Foxtail Golf Club
March 25 2004

During the weeks proceedings our opening tournament the Greater Bay Area enjoyed the finest March weather in history. Nearly everyday during March the weather was sunny with spring-like temperatures. Then came the day of our golf event. While no rain fell during the rest of the month, the day of our tournament was grim and overcast. By the time of our tee time a steady rain had been falling for an hour. Even though we were not obligated to play, in consideration of the banquet we opted to brave the weather. Donning our rain-gear we sloshed out onto the soggy golf course. What started out as a steady rain soon turned into a monsoon. Many years ago I stated that I would never walk off a golf course in the middle of a round. Though I was referring to leaving because of poor play, I have tried to live by this rule at all times. In twenty-plus years playing golf this is only the third time I have walked off a golf course. The first time was due to lightning, the second time I had the flu and it was raining fairly hard. This time the weather was trying to make up for the rest of the month in one day. When we called everyone in off the course, the collection of wet and cold golfers looked relieved and thankful for the reprieve. The staff at Foxtail was fantastic and anticipating our early exit had started to prepare the food and had the room ready. The food was excellent and plentiful, but the coffee was wonderful. I drank so much coffee that I was wired for a week. After the fine meal and the chance to dry off, we presented the awards to our top finishers.

George Garcia is our new Club Champ. His ply last year was very consistant and he dropped his handicap four strokes. That is the kind of play that is usually the recipe to win a year- long competition. Congratulations to George and the other top finishers on their great years and hopefully we can have another competitive season.

Silverado Country Club
May 19 2004

This year we are having our Silverado tournament as a fund raiser with the San Francisco Police. This is a new event and we are trying to raise money the Widows and Orphans Fund. Please sign up early as we would like to fill the entire shotgun. We will have the front nine and the Police will have the back nine. There will be tee prizes and food and beverages provided. Susan Hart is coordinating this event between the police and the fire departments. She has also done the soliciting for the prizes and funding the food and beverages. Hopefully we can have a smoothly run event and perhaps we can make this a yearly tournament. We would like to see a good turn-out so call in your four-somes. Golf line 415-822-9500

Reno Golf Trip
September 21-23 2004

We are soliciting people for the Reno trip a little early this year. Last year we were a late getting the information to the Mainline and some people were unable to attend. If you have not been to our Reno trip it is a great time to get together and play golf in a relaxed and fun environment. We provide two day of golf, rooms, food and beverages all included in the package. There is also a non-golfer rate, so if you just want to have a fun time, please consider attending this year. This year we will be playing at Red Hawk and Lakeridge. Red Hawk is a great new course in Sparks and it is a stern test of golf. It has a variety of holes that will use every club in your bag. I think you will like it!!

We will be sending out our Reno flyer to all past attendees, but if you are interested and want a flyer please call the golf line and leave your name and address and we will add you to the list.

Shadow Lakes Golf Club
June 16 2004 10:30 start times

In the past ten years there has been a boom in golf course construction. The golf committee has been trying our hardest to get out and schedule some of these new venues for our membership. Last year we played at Roddy Ranch and Hiddenbrooke. Both course are great examples of the quality of the new courses in our area. This year Shadow Lakes a neighboring course of Roddy Ranch is one of the two new courses on our schedule. When Shadow Lakes opened two years ago the golf committee played a test round. We were very impressed and have been trying to work it into our rotation. Shadow Lakes is a well designed course with a varied layout. Situated in rolling terrain. The course has a different feel from hole to hole. If you get the chance to go out there and play Shadow Lakes , I think you will be impressed. I thought it was a fun and challenging course with several par 4’s that were drivable. The elevation changes make your club selection fun. Some shots of 150 yards you could use a wedge and the next time you could use a four iron. I think everyone would enjoy this Course and it is a great golf experience.

Chardonnay Golf Club
July 13 2004 10:30 Start Times

Chardonnay has been on our schedule for the last two years. The last two years we played during winter. This year it will be a different course in the summer. I personally love Chardonnay, but it always has several holes that I play poorly on and ruin my round. With hazards on every hole thinking your way around the course is very important. Hitting quality tee shots are one of the keys here as position is often the difference, between an easy second shot and an impossible one. Please be aware that this is a starting time tournament so first paid foursomes get early times.

Hiddenbrooke
August 2nd 2004 12:30 Shotgun start

Last year we put Hiddenbrooke on the schedule at the last moment and had to play it as our November tournament. Unfortunately not many of our members chose to play at this great course. While we were at the course they offered us our chose of dates for this year. As a result we were able to get this great date and time. We hope with this incentive that we can get more players to venture out to play. We have a shotgun so we welcome guests to accompany our members. Please if you haven’t played Hiddenbrooke do yourself a favor and put aside time to make this tournament. This is a great golf course.

Rules Of Golf

I have decided to add a rules of golf section to my golf article. I don’t know how often people use the excuse of ignorance of the rules as a reason to break them. Not knowing a rule is not an excuse. If you play tournament golf you should know the rules. All golfers who play tournament golf should have a rule book in their bag. If you don’t know the rules ask someone who does. Not all rules are negative, many rules are helpful and can benefit your game.

Posting Your Scores

Posting your score is one of the most important rules of golf. If you play a round of golf and you complete at least 7 holes you must post a 9 hole score using par plus handicap for the last 2 holes. If you complete 13 holes you must post it as an 18 hole score using the same method for rest of the round . Often people use the “Winter Rules” as an excuse for not posting. In California we do not have an out of season rule. During the winter the imbedded ball and the casual water rules should be enough to off set poor conditions. If the course you are playing is open it most likely in reasonable condition. Bumping the ball is not really an option. Play it as it lies. “I played two balls on some holes.” This is another poor excuse for not posting.

#1- A player should not be playing two balls.

#2- You can still post a score regardless.

#3- Using this excuse is often used by sandbaggers to practice and not post good scores.

Only you can decide it you should post your scores but a golf committee can actually do something about this. If one of your peers reports someone not posting rounds. We the golf committee can post for you and post a penalty round also. We will be giving out a book on handicaps and posting at the Tournaments. If you are interested please contact us!

I hope that our players take this as an education about the rules. We are learning about the rules ourselves and I am trying to pass on the information. I would be interested in what everyone’s opinion is on the subject.

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