2026

After surviving golf’s ultimate hazard, Frank
Macgowan is now all smiles

What’s the most intimidating hazard you’ve ever faced on a golf course? A pond requiring a 200-yard carry? A Florida gator giving you the evil eye from just off the fairway? All child’s play, if you ask longstanding BMC member Frank Macgowan.

Picture this: Frank and his playing partner are at Oak Glen in Stillwater and his partner hits his tee shot OB left. From the tee it appears that the ball may have come to rest in someone’s back yard, and, sure enough, as they approach the yard, not only is the ball OB but posted on the neighbor’s fence is a surprisingly unfriendly No Trespassing sign.

Naturally, this was at the 13^th hole.

It was when Frank and his partner got to the No Trespassing sign that things started to get weird. Especially when Frank saw what was going on one house down. Two people were sitting on the back deck, by all appearances a husband and wife. But while the missus seemed to be sitting there nonchalantly enough, her husband was anything but. He was leveling a scoped rifle directly at Frank!

Please raise your hand if anyone has ever aimed a rifle at you while you were on a golf course.

The gun was never discharged. But you won’t be surprised to learn that experiencing his potential demise did not have a salutary effect on Frank’s game. Under the circumstances, he did well just to bogey in.

Turns out the local police department was well aware of The Rifleman, as they had received past complaints about his unneighborly disposition. So, upon hearing from an understandably aggrieved Mr. Macgowan, they decided that enough was enough. Frank is still waiting to see if he’ll be called upon by the City Attorney to serve as a witness.

Interestingly, there was also a sign posted at the next yard down from The Rifleman’s, just off the 14^th fairway– but with a strikingly contrasting tone: “Come on in and get your ball– and TAKE SOME LESSONS”!

When was a sense of humor more welcome?

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

What are the most holes you’ve ever played in one day?  36? 54?  For many of us septuagenarians (although things used to be different), completing 18 seems challenge enough.

But when you pose the question to third-year member Andrew Hooyman, you get an answer nothing short of startling: 100!  That’s right, 100 holes of golf in a single day.

How does he do it? And why?

The answer: it’s for charity—  play 100 holes and help raise funds to support brain injury survivors and their families.  The event is sponsored by Birdies4Brains, a group founded in 2011 by a golfer whose sister developed an aneurism in her brain; since then, Birdies4Brains has leveraged this unique annual golf outing into a vehicle for providing financial assistance to people like the founder’s sister and their families.  Spoiler alert: to maintain pace of play, all golfers ride and no more than two putts are allowed per hole.  Most years, golfers complete their 100 holes, the equivalent of 5 ½ rounds, by late afternoon.

Join Andrew on June 22 at Keller for a memorable day of golf and an opportunity to make a real difference to those who could use the help. It’s a full day of golf, laughs and a little swag. The field is limited to 39 golfers, so register today!

Just go to www.b4bmn.org or email Andrew at hooyman84@gmail.com.

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

Readers of The Virtual 19^th Hole will recall that two longstanding members of the BMC’s Age Shooters are Larry Fyten (who’s done it so many times, at so many courses, that not even he can keep count) and Gene Haman, who did the deed at Braemar in 2021, firing an 81 at 81 years young. So, it’s no surprise that each of them has done it again.

Both feats took place on May 7, during Thursday League’s opening day, a day of chilly temperatures and wind gusts up to 18 miles per hour.

For Larry, an 18-year member who makes 87 look like 67, it was just another ho-hummer from the N tees: 41-39, missing a score in the 70’s by a single stroke due to a 3-putt on the last hole.  As the math majors and accountants will already have calculated, Larry could have10-putted the last hole and still shot his age.  When asked afterwards about his round, Larry simply noted that he was trying to keep up with Bob Devereaux (who’s still playing regularly as he turns 100 this year!).

Similarly, for Gene, a 30-year member who turns 90 next month, the weather was neither too cold nor too windy, as he put a smooth 89 on the board, also from the N tees.  After nearly making a sandy on 13, and settling for a bogey, Gene overcame some trouble on 14 and finished strong with three straight pars.  In the words of playing partner Clay Halverson, Gene’s round was “not too bad for a guy whose favorite sport is actually pickleball.”  As far as Gene’s own reaction to his round, he conceded, in his typically dry wit, that he was just happy to come through the winter without his picture hanging in the post office.

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