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For your game
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Trashmasters judge and jury Boone Schweitzer, who presides over what may be the games most unique fundrasing rournament.
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Talking trash
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| Unique tournament format rewards poor shots, but only if you recover |
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By James Achenbach
0n Aug. 4 in Snowmass Village, Cola., Boone Schweitzer will dress in a classic black judge's robe. He will wear a formal white wig. He will read from the sacred tablet.
Well, maybe not so sacred. The tablet is called Golf's Little Book of Trash.
Schweitzer will proceed with the swearing-in ceremony. He will address 144 golfers about to participate in golf's wackiest tournament, the Trashmasters.
"Do you hereby solemnly swear to play the trash, the whole trash, and nothing but the trash, so help you golf?" Schweitzer will ask.
Cries from the assembled golfers will range from "Yes" to "Hell, yes."
Cannon fire will shake the ground.
"This is not a shotgun start," Schweitzer says. "This is a cannon start. You can hear it for 10 miles If you're in the bathroom, you won't miss the start of this tournament."
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The Trashmasters (www.trashmasters.com) is held each year at the Snowmass Club outside Aspen. The Jim Engh-designed course at Snowmass has never seen such frivolity and buffoonery.
Participants play trash golf, a game designed for all handicap levels. The essence of the competition is that participants accumulate points for their worst shots - hitting water, trees, sand and other obstacles providing they are able to recover. To collect points on any hole, a player must make a net par.
Schweitzer, who sells real estate in Aspen, has never earned a dime from the event he started 14 years ago. He and other unpaid volunteers have turned this lighthearted extravaganza into an esteemed fundraiser for college scholarships. These four-year scholarships go to local students who otherwise may not be able to afford tuition. So far, 22 have graduated and 20 are working on degrees.
This Trashmasters format has been so successful that several other communities (Scottsdale, Ariz.;
Kohler, Wis.; |
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Cabo San Lucas, Mexico;
Topeka, Kan.; Mammoth Lakes, Calif.; Minneapolis;
and Miami) have licensed Schweitzer's idea and
scheduled their own Trashmasters tournaments.
The impact of trash golf goes beyond fundraising. It easily is adaptable to everyday golf, and a foursome can choose sides for its normal game and play trash at the same time. Rule books are available from Trashmasters headquarters.
Here are a few ways to earn trash points:
>> A Willie, worth 2 trash points, occurs when a player's ball hits a cart path or road. This pays homage to Willie Nelson's "On the Road Again."
>> A 1-point Barkie is awarded when a ball strikes a tree, bush or shrub.
>> A 2-point Rockie results from a player's ball striking a rock of at least baseball size.
>> A 3-point Skippie is achieved by skipping a ball through any type of water hazard.
>> An Otis (like the elevator) is awarded when a player gets up-and-down from off the green. It is worth 1 point.
>> A Watson, worth 3 points, goes to a player
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who holes out from off the putting surface, using. any lofted club (i.e., Tom Watson on the 71st hole of the 1982 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach).
Many other trash achievements are named for real people, including a Genie (for Gene Sarazen), a Jerrie (Gerald Ford), a Woodie (Tiger Woods), an Arnie (Arnold Palmer) and a Billie (Bill Clinton).
From his "Book of Stupendous Trash," Schweitzer recites the tale of ski shop owner Tom Wenzel:
"Several years back, on a par 5, Tom topped his tee shot, which skipped across the water, hit a rock on the edge of the pond, ricocheted off a tree and came back into the fairway. He had a Skippie, Rockie and Barkie on one stroke.
"Then he cranked a 3-wood shot that bounced off a cart path, hit a bridge, and trickled into a creek. He took a drop and hit his ball into a greenside bunker. He blasted out, and the ball . went in. He had a (handicap) stroke on the hole, so he made Sandie, Birdie, Watson. His total was 22 points on one hole."
Pat Fitzgerald of Austin, Texas, plays in the event every year.
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"It's all about having fun," he says. "The golf is a great alternative to the tired old scramble format, and the parties make it a big social event. The best thing, though, is that it has a lasting impact because of the scholarships for needy kids."
Karen Tutwiler, daughter-in-law of legendary amateur Ed Tutwiler, is typical of the volunteers.
"She is our historian, she keeps our scrapbook, and she is the official Trashmasters photographer," Schweitzer said. "She also is a one-time champion.
Ed Tutwiler played in the original version of the Masters in Augusta, Ga., three times. It came as no surprise when the Masters sued the Trashmasters in the late 1990s for name infringement, although the case was settled out of court. Schweitzer was allowed to use the Trashmasters name and logo as long as the event remains a nonprofit endeavor.
Along this wild Willie of a bumpy road, the persistent Schweitzer was able to attract the perfect sponsor for trash golf - Waste Management, the world's largest trash collector.
After all, it's the trash, the whole trash and nothing but the trash.
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| John “Choo Choo” French knocks in an amazing hole in one to claim a $5,000 cash prize at the 2007 Trashmasters Main Event.
Check out the Trashmasters Mentor Program. New for 2008.
Trashmasters World Convention held in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
January 10th and 11th 2008!
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