6/10/2010 - West Side Leader
     

The Old Pine Golf Course clubhouse is a renovated 145-year-old double brick farmhouse.

Photos courtesy of Old Pine Golf Course

Owned and operated by Dave and Sue Morgan, the facility, once known as the Leaning Tree Golf Club, was bought by the Morgans in 1999 and redesigned from an 18-hole course into an executive link, 1,850-yard, par-3 course.

“We made Old Pine more challenging when we renovated it,” said Sue Morgan, a retired Akron Public Schools teacher who operates the facility. “The course is not exceptionally long, but it’s sporty and challenging.”

Her husband oversees maintenance of the golf course. Dave Morgan is a PGA professional, was the head pro at Lake Forest Country Club in Hudson for seven years and also worked at Congress Lake Golf Course in Hartville and Green’s Prestwick Country Club when it was known as Langmoor Country Club.

“This is an old-fashioned, mom-and-pop operation,” Dave Morgan said of Old Pine Golf Course. “The 41-year-old golf course is great for beginners, juniors and seniors.”

Morgan explained the golf course has “an old-fashioned feel and laid back atmosphere.”

He added Old Pine is frequented by father-son and grandparent-grandchild teams.

“The course offers a positive experience,” he said. “Beginner and intermediate golfers can feel comfortable and are not pressured while playing here.”

Sue Morgan stated the facility also has a clubhouse that was built in 1865 that was once a “quaint brick farmhouse.” The clubhouse includes a small shop that sells snacks, as well as golf balls and gloves.

“We are casual here,” she added. “We don’t take tee times, but it works out well with lots of regulars.”

Regular golfers also enjoy seeing Tye, the Morgans’ border collie, around the course chasing geese away, she added.

Sue Morgan said owning and operating the golf course is an extension of her husband’s passion for golf. Dave Morgan not only works and plays golf, but he is also a serious collector of pre-1900 clubs, she added.

“He restores the clubs and plays with them,” she said. “Dave has played in the National Hickory Championship in West Virginia.”

The event includes golfers who play the game with older, hickory-shafted golf clubs, according to the Society of Hickory Golfers website.

Old Pine Golf Course is open from 7:15 a.m. until dark every day through October. For more information, visit www.oldpinegolfcourse.com or call 330-659-4900.

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