Perspective from the 19^th Hole is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

There is a place in Oregon – Silvies Ranch in far Eastern Oregon – where goats play a key role.

On a four-hole special course, they carry golf bags around for golfers who show up.

Now, there is a second site where goats play a role.

A story in the Oregonian newspaper appeared under this headline:  Goats and a llama are chowing down on weeds at Eastmoreland Golf Course

Here is what story said:

“The grounds at Portland’s Eastmoreland Golf Course are getting some natural grooming, thanks to 10 goats, and a llama named Dewey, who have all been lending their weed and grass-munching talents to the course since September 21.

“According to a press release from Portland Parks and Recreation, the four-legged groundskeepers came on the job after the parks bureau and golf management firm KemperSports contracted with goat-renting company, GoGoatOregon.

“The goats and llama have been doing their chewing at Eastmoreland’s 13th hole, which features a ravine which bisects the par-5 fairway. “Overgrown weeds on its steep banks are expected to be giving the animals’ jaws a workout for an estimated two to three weeks.

“’The llama has already deterred a curious coyote,’ John Ball, Portland Parks & Recreation maintenance supervisor at Eastmoreland and RedTail Golf Courses, said in the press release.  ‘He and the goats are exceeding my expectations, having a great time eating all the leaves and they are super cute.  It’s awesome watching them work.’

“’It’s not only a way to bring smiles to people’s faces,’ Portland Parks Golf Director Vincent Johnson said in the release.  ‘But goats are effective and eco-friendly.  This is about caring for a valuable recreational asset and furthering the environmental stewardship that is a core part of Portland Parks Golf philosophy and practices.’”

So, the good news here is that goats – and the llama – are doing their work in Portland and enjoying every minute of it.

In sports, the word “goat” often stands for “greatest of all time.”  These animals meet that definition.