Greetings Golfers,

You know how when you haven’t seen a kid for a few years, you can’t believe how much they’ve changed in so little time. If you haven’t seen that kid in over 20 years, then it’s really mind blowing.

Well, our staff (Bennett Lang) found a bunch of old Deer Run GC photos yesterday and put them on our facebook page at www.facebook.com/DeerRunGolf . Most of the photos are over 20 years old. I forgot what the original clubhouse looked like: pre-pro shop, pre-porch, pre-major remodel… wow!

We were once a sleepy, little golf course way out west in the town of Victoria. Then the housing boom came along and all of sudden Victoria became one of the western suburbs. And over those years, Deer Run GC grew up from a baby to an adult. The baby pictures are especially hilarious.

For some of us, the trip down memory lane is nostalgic. For others, it’s a glimpse into the unknown history and beginnings of this unique place. Enjoy.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

One of the fun things about my job is that I wear so many hats. During college I waited tables and tended bar, so that helps with overseeing our Pub. And, one summer during college I worked on a golf course grounds crew. So I know a little about what our staff does outside.

What I mostly know is that I should stay out of the way. Our grounds Superintendent – Barry Provo – is one of the best in the state. It’s amazing what he does … it’s half science/half art. He has incredible knowledge and incredible feel – pretty nice combination.

So, when Barry says that it’s best to aerate the greens in October (Oct. 6) – I agree. He wants the greens to “perk”. Do I really get what he’s talking about? … not so much. But do I trust him? Totally.

Thus, during the month of September, our greens are still perfect. Our greens have been magnificent all year and I’m glad that we can keep them smooth as long as possible.

Sorry – no excuses about your putting for the next month.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

Did you watch the Viking’s game last night? I know it’s only preseason, but it doesn’t look good. I’ve been a fan since their first season in 1961 and have suffered through all of it. The four Super Bowl losses in the ’70’s were painful and the NFC Championship game loss to Atlanta in 1999 was a killer. But the NFC Championship loss a few years ago to New Orleans did me in.

So this Winter, when it’s so cold outside that my dog won’t even go out to go to the bathroom … I’m going to lounge on the couch and watch Vikings football. But, this Fall, when it’s the last mild days of the year … I’m not going to sit inside and watch the ViQueens.

I remember about five years ago when we were having a beautiful Indian-Summer weekend and had zero golfers. Everybody was at home watching the Twins and/or the Gophers and/or the Vikings. The Twins were playing the Yankees in the Playoffs – that was real enjoyable (if you like to hit yourself in the head with a hammer). The Gophers were 4-0 because they’d whooped such powerhouses as Slippery Rock University and the College of the Little Sisters of the Poor.

Thank God for Fall golf. Don’t waste these upcoming weekends torturing yourself by watching the local sporting teams – save that misery for Winter. Come on out and join me on the tee box.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

Played golf yesterday with two good friends – it’s our annual round and I really look forward to it.

The night before we played, I woke up to what I thought was a burglar. Wrong – it was a bat. So, I grabbed a tennis racket and went off after him. It not that easy to swat those guys – it’s like trying to hit a 100 mph knuckle-ball. After about half-an-hour of swinging like a mad man, I finally got him and went back to bed.

When I got up in the morning, I could barely move my right arm. My shoulder’s been goofed-up for a long time and the “bat attack” pretty much finished it off.

Well, I had to play golf later that day – Thank God for pharmaceuticals and Killians beer.

See, I believe that the golf swing is fundamentally a throwing motion. Imagine that you’re on the first tee and you’re going to throw your club down the fairway. You’d probably take a normal golf stance, shift your weight to your back foot as you wound up to throw, then shifted your weight back to your front foot as you threw the club sidearm style at the fairway. That should be your golf swing.

Winding up to swing should be as natural as winding up to throw. Unwinding to swing should be as natural as unwinding to throw.

You control the shot by controlling the club-face.

So back to the round of golf. It was pretty tough to make much of a throwing motion with such a sore arm. But as I said … I had some “help” and got the ball around the golf course better than I expected.

I hope we don’t have a nest of bats – my arm can’t take it.

Cheers,

Tom Abts

Greetings Golfers,

Last week I talked about how the crazy heat of this Summer was gone and that it feels more like Fall. Yeah, we talk about the weather up in Minnesota – how do you not? It controls what you do. Think you’re going to play pond hockey this weekend? Probably not.

Weather determines your culture and lifestyle. Northern cultures are more disciplined than Southern cultures – I didn’t say better (don’t go crazy) – they have to be more planning oriented. Do you think the people who settled Minnesota just horsed around all Summer? Not the ones who made it through the Winter.

But sometimes those cultures go overboard and never stop planning and working for the future. Goal setting is great – but always living and planning for the future is not so great. Sometimes we Scandahoovians (I’m a quarter Norwegian) need to loosen up and have some fun.

So, next Friday – August 24 – is the final FunPlayFriday of 2012. We’re keeping the theme a secret… in fact for some people involved in the planning, it’s even a mystery. So, look for the usual assortment of ridiculousness: Liquor served on many tee boxes by charming hostesses, gelato, golf lessons, massages, an all-day buffet lunch, and other delights to get you out of your nose-to-the-grindstone existence and having fun like you’re on vacation at one of those island resorts.

You know what I’m saying… Labor Day is almost here.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional

Greetings Golfers,

Fall was definitely in the air this morning. How we went from blistering heat to a semi-crisp Fall morning is classic Minnesota.

