Let There Be Golf!

 

Maybe ten years ago, I was part of a foursome that did a Heart and Stroke fundraiser called the Longest Day of Golf. Darcy Kowalchuk, Scott Maynes, Darren Rozdeba, and I teed off around 5:45 am and played until 10:13 pm. We enjoyed sun, light rain, high winds, perfect calm, and then more of each in different sequences over 101 holes. It was a good day.

Why am I referencing this? Well...I missed Mens' Night this week because of the Shoal Lake grad. I plan on making up for it tomorrow. It was my second miss in three weeks. The forecast for tomorrow calls for sunny skies and highs around 26 Celsius. I hope to be at the dump at 9:00 am when it opens...and at the first tee by 10:00 am.

For the 33 gentlemen fortunate to make it to Mens' Night, it was an evening of nice weather...good temperatures but a bit windy...the standard for this part of the province. I was asked by someone from out of town if it was always windy here. I joked that it was calm once, back in May of 2007. The irony is I am now looking at boats gliding across the almost dead calm lake. Really, when you think of it...who cares if it is windy. Last Sunday it was pretty calm as the buckets of rain spilled down upon us and into basements across town. If it is sunny and 26 tomorrow, it can blow as much as it wants.

Back to the recent Mens' Night. Skins went on three holes. Winners included Dick Edgeworth / Dale Martin ($35 on #1), Robin Kimpinski / Troy Chwaluk ($48.50 on #2), and Mike Susinksi / Dale Nicholson ($20 on #9). Mr. Nicholson also was the lone winner of the deuce pot, earning $49.50 for his two. Closest to the pins were Dale Martin on #5 and Tom Gibson on #9. Robin posted two birdies on the ringer board, moving into a tie for second at -5.

Next Wednesday appears promising for a couple of reasons. The forecast looks awesome. There are some big skins including #4 which will likely be around $110. And I will be on vacation…which means no work on Thursday. Friday should be fun as well with the annual Lakeside Golf Course Fundraiser.

Remember, if you are drinking, driving is ill advised. In fact, I would even urge caution when putting.

Wes X 2

In case you are wondering, the thing to the right is the Chinese symbol for twins.

On multiple occasions I have golfed with two Jasons or two Rons. Frequently, I play with two fifty-something men who put highlights in their hair. But on Wednesday, I had an experience that not many people likely have had. I golfed with two guys named Wes. You all know the venerable Mr. Arnfinson. The other gentleman was Wes Walstrom, from Morinville, Alberta, in town on a work crew.

It was an enjoyable evening as we hit our season high with 37 golfers. As is often the case, increased competition means fewer skins get won. Only two holes went, with Troy Chwaluk and Dan Stokes winning $20 on #7 and Rob Anderson and Neuf cashing in for $73.50 on #9. Robin Kimpinski had the lone deuce and earned $55.50 for his efforts. Closest to the pins were Scott Maynes on #5 and the ageless Clayton Hunter on #9.

The forecast for this Wednesday looks pretty good, with predicted temperatures in the mid-20’s with a humidex around 30. Enjoy your round. I will be at the Shoal Lake grad with Mr. Maynes.

One additional thing worth noting, we are hearing loud and clear that you want steak on Mens’ Night. We will be working on your behalf to make sure that this is the case going forward.

Moving Day

Saturday is traditionally moving day in PGA tournaments. In today's action at the US Open, Hunter Mahan moved into second place with his second consecutive 69, while Rory and Tiger played their way out of contention with their afternoon struggles.

Saturday was also moving day for me. After breakfast at the hotel and some yard sale visits, I spent the day packing and moving things to my new house. The big item portion of the move is tomorrow...which is Father's Day and the final day of a golf major. I know some of you Dads will be golfing. I will wave to you from my house. I know others will be watching the US Open. My satellite and internet isn't hooked up yet. I will be checking golf updates on my phone. On a positive note, while packing I found two important golf related items. Firstly, there was a dozen new Titleists that I must have received for Christmas and forgot about along the way. Secondly, I found my Drink Caddy, which I will bring to Mens' Night this week.

