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Tanners Brook Clubhouse Update

Posted June 29, 2007

The new clubhouse at the Dave Tentis-designed Tanners Brook Golf Club in Forest Lake will be ready to open in about a month. Workers were very busy when we stopped in on our way back from the MGA Mixed Team Championship. The ground floor of the barn continues to serve as the temporary clubhouse until construction is complete.

Golfing in Minnesota will return later this season to bring you more news from Tanners Brook when the new clubhouse is open for business.


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17th Mixed Team Championship – Forest Hills

Posted June 28, 2007

Jim and Donna Turner of Brackett’s Crossing won the Husband/Wife Division in the MGA’s 17th Mixed Team Championship for the second year in a row Thursday at Forest Hills Golf Club in Forest Lake. Their 70-67-137 was six shots better than the runner-up team of Dave and Claudia Pilot.

In the Mixed Team Division, Mark Aldrich and his sister Betsy Aldrich shot a 69 Thursday to finish the regulation portion of the competition in a three-way tie for first place at 134. They won a playoff with a birdie on the third extra hole.

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This Week on FORE! Minnesota

Posted June 28, 2007

FORE! Minnesota, on Saturday, June 30, 2007 (9 am on KSTC-45):

  • Course Tour: Gopher Hills (Cannon Falls, MN)
  • Great Moments in MN Golf: US Open 1991 (Payne Stewart)
  • Stories of Golf: Shjon Podein (Team 25 Children’s Foundation)
  • Tad Reeve’s Dream 18: Edinburgh USA #17
  • Pro Strategies: Mark Dolan (Albion Ridges)

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First Look – Windsong Farm Golf Club

Posted June 27, 2007

Our coverage yesterday of the Junior Girls’ State Championship was also my first visit to Windsong Farm Golf Club, currently ranked the fifth best course in the state by Golf Digest. This John Fought/Tom Lehman design opened in 2003 to rave reviews. This same design pairing opened Somerby the next year outside Rochester, which I recently played with Greg Peterson.

Like I mentioned in my Somerby course notes, I love the work that John Fought has done, especially his projects with Bob Cupp. While I didn’t play Windsong yesterday, I walked most of the front nine and a few of the other holes as well.

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62nd Minnesota Junior Girls’ State Championship

Posted June 26, 2007

With MSHSL Class A champion Katie Detlefsen not in the field, St. Cloud Apollo’s Samantha Sommers was on her own. The Class AA champion beat the field by 14 strokes today to win the 62nd Minnesota Junior Girls’ State Championship at Windsong Farm Golf Club in Maple Plain. Her 73-69-142 (E) on the 5,729-yard John Fought/Tom Lehman course blew away the field under hot and humid conditions.

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On the Tee Blog

Posted June 25, 2007

Jerry Zgoda is the latest Minneapolis Star Tribune reporter to get the blog treatment:

Jerry Zgoda is the Star Tribune’s golf writer as well as a handicapped golfer (fundamentally flawed swing mostly) whose notebook shorthand, even if nobody else on the planet can read it, is far superior to his short game. Join Jerry all summer long and share your thoughts about the world of golf, near and far.

On the Tee Blog | RSS Feed


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Things To Do Before I Die

Posted June 25, 2007

The past few weeks I’ve been inspired by the TV show (and the ad campaign) that talk about things to do before you die. I’ve been very privileged to do the things I’ve done up to this point and would die a happy man right now, but it’s been fun thinking up new things to do.

I’ve added a new box to the top of the home page that displays a random list item each time the page is loaded. Also, the sidebar now lists my personal best times at various running distances. I plan to work on lowering these in the next few years as I pursue the list item “Qualify for Boston.”

Maybe I’ll make that namesake goal of seven minutes miles after all…


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Peter Wong in Explore Minnesota Campaign

Posted June 23, 2007

The talented Minnesota-based golf photographer Peter Wong is featured in a new Minnesota tourism campaign I saw on TV this afternoon.

