A ROUND OF hearty golf claps are in order for Sequim golfer Scott Aughtry after Aughtry placed fifth overall with a best drive of 321 yards at the 2018 edition of The ParaLong Drive Cup, held March 7-8 at the Mesquite Sports & Event Complex in Mesquite, Nev.
The event brings the top golfers with disabilities from across the country to compete for the top prize; this year’s winner was Mike Gays, a golfer/below-knee amputee, who took top honors with a 358-yard drive.
Aughtry, 34, is a legally blind golfer and veteran of the U.S. Air Force. He was diagnosed a decade ago with autoimmune retinopathy, which left him with only 7 percent of his eyesight.
He’s won the American Blind Golf Organization national championship four times and the world title twice. He’s also been the disabled Ryder Cup Captain and champion.
Aughtry is raising funds for his 2018 tournament schedule at www.gofundme.com/blindworlds.
Proceeds will go toward three national championship and one world championship events.
“My goal is to raise funds for my 2018 schedule to continue to motivate everyone who sees me play, inspire those with disabilities to give golf a shot and to serve my blind and disabled community the best I know how,” Aughtry said.
The Gut Buster
The Gut Buster, the toughest tournament of the year at SkyRidge Golf Course in Sequim, will be held Saturday.
Tee times begin at 9 a.m., barring a frost delay.
The Gut Buster is an individual medal play event with men under 65 playing from the Black tees (6,529 yards); men 65 and older from the 6,146-yard Green tees, while women’s golfers will tee it up from the Silver tee boxes (5,772 yards).
There will be two pin placements on every green except for No. 9 and No. 18.
Entry fee is $70 and includes green fees, three KP holes, a long putt contest on the 18th hole, range balls, a honey pot and a surf-and-turf lunch of steak and shrimp.
Golfers also receive a practice round Friday as part of the event.
Carts are $15 per seat.
To get in on the fun, call SkyRidge at 360-683-3673.
Go Big next Saturday
Cedars at Dungeness in Sequim will host its fifth annual Spring GO BIG Golf Tournament, a one-person scramble, with a 9 a.m. shotgun start Saturday, March 31.
Everything about the tournament is big: all 18 holes will have 8-inch cups and footlong hot dogs and 22 ounce beers, sodas and waters will be served.
The cost is $70 for the public, $47 for members and employees, and includes green fees, competition, food and range balls.
There are Callaway, Gross and Net divisions.
For more information, call 360-683-6344.
Sneddon ace
Edmonds’ Scott Sneddon recorded his first-ever hole-in-one last Saturday at the Cedars at Dungeness.
Sneddon aced the 149-yard 11th hole using a pitching wedge and a Titleist ball.
There were three witnesses, all from the Seattle area, but their signatures were not readable.
Tilghman leaves
Kelly Tilghman, the first female broadcaster to anchor PGA Tour coverage, signed off Sunday after hosting the trophy presentation at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill.
Tilghman spent 22 years as a Golf Channel employee, first learning of the network from then-intern Scott Van Pelt (of ESPN Sportscenter fame) and working her way up from the library to on-air host status.
She also would serve as an on-course analyst (she played college golf at Duke) before getting the shot to host early round PGA Tour rounds with Nick Faldo as her announcing partner in 2007.
Tilghman is a trailblazer for women’s broadcasters, but she also made one big mistake in early 2008.
During a tour stop in Hawaii, Tilghman and Faldo were discussing how young players should take on the challenge of beating world No. 1 Tiger Woods, and Faldo suggested that, “maybe they should just gang up [on him] for a while.”
“Lynch him in a back alley,” Tilghman replied.
The outcry to Tilghman’s racially insensitive remark was swift and harsh. There were calls for her dismissal from the Rev. Al Sharpton and others. Tilghman apologized directly to Woods, and his agent issued a statement saying it was a non-issue. To squelch the criticism, Golf Channel suspended her for two weeks but otherwise stood by her.
Besides her golf duties, Tilghman later hosted Olympic sports coverage for NBC.
For more details on her departure, visit tinyurl.com/PDN-TilghmanLeaves.
