2023 - The First 90 Days

March 31: Paola, Jeff and my Granddaughter Ava Lyli and Ana Mica visited. More great gifts, books, and golf stuff. The visit and the books make my day and ends the month of March! 

March 28: I turn 72. Lots of birthday wishes, but the best two gifts: Anya sent me a poster of Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus exchanging money in the 60's.... and delicious cookies by the Lenius kids! (I ate and shared on March 30th with them)

March 26: First News Maker of 2023!! Aaron Kauk makes a deuce (double eagle, albatross or whatever you want to name it) on #15... James Ainsworth comes in "second" with another deuce, an eagle on #9! Great day for golf!

March 25: Great sunrise and great day: we take the pictures for the remake of the Share the Passion with eight members' kids

March 24: Clubhouse is sure taking great form!

March 22: Dell Match Play Championship gets under way in Austin TX. Scotty Scheffler, defending Champion gets eliminated in the semifinals. Sam Burns wins it all. It was the last World Match Play Championship.

March 20: Smiles that I will never forget. Jan Michael Angela's tragic accident in 1980 will never be forgotten

March 19: My sister Chuchina who has been visiting since February 5th, goes back to El Paso. From the she will travel to Mexico City, then Cancun, then San Diego, then back to El Paso... or Elk City!

March 15: Bob Maine and I have lunch at Peter G's and meet veteran of three Vietnam tours, "Shereman". Great lunch, great conversation!

March 14: Shell around the new clubhouse almost compete

March 11: We announce the "remake" of the "Share the Passion" poster for the new clubhouse

March 12: IS IT BETTER TO PLAY BY FEEL OR BY "PERFECT MECHANICS"?

I have read hundreds of instruction articles in golf magazines, read a few dozen books, and heard golf teachers point out their "secrets" to a better swing, yet, even if your swing is better, you still have to PLAY GOLF, and the swing, no matter how good it is, is not, I repeat, IS NOT ALWAYS THE SOLUTION TO PLAY BETTER. For many years in my teens and early 20's, I remember how inconsistent I became, because ever month, I was trying a new "swing thought", every "tip of the month".

Think of it as "the swing" as being a tool, knowing how to use it is another thing, and in this case, your "feel" on how to use that tool becomes very important.

There are players who play "by feel" (Jordan Spieth, Seve Ballesteros, Lee Trevino, Arnold Palmer, Phil Mickelson, Tom Watson, John Daly), players who play by "mechanics" (Greg Norman, Billy Horschell, Brooks Keopka, Lee Westwood, Tom Weiskoft) and players who use both, feel and mechanics (Tiger Woods, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo). This last group consistently try to start the swing from a perfect posture and alignment, and then swing natural, by "feel"). This is the best way to play: concentrate on your "PGA": Posture, Grip and Alignment, then just swing the way you swing.

Players who in the quest for perfection, try to change their own instincts, style, God given talent, struggle with their game. Even the best players in the world have that problem sometimes....

It happened to Seve Ballesteros, and for a while, he could not find the golf course, let alone the fairway.. And if this happens to the best player in the world at the time, It happens every day to all of us. We have a swing thought, and after two holes, we can't "feel" it any more, and the more we concentrate on mechanics, the more we will mess up.

Yesterday I was watching my favorite player now days, Jordan Spieth's third round at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, when he was heard saying, "I don't have (feel) it today" and he struggled to a two over par 74. However, if you have watched him the last 6-8 months, he has been "playing mechanics" on the course many times, making some sort of "mock" move to put the club in certain position in his backswing, and the results have not been great.

Jordan Spieth tried to change from being a true artist, to being more "mechanical" and it is not working as good as he would like to. Imagine Jordan at 16 years old, as a high school player, being invited to play in the AT&T Byron Nelson PGA Tour tournament, when he contended until the last four holes on the back nine! Sixteen years old, and he placed 20th in a full field PGA Tour event! He is now struggling to find that "old feel", and if he does, watch out, 2015 will be repeated many times over.

Tiger Woods, for instance, won the Masters in 1997 with a record of 270. He had already won three or four times on the regular tour since turning pro only seven months earlier. Then, he began changing his winning swing, but he never lost his "feel". It may have taken him longer to being consistent, but once he combined the new swing into his "natural feel", he began winning again. He and Jack Nciklaus are the exception of changing winning swings for other winning swings. Ben Hogan as well.

