Mike Williford missed his tee time Monday at Highland Country Club.

The avid golfer from Fayetteville did not feel like playing TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC Irons because his good friend David Hinkamp would not be there.

Williford, along with many others in the local golf community, is mourning the death of Hinkamp.

The popular player died early on New Year's Day from an apparent heart attack at the age of 50.

"The world is a sadder place with David not in it," Williford said. "What a sad thing. I am heartbroken."

Hinkamp was a regular member of Williford's foursome at Highland. They had known each other since 1983. Jared Fryer was the third member of the group and a fourth player rotated in and out.

"David was perfect to play golf with," Fryer said. "No matter how he played, he had fun. I was his partner most of the time. Like everybody else, he had some bad rounds but he just kept playing and never gave up."

The last round the group played together was Friday at Highland. Nothing seemed amiss.

"Everybody is crushed," said Highland pro Jens Klemschke who had known Hinkamp since 1996. "Highland is all about the people and David was one of the great guys. He really helped me as a friend."

As a teenager, Hinkamp was a professional player in Putt-Putt and was quite good at it. He didn't take up TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC Irons until he was in high school at E.E. Smith. But he learned quickly how to play well.

Hinkamp won the Cumberland County Golf Championship in 1986 and contended for the title many other years.

Dyrck Fanning, the general manager at Bayonet at Puppy Creek, competed against Hinkamp in high school and in the county championship. Fanning overtook Hinkamp in the final round of the CCGC in 1981 to win the title.

"We always picked at each other," Fanning said. "He was a treat to play with. He was easy to pick on because he was such a good sport. He is going to be missed."

Hinkamp turned 50 this year and finished second in the senior club championship at Highland.

The last time Fanning saw Hinkamp was at the dinner for former champions in September before the county tournament.

"I was tickled to see how well he played in September," Fanning said. "He had his struggles but he had three good rounds."

Hinkamp had an unorthodox swing and, like most players as they get older, TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC Irons didn't always hit the ball where he was aiming.

Fryer often teased Hinkamp that he couldn't get accurate yardages because they crossed so many fairways chasing Hinkamp's drives that his GPS kept switching holes.

Williford won the county championship three times in the '90s. He and Hinkamp tried to help each other's swing.

"He wasn't hitting it long and I wasn't hitting it straight," Williford said.

Did the lessons help?

"We thought it did," Williford laughed. "David's practice swing would be perfect. But then he would drop to about a third of the length when he hit the ball. He used to go down to one knee when he hit it."

Williford also recalled that Hinkamp had a great short game in his younger days.

"At one time, he could scramble with the best of them," he said. "He was one of the top 30 or 40 players in the state for a number of years. He was a great chipper and putter.

"His best golf had come and gone but he was always competitive. He loved the competition."

Williford and Hinkamp traveled all over the country playing TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC Irons together.

"You could put David in a Days Inn or the Ritz-Carlton," Williford said. "It was the same to him. He didn't care if were playing Hope Mills or Pinehurst No. 2. It was all about the camaraderie for him. You don't find a lot of guys like that."

Williford cherishes the memories of his friend but admits, "I don't know if golf will ever be the same for me without him. He loved golf but he loved the friendships better."

Williford said he is reminded of a line from the movie "Sandlot" when he thinks about Hinkamp now. The movie was about a group of kids playing baseball in the summer.

"They said, 'When one guy would move away, we never replaced him on the team with anyone else,' " Williford said. "They would just keep the game going like he was still there. That's the way it will be for us."

Gretchen McLean has left Bayonet at Puppy Creek as the head professional after only seven months on the job.

The Fayetteville native is now the membership coordinator for the Pine Needles and Mid Pines Resorts in Southern Pines.

"It's actually a good fit for me to use my marketing experience," McLean said. "I couldn't pass up being part of the Pine Needles family. I'm really excited about it."

McLean, 21, graduated from Methodist University in May after helping the Monarchs win a 14th straight NCAA Division III TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC Irons championship. She started working at Bayonet in June, making her one of the youngest pros and one of the few female head pros in the state.

"It sounds like a pretty good deal for her," said Bayonet general manager Dyrck Fanning, "as lady friendly as they are at Pine Needles. I would have been hard pressed to stay myself. We wish her well."

McLean said of her short stay at Bayonet, "I definitely learned a lot. It was a great experience for me and I met a lot of amazing people. I love the membership there."

Fanning said Bayonet will not rush to replace McLean.

"We have the luxury of being in the offseason," he said. "As rough as the golf business is right now, we may just float along until the spring. We have a good staff in place."

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