University of Minnesota Athletics
Bolstad Cup Shines on Beautiful Afternoon
6/16/2015 12:00:00 AM | M Club
The "M" Club hosted its annual golf outing, the Bolstad Cup, Monday afternoon at the Town & Country Club in St. Paul, bringing together more than 80 Gopher letterwinners, along with current Gopher coaches, administrators and guests. Against the backdrop of a picturesque June day, Assistant Men's Golf Coach Justin Smith, along with David Morgan, Ben Greve and Tony Felling, carded a 15-under-par 57 to outpace the field in the scramble-format tournament and take home the event's traveling trophy.
While their triumph headlined the day's action on the course, "M" Club Director George Adzick pointed out that the event is much more than birdies and bogeys.
"The Bolstad Cup is one of several events the "M" Club hosts each year that bring our mission to life in a fun and engaging way for our members," said Adzick. "This event is all about getting out on a beautiful day and having a great time with teammates and friends while reconnecting with alma mater. That's exactly what we want to accomplish on behalf of our community of letterwinners and our athletics department whenever we can, and this year's Bolstad Cup succeeded in doing that once again."
As one of the nation's oldest and largest letterwinner organizations, "M" Club events often draw alumni from every corner of the country and the Bolstad Cup was no different. Letterwinners descended on St. Paul from all over the map, some as far away as California, to be a part of this year's tournament. Those who participated were a part of "M" Club history, as the Town & Country Club became the first venue other than the University's Les Bolstad Golf Course to host the event in its distinguished history. The venue, which is the nation's oldest private golf club west of New Jersey, has a sense of historic charm that provided a fitting backdrop for the traditional feel of the event.
Smith, Morgan, Greve and Felling were certainly among the favorites entering the tournament. The first three were all members of the Gophers' 2002 NCAA Men's Golf National Championship team, with Felling providing a bit of variety as a baseball letterwinner. Three strokes back, the team of Paul Humphrey, Dave Walstad, Clark Opdahl and Thomas Campbell claimed second place with a team score of 60.
The women's division also saw Gopher golf represented at the top of the leaderboard, with golf alumnae Kelli Puhl - joined by Deputy Athletics Director Beth Goetz, Assistant Athletics Director for Development Deb Noll and longtime Gopher supporter Pam Ryan - taking home the women's title.
Following the action on the course, the "M" Club hosted a dinner and program which featured a welcome address from Director of Athletics Norwood Teague and a keynote speech from Head Football Coach Jerry Kill. Kill, as always, delivered an impassioned address that drew a standing ovation from the room full of Maroon-and-Gold-clad attendees.
With the scorecards signed and the dinner plates cleared following another outstanding Bolstad Cup, planning for next year's event has already begun. The Town & Country Club will again host the tournament next year, which will be held on Monday, June 13. Be sure to contact the "M" Club if you're interested in participating next year -- don't miss out on this great event!
