The highlight of my 2007 golf year was being involved in the complete renovation of the golf course at which I have played since I took up the game seriously in 1980. We began the planning process for this project 4 years ago and I have been working on it with our Course Architect Lester George since then. We hired Landscapes Unlimited in 2006 and broke ground on January 8 this year. The last of the construction crew just left the property in the last several days. The results of the renovation have far surpassed our members' expectations. What was once a mediocre course (at best) has really been transformed into something special and our members cannot wait to play it. Course reopening is planned for Memorial Day 2008.
Being involved with the project completely changed my understanding of golf courses, my perspective on the game, and my enjoyment of it. My hat is off to all of you architects, construction folks, and superintendents. I absolutely marvel at what goes into building an exceptional golf course and I think we were able to pull it off at our course because of a lot of hard work and a lot of commitment by everyone involved. There's information about the project by clicking the link below:
http://www.willowoakscc.net/renovation
Because of the construction, I didn't get to play as much golf as I would have liked in 2007 but I did get a chance to play the Bandon trilogy and that was another highlight for me!
First, one of the highlights of my year was meeting Paul and seeing the work that is being completed at Willow Oaks. Paul, Lester George, and everybody else has done an outstanding job and if you happen to be in Richmond it's well worth seeing.
Other highlights would include the three trips to Ireland this year for golf. It was the first trip with my boys ages 8 and 11. I played in the parent child tournament at Doonbeg and my 11 year old snaked in about a 25 foot putt for a birdie on the 11th hole.
Hopefully, next year will have more golf!!