One example was in 1972, when Jack, a natural fader of the golf ball, didn't "have it" during the 1972 Open Championship, so, he manufactured a swing that felt good for the last round, playing a draw, and almost caught Lee Trevino, losing by only one shot.

Another example is one of Ben Hogan's practice rounds when he allowed a sports editor to follow him with a camera. They got to this hole, and Hogan had about 160 yards, over a bunker to a tight front hole position. Hogan was known as a "mechanical" golfers, one who would repeat the same swing time after time. So, Hogan hit a 6-iron to about 15 feet. The sports writer was amazed at the effortless swing and result, so he asked, "Mr. Hogan, beautiful shot. What club did you use?" Hogan, said, "6-Iron, let me show you something", so he took his 5-iron and hit the same shot, then the 4-iron, then a 7-iron. All balls inside 20 feet on this uphill approach. Do you think he was mechanical or a feel player?

Probably the round that messed up Jordan Spieth, was the final round of the 2015 PGA Championship, where he was paired with Jason Day, who won by two over Jordan, and constantly outdrove him by 30-50 yards. That day, Jordan began changing his swing to get more distance. He listened too much to the "expert commentators" who said that he did not have the distance to become a "dominant player". Really?

A swing that won him the Masters, the U.S. Open, a near miss at the Open Championship that year, where he was one shot short of the playoff, but not due to swing mechanics, but due to several three-putt greens during the tournament. And a swing that also got second in that year's PGA Championship.

In the real world of hackers, I play golf with several seniors on a regular basis. Three in particular, have completely different swings, but they all play pretty good golf. But, is you asked any one of them their swing thoughts, they could not verbalize any thoughts because they all pay by feel. If they ever tried to dissect their swing to get better, they. like me and many others, would get disastrous results. In our lingo, it is called, "Paralysis by Analysis".

If you are not a player who practices 8 hours a day, do not try to change your natural instincts. Maybe change your fundamentals, like grip or stance, but never your mechanics. Arnold Palmer said it better in an early 2000's commercial for Dick Sporting Goods, "Swing your Swing" with Arnold Palmer, one of the best "feel" players of all time. GO JORDAN!!! Get that feel back!

March 9: Happy Birthday to my brother Armando!

March 8: We adopt "Mulligan", a white Chinese Goose (on March 28, he was relocated to the lake by the Elk City Park

March 6-7: Top Dressed and aerified the greens

March 3: The shell of the new clubhouse is up and the roof is beginning to be installed.

February 29: Asher Brewer brings me a reminder of a "dead golf ball"...

February 15: Announcement of the Titleist Loyalty Program. Four dozen for the price of three!

January 25: Annual Stockholders meeting. Joe Wynn left his seat open after 15 years on the board. Josh Moran won that seat 24-22 over Ricky Nagle. Aaron Kauk and 

January 17: Doctor David Bank, a long time member at the club and Rick Muncrief, brother of member Rob Muncrief, are inducted in the Elk City Leadership Hall of Fame

January 11: Foundation is poured for the new clubhouse

 January 1st: First members out on the New Year: Andy Blankenship and son Oakley!

December 31st, 2022: Last Member Group of 2022: David Dyson, Jack Coody, Danny DeLeon, Brad Spitzer

2022 Tumbleweed

Our annual Tumbleweed Couples tournament was a success. The last four years, we have had 72 teams and a few standby teams! This tournament would not have the success it has, would it not be for Ann Cowan whose tireless dedication to this tournament, has her looking for sponsors, additional help for cooking for the golfers, at the golf course and of course, and at the annual dinner. Choosing prizes, organizing various needs for the tournament... and playing, which she usually does with Cooper, her grandson.

It began on Saturday with the traditional horserace, which this year was hosted by Cathy Robison in memory of her husband Levi. Levi and Cathy never missed a Tumbleweed and the couple was as competitive as you can be. Thank you Cathy

This year, we had seven flights, and they were all exciting to watch. For those who have been around this events, one of the things that players anticipate is, "who is going to be 'bumped' to the next flight for their outstanding play the second day in comparison to the first? This year we had multiple teams who were "bumped", and some others who should have, but who "managed" their second round good enough to win, but not to be bumped. Of course, there is a degree of pride with most of the teams, those who played bad the first day, and use the second day for "redemption", they don't mind get "bumped" and play as hard as they can the second day, regardless of the "bump rule".... I like this attitude much, much better. You try to play your best all the time, and if you get "bumped" and don't win a prize in your flight, you don't care, you play for the love of the game and not for a few hundred dollars in prize money that, in the end, will not change your life style. 

