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Infiniti of Kansas City New Title Sponsor

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The Kansas City Golf Association has a new partner this season. Infiniti of Kansas City has been named the title sponsor of the KCGA’s 2015 season.

Local owners,Jennifer and Richard Webb invite all KCGA members to stop by the beautiful new dealership that is celebrating its second anniversary this summer.

Infiniti of Kansas City spent months designing the new building in Merriam, Kansas with all of the amenities of an upscale, modern dealership. Located near I-35 and 67th Street, the building is reminiscent of a modern art gallery offering car shoppers a sleek, modern showroom and setting the stage for the distinctive car buying experience.

KCGA is proud to have Infiniti of Kansas City as its Title Sponsor this year. Look for them to be featured throughout the season.

KCGA Competitions Preview

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As we begin our 103rd year of supporting amateur golf in the Kansas City Metro, the Kansas City Golf Association is pleased to announce the 2015 Competitions schedule is now available on our website at www.kansascitygolfer.org.  Tournament registrations will open on March 3rd, 2015 at 10:00am.  Please contact the KCGA office at (913) 649-5242 with any questions related to KCGA competitions.

Regional Championships

The 100th Kansas City Match Play Championship will be held at Swope Memorial Golf Course May 8th-10th.  The Kansas City Match Play is one of the longest running championships in the area and has a long list of notable champions, including Tom Watson in 1964 and 1967. Phil Bartimus is the defending champion.

The Kansas City Junior Championship is the premier junior tournament in the Kansas City area.  This year’s championship will be conducted at Prairie Highlands on June 2nd and 3rd, and the event will identify the best junior golfers, both boys and girls, in the region.  The boys’ champion will receive an exemption into the 2015 Watson Challenge, under residency requirements. The defending KC Junior champions are Eric Pahls and India Gaume.

The 9th Watson Challenge will be conducted at Mission Hills Country Club on June 12th,13th & 14th.  Last year’s champion, Robert Streb, is in 2nd place in the PGA Tour FedEx Cup points standings at the time of this writing and has been a PGA Tour winner at The McGladrey Classic in October 2014. The Watson Challenge offers the strongest field of amateur and professional golfers in the Kansas City area.  Proceeds from The Watson Challenge benefit The First Tee of Greater Kansas City.

The Prairie Invitational, formerly The Women’s Amateur of Kansas City, is the region’s top event for both amateurs and professionals.  The 2015 event will be played at Staley Farms Golf Club on June 30th and July 1st.  The event was renamed The Prairie Invitational in 2014 with the intent to identify the Best Female Golfer in the Midwest, whether amateur or professional.  Catherine Dolan was the first Prairie Invitational Open champion with a two-under-par 142 total.

The Kansas City Amateur Championship will be held at Shoal Creek Golf Course on July 17th through July 19th.  The Kansas City Amateur is a three-day, 54-hole stroke play event aimed to determine the best amateur player in the Kansas City area.  PGA Tour player Gary Woodland is among the list of notable champions. Zac Dittmer is the reigning KC Amateur Champion.

StateLine Amateur Tour

The StateLine Amateur Tour is a great opportunity for amateurs in the Kansas City regional golf community to compete on some of the best courses in the area in an atmosphere similar to inside the ropes at a big-time tour event or national amateur championship.  All events are one day, 18-hole competitions.  The StateLine Amateur Tour has eleven events on the schedule featuring different divisions of play.  This year’s tour schedule is highlighted by events at Loch Lloyd Country Club, Blue Hills Country Club, The Nicklaus Club at Lionsgate, and Lake Quivira Country Club.

Kansas City Junior Tour

The Kansas City Junior Tour provides opportunities for varying levels of junior golfers.  Two flights separate the Kansas City Junior Tour – the Prep division and the Players division. Junior golfers ages 9-12 may compete in the Prep division, which plays nine holes at each of the events.  Junior golfers ages 13 and older may participate in the Players division, which plays eighteen holes at each event.  The Players division is divided into flights for boys/girls ages 13-15 and boys/girls ages 16 and over and boys varsity.  This year’s Tour Championship will be at Shadow Glen Golf Club.

The KCGA hopes all golfers in the Kansas City Metro will consider competing in a KCGA-sponsored event and support The First Tee and golf in the Kansas City area by attending The Watson Challenge as a spectator.

