In all kinds of weather: members of Algonquin Golf Club share a century if experience: GM Mass Shakib and staff stretch brains, battle elements to produce a memorable centennial.

"A law was made a distant moon ago here: July and August cannot be too hot. And there's a legal limit to the snow here In Camelot ...

"The rain may never fall till after sundown. By eight, the morning fog must disappear. In short, there's simply not A more congenial spot For happily-ever-altering than here In Camelot."

In some ways, Algonquin Golf Club is similar to the mythical kingdom of the King Arthur legend. It is a place relatively untouched by time, where gentle traditions is on. Unlike the perfect climate of Camelot, however, Algonquin is located in a suburb of St. Louis, MO, where residents have been known to say, "If you don't like the weather, wait an hour."

Planning a season-long centennial celebration that encompassed the heart of St. Louis" meteorologically-volatile summer and fall challenged both the creativity and the weather prediction talents of general manager Mass Shakiba and his management team.

Queen of the Suburbs

While technically located in the south central St. Louis suburb of Glendale, Algonquin Golf Club is very much a part of the heart and soul of a small city called Webster Groves. "Webster" is a slice of Norman Rockwell, with specimen oaks lining streets of "century homes." Residents stroll with kids and dogs on summer evenings, and the Fourth of July parade is a major community event.

Although some homes in Webster date back before the Civil War, the "Queen of the Suburbs" actually came into its own in 1892, when real estate developers began an enclave of gracious homes called

"Webster Park." Today, when homes in Webster Groves are quickly snapped up, the prime real estate is still located "in the Park."

The Algonquin Golf Club first met in January of 1899. The club built a nine-hole tract which a local pro--a former player at St. Andrews--compared favorably to the Old Course. By summer of 1899, the club had 40 members. But the success of the Webster Park development marked the original course for destruction, as homes began to be built on the course. It took two years for the club to find a new home, about a mile west.

The club's centennial history book states: "Despite many adversities faced, members held firm to their original goal of creating a club that would serve nearby residents. A club where golf, and not homes, would be the centerpiece. A neighborhood club where families could gather and provide a foundation for growth and leadership. A club that would draw strength from its membership and provide the spirit of community in return."

Fast Forward ... Gracefully

Today's Algonquin Golf Club has retained the understated dimensions and ambience that its founders intended. Recent updates have improved the flow and polished the timeless decor of the clubhouse. The pool area has been expanded and modernized and includes a large terrace where events are staged. The club has the capability of tenting the entire pool deck as well as terraces immediately outside the dining rooms, both for expanding capacity and for dealing with St. Louis' unpredictable weather.

While it is a very gracious clubhouse, at the same time it is a lively place, where 500 members and their families get full use out of the facilities. Shakiba noted that the club's members have a total of 390 children. (Shakiba said that the ratio of girls to boys is 3:1, noting with a grin that that particular demographic bodes well for future weddings at Algonquin.)

Shakiba and Chef Craig Meyer, CEC, have moved Algonquin from a traditional club menu to offerings that reflect the kind of upscale cuisine club members can find in neighborhood high-end restaurants.

Club events keep packing them in, from an annual "prom night" to a women's karaoke night in the men's grill (packed with women ranging in age from their early 30s to 80-something), and nine-hole 4 p.m. golf outings that allow the guys to play for a couple of hours then join their spouses for special dinner offerings planned by Chef Meyer for the event, such as a Sonoma wine dinner. A father/son overnight campout on the driving range is followed by early breakfast and a golf clinic.

Gearing Up

Algonquin obviously had the facility, the track record, and the team to pull off a memorable Centennial. But were they capable of doing it?

One thing that new members to Algonquin learn very quickly is not to bet against GM Shakiba. On the wall of his office is a large color photo of racehorses pounding down the stretch, in memory, he said vaguely, "of a very happy time during college." Also on the wall are a number of framed dollar bills commemorating bets that members or staff at Algonquin made with Shakiba.

It becomes very clear after talking with Shakiba for only a short time that one of the ways he insures a winning proposition is by controlling the odds. In the case of the Centennial celebration, that meant getting his two key Centennial team members, Chef Meyer and clubhouse manager Laurie Schwetz to be proactive with the members.

"The only way we can accomplish this," Shakiba recalled telling his team members, "is to be one or two steps ahead of (the event committees). We need to set the agenda and provide them with a framework."

The plan worked. The committees still felt needed and engaged in the process of planning their club's event, but the pros had set the parameters that were needed for success.

The first thing that time Algonquin event team felt was necessary was to offer several events--formal and informal. The second was to focus through the planning of all of those events on the multigenerational family nature of the club's membership.

