In Memoriam

Flora Belle Amoyotte

August 20th

2012

secretary. Gary also chaired

both the Tournament and Golf Committee, the Social Committee and served on the Executive Committee

this year. Also special thanks go to Hap Herpel who is leaving the board.

Hap chaired the Social Committee this year and did a great job. His efforts

made for many fun-filled evenings and events. Finally, my thanks go to George

Miller who as past president has been an emeritus mem-ber of the board these last

two years. George has been a big help to me and his experience and wisdom will

be missed. Please thank these people for their ser-

vice when you see them.

In closing, I want to

thank Doug and Pat and their staffs for all their ef-forts and help in making

our club what it is. A special welcome and thank you to Chefs John and Michael who have really turned around

our kitchen. Also, thanks and welcome to Lynda for her critical help in the office

and dining area. Last, but certainly not least, we need to give a huge thank you to

Pam. Pam has faced an al-most perfect storm of prob-lems. The new software

didn’t work leading us to not be able to get financials or to enter dining orders

correctly. Also, early on

It is hard to believe that

this is the last newsletter of the year and my last as your president. It has been an exciting two years to say

the least! It has been a chal-lenging and yet fun-filled year. Hopefully, we will

have several more weeks of good weather and fun at the

club.

It is also noteworthy

that we are in the process of completing our 90th year as a golf course. As we look

at our club today, it be-comes clear how much we owe to all of the members

and staff who went before

us and made this the great club that it is. We have a legacy to live up to, and we

all need to remember that.

We had an over-flow

annual meeting where the membership elected Karen Pung and Jerry Lesperance

to the board and re-elected Bruce Hunting to the board. At the board meeting sub-

sequent to the annual meet-ing, the board elected John Gibson President, Craig

Druskins Vice President, and Sukie Stump Treasurer. Bill Bray was elected Secre-

tary and Bud Garlick was appointed to fill the one year vacancy created by

Hap Herpel’s resignation e f f e c t i v e 1 2 / 3 1 / 1 2 . At the annual meeting,

there was considerable dis-cussion about where the club stands financially. I

went over much of the ten year analysis that I sent all of you with the July billings a couple of weeks ago. I

hope you take the time to read that analysis, if you have not already done so.

We have some financial challenges ahead as a result of our declining member-

ship, and it is past time that

we address them.

A special thanks goes out to Gary Freismuth for

his three years of service on the board and this year as

From The President, Bob Foster September/October, 2012

Inside this issue:

Manager’s Report

Upcoming Events

2

House Com mittee

Treasurer’s Report

3

Pro Shop 4

Green & Grounds

New Business Membership

5

Mah Jongg News 6

Member For A Day 7

Club Champions 8

Mah Jongg; Cards 9

there were quality issues with

the food. Wait-staff was get-ting verbally abused and re-ceiving very meager tips. That

resulted in very high turn-over, and Pam was already working with all new staff in

the office and dining area. She has been working 60 to 80 hours a week this summer.

She worked the last three months of last year without pay, with the assurance she could make that up in comp

time this year. That has turned out to be a joke. Great job, Pam under the most try-

ing of circumstances!! If you get the chance, please let Pam know how much you appreci-

ate her efforts.

Finally, I want to thank not only all the boards and committees, but all of you for

what you do for the club. The number of you who are gen-erous with your time and re-

sources in order to make the club a better place is truly extraordinary. It has been an

honor and privilege to serve as your president these last

two years.

2

September 4th Men’s 18 Hole Day; Men’s Night league

September 5th Tuesday Men’s 9 Hole Day League; Ladies Association Last Day of Play

September 6th Ladies Day League Fun Day

and 8:30 Breakfast Meeting

September 9th IRGC Shoot Out 2 PM

September 10th Ladies Fun Night and Ban-

quet

September 12th Men’s Day League 18 Hole Scramble at 9 AM with Banquet and Meet-ing to Follow

