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Polk County Itemizer-Observer • July 22, 2015 11A Polk County Sports GOLF Cross Creek hosts OGA youth tournament Nearly 80 golfers from Oregon and Washington came to compete on Thursday By Lukas Eggen Golf The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — About 80 golfers descended upon Cross Creek Golf Course on Thursday morning. This was no ordinary tournament. This was an Oregon Golf As- sociation (OGA) youth tour- nament. “We had 79 kids out there, which is a pretty good show- ing for us,” Cross Creek em- ployee Dave Watson said. This is the 10th year Cross Creek has been a part of OGA, Watson said. The youth tournament, open to OGA members aged 8-17, does more than teach kids the game of golf. “It teaches them integrity and responsibility,” Watson said. “I mean each player calls his or her own penal- ties. That’s an important part of it and for kids to learn how to do that is amazing. It also teaches them discipline.” The OGA is a non-profit organization aimed at pro- moting, fostering and grow- ing the game of golf. Membership is available to both adults and chil- dren, and comes with ben- efits. Watson said he hopes • Cross Creek Golf Course hosted an OGA youth tour- nament on Thursday. • In total, 79 golfers com- peted at the event. • Results were not avail- able as of press time. • For more information: www.oga.org. LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Almost 80 golfers teed off at Cross Creek Golf Course on Thursday morning to take part in the OGA tournament. events like these help young golfers learn to love the game — even when it can be difficult. “It’s a sport you love to hate,” Watson said. “It can be so frustrating at times and then you hit that one good shot that comes off ex- actly the way you planned it, and that’s what keeps you coming back.” Thursday’s tournament saw players from Oregon and Washington compete. Among them included Dal- las High’s Kailee Curtis. Drawing golfers from multi- ple states is nothing new, Watson said, as many youth golfers make the trip to sev- eral tournaments through- out the year. “The kids have a good time,” Watson said. “A lot of them play multiple tourna- ments and they make some good friends from all over. It’s a good competition for them.” While Thursday was all about youth golfers, the OGA is focused on getting golfers of any age started —it is never too late to begin. “Almost every course has a teaching pro and, for a lit- tle money, you can get some instruction and it makes it so much easier for you to play,” Watson said. “There are a lot of programs out there to help you get on the course and have fun.” Results from the OGA tournament were not avail- able as of press time. But Thursday was a success by multiple measures, Watson said. And, as they have had for the past decade, Thurs- day’s tournament provided as much fun for the volun- teers running it as the play- ers competing. “We had 22 volunteers from the men’s and women’s clubs,” Watson said. “They come back every year be- cause it’s so much fun. The kids have fun. The parents are happy and this is a great showcase for (Cross Creek). We try and have everyone who comes here leave in a good mood.” Triathlon: Every finisher receives medal Continued from Page 10A The first 50 competitors to check in will receive a T- shirt. Cost is $15 for members of the Dallas Aquatic Center and $20 for nonmembers. Registration will be accepted the morning of the event. Participants are broken up into age groups (5-6, 7-8, 9-10 and 11-12) and Snyder said he hopes that the kids’ triathlon serves as a jump- ing off point to helping kids live a more healthy life. “Most of the kids who do this event, they tend to have parents who are pretty ac- tive,” Snyder said. “But we hope that this helps get all the kids excited to be more active.” The race begins with the swimming leg inside Dallas Aquatic Center, followed by a bike ride around Roger Jor- dan Community Park and ending with a run through the park’s grassy area. “Families can come down to the aquatic center, and we have a display on the front counter so they can see the course ahead of time,” Sny- der said. “They can even do a practice run if they’d like. We have certain things to work with to keep this safe. We didn’t want kids crossing the street, so we had to come up with something that would work.” The main focus of the triathlon is to promote stay- ing active and having fun. But Snyder said for partici- pants, the triathlon can also be a chance to show off their athletic ability. “I love watching the younger kids,” Snyder said. “The transition from little kids who swim on noodles and then get on a tricycle and act like it’s a competi- tive event, it’s fun to see. They’ve got their game faces on.” While the kids are having a blast competing, those watching may get just as much, if not more, enjoy- ment from seeing the kids compete in the triathlon. “Just come on down,” Snyder said. “Even if you don’t have a child partici- pating, it’s some really cheap comedy if you want to see something that’s re- ally fun.” Having a Word Run: Event offers races for all levels LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Spencer DesBiens receives instructions after advancing to third base during the De- marini Dirtbags’ game against the Withnell Dodgers on Saturday. The Dirtbags earned a 5-4 victory, but lost two of three games to the Dodgers. The Demarini Dirt- bags placed second in its league standings entering the American Legion State Tour- nament on July 29. SCOREBOARD CLUB SWIMMING BLUE DOLPHINS RYST Summer Open At Umpqua Community College July 17-19 Results (BDST placers) GIRLS 100 individual medley (9-10) — 6, Kaitlyn Landis, 1:43.28. 