The first event was the annual Independence Day celebration. As previously mentioned, the Fourth of July is a very big deal in the Webster Groves area. Algonquin traditionally holds its event on July 3, and has a longstanding practice of sending out letters inviting neighboring residents to view its fireworks display from the fringes of the golf course.

Members, their families and guests get a more up-close-and-personal look, following a lavish buffet dinner. The centennial Independence Day event attracted 1,150 people, filling the clubhouse, pool deck, patio, a gazebo, and the first tee. The finale to time fireworks was the new Algonquin logo lit up in pyrotechnics. A concert band, with a tenor and a soprano vocal soloists, performed on the first tee. A "one-man band" performed in the main dining room and there was a DJ on the pool deck.

Golf Cars on Parade

The closing pool party, on Aug. 31, was the next Centennial function. The theme chosen was "Cheeseburger in Paradise," but the main idea was fun--especially for the club's children. At the same time the food included the high-end tastes of the parents.

Algonquin staff greeted the 650 persons attending wearing Hawaiian shirts, leis, and straw hats. There were snow cones, fireworks, and a hot air balloon. About 60 members and their families signed up for a "parade of carts" competition. They were given two hours to decorate a golf car and a parade of the finished carts was led around the adjoining neighborhood by a police escort. Awards were given for the best centennial theme, most creative, and most outlandish.

It was at this event that Shakiba and his staff displayed their prowess as amateur meteorologists. They had begun their practice watching the weather forecasts for days on end, with the July 3 party--planning tenting and alternate game plans in case the skies broke loose.

Late August is an even more iffy thing weather-wise in St. Louis than is the beginning of July. But the Algonquin team made a judgement call to go ahead, based on science and Shakiba's sense of a winning bet. Rain that had begun that morning stopped exactly long enough for Algonquin to hold its family party.

The event came off with out a hitch. At one point, Chef Meyer turned to Shakiba and said, somewhat in amazement, "It's happening, and it's just the way we planned it."

At 11 p.m., after the last guest had left, the skies opened up and it began to rain. Shakiba attributed his good luck with the weather that day to "clean living."

The club hosted a centennial golf day for members. Following golf there were cocktails and hor d'oeuvres, and copies of the Algonquin Centennial history book signed by the author were distributed. There was also a showing of a Centennial video. A time capsule was dedicated and marked with a brass plaque. Shakiba inserted a letter to be read by the manager of the club at the time of its bicentennial, stating his vision for the club for the next 100 years. He steadfastly refuses to reveal that vision to anyone other than his unborn successor of a century from now.

Sellout Gala ... Plus

The final centennial event--a black tie gala--was held on Sept. 13. It attracted 400 members. Accommodating them was no mean trick, since the dining capacity of the club is approximately 300. But the Algonquin staff realized that turning members away from this once-in-a-century event was not an option. Furniture was removed from the clubhouse, the terraces outside the dining rooms were tented with more seating, and the party was on.

The pool deck was covered in red carpet for the event and strolling musicians led the diners into the clubhouse. When the dinner bell was rung, members were personally greeted by retired favorite servers from years gone by at Algonquin and led to their tables. The dining rooms were decorated with black tablecloths and gold chairs. Memorabilia from the past century was set up in the adjoining St. Louis Room where it remained on display for a month before the event.

Following the closing event of the Centennial celebration, the reviews from club members were stellar. Club president Timothy Tegeler addressed a letter "To the Management and Staff of the Algonquin Golf Club," that read in part:

"It was very important to me that this year, our Centennial Year, be special. And you made it so. The three parties, capped by the Centennial Gala, were each an individual success. In spite of the threatening weather we managed to get in the Family Party around the pool during the only five hour period it wasn't raining. And the food and its presentation were spectacular. Hats off to you, Chef Craig, and your entire crew, for a job well done.

"The planning and the hours that Mass and Laurie put into the gala celebration were unbelievable and the results even more astounding. It is easily the most memorable night Algonquin has ever had. The compliments we have from our members who were attending have never been higher."

General manager Shakiba also received a letter from a longtime member of the club, who sent a copy to President Tegeler. The member mentioned the success of the Centennial and went on to write:

"We've been members of Algonquin for 35 years.... We've experienced several general managers--some very good, some questionable, and some superior in one or two aspects of the task. Mass, we feel that you've become the best overall general manager in our time. Times are different. It's hard to honor traditions while meeting the socio-economic challenges. You've done well (and I'll bet the improvement's not stopped!).

THANK YOU!"