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.

Rain, rain, go away!

I am writing this blog on an evening in which I am contemplating building an ark. I am home because my daughter’s ball practice is cancelled tonight…two days after a game was postponed because of rain. I am looking at the online weather reports and hoping we don’t get the weather that is being forecasted. I am not overly optimistic.

I should quickly apologize. Lately, this blog seems to be more about weather than golf. I know that the crappy conditions outside aren't life or death for me. I recognize also that there are people whose livelihood depends on good weather.  But for many of us, golf is an important part of that work / life balance. During the summer, I look forward to Wednesdays more than Fridays.  Many of us are happiest when Mens’ Night is warm and sunny, sad when it is rainy, and grateful on nights like last night when at least you could at least dress warmly and play.

I mistakenly said during March break that I would try to stop complaining about the weather. Unfortunately, that was nine weeks ago. This prolonged poor weather is getting old fast. I can’t even remember the last time I golfed on a really nice day. I think that it may have been early September of last year…which was eight months ago.

Despite the les than stellar conditions, 29 guys showed up for Mens’ Night this week. The best thing about the increased numbers is that it results in more carry-overs for skins, leading to bigger prizes down the road. With a higher number of players, only three skins were won – Rob Anderson / Jason Gorrel ($20 on #1), Neuf / Sport ($20 on #5), and Dan Stokes / Terry McTavish ($20 on #7).  Neuf split the deuce pot with Darcy Kowalchuk and Brad Benton. Neuf and Jamie McCutchin were closest on #5 and #9 respectively.

I have to sign off now. My dog needs to go for a walk. Fortunately, it will be quick. She hates the rain too.

Don’t forget that the Lions’ tournament is next weekend. It should be a fun day. I checked the long range forecast and it isn’t supposed to snow.

Windy Wednesday

It was a windy Wednesday for those that attended Mens' Night. I will get to that shortly...but first a few thoughts about today's weather.

 

Writing on this golf blog is sort of like golfing itself. Sometimes I am eager to do it and I put other things aside to make it a priority. On other occasions, it is something to do just to pass the time while I am waiting for something else. I hope today is the latter…although I need the weather to cooperate a bit.

This morning I woke up enthusiastically, albeit earlier than expected because my dog likes to mess with me. My enthusiasm was borne from the prospect of golfing all day. Then I just looked at the forecast for today, for tomorrow, and the next week. If you are prone to profanity, I would recommend not looking at the Environment Canada site for Shoal Lake while in the presence of children. I am now uncertain whether I should dig out my rain suit for some golf or perhaps get some lumber and start building an ark.

I guess my enthusiasm can shift to our next Mens’ Night, when potentially our friends and neighbours in the farming and agricultural business might be able to join us.

Or, I can enthusiastically look back to this past Wednesday, when we had 23 golfers out for Mens’ Night.  On an extremely windy evening when the low round was just 41, only three skins were won.  Phil Ostash and I claimed $20 on #1 while Scottie Maynes and Milt teamed up for two winners ($21 on 5, $20 on 7).  Mr. Maynes had good fortune all around, hitting it closest to the pin on #5 and splitting the $34.50 deuce pot with Jamie McCutchin. The other closest to the pin was recorded by Brad Benton on #9, putting it to inside of three feet before missing the birdie.

This week, I had the pleasure of golfing with Jamie, Brad, and Garry Williamson, who apparently had to come out to deter Benton from heckling him. We golfed behind four Ostash’s. I was impressed with the care and time that each of those four took in lining up every putt, no matter how short. I mistakenly thought slow, deliberate golfing was a Milt thing. Now I understand that it is a family trait.

The future looks bright

I have some predictions about this year’s Mens’ Night…but before I get to that, I need to briefly mention what happened on the golf course.

During our first round of the season, nineteen golfers showed up after a long winter of hibernation. Skins went on five holes, including those won by Neuf and Gorrell ($20 on #1), Dale Watson and Blake Cramer ($23.50 on #3), and Jamie McCutchins and Dan Stokes ($20 on #4). Benton and Butch teamed up for two winners ($20 on #2 and $20 on $7). Brad was closest on #5 while Dwayne Blackbird hit it tight on #9. Brad and Dwayne split a $60 deuce pot with me. The only news that anyone offered were a few stories about how Robin and Brad argued about gimmies.

