Hometown girl and hometown boy grow up together at school and church. Start dating their junior year in college. The rest is hometown history…

Bo Stewart is the General Manager of El Dorado Truss Company which was established in 1976 (46 years ago) by his dad, Steve Stewart, and his grandfather, Henry Stewart. Traci is a dental hygienist and works where else? Her dad’s dental office, naturally.

Dear Members,

My last two articles were on Member’s Code of Conduct (March) and last month was on Pace of Play (April). This month I will continue with more information on both Pace of Play and Conduct (Etiquette). Pace of Play and Etiquette are vital for all Club Members to enjoy the game. These rules and recommendations should be “Common Courtesy.” So, please think of others, and play with Courtesy and Etiquette. Remember, Golf is a game of honor and Integrity.

First, regarding pace of play, as I stated in last month’s article, our Pace of Play Policy is 4 hours. We continue to receive complaints regarding slow play. To address this issue, we have added a line on our score cards. You’ll notice a line that has a “minutes” guide for each hole. Each hole has a computed time allotment. If you add the minutes together for each hole, which you have completed, your time of play should be less than the total minutes for the combined holes. If you are behind, please pick up the pace, and if substantially behind, you may be asked to skip a hole. Certainly, if you follow the recommendations in my article from last month, you’ll not fall behind the allotted time for each hole.  Secondly, we are going to start enforcing the Pace of Play strictly in club tournaments. First, your group will get a warning. If your group remains behind, you may receive penalty strokes. This may be the only way we can get slow play violators to get the message.

   

Regarding Member’s Conduct. I have noticed a disturbing trend on our course. Every day I notice trash, cigarette butts, sunflower seeds, gum, and chewing tobacco pouches on the course and greens. Please use the trash cans for these items. Trash is bad enough!! The other items are just outright disgusting!! I encourage everyone to pick up trash and throw it in a can when you see it on the course. This is our Gem in The Foothills. Let’s please keep it looking as nice as possible. Regarding cigarette butts, sunflower seeds, gum, and chewing tobacco, I do not pick these things up and throw them away. Don’t want to catch Covid!    Frankly, I find it appalling that a member would throw these things down for others to pick up or allow someone else's ball to roll through their saliva. For these things, I am asking groups to hold their playing partners accountable. If you see a player discard any of these things on the course, please call them out and insist that they put them in a trash can. Again, this should be “Common Courtesy.” However, it’s not common enough, when we continue to see these things on our greens.

Further down in The Mulligan you will find excerpts from two articles by Luke Kerr-Dineen I found on-line. All the examples are related to Pace of Play and Etiquette.  Some of the examples are duplicated in both articles, so I’m not including all the examples to keep this article shorter and non-repetitive.   Again, these should be “Common Courtesies”--yet-- we continue to see them on our course. Please take a few moments and self-reflect. If you are finding yourself doing any of these examples, your playing group will enjoy you and the game a lot more if you stop. For those who see others doing these things, some tactful and kind education will help the others on the course enjoy their game as well. Many people have simply never been advised of proper etiquette on the course.

Please let’s all take the time and effort to make Cold Springs Golf and Country Club a beautiful and fun place by using Good Etiquette and Common Courtesy.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to catch me at the club or email me at president@coldspringsgolf.com

Sincerely,

Russ Hasemeier, President

The Corena Green Classic Tournament promotes girls’ golf. The tournament will be held at Del Rio Gold & Country Club in Modesto, CA on Thursday, July 28, 2022. It is open to girls ages 8-13 and 14-17 years. The Lady Niners sponsor girls’ participation through fund-raising, primarily with a Saturday putting contest at the Men’s Invitational Tournament. Girls’ entry fee, shirts/visors and a goody bag are provided by the Lady Niners. Please, please, please tell your daughters, granddaughters, nieces, etc. about this event. It is a wonderful opportunity. Trophies and prizes will be awarded, including college awards of up to $700 for high school girls who place well. If interested, please contact Maren Morello at marenmorello@gmail.com or call 530-889-1469 (home) for an application. See Corena Green Classic flier in the ladies’ lounge. Entry deadline is June 28 (or capacity). Space is limited so don’t wait! 

Greetings Cold Springs Members!