I missed this past week but Scottie Maynes and Jason Gorrell made sure everything ran smoothly in my absence. Twenty-eight golfers battled it out with several cashing in for skins. The winners included Pete Ostash / Devin Allen ($29.00 on #1), Jim Geekie and Barry Kurtz ($29.00 on #5), and Dan Stokes / Austin Hunter ($29.00 on #7).  Luke Funk and Jason Hunter were double winners, getting $55.00 on #3 and $20.00 on #6.  

Closest to the pins for the evening were Mike Susinski on #5 and Brad Benton on #9. Brad converted his putt for the only deuce on the night, earning $40.50 for his efforts.

The ringer board sheet was not in the box. I assume it is still on the board. You will therefore have to wait until next week for the update.

Normally I would write more...but it is getting late and I am a bit played out. Enjoy your Sunday, whatever your plans might be. See you in four more sleeps.

Karma, Karma, Karma Chamelon

It was a fine birthday celebration for Scott Maynes, who brought in his special day with a the low round of the week, a fine 35.

Thirty one golfers enjoyed very good conditions, although there seemed to be some disparity in how those conditions translated into performance. For example, there were groups like Scott’s that lit it up, with foursome scores of 35, 37, 37, and 37. And then there were the slew of high 40 and low 50 scores.

I have had the good fortune to have the low round a few times at Mens’ Night. Not as often as some…but on occasion I get going and card a 36 on days when others can’t get below 37 or 38. I also have had the occasional problem round where I flirt with 50.

Until Wednesday, I never have had the experience of scoring the highest round of the evening. With 30 other guys playing, my 52 gave me the title of “most honest golfer” for the night. I did get excited a bit when I saw another 52 come in…but that feeling dissipated quickly. You see Charlie McNabb did not triple bogey eight as I did, so my score held up on a countback.

After being in the low pot the first three weeks, and on two of the weeks being paired with the highest score of the night, the situation was reversed.  After golfing with and then being matched up with a guy who shot a 61 the first night, the situation was reversed. My only hope was that I would get paired with one of those kind-hearted older gentlemen who come out for fun and who wouldn’t think of pointing out the fact that my scores weren’t going to help their scores win any skins. Thankfully, I was paired with Robin Kimpinski, a man who would not dream of drawing attention to another or making a big deal of who scored what. Thanks to his parents for helping him become the caring and supportive man he is today. I often said if he was not in the insurance business, Robin could be either a therapist or maybe a priest.

I would say that it was ironic to score the way I did, two weeks after suggesting in a previous blog that Jason Hunter would shoot a 51.  Karma sucks.

Of the thirty-one golfers, only a few cashed in on any holes. Three skins were won, by Luke Funk and Jason Gorrell ($41.50 on #2), Neuf and Cubby ($50.50 on #8), and Sport on his own ($64.50 on #6). Brad Swereda was closest on #5 while Keith Booth was closest on #9. Keith Martin had the lone deuce of the evening, collecting $46.50 for his efforts.

Brad Benton continued his assault on the record books by recording another birdie for the ringer board, bringing his cumulative score to -7. He now only needs to lock in scores for holes #4, 8, and 9. I should mention that the record books are only a couple of years old...but they are still the records.

Well that’s it for this morning. I have to go and get some gas for my cart for today’s Lions’ Club tournament. Hopefully I will see a few of you guys there. I will not see you at our next Mens’ Night, because our divisional recognition event is the same evening. I will likely be sitting there, watching as the long-serving and retiring members of my school division are acknowledged, wishing I was golfing. What does it say about me, after the torture of that 52 last week, that I still want to be out there again? Like most golfers, I have those two key qualities necessary to enjoy the game…a really short memory…and the belief, however delusional, that next week will be when I light it up.

 

One additional thing to note...when searching for a picture for this week's blog, I typed in the phrase "karma sucks" into the Google search bar. I didn't exactly find what I was looking for...forgetting the Karma is also a girl's name.