So back to my foretelling of the future of Mens’ Night. I have gazed into my crystal ball to make some predictions about the 2013 season. They are as follows:

• There will be two hole-in-ones recorded...including one on a par 4.
  Sadly, neither ace will be recorded by Dale Watson or Robin Kimpinski.
• Someone will make a cash bet with a playing partner and show poor
  sportsmanship later when they collect their winnings.
• Five people will throw clubs from the eight tee box into the swampy
  wasteland adjacent to it. One of them will go in to find their lost club,
  only to find one tossed their by Chris Hrysak during a previous season.
• Milt will talk to himself at length after hitting a shot which causes
  him displeasure.
• Many of you will buy Weber barbecues from John Deere after seeing how well your steaks cook on our new grill.
• Someone will shoot a max score of 63 on nine holes. Two golfers have been close at 61, including a poor guy this past Wednesday.
• Ron Huberdeau and Ron Susinski will get into a fist fight in the middle
  of a round while arguing about who is more handsome.
• On a windy day in late July, Luke Funk will hit the lake with his tee
  shot from #2.
• Jason Gorrell's scoring will improve by 3-4 strokes per nine hole round
  based upon the elimination of his super slice.
• On one mens' night early in the season, Clayton Hunter will register a score which is less than half his age.
• Brad Swereda will win the ringer board with a score of -8.
• Scott Maynes will tell someone his round wasn't that great after shooting a 38.
• On the same evening, Wes will tell someone he lit it up after shooting a
  38.
• Every night someone other than Benton wins the deuce pot, he will yell "Throw it back" as they try to claim their prize.
• Jason Hunter will follow a score of 51 one week with a 36 the next week.
• We will play on a night in which the lightning will be dangerously
  close. While no one will be struck, we will tell stories to our
  grandchildren about how brave we were playing in those conditions.
• John Gill will smile and be friendly after every round, regardless of
  his score or the weather conditions.
• Neuf will say the "F-word".
• I will hit someone 150 yards away with a low flying golf ball hit from a
  pitch mark by a 3 wood...similar to what I did last year.

Mens' Night 2013 starts Wednesday

 

 

After a winter that requires no description or further attention, Mens' Night begins this Wednesday. All of the same elements continue as last year, including weekly skins and the ringer board.

 

The blog will be updated on a weekly basis...some times right away...and occasionally not until Sunday. The speed of the update depends on how busy I am with other things and what the weather is like.

 

The links on the left side of the page have been updated...including the skins for this week.

Seven holes were won during our last round of 2012, so only two holes are carried over. There is a nice hole-in-one prize of $1241.50 if anyone gets lucky.

 

During the course of the season, feel free to update me on unique things that happen within your group. Great shots, thrown clubs, and feats of strength are always worth noting.

 

Hopefully, we will see you all on Wednesday...when the forecast is 20 C and sunny. I golfed a bit this evening and the course is in really good shape. We are aiming for a 6:30 pm tee off time for the first few weeks.



Another year done...

On our final Mens’ Night on September 25^th, skins went on seven of nine holes. Appropriately, it was an evening during which the wealth was shared, with fourteen golfers cashing in. Winners included Wes / Jamie ($20 on #1), Dale Watson / Neuf ($20 on #2), Chris / Bob Moffatt ($35 on #4), Charlie / Butch ($45 on #5), Hubey / Blake ($53.50 on #7), Sport / Stephen (420 on #8), and John Gill / Mikey ($20 on #9). Charlie and Sport were closest to the pins (on #5 and 9 respectively). The deuce pot went unclaimed.

So…Mens’ Night is over and, barring an unforeseen change in the weather, the golf season is likely done as well. Remarkably, I am okay with this. We had a great year for golf with twenty-five Wednesday evenings of golfing, steak eating, and card playing. Not bad by most estimates.

Like a lot of good things, it is good to finish while you are on top. The weather last Wednesday wasn’t bad…whereas the weather this week was winter-like. We had 25 golfers on our final night. This past Wednesday we couldn’t get a half dozen for cards. Last week, I felt young and healthy. This week, I am slightly hobbled by a mild back injury…caused of course by cool weather golf.

