Weekly update

It happens a couple of times per year. I get busy and don't get the blog done. When I eventually get to it, I just do a quick update. Today is one of those times.

It was a great night for Men's Night last Wednesday. 40 came out to play. Skins went on three holes. Winners included Noah Street / Rhys Lanouette ($45 on #1), Brad Benton / Ron Susinski ($25 on #2), and Joel Ostash / Reegan Kominko ($80.62 on #8). It is worth noting that three of those winners are under 20 years of age. Great job young guys.

Phil Ostash was dialed in on the par threes, at least off the tee. He was closest to the pin on both #5 and #9 but was unable to convert either birdie. As a result, he missed out on the $75 deuce pot shared by Austin Hunter and Montanna Tanner.

Tomorrow is July 1st which often leads to one of the best turnouts of the year. Of course, we also have our Fundraiser Tournament on Friday. A great week for golf in Shoal Lake.

Feel Good Golf

I just read an article on the 37 Best Feelings in Golf. It starts off by stating that golf is a maddening game, one that isn’t kind to us most of the time. But we love it anyway, and it’s the good moments that keep us coming back.

Think about a typical Men's Night. Some rounds are better than others but it is still fun. Occassionally you follow a double bogey with a chip-in birdie.

Of the 37 things noted in the article, my personal favourite is likely knowing a putt is good before it even gets to the hole. From a Shoal Lake perspective, I certainly appreciate a good drive on the third hole more than anywhere else on the course. And from a broader context, I really enjoy when everyone in the group is playing well on a sunny day free from any cares or worries.

If you want to check out the article, it may be found at https://golf.com/instruction/rules/the-37-best-feelings-in-golf/

Wednesday night was a good night for golf. We had 32 players including several who joined us for the first time this year. Special welcome to the six genetlemen from Waywayseecappo who visited and appeared to have a fun evening. One of them, Chad Tanner, had one of the low rounds of the night at 38. Another, Randy Brandon, hit it to a couple of feet to a far back pin on #5 to get closest to the pin and win a $189.36 deuce pot. Thanks also to Charles, Brandon, Donovin, and Myles for coming to Shoal Lake. You are welcome back at any time.

The low round of the evening belonged to Robin Kimpinski and Scott Maynes with 37's followed by Jason Hunter and Chad Tanner at 38. The other closest to the pin was on #9 by Reegan Kominko.

Skins went on four holes. Winners incuded Wes Arnfinson / Chad Tanner ($39.37 on #2), Darcy Kowalchuk / Rhys Lanouette ($86.25 on #3), Jason Neufeld / Troy Chwaluk ($63.12 on #5), and Blake Hunter / Theoren Hunter ($63.12 on #7).

The golf course will continue to have Friday Nine and Dines every two weeks. The next one is June 26.

The New Normal for Golf

It is interesting how quickly we have become used to a pool noodle in the cup. The golf course has only been open for 40 days yet this new hole configuration already seems standard. Like many of the COVID-19 related changes, we simply adapt and do what we need to do. Occasionally a ball pops out that should stay in but that is a small price to pay for increased safety. We have also seen fewer handshakes, smaller golf groups, and usually just one person per cart.

A couple of interesting developments with the Phase 3 Restoring Services announcement by the Province. Effective June 21, the Club House can increase to 75% capacity and outdoor gatherings may increase to 100. These new measures will help with our upcoming tournaments. Also, people don't have to self isolate after arriving in Manitoba from Northern Ontario and the western provinces. That is great news for our seasonal campers and visitors from Saskatchewan. Finally, as of June 21, you may share a golf cart with someone who is not a member of your family.

So the PGA returns this weekend. It is the first official tournament since the Players Championship was cancelled on Thursday, March 12. It's funny watching them play without fans and crowd noise. 

There was a little more noise on the golf course Wednesday as we hit 31 golfers. It was neat to see everyone spread around outside just before our 6:30 pm tee off. After our regular long winter and spring quarantine, there were lots of people reconnecting after many months apart.

