”

The addition of a pond in front of the green at the 505-yard, par-5 seventh hole has made the hole more challenging.

“It’s not as easy to reach that green in two,” Hilz said. “Even some of our senior players would just swing away on their second shot there, but now it’s more of risk-reward par-5 where they’re forced into making a decision about what to hit in there.”

Hilz said there will be three new leagues at Landis Creek and what was one ladies’ league on Tuesdays has expanded to two leagues and another on Thursdays.

“The leagues are great for people who don’t always have time to play 18 holes,” Hilz said. “You start at 3 in the afternoon and that still leaves you time to relax a little on the patio afterward.”

The increasing attraction of the game for women was already on the upswing and the pandemic has made those numbers jump noticeably.

“We’re definitely seeing more ladies here,” Hilz said. “I think our golf course is very fair for ladies, too. There’s not a lot of forced carries.”

Hilz said Landis Creek got a lot of the outings that were cancelled due to pandemic concerns in 2020 back last year. He expects that trend will continue in 2022, but with the explosion of regular play, Hilz says he sometimes

has to put some limits on some of the outings.

“We did pretty good last year with the outings, but we can’t be quite as flexible as we used to be,” Hilz said. “You don’t want to shut down the course for the whole day.”

Hilz knows how competitive the area around Landis Creek is for golf.

“There are so many public courses within a 15-mile radius of us,” said Hilz, who spent a decade before arriving at Landis Creek at one of them, Gilbertsville Golf Club. “And you can’t forget the private courses either, they have had a resurgence, too.”

He sees the Creekside as something that separates Landis Creek from the competition. And he thinks the improved cart paths will prove to be another plus for the course.

“I think we’ll be in a much better place with these cart paths,” Hilz said. “We get a lot of senior play and I think they’ll notice it. I just think the playability of the golf course will be way better.”

Some of the golfers who are new to the game in the last couple of years have had a little bit of a learning curve when it comes to golf etiquette.

“When we have cart-path-only days, we do it for a reason, we’re trying to limit the damage to the golf course,” Hilz said.

Pace of play has been a priority at Landis Creek for as long as Hilz has been there and, in that area, the newest members of the golf fraternity have cooperated.

“Even on our busy days, we’re averaging four hours, five minutes a round, which is better than the USGA guidelines,” Hilz said. “We’ve stuck with 10-minute intervals in tee times that we started during the pandemic. We used to have eight-minute intervals, but we found that the 10-minute intervals really helped with the pace of play.”

Hilz is looking forward to another big year for the game of golf everywhere in 2022 and Landis Creek will be ready when all those golfers show up to play. TSG

For more information:

LANDISCREEKGOLFCLUB.COM 610.495.6945

Heading the list of improvements for 2022 at the course are newly repaved cart paths

Hickory

GolfTrainingAids.com Announces Divot Board Training Aid Product of the Year

Top training aid seller relaunches this week at the PGA Merchandise Show – Booth 2081

GolfTrainingAids. com, home of the world’s largest selection of golf teaching and training aids, announces the Divot Board (DivotBoard.com) as its Product of the Year. The Divot Board will be showcased along with other top golf training tools at this week’s annual PGA Merchandise Show at Orange County Convention Center in Orlando.

New president John Diulus and the entire Golf Training Aids staff will be on hand at Booth 2081 to answer questions and introduce the category’s latest products to teaching professionals, suppliers, existing customers, and potential new customers.

“Despite the challenges of Covid, it’s still nice to get to see and greet people in person,” says Diulus. “We are looking forward to meeting with customers and suppliers, as well as identifying new products that we can help bring to market. Visitors will be able to meet our team and see and try several of our top-selling popular products – and learn first-hand about some of the great things we are working on for 2022.”

The Divot Board, GolfTrainingAids.com Product of the Year, was selected for its innovative design, immediate visual feedback of a golfer’s impact position (if each swing was a ball-first strike or fat or thin, and if the club face was square, open or closed) and positive reviews from golfers. The product is also extremely durable and portable enough to easily hook onto a golf bag to take out to the range or golf course.

“The key to every great product is quality and marketability,” says Diulus. “The Divot Board is excellent on both fronts. We welcome attendees to stop by and try it. To earn our Product of the Year requires meeting a lot of variables, such as quality, functionality and design. But the most important factor is

customer feedback and demand. Golfers love this product because of its high quality, effectiveness, and ease of use.”

