The CLC Matchplay - Season 5 is here! Launching at 1242!

[cjnussbaum1219]

@Smidler and i wrapped up the round of 16 action this afternoon at Lonnie Poole, with me giving jeff 7.

Hole 1, par 5: two good drives to start eventually became two long birdie putts. Both of us left a little more for par than we would have liked, but both made them and left the first tied.

Hole 2, par 3: smidler up first puts his tee shot in the green side bunker. I play the way the architect (s/o Mr Palmer) intended and play it to the hill left and rolling down to the hole. I only got my birdie putt about halfway to the hole and miss the par putt, match still tied.

Hole 3, par 5 (jeff stroking): smidler tops a drive in to the weeds and takes two to get out to the fairway. I make a comfy par and go one up.

Hole 4, par 4: two good tee shots, but jeff catches his wedge thin and rolls over the green. He hits what would have been a great chip if we hadnt gotten so much rain yesterday, but the greens were sticky and left himself 10 ft for par. He missed, i go two up.

Hole 5, par 4 (jeff stroking): two weak tee shots leave us both with a long way in and neither of us can hit the green. I cant get up and down and make bogey, jeff was nice enough to three putt and tie the hole. I stay two up.

Hole 6, par 3: jeff again in the green side bunker but hits a great shot and makes his par putt. I ran my birdie putt way past the hole but make the comebacker to stay two up.

Hole 7, par 5 (jeff stroking): both hit good drives but jeffs layup goes right and in the trees. He has to punch out and makes 6, i make a par and stay two up.

Hole 8, par 3: jeff goes 3 for 3 on front nine par three green side bunkers, but cant get up and down. I make par to go 3 up.

Hole 9, par 4 (jeff stroking): jeff pulls his tee shot in to the hazard and makes 6. I make a boring par to make the turn at 4 up.

Hole 10, par 4: i go mega blockie and put my tee shot in the first fairway right and come up short with my second. Jeff hits a good drive but leaves himself with the longest possible birdie putt. He three putts, i get up and down for par, and steal one to go 5 up.

Hole 11, par 5 (jeff stroking): the view of the Raleigh skyline from this hole is great, the golf played here not so much. I win the hole with a bogey after toping my tee shot and go 6 up.

Hole 12, par 4: jeff misses the green right and cant get up and down, allowing me to two putt for par and a 7 & 6 win.

Looking forward to the elite eight!

Cant go through our write up without giving a shout out to Tom, who we got paired up with on the first tee. Tom loved to let out a squealing, whining sound after every shot, complain about the group in front of us, hit unannounced mulligans over our heads from the tee box behind us, and walk right behind us and pick up his clubs while we were putting out - an all around menace

[Are_you_double_D]

@BCates v Are_you_double_D IV didn’t pack the drama like I-III. We played a reasonably dry Sedgefield, considering the amount of rain the last 2 days. Lots of blood on a good amount of holes, inconsistent golf from both of us. @Murky-Waters joined our group and was a delight as our 3rd, finishing with 2 birds, the only ones of the day. Hats off to Jeff_M for putting it together and hosting us. A brief run down:

Hole 1: We both hit excellent drives. I duff my iron approach, then duff my chip. Meanwhile Ben is hole high with the GIR. Ben’s comfy par tops my DB easily.

Hole 2: I hit a nice fade, Ben mistakenly takes an aggressive line but gets away with it. I hit a flarey 5i into the creek right, Ben misses the green a hair left in the best spot to miss the green. Another duffed pitch from me makes it easy for Ben to go 2up. But now I’ve had time to down about 20 ounces of WW’s Pernicious IPA.

Hole 3: One of my favorite par 3s, not sure why I like it so much. We both GIR and both make excellent long putts to within inches for pars.

