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A Brief History of Golf in the United States Golf in America is considered the best in the world. They have many of the best golf courses, and a good number of the top ranked golfers are in the US. The history of golf in the US dates back to the late 19th century as the first US golf courses were established.Among the first golf courses was the Oakhurst Golf Club which had some of the first golf holes in the US. Today, the oldest golf course in the USA is that of Fox-burg Country Club, a 9-hole public course in Pennsylvania opened in 1887. This golf course was designed by Joseph Fox, an American who had visited St An-drews, and aimed to bring the game to America. The golf course itself is America’s home of golf.The first Major to begin in the US was that of the US Open. The US Open began in 1895 at the Newport Country Club of Rhode Island. The first winner of this golf championship was an English golfer, and it was not until 1911 that J McDermott became the first US golfer to win the US Open.PGA professional golf in America began in 1916 when the PGA of America was founded. The PGA of America was founded by Robert White. It also marked the beginning

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of the PGA Championship which was first won by Jim Barnes.The last of the four Majors was established during the 1930s. With the opening of the Augusta National golf course in Georgia the US Masters was first staged as the Augusta Invitational in 1934. This was then later re-

named to the US Masters.The 1960s was a golden era for US golf as some great US golfers emerged. Palmer was one such who was the top ranked US golfer in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s. However, the emergence of Nicklaus saw the Majors of the ‘60s keenly contested, particularly at the Masters. Nicklaus would go on to win a record 18 Majors with the final win at Augusta during the 1980s.The emergence of Woods in the 1990s

saw another great US golfer win their first Major titles. In the 2000s Woods started to dominate the golf Ma-jors, winning all four of the Majors in a row. With such dominance Woods has remained at the top of the golf rankings since, and won 14 Majors in total.So today, golf in America is one of the nations favorite sports with most of the golf championships of the PGA Tour in the USA. US golfers dominate the sport, and like baseball America considers the game to be one of their own. From Pebble Beach in California to Augusta National golf course in Georgia, golf is America’s sport.

HISTORY OF GOLF— Continued


1. 125,000 golf balls a year are hit into the water at the famous 17th hole of the Stadium Course at Sawgrass.2. The longest drive ever is 515 yards. The longest putt ever is a monstrous 375 feet.3. The chances of making two holes-in-one in a round of golf are one in 67 million.4. Tiger Woods snagged his first ace at the tender age of eight years old.5. Balls travel significantly further on hot days. 6. The longest golf course in the world is the par 77 International Golf Club in Massachusetts.7. The highest golf course in the world is the Tactu Golf Club in Morococha, Peru, which sits 14,335 feet above sea level at its lowest point. 8. The longest golf hole in the world is the 7th hole (par 7) of the Sano Course at the Satsuki Golf Club in Japan. It measures an incredible 909 yards. 9. 22.8% of golfers are women.10. The youngest golfer to shoot a hole-in-one was Coby Orr, who was five years old at the time.

GOLF TRIVIA


2014 College National Finals Rodeo June 15 - 21, 2014 ...............................................................2014 Central WY Fair & RodeoJuly 4 - 12, 2014 - see ad on page 11 ...............................................................2014 Converse County 4-H/FFA FairJuly 18 - 25, 2014 - see ad on page 13 ...............................................................2014 Cheyenne Frontier DaysJuly 18 - 27, 2014 ...............................................................

2014 Goshen County FairJuly 24 - Aug 3, 2014 ...............................................................2014 Platte County Fair & RodeoJuly 30 - Aug 4, 2014 ...............................................................2014 WY State Fair & RodeoAug 10 - 17, 2014 - see ad on page 15...............................................................


June 15-21, 2014

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HistoryThe first 50 years of the NIRAAt a meeting on November 6th, 1948, in Alpine, Texas, twelve schools came together to discuss the creation of the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Asso-ciation. Decided at that meeting was the need for a constitution, which was then established at a second meeting held in February 1949.Hank Finger, then Sul Ross State Universities Rodeo Club President and chairman of the constitutional committee, worked with that committee on devel-oping eligibility guidelines, scholastic standards, and rodeo structure. The committee created a format for intercollegiate rodeo that would remain consistent throughout the country and provide national recog-nition for their constituents.At the first NIRA National Convention on April 14-15, 1949, in Denver, Colorado, final approval of the constitution was granted, fees were accepted, and rules and regulations were finalized. Three re-gions were formed; Southern, Northwest, and Rocky Mountain. Pro-tem president Charles Rankin was elected NIRA president. There were thirteen mem-ber schools at this time, representing Colorado, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming, and Texas.August 1949 marked the official, legal birth of NIRA when they filed for non-profit status. The first Col-

