Golf Balls

A lot of families around here come back from their spring breaks with deep tans. We have 217 golf balls. This column is either going to depict my family as inventive and charmingly oriented toward simple pleasures; or expose us as hopelessly peculiar. We went to a golf resort in West Virginia to meet my husband's parents, who are from Indianapolis. None of us plays golf, but we have met there over the years because it is about halfway between our respective homes. But early April is an iffy time to travel to West Virginia, or, I suppose, anywhere in the Mid-Atlantic region.

I have been watching Oriole games held in Camden Yards and on the road, and the baseballs have been flying out of the ballparks like they were shot out of a cannon. Home runs are regularly being hit as far as 450 feet. If there are 10 or 11 hits in a game, at least three of them are often home runs. In Toronto's ballpark, where the Orioles and the Blue Jays recently played each other, many of the home runs were hit so hard and so far that I thought I watching golf balls being hit off of a tee. What is this, Home Run Derby or a legitimate baseball game?

Q: We recently inherited a unique collection of approximately 26,000 golf balls, all with a different name or logo. They are in good cleaned condition and boxed. How can I find out what such a collection is worth, and how can I sell it?A: To check out or sell old golf-related items or memorabilia, or to buy books on collectible golftiques, write Russell at Russell's Antiques, 2404 W. 111th St., Chicago, Ill. 60655, or phone him at (312) 233-3205. Antique feather golf balls are very desirable and command big bucks.

J. Thomas "Gus" Novotny, a retired Howard County entrepreneur who combined his love for golf and trains and turned them into businesses, died March 24 from cancer at his home in Palm Gardens, Fla. He was 75. The son of a supervisor and a homemaker, John Thomas Novotny was born in Baltimore and raised in Hamilton. Mr. Novotny, who never used his first name, was known to family, friends and business associates as "Gus. " After graduating from Polytechnic Institute in 1956, he earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering in 1960 from the University of Maryland, College Park.

As a rule, dads don't get taken out to restaurants on Father's Day. Restaurants are trying to put families in seats on Sunday, luring them with steaks and golf balls. If you know of other restaurants with Father's Day promotions, drop me a line at richad.gorelick@baltsun.com Cinghiale ¿ Families can add to the collection of decorated wine bottles on display here by personalizing a wine bottle in Dad's honor. Bottles can be taken home. The Father's Day menu will highlight steaks, crispy fried vegetables and a unique fried Italian desserts.

J. Thomas "Gus" Novotny, a retired Howard County entrepreneur who combined his love for golf and trains and turned them into businesses, died March 24 from cancer at his home in Palm Gardens, Fla. He was 75. The son of a supervisor and a homemaker, John Thomas Novotny was born in Baltimore and raised in Hamilton. Mr. Novotny, who never used his first name, was known to family, friends and business associates as "Gus. " After graduating from Polytechnic Institute in 1956, he earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering in 1960 from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Mom gets taken out in May, Dads not so much in June. Could be that's changing. Baltimore restaurants are tempting pops with steak, golf balls, beer and whiskey. Here's what I know about local restaurant promotions for Father's Day. Tell me more, either in the comments, or in an email to me at richard.gorelick@baltsun.com Cinghiale – Families can add to the collection of decorated wine bottles on display here by personalizing a wine bottle in Dad's honor. Bottles can be taken home.

A 15-month-old boy was injured after walking behind a car that was backing out of the family driveway Saturday morning in Sykesville, state police said.The toddler, David Wayne Garver, of the 6200 block of Margin Ave. was flown to the Johns Hopkins Children's Center in Baltimore where he was treated and released, a hospital spokeswoman said yesterday.State police said the driver, David Scott Grogg, 25, of the 3400 block of Nottingham Road in Westminster, was not charged in the accident because the child was too small to be seen.

Each golf ball in E. Ray Wilson's collection is a hole in one, but not from any shot across a green.The Union Bridge resident has mounted about 1,400 balls, each with different markings, on his garage wall.The extensive collection, without a well-known trademark in the lot, includes two with presidential monograms. Balls imprinted with "White House" or a one-time issue such as " '76 Centennial," hang on his garage wall next to ones with a picture of a Washington Redskins helmet or an astronaut teeing off on the moon.

Like professional athletes who get ready for their respective seasons in training camp, weekend golfers prep their games in the offseason. Some work out feverishly doing golf-specific exercises. Others take lessons to hone their swings. And more than a few simply go out and take their whacks on the driving range. Jim Kardash, who has owned and operated the Arundel Golf Park in Glen Burnie since 2004, said golfers run the gamut when it comes to conditioning their bodies - and their minds - for a game that takes its toll physically and mentally.

