From the Editor by Scott Seward
ship trophies reside on the mantles of NCGA members, with Hannah O’Sullivan winning the U.S. Women’s Amateur, Bryson DeChambeau capturing the U.S. Amateur the next week and Karen Garcia grabbing the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur. DeChambeau, a Belmont CC
W
member, and O’Sullivan, from The Olympic Club, cut their teeth on the Junior Tour of Northern California. Garcia plays out of Auburn Valley GC. The Association is immensely proud of their accomplishments. To top it off, DeChambeau
joined NCGA Amateur Match Play champion Maverick McNealy on the U.S. Walker Cup team. Though the team lost to Great Britain and Ire- land, a spot on the U.S. Walker Cup team is one of the highest honors in amateur golf. O’Sullivan will play for USC in
2016, while DeChambeau (SMU) won the NCAA Championship and McNealy (Stanford) was named col- legiate player of the year. And while we like to think the NCGA helped develop these outstanding players, their college coaches also deserve credit. The San Francisco Chronicle’s Ron Kroichick examines the role of the college golf coach on page 24. Our Kevin Merfeld has been a
devout Bandonista for more than a decade. We think you will enjoy his experiences at Bandon Dunes Resort in Oregon. Bandon’s iconoclastic owner, Mike Keiser, recently talked about golf ’s evolution to
Golf.com, and a particular quote resonated with me: “Golf is too expensive. It takes
too much time. Those two key things can both be beaten. There are a lot of affordable courses. And if you want to play fast, play match play and play in twosomes. If I could snap my fingers,
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NCGA.ORG / FALL 2015
Fred Couples tees off No. 12 at Poppy Hills during the First Tee Open, one of the highlights of the fall tournament schedule.
A Transcendent Year
hat a year it has been for NCGA members! Three of the most pres- tigious amateur champion-
I would create caddie programs in facilities all over the country and do what clubs like Merion have always done: strongly encourage people to use caddies by banning carts. You can only take a cart at Merion or Bandon Dunes if you’ve got a doctor’s chit. I’d have all those caddie programs, with 30 to 100 kids making money, learn- ing how to be in life. And many of them would take up golf.” Keiser’s sensibility is reflected at
Bandon Dunes Resort. Sports Illustrated’s Alan Shipnuck
contributes two pieces for this issue—one, a portrait of the enig- matic DeChambeau; the other, an essay on the peak age for golf. This topic has long fascinated me because of golf ’s lifelong nature. Professionals in more physically demanding sports will peak at earlier ages. But with Jordan Spieth’s ascendance to the top of the golf world, what does that mean for this topic? Perhaps golfers peak at younger ages now, similar to other sports. Andre Iguodala is 31, and shows no sign of decline in his basketball game. The Golden State Warriors forward and new NCGA member has become an addicted golfer. We were lucky to catch 2015 Finals MVP
for a Q&A just after he retuned from his honeymoon (where he played golf several times). Another topic we have been think- ing about for a while is the ideal course setup for women. It’s quite common to find only one tee at a course that is playable for half the population, a situation we feel requires rethinking. Stephanie Wei presents some solutions on page 40. As a part-time caddie at Pebble Beach Golf Links years ago, I witnessed firsthand how women over- came the challenges the course present- ed, so Wei’s piece resonated with me. The fall is the busiest time of year
for NCGA tournaments, and our expanded tournament central section reflects the tremendous achievements of NCGA members in 2015. The cover story features one of the
NCGA’s great partners, Pebble Beach Resorts. While we might not see another
year as successful as 2015 in Northern California, we all can take inspiration from our young players’ accomplish- ments. A tip of the cap to all of our champions!
SCOTT SEWARD
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