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MAY 2020

The FUTURE of Golf

Rocket ON in Detroit Update:

Jack Nicklaus’ American Dunes in Grand Haven

Greywalls vs. Kingsley Club

Alabama’s RTJ Trail

From the Editor

Golf’s Huge Pause Button

Both the public perceptions about golf, and how we will play the game in the coming years, is certainly changing. Non-golfers think we are a bunch of grouchy whiners stuck at home, and those of us who are passionate about the game simply want others to understand we love an activity that is both physically and mentally healthy – a concept that’s not so bad during this stressful time for everyone.

There is no doubt that the challenges of the COVID-19 crisis will change our great game in many ways – which we will explore a little in the coming pages – but I also want to provide our readers some enjoyable relief time from the non-stop media barrage of bad news. I hope you will find stories in this

May edition that cover both perspectives with a balance you can appreciate. As we look to the future of golf this summer and beyond, I encourage all golf lovers to keep planning that summer or fall buddy’s trip and maybe sign up for a league. But please, do not forget the charity outings – they need us now more than ever. The proof of golfers’ compassion for helping their communities can be stronger now than ever before. Hit ‘em straight. Tom Lang Publisher/Editor

What’s Inside: 04

American Dunes Update

Benefits of Walking the Course

The Rocket Mortgage is On in Detroit

Michigan News and Notes

The Future of Golf

Players of the Decade

Golfer Survey on COVID-19

Alabama Golf and Spas

Michigan Golf Journal American Dunes

American Dunes is Progressing Nicely Latest Jack Nicklaus design in Michigan By Tom Lang

The name says it all – American Dunes. The design Jack Nicklaus has created along Lake Michigan will fund and house offices for the organization that supports military veterans’ families – the Folds of Honor – and it’s built on pure sand south of Grand Haven. It is all-American. It’s all sand dunes. Construction began last spring, and shaping took place all summer long before nine holes were seeded in the fall. On six of those nine they are

currently growing in grass enough to mow tees, greens and fairways. Two more holes only have greens being mowed, while the rest is still growing in. “When I started April 1 last year, the ground was still too frozen for us to dig up an old sprinkler head we were trying to save,” said American Dunes GM Doug Bell. “They were cutting some trees down, but the weather was just so lousy. So, it’s amazing to think here we are a year later looking out at grass being mowed.”

The former Grand Haven Golf Club had tree-lined fairways which had gotten out of control, literally making the course claustrophobic. There will be no visual comparison to the end result Nicklaus is going after, as thousands of trees were removed to open Lake Michigan breezes and golfer sightlines across the entire rolling, sandcovered property. The new design contrast between bright green grasses and white sand dunes should provide a gorgeous layout to look at, and challenging golf course to navigate. The

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

some touch ups from winter winds displacing some sand.

total yardage came in at over 7,300 yards. In late April, Bell said a minimal crew was out on the course keeping the grass alive. Fertilizing started April 21 to develop the turf that is there, so as to not lose it.

“Even with this delayed start we are still on track to open nine holes for some play, August 1, give or take a week to 10 days,” he added. The second nine received approval from Nicklaus last year but it could require

“Once Mr. Nicklaus comes back, he will mainly be here to approve the shaping on the last six holes, to meet his expectations,” Bell said. “Could he move a green a little bit, or reshape a dune or a bunker, sure. But once he approves, the irrigation can go in, and we’ll throw seed as fast as we can.” More info: www. americandunesgolfclub.com The website has been fully redeveloped and tells the full story of American Dunes. MGJ

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PGA Tour Rocket Mortgage

Rocket Mortgage Classic Is On By Tom Lang

Image Provided By Rocket Mortgage Classic

By now most avid golfers have heard that the PGA Tour heavily adjusted its 2020 tournament schedule and it includes the Rocket Mortgage Classic moving from its original late May date to July 2-5. Because of COVID-19 and the current lack-of-peoplemovement campaign in Michigan, the plan is

the tournament will be played with no fans on site – basically just the pro players, caddies and essential staff to run a professional event for TV. Early fan reactions indicate that most golfers are just fine with that idea – just bring on any golf activity we can to provide entertainment on TV, but

more importantly could also bolster the national images of Detroit some small ways.

Playing Keep Away:

One aspect that is too early to know all details but needs to be considered is social distancing for the people who are allowed on the grounds of host Detroit Golf Club. Continues on next page >>

Michigan Golf JournalMortgage PGA Tour Rocket

Michigan Tour pro Brian Stuard (native of Jackson), who finished T5 with Brandt Snedeker and Patrick Reed among others in last year’s inaugural Rocket Mortgage Classic, agreed that every Tour pro would have no problem grabbing and replacing their own clubs in the bag and let the caddie focus on just carrying and other duties. “But I’m sure that is something the Tour will give us guidelines or tips – even dealing with going into the locker room or entering the clubhouse or what to do at the driving range,” Stuard said. “There’s going to have to be some kind of set of rules, at least to start with”. This writer’s personal recommendation is that all tournaments assign a volunteer to each bunker (or set of nearby bunkers) and they are the only one to handle the rake. Same for greens; designate one volunteer to handle the flagstick at each green. Ryan Brehm – a former Mr. Golf in high school and MSU award-winning golfer who is now living in

Traverse City – has to wait to see if his conditional PGA Tour status will gain him entry into Detroit. If it does, he guarantees he will play. He’s been waiting for the hometown opportunity since Q-School.

