John Denver and Golf; the Story of the Golf Ball in the Middle of Ocean Avenue: On the day John Denver died, October 12, 1997, he played golf earlier that day at Spyglass Hill near Carmel. Here is an article that appeared in the Monterey County Herald newspaper on September 26, 2007 that tells the story: A way to honor memory of John Denver Montery Herald, 2007-09-26 By JERRY STEWART - Herald Correspondent Novato resident Neal Rogin remembers it like it was yesterday. On Oct. 12, 1997, Rogin and friends Bill Twist and Jim Linan and musician John Denver spent the afternoon playing golf at Spyglass Hill Golf Course. It was the first day of a planned two-day golf outing. Afterward, the group all agreed that they would meet later for dinner in Carmel. John had said that he was going to take his new experimental airplane (a Long EZ) up for a spin before sunset, Rogin said. He said he wanted to buzz Clint Eastwoods house to show off his new toy. Later that evening, Rogin, Twist and Linan all had dinner, but Denver didnt show up. During Denvers flight, the engine had failed, causing his plane to crash just off the coast of Monterey Bay. I remember that on our way back to the car after dinner that night, something rather strange happened, Rogin said. As we were walking across Ocean Avenue, we noticed a golf ball sitting in the very middle of the street. Bill, who was one of Johns closest friends, picked it up. It was a brand new Titleist 100, the kind of ball that John always used. We thought it was strange and wondered where it came from, but thought little more about it at the time. We found out the tragic news when we were watching the news later that night. To this day, I still dont know if that golf ball meant anything. Ten years later, Rogin, Twist and Linan are returning to Spyglass Hill. On Sunday, Oct. 14, the trio and 17 others will play the course in honor of Denver, who prior to his death had become a regular at events such as the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and the Bob Hope Celebrity Classic. Each year since Denvers death, Rogin, Twist, Linan and other friends have informally gathered at various venues in Northern California for what has become the John Denver Memorial Tournament. Because it is the tenth anniversary, the group decided to return to one of Denvers favorite spots. Its a way to keep his memory alive, Rogin said. Playing golf amid the beauty of nature is one of the things he most loved, and he really loved the Monterey Peninsula. Neal Rogin added to this story in an e-mail he sent to me: Bill Twist tells the story more like this: We came out of the restaurant and Bill found the golf ball, a Titleist 100, the kind that Bill was using that day at Spyglass with John and I and Jim Linan. All that day, it became a kind of joke that John would find Bills ball in the rough, out of bounds, in the trees. And each time John would yell out Here it is Bill, Titleist 100! So when he found that ball, Bill picked it and looked around. Was John there playing a joke? We did not know at the time what had happened. Only that night on the midnight news did we find out.
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 21:41:00 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015