Atkinson, NE - Time has just flown by since our last convention in September of 2021. After the convention in October, the board decided that we needed to move the convention back to the spring-like it has been since the Sandhills Cattle Association started holding our annual convention and trade show. This year we started our 83rd Annual Convention and trade show on Thursday, May 26th, with our 25th Annual Golf Classic at the Atkinson-Stuart Country Club. We had another great turnout at this beautiful golf course this year with forty golfers. The day began with our usual shotgun start at 10 am, and the teams had a day full of fun on this course. Our first-place team was the team, Williams & Martin, with a score of 62, and they were awarded custom Sandhills Golf Classic Jackets. Second-place was awarded to West Plains Bank with a score of 63, and they were awarded Sandhills Golf Classic rocking lawn chairs. Finally, our third-place team this year was Bassett Livestock with a score of 66, and they received Sandhills Golf Classic Cooler Backpacks! This year, we offered our Hole-In-One contest sponsored by Arganbrgith Law Office of Valentine, NE. On Hole 4, everyone had a chance to win $10,000, but sadly, no one made it again this year. Hopefully, next year we can have a big winner!
We also awarded a Yeti Cup for each hole winner. The winners of each hole are as follows: Hole 1 – Closest in 2nd Shot - Kelly Myers, Hole 2 - Closest to Pin - Nick Martin, Hole 3 - Longest Drive - Jacob Maurer, Hole 4 - Closest in 2 - Matt Kepler. Hole 5 - Longest Putt - Shane Young, Hole 6 - Closest to Pin - Nate Dvorak, Hole 7 - Shortest Drive Used - Tim Downing, Hole 8 - Longest Putt - Andrew Langan, Hole 9 - Closest to Water - Erika Harms. Congratulations to all winners, and a huge thanks to everyone who participated with us!
We are so thankful to the Atkinson-Stuart Country Club for hosting us this year and for all of our generous sponsors! We are looking forward to golfing with you all next year!
AKRS Equipment - Atkinson Livestock - Arganbright Law Office LLC - Basset Livestock - Farm Credit Services of America - Great Western Bank - Mitchell Equipment - Nebraska Bank - Nebraska Cattlemen - Niobrara Valley Feeds - United Country Real Estate AgTeam Land Brokers - Sandhill Equipment - Stracke Land & Realty LLC - Stuart Fertilizer & Grain - Suther's Feed - TK Angus - Tredas - Tri-County Bank - Triple R Tire - Wallinger Financial Services LLC - WM Krotters.
While the golfers were playing away, we had our 2nd Annual Cookoff Contest right by the green! We had three teams enter this competition this year, and it was so difficult smelling their smokers all day! Thanks to Jim Pinney of Husker Meats LLC, each team was given three cuts of meat to smoke. The three different cuts were Tri-Tip, Brisket, and a 'Mystery Meat.' The teams were allowed to use whatever seasonings and sauces they preferred but were mainly judged on their tenderness, flavor, and appearance. The Sandhills Cattle Association also asked each team to provide one of their signature side dishes for the "People's Choice Award." Our judges for this contest were Dustin Tilke, and Scott Posse of Atkinson, NE. They chose Brad Smith as the 1st Place Brisket, 1st Place Tri-Tip, 1st Place Mystery Meat, People's Choice, and the Overall Champion for the day! He won custom engraved cutting boards for each place thanks to Joanna Connot and also a Sandhills Cattle Association Apron. Robert Cullen was the winner of the Best Side Dish with his 'Beanie Weenies', and he received a custom engraved spoon from Joanna Connot. After the results were in, the golfers enjoyed a great supper and a fun social evening at the Atkinson-Stuart Clubhouse. Thank you to everyone who participated in our Sandhills Cattle Association Cookoff Contest and those who joined us for the evening! Oh, and by the way, the Mystery Meat we ate that day was alligator!!!