So instead of complaining, I will be grateful for the season that we had in 2012. Instead of rushing to the golf course for one more round, I will sit home and convalesce a bit while watching the start of the baseball playoffs. Of course, I am hopeful that I will be able to swing a club next weekend if suddenly it gets back to double digit temperatures.

That’s it for this year for Mens’ Night. Thanks to Butch and his crew for serving us well this summer. Thanks also to Wes, Blake, Jason Hunter, Scott Maynes, Luke Funk and everyone else who helped keep things running smoothly since April 25th. Thanks to all the golfers who came out for one night or several.

I expect that I will see you all at Benny’s some time in the future. Mentioning that makes me wonder if Mens’ Night might continue in some capacity at this new establishment. It has a liquor license, comfortable seating, and flat screen televisions with sports programming. Instead of golf we could play pool. Instead of cooking our own steak we could have someone cook pizza for us. We could probably even set it up so Butch still offered free rides home at the end of the night. The only thing that would be different would be when Brad loses early in poker, he will not be able to go home right away on his golf cart. He would have to stay until closing time.

One for the history books...

Usually, writing the blog is fun. Even though I know it isn't widely read, I actually enjoy doing the recap of the previous Mens' Night. While it is fun to occasionally have someone mention something that they read, the reality is I get enough satisfaction out of the writing that I don't really care if it is seen by many.

Some times, however, when I get busy with other things, writing the blog is a bit of a chore. I end up dreading having to do it a bit...pushing it until the Tuesday before golf before I complete it because of some weird sense of responsibility. I even have to talk myself into believing someone is waiting for it...lest I simply say the hell with it. Tonight, this was almost the case.

I have decided that I am no longer simply the blogger for Mens' Night...I am now the self appointed historian. Twenty five years from now, when someone gives a 75 year old Brad Benton heck for hitting from the red tees, people will be able to look back to the blog to see that the rule for the red tees is 90 years and over. When a young man by the name of Dustin Gorrell gets teased for his crazy slice, people can check the blog to read how his old man was the same way back near the turn of the century. When Nathan Maynes comes home from university for one night and wins a few skins, everyone will remark how his dad could likely wheel himself out of Morley House and still kick his ass. When old man Derhak gives some golfers a ride home 25 years in the future, he will likely tell them stories of how he used to do the rounds of town after poker, dropping off the late nighters. An eighty year old Wes Arnfinson, riding shotgun, will confirm this. When one of Blake Cramer's sons brags about winning a $200 skin, someone will tell him old Mr. Kimpinski won $212 once.

So tonight I am not writing a blog, I am writing another chapter in the Mens' Night history book. Let it always be remembered, that one September 19, 2012, Blake Cramer won a $63 deuce pot after hitting it close on #9.  Earlier, Sport hit the closest to the pin on #4. Also, never forget that on the same night, six skins were won, including Neuf and Dale ($20 on #1), Ronnie and Jason Hunter ($39.50 on #2  $105 on #8), Scott Maynes and Benton ($31 on #3, $31 on #6), and Murray and Blake ($20 on #9).

May they also remember the following week (tomorrow night), when all the farmers were done and the weather was sunny and in the 20's, when Mens' Night had the best September turnout ever. So it is written...so let it be done.

Hit it easy when it's breezy

Last week was a windy time for golfers, both at home and abroad. Those of us in Shoal Lake experienced steady wind and gusts of up to 65 km/hr. Across the pond, the British Womens’ Open  cancelled Friday's round because of the wind. The gusts there were over 100 km/hr. I suppose we can’t complain given that we were able to complete our round on Wednesday.

Brad Benton took advantage of the windy conditions to issue a challenge to other golfers. He ended up betting a dozen guys that they could not score at a certain level above their handicap. At the end of the evening, it was close to a wash as some guys came in lower than expected while others carded season-high rounds. Brad chirped me and told me that I was the only one who did not take the bet. He must have forgotten about the other nine guys who wisely took a pass.

You may have heard how a low compression golf ball is best for cold weather golf. Did you also know that a golf ball with lots of dimples is best for windy days? Adding dimples to the cover of a golf ball increases the potential distance of flight due to improved aerodynamics. Increasing the number of dimples on the ball will further increase the resulting benefit. A company called Dixon Golf manufactures a specially-designed golf ball with a 428 dimple pattern that assists that player in maintaining distance in the windiest of conditions.

