Church golf league celebrating 50th season keeps on swinging

Members of the Our Lady of the Wayside Golf League teed off last month at Arlington Lakes Golf Club, signaling the sure start of spring.

But with the start of their weekly Wednesday afternoon golf date came a rather noteworthy milestone: the league celebrated the start of its 50th season.

From what started in 1958 with a dozen men playing at Chevy Chase Country Club in Wheeling, last month played on, with nearly 120 members, coming mostly from Arlington Heights, but also Cary, Fox River Grove, Glenview, Huntley, Long Grove, Mount Prospect, Prospect Heights and Palatine.

Over the years, the group has played at courses in Schaumburg, Prospect Heights, Hoffman Estates and Barrington, but once they settled at Arlington Lakes, around 1980, they say membership took off.

"They're the largest league here," says Jim Hoch, general manager and PGA professional. "They take up all nine holes (or half the course) for an entire evening."

The group tees off in foursomes from 3:30 p.m. to nearly 6 p.m., aiming to play nine holes in just over two hours. While that doesn't leave much time for small talk in between shots, they make up for it after they finish, when they network and catch up on the week's events.

Hoch notes that one of the keys to the league's longevity is its appeal -- that stretches across generations.

"We've seen a great deal of fathers and sons who have come up through it," Hoch adds.

Don Fett of Arlington Heights, league president, says the league draws all levels of golfers, from the "high handicapper to the prolific scorer," and from all walks of life.

"We love our golf and our friendships," Fett says, "but we also respect our obligation to the church and our various charities."

Over the years, funds raised from its outings have been donated to Hurricane Katrina victims, emergency shelter sites, Our Lady of the Wayside School scholarship fund, an inner city parish, and the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

Members say the golf league is the longest running club at Our Lady of the Wayside, and has served as a springboard of sorts, launching its members into leadership roles within the parish.