Author: lenz

Could Mistwood’s playing staff be the best in the U.S.?

Mistwood director of golf Andy Mickelson said it, almost without any hesitation.

“I’d be bold enough to say that we could put our playing staff against any in the country,’’ Mickelson told me.

And I couldn’t argue with him.

Mistwood owner Jim McWethy has a big staff of teaching pros in Romeoville and their playing resumes are impressive entering the first big month of the competitive season in the Chicago area.

Start with Mickelson. He won the PGA Assistants national championship in November on the Wanamaker Course at PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, FL., and then proved that was no fluke by winning the TaylorMade national championship at Pebble Beach in March.

Brian Brodell, the director of junior development, is the reigning Illinois PGA Player of the Year and he’ll be out to repeat beginning this month at the 65th IPGA Match Play Championship at Kemper Lakes. That’s the biggest of the May tournaments and the event where Brodell got his big season in 2015 off to a great start. He finished as the runner-up to Merit Club’s Jim Billiter in that one.

But the Mistwood staff is deeper than those two. Chris Ioriatti, performance specialist, shot a record 63 over his home course last year, then teamed up with Mickelson to win the IPGA’s Fall Pro-Assistants title in 2015 and its Spring Pro-Assistants title this year.

And John Platt’s no slouch, either. Mistwood’s director of instruction and long-time coach at the high school and college level, frequently contends in the IPGA Senior tournaments. Brodell, Platt and Ioriatti are well-decorated as teachers and/or coaches but they can play, too.

“We have such a great staff,’’ said Mickelson. “We all motivate each other. That creates a culture people are attracted to; they’re attracted to good golf.’’

Mickelson is the best of the lot at the moment, but is no threat to Brodell’s bid to repeat as IPGA Player of the Year. Mickelson’s status with the PGA of America doesn’t qualify him for either the IPGA Match Play or IPGA Championship – two of the section’s four major tournaments.

While that precludes him from becoming Player of the Year, it doesn’t keep him out of big national events. Last year he won $24,000 with his victories in the PGA Assistants and TaylorMade Championships.

“Of all the club pros, that was probably the hottest six months any of them had,’’ said Mickelson, who could cash in again this November. He will be the only club pro in the Pebble Beach Invitational for TaylorMade’s players on the PGA, LPGA, European and Champions Tours.

Mickelson had a slow start as a professional player. He had no notable amateur wins before turning pro after college, and started as an assistant to then head man Visanu Tongwarin at Mistwood. When he was offered a promising job outside of golf at a Lisle packaging company Mickelson took it and regained his amateur status.

He was runner-up to Bloomington’s Kyle English in the 2011 Chicago District Amateur at Medinah before being lured back into golf via an offer from Mistwood general manager Dan Bradley. Mickelson returned to the club’s staff but it wasn’t until last year that his game exploded. Still, Mickelson — now 34 — has no intention of becoming a touring player.

“With my confidence level and where my game’s at I think I would make money at the professional level,’’ he said, “but not at this place in my life. I have a 4-year old and a 6-year old and I’m married, plus this (Mistwood) is a great place.’’

Brodell’s story is quite different. The son of a club professional in Appleton, Wis., he played college golf at Wisconsin and was the assistant coach for the Badgers for four seasons. Then he moved on to Purdue as an assistant coach for three more campaigns. He came to Mistwood two years ago in part to deal with some personal issues and has thrived on both the teaching and playing front.

“ There’s a difference between being a teacher and a coach,’’ he said. “I love to compete, and I’m confident in my ability. I’ve been through the demons of missing four-footers.’’

Playing-wise, though, he’ll compete just as he did last year – strictly in the IPGA events. Teaching will come first, and his pupils range in age from seven to 69, but Brodell will join Mickelson and Ioriatti in weekly playing sessions with members. The staff hotshots rarely play together, and Brodell won’t go far to play in tournaments, either.

“I won’t travel, but I might caddie a bit,’’ he said. One place he might do that is in the Rust-Oleum Championship, the Web.com Tour stop coming to Ivanhoe Club from June 6-12. Brodell isn’t looking at himself as a player in that event.

“If the Illinois PGA got an exemption for its Player of the Year and I could give it to anyone, I’d give it to Andy,’’ said Brodell. “He’s playing that well right now. I think I could make the cut, but Andy could win.’’

For now, at least, Brodell’s tournament aspirations are geared toward the IPGA Match Play Championship. That event helped his Player of the Year bid last year, but the loss to Billiter in the final remains a bad memory.

“I had won a lot of close matches, then (Billiter) hit one of his worst shots on the 21st hole. It went in the water, and that left the tournament for me to win,’’ said Brodell.

He couldn’t take advantage of the opportunity, though. Brodell had his own problems at Kemper Lakes’ 171-yard par-3 third hole, struggling in with a double bogey. That allowed Billiter to win the match and title with just a bogey.

Player of the Year wasn’t decided until six months later, however, and Billiter contributed to Brodell’s victory, citing club commitments for not playing in either the Illinois Open or IPGA Players Championship. Billiter also won the IPGA Championship, and those are the four events offering the most Player of the Year points.

Brodell didn’t win any of the four IPGA majors but picked up points in all of them. He tied for 12th in the Illinois Open, tied for 28th in the IPGA Championship and tied for third in the IPGA Players Championship. His Player of the Year award was just another reason for the Mistwood crew to celebrate.

Mickelson’s two big wins and the completion of McWethy’s nine-year facility-wide renovation plans also made for happy times at the club, and the celebrating doesn’t figure to end there just yet.

Web.com Tour returns — with tourney at Ivanhoe

After eight years the Web.com Tour is back. This is going to be fun.

The PGA Tour’s developmental circuit was just that when it held tournaments at Kemper Lakes in 2002 and The Glen Club from 2003 to 2008. The return event has very little to do with those. In fact, the only link is Scott Cassin, the tournament director for the LaSalle Bank Open from 2004 to 2007 and the Bank of America Open in 2008. He will also direct the Rust-Oleum Championship, which takes over Ivanhoe Club for a 72-hole run from June 9-12.

