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FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS | ForsythNews.com
A U.S. Open at Oakmont, back where it belongs
1
DENTON ASHWAY
Columnist
standard for champion
ship golf,” Mike Davis,
the Executive Director of
the USGA, told the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
“It doesn’t get any better
than Oakmont.”
Oakmont was built 113
years ago, just outside of
Pittsburgh. Iron magnate
Henry C. Fownes was
looking for a course that
would provide a chal
lenge, unlike the easy
tracks laid out in the
Pittsburgh area.
Challenge found. The
only course Fownes ever
built remains a vivid
example of getting it right
the first time, and quitting
while you’re ahead. Look
up any ranking of the top
100 golf courses in
America, and Oakmont
lands in the top 10.
Fownes son, William
Clark Fownes, installed
Time now to savor an
old-tashioned U.S. Open
golf championship.
For everyone who suf
tered through last year’s
Calamity at Chalmers
Bay. the news couldn’t be
any better. The first Open
in the Pacific Northwest
provided a British Open
landscape and greens that
putted like broccoli,
according to Henrik
Stenson.
He was corrected by
Rory Mcllroy.
I don’t think theyre as
green as broccoli: they're
more like cauliflower,”
Mcllroy said.
Give the USGA credit
for trying something new
and completely different.
The Open at Chalmers
Bay was many things, but
it wasn’t the Open cham
pionship we know and
love.
But fear not! This week
the Open returns to dear
old Oakmont. It’s the
ninth time the treacherous
course has hosted the
national championship,
and that’s a record. As it
should be.
“This really is the gold
current first base coach
Eddie, was picked in the
36th round (selection
1.069). The selection was
not only better late than
never, but still a shock to
the 6-foot-6 catcher who
has dreamed his entire
life of being a Brave. He
even caught at Pinecrest
with former catcher Brian
McCann’s old glove.
FROM 1B
he managed to find a few
more notifications men
tioning his name—not his
father’'s—and Braves in
the same sentence.
Andres. the son of for
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Pinecrest Academy’s Andres Perez is plenty familiar with the team that
selected him Saturday in the MLB Draft. Perez has been a fan of the Atlanta
Braves his whole life following the career of his father, Eddie, a former
er and now first base coach with the team.
Longtime Florida AD
retiring after 25 years
an end.
One of the most suc
cessful college sports
leaders in the country,
Foley announced his
retirement Monday after
40 years at Florida. He
started as an intern long
before Steve Spurrier.
Billy Donovan and Urban
Meyver coached at Florida.
worked his way to the top
of the athletic department
and built a powerhouse
program whose annual
operating budget has risen
from S3O million to more
than sll9 million.
The Gators have won
27 national champion
ships during Foley’s 25
By Mark Long
The Asscciated Press
GAINESVILLE, Fla.
— Florida athletic direc
tor Jeremy Foley drove
through the baseball park
ing lot. turned left at the
grounds crew entrance
and stopped a few feet
from left field. Any closer
and he would have been
in the dugout.
“It’s good to be king.”
Foley said Sunday as he
emerged from his SUV
before the Gators and
Florida State played
Game 2 of their NCAA
super regional.
His reign is coming to
The course forces play
ers to be accurate.
Precisely accurate. There
are no easy holes, no bail
out areas. Each shot
requires intense concen
tration.
You not only must hit
the green. you must keep
the ball below the hole.
The greens are huge. have
undulations that resemble
Stone Mountain, and are
as fast as Usain Bolt.
How fast are they?
After watching Gene
Sarazen putt a ball off a
green in the '35 Open.
Edward Stimpson was
inspired to invent a
device to measure the
speed of greens. Hence,
the Stimpmeter.
“You can hit 72 greens
in the Open at Oakmont
and not come close to
winning.” Arnold Palmer
once told the Post-
Gazette. Sam Snead
always claimed that he
once marked his ball, and
his dime slid off the
green.
The last time the Open
visited Oakmont,
Oakmont won. Angel
Cabrera’s winning score
many of the 200-plus
bunkers at his father’s
behest. W.C. wasn’t
afraid to fine-tune the
diabolical layout. “A shot
poorly played should be a
shot irrevocably lost.”
was his guiding mantra.
“Let the clumsy, the
spineless. the alibi artist
stand aside.”
The folks at Oakmont
like being known for the
severity of their course.
Those quotes from W. C.
appear on Oakmont’s
own website.
Bob Ford. who's been
the head professional at
Oakmont for the past 37
years, takes it a step fur
ther.
“If you're not a sadist
when you join the club,
you are after a couple of
years here!™ he told
Michael Bamberger of
Sports Illustrated last
week.
Lee Trevino told the
Pittsburgh Quarterly six
years ago: “There’s only
one course in the country
where you could step out
right now—right now—
and play the U.S. Open,
and that’s Oakmont.”
nobody really heard it,
but it was just so exciting.
“l immediately texted
my Mom to let her know,
then 1 obviously wanted
to tell my Dad but he was
down on the field. So, I
went down and knocked
on the clubhouse door
hoping I could get some
one to let him know.
They said they would try
their best, but I had to
wait and kept waiting. so
I went back up to the
stands.
“After that in the mid
dle of the game my Dad
made eye contact with
The irony was that he
was a fan in the stands
when his name was
called—wearing his
father’s jersey—so con
taining his excitement
and not making a scene
was his first intention.
“There was plenty of
screaming.,’ Perez
laughed. “Luckily we
were in a back room so
years at the helm and
claimed the Southeastern
Conference’s All-Sports
Trophy every year except
one during his tenure.
“I want to do what’s
right for Florida.” Foley
said in a statement.
