Jock Talk

The very popular Vince’s Corner Golf Tournament weekend has arrived and the Four Winds Golf Course will come alive with golfers this Saturday and Sunday with many former Kimball residents returning home to share in the fun and fellowship of this favorite golfing event. It is also the largest with 128 golfers already signed up at the time of this writing on Monday, according to the man in charge, Mr. Henry Heeg. You haven’t seen any writings about this tournament prior to this week because unlike other tournaments where we are trying to get people to sign up, Henry actually has a waiting list and has to turn people down.

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The format for the Vince’s Corner Tournament is a Two-Day, ABCD Double Blind Draw Scramble. This means that on Friday evening the golfers all gather for a meal and the drawing for the first day of play on Saturday. They draw a team made up of an A player, a B player, C player, and D player and that team will play together on Saturday, which by the was has a 12 noon start time. After Saturday’s play they do it all over again Saturday night for Sunday’s play. This includes meal and the drawing. Sunday’s play begins at 9 a.m. and the awards will be handed out when play concludes on Sunday. Sound like fun? It is and that is why there is always such a great turn out.

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So, to you golfers who are interested in Open Golf Times this weekend, you can golf Saturday morning but must be off the course by 12 noon. On Sunday there will be Open Golf after 3 p.m. Call and make your tee times. Of course spectators are welcome to come out and follow your favorite teams or pick a spot and watch them arrive at the green, or watch them tee off from a favorite tee box. A good chance to see some of your favorite golfers in action. Of course we will bring you the results in next week’s Observer Sports.

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Another golf story to report this week involves the Zitek brothers out of Pine Bluffs, who play their summer time golf as members of the Kimball Panhandle Junior Golf Association. Happy to report winning efforts again this week from the tournament held at Alliance. Tristen Zitek won the grades 10-12 division with his round of 80, and Tayten won the grades 6-7 over 9 holes with a score of 55.

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I gave you a brief, and short story about Kimball High grad Jordan Greenwood winning the Nebraska Lions Club All Star Tournament at Meadowlark Hills Golf Course in Kearney last week, but I want to relate to you readers how big of an accomplishment this really was. The field for this tournament is made up of the top 15 golfers from all four classes who played in the recent Nebraska State Golf Tournament. I refer to the top 15 seniors who played in all four classes, boys and girls. Jordan played solid golf both days of this two day event shooting 74+74=148. Bet his college coach was pleased to see these results!

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We lost of our senior Outdoor sportsmen this past week with the death of Jim Christiansen. Jim was an avid hunter and fisherman and I can honestly say that if you can have fun, and enjoy yourself, at a funeral, his funeral was all of this. His sons, Tom and Gary, put together a picture story, complete with appropriate music, to recap all of his days, including his hunting and fishing exploits and Jim truly did have some great hunting and fishing stories to relive.

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Pastor Caryl Miller of the First English Lutheran Church pointed out an old camping style coffee pot sitting among the flowers at the front of the church which she said held Jim’s ashes at his request. Jim’s wife LeaAnne said “This was Jim’s request, and he said he wanted them spread on the tail feather of a wild goose, and let them fly whereever the goose might take him.”

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His sons went even farther in describing their father as a hunter, fisherman Swede, Dane, historian, oilman, farmer, rancher, fireman, artist, story-teller, mentor, trouble maker, rapscallion, tinkerer, collector, marksman’s, poet, cribbage master, prankster, entrepreneur, mountain man, card player, dancer, drinker, carnivore, hitchhiker, picker-upper, and Good Samaritan. They went on to say that he was helpful, and handy and some times, obstinate, cantankerous, and inappropriate.

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Jim was just one year shy of my own age and I went through school with him as a schoolmate, and good friend, whom I got to share some good times with and whom I have written stories about. Jim left a lot of memories and they were re-played in fine fashion by his family.