Paul Schock and His Dog

Interview With Paul Schock, Founder and Chairman, The Prairie Club

A Light Hearted Golf Q & A Interview

By Brian Weis

Below is an interview with Paul Schock, Founder and Chairman, of The Prairie Club. Paul has had a long background in golf, both as a player and an investor. In golf he has been an USGA Committee person and Grounds Chair at one of South Dakota's finest private clubs. His business background includes 20 years as a private equity specialist. He started and built Bluestream Capital Company, SD's largest and most successful private equity firms.

The following are a few traditional and non traditional golf centric questions that I love to ask influential people in the golf industry.

When did you start golfing and who introduced you do the game?
At about age 12, by my older brother. If I shagged balls for him for an hour, he'd let me hit a few. Those were the days, no nearby driving range and everyone had their own shag bag.

What is your current home course?
Minnehaha Country Club in Sioux Falls

To date, what is your proudest golf accomplishment?
In 2002, I won both of South Dakota's Men's Amateur Championships, the stroke play and match play, with my son on the bag. It is a close second to qualifying for and playing in 11 USGA National Championships.

What is your biggest golf pet peeve on or off the course?
Slow play and courses where the average player loses a lot of balls.

What is your favorite golf destination?
Well, The Prairie Club of course! Second favorite is Sand Hills Golf Club.

What course is on your bucket list that you have not played yet?
Augusta and Pebble Beach

If you woke up tomorrow and could play one course you played before, where would you play?
Pine Valley

If you could change one aspect, rule or thing about golf, what would it be and why?
The out of bounds rule. It should be played same as a lateral hazard or reduce penalty by one stroke.

Dream foursome (living)?
Bob Rotella, Tom Lehman and my two sons.

Dream foursome (living or dead)?
Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson and Dwight Eisenhower

18 Rapid Fire, Off The Cuff Questions

1) Hitting Long Drive OR Sinking Long Putt?
Long putt

2) Having Round of Life OR Hole in One?
Round of life

3) Golfing at the crack of dawn OR twilight?
Dawn

4) Hit a power fade OR power draw?
Draw

5) Beverage cart OR halfway house?
Halfway house

6) Bathroom OR bushes?
Bushes

7) Hot dog OR wrap?
Hot dog

8) Around the green, being in sand OR thick rough?
Rough

9) Walking OR riding?
Walking

10) Do you carry traditional 3 iron OR hybrid?
3 iron

11) Do you prefer long par 3 OR long par 5?
Long Par 3

12) Pants OR Shorts?
Shorts

13) Palmer OR Nicklaus?
Nicklaus

14) Beatles OR Elvis?
Beatles

15) Play for fun OR play for money?
For Money

16) Bump or run OR flop shot?
Bump and hrun

17) Lay up OR gamble?
Gamble

18) 18 holes OR 36?
18

Revised: 08/05/2011 - Article Viewed 2049 Times

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Brian Weis Biography:

Brian Weis is the Publisher of GolfTrips.com, a network of golf travel and directory sites including GolfWisconsin.com, GolfMichigan.com, ArizonaGolfer.com, GolfAlabama.com, etc. Professionally, Brian is a member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA) and International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA).

All of his life, Brian has been around the game of golf. As a youngster, Brian competed at all levels in junior and high school golf. Brian had zero chance for a college golf scholarship, so he worked at West Bend Country Club on grounds crew to pay for his education at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. In his adult years, his passion for the game collided with his entrepreneurial spirit and in 2004 launched GolfWisconsin.com. In 2007, the idea of a network formed and GolfTrips.com was born.

Today, he is known as a fierce weekend warrior that carries a 10 handicap. With a soft fade, known as The Weis Slice, and booming 300+ drives, he can blast it out of bounds with the best of them.