It’s getting down to business week as the Coca-Cola of Durango/Navajo Trail Open hits the links at the Hillcrest Golf Club, starting Thursday with the 18-hole Pro-Am.
There are several familiar faces returning to compete in Thursday’s warm-up for the 54-hole Open portion, which will begin Friday and will run through Sunday. Names such as the Durango natives and brothers Bob and Tom Kalinowski, Mike Northern, Cortez native Micah Rudosky and Jay Synkelma are synonymous with this great event and again are in attendance this year.
It should be a wide-open run, as defending champion Jimmy Gunn will not be back to defend his title.
One interesting side note and a great localized Trivial Pursuit-type question: Which pro golfer has competed in the NTO every decade of its 53-year existence? Well, it’s none other than Nevada’s Tom Storey, who enjoyed an early arrival at the clubhouse Tuesday in preparation for the big event later this week to benefit the Hillcrest Junior Golf Foundation.
The Hillcrest layout is looking in peak shape for this week’s events, and thanks goes out to grounds superintendent Ken Kirby and his staff for their planning and hard work, which, by the way, does not stop after each day of the event.
I should remind everyone that starting Thursday and running through Sunday, Hillcrest will be closed to open play to accommodate the 40-plus professionals and full field of amateurs who are competing for cash and prizes. Open play will resume Monday.
NTO Sponsors Tournament
An event with the magnitude of the NTO would not be possible if it were not for the many individuals and sponsors who contribute to its continuing success. That being said, the annual Sponsors Tournament was held Saturday at Hillcrest:
First Flight
1. Nick Becker, Mike Jaramillo, Rey Martinez, low gross, 60.
1. John Francis, Tom Probst, Robert Sieger, Todd Sieger, low net, 53.
Second Flight
1. Amy Barrett, Kermitt Barrett, Duwayne Loudenburg, Judy Loudenburg, low gross, 64.
1. Sam Beardsley, Chris Forrest, Mike Hoffman, Shelley Mauch, low net, 56.
Third Flight
1. Justin Bates, Wayne Carsburg, Steve Emrich, Jeff Thulson, low gross, 65.
1. Paul E. Cahill, Frank Hegenwald, Oliver Pepper, Vernon Swanson, low net, 57.
Fourth Flight
1. Christina Bulleigh, Wayne Bulleigh, Uhlan Eckiss, Gunsmoke Gittings, low gross, 66.
1. Richard Davis, Bud Guffey, Ray Lehr, Art Vermillon, low net, 56.
H H H
While the NTO is going on, another very important charity event will be played at the Dalton Ranch Golf Club on Friday: the 15th annual Bank of the San Juans Charity Golf Tournament. The 18-hole Scramble will have a shotgun start at 9 a.m., and there are a lot of great prizes to be awarded. Proceeds will benefit the Community Foundation Serving Southwest Colorado.
Dalton Ranch Golf Club also is gearing up for the annual Columbine Classic Duet, which will be played June 18-19 and will bring together some of the best area golfers.
Dave Bray has been covering the local golf scene for 33 years. He can be reached at dbray3751@gmail.com.