Cassin, though, is quick to point out that the return of the Web.com Tour isn’t about him. For one thing, the circuit was called the Nationwide Tour when the tournaments were played at Kemper Lakes and The Glen Club. The new event for this season – plus two more in 2017 and 2018 – is due to the efforts of Tom Reed, an Ivanhoe member and president and chief executive officer of Rust-Oleum. The company’s headquarters are in Vernon Hills but it held its big tournament at Lakewood Country Club in Cleveland last year.

Reed wanted it staged in his hometown – and at his club, to boot. A good number of his 400 employees at Vernon Hills were quick to volunteer their efforts for the tournament at Ivanhoe. It’ll be a $600,000 event with the champion receiving $108,000. The field will consist of 156 professionals with only the low 65 and ties playing in the final two rounds.

The Web.com Tour was popular with Chicago’s diehard golfers in its days at Kemper Lakes and The Glen. They liked getting up close and personal with the PGA Tour stars of the future and seeing how they compared with a few of the older players gearing up for the Champions Tour. Those events produced some memorable champions, too.

Most notable of the bunch, of course, was Jason Dufner. He won the LaSalle Bank Open in 2006 then became a solid PGA Tour player, winning four times including the PGA Championship in 2013 and making the U.S. Ryder Cup team.

He wasn’t the only champion to make his mark later on, though. Australians Andre Stolz and Brendan Jones won in 2003 and 2004 respectively. Both arrived at The Glen Club with world rankings in the top 100, signifying plenty of promise. Stolz won at Las Vegas on the PGA Tour the year after his win at The Glen. Jones spent most of his time after his win in Japan where he won 13 tournaments.

Chris Couch, the LBO winner in 2005, won on the PGA Tour at New Orleans the following year and eventually accumulated five wins on the developmental circuit. John Riegger, the 2007 LBO winner, went on to win on the Champions Tour as well and Kris Blanks, winner of the last event at The Glen, had some near misses on the big circuit. He finished second in the 2010 Puerto Rico Open and lost the 2011 Canadian Open title in a playoff.

The Rust-Oleum Championship couldn’t be coming to the Chicago area at a better time. With the BMW Championship being played at Crooked Stick in Indianapolis in September, the Rust-Oleum Championship will be the only PGA Tour-sanctioned tournament in the Chicago area this year. It’ll include a celebrity pro-am on the Monday of tournament week, a Drive, Chip & Putt qualifying competition on Tuesday and a regular pro-am on Wednesday. The Golf Channel will provide TV coverage of the four tournament rounds.

Though Ivanhoe director of golf Jim Sobb has long been among the top players in the Illinois PGA ranks, Ivanhoe will be making its debut as a tournament venue when the Web.com Tour visits. The club has roots back to 1949 when members of the Sky Crest Country Club of Chicago found themselves without a home and relocated to Thorngate Country Club in Deerfield. They opted to find a new location in 1987 and Ivanhoe opened in 1991 with an 18-hole course designed by local architect Dick Nugent.

The club was transformed into a 27-hole facility in 1995 by architect Arthur Hills, who created three nines – named Forest, Prairie and Marsh. The original 18 holes, measuring 7,059 yards and playing to a par of 71, will be used for the tournament. Ivanhoe is one of the few clubs to earn Certified Signature Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary status in America and underwent a major renovation of its 10,000-square foot clubhouse in 2006.

Ivanhoe will have a similar caliber field to those at The Glen and there’ll be at least one hometown favorite. The first sponsor’s exemption went to Michael Schachner. He developed his game at Ivanhoe before moving on to Duke University where he posted a 60 in a collegiate round. Now a veteran of golf’s mini-tours, Schachner has been a perennial contender in the Illinois Open.

Schachner figures to have some company from the local ranks. The Illinois PGA will conduct Monday qualifying sessions at sites to be determined and they’re expected to draw a hefty number of local amateurs and professionals.

The 2015 winner of the Rust-Oleum Championship in Cleveland was Shane Bertsch, who has since returned to the PGA Tour.

As was the case in previous Web.com Tour visits, the Rust-Oleum Championship will be spectator friendly and tickets are affordable. Youngsters 17 and under will be admitted free and tickets for four days of tournament play for all others are $20. A ticket upgrade, to $30 for the four tournaments days, is also available. It’ll provide a seat at the 18th hole pavilion area.

And one other thing. The Rust-Oleum Championship won’t be the only Web.com Tour event in Illinois this year. Springfield will host one, too. The $550,000 Lincoln Land Charity Championship will be played at Panther Creek from July 14-17.

Panther Creek is no stranger to tournament golf. It hosted the LPGA’s State Farm Classic from 2007 to 2011. Its course, designed by Hale Irwin in 1992, also hosted last year’s Illinois State Amateur. Tee-K Kelly, a Medinah member from Wheaton, won that event for the second time but there were more fireworks from the 2014 winner. Ray Knoll, of Naperville, couldn’t defend his title but he posted what’s believed to be the lowest score in the tournament’s 85-year history with an 8-under-par 63 that included an albatross on Panther Creek’s tenth hole.

Illini, NU golfers are NCAA-bound again — as Big 10 champions

This is getting to be old hat. The University of Illinois men and Northwestern women are heading back to next month’s NCAA tournaments as Big Ten champions.

Coach Mike Small’s Illini and Emily Fletcher’s Wildcats defended their titles last weekend on Indiana courses. Illinois ruled for the seventh time in eight seasons and NU, which tied Ohio State for its title, were champions for the third time in four years.

The Illini men won dramatically. They trailed Iowa by eight strokes entering the final round, then stormed back to post a Big Ten record 838 score – four better than the previous mark set by Ohio State in 2004. Thomas Detry, who shot a final-round 64 to tie the Big Ten record, and Charlie Danielson finished one-two in the individual standings. Danielson won the Les Bolstad Award for lowest stroke average (70.7) during the season.

“This was huge for our seniors (Detry and Danielson),’’ said Small. “These have been the best four years for Illinois golf.’’

Northwestern’s Hannah Kim won the Mary Fossum Award for posting the low stroke average for Big Ten women during the season.