With the increased numbers there were lots of pushes for skins with only one hole going. Joel Ostash and Jim Geekie won $20 on #1. Milt was closest on #5 while Jim Geekie was tight on #9. There were no deuces which means the pot on Wednesday will likely be close to $200. The low rounds were Joel Ostash and Robin Kimpinski with 38's followed by Pete Ostash with a 39.

Thanks to Robin for the nice course set up with some pins in new and weird places.

There's Lots of Golf in 2020

In early April we didn't even know if there would be a golf season. Later that month we found out that we could open at the start of May. Since then there has been a lot of golf played. The weather has been warm but windy. There aren't a lot of other sport alternatives. It seems like a fairly low-risk activity that includes social distancing by it's very nature. Every year many of us are eager to get back hitting golf balls after our long Manitoba winters. Add a spring pandemic and those feelings are even stronger.

Personally I have played 18 days since the start of the season. That includes 408 total holes which is equivalent to 45 nine-hole rounds. Yes I am tracking them. Last year I didn't get to golf until June 19. This year I am making up for it. If it sounds like I am bragging I apologize. I am simply excited to be playing regularly and grateful that our golf season hasn't been canceled.

What other signs are there of increased golf in Shoal Lake. Several people have already got full value from their membership. Another big indicator is the number of new people who are golfing including lots of youth. It is great to see the increase in play among the under 20 crowd. This may be attributable to COVID-19. Many planned activities for kids have been canceled or have yet to start. In the absence of school functions, team sports, and summer camps many are heading to the golf course to fill the gap.

And there is more golf to come. Right now it looks like we will make a go of all of our tournaments. There will be social distancing and other COVID-19 measures employed but we will still have the tournaments. For our fundraiser we will likely reduce the number of entrants. We may have to adjust the horse race tournament in later July. Also we had our first Nine and Dine last night. We intend on running a couple each month for anyone who is interested.

And of course there is Men's Night. We had a fairly good turnout this week with 26 golfers including several people making their first appearance of the year. Skins went of three holes. Winners included Charlie McNabb / Dave Gill ($20 on #1), Troy Chwaluk / Jason Hunter ($30 on #2), and Brad Benton / Shane Kimpinski ($20 on #8).

Wind was once again a factor. Brad Benton managed the conditions well with a low round of 37. Others were not so fortunate. There were six of the 26 scores over 50 and the middle score was 46. That is as high as I can recall it. Closest to the pin was Scott Maynes on #5 and Kendal Koroscil on #9. No deuces were recorded which means next weeks pot will be well over $100.

One final thing to note is that July 1 is on a Wednesday this year. If my memory serves me correct we usually get a huge boost in attendance when this happens. Maybe we will hit 50 golfers then.

Windy Weather Blows

I am not sure if windy golf means you will have a bad time. Definitely the extremely high winds on Wednesday made it interesting. On Men's Night we had 50 km/hr winds gusting to 70 km/hr/.  It affects shots, balance, putting, and conversations. But as is always the case, it was the same weather conditions for everyone. One interesting indicator of how the effect of the wind was no one recording a score on the ringer board.

There's a line from a classic song that says "you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows". That was clear on Wednesday. It was a straight west wind...until it became a northwest wind...before it changed to a north wind.

It was so windy that wedges were going an extra 30 yards with the wind and 30 yards less into the breeze. It was so windy that on some holes Gorrell didn't have a slice. It was so windy that most of the birds were walking. It was so windy that if Milt actually played you would have seen his hair move.

Despite the gusty conditions, twelve golfers still made it out for the evening. Unlike last week, several skins went with winners on five holes.  They included Scott Maynes / Norm Verboom ($20 on #1, $21.25 on #7), Robin Kimpinski / Kendal Koroscil ($60.63 on #4), Brad Benton / Phil Ostash ($60.63 on #6), and Wes Arnfinson / Shane Kimpinski ($21.25 on #8).

Closest to the holes were Wes on #5 and Neuf on #9. There were no deuces. Robin had the low round with a 37.

We are certainly looking forward to this coming week. The forecast looks fantastic with a high of 28 Celsius and wind only 30 km/hr gusting to 50 km/hr. Compared to this past week that's almost calm. Also, as of tomorrow restaurants are permitted to have people inside so we will be able to do the prizes inside after our round.

