Wisconsin Golfer - May/June 2011

Free admission and parking for U.S. Amateur

For the first time in 14 years, there will be no admission charge for the U.S. Amateur

Championship. In addition, there will be no charge for parking at Erin Hills GC in Erin or Blue Mound G&CC in Wauwatosa.

"We want Wisconsin to embrace fully its first U.S. Amateur and want the free admission to encourage people to come see the best amateur golfers in the world," said Erin Hills competitions director John Morrissett. "With Erin Hills set to host the 2017 U.S. Open, the 2011 U.S. Amateur provides an opportunity to walk the fairways of a U.S. Open course for no charge."

In the past, U.S. Amateurs have charged up to $30 for admission. But, as a result of contributions from companies such as Baird, M&I Bank and Artisan Partners, admission this year is free.

This is great news for golf fans, who will have
the ability to walk the fairways right along with
the competitors as with any U.S. Amateur. In gen-
eral, there are no ropes that sepa-
rate the fans from
the players, such
as at a PGA
Tour event.
Past champi-
ons of the
U.S. Amateur
include every-
one from
Bobby Jones to
Jack Nicklaus to Tiger Woods.
For more information on the 2011
U.S. Amateur Championship, visit
www.2011usamateur.com or

““when he talks to a former herdsman who now works at the golf course.

We envisioned it being a golf course (but) it went beyond our wildest expectations.

— JEFF MILLIKIN

“Mr. Bob Lang came along and had the same vision for the land that my parents did,” Millikin said, except that the Delafield developer’s vision extended beyond just another golf course to include a track suitable for major championships.

“I think it turned out better (than
imagined),” said Millikin. “We envi-
sioned it being a golf course (but) it
went beyond our wildest expecta-
tions. Mr. Lang did what he said he
was going to do and then some.”
Lang’s zeal to produce a U.S.
Open-quality course eventually left
him financially strapped, and in
2009 he sold the course to Andrew
Ziegler, co-founder of an investment
firm, who then closed the course for
a make-over in preparation for the
U.S. Amateur this summer. Still, Mil-
likin said his mother, who died in
March, was “very happy” with how
the course turned out and with her
dealings with Lang.

“I think the hard part for me is,
he’ll say to me the west pasture but
now it’s the ninth hole,” he said. “I
don’t understand the new lingo.”
“I think that’s going to help all of
Wisconsin,” he said. “It’s good for
everybody.”
The Millikin family home is long
gone, as are most of the other signs
that a large-scale cattle operation
once dominated the land. Only one
barn remains as evidence of that.
And Millikin, 58, is not a golfer, so
he even has trouble sometimes
Including, fittingly, the owner of
Church Road Station.