MI Golf Journal July 2020

JULY 2020

Classic Road Trip:

French Lick Resort

Mich Historic Courses Washtenaw: 1899 Coldwater: 1920

Michiganders on LPGA Tour

Midland Flood Recovery Ladies’ Day: July 19

New Tour Edge Exotics Irons

Travel: Pinehurst is Open

Letter from the Editor

Two of Golf’s Greatest Attributes – Safety and Inclusion If I have been reminded of anything during the country’s turmoil the past few months, it is that the game of golf is literally one of the safest sports any human can play; and it’s a game that’s played by people from all walks of life.

Covid-19 did pause golf, but once leaders began to realize how golf is likely the safest sport/outdoor activity anyone can participate in, fairly soon afterward restrictions were eased, and play began again – and hasn’t even come close to slowing down.

When it comes to race relations in America, golf isn’t perfect and still has some work to do making it accessible to everyone, but there’s no denying that virtually all races and cultures are represented on the links on any given day I visit local golf venues.

Let’s all participate in ways to keep the game safe and healthy, and become more open to all.

Hit ‘em straight.

Tom Lang Publisher/Editor

What’s Inside: 08

Cover Story: French Lick Resort

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Harbor Shores, 10 Years Later

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Ladies Day with Patty Butcher

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Coldwater Golf Course Turns 100 Years Old

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The New Washtenaw Golf Club: Circa 1899

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Tournament Results: Amateur Events

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Michiganders on the LPGA Tour

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Travel: Pinehurst is Back Open

Michigan Golf Journal Midland Flood

Midland’s Currie Golf Course Recovers After the Flood

By Fred Altvater

As if Currie Golf Course in Midland wasn’t dealing with enough challenges thrown at the golf industry in 2020, the Midland region experienced a flood of biblical proportions on May 20.

After two days of extremely heavy rains, two dams that held back the waters of the Tittabawassee River to form Wixom and Sanford Lakes both gave way, allowing a tsunami of water to flood

downtown Midland and the Currie Golf Course.

Course officials had been alerted to an impending flood and moved the equipment to higher ground and took other flood precautions, but they weren’t prepared for the severity of the flooding when the dams broke.

Flood level for the Currie Golf Course is 18 feet. The water crested at 28 feet, causing parts of the course

to be submerged under ten feet of water. The Midland Fire Department used a boat to take Currie General Manager, Paul Milholland, to view damage to the clubhouse two days after the initial flooding.

“I have never seen so much mud in my life,” Milholland said. “Everything was covered with slippery, slimy mud.”

Once the water abated, several inches of dirt and Continues on page 6 >>

Michigan Golf Journal Midland Flood

debris covered fairways and greens and had to be removed as quickly as possible. Every available staff member, including cart boys and kitchen staff used snow shovels to help remove the sludge.

Mud from the flood begins to dry on fairway

“I personally want to thank every member of our staff here at Currie for their help in saving six greens. It took four men a minimum of 5 ½ hours per green to clean them.”

In 1952, the Currie Family donated money to build the 18-hole East Course, a 9-hole par-3, plus the 9-hole West Course, as a public golf facility to benefit the Midland community. In 1998, the East Course was cut back to nine holes as nearly $3 million was invested to add a second nine holes to the West Course and make it an upscale championship venue of over 7,000 yards. Improvements were also made to the clubhouse and made Currie one of the best public facilities in the state.

Currie has been able to re-open its shorter, family-friendly nine-hole East Course, as well as, the par 3 layout. The West Course

required more work but recently reopened.

For the near future, an 18-hole course will be possible by playing the front nine on the West Course combined with nine holes of the East Course. Holes 16 and 17 on the West Course must be reseeded and probably will not be playable until 2021.

The flooring, plus over two feet of drywall had to be removed from the clubhouse, which will curtail any groups from using the restaurant until remodeling can be completed.

Currie before the flood

Neither COVID-19 nor the Great Tittabawassee Flood of 2020 has stopped Currie Golf Course from offering golf to the people of Midland. MGJ

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Michigan Golf Journal Cover Story, French Lick

French Lick Resort Combines Golf and Gaming with Modern Flair and Historic Charm

By Tom Lang

I have often said that French Lick Resort’s Pete Dye Course and Donald Ross Course pack an incredible one-two punch for any golf lover – and now the resort in southern Indiana has added a modern, sleek new tower hotel to complement its two very grand, historic, stately hotels which have adorned the French Lick area for generations.

As a whole, you’d be hard pressed to find a resort anywhere in the country that has so artfully intertwined deep, rich history with modern contemporary choices to cover the preferences of any traveler. Golf by day and casino activities and entertainment by night makes for a great getaway where the golf season in the fall extends an entire month

or more than Michigan’s with its nearly-inKentucky location.

Nestled upon the rolling hills of southern Indiana, the two featured courses at French Lick are rated the No. 1 and No. 2 best public golf courses in the state of Indiana by GolfWeek Magazine and have been every year since 2011 – plus more than two dozen national rankings and awards.

Also, in French Lick’s golfing portfolio is the original 9-hole Valley Links Course layout created by Tom Bendelow in 1907 – plus a shared relationship with Sultan’s Run, a championship layout about 30 minutes away in Jasper. All-in-all, 63 holes of design variety, challenge and incredible views of the region.

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

Pete Dye Course: What stands out the most about the Dye Course is the illusion that many holes are suspended in air as they appear to “hang” onto the side of a long mountainous ridge – reflecting the reality the Hoosier National Forest area is essentially the foothills leading to the more mountainous Kentucky region.

The late Pete Dye moved huge amounts of earth to create

relatively level fairways on top of and on the sides of the rolling hills. The end result is many extreme drop-offs, hill climbs and cavernous valleys lining the fairways. These features play into the need for very thoughtful club selection, but when the ball is kept in the fairway it is a very playable layout.