And So It Begins

We had our first Men's Night of the year last night. There were only 10 golfers but that was enough to make it official. The consensus was that farmers and related businesses were all busy with seeding is going full force around the region.

Interestingly, with so few players there was only one skin won. The other eight holes had pushes including four with combined birdies. That simply means that more money carries over  building the pots for next week. The lone skin to go was #9 which was claimed by the duo of Pete Ostash and Jason Neufeld who both carded threes. They won $23.13 for their efforts.

Closet to the pin on #5 was Stephen David. None of the 10 golfers hit the green on #9. The east wind at 40 gusting to 60 proved impossible to defeat. Golfers reported hitting 3-4 more clubs than what they usually played.

There were three scores under 40 including Stephen David with a 37 and Robin Kimpinski and Scott Maynes with 38's.

A few days ago in my first blog entry of the year I explained hypothetical situations that might arise with the COVID-19 restrictions. I asked you to imagine a young golfer named Stephen who chips in for eagle on the first hole. You run to embrace them but realize that you can't...so you congratulate him from 6 feet. Well, that actually happened. I chipped in from the side of #1. That gave me the deuce pot of $56.88. So next week, imagine a hypothetical scenario in which the same young golfer named Stephen gets a hole in one on #5 for $2250.

The ringer board is underway with three players tied at -2. They include Robin Kimpinski, Scott Maynes, and Stephen David.

Given the changes in the COVID-19 measures, we likely can revert to our old format next week. You can turn in scorecards at the end of the round with prizes being awarded shortly thereafter.

Men's Night starts on Wednesday

Men's Night begins this Wednesday after a long winter and an unexpected spring quarantine. While we are excited to get going, it is important that we share some important COVID-19 safety guidelines.

These guidelines are essential not for appropriate social distancing but because of provincial directives for golf courses. It is essential that all golfers adhere to these protocols to minimize risk and to limit exposure for the golf course. Please help us keep the golf safe for all involved.

The guidelines for Men's Night are as follows:

• Golfers showing signs of Covid-19 may not participate.
• Limit to groups of 4 at all times.
• All golfers must have their own power cart unless members of the same household.
• Maintain appropriate social distancing.
• Golfers must not gather in groups of more than 10 before, during, or after the round.
• No touching the flag sticks. The flags must remain in the holes. The ball must stay in cup to be considered holed out.
• No hugging or hand shaking.
• Sign up in Club House. It is recommended that you bring your own pen or pencil.
• Pay your $10 Men’s’ Night fee in container in Club House. Please try to use exact change to minimize handling of money.
• Get a regular course scorecard from the Club House and use this for all players scores. At the end of the round, and no later than midnight, text a picture of the scorecard to Stephen David @ 847-0161. Paper copies of scorecards will not be accepted.
• Scoring will be done no sooner than noon the following day. Prize winners will be notified by text that they have won a prize. Prize winners will also be listed on the Men’s Night blog.
• Our hope is to set up e-transfer for payment of prizes and possibly payment of entry fee.
• Any golfers who do not follow the social distancing / rules of play may use their Men’s’ Night privileges.

To help us prepare for one of the challenges, let's imagine the following scenarios:

• You are about to tee off at 6:30 pm in a group of 4 and a friend pulls up into the parking lot. Let's call him Milt. You contemplate inviting Milt to join you making it a group of 5. Unfortunately you realize that is not possible so you wish Milt a nice evening and good luck in finding a group.
• You actually end up letting Milt join you one week just to be nice. On your third hole someone tells you that you can't golf in groups of 5. You aren't angry on being caught. Instead you are grateful for the reminder and quickly break up into a groups of 2 and 3.
• There is this guy named Darcy who often plays with you who catches a ride each week. This year he either walks or rents a car because you aren't in the same household.
• A young golfer named Stephen chips in for eagle on the first hole. You run to embrace them but realize that you can't...so you congratulate him from 6 feet.
• A guy named Robin pays his fee and lights it up during the round shooting a 34. He thinks he will likely win a few skins. Unfortunately he forgets to text a picture of his scorecard to Stephen. The prizes are done early Thursday afternoon and Robin notes that he didn't win anything. When he inquires about it he realizes his oversight before apologizing to Stephen for being so absent-minded.

