Good and Bad Things About an Anthony Casino

The best thing about the proposed casino in the Anthony area is that proponents say they will not get rid of Dos Lagos Golf Course. In fact, the course will probably be improved and expanded as part of an overall resort. The little upper valley course has always held a special place in my heart – and in the hearts of many other golfers. I like to refer to it as “A working man’s course.” It’s not fancy, it’s not tricky, it’s not expensive. It’s just a place where a regular fellow, or gal, can enjoy a round of golf and maybe sit down in a very nice restaurant and have a meal or refreshments — and do it among down to earth, friendly folks. It would be a shame to see the course closed.
 
NOT LOSING the golf course is the best thing about the proposed casino in the Anthony area. The worst thing is that the casino will hurt Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino – including its horse racing operation. The proposed Anthony area casino, unlike the one at Sunland Park, will have live poker and crap tables and other amenities so it will no doubt attract some of Sunland Park’s customers. One can’t blame Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino owner Stan Fulton, who has contributed so much to local causes, including UTEP, for saying “Ouch!” Studies have projected a 40-50 percent drop in business for Sunland. The Sunland horse racing purses may have to be cut. Maybe track employees, too, and most of them are from El Paso. Sadly, some in El Paso seem more interested in helping New Mexico than their own city.
 
TRIVIA QUESTION: This trivia question was suggested by a fellow golfer. Ted Williams, one of the Major Leagues’ greatest sluggers, was a combat pilot during the Korean War. A well-known United States senator was his wingman. Who was it? Answer at end.
 
DARREN CLARKE’S victory at the British Open last weekend is an inspiration to anyone who ever swung a golf club. He showed again you don’t have to be a flat-bellied young pup to play good golf. He’s 42, pudgy and gray-haired. Heck, I personally saw another big guy shoot lights out recently. My wife and I spent a few days a couple of weeks ago at Cloudcroft, the delightful little resort town in New Mexico, with El Paso golf guru Jack Welch and his pretty wife, Donna. Naturally, Jack and I played the tough little course there and I watched in awe as Jack shot 32-33—65. He’s in his 50s and tips the scales at over 300 pounds. Quick, mom, pass me some more flapjacks.
 
J.D. PARTRIDGE is one of the first football athletes of whom I became aware early in my sports writing career, first at UTEP’s The Prospector in 1949 and then at the El Paso Herald-Post in 1950. And oh, what a magic touch he had. It seemed like everything he was a part of became a winner. He was on the Odessa High School team that won the State football championship in 1946. He was on coach Jack Curtice’s Texas Western College team that went 8-2-1 in 1949. And he was on coach Mike Brumbelow’s team that went 7-3 in 1950.
He wasn’t very big physically but he was strong as a bull and more than held his own against bigger players, earning All-Border Conference honors three times as a defensive end. Later, he became a successful high school coach, locally at Eastwood High School. J.D. passed away recently but oh, what memories he left behind. I’ll always be thankful for having known him.
 
ANSWER to trivia question: John Glenn, the first American astronaut to orbit the
earth.

Veteran sports journalist and author Ray Sanchez welcomes suggestions for his column.