Hole 4: 2 full IPAs down and I’m feeling my groove. So of course Ben hits a perfect drive and I pull mine left of the cart path, over by some rich person’s fence. Ben hits a great approach to a back right pin, he’s got about 15ish foot for bird, but he’s also well above the hole with some movement. I hit a pretty good punch 5i under the trees and go thru the green long, into the rough back right side. My pitch is really easy though, I’ve got ridges left and right while the pin is slap dab in the middle of them and uphill. A good pitch leaves me about 7ft short, pretty much straight up the hill, and I’m stroking. The downhill speed gets the better of Ben’s putt. I get mine in the back door sideways for a 4/3 since I’m stroking. I get 1 back and Ben’s 1up.

Hole 5: Two drives just a hair left in the rough gives us both a chance to get the green in 2. I come up a tad short, Ben goes long and right. The sloping green gets the better of Ben and he ends up Rossed twice, conceding, and I make my comfy par. We’re AS.

Hole 6: I put a 3w short of the creek in the fairway, Ben flares his tee shot left and has to punch out. His approach goes a tad long, but finds the green. I’m stroking and play my approach safer than normal, coming up just short and right to a middle, way left pin. A decent putt from off the green puts the pressure on Ben to make the impossible happen. He’s got a huge mound, and a downhill putt. He gets Rossed again. I’m up 1.

Hole 7: This hole hates me, I go in the creek, Ben just short of the green. My pitch sucks equally, Ben finally has an uphill putt and takes advantage, we’re AS again.

Hole 8: We both hit skanky, super lucky shots; Ben a bullet slice, me a snap hook drive. We both end up short of the creek, just short of the bridge, in the fairway, about 5 yards apart. We then hit equally meh approaches to the right side of the green to a way left pin. I get a read from Ben’s putt and am able to 2 putt, while Ben misses about an 8 footer for his par. I’m 1up.

Hole 9: I manage another good fade, Ben pushes his tee shot OB. My par puts me 2up at the turn. I’m 2up and 4 beers deep, life is good.

Hole 10: After grabbing a couple mo beers, I get to the tee to see Ben smash his drive past the fairway bunker. I push mine right a bit short of my idol Patrick Reeds plaque. My attempt at a punch slice goes terribly, Ben’s approach gets hole high, about 8 ft right of a right pin. My pitch stance sucks as much as Linda Lovelace and I come up just short of the green. I’m not aware if I’m stroking at this point and comment, “Well, guess I got to make this chip”. I put it to 2in. But Ben misses the bird chance by a lip hair, I remain 2up after the 5/4.

Hole 11: I go left, Ben goes right. I put my approach just short of the green, Ben in the middle of the green. I be stroking again, my 4/3 puts me 3 up.

Hole 12: I flare my shot long and right to a back middle pin. Ben hits what looked to be a perfect approach, but he goes long. It’s dead back there, it was ugly, don’t ever go long to a back pin on 12. I make bogey to go 4up.

Hole 13: We both go a tad left and leave less than desirable approaches. I accidentally pitch across the fairway, that rough is rough man. Ben purposely (I think). pitches up just short of the green. We both bogey.

Hole 14: My fortunate, yet unfortunate pull goes thru the bunker and out. Ben goes left also, into a bush. The unfortunate part of going through the bunker is my ball being 3 ft above my feet. All I could think of was the Double_Bogey_Dave and CrucialTaunt tee ball vids. I faired about the same as they did. It takes Ben at least 2 strokes to get out the bush. I think I end up winning the hole with double bogey(was getting a stroke) to close it out 5 & 4.

Not the drama of the first 3, but always a pleasure to play such a classy competitor like Ben. If Fore20 hadn’t been galavanting thru Iceland and Greece these last 2 weeks, Ben would probably have been more prepared and focused, and the match would have been much more competitive down the stretch.

[Swing_hard_and_hope]

ELITE EIGHT IS HERE

Who will be this year’s Gonzga? Who has the cahones to join @BrooklynAJ and @grizzly224 on the trophy? We will find out in a few short weeks.

For those not keeping track at home here are the matchups:
@wolfpack888 vs @jtshelley42

@Deven75 vs @Are_you_double_D

@cjnussbaum1219 vs @JNorwoodFive

@tplatimer vs @BoyNamedSuj

All these guys have made it here playing great golf, or at least better than the fools they have been up against that day. The final 4 weekend is coming and the ultimate prize will be handed out soon.

