Minnesota Golfer - Spring 2012 - 42

(backspin
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The Gumlia Gang's Golfing Glory
A star-studded story about a sportswriter's visit with
the talented Gumlia girls in Bemidji
By Jon Roe
O
n the evening prior to the start
of the 1974 Angus Vandersluis
Memorial, a Minneapolis
sportswriter and his very pregnant wife
visited the Bemidji home of Jody Gumlia.
Gumlia and her two pre-teen daughters,
Julie and Roxy, had spent the previous few
years winning all sorts of state women's
golf titles-State Ams, State Match-Play
and State Junior Girls. An enterprising
sportswriter had even penned a story starring
the Gumlia Gang, who rode into town
from Crookston and won all the women's
golf hardware in the state.
Jody Gumlia grew up in Hoople, N.D.,
and attended the University of
Minnesota. Opportunities in golf
for women in those days were few
and far between, but Gophers
coach Les Bolstad let her hit practice
balls in the North Tower of
Memorial Stadium when possible,
and she got to watch a pretty
good young woman practice under
Bolstad's tutelage: " Jody, " Bolstad
said to her one day, " I'd like
body a few doors down from here, " Gumlia
said. " He's in the same business you are. "
That was like saying Larry The Cable
Guy was in the same business as Rupert
Murdoch.
Turns out, the guy a few doors down
owned a newspaper or two in Oklahoma.
When Gumlia and her two guests walked
in, the guy and a dozen of his friends were
getting ready to attend a gala. Dressed in
suits and gowns, they were a stark contrast
to the unshaven, jacket-clad sportswriter
and the babushka-clad wife.
In a few minutes, however, the new
visitors were the object of attention as
" I'm so happy because Julie
has been selected to be
inducted into the Minnesota
MGA-PGA Hall of Fame. "
-Jody Gumlia
you to meet Patty Berg. "
" One day I was hitting balls, " Gumlia
says, " and Les says he didn't know I was so
smart. I said, 'What do you mean,' and Les
said 'Congratulations, you made Phi Beta
Kappa.' "
Gumlia got her degree in education
and returned to the family
farm. Eventually, Gumlia was really
in the " chips " -potato chips
from the family-grown potatoes. " There
were a lot of mornings when I was on
the phone with Frito Lay and Old Dutch
and Happy's and UTZ, " Gumlia says of
being her own price broker.
When the sportswriter and his pregnant
wife visited Gumlia in 1974, there
was no pretense of a budding businesswoman.
" I want you two to meet some40
MINNESOTAGOLFER
Spring 2012
the party-goers asked about the expectant
mother's due date.
Last Christmas, Gumlia sent a card and
handwritten note wondering about the
couple and family. Both her girls are sending
children off to college, and Julie's son
can be seen for a brief moment in " Moneyball. "
He's the kid wearing the uniform
of the Oakland Athletics. " One of my best
friends, " Gumlia wrote, " is a former owner
of the Athletics, and he gave us the uniform
to wear. "
Gumlia operates a vineyard near her
home in the East Bay of San Francisco-
not far from the homes of her daughters-
and spends part of the winter season
at The Vintage in Indian Wells
near Palm Springs. In a previous
visit, she showed her Minnesota
visitors where Bill Gates and Troy
Aikman had homes, and she said
a recent golf lesson for members
was conducted by Matt Kuchar
and Mike Weir, who don't reside
at The Vintage but own property
there.
" I'm so happy because Julie has
been selected to be inducted into
the Minnesota MGA-PGA Hall of
Fame, " Gumlia wrote. " I'm going
to be playing golf for about a week
straight because Roxy is bringing
nine women here to play. Par for me
now is about 90. And I'm going to
host about 60 people for a meeting
on stem cell research. And... "
There's a question a man is never
supposed to ask a woman....
" Don't even think about asking
my age, " she added. " I'm never going
to tell you. If I tell you, then everybody
will know. And then nobody
who has been inviting me to go to
all the things I get to go to will ever
invite me to go again. So don't ask. "
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