Following up from earlier this week, when we started our two-part retrospective on the top Colorado golf-related stories of 2018 (CLICK HERE for the first installment), we continue our countdown with the top dozen stories of the year — in reverse order. And at the end, included is a list of honorable-mention selections.
12. Stewart Signs With No. 1-Ranked College Team in Nation: It’s not often that a Colorado golfer signs a national letter of intent with the No. 1-ranked college program in the nation. But such was the case in November when Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins put his John Hancock on the dotted line with Oklahoma State. Stewart, who graduated from Fossil Ridge High School this month, will be headed to Stillwater for the fall semester next year. The Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado’s Boys Player of the Year is one of at least nine Colorado residents or JGAC members from the Class of 2019 who are headed to NCAA Division I golf programs. READ MORE
11. Another National Honor for Colorado PGA: Dating back to the late 1950s, members of the Colorado PGA or the Section itself have won 19 national awards from the PGA of America. Ten of those 19 have come since 2007, including this year’s Herb Graffis Award for player development, which the CPGA received for the second time since 2011. READ MORE
10. New CGA President Janene Guzowski Continues Trend in Colorado: The last several months of this year have proven to be a major boon for women in leadership roles in Colorado golf. Janene Guzowski is the new president of the CGA, Janet Moore is the new president of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, and Molly Greenblatt has become the new chairperson of the Colorado Open Golf Foundation. And that’s in addition to Suzy Whaley being elected the first national president of the PGA of America. READ MORE
9. Colorado, Hiwan Shine as Girls Junior Americas Cup Hosts: The Girls Junior Americas Cup — a team competition featuring players from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico — is hosted just once every 18 years by Colorado, and 2018 was the Centennial State’s turn. Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen, where the Colorado Open was held from 1964 to ’91, was a fitting mountainous setting for the event. While Mexico swept the team and individual titles, Colorado posted its best finish since 2013 by placing fifth out of 18 teams. Staff and volunteers from the CGA and the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado played major roles in running this major junior event. READ MORE
8. Colorado Sweeps Team, Individual Titles at Boys Junior America’s Cup: At the same time the Girls Junior Amerias Cup was taking place at Hiwan, a Colorado team (left) was making history at the boys Junior America’s Cup in Montana. For the first time in the 44 years in which Colorado has competed in the event, its squad claimed the team title. In fact, a Colorado team had never finished better than third before this year in the competition that includes players from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico. To add to the feat, Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins won the individual title out of the 72-player field. Joining Stewart on the winning team were Cal McCoy of Highlands Ranch, Davis Bryant of Aurora and Walker Franklin of Broomfield. Former longtime CGA staffer Dustin Jensen captained the Colorado squad. READ MORE
7. 2 Coloradans Qualify for PGA Tour, 2 More for LPGA Tour: Seldom have players who grew up in Colorado enjoyed so much success in qualifying for the top men’s and women’s golf tours in the world as they did in the final half of 2018. Wyndham Clark and Jim Knous earned promotions to the PGA Tour with their performances on the Web.com Tour regular season and Finals, respectively. And Jennifer Kupcho and Becca Huffer landed spots on the LPGA Tour in 2019 by both finishing in the top 10 in the eight-round LPGA Q-Series, with Kupcho placing second and Huffer 10th. All four Coloradans will be rookies on those top circuits in 2019. In fact, the PGA Tour’s wraparound season began in October, and Knous recorded a top-10 finish in his first event as a member of that Tour. Joining Kupcho and Huffer in earning an LPGA card last month was former University of Colorado golfer Robyn Choi.
6. Gearing Up for Rules Changes: With the modernized Rules of Golf set to take effect on Jan. 1, the USGA and its affiliated Allied Golf Associations have been very busy trying to bring members up to speed on the changes. For the CGA, that effort has included weekly “Ready for the 2019 Rules” videos and four-hour Ready for the Rules seminars held at various locations around the state late in 2018 and also planned for the first several months of 2019. READ MORE
5. Year 1 of New-Look CGA: Our No. 1 story of 2017 in Colorado golf was the unification a year ago of the CGA and CWGA after both associations had celebrated their 100th anniversaries as separate — but complementary — organizations serving golf in Colorado. With 2018 being their first full calendar year together, things have gone, by just about any measure, extremely well. All of which is very good news, considering how many golfers the new-look CGA serves as members. There’s still work to be done, but it’s certainly been a stellar first year together.
4. CSU Golfers Claim USGA National Title: Golfers with strong Colorado ties don’t often get to say they’re reigning USGA national champions, but Colorado State University golfers Katrina Prendergast and Ellen Secor (left) earned that honor by winning the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball title in early May in Tarzana, Calif. The two never trailed in the first four matches they played at El Caballero Country Club. In the title match, they were 2 down with four holes left, but a big-time rally down the stretch netted them a 1-up victory over teenagers Yachun Chang of Chinese Taipei and Lei Ye of China — and the national championship. The victory was believed to be the first USGA national amateur championship by a person or team with strong Colorado ties since Jill McGill won the 1993 U.S. Women’s Amateur and 1994 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links. READ MORE
3. Vickers Passes Away: There are almost 12 dozen people in the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, but even in that select group, there are some that took it to the next level. A good rule of thumb as to who those people are is if they’ve also been inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame. There are less than a dozen people who are members of both Halls of Fame. One of them passed away in September — 93-year-old Jack Vickers. Vickers made his mark in a variety of sports, but likely will be most remembered as the founder of Castle Pines Golf Club and The International that hosted PGA Tour events for 21 years. No less than Jack Nicklaus, who designed Castle Pines, paid tribute to Vickers the day he died. Vickers’ International ran from 1986 through 2006. It featured a unique modified Stableford scoring system, which promoted aggressive play as a birdie and a bogey were worth more than two pars. The tournament produced quite a few big-name champions, including Greg Norman, Davis Love III (twice), Phil Mickelson (twice), Vijay Singh and Ernie Els. READ MORE
2. Kupcho Phenomenon Continues: Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster may very well accomplish great things in the coming decades, but even long into the future, 2018 will be a year she’ll remember fondly. Here’s a brief rundown of what she accomplished: The Wake Forest golfer won an NCAA Division I individual title a year (left) after placing second. She became the first Colorado resident to win the prestigious individual championship on the women’s side. She helped three U.S. national teams capture international team titles in 2018 — at the Curtis Cup, the Arnold Palmer Cup and the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship. In the latter event, Kupcho finished second individually out of a field of 170. She also placed second at the eight-round final stage of LPGA Q-school. After concluding her college career in May, she’ll immediately begin her LPGA career. Kupcho finished an LPGA career-best 16th this year in the LPGA Marathon Classic. Overall in 2018, she won three individual college titles. Kupcho also claimed the prestigious Mark H. McCormack Medal, becoming the first American to win the women’s McCormack honor as the top female player in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings as of the conclusion of the U.S. Women’s Amateur. And she was named the world female Amateur of the Year by digital new magazine Global Golf Post. READ MORE
1. U.S. Senior Open a Hit at The Broadmoor: It had been almost four years since Colorado had hosted a big-time tour-level event — the kind that attracts 100,000-plus fans. But the drought ended this year when the U.S. Senior Open (pictured at top) was conducted at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. And the results didn’t disappoint. The announced attendance for the week was 134,500, the most for the Senior Open since the 157,126 in Omaha, Neb., in 2013. David Toms, who won the 1999 Sprint International at Castle Pines but hadn’t captured a title on the PGA Tour or PGA Tour Champions in seven years, captured the victory at the Senior Open by one stroke. Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe placed fifth, marking his second straight top-5 performance in the U.S. Senior Open. Shortly after the conclusion of the championship, the USGA announced that the U.S. Senior Open will return to The Broadmoor in 2025.
