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LIVINGSTON GOLF COURSE AND COUNTRY CLUB:
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PRESUME
by Anthony L. ScaggsGeneral Manager Mark Olsen beamed with pride as he talked
about the fairways and especially the greens. His favorite holes were #4 and #5
and all the greens. I asked him why he continued to mention the greens. A
unique smile creep across his face and with a glint in his eyes he said, “You
cannot describe it. You have to experience it for yourself.” With that Mr. Olsen told me that his superintendent, Jeff
Pace, was working on the greens for another tournament and if I had the chance,
I should talk with him. My putt shot across the green like a ball bearing on a
plate, I thought of glass or highly polished tabletops or greased lightening.
Finally, I got the feel of the greens and made the putt. I noticed a man with a
sardonic smile watching me. I introduced myself and found out he was Jeff Pace.
I asked him if he sprayed the greens with silicon or Teflon. With a straight face, he said, “this green had not been
polished and was a little slow.” I asked him if he stayed awake at nights thinking of things
that he could do to make the greens difficult for golfers. He assured me that
he sleep like a baby and the rest came natural. Later, I joined one of the 130 members who own the club and
our conversation turned to the greens and Jeff Pace. When I told the member
that I met Mr. Pace, the first question he asked, “Did you say the greens were
slow?” When I said “no,” the look of horror left his face and he
started to breathe once more. He shared a story about one of the members at the nineteenth
hole who turned to Mr. Pace suggesting the greens were a little slow. Everyone
laughed except Mr. Pace. The next morning when they started the second day of the
tournament the greens were so fast that all you had to do was wave your putter
over the ball and it would roll across the green. To this day not one member
has mentioned that the greens were slow.
One of the hardest parts of playing this course is focusing
on your shots. Take your time, play the course, do not comment on the green
speed and above all enjoy the scenery between shots. For further information:
Yellowstone Country Contacts: Livingston Golf and Country Club, (406) 222-1031, Images copyright 1999 SearchWrite |
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The golf course does not use a lot of
water hazards but the 3,141/6379 yard, nine/eighteen hole, 36/72 par course is
very challenging with lots of trees, doglegs and very fast greens.
The signature hole is #4 a 367 yard,
par 4, dogleg right that runs along the Yellowstone river. The narrow fairway has
trees on the right and a view of the Sleeping Giant Mountain.