The tournament season is heating up and your committee has been hard at work. One of the missions of the tournament committee is to ensure an equitable and fair competitive landscape for all members. Handicaps are one of the oldest problems in golf, and we take them seriously. As such, we recently implemented an 'industry standard' piece of software, called Cap Patrol. Cap Patrol assesses dozens of factors for each player at the club, including win rate, competitive performance vs casual performance, current handicap vs last 12 months, home vs away rounds, and many many others, to generate a 'recommended handicap' for each player at the club. The handicap committee in turn reviews this information, and decides whether, or how, to adjust players' handicaps for our club-sanctioned tournaments. Remember that Cap Patrol was NOT in use for the Presidents Cup tournament...we used an alternate process for that tournament. Cap Patrol was, however, launched for the Masters tournament. As with any new endeavor, there have been hiccups. But the Tournament Committee has been reviewing the data that are entered into Cap Patrol, and feel very confident that we are in a much better place than even a month ago. Cap Patrol will be used for the Men's Sr Club Championship in June. Our intent is to inform adjusted players (if any), at least 5 days in advance, so that they have enough time to address and resolve any concerns they may have, with the Tournament and/or Handicap Committee. As a reminder, all members are expected to post scores for every round they play with other players, whether competitive or not. All players are also expected to play their hardest in every round. This is the only way that handicaps will work, and we need to hold each other accountable for trying hard on every shot, and posting every score. Missing "meaningless" putts on purpose, or taking a higher score on a hole than was earned, are dishonorable acts, and should be called out as such. Thank you for your support and patience as we continue to evolve and do everything we can to ensure a 'level playing field' in our tournaments.

The Men's Invitational is also upon us in a couple weeks (May 13-15). A huge THANK YOU to all who have volunteered their time to help make the event a success. This is our "showcase" men's tournament of the year, and generates a lot of excitement for the club. This year's interest was extraordinary...we filled the tournament in 8 days!! As in the past, there will be putting contests, 100-yard shot contest, a calcutta auction, a horserace, and pari-mutual wagering. Anyone may participate in the pari-mutual wagering; it is not limited to participants. If you have questions, please contact Michael Parsons or Dan Rietz. If you're not playing in the Invitational, I encourage everyone to come 'spectate' for the horse races on Saturday afternoon. It would be so amazing to see members in carts following the teams as they play alternate shot, under the highest of pressure. A large crowd would only make it more dramatic! As a reminder, Cap Patrol will NOT be in effect for the Invitational. Instead, all players will play to their lowest index of the last 12 months, adjusted per USGA guidelines for the formats we are playing (Chapman Scotch, Scramble, and Best Ball).

Thank you all for your enthusiastic support and participation in Cold Springs tournaments. It's truly one of the best parts about belonging to a club like Cold Springs, and we encourage those who have not played in tournaments, to give it a shot...they're so much fun, and really help us all become better golfers!

-Your Cold Springs Tournament and Handicap Committees

Remember, you can call ahead to the bar from the tee box and we can have your food ready for you at the turn, (530) 622-9948!

As always, thank you all so much for the support. We look forward to continuing to provide new specials, fresh products, and new seasonal items from the local farmer's market.

Please join us on the second Thursday of each month for breakfast and golf. It is $10 annually to join the Senior Men's Club. Then, a $25 entry to the Thursday tournament that includes breakfast and prize money. Sign up sheet is in the men's locker room. Cutoff to sign up is one week in advance of event. We hope to see some new faces!

   Score: 202   Pays $ 120.00   Each $40.00

       Don Coats           John Niehues        

  Doug Bush  

  Second Place  

    Score: 206   Pays $ 80.00    Each $27.00

  Dennis Dalton Bob Durand    

Peter Neukirchner     

 Score: 207    Pays $40.00   Each $10.00

  Mick Cochran     Marnell Smith

           Alan Bauman         Phil Boydston    

SENIOR OF THE MONTH – LOW NET  

Doug Bush   Pays $20.00

  Gross Score: 82 Handicap: 15 Net: 67 

 Gary Logan Score: 80 Pays $20 

 Hole# 17 CLOSEST TO THE PIN 

Don Aguiar Distance: 11ft 6in Pays $10.00

Number of Participants: 25

Dear Members,

Please keep in mind that we eliminated the Local Rule which allowed for the alternative to stroke and distance for balls lost or OB. If you hit a ball which is lost or out of bounds, your only option is to take stroke and distance penalty, which means re-hitting from your previous spot with a one stroke penalty. This means if you had hit from the tee, your next shot from the tee will be your third stroke.

In order to keep this relatively brief I will not copy and paste the entirety of Rule 17. If you have specific questions, you may easily download the USGA rules app. for free, or you may e-mail me at hasemeier911@gmail.com, or catch me in person at the club.

