Group plays at Tobacco Road

More than fifty members made the trip to play the very challenging Tobacco Road. Everyone had a great time and there was excellent golf played as well. The format for the day was best ball gross and best ball net. Closest to the pin prizes were awarded. The winners for the day are as follows: Closest to the Pin winners were Ron Carhart, John Marston, Joyce Gilliam and Brian Mathis. 1st place gross with a score of 64 was the team of Bill Fox, Bill Guwang, Richard Daniel and Head Pro, Mike Krick. 1st place net was the team of Dave and Penny Turner and Fred and Barbara Brown with a 49, 2nd place was the team of Ginny Seeger, Bibi Brown, Sue Palmer and Laila Nuzzolo with a 54, 3rd place was the team of Ray Nuzzolo, Gary Peterson, Jim Morris and Scott Schaeffer with 56. The 4th place team of GM Brad Bourret, Director of Golf Course Maintenance,Tim Hart, Ron Carhart and Bob Carlson also shot 56 but lost on match of cards. Thanks to Tobacco Road for a great day.

A visit from Santa

94 members came out to the Holiday Potluck at the Marathon Bar on Sunday. They enjoyed a crackling fire, caroling, great food and drink specials, and a special visit from Santa "Brock" Claus.

Top Ranked Private Golf Course

The Triangle Business Journal recently ranked Carolina Trace Country Club in the Top 25 best private golf course list. Arguably, one of the biggest attractions to CTCC is the two golf courses, Lake and Creek, designed by legendary architect Robert Trent Jones, Sr. During his career, Jones, Sr. designed or re-designed nearly 500 courses in at least 40 states in the U.S. and 35 countries around the world. At Carolina Trace Country Club, members are fortunate to have two courses designed by such a world renowned architect. Jones, Sr. worked with golf legend Bobby Jones on the Peachtree course in Atlanta and again on the Augusta National course, the home of the annual Masters Tournament. Robert Trent Jones, Sr. became a national celebrity with his complete re-design of the Oakland Hills South course for the U.S. Open Tournament in 1951. He immediately became the "Open Doctor" and in quick succession re-designed such major venues as Baltusrol-Lower course, Olympic-Lake course, Southern Hills, Oak Hill and Congressional Country Club. Among the many courses Jones, Sr. designed are: Dorado Beach in Puerto Rico, Bellerive in Missouri, Hazeltine in Minnesota, Shady Oaks in Texas, Upper Montclair in New Jersey and Spyglass in California. In addition to these accomplishments, Jones, Sr. helped found the American Society of Golf Course Architects, and was the first golf course architect inducted into the Golf World Hall of Fame.

MGA Year-End Event & Major Winners

The Year-End Championship has come to a close. The top 38 MGA players and Mike & Brock from the Professional staff played their hearts out for two days of match play, Ryder Cup Style. Day one format was fourball match play (better ball of two vs. better ball of two) on the front nine. Back nine was foursomes match play (alternate shot vs. alternate shot). Day two we played singles. Each match was worth three points, one for the front, one for the back and one for the overall match. The Trace Legends were down by two points to the Carolina Outlaws going into the second day. The Outlaws put the hammer down and won 51.5 to 38.5. Representing the Carolina Outlaws: Brock White, CTCC Assistant Golf Professional, Ron Elder, MGA Tournament Chairman, Roger Brown, Jim Morris, Rich Pruchnik, Fred Heins, Jacques Miller, Tony Palmer, Phil Kirol, Frank Buczny, Gene Pasztor, Mike Losquadro, Ray Rahn, Lou Gobeille, Don Nedza, Bob Salasko, Jerry Venice, Denny Drew, Fred Brown and John Gloeckler.

Major Winners: left to right Norm McVicker, Presidents Cup Winner Paul Garver, MGA Championship Flight 3 Winner Rich Pruchnik, MGA Championship Flight 1 Winner Gene Pasztor, MGA Championship Flight 2 Winner Ed Colwell, President’s Cup First Flight Runner-Up Not Pictured: John Kopta, President’s Cup First Flight Winner Frank Buczny, President’s Cup Runner-Up

MGA Annual Event

The MGA held their final event before the Year-End Matches. The weather and the golf course was spectacular—sunny skies at 75 degrees while playing golf in the peak of vivid fall colors. Recap from Pro Krick: Eighty players participated in the scramble format and many great scores were turned in. Among the best was the team of Dale Roberts, John Puklavetz, Jerry Venice and George Keep (pictured). They scored a 59.5 which won first place honors. Closest to the pin honors went to Scott Schilz, #6, 11’ 10”; Ralph Martin #8, 6’ 5”; Dick Brown #13, 6’ 11.5” and Al Frangipane #15, 8’ 7”. The staff jumped in and played as well. The team of Brad Bourret, Mike Krick, Brock White and Adam Gordon carded a smooth 58. Another perfect day at Carolina Trace Country Club.

