Children of all ages are invited to a free golf clinic at Historic Bowden Golf Course hosted by the host of the Golf Channel’s “Morning Drive,” Charlie Rymer, on Sunday, November 26 from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. To sign up for this free clinic, call Historic Bowden Golf Course’s Clubhouse at 478-742-1610.
Children will receive golf instruction as a group from Mr. Rymer before competing in Longest Drive, Closest to the Pin, Putting, and Chipping competitions. After the competitions, there will be food for families, and the children will have a chance to hit golf balls on the driving range. Every child will receive their own golf club to take home, and the first 100 to register will get a free hat that has been autographed by Mr. Rymer.
Improving Bowden Golf Course and increasing its use are part of Macon-Bibb County’s award-winning Forward Together Strategic Plan in the Quality of Life Focus Area. Projects identified by the Commission and public in this Area “support, encourage, and promote good living in Macon-Bibb with the arts and cultural events, tourism improvements, social and night life opportunities, and a community-wide system of passive and active recreation.”
About Charlie Rymer
Source: Golf Channel
Charlie Rymer joined Golf Channel in 2008 and currently serves as a co-host for Morning Drive, the network’s daily news and lifestyle program. Rymer also contributes to the network’s coverage of the Drive, Chip and Putt Championships and Golf Central’s coverage of the NCAA Golf Championships. He has grown to develop a likeable reputation for his quick wit and “down home” humor on air. In 2015, Rymer was elected into the PGA of America as a certified PGA professional.
Relying on his experiences on the PGA TOUR, Rymer uses his views on life and golf to entertain audiences all over the world. An accomplished junior golfer, Rymer won the 1985 U. S. Junior Amateur and went on to become a two-time, All-American at Georgia Tech. The Fort Mill, S.C., native spent more than 10 years playing professional golf and recorded his best finish on the PGA TOUR with a third place finish at the Shell Houston Open in 1995. He also captured a victory on the Web.com Tour in his home state at the 1994 South Carolina Classic.
About Historic Bowden Golf Course
In February 2015, Bowden Golf Course was listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The nomination was sponsored by the City of Macon and the Macon Golf for Kids program. Since 2013, approximately $625,000 from the voter-approved Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) has been spent on improvements at Historic Bowden Golf Course. An additional $340,000 is allocated for improvements that are scheduled to take place beginning in Spring 2018.
In January 2016, the Macon-Bibb Commission set new prices for playing golf at Bowden Golf Course. An annual membership costs $600. Daily rates are $20 for Monday through Thursday play, and $25 for Friday through Sunday play. There is also a disc golf course at Bowden, and it costs $3.21 to play 18 holes.
This 18-hole public golf course was designed in 1938 by John “Dick” C. Cotton (1907-1994), a Macon professional golfer and businessman. Cotton and other local golfers approached the City of Macon about the need for a public course after the Lakeside Course in Macon closed in the mid-1930s. The mayor of Macon, Charles Bowden, agreed to assist in any way, except financially because the city had no money during the Great Depression to build golf courses. A former, but vacant, airfield in east Macon, known as Miller Field, proved to be the ideal spot to lay out an 18-hole course. With the help of Works Progress Administration (WPA) labor, equipment from various businesses throughout the city, and the sale of subscriptions to fund materials, the course was completed and opened in September 1940.