lenz – Page 135 – Len Ziehm On Golf

Odyssey’s a place for more than just fun golf

TINLEY PARK, IL. – At first it seemed a walk down memory lane.

I hadn’t been back to the Odyssey Country Club in Chicago’s south suburbs since 1997 – the third and final year the course was used as the site of the Illinois Women’s Open championship. Odyssey got that tournament, the state’s most prestigious for women, off to a great start.

This recent visit was to participate in the Concierge & Hospitality Professionals Golf Outing, a delightful affair organized for the eighth straight year by Cheryl Justak to create awareness about the great golf available in the Chicago area and introduce it to concierges who can, in turn, pass it on to their clients and customers.

This year’s outing enabled me to re-connect with Ed Staffan, Odyssey’s manager/golf professional, and get acquainted with Nick Halikias, vice president of operations for the family-owned course and facility. The family also owns the adjoining Odyssey Fun World.

I didn’t know my playing partners before arrival, but James Cook, Tyrone Lyons and Stan Lee were all great guys. Stan could really deliver the long ball, Tyrone (my cart partner) hit some almost as long as Stan and had the sometimes difficult task of keeping my head in the game. Jimmy was the steadying influence for the rest of us.

There may have been better teams than ours (we finished 2-under-par), but I doubt any had as much fun.

Odyssey is a long drive from my home (over an hour), and that’s the main reason I didn’t have it on my calendar for such a long time. But I’ll be back.

I was very impressed with the development of both the course (designed by Harry Bowers and two-time U.S. Open champion Curtis Strange, used as the consultant) and – particularly – the clubhouse. I’ve seen most every clubhouse at the Chicago area’s public courses, and Odyssey has one of the very best. It’s outing-friendly, and a perfect setup for weddings and other social gatherings.

I just wish I could have tasted the cuisine prepared by chef Alex Ottman, but another golf-related event – the flag-raising ceremony for the 2013 BMW Championship at Conway Farms in Lake Forest, world No. 1 Luke Donald’s home course – was also a not-to-be missed socializing opportunity.

I had remembered the Odyssey course as player-friendly, yet plenty challenging. That hadn’t changed over the years. The par-72 layout is filled with lakes, wildflowers and gardens all meshing with holes that measure 7,095 from the back tees. Plus, the wildlife on the course is extraordinary. The course has a rating of 73.1 with a slope of 131.

Located between First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre, one of the nation’s largest outdoor music venues, and Odyssey Fun World, which attract kids of all ages, Odyssey Country Club, 19110 S. Ridgeland, has a great location for entertainment options before and after a round of golf.

Island Hills, Yarrow are good bets for golf trips to Michigan

AUGUSTA, MI. – Michigan-based golf course architect Ray Hearn has made an impact in Chicago with his work at Flossmoor Country Club, one of the area’s top private facilities, as well as at Mistwood in Romeoville, one of the best public courses.

If you want to test more of Hearn’s work you don’t have to go very far. Two of his earlier works are just over the Michigan line, and they’d make good stopovers for those who plan to attend the second Champions Tour major tournament in Michigan this summer.

The Senior PGA Championship, won by England’s Roger Chapman at Harbor Shores in Benton Harbor, was the first. The U.S. Senior Open will be coming July 12-15 to Indianwood in Lake Orion.

Chicago golfers headed to that big tournament can make it a nicer getaway by stopping at either Island Hills, in Centreville, or Yarrow Golf & Conference Resort, in Augusta. Both are in somewhat out-of-the-way locations, but these Hearn designs are worth a visit and the facilities where they’re located are interesting as well.

Hearn created the course at Yarrow first, after a storm in October of 2001 that included tornado force winds knocked down thousands of trees on the property. Yarrow didn’t have a golf course then, but owner Bill Pulte used the devastation as a trigger to get one built.

The resort opened in November of 1992 with only nine guest rooms and dining for 20 people. Now it has a 14,000-square foot lodge, 45 overnight rooms, eight miles of trails through forests and wetlands and, of course, its 7,005-yard golf course. Hearn’s design gets your attention immediately with a par-5 first hole that plays uphill most of the way and seems much longer even than its listed 588 yards from the back tees. The starter warned us of its difficulty, calling it “a par-7.’’

More good holes, many of them sporty and not so challenging, follow with plenty of elevation changes that fit the natural beauty of the property.

Yarrow is more of a retreat type of place, with a particularly nice patio deck overlooking the 18th green. Island Hills isn’t like that. It’s a more fun layout, with a smaller but busy restaurant – The Grille Tavern – that is open 365 days a year. The course has a history, too, and it’s plenty challenging.