Moving on!

The Championship flight was as competitive as it can be on the four top teams. Keegan Hall and sister Kinsley, opened with a 55 and never looked back. There were two 57's, Dylan Miller/Megan Blonien, and past champions several times over, David & Rachel Poole. Keegan and sister had a 56 on the second round and their lead was never threatened. Second place was the team of Dylan Miller and Megan Blonien, who at one point late in the round, were tied for Sunday's score with Keegan and sister, but came up short by one on Sunday, and lost the tournament by three shots. 

"BUMPED TEAMS":

Robert and Chanda Shepherd were bumped, but still won the flight that they were "bumped" to! 

Reggie and Carol Redwine, Todd and Robin Eitzen. 

FLIGHT BY FLIGHT RESULTS:

CHAMPIONSIP:

1. 55-56/111  KEEGAN & KINSLEY HALL

2. 57-57/114 DYLAN MILLER & MEGAN BLONIEN

3. 59-59/118 JOBY & HALEY GRAY

4. 57/62/119 DAVID & RACHEL POOLE

"AA"

1. 64-61/125 WES & TASHA MARSHALL

2. 66-60/126 KYLE & KELSI STEVENS

3. 64-63/127 KALLEN NICHOLS & ANDREA WISEMAN

4. 65-63/128 EDDIE & MARY JANE REPP (won in playoff against Travis/Maranda Stout and Justin & Krissin Twyman)

                                                                    

"A"

1. 70-64/134 BILL PASCOE & ANNA RUNNELS (won playoff)

2. 69-65/134 TONY & MELISSA DIBLER

3. 69-67/136 COOPER & ANN COWAN (won playoff)

4. 69-67/136 JOE OTTY & KELSI EDWARDS

"B"

1. 73-68/141 MONTY & PATTY LORENZ (won playoff)

2. 72-69/141 GREG & RENAE DODSON

3. 73-69/142 TYLER HARRISON & ASHLEY KAUK

4. 75-68/143 DERRICK WOLF & BRENDA KEENE (was bumped from "C" and won playoff for 4th)

"C"

1. 77-67/144 ROBERT & CHANDA SHEPHERD (was bumped from "D") (*)

2. 74-71/145 JASON HULIN & MELISSA HODGES

3. 75-71/146 ANDY & ERIN DAVIS (won three way playoff)

4. 74-72/146 ROB & SHANNELL BROTT

"D"

1. 78-72/150 JOE WYNN & RAMONA ALVAREZ

2. 77-74/151 NICK & JULIE LENIUS

3. 77-75/152 RAYNE & MICHELLE ROESER

4. 79-74/154 SCOTT & PAM DULANEY

"E"

1. 83-78/161 DARRELL & DEBBIE DUNN (won three way playoff)

2. 82-79/162 BRIAN CARNES & ANDREA WISEMAN

3. 82-79/162 RANDY & TRISH LUDWIG

4. 84-82/166 STEVEN SMITHERMAN & ASHLEY KELLEY

(*) In 2016, Robert Shepherd made a hole on #13 during the annual KECO.... only to be the only hole where no prize was awarded, all the other par-3 holes had prize from $25,000 and up!

For all photos of this year's Tumbleweed, click Tumbleweed 2022 Photos

2022 TUMBLWEED HORSE RACE

As it is tradition here, the Tumbleweed kicks off with an alternate shot horserace on Friday afternoon. This year's horserace was very special, as the honorary host, Cathy Robison, was not an Elk City resident. 

We asked Cathy to be our co-host of the horserace because her and her husband Levi, who was an Army veteran, never missed our tournament or the horserace, and his passing earlier in the year, left a void in our small world of golf in Western Oklahoma. 

Everywhere you went around Western Oklahoma and beyond, where they host couples tournaments or other men or senior men tournaments, Levi was known to all the hosts, as he was as competitive as you will ever meet. He represented Weatherford well. 

