WORLD CLASS SPORTS League MVP Award and an NL batting title in 1960, helping the Pirates to a World Series championship. But it is Laurel Valley, site of the 1989 U.S. Senior Open and the home course of the legendary golfer Arnold Palmer, which is among Pennsylvania’s most elite courses. Palmer, “The King,” whose legion of fans are known as “Arnie’s Army,” maintains his birth-place of Latrobe, near the Laurel Valley course, as a residence during the spring and summer months. Palmer isn’t the only professional golfer from Westmoreland County with a household name. Greensburg native Rocco Mediate, currently playing on the PGA Tour Champions circuit (for-merly the Senior PGA Tour), is perhaps best known for his captivating run towards a U.S. Open championship in 2008 that finally fell short when he succumbed to Tiger Woods on the first hole of sudden death following an 18- hole playoff at Torrey Pines in La Jolla, Calif. It all has helped to pique interest in Westmoreland County, where playing golf certainly offers a different perspec-tive to some. “The area of Western Pennsylvania — Westmoreland County included — Ohio and New York is honestly the mecca for the best greens in the coun-try to putt on,” said Craig Mankins, a Canton, Ohio, native and current golf pro at Hannastown Golf Club in Salem Township. “You can start right over the way at Oakmont (in Allegheny Coun-ty) and run over to Laurel Valley. A lot of the clubs here in Westmoreland County, from the exclusive ones to the private ones to the public courses, have one common denominator: The greens are fabulous. “We have the availability of cool nights and warm days for much of the time, and that’s a perfect recipe. You can cut the grass as low as you want. Now, once you get warmer nights, you have to be careful. If you cut too low, you have to watch for disease. The superintendents don’t worry about disease when the weather cooperates.” While Westmoreland County is not unlike much of the rest of Western Pennsylvania where terrain is involved, there are certain aspects when playing here that demand a golfer’s respect. “Don’t step on the leaves,” said Mike Murphy, of Tampa, Fla., who avoided injuring himself when he lost foot-ing on a slope while playing a round at Norvelt Golf Club in Mt. Pleasant Township. Murphy, a retired firefighter who plays nearly every day in the sunny South, found the going on Norvelt’s hilly terrain to be a bit tougher than on Florida’s mainly flat courses. Most courses in eastern Westmoreland County, such as Laurel Valley, Totter-idge, Champions Lakes and Norvelt, are situated in the foothills of the Lau-rel Highlands region of the Allegheny Mountains. It just adds another challenging ele-ment to the mix. “I’ve played courses in New Hamp-shire and Virginia and North Caro-lina,” Murphy said. “Because of the elevation, Pennsylvania courses are On the Green Westmoreland County boasts nearly 40 golf courses, each offering golfers, beginner and pro, new challenges at every tee. Arnold Palmer chips across the lake to the 18th green at Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier practicing for the 2005 66th Senior PGA Championship. Fall at Champion Lakes Golf Club. Totteridge Golf Club in Hannastown. PHOTOS: TRIB TOTAL MEDIA ARCHIVES ecause you care... 44 | Discover Westmoreland 2016 adno=6325473 253rd Anniversary Battle of Bushy Run August 6 and 7, 2016 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Two Reenactments Daily, Child’s Event Area, British and Native Encampments, Sutlers, Concessions and Museum Tours 1253 Bushy Run Road Jeannette, PA 15644 (724)-527-5584 www.bushyrunbattlefield.com IS THERE! HomeWell provides hourly personal care, companionship and homemaker services for seniors so they can remain in the comfort of their own homes. • Licensed, bonded & insured • Light Housekeeping/Laundry • Respite for family caregivers • Assistance with personal hygiene • Bathing assistance/dressing • Medication reminders • Grocery shopping • Bed-bound assistance • Transportation • Companionship • Meal preparation, cleanup adno=6328500 Personal Assistants Positions Available 4 S 4th St. Youngwood, PA 15697 724-635-0767 www.homewellseniorcare.com
SSM_X001XXC07312016_Discover Westmoreland
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