The Barnyard 9 about laughs as much as putts
Archie Kulchytskyy (left) and Steve Mingus (background) look on why Frank Kozelka lines up a put during a game on Tuesday, Sept. 30. (Steve Van Kooten/Courier Press)
By Steve Van Kooten
On Tuesday mornings during the golfing season, men corral themselves at the Barnyard 9 in Prairie du Chien for their weekly rounds of golf. There are usually a few dozen, but on Sept. 30, about 40 men waited to get on the green.
Roy George, who helps organize teams each week, calls it organized chaos.
“It takes teamwork to do this every week. The team consists of Steve Mingus, Al Peterson, Doug Vanderbilt and the right-hand man, Frank Kozelka,” said George.
Men are divided into teams and play their best ball. Participants put $7 into the pot, with $3 put into a prize pot for two separate rounds and the remaining dollar going to the kitty. Winning teams receive payouts, but the money is a small part of why the Barnyard 9 golf group has remained active since the late 1990s.
“We don’t come for the money; we come for the camaraderie,” said Vanderbilt.
The fellowship between the players is what brings them back every week; it’s as much about visiting with good friends as hitting the ball.
“We kid around and talk and pick on each other. They pick on me a lot because I pick on them a lot, too,” said Mingus, a Waterloo, Iowa, native who has played with the Barnyard 9 group for close to 25 years.
Around the table, others fired off quips and one-liners back and forth to each other at a rapid pace.
“I get teased about surgeries all the time, too,” one man said.
“One of these times they’ve got to do your brain,” another retorted.
“They’ve got to find it first,” a third added.
“For some, the money makes a difference, but not for me. I just enjoy golfing,” said Owen DuCharme. “It’s something to connect with people.”
That connection became apparent when George handed out get-well cards for two members unable to attend due to health issues. Everyone signed their name, imparting their best wishes for two of their own.
Even though the group restricts participation to adults over 50, it routinely attracts people from across Southwest Wisconsin to tee off on the nine-hole course.
“All of these people are good guys,” said Dave Morel. “Some of them come down from Viroqua, and others are from Steuben and Seneca, so it’s a way to meet new people you wouldn’t normally see. Some of these guys come out and golf three or four times a week, early in the morning. You’re always going to run into somebody out here.”
The Barnyard 9’s tightly constructed course is another reason they keep coming back.
“It’s a nice little course,” said Mingus. “Every hole has water on it, and I’ve been in the water at every hole.”
“This is a nice course, too. They do a fantastic job with it,” said DuCharme.
On some weeks, the course holds special events and contests to keep things interesting. During the group’s preparation session before tee-off, they discussed the next week’s plan for “Jackson’s Revenge,” named after the Barnyard 9’s groundskeeper, in which unique obstacles will be set up on each hole.
“It’s to have something different and more difficult than normal,” said Vanderbilt. “It’s all in fun.”
They also host the Ryder Cup tournament where a team from Prairie du Chien competes against a team from Westby for a traveling trophy. Prairie du Chien won the most recent tournament 11-1 in September.
In the winter, when golf is about the last thing on anyone’s mind, members come together for different events. This past winter, they held a dinner for themselves and their wives. Each summer, the group holds a picnic for their membership as well. They build memories and, of course, play golf.
The social aspect of the group’s Tuesday (and Thursday) games may bring people to the green every week, but each man’s love for the game should not be discounted either. Golf is a sport of precision, skill, and, most importantly, luck that fosters friendly competition and an excuse to get away from the rigmarole of the daily grind.
“After I retired, I started coming down here to play golf,” said DuCharme. “I’ve got plenty of stuff I should be doing, but I just like playing golf. Every once in a while, I get a good hit. That keeps me coming back.”