Robin Kimpinski actually provided some evidence that a special golf ball is helpful on windy days. He found a yellow Sponge Bob ball on the second hole which he used for the remainder of the round. On a night when there were several scores in the fifties, Robin and Sponge Bob came in with a 35.

There were 22 golfers but only two skins went on Wednesday. Mike Susinski and Dick Edgeworth cashed in for $29.50 on #1 while Scott Maynes and I won $21.00 on #9. Closest to the pins were recorded by Ron Susinski on #5 and Maynes on #9. Neither they, nor anyone else, carded a deuce.

There are not many Wednesday's remaining before we pack it in for the season. Let's make this week a good one!

Wine at Mens' Night?

Twenty golfers came out on a cooler Wednesday evening, on our twentieth mens' night of the year. The 6:00 pm start was very necessary given that it was already getting dark at 8:10 when most golfers were finishing. It was really dark when Neuf and his BFF's from the railroad crew found their way to the Club House after 9:00 pm. We weren't sure what they were doing for that extra hour or so...although Brad and Robin were willing to speculate for those of us waiting.

There was excitement in the air as some of our farmers and farm-industry guys made a reappearance. Many golfers excitedly texted their friends and spouses to report the return of local legends such as Ron Susinski and Hubey. Given the returning of these big shots, other guys tried to impress them by using utensils to eat and by drinking fancy wine from a bottle. Consequently, I will bringing forward a motion that wine may only be served during ladies night or Nine and Dine.

Whether it was the result of the lower temperature or other factors, it was not a great evening for scoring. There were reports of slices, hooks, shanks, chunks, skulls, pop-ups, chili dips, and worm burners. On a positive note, I did not hit anyone with a golf ball fired from a three wood from 140 yards away. Thankfully, it has been like three weeks since this last happened.

Scott Maynes and Dale Watson won the only skin of the evening, cashing in for $20 on #4. Closest to the pins were recorded by Benton on #5 and Jason Hunter on #9. Jason converted the two-footer for the only deuce of the evening...and cashed in for $99.50 as a result. As expected, Benton complained about the poor pin placement that caused him to two-putt. This was actually a legitimate gripe this time given that Joel tucked the flag on the ridge in the middle of the green. There were actually some four putts there last night.

The early tee-off time will continue until the end of season...whenever that might occur. We are supposed to have above average temperatures through September...and we went until October 6th last year. Personally, my hope is we golf until December. Realistically, I imagine at least 3-4 more weeks at a minimum.

Here's to the ladies!

On Friday evening at the nine and dine, a female golfer told me that she liked my blog about the farmers. I appreciated the kind words but then I became slightly rattled. I realized that females were reading my posts...and I felt badly that I have not been catering more to that segment of the golfing population. So...to honour our better halves...this blog is dedicated to the ladies who golf and who allow their husbands and boyfriends to come out to mens' night.

Where to begin? Mrs. Eastcott's son Robbie was closest to the pin on both par 3's and converted both putts for deuces. I bet she is very proud of him. Tina Maynes' husband Scott also had a two, as did Mrs. Juce's son Michael and Mrs. Anderson's husband Ron. The five would have split a $69.50 deuce pot had they not generously donated it back for next week.

Tracy Kimpinski's significant other Robin had a fine night on Wednesday...winning three skins on his own. Robin paired with the dummy card to win $212 in total, the largest single haul in mens' night history. Of course, my sense of history only goes back twelve years, so I apologize to anyone who did better before 2001. Robin won $65 on #3, $20 on #4, and $127 on #6 to catapult him to the top of the money list.

The dummy card is used when we have an odd number of golfers. The middle score card goes with the low pot, and a copy of it goes to the high pot. This is the first time anyone has found cash with the dummy card. On other occasions, people have won skins with dummies, but in those instances the dummies have been actual people such as myself. Robin has Karen Juce's husband Dave to thank for contributing to the dummy card.

The other skins were won by the Eastcott and Maynes boys who won $20 on #5 and $84 on #9. I am sure they dedicated their victory to their moms.

For those ladies who might these columns, I thought I would give you a bit of perspective from the golf world to help you appreciate your men a little bit more. In golf, a below par performance is considered really good...so feel free to take that same approach when you deal with us at home.