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The History of the CentralWyoming Fair and RodeoOne of the best ways to experience the commu-nity spirit of any town is to check out the local fair. Folks and families coming together for exhi-bitions and competitions of all sorts. And let’s not forget those thrill-seekers who will ride any car-nival ride that spins around, shoots up in the air or plunges toward the earth! In 1904 the town of Casper, then just 15 years old, held its first fair on record. The state-wide cel-ebration, known as the Industrial Convention was organized, and all surrounding counties were invited to contribute to the exhibitions.Without a permanent fairgrounds, Casper’s earli-est fairs and rodeos were held in many different places. It’s believed that there were rodeo events hosted in the Garden Creek and Mountain View areas, and in 1914 the first annual County Fair was held...well, somewhere! Sept. 23-25. Even


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the 3rd floor of the Natrona County High School was used to showcase fair exhibits. The first rodeo was produced by Leo Cramer of Big Timber, MT, and he later formed a partnership with Harry Knight, pro-ducing the rodeo in Casper for several years. After a time, Harry Knight was partnered with the legendary Gene Autry, and finally, took over producing rodeo without a partner.In 1947, the Central Wyoming Fair and Rodeo finally found a home! Along with the excitement of the ro-deo, the fair’s early years offered up shows with acts like Stan Volera on the Sway Pole, The Pribels, Out-standing Circus Clowns (1953) and “Henry’s Liberty Ponies” (1957). Entertainment ranged from cowboy crooners “The Sons of the Pioneers” (1953) to country boy Eddie Arnold (1966) to “The Rajun Cajun” Doug Kershaw in 1975. And every carnival pulled folks in with food, games and thrilling rides with names like Mad Mouse, Super Twister and Zipper!Over 60 years later, that community spirit continues. The PRCA showcases many of the rodeo greats from the College National Finals Rodeo. The exhibits from the 4-H and FFA folks keep the tradition of excellence in showmanship alive. And Crabtree Amusements Carnival delivers rides from the tame to the blood-tin-gling! No matter what the next sixty years brings, the Central Wyoming Fair and Rodeo will still be bringing families together.

Central Wyoming Fair & Rodeo History—Continued


To really appreciate the history of the Wyoming State Fair, one needs to take a trip through the Pioneer museum located on the fairgrounds, dig through the files at the library, and more importantly, visit with the Old Timers. These State Fair pioneers will tell you some of the most wonderful stories surrounding the events and the years at the Fair with a warmth and feel-ing lost in printed words.The Wyo-ming State Fair had its roots back as early as 1886 in an event called the First Annual Wyoming Ter-ritorial Fair con-ducted by the Board of Trustees of the Wyoming Fair Association. The original 80 acre site is lost to history but was somewhere along the old Cheyenne and Northern Railroad right-of-way, near Chey-enne. This must have continued for at least 4 years as there is mention of this event taking

place as late as 1890. In 1901, the Wyoming Industrial Convention was held in Laramie. Then it was on to Sheri-dan and finally to a very lavish show in Casper in 1904. The 1904 show ended with a resolution for the establishment of a permanent fair. After several political battles, Douglas won the nomi-nation with the passage of a bill in the 1905 Leg-

islative session and an appro-priation of $10,000 for the two-year period.With the $10,000, the Fair had to secure land, erect buildings and pay premi-ums and other expenses. The people of Douglas guaranteed the Fair and with this, plans for

the 1905 Fair began. Nearly all of the $10,000 was used in the preliminary work and it was necessary for the people of Douglas to sub-scribe the money necessary for the running