We will continue on with the Ringer Board this year. There is a list of rules on this blog that you may reference. If you are interested in participating put your $10 in the collection bucket and note "Ringer Board" after your name on the sign up sheet.

Enjoy the remainder of your long weekend and see you all on Wednesday...from a socially appropriate distance.

Eight is sort of enough

Eight is Enough is a TV show I remember watching a bit as a kid.  Last night, eight was not enough initially.  We needed 10 for Men’s Night but fell short.  However, eight was enough to golf.  We ended up with two four person teams involved in a scramble.  Congrats to Robin, Neuf, Shane, and Paul who defeated me, Blake, Scott Martin, and Darcy by a score of -5 to -4.

I suspect the less than ideal weather contributed to the low turnout.  However, that does not mean that that Mens’ Night is done for the year.  In fact, after we get through today and Friday it looks as if we will have a nice run of 20 plus weather.

If anyone is interested in one more tournament this year, you might consider the Lefty Righty event in Minnedosa on Saturday, September 21.  It is six holes each of scramble, best ball, and alternate shot for two person teams.  Right now we have four teams connected to Shoal Lake registered including Robin and Pete, Scott Martin and Tim Warren, Gorrell and Maynes, and Doug Cripps and I.

When will it all end?

People are starting to ask how much longer Men's Night will run.  The answer is quite simple.  We stop it when either people stop coming or when the weather makes it unreasonable.  Typically that gets us to the third week of September but we shall see.

This past Wednesday we had both sufficient players and reasonable weather.   The twelve golfers who showed up exceeded the required 10 while the temperature of 19 Celsius more than exceed the double digit threshold which we have unofficially set.

Despite the low numbers, skins only went on three holes.  Winners included Robin Kimpinski / Joe Shwaluk ($20.00 on #1), Scott Maynes / Paul Fraser ($30.63 on #2), and Charlie McNabb / Stephen David ($65.05 on #5).

For the second week in a row there were no deuces and only one closest to the pin.  Congratulations to Robin Kimpisnki who hit it tight on #5.

Congratulations to the ladies who hosted a very successful golf tournament this past weekend.  There were 17 teams. sunny conditions, and lots of good prizes.

Welcome back to Francis Caspillo who missed most of last week due to some health issues.  Fortunately it was nothing serious.  Thanks also to our head greenskeeper Tracey Spiring for his support of Francis last Wednesday.  Knowing the Club House was closed, Tracey ended his regular work day then spent the rest of the evening driving the beverage cart.  Not only did Francis still generate revenue while in the hospital, he also collected some great tips.  Thanks to all the golfers who contributed.

Good luck to our friends who are either farmers or in related industries.  I understand that there are thousands of acres to be harvested which will require several weeks of nice weather.  Here's hoping that the wet forecast for this week is inaccurate.

The wind down begins

Well it is August 30 and next week will be our first Men's Night in September.  Our tee time has rolled back to 6:00 pm and even with that it still doesn't give too much time for too many extra holes.  We should be dejected and downtrodden with the end of summer coming soon.

Or we can maximize the time remaining and get as much golf in as possible.  Getting dark too early...no big deal.  Simply golf earlier or take some LED balls and golf later.  A few guys chose the latter option after Men's Night this week.

Just because next week is September doesn't mean golf is done for the year.  Men's Night will continue until weather or low turnout makes us end it.  And if you are over 50 there are a couple of Senior tournaments coming up including Birtle on September 3 and Hamiota on September 17.

Just don't too long to find those extra days to golf.  Remember we got around 10 inches of snow last September 22.

This week, 15 guys made the best of a sunny, then cool, then windy, then rainy, then sunny, then cool later afternoon and evening.  Surprsingly, skins only went on three holes.  Winners included Terry Susinski / Stephen David ($20.00 on #1), Blake Hunter ($20.00 on #7), and Jason Gorrell / Kendal Korsocil ($20.00 on #9).

No one hit the fifth green.  Only Austin Hunter put one on #9 to earn closest to the pins.  There were no deuces.  In fact, of the fifteen players only three scored under 45.  But we still golfed.