Hearn did the original layout for a previous owner in 1999. He was called back by present owner Bob Griffioen when the previous owner converted several of the course’s best holes into real estate lots. The renovation was a two-year project in which Hearn created two new par-3s – Nos. 12 and 17. The project was completed in late 2011, and Hearn believes the new holes rival any pair of par-3s in Michigan.

The 12th is memorable because the stone ruins of an old farmstead are featured – but don’t come into play – both beside and behind the green. The hole can play anywhere from 102 to 186 yards.

No. 17, which played as the old 16th, has 10 tees now and can be stretched to 202 yards. The water, wetlands and bridges that surround the green create a spectacular backdrop on a layout that now measures 7,038 yards.

There’s more to say about Island Hills, though. In these economic times course owners continuously look for ways to bring in new players. Many times it’s just talk, but Griffioen is doing something about it. In fact, I’ve yet to find a course owner as passionate about growing the game. His efforts amount to much more than just installing a few extra tees to make it easier for the inexperienced to enjoy the game.

Griffioen’s new head professional, Tim Cole, is spearheading some unique programs that should bring in more players. For the very young he’s brought in the SNAG teaching program originally developed by Jerry Rich and his staff at Rich Harvest Links in Sugar Grove, IL. – the site of the Solheim Cup matches in 2009. Most affordable lesson programs are also offered for adults, and especially women.

More impressive still is Island Hills’ enticements for those who haven’t even tried golf yet. Forty-one sets of clubs are available for use, and they’re not rentals. They are simply made available for players who want to try the game. These aren’t just used sets, either. They include a variety of shafts, full sets of irons and hybrids. Not only that, but Cole fills each bag with balls, also at no charge.

Then there’s the oft-heard complaint that golf takes too long. Griffioen had Hearn design some shorter routings – for five holes, seven holes and 12 holes. If 18 holes takes too much time, try one of the shorter versions.

And, if that doesn’t get more people playing, then nothing will.

Mistwood shows off its new bunkers

Stacked sod-wall bunkers are an extreme rarity at Chicago courses, but they won’t be as much a mystery after owner Jim McWethy re-opens his Mistwood course in Romeoville. That’ll happen for the course’s members and permanent tee time holders on Saturday (JUNE 2).

Michigan-based course architect Ray Hearn incorporated 19 such bunkers into his new design, and he admits that the new bunkers will overshadow the numerous other changes he made at the public facility that annually hosts the Illinois Women’s Open.

“Nothing comes close to the glory of these stacked sod-wall bunkers,’’ he said. “In Chicago you want to set yourself apart, and this alone will do it. There’s nothing like this at any other Chicago course.’’

Hearn believes two other courses have stacked sod-wall bunkers, the main one being Conway Farms in Lake Forest. The site of the 2013 BMW Championship on the PGA Tour, Conway has three such bunkers. Another course – Hearn isn’t sure which one – has one.

Overall, Hearn substantially toughened and lengthened the course. The old version measured 6,701 yards, and the new one is 7,028 from the very back tees, some of which won’t be used all that much. The slope increased from 140 to 144 and the rating from 73.0 to 74.7 when Chicago District Golf Assn. officials made their visit to the new layout.

The course, which will open to the general public in mid-June, will produce a new challenge for the Illinois Women’s Open entrants, who will compete in the traditional 54-hole competition on July 25-27.

U.S. Open enters sectional stage

Village Links of Glen Ellyn will host Chicago’s sectional qualifier for the U.S. Open on Monday. The 48-man field will send its top finishers to the U.S. Open proper at Olympic Club in San Francisco, but the number of berths available hasn’t been determined yet.

PGA Tour players Tom Pernice and Tim Herron and Illinois coach Mike Small are the biggest names in the Village Links field, but Burr Ridge’s Bennett Blakeman bears watching, too. He qualified for the 2010 U.S. Open as an amateur and the 2011 version as a professional.

Others in the field include Brad Benjamin, the 2009 U.S. Amateur Public Links champion, and four ex-Illinois Amateur winners – Gary March (1986), Zach Barlow (2008), Vince India (2010) and Brad Hopfinger (2011). India will hit the first tee shot in the 36-hole elimination at 7 a.m. The second round begins at noon.

Switching stations

The Golfers on Golf radio show begins its 15th season on June 3, but it’ll have a different time slot and be heard on two stations instead of one.

The new home base is WSBC (1240-AM) and the show will be simulcast on WCFJ (1470-AM). It had been broadcast at 6 p.m. on Mondays of WJJG (1530-AM). Now it’ll be heard from 10-ll a.m. on Sundays. Mike Munro, Ed Stevenson, Bill Berger and Rory Spears will all return as the on-air talent for a 17-week run that will conclude on Sept. 23.

