Thursday afternoon Happy Hours at Northland Country Club have proven to be a popular attraction - but should the club expand the number of days when food and beverage specials are available?
Northland Country Club is pleased to welcome the following new members:
Jim Stuart (photo at right taken in 1991) was inducted into the Minnesota Golf Association Hall of Fame earlier this week, becoming the fourth Northland member (or former member) to be honored.
Northland Country Club continues to be a strong supporter of the Western Golf Association's Evans Scholarship Foundation, with members contributing $14,000 this past season.
Norm Maciver and Gregg McCall are winners of the last major tournament event at Northland for 2007.
Here's a gentle reminder that members with credit remaining at the pro shop only have until the end of the month to use the remaining balance.
The fun starts at 7:00 tonight....
The following article is an edited version of a story (full story here) that appeared in this morning's Minneapolis Star Tribune: Lee & Penny Anderson live a portion of the year in Duluth and are members of Northland Country Club. The Andersons are shown in the photo at the right which was taken during the recent grand opening of the new clubhouse at Northland.Lee and Penny Anderson have given the largest-known private gift ever made to a state college or university in Minnesota.
The University of St. Thomas announced Wednesday the largest fund drive in its 122-year history, with the acceptance of a $60 million gift that is the largest-known contribution ever made to a Minnesota college or university.The gift by Lee and Penny Anderson will be used for a new student center and improvements to athletic and recreational facilities.
The donation, part of a $500 million eight-year fund drive, reflects the stunning growth and increasing financial muscle of the St. Paul-based university, which boasts 10,712 undergraduate and graduate students. Its annual budget is $164.6 million.
Lee Anderson is owner and chairman of APi Group Inc., a Roseville-based holding corporation that has some 30 subsidiary firms involved in construction, manufacturing and fire protection. He sits on the St. Thomas board of trustees.
His wife, Penny, is a community volunteer who serves as a trustee on the boards of the Naples Children's and Education Foundation and the Naples Winter Wine Festival, both in Florida.
At a news conference on Wednesday, Anderson said some of the $60 million had been donated and the rest pledged, but declined to disclose those amounts.
St. Thomas announced Wednesday that it has raised $310 million in gifts and pledges so far in the "quiet phase" of the campaign. The amount raised so far is the most in a capital campaign by a private university or college in Minnesota, the school said.
"We have come to love the University of St. Thomas," Lee Anderson said Wednesday. "Its mission, the sense of spirituality, the traditions and most of all its dedicated faculty, administration, fellow trustees and students have caused us to think about what we wanted to leave as our legacy to higher education in Minnesota.
"We especially have been influenced by the character of the students," his wife added.
The title of the fundraising campaign is "Opening Doors," and St. Thomas says its single largest priority is $130 million for financial aid to students.
"This campaign will advance St. Thomas to a whole new level of access and excellence," the Rev. Dennis Dease, the university's president, said in a statement.
Lee Anderson's company, APi, has annual revenue of $770 million and operates 80 offices internationally, according to the Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal's 2006 Fact Book. APi has 5,000 employees, including 1,200 in Minnesota.
Penny Anderson said she had attended Minnesota State University, Mankato, for one year. Lee Anderson, a three-sport star at Breck School, is a 1961 graduate of West Point Military Academy where he was an All-East selection as a forward on the basketball team.
This story (click here) was in this morning's Duluth News Tribune.
If it's Thursday afternoon, it must be Happy Hour at Northland - well, two hours. From 4:30 to 6:30, it's an opportunity for members to get together and enjoy fellowship - along with food and drink specials. Each week, Chef Schueller comes up with something special for the appetizer menu to go along with bar specials. More and more members are coming each week. With Thursday's weather forecast, it might just be that there will be a good sized crowd following what could be a final round of golf for some members.
Have you made your reservations for All That Jazz - the next in the series of Fabulous Friday events? The Entertainment Committee has put together a wonderful evening for members this Friday, October 26.
The new Northland Country Club website was unveiled early this morning. You can click here or the image above to access the new site.
You'll notice a new addition to the Northland experience; these wine lockers have been installed just off the Fireside Room as you enter the J.R. Link Grill.
It appears as if the skies might clear somewhat for the weekend, welcome news for those golfing members who have been hoping to have at least one more round before the course closes in early November. However, because of steady rain for many days - including more than two inches on Thursday - the course will be closed for all cart traffic.
Thursday brings another opportunity to get together at Northland for Happy Hour from 4:30 to 6:30.
Save the date! It's Fabulous Friday....and all that Jazz, at your club on October 26. Jazzy food, jazzy drinks and a live jazz combo. Reserve now at (218) 525-1941 or email psmith@northlandcountryclub.com.
After months of site construction and review, the new Northland Country Club website is expected to become fully active later this week. We'd like to thank the personnel from HT Klatzky & Associates and WestmorelandFlint for their efforts in developing the new look and for programming the many options. It was a cooperative effort by both agencies that got this accomplished.
Overall, the two-day event ended with Ridgeview on top 23 1/2 to 16 1/2, the fourth consecutive year Ridgeview has claimed the Challenge Cup. 
For the second day in a row, the weather was cooperative and the golf course was in great shape despite last week's frequent rainfall. All the players this weekend had high praise for the work of the Northland ground's crew in getting the course ready for the event.
And, here are the pairings for tomorrow's matches....
Posted above are the pairings for the first day of play in the 2007 Challenge Cup (click image to view full screen). Play gets underway at 9:30 both Saturday and Sunday. We'll post results following play each day.
