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Camille Furgeson 944 wordsCamif54@ Texas Turfby Camille FurgesonVisit San Antonio often? The multicultural city presents more than just historic sights. San Antonio has a total of 56 courses to choose from—making it one of the top must-visit cities of the country for golfers to visit. La Cantera stands a prime location for residency, shopping, and recreation. The fun doesn’t stop here. Players may choose from two tasteful golf courses—the Westin Resort Course and the Palmer Course—both of which thrive in business, professional pro shop staff, and prime playing turf. While both courses are noteworthy, the Westin Resort Course epitomizes a golfer’s gold mine. Beauty remains an understatement. Golfweek ranks the course at 97th in the nation’s top 100 golf courses.1 Along with layout recognition, the customer service will exceed all expectations. Upon arrival, a guest service attendant loads the clubs on the carts for customers. Nametags are pre-printed on carts for those with reservations. An anonymous customer explains, “I love playing here. Every time I get treated as if I am royalty. They load my clubs, my name is printed on my cart, and I am always impressed by their valet-type service.”2 Eager for a course description? Upon climbing cart paths to the tee boxes, customers are in for a surprise. Panoramic views. Succulent slopes. Brutal bunkers. The course demands proper placement. It’s quite easy to get distracted while overlooking downtown San Antonio, Fiesta Texas, and the emerald green Hill Country. The views alone are well worth the visit. The Golf Channel took note of 75 bunkers, 6 natural water features, and 6 holes on which players can view the city of San Antonio.3 The most famous hole on the course remains hole number 7. A local San Antonio player states, “ Us locals call the hole the fiesta hole because it almost looks as though you can chip a ball through roller coaster tracks of the Fiesta Texas Theme Park.”4 The San Antonio player goes on to say, “The view from the tee box is gorgeous. We stay up there a good 10 minutes before we tee off just to admire the city of San Antonio. I believe this tee box is the best view of San Antonio you can get.”4 As players advance through the hole, the view of Fiesta Texas only gets better. Players may wave to rollercoaster riders as they zip by the green.Upon opening in 1995, the Texas Open committee jumped on the opportunity to hold the historic tournament at this hill country course. The tournament took place from 1995 up until 2008. PGA professionals flew in from all over the world to participate in the annual tournament. A Westin Resort Course employee describes hole 18 to be the signature stadium hole. He states, “I remember when bleachers were set up around the green. It allowed spectators to watch the PGA professionals tie up their final shots.”5 Although the tournament no longer takes place at the course, there are still memories from the annual event. The employee goes on to say, “We preserved an area on the course which we dedicated to the champions of the tournament.”5 The cart path from hole 4 to hole 5 snakes customers up to this area. Grey rocks stand in a circular shapes, displaying the names of the annual champions along with their scores. Slow play frustrates most golfers. An average round usually plays 4 ? to 5 hours. Busy days on the course might result in 6-hour rounds. In order to assure comfortable pace, the course tracks the time on each cart. Players see their pace of play on GPS units attached to their golf carts. Say goodbye to miserable 6-hour rounds. No more waiting. No more frustration. If a cart falls behind pace, the pro shop staff resolves it. Don't forget to stop at the bar to order a swanky designer beverage. Nothing says a day off work like playing a lavish golf course while sipping on a cold one with the boys. An outside service employee describes, “My coworkers and I play almost everyday after we get off work. It is nice to be able to have a group of guys to go out on the course with and take advantage its beauty.”8 The employee goes on to explain, “We get a lot of compliments on the conditions of our course. As employees, we like to play the course and make sure our fairways and greens are always kept up well.”8 With the water restrictions and season changes, it’s not easy to keep a course in good condition. Mother nature has a way of throwing curve balls at superintendents. The weather in Texas withholds a bipolar personality. In order to keep a course well