“That’s why I have spent
a lot of time thinking it
through. And I want to
make sure everyone
understands this is my
decision. I'm not sick. I'm
not dissatisfied. I'm not
getting pushed. It happens
to all of us. The time
comes.”
The 63-year-old Foley
will officially step down
Oct. 1.
was five-over par. How’d
he win? He was the only
player in the field to
record two rounds under
par—each by a single
stroke.
Only eight rounds
under par were recorded
during the entire tourna
ment, and the average
score was 5.72 strokes
over par.
And yet, Oakmont pro
vided the greatest round
in golf history. that being
Johnny Miller’s closing
63 to win the '73 Open.
Seeing someone fashion a
round like that at
Oakmont still boggles the
mind.
It startled Arnold
Palmer as well. Growing
up in nearby Latrobe,
Palmer always considered
Oakmont his “home”
Open course. He played
his first Open there, in
'53, when Ben Hogan
was the only player to
finish under par.
In a memorable Open
in "62, Palmer lost in a
playoff to a young pro
named Jack Nicklaus. It
was Nicklaus’ first win as
a professional. Observed
me. | was tugging on my
jersey to kind of convey it
to him, and he looked
back and gave me a nod.
That’s when I knew he
knew.”
Perez was a hot hitter
in the Pinecrest’s five
game win streak to end
the season. Pinecrest
head coach Ryan
Weingart wasn’t expect
ing Perez to get selected,
so he was on a fishing
boat Saturday afternoon
when his phone rang.
“l just got a text that
said, ‘Coach, I'm a
Brave,”” Weingart said.
HUMANE SOCIETY
(Zé) OF FORSYTH COUNTY
L aNO KILL shelter
ai'a:‘ §W3¥ Peanut is a
O e Sy 2-year-old
TR o ok
- 7 4 wired hair
- Terrier
: " mix. He
4 just came
i to us from
4 ‘ a county
a 4 fi .} shelter. He
7 is very
e B sweet, and
2,
— gets along
with other dogs. He would be a great
lap dog. Please come by the Humane
Society to meet him. He will be wait
ing on you!
s Midnight was
, brought in with her
sister Sheiba. Both
were kittens, about
to have kittens of
| their own. Perhaps
because of her
¥ youngage,
e Midnight’s kittens
were born prematurely and sadly didn't sur
vive. She was spayed and vaccinated and is
now ready for her very own home, with people
who will love her forever and take care of her.
She's very sweet, loving and affectionate and
would make a grcél lap cat for anyone. You can
fill out an application online at forsythpets.org!
. L .
I _C_Somc Services
Termite and Pest Control
Free Termite Inspection
770-844-1580
sonicservices.com
kw Kathleen Rastetter,
B Realtor
KW Realty Atlanta Partners
3325 Paddocks Pkwy, Ste 190
Suwanee, GA 30024
770) 298-8659 - kwrastetter@bellsouth.net
http://kathleenrastetter kwrealty.com/
o RST S e e L A R S SR
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Promote Your Business by Advertising Here.
Call 770-887-3126 ® www.forsythnews.com
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15, 2016
Palmer prophetically,
“Now that the big guy is
out of the cage, every
body better run for
cover!”
In ’B3, Palmer made his
last Open cut at
Oakmont. In 94, on a
special USGA exemption,
he played in his final
Open there.
The *73 Open would be
the last time Palmer
would be in contention in
a major. He began the
final round tied for the
lead.
In their book “Chasing
Greatness,” Adam
Lazarus and Steve
Schlossman wrote, “A 63
was simply unthinkable
at Oakmont. The three
consecutive bogeys
Palmer made immediate
ly after learning Miller
was eight under for the
day reflected a blow to
his composure so severe
that even he, the bravest
comeback performer in
golf history, simply could
not absorb.”
And now the Open
returns to Oakmont.
That’s more like it.
“He’s actually the first
Pinecrest player to be
drafted, and he’s always
been such a huge part of
the Pinecrest family, so
for him to get this type of
moment is very special
and well deserved.”
Perez will decide in the
coming days whether or
not he’ll sign with the
Braves and enter the
organization’s minor
league system or head to
North Georgia for at least
three years as a
Nighthawk. No other
players in Forsyth County
were drafted this year.
Meet these 3
B A cuties. Chi, Abe
f?fi Gl :M;_g.,_‘g : and Stef. They
y “.& T f came to us
' s from a very
AgT” 5 ]
g‘P : S rural county
. 1 fA shelter. They
N J W arelisted as
13-weeks-old,
Boxer/Hound mixes. According to their fos
ter they are the sweetest puppies ever. They
love to play, but also loved to be cuddled.
Please fill out an application online, and
once you are approved, the foster will con
tact you to set up a meet and greet.
Fluffy Muffin, a
gorgeous Maine
Coon mix, was
brought into our
F program when
g her kittens were
a few days old. A young man had
found her as a stray and had taken
her in, not knowing that she was
about to have kittens. All of her kit
tens have found loving homes. Now
it’s her turn. She is sweet and beauti
ful and, like all adult cats in our pro
gram, is just $lO to adopt throughout
the month of June.
"Pnemier Collision Service Center
ANH Collision
Specialists
NEAL HEAD, OWNER
706-216-0992
Humane Society of
Forsyth County
4440 Keith Bridge Road * Cumming, GA 30041
Phone: 770-887-6480
E-mail: rescue@ forsythpets.org
The sheiter is open to the public
Tue.-Fri. from noon to 6:00 p.m.,
Sat 10:00am. 10 700 pm. &
Sun 10:00 am. to 6:00 p.m.
Visit www.forsythpets.org for information on
offsite adoptions and other events,