Honorable Mention
— Lauren Howe, who grew up in Colorado, was a finalist in the U.S. Girls’ Junior as a 15-year-old and went on to win an event on the LPGA Tour, was voted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.
— Patrick Reidy became the fifth 50-something player in the last six years to win the Colorado PGA Professional Championship.
— Players from Texas swept the two CGA women’s major titles in 2018, giving Texans three consecutive such championships. Emily Gilbreth, a lifetime Houstonian before moving to Denver, won the 2017 CGA Women’s Match Play; Kristin Glesne of San Antonio the 2018 CGA Women’s Stroke Play; and Kennedy Swann the 2018 CGA Women’s Match Play.
— Former BYU golfer Justin Keiley won his second straight Rocky Mountain Open, defeating former Montrose resident Brandon Bingaman in a playoff after the latter shot a course-record 11-under-par 60 in the final round at Tiara Rado in Grand Junction.
— Three Colorado courses — Castle Pines, Ballyneal and Cherry Hills — are ranked among the 150 Greatest International Courses, according to Golf Digest.
— Kaden Ford of Colorado Springs finished sixth — tying the best showing ever by a Coloradan — in the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals at Augusta. At the 2019 National Finals, three Coloradans will compete — Caitlyn Chin of Greenwood Village, Chunya Boonta of Centennial and Grady Ortiz of Colorado.
— The University of Denver women’s golf team saw its remarkable string of league tournament championships end at 14, though the Pioneers’ Sophie Newlove claimed the individual title at Summit League Championship.
— CU’s Robyn Choi qualified in Colorado for the U.S. Women’s Open for a second straight year. Choi later earned her LPGA Tour card at the final stage of Q-school.
— Former Coloradan Kyler Dunkle, who won the CGA Amateur in August, claimed the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational championship for the second straight year for his second individual college title in eight days.
— Doug Rohrbaugh, who was paired with Scott McCarron and Miguel Angel Jimenez at the Senior PGA Championship, became the first golfer to sweep the Colorado PGA Player of Year and Senior Player of Year honors in the same season. Like Rohrbaugh, Colorado PGA professional Chris Johnson qualified for two PGA Tour Champions majors in 2018 — the U.S. Senior Open and the Senior PGA Championship.
— Nicholas Pevny of Aspen captured a national title, prevailing in the boys 12-13 age division of the Optimist International Junior Golf Championships in Florida.
— Former Parker resident Elizabeth Wang finished 34th — fourth among amateurs — at the U.S. Women’s Open. Wang also made it to the round of 16 at the U.S. Women’s Amateur and to the round of 32 at the U.S. Girls’ Junior. Wang, now playing for Harvard, defeated Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster in 19 holes in the round of 64 at the U.S. Women’s Am.
— Fort Collins resident Dillon Stewart became to first Coloradan to win the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior boys title. Later, he captured a second AJGA championship, this time in Montana, and won 5A state high school individual and team titles.
— New Colorado resident Dan Erickson shot a 9-under-par 61 — a course record by two strokes at Fort Collins Country Club — en route to qualifying for the U.S. Amateur, where he made match play but bowed out in the round of 64 at Pebble Beach.
— Hadley Ashton of Erie finished fifth in the girls 9-10 division at the prestigious IMG Academy Junior World Championships.
— Thirty-two years after winning her first CGA/CWGA title, Kristine Franklin earned her second, this time overcoming five-time champion Kim Eaton in the Women’s Senior Stroke Play.
— Greg Condon of the southern Colorado town of Monte Vista shared stroke-play medalist honors in the U.S. Senior Amateur, while Scott Sullivan of Grand Junction advanced to the match play round of 16.
(Note: This story was updated on Jan. 2)
]]>Jack Vickers, who founded both Castle Pines Golf Club and The International PGA Tour event that was held there for 21 years, passed away on Monday in Castle Pines. He was 93.
Vickers, who also made his mark on a variety of other sports in Colorado, was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 1995. As a Denver Post headline aptly called Vickers in a 2013 story, he was a “Colorado sports shaker and mover”.
“We lost a tremendous friend today in Jack Vickers — not only a friend to Barbara and me, but a great friend to the game of golf,” Castle Pines course designer Jack Nicklaus said on Facebook Monday. “I have known Jack Vickers since I was 18 years old, when I played in the 1958 Trans-Miss. at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, Kansas. It would be pretty hard not to remember the first time Jack and I played golf. It was at Muirfield Village Golf Club in the mid-70s — not long after it opened. Jack made a hole-in-one on the 16th that day. I think it was the first one made on the golf course.
“Jack was someone who cared deeply about the history and the traditions of the game of golf, and wanted to protect them for the future. Jack was always a huge supporter of the game — whether it was in Colorado or nationwide; whether it was the game played at the highest level or his support of grassroots programs. Simply put, Jack Vickers was very good for the game of golf. Jack was a good man, and very well-liked by all.
Jack always handled himself incredibly well, and always with integrity. He was a very good man, and I’m blessed to say he was my friend.
“When Jack got ready to do his own golf course at Castle Pines Golf Club, I was flattered and honored that he asked me to be his designer. The golf course at Castle Pines is a very good one — challenging, beautifully maintained, and located in a fantastic spot. People seem to love it and we’re proud of it. My hope is Castle Pines will forever stand as a tribute to Jack Vickers. I know that through Castle Pines, a wonderful relationship with Jack Vickers only grew. He was involved from day one and until his passing. Everyone at Castle Pines loved Jack Vickers.”
Vickers’ most visible contribution to golf in Colorado was, of course, The International at Castle Pines Golf Club, which opened in 1981. The event ran from 1986 through 2006. It featured a unique modified Stableford scoring system, which promoted aggressive play as a birdie and a bogey were worth more than two pars. The tournament produced quite a few big-name champions including including Greg Norman, Davis Love III (twice), Phil Mickelson (twice), Vijay Singh and Ernie Els.
In addition, among the competitors over the years were Tiger Woods (twice), Arnold Palmer, Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Lee Trevino, Johnny Miller, Hale Irwin, Nick Faldo, Ray Floyd, Ben Crenshaw, Payne Stewart, Bernhard Langer, Nick Price and John Daly. (Vickers and Nicklaus are pictured at left.)
“The words that come to mind (when reflecting on Vickers’ legacy) are ‘visionary’ and ‘innovation’,” said CGA executive director Ed Mate. “I have a much greater appreciation today than I did when The International started about how much courage it takes to do some of the things he did. He really pushed the envelope and tried to create something brand new and outside the box. That’s who he was.
“Those were arguably the best years in terms of the profile of golf in Colorado when we had a regular Tour stop here. Having just started working at the CGA in 1988, I just sort of assumed that that was normal. Now I’ve seen since The International has gone away that it was not normal.
“It’s a loss for sure. He was also smart enough to recognize at the end that (golf) can’t compete with football. He had very good instincts for sure.”
