Submitted by philip on
By Jerry Love, LBF Communications
ALEXANDRIA – Picture a vast spread of open fields dotted with a few trees and bushes; the new grass working hard to push the winter cover of brown away.
Scattered about are club-wielding men swinging mightily, at times quietly waiting to approach their target and other times yelling loudly as they move quickly across the undulating expanse.
A volley of cheers erupts over here, a quiet groan can be discerned over there ….
Is this some primitive battlefield? Nahhh, it’s the 2013 Spring Baptist Golf Fellowship, which took place April 8-9 at Links on the Bayou.
Golfers came from across Louisiana, along with a couple of interlopers from Texas, to converge on the Alexandria area for a time of hitting the links, good healthy back-slapping camaraderie and the pursuit of a few trophies and prizes. Of course it would not be a Baptist meeting without good food thrown in the mix.
The Baptist Golf Fellowship, sponsored by the Louisiana Baptist Foundation and the Baptist Message, is a time for pastors and laypersons to come together for a time of recreation, relaxation and light-hearted competition around the game of golf.
Medalist and Team play took place Monday afternoon. Windy conditions made the day a little more challenging but it didn’t prevent was Mike Thibodeaux, a member of Belle Park Baptist Church in Haughton, from taking home the trophy for Grand Champion of Medalist Play with a score of 74.
First Baptist Church of DeRidder walked away with the team trophy – again – with a combined team score of 320, which was 9 strokes ahead of the nearest competitor. Team members were Diz Smith, Dennis Millsaps, Jerry Istre and Tony Branham.
Teams for the 4 Man Scramble play on Tuesday were derived from the score rankings from Monday’s medalist play.
Prior to the start of the Scramble each player could purchase two Mulligans, which are sold for $5 each. A total of $525 was raised, with the proceeds going to the Shepard’s Fund, a ministry of the LBC that assists retired ministers and wives with supplemental needs.
The winning team for the scramble was Jerry Price, Fred Morgan, Tony Branham and Don Fox. They combined for a score of 60 for the round.
Watch for information in the Baptist Message or check websites www.LBFinfo.org andwww.baptistmessage.com for details about this year’s leaderboard and the next Baptist Golf Fellowship.
Come have a good time!
Winners for the 2013 Spring Baptist Golf Fellowship
SUPER SENIOR DIVISION (age 70 & over)
Ministers Flight Name Score
3rd Place Milton Wilson 116
2nd Place Jim Phaup 89
1st Place Harry Forrester 84
Laymen Flight
3rd Place Bill Bingham 87
2nd Place Frederick Stephens 87
1st Place Tony Branham 78
SENIOR DIVISION (age 60 – 69)
Ministers Flight
3rd Place Glen Bourque 89
2nd Place Bruce Magee 85
1st Place Billy Wood 82
Laymen 2nd Flight
3rd Place Wayne Tanner 97
2nd Place Clyde Pitre 97
1st Place Jim Loewer 94
Laymen 1st Flight
3rd Place Mack Truluck 78
2nd Place Jerry Istre 76
1st Place Dennis Millsaps 76
Regular Division (age 59 & under)
Ministers Flight
3rd Place Jeremy Purvis 89
2nd Place Mike Thompson 87
1st Place Steve Masters 81
Laymen 2nd Flight
3rd Place Mike Loewer 98
2nd Place Tyler Bray 97
1st Place Gary Clark 96
Laymen 1st Flight
3rd Place John Willie 79
2nd Place Matt Peters 78
1st Place Mike Thibodeaux 74
CHURCH TEAM DIVISION
1st Place FBC DeRidder:
Diz Smith, Dennis Millsaps, Jerry Istre, Tony Branham 320
4 MAN SCRAMBLE
3rd Place Chuck Lowman, Mike Beadle, Jim Tullos, Ray Cox 61
2nd Place John Willie, Dix Smith, Billy James, Don Fox 61
1st Place Jerry Price, Fred Morgan, Tony Branham, Dennis Kelly 60