Windy City Golf League Summer Session Now Open!
The Windy City Golf League, Chicagoland's only flexible and premier golf league, has opened its doors for the Summer 2012 season!
As I mentioned in my last review of the WCGL, this league is exactly what the busy golfing fanatic (or competitive weekend hack) is looking for in a men's golf league. Flexible scheduling, friendly yet skilled competition, and discounted rates with Chicago area courses are just some of the many features a membership with the WCGL has to offer you.
My experience playing in the Spring 2012 season was more than enjoyable... despite my lackluster play. What I enjoyed most was the fact that the league website recorded and tracked all of my golfing stats throughout the season, including all scores on any hole I played, scoring percentages and league scoring. This allowed me to focus on certain areas of my golf game when practicing with the hopes of improving my stats.
If you are interested in playing in a fun, competitive golf league with flexible scheduling and a friendly atmosphere, come try out the Windy City Golf League this Summer. If you register with coupon code WCGLTweet2012, save $10 on your registration fee!
Golf Confessionals: Broken Arrow Golf Club
You know what isn't fun about playing bad golf? It isn't the final score, nor is it the number of golf balls you lose during the round. It's knowing that you are better than your score indicates, but for some reason you couldn't get things together. That pretty much captures my round at Broken Arrow Golf Club in Lockport, IL this past weekend.
The course itself was in great shape. Broken Arrow has 27 holes on its property and my group played the South-to-East layout Saturday morning. The two nine's are almost completely different courses and both are challenging in their own right. Throw in the fact that we played from the tips and the entire course was soaked (thanks to weekend rains), your's truly was in for a long, rough day (Slope was a whopping 74.3 from the back tees).
My final score for the day? 96. Ninety-effing-six! Needless to say I am less-than-pleased in the result, so I will be contacting one of my golf instructor friends to work on my game a bit before I go back out. Or maybe I should go see a doctor instead? Perhaps a priest?
Anyway, Broken Arrow is a great course for the money if you are a resident of Lockport (I'm not, but I was able to take advantage of the cheaper rates since I'm cool and a member of the Windy City Golf League). The following is a description from the course's website:
Located in Lockport, IL, just 40 miles southwest of Chicago's Loop, Broken Arrow features 27 holes of Championship golf, a full service driving range, Golf-Shop, and snack bar!Broken Arrow use the “ProLink” GPS System on the Club Car fleet. These large easy to use systems act as professional caddies and are designed to give you all the information you need. At a glance, golfers can see the entire hole, including all hazards, trees, and rough areas.The yardage is displayed to these areas and to the pin to assist golfers with club selection helping to improve pace of play. Golfers can quickly communicate with the Golf Shop if they lose their club or if there is an emergency. The Golf Shop can also issue weather warnings and delays. This system features a tournament scoring package for those hosting their golf outing here at Broken Arrow as well as advertising opportunites.
This addition is certain to improve the quality of your golfing experience!
Golf Confessionals: Schaumburg Golf Club
Having never played competitive golf before on a regular basis (save for a couple junior tournaments early in my teenage days), joining the Windy City Golf League was a bit of a risk for me. Sure, I can go out and play golf against friends of mine and hold my own; but how would I stack up to other amateur players in my area? Today was my first test, and the course of choice was Schaumburg Golf Club.
First things first: the course was quite nice. The layout is a bit confusing (27 holes in all), but the greens were in excellent condition (as well as lightning-fast). Everything was well-manicured, the rough wasn't too punitive, and the bunkers seemed quite fair for the most part (I actually managed to stay out of them all day). Unfortunately for me, I did not have my A-game at all and the course ate me up and spit me out.
I decided to walk the 18 holes to save a little cash, but the weekend rates are by no means outlandish ($50+ for non-residents on a weekend isn't terrible). I can't remember the last time I walked 18 holes, and my feet are already cursing me for trying it this morning. I definitely started to lose my mojo throughout the morning due to fatigue, which unfortunately led to one of my worse rounds in a long, long time (94). Or maybe it had something to do with the mater hazards and lost balls? Either or.
The company was certainly the highlight of the morning as my three league partners were all kind, engaging, and talented players. I even had the opportunity to meet a fellow golf blogger, Chicago Golf Guy, who was playing somewhat wounded during his round (I'll let him explain that one if he wishes).
All-in-all, my first experience with the Windy City Golf League was a positive one. I managed to win one match but lost two (as all players in the foursome played one another) and hope to improve both my game and my scoring as the season wears on.
Windy City Golf League: Special Offer for Readers!
One of the biggest issues with being a golf addict like myself is that you don't always have someone to play with on a moment's notice. Scheduling a time to play 18 holes with a group of friends can be about as frustrating as missing a 5-foot putt for birdie. Over time I just learned to deal with playing most of my rounds by myself.
Then came along the Windy City Golf League.
The brainchild of University of Michigan alum and Chicago resident Jason Rotter, this isn't your typical golf league - and it doesn't want to be. For example, most golf leagues have a set weekly schedule that members have to keep in order to play matches. This can be quite taxing for those of us who have day jobs, family commitments, and other time constraints. For players who live in the city, league-play can be quite expensive to travel to the suburbs on a regular basis just to play 9 holes at the same course week after week. In other words, golf leagues can be rather inconvenient to enjoy for many golf enthusiasts. The Windy City Golf League (WCGL) changes all of that.
The biggest benefit of playing on the WCGL is its convenience factor: members can schedule matches at any course, any time, against anyone, as many times during the season as they wish. Can you say 'flexibility'?
Rather than limiting people to a number of select courses, members can play their matches at literally any course in the world. This becomes very convenient when a few friends, or a large group of people are in the same flight and decide to take a golf trip. Nothing could be more accessible or convenient for the league golfer.
As Rotter states during my recent conversation with him, golfers are grouped and flighted by handicap and typical availability (weekdays, weekends, etc.). Throughout the season, "you can play as many matches as you want against any opponent within your flight. You win points for each match based on how many strokes you win or lose by." Members are responsible for contacting fellow members to set up matches, which can all be accomplished via the WCGL website. It simply could not be any easier.
So, after discussing the WCGL with Rotter, I was convinced to sign up for the 2012 Spring season, which begins on April 16th. I plan on blogging about my matches throughout the season, as well as tweeting my experiences via my Twitter account (@chicagoduffer). I now have a league that I can participate in at my leisure with golfers at my skill-level at the courses I prefer.
And now you can too.
As a special offer to the readers of ChicagoDuffer.com, you can join the WCGL with a $10 registration fee discount by using the coupon code Duffer2012 when you register (normally $60, now $50 with the coupon code).
If you've ever wanted to play in a league but never had the time to do so, now is your chance. Don't pass up this great opportunity!