The NCAA regionals run May 5-7. NU is the No. 2 seed at Shoal Creek in Alabama. The Illini haven’t received their regional assignment yet.

CDGA season tees off

The Chicago District Golf Assn. tournament season tees off Wednesday (TODAY, APRIL 27) with the first of two qualifiers for the second CDGA Mid-Amateur – one of 11 championships the organization will conduct this season. The second qualifier is Monday at Village Greens of Woodridge and the final is May 16-18 at Lake Shore Country Club in Glencoe.

Monday is also the entry deadline for the first event of the CDGA’s new Net Series. The Series consists of four team and two individual handicap competitions. First of the better ball events is May 23 at Crystal Lake Country Club.
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Montgomerie prepares for three-peat

Colin Montgomerie made an early appearance at Harbor Shores in Benton Harbor, Mich., this week to begin his quest for a third straight win in the Senior PGA Championship. That tourney — the only major championship on any of the three major tours to be played near the Chicago area this year — is May 26-29 on the Jack Nicklaus-designed course.

Harbor Shores hosted the tourney in both 2012 and 2014, when the Scottish-born Montgomerie won his first major title on any tour. He also won last year at French Lick in Indiana. The last player to three-peat in the Senior PGA was Hale Irwin, who won from 1996-98.

This year’s Senior PGA will have at least one notable new player in the field. John Daly will be among Montgomerie’s rivals.

Glen Club welcomes AJGA

The Glen Club, in Glenview, will host the American Junior Golf Association Preview from Friday through Sunday. It’ll feature 78 boys and girls in the 12-19 age group who want to improve their eligibility status for the AJGA’s summer tournaments.

Friday will be a practice day and the 36-hole tournament proper will consist of 18-hole rounds Saturday and Sunday. Tee times will run from 7-9 a.m. off both the Nos. 1 and 10 tees.

Instruction Day spotlights Cog Hill

The PGA of America will culminate its 100-day Centennial celebration with a series of instruction sessions to be televised on The Golf Channel next Wednesday (MAY 4). One will be broadcast from Cog Hill, in Lemont, from 3-4 p.m. with Stan Utley, Todd Sones and Kevin Weeks the instructors.

Other clubs included in the day-long series of one-hour clinics are Baltusrol, in New Jersey; Ibis, in Florida; Keeton Park and Fossil Trace, in Colorado; and TPC Harding Park, in California.

Illinois lands eight Evans Scholars

The Western Golf Association has awarded Evans Scholarships to 27 caddies who reside in Illinois and eight of them have chosen to attend the University of Illinois starting in the fall. Among them are Daniel Arias, Highland Park; Madeline Atwood, Mount Prospect; Kevin Baczek, Roselle; Clara Baumgarten, Wheaton; Daniel Benson, Countryside; Angela Bogusz, DesPlaines, Nicholas Castelli, Highland Park; and Antonino Conte, Addison.

Others selected from the Herald area include Andrew Christopher, of Glenview, who will attend the University of Colorado; Dante Bruno of Elmwood Park (Purdue); Katlin Coy of Glenview (Marquette); Claire DeRosa of Park Ridge (Wisconsin) and Alison Dobbins of Crystal Lake (Indiana).

Mistwood pros celebrate clubhouse opening with another victory

Mistwood’s magic foursome (from left) John Platt, Brian Brodell, Chris Ioriatti and Andy Mickelson.

How much better can things get at Mistwood?

This was a big week at the Romeoville course, if for no other reason than owner Jim McWethy is hosting a week of special events to celebrate the grand opening of his spectacular new clubhouse.

Opening of the 27,000 square foot clubhouse, which includes McWethy Tavern and the Grand Hall dining facility, completed nine years of planning and construction at Mistwood. The course was renovated first, a two-year project, and then a state-of-the-art Performance Center was constructed.

As director of golf Andy Mickelson was on hand for the start of the grand opening festivities on Monday but he had to duck out early. Mickelson and assistant professional Chris Ioriatti had an early afternoon tee time at St. Charles Country Club in the Illinois PGA’s Spring Pro-Assistants Championship.

They won last fall’s version of the competition and they were up to the task again, shooting a 9-under-par 63 to top the 64-team field. More playing success by Mistwood’s staff of professionals is likely, as another teach pro – Brian Brodell – is the reigning IPGA Player of the Year and John Platt was among the section’s top senior players last year.

Though the golf season is still young, big things are already happening at some of the public facilities – and not just at Mistwood. Two Wheaton facilities – Cantigny and Arrowhead – have stepped up their offerings for this season as well.

At Cantigny, the popular Vision 54 program introduced last year has been expanded. Instructor Gay Crain conducted a training course last year. Now the program, which begins on Thursday, includes an overview course followed by three optional follow-up courses that go more in-depth on specific skills.

Vision 54 is based on teachings at Annika Sorenstam’s academy in Florida and the best-selling book “Play Your Best Golf Now’’ by Lynn Marriott and Pia Nilsson. The courses represent “a process, a philosophy, a new outlook and a holistic approach to golf.’’

Cost for the four one-hour sessions is $160 and will be limited to five golfers, ages 14 and up. The program will be repeated in May, June and August.

Arrowhead, celebrating its 90th anniversary this year, has added a new, high-tech addition to its clubhouse. Pelican Golf Fitting Center held its grand opening last week.

In moving into the Wheaton Park District facility Pelican becomes the first subsidiary of GolfDirectNow — a firm headquartered in a warehouse two miles away in Warrenville. GolfDirectNow has sold golf equipment via the Internet the last four years.

Kent Sirois, who had been director of golf at both Naperville Country Club and White Eagle in Naperville prior to joining the golf staff at Dick’s Sporting Goods for a 15-year run, and local swing instructor Mike Mandakas are in charge of the Pelican facility.
Pelican offers club-fitting, club repair and instruction with the help of such new state-of-the-art equipment as BodiTrak, TrackMan and SAM Puttlab.

“It’s very technical and will help many, many golfers – regardless of their ability,’’ said Sirois.

At least a dozen vendors have provided equipment to supplement the club-fitting procedure.