2015 Kansas City Golf Show is Almost Here

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The Kansas City Golf Show is coming up soon! Don’t forget to bring the whole family down to Overland Park Convention Center February 6th – 8th. This year’s golf show is going to help golfers kick off the spring season with incredible savings, fun contests, a free driving range, free lessons and much more. Some of the 2015 Exhibits include: The Golfsmith Testing and Fitting Zone, The Lesson Zone, a Long Drive challenge, a Putting Contest and much more. This is the biggest golf sale of the year in Kansas and a celebration of the region’s exciting golf community. Make sure to take advantage of show-only savings on all name brand clubs and a chance to take home great giveaways. You don’t want to miss out!

Be sure to stop by the KCGA Booth where you will get to experience the history of Kansas City golf along with the historical timeline of the Kansas City Golf Association. We will be providing information on all of our 2015 tournaments and events. You can also get signed up for a USGA Handicap Index and for the chance to win FREE tour memberships into KCGA events for junior golfers and amateur golfers. We hope to see you there!

Ticket Prices: Adult $12, Senior (60+) $10, Kids 12 and under FREE. Additional $1 off to KCGA Members (off the $12 ticket price)

Hours: Friday 11:00am to 5:00opm, Saturday 10:00am to 5:00pm, Sunday 10:00am to 4:00pm

For more info, visit http://kansascitygolfshow.com/

Doug Habel Chosen as New KCGA Executive Director

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On December 19th, 2014, Doug Habel, 36, was announced as the new Executive Director of the Kansas City Golf Association. Habel had been Competitions Manager for the KCGA since 2012. Previously, Doug had been a PGA assistant pro at three Kansas City area courses. He was at Hillcrest from 2003-2005, Wolf Creek from 2005-2009 and Oakwood from 2010-2011. Doug has since had his amateur status reinstated.

Habel grew up in the Kansas City area and attended Hickman Mills High School and Truman State University in Kirksville. Doug and his wife Laura are the proud parents of four children, ages 4 through 11. Doug replaces Matt Williams who took the Georgia Golf Association Executive Director post on November 16.

“I’m very excited about the opportunity.”, said Habel, “I’ve spent my whole life working in golf in the Kansas City area, and I’ve always admired and respected what the KCGA does. I’m honored to be leading such a fine organization into the future.”

KCGA to Induct Three into Hall of Fame

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Local touring professional Bob Stone and renowned amateur Karen Schull MacGee will add their names to the roster of local golf greats when they are inducted into the Kansas City Golf Hall of Fame in the class of 2014.

Joining this duo of great players will be the “The Foursome,” golfing pioneers who took on “Jim Crow” and opened public golf facilities to players of color in the 1950s.

In the early 20th Century, the movement to build municipal golf courses was seen as a way to democratize the game, allowing the poor and middle-class to enjoy the values of health, recreation and camaraderie associated with playing golf. But these same values were denied to men and women of color. Until The Foursome came along.

These four men: George Johnson, Reuben Benton, Sylvester “Pat” Johnson and Leroy Doty changed that in March 1950. They drove “up the hill” from the hardscrabble nine-hole course blacks were allowed to play (Swope #2) to the A.W. Tillinghast designed Swope #1 (now Swope Memorial).

Demanding the “right” to play the course their tax dollars were used to maintain, the four were turned away by the man behind the desk. Unwilling to accept “no” for an answer, they laid their money on the counter and proceeded to the first tee where, to threats of arrest, they took on “Jim Crow” and won. It wasn’t quick or easy, but their heroic first steps eventually opened the gates of city owned facilities to all people, regardless of race.

Bob Stone won more than 45 times as a professional, including the Florida Citrus Open on the PGA Tour in 1969. He found success throughout the country from the mid-1950s to the 1980s always returning to his club professional roots at Rockwood and later, at Crackerneck Golf Club in Independence.

In the 1981 US Senior Open, Stone finished tied with legends Arnold Palmer and Billy Casper. In the 18-hole Monday playoff he surged into an early lead, only to be overtaken by a streaking Palmer, but besting Casper by three strokes.

Stone was a contender in state Open Championships throughout the mid-west winning multiple times in Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Kentucky and Wisconsin. He was Midwest Section PGA Champion four times, US Open Sectional qualifier three times and Senior Open qualifier twice.