As always we look forward to hearing about good matches, encourage utilizing friends with fancy memberships to get out, and make sure to write up some recaps!

Cheers,
The CLC Matchplay Commish

[wolfpack888]

Myself and @jtshelley42 (will call JT to conceal identities) got out to CC of Lexington (not in NC) this past weekend thanks to @BarnacleRob hosting. Kids, life, everything else, this was one of the only weekends where the stars aligned to play, even if a bit prematurely. My day started off with finding out that @LukeBoatright may have bailed on us for the Tigers, didn’t want to see that dumb guy anyways, and off to the first tee we go. I’m getting 3 pops.

Hole 1 (Par 5): We both hit fairways, sensible layup from myself and JT puts his in the water. I put one to about 20 ft and make the downhiller for bird after the hole had been conceded, but hey we like birdies so I’m posting it. I’m 1up.

Hole 2 (Par 3): JT left of the green, I’m short sided in the right bunker. Good chip from JT gives him a par look and then I take two to get out of the bunker). Missed bogey putt from me, JT cozies it up, back to AS.

Hole 3 (Par 4): I’m fairway, JT left and has to punch up. I put mine off the back edge and lag putt to a tap in. JT doesn’t get up and down. I’m 1 up.

Hole 4 (Par 3): JT left of the green, I’m short right. I chip in a little sidewinder for birdie and take the hole, 2 up.

Hole 5 (Par 4): We both hit fairways, then we both go long right to a nasty back right pin. Neither of us get and up and down but both make great bogey putts after running it past the hole (seriously, this pin was mean). I’m popping, and we go 3 up.

This is about the time we both discover we are Orioles fans and most of our remaining round discussion (besides betting on colorado/nebraska) turns to baseball. Maybe I got too comfy and start to let the early lead slip…

Hole 6 (Par 4): Both in the fairway, JT hits the green and I’m short). I don’t get up and down and JT 2 putts, but I’m popping. I remain 3 up.

Hole 7 (Par 5): I push it right and am saved by a tree, JT also down the right. We both layup, I miss the green and JT has a tricky long downhiller. A missed up and down and a 3 putt later and bogey pushes, and I remain 3 up.

Hole 8 (Par 4): We both miss right and punch up short of the green. No up and downs, another bogey push, and remain 3 up.

Hole 9 (Par 4): We both hit the fairway, and then I sound like I’m repeating myself. Missed greens, no up and down, bogey, remain 3up.

Hole 10 (Par 4): @BarnacleRob tells me “don’t hit it left, water cuts in back there.” So I find the first ball on the day that doesn’t cut and splash. I somehow save a bogey but fairway-green-2 putt from JT takes the holes. I’m 2up.

Hole 11 (Par 3): This is when the rain starts to come down and we face a 195yd par 3. Considering the weather, two solid shots. JT gets a filthy up and down from the right side of the green, I lag it from just off the back to a tap in. I remain 2up.

Quick moment to seek shelter, quick beer, back out on 12 fifteen minutes later.

Hole 12 (Par 4): JT pushes it right and punches up, I hit the fairway and green. JT puts it on and leaves himself a long downhiller that he misses. I 2 putt and go back to 3 up.

Hole 13 (Par 4): I’m being forgetful on what happened here, but the scorecard says par for me and bogey for JT, so we go 4up.

Hole 14 (Par 4): I hit the fairway and JT goes right. JT punches out and comes up short with his approach. I miss left in the bunker and don’t get up and down for par, finish with bogey. JT also doesn’t get up and down for bogey, handshakes take place and that concludes the match 5&4.

Was a lovely day out there with good company, managed to dodge most of the hard rain except for about 15 minutes there. Pace was aspirational as we finished in 3:45 with the rain pause. Saturdays in the south spent more at stadiums than the course. The round was just one of those days where everything was going right: chip ins, tree love, all that jazz.

It’s on to the Final 4!

[tplatimer]

#perspective looming large

[BarnacleRob]

Great meeting you @wolfpack888 Had a blast watching you and @jtshelley42 battle it out.