With the shortening days, we have decided to roll back the start time this coming week to 6:00 pm. Spread the word. By the way, this will be our 20th mens' night of the season!

Where have all the farmers gone?

What happens if you schedule mens' night...but almost no one comes? Those who show up play anyway. Twelve of us came out on Wednesday. We hit some balls, had a few drinks, and even stayed for a good game of cards.

Unfortunately, twelve is an extremely low turnout. While it makes for a really quiet room when we do the prizes, it also makes for pretty low prize values. Plus, mens' night is one of those social activities where the phrase "the more the merrier" applies. So on behalf of those who were there on Wednesday, I have one request. Please try to finish all of your faming quickly because we need you back.

Last week I mentioned how low attendance often translates into lots of skins being won. Well that trend lasted for one week, because only a single skin was captured this week.  Scott Maynes and Clayton Hunter struck paydirt on #1 winning $20 for their combined -7 score. There was a $120 pot on #6 that went unclaimed despite three birdies. Of the six groups, five scored an 8 to push the hole.

The Anderson twins (Rob and Ron) were closest on #5 and 9 respectively. Neither they, nor anyone else scored a deuce. Speaking of Rob, congratulations on your recent marriage. We have a support group for married men that meets in the club house after mens' night. We gather to talk about our wedded experiences while occasionally playing some cards. You are welcome to join us.

The twelve in attendance did make an important decision about the season money list. We decided that any cash won for a hole-in-one does not count toward the money list. This is the same as we do for the PGA tournament drafts and the ringer board. So the money list has been reset...and Benton is in the lead.

Back to my appeal to the farmers. We need you and your farming friends out for mens' night. I am even willing to drive one of your tractors if it gets you out sooner. I should mention that I know nothing about farming, I cannot distinguish between different types of crops, and I can't drive a standard. I am also allergic to flax and I am uncomfortable around livestock. But if you are willing to take a day or two to teach me how to be a farmer, I am willing to spend an hour or two some morning driving your most expensive piece of farm equipment around one of your fields. Given that it is quite humid lately, it would need to be something with an air conditioned cabin...and maybe satellite radio.

Ringer board results

The Ringer Board can’t end at the same time next year. The middle of August is a time when my work group has their annual conference. For some reason back in April, that seemed like a nice time to have the final ringer scores due. So not only did I miss out on an extra week to complete my own card, I also missed out on the confusion regarding how to wrap up the leader board. After several texts back and forth, it was resolved by the group in attendance that any unfilled scores would be triples.

When final numbers were tallied, Scott Maynes won the championship flight with a score of -7, followed by Brad Benton’s -6, and Jason Neufeld’s -4.  Neuf won on a countback against Joel Ostash. In the first flight, Mike Susinski won with a +2 followed by Austin Hunter at +3. All money will be returned to participants with 70% to Flight 1 (40, 20, 10) and 30% to Flight 2 (20, 10)...or cash values of Flight 1 ($100, 50, 25) and Flight 2 ($50, 25).

In the regular golf, eighteen golfers battled it out for prizes.  Usually, the fewer the golfers the more skins get paid.  That was the case last week, as five holes went.  Winners included Mike Susinski / Chris Kimpinski ($20 on #1) and two sets of double winners -  Jason Neufeld / Ron Anderson ($20 on #4, $49.50 on #5) and Jason Hunter / Jamie McCutchins ($25 on #2, $20 on #7). Fortunately, bigger skins on #6, 8, and 9 made it through the week.  The sixth hole will likely be around $125 tomorrow night.

Closest to the pins were Neuf on #5 and Benton on #9. Only Brad converted the 2 and he and Scott Maynes scored the evenings only deuces.  They allowed the $27.50 pot to carry on for this coming week.

See you tomorrow evening.

Apologies for my lateness

Well...the fact that I am updating the blog the night before the next mens' night shows how nice our summer has been this year. It has been too nice to this past week to sit at the computer and spend the hour or so it takes to update everything. I am always reluctant to say this because I am not sure what constitutes a good summer for farmers. Hot weather can be just right for some and too dry for others. Rain can bring much needed moisture or cause overly wet fields. I am not saying that farmers are finicky. Instead, I am coming to understand that farming is a relative thing and good conditions for one person may mean less than ideal conditions for a neighbour. All I understand is that sunny and dry weather is great for golfing. The only bad thing with recent weather is we are losing golfers who also farm...as was the case last week when we dropped down to 33 golfers.

