VERO BEACH — As a lark two years ago, four local businessmen with a penchant for the game decided to test their mettle by playing 72 holes of golf – walking the course at four different golf clubs – while carrying their own bags.
The players – Darren Sylvia, COO/CFO at Construction Data Company; Michael Hauser, owner of Back in Form Physical Therapy; Andrew Hartline, senior vice president at Northern Trust Bank, and David Haller, vice president of North American sales and marketing for Greene River Marketing, pulled it off – and enjoyed the experience enough to attempt it again.
“Last time we hadn’t done this for charity and people thought we were crazy,” laughs Hartline. “The first thing people asked was, “Is it for charity?” When we said no, they thought we were really crazy.”
Two charities will benefit from their powerful drives this time.
Sylvia chose the Education Foundation, where he serves on the board, and the other three accepted donations to the Indian River Golf Foundation, where Hauser is a board member.
“The foundation raises money for kids to play golf who wouldn’t otherwise play,” said Hauser. “We help people have access to golf and teach them to play responsibly.”
They credit (or perhaps blame) Hauser for initially reading about and introducing them to the 72 Club concept.
Most 72 Club players do it just at their home club. “We thought we would mix it up a bit and play at four courses,” he said. “I sent an email out to a bunch of friends and these guys were the only ones as crazy as I am. The others just said, ‘What?'”
“It’s just sort of a proud thing to say that you’ve done,” said Sylvia. “It’s been done around the country and we decided to do it ourselves.”
As dawn broke over the horizon Wednesday morning, the self-professed golf fanatics teed off at the Vero Beach Country Club where Hauser is a member, and played next at Bent Pine Golf Club where Sylvia and Hartline are members. Riomar Country Club followed, and they sank their last putts at The Moorings Club. The Indian River Club, where Haller is currently club champion, was not in the mix.
Sylvia extended heartfelt thanks to the clubs for allowing them to accomplish their goal saying, “It’s an odd thing for a group to ask if they could clear a path for us.”
Armed with Gatorade and protein bars, the foursome tramped through the wet grass, toting carry/stand golf bags, lightened as the day progressed by clubs abandoned in car trunks.
“Last time, by the time we got to the Moorings we had about four clubs,” laughed Hauser.
“I added it up,” said Sylvia. “The average course length is 6,500 yards. That’s about 20 to 25 miles by the time you add them all together, and we’re carrying 15 pounds.”
It’s a summertime event despite the heat. “You need a lot of sunlight; playing 14 hours you’re going to run out of sunlight in the winter,” said Sylvia.
“Yesterday we were panicking a little that we wouldn’t be able to play, but Debby has been good to us,” said Hauser, referencing the tropical storm. “We’ve gotten lucky. It’s been nice having some breeze and a little mist.”
“We teed off at 6:05 this morning at the Vero Beach Country Club and it didn’t rain a drop there,” agreed Hartline. “We teed off at 9:10 at Bent Pine and it misted a bit.”
The threat of bad weather had the added advantage of scaring others off the course, so their play wasn’t held up.
Wednesday’s blustery winds were far superior to the 100-degree heat they suffered through last time.
“We’re keeping pace pretty good,” said Sylvia, as the foursome teed off at the breathtaking Riomar Country Club. “It’s one of the most beautiful courses. You have the ocean right along there. You can’t beat it.”
They were greeted by families at the completion of their marathon around 7 p.m., and ended the exhausting day with a well-deserved dip in the Moorings pool.
“We didn’t see another soul on the course at the Moorings; we flew right through there,” said Haller when reached Thursday morning. “It was fun; it was a good way to finish. I don’t feel nearly as bad as I thought I would. I slept real well though; best night’s sleep I’ve had in quite a while.”
Not surprisingly, they all admitted to being a bit sore and sluggish, but seemed ready to do it again – in another two years, when their bodies will have forgiven them.
“I had a great time,” said Hauser a physical therapist who said he was ready to treat himself Thursday morning. “It was challenging but at least this time we knew we were raising money for charity which helped us get through it. Everything worked out great; it was nice of all the clubs to support us like that and let us use their facilities.”
“We’re just a group of guys who enjoy the game and enjoy each other’s company,” said Hartline. “I was lucky to meet three other guys who were as crazy about golf as I am. Crazy being the key word.”