GPN BANK'S BEDLAM CUP HAS COME A LONG WAY!

There is absolutely no question that Elk City is a "Football Town". Once football season starts, and especially when Oklahoma State University and/or seven time national champions Oklahoma University are playing, our fairways are pretty empty.... it's a good thing that basketball is at night!

Anyway, with that in mind, four years ago, then club president Joe Wynn, asked if we could come up with an idea that would bring some golfers in the fall for a special event, at least for a weekend, and we came up with the idea of some sort of inter-city challenge matches.

Bob Maine during the 2011
Bedlam Cup presentation.

We approached Bob Maine (a certified "orange-only" fan) from Great Plains National Bank to see if they would be interested in being a title sponsor for an invitational event. Bob approached higher sources at the bank, who in turn approached certified "golf-nut" (a Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and knowledgeable golf fan) Robert Garton, and certified "red-only"man, president at the GPN Mangum OK branch, and between Bob "Orange" and Bob "Red", the GPN Bank Bedlam Cup was born in a matter of two months. That first year in 2011, we invited several cities but being a last minute thing, most were skeptical, and only two teams participated, Mangum and Elk City. 

Robert Garton, a good player and
certified "golf nut" who helped
start the Bedlam Cup.

The next year, it got a little bigger and we had four visiting cities... six in 2013, and seven in 2014 which made it a nine team event (Elk City usually has two teams). This year, we will have eight visiting cities for a ten team tournament! No telling what we need to do next year!

In Elk City, the tournament has been so well received by members that we had to come up with a way to qualify the players. Other places do similar things as well. Here, players are qualified through their performance in the Club Championship and Elk City Shootout, plus up to four "picks", which this year we used by inviting Keegan Hall, Shawn Wilson and Kallen Nichols, whose father, Terry, was the last Honorary Captain of Elk City. Kallen will also be the Honorary Captain in memory of Terry.

Terry Nichols (Aug 2014).
Honorary Captain 2014

The tournament format simple, even if the pairings are not: 

The tournament, which will start at 8:30 a.m. shotgun start, is designed so that each city divides their 16 man field into eight 2-Man teams who will play 27 holes: Holes 1-9 are "best ball" (also known as "low ball" for many); Holes 10-18 are scramble, and, for the last nine holes, half of the 2-Man teams of each city will go to the front, and half to the back nine, and all players will play alternate shots. The top scores of each team count for points, one point each win, with the alternate shot format counting two points per win. 

As far as the pairings, we do new pairings for each round of nine holes so that players have the opportunity to play and meet different people from our sister cities, and in the end, each 2-Man team may have played with at least twelve different people.

"Red Team" - Elk City - Defending Champions

This year, the invited teams are: Clinton, Cordell, Hobart, Hollis, Mangum, Sayre, Wellington, Woodward and, as usual, Elk City as host, will have two teams.

Great Plains National Bank uses this tournament as an opportunity to raise funds for a local charity, in past years, it has been the Relay For Life group. But, just as important, together, we use this event as a gathering where we use golf to promote friendships and friendships to promote golf.... NEAT, ISN'T IT!