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COURSE
FEATURE By Steve
Powell If you stood at the
corner of 84th St. and Harrison in the
near-southwest area of Omaha, you'd be
practically in the middle of a golf
constellation: about a mile west is
Omaha's Johnny Goodman 18-hole
championship course; southwest is
Papillion's Tara Hills 18-hole municipal
course; Ralston's Lakeview public 9-hole
course is just northeast about a mile; and
Milt's Golf Center, the 9-hole Par 3
course with driving range-practice
facility is northeast less than two miles.
But at the center of
this dynamic golf wheel is the surprising
and delightful La Vista Falls executive
course. Opened in 1992 on what was
formerly a neighborhood flood control area
for La Vista (pop.13,895), La Vista Falls
is the ideal course for honing the short
game, and polishing your long
shots. "The course is in
really excellent condition this year,"
said Rick Koch, the golf services manager
and head golf professional." "Of course, that's
partially due to the great weather we've
had, but it's also helped by the expertise
of George Barth, our superb course
superintendent," Koch said. "George has
our Pencross Bentgrass greens in fantastic
shape." It's hard to ignore the
course when you're traveling along busy
84th Street because it overlooks the
layout from the west. Its lush greens and
inviting fairways could tempt any golfer
to take the test of these dandy links.
Local ordinances prohibit advertising
along the road, so it's not a course that
calls attention to itself, but most
golfers will find it an exciting and
satisfying course. "This is one of the
most surprising courses in the metro,"
said local golf enthusiast, Mark Rousseau.
"Even though it isn't long, it gives you a
real challenge," he said. For the men, it runs
approximately 2000 yds. It has a course
rating of 29.1 and a slope of 95,
comparable to other executive courses in
the area like Eagle Run (CR:30.5; Slope
89; 2,024 yds.). But two long dog-legs,
and multiple, imaginatively, multi-tiered
greens make this course more game and less
predictable. Water is a factor on four of
the holes. The course gives you a
quick start with two Par-3s of about 140
yds and 160 yds. Then the 3rd presents the
first water challenge&emdash;a big creek
right in front of the green. A
sentry-like, tall cottonwood tree protects
the left side of the green where the pin
was tucked the day we played. The green
tilts diabolically toward the creek, so a
long chip shot is perilous coming
back. After a nice uphill Par
3 of 110 yards at No.4, you face the
daunting 375-yd dog-leg-right, Par 4, 5th
hole. A rather narrow opening from the tee
of about 35 yards is the only access to
the fairway. Down the left, a line of
trees protects the 8th fairway, down the
right a large pond. You'll need a good tee
shot placed in the center about 200 yards
plus to have any realistic chance of
shooting for the green on your second.
Water runs clear back to the green on the
right, and winds across on the left side
so you have ample opportunity to splash
both your drive and your approach if
you're prone to slice. The Par 3 No.6 is the
shortest hole at about 105 yds. The big
pond in front and left of the hole
naturally make you want to over club this
shot. Since the tee is elevated, it
actually plays shorter and requires some
finesse to land on the dance floor.
Fortunately, large grassy mounds work as a
backstop for the long shot
here. The long, dog-leg-left
No.7 is rated the toughest hole on the
course at 336 yards but a wide fairway is
very forgiving to the wayward drive. The
green slopes aggressively from left to
right so your approach has to have room to
trickle. The grass bunkers on the right
give you the maximum opportunity to
recover for par. No. 8 presents one of
those thoughtful Par 3s. At 183 yards, it
has somewhat of tear-drop-shaped, 3-tiered
green. You can't really roll it on because
the opening from the short grass is only
about 7 yards wide. On the right is a
large sand bunker. If you can fly it there
with a little roll, you're
dancin'. It's nice to finish a
course with a smashing drive. The 350 yard
No. 9 invites you to take your best shot.
You get the maximum chance to succeed here
with 70-yd. wide fairway down the hill and
over the creek. The approach could be
stymied because another large cottonwood
stands in the center of the fairway. Stay
right off the tee or be ready to shoot a
low-runner under its branches. Although tee times can
be reserved up to one week in advance, day
time tee times are usually available and
walk-ins are always welcome, according to
Koch. "For the quality of
this course, I think the rates are lower
here than at many other 9-hole courses in
the area," Koch said. You can call Rick at
339-9147 to get the best rates during
their Summer Special (see ad in this
months MTT). FEATURE By Bob O'Keefe •
Way to go A.J. Fremont Golf Club
was home to the history making effort of
A.J. Elgert as he won his second
consecutive Nebraska state stroke play
golf tournament. He outlasted Patrick
Duffy, an Omaha attorney, in a sudden
death playoff, by almost driving the 317
yard par 4 7th , and then chipping within
three feet, for an easy birdie putt and
win. •
Congratulations to Elizabeth
Morrell for winning the Greater Omaha
Women's Championship played at the Omaha
Country Club. •
I guess Martha Burk picks and
chooses her crusades as the next story
shows. Danielle Swope was not allowed to
play in the Fort Wayne, Indiana Women's
City Golf Tournament because her birth
certificate lists her gender as male. Born
with both male and female reproductive
organs, she underwent gender reassignment
operations to become completely female.
