“Don’t say goodbye, goodbyes are forever, say see you later.” That’s exactly how I felt when I took this photo on the 1st tee on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 22nd, which was officially the final day of play on The Kansas City Country Club’s “old course.”
Is it okay to call a golf course a friend? I think so. God knows we have spent a lot of time together for over 35 years. We know each other’s moods, vulnerabilities, strengths, weaknesses and peculiarities. That’s no different than what I know about my golf buddies.
Yes, there have been days when I left the course disappointed and feeling that it was my foe – hardly a friend. Of course (pun?), on most days I walked off 18 believing that we had a good time together – each of us giving and taking.
Yes, there was a real sadness when I looked down the brown No. 1 fairway on Sunday. As Andrew Green renovates our course over the next 18 months, I am going to miss the anticipation of another day with a great friend, our course. A golf course, after all, is not just a playground, it is a place where a lot of memories have been born.
As We All Know…
“A golf course is a piece of land sanctified, blessed, and transformed into a battlefield of blessed adventure. It's a place where the battles are fought but the warriors are friends.” – Dr. Alister MacKenzie (1870 – 1934), who designed or redesigned over 400 courses in his career, including Augusta National, Cypress Point, Royal Melbourne, Pasatiempo, and Crystal Downs. His book, Golf Architecture, was written in 1920.
“Golf courses are the answer to the world’s problems. When I get out on that green carpet called a fairway, manage to poke the ball right down the middle, my surroundings look like a touch of heaven on earth.” – Jimmy DeMaret (1910 - 1983), who won the Masters 1940, ’47, ’50. He had 31 career wins on the PGA Tour.
“It would be an insult to your good taste and intelligence to tell you how to behave on the links, because it is only necessary to remember that for the time being the golf course is your garden and the clubhouse is your temporary home.” – Englishman Sir Thomas Henry Cotton, who won The Open Championship in 1934, 1937; 1948.
“A golf course is never quite the same from one day to the next. So you have to be able to meet the course on its terms, not your own.” – Billy Casper (1931 – 2015) who won three Majors –1970 Masters and 1966 U.S. Open, 1959; 1966. He had 51 PGA Tour victories, ranking him 7th all-time. During his peak years between 1962 and 1970, Casper won 33 PGA Tour titles, the same as Nicklaus, six more than Palmer and 25 more than Player.
“On the golf course as nowhere else, the tyranny of causality is suspended and men are free.” – American author John Updike (1932 – 2009), whose book, Golf Dreams (1996), is a wonderful read.
“The practice tee is the place to try out and to work hard; the golf course is the place to let things go, free yourself up. Don’t try harder on the golf course. Try less hard.” – Davis Love, Jr. (1935 to 1988) is the father of Davis Love III. Love was the captain of the University of Texas golf team and played professionally before becoming a teaching professional. He died in a private plane crash while on an approach to the Jacksonville airport in 1988.
“I fear for the future of traditional golf, where people get out, have a bit of a stretch, hit a few shots and walk around a nice place. That is the first thing a golf course should be: a nice place to walk.” – David Feherty (Born 1958), who played professionally from 1976 to 1997. He had 11 worldwide wins, including five on the European Tour. He began his broadcasting career in 1997 as an on-course reporter for CBS. (Comment: KCCC is a wonderful “in town” course that is easyto walk with green-to-tee distances being minimal.)
Here’s a well-deserved thank you to my “old course” – a Tillinghast gem.
Thanks for the memories!
Allan Stark
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