The GCSAA National Championship and Golf Classic is sharing space at the Woodlands Waterway Marriott this weekend is the Safari Club of Houston, which is holding its annual convention here. The next few pictures show you what that group is up to.
A menacing wolf stands over a recent kill, courtesy of the Safari Club of Houston. You don't see this kind of action in every Marriott in the world!
A grizzly bear stands watch over the entrance to GCSAA's neighbor in Houston, the Safari Club of Houston's annual convention.
As part of their tee-prize package, tournament participants receive a gift card from Callaway that can be redeemed online. Callaway brought representatives to Houston to man this display featuring some of the products available.
The Safari Club of Houston pulled out all the stops on the entrance to the ballroom for their big dinner and reception tonight, setting up a full campsite on real grass sod.
A competitor checks out the pairings for the first round of the National Championship and the Four-Ball Competition.
Participants in the GCSAA tournament get a generous selection of items as part of their registration. This year, they also get to enter a drawing for a Carribean cruise, thanks to a gift from the Houston Convention and Visitor's Bureau.
The pro shop at Redstone Golf Club is ready to welcome competitors the next three days.
In addition to hosting GCSAA's golf event, Redstone Golf Club is also the home to the PGA Tour's Shell Houston Open.
Redstone Superintendent Roger Goettsch, CGCS (center) goes over final details with a team of GCSAA and Toro staffers Saturday morning.
Goettsch and his staff at Redstone constructed this wheeled scoreboard especially for the GCSAA tournament. The club will continue to use the scoreboard for other events, including a top collegiate tournament scheduled for the club in a few weeks.
This patio area outside the clubhouse at Redstone will be the main scoring area for the National Championship, in addition to the trophy presentation at the conclusion of play on Tuesday.
The host of the GCSAA National Championship, the Tournament Course at Redstone Golf Club.
Here is photo No. 1 from our behind-the-scenes tour of the tournament facilities -- this is the tournament's jack-of-all-trades Pat Payne (her real title is manager of tournament logistics and meeting planning) in the registration area.
GCSAA staffers Eric Neuteboom and Heidi Elser prepare to hang score sheets for the National Championship in the ballroom at the Marriott.
No. 4 in the behind-the-scenes tour -- this is the data entry room. Scores from the individual courses are phoned into staff manning these computers.
This is the scoreboard at the Tournament Course at Redstone Golf Club, less than an hour before the first groups finished play in round one.
GCSAA and Toro staffers working the tournament at Redstone prepare the scoring area.
Here's what attendees found during the Hall of Champions Celebration last night, which also doubled as a "Big Game" party.
The Hall of Champions Celebration was the only official tournament event not held at the Woodlands Waterway Marriott -- it was in a ballroom at the Woodlands Resort -- so tournament staff constructed a satellite scoreboard that displayed Four-Ball results and scores from the first round of the National Championship.
Another food station that greeted competitors during the Hall of Champions Celebration.
A tip of the cap to Jeff Graham (right), who has led the tournament for GCSAA for the last six years. Jeff has taken a new job as director of operations for the Champions Tour event in Kansas City, but returned to manage events in Houston. Here, David Downing, CGCS, a GCSAA board member and chairman of the Tournament Committee, thanks Jeff for his contributions.
Here are the first shots from the golf course this year -- this is a group on the green at No. 1 on the Tournament Course at Redstone Golf Club.
More shots from Redstone Golf Club. The ryegrass overseed has this facility in almost perfect condition.
A competitor eyes his tee shot during second-round action in the National Championship. If you look closely, you can see his ball in the middle of the fairway.
This is what everyone is shooting for -- the National Championship trophy is on display in the scoring area at Redstone Golf Club.
Mike Stieler, the superintendent at California's Riverbend Golf Club, looks over his scorecard after a second-round 74 propelled him into third place overall.
Scores were posted as they came in on a scoreboard outside the clubhouse at Redstone Golf Club.
Competitors gathered to check scores and discuss their rounds with other players on the patio at Redstone Golf Club.
