LAYING THE GROUNDWORK
Before the first shot is hit at any VSGA championship, exhaustive behind-the-scenes work prepares a course for high-level play. Here’ s how it all comes together | by ARTHUR UTLEY
It was 7:30 a. m. on a chilly May Tuesday at Richmond’ s Willow Oaks Country Club, three days before the start of the 52nd Virginia State Golf Association Four-Ball Stroke Play Championship.“ Who turned off the heat?” one member quipped at the first tee as she waited for the rest of her group to arrive. A few holes ahead of her, two VSGA staff members— Josh Coates and Kent Holubar— were already on course, intently studying the greens and looking for equitable hole locations for the upcoming two-round championship.
Two days later, on a much warmer and muggier Thursday morning, Coates and Holubar walked more than five miles, armed with paint guns and more than a dozen cans of spray paint, set to mark every hazard on the course with lines of red or yellow. Through the years, the VSGA tournament staff has earned a stellar reputation for its ability to run an event, and much of the work takes place well before anyone arrives to hit a shot in a practice round.
Marking a course, choosing hole locations and meeting with Rules officials are just part of the extensive preparation for a championship.
24 V IRGINIA G OLFER | J ULY / A UGUST 2017 vsga. org