Lake Park class project keeps Medinah tees in shape

As golfers at the prestigious Medinah Country Club tee off this summer, they'll be lining up their drives in a tee box kept beautiful, in part, by the work of students in Lake Park High School's woods production 2 classes.

Technology and engineering teacher Mike Chabalowski was approached by Medinah officials who asked for his class to produce 144 divot boxes to be installed on the three world-renowned golf courses at the private club.

Students built the divot boxes, all of which feature a "Made in the Lake Park Lancers Wood Shop" logo, using a composite material as well as stainless steel hinges and screws to help ensure the boxes last for several years in all types of weather conditions.

The boxes hold materials for repairing divots golfers create in the grass with their swing.

The boxes will be in place next summer as Medinah hosts the 2019 BMW Championship, welcoming the world's top 70 golfers in the penultimate events of the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Students in the class on Lake Park's East Campus, located across the street from the club, had hoped to visit Medinah to see their handiwork in place and to see demonstrations of how the grounds crew maintains the courses, including mowing a green, rolling a green, properly watering bent grass, checking for moisture in a green and a fairway and more.

However, foul weather and the students' end-of-year schedules made the visit impossible.

Medinah has hosted other memorable moments spanning 60 years of major championship golf, including the 2012 Ryder Cup; the U.S. Open in 1949, 1975 and 1990; the PGA Championship in 1999 and 2006; the 1988 U.S. Senior Open; and three Western Opens, now called the BMW Championship, in 1939, 1962 and 1966.