I love August. You never hear that … people talk about how they love Spring, or love Fall … I know I’m comparing months to seasons, but you never hear that they love August, even if they say they love Summer. Maybe it’s because August is the end of Summer. This week’s PGA Championship is the last Major of the year – Summer is winding down.

Speaking of the PGA Championship … have you ever played the Ocean Course on Kiawah Island? It’s crazy difficult. That so many guys shot under par yesterday is testament to how good Tour players are. When I played there a couple of years ago, my caddy told me that the average score for the people he looped for was 125. That’s not a misprint… he said 125 … and that was the average score – not the high score.

Sure, yesterday they had great weather – usually the wind really blows on Kiawah. But, even with great weather, I can’t believe that so many guys shot such low scores. Let’s hope that the wind picks up and we can see what they can do when it gets nasty out there. We missed out on challenging weather during the British Open – we deserve to see these boys cope with the challenges that Kiawah was designed for.

Cheers,

Tom Abts

GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

On Wednesday I played in the 3M ProAm at the TPC in Blaine. No, I’m not playing in the Tournament – I ain’t that good. Two MN PGA Club Pros are that good and are playing – Donnie Berry and Dave Tentis – but most of us aren’t. We’re more like good amateurs than Tour Players – big difference.

So, our Tour Player was a guy named Joel Edwards – you probably haven’t heard of him (I hadn’t), but you should’ve. Not only is he the nicest guy in the world, but a ridiculously good golfer. So why is he unknown? Well, he’s not the best putter. No matter how well you can strike the ball, you have to putt well to score well.

Joel is from Texas and has an old-school golf swing. He just winds up and hits it with his hands. Very, very cool. His basic shot is a low bullet that doesn’t turn left or right – just really straight and really solid. One of the guys in our group was struggling and said to Joel that he couldn’t finish his swing. Joel told him to swing his arms past his body and release his hands. Woah! I completely agree, but that’s very old-school – you don’t hear that kind of talk anymore.

So if that concept interests you … here’s a pretty good drill. Just go to the range and hit balls with your feet together. Seriously. Take the narrowest stance you can, and when you hit the ball, make sure that your top hand turns over the golf club so that you hit a hook. Most people slice because they don’t have enough hand action. When they do hook it, they hook it with their shoulders – not their hands.

For a real demonstration, go out to the 3M Tournament this weekend and watch the big boys… and take a look at Joel Edwards.  And, watch Brad Faxon putt. If you could combine the two …

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

You’ve probably heard about the PGA/USGA initiative TEE IT FORWARD. Normally I’m not a big fan of this kind of stuff – usually it’s some gimmick to get people to play golf… gimmicks usually aren’t a great way to get people to do anything.

But, this TEE IT FORWARD is pretty smart. And I mean smart in the sense of Common Sense. Is it really fun to play golf when the course is too long for you? Isn’t it common sense to play at the right length?

A few years ago while at the PGA Show in Orlando, some of us played hooky from the Show and played golf. We’re not Tour players – but we’re still Golf Pros – so we’re decent players, and we played from the white tees. The guys in front of us and behind us played from the black tees… and they were terrible… but, they were going to “play all of the golf course”.

How smart is that? Should they also hit the ball into every hazard to “play all of the golf course”?  I thought the goal of golf was to have fewer strokes, not more strokes. But I guess if you’re shooting 125, you’re too good to play off the white tees.

Obviously if you can’t chip or putt, you’re going shoot a million even if you play a shorter length… but, why not at least give yourself a chance?

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

You know that saying “Hot enough for ya”? … I like to act as if it’s a serious question … sort of take my time and then respond with “Yes, it is hot enough for me – thanks for asking” …

Yeah … I’m losing it. I’ll blame it on the heat.

I’m pretty good at blaming. Golf is great for us blamers. I’m always getting screwed by bad bounces, loud noises, wind, slow play, sweaty hands, unfair greens … the list goes on and on …

But, I can take slow play off that list for one day. We’re resurrecting FastPlayFriday for July 27. Not FunPlayFriday … I mean the original … the real deal … FastPlayFriday.

As you recall, the Front Nine must be played in under 1:55 or you will be removed from the golf course. We will be awash in Rangers and Starters. The heat will be no excuse for dilly-dallying around … in fact, the heat should be a major incentive for fast play.

Hope to see you soon. Can’t wait to ask if it’s: “Hot enough for ya?”

Cheers,

Tom Abts

Greetings Golfers,

Spent the weekend in Austin, TX. Wasn’t hot enough in MN, so needed to get some Texas heat. Though it was ridiculously hot, Austin is very cool. Great food, great music, just generally a good vibe – almost bought a “Keep Austin Weird” hat.

Did buy a hat – a Barton Creek golf hat. Played their semi-famous Fazio Canyon course. It was fun, it’s a good resort and a very good golf course … but, I’m getting jaded in my old age … it was just too typical. Let me make a leap: While watching the Irish Open on television last week, the announcer commented that he liked the swing of one of the young players “It’s old-fashioned … not one of those modern, assembly line swings”.

What I’m trying to say is that too many golf resorts remind me of these modern, assembly line golf swings – they’re good, but they don’t have enough personality. In fact, I think these resorts try to make sure that they don’t have a personality – they may be well run, but they feel like an efficient factory. I want personality … a good personality … maybe these resorts are afraid that they might have a bad personality, so they go for no personality.

Well, Austin still has a great personality. I used to go there a lot in the ’70’s and loved it … always kept it on my list of livable cities. Even though it’s changed from a town to a city, it’s kept its unique vibe. Thank God.