Remote Iraq post outfitted with golf clubs

The soldiers serving at Joint Security Station Aqur Quf had a problem: They had a hitting mat and tens of thousands of golf balls, but only two clubs.
Thanks to the kindness of News Tribune readers, that’s not a problem anymore.

The donors are people such as Zoeanne Hondle of Tacoma, who sent numerous clubs and a hard-top bag. Vic Peterson of Tacoma shipped clubs including a Callaway Big Bertha, plus a note saying his distance record with the driver was 325 yards.

The newspaper ran a story Dec. 23 about the small outpost in western Baghdad province where soldiers from Joint Base Lewis-McChord take a break from the grind of their yearlong deployment by teeing off from the roof of the motor pool building.

But these Stryker soldiers from the 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division had only two clubs, and both were woefully short.

Dozens of readers responded and shipped sets of clubs – old ones, new ones, cheap ones and expensive ones. They did it at their own expense so the soldiers could take golf swings in style.

“They’re great,” said Sgt. Christopher Bergevine, who works in the motor pool at Aqur Quf and is one of the outpost’s regular duffers.

The gifts also have become a tool of international relations. When the first batch of clubs arrived in early January, two Iraqi army officers appeared and received a crash course from their Lewis-McChord counterparts.

It all started shortly after the soldiers came to Aqur Quf in September. They discovered a shipping container with 50,000 golf balls and two clubs – the latter of which appear designed for shorter people. But they set up the driving mat and sent balls over the wire as a stress reliever.

“Sometimes the guys in the guard tower will radio the (tactical operations center),” Spc. Clois Seely told The News Tribune in December. “They’ll tell them, ‘The mechanics are throwing things at us again.’”

New shipments of clubs first arrived last month at the 4th Brigade public affairs office, a cozy room made even cozier by boxes of golf gear. Four full sets have already been sent to the soldiers at Aqur Quf, with additional sets distributed to the brigade’s other battalions across Baghdad province.

Boxes arrive almost daily. Brigade commander Col. John Norris plans to send thank-you notes and a certificate of appreciation to those who donated.

Thirteen boxes sat in the corner of the public affairs office Jan. 18, when Capt. Chris Ophardt and Spc. Luisito Brooks ripped into the packages to see what had arrived.

The first three boxes were from Zoeanne Hondle of Tacoma, who sent irons, woods, drivers and that hard-top bag. Vic Peterson mailed woods and irons, in addition to that long-yardage Big Bertha driver.

William Barton of Tacoma mailed a box of drivers. Gail Deason of Lakewood mailed irons and wooden drivers, including the not-often-seen 21/2- and 41/2-wood clubs.

Other boxes – donations from concerned readers in Tacoma, Lakewood, Bonney Lake, Steilacoom, Fox Island and elsewhere – still awaited opening.