Under a bright, sunny sky with 17 mph winds and temperatures hovering around 68°F, twenty alumni and four undergraduates teed off Saturday September 7 at noon at the Beckett Ridge Golf Club north of Cincinnati, Ohio in the 2024 edition of the Fricker Cup.
The prize? Immortality: Having your name and that of your partner inscribed on the trophy and being able to touch the cup with you bare hands without invoking the curse of Fricker!
This year's tournament saw Brad Storts IC '89 and Ed Kendall IC '89 finish with the lowest score among the alumni, 13 under par. This is their first Fricker Cup victory having played in several tournaments.
This year was the first year that a team of undergraduates was invited to play. The Chapter's current Grand Master, Luke King IC'22, Grand Master of Ceremonies Will DeMuessy IC '23, past Grand Master of Ceremonies, Tanner Thompson IC '22, and Parker Fromin IC '22. They played well enough to finish in first and 6th place and said they can't wait to compete as alumni to get their names on the Fricker Cup!
2021 Fricker Cup Champion Ed Kessler IC '86 won the longest drive. Two-time Fricker cup Champion Wes Bren IC '85 won the longest putt on #18. Bren and his partner, Matt Smith IC '87 also won a consolation prize for have the worst score of the afternoon, 3 over par Net 75. They apologized for their group slowing up play that afternoon, noting golf takes longer when you hit more 28 strokes than par!
This year's memorable and successful event was planned by the The Fricker Cup Planning & Rules Committee of John Henry IC '85, Brad Flinders IC '86, Brian Harding IC '86, Ed Kessler IC '87, Jeff Meek IC '87, and Frazer Donaldson IC '88.
The first Fricker Cup was played at Hueston Woods course near Oxford in 2014, ten years ago. Ever since, with the exception of 2020 due to Covid two alumni have had their names added to the impressive trophy. This years format was a partner scramble, with each partner needing to contribute at least 6 drives. A boisterous awards ceremony followed the round at the club house that also featured a table full of Kappa Sigma memorabilia brought by Michael Schoedinger IC '86.
The undergraduates in attendance enjoyed seeing the old Bononia Docets and photos and were pleasantly shocked to learn the truth of Eddie Fricker's identity.
Like previous Fricker Cups, KSTUAA hosted an alumni gathering Friday night open to all Theta-Upsilon alumni whether they were participating in the golf tournament or not. A large group of over 25 alumni and guests gathered at Voodoo Brewery and later at Twin Peaks at David Bouve's suggestion. The group met at Twin Peaks (lots of TV with College football on) after the Fricker Cup Saturday evening and again additional alumni joined the group.
KSTUAA Board Votes to adopt 3 Great Aims and Creates Two New Chairs/Committees
- Alumni database – we seek to have accurate info on 100% of our members
- Volunteers from all eras
- Hall of Fame & communications celebrating achievements across the spectrum e.g. Public Service
- Maintaining Composites and Library of contributions, history
- Hosting in-person Events (Reunions, Open House, Homecoming, Charter Day, Happy Hours, Fricker Cup)
- Host virtual events (e.g. Cossa Challenge & contexts)
- Regular Communications (Social Media, eNewsletters etc.)
- Memorial Fund to honor
- Promote Volunteer opportunities
- Chapter Advisory Council and its Programs and involvement
- Professional Networking (Alumni Docent Program)
- Promote Financial Giving (e.g. SAJ/Endowment Fund & KSTUAA project donations & dues)
- Support the Theta Upsilon Housing Company & related initiatives
- Promote good relations with Miami, Kappa Sigma and Oxford community
- The Archives Chair is responsible for collecting information, photos and memorabilia that reflect Theta-Upsilon’s history and find ways to display it physically at the chapter or digitally on-line. For example, the composite reprints and items like the original Star & Crescent pin for the trophy room. The Archives Chair will also maintain the Family Trees with information gathered by the Records team and share this electronically. He will publish stories of historical interest on the website and in the newsletter and ensure that the information about Chapter officers, awards and volunteers is accurate on the website. The Archives chair will work with other committees to secure donations to make this all happen.
- The Hall Of Fame Liaison has two primary objectives: 1. to engaged the HOF Nominating Committee and support its efforts to secure open and representative nominations, a fair election of an inductee, and help coordinate with the Chapter and the Events committee a respectful and quality induction ceremony and celebration and work with the Communications teams to publicize the activity and 2. to provide updates and service directly to the HOF inductees at least twice a year as a special group of alumni interested in Theta-Upsilon (for example a conference call with updates about the chapter and KSTUAA)