Like professional athletes who get ready for their respective seasons in training camp, weekend golfers prep their games in the offseason. Some work out feverishly doing golf-specific exercises. Others take lessons to hone their swings. And more than a few simply go out and take their whacks on the driving range. Jim Kardash, who has owned and operated the Arundel Golf Park in Glen Burnie since 2004, said golfers run the gamut when it comes to conditioning their bodies - and their minds - for a game that takes its toll physically and mentally.

The following is compiled from police reports from the Towson and Cockeysville precincts. Our policy is to include descriptions when there is enough information to make identification possible Cockeysville Windy Falls Way, unit block, between 1 and 7:30 p.m. Aug. 13, coins stolen from machines in two laundry rooms after doors pried open and coin boxes broken. International Circle, 200 block, between 9:30 p.m. Aug. 12 and 9:28 a.m. Aug. 13. Business checks taken from room at Embassy Suites.

The latest news on executive pay at publicly traded companies is good - if you happen to be a CEO, that is. Reflecting the national trend, at least 14 highly-paid chief executives of 19 companies surveyed in the Baltimore region saw fatter paychecks in 2010, according to a Sun analysis. We are not interested in vilifying the executives who in many cases steered their companies toward much better financial performances last year. It's entirely possible many were well-deserving of a merit-based wage increase.

As a rule, dads don't get taken out to restaurants on Father's Day. Restaurants are trying to put families in seats on Sunday, luring them with steaks and golf balls. If you know of other restaurants with Father's Day promotions, drop me a line at richad.gorelick@baltsun.com Cinghiale ¿ Families can add to the collection of decorated wine bottles on display here by personalizing a wine bottle in Dad's honor. Bottles can be taken home. The Father's Day menu will highlight steaks, crispy fried vegetables and a unique fried Italian desserts.

Mom gets taken out in May, Dads not so much in June. Could be that's changing. Baltimore restaurants are tempting pops with steak, golf balls, beer and whiskey. Here's what I know about local restaurant promotions for Father's Day. Tell me more, either in the comments, or in an email to me at richard.gorelick@baltsun.com Cinghiale – Families can add to the collection of decorated wine bottles on display here by personalizing a wine bottle in Dad's honor. Bottles can be taken home.

The McDonald's LPGA Championship said goodbye to Bulle Rock in improbable fashion Sunday, with a Swedish rookie named Anna Nordqvist earning her first tour victory on a sun-splashed afternoon in Harford County. But don't let all the hugs and champagne-popping scene on the 18th hole fool you. Women's golf is struggling. Forget the fact that the LPGA Championship still doesn't have a home for 2010. Forget that there are open dates on this year's schedule. Forget that major sponsors, whacked by the recession, are pulling out in droves.

I have been watching Oriole games held in Camden Yards and on the road, and the baseballs have been flying out of the ballparks like they were shot out of a cannon. Home runs are regularly being hit as far as 450 feet. If there are 10 or 11 hits in a game, at least three of them are often home runs. In Toronto's ballpark, where the Orioles and the Blue Jays recently played each other, many of the home runs were hit so hard and so far that I thought I watching golf balls being hit off of a tee. What is this, Home Run Derby or a legitimate baseball game?

The driver of a tractor-trailer loaded with 51,000 pounds of dry cement escaped serious injury when his rig crashed into a parked pickup truck and pushed it down an embankment into a ravine and up the other side onto the Western Maryland College golf course about 11:40 a.m. Monday.The driver, Joseph Ward, 28, of Baltimore, received only minor bruises and did not require hospital treatment.Mr. Ward told police he was northbound on Route 31 and momentarily took his eyes off the road. He said he has been driving heavy trucks for 10 years and this is his first accident.

As mandated by law, all dads are required to fall into one of four categories for Father's Day: those who like power tools; those who like big, fancy grills that could cook up a moose; those who like fancy electronic gadgets; and those who golf. If the dad in your house is a golfer, one of those curious individuals who enjoys the emotional flagellation that comes with this most difficult sport, why not treat the big guy to 18 holes this weekend? If you decide to, here's a purely subjective look at some public courses in the Baltimore area that Dad might enjoy - or that might send him over the edge if he's really hacking it up: BEST FOR DAD'S EGO Longview Golf Course 1 Cardigan Road, Timonium 410-887-7795 baltimoregolfing.