Rule 17.1d:

Relief for Ball in a Penalty area. If a player’s ball is in a penalty area, including when it is known or “virtually certain” to be in a penalty area even though not found, the player has these options, each for one penalty stroke.

Simplified: Aside from playing the ball as it lies, the player has only two options for a yellow penalty area, and only three options for a Red penalty area. 

For relief from a Yellow penalty area, the two options are: 1. Take stroke and distance relief. Which means playing the ball from the where the previous stroke was made.    2. Take back-on-the-line relief. 

The Diagram below makes the options visually clear. Keep in mind that a ball which has crossed into a yellow penalty area does not allow for “lateral relief (within two club lengths of the entry point)” Recently a player asked, ”What if the ball crossed over the hazard and then spun back or hit a tree and entered the yellow penalty area from the opposite side? May the player drop on the side nearer the hole? The answer is No, because a relief drop from a penalty area must not be closer to the hole and may not come to rest in the same penalty area. Remember the line is part of the hazard. Thus, they will have to drop back-on-the-line, on the far side, or play the ball from the where the previous stroke was made.

As stated above, the player has three options for taking relief from a Red Penalty area: 1. Take stroke and distance relief. Which means playing the ball from the where the previous stroke was made. 2. Take back-on-the-line relief. 3. Take Lateral relief (Red penalty area only).  The relief area is within two club lengths of the point the ball crossed into the penalty area. No closer to the hole. The ball must come to rest in the relief area. Which means, it cannot roll outside of two club lengths from the point of entry. Also, be aware that the “equal distance” relief, was eliminated from the rules in the 2019 revision. Taking a drop from anywhere other than the three options in the diagram would be playing a ball from the wrong spot and result in a general penalty.

As everyone knows, finding new employees is a difficult task and as you can imagine, Cold Springs is no different from other organizations. Consequently, we are considering getting some work parties together to help Doug out with projects that can easily be accomplished by our members. Last year work parties repaired the bridge on #9, cleared the willows on #15, and replaced the guard rail on #7 tee. This work allowed Doug and the maintenance staff to spend their time keeping the course in great shape which I think everyone will agree, has been outstanding! If you are interested in being part of a work party, we will have a signup sheet in the office. And if you have any special qualifications (such as certified rake and shovel specialist, etc) please let us know. Work will usually be done on Monday and Doug will coordinate and identify the work to be done. 

Blue flags are offered to golfers who need a little assistance getting around the course but, having a blue flag still has some restrictions. Carts are to be kept 30 feet from greens and tees. Last month a cart was seen driving around the back of #16 green which certainly exceeds these limitations. Please take a few moments to think about the course of travel to stay within the guidelines for carts with blue flags. 

The spring rain has been a great boon for the course and it is in great condition! The greens are now completely healed and are rolling great. It seems that most people are going out of their way to repair pitch marks which is great news. Let’s keep it up!

The warm days in early April caused the turfgrass growth to really take off. That put us into full springtime mode having to kick up our mowing intervals to keep up with the flush of growth. It was good to finally get some more rain. It gave us a break from full course irrigation, helping to save some money on pumping costs for a couple of weeks. It should be a little helpful in adding some more water to the reservoirs. In regards to our water resources, we will be in a wait--and--see mode whether or not the state will implement water curtailment from our diversion.

With springtime rains, we are always playing catch up with growth once we can get mowers back out on the course. With a retirement and another crew member on leave, we have been a little shorthanded and challenged with keeping up with everything through April. We are looking to hire one soon, so we can catch up on the detail work. Greens made it through late fall, winter and early spring with no significant snow mold activity. This is due in part to the drier conditions and improved drainage. The annual bluegrass flowers or “seed heads” on many greens have been very abundant, even with control measures applied. We have started regular intervals of verticutting and sand top-dressing to help knock out the Poa “seed heads” and help control the erratic growth going into the summer season. No major projects are planned through May--just constant irrigation adjustments to get through the summer and any potential curtailments of water diversion.

