How Spencer Konecne, Chad 'Chappy' Enright and Bemidji Town and Country Club staff feed the Birchmont
· Yahoo Sports
Jul. 29—BEMIDJI — During the 102nd Birchmont, Spencer Konecne has been pulled around the Bemidji Town and Country Club more than Stretch Armstrong.
As the clubhouse manager for BTCC, Konecne is the one responsible for preparing for and keeping tabs on the course's snacks and beverages throughout the tournament. Whether it's taking trash out behind the bar, making sure the Halfway House is fully stocked or quickly chatting with a Coca-Cola representative to make sure they have everything they need, Konecne's life the past week has been a chaotic one.
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"(I'm) making sure all the gears are turning," he said. "Make sure everybody's here and is comfortable and set up. It's a lot of getting ice, stocking; that's my biggest job right now. Just making sure our staff are prepared."
This year is the Bemidji native and 2019 Bemidji High School graduate's first Birchmont as clubhouse manager, but he knew just how crazy this tournament can be for the employees. He was a bartender for the course during the 98th Birchmont, and with golf-loving parents, he knew this week is BTCC's Super Bowl.
He knows he has to remain on his toes, because something unexpected is bound to happen.
"A surprise this week: everybody's drinking Patrón, so I've gone through a whole case already," Konecne said. "But I'm working with the reps, so they're great. They'll bring in stuff, so try not to run out of anything."
Preparation for the Birchmont starts in May, two months before the players tee off. Managers meet to lay down expectations and things to look out for in this year's edition of the tournament, while going over what they need to stock so they don't run out of anything come the last week of July.
As the Birchmont got closer and closer, stress started to creep up on Konecne. So far, his staff has made things easy on him.
"It's tough, (but) it's easier, though, because I have great staff," he said. "I have a lot of great servers inside, so I can trust them. I have a manager of the halfway house out there as well, Abby Kieson — she does a great job running things out there. So I'm able to trust them.
"And then Chappy in the kitchen is great."
As far as food is concerned, that's the job of head chef Chad "Chappy" Enright. Since he runs a scratch kitchen, preparation for the Birchmont only starts a week prior, making sure he orders everything he needs so it comes in time throughout Birchmont week.
"There's not much we can do ahead of time," Enright said. "It's just kind of planning what we might need, make sure everything's ordered."
Throughout the week, Enright spends all day in the kitchen — breakfast, lunch and dinner — while simultaneously checking on the cheeseburger stand near the practice green.
"A big event like this, we try to spread out things," Konecne said. "So we have the (Blackstone) outside, we have the beverage cart for drinks, the halfway house — you got hot dogs out there. We're also setting up an outdoor bar."
The numbers of food sold throughout the week can be hard to fathom. In the first two days of this year's tournament, golfers went through 200 hot dogs, and for the Tuesday dinner, golfers ate 15 of the 16 prime ribs Enright had prepared.
Enright has been working at BTCC for 15 years, so like Konecne, he tries to expect the unexpected. That precisely happened on Tuesday when the kitchen's dishwasher broke down.
"So I had to hurry up, get on the horn and get (the repairman) out here — and he had to come from Sioux Falls," Enright said. "I'm like, 'Well, I need you today.'"
With all the chaos, Birchmont week is chock-full of long days for both Enright and Konecne. Just on Monday, Konecne worked from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., a shift he will repeat throughout the week. Enright, meanwhile, has worked over 90 hours in a week and a half, with much more on the way.
By the end of the week, Konecne, Enright and the rest of the BTCC staff can all have a little breather before things go back to normal.
"This is our Super Bowl," Enright said. "Come Saturday afternoon when you see the pro shop close, it's like, 'Oh, man. It's over.' Then (the next day) you got to come back in and get caught back up."
102nd Birchmont Golf Tournament Schedule
Wednesday: Match play begins for all championship divisions. (Junior 10-12 Division do not play.)
Thursday: Match play continues for all championship divisions. (Women's Regular, Masters Regular and Junior flights do not play.) Annual Long Drive Contest at 7 p.m.
Friday: Match play continues for all divisions. (Junior Championship Division does not play.) Putting contest at 7 p.m.
Saturday: Match play finals for all divisions. Award ceremony.