Golf ball drop 'another huge success' for Little Red House

Tue, May 20, 2008

SPRING LAKE — Greg Olthoff said he had such a great time out Monday that he was donating his golf ball drop winnings back to The Little Red House.

Participants raised more than $12,000 in the day's third annual On the Green for Little Red fund raising event, where Olthoff won the second place prize of $400.

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Bill Boyer's ball dropped the closest to the hole in a "drop-off" at the 6 p.m. climax to the activities at the Spring Lake Country Club. Boyer won $1,000, while the third-place prize of $200 was won by Scott Kramer.

Officials had to conduct the "drop-off" tie-breaker after three of the 1,300 golf balls fell directly into the hole on the putting green. Employees swept the balls off the green and officials from Titan Equipment of Grand Rapids went back up in their lift to make the second drop of the evening. None of the three balls went into the hole this time, but Boyer's dropped the closest.

A four-person, best ball golf scramble was held prior to the golf ball drop. Taking first place for the men, with a score of 59, were Doug Heins, Gary Gerlach, Bernie Wade and Kevin Kihnke. First place winners for the women, with a score of 72, were Jan Harestad, Carol Scholler, Mary Kay Taylor and Linda Zolman.

The team with the highest score hit a 78. Nobody got a hole in one, which would have won that person a two-year lease of a Mercedes Benz from Betten Imports of Grand Rapids. This prize will also be available at next year's event.

"It was another huge success," said Mary Eagin, who chaired the event with her husband David, a member of the Little Red House board. "A new piece this year was that we had sponsors for the event...allowing more of the money raised to go to the Little Red House."

Eagin said some of the money would go towards programming, while a majority of the funds will be used for scholarships to allow more local residents to use the adult daycare center located in Spring Lake.