Brehm said that because players and caddies are a team, an extension of each other to a degree, he’s not sure the pair can completely socially distance from each other, so ideally every player and caddie can be tested for the virus first to get an all clear.

Continues on page 10 >>

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Michigan Golf JournalMortgage PGA Tour Rocket

“There will be necessary protocols that we’ll all need to learn and accept and adopt, but that’s okay,” Brehm said about the new frontier of golf. “The feedback I am getting from people who talk about this is that at least in golf, we’re not sharing the same golf ball; we all have our own,” compared to sports like basketball and baseball.

Pro Golf with No Fans?

Stuard, age 37, said he cannot recall the last tournament he played with almost no one other than the players on the course, since high school golf (at Napoleon High) or college (at Oakland Univ.), except for a handful of former Hooter’s Tour events. “I think it’s going to be strange and different for everybody,” he said. Brehm added: “In golf, you try to kind of get into your own world out there anyway. But I know there’s an energy that fans bring to the

event; and I have felt that energy before and it’s real. So, that will be something that all of us will miss. However, I do think fans across America are so ready for some live sports again. Hopefully, we can get back there, do it safely, and provide that little spark we all need.”

How Fans Can Help Metro Detroit Charities:

As most golf fans know, local charities receive the proceeds of professional tournaments. In the case of the Rocket Mortgage Classic, that was more than $1 million in 2019. In ‘typical’ situations, charities stand to lose all that funding if no fans are in attendance… so here is an idea I want to advocate. All fans that would have purchased a ticket to watch pros in person could donate at least that same cost of a ticket to the tournament’s charity fund. Then sit back and watch on TV with full delight that

Michigan is making some positive noise across the entire sports world. “In cooperation with the PGA TOUR and our broadcast partners and Detroit Golf Club, we are turning this tournament on its head,” Jason Langwell, Executive Director of the tournament, said in a provided statement. “As this is a TV-only event with no spectators, we are examining new fundraising capabilities that have yet to be seen on the TOUR. I, for one, am anticipating great things from the Rocket Mortgage Classic and the impact it will have on the city and its residents.” It looks like Detroit and Michigan gets the chance to shine on global sports television a second consecutive year in a positive manner. And we will shine that much more brightly if our rabid golf fan base supports golf’s charities. Like we always do. MGJ

Michigan Golfof Journal The Future Golf

The Future of Golf

GAM’s second century lies ahead By Tom Lang

Editor’s note: the vast majority of this story was written in the fall of 2019, as the GAM was still celebrating its 100th anniversary year and no one had even heard of COVID-19 yet.

With its first 100 years of history in the rearview mirror of the Golf Association of Michigan (GAM), what might be coming for the future of the GAM, and for that matter, the sport of golf in general? Honestly, the list could be endless – especially as golf

in Michigan was paused this spring for social distancing and new protocols are certainty in our future. GAM, which was established in 1919, has entered its second century of serving the interests of golf clubs, individual golfers and public golf venues in Michigan.

In 2020 and beyond, both opportunities and challenges lay ahead – such as: • expanding golf-related options for youth, women and diverse cultures • providing fun competitions for people who classify themselves simply as recreational golfers • exploring more entertainment sides of golf • addressing time constraints and speed of play

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

• the uncertainty of what will constitute amateur status for NCAA studentathletes who might end up getting paid • and a new normal of social distancing, at least in the short term GAM was founded over a century ago to serve private country clubs in metro Detroit, but as the decades passed the mission was expanded to serve public courses and individual golfers across Michigan as well. “We used to run just the elite, top amateur championships in the state, and now we offer tournaments and events for all ages, genders, and demographics of people,” said Chris Whitten, the former U-M golf coach who is new to the GAM to start the second century as its Executive Director. “We want to continue to host great, first-class championships – but a key will be adding in more programming to connect with all types of golfers – whether recreational or competitive – all over the state. The growth of Junior events in just the

last 5-to-8 years has simply been phenomenal.” “We want to get together as many small communities, pockets of golfers who enjoy the game, as we can. If someone thinks they have to be a scratch handicap player or a tournament golfer just to participate in the GAM, I think they are missing out on some programs.” Newer programs that will continue to grow this year (COVID-dependent) and beyond include the GAM

Golf Days, a net-handicap event open to anyone who wants to play elite courses they normally wouldn’t have access to. It is capped off by a year-end championship amongst the event winners. GAM has also added many net-handicap events and the team-based GAM Scramble in recent years. Youth are Literally the Future: Almost all agree that for golf to continue to thrive, more young people need to get in the game. Continues on next page >>

The Future of Golf “There are a lot of programs available through the Michigan PGA, or First Tee or Midnight Golf that are teaching kids the basics of the game, but the next step is access to courses,” Whitten said. “They need to be able to play, with friends and family. So that’s what the GAM Foundation and Youth on Course are trying to do – get kids on courses for $5.” Past GAM President Sara Wold expressed that the future of golf is best served focused on diversity at all levels – geographically, culturally and socioeconomically – and that the most progressive path is through youth. “I think the best way to reach diverse groups is through the youth,” Wold said. “Junior programs and tournaments, Youth on Course, where we see a lot of diversity already. And I think if the parents see that the kids are welcome, maybe they want to go out and play golf with their kids. That’s a strategy for getting the messages out to a more diverse population. In the

