Sixty years ago this week, I played 100 holes of golf in one day

By JOHN KRAFT

Guest Columnist

In June of every year, I reminisce how lucky I was as a child to grow up in Noblesville during the 1950s and early 1960s, when life was simple and kids had a chance to be kids and enjoy summers in a safe, nurturing atmosphere in a friendly Midwestern farm town.

It was during this time when I was small boy, a good friend of mine introduced me to golf at Forest Park. I was 13 years old. Soon, I was hooked! During the summer I had to balance my farm chores, mowing lawns, and playing golf. I loved the game.

Now, when I look back to those wonderful times on that old nine-hole course, I smile and remember a very special day during the third week of June one year … the day I played 100 holes at Forest Park!

I chose June 20, 1961, a Tuesday, the day before the Summer Solstice: the longest daylight of the year.

Monday night, I selected just a few clubs to carry in what was known as a “Sunday bag” – a light canvas bag, a couple of golf gloves, tees and about four or five golf balls, nothing else. I chose a putter, 3, 5, 7, and 9 iron, a wedge, and a 2-wood. Back then I hit a 2-wood off the tee as well as in the fairway. It was my “secret weapon.”

I didn’t sleep much that night and 4 a.m. quickly came. My mother took me to the golf course as my father, an obstetrician, had left in the middle of the night to deliver a baby at Riverview Hospital.

We arrived at Forest Park just before sunrise. My tee shot on number one split the two bunkers and the magic was about to begin! I was so happy walking down the first fairway. I was on top of the world. All I had to do was to get to my ball and hit the next shot. Life was good!

There were no golfers out early that Tuesday morning, so by 9:30 I had played 36 holes and was feeling confident about my pace. But then, the course began to fill up more than I anticipated with out-of-town golfers. This was strange, as it was a regular weekday and the only other weekday with heavier than normal play was Wednesday when the local merchants closed downtown shops and came out to play golf together in large groups. However, some organization from Indianapolis was having a “retreat” in Forest Park and a bunch of “duffers” were invading the course! Despite this, I did manage to finish 45 holes by 11:45 and tried to get in line to tee off once more on the first tee. But there was a long list of groups ahead of me.

And then, just as my heart began to sink, our local golf pro, Red Robison, steps to the first tee and tells the group that is about to tee off that “this little fella is on his way to play 100 holes of golf today, so I want you gentlemen to let him go ahead and tee off in front of you … he won’t hold you up, I promise you!” And so, I teed off ahead of them!

Well, the word spread quickly that this little blonde head kid who was walking and carrying a white canvas bag was playing 100 holes today, so when he gets behind you, let him play through! It was almost like a Disney movie … men I had never met were shouting encouraging comments to me from other fairways and groups of golfers consistently let me play through them. By 4:30 I was on schedule having played 72 holes.

The late afternoon sun was very warm, yet I did manage to finish my 81^st hole by 5:45 and make the turn to tee off on the 82^nd by 5:50 p.m. When I finished the 90^th hole and sprinted to the first tee to begin the 91^st hole, there were several folks there offering their support. It was a thrill for me. I hit the best drive of the day and did not look back. Picked up my bag and jogged down the first fairway. It was 7:20 p.m.

I quickly finished the nine holes as dusk set in. I had now played 99 holes. Since the last hole at Forest Park is an up the hill Par 3, I ran back down to hit a 9 iron back up to the green. However, the greens keeper had turned on the sprinklers on number 8 green and the ninth tee was in line with the water spray. So, I had to time my tee shot in between water bursts! When I hit my shot up the hill to the ninth green, I was soaking wet, but I couldn’t have cared less! My ball landed slightly to the right of the pin. Once on the green, I two-putted for par on the 100^th hole!

It was 8:55 as I walked off the green of the 100^th hole. I was greeted by my mom and dad, my Uncle Larry Richardson, Red Robison, his wife Ruth, and son Rick and Billy Elder. Earlier in the day, Andy Richardson, Joe Butler and Donny Powell had been there and offered very friendly encouragement.

I really felt good about what I had just done. I must admit, it really was a lot of fun!

In the next few years, I went on to play golf in high school, at Georgetown College and Butler University, where I set a low scoring school record in 1967. However, when I look back on my life when golf meant “everything” to me, there is one accomplishment that is uppermost in the vault of my many golf memories: That one day, 60 years ago this week, when at age 15, I played 100 holes in one day while walking and carrying my clubs!

John Kraft is a fifth-generation native of Noblesville and occasionally plays golf, but only on cool, cloudy windy days in Tallahassee, Fla. He can be reached at jhkraft@msn.com.

Images courtesy John Kraft