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<v Speaker 1>Of course, we've got our golf pro here with us today.

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<v Speaker 1>So Jerry Benedict is our golf pro. He still is

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<v Speaker 1>our golf bro. Jerry has been the golf pro at

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<v Speaker 1>Adams Golf Course since nineteen eighty six. Six nineteen eighty six,

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<v Speaker 1>so a couple of years before I graduated high school,

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<v Speaker 1>believe it or not, he became the golf pro out

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<v Speaker 1>there and has been ever since. So it is truly

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<v Speaker 1>hard to imagine Adams Golf Course without our golf pro,

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<v Speaker 1>Jerry Benedict. But we are about to enter into that era,

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<v Speaker 1>and so that is I think pro. Your last official

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<v Speaker 1>day is on the sixteenth, right, but we'll be having

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<v Speaker 1>a party for you on the fourteenth, and we would

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<v Speaker 1>invite everybody to attend that. That's actually on August fourteenth,

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<v Speaker 1>from two to four at the clubhouse, right. The public's invited.

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<v Speaker 1>Anyone who'd like to attend, come on up and tell

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<v Speaker 1>Jerry goodbye. Although I don't know that he's leaving. Linda Linda,

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<v Speaker 1>Linda has plans for you, but I'm not sure whether

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<v Speaker 1>she can drag you out of Bartle's or not.

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<v Speaker 2>So yeah, I'm going to get out of it.

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<v Speaker 1>Pro. We are.

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<v Speaker 2>Careful what you agree to. They don't forget.

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<v Speaker 1>Linda definitely didn't forget.

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<v Speaker 2>So pro we don't make any promises when you're drinking.

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<v Speaker 2>I think those are words to live by. It that

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<v Speaker 2>is that is sage advice.

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<v Speaker 1>I think that is sage advice. Bro. So that if

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<v Speaker 1>you take nothing else from his career, listen to that.

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<v Speaker 2>This is a man speaking with experience.

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<v Speaker 1>So thirty see if I did the math right, thirty

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<v Speaker 1>eight years, thirty eight as a golf pro Adams Municipal

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<v Speaker 1>Golf Course, this time, this time, that's right.

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<v Speaker 2>You were actually an assistant bro seventy seventy five.

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<v Speaker 1>Seventy to seventy five, So thirty eight years is the pro.

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<v Speaker 1>Five years as the assistant pro forty three years at

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<v Speaker 1>Adams Municipal Golf Course.

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<v Speaker 2>It's pretty incredible commenty. I don't know how many how

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<v Speaker 2>I got here, but here you are from Michigan, Michigan.

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<v Speaker 1>A good Michigan boy down here in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. So

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<v Speaker 1>but we're going to miss you and any anything you

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<v Speaker 1>want to tell everybody.

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<v Speaker 3>I'd like to go through some of the things just

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<v Speaker 3>real quick. When I came, the place was a mess

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<v Speaker 3>of asphalt around the clubhouse with holes in it and stuff,

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<v Speaker 3>and every ice there was buckets in the room catching

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<v Speaker 3>the rain drops and stuff. And I said, what the

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<v Speaker 3>heck is the dealing. Well, the city won't help us.

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<v Speaker 3>A city won't hell. That was the big excuse.

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<v Speaker 1>That was the story.

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<v Speaker 2>It was eighty six.

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<v Speaker 1>By the way, I wasn't working for the city yet.

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<v Speaker 2>I just want to get that on the record.

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<v Speaker 3>Material there were no cart paths, and there was bear

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<v Speaker 3>spots by the tea boxes and by the greens or

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<v Speaker 3>the cart paths where the carts were going and stuff.