There are six tee selections ranging from the tips of more than 8,100 yards to the forward tees at just over 5,000 yards.

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Michigan Golf Journal Cover Story, French Lick

lookout points for the surrounding forest and the two small towns below (French Lick and West Baden), but there are so many wonderful views from virtually every green and tee that no one location can be singled out as best.

As a golfer first, I rarely call out amenities like clubhouses, but the centerpiece at the Dye Course is spectacular in historic grandeur. For people who love earlycentury architecture with a modern touch, having lunch and looking around inside is inspiring.

Donald Ross Course: Stately, elegant, classic and natural – a typical Donald Ross design.

Pete Dye Course

It hosted the 2010 PGA Professional National Championship, the 2015 Senior PGA Championship presented by KitchenAid, the Big Ten’s men’s and women’s golf championships, and LPGA Legends. The resort has also played host to the Senior LPGA Championship in its first three years before a ‘Covid break’ in 2020, with a return set for 2021.

Dye was quoted as saying it was the best piece of inland property he’s ever worked.

The challenges of his fairway drop offs and risk-reward shots are balanced by greens that generally don’t have severe sloping on the putting surface. But that doesn’t mean subtle breaks won’t fool you – they will. Holes 3, 7 and 18 are stout, sweeping left doglegs with major valleys on each that require careful consideration of the correct club for the layup or “go for it” strategy.

The tee boxes at holes 8 and 11 are especially great

The good thing is – when would typical Ross ever be considered a bad thing?

The Ross Course balances the resort’s modern Pete Dye design with its historical ties to the area, which was inhabited by people looking for the speculative ‘healing and relaxation’ in the many local mineral springs. Several years back the resort spent almost $5 million to restore the course back to Ross’ original plans and condition.

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

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lies in the fairways and undulating greens. There is enough severity – with spines, swales, dips and plateaus on many greens – that Indiana native Fuzzy Zoeller was said to be a regular visitor in his younger playing days to practice putting in preparation of going to Augusta National.

Pete Dye Course

Now more than a century old, the Ross Course was the site of Walter Hagen’s 1924 PGA Championship.

Ross’ design gently flows across the dramatic, natural rolling terrain. I suspect Ross

just needed to figure out good routing because the only earth moving needed would have been to shape tee and green complexes.

Also like “typical” Ross, par is protected by uneven

French Lick is the world’s only resort to combine the classic work of Ross with the extraordinary modernday work of Dye – providing an experience of two of the best designers in golf history on one trip; yet add in Tom Bendelow and you’ve got a triple play.

Donald Ross Course

Continues on next page >>

Michigan Golf Journal Cover Story, French Lick

Hotel Amenities and Resort Extras: As historical settings go, the resort’s two main hotels are classic and very unique – each in their own right – and compliment the cozy downtown of French Lick. The circular West Baden Springs Hotel, with its huge skylight dome reaching 100 feet into the air and measuring 200 feet across the radius between interior-view hotel room balconies, is so elaborate that at the time it reached 8th wonder of the world status in 1902 by media.

Jaw-dropping describes the feeling of walking through the front door and into

Valley Tower Hotel

the massive, indoor openspace atrium.

Although built several generations ago when many local mineral springs were the main attraction, today’s resort is finely appointed with all the modern features of indoor and outdoor

pools, spa amenities, several restaurants, a casino, convention center and outdoor gardens – plus private hunting and fishing experiences, and a shooting range. There are many family activities in the area with an indoor water park, plus trails,

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carriage rides and the French Lick Scenic Railway. My wife is not a golfer but enjoyed what she said was the best horseback ride of her life at the resort on Hank, the blueeyed Pinto.

The complimentarily French Lick Springs Hotel was voted in 2015 by readers of USA Today as the top historic hotel in the country. Grab one of the dozens of rocking chairs on the massive front porch and unwind.

The new-this-year Valley Tower Hotel features 71 rooms adjacent to the resort’s Event Center at the French

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an incredible combination for buddy trips designed for playing golf and sports viewing of major events. No need to schlepp all the way to Vegas or Atlantic City; everything such Midwest friends need for a getaway is right here.

Lick Springs Hotel. It also offers 12 suites that can be configured in one-, two- and three-bedroom combinations – perfect for golf groups.

The Valley Tower features the new Valley Bar as well as a sports book with sports viewing area inside the French Lick Casino. What

Whether you are searching for great golf, spas, casino operations, delicious food, very cool accommodations, family activities or amenities, you can find it all at French Lick Resort.

Don’t miss out.

More information can be found at: www.frenchlick.com. MGJ

U.P. Golf

Experience a Golfing Road Trip to Michigan’s Gorgeous Upper Peninsula As luck would have it, one of the Midwest’s top emerging golf destinations, The Island Resort & Casino in Michigan’s idyllic Upper Peninsula, offers some very attractive and amenity-loaded stay-and-play packages.

The Island has been the UP’s go-to property for casino gaming and big-ticket live entertainment, but the growing popularity of its acclaimed Sweetgrass and Sage Run golf courses is attracting travelers and road trippers from all corners.

Sweetgrass is a fun prairie, links-style course with scenic and generous fairways and some of the most fun greens you can putt including a Redan, Biarritz, Island, and a double-green. An unexpected contrast from its sister course, Sage Run plays up, down, and around rugged terrain along a huge natural ridge of land which provides scenic panoramas and thrilling shot values at every turn.

An honoree on Golf Digest’s prestigious list of “Best New Courses, 2019,” this hilly Paul Albanese design is a king-sized challenge in an unforgettable natural setting.

Sweetgrass island green

Before or after golf, enjoy a pleasing array of dining options, including the posh 5 Bridges Steak & Seafood House, 5 Bridges Pub (home to the UP’s largest selection of craft beers) casual Firekeeper’s Restaurant and the fun-packed McC’s Sports Bar. The luxurious Drift Spa offers high-end spa services with access to the resort’s saltwater pool, steam rooms, and sauna.