Karen Schull MacGee was a graduate of Southwest High School and the University of Kansas. Between 1958 and 1980 MacGee was “the one to beat” in women’s golf in the Kansas City area. She won the Kansas Women’s Amateur five times, the Missouri Women’s Amateur seven times and had twelve Kansas City Match Play and Country Club District championships.

After winning the KC Match Play championship for the eighth time in 1980, MacGee opted to focus on her career in nursing and stepped away from competitive golf.

The Kansas City Golf Hall of Fame was created in 2012 to cap the celebration of the centennial anniversary of the KCGA. The Hall recognizes the contributions and accomplishments of area amateur and professional golfers, teaching professionals, golf course superintendents and pioneers of the game.

Stone, MacGee and “The Foursome” join the golf greats who were inducted in the inaugural class last year. That class included local legend Tom Watson, long-time teaching pro Stan Thirsk, turf grass pioneer and golf course superintendent Chester Mendenhall, Opal Hill accomplished player, teacher and one of the founders of the LPGA, 1927 US Women’s’ Amateur Champion Miriam Burns (Horn) Tyson, former KCGA Executive Director Bob Reid and 25-year Blue Hills professional Leland “Duke” Gibson.

The induction ceremonies will take place in conjunction with the annual meeting of the KCGA Board of Directors on November 15, 2015 at Indian Hills Country Club at 12:00 p.m. For press credentials to the event, please contact Matt Williams at matt@kcgolf.org

Team Kansas Retains the Stateline Cup

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The Stateline Cup Matches were played on October 30th, on a beautiful day at Firekeeper Golf Course in Mayetta, KS. The matches pitted a team of Missouri players against a team of Kansas players. There were six four-ball matches, six foursomes matches and twelve singles matches.

The matches were close all day but team Kansas did what they needed to do to retain the cup for another year, as they ended in a 12-12 tie.

Click here to see the scores…

Terranova Tears Up Back Nine to Win

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Wolf Creek G.C. — The course and weather conditions could not be better for the 2014 Kansas City Masters.  The wind was so still, conversations carried hundreds of yards and through the majestic oaks surrounding Wolf Creek Golf Club.  As the final round began, three men shared the lead at two under par setting the stage for a shootout to complete the 2014 KCGA season.

A chaotic leaderboard changed throughout the final round as players jockeyed for position heading into the back nine.  With nine holes remaining a half dozen players had a chance to take home the final crystal of the year.  It looked like Steve Groom and Joseph Winslow in the final pairing were going to duke it out over the home stretch, but both players found trouble early on the back nine.  A double bogey for Groom on ten and back to back bogeys on eleven and twelve put both players in black numbers for the first time.

In the group ahead, Mark Terranova quietly moved up the leaderboard after making a birdie on the par four thirteenth.  Terranova looked like he would drop a stroke at the par three fifteenth hole after a poor approach, but after a ten foot slider and a monster fist pump he escaped with par.  Terranova then birdied to take the outright lead on seventeen at even par.

Heading to eighteen, it looked like it would take at least even par to fend off the challengers.  After a well placed tee shot, Terranova fired his approach to the backstop behind the front hole location on number eighteen.  There was a nervous hesitation as it looked like the ball might stop precariously on the slope, which would have left a nearly impossible two putt, but gravity prevailed and the ball gently drifted back to the hole.  Terranova holed the putt for good measure and capped the victory finishing as the only player under par for the thirty-six hole championship.

“I am very happy for Mark,” said Matt Williams, KCGA Executive Director.  “He has been close so many times in our events and he finally closed it out. His back-nine today was some of the highest quality golf I have seen this year.”

While Groom finished in second, he took home low Senior honors and continues to establish himself as one of the great senior players in the region.

The KCGA would like to thank the staff of Wolf Creek Golf Club for hosting the event.

For complete results click here!

Stateline Tour Championship is in the Books

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Steve Groom, of Raytown, MO fired an even par 71 today on a tough day at Shoal Creek Golf Club to take home the title in the Senior division of the Stateline Tour Championship. Groom was the first round leader after a 72 in round one. Tom Leonard, Greg Loteckie and Ed Walsworth were all close behind and within striking distance, but Groom never faltered and cruised to a four shot victory.

In the Legends division, Fran Ferns, of Leawood, KS won his first Stateline Tour championship with an 8-over 150 total. Ferns shot a 2-over 73 the first day, which gave him a lead of two shots over Ron Brewer and three shots over Jim Lodes and Brad Robinson. Fern’s led by only one with two holes remaining, but was able to hold on for the victory. Ron Brewer took home the title in the net competition with a 141.