Sunday Couples Championship

The Sunday Couples Championship was conducted on October 25th & 26th. The first day couples played a modified Pinehurst format. Each person drives, hit each others' drive, select the best shot and alternate until the ball is holed out. The weather had light showers on-and-off with comfortable temperatures. After a few “I am sorry’s,” the field turned in some great scores. Leading the first day in the gross division was Ron and Chris Heppell with a 74 (pictured on the right). The first day net was lead by Tim and Jeanette Bloedorn (pictured on the left) and Ed and Margaret Arnold with a 64.6. Players enjoyed beautiful fall weather on day two of the tournament and the scores were just as good. The format for the second day was better ball of two. The Heppell’s hung on to their lead and shot a second round 76, total 150 to win the gross division. The Conti’s finished second with a two day total of 162. The Bloedorn’s continued their great play and won the net division with a two day total of 127.6. Finishing just out of the lead was Russ Bosch and Chris Jussume with a 127.8. The total championship event included forty couples. Nice job by the Fox’s and the Hodge’s for chairing the season-long events.

CTCC wins 1st place in Mid-Carolina MGA

[Pictured, center, President Ed Zieglar presented the winner’s plaque to CTCC representative Fran Remington (right) and CTCC Assistant Representative Ron Carhart (left).] The Mid-Carolina Men’s Golf Association ended its season at Bayonet on October 20th. A very tight race concluded with Carolina Trace Country Club emerging as the winning team, breaking the stronghold that Pinewild had on first place for the past two seasons. Richard Bago, Anderson Creek, took Net honors with a 63. A four-way tie for the low Gross of 75 was held by Cliff Hickey, Pinewild; Rodney Koons, Foxfire; Dick Skobo, Beacon Ridge and Bob Watt, Pinewild. Congratulations to the CTCC MGA golfers for winning first place.

Couples Member Guest

The Twentieth Couples Member Guest Tournament was played on October 2-4 under warm sunny skies. Both members and guests expressed delight with the relaxed informal social gatherings around the pool and enjoyed the fun, but competitive golf. The participants gathered for food and drinks on Thursday night for the mixer-cocktail party; on Friday after play for a grilled lunch; and on Saturday after play for an awards social. Everyone stayed to talk and enjoy the sunshine long after the planned events. Special thanks to Chaircouple Ed and Judy Colwell.

(pictured from left to right, Judy Colwell, Ted and Ginny Breuer)

CT Street Fair

Sales are final, and many of the 2008 Street Fair vendors made more money than ever before. 2008 CT Street Fair was held in the parking lot of the Club with 30 booths and 6 boot sale vendors. Street Fair is an annual event open to all Trace residents to enjoy a fall festival with unique items on display for purchase. Perfect Carolina weather contributed to the large crowds and CTCC's outdoor grill cooked-up Trace hamburgers and hot dogs too. The CT volunteer fire department was on-site providing residents with educational material. 103.1 FM radio station provided easy listening music all day long adding to the carnival atmosphere. The most popular booths were the women's 9-hole book sale and "Just a Growin' Produce" with their tasty strawberry cider. Also, local artists had several pieces available to purchase, as well as, Longaberger, Mary Kay, Sterling Silver, hand made bird houses, hand crafted wooden items and floral arrangements, the WGA sold lost and found items from the Pro Shop, Shoppes of Steel Street and Sanford Antique Mall were some of the highlighted vendors. Another community-focused festival for all Trace residents sponsored by the CT Country Club added to the treasured sense of community.Special thanks John and Susan Thorn for organizing the Street Fair this year.

