2025

The Braemar Golf Association has announced that Jeff Mold, Braemar’s Golf Course Superintendent, has received Braemar’s Distinguished Service Award. Due in no small part because of Jeff’s extensive course management expertise and leadership skills, Braemar has become one of the premier public golf destinations in the metro area and beyond.

Jeff’s career path began with his employment at a golf course under construction near his hometown in Rush City, Minnesota. He enjoyed the work so much he enrolled at Anoka Technical College in their Golf and Grounds Management program. After graduation, Jeff worked at several courses, eventually serving as Assistant Golf Course Superintendent at Edina Country Club. Jeff accepted the job as Braemar’s Golf Course Superintendent during the course redesign/rebuild.

Since the reopening of the “new” Braemar, Jeff and his crew have maintained our golf facilities at the highest standards. As a result, the superb condition of the tee boxes, fairways and greens on the championship course excel those at all but the area’s top country clubs. And the work never stops, starting each day at dawn and continuing until dusk. Supervising a full-time staff of four assistants and approximately 24 seasonal employees, Jeff’s contributions to Braemar have been immeasurable.

Jeff’s hard work and dedication to the excellence of Braemar golf have made him the latest recipient of Braemar’s Distinguished Service Award. Congratulations, Jeff! Braemar is fortunate to have you here as our Golf Course Superintendent.

Dick Helde
Editor, The Virtual 19th Hole
helde.richard@gmail.com
612-306-3590

The results of the first-ever BMC quiz are now in, and we have a winner!

If you follow The Virtual 19^th Hole, you’ll recall that BMC members were asked if they could identify the place on the course that was depicted in a photo displaying some rather innocuous shallow water littered with golf balls– balls that had clearly missed their mark. A challenging test of Braemar course knowledge to be sure. And the volume of responses confirmed that members enjoyed taking up the challenge.

In total, nine members correctly identified number 2 as the hole shown in the photo. Of those, three specifically described the photo as having been taken, as described by photographer Greg Wright, from the riding/ walking bridge looking back toward the tee box, to the north/east.  Several respondents correctly identified the creek on number 2 but judged the photo to have been taken nearer to the narrower walking bridge.  Other contestants who took a shot but fell short took a swing at 16 and, in one case, number 18.

As described, the lesson to be learned was thrown in just for fun since two of the suggested answers were obviously in jest.  Nevertheless, extra credit goes to Vince Bradford, who overcame the inherent limitations of multiple choice and posited that the lesson was to avoid thinking too much!

Congrats to the members whose impressive course knowledge enabled them to zero in on hole 2: Rick Ites, Rick Windham, Vince Bradford, John Hasper, Chuck Wait, Drew Cripps, Tim Smith, Rolf Sonnesyn and Tom Klassen.  The three respondents who specifically identified the correct portion of the creek were Tim Smith, Rolf Sonnesyn and Tom Klassen.

Because Tom’s response came in at lightning speed after only 16 minutes, Tom took the top spot in the competition. Silver goes to Rolf, who needed a few extra hours to get it right, and bronze goes to Tim Smith who, after taking several days to respond, also nailed it–perhaps after completing an inaugural 2025 round and making some careful observations along the way?

Course Knowledge Champion Tom Klassen

Dick Helde
Editor, The Virtual 19^th Hole
helde.richard@gmail.com
612-306-3590

For every BMC member who loves playing golf at Braemar, here’s an excellent opportunity to show off your course knowledge! Simply take a careful look at the photo above and answer the questions below.  Then submit your answers to The Virtual 19^th Hole. Winners will be included in a drawing at the end of the season for Honorable Mention as The 2025 BMC Champion Golfer of the Year.

Questions

1.  On what hole was the photo taken?
2. Where exactly on that hole?
3. Which of the following best summarizes the lesson to be learned from this photo:
   • For the bombers: big mistake trying to drive over the penalty area.
   • For the rest of us: big mistake topping your approach shot to the green.
   • Stop rinsing your balls here or the resulting rise in water level will quickly overflow the banks and turn this area into a massive lake.
   • With a decent pair of water shoes a guy could easily get himself a year’s supply of golf balls here.

Submit your answers simply by replying to the cover email, or to:

Dick Helde
Editor, The Virtual 19^th Hole
helde.richard@gmail.com
612-306-3590