In the Players division, first round leader Michael Buckhouse, of Lawrence, KS struggled a bit down the stretch, but was able to secure the championship. Buckhouse, who shot a 1-under 70 in round one got off to a great start and looked like he would cruise to an easy victory, but a few bad holes made things interesting. Ultimately, Buckhouse’s total of 149 would win by 2 over runner-up Ritch Nigh. Greg Hillman took home the net championship with a 141.

Finally, in the Open division, Mark Terranova, of Overland Park, KS, came from behind to secure the title with a 5-over 147. Terranova trailed first round leader Josh Weems by one shot after the opening round, but quickly made up that deficit in round two and played a solid back nine to clinch the win.

Click here for complete results.

Blue Hills Women Secure KC Cup

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For the second time in three years, the women of Blue Hills Country Club are the Kansas City Cup champions. It was a cool, gray day at Meadowbrook, but Blue Hills played great and cruised to a 3-0 victory over The Golf Club of Kansas. For the Golf Club of Kansas, it was their third straight trip to the finals, but they’re still in search of that elusive first victory.

In match #1, Toni Zink and Missy Giocondo of Blue Hills defeated Debbie Henderson and Veda Landon of the Golf Club of Kansas 3&2. Landon and Henderson squared the match when Landon made an ace on the par 3 2nd hole. It was Landon’s third career hole in one. That would be the highlight of the day for the Golf Club of Kansas, as Blue Hills would soon take the lead and hold the lead for the rest of the day. Zink and Giocondo led 2-up on the 16th hole when Zink made a 50 foot net eagler putt to clinch a 3&2 victory.

In match #2, Diane Easley and Carol McLerran of Blue Hills defeated Mary Kolich and Paula Sowell of the Golf Club of Kansas 4&3. Easley and McLerran jumped out to an early lead and looked liked they might have an easy victory, but Kolich and Sowell made a run at them in the middle of the round to cut the lead to 2-up. Easley and McLerran would pull away and clinch the match with a long par putt on the 16th hole.

In match #3, Shelley Whipps and Liz Kryger of Blue Hills defeated Sydney Tucker and JoAnne Bridgnell of the Golf Club of Kansas 5&4. Whipps and Kryger played a stellar round of golf and led from wire-to-wire to clinch the final point for Blue Hills.

Congratulations to Captain Diane Sparks and Blue Hills Country Club!

Kansas City Golfers Grab National Headlines

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Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that the legendary Tom Watson will captain the U.S. Ryder Cup team in Gleneagles, Scotland next week.  Watson will try to lead the U.S. team to victory on foreign soil for the first time since he last captained the squad in 1993.

What you may not know is that the area’s best players have been dominating the national golf headlines the past several weeks.

The run of great play from area residents began with Robert Streb at the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston.  The Kansas State alum caused an uproar throughout local clubs when he holed an eagle putt on his final hole of the championship.  The NBC broadcast team promptly declared that the dramatic eagle putt was good enough for Streb to continue on in the FedEx Cup race.  The putt momentarily put him in the top 70, but after some recalculating, Streb would fall just two FedEx Cup points short of continuing.

Even though his 2014 season was cut short, Streb has made quite a splash in his second year on tour amassing 1.3 million dollars and while becoming the 181st ranked player in the world.  Streb also claimed the title of Kansas City’s best player when he took down the metro’s best at Loch Lloyd earlier this year during the Watson Challenge.  His class as a player and person was on display at this year’s Watson Challenge as he and his wife promptly donated the winner’s check of $10,000 to the First Tee of Greater Kansas City.

“When Robert said that during the awards ceremony, my mouth just dropped open,” said KCGA Executive Director, Matt Williams.  “I know he is having a great year, but he is only three seasons removed from scrapping it around in the mini-tour world. I mean ten grand is ten grand and it took some real class to step up and have an impact on our community like that.”

With the new PGA Tour schedule, Streb is not likely to stay idle for long.  The official 2015 PGA Tour season kicks off at the Frys.com Open in early October which is an event he had reasonable success at last season.