His gentle demeanor made him stand among others. To say the least, that gentle smile and personality gave many a false sense of security on the golf course in a golf match, only to get beat when you least expected because he never gave up and fought to the last stroke.

We will miss Levi and Cathy coming together to play and often place in their flight. We are sad that he won't be here any more on the course, but we are happy that we got to meet him.

Thank you Cathy for accepting our invitation to host the horserace to remember and celebrate Levi among golfing friends who traveled with you two to other places to enjoy this wonderful game.

RESULTS: 

"Main Event"

1st David & Rachel Poole, 2nd Michael & Ann Cowan, 3rd Tyler & Tori Windsor, 4th Dylon Miller & megan Blonien.

"Consolation Flight":

1st Ricky & Lisa Nagle, 2nd Andy & Erin Davis, 3rd Rayne & Michelle Roeser.

In my group - the Consolation Flight - we got to witness a great chip in and a never-give-up shot by Randy Brunken.

 

 

2022 CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP: ELK CITY GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB

I'd like to start with an apology. Since I started Facebook years back, I quit writing our little historical events here. I started doing posts in Facebook, but here, you can go back and find something by date or name or any other references. In Facebook, you can only scroll and scroll and try to find something that you may have missed, or that you want to read again. But, I will continue using Facebook for photo albums. 

Since I have not written consistently in a long time, I am going to start with a little historical recap of the Club Championship since I came to Elk City in 2011... wow, eleven years, and a twelfth season almost over!

Year        Champion            Woman Champion   Senior Champion        Super-Senior Champion

2011        Joby Gray           Ann Cowan             Harry Payne                -------------------

2012        Russ Smith          Haley Gunkel           Ronnie Smith               Grady Lantz

2013        Russ Smith          Rachel Poole           Craig Martin                David Bank

2014        Joby Gray           Ann Cowan             Craig Martin                Robert Lakey

2015        Joby Gray           Ann Cowan             Craig Martin                David Bank

2016        Joby Gray           Kinsley Hall             Eddie Davis                 Tom Gilliland

2017        Logan Gore        Ann Cowan               David Dyson              Craig Martin

2018        David Poole       -----------                 J.Donaghey/J.Coody  Robert Lakey

2019        Tres Hill              -----------                Greg Dodson              Craig Martin

2020        Dustin Gunkel     -----------                 Quint Nichols             David Bank

2021        Mike Wilson       -----------                 David Dyson              -----------

2022        Tres Hill              ----------                  Jack Christian             Bob Miller        

Since we lost the clubhouse in 2017, the attendance to the Club Championship has been decreasing little by little, but not the quality of play. This year, 35% of the players were in Championship Flight, by far the biggest percentage! We missed Mark Fairchild, Andrew Albert and Jorey Price as they had entered a big scramble tournament elsewhere, otherwise, it would have been closer to 40%. Mark Fairchild has been Runner-Up four times and Andrew once.

Tres Hill opened with a 64, and was leading his pal Aden Schmidt by 2, Dunstin Gunkel by three and four other players who shot 68, Joby Gray, defending Champion Mike Wilson, Travis Stout and Kaleb Keith. There were three players who opened with 70: Aaron Kauk, Travis Poole and Justin Twyman, last year's runner up.

Tres continued "hot" on Sunday and no one got close. Young Mason Schmidt, who opened with a 75, was five under after nine holes, but was too fart back to catch Tres who closed with a 66 for a six shot victory over four time champion Joby Gray, who shot identical rounds of 68. We joked that Joby was the best "five time a year" player since he has not played much the last few years.

In the "AA" flight, which had several seniors, there were three tied at 71 on the first day: Tyler Foale, David Dyson (a senior) and Jack Christian (another senior). Jack Christian and Tyler Foale tied in the "AA" with 146. Jack won the three hole aggregate playoff with 4,4,4 against 4,5,4. Jack also won the Senior Championship and Bob Miller won the "A" and the Super-Seniors. Lynn Bailey won the "B" Flight. There were no women in the tournament. 

About the champion...

I first met Tress while taking a ride around the golf course the first week I was here, he was playing with Kinsley Hall. You could see that both had potential. Better yet, they were walking the course... just the two of them, which meant they liked the game. When I took this picture, I was maybe 50 yards back, they hadn't noticed me. Just watch where the ball is going. What impressed me the most, was the sound of the ball when this 8 year old made contact. It was a sound of excellence, he was hitting the ball dead center in the clubface. As he grew and continued playing, we played a few times together, then in High School, he became the team's "#1 Bag" right away. He hasn't looked back since then

For all tournament pictures, click this link>>> 2022 Club Championship Pics

Tres Hill in 2011, teeing off on #9. Hitting the ball dead solid, right down the middle.

