FarmLinks Golf Club had a rare hole-in-one Oct. 7 during the biannual Fall Race Weekend in which superintendents, customers and associates travel to the Sylacauga area for a weekend packed with NASCAR festivities.
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Guests who attend Race Weekend enjoy fishing, playing golf, attending seminars, relaxing and, of course, watching a little thing called NASCAR racing. But Mitchell Glod, superintendent of Fort Cherry Golf Club in McDonald, Pa., enjoyed something a little extra: a hole-in-one on FarmLinks #17, a picturesque, par-3 hole that plays across Pennywinkle Lake, right below Parker Lodge.
This was the first hole-in-one and the first trip to FarmLinks for Glod, who has worked at Fort Cherry for 18 years.
“When people talk about The Experience at FarmLinks, they really mean it’s an experience – an incredible experience,” Glod says. “I’d heard about the Southern hospitality, but I never expected as much as this. The fertilizer presentation by Dr. Jeff Higgins was phenomenal, and Mark Langner’s tour of the course was amazing. Everything was so well done – from the food to the seminars to the recreational activities. I couldn’t have asked for anything more.”
Ask for it or not, Glod got it. Under sunny skies and 80-degree weather, Glod set out around 9:30 am on Saturday morning with Michael Blackwood and Bill Schweitzer, both from the Pittsburgh area, and Dave Hamilton of Harrell’s.
“When we got to hole #17, I joked that I’d just hit the ball into that huge sandtrap so I could lie there for a while and get a suntan,” Glod recalls. “I decided to use a six iron, but I thought my shot looked a little too far to the right.”
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With half of the green in the shade and the other half in the sun, none of the foursome actually saw Glod’s ball roll into the hole. But when the group crossed over the bridge to the #17 green, they found only 3 balls.
“Not expecting anything, I went over to the hole and looked in, “Glod stated. “I couldn’t believe that my ball was actually in that hole!”
While not the first hole-in-one for this 7,444-yard, championship golf course, FarmLinks has never had a superintendent get a hole-in-one – before Glod.
“We’re very excited for Mitchell, and we’re glad that this exciting event happened during his first visit here,” says Erle Fairly, president of FarmLinks. “I just wish I could say that I fall into the same ranks!”