In an interview with the Denver Post in 2013, Vickers reflected fondly on The International. The event formally went into the history books in early February 2007, when PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem and Vickers announced the event’s demise at a Denver-based news conference. The end came due in large part to the lack of a title sponsor, with Woods’ often bypassing the tournament being another significant issue.
“I miss it,” Vickers told the Post in 2013 regarding The International. “I still think about The International a lot. If I got involved and there were the right circumstances, I’d like to revive it. I belong to a lot of clubs around the country, and I’ll put (Castle Pines) up against any of them. If I did another tournament tomorrow, it would go right on and it would be first-class.” (Vickers is pictured at left, in a red tie, at a 90th birthday celebration for journalist Kaye Kessler, who’s sporting a beige pullover.)
Beyond the entertainment The International produced, over the years its non-profit arm donated about $14 million to charities in Colorado and elsewhere.
“The other thing The International did that I was always appreciative of was that they became a very big sponsor of the CGA,” Mate said. “The Boys & Girls Clubs were always talked about (as beneficiaries), but they also made annual contributions to the CGA that (Vickers) was responsible for which led to a nice junior golf endowment fund, which now has about $300,000 in it that we use for junior golf. A good chunk of that money came from The International. And when we started our newsletter, The International sponsored it. They did a lot of great things for us for sure.”
Vickers’ contributions to the PGA Tour were acknowledged in 2014 when he became the 11th recipient of the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award on Sept. 4 during the BMW Championship that Cherry Hills Country Club hosted that year.
The Tour’s Lifetime Achievement Award honors individuals “who have made outstanding contributions to the PGA Tour over an extended period of time through their performances on the golf course as well as their actions off the course in serving as ambassadors of the game.”
Prior recipients had included some of golf’s biggest names: Gene Sarazen (1996), Byron Nelson (1997), Palmer (1998), Sam Snead (1998), Jack Burke (2003), Pete Dye (2005), Deane Beman (2007), Nicklaus (2008), President George H.W. Bush (2009), and Gary Player (2012).
“Jack Vickers was a gracious host of The International for 21 years and remains a great ambassador for golf with a strong commitment to charity,” Finchem said at the time. “Castle Pines’ spectacular mountain setting and the modified Stableford scoring system made The International one of the most unique tournaments on the PGA Tour schedule and a favorite among our players for its unmatched hospitality. Jack’s selection will be celebrated by everyone he touched, including the many hundreds of Tour players he befriended at his tournament.”
When the inaugural International was announced, it featured a $1 million purse, the largest in PGA Tour history at the time.
Even in its post-International days, Castle Pines Golf Club is considered one of the top courses in the U.S., currently checking it at No. 42 on Golf Digest’s list of America’s 100 greatest courses.
Golf was by no means Vickers’ only foray into sports in Colorado. He was a majority owner of the NHL’s Colorado Rockies; helped found the University of Colorado’s Flatirons Club, a major fundraiser for the school; and helped sponsor Irwin at the beginning of his professional career. He also was involved in early attempts to bring major league baseball to the Centennial State.
Besides the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame and the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, Vickers was inducted into the Colorado Business Hall of Fame and the Colorado Tourism Hall of Fame.
Vickers also was named the 2003 Ambassador of Golf by Northeast Ohio Charities as part of the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational.
(Updated Oct. 3: Memorial services for Vickers will be held Oct. 12 at 11 a.m. at St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Englewood, 8035 S. Quebec St. Donations in Vickers’ honor can be made to Catholic Charities through the Archdiocese of Denver, 6240 Smith Road, Denver, Colorado 80216, or the Jack A. Vickers Boys & Girls Club, 3365 Holly Street, Denver, Colorado 80207.)
The anniversaries may draw little fanfare, but they shouldn’t pass unrecognized.
Thirty years ago this week, The International PGA Tour event debuted at the Jack Nicklaus-designed Castle Pines Golf Club. And 10 years ago, on Aug. 13, 2006, the final round of the final International was conducted, ending the longest-running and most successful tour event in Colorado golf history.
The tournament didn’t formally go by the wayside until early February 2007, when PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem and International founder Jack Vickers announced the event’s demise at a Denver-based news conference after a 21-year run. The end came due in large part to the lack of a title sponsor, with Tiger Woods’ often bypassing the event being another significant issue. But after some of golf’s all-time greats claimed the title over the years — including Greg Norman, Davis Love III (twice), Phil Mickelson (twice), Vijay Singh and Ernie Els — Dean Wilson will go down as The International’s last champion after hoisting the trophy 10 years and three days ago. When Wilson defeated Tom Lehman in a playoff, it proved to be the only PGA Tour victory of his career. (Wilson is pictured below at the trophy ceremony alongside Vickers.)
And just like that, after two decades of having a big-time PGA Tour event visit Colorado each summer, local sports fans were left with a void.
As Keith Schneider, the general manager at Castle Pines Golf Club, noted when the news was announced in 2007, “I think the community will miss this event. The Colorado PGA and the (CGA) will suffer with the way the tournament supported the local golf community. The Colorado Open winner would get a spot in The International field. Now that’s gone. It’s too bad.”
As Schneider pointed out, the impact The International made went beyond its considerable entertainment value. After all, as of 2007 The International’s non-profit arm, along with Castle Pines Golf Club, had donated about $14 million over the years to charities in Colorado and elsewhere.
“It’s a sad day in Colorado sports,” said 1996 U.S. Open champion Steve Jones, now a Colorado Sports Hall of Famer. “I’m sorry to see it go. It’s a favorite of all the players.”
Certainly, life goes on, and there have been many great golf tournaments held in Colorado over the last decade. The list includes a BMW Championship, a U.S. Women’s Open, a Solheim Cup, a U.S. Senior Open, a Senior PGA Championship and a U.S. Amateur, among others. But The International — with its stellar hospitality, great fields and a unique format in which a birdie and a bogey were worth more than two pars — left an indelible mark on the local sports scene.
Perhaps the PGA Tour will return to Colorado in the not-too-distant future. Certainly another BMW Championship could be a possibility at a site like Castle Pines or Cherry Hills. But with this being the 30th anniversary of the first International and the 10th of the last, it’s worth remembering some of the highlights from Castle Pines. As one of very few media types to have reported from all 21 Internationals — and all seven days of tournament week every year but one — I had the pleasure of covering everyone from Arnold Palmer to Nicklaus to Woods to Tom Watson to Lee Trevino to Johnny Miller to Hale Irwin to Nick Faldo — along with all the aforementioned International champions — when they competed at Castle Pines.
Here are some of my favorite moments (in descending order), as I recalled in a column in the (Boulder) Daily Camera newspaper 11 years ago:
10. Weathering Weather Delays: You’d think that out of the 21 Internationals that once, just once, they’d have gotten through a tournament week without weather interrupting play. But nooooooo. Much to the dismay of the players — and plenty of other folks at Castle Pines — lightning strikes more often in the Castle Rock area than just about anywhere else in the country. And the 2004 tournament was especially a sight to behold, with a couple of inches of hail covering the course at one point, then rain and melting hail forming streams in the fairways at Castle Pines.
9. Big John: As big as Woods has been for golf, John Daly took a back seat to no one in popularity in his prime. And Daly’s first appearance at Castle Pines, in 1991, came directly on the heels of his victory in the PGA Championship. With his “grip it and rip it” mantra, people at Castle Pines couldn’t wait to see how far Big John hit it at a mile-high altitude. And he didn’t disappoint with 400-yard-plus drives.
