NEARLY AGE 50, COUNTRY CLUB REMAINS OASIS FOR GOLFERS FIRST 9 HOLES OPENED IN OCTOBER OF 1955.Byline: Charles F. Bostwick Staff Writer PALMDALE - Back when the Antelope Valley This article is about the Los Angeles County region. For the census-designated place in Wyoming, see Antelope Valley-Crestview, Wyoming. The Antelope Valley was populated pop·u·late tr.v. pop·u·lat·ed, pop·u·lat·ing, pop·u·lates 1. To supply with inhabitants, as by colonization; people. 2. mostly by ranchers and by families of those who worked at newly opened aircraft plants or in their own small businesses, 300 people put up $500 each to invest in a golf course. They bought 160 acres 1 1/2 miles outside Palmdale, engaged prolific golf course architects William P. and William F. Bell and opened the first nine holes of the Antelope Valley Country Club in October 1955. Another nine holes were opened two years later, and then came a clubhouse, a pool and tennis courts. ``We have kept growing. We have kept improving the facilities. We plan to keep doing that in the future,'' said the general manager, Steve Applegate, who started working at the country club as a 16-year-old in the 1960s, played on the professional tour for a while and came back as a golf pro in the late 1970s. Marking its 50th anniversary this year, the country club has had a membership over the decades that included committed golfers, Antelope Valley civic leaders and even people living in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. or farther away who drive up on weekends to golf. Some 200 gathered Saturday night for a gala banquet at the clubhouse to mark the anniversary. Among the early members was Lois Fessenden. She and her husband joined in 1956 after he was transferred from San Bernardino San Bernardino, city, United States San Bernardino (săn bûr'nədē`nō), city (1990 pop. 164,164), seat of San Bernardino co., S Calif., at the foot of the San Bernardino Mts.; inc. 1854. to run Hayward Lumber lumber, term for timber that has been cut into boards for use as a building material. The major steps in producing lumber involve logging (the felling and preparation of timber for shipment to sawmills), sawing the logs into boards, grading the boards according to in Lancaster. ``Believe me, there wasn't very much here,'' Fessenden, now 87, said of the Antelope Valley in the mid-1950s. She and her husband both took lessons. ``I'd always wanted to play. I didn't even know what 'par' was,'' Fessenden said. Their three children - Jim, George and Jo Ann - also took lessons. And when the Country Club Estates started up in the late 1960s around the golf course, the Fessendens bought one of the first houses, which were a step up from the post-World War II tract houses in most of Palmdale. ``It was a family affair,'' she said of belonging to the country club. Fessenden no longer plays golf, but she still goes to the country club every Tuesday to play cards. Women meet there to play gin, bridge and pinochle pinochle (pē`nŭ'kəl), card game, probably derived from bezique, that was developed in the United States in the 19th cent. Pinochle is played by two, three, or four players, with a deck of 48 cards containing two each of the aces, face . ``We have quite a group that plays,'' she said. Run by a general manager under policy set by a board of directors, the club now has some 450 golfing members - just shy of the maximum it allows of 500 - plus 200 tennis members and 100 social members, who can dine there or play cards. Full membership now costs $5,000, plus $260 a month. Most members have been people involved in the Antelope Valley community, said Robert Clark There are several people by the name of Robert Clark:
``They're active people. We've had a lot of teachers. We've had people in the aerospace industry. Golf is a social game,'' said Clark, who played on the PGA Tour The PGA Tour is an organization that operates the USA's main professional golf tours. It is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA. Its name is officially rendered in all caps as “PGA TOUR". in 1967 and was hired in 1968 as golf pro. He stayed for 11 years, then went into the real estate business. He has been on the board 18 years. ``If there's a secret for the success of the country club over the last 15 or 20 years, it's got to be the people on the board. They're wise enough to let management do their job,'' Clark said. Members are proud of the club. The 18,000-square-foot clubhouse was enlarged and remodeled in 1997, and a new driving range was opened two years ago. Members attribute much of the recent growth and financial well-being to Mark DePompa, who was general manager from 1976 to 2002. DePompa, who caddied as a boy and later ran golf courses for the military at Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base, U.S. military installation, 301,000 acres (121,805 hectares), S Calif., NE of Lancaster; est. 1933. It is one of the largest air force bases in the United States and has the world's longest runway. , in the Philippines and in Washington, D.C., took over a club that was in debt and turned it around. ``I always said it was the best-kept secret in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, ,'' DePompa recently said about the club. ``What else could you ask for?'' Charles F. Bostwick, (661) 267-5742 chuck.bostwick(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1 -- color -- ran in AV edition only) A golfer enjoys himself Saturday at the Antelope Valley Country Club, where the first nine holes of the golf course opened in October 1955. (2) Virgil Wheeler, left, and Buzz Barker barker a term for an animal that does not usually bark which makes a violent respiratory effort, often during a convulsion, accompanied by a sound which roughly resembles a dog's bark. watch Steve Applegate swing on the 18-hole golf course at the Antelope Valley Country Club, which also has a driving range, clubhouse, pool and tennis courts. (3 -- ran in SAC Sac: see Sac and Fox. SAC - 1. An early system on the Datatron 200 series. [Listed in CACM 2(5):16 (May 1959)]. edition only) Golfers enjoy themselves Saturday at the Antelope Valley Country Club, where the first nine holes of the golf course opened in 1955. Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer |
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