USGA Junior qualifier (which GAM officiated in Michigan) I think we had 8 different countries represented.” Entertainment and Golf: A non-traditional area of expansion for the game in general could be off-course experiences such as TopGolf, Big Shots and venues that feature simulator golf. Such options focus as much or more on food and beverage services in a social atmosphere for large groups of friends or co-workers to gather at a ‘static station’ on the property, as opposed to 3-to-4 people moving around together on a greengrass golf course. When the latter are on a course

together, one potential expansion to add some entertainment could be using more technology like Golf Boards that players ride on instead of seated carts. (This could also hold true for social distancing.) Kathy Aznavorian, co-owner of Fox Hills Golf and Banquet Center in Plymouth, said she doesn’t know if a trend she’s witnessed will proliferate in Michigan or not, “but larger, multi-course owners have partnered with Big Shots (on the U.S. west coast) where they take the entertainment venue and couple it with a golf course in areas with higher populations. In some cases, they are building right next to each other, so they have the more serious golf piece, and they have the entertainment piece.” Whitten concluded: “It all ties into the big picture of GAM wanting to be the representative for the individual golfer and at the same time be a source of information and of service to all of our member clubs and public courses. There is a lot of room to grow in all areas.” MGJ

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Michigan Golfof Journal The Future Golf

Golfer Survey on COVID-19 Reveals Little Fear Stu Healey has worked in the golf industry for over 40 years – yet recently said he has “witnessed several peaks and valleys, however COVID-19 is beyond anything any of us has ever seen.” Like many of his counterparts in golf, he didn’t want to speculate how and to what degree the virus would change golfers and their playing habits – he wanted to know. So, he surveyed the tens of thousands of Handicomp users. Handicomp is a 52-year-old Michigan based software company started by his father that develops web and mobile applications with an emphasis on golf activities such as league management, tournament management and golf handicapping. “What pleasantly surprised me is the degree to which golfers trust each other and also, they understand the defeat of COVID-19 is a long game,” said Healy, the president of Handicomp. “I hope state governors appreciate both golfers’ character and wisdom. “Also, responses suggest for the most part golf will remain golf, but most else at the course will be different and that’s where the industry may have to adapt the most; at least until after the long game, which may mean 2022.”

The following results come from Handicomp’s survey taken between April 1-10 (the majority of days when golf was open in MI), in which nearly 8,000 golfers gave feedback. In this section and the section following, virtually all respondents were golfers, and more than 85% were men: If rules of social distancing are followed by golfers and course owners, should golf be open for play even if other states are not? 78% YES 11.4% NO 10.2% Whatever my government decides When will you play your next round of golf? 68.6% As soon as I can 14% Once gov’t relaxes rules on distancing 9.6% Sometime after rules are relaxed 6.4% Only after the pandemic is over Do you believe the benefits of golfing outweigh the risk associated with spreading C-19, providing that the rules of social distancing are followed by all? 45.8% YES 19.6% Nearly equal benefits and risk 27% NO 7% Don’t know

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

When will you allow yourself to be part of a (general) crowd of people? 4% Now 33.2% Once gov’t relaxes social dist. rules 36.4% Sometime after rules are relaxed 26.3% Only after pandemic is over Do you care about the golf industry? 87.5% YES 11.7% Yes, but not during C-19 0.7% NO

Has COVID-19 changed your mind about Outings? 12.4% Will not play Outing due to C-19 7.5% Will not play Outing for other reasons 78% Will play in an Outing this year Shotgun events could make social distancing more difficult. How will this affect you? 70% I’m perfectly fine with a shotgun event 16.7% I will be less likely to play in a shotgun 12.1% I will not play a shotgun event

The following survey took place from April 9-17 (a time frame in which MI courses were ordered closed, well, sort of) when Michigan was in the early stages of Michigan Governor Whitmer’s second and more aggressive stay at home executive order. The focus of the questions was about playing in Tournaments and Charity Outings:

How long will the pandemic impact your decisions to play or not play in Tournaments and Outings? 25.2% One-to-three months 25.1% Won’t affect at all 28% Three months to a year 9% One-to-two years

Do you belong to a private, member-only club? 23.5% YES 76.1% NO

Have you or a member of your immediate family tested positive for COVID-19? 96.7% NO 3.3% Me and/or a family member

How many Outings (not tournaments) did you play in last year? 8.6% One 29.2% Two-to-three 15.5% Four-to-five 38% More than five (Editor’s note to our Governor: continued proof that golfers are some of the most charitable and caring people around.)