The Explore Minnesota website has a section called My Favorite Minnesota with a golf link on top that displays a nice section on Peter, samples of his work, his favorite Minnesota courses and a fun video.

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U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame

Posted June 22, 2007

On our way back from Fortune Bay, we drove through Eveleth past the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. With all of the talk about it closing or moving, we weren’t sure if it was still open. Their website says it’s closed and the parking lot only had one car in it. Good thing we actually stopped to check–they are open and will apparently stay in that location.

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Red-Headed Woodpecker

Posted June 22, 2007

Almost forgot to post this picture…

When I was at Izatys a few weeks ago to cover the state golf tournament, I saw this guy buzz my head a few times. He was hiding behind this tree branch and flew away when I tried to get a better view.

My wife decided it was a red-headed woodpecker, which appear to be somewhat rare in these parts now.

Fun to see–very vibrant and distinct colors…


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This Week on FORE! Minnesota

Posted June 21, 2007

FORE! Minnesota, on Saturday, June 23, 2007 (9 am on KSTC-45):

  • Course Tour: Albion Ridges (Maple Lake, MN)
  • Great Moments in MN Golf: US Amateur Champion John Harris (August 1993)
  • Stories of Golf: Portrait of Golf (Bud Chapman)
  • Tad Reeve’s Dream 18: Hazeltine National #16
  • Pro Strategies: Don Berry (Edinburgh USA)

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Soudan Underground Mine and Labs

Posted June 19, 2007

This afternoon we took the girls to tour the Soudan Underground Mine State Park in northern Minnesota. We took both tours offered: the historic tour and the physics tour.

Both involve taking a cage tram down a half-mile shaft (2341 feet down, 689 feet below sea level) at a top speed of 10mph (that felt much faster). You could fit about ten people in each cage and I was a bit claustrophobic during all four rides.

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The Wilderness at Fortune Bay Update

Posted June 19, 2007

I spent the past two days playing the multiple-award-winning Wilderness at Fortune Bay course in Tower, Minnesota. The weather both days was mixed–rain, wind, sun, hot, cold–typical northern Minnesota variety, I guess.

The difference between the blue tees and the white tees is substantial (6772 versus 6147). I played the longer tees the first day and the shorter ones today. My score wasn’t all that different, but it does make a big difference on a few holes.

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Fortune Bay Resort

Posted June 18, 2007

Yesterday we drove the twisty Minnesota state highway 1 from the north shore through Ely to Tower and the Fortune Bay Resort on Lake Vermilion. I had a 2pm tee time on the Wilderness course, while the girls spent most of the evening in the swimming pool. We had dinner in the casino cafe, which makes a mean batch of cheese curds.

The hotel is adding 58 rooms and we had an older room right next to the action. We moved rooms today, so hopefully this one will be better. I played another round this morning at 8am, the girls are at the Heritage Center now and we leave for two different Soudan Mine tours in an hour. More video poker action tonight (I’m down $8) and then we head home tomorrow.


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Final Thoughts on WWDC07

Posted June 17, 2007

Here are the items I submitted to Apple this year as feedback on the conference:

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Showdown at Somerby Wrap-Up

Posted June 17, 2007

The Saturday leaders were all chasing the early clubhouse leader, amateur and Stanford NCAA Division I Champion Jamie Lovemark, who stormed up the leaderboard by shooting a 7-under-par 65 Sunday. Chris Riley caught him though, forcing a playoff that went two holes.

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Father’s Day in Grand Marais

Posted June 17, 2007

Made it to Grand Marais yesterday to pick up the girls. I skipped out on covering the Nationwide event outside of Rochester when I found out there was a rain delay, so we basically drove non-stop to see the girls.

We ate at Sven and Ole’s for dinner, although in hindsight, I would have gone to Chez Jude (from my seven in ’07 dining list). Turns out they are only open Tuesdays through Saturdays, so I missed my window there. Pizza at Sven and Ole’s is always good though.

