John Egbert, Golf Course Handicapper
John Egbert grew up at the family home near Krout School on South Washington Street. His interest in golfing began as a caddy at the Mohawk Golf Club at the age of 13. After three years caddying, he worked at his father’s firm as an electrician.
He was the quarterback and middle line backer for Columbian for the 1943 season when the football team’s only loss was to Fostoria (7-0). He remembers playing the team from the Junior Home in their Redwood Stadium, now the site of the National Guard Armory. This location was also the site for shops where the Junior Home Kids all learned a trade, such as weaving, setting linotype, etc. This was the Junior Home’s last football season. They had fifteen on their squad but tied Columbian’s team of 42 with a score of 6 – 6. John missed the point after the touchdown!
In February, 1944, John had enough credits to graduate from Columbian and he tried out for the U. S. Merchant Marine Academy program, but did not make the final cut for officer’s training. Knowing he would be drafted, he and George Steinmetz, the son of the sheriff, then enlisted together in the Navy in July, 1944. They were late getting started to Cleveland for the swearing in ceremony, so they made up for lost time. The sheriff ran the sirens part of the way there.
Because of his training with the Merchant Marines, he was involved right away with the training of recruits at Samson Naval Base near Geneva, N. Y. (Your author had ten weeks boot camp at Samson.) Later transferred to Camp Perry, Va., he joined the Logistic Support Company that had recently come back from Italy. He became coxswain of an Amphibious Landing Craft and soon learned how to operate and maintain cranes, bulldozers and tanks, all the things they had to transport.
From Camp Perry he traveled across the country to Treasure Island in CA, where he went to firefighter’s school. His unit went on to Honolulu in an APA Transport Ship and then to the Marshall Islands. John finally ended his trip at Buckner Bay Naval Base at Okinawa where he remained for one year. During his Navy time the only person he saw from the Tiffin area was Peter Yochem, Prudy Herring’s brother. He was discharged June, 1946.
He came home and went to Heidelberg and became a member of the football team. He was involved in a prank that had become a tradition, burning an out house the night before Homecoming. Out houses were becoming scarce in 1946, but National Machinery had just completed a three holer for their athletic field on Greenfield Street. Egbert and accomplices dragged that three holer over to the Heidelberg lawn. Unfortunately the blaze was so large that it burned out the wires overhead and temporarily shut down the communication system at National Machinery.
Bill Allman came out to take pictures of the prank, and when Katherine Kalbfleisch saw them, she confiscated them. All the authorities could tell from the pictures was that one prankster was wearing a blue high school sweater with two stripes on the arm. Finally, they were identified and John was campused by then acting President Fred Lemke and allowed to go only to and from classes for the rest of the year. John also paid the Hosler Construction Company $128 to rebuild the three holer. The joke later was that this project was the first major construction for the Hosler Company. John met his future wife, Shirley Blaser, while at Heidelberg.
Later John joined his brother, Rule Egbert, Jr. in forming Amplex Construction Company. The Egberts’ company wired the LaSalle Building, Harold’s Department Store and every school building in Tiffin except St. Marys. They also wired Basic where 50 electricians were needed at one time.
In 1960 he quit the company and built the Riverview Inn. He ran that for 20 years assisted by Jackie San Gregory and Charles Marks.
In his Navy sea bag, John carried a nine iron and several golf balls. On returning to Tiffin, he played golf every chance he could get. In 1947, Mr. Burton Crobaugh, who had a membership at Mohawk, allowed John to use his share provided he would pay the dues. John became a good player in the fifties and sixties and played in the Toledo District Amateur Circuit. He still plays in tournaments and today has a handicap of 12. As an amateur legally he is only allowed to receive $500 worth of merchandise, no prize money. Now at age 73, he has played golf for sixty years.
He has served as a marshal at golf matches since 1957. In 1981 he became the USGA representative for the 419 telephone district. He is a sectional affairs committee member, and now serves as the rating chair-person for evaluating the difficulty of the golf courses in our 419 area. His team of seven men and women ride over the entire golf course and determine the handicap for each hole. They look at the terrain, the distance to the hole, hazards, the size of the greens, and width of the fairway. They then come to a consensus on the handicap for each hole. This process takes about three hours. If time permits, the team plays the course.
John is also a member of the board of the Evans Scholars Foundation. This is golf’s no. 1 charity and provides a college education for more than 810 deserving young men and women caddies each year. Eight caddies have been selected by the Mohawk Golf Club and have each received about $40,000 for their education.
John was given the Burt Silverman Memorial Award on Oct. 8, 1998. This award is given to an in individual who enriches the community through their dedication to golf.
John and Shirley Blaser were married in 1948. They have three children, Jan, a minister and dental hygienist, John, a stock broker, and Ruth, who works for Ameritech. John and Shirley have moved from Egbert Park to a condo overlooking the Mohawk Golf Club course. They both play regularly on this course rated the 6th or 7th most difficult in northwestern Ohio.
- Percy