When will you allow yourself to share a golf cart with someone you do NOT know? 7.4% Now 23.5% This Summer 21.7% This Fall 34% Next year 8.6% After next year

Will you play in an Outing or a Tournament this year? 29% Only an Outing 54.5% Both 4.1% Only a Tournament 10.3% Neither

Share a cart with someone you DO know? 30.5% Now 35% This Summer 17.1% This Fall 12.2% Next year 2.9% After next year MGJ

Michigan Journal Walk vs.Golf Ride

Benefits of Walking the Golf Course Better Health, Better Play for Some are Just a Couple By Tom Lang

There is what some would call a ‘lost art’ to the game of golf – walking the course instead of riding in carts. Yet with the ‘new normal’ looming ahead, restricting how we will play golf, walking might be the only way most golfers can traverse the course under social distancing for a while. After the virus dust settles, many golfers might continue the new habit. Competitive golfers walk all the time as part of the rules

– be it juniors, high school, college or the professional tours. Most people view walking simply as a golf tradition – but maybe those low handicappers know something we don’t and actually play better, too, in addition to gaining healthy benefits. Rather than quick, jerky, stopand-go, lateral movements crisscrossing the fairway to reach your cart-riding partner’s ball, consider how walking would keep your round at a more even tempo.

This can lead to better playing rhythm, improved target orientation and club selection enhancement. Walking toward your ball with the next target location in sight gives the player more prep time to ‘see the shot’ and think about club selection for that shot at hand. Several medical studies have shown walking golfers reduced their levels of bad cholesterol, while keeping their good cholesterol steady, whereas a control

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

group of riding golfers failed to show those good results. Other researchers calculated that four hours of playing golf and walking is comparable to a 45-minute fitness class, and it burns more calories than playing tennis. Many courses require motor cart use for various reasons. Other courses are designed and built for carts, where green to next tee distance can be a longer trip than the par 5 you just finished – or in northern Michigan, halfway up the side of a small mountain. In those cases, speed of play is an issue. “I view walking in a few different ways, including the obvious health benefits,” said Ken Fry, a retired PGA member in both Michigan and Indiana. “I also view it from a course architecture standpoint. You can’t appreciate the way a hole flows from tee to green sitting off to the side in a cart. Architecture is meant to be enjoyed from within the playing corridor. I believe viewing a course this way allows for strategic decision making too, that

hopefully leads to better scoring.” Fry added a long-term traditional walker’s perspective that he agrees needs 6-foot awareness during COVID-19. “Finally, walking is part of the social aspect of playing golf,” he continued. “If you’re in a cart at most you interact with one person and see the remaining group on tees and greens. Walking allows conversation among the entire group throughout the round on a regular basis.” It goes without saying, some people have physical limitations regarding walking; no one is trying to put you down for riding.

For me, when I ride, at minimum I try trading off driving duties with my partner every few holes. One can drive the cart after teeing off while the other walks to their ball, taking a couple clubs for second shot selection. Then the cart driver can pick up their partner on the way to the green complex. That increases exercise and reduces both players always driving/riding to both ball locations. For those who ‘go all the way’ and chose to carry their bag, consider the style that has backpack-like dual straps. This will better balance the bag on your back, rather than have all the weight tipped to one shoulder. MGJ

Michigan Golf for Journal Equipment Walking

New Technology for the Walking Golfer Improve Your Health, While Enjoying Better Golf By Steve Strock, Maple Hill Golf

With the ‘new normal’ that we are headed towards in the world, walking golf courses will be as prevalent as ever. Luckily, there are many benefits to walking the course and lots of different technologies to make the walk as enjoyable and painless as possible. Golf was intended to be a walking game and we as golfers have strayed away from that as the world has sped up and expectations of instant gratification have increased. Golf manufacturers haven’t forgotten about the walkers, though. There are many new technologies out there to help make the trek around the course easier, faster, and more fun. Here are a few of my favorites for 2020:

Bushnell Wingman Speaker/GPS Combo The Bushnell Wingman offers golfers a “first of its kind” experience. Featuring high quality audio combined with having the ability to receive audible GPS distances, the Wingman is a great addition to any golfers’ bag of equipment.

It’s as easy as connecting to your music source and connecting to the Bushnell Golf App. The speaker/GPS unit comes with a detachable remote small enough to fit in your pocket….simply push the button on the remote and the speaker will audibly tell you the distance to the front, middle, and back of the green! When done, your music will resume. Other great features of the Wingman: Power for 36 Holes – the rechargeable battery is long lasting and provides up to 10 hours on a single charge. Power for Your Devices – the Wingman includes a built-in USB port for charging other devices. BITE Magnetic Technology – the Wingman includes a built-in hyper-strong magnet to attach it to the bar of a cart (or pushcart for the walkers!!). Bushnell Golf App – on your phone provides you with full-color aerial views and flyovers of hole layouts with distances. Also, can do score tracking and book tee times on the app.

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

BagBoy Nitron Push Cart The revolutionary auto open BagBoy Nitron cart is the latest in a long line of groundbreaking push carts made by BagBoy. The Nitron features an easy one-step opening process, assisted with Nitron-Piston Technology. Literally, press one button and cart unfolds and is ready to go in seconds! The cart folds up compact and is lightweight for simple storage and transport. Other features of the Nitron cart: • Full-feature scorecard console with integrated beverage holder, mobile device holder, and golf ball storage • Integrated umbrella storage with loop and storage notch • Extra large accessory bag under scorecard console for storage • Handle mounted parking brake • Easy, tool-free assembly

