Everything’s coming together for next week’s Encompass Championship at North Shore Country Club in Glenview. Fred Couples and Tom Lehman have formally entered the first Champions Tour stop in Chicago since 2002, assuring the event one of the strongest fields on the 50-and-over circuit. The 81 starters include all of the top 10 on the…
Author: lenz
Mistwood’s new Performance Center is spectacular
Mistwood Golf Club, the long-time Illinois Women’s Open site in Romeoville, closed early the last two years and opened a bit later than most of the other Chicago public courses this spring. Now those hard decisions, made by owner Jim McWethy and his veteran staff, are paying off. The August closings in 2011 and 2012…
Johnson’s JDC title defense is almost as captivating as Stricker’s was last year
Clair Peterson, tournament director for the John Deere Classic, has felt blessed – and with good reason. From 2009-2011 he had a very popular champion whose presence enhanced the interest in the JDC. Steve Stricker, from nearby Madison, Wis., tried to become only the fifth golfer in 140 years to win a major professional tournament…
Wait to get into U.S. Open begins for Medinah’s Travis Johns
Sectional qualifying for the U.S. Open, aptly dubbed “golf’s longest day,’’ was especially long for the Chicago players hoping to land a berth in the Open proper at Pennsylvania’s Merion course in two weeks. None made it through Monday’s 11 nation-wide 36-hole sectionals, and newly named Medinah assistant pro Travis Johns is the only one…
Chicago hopefuls talke U.S. Open dreams to St. Louis’ Old Warson
St. Louis was the site of the Senior PGA Championship, which concluded on Sunday, and it’ll also be the place of choice for the Chicago golfers who survived local qualifying for the 113th U.S. Open, to be played later this month at Merion in Ardmore, Pa. Old Warson Country Club, in St., Louis, will have…
SENIOR PGA: Kohki Idoki overcomes three Champions Tour superstars
ST. LOUIS – Who would have expected this? Three of the top stars in American golf were in position to win the 74th PGA Championship at Bellerive Country Club on Sunday. None did. The first major title of the year on the Champions Tour instead went to Kohki Idoki, a 5-foot 5-inch 136-pound Japanese golfer…
SENIOR PGA: Perry-Cochran scenario makes for a neat story
ST. LOUIS – It’s not unusual for the PGA to pair friends in the first two rounds of its tournaments. That’s why Kenny Perry and Russ Cochran played together in the first two rounds of the 74th PGA Championship at Bellerive Country Club. The results, though, don’t always come out they did on Thursday and…
TRAVERSE CITY, MICH.: Two resorts have withstood the tests of time
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. – Golf course openings are rare in these tough economic times. Three decades ago that wasn’t the case, but none back then were as celebrated as Jack Nicklaus’ The Bear at Grand Traverse Resort. Grand Traverse, then just five years old, took an extraordinary step when The Bear was ready for play….
Hallberg has been Chicago’s best ever home-grown golfer
No Chicago-born and raised golfer has accomplished more than Gary Hallberg, and now he’s coming back. Hallberg was a state high school champion at Barrington, an Illinois Open winner twice, an NCAA champion at Wake Forest and the first player to earn PGA Tour playing privileges without going to qualifying school. As a professional he…
Encompass outing is memorable with putter announcement looming
Officials for the Encompass Championship, which brings golf’s Champions Tour back to Chicago for the first time in 12 years next month, held their kickoff event on Monday at North Shore Country Club in Glenview. They announced the latest player commitments for the June 17-23 event included 16 major championships winners – Mark Calcavecchia, Ben…