Three days a week
For Canadians in Lake Chapala, perfect weather, great local courses and friendships keep them on the course all year-round. Article and Photos by Joel Hansen
G
olf was over for another day and the dice had come out. Shaking the cup and slamming them on the table, everyone gathered around to calculate the score. “Pair of nines!” comes the groan, over the hoots and cheers. It was about an hour after we had finished another “Afternoon Group” at the Chapala Country Club. Golf scores had been calculated, near birdies bragged about, skins paid out, and the group who plays the Stableford system had their ongoing scores entered into the book, which dates back over three years.
John is a local realtor who specializes in the golf properties surrounding the Chapala Country Club. He is also the Chapala Country Club champ from 2006 to 2010; a fact I discovered on my own – honestly, he didn’t tell me. John has many loves in his life but nearly topping his list, just below his lovely wife, is golf. With barely restrained enthusiasm; John invited us to attend the Guadalajara Country Club’s Seniors’ Golf Tournament. For the past thirty-six years this very exclusive private club has invited the public to the tournament, giving non-members full access to the facilities, including the spa, lounges and locker rooms.
“This afternoon group has been going on since well before I moved here,” points out John Cearnal, who moved to Chapala in 2005. John is one of the organizers of Robbie and Turbo the Men’s Afternoon Group that meets Robbie was the first. In 2006, after spendevery Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for This page: With its long history, the Guadalajara ing three days in Chapala, he and his wife their noon tee off. The number of players Country Club has seen the city build up around it. Marilyn bought a house. He returned to fluctuates between a low of fourteen in the Canadians, Turbo and Suzie, at the Seniors Tour Romania (where he was working) and told summer to twenty-four in the winter seaOpening Night Cocktail Event everyone “I did it, now it’s your turn.” At son. They welcome new members, but of the time, Canadians, Robbie and Turbo worked with Atomic Energy course you have to be able to handle plenty of good-natured ribbing, of Canada, and for the previous twelve years they had been traveling some low stakes gambling, a cold cerveza or two, and play somewhat the globe together, (accompanied by their wives) building reactors in decent golf.
52 Mexi-Go! June 2012