Mike Wilson, defending champion hitting out of the penalty area left of the green on #15. Mike's approach shots were a little off on Sunday and had to take his shoes off twice during his final round. He still managed an under par round

Tres Hill now (Tee Shot on #12 on Saturday)

For all tournament pictures click the following link Club Championship Pictures

Tres Hill eleven years ago!

MORE MASTERS - TIGER - ELK CITY

My "horse" did not make the cut. Jordan Spieth, champion in 2015, shot rounds of 74 & 76. He seems to be "thinking" too much. I believe his game went "south" when he tried to gain much more distance after he lost by one to Jason Day in the 2015 PGA Championship. Now he has a "pre-shot" routine where he cocks his wrists at the top of the backswing, then does something different on his actual swing. Arnold Palmer said it best: SWING YOUR SWING!  Anyway, he is still one of my favorite golfers for more than his golf skill. Great young man!

Tiger made the cut at +1. At one time he was +3, but grinded and finished with a 74. My favorite golfer, Jordan Spieth, is having a hard time with his putter and finished +6 and missed the cut. Scottie Scheffler, now number 1 in the world rankings is leading at -8. 

Tiger thinks he can still win. He started 71-74. In 1986, when Nicklaus won his sixth Masters, started with 74,71. Followed with 69 and 65. If Tiger shoots 69 today, WATCH OUT! Will history repeat for a 46 years old of different generations? In his interview, he said that the course will play fast on the weekend, just "like Masters leaders want it to play. I need to shoot a good score. Anything can happen". He never, ever, gives up, nor talks about losing.

Everyone within 10 shots now is a threat to the lead. One triple and a birdie can change things rapidly. And all players are at that risk. Charl Schwartzel, the 2011 champion is five behind, but remember, he was three down with four to go on Sunday, and finished birdie, birdie, birdie, birdie to snatch the title from Jason Day and Adam Scott, delaying Australia of a first Masters title ever. Adam Scott then won in 2013 in a playoff with Angel Cabrera, who sadly, is in jail in Argentina and is one of two living Masters champions who did not make it to the Champions Dinner on Tuesday.

In Elk City, we will have a "Masters" of our own. A little tournament in which players will play their own ball, with a handicap, and will combine their score with two picks from the Masters leaderboard counting only their Sunday score. We will order Master mementoes for the participants and the winners.

THE HEART OF A CHAMPION

THE HEART OF A CHAMPION

From time to time, the world watches someone with a fighting heart bigger than anyone else. There have been many. Even Secretariat. When this triple crown winner died, the doctors in the autopsy room declared that his heart was almost twice the size of a similar sized horse. The "size" of the heart or the contents of it have a biblical meaning as well, "out of the abundance of your heart, your mouth speaks". How many times have you seen a champion speak bad of himself? Rarely, if ever. They always speak positive. If athletes do not perform well, I can tell you it is not because they quit "fighting" to do better.

Hungarian Olympic rapid fire pistol champion Karoly Takacs won the Olympic medal in back to back Olympics, the first time in 1948 in London, and the second time in Helsinki. If the story stops there, you wouldn't know the real feat. After the 1948 Olympics, Karoly had an accident that messed up his right hand, which was his shooting hand. So he went into self seclusion to practice with his left hand for the next four years, and came back and won in Helsinki shooting with his left hand! Heart of a Champion.

In golf, you have Ben Hogan. In January of 1949, driving in the fog going back to Texas after playing in California, a Greyhound bus going the opposite way, tried to pass in the heavy fog on a two-lane highway and hit Hogan's car head-on.

In those days cars were much heavier, never the less, the bus was forty times heavier than his 1948 Cadillac. When Ben all of a sudden saw the lights of the bus through the fog, his reaction was to throw himself to the right to protect his wife Valerie who traveled with him all the time. This move, ended up saving his life, as the steering wheel would have crushed him. But did not save the rest of his body. His left leg was practically destroyed, his pelvis broken.