8. Unlikely Champ Beats Major Winners: Clarence Rose in 1996 became the most improbable winner in the history of The International, edging out Wilson (2006). Rose made eagle twice Sunday on the par-5 17th hole, including once in a playoff against Brad Faxon, to post the only PGA Tour victory of his career. Rose beat a field that included the winners of all four major championships that year — Faldo, Jones, Lehman and Mark Brooks.
7. Doubling Up: Double eagles are a big-time rarity, even on the PGA Tour. But two were recorded on the same day during the 1990 International. Steve Pate holed a 2-iron on the par-5 eighth hole and Jim Gallagher Jr. matched the feat by draining a 5-iron approach on the par-5 17th.
6. Heavy Hitters: In 1986, the first year of The International, the tournament drew a field hard to beat for any event outside a major championship. Playing Castle Pines that year were Nicklaus, Palmer, Watson, Miller, Norman, Irwin, Ray Floyd, Ben Crenshaw, Nick Price, Payne Stewart and Bernhard Langer. Just that group accounts for more than 50 victories in major championships.
5. Cover Your Ears: This is one few other people witnessed, but it’s a personal favorite. One year I ventured down to the CBS compound to try to interview Gary McCord. And while I was waiting — and waiting and waiting — a scene played out that I’ll never forget. Someone drove off in the personal golf cart of CBS analyst Ken Venturi, and to say Venturi was livid about it would be the understatement of the century. When Venturi located the culprit, he spewed more four-letter words than I’ve heard strung together in my life, and my late dad once had a very rich vocabulary. Suffice it to say that the person who took the cart got the message loud and clear.
4. One for the Senses: A not-so-sterling performance by Tom Pernice Jr. in the final round in 2001 was punctuated by one of the most poignant moments in the tournament’s history. After winning, Pernice was embraced by his two daughters. One of the girls, Brooke, who has a disease that causes blindness, put her hand on her father’s face, trying to feel the emotion of the moment. The scene was caught by CBS cameras and became an indelible image for many onlookers.
3. Big Easy Wins … Finally: Els had long been one of the most popular players for folks at The International, which in 1991 marked just the second PGA Tour event ever in the U.S. for the South African. He had been a regular competitor ever since at Castle Pines. But in 2000, after four top-seven finishes at The International without a win, Els broke through for a victory. In a year in which Mickelson finished second and Norman fourth, Els tied the tournament record for points with 48.
2. Tiger Soars With Eagles: Woods played only twice at The International, but the first time was quite memorable. In 1998, he made a hole-in-one at No. 7 at Castle Pines, resulting in one of the biggest crowd roars in tournament history. For the week, Woods made four eagles (two each in rounds 1 and 3), which tied for the tournament record. Tiger finished fourth, behind Singh, Willie Wood and Mickelson.
1. Beem Me Up: Sunday’s back nine of the 2002 tournament will go down as one of the most exciting stretches in PGA Tour history. Facing a 10-point deficit with five holes remaining, Steve Lowery threw the scare of a lifetime into Rich Beem, who seemingly had the tournament wrapped up. Starting on the 14th hole, Lowery posted the best four-hole stretch in tournament history, going birdie-eagle-bogey-double eagle. Lowery holed out twice from the fairway during the run, which was worth 14 points. Only an eagle by Beem on No. 17 and a missed birdie putt by Lowery at No. 18 kept Beem from having a full-scale nervous breakdown. Beem ended up winning the tournament by one point.
Editor’s Note: With the CGA celebrating the 100th anniversary of its founding in 1915, this is the 10th monthly installment of a series of stories looking back on the last century of golf in Colorado. All the articles are being published on coloradogolf.org. This chapter focuses on the period from 2005-present. For the previous installments, CLICK HERE
When it comes to big-time golf tournaments being held in Colorado, the last decade has certainly had its ups and downs.
And many of the “ups” may have largely been the result of the biggest “down”.
The dominoes began to fall early in 2007. That was when Jack Vickers, founder of The International and of Castle Pines Golf Club, and PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem announced at a Denver-based press conference that The International’s run in Colorado was ending after 21 consecutive years on the PGA Tour.
Though there were many contributing reasons, the lack of a title sponsor in the final years of the event played a major role. The tournament hadn’t had a title or presenting sponsor after 2002. Tiger Woods seldom playing in the event — he competed in 1998 and ’99 only — was another factor, as were problems with the tournament’s dates.
But whatever the case, there was a sense of mourning on the Colorado sports scene. The International had produced champions such as Phil Mickelson (twice), Davis Love III (twice), Greg Norman, Ernie Els and Vijay Singh. Among the many other giants of the game to have played at Castle Pines were Jack Nicklaus (designer of Castle Pines GC), Woods and Arnold Palmer.
And the event produced some incredible golf, including in 2002, when one of the most amazing finishes in Colorado golf history occurred. Ten points out of the lead with five holes left, Steve Lowery went birdie-eagle-bogey-double eagle in a four-hole stretch, twice holing out from the fairway during that run. Only an eagle at the 17th hole by Rich Beem and Lowery’s missed birdie putt on 18 kept Lowery from carting off the trophy.
With the International’s exit, for the first calendar year since 1971, Colorado was left without a PGA, LPGA or Champions Tour event in 2007.
But as it turned out, the void was largely filled, and the last decade has been full of top-level spectator events.
— Before 2005, the U.S. Women’s Open had been held in Colorado just once — at 1995 at The Broadmoor, with Annika Sorenstam winning. But twice in the seven-year period from 2005 through 2001, the Centennial State would host the top tournament in women’s golf.
Birdie Kim won the 2005 championship in spectatcular fashion at Cherry Hills Country Club, holing out for — what else, given her name — birdie from a deep greenside bunker on the 72nd hole.
Six years later, at The Broadmoor’s East Course, another South Korean, So Yeon Ryu (left, in orange), prevailed, winning in the first three-hole aggregate playoff in the tournament’s history. Like Sorenstam at The Broadmoor and Kim at Cherry Hills, Ryu made the U.S. Women’s Open her first LPGA Tour victory.
Both the 2005 and ’11 Women’s Opens in Colorado drew more than 130,000 spectators for the week.
–The Broadmoor attracted a similar number for the 2008 U.S. Senior Open, won by Eduardo Romero of Argentina. That tournament is remembered for the black bear that ran across a fairway in which Bernhard Langer was playing. And then there was the presence of then-celebrity couple Greg Norman and Chris Evert …
— Colorado would go on to host two Champions Tour majors in three years as the 2010 Senior PGA Championship came to Colorado Golf Club, with Tom Lehman claiming the title.
— In 2012, the U.S. Amateur came to Cherry Hills for the second time — Phil Mickelson’s win in 1990 being the first — with CommonGround Golf Course serving as the second stroke-play venue. Steven Fox won the championship this time in one of Jordan Spieth’s final amateur events.
— In 2013, the Solheim Cup — the female version of the Ryder Cup — came to the western U.S. for the first time, with Colorado Golf Club being the host. The Europeans (left) won the Cup on U.S. soil for the first time. The 18-10 score marked the largest final margin in the history of the event.
