Laughter cheerfully echoed from the Shary Municipal Golf Course pro shop. Curiosity revealed a long table full of Winter Texans in the clubhouse appeared to be having a great time.
Investigation revealed the group was from Texan Mobile Home Park in McAllen. They play nine holes on the Shary Golf Course every Monday and Thursday beginning at 8:30 a.m. This was their standard time and some of the group of 17 had played as long as 20 years at that time.
Marvin Thiesse of Iowa said the group enjoyed the course because it was close to where they lived. They had been playing so long that they looked forward to the camaraderie as much as the game itself.
Pauline Johner of Alberta, Canada said the group had reserved the same tee time for years. While not everyone came every time, most played the course twice a week.
"It takes us about two and a half hours to walk the nine holes," said Dick Hunt of Nebraska. "It’s good exercise."
Asked if the course was easy or challenging, Ron Ingleright of Michigan replied, "It’s easy."
"Easy for whom?" asked his wife, Bev, adding that what is easy for some people is not so easy for others.
At the other end of the table, Curt Erickson of Minnesota was counting money. They said he was the unofficial park golf director because he was in charge of getting the tee times and birdies.
Erickson said he was underpaid for the job but did it anyway. Others said he volunteered for the job that had no salary.
They went on to explain that each one chipped in a dollar. Erickson would place a flag for a chip in, where players holed it from off the green. The person whose ball landed closest to the hole got the pot for the day.
Art Hildebrand won the pot that day after shooting a long chip (about six foot four inches) and was busy counting his money when the Winter Texan Times editor pulled out her camera.
"Watch out, Art," someone shouted. "She’s got a camera. If she puts you in the paper, the IRS will be looking for you." He posed for the picture, showing Washington prominently on the dollar bill in hopes of deterring the IRS from looking for him.
That was when someone at the other end of the table shouted, "tell her about Leo."
Leo Le Blanc, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, is legally blind but amazingly, with the help of his wife, he still plays golf. (See related story.)
While most of the players were men, there were several ladies in the group.
Arnold Cook said the ladies are very good players. At 87, Cook is the oldest member of the group present. He still enjoys playing the nine holes because it is good exercise and often plays with the ladies. Cook is not the oldest in the group. That honor goes to Ed Klinger, 89, who did not play that day.
"Yeah, Arnold likes to play with the ladies," another quipped, offering a more colorful connation to Cook’s words.
In defense of Arnold, Dick Hunt said that the ladies present “were exceptionally good golfers.”
" Don’t believe what he says. He’s a bachelor," another shouted. "He’s buttering the ladies up because he needs a housekeeper."
"Or a caddy," another added, while the group laughed. They were on a roll.
"Be sure you get that right. He’s looking, not good looking," another added.
It was evident that the camaraderie of the group was high. After being together for as long as 20 years, the friendships are just as important as the game.