Volunteers Needed for the Northern New Yorker

Volunteers will be needed for the Northern New York Women's Golf Tournament which will be hosted by the Saranac Lake Golf Club on Tuesday, July 30th. The event is expected to draw 90-to-100 competitors with teams from Saranac Lake, Canton, Craig Wood, Gouverneur, Malone, Massena, Ogdensburg, Potsdam, and Tupper Lake. Volunteers are needed to serve as spotters on the course, setting up for breakfast, lunch and dinner, registration, setup prior to the event, typists, someone able to make multiple photocopies, and more. Please contact Peg Kelly or see Tony in the clubhouse if you would like to volunteer.

The Northern New Yorker began in 1931 as a women's competition between the golf clubs in Malone, Massena, Ogdensburg and Potsdam. In 1935, Canton and Gouverneur entered the competition. Tupper Lake joined in 1941. Ogdensburg would drop out in 1937, but rejoined in 1953 - the same year Saranac Lake entered the competition. Each team takes a turn hosting the event, which means this is the first time Saranac Lake has had home course advantage in 9 years.

The tournament was originally match play, but switched to a stroke play format in 1935, the scoring system that is still used today. There are 6 woman teams with 1st and 2nd Alternates, a Senior and/or Super-Senior, and possibly a Junior participant. Juniors were added to the tournament format in 1968 as a means of retaining interest in the event and women's golf in general.

The tournament is run by an executive committee which consists of a member from each of the participating clubs. A chairperson is elected every 3 years. Each club pays a $100 entry fee to cover the host club's costs of running the tournament, including administrative costs and prizes. Each member of the winning team wins a special prize while prizes are also awarded for low gross and low net scores.

Kathy Lawrence of Canton set the tournament record for gross score in 1981 with a 69. Andrea Maxon of Canton shot a 74 in 2005 to become the youngest medalist at the age of 17. Marla Rawlins became the oldest medalist in 1989 with an 83 at the age of 73.

All members of the participating clubs are issued courtesy cards that allow them to play at any of the participating clubs in lieu of greens fees. Lifetime courtesy cards are issued to anyone who participates for 20 years.

This event is certainly the highlight of the calendar for the 2013 season at the Saranac Lake Golf Club. Please support the event in any way that you can!