South Carolina Cup team missed Hartline this season

Charles Hartline was in what he calls a catch-up mode this year when it came to playing in Regions Cup tournaments.

The only problem was the Aiken resident never got started.

Thus, one of the top South Carolina senior golfers didn't play in a single event this season.

"Well, I kept saying, 'I'll catch the next one, I'll catch the next one' and it got past me," Hartline said. "It got too deep in the season."

It was the Regions Cup's loss. The popular Hartline, 58, is a former winner who had qualified for the season-ending Regions Cup Matches every year but one since turning 50.

The South Carolina team could have used him over the weekend in the Regions Cup Matches, especially since they were played at Aiken's Houndslake Country Club, which is Hartline's home course.

Georgia beat South Carolina 38-25, and the six Georgia seniors outscored their South Carolina rivals 181 to 81 during the two days of matches.

After Saturday's first round matches, a number of the Regions Cup team members were eating lunch at tables in the Houndslake snack bar. At the counter, set off from them, was Hartline, who had just completed a friendly round and was eating a sandwich.

"I would have loved to play here, with this being my home course," Hartline said. "It was tough (seeing the Regions Cup team members). All the guys asked me all season where I was at."

Hartline has had heart problems in the past, but that had nothing to do with him taking the year off.

"I had conflicts during the first three or four tournaments, then I decided not to play in the middle of the season," he said. "I was going to play at the end of the season."

Hartline could have made the six-man South Carolina Regions Cup team with high finishes in the final two events, both at Midland Valley Country Club.

But he was asked by a fellow member to play in a tournament at Houndslake during the first Midland Valley tournament, so he skipped the last one, too.

Will he return next year?

"Probably so," Hartline said. "I like the competition and the camaraderie out there with the guys. There's a lot of good things going on out there, for sure."

"He told me he would be back next year," said Wayne Marchant, a senior who was a member of the South Carolina Regions Cup team.

TOUGH TEST: When Thomson's Belle Meade Country Club reopens Saturday, the most noticeable change will be on the toughened-up front nine.

The course, which has been closed since January for major renovation, is more than 200 yards longer than it was before. Most of that added yardage is on the front nine where new, longer tee boxes have been built.

The changes, which have been carried out by golf course superintendent and general manager Ted Shurling, will bring the front to about 3,500 yards. It was 3,339 yards before the renovation.

"The front nine is pretty beefy," head pro Gregg Hemann said.

The back nine will only play a little longer than its original 3,064 yards.

On the front nine, the hole that has been lengthened the most is No. 6, which is about 25 yards longer, Hemann said.

Some yardage has been added to the par-5 seventh hole, but that's not the only reason it will play longer.

"The tee shot will now land into the hill so the yardage added will be exaggerated by the lack of roll," Hemann said.

DRIVE, CHIP AND PUTT: Jones Creek Golf Club will hold a Drive, Chip and Putt contest for juniors at 2 p.m. Sept. 25.

The three ages groups - 5-9, 10-13 and 14-17 - will earn points for length of drive, closest to the pins and lowest number of putts on the putting greens. The golfers with the most points win their age group.

The deadline for entry is Tuesday. The cost is $20, or $25 for day-of-event registration.

The last event, held July 10, drew 42 juniors.

NO TIME TO WASTE: Here's a phrase golfers like to say when they change their swing in an effort to improve their scores: "You need to get worse before you get better."

Marc Solomon, the founder of Golf Made Simple golf schools in Florida and California, couldn't disagree more.

"I would like to come out to golfers around the world and officially announce how absurd it is to say that," Solomon said in a release promoting his schools.

Solomon uses some interesting analogies to back up his point.

"Would you bring your teenage son or daughter to learn how to drive a car at a school that openly states that they would drive worse before they drive better? Would you pay money to attend a university that lowered your IQ during your freshman year? Or course not. So why would a golfer believe they should get worse before they get better."

By teaching golfers that they can improve their games immediately with the correct instruction, Solomon said that 92 percent of the golfers who come to his schools looking to break 90 for the first time are successful in reaching that goals.

"Most people who play golf are on a tight schedule between their work and family commitments," Solomon said. "They just don't have time to get worse before they get better. They need to get better now."

Reach David Westin at (706) 724-0851 or david.westin@augustachronicle.com.