The 3rd Annual Thursday One-Club Invitational Championship was played at Northland yesterday with 26 players participating. The players were divided into two-man teams and played a 6-6-6 game, alternating between best ball, alternate shot and scramble. 
At the end of soggy wet day when the golf course played extremely long, Jeremy Jeannette and Gregg McCall were victorious, posting a final score of 91. This has become one of the more popular late season events, and an opportunity for players to sport kilts, knickers and sport jackets of questionable taste. Thanks to Steve Payette who sported a fantastic kilt from his recent Scotland trip for providing the photos.
The 2007 Challenge Cup featuring two 16-man teams from Northland and Ridgeview will be contested over two days this weekend, with Northland hosting both days of the event. Several of Ridgeview's holes are undergoing construction and recent wet weather has made portions unplayable.
Are you interested in playing Northland backwards? If so, it's time to call the pro shop and sign up.
Thursday Happy Hour got off to a good start last week. Have you made plans for this week? Here are this week's specials:
As we come towards the end of the season I am beginning to get some inquiries about the closing of the golf course. At this time we are tentatively planning on Sunday, November 4th being the final day of the season. This date could be earlier if the weather dictates, but I would not expect the season to extend past November 4th unless we experience extremely warm weather conditions.
While there's no firm date for when the golf course might close for the season, there is a limit on how long members who have accumulated pro shop credit over this golf season have to complete their shopping. Director of Golf Joe O'Connor would like to close the season's books on October 31. There are still plenty of great season-ending specials to take advantage of for both men and women, including a new supply of fall clothing for both groups. Stop in during your next visit to club.
Have you tried the new Oktoberfest menu features yet? Members who have tried this year's features have had rave reviews.
Northland Country Club's Director of Golf Joe O'Connor has been honored as the Minnesota PGA Facility Promoter of the Year among private clubs in the state. The award comes from the Minnesota Section of the Professional Golf Association.
Howling east winds off Lake Superior, fog, and occasional drizzle presented difficult course conditions today for the 32 participants in the 2007 version of the Northland "Y & O" Challenge. (You can click the image above to view the scoring summary full screen) At the end of the match play event, the "Young" team, captained by Bart Olek, reclaimed the trophy from Larry Johnson's team of veterans, winning the event by a 15 to 9 margin. (The two are seen above during the exchange of the bronze trophy).
The pairings for tomorrow's "Y&O Challenge" (click on the image to view full screen) have been determined and the two teams will begin competition at 9:30 tomorrow morning for the bronze trophy that is awarded annually to the winning team. The selection of teams was completed tonight during a gathering of team members in the Donald Ross Room, with team captains Larry Johnson ("O Team") and Bart Olek ("Y Team") carefully going over their rosters to determine the strongest pairings. (Northland would like to thank Stewart Taylor Printing for its donation and sponsorship of the championship trophy)
When asked about the team's apparent advantage tonight, "Y" team captain Bart Olek intimated there was "a pair of concrete shoes and a dive location off the Bong Bridge for any team member who can't finish the deal." Following his comments, Olek was seen sitting by himself as he completed his roster selection, although several of the "Y" team members indicated there was no intent to shun Bart from the festivities. "You have to understand," said one of the "Y" team members, who asked to remain anonymous, "Bart spent the past year orchestrating his return as captain of this team. While we had some reservations, we decided to give him one final chance to bring home some glory. I don't think that will be the case if the team performs badly again."
The annual Challenge Cup matches featuring teams from Northland Country Club and Ridgeview Country Club will be played the weekend of October 13 - 14.
In the past 3 weeks the Duluth area has received nearly 5 inches of rain. As you can probably imagine the recent rains have resulted in the golf course being saturated. When we receive consistent rainfall over an extended period of time water begins to flow along the rock underneath the golf course, keeping the golf course extremely wet. This condition is magnified this time of year because the sun is lower and the weather cooler keeping the course from drying the way it would in the summer. We have also completed aerification of all the fairways. During wet conditions the aerified fairways result in very soft and muddy conditions. Because of this you can expect that any rainfall will result in a period of time in which carts will not be allowed on the golf course. Obviously this is an inconvenience but cart traffic when the golf course is as wet as it is right now results in visible damage to the turf and severe compaction of our soils. 
Northland Country Club will host the 2008 season ending Senior Tour Two Man "Best Ball" event sponsored by the Minnesota Golf Association. The event is scheduled for a 1:00 shotgun start on Tuesday, September 2. A full field of 120 teams are expected to compete.
Bud Kolquist is celebrating - he recorded a hole-in-one Thursday at Northland. Bud aced #17, playing 135 yards, with an 8-iron.
The 2007 Y & O Challenge will be played this weekend at Northland Country Club. Team captains Larry Johnson ("O") and Bart Olek ("Y") have finalized their teams. This year's event will include the largest field of participants in the series history, with eight teams of two on each squad.
We've added a new feature to the blog site - ClustrMaps will allow all readers to see where people reading the site live. The site traffic report for today lists viewers from 19 states and 7 countries. The new service will begin updating sometime tomorrow. As you can see by the counter on the right, we've passed 70,000 total hits since the blog began operating last September. Once the updates begin, just click the image (seen on the right side of the page on most screens, just below the club contact information - occasionally, this information appears on the bottom of your screen) to see the daily updates.
It's the return of Happy Hour at Northland Country Club this Thursday, October 3. Each and every Thursday from 4:30 to 6:30, drink and appetizer specials will be available in the J.R. Link Grill. With the golf season winding down, this will be a just one of many ways to stay in touch with other members during the off-season.
