I had the opportunity to work on the crew at the U.S. Amateur tournament at the Atlanta Athletic Club recently and came away with a couple of thoughts.
First, the tournament itself has always been one of my favorites. It's not about money or exemptions, it's just about playing golf at a high level. The ability of the participants was through the roof and it was fun to watch them play the course and practice on the range. Everyone I spoke to was friendly and happy to be a part of the competition. Three hundred and twelve hopeful players started the week with the desire to take home the trophy, which they get to keep for the year by the way, and somewhere along the way 311 would have their dreams crushed. Golf at it's simplest, survive the stroke play segment and out-duel your opponent in match play.
Second, being a part of the team at AAC was part golf tournament, part complex work synchronization and part family reunion. Obviously using four tees and 7:55 starting times meant that things had to work flawlessly in the dark at many different locations on the property, that was the synchronization part. The biggest thing I took away from my time at the tournament was the feeling of family that was present among the staff. Many of the people I worked with every day had worked at AAC at some point and returned to volunteer for the tournament. There were superintendents, assistants, sales associates, interns, family members and even staff members from other departments helping out the grounds crew. Many of the volunteers had traveled a good distance to get there. Everyone I spoke to, whether currently on the staff or someone who had moved on, spoke about the sense of family that you get when working at the AAC. The family atmosphere at AAC seems to have remained intact through the many years and changing faces thanks to the leadership of Ken Mangum, CGCS, and his ability to assemble a great team and chart a successful path for the facility. I've had the pleasure of knowing Ken for many years and whether he's representing our profession on television, running a major tournament or just talking about fishing, he does it with the same smile, calm demeanor and class that make him so special. It was a pleasure to be a part of the family for that week.
Several other staff members need to be recognized as well because Ken himself will tell you he doesn't do it alone. Thanks and congratulations go out to Tyler, Matt, David, Elliot, Stephen and the entire AAC staff. It was a fun week and I look forward to volunteering again at the next big tournament.
