"IF YOU LIKE GOLF"
weekly online golf column
by
Chris Dortch

April 27, 2004

The local golf season begins with a flurry this week. The Signal Mountain Invitational (April 30, May 1-2) , long the amateurs’ season opener, will be followed quickly by the Chattanooga Classic (May 3-9), the Nationwide Tour’s second appearance at Black Creek.

Anyone who has played Signal Mountain knows the toll 54 holes can take on you. The course is short and not particularly tight, but demands precision with wedge play and putting. There are only so many downhill three-footers and 40-yard wedge shots a player can handle in a three-day tournament. Almost always, the player who has great command of his short game emerges victorious. Be sure to check back on this website for complete coverage.

Chattanooga Classic organizers are hopeful for better weather than the tournament was forced to slog through during its debut last summer, but also hope the tournament is as exciting as last time, when Jason Bohn shot a final-round 64 and won by a stroke over Kyle Thompson. Bohn needed eight birdies on Sunday to come away with the win. Tough as it can be, Black Creek also awards plenty of birdies to players who are smart enough to pick their spots. That’s what makes it a terrific tournament venue.

The calendar of events for the Classic:

Player Registration/Media Registration

1:30 p.m. Monday Pro-Am. Shotgun start

After Play Monday Pro-Am awards program

"Super Tuesday"

Player Registration/Media Registration

Player Practice Rounds

12:30 p.m. The First Tee of Chattanooga Youth Clinic

2:00 p.m. Regions Bank-Morgan Keegan Pro-Celebrity Shootout

5:00 p.m. Franklin American Mortgage Long Drive Contest

7:30 p.m. Wednesday Pro-Am pairings party in the VIP tent at Black Creek Club. Silent Auction.

7:30 a.m./12:30 p.m. Wednesday Pro-Am. Double crossover start. Morning at 7:30 with tee times approximately 10 minutes. Afternoon at 12:30 with tee times approximately 10 minutes.

After Play Wednesday Pro-Am awards program.

7:00 a.m. (approximate) First Round. Threesomes.

7:00 a.m. (approximate) Second Round. Threesomes.

7:00 a.m. (approximate) Third Round. Twosomes.

7:00 a.m. (approximate) Final Round. Twosomes.

After Play Awards Ceremony

After Play Volunteer Appreciation Party

• The Chattanooga golf community lost a great friend and supporter with the recent death of Bome Patten. The long-time Signal Mountain member was a fixture at most tournaments hosted by the club, volunteering his services and offering words of encouragement to winners and losers alike. Father of noted Chattanooga teaching professional Zeb Patten, Bome also dabbled in golf writing, having produced the fine biography of Signal Mountain’s pro emeritus, Don Malarkey. Mr. Patten will be missed.

• Be sure to check out the spring edition of Chattanooga CityScope magazine, which will feature a piece on the area’s toughest golf holes. Something tells me The Honors Course will be well represented in the piece. There might be a few surprises on the list as well.

• The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay continues to receive accolades, having recently been chosen as the second-best public course in the state by Golfweek.

Harrison Bay lost out only to its Bear Trace cohort from the West, the Bear Trace at Ross Creek Landing. RCL also received high praise from Golf Digest readers, along with yet another Bear Trace course, Chickasaw. Each earned four and a half out of a possible five stars in Golf Digest’s list of "Best Places to Play."

Golf Digest included the Ross Creek Landing and Chickasaw honors in its May 2004 edition and in a book published by Fodor’s that features reader ratings of more than 3,500 public courses in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Islands. The magazine excerpt of the book lists the top courses in each state.

"Superb conditioning, good service and courses designed by Jack Nicklaus combine to earn our courses accolades again and again," said Bear Trace Marketing Director Tommy Smith. "To be honored by the readers of Golf Digest is to be honored by discriminating golfers who expect an enjoyable experience on an outstanding course. At the Bear Trace, that is exactly what we aim to provide."

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