Lampasas golf club maker to let the big dog bark at national competition
By JEREMY HEATH Staff Writer

Ron Langley: National long drive finalist.

The average weekend golfer needs the help of a sprinkler head to drive the ball 300 yards.

In contrast, Lampasas club maker Ron Langley used to be embarrassed because he's lucky to still get 325 yards out of the big dog.

That was before a friend enlightened him last year.

"This guy asked me why I'd never tried out for any of these long-drive competitions," Langley said. "I told him because at my age I can only hit the ball 300 to 325 yards, and those guys on the longdrive tours hit the ball 400 yards.

"Then he told me they added a senior division, so I looked into it, and here I am."

After speaking with his friend, the 63-year-old Langley entered the Grand Champion Division of the RE/MAX World Long Drive Championships tour. The division is for drivers 61 and older.

Langley, and three of his four team members, are scheduled to compete in the WLDC Finals Oct. 22-27 at the Palms Golf Club in Mesquite, Nevada.

He and his teammates first had to qualify at the local and district level. The district tournament, which was Sept. 22 at City Pointe Driving Range in Dallas, consisted of players from all over Texas and Louisiana. Langley is one of 32 players who qualified in the Grand Champion Division.

The winner of Langley's division will earn $14,000.

Four men's divisions and a women's division are offered. The Open Division is for men 18-44, the Senior Division is for men 45-52, and the Super Senior Division is for men 53-60.

Total tournament purse is $550,000, and the event is scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN during the Christmas holidays.

Langley plays for Team SMT, a five-person team named for the brand of clubs Langley manufactures privately.

Teammate Michael Whitley of San Saba qualified in the Open Division, and John LeBlanc of Tulsa qualified in the Super Senior Division. Teammate Amanda Tuskey of Killeen won the district title in Dallas to qualify in the Women's Division.

"I met all these people over the years through building clubs for them," Langley said.