Ringer boards wraps up as daylight gets shorter

Due to the receding sunset, we will be rolling back our start time to 6:00 pm this coming Wednesday.  This also keeps us free and clear of the sprinklers which are scheduled to run from 8:30 - 9:30 pm.

The ringer board concluded this week.  Brad Benton won the first flight with a -7 followed by Chris Kimpinski at -6 and Jason Gorrell at -5.  The second flight champion was Jason Hunter at -2 with Darcy Kowalchuk in second place at even par.  Thanks to the 13 players who participated.

This past week there were 22 golfers including a threesome from Hamiota.  Numbers typically decline a bit once harvest begins.

Closest to the holes were Sonny Blackbird on #5 and Jason Gorrell on #9.  Jason converted his birdie to share the $41.25 deuce pot with Cam Gregory and Anthony Dyck.

Five skins were won and all were $20.00.  Winners included Robin Kimpinski / Kory Stebeleski (#1), Jason Neufeld / Stephen David (#3), Chris Kimpinski / Kevin Bartram (#7), Scott Maynes / Charlie McNabb (#8), and Scott Martin / Cam Gregory (#9).

Not much to say

I was away last week at a conference so I missed Men's Night.  When that occurs it affects the blog in two ways.  Firstly, I end up being late in updating it.  Secondly, the blog is shorter.  Both are true this week.

There were 26 golfers last Wednesday.  Skins went on six holes.  Winners included Ron Huberdeau / Dale Martin ($20.00 on #1), Chris Malchuk / Scott Maynes ($20.00 on #2, $20.00 on #7), Pete Ostash / Ron Susinski ($34.38 on #3),and Jason Gorrell / Chris Kimpinski ($34.38 on #8, $20.00 on #9).

Closest to the holes were Wes Arnfinson on #5 and Chris Kimpinski on #9.  Chris converted his birdie to share the $48.75 deuce pot with his brother Robin.

This coming week is the final week to enter scores on the ringer board. Brad Benton still sits in first place, a stroke ahead of  Scott Maynes and two in front of Chris Kimpinski.

Thanks to Joe Shwaluk for coordinating an awesome evening of Night Golf on Friday.  All who attended seemed to have a great time and the weather was ideal.

Golf lessons anyone?

I want to talk about golf lessons in a bit...but first I will update you on what happened on Men's Night.Of the 29 golfers, Terry Brandon easily had the best evening.  His 37 was low score of the night and included an eagle on both two and seven.  He had 3's on holes 7, 8, and 9.  His 2 on two combined with Jason Neufeld's birdie 3 to win a $35.01 skin.  It's not often that a team is a combined -3 on a hole.

Other skins went to Keith Martin ($20.00 on #1), Tyler Ostash / Blake Hunter ($148.01 on #4), Chris Kimpinski / Troy Chwaluk ($35.01 on #6), Austin Hunter / Blake / Cramer ($20.00 on #7), and Scott Maynes / Robin Kimpinski ($20.00 on #9).

Closest to the pins were Theoren Hunter on #5 and Scott Maynes on #9.  Scott converted his birdie to share the $54.38 deuce pot with Chris Kimpinski, Terry Brandon, and Ron Susinski.

There are only two weeks remaining on the ringer board.  Remember, if you fail to post a score you get triples for those holes.  Brad Benton still leads at -7 with a completed card.  Scott Maynes is second at -6 with three holes remaining.

Now back to golf lessons.  Very few people that I know have ever received golf lessons.  Darcy Kowalchuk actually went to a PGA academy for a few days in Florida this winter.  Beyond that, perhaps there are a couple of guys who had a an hour or two of lessons somewhere.

In North America, the typical golfer spends around $3000 a year golfing.  That might seem like a lot but consider all the costs associated with playing.  There are memberships, green fees, clubs, balls, gloves. cart costs, golf trips, clothing, shoes, and lessons.

One key difference between us and European golfers is how we spend money on golf.  North Americans spend around 80% on equipment and clothing while about 80% of European golf related expenses are lessons and training.  Maybe that's why they do so well in the Ryder Cup.