[LukeBoatright]

Congrats @wolfpack888

Many people are saying you’ll see me at the final 4.

Who knows.

[Swing_hard_and_hope]

Congrats to @wolfpack888 on locking up the first final 4 spot. 3 more to go. Good luck out there folks!

[JNorwoodFive]

@cjnussbaum1219 and myself will be having our Elite 8 matchup this coming Saturday at Longleaf at 2:30. We have room for two more. Going to be a delightful overcast day in the low 70’s so come and join us. Let me know if you would like to.

[cjnussbaum1219]

After heavy debates that continued into this morning about whether or not to brave what looked to be some tough conditions, @JNorwoodFive and i held our Elite Eight matchup at Longleaf. The possible interesting conditions brought out @Harper to join us and provide commentary to the First Flight chat (side note: Harper is the Jim Nantz of whatsapp golf commentary. Just legendary stuff). I am giving three to Josh with a trip to the Final Four on the line. No way i can do Harpers updates justice, but here it goes.

Hole 1, par 4: two strong drives to start out but Josh thins his wedge and struggles behind the green. I hit the green and two putt to go one up.

Hole 2, par 4: both of us try and take the safe play with less than driver, so naturally we both end up in tree trouble. Josh has to lay up but gets buried in the rough and can barely advance his third shot, i left myself a long second shot that misses the green right. Josh makes a great up and down from 20 yards short for his 5, i cant get mine up and down to tie the hole with 5.

Hole 3, par 3: i hit a solid iron but end up about 30’ left while josh catches his heavy and is well short of the green. His chips comes to the front of the green but his first putt is well short. In what became a theme of the day, someone pissed in the Cheerios of the Longleaf greenskeeper and the pin was on a downslope that my putt kept running away from, leaving a 12’ coming back that i also missed for a three putt 4. Josh also missed his 10’ for bogey, so i win the hole and go 2 up.

Hole 4, par 3: my tee ball is just off the green but as far from the hole as possible, but josh leaves himself in a really tough spot in the bunker short left. He hits a good shot and leaves about 12’ for par, i lag one up about 3’ past the hole. Josh cans his for another great up and down to make my slider that much tougher, i lip out and josh gets one back.

Hole 5, par 5, josh stroking: two meh drives lead to two layups. Josh hits his just off the edge of the green but in comfy two putt range, i catch mine a little thin and leave a short sided chip off a major downslope that i cannot get up and down, josh evens the match.

Hole 6, par 3: coming off two big wins, josh pulls his tee shot left and bounces in to the hazard. I play safe and hit mine to the right of the green. I hit what i thought was a good chip but catches the slope and rolls to about 20’ for a two putt bogey. After his drop, josh makes another long putt to get up and down and keep the match even.

Hole 7, par 4, josh stroking: two very good drives leave wedges in to the green. Josh hits to the middle of the green and i pull mine left. My chip catches the upslope and stops just barely on the green, josh rolls his birdie putt to just outside the circle of friendship. Thinking i have to make mine to have a chance, i blast my 8’ putt 10’ past the hole, and gave the comebacker an annoyed one hand stab that somehow went in. This would soon become very important, as josh ran his 4’ past the hole and left himself a 10’ for bogey that was also missed. A four putt makes it 6-for-5 and we tie the hole.

Hole 8, par 5: josh’s tee ball leaves him an awkward stance and he pushes his layup to the right rough. I hit a good 3-wood and caught the slope, setting me up to go for it. I come up just short of the green, and josh ends up right next to me with his third. I put first and proceed to run my putt 25’ past the hole. Not to be outdone, josh then putts his 28’ past the hole (fortunately harper caught both these on video, was a great representation of the day). We both two putt from there, my par puts me 1 up.

Hole 9, par 4: i hit a solid drive up the right and josh pulls one in to the tall grass left. He has to punch out but runs in to the bunker near my tee ball. I leave my approach short and josh does the same. We both proceed to three putt and i win it with bogey to make the turn at 2 up.

At the turn, we had a few key additions to the match: josh stopped in for a transfusion (this will become important) and we were joined on the ninth green by @rkris who would ride with us for the back 9.