September 13th Fall Couples league Starts 5 PM

September 13th Ladies Interclub Vs

Boyne @ Hidden river 8:30 AM

September 14th Board Meeting 8 AM

September 14th Ryder Cup Pairings Dinner 5 PM

September 15th Ryder Cup 9 AM

September 16th Ryder Cup 10 AM

September 17th Boyne Interclub Couples

@ Boyne Heather 12:30 Shotgun $50 per

Person

September 19th Member’s night 3:30 Shot-gun

September 22nd V.F.W. Outing 11 AM Shotgun

September 24th One Person Scramble 3 PM Shotgun

September 26th Fall member Staff Scramble 3 PM Shotgun

October 2nd Superintendent’s Revenge Tough Day 2 PM

October 11th Fall Couples League Last Night Awards Party

October 12th Board Meeting 8 AM

October13th IRGC Women’s Club Auction & Dinner

October 14th Last Hurrah Party 5 - 7 PM

With the golf season starting to wind down, this is just a reminder about

meeting your food and beverage minimums. Lynda Johnson has written

the amount you have left to spend to fulfill your minimums on your Au-

gust statement, and if you have any questions regarding the amount, she

will be happy to help.

One idea to help use those minimums is to let The Greenside Grille do

the cooking for you. The menus are posted on the website, just call 238-

8515, and we will be happy to have your meal ready for you to take

home. Another suggestion is to take a bottle of wine home. Just order a

bottle with your dinner, and if you are unable to finish we will place a

cork in the bottle and place the wine in a bag for you to finish at home.

Finally, The Greenside Grille will be hosting a Michigan-Michigan State

Football Party on Saturday, October 21. Game time has not been deter-

mined and neither has the party time. The Grille will be divided in half.

Half of the Grille will be decorated in Maize and Blue and the other half in

green and white. Friday, October 20 will be set aside for decorating. If

you want to help decorate let me know. Additionally, we will have

squares that you can purchase for prizes and for money, specials on food

and drinks. Invite your friends and family for a great afternoon. Note: If

the game is in the afternoon (3:30), we will host a U of M verses MSU

scramble.

From Our Manager, Pam Phipps Upcoming Events

3

rently we have 177. As our membership

drops and we don’t meet budget, it be-comes increasingly difficult to purchase needed new equipment and maintain the

club in top condition.

Our balance sheet remains strong, with debt at a comfortable level. The locker loan is scheduled to be paid off next

year, and the cart loan should be paid off early in 2015. Both the mortgage and cart loan were refinanced in 2010 at a

6% interest rate.

We continue to benefit financially from the generosity of our members, both in volunteer labor and donations. Our

beautiful on-course gardens, as well as many of the updates and improvements to the clubhouse, are the result of mem-

bers’ volunteer efforts. We can be

extremely proud of improvements to the golf course on holes #4 and #17 which came about at no cost to the

club, thanks to the hard work of the 4 and 17 Committee and generous

member donations.

I’d like to thank members of the Fi-

nance and Budget Committee for their hard work. Our committee in-cludes Bill Bray, Bob Foster, Bud Gar-

lick, John Gibson, George Miller, Margie Reh, and Tom Soltis. I’d also like to thank our management: Pam

Phipps, Pat Whitman, and Doug Tem-ple for their cost control efforts this

year.

Suzanna Stump

I am pleased to report that through

July the club’s profit/loss is $17,000 ahead of budget. However, net oper-ating income is $20,000 behind

budget. Most of this budget miss is in golf, as we are forced to discount green fees and cart rental to keep up

with our competitors. Our manage-ment has done an excellent job this year in controlling costs. July year-to-

date total operating expense is almost $36,000 below budget. This cost con-trol has offset the below-budget oper-ating income to put us ahead of

budget.

Unfortunately, our net golfing mem-bership continues to drop as the economy and golf industry in general

continue to suffer. Last year at this time we had 189 golf members; cur-

Notes From the Treasurer

House Committee Bill Bray, Chairperson

The Greenside Grille

As we all know, we have struggled to get our restaurant operating on a level with

which we are happy. As a result of all the disappointing experiences of our members

and the general public, a massive effort has been undertaken by our General Manager,

Pam Phipps; your Board of Directors; the Marketing Committee; and the House Com-

mittee along with its Special Restaurant Sub-committee headed by Bud Garlick. The focus

and results of that effort are as follows:

Hiring of Executive Chef John Giles and his Sous Chef Michael Walters.