Shortly after Robert Streb’s eagle putt dropped in Boston, the 2014 U.S Mid-Amateur Championship kicked off at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, PA.  The event, which gathers the best amateurs ages 25 and over, boasts one of the greatest first place prizes in all of amateur golf.  The Mid-Amateur champion is traditionally awarded a spot in the Masters each spring.  Needless to say, the competition from the average “working Joes” is fierce.

St. Joseph’s Brad Nurski, is no stranger to big events.  He has been an excellent player on the local and statewide scene, but has never had substantial success on the national level.  After advancing through the Kansas City local qualifier as medalist, Nurski joined 264 other players from across the globe with the hopes of claiming one of amateur golf’s top prizes.

Nurski opened up with two solid rounds of 70 and 71 to finish one under in stroke play qualifying.  The one under total would be good enough to share medalist honors with Scott Harvey of Grensboro, N.C.  The two players received the first and second seeds in the sixty-four player bracket and went about their business.  After five sets of matches, the two co-medalists would end up squaring off in the finals.

When asked if co-medalists have ever played in a USGA final, the USGA’S Mark Passey explained, “I’m sure our historians back at Golf House are scrambling to find out, but I am not sure it has ever happened.  You typically do not see two players sustain such a high level of golf for an entire week.”

Unfortunately for Nurski, his incredible run would end in the finals.  The inevitable question came from the media following the match. “Obviously you are disappointed with the finish, but what do you take away from this experience?”

Nurski responded, “I mean.. you know that you can compete with the top mid-am guys in the country.  And that was my goal, and the goal is always to win, but Ijust didn’t come out on top today.

You know, obviously it’s going to open up a few doors for me which I didn’t have open when I got here.  I’ll get to play in the U.S. Am next year and I’ll get to come back to this tournament for two years, so that takes a lot of weight off your shoulders when you know you don’t have to qualify for some things.  And we obviously got the USGA State Team coming up in a couple of weeks and hopefully team Missouri can get a little revenge on North Carolina.”

As he mentioned, Nurski will team up with Skip Bermeyer and Phil Caravia, both of St. Louis in the USGA State Team Championship for team Missouri next month.

One of the members of the winning USGA State Team from 2010, Bryan Norton, also grabbed the national spotlight earlier today.  A longtime stalwart in Kansas City area competition, Norton came up just short in the 2014 U.S. Senior Amateur Championship today in Newport Beach, CA.  This was the first time Norton was eligible for the championship as all participants must be at least 55 years of age.

Norton has already amassed an impressive season with a victory in the Senior Coleman Invitational, earned a spot in the U.S. Senior Open at Oak Tree in Oklahoma and took the title at the Kansas Amateur at his home club of Mission Hills.

All that aside, Norton has always had his eyes set on an individual USGA title.  Norton has been very close before.  He suffered an injury in the final match of the 2003 U.S. Mid-Amateur and was forced to concede the match to Nathan Smith.  The final match concession was the first of its kind in the 108 year history of the USGA.

Redemption will have to wait at least one year more as Norton came up just short in his bid at the Senior Amateur today.  Norton dropped four of his first nine holes, but after birdies on holes eleven and twelve, Norton had clawed his way back into the match.  His opponent Pat Tallent of Vienna, VA rolled in a thirty foot birdie putt on the par four 17th to close out the match 2 and 1.

Norton’s year will certainly be a highlight of his golfing career and as one of the “rookies” in Senior golf, he is poised to be a dominant figure in many more events in the future.

With all this local golf excitement, one burning question remains.  Can Tom Watson lead what experts believe is an underdog American team to a victory in the Ryder Cup?  A victory by the Kansas City icon would serve as the bookend on one of the greatest months in local golf history.

Watson has been downplaying his role as of late. “I am just the director. I put the pieces in place and the actors do their thing.  I really don’t have much say in the outcome,” explained Watson.

That may be true, but Watson is the most successful American ever to play in Europe.  His five British Open victories, dominant record and successful captaincy in the 1993 Ryder Cup can do nothing but bolster the confidence of the twelve man team.

No matter the outcome, the additional exposure on Watson has done nothing but enhance golf in Kansas City.  “I can’t explain it, but there is just a buzz going around golf in Kansas City,” said Matt Williams of the KCGA.  “Every day there is a great story about someone doing something amazing on the links and if team USA can win next week, there will be people celebrating in the streets.  The level of competition here in Kansas City is some of the best in the country and it is exciting to see it play out in the world’s biggest events.”