Divot Board creator and CEO Bo Longo says he’s honored to have had the training aid named Product of the Year and is excited to partner with the Golf Training Aids team to continue to present the product to more avid golfers. “We are so appreciative to receive the first-ever golftrainingaids.com Product of the Year. Golftrainingaids.com is a great partner and instrumental to the Divot Board’s success. We worked very closely with GTA on developing effective sales and marketing plans that helped make our product attractive to the golf community,” says Divot Board CEO Bo Longo.

Longo will be on hand at the Golf Training Aids booth, along with general manager Dane Wiren, marketing director and head of social media Emily Faulkner, and business development specialist Christian Cintron. GolfTrainingAids.com is also relaunching a product in 2022 that will be endorsed by former long drive champion Maurice Allen, who will be appearing at the booth.

About GolfTrainingAids.com

Golf Training Aids’ online marketplace - GolfTrainingAids. com - offers the world’s largest selection of golf teaching and training aids. Founded by PGA Master Professional Dr. Gary Wiren in 1984, the brand brings an unprecedented wealth of golf knowledge and experience to this “one stop shop” for golf training solutions. The expertly-curated selection of feedback devices, training tools and golf improvement aids is designed to be a comprehensive game improvement offering representing the best of the best in developmental golf products available.

In 2022, GolfTrainingAids.com will begin to feature an increasing amount of instructional and how-to video content, to help connect golfers with game-improvement solutions exactly suited to help specific weaknesses in their games.

Dr. Wiren is a golf educator, a Master member of the PGA of America, and a former national PGA staff director. He has written or participated in the writing of 250+ magazine articles and 14 books. His popular, award-winning When Golf Is a Ball was named “best golf book in the year 2004.” He has 13 film credits, four videos on the market including the award-winning The Fascinating World of Golf, and has taught privately, in groups, at seminars and stage performances, to more than 250,000 people in 30 countries.

For more information, visit GolfTrainingAids.com.

Fry/Straka Go Big At Union League National

With 23 holes down and 4 to go, the new incarnation of Union League National Golf Club, designed by Fry/Straka Global Golf Course Design, would normally be looking at a grand reopening sometime in late 2022. But the golf course never fully closed, and architects Dana Fry and Jason Straka don’t anticipate their ambitious re-vegetation effort to conclude until 2024.

“Nothing about Union League National is normal,” Fry explains. “Traditionally, a project that takes that long — we broke ground in 2018 — drives a membership crazy. But we phased our work approximately 9 holes at a time, so 18 of the 27 holes have always been open for play. Psychologically, that approach was more clever than we knew: Because the membership here watched The Big Fill slowly emerge, then completely transform their golf course property.”

Any discussion of Union League National (ULN) begins with The Big Fill, a large-scale earthmoving effort — more than 1.6 million cubic yards in scope — that Fry/Straka created at the center of this 268-acre parcel. It rises to 78 feet above sea level, 56 feet above the original grade. However, its tendrils spread out hundreds of yards in half a dozen directions. The man-made ridgelines slowly but elegantly taper down, only to rise again and form new, smaller plateaus, from which other distinct ridge networks splinter off into the landscape.

“All these ridges are like the arteries a human body,” Fry says. “By the time we finished with the major earthwork, the largest section of The Big Fill accommodated 8 tee complexes, 9 green complexes and parts of 7 fairways. It’s that massive: 78 feet high in places. It covers 45 acres! In the same way an architect blends surrounding contours into a single green complex, we are blending an entire routing into the contours we created via The Big Fill.

“Why do we carry those ridgelines out so far? Because that’s part of what makes man-made earth shaping look natural. The other part relies on vegetation. The aesthetic and environmental vision for this property would never be fulfilled without Jason’s understanding of the agronomics, the plantings, the aquatic plants, the soil biology.”

The par-4 8th hole, on the Grant Nine, at Union League National GC. The terrain at right is entirely manmade.

According to Straka, sitting president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, “From the forward tees to the greens, most of the fairways at Union League are at — or 3 to 5 feet below — natural grade, with a native-rough edge. We specified 13 different species of native grasses, ground covers and shrubs, plus dozens of wetland plant varieties, to create a rugged Pine Valley look, and to control erosion. Additionally, thousands of oak, cedar and pine trees were planted or relocated to connect the existing tree lines and those native edges to The Big Fill itself. We worked very hard and conducted all sorts of site walks with ecologists, across southern New Jersey, to get these plantings just right. We even took the construction team to Pine Valley to ensure we got the look and plant management ethos just right.”

