What an amazing weekend we have for our Women's Game with the playing of the LPGA's First Major, the Chevron Championship, formally known as the Dinah Shore at Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage, CA.  The Championship will conclude on Sunday when the winner takes a dip into Poppie's Pond next to the 18th Green for the final time as the Championship moves next year to Houston, TX.  The Event will be Broadcast on the Golf Channel from 5 to 9pm both today and tomorrow. 

For More on the Chevron Championship

Earlier today will be the final round of the 3rd playing of the Augusta National Women's Invitational on NBC from noon until 3pm.  We hope many of you will tune in to see the best female amateurs from around the world compete on the Links of Augusta National. 

For More on the ANWI

And…Don’t forget to follow 80 of our youngest golfers when they take part in the Drive Chip and Putt Finals on Sunday at Augusta National on Golf Channel at 8am.

For More on DC&P 

The Masters Starts this upcoming Thursday, April 7th and that makes it time for our Master’s Contest.  Now in it’s 19th year this annual online competition has seen only one repeat winner, Jeff Scohy who won in 2005 and 2019.  Last Year’s winner, Bill York, chose to receive his 6 dozen personalized golf balls from Titleist in the form of ProV1’s.  Second Place will receive 4dz and third place will receive 2dz Personalized Balls.  

Thanks again to Mercedes Benz of Centerville for sponsoring this contest.  

Make Your Selections Here

Longtime area golfer and MVGA Member, Kevin Hall, will be inducted into the African American Golfers Hall of Fame tonight at 6pm at the PGA Golf Club in Port Saint Lucie, FL.

Kevin lost his hearing at age 2 after becoming ill with H-flu meningitis. At 9, he started playing golf and later became the first Black golfer to play at Ohio State University (OSU). Kevin won the Big Ten in 2004 and is also a four-time Advocates Professional Golf Association (APGA) TOUR champion. 

He shall receive the “2022 AAGHOF Trailbrazer Award" 

As more golf favorable weather is forecasted, tee sheets will be filling up fast with those looking to play the first rounds of the 2022 golf season. While daytime temperatures will be ideal for golf, overnight temperatures during the shoulder seasons often drop to a range where frost is likely to develop in the morning. Here are a few points to keep in mind when it comes to frost delays.

• Play is delayed because traffic, whether from walking or carts, on frost-covered turf can lead to turf decline.
• Delays extend beyond when the frost has lifted because agronomic teams need time to complete critical maintenance practices uninterrupted ahead of play. Demands for opening the course as soon as the frost is lifted will reduce what can be done from a maintenance standpoint and ultimately impact how the course plays for the entire day.
• Just because frost was not observed before leaving the house or near the proshop and first tee, does not mean it is not present in low or shaded areas of the course.
• Frost often does not set in until the sun is rising. Efforts can be made to forecast whether a frost delay will be experienced but it is common for delays to be put into effect after golfers have already arrived for the first tee time.
• While frost delays can be frustrating, patience is critical, so turf health is not jeopardized.

The USGA Green Section Fore the Golfer, Frost Delay – It’s Worth the Wait, does an excellent job of explaining the science behind frost. 

For more information on relevant agronomic topics, subscribe to the USGA Green Section Record or if your facility is interested in the USGA’s Course Consulting Services, please reach out to Zach Nicoludis at znicoludis@usga.org. 

Moraine Country Club has a rich history surrounding its golf course and traditions. One of those traditions is the caddie program. Moraine has a strong relationship with the Western Golf Association (WGA) and an excellent track record of producing Evans’ Scholars who attend either Miami University or Ohio State University.  Complimentary to the Evans Scholarship is the Moraine Caddie Scholarship program. This scholarship opportunity was created locally at Moraine by a group of members of the club.  Recipients may attend any university or trade school of their choice.  Annually Moraine recognizes caddies that excel as leaders on the golf course, in the classroom, and those who are loyal to the caddie program through these two outstanding scholarship opportunities.

If you are looking to become a caddie for the upcoming season there is still time. The club will host new caddie orientations today, on April 9, 16, and 23 at 9:00 AM. Each session will last approximately 90-minutes. Those interested will only need to attend one session. At the conclusion of the orientation perspective caddies will have the opportunity to sign-up for an on-course training. The caddie season at Moraine runs April-October with some limited out of season caddying opportunities during the late fall months.  Prospective caddies must be 14 years old and the program is designed for High School and College aged young men or ladies.

For more information, contact the golf staff at Moraine CC at 937-293-6391 or Mr. Jonathan McEldowney, Caddy Master at jmceldowney@gmail.com 

For most college kids, a weekend off-campus likely means a trip home to do laundry and gobble up some homemade meals. 

For Austin Greaser, a weekend away in early March means something very different. On a Thursday evening, Greaser hopped in his car and headed south from Chapel Hill, North Carolina to Augusta, Georgia. It was the second trip in as many weekends to Augusta National, the hallowed grounds that hosts The Masters every April, and Greaser has some work to do. After finishing runner-up in the 2021 U.S. Amateur, Greaser’s name is on the list for the most exclusive party in golf. 

For the Rest of the Story

Back for it's fourth year, the 2022 Season Challenge to post more rounds of golf during our active season then in 2021 will begin on March 15th and end at the end of our Active Season, November 30th.

