Tuesday, July 20, 2010
By JON MOFFETT
Youngstown
Gary Pollock was about 9 years old when he picked up his first golf club.
Granted, he didn’t know how to use it. And he wasn’t actually playing the game. But it was his start.
Pollock was a spectator to his father and his friends as they golfed. Soon after, Pollock began playing for real. The rest is somewhat ancient history.
“My dad used to take me golfing, and the first time I went was at — and this will show your readers my age — the old Poland Country Club on Youngstown-Poland Road,” he said.
Now 74 and still going strong, Pollock remembers those times on the links with his father. The elder Pollock instilled an appreciation for the game — and a competitive drive — in his son that would last a lifetime.
He’s just one of many area golf veterans who have made it a point to be part of the “Greatest Golfer of the Valley” tournament hosted by The Vindicator and Farmers National Bank. The tournament will be played Sept. 11, 12 and 18 at three Valley courses. It features seven divisions, including Pollock’s Super Seniors division.
It also includes Tom Syrianoudis, who at age 73, is still golfing like the inverse of his age.
“You can always compete playing golf, no matter how old you are,” Syrianoudis. “The challenge is still there as long as you can do it.”
A retired quality control inspector for the General Motors plant in Lordstown, Syrianoudis estimated he’s been golfing for about 50 years.
Syrianoudis was a baseball standout at East High until he graduated in 1954. But when he stopped playing the game, Syrianoudis needed something to fill the competitive void.
That’s when, he said, his friends introduced him to golf.
“I love [golf],” he said. “It’s a great game to compete in.”
Pollock, too, loves the competition golf brings.
It wasn’t easy for Pollock to make an athletic impression while at Poland High in the mid-1950s. He said at 135 pounds he was too small for football and basketball. But there was always golf to quench his thirst for competition.
That’s why he was convinced to enter the “Greatest Golfer of the Valley” tournament in September.
The tournament features seven different divisions: scratch, 6-12 handicap, 13-17 handicap, 18-plus handicap, women, seniors and super seniors.
Participants will play two rounds of qualifying at Mill Creek and Trumbull Country Club. Those who advance will play the championship round at The Lake Club.
How does Syrianoudis’s golf game translate to best senior in the Valley?
“For my age, [my game] is fairly good,” Syrianoudis said. “I shoot between par and 10-12 over. I usually shoot around a 40 or 41 on average.”
Syrianoudis has also talked to a few of his peers who also wish to claim the title.
“I think I’m in the harder division,” he said laughing. “There are probably a lot of good golfers in there.”
While golf is the substitute, Syrianoudis still loves baseball. He’ll occasionally play catch or hit baseball with his grandchildren. But he said the physical nature can take its toll on his body. Pollock said he’d rather play softball or baseball, but still likes golf.
“It’s kind of hard with all the running and stuff, and I’m pretty active,” Syrianoudis said.
But while his body doesn’t enjoy the physical activity, his heart and mind still crave the competition.
“There aren’t too many sports you can get into at this stage of your life,” he said. “There are a lot that have running and jumping, and at my age, you shouldn’t do that.
“But I like the outdoors, I like the people I play with, and I like the challenge and competition.”
Pollock took it one step further, saying, “If I would have had an opportunity to go and play softball, I would. But when I play golf, I play to win. Whatever I do, I play to win.”
He added, “I don’t like to get beat. It doesn’t bother me, and I don’t lose sleep over it, but I play to win.”