A while back, I got the idea to try and do some sort of a retrospective on the old Tri-County Country Club for an entry in the Par for the Course series. I bounced the idea off of Corbin High School Boys Golf Head Coach Joe Roberts, who promptly went to work organizing a reunion dinner for old club members at David’s Steakhouse.
The reunion dinner took place Monday evening, and while it was somewhat of a small crowd, there were still plenty of entertaining stories to be heard, and I picked up a couple of ideas for potential future column entries.
Those in attendance at the dinner were: Roberts, Dork White, Charlotte White, Joey Falkowski, Olsyn Falkowski, Kelly Jo White-Falkowski, Wade Carr, Pat Carr, Mike White and Robert Gray.
It was interesting for me to listen in on discussions about some of the old tournaments that were held at the country club back in its heyday, including those that were sponsored by Pepsi. Apparently, there were even years when competitions were broadcast live over local radio, which would have been pretty cool to listen in to.
I also learned about sand greens, which I had to look up on YouTube because I had never heard of such a thing, and I got to hear about how players from all over would come to Corbin to play on a small nine-hole course that, from the sound of it, had a real unique charm.
I never got to personally experience being out on the course at the Tri-County Country Club, as when I first began working for the News Journal back in 2011, things were already well in decline. I would have to go into our archives to pinpoint the exact date that operations officially ceased at the club, but I do recall the course sitting dormant for a good while as its future hung in the balance. Ultimately, the property was sold and cleared off for development.
It is unfortunate that someone, or a group of people, were not able to step in and save Corbin’s golf course. There is kind of a long story behind why that ended up being the case, and I understand that there are still some hurt feelings over it that continue to linger to this day, but for those who worked and played at the Tri-County Country Club, the memories will always be enjoyable to think back on.
Thanks again to all who attended Monday’s dinner and took the time to share some of those cherished memories.
O’Neill selected as PGA HOPE Ambassador
I was excited to see a post from the Golf House Kentucky Facebook page earlier this week informing that Corbin’s own Bob O’Neill has been selected to serve as the Kentucky Ambassador for the PGA HOPE program.
“We are so excited to have Bob represent Kentucky at the sixth annual PGA HOPE National Golf and Wellness Week in Washington DC in October,” the post read. “Bob served in the Kentucky National Guard for 12 years and represented Team Lexington in the 2024 Secretary’s Cup. Bob will be Kentucky’s fourth ambassador, and we can’t wait to continue our journey of helping veterans across the state of Kentucky!”
PGA HOPE provides veterans with free golf instruction courtesy of local PGA pros. The program was designed as a therapeutic rehab tool for all military vets. For more information, visit www.kygolf.org/content/pga-hope.