A typical golf lesson in Manitoba costs $35-50 an hour.  Minnedosa is likely the closest location that offers lessons.  You could also go to Golf Town or Golftec in Winnipeg and get training or pay for simple swing evaluations.

If these options seem too costly, I offer lessons every Wednesday from 2:00 - 6:30 prior to Men's Night.  For $11.95 you will get my analysis on your swing with personalized comments such as "Nice draw Maynes" or "That was a good one Robin" and maybe a "Too much club Blake".  The fee also includes instruction on how mark score when no one else in your group will do it and how to sit quietly when the person with whom you are riding just threw their club 60 yards after a bad second shot on #4.

Probably the biggest benefit of training with me is that I will familiarize you with drills to increase your self confidence.  You will learn to quietly whisper "You are the best putter in Shoal Lake" while standing over a 20 footer.   I will even teach you how to confidently hit your ball to the proper side of the fairway that best gets you a lefty-righty partner.  Most people who take two lessons with me are yelling "Boom goes the dynamite" on drives of their own within 2-3 weeks.

Most golfers have different ideas on what makes their play better.  Some think it is equipment, others play high priced tour balls, and maybe a few get a couple of lessons.  While 67% of golfers don't drink while they are playing, 37% of those who do actually believe it makes them play better.  So for a slightly increased fee of $22.95, I will give you my standard lesson plus a double spiced rum and ginger ale.

Best of luck to the Shoal Lake golfers participating in the Hamiota match play tournament this weekend.

That's a gimmie

There were 27 golfers on Wednesday.  Closest to the holes were Jason Hunter on #5 and Joe Shwaluk on #9.  Only Joe converted the birdie resulting in a shared deuce pot of $121.88 with Ronnie Susinski.  That's Joe's third or fourth closest to on nine this year.  If he makes a few more we may have to put a plaque in his name on the tee box.

Skins went on six holes which was a season high.  Winners included Jason Neufeld / Jason Gorrell ($56.99 on #1, $112.38 on #3), Scott Maynes / Dale Hunter ($40.63 on #4), Scott Martin / Darcy Kowalchuk ($20.00 on #7), Theoren Hunter / Wes Arnfinson ($95.88 on #8), and Joe Shwaluk / Jason Hunter ($40.63 on #9).

Scott Maynes had a 35 which was the lowest round of the night.  He had one bogey and two birdies.  His group yielded the four lowest scores of the evening with a 37 and two 39's.  Scott moved up a stroke on the ringer board closing in on Brad Benton who currently sits in first place.  Speaking of the ringer board, you have three Wednesdays in August to lock up your final score.

Neuf won $84.63 on Wednesday jumping him to first place on the season money list with $190.39.  In second is Scott Maynes with $149.57 followed by Brad Benton with $142.86.  I have won $27.63 to sit solidly in 28th place.

After Men's Night, whether you golfed well or poorly, the conversation most often turns to putting.  Some guys talk about how they would have broken 40 if it weren't for a three putt.  Others mention that they had a 54 but with several three putts.  Almost everyone reflects on the impact of bad putting.  There are likely two explanations for this.  Either all male golfers in Shoal Lake are bad putters or putting is hard.  Let me make a case for the latter.

Golf magazine recently did an article on putting.  It stated that one of the biggest difference between us and pro golfers is what happens on three foot putts.  Pros convert three-footers at a rate of 99.4%.  Amateurs are often happy to go nine holes without missing a short putt.

Another interesting fact from the article was that pros only convert seven foot putts at a rate of 61%.  That is comparable to the rate at which major league pitchers throw strikes (62%) and the percentage of made NFL field goals that are 57 yards or longer (62%).  For eight foot putts, pros make only 52.8%.  The worst free throw shooter in the NBA made 50% of his shots from the line this past season.

So if you miss a few putts, including some short ones, it's not the end of the world.  However, if you want to feel really bad about your putting, consider this...from 2002-2005 Tiger Woods made 1536 of 1540 putts from three feet or less.  In four years, he only missed four times.

We regular golfers really only have three choices.  We can accept that putting is hard and not get too upset by it.  A second option is that we could putt better...recognizing that even that if we putt like pros we will still miss a lot.  Or, we could play with people who give lots of gimmies.