lege National Finals Rodeo was held the same year in San Francisco, California. The first NIRA All Around Champion crowned that year was Harley May of Sul Ross State University.Entering into the 60s, the Sikes family led college rodeo into consistent membership growth and the television boom. The 1962 College National Finals Rodeo appeared on ABC’s Wide World of Sports. NBC aired the 1965 finals, and ABC, again aired the event in 1967. Rodeo at this time was experiencing a huge growth in several arenas, professional and col-lege, the television airtime was a welcomed partner in the growth. Member schools totaled 97 in 1966.Over the years, NIRA’s history has read like a Who’s Who in the sport of rodeo. Roy Cooper, Chris LeDoux, Ty Murray, Tuff Hedeman, Dan Mortens-en, and many more, are all champions in college ro-deo, as well as professional rodeo. They have added to the success of college rodeo, and created some of it’s rich western history.Preserving Western heritage through collegiate ro-deo”, has been a theme repeated over the course of fifty years. Today these efforts are being made through over 100 college rodeos a year, over 3,500 student members annually and 137 member schools and universities. College rodeo has yet to its peak. What will the next fifty years offer?

NIRA—Continued


Welcome to Glenrock WY.....Exit 160 & 165

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of the State Fair. A race track costing $5,000 and billed as the Best Track in the State, a mod-est grandstand and an Art Hall were built. The mer-chants of Douglas donated $3,000, enough money to begin building the Agriculture Hall, which was finished in 1913 and is still in use today as the Administration Building and Directors Office. The Midwest Review in 1925, published by the Midwest Refining company, stat-ed that $40,000 was appropriated for the operation of the Fair on a two-year basis but This will not be ample to provide for any new buildings which are sadly need-ed because the Fair is growing to greater proportions. By 1925, the Ag Hall had been erected, the Art Hall enlarged and remodeled and the wooden grandstand replaced by a steel grandstand. An exhibit pavilion for horses, cattle and sheep had been built. It was equipped to care for the wants and needs of the exhibitor in a much better manner than the first Fair. The early camp at the Fair consisted of tents set up military style, with a military call to rise and sleep with the raising and low-ering of the flag.

WYO STATE FAIR HISTORY—Continued

WELCOME TO WHEATLAND, WYOMINGI-25 Exit 78 and 80

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1. Homeownership Builds Wealth Over TimeWe were always taught growing up that owning a home is a financially savvy move. Our par-ents knew it, and their parents knew it. But this past decade of real estate turbulence has shaken everyone’s confidence in homeownership. That is why it’s so important that we discuss this again now that we’re in a ‘new market.’ Homeownership can be a very savvy financial move – but only if people buy homes they can actually afford. In 2014, this idea of sticking to a home you can afford to gradually build wealth is a “rule” that just happens to be new and old at the same time.

2. You Build Equity Every MonthYour equity in your home is the amount of money you can sell it for minus what you still owe on it. Every month you make a mortgage payment, and every month a por-tion of what you pay reduces the amount you owe. That reduction of your mortgage every month increases your equity. That is especially true now with the elimination

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of risky mortgages like negative amortized and interest-only loans – thanks to the new “Qualified Mortgage” rules. The way mortgages work is that the principal por-tion of your payment increases slightly every month year after year. It’s lowest on your first payment and highest on your last payment. Thus, as the months and years go by, your equity grows!

3. You Reap Mortgage Tax DeductionBenefits Mortgage deduction: The tax code allows homeowners to deduct the mortgage interest from their tax obligations. For many people this is a huge deduction, since interest payments can be the largest component of your mortgage payment in the early years of owning a home.Some closing cost deductions: The first year you buy your home, you are able to claim the points (also called origi-nation fees) on your loan, no matter whether they are paid by you or the seller. And because origination fees of 1 per-cent or more are common, the savings are considerable.Property tax is deductible: Real estate property taxes paid on your primary residence and a vacation home are fully deductible for income tax purposes.

Benefits of Being a Home Owner

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BENEFITS— Continued

4. Tax Deductions on Home Equity LinesIn addition to your mortgage interest, you can deduct the interest you pay on a home equity loan (or line of credit). This allows you to shift your credit card debts to your home equity loan, pay a lower interest rate than the hor-rendously exorbitant credit card interest rates, and get a deduction on the interest as well.

5. You Get a Capital Gains ExclusionIf you buy a home to live in as your primary residence for more than two years then you will qualify. When you sell, you can keep profits up to $250,000 if you are single, or $500,000 if you are married, and not owe any capital gains taxes. Now, it may sound ridiculous that your house could be worth more than when you purchased it after these past several years of falling house prices. However, if you purchased your home anytime prior to 2003, chances are it has appreciated in value and this tax benefit will come in very handy.