“We’re not biased to any vendor,’’ said Sirois. “It’s all in what fits any individual. We can fit almost anybody.’’

Have some seconds

Last weekend was one for near-misses as far as Chicago area tour players were concerned. Northwestern alum Luke Donald finished tied for second (behind champion Branden Grace) at the PGA Tour’s RBC Heritage Classic and Crystal Lake’s Joe Affrunti was in a six-way tie for second in the PGA Tour’s Latinoamerica circuit in Argentina.

Donald, a former world No. 1, cracked the top 10 on the PGA circuit for the first time since Travelers Championship eight months ago. It was his fourth runner-up finish in the Heritage and he also has two third-places finishes there.

“This was a great step in the right direction,’’ said Donald, who earlier said he’d considered quitting the tour during a frustrating 2015 season. “I’m really positive about my game going forward.’’

Here and There

Illinois senior Charlie Danielson has been named to the U.S. team for the Palmer Cup matches against Europe’s top college players. Danielson is the fourth Illini player selected to the Palmer Club, played last year at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove. Others were Thomas Detry, Thomas Pieters and Scott Langley. This year’s matches are June 24-26 at Formby Golf Club in England.

Cog Hill will hold a Tee It Forward Scramble for two-player teams from noon-2 p.m. on Saturday on its No. 1 course. Cog has also announced that players can certify to use GolfBoards. The new form of on-course transportation will be available at the Lemont facility this season.

The Chicago District Golf Assn. opens its tournament season next Wednesday, April 27, with a qualifier for the CDGA Mid-Amateur Championship at Wilmette Golf Club.

The Pine Hollow Open will celebrate its 40th anniversary on April 30 at Downers Grove Golf Club.

Arlington Lakes plans a July 1 opening for its 18-hole course that has been undergoing a renovation.

Here’s what’s new from some of our favorite travel destinations

California’s famed LaCosta was one of our favorite stops during our coast to coast golf tour.

Our latest, extended travels to golf destinations are over now, and they were unprecedented. We were basically on the road for six months – from Oct. 1 to April 10 – and made visits to destinations in Nebraska, Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, California. Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia and Indiana.

We covered about 14,000 miles on this all-driving odyssey and hit 18 destinations with a lengthy stay in Winter Haven, FL., in between – a period during which we tested a number of golf facilities in the Orlando area. All were chronicled in my reports and Joy’s photos.

All in all it was a worthwhile, educational and productive journey in which we had lots of fun, saw old friends, made many new ones and hopefully provided helpful information for your golf travels.

Here’s a sampling of what’s new for golf travel aficionados, starting with a report from the last of our recent stops — long-time favorite French Lick Resort in southern Indiana.

The big news at French Lick has centered on its spectacular Pete Dye Course in recent years, but not this time. Director of golf Dave Harner and his staff turned more attention to the Donald Ross Course this time.

Colin Montgomerie’s win in the 2015 Senior PGA Championship won’t be forgotten at the Pete Dye Course at French Lick.

“We recognized that it’s not an easy course for women or players with 25 handicaps or higher,’’ said Harner, “so we added 11 new forward tees and they’ll shorten the course for those players by about 900 yards. It’ll enhance the playing experience for those players, speed up play and open us more to family golf.’’

The Ross will also be the exclusive site for July’s Indiana Open, the first time that has happened at one of the Hoosier state’s most historic courses since 1962. Both the Dye and Ross layouts were used to host that tournament in 2012.

All three French Lick courses will be used to host the Indiana Junior Age Group Championship in July and the LPGA Legends Championship will be the big event of the season at the Dye, from Aug. 19-21. Harner said the fourth playing of that event “will be bigger and better than ever.’’ The pavilion at the Dye Course clubhouse has also been doubled in size to allow for more social events there and the club has a new head professional in Andy Fortner. He moved over from the Ross Course, with Rob Koontz taking over the head job there.

A DEAL AT PINEHURST: Want to play Pinehurst’s historic No. 2 course (as well as No. 8) for only $19.75? And, you could play the resort’s other layouts for free – if you opt to join the Private Residence Club at the newest of the Pinehurst courses, called either No. 9 or simply The National. It’s a Jack Nicklaus design.

Obviously there’s a catch. You have to buy in to The Cottages at National but this unusual offering is an enticing deal for those able to spend at least three weeks a year at Pinehurst. There are seven cottages, each with either two or four bedrooms, and the Private Residence Club falls somewhere between a time share and home ownership. It’s a substitute for buying a second home, according to creator Dave Hanna. He’s been at Pinehurst since 1992 and can tell you how it all works.

The newest course at Pinehurst Resort is still in the growing stage as far as residents are concerned.

MEXICO-BOUND? KemperSports has kicked off a hole-in-one promotion called UNO! Golfers who make an ace at one of Kemper’s participating facilities have a chance to win a seven-night trip for two to Vidanta Resort in Mexico. Vidanta has courses designed by Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer. KemperSports also announced that it has added Mahopac Golf & Beach Club in New York to its management portfolio.

IT’S A GO IN KOHLER: Two of the courses are now open in Kohler, Wis. – the Irish Course at Whistling Straits and the Original Championship Course at Blackwolf Run. The Straits Course at Whistling Straits will open later this month. The Original Championship Course – used for the 1998 and 2012 U.S. Women’s Open – will be available through April 22. The Original is comprised of select holes on both the River and Meadow Valley courses.

AND ITS FREE: Six courses in Gaylord, Mich., will offer free golf with a paid night’s lodging at one of the participating hotels from April 22-24. The nearby Boyne resorts also are planning some major promotional events to spotlight the 50th anniversary of the Heather course at Boyne Highlands and the 20th anniversary of Bay Harbor.

CHECK YOUR WATCHES: The Omni Homestead Resort in Virginia turns 250 years old (yes, even older than the U.S.) this year. To celebrate the resort will celebrate at 2:50 p.m. every day from Memorial Day to Labor Day with the serving a different flavor of cake.

The True Blue clubhouse is one of the most beautiful in Myrtle Beach.

COME ONE, COME ALL: Registration has opened for he 33rd World Amateur Handicap Championship in Myrtle Beach, S.C. The event, to be held Aug. 27-Sept. 2, generally draws about 3,500 entrants from all 50 states and some foreign countries.