Sage Run

Golfers can customize Stay and Play packages that offer 1, 2, 3, and 4-night lodging options with up to four rounds of golf. Package pricing is affordable ranging from $95 - $758, depending on the time of year. The “Perfect 4-Some” package combines a smorgasbord of top-tier golf experience: Sweetgrass and Sage Run as well as the breathtaking Greywalls course in Marquette, and TimberStone, a beautifullyforest gem in nearby Iron Mountain.

For more information, visit www. islandresortgolf.com. MGJ

Ladies Day

Ladies’ Day Features Skills Clinic with LPGA’s Patty Butcher

By Kate Moore

Women have always played golf. As a matter of fact, the LPGA Tour started 70 years ago.

An important part of growing the game of golf is growing women’s golf. Many are not aware that the fastest growing group of golfers is women.

Out of the 27 million golfers in the U.S., women account for 6 million.

Recognizing this growing segment of our favorite sport, the Michigan Golf League program, part of the Michigan Golf Course Association’s portfolio of products and events, is holding the 3rd annual Ladies’ Day with Patti Butcher Sunday, July 19 at The Lynx Golf Course in Otsego. This fun women’s event now features two options for the day. Partners can play a complete 18-hole scramble or choose the shorter 9-hole scramble. Both provide Butcher’s skills clinic.

Patti is the owner and operator of Patti Butcher Golf Enterprises, at Scott Lake Golf & Practice Center in Grand Rapids. She’s a 2010 LPGA National Golf Professional of the Year and two-time LPGA Midwest Teacher of the Year

(2002, 2006). Twice named to Golf Digest’s list of the ‘50 Best Women Teachers in America,’ Butcher started the nationally ranked women’s golf program at Grand Valley State University and served as the Division II representative for the NCAA Golf Committee.

She specializes in on-course instruction and working with students of all skill levels to meet their scoring goals.

The Lynx Golf Course provides a perfect venue for the day.

The highly-rated, superbly conditioned golf course boasts six holes along the Kalamazoo River. The elevation changes

and tree lined fairways provide a wonderful setting that challenges your game and rewards your senses.

“The MGCA is excited to be working with Patti Butcher again to bring you Ladies’ Day and to be at The Lynx Golf Course,” said MGCA executive director Jada Paisley. “Listening to our golfers’ request from last year, we have created both a 9 hole and an 18 hole event. Bring a friend and have a great day.”

For information and registration, visit migolfleague. com or call the MGCA at 800860-8575. MGJ

Michigan Golf Journal Washtenaw Golf Club

One of the Grandest of Them All Washtenaw Golf Club circa 1899

By Tom Lang

Washtenaw Golf Club has one of the finest and longest histories in our state.

It is the third oldest golf course in Michigan, dating back to its establishment in 1899.

Yet arguably its best era is just beginning to take shape.

Three new owners banded together to take over the formerly private club early this year and make it fully public. The group is led by Michigan Golf Hall of Fame member Dave Kendall – a two-time Senior PGA champion in Michigan, former president of the

Michigan PGA Section and award-winning instructor based out of his multi-staffed Kendall Academy located at nearby Miles of Golf in Ypsilanti, since 1997.

Washtenaw has long been characterized by several sources as one of the best

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

Southeast Michigan golf courses to experience traditional golf – which isn’t a surprise since the original layout from the 19th century is basically still intact here, 121 years later, but with some added touches of contemporary flair.

“It’s got the character of the old golf courses; big trees and narrow fairways,” Kendall said recently. “Trees are a big part of this course, but we will manage them,” to keep it under control. “I love that it’s been around since 1899, and to be the caretaker of it during this time in its history I feel is quite a privilege.”

Playing the Course: It came as no shock to this first-time Washtenaw player that the style and layout of the Washtenaw Golf Club is classic golf at its finest. What did come as a surprise was the wonderful rolling landscape and elevation changes – especially considering the location just a few blocks off the highly-commercialized and flat main drag between the football stadiums at Eastern Michigan University and University of Michigan.

The greens are in excellent condition. Most are on the medium to smaller side, with very subtle

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undulation throughout most green complexes – yet a few showcase tiers and large mounding. The day I played the course it was hosting a Michigan Amateur Championship qualifier for some of the best players in Michigan (playing from the tips at 6,564 yards), and later the same day the course was buzzing with your average public players. Many of them were using more forward tees, and the pace kept moving, highlighting to this golfer that Washtenaw is a layout all skill levels enjoy coming out to play.

Most of the holes run north and south, so wind direction Continues on next page >>

Michigan Golf Journal Washtenaw Golf Club

is a key factor in navigating the course.

As a single, I eventually caught up to and joined a father-son duo – Jim and Jack Kamsickas of Northville.

Jack is age 18 and is heading to Clemson University for its PGA management school.

“It’s such a traditional layout, and that’s probably the part of the course I love the best,” Jack said. “It’s heavily treelined so that puts a lot of emphasis on the tee shots, which I love, because it’s rewarding when you hit the fairway and you can shoot low numbers, but if you struggle off the tee you’ll score higher, and I think that’s a great test.”

Perhaps my favorite stretch of three holes was 10-12, kick-starting the back nine.

No. 10 is a par five that starts uphill off the tee, then golfers must navigate a hard-slopping fairway from right to left as they head toward what felt like the largest green complex on the course. Hole 11 is a par 4 with a wide-open fairway off the tee that pinches down to a smaller gap in the trees to go through to the slightly elevated green complex. No. 12 is a short, downhill par 3 that all golfers can reach – but don’t go too far or you’ll be in the pond at the back of the green.

That 3-hole stretch circles back near the 10th tee, so the

new owners are considering the creation of a 12-hole rate for golfers that want to play more than 9 but not a full 18.