Hole 10, par 4: two more good drives, my wedge goes just off the back and josh come up short, leaving himself a shortsided bunker shot with the green running away that he can barely keep on the green. We would both two putt from there, par puts me 3 up.

Hope 11, par 3: both catch our tee shots heavy but hit good recovery shots to leave us both with 8-10’ par putts. Josh cant make his, mine stops on the lip before dropping in the side door, par puts me 4 up.

Hole 12, par 4: both drives in the fairway, both fail to take advantage. Josh ends up in the bunker short left and cant get up and down, i thin mine long and also cant get up and down. Hole is tied with bogey.

Hole 13, par 4, josh stroking: two bad tee shots force both of us to layup. Both hit okay wedges and two putt, josh’s 5-for-4 wins it. I am 3 up.

Hole 14, par 5: i pull my drive left and josh finds the fairway, but both have to layup. My wedge takes a big bounce and goes long, josh goes just long as well. I, again, fail to get up and down. Josh chips up but runs his putt well past and cant make the comebacker for a 3-putt double. I make 6 and go dormie 4.

Remember josh’s transfusion decision earlier? Now it pays off. Kicks in down the stretch and he starts playing his best golf of the day.

Hole 15, par 4: two good tee shots lead to wedges in to the green. I leave my first putt on top of the ridge and, again, three putt. Josh makes a solid oar and cuts the lead to 3. Things are starting to move.

Hole 16, par 5: hole is over before it even begins. I hit what i thought was a decent drive, not knowing how much the internal OB cuts in on the right, and my optimism is crushed when Ryan says i should hit a provisional. I promptly pull that one OB left and concede the hole when neither ball ends up being in play. Internal OB can fuck all the way off, things are moving swiftly.

Hole 17, par 4: josh hits his drive well but ends up in the rough along the fence of the track right, i lay up with and iron. I chunk my wedge short (things are moving much faster) and cant get up and down. Josh hits a good wedge from the thick rough and makes a solid par to cut the lead to 1.

Hole 18, par 4: josh leads off with a popped up driver down the right, i follow up with a well hit 3-wood but it tails right towards the pines just off the fairway. Josh’s drive ended up being so bad it was okay, as he was far enough back to not have tree trouble but his approach comes up short. When we get to my ball, josh, ryan, and i all agree that my ball is on a borrowing animal hole (s/o TS Michigan) and i have to take a drop. I would like to point out that this drop was in no way scummy, we confirmed it was an animal hole after we made the decision to drop and either way i would have had to punch out even if i had played from the original spot. My punch out catches a tree branch and falls straight down, 70 yards out, and the next shot ends up 20’ from the hole. Josh chips up from short of the green and runs about 8’ past the hole. I cant make my putt, which leaves him a putt to force a tie breaker after i was dormie 4. He runs it past, leaving me 3’ to win the match. And for the first time since 11, i actually make the putt to avoid the biggest choke job of the year. I win it 1 up.

Had a fantastic day in what ended up being great conditions, the rain held off until after we got done and we were left with a comfortably overcast day with a slight breeze.

Did i almost blow a dormie 4 lead? Look, fer sure.
Did i shoot 87? Yes.
Did i fail to make a par after the 11th hole? Also yes.
Did i have 40 putts? Again, yes (sadly not even my worst putting performance of the season).
Are we on to the Final Four?

LGLG!

[JNorwoodFive]

Great write up my friend!! Congratulations! It was a fabulous day out there with great company and coverage s/o @Harper and @rkris! Some ugly golf was played today but had a blast doing so. Good luck in the final four!

[Nsandila]

Underselling the ugly conditions here, it was a tropical storm that passed through! Y’all are some true sickos. Great job

[Swing_hard_and_hope]

Friends and Fellow Refugees. We have reached that time in October where these is a slight chill in the air, but the competition is just heating up. We have reached the final 4 of the CLC Matchplay.

I am excited to announce the date, the competitors, and the venue!

