Soldier Hollow and Rose Park Host VOC

MIDWAY & SALT LAKE CITY -- September has been a busy month for Veterans on Course (VOC). Originally, only two VOC events were scheduled for September, but after a construction company burst a pipe near Soldier Hollow and contaminated the water with E. coli, the event was rescheduled to the first Thursday in September.

Soldier Hollow was gorgeous as ever. Teachers Dennis Mead, a retired veteran and PGA Professional, and Dave Terry, former Salt Lake City Golf Director, kicked off the event with an hour of lessons. Dennis taught the fundamentals of the golf swing and critiqued swings on the driving range. Dave covered putting, which included a fun competition for the participants.

The nine-hole scramble tournament was played on the front nine of the Silver Course. Per usual, closest-to-the-hole contests were available on every par-3. Carl Price earned the win on hole 5, and Craig Sorensen claimed the prizes for both hole 3 and hole 7. Jim Austin, Chad Martin, Val Martin, and Jason Moffet clinched the title of scramble champions at seven-under 29.

The Utah Golf Course Superintendents Association attended the event as the guest speaker and event sponsor. Their Chapter Executive, Natalie Barker, spoke during the after-play dinner about what superintendents do and how important they are to golf.

Firs the first time in four years, Veterans on Course finally experienced great weather and zero wind at Rose Park Golf Course. Head Professional Derek Schmehl, Assistant Professional Stacey Camacho, Miles Nollman, and DJ Gray taught the lessons. Stacey and Miles manned the driving range, and Derek and DJ set up quite the short game obstacle course on the putting green.

It ended up being throwback Thursday for the scramble as VOC was reassigned to the old front nine (now back nine). Joe Pasternak claimed the hole 10 closest-to-the-hole award, and Art Lee earned the No. 14 closest-to title. The threesome of Ben Chavez, August Koenig, and Justin Smith shot seven-under-par 29 to secure the overall scramble win.

ABC 4 Sports Director Wesley Ruff played nine with the veterans and attended the dinner as the guest speaker. Wesley spoke about all the qualities that make a person a CHAMPION, including traits like P for staying positive and N for never giving up.

The Utah Golf Foundation (UGF) thanks Soldier Hollow Golf Course, the Utah Chapter Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, Rose Park Golf Course, and Wesley Ruff for supporting Veterans on Course. The UGF truly appreciates your support. Last but not least, thank you to the participants for attending our events. Your service to our great country is truly appreciated as well.