Quick History Lesson and New Beginnings: The original founders persuaded a local farmer to let them stick three empty tomato cans in his freshly cut hay field west of the city and invited their friends over for a game of golf. The event was a success, and 15 men from Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor formed the Washtenaw Country Club in Ypsilanti Township a year later.

Eventually, the sheep that grazed on the greens were replaced with lawnmowers and the tomato cans with

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

golf holes, and the small hay field became a club.

The course is old enough that Kendall has been unable to find records on who was the original designer but did find quotes from Donald Ross that he played it and really liked the course and the land.

Fast forward to 2020 and the three new owners’ plan calls for a remodeling of the clubhouse to allow better flow and traffic for public dining and special events.

New partner Nick Ma, who owns and operates a couple restaurants in Ann Arbor, said the existing kitchen is huge and can easily accommodate golfers in the grill room, a new stand-alone restaurant, and the club’s wedding and banquet facilities, simultaneously.

“There’s not really a need for such large space given to the old locker rooms for the membership,” Kendall

OK, WHAT IS WRONG WITH MY GAME?

Hole # 3 423 yds Par 4

said about using that space to expand other options for public use. “We’ll still have a bar and dining area for golfers but now there’s room for family dining, too. The added space benefit allows a (250-person) wedding or a banquet to be held separately from the golf and restaurant operations. They won’t disturb one another.”

Ma added: “I think we can have a great stand-alone restaurant here and be open year-round. The space is great for it. We’re planning for a Bistro-style, which is missing in the surrounding area.”

The third partner and general business savvy contributor is Steve Davis, who grew up with Kendall in the Jackson area and was a walk-on golfer at U-M before launching a career in the automotive business that took him around the globe.

IF I EVER SEE YOUR ‘GAME’, I'LL LET YOU KNOW.

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Join the 1899 Club: A new, unique members club has been created aimed at providing avid golfers with all the resources they could possibly need – increased savings and access to the golf course, savings on food and dining, discounted lesson opportunities at Kendall Academy, and gift cards to Miles of Golf nearby.

“The 1899 Club is for the golf nuts who spend money on the game,” Kendal said. “By all of us working cooperatively (golf course, teaching academy and retail store), it’s almost like we are their agent, where we can get them better deals through this club than if they just walked in on their own.”

More information is at: https:// www.washtenawgolfclub.com/ wgc-1899-club/ MGJ

Michigan Golf Working theJournal LPGA Tour

Michiganders On The LPGA Tour

Kelly Schultz and Zach Sepanik working behind the scenes

By Tom Lang

Many people who play golf have dreams of one day making it on Tour.

For two Michiganders, they love the game as much as anyone, and feel truly fortunate to have found their niche as staff members of the LPGA Tour’s communications team, who help bring the pro golfers’ stories to life.

Kelly Schultz

Hometown: Brighton Graduate: Brighton High School, 2000; Michigan State University (Journalism), 2005

across the state and playing numerous Junior tournaments. Played golf for the Brighton High School team.

Kelly Schultz

“A very proud Spartan, I bleed green. My game is so much better after college and I “I always say to people I was joke about that with (coach) very fortunate to grow up Stacey (Slobodnik-Stoll). It in Michigan, where there is can be funny how when you such passion for golf and I got take the competitive pressure a chance to enjoy beautiful off yourself, your game turns golf growing up, and also out better. learned the great mental “I wear my Spartan gear quite fortitude of practicing in the Started golfing: age 5 often, even when traveling on winter, indoors. I credit that Tour. The players often smile Other background: Grew to helping my short game. when they see me; because up playing golf all around At MSU: Under her maiden they all know I’m a Spartan Michigan in part due to her father’s John Deere dealership name Thesier, she played golf alum and I wear it with that sold equipment to courses at MSU. pride.”

Role on LPGA Tour: Vice President of Communications, where she oversees the entire communications department, PR activities, LPGA staff at tournament sites, social media platforms and content. She has been a staff member for 9 years.

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

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The Links aT hunTers ridge Working a Minnesota Twins baseball game

Early career: While at MSU she worked at The State News, covering the Lansing Lugnuts baseball beat. After graduating she got an internship with MLB.com in 2005, in Chicago covering the White Sox during their World Series run. She then went to Minnesota as a full-time beat writer for the Twins.

“I fell in love with baseball covering the Lugnuts, but after five years of (MLB.com) I decided I missed golf and looked for a chance to get back into golf, and that’s how I got to the LPGA.” What she says about Michigan: “I am pretty much a salesperson for the state when it comes to telling people about planning their golf trips. I tell them there’s no more beautiful place to be than in Michigan, whether it’s Up North or near Detroit, anywhere, and that they’ll have such a spectacular time.

“There’s still nothing to me that beats playing golf in Michigan in the summer…

I’m very lucky to be from Michigan. There’s nothing like a Pure Michigan summer to enjoy when we visit – and I’m lucky Michigan now has two LPGA events with the Toledo event not too far down the road.

“I’ve always got to get my Michigan sweet corn – there’s nothing like that.”

Continues on next page >>

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Michigan Golf Working theJournal LPGA Tour

Zach Sepanik

Hometown: Grandville Graduate: Grandville High School, 2008; Grand Valley State, 2012; Oklahoma (Masters), 2015 Role on LPGA Tour: Media Official (moderates media communications with pro players)

take a few swings that way. I was never a great golfer; it has become the kind of thing I enjoy working in more. But I grew to love it because grandpa would take me and my brother out.”

Started playing golf: age 8 or 9. “I could always tag along with grandpa whenever he went to play golf (mostly at The Pines). I’d

He participated in summer golf camps at Maple Hill and played there a lot with friends. “Maple Hill is just a staple there in

Zach Sepanik

west Michigan, for the recreational golfer. I remember the only day I ever skipped class in high school, senior year, my buddies and I decided one time after lunch to cut out and go play golf at Maple Hill.”

