Easter Brunch was a huge success! We are so thankful for all of our wonderful members that chose to spend their holiday at the club. I have worked 14 years of Easter Brunches and for some reason this was the best one yet. There was such a great vibe going on and that is thanks to YOU, our membership. I want to give a huge shout out to out staff, we had a rock star crew and they did an amazing job. We appreciate each one of them giving up their holidays to make all of our club event such a success. 

We are so fired up about the 2017 Member Guest. This is a favorite not only among the membership but also the staff. This year we had the most people put their name in the lottery (over 150) which means (what we all already thought) the tournament is AWESOME  but also that some people will not get to play. We still feel that the lottery is the most fair and transparent way to  decide the field but are always open to hear your ideas. 

After the kids created the most amazing little pots Tim and Kat helped them plant a flower in it.  As always the egg hunt went very fast but everyone had a ton of fun and enjoyed some chocolate chip pancakes following the hunt. Although these events are not money makers we do love interacting with all the kids. Thanks for all that participated. 

We decided to switch up our Member Appreciation Party, so this year the party was hosted at The Mark in Elkhorn. We bowled, we laughed, we drank and we had so much fun! Members enjoyed complimentary bowling, cocktails, wine, beer, snacks and cake. Tim took several groups to The Dark Ride (which is amazing if you have not tried it yet) and a few very long laser tag games were played. By no surprise we had record attendance this year and expect this event to grow in the future.  Below is the list of drawing winners from the evening! Thank you all for your part in making this club what it is...... we have an amazing culture that we are so proud of and that is thanks to you! We look forward to another great year filled with golf, friends, family and FUN!

Annual Locker Fee - Todd Livingston 
Annual Club Storage - Michael Hughes 
Annual Trail Fee - Scott and Kim Drvol
Annual Range Fee -Mike and Kathy Steenson 
TPC Travel Bag - Jon Duncan 

Dear Members,
               
I hope you are enjoying a great winter season and were able to spend time with family and friends over the Holidays!  I now realize how quickly life can move with 2 small children running around the Christmas tree.  I am so excited about the 2017 season.  In 2016 our entire business plan was designed around adding more value to your membership.  We added yoga, a free concert, pool parties, bingo nights, trivia nights, improved stags and increased our budget for the Summer Celebration!  In 2017 we look to improve on that mission even more. Morgan has added even more fitness activities, more pool parties and more live music for 2017.   You as members have always been our only advertising and that is what truly makes Players Club so special.  Ninety-Five percent of our memberships over the past 5 years have come from member referrals.
                We will have quite a few new faces with us next year.  In the golf shop AJ and Jared are both on to the next phase of their lives and will soon be graduating from College.  Watching them grow for the last 7 years has been a highlight of my career. I know the members will miss them as much as I will. Our Assistant General Manager, Adam Brandow, is off to his next challenge as he accepted the role of General Manager at Kearney Country Club.  We know he will do well there and wish him all the best.  Our sales and events coordinator Karissa Williams is leaving the hospitality industry and moving to a full time sales job in the Omaha area.  We thank Karissa for all she has done for us.  I hope to have both of those positions filled within the next few weeks and will relay that information as it becomes available. 
                The Golf Shop will have some new faces but our leadership team remains in place.  Don, Tyler and Tom will lead us again in 2017.  The Nebraska PGA recognized The Players Club team of Don Germer and Morgan Halpine as the Private Club Merchandiser of The Year for 2016.  This is voted on by other Nebraska PGA members and sales associates throughout Nebraska.  The selection and style this year was above and beyond expectations so please make sure you recognize their hard work and achievements!  The Golf Shop staff is very excited to see you as soon as the ground thaws. They will show you what’s new in fashion and all the exciting technology changes ahead this spring.
                Our Food and Beverage operation continues to grow each year.  We are constantly looking for ways to improve the level of service and offerings that are available to you. For 2017, you will see 4-5 additional craft beers available on tap in the pub.  We will be rotating the selections throughout the summer.  We have also done some reorganizing and will now have space to store aluminum bottles for those of you that look to enjoy an ice cold beer or two at the pool!  We will also be experimenting with IPAD technology at the pool in order to increase service times both at the pool and in the pub.  New pub patio furniture should be in place by spring as well as an additional TV allowing you to take advantage of the perfect Nebraska springs and fall evenings! 
                The maintenance department once again delivered amazing results in 2016.  We look to continue to offer you some of the finest playing conditions in the Midwest while also focusing on improving our Native grasses and “off areas.”  You can be of great help here by keeping your carts out of those areas throughout the year.  We will continue on our bunker renovations and may be adding in some very new and exciting new technology over the next few years that will truly change the way you see bunkers!  We are also in the process of finalizing some permanent restroom areas on the golf course.  I would love to see these installed by the fall of 2017 but for sure by 2018!  The maintenance of a golf course is one of the most interesting and constantly changing things I have ever been around; it is a tireless and difficult job.  Please make sure to thank Ahren and his staff when you get a chance, they deserve it!
                With all the above changes and additions we have still been able to keep the dues almost 50% below our competition.  We will be adjusting the dues structure for 2017 beginning in March but have frozen all other associated fees.  I am truly thankful each day to work with the people that I work with and for the members we serve.  The Players Club is truly a special place and we look forward to improving upon every facet as we go forward.  As always my door is always open for any thoughts or ideas to make your experience here better!

