The members at North Augusta Golf and Country Club aren't the only ones who will be paying close attention when the private club goes to auction Jan. 29.

The club's employees won't know until then if they'll have a job the next day.

"Assuming it sells as a golf course and it's not a land deal, the new owner has 30 days to close and we will run it as is for 30 days," head pro Doug Cameron said Tuesday.

And what if a land developer buys the course, which covers 135 acres?

"We don't know," Cameron said.

Cameron said a "skeleton staff" of "13 or 14" employees are running the course, which doesn't have a free-standing clubhouse.

Cameron wouldn't venture a guess as to which way the auction will go.

"I've heard all kind of rumors," he said. "Everyone is hoping it's going to be a golf course.

"Due to the contract, the auction house (J.P. King) can't tell us anything," Cameron said.

STREAK ENDS: Laura Coble's historic run as the top female amateur golfer in Georgia has come to an end.

The Augustan, who won 10 consecutive Georgia State Golf Association female player of the year titles from 1998-2007, finished second in 2008.

Before Coble's run, the record for consecutive female player of the year titles was four, by Vicki Goetze (1989-92).

Under a points system based on finishes in major Georgia amateur and two U.S. Golf Association events, Coble had 900 points to 1,000 for Mariah Stackhouse, of Riverdale.

Stackhouse, who was 14 years old during the 2008 season, had victories in the Georgia Match Play Championship (for the second consecutive year), the Greater Atlanta Women's Amateur Championship and the Georgia Women's Golf Association Amateur, where she beat Coble in a playoff.

NEW TOUR: Senior amateur golfers ages 50 and older in the area will soon have a new option for competitive play.

The Harris Teeter Senior Amateur Golf Tour, which debuted in Charlotte, N.C., in 1998, will have an Augusta-area chapter this year.

Players will be broken down into four flights, based on their USGA handicaps. The top 15 point-getters in each flight will qualify for the Tour Championship Nov. 17-18 in Pinehurst, N.C.

There are 16 tournaments in the series, which will run from early February to late September with two tournaments each month. All the courses are in the Augusta area with the exception of two stops in Greenwood, S.C.

The season opener is Feb. 4 at Pointe South Golf Club.

The tour membership fee is $80 and entry fee is $50 to $65 per event. Golfers can join the tour at any time.