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<v Speaker 3>So that's one of the first things we did was

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<v Speaker 3>we semeented around it around the clubhouse and got cement

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<v Speaker 3>and fixed it up where it was nice, and then

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<v Speaker 3>we put cart paths in. I hired a guy from

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<v Speaker 3>Oklahoma City Golfing Country Club is He was the second

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<v Speaker 3>assistant to one of the best superintendents, and he did

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<v Speaker 3>he did one half of a job for us, and

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<v Speaker 3>together we all laid cart paths, and we hired this

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<v Speaker 3>guy named Jody Shahan to help us.

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<v Speaker 1>And another got another longtime story on our course.

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<v Speaker 3>But the city was there, of course, and the Lion

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<v Speaker 3>Foundation was the air force. Since then we extended the

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<v Speaker 3>clubhouse on the south side because it was just a

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<v Speaker 3>little narrow locker room and he couldn't see out or anything.

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<v Speaker 3>And so they made a nice extension on the south

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<v Speaker 3>side of the clubhouse, which was beautiful. And then one

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<v Speaker 3>of the best things we did, my son told me.

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<v Speaker 2>To do it.

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<v Speaker 3>Our scoreboard area was a hill with muddy and people

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<v Speaker 3>couldn't sit out there. They have to stand and watch

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<v Speaker 3>their scores come in. And and so we laid a

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<v Speaker 3>cement path all the way to the scoreboard, filled into

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<v Speaker 3>a dirt, filled it in and it was one of

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<v Speaker 3>the biggest improvements in the clubhouse.

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<v Speaker 2>People.

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<v Speaker 3>I mean, Southern Hills doesn't have as good a scoreboard

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<v Speaker 3>area as we have, and either does Hill Chris. They

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<v Speaker 3>sit out there and we cook for him. They eat

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<v Speaker 3>out there, they watched their scores come in, and they

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<v Speaker 3>present the prizes right there.

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<v Speaker 2>It's really a nice deal.

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<v Speaker 3>But the cart pass was the biggest improvement to the

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<v Speaker 3>golf course.

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<v Speaker 1>Can you imagine a golf course without cart pass now?

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<v Speaker 3>Target we laid it ourselves, with Jody and me and

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<v Speaker 3>Larry still.

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<v Speaker 2>Still there.

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<v Speaker 3>Driving rage t was extended the two thousand renovation. In

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<v Speaker 3>two thousand where we u put four new greens in

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<v Speaker 3>that we're having trouble, and did the lakes and stuff.

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<v Speaker 2>The city was there for that, and the Lion Foundation

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<v Speaker 2>was there for there for that.

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<v Speaker 3>White Sand Bunkers, which actually the White Sand Bunkers I

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<v Speaker 3>raised most of the money from that at the Solo Club.

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<v Speaker 2>I want to let you know, since we brought it

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<v Speaker 2>up the other day, that was pro second office.

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<v Speaker 3>The city was there for everything, and the White Sand

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<v Speaker 3>Bunkers are wonderful. And now the city's there for the

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<v Speaker 3>twenty twenty five renovation, which is going to be wonderful

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<v Speaker 3>and it's really going to be nice, and so is

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<v Speaker 3>the Lion Foundation going to be there. And all of

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<v Speaker 3>the members had done so well with her. So it's

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<v Speaker 3>been a wonderful, wonderful career for me, and I can't

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<v Speaker 3>believe the city put up with me this long.

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<v Speaker 2>But I'm very thankful.

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<v Speaker 3>Raise my kids in my house, and the golf course

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<v Speaker 3>was a backyard, and the junior program, the senior program,

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<v Speaker 3>and the ladies program. The junior program, now, there's so

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<v Speaker 3>many good players came out of the junior program that

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<v Speaker 3>we did. Sean Barker holds the course record. We taught

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<v Speaker 3>him from the beginning. Many many people are playing golf

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<v Speaker 3>from that junior program and stuff. The senior program is

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<v Speaker 3>the biggest senior program because of Adam's golf course. The

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<v Speaker 3>people retire from Phillips and they stay here, and the

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<v Speaker 3>city recognizes the importance of the golf course, and the

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<v Speaker 3>Ladies Association is absolutely wonderful.

