Ron Bjorklund accomplishes goal of golfing in all 50 states

Ron Bjorklund had a mission: to golf in all 50 states. And he accomplished that mission on Oct. 9, 2018, at the Cape Cod Country Club in Massachusetts.

The daring feat became a goal for Bjorklund in 2007 when he golfed with his brothers at the Mendenhall Golf Course in Juno, Alaska.

"I figured if I could get Alaska, I could probably get the rest of them," Bjorklund said. "I already had Hawaii and a lot of the western states. My daughter lives in Montana and we get over there frequently; her sister lives in Colorado, and so between here and Colorado we had gotten several."

Ron Bjorklund travels with his wife, Sue Bjorklund, having driven across the United States twice, taking his TaylorMade golf clubs with him, even flying with them on occasion, although renting clubs at times.

"Last year we drove back to Niagra Falls and back and picked up 11 states then," Ron said

"Her brother lives in Florida, so we've driven back and spent Thanksgiving with him; picked up about 10 or 11 states then."

Sue's brother lives at the Waterlefe Golf & River Club in Bradenton, Florida.

"It is really a lot of fun to play," Ron said. "There's a lot of water, and that's why they call it Waterlefe. The fairways are all domed so everything runs to the water. There's a lot of gators in the water. We've seen half a dozen gators when we've golfed there."

"You don't like to golf up next to them if you don't have to," Ron continued about the alligators. "You don't mess around too much by the water getting balls," Sue added.

"If you hit a ball in the water, you just let it stay in the water," Ron said.

The Bjorklunds have also seen alligators in North Carolina, but that's not the only wildlife someone will encounter when golfing.

"We've seen elk when we golfed up in Banff [British Columbia], and bear when we were golfing in Whistler [BC]," Ron said. "We've seen a lot of wildlife on the golf courses, deer and turkeys and everything out on our golf course."

By "our golf course," Ron means the Banks Lake Golf Course, one of his favorites. "I was on the first board of directors out here, so we've been involved with that ever since it was built," Bjorklund noted.

His golf buddies include local men Jim Benson, Mike Zowada, Dave Portch, and Greg Behrens, who called the Cape Cod Country Club to let them know they were the last stop for Bjorklund to complete his mission.

"The guys at the Cape Cod Country Club were just really cool about it," Bjorklund said, adding that the club put a welcoming note and decorations on Ron's cart, and that he got souvenir glasses and balls to commemorate the occasion.

Bjorklund had been golfing for about 66 years leading up to the feat.

"My dad put a golf club in my hand when I was four years old and I've been golfing pretty much ever since," said the golfer, whose handicap is 11.2. "That means I golf about 11 or 12 strokes over par all the time, but I've golfed better than that too."

In all that time a golfer must lose their temper once in a while, right?

"Never!" Ron said.

"He doesn't!" Sue added, having golfed in most of the United States herself. "And he's been very patient with me because I'm not a good golfer, but he's always very patient and he likes to have fun and have a good time."

"I've never broken a club over my knee," Ron joked, adding that he knows golfers who have. "It's just a game ... and it's really provided us a lot of fun because it's provided us a purpose when we travel."

Ron said he has driven across the country twice.

"Just throw the clubs in the back of the pickup and just take off," he said.

"A lot of the time it's not the golf courses that you remember, it's the people you meet at the golf courses."

The Bjorklunds recounted being invited to tailgating parties in South Dakota, being featured in a newspaper in Oklahoma, talking and golfing with people from Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, and elsewhere, and more.

They golfed on spongey courses in southern states after hurricanes or torrential rains, desert courses in Arizona, California, Nevada, and others.

"Golf courses are some of the prettiest real estate in the area and so you really see some nice beautiful settings," Sue said.

So what's next for the Bjorklunds?

Ron said he golfed at Guam while in the Navy, but not the other U.S. Territories. He's golfed in Mexico and Canada. He's open to golfing in Europe.

"I think my next goal will be to golf in every county in the state," Ron said. "I don't know if there is a golf course in every county, but I'll find out!"