His Game Is All Over The Map
It’s 251 courses in 23 states and counting for Bob
Jewell
By Ed Letsinger
It was the winter
of 1979 at Ohio State University and Bob Jewell, then a senior, was in
search of just one measly credit hour to satisfy a physical education
requirement. The only course he found available was “Introduction to
Golf” so needing the hour he decided to sign up. Never mind the fact
that he had never played the game nor had any desire to do so.
“I hated the game
when I was in high school,” the 49-year-old West Chester resident
recalls. “I just thought that it was a goofy sport that you went out
and played sometimes with your buddies.”
His instructor
was a graduate student who had also never played the game. The
classroom book was Ben Hogan’s
Five
Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf
and the
instruction consisted mainly of beating balls into a net in an
on-campus indoor facility. Jewell’s weapon of choice was a borrowed
5-iron from his brother-in-law since he owned no clubs.
Jewell
survived the winter and when spring rolled around he eventually
ventured out to the driving range with some classmates. Despite
spraying balls all over the place initially, he eventually got the
hang of it and admittedly became fond of the game he once despised.
“I was
hooked,” says Jewell. “I never looked back after that.”
A Whole Lot Of Golf
“Hooked” is an understatement at best when you take into account that
Jewell has now played an amazing 251 courses in 23 states with no
intention of slowing down. Not that he has any desire to set some
kind of record, he insists, like play 500 courses or play golf in all
50 states. Quite simply he just loves to play.
Jewell
never gave his feat much thought until about five years when he was
sitting around with the in-laws in Maryland at Christmas time. Like
all golfers in cold weather climates in December, he and his
father-in-law were wistfully talking shop when the question arose:
Just how many courses has Bob played and in how many states?
“I
pulled out a piece of paper and went through my calendar and came up
with about 175 courses and it seemed like a lot,” Jewell recalls.
Curiosity then set in, so Jewell did some more research and then
started tracking his play on his computer to accurately arrive at the
number he stands at today.
Not
really knowing how his numbers stacked up against other golfers or
having a bench mark to measure against, he sent out a few e-mails to
folks at publications like Golf Digest and Golfweek to
see what he could find out.
Jerry
Tarde, Editor of Golf Digest, told him in an e-mail: “That
sounds like a heckuva lot of golf courses to me, probably twice what
I’ve played. The most I knew of was Dave Anderson, the writer for the
New York Times who travels with his clubs everywhere. The last
I heard he was closing in on 300, but you’re well up there.”
Bradley
Klein of Golfweek said he wasn’t sure but admitted, “That’s a
lot of golf.”
According to Jewell, Ohio is the state that leads the way in courses
played with 95, followed by Pennsylvania (19), South Carolina (19),
Texas (18), North Carolina (14) and California (14).
The Experience
The
golf started in earnest in the mid-80s when Jewell was living in Texas
and working in sales for a Houston-based company that required travel
mainly out west. When a business trip came up the clubs would usually
accompany him. All of a sudden a few rounds here and there in
California and then a few more in Utah started to add up.
Living
in three other states throughout his life including Ohio, South
Carolina and Pennsylvania has also helped add to the experience, as
does the freedom of now owning his own management consulting firm
which allows for a flexible schedule.
But his
odyssey is not about playing all the so-called “big-name” golf
courses. There is no Augusta or Pebble Beach on his playing resume, at
least not yet. He has stood on the 18th hole at Pebble
Beach and has walked Oakmont. By his count he has played only one of
Golf Digest’s current “Top 100 overall courses” and six “Top 100
public courses.” The top course played in terms of notoriety is
historic Merion Golf Club.
“That
is still a great test of golf and has some of the fastest greens I’ve
ever seen,” says Jewell. “I think every club came out of my bag that
day.”
One of
his most unique experiences he says, among many, was the day he played
Hancock Golf Club in New York. It was the first golf course ever
designed by Robert Trent Jones, when he was still a student at Cornell
University.
“It was
fun to hear about the course and history, and to see all the unique
features,” says Jewell.
The
aromas of pine and eucalyptus at Pasatiempo Golf Club in Santa Cruz,
Calif., where Julie Inkster learned to play the game, are still fresh
in his mind as is the breathtaking view of the Golden Gate Bridge from
the 17th hole at Lincoln Park Golf Course in San Francisco.
It’s
the little things that seem to resonate with Jewell, who says he
mainly walks when he plays to better enjoy the surroundings, study the
course and take in the whole experience.
That is
how he has become a big fan of Arthur Hills, whose courses that he has
played now number 20.
"Arthur
Hill courses just really jump out at me,” says Jewell. ‘They are
usually straight forward and nothing too fancy. The original 18 at
Shaker Run is still one of my favorites,” he says. “It is still a
great test of golf.”
Jewell,
as many courses as he has played, still lists Cincinnati as one of his
favorite regions. He plays a lot of rounds at Crooked Tree Golf
Course, and also mentions Blue Ash as a favorite.
“Cincinnati has so many great places to play,” he says. “You really
can’t beat all of Ohio for great golf courses.”
Future Plans
So
where does Jewell go from here? He’s traveled to Scotland and Ireland
but never got the chance to play there. So he says a golf trip to
those destinations is at the top of his list. If history is any
indication, there will be many more trips to come.
“I
don’t want this to become a chore,” he says. “I just want things to
happen naturally and to have fun and great memories.”
By The Numbers
251 –
Total courses played
23 –
States
95 -
Ohio courses
19 –
Pennsylvania
19 -
South Carolina
18 –
Texas
14 -
North Carolina
14 -
California
20 –
Arthur Hills courses played
7 – Top
100 Golf Digest courses played