— And then in 2014, the PGA Tour returned to Colorado for the first time since 2006, with Cherry Hills hosting the BMW Championship, the penultimate event of the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Billy Horschel won the tournament en route to claiming the 2014 FedEx Cup title.
The 2014 BMW Championship (pictured at top, with Rory McIlroy competing at Cherry Hills) was later named the PGA Tour’s Tournament of the Year for the third straight season. With University of Colorado Evans Scholar alum George Solich serving as general chairman, the event raised a record $3.5 million for the Evans Scholars.
— And, looking ahead, another major spectator event is on tap for the state as the 2018 U.S. Senior Open will be contested at The Broadmoor the same year as the resort turns 100 years old.
Here are some of the other Colorado golf highlights of the period from 2005 to present:
— Two distinguished Colorado PGA golf professionals, Warren Smith and Charles “Vic” Kline, were both inducted into the PGA Golf Professional Hall of Fame in 2005.
— In 2005, the CGA and CWGA officially purchased the former Lowry golf course, the site of the present-day CommonGround Golf Course.
— Rick DeWitt became the oldest (at age 50) winner of the CGA Les Fowler Player of the Year Award, in 2006.
— In 2006, the Walking Stick course in Pueblo hosted the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship, with Tiffany Joh defeating Kimberly Kim in the final.
— In 2007, former University of Colorado athlete Hale Irwin won his record 45th Champions Tour event — 16 more than the No. 2 player on the list, Lee Trevino.
— In 2008, Murphy Creek Golf Course in Aurora was the site of the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, with Jack Newman earning the title. Among the other competitors were Rickie Fowler and Billy Horschel.
— The Tom Doak-designed CommonGround Golf Course, originally owned and operated by both the CGA and CWGA, opened in 2009, marking the last new 18-hole course to come on the scene in Colorado. A nine-hole Kids Course also opened, thanks in significant part to a $175,000 grant from the USGA. The Kids Course is largely used for junior golf development and community outreach.
— In 2009 Steve Ziegler became the first player since Brandt Jobe in 1985 to sweep the CGA Match Play and Stroke Play titles in the same year.
— Coloradans John Elway and Tom Hart won the 2009 Trans-Miss Four-Ball title at Cherry Hills Country Club.
— Denver Country Club hosted the 2010 Trans-Miss Championship, won by Scott Pinckney, and the senior Trans Miss, won by Chip Lutz.
— After decades as a U.S. Open Sectional Qualifying site, Columbine Country Club lost that status after 2010.
— Wyndham Clark won the 2010 CGA Stroke Play at age 16, becoming the youngest winner of the event since Bob Byman in 1971. In the final round of the championship, Jim Knous shot a course-record 10-under-par 60 at Boulder Country Club to force a playoff, but Clark prevailed for the title.
— From 2010-13, Keith Humerickhouse claimed four consecutive CGA Mid-Amateur titles, becoming just the third person to win four straight CGA championships.
— In 2011, the Allied Golf Associations of Colorado became partners in the Colorado PGA Golf in Schools initiative, designed to introduce kids to golf through P.E. classes at school. The program has now reached more than 40,000 students.
— Green Gables Country Club, a storied course that dated back to the 1920s, closed in 2011. The course hosted six LPGA Tour events and one from the Senior PGA Tour.
— The CGA hosted the Junior America’s Cup at Hiwan Golf Club in 2011, when the Colorado team finished third, its best showing ever at the event (since matched in 2015).
— The CGA launched the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course in 2012. The Academy, named for University of Colorado Evans Scholar alums George and Geoff Solich, provides incentives to take caddies as it pays the base fee for the caddies, with the players having the option to tip. The caddies attend weekly leadership classes and do volunteer community-service work each summer. In Colorado, the Academy concept has spread to Fort Collins Country Club and Meridian Golf Club.
— Part-time Lakewood resident Hollis Stacy, winner of three U.S. Women’s Opens and six USGA championships in all, was inducted into World Golf Hall of Fame in 2012.
— The philanthropic Colorado Golf Foundation was launched in 2012, with CU Evans Scholar alum George Solich providing a $2 million lead gift. The foundation provides funding for Colorado-based organizations and programs that use golf to build important life skills and character, with an emphasis on instilling hard work and self-reliance in young people.
— In 2012, Coloradan Christie Austin, while serving on the USGA Executive Committee, became the first woman to chair the USGA Rules of Golf Committee.
— Coloradan Derek Tolan, who competed in the U.S. Open as a 16-year-old in 2002, won the HealthOne Colorado Open twice in a four-year period starting in 2009.
— In September 2013, about 14 inches of rain in less than a week caused devastating flooding (left), leading to major damage at many Colorado golf courses, including CommonGround GC and Coal Creek GC.
— Colorado resident Mark Wiebe won the Senior British Open in 2013, marking the first major championship of his career.
— Melissa Martin of Grand Junction became the seventh player to win the CWGA Stroke Play at least three times, doing so in the course of five years (2009-13).
— In 2014, the Colorado Open was played for the 50th time.
— Also in 2014, Kent Moore completed a sweep of major CGA championships — and has won at least one in five different decades. His resume includes victories in the Junior Match Play (1973), Stroke Play (1986), Match Play (1989), Mid-Amateur (1995), Senior Match (2006) and Senior Stroke (2014).
— In December 2014, the Evans Scholarship for caddies surpassed the 10,000 mark in graduates, including 434 from CU.
— Paige Spiranac won the 100th CWGA Match Play Championship in 2015 in a stellar final in which she was 9 under par for 35 holes against University of Colorado golfer Brittany Fan. And Jennifer Kupcho put on an exhibition at the CWGA Stroke Play, winning by an amazing 21 shots in posting a 16-under-par total.
— For the eighth time in a nine-year period (2007-15), members of the Colorado PGA, or the Section itself, won a national PGA of America Award. The honorees during that stretch were Danny Harvanek and Ann Finke (Junior Golf Leaders); George Kahrhoff, Dale Smigelsky and Jim Hajek (Merchandisers of the Year); Clayton Cole (Bill Strausbaugh Award), Kyle Heyen (President’s Plaque Award), and the Colorado PGA Section as a whole (Herb Graffis Award).
— Doug Rohrbaugh won three straight Colorado PGA Professional Championships from 2013-15, tying a record previously established, then matched, by Ron Vlosich and Ken Krieger, respectively. Rohrbaugh also captured the 2013 HealthOne Colorado Senior Open title.
— The CGA and Colorado PGA announced they’re joining forces to bolster junior golf in the state. A Junior Tour, which will include four junior major championships, is scheduled to debut in 2016.
— The CGA is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2015, culminating with a Century of Golf Gala in mid-November at The Broadmoor. Jack Nicklaus, who won his first and last USGA championships in Colorado (the 1959 U.S. Amateur and the 1993 U.S. Senior Open), is a guest of honor. Also among those who will be recognized are six People of the Century: Judy Bell (Woman of the Century), Hale Irwin (Male Player of the Century), Charles “Vic” Kline (Golf Professional of the Century), Dennis Lyon (Superintendent of the Century, Barbara McIntire (Female Player of the Century) and Will Nicholson Jr. (Man of the Century).
]]>It’s been a year since our last distribution of gifts — Colorado golf-style — and we’re back in the holiday mood.
We’ve studied our naughty and nice lists, and taken time to pick out that perfect something for deserving souls. Of course, given who we are, we’ll stick with a golf theme.