Cobra Ultralight Stand Bag The 2020 Cobra Ultralight stand bag is just that – a extremely lightweight golf bag, designed to be walker-friendly. The bag is built for carrying at just 4.5 pounds. The Ultralight stand bag features 8 pockets and a COOLFlow hip pad – providing ultimate breathability and comfort on warm, summer days. Other features of the Cobra Ultralight Stand Bag: • 5-way top with designated full-length club dividers and top grab handle • Oversized apparel pocket with key clip • Insulated beverage pocket fits large water bottle • Quick release shoulder straps and hip pad with COOLFlow foam • EASYFlex base for maximum ground contact MGJ

Michigan Golf Journal DeVries Designs

Kingsley Club vs. Greywalls

Twitter battle took place during golf’s quarantine By Tom Lang

If you are a Twitter user and you happened to frequent the social media platform more often during our boredom this spring, you might have noticed the battles between other weary golfers during April’s downtime from our sport. They were commenting

on a poll about various holes golfers preferred between two Mike DeVriesdesigned gems in Michigan – Greywalls and Kingsley Club. Greywalls is a public course in the U.P. Kingsley Club is a private property in a remote area southeast of

Traverse City but does offer opportunities for public players who ask around. Both are gorgeous pieces of land, so there is that starting point. And while they present challenges, when you make great shots it makes the

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

experience that much more rewarding. Here is my brief assessment of both DeVries designs: Course Review: Greywalls, Marquette Greywalls has received a ton of national attention, and rightly so. Its only negative is the remote location, but some golfers like that as a way to keep high traffic down. Greywalls has very unique geographical characteristics

that DeVries brought to life in his design and routing. The course is located on rolling land high above downtown Marquette and Lake Superior, filled with sheer granite walls, striking elevation changes, rock outcroppings and more sand than anyone expected to find just under ground level.

Despite the sand base that populates a large portion of the back nine, DeVries didn’t think adding a ton of bunkers was the only option to add challenge. The course has 36 sand traps, and half are placed on just two holes. Instead, DeVries clearly utilized the rock formations as hazards in some cases.

“Just trying to figure out that puzzle and make it fit together was really the challenge, but fun to figure out,” DeVries once said of the routing he hoped to make as walk-able as possible. “But I think it came out great and it’s an exciting course. It can be a roller coaster at times but it’s really great golf.”

“It has so many beautiful rock outcroppings,” he said. “You could never build those. You can’t manufacture that. So, utilizing those as a hazard or a feature. Just like in a bunker you can get a good lie or a bad lie – you can get a good bounce or a bad bounce off a rock outcropping.” Continues on next page >>

DeVries Designs Course Review: Kingsley Club DeVries created a masterful layout on beautiful rolling hills, and the result appears that he had his most fun shaping green complexes. Several greens are elevated tabletops with testy run offs for approach shots and chip shots that are even the slightest offline. But the design is balanced with a good number of greens that are bowl shaped as to push shots that are well offline back onto the green. The first, fourth and fifth greens show off this feature the most.

low at the time. But when the northern winds picked up later in the round, all havoc broke loose on the scorecard. Very few mis-played greens will feed balls into bunkers, rather just into steep greenside run offs. Shots that go into bunkers are earned by golfers’ mistakes. Like so many course designs, if golfers keep their ball in the fairway the layout is very playable. This wellbelow average golfer was able to shoot 3-over par on the front nine, a new career

One playing partner described Kingsley Club as playing Arcadia Bluffs but without Lake Michigan as a backdrop. Another made a similar claim – that if you picked up Kingsley Club and could drop it onto the Bandon Dunes property along the Pacific Ocean in Oregon, it would feel very natural with the rest of the Bandon designs. MGJ

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Stranded in USA

U-M Golfer Thriving in Difficult Times By Steve Kornacki

His family is in Europe, located an ocean and parts of two continents away from the University of Michigan. Wolverine men’s golfer Pier Francesco De Col was raised in Turin, which is called Torino in Italy, before coming abroad to compete and study in Michigan. And he now finds himself, along with a handful of

(reprinted with permission of MGoBlue.com, first published April 9)

other European born U-M student-athletes, temporarily separated from their loved ones because of traveling restrictions and difficulties brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Others include women’s tennis player Giulia Pairone, also from Turin, and football defensive lineman Julius Welschof, who hails from Miesbach, a town in Bavaria, Germany.

De Col is making the best of matters and finding ways to thrive in difficult times, including taking online classes and doing his best to stay in good physical condition. He is staying in the West Quad, one of the few remaining in the usually hustling-and-bustling dormitory located a short walk from the main athletic campus.

Continues on next page >>

Michigan Golf Stranded in Journal USA

“Some on my floor are from China and can’t go home either,” he said. “Everyone from the United States left.” De Col’s father, Paolo, and sister, Eleonora, are quarantined at their home. “But they have a garden and are fine,” he said. His grandfather, Piero, and grandmother, Mirty, headed for the mountains “to see the least amount of people possible” and hunker down in the same area where the 2006 Winter Olympics were held. The freshman gets up early and picks up bagels to eat in his room or elsewhere, making a FaceTime connection with Dad and Eleonora while he eats breakfast and they have

lunch. “That way we can eat together a meal,” De Col said. Then he takes online courses, picks up box meals later in the day, does some stretching to stay loose, and takes a break in the early afternoon. “I do a little putting,” said De Col, whose 74.92 strokes per 18 holes ranked third on the team, “and I swing (an iron) in my room, too. I put a glass on the floor and putt to it. The floor is actually good for putting. I have a line. I can go as far as 40 feet away, and no one is going to bother me.” Does he feel he is improving his putting? “Yeah,” said De Col, who smiled and chuckled during our Google Hangouts meeting.