Here and there

Spain’s Carlota Ciganda, a former Arizona State golfer, won last week’s nearest sectional qualifier for next month’s U.S. Women’s Open at Wisconsin’s Blackwolf Run course by 11 shots. Only two from that sectional, held at Big Foot in Fontana, WI., qualified to play at Blackwolf Run, with Purdue’s Junthima Gulyanamitta beating ex-Illinois Women’s Open champion Aimee Neff in a playoff for the second spot….Medinah Patriot Day, a benefit for Illinois military families, will be held on Tuesday over the club’s Nos. 1 and 3 courses…..Kewanee’s Tom Miler added the CDGA Senior Amateur to his title collection this summer last week. He had previously won the Illinois State Public Links tourney. Taylorville’s Dave Ryan finished second in both….Entry deadline is 5 p.m. Friday for the Illinois Open. All professionals and amateurs with handicaps of 10 or less are eligible to compete in one of the seven qualifying rounds for the July 16-18 tourney proper at The Glen Club in Glenview….New management has decided to rename what was the Crystal Lake Golf Learning Center, located across the street from the Prairie Isle course. It’s now Fore Seasons Golf Learning Center…..Chuck Mills, North Chicago High School’s first football coach, will join his players from the 1955 team at an outing June 8 at Glen Flora in Waukegan.

SENIOR PGA: Chapman surprise win is still hard to imagine

BENTON HARBOR, MI. — To put it mildly, it’s hard to fathom Roger Chapman’s victory in the Senior PGA Championship on Sunday.

In 16 full seasons (and parts of a few others) on the European PGA Tour Chapman had just one victory – in a tourney called the Brazil Rio De Janeiro 500 Years Open in 2000., where he beat the much better known Padraig Harrington in a playoff.

When Chapman left the European Tour in 2006 it wasn’t to move to a senior circuit. No, Chapman’s best option then was to work for 18 months as a rules official. It provided a nice interlude before the 50-and-over competition was a possibility.

Chapman has yet to win a tournament in his four seasons of senior tournaments, and this year he’d played in only one event before Sunday – a 16th place finish two weeks ago in the Mallorca Open. In all his years as a touring pro Chapman says he had at least 15 runner-up finishes world-wide.

And then came Sunday at Harbor Shores – a two-year old layout designed by Jack Nicklaus that features all sorts of elevation changes and some severe undulations on the greens.

Chapman didn’t just win. He took the first major of the Champions Tour season wire-to-wire, the first player to do that since Hale Irwin in 2004. With 10 holes left Chapman owned a nine-shot lead. It dwindled to two over playing partner John Cook before Chapman posted his 72 for a 13-under-par 271 total.

“It’s hard to play with a huge, huge lead like that,’’ said Cook, “but for 70 holes he was really impressive.’’

“It’s difficult when you haven’t had much experience with that,’’ added Chapman. “You have that negative man sitting on your shoulder, telling you all the bad things that could happen.’’

Some did. Chapman finished with two bogeys before becoming only the third English golfer and seventh international player in 73 years to win the Senior PGA.

When the last putt dropped a choked up Chapman was doused with champagne by David Frost and Bobby Clampett, two rivals who had invited him to dinner on Saturday night.

“We were all crying. They’re two very good friends,’’ said Chapman, who declined the dinner invite because he wanted to keep a routine that included dinner at a restaurant in nearby Stevensville.

Frost had deprived Chapman in his last previous chance at a victory when he eagled the last hole and then beat Chapman in a playoff in a European Senior Tour event last year.

Sunday was a day for good scoring, but none of Chapman’s top challengers could deliver. Kenny Perry shot a tournament record 62, one better than the 63s posted by Buck White in 1961 and Arnold Palmer in 1984. Peter Senior posted 63 and Sandy Lyle and Joe Daley 64s.

Those scores would have done wonders for Cook, who finished second after carding a 69, or Hale Irwin, who shot 68 to finish third. Chapman enjoyed a $378,000 payday and received an invitation to August’s PGA Championship among other perks.

“This is the greatest thing I’ve ever done,’’ said Chapman. “It’s the best feeling in the world.’’

SENIOR PGA: A Chapman breakthrough, or an Irwin comeback?

BENTON HARBOR, MI. – If you look at golf’s big picture, there are two significant stories brewing going into Sunday’s final round of the 73rd Senior PGA Championship.

The more obvious one is Roger Chapman, the English pro who tied the record at the new Harbor Shores course with a 7-under-par 64 on Saturday to open a five-stroke lead in the Champions Tour’s first major tournament of the year.

Still lurking, though, is 66-year old Hale Irwin, who goes into the final round tied four third and seven shots back. Once the dominant player on the 50-and-over circuit, Irwin is far more familiar with winning than Chapman. Chapman, 58, had one win in 19 seasons on the European PGA Tour and none anywhere since he turned 50.