Time’s a wastin’, so without further ado …
To: John Ogden, head professional at Cherry Hills Country Club. Gift: Credit where credit is due after you predicted in the weeks leading up to the BMW Championship that the winning score would be 264 to 268. Billy Horschel won with a 266 total.
To: Rory McIlroy. Gift: That no hole ever treats you as badly as the par-3 12th at Cherry Hills did during the BMW Championship. (He four-putted the hole twice in the final two rounds, including from 4 feet on Saturday. The result: triple bogey, double bogey).
To: Phil Mickelson. Gift: The ability to think of a better excuse for withdrawing from a tournament after pulling out of the no-cut BMW Championship before the weekend at Cherry Hills, citing a need “to rest and prepare for the Ryder Cup” — which took place three weeks later.
To: The CGA. Gift: In 2015, an unforgettable 100-year anniversary year worthy of an organization with such a rich history.
To: The CWGA. Gift: See above, except in 2016 in your case.
To: Hale Irwin. Gift: Just as your competitive career winds down, an ever-expanding impact on Colorado kids through the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program, the AJGA Hale Irwin Junior, and hopefully other things to come.
To: Former Coloradan Brandt Jobe, who has finished second four times — but has never won — on the PGA Tour. Gift: That 2015 brings a victory — either on the PGA Tour or the Champions circuit, for which you become eligible in August.
To: Colorado-based Champions Tour player Mark Wiebe, who battled injuries this year. Gift: That 2015 more resemble 2013 (two wins) than 2014 (0 top-25s).
To: New CGA managing director of operations Dustin Jensen, who is moving back to Colorado from North Dakota. Gift: A touch of winter warmth, Colorado style.
To: Officials from Coal Creek Golf Course in Louisville. Gift: A banner season in the summer of 2015 after then being closed for more than 18 months by the September 2013 flooding.
To: George Solich. Gift: A stress-free summer in 2015 after anything but in 2014 as general chairman of the BMW Championship.
To: Doug Rohrbaugh of Carbondale. Gift: After having so much success in Colorado in recent years — including winning titles in the HealthOne Colorado Senior Open (one) and the Colorado PGA Professional Championship (two) — a top-10 finish as a member of the Champions Tour.
To: The University of Colorado women’s golf program. Gift: A top-three finish at the Pac-12 Conference Championship that you’re hosting in April at Boulder Country Club.
To: Wyndham Clark of Lone Tree, the 2014 Big 12 Player of the Year at Oklahoma State. Gift: After a lot of close calls, an individual college victory.
To: Jack Vickers. Gift: In receiving the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award, satisfaction in the impact you made in graciously hosting a PGA Tour event in Colorado for 21 years, The International.
To: Ross Macdonald (left). Gift: A third consecutive CGA Junior Stroke Play title to match Scott Petersen’s remarkable feat from the late 1980s.
To: CSU-Pueblo golfer Leina Kim. Gift: An NCAA women’s Division II title in 2015 after leading the nation in stroke average so far this season.
To: Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster. Gift: A win in a national event leading into your freshman season at Wake Forest beginning in the fall.
To: Former CU golfer Emily Talley. Gift: After knocking on the door so many times as a professional, an answer in the form of an individual title.
To: Connie Gallagher of Denver, who in October aced a par-4 at Pebble Beach Golf Links. Gift: A return trip to Pebble to relive the moment.
To: Kent and Janet Moore, both Colorado Golf Hall of Famers. Gift: That you both win state senior titles in the same year.
To: Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Kim Eaton. Gift: That you don’t miss a beat in competitive golf next year despite those two recent knee replacements.
To: John Elway. Gift: A shot at winning both a Super Bowl (as Broncos general manager) and a HealthOne Colorado Senior Open (as a competitor) in the same year.
To: The late Jim Moore, former Western Golf Association educational director. Gift: That your ever-present upbeat spirit will live on in the Evans Scholarship program for caddies, including those at the University of Colorado.
To: Sherry Andonian-Smith (left), who almost made the cut in the 2014 HealthOne Colorado Senior Open, and who went 3-0 for the Colorado PGA in the Taylor Cup matches. Gift: Colorado PGA Senior Player of the Year honors in 2015.
To: The guy who eagerly volunteered to caddie for a competitor in the 2014 HealthOne Colorado Women’s Open, only to quit mid-round, saying he had phone calls to make. Gift: That your services are required elsewhere during the 2015 tournament.
To: Leslie Core-Drevecky, the first female president of the Colorado PGA. Gift: A marked increase in play by women and girls golfers in Colorado.
To: Eric Hoos, who got struck in the head by a competitor’s golf ball while picking his ball out of the cup at the 2014 CGA Senior Stroke Play. Gift: A military-style helmet for the 2015 tournament.
To: Part-time Colorado resident Jonathan Kaye, a two-time winner on the PGA Tour. Gift: After competing very little since 2010, some success on the Web.com Tour in 2015.
To: Priscilla Lind, who recently passed away. Lind was the wife of Babe Lind, who was in the first class of inductees for the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame. Gift: Many thanks for sharing some of Babe’s historic golf trophies and memorabilia with the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame and the University of Denver.
To: Golf courses such as Broadlands, Saddleback, Park Hill, Springs Ranch and Eagle Vail which have opened part of their facilities to “footgolf”, an activity in which participants essentially play golf with their feet, using a soccer ball, much shorter holes and large cups. Gift: An “A” for effort in thinking outside the box to generate additional revenue for their golf courses.
To: The golden oldies who play golf at Heather Gardens. Gift: Good health, good friends and great fun hitting the links well into your 90s.
To: All Colorado golfers. Gift: Happy holidays.
Following up from last week, when we started our two-part retrospective on the top Colorado golf stories of 2014 (CLICK HERE for the first installment), we continue our countdown with the “back nine” — the top nine stories of the year — in reverse order. And at the end, we’ll include a list of honorable-mention selections.
9. The Jennifer Kupcho Express: Jennifer Kupcho won, she won consistently and she won big in Colorado in 2014. It was indeed a remarkable run for the golfer from Westminster who will be playing collegiately at Wake Forest beginning next year. While her most remarkable performance of the year may have come in the HealthOne Colorado Women’s Open, where she finished second as a 17-year-old amateur competing against a field that included plenty of tour pros, that’s just a small part of the story. Kupcho (left) won the 4A state high school meet by 14 shots; the CWGA Junior Stroke Play by nine, the CJGA Tournament of Champions by 12; the CJGA Junior Series Championship by eight; the CWGA Match Play by 6 and 5 in the final, and she took low-amateur honors in the Colorado Women’s Open by 12. All told, she captured three CWGA titles, two major CJGA victories and a state high school crown. She also qualified for two USGA national championships. Kupcho was the youngest CWGA Player of the Year since 1999 and earned her third consecutive CWGA Junior POY honor. Out of state, she tied for eighth place in the stroke-play portion of the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship and placed eighth in the Girls Junior America’s Cup. Full story: CLICK HERE.