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

Other background: Sepanik was never driven to play competitive golf – he ran cross country in high school and one year of college. But during his high school and college years he worked every summer at Sunnybrook CC, a total of 8 years until leaving for grad school.

“That background really Zach and grandpa rekindled golf for me, and I played a little more, was surrounded by people invested in the game. I enjoyed how they loved the game; same as the people at Maple Hill.

“I remember working there (Sunnybrook) the day after Thanksgiving one year, and the day after Christmas another time. If there’s no snow on the ground and the weather isn’t horrible, people of west Michigan are going out to play.”

he was won over by the hospitality of the staff.

“That always stood out to me, and I think made it more appealing to cover for the media involved. You don’t get your Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods, but there’s just as many interesting stories out here if you take the time to learn them. It felt like a really good fit for me … and maybe take on a little more challenge with the discrepancies between men’s and women’s golf coverage.

“A large part of it was to use my journalism background from college and being able to tell the stories of the unique players that there are out here on the LPGA Tour.” MGJ

Early career: during college he did an internship at Fox 17, then after grad school he worked at WOOD-TV 8 for two years (fall 2015 – until joining the LPGA Tour), mostly on the weekend as an anchor and reporter.

“I had a five-minute sportscast to fill and it seemed like half of it was golf. There were other sports to cover of course, but I think my personal interest pushed things toward golf,” he said with a laugh.

Why the LPGA Tour?

While at Chan. 8, Sepanik covered several pro golf events and just felt the LPGA Tour gave better access for media, and

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T3

Michigan Golf Journal LPGA Tour’s Return

Women’s Pro Golf Returning to Michigan and Toledo Two LPGA Tour events and the Symetra Tour launching locally in July

By Tom Lang

Michigan fans of the LPGA Tour can soon see live golf in person.

The LPGA Tour recently announced back-to-back events in Toledo, and that the Symetra Tour will play its previously scheduled event at the Battle Creek Country Club as the first tournament to rekick-start women’s pro Tour golf, July 24-26.

The Marathon LPGA Classic at Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania, Ohio, will move and be held Aug. 6-9.

The Marathon LPGA Classic will allow spectators on site following recent approval from Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.

This schedule adjustment allows the LPGA Tour to add a new three-day event in the Toledo area – the LPGA ‘Drive On’ Championship.

The three-day, official tournament will be held July 31 to Aug. 2 at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, and act as a test return to women’s pro golf.

“It’s so great they added a second event

in Toledo,” said DeWitt, MI resident and former MSU player Liz Nagel.

“You know me; the more golf that can be played in the Midwest the better. Especially being at Inverness, I think that will be awesome. I’m thrilled that they’re going to have us again – with so much rich history there and the Solheim Cup coming up there next year – and in my ultimate world I’d play myself onto that U.S. team.

“The first tournament will be just players and caddies and staff, not even families. That’s probably for the better. I’m thankful we’ll have a warmup event like this. We need to get back out there and see what it will be like with the (virus) testing and all that stuff, so the Marathon we’ll be good to go and get some fans back out there with us.”

The Symetra Tour announced that it will resume the 2020 season with

the 7th annual FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship in Battle Creek. This event (fan attendance TBD) will mark the first tournament to be played by the ‘LPGA Tour family’ following a 3-month hiatus and is the first of nine remaining Symetra events.

Nagel added: “I’ve played in the Marathon twice before; the fans are great there and even in Toledo it still feels like home since it’s so close. My family and closest supporters can easily get there, and it’s great that the (Ohio) Governor is allowing fans, for both the LPGA and the PGA Tour and Jack’s tournament (The Memorial) because I know that’s big for them too.” MGJ

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Michigan Golf Journal New Equipment

New Exotics EXS Pro Forged & Blade Irons

By Ed Travis

One Liner: Complementing Exotics ESX Pro metalwoods announced recently, Tour Edge has released details of the Exotics EXS Pro Forged irons, EXS Blade irons & Blade wedges.

Fast Facts Exotics EXS Pro Forged Irons: Players category cavity-back design Triple forged with tungsten toe weight CNC milled forged face, grooves & cavity Electroformed insert of steel, ABS polymer & gel Pitching wedge 46° loft, 5-iron 25° loft Stock shafts: True Temper Elevate Tour VSS Pro, True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 Stock grip: GolfPride Tour 360 $149.99 each, available June 1 Fast Facts Exotics EXS Blade Irons: Players category forged CNC milled muscleback design Narrow sole, thin top line Rounded sole leading edge Pitching wedge 47° loft, 5-iron 27° loft

Stock shafts: True Temper Elevate Tour VSS Pro, True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 Stock grip: GolfPride Tour 360 $149.99 each available June 1 What You Need to Know: Both of these new players category iron models are limited-edition with the cavity back EXS Pro Forged targeted for play by those with low to medium handicaps and the EXS Blades for low handicappers and professionals.

According to David Glod, Tour Edge founder and Master Club Designer: “We received enormous demand for player’s irons after putting our focus on game improvement hollow-body irons with the EXS 220 releases.

As a club designer, I love player iron designs that are as beautiful as they are playable.”

In addition to the two iron models Exotics EXS Blade Wedges ($149.99 each) were introduced offering six standard lofts from 50° to 60°. Forged and then CNC milled from soft S25C carbon steel they have a flared toe design which moves the CG higher for lower launch and higher spin.

“We used a lot of feedback from the PGA Tour and tested these irons with our professional staff, as well as with extensive robotic testing,” said Glod. “I can report back that we have three winners across the board. I believe that the milled forged iron connoisseurs out there are going to be very impressed with the playability we were able to combine with a traditional forged feel.” MGJ

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Michigan Shores, Golf Journal Harbor 10 Years

Harbor Shores Golf Community Celebrates 10 Years of Revitalization $900 Million Economic Transformation of Lake Michigan Shoreline Area As the Jack Nicklaus Signature course at Harbor Shores Resort – the every-otheryear host of the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship – and its surrounding 550-acre community marks its first 10 years, the transformative impact the development has had on the Lake Michigan shoreline communities of Benton Harbor and St. Joseph, Michigan is humbling to consider.