Irwin was dubbed Mr. Chicago in his glory days, when he won the 1974 Western Open at Butler National, the 1990 U.S. Open at Medinah and two Champions Tour titles when the circuit had an annual Chicago stop at Stonebridge and Kemper Lakes.

Though Irwin hasn’t won since 2007, the winningest player in Champions Tour history is in somewhat familiar territory. The two-year old Harbor Shores course, designed by Jack Nicklaus, is the closest Champions Tour event to Chicago and the undulating greens remind Irwin of Winged Foot, the New York layout where he won the first of his three U.S. Opens in 1974.

If Irwin could pull of a win at Harbor Shores he’d be the oldest champion in Senior PGA history. Jock Hutchison, the long-time pro at Glen View Club, won the first Senior PGA in 1947 at age 62, and Irwin isn’t giving into age just yet.

“I’d have to play at least as well as I did yesterday (a second round 66 – the fourth time he’s shot his age in competition), said Irwin. “Roger played extremely well. He really separated himself from the field, but that can be inspirational as well.’’

Better putting would inspire Irwin, who is tied with Steve Pate and two shots behind second-place John Cook. Even after shooting his 66 he changed putters on Saturday, going with a heavier one. That’ll get discarded for the final round, as Irwin plans to bring back his Friday putter minus the tape he had put on it.

“Right now I’m looking for anything,’’ he said.

Irwin missed from eight feet at the first hole of Saturday’s rain-delayed round and three feet on the third. Then he put his tee shot in the water and three-putted at No. 4 for a triple bogey six. He still posted a 69 while playing in the same threesome as Chapman.

“That was the first time I played with Hale,’’ said Chapman, “and I felt in the right place mentally. I hit a lot of good iron shots early, and they kept getting better and better. That had to be the best iron play of my life.’’

He’s at 14-under-par 199 for 54 holes. Burr Ridge’s Jeff Sluman, the only player with a Chicago connection to survive the 36-hole cut, is tied for 42nd. Champions Tour members Gary Hallberg and Chip Beck and club pros Mike Harrigan and Billy Rosinia all failed to break 80 in difficult conditions during Thursday’s first round. They improved dramatically in the second but couldn’t qualify for weekend play.

Indiana’s Swan Lake lands U.S. finals, ING gathering

GREENVILLE, S.C. – Swan Lake, the Indiana resort that has operated relatively low-key since its opening in 1969, is about to elevate its profile.

Located in Plymouth, near the Notre Dame campus, Swan Lake hosted the National Junior College Championships last week and will host that event again in 2014. Of even more note, it’ll be the site of the U.S. finals of the World Golfers Championship this September and the International Network of Golf spring meeting in 2013.

The announcements of both came at this year’s 22nd ING spring gathering, conducted at Embassy Suites Greenville Golf Resort and Conference Center and its accompanying golf course, The Preserve at Verdae.

“These are pretty big things,’’ said Andy Mears, director of sales and marketing at Swan Lake and an ING executive committee member. “We’re planning to hold a lot of events like this to showcase the resort.’’

Swan Lake didn’t always take that approach, even after Richard Klingler took over ownership 12 years ago. Mears came on board in November, 2011, as a key mover in changing the resort.

“There’s been a complete transformation of management there,’’ said Mears. “The owners decided to go in an entirely new direction. We’ve opened up to outings and have a whole new staff at the (teaching) academy. We’ve got 70 pros on staff, and they’ve been incredibly busy.’’

Klingler, an Indiana native who founded the Holiday Rambler RV Co. and later sold it, wasn’t even a golfer when he took over Swan Lake in 2000. In addition to taking on the big events, Swan Lake has attracted outings, notably a big one from Wal-Mart, which moved from a course in Valparaiso to Swan Lake. The resort used to average eight weddings a year; this year it’ll host 25.

The teaching operation is a high priority as well, under head professional Chad Hutsell. He had held that job at Plymouth Country Club for 12 years and returned to the area at Swan Lake after a stint at Aberdeen in Valparaiso.

“We’ll turn the golf operation into a learning center for PGA apprentices,’’ said Mears. “We want to be the Triple-A farm club for the PGA of America.’’

Swan Lake, spread over 600 acres, has 92 hotel rooms plus cabins and cottages and a 20m000 square-foot convention center.

The biggest event of this year, the U.S. finals of the World Golfers Championship, will be held Sept. 20-22. The leaders in five flights based on handicap will qualify for the finals in Durban, South Africa. Billed as “the world’s largest amateur tournament,’’ this is a growing competition started 17 years ago by legendary late Swedish athlete Sven Tumba, a hockey great who turned to golf later in life and designed the first course in Moscow.

Tumba’s first events were invitationals, but he eventually switched to a qualifying format and now eliminations are held in 40 countries. Florida-based Anders Bengtson is the majority owner of the U.S.. portion of the competition, which involves about 200 elimination events held year-around.

