WELCOME TO THE CLUB : AFFILIATE GROUPS ARE CHEAP WAY TO PLAY.Byline: GREGORY J. WILCOX Membership in a swank country club never came within Dick Carlin's economic grasp. ``It would have been nice but I never had it,'' Carlin car·line or car·lin n. Scots A woman, especially an old one. [Middle English kerling, from Old Norse, from karl, man.] said of the big paycheck required to fund access to the fairways, greens and grill rooms of exclusive Southland clubs. ``I've always played public links.'' But the North Hills resident has not lacked for a club experience, either. Twenty-five years ago Carlin joined the men's club at Knollwood Country Club in Granada Hills, a public course, and eight years ago became a member of Northridge Golf Club. Now he is president of the Northridge group, known officially as an affiliate club, which makes the members vagabonds of local golf. These clubs claim no home course, preferring instead to roam from venue to venue in search of tee times for their regular tournaments. The affiliate clubs - and the men's, women's and seniors' clubs at public courses - typically ensure their members at least one prime tee time a month. It comes in the form of a club tournament, with the cost of entry including greens fees, golf cart, prizes and a dinner. They are golf clubs for the masses. The cost of belonging won't deplete de·plete v. 1. To use up something, such as a nutrient. 2. To empty something out, as the body of electrolytes. bank accounts or bring on a sudden case of snobbery. The dues are modest, typically about $50 a year. Membership in the 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, Public Links Golf Association, a nonprofit group formed in 1931 to cater to the needs of the public course player, is another perk. This group, based in Buena Park Buena Park (bwā`nə), city (1990 pop. 68,784), Orange co., S Calif.; inc. 1953. Food processing, the manufacture of aircraft, and tourism are important to the city's economy. , computes handicaps for its members, thus affording them an opportunity to play against golfers of a similar skill level in United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. Golf Association-sanctioned events. The association has about 22,000 members, with 10,000 of them members of public clubs, said Jim Douts, the organization's executive director. Can't find a club to join? Just form your own. It's not that hard, said Douts. Round up at least 25 acquaintances, fill out an application and send it along with a $50 initiation fee to the association's headquarters in Buena Park. ``You have to be voted into the association but that's just a formality,'' Douts said. And all of the club presidents are members of the association's board of directors. Membership in the individual clubs is not automatic, though. It's usually a case of friends bringing in friends. At Carlin's Northridge Club, prospective newcomers are screened by the members. Carlin, a retired film technician, said prospective members must play a couple of rounds of golf with current members and demonstrate some skill at the game. For men this means being able to shoot one round at no more than 30 strokes above par. For women, it's 40 stokes above par. This prebonding bonding routine is appropriate, in that it helps weed out those who don't belong. ``You can't have someone out there who is just a beginner. You hold people up that way,'' Carlin explains. ``If you just demonstrate that you can play and be pleasant, then we accept you.'' The Northridge club has about 44 members but it will soon split into two groups. The club was founded about 25 years ago and some of the original members have retired. Now they are forming their own group and will hold the tournaments on weekdays, when greens fees are cheaper. Other affiliate clubs take a similar approach. Paul Trietsch, the immediate past president of the Valley Businessmen's Golf Association, says prospective members of that group have to be invited to join by a current member. Three rounds of golf follow that basically amount to a personality background check. ``We don't care
