About six years ago, John Carlson climbed aboard the Tapemark bandwagon. After receiving a call from Phil Callen, John decided it would be a nice change of pace to play a few tournaments back in his home state. “I didn’t come back for about three straight years because it didn’t work into my schedule,” said John, “but for me, it gives my family a chance to come out and watch a big tournament in the Twin Cities.”

Carlson has taken home the $5100 first place check in the last two years at the Tapemark. His fifteen-under par total won in 2007, then he followed with another three stroke victory (at -13) last year.

This is a unique experience for John primarily because he does not often play tournaments in the metro area. He also enjoys the people, “The Tapemark tournament has a great mix of Minnesota natives as well as nationwide professionals teaming up with amateurs for a fun and charitable experience. Tapemark seems to get the best players from the state and it also gets quite a few of our mini-tour and Nationwide tour players to come back and play.”

Out of all the tournaments in the state, John ranks it among the top three. But it is not just the quality of the tournament that places it that high, it is also the experience, “When you’re walking around with a hundred or two hundred people watching the last couple days that’s a whole lot different than any other tournament. The players rate this tournament very highly.”

What does the course do for John as a player? “I probably drive the ball as straight as anyone, and I hit it plenty far, and that gives me advantage over the guys that don’t hit their tee ball quite as straight. It seems that I have got the ball in the right positions on the green so that I can make aggressive putts … those Southview greens can get pretty quick.”

It’s not just the friendly atmosphere that keeps Carlson coming back to the Tapemark. “It’s always easy to come back to the course that you score in the sixties in almost every round I’ve ever played there.” But beyond the results, the tournament is all about having a good time. Over the years he has met some great players, volunteers, and fans. “I’ve played with Fred Boos who is known around the Tapemark for being one of the really fun guys and since then, I’ve had a pretty good friendship with him. I have been able to go up to his beautiful cabin up at Grandview Lodge.” Other amateurs have made the tournament a great experience for John as well. “Last year I played with Mike Opitz from Edina Country Club who is a real character, [and] on the last green Opitz told me that he was going to have a group bear hug with me and he wasn’t kidding. My partners just came running over to me after I made the putt and just engulfed me, these huge guys in front of all those people, that was pretty good.”

John also holds the amateur contribution fairly high, “I think the professionals who think that the amateurs mess them up should take a good look at themselves. They should really thank the amateurs because they really add to our purse, they really add to the fun of the event. If they weren’t there, then it would be just another Pro series event in the state which offers a small purse, and not a whole lot of camaraderie.”

Like many of the players, volunteers and sponsors in the event, John has a personal reason for being a part of the Tapemark Pro-Am every year, “I have an aunt that works closely with people with mental disabilities, and that’s another reason why I come back and play. This cause rings pretty close to my family.”