Once in the hospital ("Hotel Dieu" in El Paso Texas), he underwent several operations. Three months in the hospital. Never mind that the doctors predicted that he would never play again, they didn't even think he could ever walk again. Hogan was already the winner of three major championships, two PGA Championships and an U.S. Open and several tournaments on tour. He was thirty seven years old and in the "late prime" of his golf career. What doctors did not measure was the size of his heart, not physical size, but the "size of the fight" in his heart. He fought to recover, he would challenge himself to walk to the corner of his block, then around it, then farther, and father, and farther... and he came back to play golf one year later, almost fourteen months to be exact. In 1950, he played his first tournament after the accident. The Los Angeles Open at Riviera Country Club. Tied for first and lost in the playoff against Sam Snead in the extra eighteen holes on Monday. Then, WON SIX MORE MAJORS between 1950 and 1953!

By the way, people should have known that Hogan was a "never quit person". He had tried the tour three times and gone broke three times before he started winning. During that time, he changed his swing from someone who "hooked" the ball, to someone who sliced the ball, something that it is far more difficult to do than people may think because you are fighting your natural tendencies. That, friends, is determination. Hogan was not a popular person with golf fans, he was very private and serious, and many people say, "rude". The time in the hospital, he confessed years later, made him reflect how he treated people and became much more open and accessible to others.

You probably know other similar stories of people with big hearts that fought back from injury or disease, or other obstacles, to come back and do whatever they did all over again, always against all odds.

Enter a man by the name of Tiger Woods. I have written before that this man was different than others. No one can even imagine how difficult it is to win three U.S. Amateurs in a row. In 1996, when he turned pro soon after his last U.S. Amateur win, I won a $100 bet with a "nay-sayer" who said, "I can't believe he turned pro before playing The Masters (since Tiger had qualified for the '97 Masters as the Amateur champion, he would no longer be invited to play in it as a pro until he met the required qualifications as a pro, which in those days was to win a tournament between the Masters of '96 and the Masters of '97). I told my friend that I sensed this kid was special. Yes, he was cocky and came out as "arrogant" to many, including me. But his WORDS were never negative about himself: "why play if you don't want to win?" He believed! And he achieved. He won three times before the '97 Masters and not only qualified for it, but he won it in record fashion. When I made the bet with my friend, he said, "now he'll know what is it like playing against the 'big boys'". I say, now the pros would know what is it like playing against a guy that ONLY plays to win!

From 1996 to now, Tiger slowly gained the respect as a player, and somewhat as a man. He did many things that made me upset that had nothing to do with his well publicized problems of 2009. He skipped tournaments that I thought he should play, he played in places that I thought he should skip, he said things that I thought he should not say, and kept quiet when I thought he should say something publicly. In that arena, I began seeing him differently when he publicly said that he respected the office of the President of the United States regardless of who was there, in support of President Trump back in 2016. Meanwhile, he has started a foundation that discriminated against no one and that has helped thousands, if not millions of kids.

Back to the game he plays. After his well publicized accident in California in 2021, he was in "self seclusion" for 13 months, and many speculated if he would even try to play again. Well, here he is. He turned a round that could have easily been a 76 or 77 into a very respectable 71. You have no idea what it took from his heart to do that. There is a long way to go. Will he win? Who knows, but he did win the first battle. The war (inside and out) is still going on.

If you are a knowledgeable golfer who observes how champions play, you could see that Tiger was "ALL IN" in his comeback to the limelight. What he did yesterday is nothing short of remarkable. Along with others, I will be cheering for him today, and if he makes the cut and contends, I will be cheering for him as well.

And I will always point to him as an example of what the Heart of a Champion can accomplish. The one that says, "never give up", whatever the circumstances are. Whether it is work, or something you are trying to achieve. Never allow others to tell you how to do your own thing. You are the only one who dictates how the future will look like as far as you are concerned. You don't have to like the man to recognize his achievements, you only have to learn that if you have determination, you can achieve more than people think. 

MORE MASTERS TRADITIONS

MORE MASTERS TRADITIONS

You cannot speak about Masters traditions without mentioning the Champions Dinner, which is on Tuesday night. Ben Hogan started the tradition in 1952 as defending champion of 1951. This dinner is attended only by living past champions and the current Augusta National Chairman. There is a "Master of Ceremonies" which for many years was Byron Nelson. Now, Ben Crenshaw, one of the most knowledgeable golf historians among professional golfers, is the Masters of ceremonies. Ben Crenshaw won twice, in 1984 and 1995.

