NEW BETHLEHEM – If it’s a nice morning — and even some mornings that aren’t so nice — you’ll typically find New Bethlehem’s Sheryl Riesmeyer outside. More specifically, you’ll find her on the fairways and greens of Pinecrest Country Club in Brookville playing a round of golf with her husband, Mark.
“I love being outside, so [golf is] right up my alley,” Riesmeyer said, noting that she plays “at least five times a week, usually in the morning. I’m a morning person, it’s the best time of the day. Mark and I are the first ones to [tee off]. On Wednesdays I have a match with the girls and that’s probably my latest morning teeing off, that is 9:04 a.m.”
“I like to play in the morning. The greenskeeper calls us the ‘dew chasers.’ The morning is the best time.”
Riesmeyer, who was employed by the United States Postal Service for 36 years, began playing golf in 1979, the year she got married.
“I decided that [golfing] was the only way I was going to have something to do with my husband,” Riesmeyer said. “He was an avid golfer; Mark is pretty good. He got me lessons from Hal Hansen, he was the pro at Pinecrest. We played on the weekends together and sometimes after work.”
It wasn’t until Riesmeyer retired from her job as the postmaster of Distant in 2006 that she really began putting time into her game.
“I don’t know if I have talent; I’m persistent,” she said. “There’s certain things you can become good at. For instance, my short game is pretty good. I may not drive the ball as far as some people, but I make up for that in my short game.”
“Golf is a game that you’ll never beat; you can’t conquer it. You have to have a lot of patience.”
Riesmeyer’s game improved to the extent she was able to join the Women’s Golf Association of Western Pennsylvania (WGAWP) when Pinecrest became a member club five years ago.
Now a 10 handicap — which according to “Golf” magazine places her in the top 10 percent of women — Riesmeyer plays in various WGAWP tournaments and open rounds throughout the summer. These events take her to 35 or 40 different golf courses across the western part of the state each year, including such notables as Oakmont Country Club, Pittsburgh Field Club, Fox Chapel Golf Club and St. Clair Country Club.
“They [the WGAWP] really handle their tournaments and open days well,” Riesmeyer said. “You’re usually paired with someone very similar to your handicap. It’s just been a lot of fun, I’ve met a lot of nice, nice women.”
“There’s team events, there’s individual events. I didn’t know if I would like the competitive nature of it, but I do.”
This year’s WGAWP three-day, season-ending championship is slated for Oakmont, which has hosted the men’s and women’s U.S. Open, staged by the United States Golf Association, on multiple occasions. Riesmeyer, through her participation in the WGAWP, has had the opportunity of previously playing the course, considered by “Golf Digest” to be one of the five greatest in America.
“I’ve been there for numerous events [to watch] when the [professional] men played there. The first time I played Oakmont, what ran through my mind was, ‘You sure are one lucky girl.’ To be able to play a course that I saw Arnie Palmer play on, that I saw Dustin Johnson win his championship (the 2016 U.S. Open). That was awesome in itself,” said Riesmeyer.
“To go into that clubhouse and see all the pictures on the wall, all the memorabilia. It’s breathtaking.”
Despite the opportunities golf has afforded Riesmeyer, the game remains, at its heart, a chance to spend time with her husband.
“I enjoy the fun of it and the competitiveness. It gets me outside, and I’ve been fortunate to play a lot of beautiful courses in our area,” she said. “Mark has helped me so much with my game; I have to give him a lot of credit. I enjoy his company. Golf is something Mark and I can do together as we get older.”