First the competitors. There will be more in depth player profiles, betting odds, and much more to come, but lets start with the names:
@wolfpack888
@Are_you_double_D
@cjnussbaum1219
@tplatimer

Next up, where and when does this battle go down? Just like any good matchplay tournament we will have a one day 36 hole extravaganza on 10/29. This will be hosted at what many are calling the best new course in the entire country, Old Barnwell.

Looking forward to seeing how it plays out and I promise the content will be FLOWING.

[Swing_hard_and_hope]

Coming this Sunday the Final Four is on at Old Barnwell in Aiken SC.

Check out the player profiles for our 4 competitors.

[cjnussbaum1219]

What a weekend! Could not have had a better weekend down in Aiken, and I will try and keep my ramblings here as organized as possible. But first a major thanks to @LukeBoatright and the dearly departed Naner Man for allowing us to experience the joy of Old Barnwell. We were on the second hole surrounded by fog that we could barely see 50 yards through when Deven already declared this was his favorite course in the world, and its hard to argue against him. Also a big thanks to @Swing_hard_and_hope for organizing this tournament again this year, its been the highlight of my year to play my way through and keep the trophy at home in the First Flight!

Shoutout to all of my fellow competitors; Nick, Pat, and Tim in the group stage and Aaron, Smidler, Norwood, Powell, and Cory in the knockout rounds. And of course shoutout the troops, who I was playing on behalf of after topping Powell. Can’t wait to run it back next year and defend the title.

And now, on to the recaps:

Semifinal vs. Powell

A quick note before we get in to this one: you have heard of the Imperial system of measurement, you have heard of the metric system of measurement, but today we created a new system - the Powell. One Powell = approximately 18" in to deep heather. Please keep this in mind, it will be referenced often. Powell is getting two strokes here.

Hole 1, par 5: There was allegedly a set of mounds about 100 yards off the first tee, but we could barely see them the fog was so thick to start the day. Powell pops his drive up a little but finds the fairway while I push mine right to a fairway bunker. I am forced to pitch out of the bunker and Powell follows suit with a layup since we still can’t see the green at this point. I hit my third on and two putt for par, while Powell’s layup resulted in the first powell of the day. Out of a tough lie, the lack of practice range to warm up hurts him and he blades a wedge over the green and leaves an impossible shot coming back that he can’t hold the green with. I go one up.

Hole 2, par 4: both of us hit good irons off the tee, but Powell is at a tough angle and can’t hold the green. I hit the green and two putt for par, his first chip rolls back to his feet and he makes bogey. I am two up.

Hole 3, par 4: I again take iron off the tee and find the fairway, Powell hits a solid driver but ends up about a half powell in the heather. He catches it thin and ends up another powell into the heather long. He blades it out of there and before the ball has stopped moving, yells “good hole Cody, Fuck!”. I go three up.

Hole 4, par 3: we still cannot see more than 50 yards and can only listen for our tee balls to hit the green since we sure as hell can’t see them. We both hit the green but have long birdie putts, and what ensued after that shall not be discussed. Powell wins the hole with a three putt bogey (yes, that means I four putted. We are on to Cincinnati). I am two up.

Hole 5, par 4: we both hit solid drives, but I end up in the fairway and Powell ends up powelled. He hits a great punch out of a heavy lie that runs up just short of the green while my approach is short sided in a greenside bunker. We are also not going to discuss what happened from there, but will leave it at Powell winning the hole with bogey. I am one up.

Hole 6, par 4, Powell stroking: two more solid tee shots but neither of us can take advantage thanks to a tough pin location, with me coming up just short and Powell rolling over the back. I get mine up and down for par, but Powell’s first chip comes up short and he can’t get up and down for there and makes 6 for 5. I am back to two up.

Hole 7, par 4: I hit the fairway and Powell hooks his in to the native area. We both come up short of the green, but only Powell gets up and down to win the hole. Back to one up.

Hole 8, par 4: I take an iron again and hit the fairway, Powell pulls his drive slightly and is powelled again (I told you it will keep coming up). I hit the green and two putt for par, Powell makes bogey and I go two up again.