John and Michael's cooking has been well received by those who

have enjoyed the restaurant since John came on board on May 30th

and prepared an outstanding meal

for 80 people at Member's Night.

For years we have had the prob-lem expressed by many people

saying, “I didn’t know there was a restaurant at IRGC open to the

public.” We decided a name for our restaurant would attract atten-

tion in the community, thus we have adopted the name “The

Greenside Grille” at Indian River

Golf Club. You will see this name

in all advertising, new signs, and on

the menus.

We have been honing new menus

that combine old favorites with some of John's specialties. These

were rolled out the week of June

24 th.

We have a new group of servers in the restaurant who have under-

gone training provided by hospital-ity professionals, Tom and Mary

O'Hare.

Tom and Mary are just two of the volun-

teers who have spent countless hours help-ing Pam strive to achieve the results that all

of our members expect and deserve.

We now have to ask all the members to

continue to do their part to make The Greenside Grille into a restaurant that is

loved by our members and our community.

Please support our restaurant and

spread the word about your good ex-perience. Word of mouth positive rec-

ommendations are the best form of advertising. Our members will enjoy

our new restaurant,T and we will bene-

fit when it becomes a profit center in

our club.

Treat the staff with respect and remem-

ber that they depend on your generos-ity in tips to earn a living. We have lost

several good staff members throughout this year because some of our members

not abiding by these principles.

Statistics from our website provider

(Cybergolf) show that 166 of our 239 +/- members have email addresses (69%); 135 of those 166 (81%) opened the August newslet-

ter; and 129 of those 166 (78%) opened the

email explaining the changes to the By-laws.

The company providing our Green Book printing has gone out of business. We intend

to put all information on the website and

eliminate printing of the green book.

We still need to find a way to keep those

who do not use the internet informed, keep-

ing in mind that mailings are very expensive.

Please continue to support the Greenside Grille and the club in general. Your sugges-

tions for our continuous improvement are

welcome and appreciated.

4

Golf Season Winding Down BUT

Don’t put your clubs away yet!

Fall is the best time of year to play.

Mark your calendars and plan to attend

these fun fall golf / social events:

September 13th - Ladies Interclub @

Boyne Hidden River Golf Club

September 17th – Boyne Interclub Cou-

ples @ the Heather Golf Course

September 19th – Members Night

September 22nd – VFW outing at IRGC

September 24th – One Person Scram-

ble

September 25th – Chamber of Com-

merce Outing

September 26th – Fall Member / Staff

Scramble

October 2nd – Superintendents Re-

venge – Tough Day!

Support Your Golf Shop

Many members have pro shop

credit that will soon be expiring. I

am reminding you to please come in

and support your golf shop. Now is

a great time to pick up a vest, a

dozen balls or a new glove. Make

sure to use your gift certificate bal-

ance before it expires!

IRGC’s Own

Ryder Cup

Support your

fellow mem-

bers as they

play in the

World Famous IRGC Ryder Cup on

September 15th and 16th. Two

teams of twenty four players

headed by Captains Doug Temple

and Pam Phipps will be dueling head

to head in a bid for the cup.

News From The Pro

Happy Hour in the bar Monday through Thursday

from 4 to 6 PM.

Half off house wines, house liquor and some draft beers.

Come join in the fun.

Yoga Mondays 9:30 AM

Yoga classes at the club will continue on Monday mornings at 9:30 AM until at least mid-October. Come

join us as your life settles down after the busy summer!

Format for play is best ball, alternate

shot and stroke play (just like the real

Ryder Cup tournament being played at

the Medinah Country Club in Medinah,

Illinois, U.S.A.). Come have a cocktail

on the deck and watch these two

teams go head to head! Prime viewing

time is 2:00 PM until 5 PM each day.

5

Wow! Hard to believe how quickly this golf season is

flying by. The weather has been great and thanks to Pat Whitman and crew as well as all our member volun-teers, our golf course is beautiful and in great shape.

Thanks everyone. Our course and grounds just keeps getting better every year.