Crystal Goblets: if you make an eagle, or have the best score of the day, you get a crystal goblet with the Masters logo engraved.

The Green Jacket: you can only use the green jacket as a champion during the reigning champion year. Otherwise, you can only use it at the premises when you are visiting or during the Masters of that year. In the 60', Gary Player won and of course took the jacket with him, but after he didn't win the following year, he was spotted wearing the green jacket in South Africa. Clifford Roberts, chairman of Augusta National, called and asked Gary to send the jacket back to the USA. Gary said, "come and get it". They both agreed that Gary would not wear it any more until he returned to Augusta.

"Honorary Starters". The tradition started at the before 1963. Jock Hutchinson and Fred McLeod had been the first group out for years, but when they were not able to compete any more, they became honorary starters from 1963 to 1973. Byron Nelson and Gene Sarazen started in 1981. Sam Snead joined them in 1984. Snead hit his opening tee shot in 2002, about a month before he died. Arnold Palmer took over by himself in 2007, later joined by Jack Nicklaus and later by Gary Player. Palmer passed in 2016, and last year Jack and Gary were accompanied by Lee Elder, the first black golfer to ever compete in The Masters. He died later last year. Jack and Gary will be joined this year by two time winner, Tom Watson.

New "traditions" are the "Drive, Chip & Putt" and the "Augusta National Women's Amateur". It would take pages to describe these two.

Caddies: until 1983, all players were required to use caddies from Augusta National. Later it was opened to players being able to bring their regular caddies. Jack Nicklaus won five Masters with local Caddy Willie Peterson, but his greatest Masters ever, was won with his son Jackie on the bag. It was Jack's last win at Augusta, and if you see the leaderboard at the end, the top eight behind Jack on that Sunday, accumulated over 20 majors together!

ARNIE'S ARMY: some things are designed by our Creator without us ever knowing why. You can't speak about Augusta National or The Masters without speaking about Arnold Palmer, the first four time winner of the green jacket. Here is where the "perfect storm began:

First, The Masters was not a famous event at all, not until way after the 60's when Palmer had already won his last Masters title in 1964. Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts founded The Masters, but one man, made The Masters famous: Arnold Palmer. Up to the early 60's, The Masters never sold all their tickets. Every unsold ticket, was given to Fort Gordon to send as many soldiers as they could to watch The Masters. Clifford Roberts had a plan: the tournament first started a telecast in 1956 and he wanted to have as many spectators on tv as possible. In his mind, how could he say this was an "important" tournament if there were only a few people watching. He needed as many people in the gallery as he could have so that the broadcast showed thousands interested!

Enter Arnold Palmer. His first win was in 1958. During the round he was having difficulty pulling away from Doug Ford and Fred Hawkins. But not to worry, the soldiers from Fort Gordon, knowing that Arnie was a vet from the U.S. Coast Guard, "picked him" as their favorite golfer to cheer for and he ended up winning by a single stroke over these two great golfers.

That my friends, is where the term "Arnie's Army" began. Arnie's Army became a fixture at Augusta National and the nationally, as Arnie continued to win majors and tournaments all over the world. If you go to Augusta National during the Tournament, you will see hundreds of people with "Arnie's Army" buttons. Even today's professionals wear an "Arnie's Army" button. Augusta National used Palmer's personality to sell their tournament, and Palmer used The Masters and his charisma to sell himself. A match made in heaven!

And that, my friends, as Paul Harvey used to say, is the rest of the story! 

MASTERS TTRADITIONS

MASTERS TRADITIONS

Let's start wit this: The Masters was founded by the GOAT of amateur golfers: Bobby Jones.

Bobby Jones had played against the best amateurs and best professionals of his time. And he had beat them all. He won thirteen majors of his time, including U.S. Open and British Open, where professionals played.

So, when he started the Augusta National Invitational, he not only invited professionals but also the best amateurs of his time. Players he had played with. Since amateurs did not get paid any money for their wins, he had a cabin built inside the premises called the "Crow's Nest", where amateurs stay for free when playing The Masters. To this day, the Crow's Nest is the place where to stay if an amateur is invited to The Masters. I have never seen a picture of the inside of the Crow's Nest, but I bet my next week's lunches... better yet, my next week's payday, that it is as simple and luxurious as anything you have ever seen: first class. Meals are free (and if you can imagine, meals at Augusta National are anything but fast food). This year, there will be six amateurs in the field.