Hole 9, par 4: a driveable par four, but i take an iron off the tee to make sure I don’t end up in the bunker. Powell pulls his slightly and ends up in the bunker I was set on avoiding, which proved my decision correct. My approach goes just off the back left of the green, but four shots later Powell concedes the hole from the same bunker he tee shot ended up in.

I make the turn and three up, but as we were walking across the bridge coming off nine tee Powell says what will become my mantra of the day: “I am making a mess from two feet off the fairway, and you are plodding along with irons earning your 4% annually”. For the rest of the day, i became a high-yield savings account - play it safe and make the other guy beat me.

Hole 10, par 4: there are about 9-10 bunkers all down the left side of the hole, but you can’t see any of them off the tee. Our sherpa Luke tells us to stay right, but Powell’s drive just rolls in to the bunker while my iron finds the fairway. He goes slightly long, but gets bailed out when I three putt and we tie the hole with bogey. I am still three up.

Hole 11, par 3: Powell makes a solid par on a long par three, and I waste a good tee shot with a three putt from 20 feet to give one back. Two up.

Hole 12, par 5: His drive is good but mine leaks right in to the heather. I pull my layup in to the waste area right and have no angle in to the green, and end up in a greenside bunker that is about 20 feet above the hole while Powell has about a 10 foot birdie putt. I can’t hold the green from the bunker but almost chip in for par. Powell returns the gift of three putts I had given on the last two holes with one of his own, and I escape with a tie to stay two up.

Hole 13, par 4, Powell stroking: Both tee shots bounce through the fairway, mine in the rough and Powell predicatably powelled in the heather. I miss mine short right and bounce down in to a greenside bunker, his looks to be good but just catches the ridge and ends up in the rough left of the flag. I make the up and down of my life, standing with one foot out of the bunker and landing on top of the hill, rolling down the slope, and leaving about a 10 footer that I would make for par. Powell kindly plays ping pong across the green and I go back to three up.

Hole 14, par 4: First, a word on how awesome this hole is. You are greeted by a wall of grass and bunker 170 yards off the tee with the flag just peaking over the ridge about 30 yards past it. If you can land it over the ridge, you can have a good look at eagle depending on which slopes you catch. If not, good luck. I, of course, did not, leaving my tee shot in the bunker short left. We both end up with circus putts for birdie that neither one can get close and we tie with bogey. Still three up.

Hole 15, par 5: three up with four to go, and I am having flashbacks to my quarterfinal match with Josh being dormie 4 and struggling to close it. My mindset in that match nearly cost me, thinking just one par on the last four would win it. I would not make the same mistake here, hitting my two best shots of the day and rolling in a 15 foot eagle putt to close it out. I win the match 4&3 and move on to face Cory in the finals in the afternoon.

Finals vs. Cory

Hole 1, par 5: After an hour to get some foot and relax, we go back out for the finals and both open with tee shots in the fairway bunker. We both have to wedge out and miss the green on our approach, but Cory stubs his chip and I am able to win with bogey. I am one up.

Hole 2, par 4: I hit an iron off the tee again (high-yield savings) but come up just short with the approach. Corey misses the green from the fairway, but a great up and down matches my two putt par. Still one up.

Hole 3, par 4: Two good tee shots, but Cory catches his thin and over the green. He hits a world class SHAFUA and makes par to again match my two putt. Still one up.

Hole 4, par 3: My tee shot is just short of the green and Cory is again long of the green all the way back on the next tee box. He is a good 20 feet below the hole, short sided, having to land on a downslope, from about 30 yards away. Literally an impossible shot (a real one, not a Lexi impossible shot). And he SHAFUAs again. Unreal. He can’t convert the putt on this one though and makes bogey, my two putt par wins to go two up.

Hole 5, par 4: Cory hits a good shot and I am powelled in the heather. The rest of the hole will not be discussed. I won the hole with a double. Yeah, it wasn’t great. Three up.

Hole 6, par 4, Cory stroking: He pulls his tee shot in to the weeds but I make it a goal to find every fairway bunker on the hole. We both make ugly doubles, Cory takes it with a 6 for 5 (now two holes in a row won by a double). I am two up.