NEW DIRECTION: Reynolds Plantation Oconee, in Greensboro, Ga., has transformed its instruction program. It’s now the Reynolds Kingdom of Golf, presented by TaylorMade and will be a full game improvement facility operated by Reynolds Lake Oconee. Reynolds also announced that it will host one of the premier national junior tournaments, the Rolex Tournament of Champions, from June 28 to July 1. It’s an invitational event for boys and girls in the 12-18 age group.

SITE CHANGE: The Web.com Tour Championship has been moved within the Jacksonville, FL. Area. It had been held at Dye’s Valley Course at TPC Sawgrass from 2013-15 but construction on the entire TPC property led to officials looking for a different site. This Oct. 3-9 the event will be held at Atlantic Beach Country Club, a former site of the PGA Tour’s Greater Jacksonville Open.

Chambers Bay, the 2015 U.S. Open site on Puget Sound, was the toughest course we played.

International Crown needed Webb to play at Merit Club

The UL International Crown, the biggest event on the Chicago golf calendar this season, lucked out when it reached its first qualifying deadline last week in the midst of Masters hoopla world-wide.

In announcing the eight countries to qualify for the July 19-24 global team event at the Merit Club it was significant that Australia was among them. Australia stood eighth among the team contending for places in the tournament and that meant that Karrie Webb would be returning to the Merit Club where she won the U.S. Women’s Open in 2000 – the only big tournament played at the Libertyville private facility.

Webb was also the champion of the Kellogg Keebler Classic at Stonebridge Country Club in Aurora in 2004 – the last LPGA tournament played in the Chicago area. She won both those events by whopping five-stroke margins and has since been inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. Webb has 57 world-wide tournament wins with 41 of them coming on the LPGA Tour – more than any other active player.

The Crown needs players of that stature in the Crown since its format doesn’t guarantee all the top players will participate. Lydia Ko, the current world’s No. 1 player, for instance, won’t be playing at the Merit Club because her native New Zealand didn’t qualify. Other notables who will miss the Crown for the same reason include seventh-ranked Brooke Henderson (Canada) and veteran star Suzann Pettersen (Norway).

Webb, 41, hasn’t been back to the Merit Club since the day she held off Meg Mallon and Cristy Kerr to win the first of her seven major titles.

“I’m real excited about coming back,’’ she said during a brief Chicago visit last week. “I want to see if my memories are as vivid as I think they are. Most of the other LPGA players were kids at the time I won.’’

She repeated as champion the following year at Pine Needles in North Carolina but isn’t as dominating a player now, owning a No. 36 world ranking and standing 21st on the LPGA season money list

The Crown made its debut in 2014 at Cave’s Valley in Maryland. The second playing will look much different that the first in that the top two teams two years ago – Spain and Sweden – didn’t qualify to play at the Merit Club.

“I feel like I’m the pseudo-defending champion since Spain isn’t coming back,’’ said Webb. “Fortunately (Australia) could sneak in but we’ll be underdogs that week.’’

Each of the eight team qualifiers will have four players, and they’ll be determined off the world rankings on June 13 following the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. The current top four U.S. players are Lexi Thompson, Stacy Lewis, Kerr and Brittany Lincicome. The first three played for the U.S. at Cave’s Valley.

Lincicome, currently ranked 18th, will have to hold off Jessica Korda (ranked 22nd), Gerina Piller (23rd) and Alison Lee (24th) to secure her spot on the team. Paula Creamer, now ranked 41st, was the fourth player for the U.S. at Cave’s Valley.

The last time the LPGA visited Chicago was in 2009 for the Solheim Cup matches at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove. The Crown kicks off a three-year run of big women’s events in the Chicago area. The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship will be played at Olympia Fields in 2017 and Kemper Lakes in 2018 and the first U.S. Senior Women’s Open will also come to Chicago Golf Club in 2018.

Here and there

The Golfers on Golf radio show, with its “favorite foursome’’ of Rory Spears, Ed Stevenson, Mike Munro and Bill Berger, kicks off its 22-week season at 9 a.m. Sunday on WSBC (1240-AM) and WCFJ (1470-AM).

Libertyville’s Michael Schachner is the first sponsor’s exemption for the new Rust-Oleum Championship, coming to Ivanhoe Club on June 6-12. A veteran of the mini-tours and perennial contender in the Illinois Open, Schachner developed his game at Ivanhoe.

Arrowhead, in Wheaton, will hold the grand opening of its Pelican Performance Center on Thursday and the first demo day of the season will be conducted there from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday.

The Illinois PGA opened its tournament season on Monday with a three-man scramble at Chicago’s Harborside International with the team of David Hanson of LaGrange Country Club, Alex Mendez of Butterfield and Marty DeAngelo of Medinah winning with a 13-under-par 59.

Mistwood, in Romeoville, will hold the grand opening of its new clubhouse on Monday, kicking off a week-long celebration of special events there.

Wintergreen can accommodate golfers and skiers at the same time

The Blue Ridge Mountains create a dramatic backdrop for any round at the Stoney Creek course.


WINTERGREEN, Virginia – Let there be no mistake about it. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Wintergreen Resort is a destination for skiers – but it’s also quite a bit more than that.

Wintergreen also has 45 holes of golf available and, while it’s not unusual for resorts to have both ski slopes and golf courses, this one is notably different. It’s possible to enjoy both sports on the same day during the winter months at Wintergreen.

And another thing sets this place apart. Frequently at places where both golf and skiing are offered one gets the edge over the other in terms of facilities. That’s not the case here. Wintergreen has 24 ski trails and is probably better known for that sport, but the golf is just fine, too.

This is how things fit together. The crew at the older of Wintergreen’s two courses, Devils Knob, begins the transition from golfers to skiers in early fall. Golf play ends in late October so that the ski slopes can be ready in time for a hoped for opening on Thanksgiving weekend.

