It was the summer of 1983 up at Waskesiu and the memories are just so vivid.
Such can be the case when an incident so entirely bizarre occurs, especially when the adult in the room goes off in a completely inappropriate manner.
The personal impact has been an issue for decades, as I have tried to find ways to either deal with the fallout or just bury it in the vault. I haven't achieved either objective. It's affected how I have viewed people in positions of authority. It played a role in how I have treated people in certain situations. It has all made it very difficult for me to trust. I have become somewhat of a career cynic.
Setting the Stage
I began working in the spring in the restaurant at the Waskesiu Golf Course, waiting on tables in the clubhouse. It was a nifty job for the most part, with plenty of young people around and about. The resort area (Prince Albert National Park) was really a fun and vibrant place back then, where many of us found ways to create mischief, enjoy life and basically just try to figure out who we were or who we wanted to become.
Danny was the fellow who managed the clubhouse operation. Ron was in charge of the golf operations and Dennis was the facility’s general manager.
By the time mid-season rolled around, I had things set up to play in the Saskatchewan Open at the Saskatoon Golf & Country Club. As the tournament approached, two guys from the pro shop at Waskesiu also entered the tournament, Jeff and Chad. One thing led to another and it worked out the three of us could stay at my parent’s house in Saskatoon that weekend – coincidentally my parents were heading up to their cabin at Waskesiu.
It was a nice gesture by my parents to give us the run of the house in Saskatoon for the three-day tournament. They went to the trouble to make sure the cupboards and fridge were well-stocked for us.
As I recall, I’m pretty sure the incident in Saskatoon occurred during the first round, but perhaps the second. At some point, Jeff encountered a rules decision concerning improper relief. I wasn’t there when it happened, I wasn’t playing in that group. I certainly don’t believe there was anything nefarious. It was just a mistake. When the error was discovered, it was apparently too late for him to rectify it. Jeff was disqualified.
Chad had shot big numbers, I tossed up a 77 each day and Jeff was out.
After his disqualification, Jeff and Chad decided to leave Saskatoon and head back up to Waskesiu, even though there was more golf to play at the Saskatchewan Open. The fellas had driven down together, so they had their own set of wheels. I stuck around and played out the tournament, then headed up to Waskesiu to get back to work.
During my first shift back in the restaurant, Ron walked in and approached me. I remember I had a pot of coffee in one hand and some cups or menus in the other. Ron was livid. He began to rant about how a mistake was made by the rules officials in Saskatoon. He told me he was angry that I didn’t withdraw from the tournament as a show of support for Jeff, who Ron felt had been hard-done-by.
Frankly, I thought his behaviour was embarrassing. What an arrogant prick. But, as a young guy, at work with customers within earshot, I kept my mouth shut and took the beating. It was truly bizarre to me, in that situation, the 20-year-old had the presence of mind to show more composure than the adult in the room.
Later that day, I spoke with Dennis about the interaction, BY that time, he was aware of the interaction given the number of people in the clubhouse who watched it evolve. It bothered me that Ron could feel comfortable being so disrespectful in that environment. I asked Dennis if he thought the antics were appropriate. No answer. I wondered if Dennis had any suggestions as to how I could stay out of the firing line. Sadly, he didn’t offer anything of substance and simply told me that he would “talk to Ron”.
That was the last I heard about it. A few weeks later, I left the restaurant and worked the rest of the season on the grounds crew. I didn’t really enjoy the new gig, but it enabled me to keep my distance from Ron. It affected how I felt about Jeff and Chad, too.
The dressing down from Ron really upset me. Is this the way a golf pro operates - treats people? Or, did he just feel I was an easy mark - vulnerable enough for him to behave like a total prick? The sheer lunacy of his deportment was appalling, though it seemed to go unchecked. There were people in the environment who held Ron in high regard and he was also known as a very good player. He was a pro, but his antics certainly weren’t very professional.
Yet there didn’t seem to be any consequence, at least none that I was made aware. No apology. No attempt to reconcile. Nothing. It stung. I wasn't a member of the club, nor was I one of the professional staff, but I felt I represented the club at the Saskatchewan Open in a dignified manner.
Also, why was it so easy for Chad to make the decision to bail on the event after not playing well? He could’ve stuck it out, played the final round(s), then rode back up to Waskesiu with me…or with anybody else he may have known who could’ve given him a ride. It didn’t seem very professional.
Yet, I was chastised in front of a full restaurant by an esteemed golf pro for not withdrawing from the tournament?
It soured me so much. I know it played a huge role in my decision to find a way to just walk away from golf altogether - the game and the business.
Switching Gears
The next year, I began a decade-long run that included highly competitive fastball and very, very little golf. I completely lost touch with the industry and many of the people I played golf with. There were those I think I really would’ve enjoyed staying in contact with, but certainly some I wouldn’t have pissed on if they were on fire. Such is my mindset as kind of a matter-of-fact thinker. I simply do not suffer fools.
