A freak hailstorm rained down hell on a golf course in Oklahoma City on Tuesday, days before the member-guest tournament. Volunteers had less than 48 hours to save it.
The Rose Creek Golf Club was nearly destroyed after the storm pelted its greens and fairways with large chunks of hail, some of which were larger than golf balls, Golf Oklahoma reported. But on Wednesday morning, over 200 members, along with the maintenance crew, walked the course and meticulously fixed the countless pockmarks. By 1:00 p.m., the course was playable. (RELATED: The Fairway Cigarette And Its Enemies)
Member Relations Director Mallory Smith estimated over a million hail marks — a million! — were repaired by the volunteers, whose efforts she called “wonderful.” She also said that every volunteer was gifted a free ticket to the tournament by a member who is a part of the Oklahoma City Thunder organization.
This story makes me love golf even more — for two reasons. The first is that I love seeing the little communities centered around a golf course, whether it’s private or public. Golf can be a game for lone wolves, but there is also community around the clubhouse. I golf at a Donald Ross municipal in North Carolina. Without fail, every time I have a tee time there, the old, salty scratch golfers are sitting in the clubhouse after their early morning round, watching golf or college football, sipping Miller Lites — the ideal way to spend life in retirement. (RELATED: Donald Trump Gave Me A Flyover During A Golf Round In Wilmington)
The second is that I love seeing golfers share a sense of etiquette and respect for courses, treating them as if they were beautiful landmarks, precious works of art, which they so often are. They need to be treated with a delicate touch, preserved for future generations.
Admittedly, I do not always live up to this ethos. Sometimes, I will leave a massive divot and I’m either too angry or too ecstatic to bother fixing it. However, when I’m not shotgunning beers, steering my golf cart into prohibited territory or shooting over 100, I try to embody that sense of respect and decorum. It makes the game special.