“We’re now in eight states and looking for tournament directors all over the country,’’ said Bengtson, a fellow ING member. “We’ll have in the thousands try to qualify (for the U.S. finals) and expect 80-100 to play at Swan Lake.’’

John Downey is the tournament director for Illinois, and a former Chicago area judge, Eddie Stephens, was a qualifier for the World finals last year at the U.S. event held in San Antonio, Tex.

The World Golfers Championship is unique, in that men and women of all ages compete together. There’s no breakdowns for age or sex, only by handicaps (0-5, 6-10, 11-15, 16-20 and 21-25). Different tees, though, are used according to sex , age and handicap differences.

“We feel we’re a true amateur tournament,’’ said Bengtson. “We’ve established camaraderie with people, some of whom can’t even communicate because of their language differences. But they’ve still become friends.’’

Bengtson took next year’s finals to Swan Lake because “it’s very charming and we need at least two courses…I don’t want the players playing one course over and over because they play four in the finals.’’

The World finals were held at PGA National in Florida the first three years but had a more international flavor after that. The finals will be held in South Africa for the second straight year but were held in Spain in 2009 and Thailand in 2010. Arnold Palmer has endorsed the competition and the late Seve Ballesteros was honorary chairman of the advisory committee last year.

Swan Lake has two 18-holers for the 72-hole competition, and the finals include two practice rounds and four tournament rounds, to be played on four different high-quality layouts.

As for the four-day ING event, it’ll bring golf leaders from management, resort, equipment and media together next May 19–23. Executive director Mike Jamison has taken the event around the country, with this year’s golf portion played on a challenging layout designed by Willard Byrd in the 1990s. It had hosted a Nike Tour event for nine years.

That was in keeping with the type of layouts Jamison had previously used. It was held at Florida’s Innisbrook layout, site of the PGA Tour’s Transitions Championship, in 2010.

Harrigan, Rosinia take aim at Senior PGA

This is an unusual year for big-time tournament golf in Chicago. Only September’s Ryder Cup at Medinah is on the calendar, but five other big-time events are within a short drive.

The first of those is the 73rd Senior PGA Championship, one of the majors on the Champions Tour. It begins a 72-hole run on Thursday at the spiffy new Harbor Shores resort course in Benton Harbor, Mich.

The field will have a touch of Chicago flavor. Mike Harrigan, the former Medinah pro who has been teaching at Chicago’s Diversey Range and the Players Club of Chicago in Justice, qualified for the starting field off a 17th-place showing in the Senior PGA Club Professionals tourney last October in Virginia and Billy Rosinia, the pro at Flagg Creek in Countryside, qualified off the alternate’s list last week.

Their opponents will include long-established stars like Freddie Couples, Tom Lehman, Bernhard Langer, Kenny Perry and Hale Irwin. Last year’s winner, Tom Watson, won’t defend his title because of a pinched nerve in his wrist, but Harrigan and Rosinia will obviously be in some select company.

Harrigan, 63, never was a touring pro but this will be his fourth time in the Senior PGA and he also qualified for three U.S. Senior Opens. He survived the cut in the 2000 Senior PGA at Florida’s PGA National in a tourney shortened to 54 holes by weather problems.

“I just want to continue to compete,’’ said Harrigan, who spends nearly half of each year living in Jupiter, FL. “I’ve heard Harbor Shores is a great golf course. I’m looking forward to it.’’

Harbor Shores is a Jack Nicklaus design that opened to rave reviews in 2009 and was awarded two Senior PGA Championship before it was even completely open. The tourney will return to Harbor Shores in 2014.

Harrigan keeps his game sharp in Florida, where he plays at The Fox Club in Stuart. Its members include 15-20 touring or club pros and some top-ranked amateurs. He believes last year’s qualifying tournament will help his chances this week. He qualified at Creighton Farms, a course also designed by Nicklaus.

“I understand it’s very similar to Harbor Shores,’’ said Harrigan. “It was very difficult, with very undulating greens. I thought they were impossible.’’

More big tournaments will follow the Senior PGA at reasonably nearby courses. The PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic, in the Quad Cities, is the only other one in Illinois but the U.S. Women’s Open will be played in Kohler, WI., the U.S. Senior Open in Orion, MI., and the PGA Tour’s BMW Championship in Indianapolis.

Illini in finals again

Illinois, which won the Big Ten championship the last four years, will compete in the NCAA finals for the fifth straight year. The Illini, thanks to a second-place finish in the Oklahoma regional, will be in the field at California’s prestigious Riviera course. The tourney begins a six-day run there on Tuesday (MAY 29).

Northwestern also qualified for the NCAA tourney but finished eighth in the Kentucky regional and failed to reach the finals.

