Short Shots

Prairie Dunes changes await 2010 Am field
Competitors in the 2010 Kansas Amateur Championship who are familiar with Hutchinson’s

Prairie Dunes Country Club will find changes to the facility when play gets underway next summer. According to Rusty Hilst, tournament administrator for the Kansas Golf Association and a longtime Prairie Dunes member, changes to the bunker and mound behind the course’s seventh green are part of a $125,000 project done by Dave Axland of the Coore & Crenshaw Design team.
“The project includes a new practice putting green, the aforementioned bunker, other bunker work on No. 7, new championship tees on Nos. 1 and 8 which will add 50-plus yards to the course, and a great deal of cart path rerouting in the area of the project,” says Hilst, seven-time club champion at Prairie Dunes.

“The visual impact of the project as you play No. 7 is amazing. (The seventh) green now looks as if it is sitting in a natural amphitheatre.”
   Hilst says he expects the new tees to be used during the 2010 Kansas Amateur.
   “It may also be possible to use the new practice putting green which is located very near the driving range,” he added. “Our regular putting clock will certainly be open.”
   The new tees will enable playing the Championship course, annually ranked among the country’s best, at almost 6,800 yards to a par of 70 for the two stroke-play qualifying rounds.

Rules of golf changes announced
   The USGA and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews have announced a host of changes to the 2010-2011 “Decisions on the Rules of Golf” following a two-year review cycle

by those organizations. The changes take effect Jan. 1, 2010.
   The changes include 28 new decisions, 51 revised decisions and one withdrawn decision. All told, the “Decisions on the Rules of Golf” contains more than 1,200 entries, most of which address specific circumstances under the Rules of Golf in a question-and-answer format.
   In addition, the USGA and the R&A issued a joint statement reaffirming a 2006 decision to allow the use of electronic distance-measuring devices by local rule, as long of those devices measure only distance and not factors like wind speed and direction. Neither organization anticipates adopting that local rule at any of their championships.
   The full text of the new and revised “Decisions on the Rules of Golf,” as well as the full text of the joint statement, can be found in the Rules section of the USGA’s Website, www.usga.org.

Patriot Golf Day raises nearly $2 million
   More than 4,400 golf facilities across the country registered to participate in the third annual Patriot Golf Day, and thanks to the PGA Professionals’ and USGA Members’ efforts, some $1.9 million has been raised to benefit the Folds of Honor Foundation.
   Patriot Golf Day, jointly supported by The PGA of America and the United States Golf

Association, is the primary fundraiser for the Folds of Honor Foundation, which provides post-secondary educational scholarships for children and spouses of military service men and women killed or disabled while serving our great nation. A total of 569 educational scholarships have been awarded by the Folds of Honor Foundation in the last two years.
   Patriot Golf Day was originated by Major Dan Rooney, an F-16 pilot, PGA Professional and USGA Member from Broken Arrow, Okla., who has served three tours of duty in Iraq. Rooney is also a graduate of the University of Kansas where he played on the Jayhawk golf team. During Labor Day weekend at participating courses nationwide, golfers were asked to donate at least $1 for each round of golf. Non-golfers participated by making a donation to the foundation at its Web site at FoldsofHonor.com. As a proud supporter and Official Card of Patriot Golf Day, American Express donated an additional $100,000 to support the Folds of Honor Foundation by matching donations made using American Express® Cards during Patriot Golf Day Weekend.
   In the last three years, PGA Professionals and USGA Members have been instrumental in raising more than $5.1 million by hosting Patriot Golf Day events at their facilities. The inaugural Patriot Golf Day was held Sept. 1, 2007, and resulted in donations of more than $1.1 million. The second annual event was held over Labor Day weekend (Aug. 29 - Sept. 1, 2008), and raised more than $2.1 million in donations, including donations of $130,000 from Captain Paul Azinger and the 12 members of the victorious U.S. Ryder Cup Team.
   “It is so rewarding to see that 569 children and/or spouses of those who have been killed or injured due to their military service are getting educational opportunities, thanks to the selfless fundraising efforts of our PGA Professionals, USGA Members and amateur golfers across the country,” said PGA of America President Jim Remy. “The game of golf raises $3.5 billion each year for various charities and The PGA of America is proud to be able to promote and support the mission of the Folds of Honor.”