Fry/Straka expects the final 4 holes to be completed and playable by July 1, 2022. However, the finished product at Union League National won’t be in evidence for quite a while. “In 5 or 10 years,” Fry asserts, “they’re going to say that we found the most amazing natural dirt ridge in all of south Jersey.”

Union League National GC is located just an hour southeast of Pine Valley GC, in the storied Pine Barrens of southern New Jersey. These 27 holes occupy the footprint of a 27-hole public course, designed by Hurdzan/Fry, which took shape in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

The Union League of Philadelphia, formed during the Civil War, had traditionally been a city club. Its vast membership, however, is drawn from all over Greater Philadelphia, including the summer communities here along the Jersey shore. The club purchased Sand Barrens GC in 2017. The public facility’s former owners, Malcolm and Edson Robertson, are members at the Union League — and at Calusa Pines, a 2001 Hurdzan/Fry design in Naples, Fla. (#98 on GOLF Magazine’s U.S. Top 100). Fry/Straka was retained and onsite here in Avalon by February 2018.

“We deployed The Big Fill at Calusa, but not on this scale,” Fry says. “This is honestly the only course project I know of, anywhere, that combines the two crucial elements: the massive earth-moving style and a Pine Valleystyle palette — the soil and vegetation that we associate with great golf. That’s frankly why Jason or myself, and many times the both of us, have been here, on site, pretty much

every week for going on 5 years now. It’s a massive job and a massive opportunity, to create something really special. We’ve never undertaken a project that better underlines the strengths of our firm.”

Fry/Straka is busy with renovation and original design projects all across North America, while Yas Acres in Dubai, the firm’s first Middle Eastern commission, christened its front nine last month. The firm (www. FryStraka.com) also has projects underway in Vietnam, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, and throughout the United States.

In the Union League of Philadelphia, Fry/Straka are collaborating with an equally innovative and ambitious partner. After purchasing the former Sand Barrens property, the club expanded its holdings, in early 2021, by acquiring the former Ace Club in Whitemarsh Township, Penn., north of the city. Renamed Union League Liberty Hill GC, it joins in the fold Union League National and Union League Torresdale, the League’s Donald Ross-designed city golf club.

Here in Avalon, club CEO Jeff McFadden and ULN General Manager Jacob Hoffer have granted the design and construction teams extraordinary resources and latitude. “The Big Fill approach started out as a solution,” Hoffer explained. “Jason and Dana were redoing a large bunker complex where the goal was mainly aesthetic. They started to generate a large amount of fill, which we piled up behind the 1st green on the Meade course. We talked about maybe paying to have it removed —

and we literally saw the light bulb go on in Dana’s head. He said, ‘Calusa’, climbed to the top of the pile, and started spelling out what was involved.

“The game plan, what started as a small capital investment — taking down some trees and redoing some bunkers — grew and morphed as the members and the board started to see what was possible. Even so, it’s still hard for me to understand how Dana’s conceptual vision works, how he can see what can happen to a golf hole before the earthwork even begins. It’s sort of amazing.”

Embracing the prospect and scale of the evolving project, Union League National will undertake equally enterprising change elsewhere on the property: A new clubhouse is planned, along with a short course, new practice facilities, putting course, cottages, tennis complex and swimming complex, all lining an entirely reimagined entrance scheme.

On course, ULN will construct a landmark half-way house facility to conveniently and dramatically service golfers playing all three nines, each of which has been named for a Union Army general: Meade, Sherman and Grant. “In many ways, the halfway house is the fulcrum of the entire golf project,” Fry says, “and it will occupy one of the most dramatic halfway-house settings in all of golf. The architecture they’re discussing — tucked up against a man-made, hillside peninsula, with a patio on the roof, multiple patios down below, and seating for 100 people — is off the charts.”

The par 4 2nd hole on the Meade Nine, with two separate Big Fill tendrils as backdrop.

Talamore Golf Resort Continues To Evolve And Improve

By Dave Daubert, Contributing Writer

Widely

considered one of the Southeast’s most guest-friendly getaways, Talamore Golf Resort in Southern Pines, NC, continues to evolve and improve. Talamore has several new amenities and others arriving soon that include:

A Toptracer Range with 10 hitting stalls that will open this spring. Talamore guests will be able to experience interactive golf entertainment powered by the same technology that viewers enjoy during televised PGA Tour events to track the shots of the game’s best players. Guests can compete against friends, play a virtual round at some of the world’s top courses and receive instant shot feedback on interactive game screens. The technology uses high speed cameras, coupled with sophisticated computer algorithms, to provide instantaneous ball tracking information to guests using the range.

