Do they play hickory golf in Iowa and the mid west ? ” You betcha” !!!
The recently held Iowa Hickory Classic held at Hyperion Field Club in Des Moines, literally had hickory players from coast to coast and border to border. Players from Florida to the state of Washington, and Minnesota to the Lone Star state of Texas joined five dozen other participants in this 8th annual classic.
The 1910 Tom Bendelow-designed Hyperion Field Club played long and hard after record amounts of rain drenched much of the Midwest but the clouds parted and the tourney was held in pleasant and sunny conditions. Fifty-four registered players and another 32 guests enjoyed the Friday evening Scottish dinner, and the Saturday serving of authentic fish-n’-chips. A robust trade show was held after Friday’s practice round and the trading was the most robust in years.
Winner Dave Brown is shown above at right receiving the tropy
from Hyperion Field Club Superintendent John Ausen. Dave also is the captain for the USA team
contesting for the inaugural SoHG International Hickory Cup this fall in Carnoustie, Scotland.
The following players took home the Gold, Silver, and Bronze:
Open Division low gross
Gold Medal David Brown…….Omaha, Neb. 81
Silver Medal John Berggren…..Kingwood, Texas 85
Bronze Medal Kevin Cawley……Omaha, Neb. 86
Open Division Reserve (net)
Gold Medal Chris Hardy……..Port Byron, Ill. 70
Silver Medal David Gamet……St. Joseph, Mo. 72
Bronze Medal Larry Krebsbach..Lincoln, Neb. 73
Senior Division low gross
Gold Medal John Hutton………Lakewood, Col. 83
Silver Medal Tim Lathrop………Ankeny, Iowa 89
Bronze Medal Bobby Jones Jr….Urbandale, Iowa 91
Senior Division Reserve (net)
Gold Medal Jim Koss………….Hobart, Wisc. 76
Silver Medal Russ Darr…………Des Moines, Iowa 78
Bronze Medal Mark Larson………Rushford, Minn. 79
Statesman Division low gross
Gold Medal Max Hill……………Austin, Texas 96
Silver Medal Bill Reed………….Des Moines, Iowa 97
Bronze Medal Peter Herrington…St. Louis, Mo. 104
Statesman Reserve (net)
Gold Medal George Penry……Omaha, Neb. 77
Silver Medal Kelly Gay…………Cumming, Iowa 85
Ladies Division Low gross
Gold Medal Jeanne Swenson….. Kelley, Iowa 98
Scramble Team Division
Gold: Jackson Overton, John Overton, John Piffer, Rives McBee 69
Silver: Fred Smeltzer, Sherry Smeltzer, John Ausen, Duane Baylor 71
Bronze: Russ Fisher, Terry McCreanor, Clayton Copple, Bob Gardenhire 72
This I just have to share:
The youngest hickory player, Jackson Overton, is 9 years old, hits it 180 off the tee and putts with no fear. He was joined by three elder hickory players – his grandfather John Overton, family friend John Piffer, and Rives McBee. I’m not going to say how old Jackson’s playing partners are, but Jackson is 9…and the average age of the 4 team members is 57. You do the math. Here’s a hint – they all beat their age by shooting the 69 and had room to spare. Good shootin’ guys.
Hope to see you all at the GCS 44th Annual Meeting, Trade Show, and Hickory Championship in November at Las Vegas, Nev.
The classic Iowa Hickory Golfer – Mr. William Reed