How did he celebrate his 20th birthday on April 1? “I had a phone call with other friends who are at Michigan, too,” said De Col. “It was like five of us talking, and I was fine.” The isolation has not been a problem for him, and he is following the advice of family members. “They advise me not to see anybody and avoid all contact,” said De Col. “But I like being home, and so that’s quite nice. Finding a daily routine has been very important.” How did he come to Michigan from Europe? “I was looking for a great athletic program with great

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

academic programs,” said De Col, who is enrolled in the Ross School of Business. “The online courses we’re taking now are fine, but I definitely don’t prefer it. I like learning in a classroom. “Michigan, though, was by far the best choice in the U.S. that could combine both, and everything I do is really close. So, it’s been perfect for me here.” De Col misses being with loved ones but

looks forward to their daily conversations over a virtual meal together. “I could’ve gone back,” he said, “but I was going to have to take two or three flights to go back home. I would’ve spent an entire day in airports and been around a whole lot of people. And besides that, the situation in Italy is really bad. You can’t leave your house, and there are police walking in the streets

making sure everybody stays in their houses. So, it wouldn’t have made a lot of sense. And I was afraid that if I went home, I couldn’t get back here.” His new home, even with the current restrictions, has become comfortable in less than one year of living in Ann Arbor. Being able to take joy in putting into a drinking glass defines adaptability, doesn’t it? MGJ

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Michigan Golf Journal Michigan News and Notes

State’s Top Superintendent Steve Hammon, a Grand Rapids native and the golf course superintendent at Traverse City Golf & Country Club for 23 years, has been selected as the 2020 Golf Association of Michigan Superintendent Award of Merit winner.

The award is among a handful of awards normally announced during the GAM Annual Meeting, but that meeting is being held this year in a different format due to the current public health concerns and restrictions. More GAM awards will be

announced in the future at www.GAM.org.

Hammon started with Traverse City G&C in 1997 following career stops that included being the superintendent for The Old Course at Indianwood Golf & Country Club in Lake Orion, an assistant at Crystal Downs Country Club in Frankfort and various grounds staff roles at Pebble Beach Golf Links, Cypress Point Club and Riviera Country Club in California and Coral Ridge Country Club in Florida. MGJ

Shank this Virus

Carl’s Golfland has been running a special fundraiser while bringing the golf community together with a T-Shirt program raising money for organizations on the front lines of the COVID-19 fight. As of mid-April, Carl’s Golfland has been able to donate $75,000 to groups like the American Red Cross, Henry Ford Health System, Hurley Medical Center, St. Joseph Mercy and Say Detroit Health Clinic. The end goal is at least $250,000. Go to https://www.carlsgolfland.com/

shankthisvirus to learn more and order your T-shirt for $18, with proceeds going to the charitable groups. Golfers are also being encouraged to post photos wearing the T-Shirts on social media. MGJ

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

3 MSU Golfers Awarded Michigan State junior James Piot, of Canton, has been named to the PING All-Midwest Region Team for a second straight year. He led the Spartans with a 72.18 scoring average in 2019-20 – the 5th lowest single-season mark in program history – adding the first two tournament wins of his career (Island Resort Intercollegiate and the Inverness Intercollegiate.) Piot fired the lowest round of his collegiate career, a 6-under-par 66 in the second round of the Quail Valley Intercollegiate. Piot owns a 72.39 career scoring average, which is currently 3rd best in MSU history. MSU’s Allyson Geer-Park and Valery Plata both earned Women’s Golf Coaches Association All-America honorable mention honors, GeerParks for the second time (2018). The Brighton native finished with the best career average in program history at 72.81 after logging a 72.39 her shortened senior season. She has since turned pro. Plata, a native of Colombia, cut nearly three strokes off her scoring average from last year, finishing her sophomore season at 72.5. Her win at the Tar Heel Invitational included three rounds in the 60s – 69, 68 and 68. MSU ended the year ranked No. 16. MGJ

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Michigan of Golf Journal Players the Decade

Christine Meier

Tom Werkmeister

Julie Massa

Randy Lewis

GAM Players of the Decade: Tom Werkmeister, Christine Meier, Randy Lewis and Julie Massa By Greg Johnson

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

Tom Werkmeister of Grand Rapids and Christine Meier of Rochester Hills dominated as amateurs during the last decade – and then they turned professional. They have been named the Golf Association of Michigan (GAM) Players of the Decade. Randy Lewis of Alma and Julie Massa of Holt demonstrated as seniors that golf is the game of a lifetime, and that elite play can remain a part of it. They have been named the GAM Senior Players of the Decade. “We charted the GAM Honor Roll numbers for the decade in determining this,” Ken Hartmann, the GAM senior director of competitions said. “The cream rises to the top. All of them are exceptional golfers and people.” Werkmeister, a metro Detroit native, has been a five-time GAM Player of the Year and in the last decade won the 2017 Michigan Amateur Championship (his second), the 2016 GAM Championship, led GAM’s Michigan team to the 2016 USGA State Team Championship as national co-medalist, won four of his record six GAM MidAmateur Championships and in 2013 was the first amateur to win the Michigan Open Championship in 38 years.