A shot for the ages

St. Charles Country Club assistant Curtis Malm won last week’s 61st Illinois PGA Match Play title at Kemper Lakes in Hawthorn Woods. He made Rich Dukelow, an assistant at Cantigny in Wheaton and the reigning IPGA player-of-the-year, the losing finalist for the second straight year, but the section’s first major tournament of the season may be best remembered for the dramatic shot Jason Lee hit to end a second-round playoff.

Lee, the head pro at Chicago’s Ridgemoor Country Club and the tourney’s 2001 champion, holed a hybrid shot from 225 yards for double eagle to eliminate Kevin Rafferty of Dick’s Sporting Goods-Vernon Hills in 22 holes.

Here and there

Steve Stricker, who will bid for a fourth straight title at the John Deere Classic in July, played a round at The Glen Club in Glenview last week…..Pete Jordan, who played the PGA Tour for several years after developing his game at Medinah, was the caddie for J.J. Henry during the golfer’s bid for the Byron Nelson title last week….. The Illinois Women’s Open will return to its July dates (July 25-27) after being pushed back to August last year to accommodate a renovation project. Mistwood owner Jim McWethy has set June 1 for the course’s re-opening…..Settler’s Hill, in Geneva, re-opened on Tuesday following a lengthy renovation….Ivanhoe pro Jim Sobb couldn’t defend his Illinois PGA Match Play title last week at Kemper Lakes but he’ll go for a three-peat in the senior version of the tournament beginning Tuesday (MAY 29) at Shoreacres in Lake Bluff….The Chicago District Senior Amateur concludes a three-day run at Rockford Country Club on Thursday….First qualifier for the CDGA Amateur is Tuesday (MAY 29) at Royal Country Club of Long Grove. Glenwoodie, in Glenwood, will also host qualifying for the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links tournament on that day.

Sobb’s streak is over in IPGA match plays

For two years now Jim Sobb has been the man whenever the Illinois PGA holds a match play tournament. This year, though, his reign can to an abrupt halt.

The Ivanhoe pro won the section’s senior match play title in 2010 and 2011, was runner-up in the regular match play in 2010 and became the first player to sweep both titles last spring. To do it he had to win five matches in three days in the senior event and six in three days in the regular version.

Sobb, 56, tried to do it again on the same courses where he pulled off his historic sweep. He got by his first match Tuesday in the IPGA regular match play event at Kemper Lakes in Hawthorn Woods, edging 68th-seeded Jeremy Anderson, assistant at Twin Orchard in Long Grove, by a 1-up margin. But three-time winner Doug Bauman, from Biltmore Country Club in Barrington, eliminated Sobb 5 and 4 in his second match.

The 62nd annual tourney – first of the IPGA’s four major tourneys of the season — runs through Thursday.

The tourney started with 116 players, with the entrants seeded according to last year’s Bernardi point standings that determined the IPGA player-of-the-year. Sobb is the No. 4 seed and drew a first-round bye. Top-seeded Rich Dukelow of Cantigny, in Wheaton, also drew a first-round bye before winning his first match 5 and 4 over Michael Campbell of Village Links of Glen Ellyn.

“I’m sure everybody will be after me, but a couple things in my favor is that I’ve played these courses so many times,’’ said Sobb, who beat Dukelow 3 and 2 in last year’s final. While a Sobb title defense is now impossible, Dukelow advanced to the semifinals.

Last year the senior and regular match play competitions were held on successive weeks. This year the senior version is again at Shoreacres, in Lake Bluff, but on May 29-31 so Sobb will get some welcome rest before seeking his three-peat there.

ND golfer leads U.S. Open survivors

Notre Dame golfer Max Scodro, of Chicago, carded a 7-under-par 65 to earn medalist honors at Monday’s 90-player U.S. Open local qualifier at Schaumburg Golf Club.

Others qualifying for sectional play were Jack Perry of Evanston (67), former Illinois Amateur and Northwestern golfer Ravi Patel, Hinsdale’s Brett Tomfohrde and Libertyville’s Michael Schachner (all at 68) and Glencoe’s Jason Shapiro (69).

Most figure to bid for spots in the U.S. Open proper at a June 4 sectional elimination at Village Links of Glen Ellyn.

Cantigny’s “Double Jeopardy’’ ready soon

The frequently controversial 555-yard No. 2 hole on the Woodside course of the 27-hole Cantigny complex will re-open May 25. Erosion problems along the banks of a stream that lined the fairway of that hole, dubbed “Double Jeopardy,’’ forced closing of the entire nine.

Rick Jacobson’s design firm, in Libertyville, supervised the re-contouring of the fairway and that eliminated the blind second shot that had been required previously.

“We made a good hole even better,’’ said Cantigny executive director Mike Nass. “It was a hard decision to take Woodside out of play for so long…For fairness and playability, this is a huge step forward.’’