Harbor Shores stands as a remarkable testament to a vision made possible by $900 million in strategic investments, a collective set of projects with collaborating community

leaders and organizations, led by the Whirlpool Foundation and its benefactor, global home appliance leader Whirlpool Corporation.

When Whirlpool Corp. and community leaders made the critical decision to develop Harbor Shores Resort and transform its hometown in Southwest Michigan, it was unknown how a development of this magnitude with golf as its anchor could help turn a city around. Now a full decade later, Harbor Shores has far exceeded its original masterplan. That vision, to transform a once-thriving

manufacturing hub into a beautiful and robust residential and recreational development that would serve and promote the local community, has yielded immense economic impact to the two core cities and the surrounding villages and townships. Today, this development has become part of the fabric of the community.

“Before construction of Harbor Shores began, the area was in need of a monumental project that could have the scale to bring about real change, especially in Benton Harbor,” said Jeff Noel, Vice President of Communication & Public

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

Affairs for Whirlpool Corp.

“While the golf course may generate most of the publicity, this community is consistently working on projects to ensure a better quality of life for everyone.

Using golf to bring people together to give back remains an ongoing mission and is the proud center of the Harbor Shores story.”

The Nicklaus course at Harbor Shores sits on a site where 6,000 manufacturing jobs were lost over an 18-month period in the 1980s. Most of these buildings sat empty for years, leaving roughly three million square feet of industrial materials and contaminated soil—enough to fill a football field 80 feet tall. In 2008, that property had a state equalized value of zero dollars.

By 2017, the same land had a taxable value of nearly $37 million.

The opening of the golf course at Harbor Shores in July 2010 signaled a turning point in Benton Harbor’s history. The 6,852-yard, par-71 Jack Nicklaus Signature design is a key component of the $500 million core Harbor Shores development on the shores of Lake Michigan and the Paw Paw River.

The direct spike in jobs, redevelopment, new homebuyers, tax base,

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by Nicklaus that is a must see (even if you already have before). https:// www.youtube.com/ watch?v=rNS0qZ85kYw

vacationers and civic pride from the sprawling resort and residential development is almost incomprehensible when one considers what stood on these shores just barely a decade ago.

The golf course, which Jack Nicklaus has tabbed as one of his 18 favorite designs of all time and was the daily work of his then assistant, Chris Rule of Holt, Mich., runs across four remarkably diverse terrains including a photogenic setting along the coastal dunes of Lake Michigan. This is also the 10th anniversary of one of the greatest, probably longest, and most fun putts ever made

The First Tee of Benton Harbor, headquartered at Harbor Shores with offices and programming located directly on the golf course, is also the only fully subsidized program of its kind in the Midwest and reaches more than 1,000 children annually.

Another major component to the development is The Inn at Harbor Shores. A 92-room luxury hotel on the St. Joseph River, The Inn also features 14 luxury suites, two top-floor condominiums with a fine selection of dining options and spa. Next to the Inn, guests and locals may enjoy a 100-slip deep-water marina that can accommodate boats up to 90 feet long. Real estate is also flourishing within Harbor Shores with five residential communities.

From lot after lot of abandoned manufacturing plants and industrial waste sites, to a focal point in a community that has been sustainably and measurably revitalized, Harbor Shores and the surrounding area is one decade-long chapter into a remarkable journey. MGJ

Michigan GolfSeason Journal Centennial

Coldwater Golf Course: 100 Years

By Tom Lang

Anniversaries provide celebratory milestones for fun, enjoyment and honoring all those who have endured – often through both good and bad times.

Right now, it’s all good times at Coldwater Golf Course – formerly the private Coldwater Country Club – as it celebrates 100 years. The club was established in 1920 – designed by famed architect Tom Bendelow – with nine holes along the rolling edges of Morrison Lake and is the oldest golf course in Branch County. It has been a public course most of the current 21st century.

The second nine came along as the club hit the halfway mark of its Centennial, with construction starting in the late 1960s and opening for play in the early ‘70s.

The “newer nine” is routed as the front nine. Several current members have been affiliated with the course for more than 50 years.

“Not a lot of courses have withstood the test of time for 100 years,” said general manager Joe Drennan.

“All the compliments I hear come from the great shape the course is in.

With several holes right along the water – you

don’t get that everywhere.

Between the conditions and the water views, those are typically the main comments we get here.”

Two very unique concepts jumped out at me while playing the course recently: 1) The back 9 starts out with back-to-back par threes, with elevated tees hitting over a valley to each green. The 10th hole was a par 4 several decades ago, but a rerouting of the hole shortened it and changed the approach.

2) Holes 5 and 8 provide choices by playing from dramatically different

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

distances from their tips.

Hole 5 can be a 556-yard par five, or a 477-yard par 4 (hint: play the par 5).

Hole 8 plays as a 336-yard par four, downhill dogleg left around a pond, or as a par 3, 152-yard hole over the same pond. Again, I liked the longer version.

The back nine gets a majority of the praise for its lake-view vistas and treelined fairways, but the front nine makes just as many turns and elevation changes that are beautiful in their own-right. Sans the par 3s, only one hole is straight and flat (par 5, #7).

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Putters beware: the greens are filled with more severe breaks and undulations than first meet the eye. It would take several rounds experiencing them to tidy-up the score you want.

The course is home to the Coldwater High School teams, where the girls program won 3 consecutive Class B/Div. 2 state championships in 1999-2001, and the boys’ team won in 1994.