He turned professional in 2018 at the age of 50 to pursue a PGA Tour Champions career. “Trust me, this was a goal and I’m very excited and very honored to win,” he said. “The GAM has been great for me and my golf career. I’m a professional now and I miss the people I played against and the tournaments I got to play in as an amateur. I have great memories though and this adds to them.” Meier, a Rochester Hills native who in 2020 will be an assistant professional at Bloomfield Hills Country Club, won the 2011 and 2013 Michigan Women’s Amateur Championship to highlight the last decade, but as an amateur also qualified for the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open Championship and in 2013 made it to match play in the U.S. Women’s Amateur. She turned professional after playing for Michigan State University and played primarily on the LPGA’s Symetra Tour until the summer of 2019. She said she was completely surprised to be named the Player of the Decade. “The GAM was a huge part of my amateur career and winning the two amateurs Continues on next page >>

Players of the Decade is really special,” Meier said. “I’m really very proud of what I’ve done in golf. Professional golf is a tough thing because sometimes you lose sight of everything else you’ve accomplished. Half of one percent of golfers have not done the things I’ve done, so looking back on it, it’s really cool that this has happened.”

In the decade she won the 2013 GAM Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship, the 2017 GAM Women’s Senior Championship, the 2017 and 2018 Michigan Women’s Senior Amateur Championships and in 2019 won both the GAM Tournament of Champions and the GAM Senior Tournament of Champions.

Lewis, 62, didn’t start earning Honor Roll points as a senior (age 55 for male amateurs) until 2012 but achieved remarkably in 2011 when he won U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at the age of 54, the oldest to ever achieve the feat. It earned him an invitation to the 2012 Masters Tournament. In the decade he was a four-time Senior Player of the Year, Lewis won the 2014 and 2017 Senior Match Play Championships and in 2017 won the senior division of the GAM Mid-Amateur.

A former Oregon Women’s Amateur Champion, the 56-year-old Massa has won 14 times in GAM championships in her career and played in 20 USGA national championships. She said she had not thought about being Player of the Decade and is greatly surprised. MGJ

The GAM Player of the Decade for the 1990s, Lewis has won two Michigan Amateur Championships, a GAM Championship and a GAM MidAmateur title among other titles. He has also competed in 26 USGA national championships. For the last five years of the decade, essentially since she turned age 50 and became a senior woman golfer, Massa has been the GAM Women’s Senior Player of the Year.

Golf Tips

Golf Tip: Problem Solver Golf Tips provided by Dave Kendall Academy in Ypsilanti Playing golf is problem solving. You spend strokes to improve your position – taking the greatest opportunity for gain while taking the least risk necessary. At a minimum, a player should be able to predict the general direction the ball will go and be able to predict about how far it is likely to travel. The closer you get to the green, the more important this becomes. Distance without directional control is a liability to your game. Understanding how to control the direction of your golf ball is as important to your golf scores as understanding how to operate the steering wheel of your car is to your health. If you cannot create both right and left ball flights, you most likely are not reliable at creating straight golf shots. The majority of golfers, even those who play regularly, are not highly skilled at creating both right and left ball flights predictably and reliably. Because a player is not skilled at both right and left, it is

difficult to find straight. In very few cases in my experience did I find that a player did not have the physical skill to create both right and left ball flight reliably. In almost every case, the inefficient player had a bad concept of how to do it. Once the concept is understood it is very easy to train the movements, for most players. A skilled teacher can identify in minutes the cause of a ball flight problem. Usually the retraining is not difficult, it just requires thought and repetition until it is normal. It is amazing how much more fun golf is when you learn to create some degree of efficiency at it. Do not spend a lifetime trying to develop the perfect swing. Repeatedly tearing it apart and putting it back together differently with no real gains. There is no best system for all, only a best system for you. Work at developing a

way that is understandable to you, makes logical sense, is adjustable to the varied needs of the game, and fits your capability. A skilled coach can help you to put that together and help you to understand why certain approaches work for you and why others do not. Then work at becoming an outstanding operator of YOUR system, through thoughtful practice. The system that was put together for you, built around your skills. MGJ

Michigan Journal On TourGolf in Arizona

Pro Sarah Burnham Making the Best of Being Stranded By Tom Lang

Former MSU women’s golfer and two-time Big Ten Player of the Year Sarah Burnham went to Arizona in early January to do some winter training for the LPGA Tour. She was in position to play in the LPGA Tour’s Founders Cup in Phoenix, March 19-22, when the Tour announced it was canceled, so she called the Cactus Tour director and asked if LPGA-status players are allowed to play on his tour. “He said we were all welcome to play and the first week there were a bunch of us out there already,” Burnham said. Anna Nordqvist won the mid-March event at Moon Valley, where Burnham finished T4 with LPGA Tour pro Amy Olsen. Then Stay in Place orders started being announced, and most LPGA Tour players

disappeared from the Cactus Tour. “There are a lot of sponsors that don’t want their golfers to play because they think it looks bad, which I can understand from a branding perspective; but my sponsors have been pretty cool about everything and they enjoy watching me compete and play,” she said.