"Don't Care" is a 1994 (see 1994 in music) single by American death metal band Obituary. how proficient they are as long as they enjoy the game and are nice people. We have everyone from a three handicap to a 40,'' said Triestch, a pawn broker See Pawnbroker. See also: Broker and owner of Traders Inc. in Reseda. This group plays its matches on Thursdays, so members have to be able to take that day off from work. And members who miss three tournaments in a row are dropped from the club. Triestch said that some of the members of his group also belong to private clubs in the Valley area. And he is a member of the club at Lake Lindero. And the affiliate clubs are a nice option to the organizations that operate out of public courses. Membership rolls in the public-course clubs like those at Knollwood and Woodley Lakes are usually filled and there is a waiting list. And the affiliate clubs play a wide variety of courses throughout the year. It can also be a good way to hone your game. Two current 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". members - Duffy Waldorf James Joseph "Duffy" Waldorf, Jr. (born August 20 1962), joined the PGA Tour in 1985. Waldorf was born in Los Angeles, California. He attended UCLA and graduated in 1985 with a degree in Psychology. and Tom Stankowsky - played amateur golf out of the Sepulveda Men's Golf Club. Notes:Summer is still a couple of weeks away and by Sunday the LPGA LPGA abbr. Ladies Professional Golf Association will already have contested three of its major championships. Is this any way to run a tour starved for media attention? Tour commissioner Jim Ritts, during a recent visit to Glendale's Oakmont Country Club Oakmont Country Club is a prestigious "top five" country club and the "oldest top-ranked golf course in the U.S.".[1] It is located in the Pittsburgh suburbs of Plum and Oakmont, Pennsylvania, USA. , said there was simply no way to avoid this scheduling quirk. This week the tour stops in Southern Pines, N.C., for the U.S. Women's Open at Pine Needles pine needles pine npl → Kiefernnadeln pl pine needles npl → aghi mpl di pino Resort. Ritts said the tour did not want to risk a sultry Southern heat wave. ``This course doesn't do well in extreme heat,'' he said. It's a fitting stop. LPGA Hall of Fame member Peggy Kirk Bell Peggy Kirk Bell (born October 28 1921) is a former American professional golfer and golf instructor. She was is a founding member of the LPGA and a strong advocate of women's golf. Raised in Findlay, Ohio, Peggy started playing golf at age 17. has lived at the resort for more than four decades. And she is one of the world's top women golf instructors. THIS WEEK LPGA TOUR U.S. Women's Open Site: Southern Pines, N.C. Dates: Today-Sunday. Course: Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club (6,207 yards, par 70). Purse: $1.2 million. TV: ESPN ESPN Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (Thursday, 10 a.m.-noon and 2-4 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.) and NBC NBC in full National Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. commercial broadcasting company. It was formed in 1926 by RCA Corp., General Electric Co. (GE), and Westinghouse and was the first U.S. company to operate a broadcast network. (Saturday, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.; Sunday, noon-3 p.m.). Last year: Annika Sorenstam won her first LPGA title, closing with a 2-under 68 for a one-stroke victory over Meg Mallon Meg Mallon (b. April 14 1963, Natick, Massachusetts) is an American professional golfer. Mallon attended Mercy High School in Farmington Hills, Michigan and The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. She became a member of the LPGA Tour in 1987. . Sorenstam had a 2-under 278 total on Broadmoor's East Course in Colorado Springs, Colo. PGA TOUR Memorial Tournament Site: Dublin, Ohio. Dates: Today-Sunday. Course: Muirfield Village Golf Club (7,104 yards, par 72). Purse: $1.8 million. TV: ESPN (Thursday, noon-2 p.m.; Friday, 7 a.m.-9 a.m.) and ABC ABC in full American Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. television network. It began when the expanding national radio network NBC split into the separate Red and Blue networks in 1928. (Saturday, 1-3 p.m.; Sunday, noon-3 p.m.). Last year: Greg Norman finished with a 6-under 66 for a four-stroke victory over Steve Elkington, Mark Calcavecchia and David Duval. Norman, who also won the tournament in 1990, had a 19-under 269 total. SENIOR PGA TOUR Bruno's Memorial Classic Site: Birmingham, Ala. Dates: Friday-Sunday. Course: Greystone Golf Club (7,012 yards, par 72). Purse: $1.05 million. Last year: Australia's Graham Marsh won his first senior title, finishing with a 2-under 70 for a five-stroke victory over J.C. Snead. Marsh had a 15-under 201 total. CAPTION(S): Photo, Box Photo: Pawn shop owner Paul Triestch is a past preside nt of the Valley Businessmen's Golf Association, an alternative to country club play. Hans Gutknecht / Daily News Box: THIS WEEK (see text) MEMO: The golf column appears on Thursdays in the Daily News. |
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