All in all, the Coldwater Golf Course blends history, value,

conditioning, and great food at the on-site Bill’s Grill House to provide golfers of any skills an enjoyable time outdoors. MGJ

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Michigan Golf Journal Tournament Results

Amateur Tournament Results GAM Junior Kickoff, Women’s MidAm and Men’s Senior Match Play

By Greg Johnson

PJ Maybank III of Cheboygan beat the rest of the boys by 6 shots and Ariel Chang of Macomb Township topped the other girls in the field by 8 shots in the GAM Junior Kickoff Championship at Washtenaw Golf Club.

A field of 153 junior golfers played in the first GAM junior tournament of the season, and champions were also determined in the 15-and-under age groups. Griffin Mawson of Traverse City was the top 15-and-under boy, and Lauren Timpf of Macomb won the 15-and-under girls’ title.

“I had a rough start with a bogey on the first hole, but then I had four birdies in a row on the front nine and that definitely helped the score,” said the 15-year-old Maybank, a past Drive, Chip and Putt champion at Augusta, who shot a two-round 141, choosing to play in the age 16-18 championship group.

The 17-year-old Chang, who fired a 144 total, said she left a few putts out on the course, but overall felt great about her round. “I’ve won age groups before, but this is the first (GAM) championship and it was a goal,” she

PJ Maybank III

said. “I just came out and tried to do my best. I showed up and I’m very pleased.”

Chang still has a year of high school remaining and has verbally committed to the University of Detroit Mercy women’s golf program.

Midland’s Kimberly Dinh birdied the first hole of a sudden-death playoff with Ann Arbor’s Ashley Mantha and won the 22nd GAM Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship played at Country Club of Lansing.

The 27-year-old former University of Wisconsin golfer who recently completed her PhD in chemical engineering at MIT reached the par 5 first playoff hole (No. 5) in two shots and almost made a 40-foot eagle putt before tapping in for birdie.

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

Ariel Chang

“It feels great to compete and win again,” Dinh said.

“I knew it was close, but I wasn’t looking at the scores (online scoreboard). I didn’t want to think about anything but playing my game. I hit three really good shots on the playoff hole and I’ll always take a tap-in birdie.”

Mantha, a 34-year-old high school teacher (at AA Pioneer) and golf coach (at AA Skyline) rallied from three shots off the lead to force the playoff, and just missed an 8-foot downhill birdie putt that would have pushed the match onward. Michigan women’s golf coach Jan Dowling took third place, and MSU coach Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll, a 10-time past champion of the tournament, was fourth.

Top 50 High School Tournament The Top 50 Tour held an event on June 4 at Eagle Crest Golf Club in Ypsilanti with the hope of giving high school players a chance to recreate the high school state finals that never took place in the spring due to Covid-19 canceling the entire MHSAA spring sports season.

An emotional Mitch Wilson of Portage won the GAM Senior Match Play Championship for the second time in the last five years. After he turned back Charles “Chip” Anderson of Grand Rapids 2 and 1 in the championship match at Gull Lake View Golf Club and Resort’s Stoatin Brae course, he called it a special trophy, a special week and then dedicated the win to his mother Jeddy Wilson, who passed away two weeks prior.

Carter Housler of Grand Ledge won the title in a playoff with Ian Smith of Plymouth High. Each shot 1-under par in regulation.

Three more players tied for third at even par: Brian Marx of Notre Dame Prep, Colin O’Rourke of Brother Rice and Evan Johnson of Grosse Ile.

“She was the one when I was a youngster that would get me over to Grand Prairie Golf Course where I could play golf for 50 cents,” he said. “She is really the one who got me going with playing golf. So, this one is for you mom. Thank you.”

Brother Rice won the team portion with combined scores of 304, followed by Detroit Catholic Central at 309 and Plymouth at 318. MGJ

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Rocket Mortgage Apparel

Rocket Mortgage Classic Online Merchandise Shop is Open • Shop features custom ‘Drive Detroit’ T-shirts designed by three students at Jalen Rose Leadership Academy who won the Rocket Mortgage Classic T-Shirt Design Contest • Shop is open at RocketMortgageClassic. com and is operated by event apparel partner Levelwear

The tournament’s vision of “Changing the Course” is a Detroit where every resident has access to the technology, internet and digital literacy that is the baseline for education and opportunity in today’s economy. When the COVID-19 pandemic came along unexpectedly, it shined a brighter spotlight on digital inequality across Detroit, as 30% of the city’s households lack internet access and internet supported devices.

The Rocket Mortgage Classic

Online Merchandise Shop opened its digital doors to allow The Rocket Mortgage Classic Online Merchandise Shop fans a chance to acquire the is operated by tournament newest tournament-branded apparel – but more importantly apparel provider Levelwear, which is in its second year in the process support of developing the official the tournament’s primary tournament clothing. It charitable mission of ensuring includes men’s and women’s all Detroit households are fit clothing in an array of with access to the internet, designs and colors, as well as devices and technology. accessories including hats,

head covers and more.

Net proceeds from the

tournament’s virtual “We are thankful to our merchandise outlet will be partner, Levelwear, in linking used to advance the Rocket Mortgage Classic’s new, multi- our tournament and our fans at home through its operation year “Changing the Course” initiative, a social responsibility of the Rocket Mortgage Classic Online Merchandise Shop,” campaign shared with its title sponsor, Rocket Mortgage. said Executive Director Jason Langwell. “Every single dollar

will go toward the great cause of Changing the Course in the Detroit community by eliminating the digital divide that has existed for far too long.”

