Opinion & Analysis

Man survives golf course sinkhole

Published

13 years ago

Mar 13, 2013

The 14^th hole at Annbriar Golf Course in Waterloo, Ill., is a daunting affair. The mid-length par five doglegs left, weaves past bunkers before crossing a stream to a tricky green. For Mark Mihal, 43, his score was the least of his concerns on Friday. Curiosity got the best of him while traversing the fairway and he went to look at a bubbly, rumpled portion of the short grass.

Unlike Alice going down the rabbit hole, the mortgage broker found himself some 15 feet below the surface in a muddy sinkhole. The ground had given way and the Illinois golfer went down with it. Fortunately, his three partners were immediately aware of the situation. They called for help from the clubhouse and a rope and ladder were dispatched to the site.

Ed Magaletta, one member of the foursome, took matters into own hands. Realizing that Mihal had injured his shoulder on the way down, Magaletta joined his friend in the abyss. He created a sling from his windbreaker to stabilize the injured arm and reassured Mihal until help arrived. Within 20 minutes, the golfer was breathing fresh air and basking in the sunlight of a newly-appreciated day.

Russ Nobbe, the general manager of Annbriar, loaded the rope and ladder onto a golf court and rushed to the 14^th hole. Mihal confessed that he thought about Floridian Jeff Bush, the victim of a sinkhole less than two weeks ago and started to get nervous. Even though he was in the descent for less than five seconds, he recalled that it felt much longer.

Geologists suggest that Mihal was also the victim of incredibly poor timing, as the sinkhole would have opened with the next strong rain. In southern Illinois, thanks to a history of mining, sinkholes are not uncommon. Nearly 15,000 have been recorded in the region. In this case, a combination of acidic rainwater, snowmelt and carbon dioxide caused limestone below the surface to dissolve and collapse.

Mark Mihal hopes to return to the fairways as soon as he can. Whether he does so at Annbriar is up for debate. After a scare like the one he had, even the toughest of us would have second thoughts on tempting fate.

Opinion & Analysis

AVL: My U.S. Amateur local qualifying experience

Published

5 days ago

Jun 5, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This past Monday, I played in the U.S. Amateur local qualifier at Rock Creek Country Club in Portland, Oregon. A full tee sheet from 7:30 a.m. to 1:55 p.m., the top 11 scores would make it to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying.

I teed off at 10:48 a.m.. With the 7:30 am tee time, you can get a feel for the leaders’ pace, and they were off and running on the challenging setup at Rock Creek.

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Getting to the highlight of the round on the par five 17th, a drive up the left side and 212 yards left to the front hole location. I took out a 5-iron with plans of middle of the green. The ball ended up 8 feet left of the hole, pin high. A slight downhill putt dropped in for an eagle 3 on the 17th. With the cut line looking to be anywhere from -2 to even par. This was the boost I had been waiting for all day.

With making par from the trees on 18, it was time to wait for a potential playoff with a posted score of one under par 71.

Three hours later, it was playoff time. 8 players for 6 spots. I made par on the playoff hole, which was good enough to advance to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying in July. USGA qualifiers sure deliver on all of the emotions in golf!

Club Junkie

Building my 2026 gamer WITB: Ranking the contenders and new putter projects – Club Junkie Podcast

Published

6 days ago

Jun 4, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

The annual What’s In The Bag build is underway, and on this episode of Club Junkie, Brian breaks down the clubs currently leading the race for a spot in his 2026 gamer setup. From drivers and fairway woods to irons, wedges, and shafts, he ranks the equipment that’s performing best and explains what’s separating the front runners from the rest of the field.

Brian also heads into the workshop to discuss several putter projects currently on the bench. From head options and shaft choices to build ideas and testing plans, he shares what he’s working on and which putters could become serious contenders for the bag this season.

If you’re a gear junkie who loves equipment testing, club building, and the never-ending pursuit of the perfect setup, this episode is for you.

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Club Junkie

Tour Edge Exotics mini driver review + TaylorMade Spider ZT Max first look – Club Junkie

Published

2 weeks ago

May 28, 2026

Brian Knudson

On this episode of Club Junkie, I put the new Tour Edge Exotics Mini Driver to the test and break down the performance, forgiveness, distance, and where it fits compared to a traditional driver or strong fairway wood. If you have been curious about adding a mini driver to the bag, this one is worth a look.

I also dive into the new TaylorMade Spider ZT Max putter that was recently spotted and discuss the growing zero torque putter trend. Plus, there is a closer look at the new Project X Titan Yellow shaft showing up on the PGA Tour and what makes it different from other profiles currently out there.