At the annual meeting last Sunday all of our Greens and Grounds Committee members were thanked for their service all year long. They are John Gibson, chairman,

Patti Brown, Steve Cheli, George Miller, John DeMond, Mike Reardon, Cliff Stanton, Pam Phipps, Doug Temple and Pat Whitman.

It is a pleasure to report that the project for holes #4 and #17 was completed on time and on budget. Special thanks to all the 102 golf and social members whose

financial support made this project possible. Also thanks John DeMond, Cliff Stanton and George Miller for lead-ing this project and especially Pat Whitman who did

such a great job managing this project daily. Special thanks to Patti Brown and all the people who

take special care in keeping our grounds so beautiful. They all received a strong round of applause. The mem-bers who work so hard all season long at their own

expense are: Club House - Donation to help pay for hanging pots,

Linda and Ralph Lindgren Jessie and Bob McFadden: parking lot garden

Mary and Dale Shaw and Ann and Ray Parks: steps to the pro shop

Kathy and Ken Millard: planters on porch Vern and Dick Binder: step entrance to the club house.

Greens and Grounds Committee Meeting

Patsy and Dewitt White and Brent Willison: flag pole gar-

den; Kristina and Dave Moutrie: fairway Hole #1 Sally and Steve Bataran: tee box Hole #3

Terry and Bob Foster, Pat and Bill Bray, Pam and Jerry Lesperance: IRGC sign on Highway 27

Jeff Hamal and Mike Reardon cleaned up the pond gardens on Hole #3.

Sue and Scott McPherson: Hole #6

Carol and George Miller: Hole #7 Karen and Rick Pung and Carol and Gary Freismuth: Hole #8

Sue and Bud Garlick: tee box and Karen and Dave Hill: rock wall garden Hole #9

Karen and Jeff Hamal: Hole #11

Sue and Bob Schultz: Hole #15 Bathroom Planters - Mary Lou and Mike Reardon.

As you can see, there are many opportunities to help. More volunteers are welcome, give Patti Brown a call.

(231-238-8698) Mike Reardon was recognized for reading the distance

from about twelve sprinkler heads to center of green on several holes, and Pat Whitman has placed distance tags on those heads. Thanks Carol Freismuth for your sugges-

tion. Also the Manhattan and Shooters Clubs were thanked for all their landscaping projects this year and in the past. It is very much appreciated.

John Gibson, Greens and Grounds Committee Chairman

It is not well known that we currently have a business membership classification under which a certificate

member can become a business member and then sponsor up to four associate members for annual membership.

The associate member pays only dues and minimums. The business associate does not have to buy a certificate.

Indian River Golf Club wants to promote this in the business community, so we are expanding it. The new Busi-

ness Member Plus will cost $3000 per year and will include a single membership plus $2400 worth of IRGC gift

certificates that can be used in the pro shop or The Greenside Grille. The business owner can use the gift certifi-

cates for employee or customer incentives or gifts. If you have any suggestions or are interested in more details,

contact Larry Lutz.

New Business Membership Plus Being Offered

6

Richmond Golf Club 1940 Temporary Rules

By Hooked on Golf on Saturday, February 19, 2011

1. Players are asked to collect bomb and shrapnel splinters

to save these causing damage to the mowing machines.

2. In competitions, during gunfire or while bombs are fal-ling, players may take cover without penalty for ceasing

play.

3. The positions of known delayed action bombs are marked by red flags at a reasonable, but not guaranteed,

safe distances therefrom.

4. Shrapnel and/or bomb splinters on the fairways or in bunkers within a club’s length of a ball, may be moved

without penalty, and no penalty shall be incurred if a ball

is thereby caused to move accidentally.

5. A ball moved by enemy action may be replaced, or if lost

or destroyed, a ball may be dropped not nearer the hole

without penalty.

6. A ball lying in a crater may be lifted and dropped not

nearer the hole, preserving the line to the hole, without

penalty.

7. A player whose stroke is affected by the simultaneous

explosion of a bomb may play another ball from the

same place. Penalty: one stroke

The Richmond Golf Club is home to a Grade 1, period build-

ing dating back to the early 18th Century. The Mansion was

designed by the renowned architect, James Gibbs, for John

Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll. Construction began in 1715

and was substantially complete in 1720.