The LPGA, U.S. Golf Association and Ladies
European Tour have policies that players
must be female at birth. Coincidentally,
the Indiana PGA and the Indiana Women's
Golf Assocation adopted similar rules last
fall after Swope entered the Indiana
Women's Open. She was allowed toplay in
the Fort Wayne Men's City Tournament,
saying she "has respect for the men for at
least giving me the opportunity to play.
The women I don't have any respect for".
Fort Wayne, Ind. (AP). • Todd Hamilton winning a
four-hole playoff against Ernie Els, the
number two golfer in the world, shows you
that on any given day, at any given time,
when it's your turn, you will win. I still
don't understand Ernie's putt on number 18
in regulation. Not even close. • Speaking of close. Don't miss
out on getting tickets to this years
Nationwide Tour at The Champions Run. You
will have great fun and see some of the
future professionals in next years U.S.
OPEN and Masters. • Mike Schuchart and Chris Wiemers
grabbed two of the three open spots for
the Nationwide Cox Classic. Mike is a PGA
teaching professional at Wilderness Ridge
in Lincoln, Nebraska and Chris in the head
PGA professional at Eagle Run in
Omaha. • Swedish press reports that Tiger
Woods and Elin Nordegren will marry soon.
Let's see, are there any major tournaments
coming up? • After winning the John Deere
Classic, Mark Hensby won a riding
lawnmower. But, what is he going to mow
when he lives in Arizona? FEATURE By Troy Martin, MTT
Writer Caddying for Dave
Stockton, Sr. has its advantages. I
happened to hit the jackpot during the
Bank of America Classic last month in
Boston. Tournament organizers gave Dave
four tickets to a private suite at Fenway
Park. Red Sox versus Phillies. Dave handed
the tickets to me and said, "Enjoy." WE
DID. Proof: During the seventh inning, the
Red Sox catering staff said we broke the
all-time stadium record for shrimp,
lobster, and Samuel Adams consumed by one
suite during one game. Did I mention it
was just myself and two other caddies in
this 12-person suite? The price was
right. Dave went on to finish
33rd in Boston making $10,000, with an
extra $9,000 in the Georgia Pacific Grand
Champions part of the tournament for
players over 60 years old. I gained 9
pounds. Off to Long Island! Upon entering the New
York City metropolitan area, I quickly
noticed how much it's NOT like my hometown
of Omaha, Nebraska. Now I know how a
farmer from Wahoo feels, trying to make
his way down Dodge Street. Traffic was so
bad on the interstate an elderly man
passed me on the shoulder like I was
standing still. He was walking.
Everything was fine
once we got to Eisenhower Park Golf
Course. It's an outstanding public
facility on Long Island with three,
18-hole championship golf courses. It is
15 minutes from famed Bethpage Park, which
has five, 18-hole public courses and
hosted the 2002 U.S. Open. Eisenhower is
also an hour from Shinnecock Hills, site
of the 2004 U.S. Open. Not a bad place to
be if you love golf. I always walk the
course prior to Dave's arrival to get my
bearings, all the yardages we'll need and
map out the greens. From the first hole, I
could tell this course was not built for
us. Playing at 7,000 yards and a par of
70, I felt Dave was not a long enough
player to compete on a course like this.
As usual, I was wrong. I forgot to factor
his heart, pride and putter into the
equation -- he played great. During the
first round, he hit a wood for his second
shot on six par 4's. Dave shot 67 and was
tied for seventh place. Saturday was not
so kind to us, but he rallied on Sunday.
He shot 68, finished 14th and earned
$25,500. He also finished second in the
G.P. Grand Champions part of the event,
earning $21,500. Two weeks on the East
Coast making $66,000. That should buy some
fuel for his jet. After Long Island,
yours truly teed it up in the South Dakota
Open (not to be confused with the British
Open contested during the same week). I
accidentally cleaned one of my opponent's
clubs and another guy's golf ball (caddie
habit, I guess). Rounds of 72-67-74 were
good enough for a 12th place tie, and
barely enough money earned to put fuel in
my car! Looks like I better get
back on the other side of the golf bag.
Next up is the Senior U.S. Open in St.
