from yesterday's Rocky Mountain News (9/27):
Native Americans build golf mecca in upstate NY
By JOHN KEKIS
Published September 27, 2008 at 2 a.m.
"VERONA, N.Y. (AP) _ Growing up as a Native American in upstate New York, Ray Halbritter always thought golf was out of reach.
"Golf to us was something that wealthy people did," he said. "We couldn't afford golf balls. We would look in the woods for golf balls. To this day, I like finding golf balls."
Today, the 58-year-old Halbritter no longer has to search for golf balls. The chief executive officer of the Oneida Indian Nation of New York has coupled his business savvy and love of golf to develop Turning Stone Casino and Resort into one of the nation's top golf meccas.
Turning Stone, nestled in the Mohawk Valley region of central New York about 35 miles east of Syracuse, opened as a casino in 1993, but Halbritter had a vision that dovetailed with golf. The resort now boasts three courses rated among the top 10 in the state: the Shenendoah and Kaluhyat layouts, designed by Rick Smith and Robert Trent Jones Jr., respectively, and Atunyote, the crown jewel that opened four years ago." ...
for the complete story
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