GOLF COURSES
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Storey and Jenkins were childhood friends in Surrey , England , and were in the same class at school between the ages of four and twelve .
T he recent qualifier for the USGA Amateue Fourball , held at the new Landmand course in Nebraka , produced a remarkable result . With two qualifying slots available for pairs to compete in the final , to be held . at the Kiawah Island club in May , both qualifiying teams contained a player from England . And , by an amazing coincidence , those two Englishmen were childhood friends , who have known each other since the age of four .
Sam Storey , assistant golf coach at Morningside University in Sioux City , Iowa , and his partner Corey Matthey , took the first qualifying spot with a 65 . The second spot went to Zac Jenkins and his partner Lucas Scherf , who shot a 66 around the King-Collins designed Landmand course , which only opened in September . Storey and Jenkins were childhood friends in Surrey , England , and were in the same class at school between the ages of four and twelve .
“ I came to America in 2018 , after putting myself on a site called ProDream USA , designed for young golfers seeking a college scholarship ,” says Sam . “ I ended up at Morningside University in Sioux City , which was great for me – I wasn ’ t a brilliant player when I came out , and my time at college has really done me good . Zac used the same site , and by pure coincidence , ended up at Drake University in Des Moines , Iowa . That ’ s amazing enough , but to find ourselves qualifying for a USGA championship at the same venue , on the same day , is quite astonishing .”
Given that he is based in Sioux City , only a few miles from Landmand , Sam was very familiar with the new course . “ I had probably played five rounds there before the qualifier , but Corey and I saved our best golf for the day ,” he says . “ Corey is a local guy , born and bred in Sioux City , though he now lives in Scottsdale , Arizona . Because I knew the course fairly well , I was able to tell him where and where not to hit it . It ’ s all about playing the course the way it was designed – it is a long , long way from being a stereotypical get a yardage and hit it there tournament course . We executed our game plan really well . Our main plan was no bogeys and take on the par fives , which is not a normal strategy for fourball golf – you normally have to attack the golf course all the way round . But there are places at Landmand where you can run up a big score , so it paid to be a little more cautious . I think the field contained quite a lot of players who had heard about the course and really wanted to see it . I understand that – it ’ s a remarkable place .”
GroundskeepingJournal . co . uk | November 2022 9