TALKIN? GOLF: And the award winner is . . .

Summer is too darn short!

Yeah, I know it isn?t officially over until the third week of September and please don?t preach to me about how great golf is in the fall.

I know that.

But summer golf is filet mignon while golf any other time of the year is hamburger.

In the summer you can rise with the sun and tee it up before 5 o?clock and still get in a day?s work. Or, you can tee it up at suppertime and finish 18 holes long before darkness chases you to the clubhouse.

However all good things must come to an end and so does summer, which means this is the final column of the year as well.

The Golf Clubhouse closes for the season.

Next week high school football and soccer, volleyball and cross-country will push Talkin? Golf and Aces, Etc., off these pages.

It has been a fun summer.

We never lacked for cannon fodder.

Because our season is so short, the tournament dance card was packed.

So, in our final installment, it is time to bestow a few awards.

We?ll call them the Harbies because Oscar, Emmy, Tony and Cleos are taken.

Clarence Darrow Best Argument (i.e., Gripe) Award

To attorney Drew Elinoff, who argues, ?Why can?t they make divots ground under repair. Why should one golfer be penalized because of another golfer?s lack of courtesy.? Elinoff is a 12-handicapper, but he won?t be for long. Last weekend he had rounds of 76, 79 and 77.

Pat Bradley Golfer of the Year (women?s division)

To Meghan Khang, the Rockland High School sophomore-to-be has unlimited potential and it won?t be long before she is among the top professionals on the LPGA Tour. This summer she qualified for the US Women?s Public Links, US Women?s Open, US Women?s Amateur (making match play) and the US Girls? Junior. I don?t know if that has been done before.

Paul Harney Golfer of the Year (men?s division)

To Doug Clapp of Walpole and Old Sandwich Golf Club of Plymouth, who had a sizzling hot summer. He had top 10 finishes in the Norfolk County Classic, Ouimet Memorial, New England Invitational, Hornblower Memorial and was fourth low amateur at the State Open. He made it to the round of 16 at the State Amateur, losing to eventual champion Mike Calef and then was a good sport and caddied for Calef the remainder of the tournament. He also shared medalist honors at Wellesley CC in the U.S. Mid-Amateur qualifier. He will be at Conway Farms GC in Lake Forest, Ill., for the national championship Sept. 5-11.

Donald Ross, A Job is Never Done Award

For giving 110 percent and never being satisfied with his golf course, to South Shore Country Club general manager Jay McGrail. First he brought the course back from the dead. Now, he is restoring the bunkers (see photo), elevating this 90-year-old design to elite status among upscale public courses in New England. The bunkers were like a mustard and ketchup stain on a wedding dress.

Jack Neville Best Club Pro (public courses)

To Bob Beach of Braintree Municipal Golf Course. There are and have been so many dedicated golf professionals from our region. Charlie Lanzetta and Kenny Campbell, for instance, have done so much for junior golf. But Beach has taken it one step further. He has done more for the game than any other professional in the region ? by far. He is committed to giving golf course access to a number of diverse groups, individuals with physical and mental handicaps have experienced that wonderful thrill of that first birdie because of Beach.

Tom Winship Editing Award

To attorney William Wallace, who spotted an error in last week?s column regarding the upcoming PGA tournament in Norton. He pointed out it was Roger Maltbie who lost the $40,000 winner?s check at the PGA?s Pleasant Valley Classic in 1975. Maltbie was showing off the check to some young ladies at the 12-stool bar in Sutton called T.O. Flynn. A cleaning crew found the check on the bar room floor the next morning. Wallace, who has lost distance off the tee and enjoys his golf from the white tees, is a single-digit handicapper when it comes to golf history.

Source: http://www.wickedlocal.com/marshfield/newsnow/x218319111/TALKIN-GOLF-And-the-award-winner-is

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