1st Annual Lake Fest

2008 Lake Fest was a fun and festive event for all Carolina Trace residents. Carolina Trace Country Club and the CTA-CTCC Joint-Lake Committee (JLC) sponsored the event. Tracers could enjoy pontoon rides, kayak rides, a performance by the Temple Teens from Temple Theatre, face painting, water balloon contests, take your best shot to hit the pirate ship, watch a remote control boat reach 60 miles per hour, fishing contests, darts, Trace Jeopardy, Head Pro Trick Shot demonstrations, putting contests, hit balls at the driving range, swim in the Club pool, purchase CT cookbooks, commemorative tile, CT history, aquatic plants for Lake Trace, a 50/50 drawing and many prizes were given away every 30 minutes. There were also information tables throughout the venue where residents could learn about the exciting projects of T.U.F.F. and the JLC, wellness efforts, meet the on-site brokers and landscaping team at Carolina Trace Gated Properties, receive a special membership offer from the Club, and enjoy a cook out on the Country Club outdoor grill--to name a few activities.

Special thanks goes to Lee and Max Mortensen Amcher, Libby Bibb, Tim Hart, local corporate sponsors, and more than 200 volunteers to make this event possible.

Club Champions

(Pictured from left to right: Keith Reeves, Diane Conti, and Head Pro Mike Krick)

Men’s Club Championship: The men played Match Play over the past month with the Semi- finals and Final being played on August 29th and 30th. A Semi-finals match was between Ron Heppell and Keith Reeves. The other Semi-finals match was between Fred Berman and Jim Morris. The match between Heppell and Reeves went all the way to the 20th hole, and Reeves won. Berman finished his match against Morris on the 18th hole. The Finals were set: Reeves vs. Berman. The match went back and forth, Berman in the lead, Reeves in the lead... and after twelve holes Berman was one-up. Then, Reeves came storming on to win the next four holes and win the match 3 & 2. Heppell won the consolation match.

Ladies Club Championship: Solid play year-after-year wins championships and that is exactly how "Consistent Conti" plays. Diane Conti has now won her 12th Ladies Club Championship at CTCC. Of the twelve times Conti has played in the CTCC Ladies Club Championship, she has won all of them (12/12). The ladies played three rounds of stroke play to decide their championship on August 28th, 29th and 30th. Conti was challenged early by Tina Drew and Marie Inzerillo. In the end, Conti stayed strong and won the three day event by 17 shots. Tina Drew was runner-up with a three day total of 265 and Marie Inzerillo finished third with a three day total of 270.

Competitive golf on two world-class championship courses designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. is one of the many features that sets CTCC apart from many other communities.

(Keith Reeves and Fred Berman)

(Ron Heppell and Jim Morris)

(Tina Drew, Diane Conti, Marie Inzerillo)

Tennis is Thriving

CTCC has many active tennis programs, pictured are some of the core players. The CT Tennis Association sponsors tennis tournaments on holiday weekends and also club championships for mixed doubles, women’s doubles and men’s doubles. Beginners-to-experienced players are welcome to join the Association. Women’s drop-in tennis is held on Monday's and Friday's and men’s drop-in tennis is held on Tuesday's and Thursday's. View your copy of the Member Directory and contact Women's Coordinator, Debi Skibitsky or Men's Coordinator, Pepe Correlo for more information. Our members play on four, lighted Har-Tru courts that are the envy of many larger tennis facilities in North Carolina.

WGA Championship

The Women’s Golf Association Championship was held on Tuesday August 12th & 19th. The tournament was a thirty-six hole individual low net. The ladies were split up into four flights of nine-to-ten players per flight. The first day of the tournament players played the Lake Course and the second day, the Creek Course. The overall champion for the event was Diane Keep with a two round total of 133.

First Flight winners: Marie Inzerillo with a score of 139 took first place, 2nd place went to Marcia Connor who scored 140, 3rd place went to Chris Heppell with 140 and a tie for 44th place between Carole Philbin and Sue Palmer at 143.

Second Flight winners: 1st place went to Polly Scalice with a score of 144, a tie for 2nd place between Phyliss Gray and Mary Ann Pruchnik with 147 and 4th place belonged to Karen Towson who finished with a score of150.

Third Flight winners: BiBi Brown with 147 took first place, 2nd place was a tie with Kathy Salasko and Lyona Beck with 149, and 4th place was Helen Woodside at 150.