Lastly, we had a special visitor this morning as seen below:

On April 5^th, we played a Modified Stableford competition and here are the results:

Our Ace of the Month competition was held on April 12^th and here are the winners:

April AOM: Nancy Tenley (Net 69)

Closet to the Pin Hole 17: Gloria Gaetano 9'7"

As mentioned regarding the stormy weather, the tough decision was made to delay our formal Guest Day from the 19^th and move to the 26^th. We were rewarded with an absolutely gorgeous day. Elaine Boggess had the delightful theme of 3-2-1 Blast Off and carried the theme to table decorations and wonderful tee prizes. Starting with a delicious breakfast, nine groups tackled the course in a variable 3-2-1 format. Gathering after golf for lunch and awards, it was an enjoyable day to share with our members and guests. Kudos to Elaine for all her hard work, our golf pro Daniel, Melissa for making up our beverage selection of the day, and Chef Mike for the delicious food.

 

Calendar for May:

May 3, 5 & 10: 18 Hole Ladies Group Championship. Please be looking for emails from Heidi Matlack regarding tee times and other info. There will be an after-the-field group for those not in the tournament.

May 17^th: May AOM with general meeting after golf

May 24^th: Casual Guest day/MYO4/No sweeps

May 31^st: 4-Person Team, Cha-Cha-Cha/Draw/Sweeps

 

See you all out on the course!!

Here you will find excerpts from two articles by Luke Kerr-Dineen that I found online. All the examples are related to Pace of Play and Etiquette. Some of the examples are duplicated in both articles, so I’m not including all the examples to keep this article shorter and non-repetitive. Again, these should be “Common Courtesies”--yet-- we continue to see them on our course. Please take a few moments and self-reflect. If you are finding yourself doing any of these examples, your playing group will enjoy you and the game a lot more if you stop. For those who see others doing these things, some tactful and kind education will help the others on the course enjoy their game as well. Many people have simply never been advised of proper etiquette on the course.  

Taken from: “The 35 rudest things you should never do on the golf course.”, By: Luke Kerr-Dineen February 27, 2022

1. Driving the cart ahead of the group. I get why people would hate this, especially if the cart is in an area where you might have to worry about hitting it. You’re not saving much time from doing it, either. More often than not, you’re actually slowing things down while being rude.

2. Taking calls on the course. If you’re going to do it, ask in advance, pick up your ball, and excuse yourself to a remote location. It may sound excessive, but remember most people play golf to get away from their phone. Be mindful of that.

3. Order way too many drinks. We’re all for having fun, but be wary of getting boorish — especially around a fancy club.

4. Get mad about their game. I get this one. Don’t take yourself too seriously. It’s just a game, have fun with it.

5. Standing over the ball too long. Standing over the ball doesn’t even help you. Give yourself about five seconds, and go.

6. Talk too much. File this one under basic social skills. Don’t talk about yourself all the time, ask questions, and give everyone else some occasional space.

7. Drives their cart too close to your ball. As far as I’m concerned, every ball has a 10-yard no-carts zone, minimum, around it. Don’t ever enter it.

8. Unsolicited swing advice. If you’re going to do it, do it right.

9. Writing the score down in the cart, not on the next tee. This seems like small potatoes to me, but I suppose I understand it. The goal is to clear the green entirely so others can hit up.

10. Too many practice swings. You really don’t need more than one or two, anyway. Just hit the ball.

11. Cheating. This one came up a lot, and for good reason. Again, it’s a game: What’s the point of playing if you’re going to cheat at it?

12. Bring spectators to watch. Specifically, family members, the commentator said. I think this is only a problem if you don’t ask your playing partners if they’re OK with it first. Remember, a round of golf is a shared activity.

13. Walking in your line. This is, without a doubt, my biggest pet peeve. I get genuinely annoyed by it. Don’t walk in my line — it’s super inconsiderate.

14. Complaining after every bad shot. Like your fantasy football team, we don’t actually care that much about it.

15. Stand behind you on the tee box. Stay out of people’s periphery vision, especially if you’re fidgety.

16. Knows your score on the bad holes. Don’t be an accountant out there, especially after someone clearly just had a bad hole. They don’t need reminding of it.

17. Don’t show up and have the courtesy to inform you. Do people actually do this? If you’re going to ditch, at least have the courtesy of letting them know you’re ditching.

18. Complain after good shots. No matter who you are, you’re not good enough to do this. Trust us.

19. Trolling for golf balls. Do it on your own time.

20. Playing music on the course. Personally, I’m not a music-listener on the course, but if somebody is, I’m not going to stop them. Just remember: It’s a bit rude to not ask your playing partners first.

21. Blabbing when it’s my turn. This is basically rule No. 1 of golf etiquette.

22. Hitting my ball. I have a friend who is one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet, who turns into a scary monster when somebody hits his ball. So many golfers really hate when you do this, and for good reason, so take an extra few seconds and check the ball you’re about to hit.