Burnham won two of the next three events. She said the vast majority of remaining competitors are pro and amateur residents of Arizona. “All the golf courses in Arizona are open and we’re not doing anything different than what the guidelines are recommending for social distancing,” she said. “We leave the pin

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

alone, and there are foam cut outs in the bottom of the cup that keep the ball from dropping all the way in, so you can pick it up really easily. We play in twosomes, almost every caddie is a member of the golfer’s family… and we’re scattered all across the course.” Her apartment lease ran out the end of April and she headed to her parent’s new home in Florida with a U-Haul in tow, filled with belongings and furniture from her MSU days – plus

a few small paychecks and some competitive experiences in hand that others have missed recently – until the LPGA Tour resumes. “It’s been great to play competition rounds, where every shot counts,” Burnham added. “Even the little putts are more pressure than if you’re out playing for fun and people say, ‘pick it up.’ The competitive rounds help me prepare for that same feeling on the LPGA Tour once it gets going.

“In my second win I was going back and forth with another golfer who played on the LPGA Tour a couple years back and plays Symetra. To win by one shot over her made it more intense. It’s been great to have that pressure. I got a little trophy and he gave me the winner’s check, then he pulled out a roll of toilet paper to go with it. That was funny and I was like, ‘oh my gosh I could actually use this.’ It’s really hard to find. You have to go super early to Target or something and wait in line.” MGJ

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RTJ Trail in Alabama

It’s Hard to Beat Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Trail By Dave Daubert

Photo by Jonathan Hoomes

(Editor’s note: this golf trail was chosen due to its combination golf and Spa amenities.)

It seems every state has some sort of golf trail, but the granddaddy and the very best is the Robert Trent Jones (RTJ) Golf Trail in Alabama, a collection of 26 jaw-dropping beautiful courses at 11 different sites from Muscle Shoals in the northwest to the Gulf Coast in the south. I recently took a whirlwind tour of a few of the locations and was overwhelmed by the sheer beauty and diversity of the

courses, the hospitality of everyone associated with the trail and the incredible value for so much memorable golf. When the Trail opened, Alabama was attracting about $2 billion annually from tourism; that number is now close to $15 billion. I began my Trail experience at Hampton Cove in Huntsville, a 54-hole facility with two drastically different championship-caliber courses and an 18-hole par

3 course. The Highlands course is a Scottish linksstyle design complete with flowing fescue bordering the fairways with two dynamic finishing holes. Highlands stretches out to 7,428 yards and has four sets of tees. In complete contrast, the River course laid out on a former soybean farm in the flood plain of the Flint River has 16 holes with water that comes into play. Its saving grace – zero bunkers – not a spec of sand. The River is a throwback to the bygone days when very little dirt was moved to construct a golf course. The short

Continues on next page >>

Michigan Journal RTJ TrailGolf in Alabama

the beautiful clubhouse next to it.

Photo by Tom Lang

course is 18 par 3s with just as much thought and design from the RTJ team as its big brothers. “Short” is not the right word; “Captivating” is better. My next stop was the Shoals Golf Club in Florence, tucked away in the remote northwest corner of the state with two monster golf courses, the Schoolmaster and Fighting Joe. The 7,971 yards Schoolmaster, named for President Woodrow Wilson, has narrow but receptive tree-lined fairways. With little water in play, the course seemed to blend into the countryside perfectly, playing among soft elevation changes.

Driving into the open side of the fairways provides good shots into the large contoured greens, and with a little study, you can master this one. The scenic finishing 18th is one of those Kodak moments. This uphill par 4 has a grand view of Lake Wilson with

Fighting Joe was named after a Confederate General, who after the Civil War, became a General in the United States Army named Joe Wheeler. The golf course is one of the longest in the world at 8,092 yards, virtually timeless with water on 14 holes bordered by 3 feet long prairie grass rough. Play the right tee length to make your experience an enjoyable round. I stayed at the Marriott Muscle Shoals Resort & Spa, overlooking the Wilson Dam on the Tennessee River. The 200-room resort

May 2020 www.michigangolfjournal.com

features the Renaissance Tower connected to the hotel with a rotating restaurant, the Four Diamond 360 American Grill. The surrounding views and fine dining experience were a real treat. The lively Swampers Bar & Grill in the hotel celebrates the Muscle Shoal region’s rich music recording studios heritage, with live entertainment from great musicians. The next day I traveled to Opelika/Auburn to

play at Grand National, another 54-hole complex and my personal favorite. With 12 holes hugging the shores of 600-acre Lake Saugahatchee, the 7,149 yards Lake Course has got to be the most scenic with a quartet of par threes as good as any in the country. The 230 yard, 15th hole is considered the prettiest hole on the Trail. The cornerstone is the Links Course at 7,311 yards, which is the toughest of the duo without a single

weakness. The 18-hole short course is a hybrid of its big brothers, beautiful and demanding, and one of the best par 3 courses in the country. Five days and eight courses made for a busy week. My next trip I will allow for a little more down time to make my RTJ Trail play less exhausting. If what I played is an example of the other 8 locations and 18 courses, you have got to check out the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. MGJ

MICHIGAN GOLF JOURNAL

Course Photo:

STOATIN BRAE at Gull Lake View Resort