After the ski season ends, usually in mid-March but sometimes later, Devils Knob is given a later spring opening date than most courses. It’ll open for play on April 16 this year, though it was probably playable a few weeks before that. Skiers never touch the course but the climate is different than it is down below, where Wintergreen’s other golf facility – 27-hole Stoney Creek – is located.

The opening hole at Devils Knobs is one of many at Wintergreen with an elevated tee shot.

They’re about nine miles apart, but Stoney Creek remains open all year long – though occasional snowfalls admittedly preclude play at various times in the winter months. Fred Biggers is superintendent for both golf facilities but isn’t involved with the ski slopes. His winter duties, though, include helping out with snow removal.

I’m no fan of driving on the steep, winding roads in the Wintergreen area, but getting from Devils Knob to Stoney Creek isn’t much of a problem and the courses are comparable in terms of terrain and the challenges offered. Though Stoney Creek is on much lower land, its elevation changes aren’t much different than the stunning ones that would be expected on the higher, more mountainous terrain of Devils Knob.

Biggers, a 6-handicapper, believes that Devils Knob is a bit more challenging but that doesn’t appear to be a universally held opinion. At an elevation of 3,851 feet at its No. 15 tee, Devils Knob is the highest course in Virginia. Temperatures there are generally 12-18 degrees cooler than they are at Stoney Creek.

A milestone 40th anniversary for Devil’s Knob is closing in; it opened in June of 1977 so it’s 11 years older than Stoney Creek. Devil’s Knob also has a big edge on Stoney Creek as far as historical interest goes. It’s the first of 17 course co-designed by the father-son team of Ellis and Dan Maples.

Looking back from the green reflects how demanding Stoney Creek’s second hole is.

The Maples clan is legendary in golf circles, especially in their native North Carolina. Five generations of Maples have been involved in golf, with two others being head professionals and two more working as superintendents. Ellis, who died at age 73 in 1984, and Dan are both in the Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame. Dan started his own design firm after his father’s death and his portfolio of courses is now approaching 50.

As for Devils Knob, Ellis — who was also an outstanding player — and Dan set foot on 1,000 acres of thickly wooded hillsides after landing what was then a prize assignment. In the mid-seventies a golf course designer generally received about $3,000 per course. Devils Knob was a $50,000 project for the Maples.

“It was unusual because the land was so high and rocky,’’ said Biggers, who doubts that the course could be built today because of probable environmentalists’ concerns.

But it was built in the mid-seventies at roughly the same time the ski slopes were created and the first resort and lodging facilities went up. Ellis routed the first nine holes and Dan did the second. Now Devils Knob limits play to members and resort guests.

As Wintergreen grew in popularity the second course, Stoney Creek, was deemed a necessity. It consisted of what is now the Monocan and Shamokin nines. A third nine, Tuckahoe, was added in 1990 just before Biggers arrived as superintendent. In addition to the stunning elevation changes offered at Devils Knob, these courses have a babbling brook running through the property.

Lindsay Dorrier gave us an interesting tutorial on how the Bold Rock Cidery operates.

All three nines were designed by Rees Jones, best known for all the work he has done getting courses tweaked to host U.S. Opens. Players don’t need to be staying at the resort to play it.

Both golf facilities are fun, and so is the journey between them. Wintergreen has its own added attractions, most notably the Copper Mine Bistro at the Mountain Inn, the resort headquarters. Take the drive down from there to Stoney Creek and you come across some other adventures.

Devils Backbone Brewery is an interesting place, a restaurant in a spacious setting that allows for outdoor socializing as well.

And a little further down the road is the Bold Rock Cidery. Its appearance is similar to Devils Backbone but the beverages of choice are built around apples. This place has both an interesting history and a promising future.

The Bold Rock Cidery has the facilities to offer a good time both indoors and outdoors.

John Washburn, a Virginia resident, purchased the eight acres on which Bold Rock sits 30 years ago. He didn’t do much with it until 2012, however. Then, rather than go the traditional routs of building a brewery or winery, he joined forces with Brian Shanks, a New Zealander, to create a company that produces hard cider. Bold Rock now has four sites, and this one is the flagship.

Lindsay Dorrier, a University of Illinois grad who is Bold Rock’s director of retail operations, says the alcohol content in the ciders ranges from 4.7 percent (similar to a lite beer) to 6 percent (similar to a craft beer) to 6.9 percent (which approaches the wine level).

A broad range of Virginia apples are used in the manufacturing process and the cider is offered in 12-once bottles that resemble beer bottles as well as various sizes of growlers. This isn’t just a place to buy cider, though.

Bold Rock is housed in a big wood-frame barn and caters to a lunch crowd with its gourmet sandwiches and appetizers. It also has a big backyard that encompasses the Bold Rockfish River. Kids can play there while adults can sit around a fire pit or try their hand at corn-hole boards. All in all, it’s a very pleasant atmosphere, whether golf is part of the day or not.

As for the golf, Wintergreen just announced new spring Stay & Play packages that start at $79 (double occupancy) or $109 (single occupancy). Check the resort website for more information.

The Devils Knob course is interesting and the clubhouse has a unique look as well.

This Masters will be good — but won’t match the epic of 30 years ago

This week marks the 80th playing of the Masters tournament and the 30th anniversary of Jack Nicklaus’ last championship. His win in 1986 was also the first Masters that I covered from Augusta National, and I doubt there’ll ever be another one like it.

Nicklaus, who has accurately called the Masters “the championship of nothing,’’ was 46 when he won his record sixth title and became the tourney’s oldest-ever champion. The Masters isn’t like the other three major championships – the U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship. It “just’’ decides the winner of that year’s event at Georgia’s Augusta National.

Still, the Masters is a special tournament and the electricity during Nicklaus’ final round charge 30 years ago has rarely been matched in any sport. In my nearly 50-year career it tops everything else, which includes the 1994 World Cup finals, Northwestern’s run to the 1996 Rose Bowl and the Blackhawks’ recent Stanley Cup successes.

While every Masters seems to create drama, it’s tough to image this one being a rival for Nicklaus’ last win. The story lines just aren’t there.

There’s no Tiger Woods comeback possibility. As expected, he withdrew last week citing health issues.

