In Praise of Golf Commissioners by Terry Moore
Golf Commissioner: Someone who takes on the responsibility of making advance tee times usually for multiple groups.
Sorry, Jay Monahan and Greg Norman, past Commissioners of the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, respectively: this column is not about you. Instead, it’s about the unsung golf commissioners who diligently book tee times for their lucky golf cronies every week.
Over the years, I've been fortunate to be a member of several such golf groups.
The first group was at Ada's Egypt Valley CC in the late '90s and Bill Willis, a friendly and well-organized member, used to book weekend times for a group of us. It was all done via email, and recipients had to reply promptly to secure a spot. To save time at the course, Bill introduced the idea of a "virtual ball toss," where he would randomly select players for assigned tee times. Once, Bill confided in me that he'd get private emails from players pleading with him to be paired with or not paired with certain players. It's not always easy being a Commish.
Incidentally, another alumnus from that group, Gregg DeWitt, is now the commissioner at a club in Naples, FL. Possessed with both tact and good humor, Gregg is ideally suited to the task. He describes his role thus: "I see my job as protecting the social contract. I run three games a week during the season, and my focus is always on keeping the games competitive, fresh, and, most importantly, inclusive." And he does so with flying colors. He smartly delegates the actual pairings and the betting game to the pro shop. Why? "Interpersonal politics kill camaraderie, and I avoid it at all costs."
The commissioner at The Meadows at GVSU in Allendale is Bob Bernott, who sets up tee times three mornings a week all season. A member since 2002, Bernott began arranging tee times two years later for a small group of fellow members. Now that list of invitees has grown to over 30. Members just show up and Bob sends them off without any fuss or instruction. He embraces the KISS principle—Keep It Simple Stupid!
Asked about his motivation, Bob said, "I enjoy playing golf as much now as I did when I first started playing 64 years ago in 1961. Playing with friends who also enjoy the game drives me."
More recently, after passing a lax vetting process, I became a regular weekend warrior at Kaufman GC in Wyoming. Thanks to Johnny Lewis, I don't have to worry about reserving a hotly pursued early tee time. Fifteen days before every Saturday and Sunday in the golf season, Lewis religiously books two tee times via Kaufman's online portal. And I mean 15 days prior starting at midnight! And he's been booking tee times since the '90s. "When I was younger, it wasn't an issue staying up late to book times," said Johnny, an owner of a windshield repair and replacement company. "Today, I have to set an alarm to wake up and do it."
In the beginning, Johnny also booked tee times and did pairings, like Willis. "But it became too much and I asked Bill Raymond to help out." So every Wednesday at 6 p.m. Raymond sends out a group text surveying everyone about their weekend golf plans. At the course, cards are drawn to see who plays with whom, although there are considerations for walkers and carts playing separately. Usually, there's a modest "skins" game as well as a match between groups.
Asked why he does it, Johnny said: "Like others, I know the joys of teeing off early. There's nothing better than having the course wide open in front of us with greens freshly mowed. And just like our guys, I'm passionate about the game."
Upping the ante on being a commissioner is Hiro O'Neill, a longtime player and season pass holder at Kaufman. Born in Japan, O'Neill came to the U.S in 1977 and ended up in Detroit where he eventually became a UAW member at General Motors (GM). While being laid off from GM and working at a Japanese restaurant, O'Neill was invited to take up golf and play with his co-workers. One of them even gave him a set of golf clubs. Before long, and with the help of a golf instruction book he purchased during one trip back to Japan, he was hopelessly hooked."Before then, I thought it was a silly game—hitting a ball and finally getting it into the hole."
After transferring to Grand Rapids and ultimately retiring from a GM plant in Wyoming, O'Neill became a "commissioner" at Kaufman in 2009. "At that time, there were only five other players," recalled O'Neill. Today, at least 16 guys want to play. What O'Neill does is quite remarkable: he makes daily tee times, Monday through Friday, beginning 15 days prior to each day. In other words, five "midnight rendezvous" per week! And depending on the season, the times fall between 8:30 am and 9:30 am. Once at the course, O'Neill pulls cards to pair players with times. One of the usual games is a modest "50 cents" skins, hotly contested as if they were FEDEX points.
As with Willis, DeWitt, Bernott, Lewis and Raymond, O'Neill does it gladly and without complaint. He sums it up simply: "The guys are all good sports and I know how important early tee times are. To me, they're the greatest bunch of guys."
On the last note, too many skins may have gone to Hiro's head.