Sincerely,

Tim Halpine
General Manager
402.963.9950
thalpine@playersclubomaha.com

This is certainly a favorite for the staff and the members. We all love this time of year, the decor, the music, SANTA (our Santa rocks) and the chocolate fountain. This is such an exciting event for kids, they get to visit with Santa and take a picture and enjoy the hot chocolate station and chocolate fountain among other things. We offer prime rib and a full lunch spread a long with all of your favorite breakfast items. Reservations were taken at 10am, 11am, Noon and 1pm. Everyone had their table for almost two hours if they pleased, long enough to consume way too many calories and have great conversation. Hope to see you all next year!

1. Backswing Advice 
Being able to be synchronized is a key part of a solid golf swing and a solid strike. One of the best tips I ever received was that “when your shoulders stop turning in your backswing, your arms need to stop swinging”. There are a number of great players that do not follow this idea. The most famous or infamous would be John Daly. In his prime he was the longest “good” player to play the PGATOUR and his arm swing was longer than his shoulder turn. But keep in mind he was a world-class player. My recommendation is that when your shoulders stop turning your arms should stop swinging. Sounds simple but it takes practice. You will find that you will see some consistency in your ball hitting. Finding the bottom of your swing consistently will result in being able to control your ball flight. This is especially important in your senior years. Your loss of flexibility will result in a shorter than wanted shoulder turn. When your arms match your shoulder turn you will be pleasantly surprised to the quality of your golf shots. Remember it     doesn’t hurt to move up to the WHITE TEES either - that                                                                                                               is if you are eligible!

                                                                                                              2.Maintaining Your Spine Angle
 Back in the day when I learned to play they used to say “keep your head down” - one of the single biggest mistakes in golf.  Watch Henrik Stenson, for example, he does not keep his head down. He does however maintain his spine angle throughout his swing. Your spine is the axis of your swing and maintaining it allows you to keep the club in perfect orbit around you. Change the tilt of your spine angle and the orbit of the club changes also. When the club is not in perfect orbit then you must compensate to save the shot. Trust me, your instincts will know when the “planets” aren’t aligned, instinctively you will make an adjustment. When making adjustments to a golf swing that takes no more than 1.5 seconds to make - that is the formula for disaster. Maintaining your spine angle takes practice but with practice you will start to feel more effortless power than powerless effort.

