Photography by Thomas Toohey Brown
Business/Sports Club/Society Golf Event
There’s a first time for everything … and at last summer’s Business, Sports Club, and Society division of the 2007 Acura ClubCorp Championship Series, there were at least a couple of firsts. Jay Pittman, director of golf at Woodside Plantation Country Club in Aiken, South Carolina, became the first golf professional in the 18-year history of the tournament to win back-to-back team championships. He followed last year’s win with the Houston Society team by leading the Tampa Bay Society team to victory at this year’s event, held as always at Pinehurst in the Village of Pinehurst, North Carolina. In the photo above, Pittman is seated next to Society manager Amy Jo Blevens. Standing, from left, are team members J.T. Thatch, Bill Mitchell, Jackie Mitchell, and Randy Wehling. With a final score of 183, Tampa Bay won by one stroke over Hawaii’s Plaza Club team. Wehling, by the way, has won three of the seven times he’s played in the tournament, having previously won in 2000 and 2003.
Also setting a precedent this year was the Pittsburgh Society team — the first all-female team to participate in the tournament. They placed in the top half of the field with a final score of 195.
When not on the course, championship participants had the opportunity to test-drive the latest models from Acura, and for added entertainment, the title sponsor displayed its Lowe’s Fernandez American Le Mans series race car, the 3.4 liter, V-8 auto driven by racer Adrian Fernandez. And, in typical fashion at this event, there were no losers, as Maui Jim gave pairs of sunglasses to the two lowest-scoring teams on each course.
Country Club and Resort Golf Event
The Country Club and Resort division, now in its 21st year, battled some hotter than normal September temperatures — and dodged tropical storm winds. But that didn’t keep Indian Springs Country Club from blowing in from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, to take the lead on Day One and hanging on to it for the duration. This marked the affiliate club’s second win at the event; the first came in 1988 with another team. Pictured above, from left, are Kevin McKean, Mark Baber, golf professional Michael Gotcher, Mark Cochran, and Daniel Cochran.
Aaron Kelly, golf professional from Moonah Links Golf Club (one of four Australian clubs participating in the September tournament), hit a 175-yard hole-in-one on the 17th hole of Pinehurst No. 2. “To have an ace on a hole and course so rich in history is an experience I will never forget,” he said. His one regret was that he didn’t ace the hole with a new Acura as the hole-in-one prize. Not that no one went home with the keys to an Acura … Bob Landis of Oak Pointe Country Club in Brighton, Michigan, won a drawing that allows him the use of an Acura of his choice for one year. Another lucky drawing winner, Alison Bawden of Australia’s Lakelands Golf Club, donated her three-day, two-night stay at Barton Creek Resort & Spa to the ClubCorp Charity Classic. The package was auctioned the next night, raising $1,100 for the Classic’s selected charities. The freebies were flying at this year’s event as a record number of sponsors, including Premier Capitol Cigar Co., TaylorMade, and Maui Jim, were on hand to share their latest products with the participants. — Louis Marroquin