Skins went on three holes. Winners included Jim Geekie / Jason Gorrell ($20 on #1), Ron Huberdeau / Jamie McCutchins ($20 on #4), and Mike Heatherington / Jamie Huberdeau ($20 on #7). The skin on #1 was noteworthy in that it was won with a combined score of -3.  Gorrell made a long deuce and Sport helped out with a birdie.  The other deuce was recorded by Neuf and the two Jason"s split the $121.50 pot.  Closest to the pins were recorded by Brad Swereda on #5 and Neuf on #9.

After having eight sub forty rounds in the previous week, only three golfers went low this week.  Robin Kimpinski led the way with a 38 followed by Benton and Neuf with 39's. There were an unusual number of high scores with multiple 49's and several over 50.

Don't forget that tomorrow night is the last night for the ringer board. Given that I am away tomorrow, I had to lock in a couple of bogies last Wednesday. Best of luck for birdies for all those with holes remaining.  Good luck to Maynes and Benton who will go head-to-head tomorrow at -7 and -8 respectively.

Don't diss the rookies!

It was a disappointing night on the golf course as no one recorded a hole in one. However, the weather continued to be great and we had a season high of 49 golfers.

Scoring conditions were perfect with eight golfers coming in with sub 40 rounds, led by Robin and Benton with 34’s.

Four skins were won on Wednesday including Wes / Keith Martin ($24.50 on #1), Doug Koroscil / Blake Hunter ($24.50 on #2), Jason Wowryk / Jason Gorrell ($66 on #4), and Robin / Dylan Kimpinski ($24.50 on #7). Hole number 6 will be the big one this coming week, checking in at an estimated $120. Our second hole in one pot is also closing in on $1100.

There were four deuces recorded on the evening. Congratulations to Ron Susinski, Ken Stewart, Brad Benton, and Jason Wowryk. It is worth noting that these generous individuals chose to throw back the $73.50 pot for next week.

Closest to the pins were recorded by Robin Kimpinski on #5 and Jason Wowryk on #9. Not content to simply win the prize, Robin also wrote a “FU Maynes” on the sheet, mocking the poor golfer who was previously closest. We have worked so hard to get Scott interested in golf and his game is finally coming around. We can’t do things to discourage him. On behalf of the whole Mens’ Night crew, I apologize on behalf of Robin. We hope that Scott doesn’t choose to give up the game as a result of this.

Speaking of Mr. Maynes...great job on organizing and facilitating the horse race tournament. I would also like to formally register for next year's tournament now. Hopefully I am the first.

We only have two weeks remaining on the ringer board – August 8 and 15. If you have holes remaining you need to get busy filling in your score card.

In case you are wondering, the forecast for this week looks good!

Dale Watson hole in one!

Dale Watson struck gold on Wednesday, recording the first hole in one in several years.  Dale aced the 185 yard par 3 fifth hole and received the $1616 pot for his efforts. 

Everything else that happened on Mens' Night takes a back seat to Mr. Watson's efforts...so this week's blog is all about him.

Congratulations Dale!

British Open pool winners

The British Open pool has wrapped up.  Congratulations to the prize winners:

$140   Wes Arnfinson
$40     Chris Kimpinski
$20     Ken Stewart

British Open pool – final standings:

Team points are shown on the link to the left.

1. Wes Arnfinson 307
2. Chris Kimpinski 285
3. Ken Stewart 281
4. Dallas Malchuk 268
5. Jamie McCutchins 250
6. Luke Funk 236
7. Scott Maynes 226
8. Darren Ostash 223
9. Brad Benton 215
10. Brodie MacEachern 205
11. Daddy Derhak 204
12. Rob Kimpinski 197
13. Mike Susinski 193
14. Stephen David 192
15. Brayden Stewart 192
16. Ron Susinski 182
17. Peter Ostash 180
18. John Derhak 140
19. Jason Hunter 137
20. Hubey 133

Horse Race on Saturday

Our Horse Race tournament is this Saturday.  Information is found in the links section to the right.

Previously I mentioned an incorrect number for the limit of entrants.  We are accepting 72 golfers...and right now we are over 40.

Contact Scott Maynes at 365-6458 to enter.