3. Using the Bounce
Bounce is the angle of the sole against the ground, when your wedge is properly soled at address.  If your sand wedge has 14 degrees bounce, you will tend to have the leading edge sit off the ground. If your wedge has 8 degrees of bounce the leading edge will sit closer to the ground. There are plenty of short game shots at The Players Club where a golfer NEEDS to feel the bounce. Start out by not leaning the shaft toward the target. The shaft should run more vertically or perpendicular to the ground. With your pitching motion you can make swings and listen for the sole to “bounce” off the turf. If the leading edge hits the ground first the club will dig and that won’t be pretty. Your around the green shots will be more consistent using the bounce because the short shots will be hit with truer loft. The “hands ahead”, “digging” action changes the loft of the wedge. Spend more time at the short game area listening for the bounce and less time pounding balls on the range and your scorecard may be a little cleaner.

As we close the doors to the popular Palmer's Pub we thought it would be fun to run the numbers and see what the most popular items were as well as the least popular items. This is what we found: 

Top 10 Menu Items 
You will definitely see these items back on the menu next year! I was shocked that for the first time ever Arnie's Burgers was beaten by boneless wings as the top dog! 

​Bottom 5 Menu Items 
I can't promise any of these will make the menu next season. Its time to make room for some new fresh items that will hopefully be more popular than these!

We offer Sunday Fundays throughout the year. It is a day for our members to drop their kiddos off and we entertain them for normally 3 hours but we did add an extra hour to this past event to allow parents to shop for the holidays. The hit of the day was holiday bingo, we could have played for the entire 4 hours. Everyone followed the rules and we a lot of winners, so many we ran out of prizes. We also made gingerbread houses covered in extra sugary icing and a ton of candy. We even had a house with with a swimming pool filled with icing. The kids certainly used their imagination and were super creative. We ran out of time waiting for our handprints to dry so they did not get glitter and a finish spray but the kids wanted to take them home anyway.  We look forward to the next event with our TPC kids. ​Thanks to everyone that came!!!!

Golf Etiquette Straight From the PGA (the text in red has been added by our very own Don Germer)

What people can expect during a round of golf, from beginning to end:

​Make A Starting Time 
                      - Take  minute and call the pro shop to reserve your tee time. It is always helpful
                      to have a tee time scheduled so you can make the most of your time. If you are
                      solo and want to join a group let the pro shop staff know in advance of your
                      arrival. Members may make tee times 14 days in advance, social members 7 days
                      in advance)
Arrive:
                 Our outside service staff will help you get your clubs from your auto or from bag storage
                 onto one of our new EZ - GO golf cars.

• Warm Up:
  • Try to arrive soon enough to give yourself time to warm up properly.
  • Work your way though the bag, beginning with the short irons, moving onto the mid-and long irons and then the woods.
  • It's often a good idea to finish warming up by hitting a few soft wedge shots before heading for the practice green and hitting a few putts.
  • Don't hit hundreds of balls and leave your game on the practice tee. Save that for after the round.
• First Tee:
  • Check the scorecard to learn  any local rules. We have nine local rules.
  • Local rules apply only to the specific course you are playing.
  • If your playing companions suggest a match, it's a good idea to make sure everyone is comfortable with the stakes.
  • Make sure to place an identifying mark on your ball and inform the other players the type and number ball you are playing.

Avoid Slow play:

• When your group is not keeping up with the pace of play of the group in front of you:
• The pro shop is monitoring your pace as well as where you are driving your golf cart.
  • Walk at a reasonable speed between shots.
  • Begin planning your next shot as you approach the ball by studying the strength and direction of the wind.
• When you reach your ball, check the lie, select your club, visualize your swing and shot, and then play your shot.
• From the time you select your club until you actually hit your shot, you should take no more than 30 to 45 seconds.
• If you aren't ready to play when it is your turn, encourage one of your fellow players to play.
• Foursomes have the right-of-way on the course.
• Texting while your are driving a golf cart is prohibited.