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Last Day in SFO

Posted June 15, 2007

Nice last day in San Francisco today. Most of my sessions today were focused on the issues I have with the new school in Los Angeles. The quality of sessions today restored my confidence in WWDC–up until today, I was pretty sure I wasn’t going to come back next year. Now, I’ll have to re-think that decision.

We walked over to a new restaurant I’ve wanted to eat at for two years, Zuni Cafe at 1658 Market Street. They were crowded, but we lucked out yet again and got a nice table near the bar and right next to the window.

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U.S. Open and Somerby Friday Updates

Posted June 15, 2007

Edinburgh USA professional Don Berry made the cut at the Nationwide Tour’s Showdown at Somerby in Byron. He followed his first-round 69 (-3) with another 69 to place him in a tie for 24th–two strokes better than the -4 cut line. Golfing in Minnesota will be on site for Saturday’s round–watch for photos in our tournament gallery this weekend.

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A Nerd Party! A Big Nerd Party!

Posted June 15, 2007

Tonight was the “Campus” Beer Bash at WWDC–now moved from the Apple Campus to Yerba Buena Gardens atop Moscone Center. I wasn’t sure I’d like not being in Cupertino, but I sure didn’t miss the bus ride down and back. Overall, I think it was a good move.

We snuck in the back way and didn’t have to wait in line for food. They had tables set up by regions of the world, including Japan, China, Italy and Mexico. Lots of drink servers, a few ice cream carts and several desert tables equaled (or maybe exceeded) the catering options of beer bashes of old.

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Thursday Tournament Action

Posted June 14, 2007

Lots of action to watch today: Michael Berg at the U.S. Open and first-round play at the Showdown at Somerby in Byron. Here are some direct links:

Michael Berg’s Live Scorecard

Showdown at Somerby Live Leaderboard

UPDATE: Berg finished his round with an 81 (+11), two shots better than his 2003 U.S. Amateur performance.


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This Week on FORE! Minnesota

Posted June 14, 2007

FORE! Minnesota, on Saturday, June 16, 2007 (9 am on KSTC-45):

  • Course Tour: Braemar GC (Edina, MN)
  • Great Moments in MN Golf: PGA Championship (August 2002)
  • Stories of Golf: Father’s Day Special (assorted guests)
  • Tad Reeve’s Dream 18: Hazeltine National #10
  • Pro Strategies: Nate Baldry (Crow River GC)

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Harding Park Golf Course

Posted June 14, 2007

This afternoon we left WWDC early and headed out to Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco for a twilight round. The non-resident rates have been increased significantly since the American Express World Championships were held there in 2005, so we elected to wait until 5pm when the cheaper rates kicked in. We ate at the new clubhouse before the round, where I ordered fish and chips that were hot and fresh.

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Sears Fine Food San Francisco

Posted June 13, 2007

This morning Jake and I had breakfast at Sears Fine Food, located at 439 Powell Street in downtown San Francisco. Open since 1938, they claim to be “world famous for little pancakes.” Couldn’t pass that one up, so we both ordered 18 silver dollar-sized Swedish pancackes with bacon. Very tasty, with great service and atmosphere. We didn’t even have to wait in line and got a perfect table right by the front window. Recommended.


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Golf Digest Top 40 Casino Golf Courses

Posted June 13, 2007

The July 2007 issue of Golf Digest ranks their Top 40 Casino Golf Courses and three Minnesota courses have made the grade.

At number two is Jeffrey Brauer’s The Wilderness at Fortune Bay in Tower, which we will be visiting next week to play and take pictures for the photo gallery.

In a tie for 15th is the Rees Jones-designed Dacotah Ridge Golf Club in Morton, associated with Jackpot Junction Casino.

The Garrett Gill/Paul Miller Meadows at Mystic Lake course in Prior Lake was tied for 21st.

Congratulations to these three great facilities!


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