6. A Mortgage Is Like a Forced Savings PlanPaying that mortgage every month and reducing the amount of your principal is like a forced savings plan. Each month you are building up more valuable equity in your home. In a sense, you are being forced to save—and that’s a good thing.


7. Long Term, Buying Is Cheaper than RentingIn the first few years, it may be cheaper to rent. But over time, as the interest portion of your mortgage payment decreases, the interest that you pay will eventually be lower than the rent you would have been paying. But more importantly, you are not throwing away all that money on rent. You gotta live someplace, so instead of paying off your landlord’s home or building, pay off your own!

8. Here is one measure which will take a few years before you can reap its benefits. Plant a few leafy trees on the side of your house with the most sun. During the sum-mer the trees provide shade and in the winter after they shed their leaves, they let the warming sun rays through.

9. This energy saving tip may not affect the temperature control of your house but definitely affects your total en-ergy consumption. When not in use, unplug your elec-trical appliances, TV sets and DVD players and so on. These electrical home gadgets, even if they are switched off but still plugged in, consume considerable amount of energy. In the state of California, the total amount of electricity required to power the switched off appliances, when they are showing just the time of day and perhaps fancy display screens, consume the equivalent output of one coal powered station. That’s a lot of energy we can all save and help clean the environment.


Follow These Energy Conserva-tion Tips And Save Your Money! Aside from the obvious benefit of saving money, running an energy efficient home benefits us all in the greater community. We reduce global warming and help keep our dollars in the country as supposed to sending them to often unsavory regimes overseas. Even if we implement just a few of the listed tips, the savings will be substantial and oneâ€™s satisfaction even greater.Temperature Control of Your HomeHeating and cooling accounts for approximately about 2/3 of your energy costs. Implementing just a few energy saving tips in this area will have a big impact on your energy bill.1.Install ceiling fans. They effectively supplement or may even serve as an alternative to air conditioning. They generally use very little electricity. To make them more effective, adjust your fan so that it is blowing air downwards.2. Install a programmable thermostat. Set it to lower the heat by a few degrees at night and when you are away. Raise the temperature of the AC when you have left for the day. You can save even more money if during your absence you switch off your AC alto-gether. Make sure that you turn the AC back on well ahead before your return. It may take a while

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Decide how much you can spend.For a convenient worksheet, go to pueblo.gsa.gov.

Check your credit reports to find out your status.Your credit report affects a lender’s willingness to give you a loan, and if there’s a mistake that nega-tively impacts you, you can try to correct it.

Get an idea of how much you can borrow.Real estate agents and lenders can help with this, or use one of the mortgage calculators on the Web (such as on bloomberg.com).

Shop for a mortgage lender.Look for the best rates and terms and a good-faith estimate of closing costs.

Consider getting preapproved for a loan.You won’t waste time looking at houses you can’t afford. Plus, a preapproval letter will demonstrate your viability as a buyer (a good edge, when you bid on a house, if there are multiple offers), and you’ll save time once a bid is accepted.

Find a real estate agent.An agent, who will be paid by the seller, can do a lot of the legwork for you. To find an agent, ask friends and family, interview several candidates (make sure they’re licensed and have access to Multiple Listing Service). Decide who you’re most comfortable with, and contact references if possible.

Research potential neighborhoods.Investigate issues like crime rate, schools, local ser-vices, proximity to museums or other institutions that are important to you, commuting distance, eth-nic diversity, and property taxes.

Make a list of features you want in a house.Divide it into must-haves and like-to-haves.

Go house hunting.Read the newspaper real-estate section, check out online sources (like realtor.com), go to open houses, and use your agent. Print out a checklist of things to look for in each home you tour at hud.gov.Make an offer.But it should be contingent on the results of a home inspection and your ability to secure a mortgage.

Get an inspection.To find a qualified inspector, ask for recommenda-tions, or search for a certified inspector at nachi.org. Ask for and check references.

Consult a lawyer if you desire, or if it’s required in your state.An attorney will help you decide whether you want to proceed with the deal, before signing a contract.Related: Do You Need a Lawyer to Buy or Sell a Home?

Start organizing for your move.Once the sale is final, use the Moving Checklist to help you hire movers, order supplies, and pack up your belongings.

Home BuyingChecklist

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issue 4

Documents

us golf courses

golf balls

golf holes

golf championships

professional golf

golf rankings

round of golf

oldest golf course