Golf is central to Father’s Day for LaFortune Park’s McCrate

The Tulsa World Scene Section published a nice Father’s Day related article on Pat McCrate, Director of Golf at LaFortune Park Golf Course in Tulsa and South Lakes Golf Course in Jenks.

By Michael Smith

This weekend brings two annual events to the fore: If Sunday is Father’s Day, it must be the final round of the U.S. Open golf tournament.

And that means that Pat McCrate, longtime director of golf for the Tulsa County-owned courses at LaFortune Park and South Lakes, is enjoying both of these celebrations with his father, the man who taught him the game.

“For a lot of years, Dad and Mom would come out from Ohio to Tulsa, and it would end up being Father’s Day while they were here, and my dad and I would play golf,” McCrate said.

“Now, every Father’s Day, we’ll call and we’ll watch the last three or four holes of the tournament together. Back and forth, it’s ‘Did you see that?’ and ‘Do you think he can hang on?’ and ‘How is the family?’

“We’ve been doing that for the last 15 to 20 years, if he’s not here. If he is here, we’re watching the tournament together.”

Growing up, McCrate remembers forging his competitive fire and how much he wanted to best his father at golf. He recalls how good an athlete his dad, a physical education teacher, was at so many sports.

“In our family, if we had a ball, we all played, including my mom,” he said. “But Dad was the golfer.”

Now McCrate is a father who has passed the game of golf on to his children, with his youngest — 13-year-old Molly — playing on Union’s junior high team.

Read the full story at www.tulsaworld.com here.