120 participants met at the Kaiserburg Golf Course in Bad Kleinkirchheim for the 2015 Don Harradine trophy. In 1984, the 18 hole course was nestled in to the existing landscape by Don Harradine with 9 holes built in the municipality of Bad Kleinkirchheim and the other 9 in the municipality of Patergassen.
A generous practice facility with numerous covered tees and a beautiful 6 hole short course have been built since which positions the Kaiserburg golf complex as one of the best golf experiences in Kärnten. The “top of the mountains” award was presented to the course in 2015 which classifies it amongst the best courses in the Austrian mountains.
The course and the weather showed their best side on the 22nd of September and a wonderful golf experience was had by all the players that profited from the practice round on that particular day.
The course was in an excellent condition thanks to the head greenkeeper Mr. Pontasch Gerhard and his staff. Unfortunately, the weather forecast announced very bad and wet conditions for the day of the actual tournament. The general mood the next morning was something between hope and anxiety but the players started anyway on tees 1 and 10 as it was decided to follow the saying: “Hope dies last”.
The ladies and the other participants who decided to accompany them went to Burg Sommeregs to visit the biggest torture museum in Central Europe with more than 70 original exhibits. Besides being educational, the tour through the various time periods was quite gruesome. The special exhibition by Amnesty International which demonstrated to-day’s suppression of mankind showed the visitors that nothing much has changed since the middle ages. But, despite the tense silence caused by the exhibition, the excellent meal at the Schloss Restaurant soon changed the atmosphere to a more cheerful mood.
Unfortunately, the tournament was cancelled due to the increasingly bad weather and the unplayable conditions of the course. The drenched golfers were therefore quite happy to use the generous wellness facilities offered by the Hotel Pulverer.
The circumstances of a “cancelled tournament” would normally signal a clear “flop”, as an evening without a prize giving would not be a worthwhile event. But, this was definitely not the case especially considering the spirit that has always been demonstrated during the DHMT. The participants came especially from Germany, Switzerland, Slovenia and Austria for this tournament and they had been looking forward to that event since one year. Many arrived earlier or stayed longer. They used that opportunity to organize a short holiday in order to get away from the daily stress experienced on their own courses. This meant that the participants were in an excellent festive mood even without the tournament and the prize giving. Peter Harradine travelled especially from Dubai and gave a speech in his usual humorous manner, although his theme this year concentrated on his 70th birthday and several remarks about getting old! So once again, we wish him a belated “Happy Birthday dear Peter”.
Our president, Alex Hofinger thanked the responsible staff at the club by presenting them with a memorial cup which we hope will receive a place of honour at the club house.

A particular mention must be given to the International and National sponsors who’s generosity greatly contributes to ensure that the DHMT is an unparalleled and unforgettable experience that is carried out in a very relaxed atmosphere.
The organization of the tournament was in the capable hands of Gertraud Zopf (AGA), Frau Ulli (Hotel Pulverer) and Frau Stefanie Lexer (Management of the Kaiserburg Golf Course) who ensured that they produced another successful Austrian celebration in honour of Don Harradine.
Seeing as we could not finish the tournament last year and due to everybody’s wish the DHMT 2016 will be played again in Bad Kleinkirchheim from the 20-22 of September.
The AGA, the Golf Course and the Hotel are honoured and happy to welcome the tournament back to Bad Kleinkirchheim.

Hein Zopf