The most exciting weekend of the year

The most exciting weekend of the year begins today at McCook's Heritage Hills golf course with the annual Ron Coleman Memorial Horserace which kicks off the festivities at 4 pm. In a unique format, all 25 professional golfers due to tee it up in the Pro-Am will also compete in the horserace. It will begin simultaneously on holes one and 9 and one pro will be eliminated on each hole until only one remains after play is finished on the 18th hole.

The horserace is a precursor for the Bernie and Nona Mullen Pro-Am, a 36 hole team competition to be played on Saturday and Sunday as a fundraiser for the McCook Community Hospital Health Foundation in honor of their son John.

Many former residents of the area return for these two events and I saw several of them yesterday while playing a round of golf in the morning. This is something the golfing community looks forward to all year long and those who can come almost always do. The public is invited to attend the Friday afternoon horserace and many take advantage of that invitation as scores of golf carts follow the pros from hole to hole. For some, the horserace is the highlight of the golfing weekend.

For others, it's the Pro-Am, a stroke battle between 25 four-person teams and their pros. With that many teams on the course at the same time, it makes for a long two-day weekend but those that play say there's nothing else quite like it. The competition is friendly but intense because everyone starts the tournament on Saturday morning feeling like they have a chance to win.

I know many of you aren't golfers but this is an event you should give a try if you haven't attended it yet. Whether it's following the pros around the course on Friday, following your favorite team on Saturday and Sunday, eating some of the delicious food that's available in the clubhouse or having an adult beverage or two while the activities are going on, Heritage Hills is a special place this weekend.

The golf course has been the launching pad for tremendous success at the high school level and now the college level as well. The McCook Bison just won another state championship in golf and the McCook Community College Indians qualified to compete in the nationals in Florida.

And thanks to the recent rains, the course has never looked better. You can see it from Highways 6 and 34 traveling east and west and Highway 83 traveling north and south but there's nothing like a close-up look to get a true taste of what a championship golf course looks and feels like. Bobby Gaulke is doing a wonderful job as our head professional and Bill Bieck has no peer as the golf course superintendent. He is highly regarded throughout the state because of his work at the Hills. In some professions, your work speaks for you and taking care of a golf course is one of those. We're privileged to have both of these great guys serving the best interest of Heritage Hills golf course and the city of McCook.

I hope to see many of you this afternoon at the horserace. Golf carts are available to be rented and many people drive their own. You don't even have to have knowledge of the game of golf to enjoy yourself because of the fun being had by those around you.

So eat, drink and be merry and celebrate with the rest of us the best time you'll have at the golf course this year!