Jordan Spieth could become the first repeat champion since Woods won in 2001 and 2002. Rory McIlroy could complete a career Grand Slam, having already won the U.S. and British Opens and PGA Championship, and other young stars could make a career breakthrough.

Jason Day regained the world’s No. 1 ranking with his back-to-back victories at the Bay Hill Invitational and World Golf Championship-Dell Match Play event in his last two starts. With Day taking last week off Dustin Johnson (third) and Ricky Fowler (tie for 10th) had good finishes in the Shell Houston Open on Sunday so their games could be peaking at the perfect time. Neither has won one of golf’s major titles yet, but this could be their week.

The Masters holds its traditional Par-3 contest on Wednesday as a prelude to the start of its 72-hole run on Thursday. Already, though, some champions have been crowned at Augusta National and one was a Chicago area golfer.

The Drive, Chip & Putt national finals, well received as a new Sunday warmup attraction last year, included Christian Kim of Vernon Hills as one of its featured players this year. He won the boys 10-11 competition.

A Luke Donald update

Luke Donald, the former Northwestern star and world No. 1 golfer, didn’t qualify for the Masters for the first time since 2004 but he’ll impact the week in Chicago.

Donald has been a long supporter of the First Tee of Chicago, which holds its Masters Viewing Party and Golf Fashion Show at 6 p.m. on Thursday at Old Crow Smokehouse, 149 W. Kinzie in Chicago’s River North. Donald’s traditional wine-tasting event is part of the festivities.

He’s also involved in a new project along with his long-time swing instructor Pat Goss. They’re among the leaders of a group that is reviving the Peter Jans course in Evanston. The new version will be called Canal Shores. It’ll have a 12-hole course, youth development area and six-hole short course with a massive putting course.

Goss was recently elected president of the First Tee of Chicago, succeeding Bruce Patterson. Patterson, the director of golf at Butler National in Oak Brook, served as president for seven years.

Eight countries set for International Crown

The LPGA named the eight countries that qualified for the July 21-24 UL International Crown at Merit Club in Libertyville this week and they didn’t include Spain, which won the inaugural staging of the event two years ago.

Spain stood 11th in the point standings at Sunday’s deadline and only the top eight advance to the Merit Club. Those countries are the Republic of Korea, U.S., Japan, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, England, China and Australia. The four players who will compete for each those teams at the Merit Club will be determined after the June’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

Golf on North Carolina’s Outer Banks is more than an afterthought

The par-5 fifth is the first of several holes that play along Roanoke Sound at Nags Head Golf Links.

OUTER BANKS, North Carolina – The Outer Banks of North Carolina had been a mystery to us, and apparently we weren’t alone.

A golf buddy of mine who lives in North Carolina, who had been there and liked it, told me that “most people in North Carolina don’t know about it.’’ A much bigger portion of the visitors to the Outer Banks come from Virginia, which is only an hour away, and all points north.

Fortunately the Outer Banks is no longer a mystery to us after we spent a week checking out many of the things the area has to offer. Since our travel destination invitations over the years have been almost entirely golf oriented, the Outer Banks represented a big change. And it turned out to be a refreshing one.

You can’t beat the view while you’re putting out on No. 18 at Nags Head.

The Outer Banks is a beach area that is big on family activities. Golf is – in varying degrees — a lifestyle thing at some of our nearby stops in Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Pinehurst, N.C. It’s not a lifestyle thing in the Outer Banks. Golf is simply an amenity here – but it is a very good amenity.

We visited the Wright Brothers Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, the town adjacent to Kitty Hawk where Wilbur and Orville became the first to put an airplane in flight in 1903.

We tested the shopping in the quaint little town of Manteo. We climbed the 220 steps to the top of the Currituck Beach Lighthouse and enjoyed the scenic views from there. We went on the Wild Horse Adventure Tour — a two-hour Hummer ride in search of the wild horses roaming about the more remote parts of the northern barrier island (we couldn’t find any of them, but the bumpy ride was fun anyway).

There wasn’t time to try some of the other popular attractions here – kite-flying, cycling, birding, surfing, paddleboarding. We didn’t use the beautiful beaches much, either, but we quickly realized there are plenty of entertainment options. The Sanderling Resort, in particular, has an array of activities that will enhance family vacations and you can’t beat the views and close proximity to the Atlantic Ocean and Currituck Sound from there.

Enhanced landscaping throughout the course set Kilmarlic apart from the other Outer Bank courses.

And then there were the restaurants. The oldest one in North Carolina is here – 70-year old Owens Restaurant in Nags Head. Then there’s the Lightsaving Station No. 5 at the Sanderling Resort; the Sugar Shack and Basnight’s Lone Cedar Café in Nags Head; Aqua Restaurant and Spa in Duck; the Black Pelican Oceanfront and Ocean Boulevard Bistro & Martini Bar in Kitty Hawk; the Outer Banks Brewing Station in Kill Devil Hills; and Poor Richard’s Sandwich Shop and Full Moon Café and Brewery in Manteo.

That list goes on and on and — if you didn’t want to go out for a formal breakfast — there was Duck Donuts. There’s three locations providing the best donuts anywhere (their claim, as well as mine).

And, of course, there was the golf. That, as always, was our main focus for coming and the Outer Banks didn’t disappoint.

Golf in the Outer Banks is good, but different. For one thing, wind comes significantly into play on a daily basis on all the courses, whether the course is on the water or not.

Only two of the courses have nationally known designers, but don’t look on that as a negative. The layouts of Tom Steele, Bob Moore, Dan Maples and Russell Breeden are just fine. They’re pretty much regional guys who brought golf to life on the Outer Banks in the last 20 years or so.

Coastal Carolina-style homes create an interesting backdrop on several holes at Currituck Club.

Arguably the best course we played was designed by a big-namer, Rees Jones’ Currituck Club in Corolla. Opened in 1996 there’s lots of great holes here, the course is in good condition throughout and has a most comfortable clubhouse with good dining. It’s also a popular wedding destination.

Kilmarlic, on the Currituck mainland in Powells Point, was a close second. One of the few courses in the area that has been frequently tournament tested, it hosted the North Carolina Open in 2004 – two years after its opening – and again in 2009. The Old Dominion/Outer Banks college tournament has also been played there the last four years.

