There FocusI Was: Arabian Nights and Computer Gremlins Continued from page 59
NHA Sports:
NHA Symposium Golf 2013 Article by LTJG Dave Lovett, USN
Photo Courtesy of Riverwalk Golf Course
T
he 2013 Naval Helicopter Association Symposium kicked off with a great start at the Riverwalk Golf Club on Monday, May 13th, 2013. The Riverwalk Golf Club is one of San Diego’s premier private golf courses located just north of downtown. The course is comprised of three nine-hole courses, two of which, Presidio and Mission, were utilized for the tournament. This year’s event was planned and organized by LTJG Dave Lovett with assistance from HSC-21 volunteers and support from our loyal sponsors: Northrop Grumman, Sikorsky, CAE, Navy Mutual, Columbia Helicopters, and L-3 Communications/Vertex Aerospace. This year, NHA turned out to be a predominantly West Coast event as a result of the federal government’s sequestration. Despite the fiscal setbacks, the San Diego-based naval rotary wing community was able to show up and play golf with a substantial turnout. With over 100 military and industry participants, there was plenty of competition both on and off the course. The golf tournament, overall sponsored by Northrop Grumman, raised money for the NHA Scholarship Fund, while providing an opportunity for old and new members to connect. The event was conducted with four-man teams using a “best ball” format. Both mulligans and string were available for purchase at registration to help the more casual players remain competitive…or at least on the fairway. The course remained busy as the players attempted to win not just the overall team prizes but also other challenges throughout. Players competed for the longest drive on the 521 yard Mission 9 hole, as well as closest to the pin on the Par 3 Presidio 8 hole. Additionally, players competed for a $5,000 hole in one prize on the 156 yd PAR 3 Presidio 2 hole, sponsored by L3 Vertex. To help the players to fine tune their skills, the Coronado Brewing Company was kind enough to offer two refreshing beer stands along the course. At the conclusion of the 5 ½ hour tournament, the players returned to the clubhouse for dinner. They sat down to a BBQ buffet and relived the great shots and epic fails encountered on the course. The awards ceremony took place during dinner and began with a variety of raffle prizes donated from local businesses. The long awaited overall team winners were finally announced: 3rd place team composed of Bouvé (CHSMWP), Marion, Hoffmann and Gould; 2nd place team, from HSC-21, was Balderson, McKerry, Felice, and Goodman; and finally, the 1st place team, from HSC-3, was Powell, LaBorde, Klamper, and Zubeck. The beautiful and sunny Southern California weather helped to make this one of the best days of the year to golf leading to a successful tournament with over $6,000 generated for the NHA Scholarship Fund. We all look forward to next year’s Tournament where we will hopefully be able to reunite with our East Coast and Photo by AWR1 Jeff Kotyk, USN overseas brothers and sisters for another fantastic event.
Rotor Review # 121 Summer ‘13
60