23. Not ready to go when it’s their turn. Don’t dilly dally. When it’s your turn to go, get moving.

24. Giving up. A coworker and I played a match once with somebody who walked off the course after the 10th hole. It was pretty awkward, but also rather satisfying, if I’m being totally honest.

25. Commentating on my shots. Take it easy, Johnny. Focus on your own ball.

26. Taking honors on the tee box. Unless playing ready golf has clearly been established, if you have honors, you’ve earned it. You should be able to enjoy it.

27. Standing in your line of sight. A few steps off to the side makes all the difference.

28. Congratulating someone on making a putt before they do.  Specifically, if the ball ends up missing. Just wait a few extra seconds and save yourself an awkward situation.

29. Don’t let the next group play through. There’s actually no upside to not letting faster groups play through. Just do it.

30. Eye-ing up putts for too long. You’re not playing the Masters — and it’s probably not helping you that much anyway.

31. Talking to my golf ball. Don’t talk to MY golf ball.

32. Making excuses.  Again, nobody particularly cares. It’s just a game, have fun.

33. Spitting sunflower seeds onto the green. An oddly specific one, but I can see how this would be super annoying, especially to supers.

34. Not fixing ball marks. Somebody worked hard on that green. Don’t disrespect it like that.

35. Taking a divot on the green. This is golf’s ultimate cardinal sin, and genuinely not OK. You should get banned for this.

Taken from: “The 34 most annoying things that golfers do on the course.” By: Luke Kerr-Dineen May 20, 2020

1.      Saying “get left” when the ball is clearly slicing. This is my pet peeve. Understand ball flight, people! If a ball is carving out to the right, there’s no chance of it getting left, so don’t pretend like there is.

2.      Not picking up on bad holes. Have some awareness. If it’s taking you eight shots to get to the green, don’t slow the whole group down and make them watch all that. Pick up your ball, sit this one out, and move on.

3.      Taking too many practice swings … only to top the ball 10 feet. Don’t be that guy. If you’re going to have a long pre-shot routine, you better hit it good.

4.      Mood swings. Nobody wants to play with someone who throws a temper tantrum, or someone who jumps for joy two holes later when they make a birdie putt.

5.       Always on the phone. Again, don’t be that guy. If you need to take a call on the course, it had better be an emergency.

6.      Walking slowly. Walk quickly, play quickly, and people will give you a lot of leeway for other things.

7.      Bragging about good rounds during their bad rounds. We’ve all played with the guy who tells you they shot even par last week, even though they’re 10 over through 10 holes on their current round.

8.      Providing constant commentary on their game. Dude, we don’t care.

9.      Looking at putts from every angle. You’re not a Tour pro, so don’t act like one. Read your putt quickly, and commit. You’ll probably make more that way anyway.

10.  Not fixing your pitch marks properly. It really is the least you can do.

11.  Having someone tell you that you hit a great shot when you know that it wasn’t. Don’t patronize my golf game!

12.  Waiting for the green to clear on a par 4 when they have no chance of driving it. Another golden rule: You’re not a tour pro, so don’t act like one.

13.  Looking for your ball 50 yards ahead of where it actually is. Have some awareness. If you hit a drive 280 yards once, it doesn’t mean you hit 280-yard drives all the time.

14.  Miraculously’ finding your ball every time. Cheating, in other words. Don’t cheat.

15.  Stealing the honor. One of my pet peeves. If I made a birdie, I want to tee off first. It’s a small victory that doesn’t come around often, so give me that.

16.  Complaining. Nobody cares.

17.  Talking to other people’s balls. Leave me and my golf ball alone to sort out our own issues.

18.  Not watching your partner’s ball. “Oh, I didn’t see it.”  I’m guilty of this too often, but if your buddy hits his ball in some trouble, at least give him a fighting chance of helping him find it.

19.  Teeing up your ball too soon. Wait until your playing partner is off the tee before trying to chase him away.

20.  Fishing for golf balls. We’re playing golf, not hunting for golf balls.

21.  Bad temper. It’s just a game. Chill out.

22.  Caring too much about yardages. Does it really matter if it’s 174 to the middle or 176? Just hit the ball.

Please let’s all take the time and effort to make Cold Springs Golf and Country Club a beautiful and fun place by using Good Etiquette and Common Courtesy.

Sincerely,

Board President Russ Hasemeier