The 2011 Invitational was the eleventh playing of Bird Golf’s annual celebration of golf. It was another grand success with fabulous golf and great camaraderie in the perfect setting.
The amazing, Carey Mumford, once again opened proceedings with another compelling presentation on Clear Key. As always, Carey had his audience spellbound with his insights into the mental game of golf and the behavior, style and function of the human being.
Carey Mumford
The opening dinner that followed Carey’s presentation was held for the first time at the Sivlik Restaurant at Whirlwind GC. Executive Chef, John C. Farley and his staff produced a delicious array of sumptuous food that was universally enjoyed by all.
Following the dinner, came the induction of BGA’s East Coast Head professional, Tim Peightal, into the Bird Golf Walk of Honor. In a career that has so far spanned, 37 years, Tim has touched the lives of thousands of people with his enormous skills as a teacher and mentor. Tim’s speech will be remembered by all as he described his remarkable golf journey that has seen him learn from some of golf’s all-time great teachers (Bob Toski, Davis Love Jr. and Johnny Farrell) as he refined his own craft.
Tim Peightal
Tim becomes the fifth member of The Walk of Honor and joins fellow honorees, Jim Samsing, Sharon Miller, Mary Mills and Carey Mumford.
The Bird Golf Academy Walk Of Honor at Wildhorse Pass
Day one of the tournament was our Scramble format and produced some great play and scoring. The winning team on the day was the trio of Jan Harris, Cody Learmonth and Jeff Goodrich (the 2009 Champions) who with their professional, Marty Hoeffken played superbly and recorded a net score of 51. Following in second place was the team of Bernad and Tonya Gibbs and Steve Perkins with their professional, Sharon Miller. There was a log-jam of teams in third place that included: Jim Nowakowski Dan Tang and Cavell Simmonds (Cavell is a remarkable lady who is a 3-time cancer survivor and has “a lot of game”!), with Craig Waryan; Rory Kidd, Jason Kidd and Pauline Lockard with Heath Morden and Yvette and Erik Jonsson and Hub Donald, with Jim Samsing.
Following the first day of the tournament, everyone competed in the putting contest, which proved to be another very hotly contested affair. The men’s putting contest winner was Jon McMahon with a score of 21 and the Ladies winner was Deb Odland who played the 9 hole course in 22 stokes.
Deb Odland / Jon McMahon
Day two brought with it more spectacular play by the Harris, Learmonth and Goodrich team who coupled with their professional Roger Kreuter, recorded a very impressive team score of 22 under par in the Two Low Net format which gave them a commanding lead heading into the final round. They were led on this day by Jan Harris who shot a personal best 92. The second place team was Stephanie Lary, David Schwan and Mike Gelinas and their professional, Jay Ewing, who finished one stroke behind the winning team. In third place was the Nowakowski, Tang and Simmonds team with their professional, Shirley Furlong.
Sunday’s final round was filled with more heroics from our students. The winning team in this Low Gross/Low Net format was the team Lary, Schwan and Gelinas with their professional, Heath Morden. In second place were Bernad and Tonya Gibbs and Steve Perkins and their professional, Troy Weise. Tonya Gibbs has only been playing for a few months (this was also her first tournament) shot a personal best on this day, a fantastic 105. Third place, for the third straight day went to the team of Nowakowski, Tang Simmonds trio who played with professional, Tim Peightal.
For the first time in the history of the Invitational we have a 2 time Champion team. The team of Jan Harris, Cody Learmonth and Jeff Goodrich who all played so well for 3 days and richly deserved their second triumph. Their play was a tribute to their coach, Shirley Furlong and a testament to all their hard work. Cody Learmonth was one under par after 17 holes and had the chance to shoot under par for the first time before a hiccup on his final hole. We are certain that Cody will be recording under par rounds very soon.
7th PLACE TEAM
Roger Kreuter, Tim Peightal, Larry Kirk, Carey Mumford, Jon McMahon & Jim Samsing
6th PLACE TEAM
Sharon Miller, Erik Jonsson, Yvette Jonsson, Marty Hoeffken, Hub Donald, Carey Mumford & Jim Samsing
5th PLACE TEAM
Heath Morden, Tim Peightal, Pam Wright, Jason Kidd, Pauline Lockard, Carey Mumford & Rory Kidd
4th PLACE TEAM
Tim Peightal, Jay Ewing, Cavell Simmonds, Craig Waryan, Shirley Furlong & Carey Mumford. Not pictured Dan Tang & Jim Nowakowski
3rd PLACE TEAM
Troy Weis, Sharon Miller, Steve Perkins, Tonya Gibbs, Bernad Gibbs, Craig Waryan & Carey Mumford
RUNNERS-UP
Heath Morden, David Schwan, Jay Ewing, Mike Gelinas, Mary Mills, Stephanie Lary & Carey Mumford
2011 CHAMPIONS
Roger Kreuter, Marty Hoeffken, Cody Learmonth, Shirley Furlong, Jeff Goodrich, Jan Harris & Carey Mumford
2011 PROFESSIONAL CHAMPION
Roger Kreuter with 2011 Team Champions Cody, Jan & Jeff
The 12th Annual Invitational will be at Wild Horse Pass Resort November 1-5, 2012. This year BGA will be honoring Senior West Coast Instructor Craig Waryan. We will hope very much that you can join us for all the fun!
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