Admittedly, as a sports page scavenger, I did watch from a distance during the summer months back then as some of the guys I knew as a teenager began to achieve some great success on the Saskatchewan amateur golf scene. Some of their accomplishments were truly historic. Really impressive!
But, returning to the ball diamonds was a great time. I enjoyed being part of a team - being a contributor. I struggled at times with being a good team mate, but I also became a player who frequently delivered under pressure. I'm not sure the group would've tolerated me as long as they did had I been an unproductive stiff.
In 1988, we were a good team with a bunch of great characters. We won a provincial championship - I hit a two-run home run in the final to plate the winning runs in a 3-2 win. It was a terrific feeling. A triumph! We went on to earn a silver medal representing Saskatchewan at the Western Canadian Championship in Vancouver.
I hung ‘em up after the 1992 season and shortly afterward season, we relocated to Edmonton and in 1994, I jumped back into the golf business for what has been a very rewarding 28 years and counting.
Trepidation sucks
For some reason (and I totally have to own this) I really felt off balance for many years every time I set foot on the Waskesiu Golf Course. In fact, I still do. The same “old guard” from Ron’s days seemed to be around the facility and I struggle to feel any level of comfort on a golf course that had really been my utopia as a kid.
I had begun to play more golf in Alberta during the 1990's. I met a handful of solid guys who were knowledgeable and very helpful. They treated me with respect and it was easy to return that courtesy. These were good days! By about 1999, I had become a scratch handicap.
I decided to travel to Waskesiu in 2003 to play in the Lobstick Open, a chance to visit my parents at the lake as well. I was nervous about the environment. I remember it immediately felt to me like there was so much of the same BS from the same faction 20 years prior in that same atmosphere. It really bothered me and I’d had enough of it.
I went off after a disagreement with tournament officials over amateur, non-amateur and professional status. I wouldn’t change a thing, but I know it was not a shining moment. More than anything, it was really just the culmination of so many years of frustration.
In 2004, I returned and somehow summoned up the fortitude to post a pair of 72's and finished fourth in the Lobstick Open. I played the second round with three young Saskatchewan-based professionals who I found to be terrific young guys with really healthy views on what the golf industry needed and how they felt they could contribute. Their collective disappoint with the kind of opportunities they felt their role models had left behind was intriguing. Overall, it was tremendously refreshing, given my disdain for much of the old guard.
The next year, the pro at Waskesiu, Derrick, was kind enough to invite me back to the tournament in 2005. It was a totally unexpected phone call. Humbling. Heart-warming. Very special. But by that time, we had made the decision to move from Edmonton to Kelowna.
Waskesiu was seldom on the radar for quite some time. I didn't play the golf course again for about a decade.
Fast forward to 2007
In March of 2007, I attended the PGA of Alberta consumer golf show in Edmonton. I was with John, the general manager and head pro at Shannon Lake. We were entering our first season as part of the management team at the golf course in West Kelowna, which had been hemorrhaging financially. We were determined to turn the tide!
The day before the trade show, we had a meeting set up at the Golden West Golf Course in north Edmonton to talk about the point of sale software we had inherited. The McCracken family supplied the software, provided administrative support and had a sales guy working to promote the package. The sales guy, coincidentally, was Ron.
I knew this in advance but was confident he was unaware I’d be attending the meeting that day. I shared my memories with John about the incident at Waskesiu, so he knew I was somewhat uncomfortable.
Upon our arrival, the look on Ron’s face was priceless! It was obvious to me that it was he who was uncomfortable in that moment.
John and I learned what we had to learn about the software that day. We didn’t really like the program but agreed to work with it that season. It was really odd we thought, this suite that we soon began to refer to as a “pickle tray”.
We did see Ron once during his travels, a short visit with us that was basic public relations, just checking in to see how we were progressing. There was nothing more to it than that, although I found a way to tolerate and then enjoy a few small-talk conversations with Ron.
Ultimately, we quit using that particular software program. I was privileged to be involved in making the decision not to renew the contract and to deliver the news.
By the way, the name of the software program we gassed?
Carma.
Epilogue
I'm confident there are many still on the planet who had wonderful experiences with this fellow and would boisterously defend him as an outstanding role model. I won't begrudge any of them their right to exercise that measure of loyalty. In fact, I'm thankful there was upside for them.
But, perhaps it was also karma at play to some degree when it came to pass that I won the 2018 Senior Lobstick?
As confidently as I was able to produce in pressure situations on the ball diamond, I have really struggled on the golf course when the heat was on. Particularly at Waskesiu where I just cannot seem to quiet my mind. Just too much baggage, even though I absolutely adore everything about the property once the grass is beneath my feet.
It was an emotional, magical week for me in 2018, especially on the putting surfaces. Surviving in an environment where I feel like I have experienced both the worst and best of times, was an absolute triumph.