Here and there

The recently-sold Ditka Sports Dome, in Bolingbrook, will re-open Saturday, but strictly as a restaurant, now called McQ’s. The indoor golf area is being renovated and the first shots won’t be hit there until November….Acquiring Ryder Cup tickets might still be possible, assuming you’re willing to buy at least four tickets to the May 24-27 Senior PGA Championship at Michigan’s Harbor Shores course. For details contact www.RyderCupAdmin@pgahq.com…..The fourth annual Sunshine Marathon, a fundraiser for the Chicago District Golf Assn. charity arm, is Saturday at the Zigfield Troy course in Woodridge….A record 1,364 players entered the July 5-8 U.S. Women’s Open at Wisconsin’s Blackwolf Run. They range from 11-year old Californian Elizabeth Wang to Arizona resident Bobbi Lancaster, 61….A new Chicago company, NewSpin Golf, is about to introduce SwingSmart, a game improvement tool that provides instant information on key elements of the swing….Kewanee’s Tim Miler was the champion in the rain-shortened Illinois Public Links Championship at George Dunne National in Tinley Park….The 54-hole Illinois Mid-Amateur concludes today (WEDNESDAY) at Flossmoor.

Chien, Hopfinger lead first U.S. Open local qualifier

Monday’s rains forced the Illinois Public Links Championship to be reduced from 36 to 18 holes, but the bad weather didn’t hamper the first of two local qualifying rounds for the U.S. Open – the first significant competition of this Chicago golf season.

Northwestern student Sam Chien, an amateur, and Iowa alum Brad Hopfinger, winner of last year’s Illinois Amateur who in his ninth month as a professional, shared medalist honors with 3-under-par 69s at Inverness, and Illinois coach Mike Small also advanced to sectional play by shooting a 70.

Deer Park’s Greg Conrad matched Small’s score and Wisconsin resident Andy Hansen and Bennett Blakeman of Burr Ridge also qualified for sectional play through a sudden death playoff. Blakeman, qualified for the last two U.S. Opens, the first as an amateur and last year as a pro.

The Chicago District Golf Assn. will host the second local qualifier on Monday at Schaumburg Golf Club. Most of the survivors of the 90-player eliminations are expected to bid for berths in the Open proper in the June 4 sectional elimination at Village Links of Glen Ellyn.

According to the U.S. Golf Assn. over 9,000 filed entries for this U.S. Open, the finals of which will feature 156 players competing at Olympic Club in San Francisco June 14-17.

Illini head local NCAA invitees

Small, who has guided Illinois to four straight Big Ten championships, got more good news this week when his Illini were assigned the seventh seed among 14 teams in an NCAA regional tournament at Norman, Okla. Loyola, like the Illini a conference champion, had the 14th seed there.

Northwestern, an NCAA qualifier for the 13th time in coach Pat Goss’ 16 seasons, was the ninth seed among 14 teams in a regional at Bowling Green, Ky., while Notre Dame was the 11th seed of 13 teams at Ann Arbor, Mich.

Teaching pros on the move

Joe Bosco, who co-founded the Green To Tee Academy with Peter Donahue in 1991, has opened his own instructional operation at The Glen Club in Glenview.

Donahue, meanwhile, will take the Green To Tee teaching staff to Highland Park Country Club. The Academy had been based at Glencoe since 2004.

In addition to opening his own teaching program, Bosco will team up with Mike Adams, who has taught numerous pro tour players, on a Foundation for Achievement program that consists of four-hour sessions at The Glen on May 21 and 22. Bosco and Adams will also host a Teach the Teacher Workshop for Illinois PGA professionals on May 22 at The Glen.

Silver Lake range to open

The 45-hole Silver Lake facility in Orland Park will hold the ribbon cutting for its new practice range at 11 a.m. on Friday. Long drive champion Joe Hajduch will be featured at the ceremonies.

Silver Lake has operated without a range since its opening in 1927. The new range will be located near the No. 9 hole on the North course, and that hole has been reduced to a par-3 to accommodate the range construction.

Here and there

Luke Donald’s fourth annual Taste of the First Tee fundraiser has been scheduled for June 20 at Northern Trust’s headquarters in downtown Chicago. Fellow PGA Tour stars Steve Stricker and Mark Wilson will also participate….The rain-shortened Illinois Public Links tourney wrap up Tuesday with 18 holes at the George Dunne National course in Tinley Park…..The Northwestern women’s team is the 15th seed in the 24-team NCAA East Regional, which begins a three-day run Thursday at State College, Pa…..GolfVisions has added Chapel Hill, in McHenry, to its Chicago area portfolio….The Crystal Lake Golf Learning Center, which is located across the street from the Prairie Isle course in Prairie Grove, has undergone an ownership change with Eric Pelfresne the new general manager….Erin Hills, a future U.S. Open site in Wisconsin, opens for the season on Thursday (MAY 10)…..Lemont’s Cog Hill has scheduled a two-person scramble tournament for May 19 on the No. 1 course…..Settler’s Hill, in Batavia, has set a May 22 opening. It’s been closed to accommodate a Waste Management renovation.