The winner will receive a Gift Certificate to the Miami Valley Golf Shop of the winners choosing.

The drawing will be held in December for those who registered for this challenge and posted more rounds of golf in 2022. 

Golfer's chances for wining the Grand Prize will increase based on the number of scores posted over their 2021 total. 

To be eligible you must have posted at least 5 rounds in 2021 and be an active member of the MVGA/GHIN System Handicap System

For More or to Register

Now in it's second year, Miami Valley Golf through our Golf Next programming is once again offering our member facilities and junior programs across the Miami Valley to use our resources to develop and register golfers for their Lesson Programs.  

If interested you can learn more here!

With Match Play events becoming more popular over the past few years most golfing facilities are finding a resurgence in Bracket Events. While these types of events can be played over a few days, like a Club Championship, or over an entire season, this format creates added excitement as players advance through the bracket round by round. Your Golf Genius software can help your staff develop these events in a quick and professional way with many different options.

Season-Long vs. over Weekend:

There are typically two different types of bracket tournaments. Bracket tournaments played over the course of the season or over a single weekend. Both can be created in your system, but it is important to keep the following things in mind:

For More

The Wright State Junior, Tyler Goecke, adds yet another trophy to the collection this week. On March 27th-28th Wright State traveled to Wilmington, NC where they competed in the UNCW Seahawk Intercollegiate, played at the Country Club of Landfall. The golf course played as a par 72 stretching out to just short of 7000 yards.

Goecke began the tournament with three birdies and just one bogey in round one, placing himself just two shots back. After the 2nd round, Goecke had himself just one shot behind the lead after firing a 4-under bogey-free round of 68. It was in the 3rd round where Goecke was able to separate himself by carding his 3rd consecutive under-par round, being the only player in the field to do so on the tough golf course. Goecke made 5 birdies in round 3 on his way to another 2-under-par 70, earning himself medalist honors by 2 shots. As a group, the Raiders finished 6th out of 14 teams.

Goecke has finished in tied fourth, first, tied third, and first in the four tournaments the Raiders have competed in this spring, respectively. This has earned himself Horizon League Golfer of the Week three times.

The Raiders will compete next at the Big Blue Invitational on April 11th & 12th in Nashville, TN.

The University of Dayton women's golf team wrapped play at the Georgia State Spring Invitational this past Tuesday. The 54-hole event hosted by the Panthers was competed at Rivermont Golf Club, just north of Atlanta. The course played at par 72 and 6,075 yards.

Xavier claimed top team honors with a score of 299-310-300=909 (+45) while Lipscomb's Lauren Thompson garnered medalist honors after turning in a score of 71-75-70=216 (E). Dayton finished in 16th place overall with a team score of 325-330-315=970 (+106).

The lady flyers return to action on Monday and Tuesday as they head to Kentucky for the Colonel Classic hosted by Eastern Kentucky. 

The Dayton Men's team are playing this weekend in the Irish Creek Intercollegiate in NC for scores

This past Monday and Tuesday, Freshman Caden Scarbrough closed with a one-over par 73 as the Yellow Jackets wrapped up play in the Findlay Spring Invitational.

The Wittenberg women's golf team opened up their spring season at the the Pioneer Classic at the Lakeside Golf Club in Beverly, Ohio. The Tigers put together rounds of 359 and 342, finishing with a team score of 701 (+125), earning a fifth-place finish.  For More

The Lady Tigers return to action this weekend at the Eva Weiskopf Spring Memorial from the Wooster Country Club.

The Wittenberg Men's team play their first event of the spring this Monday and Tuesday when they travel to play in the Hershey Cup.

In match play, A, whose ball lies in the general area, is not sure if he or she is allowed relief from an immovable obstruction that lies in a penalty area. B is also unsure. They agree that A should play two balls. A decides to do so and before playing chooses the second ball to count. A plays the original ball as it lies in the general area and plays the second ball according to the abnormal ground conditions Rule.

What is the ruling?

A. A gets the general penalty for playing a wrong ball.

B. There is no penalty for playing two balls and the original ball counts.

C. There is no penalty for playing two balls and the second ball counts. 

A player marks and lifts a ball embedded in a bunker when play is suspended. During the suspension, the bunker is prepared by the maintenance staff and the surface of sand is now smooth. The player resumes play by placing a ball on the estimated spot from which the ball was lifted but on the smooth surface and plays it.

What is the ruling?

• A. There is no penalty.
  
• B.  The player gets the general penalty for playing from a wrong place.
  
• C.  The player must recreate the lie to as close to the same condition before the bunker was prepared or the player is disqualified.
  
• D.  The player, when using a ball, has not used the original ball when replacing on the spot and receives the general penalty and if this mistake is not corrected before teeing off of the next hole they are disqualified.

For the Detailed Answer

Local qualifying begins in May. Entrants will play in girls’ and boys’ divisions in four age categories, with scoring centered around skill development in driving, chipping and putting. Local Qualifying Sites are Tri-City Golf Ranch, Heatherwoode, Southwest Golf Ranch, The Golf Club at Dublin and Blacklick Woods Golf Course

For More Info or to Register

And Don't Forget to  Keep in the Loop by following MaddenNext online and through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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