Hole 7, par 4, Cory stroking: I end up in fairway bunker off the tee, where Cory is kind enough to join me after he blades his second shot in to a rake and down in to the bunker. I clear the lip by about half an inch and end up in the greenside bunker, but it wouldn’t matter. Cory has way too much fun in that bunker and concedes the hole three shots later. I am three up.

Hole 8, par 4: Neither of us take advantage of two good tee shots and miss the green short and left, and neither can get up and down from there. Hole is tied with bogey. Still three up.

Hole 9, par 4: we both hit the fairway, and I hit my best wedge of the day (s/o Naner Man for getting it on camera) to a foot for a conceded birdie. Cory thins his approach shot off the back and is left with another impossible chip, but he doesn’t have as much luck from there and I win the hole to make the turn four up.

Hole 10, par 4: I end up a long way back off the tee and have a long iron in that rolls off the back. Cory from the rough hits his just right of the green and almost makes a delicate birdie putt. His tap in par beats my bogey, back to three up.

Hole 11, par 3: Cory blocks his right and is again left with an impossible shot over all kinds of slopes in green. He makes bogey and I two putt for par to get back to four up.

Hole 12, par 5: two good drives lead to two awful approach shots. I end up buried in the rough and hit my third long and left, but Cory hits his best approach of the day for a good birdie look that would become a two putt par. I have no chance from over the green, Cory takes it to cut it back to three.

Hole 13, par 4, Cory stroking: Cory hits the fairway and I am in the right rough. I miss the green long left, but he hits his thin again and it fortunate to catch the greenside bunker or he could have gone all the way over in the trees. He ends up with a really tough lie and can’t hold the downslope on the green. I make a very much defensive match-play decision and chip mine around the bunker purposely staying left of the green and two putt from there for bogey, Cory can’t get up and down and ties the hole with a 6 for 5. Still three up.

Hole 14, par 4: Again, this hole is fucking sweet. Again, the tee shots were anything but. Cory is in the bunker short, and I am in the bunker short left. He leaves his on the face of the hill and runs the next one off the green to the bunker left. I take the safe play and wedge out well right of the flag. My bogey beats his six, and I am dormie four.

Hole 15, par 5: I try and keep the same mindset as the semifinal round and want to end it here. Neither off us hit great drives and both have to layup, but my wedge ends up about 15 feet from the hole while Cory ends up long in a bunker. he can’t hold the green from there, stubs his chip, and concedes the match. I make my birdie putt and win the final 5&3.

On sandbagging, or lack thereof (who could say)

It has become tradition that the winner of this event is thereafter known as a sandbagger, and that is a title I will hold proudly, however I would like to take a moment here to state my defense. I used to be good, then stopped playing for about three years prior to starting again a few years ago. That player still comes out in 4-5 hole stretches, but rounds are always littered with 3-4 doubles or worse. This kills me in stroke play and thus keeps the handicap high, but in quota/match play where those only cost you one hole if your opponent can take advantage makes me dangerous.

One last shoutout, sorry to bring the vibes down

I joined the refuge in early 2021, and I was in a bad place. My mom had just been diagnosed with terminal cancer (as I’m typing this, I’m realizing this is the first time I have actually spoken/written that, dang) and I needed to feel a part of something. Even though I am very much a lurker here and on our WhatsApp groups, I don’t have words to describe how much having these communities has meant to me the last few years. After years post-college of barely playing at all, I dove deeper in to golf to cope with everything else going on, and knowing there is always a game to be had has kept me going now 58 weeks after her story reached its unhappy ending. Hate to end on such a down note, but I just needed to get that out.

If you are still reading through this, kudos to you. If you gave the hidden sections a very justifiable TL;DR, you are the smart ones. Either way, cheers to an amazing year!

[AirMailWedges]

Match play champ and Major “Airshow” winner… have a summer my dude!

[EZmiss]

@cjnussbaum1219

sandbagger, and that is a title I will hold proudly

Fuck the haters.

Only @JamesHCard is a real sandbagger.

[JamesHCard]

[EZmiss]

I am still waiting to shoot a 64 in a competitive environment as a 7 handicap. How did that feel?

[JamesHCard]