LAKE OF THE OZARKS – A former Cardinals great, from the gridiron that is, led a team to top honors in an elite Missouri Sports Hall of Fame golf event named in honor of a former Cardinals baseball great.
Jim Hart, who quarterbacked the St. Louis Cardinals from 1966 to 1983, led Ozark Ready Mix to the Stan Musial Championship sponsored by Landau Boats on Monday at The Club of Porto Cima next to Lake of the Ozarks.
The 14th annual event included Missouri Sports Legends Norm Stewart and Bill Virdon along with soon-to-be Missouri Sports Legend Jon Sundvold, who will be honored Nov. 15 in the Enshrinement in Columbia Class of 2015.
Ozark Ready Mix, which fired a 57, featured owner Mike Farmer, Mac LaMone, Jim Jackson and Forrest Shock. Farmer is part of the Farmer family which, in January, became the first family to be inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.
A KOLR TV 10 team led by former footballer Eric Williams placed second and consisted of Doug Wilks, Jeff Gamble, Vic Ortega and Wayne Lewis. The team finished with a 57, with Ozark Ready Mix winning on a scorecard tiebreaker.
Former basketball standout Tony Guy led White River Valley Electric to a third-place finish, firing a 58. The team featured Chris Hamon, Jared Campbell, Larry Coble and Chris Messer.
Advertising Plus, featuring former St. Louis Blues standout Bobby Plager, placed fourth with a 58. The team included Marc Kiser, Scott Loveland, Tim Blasi and Tim Rinker.
Hart also was the closest to the pin on No. 6, while David Couthie was closest to the pin on No. 15 among those 44 and younger; Sundvold was closest to the pin on No. 2 among those 45 and older; and Farmer was closest to the pin on No. 11 among those ages 65 and older.
The Stan Musial Championship also featured former Kansas City Chiefs kicker Nick Lowery; former big-leaguers and World Series winners Jim Eisenreich, Tom Henke and Joe Crede; former pro footballers Mel Gray, Earl Denny, Eddie Moss and Art Still; former basketball standout Bud Stallworth; former pro golfer Kim Vinton; racquetball great Rita Hoff-Scott; and former Kansas City Royals pitcher Al Fitzmorris.
The two-day event included an auction and steak-and-lobster dinner at Camden on the Lake. The Missouri Sports Hall of Fame’s next two events are the Sporting Clays Classic sponsored by Killian Construction and sponsored by Bass Pro Shops on Oct. 2 at the Ozarks Shooters Complex in Walnut Shade; and the St. Louis Celebrity Golf Classic presented by Hillyard, Inc., on Oct. 6 at The Legends in Eureka. Opportunities for both events remain available. Call 889-3100 to book a team.