FEATURES
Deeper dives into the people, places or things that deserve more space and time to tell a meaningful and impactful story.
AGAINST OVERWHELMING ODDS
College sweethearts Emma and Hayden Springer are the All-American couple: she works as a neurosurgical nurse while he is chasing his golf dreams. The joy they felt when Emma became pregnant turned to grave concern when their baby was diagnosed with Trisomy 18, a deadly chromosomal condition. Sage Springer was not expected to leave the hospital but, eight months later, she is a living miracle. Defying a different kind of odds, Hayden played his way into the U.S. Open through qualifying. This week at Torrey Pines will be a celebration of a remarkable family.
THE HOLY WATERS OF THE AU SABLE RIVER
With the additions of unique golf, a short course, lodging and other amenities, Forest Dunes has quickly emerged as one of the top destinations in the country. But what most golfers don’t realize, is the resort’s proximity to one of the best fishing “holes” in the world.
CATCHUP WITH GRAYLING AND JAKE HINKLE
After the Grayling High School boy’s golf team was involved in a horrific car accident, en route to the season’s first match, the town and the team rallied around the players and their families in one of the most inspiring golf stories I’ve ever told. Years later, we catch up with Jake Hinkle, who was involved in the accident, had to learn to walk again, and went on to get a college golf scholarship.
THE PAR-3 COURSE AT FOREST DUNES
After adding the Loop, the reversible routing by Tom Doak, Forest Dunes had three 18-hole golf courses, which is a sweet setup for the Michigan buddies-trip clientele. But what owner Lew Thompson really needed was a place to play with his grandsons, so he called upon Keith Rhebb and Riley Johns to build a par-3 course. Pressure was on the young architects to deliver.
DIRECTOR OF OUTSIDE HAPPINESS
So many aspects and people of Bandon Dunes link the land and the resort to the town, in part, making this a collection of true links golf. But by being there from the beginning, and nearly every work day since, no one has been there longer, no one has spent more time on property, than Bob Gaspar. The former teamster and member of the Coast Guard is now affectionately known as “Shoe” because there’s a striking resemblance to the great jockey, Bill Shoemaker. This is the story of how Gaspar discovered the Bandon Dunes development before it opened and why this Shoe was such a great fit from the start.
THE BARBER OF BANDON
Like the routing of a golf course, the story of Bandon Dunes, the evolution of a pure golf destination along the remote coastline of Oregon, doglegs in several directions and over a variety of undulations. The constants have been Mike Keiser, the owner, Kemper Sports, the management company, loyal employees, of which there are countless, minimalist architects, of which there have been several, and then there’s Mick Peters, the local barber, who, along with his son Mike, have been the first to be first and then second off at every new course at the resort. This goes back to May, 1999, when Mick and Mike were first off Bandon Dunes, the first course, designed by David McLay Kidd. And on June 1, 2020, on what Keiser says will be the last addition of golf to arguably the best pure golf destination in the world, Mick and Mike Peters are first and second to the first tee for the last time.
WALTER IOOSS JR., REFLECTS ON ICONIC SHOTS
Walter Iooss Jr. shares several stories about his special relationship with NBA legend Michael Jordan, chasing Tiger Woods at a golf tournament, almost botching a portrait session with Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer, and how he captured arguably the most famous image in NFL history. Iooss has been taking pictures professionally for 59 years. He has shot every Super Bowl. He has over 300 covers of Sports Illustrated, which includes action, portrait and swimsuit. His versatility, personality and talent, along with the trust and respect of his subjects, plus his passion for sports and his craft have earned him a spot in the International Hall of Fame of Photography.
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