8. Locals Headed for Top Tours: The last several months have produced a big crop of players with strong Colorado connections who have qualified for golf’s top tours — many for the first time. Here’s a quick rundown:
— Denver native Mark Hubbard earned PGA Tour status by finishing in the top 25 on the Web.com Tour’s regular-season money list. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— Fort Collins resident Sam Saunders, Arnold Palmer’s grandson, also landed exempt status on the PGA Tour for the first time thanks to his 2014 performance on the Web.com Tour. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— Former University of Denver golfer Espen Kofstad regained a spot on the European Tour by finishing 10th in Q-school. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— Not long after winning his second consecutive Colorado PGA Professional Championship — and becoming what is believed to be the oldest champion in the event’s history (age 52) — Doug Rohrbaugh of Carbondale earned conditional status on the 2015 Champions Tour by finishing 12th, thanks to a playoff, at the Q-school finals. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— Tonje Daffinrud, who turned pro this year after placing 10th in the NCAA Women’s Finals for DU, qualified for the Ladies European Tour by finishing fifth on the Access Series 2014 Order of Merit. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— Former Fort Collins resident Drew Stoltz earned conditional status on the Web.com Tour by making it to the final stage of Q-school. Full story: CLICK HERE.
7. Stadler’s Breakthrough: Part-time Denver resident Kevin Stadler broke through in February for his first victory on the PGA Tour, out-dueling Bubba Watson down the stretch to win the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Stadler, who has claimed titles at the Colorado Open and the CGA Match Play (twice), went on to be in the same field as his dad, Evergreen resident Craig Stadler, in the Masters, where Craig won in 1982. Kevin Stadler, a Kent Denver High School graduate, placed eighth at Augusta National, marking his best finish ever in a major championship. He won more than $2.3 million on the PGA Tour in 2014, not counting what he made for placing second in the French Open. Full story: CLICK HERE.
6. Clark Shines at College Level as Redshirt Freshman: Wyndham Clark (left) of Lone Tree made a splash on the national scene a couple of times during the year. The 2010 CGA Stroke Play champion earned Big 12 Conference Player of the Year honors during his redshirt freshman season at Oklahoma State. Full story: CLICK HERE. This despite the passing of his mother, Lise, at age 55 in 2013 after a battle with breast cancer. Clark also played in the match-play finals of the NCAA Championships, where OSU fell to Alabama and finished second in the nation as a team. Despite the loss, Clark won all his individual matches (3-0) in the match-play portion of the NCAA tournament. Full story: CLICK HERE. In addition, Clark, a two-time Colorado state high school champion, also represented the U.S. in the Palmer Cup, a Ryder Cup-like competition between the top college players from America and Europe. Full story: CLICK HERE.
5. 50 Years and Counting for Colorado Open: The HealthOne Colorado Open celebrated its 50th year in 2014, and what a 50-year run it has been. Since debuting in 1964 (the tournament wasn’t held one year, 2003), a long list of golf luminaries have participated in the event, including Sam Snead, Phil Mickelson, Billy Casper, Hale Irwin, Fred Couples, Mark O’Meara, Dave Stockton, Dave Hill, Don January, Steve Jones, Dow Finsterwald, George Archer, Al Geiberger, Corey Pavin, Steve Elkington and Peter Jacobsen. All told, participants in the Colorado Open have accounted for more than 35 major championship victories. And there are 10 Colorado Open champions who have now won at least one PGA Tour event. Former athletes John Elway, John Brodie and Rick Rhoden have also competed. Full story: CLICK HERE. The Colorado Open wasn’t the only Colorado Open Championship to celebrate a notable anniversary in 2014 as the Women’s Open was held for the 20th time.
4. Vickers Given His Due: It’s difficult to overstate the impact Jack Vickers has had on the Colorado golf scene, given that without him the PGA Tour’s International at Castle Pines wouldn’t have existed. As it is, the Vickers-founded tournament (and Castle Pines Golf Club) produced 21 Tour events from 1986 through 2006 — many of them very memorable. Champions of the tournament include Phil Mickelson, Greg Norman, Ernie Els, Davis Love and Vijay Singh. Therefore, it was no small matter when in September, Vickers was the 11th recipient of the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award. Seeing who had previously won the honor speaks to its stature: Gene Sarazen (1996), Byron Nelson (1997), Arnold Palmer (1998), Sam Snead (1998), Jack Burke (2003), Pete Dye (2005), Deane Beman (2007), Jack Nicklaus (2008), President George H.W. Bush (2009), and Gary Player (2012). Full story: CLICK HERE.
3. Year of the Oddity: To say that there were some odds-defying feats in Colorado golf in 2014 would be a vast understatement. Here are some of the oddities that happened this year:
— In April at Gypsum Creek Golf Course east of Glenwood Springs, Fred Kessler from Gypsum and Dan Eby from Avon, playing in the same group, both aced the 151-yard 17th hole — with consecutive shots. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— In July during a practice round for the HealthOne Colorado Open at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club, Micah Rudosky and his son Jakob each made a hole-in-one during the same round while playing in the same group. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— Also at the Colorado Open, amateur Cole Nygren of Longmont pulled off one of golf’s rarest feats. He holed a 3-wood from 296 yards for an albatross — a double eagle — on the par-5 ninth hole. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— In September at the Ram Masters Invitational college tournament at Fort Collins Country Club, there were three holes-in-one in less than an hour on the same hole, the ninth. Drew McCullough of Wyoming, Shane Fontenot of McNeese State and Pierre Tillement of George Washington pulled off the feat. McCullough went on to win the individual title at the tournament. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— In October, Denver resident Connie Gallagher made what is believed to be the first hole-in-one on a par-4 by a female in the history of Pebble Beach Golf Links. Gallagher aced the fourth hole from 253 yards. Full story: CLICK HERE.
— Later in October, University of Colorado men’s head coach Roy Edwards and assistant coach Brandon White not only made holes-in-one on the same day and at the same course (Boulder Country Club’s Fowler Course), but they did it within a minute of one another on adjacent holes. Full story: CLICK HERE.
2. Flood Recovery: For some Colorado golf courses, it was a matter of days or weeks to get back to normal following the devastating floods of September, 2013, when close to 15 inches of rain fell in six days in some areas of Colorado. But for many other facilities, recovery continued into 2014. A partial list of courses significantly affected includes Coal Creek in Louisville, CommonGround in Aurora, Mariana Butte in Loveland, Pelican Lakes in Windsor, Estes Park Golf Course, the Lake Estes Executive 9-Hole Course, Evergreen Golf Course, Twin Peaks in Longmont and Flatirons in Boulder. Perhaps the two courses that withstood the most damage were Coal Creek and CommonGround (above), which is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA. CommonGround returned to 18-hole status for its championship course on May 29. Full story: CLICK HERE. And officials hope to finally reopen Coal Creek, with an estimated reconstruction cost of $5.6 million, sometime late in the spring of 2015. Full story: CLICK HERE.
1. BMW Championship the Best of the Best: The BMW Championship, hosted by Cherry Hills Country Club in the first week of September, earned the No. 1 spot on our list for two main reasons: First, it marked the first time Colorado had hosted a PGA Tour event since 2006 — and it was a FedExCup Playoff event at that; Second, all its net proceeds benefit the Evans Scholarship for caddies, including those attending school at the University of Colorado. In both regards, the tournament was a major success. All of the top 10 players in the World Golf Ranking competed, and seven of the top 15 in those rankings finished in the top 10 at Cherry Hills. Billy Horschel won the tournament and went on to claim the FedExCup title the following week. Full story: CLICK HERE. The penultimate playoff event drew close to 126,000 fans over six days. With former CU Evans Scholar George Solich serving as general chairman, the BMW Championship was not only named the PGA Tour’s Tournament of the Year (CLICK HERE), but it raised a record $3.5 million for the Evans Scholars, which is a flagship program for both the CGA and CWGA (CLICK HERE). (The BMW Championship awards ceremony is pictured, at top, with Horschel in the red pants and Solich standing second from the right.)