Fourth Flight winners: 1st place went to Janice Daniel at 145, 2nd place was Judy Colwell with 146, 3rd place went to Dottie Gall at 150, and 4th place was Joan Gustavson with 151.

Head PGA Golf Professional, Mike Krick and Assistant PGA Golf Professional Brock White enjoyed organizing one the WGA’s major annual tournaments. Many flight winners had very close scores, “we all enjoyed watching two very competitive days of women’s golf at Trace” stated Krick.

ESPN Radio Spotlight

Head Pro Mike Krick will once again be featured on ESPN Radio. For more than a decade, Krick has been featured on many radio and TV programs talking about the industry, professional and rising amateur players, and the latest happenings at Carolina Trace Country Club. Krick's 8/8/08 radio spot will feature news about the PGA Championship, the progress of the new Carolina Trace CC clubhouse, and our incredible membership offer to join the Club before the clubhouse is completed. It is certainly an asset to have a talented golf professional work for so many years at our Club, but it is even more treasured when you have a golf professional that loves the game as much as Krick does.

Summer Short Game School

Head Pro Mike Krick and Assistant Pro Brock White coached the first of four classes for our Summer Short Game School. The classes incorporate individual and group instruction for chipping, pitching, putting and bunker play. Women are scheduled on the first two days and men are scheduled next week for days 3 and 4 of the summer school. One of many qualities you find in both Krick and White is the keen ability to work with beginning and experienced golfers. Both Pro's enjoy interacting with members on specified techniques, no matter the level of game-- and that is not an industry standard. In addition to many other amenities, CTCC is well-known for our two world-class courses, full-length driving range, and short game practice area all complimented by a friendly and talented professional staff. Our Pro Shop is open 364 days of the year, and it is a CTCC standard to have a professional staff so accessible to our strong and growing membership. We encourage all members to sign up for individual lessons or enjoy a series of concentrated lessons.

Demo Completed

Demo of the clubhouse has been completed. Architectural drawings of the new clubhouse exterior have been released to the members, as well as Phase 1- the temporary dining facility.

Demo progress

Progress of the demolition of the clubhouse is ahead of schedule.

WGA Member-Member Photos

Overall Winners were Carol Burgess and Mary Lynn Riddle. Flight Winners are pictured below.

Demo continues

WGA Member-Guest, June 25 + 26

The heat did not slow down the WGA Member-Guest! Head Pro Mike Krick recaps the tournament. The theme for the day was butterflies & birdies. The format was two best balls of the foursome, awarding net and gross prizes.First place Gross with a score of 155 was the team of Ginny Breuer, Kathy Lebedz, Sue Hodges and Susan Walley (pictured first) . First place net team was Janice Daniel, Nancy Brooks, Louisa Heffelfinger and Marion Kerrigan with a score of 120 (pictured second) . Closest to the pin honors went to guest Sandi Terrill on hole #6 and member Colleen Hayes on hole #8. Most birdies award went to guest Karen Wheeler with four, and second place birdies to guest Lilia Rodriguez. Carol Martell the tournament chairperson and the entire committee did a wonderful job with decorations and organized a fun day for all involved.

(Pictured Left, Tournament chairperson, Carol Martell with our very own butterfly, Pepe--real men wear pink!)

Carolina Trace Gated Properties, the on-site real estate company, supplied the specialty drink on 13 Lake. For the Men's Member-Guest they supplied their famous Bloody Mary's. For the Women's Member-Guest Office Manager, Diane Olmsted perfected a frozen cosmoplitan. After several tries to make the perfect recipe, the frozen cosmo's were the perfect compliment to a great day of competitive golf and fun. Below is the coveted recipe.

Cosmopolitan Slushy (4 1/4 hours; 5 min Prep; Serves 6 people) Ingredients include: 10 ounces citurs-infused vodka ; 1/2 cup Rose's lime juice ; 2 cups cranberry juice ; 4 ice cube trays. Directions: First, combine vodka, lime juice, and cranberry juice in a pitcher with 2 cups water and stir to blend. Second, Divide the mixture between ice cube trays and freeze for at least 4 hours or overnight (the drink cubes will freeze only partially). Third, Just before serving, empty trays into a large bowl and using a fork to break up the cubes to loosen the ice crystals (the ice will be slushlike). Then, spoon slush into tall stemmed glasses and serve immediately.