French Lick’s fourth course, Sultan’s Run, is a keeper

JASPER, Ind. – If ever there was a comeback story in the golf business, it’s the one that has unfolded at French Lick Resort — and it continues to get better.

This little town in the resort’s namesake in southern Indiana, near Louisville, was the home to one of the most popular retreats in the United States in the early 1900s and its two stately hotels reflect that. The French Lick Hotel (now with a 24-hour casino added) has 443 rooms and suites and dates back to 1845. The West Baden Hotel, with 243 rooms and suites, was built in 1902.

French Lick went through a lengthy economic downturn after its heyday years, with its only claim being the fact that it was the boyhood home of basketball great Larry Bird. Now that’s all changed.

The original French Lick had an 18-hole course designed by one of the architectural greats, Donald Ross. He opened it in 1917 as The Hill Course, and the 1924 PGA Championship (won by no less a legend than Walter Hagen) was staged there. The course also hosted LPGA and Senior PGA Tour events before a $5 million renovation. In 2005 it re-opened as The Donald Ross Course.

The original French Lick also had an 18-holer designed by Tom Bendelow, perhaps the most prolific architect in golf’s early years in the United States. Bendelow did his creating in 1907, when The Valley Course opened. It also went into disarray and was renovated in partnership with US Kids Golf as a nine-holer. It’s now called the Valley Links course, and its popularity and conditioning in improving rapidly. In what other nine-holer can you go around twice and end up playing a 7,000-yard-plus layout? You can at Valley Links.

Then came the arrival of Pete Dye, arguably the most famous architect of this generation. His most famous creations include TPC Sawgrass in Florida, Whistling Straits and Blackwolf Run in Wisconsin, The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Resort in South Carolina, Oak Tree in Oklahoma and Honors Course in Tennessee.

Dye, by now in his 80s, created a spectacular course to further spur the French Lick revival. That layout opened in 2009 and hosted a PGA event – the Professional Players National Championship – a year later. It hosted the Big Ten men’s event this year, and will also host it in 2013 and 2014 while The Ross hosts the Big Ten women’s championship at the same time.

Though he’s designed or co-designed about 300 courses world-wide, Dye said his namesake course at French Lick is “probably the biggest construction job I have ever had. This is the most interesting inland site I have built on.’’

Still, the French Lick experience continues to grow. This year the resort took over the management of Sultan’s Run in nearby Jasper. This is a big development for French Lick. Sultan’s Run is an 18-holer designed by one-time Dye protégé Tim Liddy and has a memorable waterfall on its closing hole.

This layout is good all the way around, a real fun track to play. And, if you visit French Lick, it’s not one to miss. Its addition to the golf options should keep lots of golfers at the resort an extra day. They’ll be missing something if they don’t play Sultan’s Run.

“That’s one of the most talked-about holes in Indiana,’’ said Dave Harner, French Lick’s director of golf. “But there’s not a bad hole, and that course is a contrast to both of ours. While (the Dye and Ross layouts) are more links style, this is a parkland course with tree-lined fairways and a far amount of elevation.’’

Sultan’s Run, built in the 1990s, is a challenging 6,859 yards from the back tees. It’s challenging, sporting and playable — a real treat about 20 miles from the resort, but transportation can be provided.

Though it’s not connected to French Lick, those playing Sultan’s Run can make it to Schnitzelbank, the best German restaurant I’ve ever visited — and that’s saying something because I’ve been to quite a few. Schnitzelbank, which just celebrated its 50th anniversary in January, is a fixture in the town of 5,000.

Harner is every bit as enthusiastic about the good things happening on the Valley Links. Upon its re-opening the resort offered a junior certification program for residents that allowed youngsters 12 and under to play free if accompanied by an adult who played a half-price.

That plan was more recently stretched to include resort guests. Valley Links has six sets of tees, the shortest providing a layout of 1,100 yards to even 5- and 6-years can play it.

“Our junior program is noteworthy,’’ said Harner, “and it’s been starting to get attention lately. For years we thought the juniors were more of a nuisance, and now we realize we should have taken better care of them.’’

The entire golf world is realizing that in these tough economic times, but French Lick is doing something about it and so are the little towns around it — Mitchell, Orleans, Paoli and, of course, Jasper. I was stunned by how much development has been done (and not just in golf) in those communities since my last visit in 2010. The economic recession seems to have stimulated progress, not slowed it down, in this little corner of Indiana.

Author: lenz