In one stroke, Edina becomes epicenter of pro golf

Jennifer Simonson, Star Tribune

U.S. Women’s Open competitor Jean Cho-Hunicke, background, practiced putting Tuesday at Interlachen Country Club in Edina. After more practice rounds today, competition begins on Thursday. The throng of fans, media and players has brought temporary chaos to the area.

By CURT BROWN, Star Tribune

Last update: June 25, 2008 - 12:15 AM

The quiet, manicured fairways have given way to jackhammers and a village of corporate schmoozing tents. The stately Tudor clubhouse has been swamped with a throng of golf fans estimated to reach 140,000 by Sunday. ¶ Standing ready to receive them is an army of 3,500 volunteers with chattering walkie-talkies and humming golf carts.

Many of the neighbors on the Edina-Hopkins border near Interlachen Country Club are thrilled to have the world's oldest and most prestigious showcase of women's golf -- the 63rd U.S. Open championship -- in their back yard.

Others are bracing for traffic snarls and parking crunches when the practice rounds end today and the competition tees off Thursday.

"It's been the most frustrating thing to live through," said Lisa O'Halloran, who lives along the 17th hole in Hopkins. "I know some of my neighbors are excited about seeing the best golfers in the world. But the floodlights, jackhammers and golf carts and walkie-talkies at 1:57 in the morning have been maddening."

She said most of the traffic is being funneled through Hopkins, while her Edina neighbors have been spared.

Kids, on the other hand, are smiling. Not only can up to nine youngsters 17 and under get in free with each paying adult, they get coupons for a free meal at any concession stand, a free golf cap and front-row seats in all the bleachers all week.

"Golf is kind of an old person's sport -- no offense or anything," Cameron Cleveland, 14, of St. Louis Park, said while waiting Tuesday for Annika Sorenstam's autograph. "All these people grew up with golf and they're getting older. So they've got to do something to get young kids into it."

And there should be plenty of drama to get into inside the ropes that separate the fans from the international field of elite players -- including three dozen South Koreans.

Sweden's Sorenstam, at 37, is seeking one more jewel for her soon-to-be retired crown that includes a numbing 72 victories. Michelle Wie, the 18-year-old phenom from Hawaii, hopes to trigger the changing of that guard this weekend.

Filling a void

Now that Tiger Woods is out with a knee injury after winning the men's counterpart to this championship earlier this month, some hope women's golf can fill the Tiger-less void.

"There are still people out there that don't believe we have the game or the shots or the excitement," the top-ranked woman golfer in the world, Mexico's Lorena Ochoa, said after a Tuesday tune-up.

"Without Tiger, the ratings go down," she said. "Hopefully, they will turn their TVs to women's golf and it will help us."

Tickets cost $20 for Wednesday's practice action, and rise to $45 Thursday and Friday and $50 on the weekend.

Boosters say the event will help the local economy by drumming up $3 million in hotel stays, restaurant tabs and rental cars. The U.S. Golf Association, which puts on the U.S. Opens, expects to break even and funnel proceeds into grants to organizations that promote the game, such as the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board and the Minnesota Minority Junior Golf Association.

There's plenty of corporate presence, too, along the 10th fairway "village," where many of the 15 corporate, um, tents have been erected.

"Tents come from Hoigaard's; these have air-conditioning and porches so we're calling them villas," said Pam Allen, a co-chairwoman of the hospitality committee and a longtime Interlachen member.

At a recent meeting, the other hospitality co-chairwoman, Robin Larkin, said a debate broke out about the size of the bleachers on the practice range, which were filling up fast Tuesday.

"Where else but Minnesota would people pack the bleachers just to root for good practice shots?" Larkin asked. "Talk about Minnesota nice. This is a great showcase for the state."

And a great opportunity for a firsthand glimpse of the game's top women.

That's why Kris Flees, of Savage, was carrying her 6-year-old after a day of watching the practice rounds and collecting autographs.

"Her name is Annika," Flees said. "And I'm sure we're not the only ones out here who named our daughter after her."

Curt Brown • 612-673-4767

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