There are many things to love about the Windsor Golf Club. There is excellent golf instruction given by Jason Schmuhl, Molly James, Demian Reddy, Neal Hellman, Patrick Steiner and others. We have a challenging, beautifully conditioned and affordable 18-hole course that is open to all. There’s an excellent practice facility including a grass driving range, chipping area and two putting greens. The chipping and putting greens are always open and always free for the public to use.
One of the best things to love about Windsor Golf Club is its promotion and commitment to junior golf. As one of the coaches of the team, along with Super Coach Devin Savano, I see first hand the financial generosity of Jason and his staff as well as the pride they take in having a new crop of young golfers to help. There are over 30 members of the junior golf team and there are 10 players who’ve played in the six tournaments we’ve had with other courses in Sonoma County.
Below is a list of young Windsor golfers who’ve played at least three summer events, along with one of their best scores from the season:
Alex Barragan, age 14 (47 at Bennett Valley); Jackson Calegari, age 13 (44 at Santa Rosa Country Club); Will Hoff, age 13 (43 at Northwood; Gavin Kahn, age 11 (51 at Santa Rosa Country Club); Nick Savano, age 12 (49 at Santa Rosa Country Club); Will Schettler, age 15 (52 at Petaluma Country Club); Wim Sirks, age 12 (48 at Healdsburg Golf Club); Dillon Stefani, age 7 (43 at Bennett Valley); Ben Sutherland, age 10 (47 at Healdsburg Golf Club); and Mason Tomasek, age 13 (53 at Santa Rosa Country Club).
Other players who are out on the course and driving range a lot but haven’t been able to play in as many tournaments are Patrick Logue, Marco Palacios, Barry Liu, Gracie Shaw, Madison Shaw, Benjamin Tisman, Scotty Wong and Kevan Carstensen.
There are still two tournaments left this year – at Windsor this week and at Fountaingrove before the individual playoffs. Windsor is currently in third place behind Petaluma Country Club and Bennett Valley.
I’ll have to write another column in the next couple of weeks as I have so much to cover. My good friends Tim Bogue and Jason Schmuhl and their summer golf schedules, my dad shooting his age at Oakmont, my return to playing golf and my son’s hole in one at Northwood.
OK – for family harmony, I better write about my son’s hole in one. On June 13, I dropped Jackson off at Northwood Golf Club out in Monte Rio with his pal Will Hoff. They jumped right to the first tee and I headed back to town with my daughter Katie. Thirty minutes later Jackson stepped up to the 145-yard, par 3 third hole and grabbed his hybrid club. He hit it right down the middle and turned away to pick up his tee.
The other three guys shouted, “That’s going right at the hole.” As the pin was in the back of the green they couldn’t tell if it went in. Another boy in the group ran up to the green and looked into the hole and picked up Jackson’s Callaway #3 and raised it in the air. Jackson shouted back, “Put that back in the hole!” He wanted the honor of taking the ball out of the hole. At age 13 years old and five days that’s an outstanding accomplishment.
The best part is that Jackson didn’t tell me until about 15 minutes after he got home. He said, “Dad, how old were you when you got your first hole in one?” I said, “About 35 years old.” He replied, “Well, I guess I beat you by 22 years.”
What a sarcastic little weasel.
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