tamed, superintendents must remain focused on their course’s conditions. On the course website, the director of agronomy, Jeff Kadlec, describes the importance of “doing more with less.”9 He goes on to say, “It helps us keep costs down and can create excellent playing surfaces.?Firm and fast is a great way to play golf, but lush green is neither firm nor fast.??All of us here in the maintenance department are constantly trying to give you the best of both worlds.??Like you, green is still my favorite color.”9 The Westin Resort at La Cantera exemplifies luxury. Prime turf. Professional staff. A memorable round. This course remains a must see for golf enthusiasts. After finishing an afternoon of perusing The Shops at La Cantera, stop by to see what all the fuss is about—it’s well worth the trip.-00-Sidebar“I’ll Ride, She’ll Walk!”No more worries about entertaining the wife and kids while you play golf! The Westin Resort at La Cantera offers beautiful nature trails that snake through the golf course. A San Antonio couple describes, “We love it. While my husband plays golf, I am able to exercise. The trails are challenging to walk, but the scenery is unlike any other nature trail in San Antonio. We love this course!”6With multiple trails to choose from, each provides a breathtaking view atop of the Hill Country. It is quickly notable to leave the nature undisturbed. The resort takes pride in preserving the life along the trails. The resort website describes, “With its range of topography and climbing to ?at surfaces, the nature course accommodates all skill levels: experienced trail runners, walkers and nature enthusiasts who prefer to stroll the course reading about the ?ora and fauna of the Texas Hill Country.”7Endnote "Golfweek's Best Resort Courses 2013 | Golf News at Golfweek."?Web. 7 October 2013. Anonymous customer, interview by Camille Furgeson, The Westin Resort Course,San Antonio TX, 6 October 2013. "La Cantera Resort - The Resort Course."?San Antonio. The Golf Channel, Web. 8October 2013. Anonymous local San Antonio player, interview by Camille Furgeson, The WestinResort Course, San Antonio TX, 6 October 2013. Anonymous employee, interview by Camille Furgeson, The Westin Resort Course,San Antonio TX, 6 October, 2013. Anonymous couple (wife), interview by Camille Furgeson, The Westin Resort Course, San Antonio TX, 6 October 2013. "Experience the Scenic."?Westin Resort La Cantera. Web. 10 October 2013. Anonymous outside service employee, interview by Camille Furgeson, The Westin Resort Course, San Antonio TX, 6 October, 2013.9. Kadlec, Jeff. "Agronomy Corner."?San Antonio Texas Golf Course. 10 October 2013Image Captions1. Hole 7. Greenside view of a Six Flags Fiesta Texas famous attraction.2. Hole 1. Welcome sign on the entryway to the La Cantera Nature Trail.3. Hole 2. Tee box aside a body of water.4. One of 6 natural water features on the course.5. College coach, Rob Lee from the University of the Incarnate Word finds a logo ball while looking for a player’s errant shot on hole 1. 6. The Champions Ridge, home of the Texas Open winners. Memory stones are placed with champion’s names and scores from the Texas Open tournament.7. Hole 7. Fairway view of Six Flags Fiesta Texas8. Hole 7. Panoramic view of San Antonio.9. The Westin Resort Golf Course is one of the highest locations for a view of San Antonio.*All picture were taken by Camille FurgesonCamille A. Furgeson7 October 2013Nancy Gibbs, EditorForbes Magazine 60 5th AvenueNew York, NY 10011Phone (212) 366-8900Dear Mrs. Gibbs,There are 56 golf courses in San Antonio, but there is only one course that stands in the nations top 100—The Westin Resort Course at La Cantera.Located in the emerald green hill country, this course thrives in professional pro shop staff, customer service, and prime playing turf. Course designers Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish opened their masterpiece in 1995. Since then, the Texas Open has been held there and the course has made a name for itself due to it’s talented superintendent.As a collegiate San Antonio golf coach with access to staff and customers input, I propose writing an article for your lifestyle section. This piece would average in the typical 850-1,000 word range. Photos will also be included of the panoramic views of San Antonio--from downtown to the Fiesta Texas Theme Park. Upon assignment, I could produce this piece in the time frame of 4 weeks.Thank you for your consideration.Best,Camille A. FurgesonCamif54@(916) 531-4897 ................
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