Mah Jongg Tournament

This year’s Mah Jongg Tournament on August 14th

was well attended. There were seven tables of four players

which included ten players who were not IRGC members.

They commented that they had a great time playing Mah

Jongg, and that they enjoyed the wonderful food and fun.

They are anxious to play again next year. There were

other requests to play which came in after the registration

deadline which means possibly more participants next year.

The winners from right to left below are first place

Sheila Ashcroft, Second place Diane Burnett and Kathy

Woodrow, Third place. Congratulations for your skillful

play!

There were also prizes for the more difficult hands on

the Mah Jongg card. Carolyn Martin won for completing the

first closed hand, Sheila Ashcroft won for completing a joker-

less hand, and Pam Correll won for completing the first quint

hand. Nice play!

The tournament success was the work of many mem-

bers. Among them are Karen Hamal who made the decora-

tion and needed a crew of volunteers to install them; Pam

Kroeger who fine tuned the game play, especially the compli-

cated rotation of players, and Jessie Mc Fadden who was al-

ways there when needed and was designated timer of the

games. Pam Phipps and Chef John worked with us to provide

a delicious meal with an Asian theme.

Mah Jongg is becoming more and more popular. Any

member who wants to learn this fun game should call Jessie

McFadden at 231-238-7369 for information. Beginners are

welcomed at any time, and Mah Jongg play continues through

the winter at the club.

“Mah Jongg proves to be a bridge connecting

seemingly unlike individuals, spanning

generations, continents and cultures.”

Tough Days On The Golf Course

7

You can play in the 9 hole scramble, enjoy appetizers and entertainment.

The cost for golfing members is their usual cart fee plus $5, and IRGC social members

and guests who want to play golf pay $25 for everything.

Or

You can enjoy appetizers and Mike Ridley’s entertainment only (no golf), costing you only

$5.00

Members and guest must register with the pro shop for this event. Guest’s names and contact

Information are required. If you want to stay and enjoy dinner, please make a reservation.

The purpose of this event is to show

prospective members how fun it is to

belong to IRGC. It is very important

for all golfing and social members to

participate, even if they are unable to

bring a prospective new member. Of

course, it is best if you can bring a

prospect.

8

Carol Wright and Arlene Loca Co-Champions

Jim Wright, Men’s Championship Flight Winner

Carol Freismuth, 1st Flight Women’s Stableford Winner

Steve Reh, Men’s Presidents Cup Winner

Candy Tucker, Women’s President Cup Winner

Jeff Hamal and Charlie Lange (not pictured), 1st Flight Co-Champions

Brian Rappeley, 1st Flight Men’s

Stableford Winner

Joe Balcerowiak and Tony Mercurio, 9

Hole Men’s Stableford Co-Champions

9

Indian River Golf Club

P.O. Box 428

Indian River, MI 49749

231-238-7011

2011Officers:

President: Bob Foster

Vice-President: John Gibson

Secretary: Gary Freismuth

Treasurer: Suzanna Stump

Tee Times 238-7011

Restaurant 238-8515

W E A R E O N T H E W EB !

W WW . I ND I AN R IV ERG OL FCL UB . C O M

Mah Jongg play is Tuesdays

from 10:00 AM to 2:30+ PM. Begin-

ners are welcome. To inquire about

learning the game, contact Jessie

McFadden at 238-7369. There is an

on-going beginner table.

D u p l i c a t e B r i d g e

(Sanctioned) Tuesday night at

6:00 PM. Dinner is at 5:00PM.

Party bridge is Thursdays

from 11:30 AM to 4:00 PM. Lunch

is at 11:30 AM, and bridge starts at

12:30PM.

Euchre is Wednesday at 7 PM.

Call Kevin Clarke at 248-915-5789

to sign-up.

Going South? Remember to up-date your phone num-bers, email and ad-dresses with the office,

if there are any changes, or go on the member only page on

the IRGC web site and update your info on the member profile

page.

Beautiful Brown-eyed Susan's (Rudbeckia

hirta), grace the rock wall garden on hole

nine. Thank you gardeners!