Only the second course designed by Steele, it has all the other area courses beat with its four-bedroom cottage for on-site lodging and 18 more of them are to be built in front of the course this fall. That may well make Kilmarlic one of the best golf getaway options in North Carolina when you combine the course with the other amenities.

Nos. 2 and 11, both good par-3s, sit side by side at Kilmarlic separated only by water.

Best views on the Outer Banks courses came at Currituck’s sister course, Nags Head Golf Links. Nos. 5, 9, 15 and 18 are all on the water and the sunsets there are outstanding. This is a cozy, fun course that is ideal for walking.

As far as conditioning goes, The Pointe – less than a mile from Kilmarlic – is as good as any in the area and it has a unique bridge on the 16th hole. The Pointe is user-friendly and its sister course, Carolina Club, sports the always challenging island green on its No. 7 hole. Breeden is the designer of record on The Pointe and worked with Moore on Carolina Club. The Pointe opened in 1995 and Carolina Club, in Grandy, three years later.

There’s some other good golf options out here, too. Scotch Hall Preserve joins Rees Jones’ Currituck Club as having a big-name designer. It’s an Arnold Palmer Signature Course that can stretch to 7,254 yards with a hefty 76.0 rating and 145 slope. Opened in 2008 in Merry Hill, it is one of the Outer Banks’ newest facilities.

The Pines, in Elizabeth City, was updated with a massive renovation in 2004. The Sound, in Hertford, is a Maples design dating to 1990 that has a beautiful finishing stretch. The last three holes overlook the Albemarle Sound.

While the Outer Banks offers a variety of entertainment options, it has enough good courses to make it a good destination for golf getaways as well. Trips there will be both affordable and memorable, no matter which courses or accommodations you choose, especially in the spring and fall.

The Pointe is a well-conditioned course and has this unusual looking bridge on its 16th hole.

A busy year already, but Streelman can finally focus on the Masters

Next week’s Masters tournament may be the first highlight event of the year for most golfers, but not for Kevin Streelman.

The only Chicago area player to qualify for the Masters has had an eventful year already. Most of it has been good – but not all. Streelman returns to the PGA Tour for this week’s Shell Houston Open still celebrating the birth of his son, Rhett Davis, on March 22.

Until Rhett’s arrival it was doubtful that Streelman would even play in the Masters. His wife Courtney’s due date was on the Saturday of Masters week and the couple dealt with a difficult delivery when their first child, daughter Sophia, was born three years ago. Sophia arrived six weeks early via C-section, and Streelman had vowed he wouldn’t play in the Masters until Courtney gave birth again.

“My family is more important than any silly thing we do on grass,’’ Streelman had declared as Rhett’s delivery time closed in. “I’ll always be there for my wife.’’

With all things well on the home front Streelman confirmed on Monday that he’d play at Houston – his first tournament since back-to-back missed cuts at the Valspar Championship and Bay Hill Invitational in Florida earlier this month. His last full tournament was a tie for 17th at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Feb. 21.

“Golf wasn’t high on my priority list after that,’’ admitted Streelman. “It’s been a big month, but I’m on top of the world now.’’

Streelman left for Houston on Tuesday hoping to regain the form he had a month ago on the PGA Tour’s West Coast swing. He did little more than putt on a practice green in his basement since then.

The strong finish at Pebble Beach concluded a great month on the West Coast, as Streelman tied for 11th in the Career Builder Challenge in LaQuinta, Calif., and finished third in the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. Those strong finishes account for the bulk of his $814,710 in season winnings.

Other major developments in Streelman’s life came both before and after the California tournaments. In February he was named co-chairman of the PGA Tour’s Player Advisory Council. That’s a three-year commitment as leader of a 16-player group that plays a major role in determining PGA policy.

Immediately after the Pebble Beach tournament Streelman had to pull off the circuit for three weeks to deal with a health concern of his own. Doctors advised the removal of a nickel-size mole from his stomach and that required two surgeries and more healing time.

Streelman said the surgery “came out fine,’’ but he withdrew from the Northern Trust Open at Los Angeles-based Riviera after the surgical procedure required 10 stitches. Then came the sub-par showings in Florida while Courtney’s delivery status was in limbo.

Now Streelman can focus on the Masters – the first of the year’s four major championships. He’s in the field thanks to his tie for 12th in last year’s Masters, and also won the tourney’s popular Par-3 contest in 2015.

Though Streelman, 37, has two PGA Tour wins – Tampa Bay in 2013 and Hartford in 2014, plus the Kodak Challenge special event of 2009 – he hasn’t seriously contended for a major title. His caddie, A.J. Montecinos, has some experience with that, however. He carried for champion Y.E. Yang in the 2009 PGA Championship.

Streelman and Montecinos were born in the same hospital in Winfield (though in different years), and Streelman grew up in Wheaton before playing collegiately at Duke. He turned pro in 2001 and has retained his Chicago connections while establishing residence in Arizona.

He’s returned for special events at Cantigny, the public course where he first developed his game, and has long played with clubs made by Chicago manufacturer Wilson Sporting Goods. Streelman also works with Chicago swing instructor Jake Thurm.

The tie for 12th at last year’s Masters matched Streelman’s best showing in a major championship (he also tied for 12th in the 2013 PGA Championship) and his world ranking has dropped a bit from last year, to No. 116.

That’s not as high as Luke Donald, the former Northwestern star and world No. 1 in 2012. Donald will miss the Masters for the first time since 2004. He needed to be in the top 50 to get in the field off the world rankings, and he’s now No. 92. Donald has only one top-25 finish in nine events this season but came close to another on Sunday when he tied for 26th at the Puerto Rican Open.

Streelman won’t be the only Chicago area golfer at Augusta National, though. The Illinois Junior Golf Assn. will be well represented in Sunday’s Drive, Chip & Putt national finals. Schaumburg’s Emily Duan and Vernon Hills’ Christian Kim made it in the 10-11 divisions and Crystal Lake’s Eric Klutke and South Barrington’s Stephanie Su in the 12-13 age group.