Category: Events

VaHGA was well represented at this year’s Southern Hickory Fourball hosted by Tad Moore at the Highland Park Golf Course in Birmingham, Alabama. Terry Pemberton and Eric “the Hickory Hokie” Johnson teamed up as did Deal Hudson (now from Lilburn GA but still a VaHGA Founding Member) and yours truly. Non-resident VaHGA members Mike O’Donnell and Tyler Guthrie also competed in the event.

The course was in good shape; the greens were difficult. Every hole is different requiring a multitude of shots. #4 requires a good drive and a strong approach over a deep ravine. #7 gives me nightmares; the approach over a concrete creek requires precision and length. The views from 15 and 17 tees are beautiful. See below for the tee shot on par 3 #5 over a pond.

The scoring system this year was a Stableford “Quota” system which required some mental adjustments for old timers. In this system, each player is competing against their own handicap. One subtracts their handicap from 36 (18 holes at even par, 2 points for par). That number becomes that player’s “quota” or “target”. My handicap from the front tees was 16, so my “quota” or “target” was 20. I shot an 88 in Round One (and “earned” 18 points) two over my handicap on this par 70 course, and my “Quota” score was -2 , So one is playing “against” one’s own handicap. At the end, one can simply add both players (or more if larger teams) scores to their “quotas.” Two partners who scored -2 and +2 to their quotas would have a score of zero/0 which beats any negative score but loses to any positive score The Stableford Quota leaders after Round One were at +8, meaning they played better than their handicaps. Most teams were in negative numbers. This system simplifies playing team games (2+ players).

Winners.  Some 60 players showed up this year. Peter Flory and Ted Kopec won the Open Division while Barb Kopec and Tad Moore won the Stableford Quota Division (+10).  

During the awards ceremony, VaHGA recognized and honored host Tad Moore for his national and global support of hickory golf, his beautiful artistic golf clubs (mentioning Otey Crisman), and his warm generosity as a person, someone who is a “net contributor” rather than a net taker in society.  We presented Tad with a VaHGA Medal of Honor and a lifetime honorary complimentary membership to VaHGA.  

Saturday March 26th the Virginia Hickory Golf Association (VaGHA) contested the annual Richmond Cup at the Lakeside Park Club, a difficult Donald Ross design. The wind was blowing hard and cold! Ten intrepid players challenged the elements and the dangerous greens, Andy Moye (NC), Russell Eaves (NC), Eric Wagner (Charlottesville), Dennis Meadows (Virginia Beach), Linn Williams (NOVA), Nelson Ford (NC), Rob Gilbert (Lynchburg), Tom Mehigan (NOVA), David Farrar (our host, Richmond) and Jim Clawson (Charlottesville).

We played a Stableford format in which points were hard to come by. The ‘earned’ points ranged from 1 to 17. Earned plus handicap scores ranged from 23 to 32.

In the end, Andy Moye was the ‘gross’ winner (he declined the moniker!) and Dennis Meadows won the ‘total’ points in a scorecard playoff with Eric Wagner (a former champion here). We all had fun AND were happy to get out of the wind!

Saturday, April 9, dawned mostly clear, cool and with the promise of the first annual VaHGA Hickory NUT competition. Local players Skip Platt, Jerry Wells, George Belbey, Eric “Hickory Hokie” Johnson and Jim Clawson were joined by out-of-towners Mike “Bagger” Hobson (Florida), Tom Mehigan (NOVA) and Rob Gilbert (Lynchburg). Festivities began when Siri sent Tom to the McIntyre Frisbee Golf Course instead of the Meadowcreek Municipal Golf Course. A little reshuffling on the first tee and off we went. We had one foursome (younger, stronger, longer) playing a white/yellow combination (5365) while the older, weaker and shorter foursome played from the red (4682) tees. The course was recovering from recent rains and storms, so we played lift, clean and place. Then the breeze/wind came up causing shivers and more layers.

