When you think Trochu, think big tee.
The community is cheering like it scored a hole-in-one after emerging the winner of a giant 12-metre golf tee, courtesy of Alberta Treasury Branch’s Teenormous contest.
“We’re ecstatic,” said Audrey Nelson, clubhouse manager for the Trochu Golf Club, which sent in a video submission earlier this year pitching its case for the ATB judges. “Everybody in town has been pretty up about it.”
Club members didn’t waste any time celebrating. “In fact, we had a little get together. About 20 of us showed up and we had to do a little toasting.”
Nelson said the club has a spot picked out on a hill overlooking Hwy 21 near the entrance to the golf course. “It will be (visible), absolutely, for a long ways.”
It’s hoped the eye-catching landmark will give the club and the town of 1,100 a little extra sizzle.
“I’m certainly sure it will help. We’ll be known as Teenormous, the town with a big tee,” she laughed.
Guinness World Records hasn’t been asked to take a look at the tee yet, but Trochu could have a serious claim to owning the world’s biggest tee. The latest entry for biggest golf tee is an 8.13-metre competitor built by Michigan college students for the Esacanaba Country Club.
Trochu can also now join a proud tradition in many rural Albertan communities to think big when it comes to oversized mascots. Vegreville has its Easter egg, Glendon a perogy, Drumheller a dinosaur and Andrew a mallard duck — not to mention Bow Island’s world’s largest putter.
Twenty to 30 communities across Alberta had their eye on the oversized golf prize. Trochu was among three short-listed and beat out Camrose and Marwayne, thanks in part to a flood of support in an online vote set up by ATB at www.wearealberta.ca
Two-thirds of the nearly 5,000 votes cast went to Trochu, 90 km south of Red Deer.
ATB spokesman Shawn Ohler said picking a winner was tough but Trochu came out on top because of its impressive show of support and the creativity the community showed in its video submission.
The video featured the club’s oldest golfer, a 93-year-old, and youngest, a 12-year-old. The club also spelled out “T is fore Trochu” with 1,618 golf balls on one of the greens. The club and its members also showed a lot of spirit coping with an August windstorm that snapped numerous trees and wrecked a golf cart shelter.
Ohler said ATB is paying for the 680-kg tee to be transported and installed in Trochu, likely some time next month. The tee was created by Calgary’s Heavy Industries a couple of years ago as a promotion for the ATB Financial Classic golf tournament and has been on display most recently at Sirocco Golf Club, south of Calgary.
pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com