Louis. CADDIE
NOTES: Most Professional
Golfers say to be a good caddie you simply
need to know the three "ups". Show up,
keep up, and shut up. At least I show up,
one out of three is not that
bad! The look on playing
partner Craig Stadler's face was
priceless, and the hundreds of spectators
surrounding the tee box were left
scratching their heads. On the 17th tee in
Birmingham, Dave asked me what club I
thought he should hit. I responded, "A
3-iron." He agreed, so I handed him a
7-wood. Dave hit a high shot right into
the middle of the green. We were not attempting
to fool anybody. Dave just isn't proud of
our bouquet of head covers and has a
difficult time believing he carries a
7-wood in place of a 3 iron. Yes that's
right, the club of choice in every 9-hole
ladies golf league. The difference,
however, is Dave can hit it 210 yards and
land it on a fly's behind if he had to. He
makes more birdies with his 7-wood than
most make with wedges. A little tip for
the average golfers out there, drop your
2, 3, 4 irons and your pride. Try working
with a 7-wood or a hybrid rescue club. You
will be amazed at how much easier they are
to hit. Troy is also a PGA
Professional still competing on tours and
president of
Bucketboygraphics.com FEATURE The "METRO" has become
known and commonly referred to as the
"City Championship". It brings the finest
players together from the public and
private clubs to determine the "Best
Player in The METRO". Former Champions in
the Field for 2004 include ED (Moose)
Person 1999 Platteview C.C, Pete Godwin,
Willow Lakes 2000, Dave Shillinglaw,
Willow Lakes 2001, Trent Morisson Bent
Tree, 2002 and 2003 Champion at Bent Tree
Al Dusek. The field looks
stronger than ever for 2004, and includes
the 1st and 2nd ranked players in the NGA
(Nebraska Golf Association) points system:
UNL golfer Judd Cornell and State 4 Ball
Champion and State Amateur Runner up
Patrick Duffy. Also in the field is former
Nebraska State Champion, Jay Muller, two
time match play runner up Rob Mullin,
current Omaha World Herald Public Links
Champion Craig Bakke, former Public Links
Champion Rick Dusek, the always dangerous
Ward Prine and Kip Peterson from Dodge
Riverside, Platteview C.C. Champion Ken
Albrecht, Champions Run's Bret Monson and
Kirby Smith, Michelob Champion Nick
Vondrak and home course favorites Murray
Krambeer and Barry Couselor. Tournament Chairman
Dave Shillinglaw enjoys having a strong
field of great players but it's the
Platteview, Willow Lakes and Bent Tree
flight players that he enjoys most. " They
are the backbone of the METRO. They always
seem to get their entries in first. Many
play in the same flight against the same
guys each year so there are some great
rivalries created. They really embody the
reason why the METRO was created in the
first place" The sponsors each year
provide a great service to make the METRO
such an outstanding event. Prairie Golf
has been the presenting sponsor since the
tournament's inception in 1998. According
to Prairie Golf President Norm Stoakes "
The METRO is the finest amateur event in
the state and something we wanted to be
part of and grow with" Along with Prairie
Golf, Gold Level Sponsors Wells Fargo, Cox
Business Services, 1620 the ZONE -ESPN
Radio, Professional Automotive Services,
FED/EX Kinko's and Ameristar Casino help
make the event the success that it is. But
all the sponsors play an integral role. To
access all metro sponsors links go to the
tournament website at
www.metrochamp.com A survey was given to
all players after the 2003 event, which
produced: The TOP 10 Reasons why the METRO is
Special. 10) Flights are named
after the golf courses the event has been
played at: Platteview, Willow Lakes and
Bent Tree and handicaps for players range
from 0-20. 9) Players with
handicaps from 0-25 play in the METRO and
everyone is flighted ahead of time except
the Championship/METRO flight 8) The competition is
outstanding while lunch and range balls
are included both days. 7) Player's names are
announced on the first tee box both
days. 6) The banners and
signage on the course make's players feel
like there at a big time event. (Because
they are) 5) A history of the
scores dating back to 1998, plus daily
scores and pairings can be found at the
tournament website
www.metrochamp.com 4) This year's
participant gift provided by Golf USA
owner Tom Tvrdik is a duffle bag to match
the cooler from 2002 3) The player's party
at Ameristar Casino and the METRO
BABES 2) Get your entry in
early, or you'll get put on the waiting
list 1) Only players from
the Metro Area and Council Bluffs are
eligible to play. Everybody else is
out! If you would like to
play, send the entry in now. A waiting
list is common, but many people get in for
a number of reasons and the worst thing
that will happen is you will be added to
the mailing list for next year. According to Melvin
Mungin from Willow Lakes it's not all
about winning. "The Metro is the best
organized most fun event around. I play in
two-three tournaments all year long and I
put the METRO on my calendar as soon as
the dates come out. It gives me a chance
to compete against guys in my own handicap
range and maybe remove a few dollars from
some good friends' Does it get any better
than that?" For more information on
the METRO go to www.metrochamp.com, or
call 598-7445. See you at Willow Lakes
August 21-22. |