100 freestyle (9- 10) — 9, Kaitlyn Landis, 1:34.38. 50 freestyle (8 and under) — 7. Gentry Hagedorn, 43.95. 200 freestyle (9-10) — 3, Taylor Hagedorn, 2:51.67; 9, Kaitlyn Landis, 3:22.23. 25 breaststroke (8 and under) — 2, Gentry Hagedorn, 23.95. 50 breaststroke (9-10) — 9, Taylor Hage- dorn, 50.09; 17, Kaitlyn Landis, 58.69; 21, Madison Hanson, 1:01.55. 50 butterfly (8 and under) — 2, Gentry Hagedorn, 48.94. 100 butterfly (9-10) — 1, Taylor Hagedorn, 1:32.96; 5, Kaitlyn Landis, 1:59.88. 50 backstroke (9-10) — 9, Kait- lyn Landis, 48.25; 24, Madison Hanson, 1:01.70. 400 individual medley (15 and over) — 5, Emily Beasley, 7:11.03. 200 freestyle (15 and over) — 10, Emily Beasley, 3:03.60. 50 freestyle (9-10) — 7, Taylor Hagedorn, 36.87; 15, Kaitlyn Landis, 41.90; 27, Madison Hanson, 52.82. 50 breaststroke (8 and under) — 3, Gentry Hagedorn, 53.64. 100 breaststroke (9-10) — 8, Taylor Hage- dorn, 18, Kaitlyn Landis, 2:08.65; 19, Madison Hanson, 2:10.93. 25 butterfly (8 and under) — 2, Gentry Hagedorn, 19.83. 50 butterfly (9-10) — 4, Taylor Hagedorn, 42.44. 50 backstroke (8 and under) — 6, Gentry Hagedorn, 51.32. 100 backstroke (9-10) — 10, Kaitlyn Landis, 1:48.70. 200 backstroke (15 and over) — 14, Emily Beasley, 3:24.52. 100 breaststroke (15 and over) — 18, Emily Beasley, 1:52.34. 200 butterfly (15 and over) — 4, Emily Beasley, 1:52.34. BOYS 200 freestyle (11-12) — 10, David Beasley, 3:18.26. 25 breaststroke (8 and under) — 5, Cash Hagedorn, 32.58. 50 LUKAS EGGEN/ Itemizer-Observer file The 10th annual Summerfest Kids’ Triathlon gives participants a chance to shine. backstroke (11-12) — 12, David Beasley, 50.96. 25 freestyle (7-8) — 4, Cash Hagedorn, 24.47. 50 freestyle (11- 12) — 8, David Beasley, 36.91. 50 back- stroke (8 and under) — 3, Cash Hage- dorn, 1:02.88. 50 backstroke (11-12) — 7, David Beasley, 1:45.43. CLUB GOLF CROSS CREEK GOLF COURSE MEN’S CLUB Tuesday, June 14 Results Low Gross/Low Net Gross — 1, Greg Fisher-Lee Taylor, 35. Net — 1 (tie), Bob Bennett-David Karr and Ted Bennett-Dave Day, 31. Tuesday, June 14 Results Progressive Tees Gross — 1 (tie), Lee Taylor and Bill Karjala, 76. Net — 1, Jack Duncan, 67; 2 (tie), Bob Bennett and Michael Willem, 69. Continued from Page 10A While the 5K and fun run were always designed to ap- peal to less experienced runners, the event’s newest race, the 10K, was started to bring in a whole new crowd of runners. “We started with just the 5K and fun run,” Locke said. “One of the gals that used to work with us was encourag- ing us to do a 10K to reach a different group of people. It’s worked really well.” Since then, the event has been growing, Locke said. But organizers don’t want the event, which is com- pletely run by volunteers, to get too out of hand too quickly. “We want to keep our numbers that we had the previous year and add a few more,” Locke said. “We would love continuing small growth. The part we struggle with is if we get too big, you look at some of the bigger runs and you put in a lot of time and that’s their only job. That’s not where we’re at. We’re all volunteers and this is our hobby for us, but we would love to see it grow in terms of exposure to running and funding more of the athlet- ics. It’s a little scarey too, though. We will just have to up our game, too. … It ben- efits the booster club, which benefits the kids’ athletics. That part is really good.” Part of what sets the LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer file The Summerfest Fun Run offers 5- and 10-kilometer races for distance runners to take part in. Summerfest Fun Run apart is the course it takes run- ners on, Locke said. The 5K run/walk will travel north on Jefferson to Walnut Street before turn- ing east and following Wal- nut to the Dallas Aquatic Center where participants will run a loop around the soccer field before return- ing to Walnut, heading south on Levens Street to Academy and back across Main Street. The 10K race follows a similar course, but directs runners eastward from the aquatic center on Barberry before looping back via Hawthorne and Academy to LaCreole before heading west down Walnut through Dallas City Park. “We want to showcase some of the city’s running area,” Locke said. “We’ve gotten feedback that run- ners like the change of scenery.” For any last-second plan- ners, registration will be available at the Dallas Booster Club’s booth during Summerfest, online at www.runsignup.com/Sum- merfestRun or the morning of the event. As the Summerfest Fun Run hopes to enjoy another successful event, perhaps its biggest appeal is the local connection. “You’ll see the athletes, coaches and parents direct- ing runners and giving en- couragement,” Locke said. “All of our awards are locally made. It makes this a little more personal.”