Between giving lessons, working in the pro shop and fulfilling the other duties an assistant professional at Fargo Country Club must fulfill, Steve Zarr can't find much time to play golf.
When he does, however, look out.
Zarr shot 69 Monday to tie Rose Creek Golf Club's Dave Alpeter for first place in the Forum Communications Co. pro-am at Lakeside Country Club in Perham, Minn. It is the second first-place tie the 27-year-old from Minot, N.D., has taken in a Forum-sponsored pro-am. He shot 68 last week at Fargo Country Club and shared the top spot with Bill Israelson of Staples, Minn.
"I am playing well -- but only in competition. If I'm playing a practice round it's liable to be an 80," Zarr said.
Those practice rounds are few and far between. Zarr said he usually only has time for one 18-hole round a week, sometimes two. And time on the practice range is virtually non-existent.
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"We get so busy around here that there just isn't time," Zarr said. "And then at the end of a 12-hour day, the last thing you want to do is go beat balls on the range."
So, all you weekend warriors, what we have here is a golfer who rarely plays and never practices -- and still shoots rounds in the 60s. What gives?
"A lot of it has to do with my faith," Zarr said. "I don't worry about a lot of stuff. If I just make sure my family is taken care of, I know God will take care of the rest. He is central in my life."
It is obvious Zarr has some talent, too. He was a college player at Minot State, where he made NAIA All-America. He tried the life of a mini-tour pro for one year in 1996, when he tasted some success on the Dakotas Tour.
"I missed only one cut and generally finished in the middle of the pack, anywhere from 10th to 20th place," Zarr said.
But family commitments and the need for a steady paycheck caused Zarr to take a job as an assistant at Fargo in 1997 and he's been there since.
There are no regrets. Zarr has a 5-year-old daughter from a previous relationship who lives with her mother in Minot, and he and his wife are expecting their first child.
"The tour life has its good points and bad points. I did enjoy it, but it's lonely. If there was a way you could bring your family with you on the road, I couldn't imagine a better job on earth," Zarr said.
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Instead, Zarr plays in about 10 one-day pro-am tournaments per summer. Bigger, multiple-day tournaments in the region like the Minnesota State Open aren't an option because it would require Zarr to take a full week off from his job.
"You're not only talking the tournament days, but you like to go down early in the week and play practice rounds," Zarr said.
Practice? Did he say practice? Who needs it?
Judging by his scores recently, certainly not Zarr.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Mike McFeely at (701) 241-5580