Honorable-Mention Selections
— University of Colorado-bound Ross Macdonald became the first player since the 1980s to win consecutive CGA Junior Stroke Play Championships.
— Golf World magazine included four “locals” among its list of the “100 Best Modern Players” (since 1980) on the PGA Tour: David Duval (No. 8), Hale Irwin (35), Craig Stadler (42) and Steve Jones (83).
— Coloradan Mark Wiebe played in the 500th PGA Tour event of his career, competing in the British Open.
— Eric Hoos exited after a 15-year run as University of Denver men’s golf coach, and was replaced by Erik Billinger.
— Sammie Chergo, who coached the DU women’s team to two top-10 finishes in the NCAA finals, became head coach at Oregon State.
— Three Colorado-based golfers earned spots in out-of-state halls of fame: 11-time LPGA Tour winner Shirley Englehorn (LPGA Teaching and Club Professional Hall of Fame), Mark Wiebe (San Jose State Sports Hall of Fame) and Lynn Zmistowski (Minnesota Golf Hall of Fame).
— Denver’s Nick Mason qualified for the U.S. Open.
— The CGA announced that CommonGround Golf Course will host a new AJGA event, the AJGA Hale Irwin Junior, in June 2015.
— In just the second CGA Match Play final since 1981 to go extra holes, Cody Kent defeated Jacob Allenback in 37 holes.
— CSU-Pueblo’s Leina Kim leads the NCAA Division II women’s ranks in scoring average after fall competition (71.2).
— Colorado caddie Melyzjah Smith earned an Evans Scholarship at CU thanks to a hole-in-one Hunter Mahan made at the 2013 BMW Championship near Chicago.
— Seventeen caddies, believed to be a record-sized class, received Evans Scholarships at CU, including 15 teenagers from Colorado.
— For the last time, qualifying for the men’s and women’s U.S. Amateur Public Links were held in Colorado, while the first qualifiers for the men’s and women’s U.S. Four-Balls were contested as the USGA made changes to its championship schedule.
— Josh Seiple of Castle Rock was named to the AJGA All-American second team.
— Former CU golfer Emily Talley finished second in the inaugural Big Break Invitational on the Golf Channel.
— Becca Huffer of Denver won the Michigan PGA Women’s Open.
— Former DU golfer Sue Kim made her third cut in three tries at the U.S. Women’s Open. Greeley’s Carleigh Silvers also qualified for the event.
— A victory on the Symetra Tour narrowly eluded Littleton’s Ashley Tait, who lost in a playoff to Madison Pressel in the Decatur-Forsyth Classic.
— The University of Northern Colorado men won the America Sky Conference title, with Coloradan Ben Krueger capturing the individual title.
— Golf magazine readers named the Broadmoor North America’s top resort.
— Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Bob Byman was on the 1974-75 Wake Forest squad that PGATour.com named the top college golf team of all time.
After all, he was the product of just such a program.
Solich earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Colorado after going to school on an Evans Caddie Scholarship, and now he’s doing his best to pay it forward.
His latest venture in that regard is one on a very large scale. With a $2 million lead gift from Solich and his wife Carol, the CGA on Monday announced the formation of the Colorado Golf Foundation, which will provide assistance “for innovative programs that use the game of golf to instill hard work and self-reliance in young people.”
For Solich, the kids are the key.
“I love golf and what it can teach kids of all socio-economic backgrounds — good lessons about character and competition,” he said. “For me, the game has affected my life in so many great ways.”
The CGA has been designated the organization that will manage the day-to-day affairs of the CGF, with guidance provided by an independent nine-person board of directors and five advisory directors who will review opportunities and distribute appropriate grants.
Former USGA president Will Nicholson Jr., a lifelong Coloradan who helped structure the foundation, has been named the CGF’s chairman.
Among the programs the Colorado Golf Foundation anticipates funding are two which Solich has helped fund and support in the past: the year-old Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course, and the CGA’s Evans Scholarship Recruiter position. Others programs that have been specified for anticipated funding are other Colorado-based caddie programs and the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program at CommonGround.
(Solich is pictured above congratulating a participant in the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy.)
And the plan is to consider support for “other youth-based programs and initiatives that place a high value on leadership, character development and the traditions of the game of golf.”
“I think the (CGF) will make a big difference,” said Nicholson, who has a long history of volunteerism in the game. “And I think it will be great particularly for young people; that’s the emphasis. I’m delighted and honored that George asked me to be chairman.”
Like Solich, Nicholson believes golf is an especially effective vehicle for instilling key values in young men and women.
“The key is that golf is a game of self-discipline and doing what’s right when no one is looking,” said Nicholson, who last year was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame.
Solich hopes to see the $2 million seed he’s planted blossom into something that other philanthropists support and which will grow and thrive over the long haul.
The foundation “is almost a co-op for a lot of different programs we want to support through golf, and we hope others see the benefit (and assist in the effort),” Solich said. “I hope that $2 million (grows to be) a much bigger foundation and will drive some good programs in the state of Colorado that are rooted in golf and that will have a broad effect on people’s lives.
“When we look back in five or 10 years, I hope we can say, ‘Look at what we started and how many kids we affected.'”
The nine members of the CGF board, which must include at least two members of the CGA Board of Governors, are Nicholson, George Caulkins, former Cherry Hills Country Club head professional Clayton Cole, Jim Hayes, Phil Lane, CGA president Tom Lawrence, CGA executive director Ed Mate, Geoff Solich (George’s brother and an Evans Scholars alum) and Castle Pines Golf Club general manager Keith Schneider.
The advisory board will include George Solich, World Golf Hall of Famers Hale Irwin and Judy Bell, and Colorado Sports Hall of Famers Jack Vickers and Dow Finsterwald.
For several reasons, Solich feels the CGA is the ideal organization to manage the day-to-day affairs of the foundation.
“The mission of both organizations are strongly aligned, and what the CGA has done with CommonGround (which is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA) as a tool is so admirable. They have the caddie program, the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program; it’s turned out to be an incredible confluence, a great staging area to deliver all these great programs. I also believe the leadership at the CGA has never been stronger, and the mission and direction has never been stronger. So it was perfect alignment.”
Providing the lead gift and guidance for the Colorado Golf Foundation is the latest of several major endeavors Solich has taken on in the golf realm over the last several years.
He was a major force in bringing the 2014 BMW Championship PGA Tour playoff event to Cherry Hills Country Club, and he will serve as general chairman of that tournament. The BMW Championship helps fund the Evans Caddie Scholarship. And in a related matter, Solich has been a Match Play Challenge partner in an initiative in which major donors match contributions of $2,500 or more to the Evans Scholarship. And that’s all in addition to the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy — which is named in honor of brothers George and Geoff, both former Evans Scholars and prominent players in the oil and gas business — and George funding the CGA’s Evans Scholars Recruiter position.
“I’ve been blessed to be able” to give back, Solich said.
For more information on the Colorado Golf Foundation, or to support the CGF, contact Will Nicholson at 303-585-7100.
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