George Belbey reported rappelling down one slope and belaying himself to hit a miracle shot without falling into the adjacent river. Amidst the jokes, laughter, cries of “Turkey Ball!,” and “Good Shot!”, the two foursomes motored on. The only birdies on the blustery day were recorded by Hobson (#2), Mehigan (#11) and Clawson (#16). Two players hit their handicaps exactly for net 71’s, and two had good days shooting 65s. “Any quadruple bogeys?” at the post-round lunch table saw several hands go up! Honoring the Masters, the local snack bar had cheese and pimento sandwiches and sumptuous maple cookies — roundly enjoyed by the group.

When the last putt went in, we had ties for both gross and net divisions. Bagger Hobson and Skip Platt tied for low gross at 84, while Tom Mehigan and Bagger tied for low net at 65. Scorecard ‘playoffs’ left Hobson and Mehigan as the two winners.

Following the Pine Needles Foursomes and Mid Pines Hickory Open, the VA and NC teams met at newly renovated Southern Pines Golf Club on Monday-Tuesday, November 8-9 to contest the VANC HICCUP.  The trophy, a renovated Janus-faced (baby blue NC on one side and navy blue on the VA side) funeral urn, also known as the Flame of Eternal Hope, was up for the taking after a COVID gap in 2020.  The weather (cold and windy for Mid Pines) cooperated with beautiful sunny warm temperatures on both days.  The SPCC venue has been highly touted since its opening in September.  The course maintained its original routing but intensified the sandy waste area flavor common to the area.  More than 500 trees had been removed to open up the course, and in typical Donald Ross fashion, the green complexes were very “complex” with undulating Bermuda grass greens and steep drop-offs and false fronts.  The course has several “hilltop” greens demanding accurate distance judgment and shot execution.  

The VANC HICCUP is a decade old competition designed in Ryder Cup format with 18 holes each for Fourballs, Foursomes and Singles.  This year we fought match play with one point each for the front nine, the back nine and the overall total, 60 points available, 30 for VA to retain the cup, 30.5 for NC to regain the cup. 

The VA team was an eclectic group including lifetime VaHGA members from Tennessee, Ohio, Pennsylvania and at one point even North Carolina.  The NC team was a moving target with WDs occurring almost daily which led to Captain Rich Schmidt canvassing his larger member base to fill in emerging gaps in the competition. As late as tee time, some players were not sure who their opponents would be.   

Monday the two twelve-man teams played fourballs in the morning and foursomes in the afternoon.  The afternoon Foursomes matches concluded in near total darkness when the leaderboard taped on the window at SPCC’s grill room showed the VaHGA team with a solid 14-10 lead, setting the stage for the 12 singles matches on Tuesday.  

On Tuesday both teams sent out their players largely ranked by handicaps hoping to establish a strong start.  Halfway through the singles matches (6 matches) NC had racked up a 15-3 turn around!  NONE of the matches showed any half points, all were sweeps including the lone VA bright spot, Greg Whitmer who swept his three points for the VA side.  At this point, the score was VA 17, NC 25. 

The higher handicaps did not fair much better as the final score was VA 26, NC 34.  At the trophy ceremony on the patio/deck at SPCC, Captain Rich Schmidt, resplendent in his Loudmouth Scottish flag “lucky” pants, pasted the “2021” sticker on the baby blue Carolina side of the FOEH.  Tails tucked the VA team headed home to all points of the compass, determined to regain the FOEH in 2022—in Virginia. 