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<v Speaker 2>But anyway, it has been quite a journey.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, And the upcoming renovations out there are primarily focused

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<v Speaker 1>on the greens and it will be the probably it

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<v Speaker 1>will be the largest investment the city has made in

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<v Speaker 1>the golf course and pro that wouldn't have happened without you. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>your advocacy for the golf course through the years is

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<v Speaker 1>the reason that we're doing that. So I'm grateful to

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<v Speaker 1>you for your leadership out there. I'm grateful to you

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<v Speaker 1>for all of the time that you've spent and invested

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<v Speaker 1>in the golf course. And I personally will miss you.

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<v Speaker 3>You think I'll miss you too, But I'm going to

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<v Speaker 3>stick around for a.

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<v Speaker 1>What if you don't leave, I don't get to miss

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<v Speaker 1>your pro.

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<v Speaker 2>Thank you, that's all right. In a long time, that's

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<v Speaker 2>all right.

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<v Speaker 1>If you don't leave, I don't have to miss your pros,

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<v Speaker 1>but I truly do appreciate you and we want to

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<v Speaker 1>send you out in style.

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<v Speaker 2>So one more time.

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<v Speaker 1>We've got a party for the Pro on August fourteenth,

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<v Speaker 1>two to four at the clubhouse. Everyone's invited come join us.

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<v Speaker 1>And then in the transition, so Pro's last day will

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<v Speaker 1>be August sixteenth, And for anybody who doesn't know the

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<v Speaker 1>way the golf course has been run probably the entire time,

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<v Speaker 1>but I know since we hired PRO in eighty six

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<v Speaker 1>it has the PRO actually operates the pro shop out there,

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<v Speaker 1>the driving range, the golf carts, I think that was

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<v Speaker 1>primarily it. Yeah, the concessions, all the food and beverage,

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<v Speaker 1>and so that was a very common model back then.

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<v Speaker 1>It's become less common now and so we are actually

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<v Speaker 1>looking to transition in the near future with we will

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<v Speaker 1>be transitioning over to where the city actually owns all

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<v Speaker 1>of that and operates it. So we wanted to celebrate

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<v Speaker 1>that as well. So we've got a party for the

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<v Speaker 1>Pro on the fourteenth, and then on the seventeenth we're

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<v Speaker 1>going to celebrate taking over the golf course and it

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<v Speaker 1>will be free golf for anybody who's interested. So on

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<v Speaker 1>August seventeenth, come on out. We'll have carts available, we'll

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<v Speaker 1>have water available, and it's free golf for anybody in

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<v Speaker 1>the Bartlesville community. We invite you, We want you to

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<v Speaker 1>come out. We want you to be part of this course.

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<v Speaker 1>As the pro mentioned when the process city, what he

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<v Speaker 1>really means is the citizens of Bartlesville. They're the ones

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<v Speaker 1>that have passed these bond issues and sales taxes to

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<v Speaker 1>allow for the support the golf course. So this is

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<v Speaker 1>our way of saying thank you to our community. Whether

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<v Speaker 1>you're a golfer or whether you're interested in golfer, never played,

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<v Speaker 1>it doesn't matter. Come on out August seventeenth. We will

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<v Speaker 1>have somebody there to help get you started, get you

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<v Speaker 1>set up, and it's a first come, first serve, and

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<v Speaker 1>the pro shop will not be opened that day because

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<v Speaker 1>again it's transitioned, so we've got to do a big

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<v Speaker 1>inventory and do a big countdown so that we can

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<v Speaker 1>handle that change over. But the golf course itself will

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<v Speaker 1>be open, and we certainly hope that the public will

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<v Speaker 1>come out and enjoy it. Come enjoy your investment, and

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<v Speaker 1>come tell pro Bile in the fourteenth we're looking forward.

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<v Speaker 2>To both of those things.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, thank you, bro, I said, you are an institution

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<v Speaker 1>unto yourself, sweet and we appreciate you.