Talamore has taken a cutting-edge approach to enhancing its distinctive sod wall bunkers by becoming one of the first golf courses in the country to install EcoBunkers. The stylish new bunkers at Talamore — 11 total, some as tall as 7 feet — will debut in February and resemble the beautiful sod-wall bunkers seen on TV every summer during the Open Championship in the United Kingdom.

The Talamore practice range has been upgraded and a new, 15,000-square-foot putting course is being installed between the driving range and the 10th tee boxes that is expected to open in the fall. Guests can warm up or practice on the putting course while waiting for Toptracer, or simply settling some bets after their round.

A new 1,000-square-foot deck has been added on the back of Talamore, which overlooks the course’s memorable finishing hole. There is comfortable furniture and cozy fire pits, along with lights and several TVs, making it the perfect spot for guests to socialize post round or wait to compete on Toptracer. “It’s customer service, customer relations. Just wanting our guests to come and see something new, or see something different and experience something different in town that they may not be able to see anywhere else,” said Talamore General Manager Matt Hausser. “It’s having our guests come and stay and stick around and hang out, just let them have a good time.”

Last but not least, the resort got some publicity with an early Christmas present — the arrival of a 35-pound baby llama named “Jones,” after golf course architect Rees Jones who designed Talamore. Jones was born to llama

mama Camellia, bringing the course’s herd to an even four. Jones enjoys playing with his older brother, Arnie, named for… you guessed it… Arnold Palmer, who designed its sister course, Mid South Club. TSG

more information:

Sunday: 10am-7pm

Monday & Tuesday: Opening Soon Wednesday – Saturday: 11:30am-9pm

FOR GROUPS WITH OVER 84 PLAYERS

CORPORATE OUTING RATES

April–October

$99–F&B package included–No Alcohol Monday–Thursday

April–September

$119-F&B package included-No alcohol Friday (Subject to approval)

CHARITY OUTING RATES

April–October

$85–F&B package included–No Alcohol Monday–Thursday

April–October

$99-F&B package included-No alcohol Friday (Subject to approval)

TALAMORE

Where More Is What You’ll Always Get

Like Donald Ross, who spent roughly 30 years fine-tuning his work on Pinehurst No. 2, those at the helm of the Talamore Golf Resort less than five miles away in Southern Pines have spent the last three decades working tire lessly to make its all-encompassing acreage a pure oasis for golf vacationers of all sorts.

Its proof of success is in Golf Advisor’s annual Golfers’ Choice rankings of the best golf courses in the U.S. For Talamore Golf Resort, it was total domination, highlighted by its position as the No. 1 public golf course in North Carolina.

To add icing on the cake, Mid South Club, Talamore’s sister course, was just voted the Best Public/Semi-Private Course in the Sandhills. Two #1 golf courses... both under the same umbrella...both at the center of Talamore’s golf vacation paradise.

Nate Oxman, Staff Writer - Tri-State Golfer Magazine

Historic Village of Pinehurst Area of North Carolina

More Hospitality Included

More of Everything

Midland Road Masters Package

Dates: 9/13/22 - 11/17/22

Weekday - $895 per person

Weekend - $1007 per person

3 Nights in a luxurious 2 bedroom/2 bath Mid South Lodge

Play 1 round each at Talamore Golf Club, Mid South Club, Mid Pines & Pine Needles

Signature Golf Package

Dates: 9/10/22 - 11/11/22

Weekday - $491 per person Weekend - $587 per person

2 Nights in a deluxe 2 bedroom/2 bath Talamore Golf Villa

Play 2 rounds of golf at Talamore Golf Club and 1 round at Mid South Club

*Package rate is based on quad occupancy and included ALL lodging fees, green fees, cart fees, and applicable taxes. Offers are subject to availability. Cannot be combined with any other promotions or offers, and does not apply to existing bookings. Advance reservations are required. Daily breakfast delivered to your door and southern pig pickin’ are only offered seasonally.

#1 Public Golf Course in NC

Arnie’s Only Design in the Area

Access to 25+ Area Courses

Delivered to You Each Morning

Talamore’s BBQ Pavilion

Traditional Southern BBQ

Talamore Golf Villas

Lodges at Mid South

The Palmer Cottage

Talamore Golf Club Mid South Club Tobacco Road