The online merchandise shop is carrying a customized ‘Drive Detroit’ T-shirt – featuring the silhouette of a swinging golfer set within the backdrop of the Detroit skyline – which was designed by Detroit residents Tyler Stewart, SaLena Gulledge and Kamaree Cornelius – all students at the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy, and winners of the first Rocket Mortgage Classic T-Shirt Design Contest. The ‘Drive Detroit’ T-shirt design was judged to most completely capture the spirit of Detroit’s PGA TOUR golf tournament and connect the city of Detroit with the game of golf. MGJ

Michigan Journal Golf tipsGolf swing

Golf Tip: Full Swing Concept Golf Tips provided by Dave Kendall Academy in Ypsilanti The most important job of our body in good golf is to provide the most efficient blend of balance (legs, hips, spine), speed (arms), and reliability (club face). When we get this blend correct, rhythm, power, consistency, and confidence are the by-products.

The most common error in combining this blend is that misguided effort will create distance without regard for balance and reliability. The greatest inhibitor of good balance is too much effort at the wrong time from the wrong place. This puts the speed mechanisms – arms and hands – in bad positions to create speed in the desired direction. Sometimes it is because of a physical deficiency, inflexibility or lack of adequate strength in a part of the body. Most often it is because of a misunderstanding of how speed and efficiency are created.

Speed is a result of good balance and coordination of body, arms, and arm rotation. Reliability is a result of good balance (contact) and clubface awareness (direction).

Complicated, inefficient swings are usually the result of bad balance, and/or an inefficient sequence of motion.

Good balance is very attainable for most any golfer if it is made a priority.

Once we have good balance, proper sequence becomes very possible. It must be understood conceptually and practiced consistently.

The most important component to balance is a stable lower body. Lower body stability will allow the upper body to rotate behind the ball in the backswing and flow through the ball during the forward swing. Inefficient lower body movement will

make it almost impossible to create efficient upper body movement and flow.

If the pursuit of speed compromises balance and reliability, it is very harmful to good golf. Our priority should be to only swing as fast as we can maintain good balance and ball flight reliability. Once we get in good balance, our arms will be able to move faster, in the right direction.

Being a good player is being smart about our approach, not simply expecting to bully the ball around the course. MGJ

MGJ Contest Winner Drawn: This spring of 2020, the Michigan Golf Journal joined with Thunder Bay Resort in northeast Michigan to offer a contest valued at more than $2,000. The winner was recently picked in a blind draw: Kim Carlson of Wisconsin. More than 500 people entered the contest.

Kim won two nights lodging at Thunder Bay for 4 people, breakfast each morning, an awardwinning Elk viewing tour, carriage ride, gourmet diver and wine tasting. Rounds of golf were also included, at Thunder Bay, Red Hawk and Black Lake. Learn more about Thunder Bay Resort’s offerings at: https://www.thunderbayresort.com/

THEY CLOSED THE SCHOOLS.

THAT’S TERRIBLE.

Comic strip

CLICK CLICK CLICK

RESTURANTS AND BARS ARE CLOSED.

THAT’S AWFUL.

YOU CAN’T GO TO WORK.

WHAT A SHAME.

GOLF COURSES ARE CLOSED.

WHAT!? THAT IS AN OUTRAGE! THEY ARE GOING WAY OVER THE TOP. MY HANDICAP WILL PLUMMET! HOW WILL WE SURVIVE?

MichiganPinehurst Golf JournalResort Travel:

Pinehurst Resort Open Again

By Dave Daubert

The Home of Golf in America, the Pinehurst Resort in Moore County, North Carolina opened early June for guests.

Having shut down like most of golf for a time this spring – only Pinehurst #6 did remain open as it’s for members only – the experience had similar ties in history for one

of America’s most historic resorts.

In 1895, James Walker Tufts initially purchased 500 acres and eventually added 5,500 more in the North Carolina Sandhills with the vision of building “a health resort for people of modest

means,” to help with the disease commonly known as Consumption. He named it Pinehurst thinking that the scent of the ever-present pine trees would help those afflicted.

About 125 years later, the Covid-19 pandemic, very

July 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

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Inn that was built in 1895 in the heart of the historic Village of Pinehurst. It’s 82 rooms and suites have been housing guests for 125 years.

Part Queen Anne Revival, The Holly is home to the Four-Star 1895 Grill and the Tavern, a Scottish bar brought from across the pond.

similar to Consumption, shuttered most of the Resort and Village in early spring of 2020.

Pinehurst offers some of the finest accommodations in three totally unique Inns, a myriad of amenities and a variety of golf unmatched anywhere in the world. With 10 golf courses (including ‘The Cradle-a fun short course’), 16 tennis courts, multiple lawn sports, shopping and dining, Pinehurst Resort can fit the bill no matter the size of your group or interest.

This past autumn, the 43 room Manor built in 1923 was completely transformed into a casual and stylish inn. While the Manor’s original look is still the same, guests will find a completely fresh and contemporary lodging experience.

“Our intention was to improve upon and modernize the guest experience while still preserving the Manor’s unique charm,” said Bob Dedman Jr., Pinehurst Resort’s CEO. “I think we have accomplished that in fine fashion. Our mantra is simple: Always Pinehurst, but always better.”

On my last visit to Pinehurst for the opening of Gil Hanse’s rework of #4, named the “Best New Course You Can Play” by Golf Magazine, I enjoyed my stay at the charming Four-Diamond Holly

Out of the 10 courses, I have played 2,3,4,8,9 and The Cradle. For someone who enjoys practicing his short game, the Gil Hanse designed short course is ideal.

For years I have been coming to Pinehurst and I would always mention that they should do something with that dilapidated steam power plant. Well, guess what? – They did. It is now the home to the Pinehurst Brewing Company where we were treated to a sampling of their craft beers under the watchful eye of head brewmaster Eric Mitchell while tasting the many different choices of meat from their famed barbeque.

Clearly, Pinehurst offers more than just golf, but excels at the full relaxation experience.

For more information visit Pinehurst.com or call 844993-9856. MGJ

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A l l R i g h t sR e s e r v e d ; C o p y r i g h t2 0 2 0 Web:www. mi c hi g a ng olour na l . c om E ma i l :mi c hi g a ng olour na l @g ma i l . c om T wier :@MI g olour na l