Here’s a link to a number of photographs from the event.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/vnao6veyu2yebuq/AACyxiE_HIynAMMY4msrQLiga?dl=0

After a variety of hiccups, the 2021 Gutty Gopher took place ad hoc after all. Canceled first because of low registrations, dates moved to accommodate the few who wanted to play, dates moved again because of family issues, the 2021 VaHGA Gutty Gopher took place on the original date, October 2nd, 2021 at Meadowcreek Golf Course in Charlottesville where a hardy core of four gutty enthusiasts met to contest the trophy. The four came from Virginia Beach in the east, Arlington in the north, Lynchburg to the south and Charlottesville in the center. The weather was beautiful, perfect, and the course in good “rough around the edges” hickory shape. Dennis Meadows from Virginia Beach was our medalist while Rob Gilbert from Lynchburg took net honors. Generally, a good time was had by all. Clubs were exchanged, promised, renovated, and only a couple of balls lost. Rob Gilbert was “best dressed” for the day.

The 2021 version of the Virginia Hickory Open was completed Sunday, July 25, at the Meadowcreek Golf Course in Charlottesville, Virginia. Skip Platt (143) was a repeat Champion (2017) with Andrew Simmons coming in second (155). Jim Clawson won the Super Senior gross division at 159 followed by Bud Nelson at 173. Results including net winners are shown below.

Captains Rich Schmidt (NC) and Jim Clawson (VA) have agreed to hold the 2021 version of the Virginia-North Carolina Hickory Challenge Cup (VANC HICCUP) on Monday and Tuesday (November 8-9) right after the conclusion of the Mid-Pines Hickory Open. The event will be held at the newly renovated Southern Pines Country Club, one of Donald Ross’s earlier designs, and now a part of the Mid-Pines and Pine Needles family of courses.

Any member of the VaHGA is eligible to play on the VaHGA team. While North Carolina holds a lifetime advantage, the Virginia team won the event in 2019 and held the Cup through the COVID hiatus in 2020.

The Ryder Cup is our inspiration for this event with rounds of Fourball (better ball) and Foursomes (alternate shot) nine hole matches on Day One and Individual Matches played on Day Two.

If you are interested in playing we encourage you to contact Captain Jim Clawson at jimclawson@virginia.edu to reserve a first-come, first-served spot on the Virginia team.

Happy June and beginning of Summer!  We are happy to note three events coming up hosted by the Virginia Hickory Golf Association.  All three events will be held in Charlottesville, VA, centrally located, and with multiple lodging, wining and dining options at all levels.  We invite all of our members and all of our hickory friends worldwide to consider coming to Charlottesville to compete in these events.  https://travel.usnews.com/Charlottesville_VA/Things_To_Do/

1. The Virginia Hickory Open will be held on July 23-25 (Friday practice, Saturday and Sunday) at Meadowcreek Golf Course.  https://www.meadowcreekgolf.org/  This course allows runups on 17/18 holes and every hole is different/unique.  Two rounds medal play, period dress preferred, range finders okay, McIntyre replica balls preferred, any ball acceptable. 
2. The Virginia Hickory Fourball will be held on August 27-29 (Friday practice, Saturday Sunday) at Old Trail Golf Course.  This  https://oldtrailgolf.com/  This scenic course nestled at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains allows runups on 13/18 holes.  This event is a two-player team event featuring Better Ball on Saturday and Foursomes (alternate shot) on Sunday.  Period dress preferred, range finders okay, McIntyre replica balls preferred, any ball acceptable.
3. The VaHGA Gutty Gopher will be held on October 1-3 (Friday practice, Saturday Sunday) at Meadowcreek Golf Course.  (See information above.)  This will be two rounds of medal play with McIntyre Park (Open) or Braid/Vardon (Senior/Net) ball required, period dress strongly preferred, no range finders permitted.   

Please use the Tournament Registration sheet below to register for any or all of these events.  For questions, email JimClawson@virginia.edu VaHGA Captain.  If you plan to play, please let me know by email so we can plan.  Cheers. 

As you all know, happily the hickory golf season has grown increasingly crowded.  We have tried to respect the schedules of other events as best we can.  We hope to see many of you soon at one or more of these three events.

Far and Sure — or as you can Short and Wayward!  😊

James G. Clawson
Captain, Virginia Hickory Golf Association