Maintaining the course:

• Replace your divots.
• Turf tends to explode on impact, making it difficult, if not impossible, to replace the divot. In this case, you have two options:
  • You can use the toe of your shoe to kick in the turf around the edges of the divot.
  • Many courses often put containers of a soil/seed mixture on their carts and tees. If this is the case, simply fill in the divot with the mixture.
• Bring a rake into the bunker with you -- remembering that you should always enter the bunker from the low side at a point nearest to the ball.
  • Whenever possible, avoid walking on the steep face of a bunker.
  • After hitting your shot, rake the area you played from, as well as all your footprints and any others within reach.
  • Rakes should be left either in or nearby the bunker.
• It is important to repair any pitch marks or indentations caused by the ball hitting the green.
• Using a tee, knife, key or repair tool, repair the mark by working the edges towards the center, without lifting the center of the mark. Don't tear the grass. Finish by smoothing the area with a club or your foot. Try to get the area smooth enough to putt over.
• Just remember that while the Rules of Golf allow you to repair pitch marks on your putting line, you cannot repair spike marks on your putting line until after you have putted.

On the green, remember:

• Don't step on your fellow players putting lines -- the imaginary line that connects the ball to the hole.
• If your ball is on a player's line, volunteer to mark the ball.
• If you're ball is not furthest from the cup:
  • Mark your ball, either with a plastic marker or a small, thin, dark coin such as an old penny.
  • After you have marked your ball, place your putter down at a 90-degree angle with the heel touching your marker.
  • Move the marker from the heel to the toe of your putter. Reverse the procedure to return the ball to its original position.
• Do not stand where you might distract a fellow player and don't move.
• Don't make any noise when your fellow player is preparing to putt. (unless you really need them to miss.)
• If you don't have a caddie and are asked to tend the flagstick, make sure you aren't standing on anyone's line.
• Hold the flagstick at arm's length so the flag doesn't flutter in the breeze, and make sure your shadow doesn't fall across the hole or line. Loosen the bottom of the flagstick so it doesn't stick when you try and remove it by pulling it straight up after the other player has putted. The flagstick should be removed right after the player has hit the ball.
• If you lay down the flagstick, lay it off the green to prevent doing any damage to the green.
• Generally, the player closest to the hole will tend the flagstick.
• After everyone has putted out, immediately walk to the next tee.

Miscellaneous:

• If you hit a tee shot into the woods and suspect that it might be either lost or out-of-bounds, the Rules of Golf allow you to play a second or provisional ball.
  • You then have five minutes from the time you reach the spot where you suspect the ball landed to find the ball. If it is not found within that five-minute period, you must declare it lost and play your provisional ball with a one-stroke penalty
  • If, however, you play the provisional ball and subsequently find your original ball in-bounds, you must pick up your provisional and continue to play the original ball, in-bounds.
  • Out of bounds balls are assessed the penalty of "stroke and distance."
  • For a complete discussion of the Rules of Golf, visit the USGA's web site.
• For safety's sake, never hit when there's a chance you might be able to reach the group ahead of you, and anytime you hit a shot that you think even has remote chance of hitting any other players, yell "fore" immediately, and make a point of apologizing to any players your ball lands near.
• Displays of frustration are one thing, but outbursts of temper are quite another. Yelling, screaming, throwing clubs or otherwise making a fool of yourself are unacceptable and, in some cases, dangerous to yourself and others. It's a game - stick and a ball.
• As a player, you also have a responsibility to learn and understand the Rules of Golf.
• Five of the most common Rules are those deal with Out of Bounds, Lost balls, Unplayable lies, cart paths and water hazards.
• Moving on, if your group stops for refreshments, either at the turn or following the round, volunteer to pay for them, as well as offer to buy drinks for the caddies.
• Whoever pays at the turn, however, should not be expected to pay for refreshments at the end of the round.
• Finally, at the end of the round, shake hands with your fellow players, congratulate the winners, console the losers, and thank them for their company. At the end of the day, the great pleasure of the game is the time you get to spend with your friends whether old friends or new friends you just made through the game.