Birch Ridge Report

Everyone knows Murphy, right? No, I’m not referring to Dan (Birch Ridge Golf Association president and building contractor extraordinaire) or Linda (retired borough clerk and Birch Ridge Golf Association secretary). The Murphy I’m referring to is the one who is credited with the many phrases commonly known as “Murphy’s Law” (such as, “If anything can go wrong, it will”).

I have come to the conclusion that Mr. Murphy must have played golf, since many of his “laws” most certainly apply to this game that frustrates us all, but that we love so much. And while Mr. Murphy probably didn’t actually say all of the following words of wisdom, his general philosophy prevails. Here are just a few that I can personally relate to:

“If there’s more than one way to hit a ball, you’ll choose the wrong way.”

“If you see a ball in the rough 50 yards away, it isn’t yours.”

“If there’s a ball on the fringe and a ball in the bunker, yours will be in the bunker. If both balls are in the bunker, yours is in the footprint.”

“On a shot in the rough, you can find everyone’s ball but your own.”

“If your golf swing feels natural, you’re probably doing it wrong.”

“Once struck, the ball acquires a mind of its own.”

“The best way to play a shot will only become obvious once you have hit the ball.”

I wonder if Murphy’s Law of Golf surfaced during the Seward Booster Club Event this past Saturday at Birch Ridge. Although I don’t have the results in as yet with the winning team names and other prizewinners, rumor has it that three teams tied for first place at 3-under par. After the card-off, I guess the two teams who lost out on first place might agree with the Murphy’s Law that says, “Bad luck is yours and good luck belongs to your opponents.”

It’s not too late to sign up for the Soldotna Elks Tournament on Saturday at 8 a.m. (check-in by 7:30). The entry fee of $65 includes your greens fees and a wonderful steak dinner after the tournament at the Soldotna Elks Lodge. If you want to bring a non-golfing guest to the steak dinner, the cost is only $10.00. You won’t want to miss out on one of the most fun tournaments of the year so call the pro shop (262-5270) and get your name on the list right away.

Mark your calendars and watch for more information on the following:

· Bassackwards Tournament, Aug. 19;

· Birch Ridge and Kenai Combined Tournament, Sept. 2-3;

· Cold Weather Classic, Sept. 23.

Last Wednesday was BIG Wednesday for Men’s Night. Enjoying the great weather, the team of Phil Christensen, Roy Bird, Bob Sizemore and Rudy Zaborowski also enjoyed taking first place. Bob Sizemore was a really BIG winner by also having the long drive on No. 2 and a pure birdie on No. 3. Other BIG winners were Roy Bird (being closest to the hole on No. 6) and Scott Kempf (closest to on No. 8).

Nineteen seniors came out to play on Monday, with George Collum scoring the low net with a 32. Closest to the hole on No. 6 was Darell Jelsma and on No. 8, Don McGhee took the closest to honors. Mark Hutton had the longest putt.

The Tuesday Morning Ladies would like to remind everyone that they will be playing next Thursday, Aug. 10, instead of Tuesday. Same time, 10 a.m. This will be their end of the year party. (What? How can that be? Already? No — I can’t even think about that!)

Bring a salad and dessert — pizza will be delivered (hopefully only the pizza will be sliced and not the golf shots!)

This past Tuesday, Tanya Boedeker had the fewest putts. Jan Stenga won the “guess your score” prize (I’m not sure how that works, but if I could win by just “guessing” my score, I probably would stand a better chance of taking a prize). The mystery hole prize was shared by Cheryl Hammarstrom and Jan Stenga. (Hey, maybe there’s hope for me yet, since every one of the holes I play is a mystery.) Sure sounds like these gals know how to have fun!

And on the subject of having fun, let’s not forget about those Tuesday Night Couples — even without our fun loving couple-in-charge (John and Jane Tongen) who were off doing that dreaded fishing thing. (Murphy’s Law states that the fish are always biting — yesterday! Is that kinda like “I’ll always have my best golf shot — tomorrow?”)

Eight couples played a two-person (one couple) Scotch Doubles Game. Each person teed off, they chose the best drive and then alternated shots into the hole. And once again, Tom and Tanya Boedeker took first place with a net 28. Dan and Linda Murphy came in second with a net 30. (Are you sure you guys aren’t related to that other Murphy?)

We were happy to welcome Warren and Letty Carp from Los Angeles and Palm Desert (parents of Lori Weimer). Evidently we didn’t scare them off too bad, since they promised to return again next week. How about the rest of you fun-loving couples? It’s time to call and sign up for next Tuesday night.

TOM’S TIP FOR THE WEEK: “Improve impact for better ball striking. In all my years of being a golf coach and golf professional, I realized very early that even good players have swings that look unusual. Despite the unusual and individualistic look all players have, the common element among them is the impact position. As with all good players, you must have the ability to square the clubface with a sound swing path to achieve proper impact. Keep your head in a good position through impact and try to picture your club contacting the golf ball. This means, ‘DON’T LOOK UP.’

“With all great ball strikers, notice their head position at impact. You’ll see their great position results in improved hand-eye coordination and more solid golf shots. Your impact position can also improve dramatically with this technique. Your shots will fly longer and straighter, resulting in lower scores. The impact position will improve, and you too will become a better ball striker. Prime examples of this: Miller Barber, Gay Brewer and Jim Furyk. They all have strange take-aways, but at impact they were all the same.”

SHARON’S THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: “It’s been my experience that when I look up, resulting in a really bad shot, I look down again just when I ought to be watching the ball if I ever want to see it again.”