Every PGA Tour event has a "Pro-Am" on Wednesday. None of the majors has a Wednesday Pro-Am (which raises money for different charities), but they leave Wednesday open for last practice day. Not the Masters. On Wednesday, you have the Par-3 Tournament in the additional short holes on the north-east of the property. If you are playing in The Masters, you are invited, but it is not reserved for Masters players only. Some older players who have won before, or former famous amateurs, or even Augusta National members who want to have a good day with some of the more famous players. The first Par-3 Tournament was played in 1960 and was won by Sam Snead. One historical fact: no one who has won the Par-3 Tournament has ever won the Masters in the same year, so, as a tradition, players in the Par-3 tournament who are playing in The Masters, usually hit their last ball in the water in purpose, so not to "jinx" themselves in the main event. Oh yes, during the Par-3 Tournament you can have your kid caddy for you, but they will have to use an Augusta caddy uniform! Up to 2014, the last group to tee off in the par three tournament was the one of Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player. Between them, they won 13 Masters titles.

Food in the premises for spectators: it is the cheapest of any place at any tournament. Let's put it like this: if you would order one of everything in the menus, you would spend less than $70.00! There are more than ten types of sandwich, the most expensive is... $3.00! Import beer is $5.00! All wraps are in green color.

At one time, in the 60's, a player was expelled from his practice round for trying to skip a ball across the pond on #16. It was a "no, no" to disrespect the game by playing around", and more if you dared to do it at the Holly Grounds. That was then, now, most all groups who play a practice round, to the delight of the patrons (don't dare to call them crowd, or mob when they are so many in one place) have contests on who gets closer to the hole by skipping the ball on the pond. I can imagine there are some hefty bets made, both, on the groups, and by the spectators! In 2014, I watched a few groups there, and it was a lot of fun.

The Masters gives you a daily pass from Monday to Sunday (practice rounds and tournament) if you are a PGA Professional. It is not a "ticket", it is a daily pass. So, in 2014, when I was invited to a trip to The Masters with several members of Elk City Golf & Country Club, I called Augusta National and asked if I could bring my camera inside the premises. I was told "yes", but only Monday to Wednesday. I had to have a special permission to take photos during the tournament itself. And, I was reminded, NO CELLPHONES AT ANY TIME ANY DAY. Period. In other words: no possible noise that may distract a player, even if in a practice round. No, you cannot say "I'll turn it off or put it on silent mode", when Masters rules say "no phones" it simply means "no phones", and that its the end of it. By the way, there are payphones in certain areas of the property so you can check on your kids and their nannie.

How about the first day pairings? It is a tradition that last year's champion is paired with last years U.S. Amateur champion. Tiger Woods won three straight amateurs, so, in 1995, he played with Jose Maria Olazabal, in 1996 he played with Ben Crensahw, and in his debut as professional (*), he played with Sir Nick Faldo.

(*) - by turning professional in the fall of 1996, Tiger Woods was no longer eligible to get an invitation as the last U.S. Amateur champion, however, Tiger won three professional tournaments between the fall of 1996 and the spring of 1997, so he had an invitation to play as a PGA Tour winner of the last 12 months.

How many commercials do you see when watching The Masters? Don't count them, I'll tell you. Four and only four minutes per hour of commercials are allowed for The Masters Telecast. CBS has been the only network to broadcast The Masters since it started, and they only have a one year contract. CBS has to renew the contract every year... so don't mess up!

Golf fans that have a ticket are referred as "patrons", not fans or "spectators". The ticket says, "patron passes".

Note 1: Every hole at Augusta National is named after a flower that surrounds the fairway or green in general. The photo here is of the famous par-3 #12, called "Golden Bell".

Note 2: The picture of three players going into the future is of Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Arnold Palmer. The "Big-3" as they called them in the 60's when the three would give exhibitions around the world. It was taken during my visit in 2014, and has a little historical meaning: It was the last time that the three of them played together in any setting, as Arnie's health deteriorated and could not play in 2015 and 2016, finally passing in September of 2016.

More tomorrow.