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BRASH: Pike is eyeing another Forsyth Seniors crown
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Published: May 19, 2008
Arlis Pike raised more than a few eyebrows after he won last year's Forsyth Seniors. When asked about the victory he said "it was like a bunch of mules chasing a thoroughbred."
Pike hasn't toned down his approach to this week's tournament. He will get a chance to repeat as champion when the Forsyth Seniors is played Thursday at Olde Homeplace and Friday at Maple Leaf.
Pike, 60, said he feels as if he is still in his 40s because of the fine shape he is in.
"My goal is to go out there and beat all of them," he said rather boldly. "There's not any pressure to repeat because I'm full of confidence."
A lot of the players in the field of around 100 might think that Pike is full of something else. Regardless of what Pike says, one thing is for sure, he can usually back up his boasts.
Back when he was winning three Forsyth Invitational tournaments in his younger days he talked a lot and is still doing it.
He turned professional when he approached his 50th birthday, but never did make it though the Champions Tour qualifying school. He tried his luck on various senior tours from 1997 through 2003 before regaining his amateur status. In recent years he has been content to play in just a few tournaments and to play with friends at Pine Knolls in Kernersville.
"I really don't play as much as I used to," he said.
But when he does play Pike has the game because he rarely hits one off-line. If his putting is on, he usually doesn't lose.
"A lot of the older guys now sit around drinking coffee and talk a lot," Pike said. "That's just not me and I just feel like I can beat them all unless something awful happens with my game. I just feel like I can beat them."
Pike stays busy with his successful landscaping business. This past weekend he played in a prestigious amateur tournament at Danville Country Club in Danville, Va.
Pike will try to become the first repeat winner of the Forsyth Seniors since Ron Morgan won four in a row from 1998 until 2001. Morgan, along with Mike Kite, Wayne Kiser and John Hampton are all in the field. Also playing is Gerald Carter, who just turned 55 and has been in contention in several Forsyth Invitationals through the years. The minimum age to play in the Forsyth Seniors is 55.
Pike says he likes both Maple Leaf and Olde Homeplace.
"You have to post good scores at both places but also I like both courses because the folks there are friendly and you just feel welcome," Pike said. "That makes it a whole lot easier to play golf."
Pike said he expects to play well, but if he doesn't there are plenty of guys who could win the title. Last year was Pike's first time playing in the Forsyth Seniors.
As for his boast about the mules chasing him, the very quotable Pike said: "I think those mules have gotten a little older and this thoroughbred has gotten a little faster."
Pike realizes he is setting himself up for failure, but he doesn't mind.
"I know if I don't win I'll have to eat a lot of crow," he said. "I know I talk a lot of crap, but that's what makes it fun."
Primland is stepping up
There's a reason that Golf Digest named The Highland Course at Primland as America's best new public course for the category of $75 and over.
The Donald Steel-designed championship layout is located in Meadows of Dan, Va., about an hour's drive north of Winston-Salem just across the Virginia border. The course is located atop one of the highest ridges of the 12,000-acre resort and has some of the most scenic views anywhere.
Adding to the course's growing reputation are cottages that opened this month. The three fairway cottages are located between the 10th and 18th holes and blend in nicely with the Virginia mountains.
"It's added a lot to what we already have up here," said Steve Helms, the vice president and general manager of Primland. "There are now places to stay up here and next year our main clubhouse will open."
The clubhouse, which will feature 26 five-star guest rooms, should be ready by next year.
As for the remoteness and beauty of The Highland Course, Steel wanted to bring a links-style course to the mountains.
"There's a sense of escape that is special," Steel said. "Golf courses have been built in every landscape imaginable but only rarely on mountain peaks."
Around the green
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Jim Nantz, a popular CBS announcer, has a new book out: Always By My Side, A Father's Grace And A Sports Journey Unlike Any Other. The book details how Nantz and his family have dealt the past 13 years with Nantz's father's long battle with Alzheimer's. Jim Nantz Jr., 79, is in an assisted living center in Houston. The idea of the book came early last year when Nantz realized that, in 2007, he would be the lead announcer for the Super Bowl, the Final Four and the Masters.
■ John Dell can be reached at 727-4081 or at jdell@wsjournal.com.
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