Shot Tracers and Regular Golfers

This evening I will do the Men's Night update first and follow it with my weekly musing.

Last Wednesday, we had 38 golfers.  Skins went on three holes.  Winners included Austin Hunter / Blake Cramer ($23.75 on #2, $$23.75 on #7) and Dale Martin / Norm Verboom ($23.75 on #6).
Closest to the pins were Keith Martin on #5 and Phil Ostash on #9.  Neither they nor anyone else made a birdie so the deuce pot went unclaimed.

On Saturday, we had the Horse Race tournament.  It was a beautiful day with almost 40 participants.  Congratulation to the winners - Scott Maynes first flight, Austin Hunter second flight, and Jason Gorrell third flight.

Now I will switch gears and write about something that I have been thinking about recently.  I enjoy watching golf but watch very little of it when the weather is nice.  The exception is the majors.  When I do watch, I like the full experience which includes all the technological things the networks add.  For all of the technology used in golf broadcasting, I most enjoy the shot tracer.

In the last week, I saw several shots in Shoal Lake that would be interesting on the shot tracer.  Shots that if tracked would leave the TV screen on the left, right, or top sides.  Some of these errant shots came from my clubs and some were from others with whom I was playing.  For example, I saw a ball hit from a tee box hit the marker three feet in front of the golfer before bouncing back to hit that person in the chest.  That would be tough for the shot tracer to follow.

I also witnessed someone hit a ball from the third tee box, hitting a top height of about 3 feet before skipping two times.  The ball then hit the last rock framing the ladies tee box, go close to 100 feet in the air and fly about 150 feet backwards, over the lilac bushes and trees to the back left of the tee box.  It came to rest between the trees and the second green.  I am pretty sure the shot tracer would have a hard time with this ball flight.

There's actually a shot tracer app available for Android and Apple phones that is supposed to work fairly well.  Someone should try it and tell me how it works.

If you want to check out a funny video on the shot tracer topic, check out https://imgur.com/gallery/agTDLSr

Golf is hard

Golf is hard.  No matter how much you enjoy it or how good you play, it is a difficult and challenging game.  In many sports, simply being athletic can make you adequate.  You can't muscle yourself to greatness in golf.  Golf takes lots of practice, proper technique, patience, and a clear mind.  Even then it can be challenging.  Part of the challenge is the average person gets frustrated when they don't play perfectly.

Think about how challenging the game is just at a basic level.  You have a four-foot long stick with a graphite head at the end.  You then try to hit a ball that is one inch in diameter into a hole somewhere between 400 and 1500 feet away.

When you watch golf on TV it looks easy...with guys pumping drives 300 yards down the middle of the fairway and hitting approach shots within feet of pins.  However, it isn't always easy for the people that do it for a living.  Case in point...David Duval 's experience yesterday.  He hit the wrong ball en route to a score of 14 which was the highest hole score in 69 years at the British Open.  He had a 49 on the front and a 42 on the back for a 91.  While he is not the golfer that he once was, he still is a PGA professional and former major winner and world #1.

So if golf is so hard, why do we bother playing?  Because sometimes it seems really easy and then it is really fun.  I witnessed some of that easy golf on Wednesday evening.  Scott Martin had a 36 with nine pars, hitting drives down the middle and never really being in any trouble.

Scott Maynes also made putting look easy, draining an 81-foot putt on #5 for birdie.  He started 5 feet on the front of the green and made a perfect roll to the hole at the far back of the green.

There were lots of interesting pin placements.  The location inside of 10 feet of the left middle side of #8 was particularly diabolical.  Rumour has it that the guy putting the holes in on Wednesday morning was cranky.

Back to Maynes' 81-foot putt.  The distance was confirmed by Scott Martin who measured it with his GPS.  The next morning during his daily 18, Scott checked to see if a similar putt from just on the green could be longer on other holes.  Here are some of his findings.  The second hole from side to side could stretch to 90 feet.  It would be around 90 feet from the front of #3 to a hole at the back.  Other potentially long putts would include a 70 footer on #3, 74 feet on #8, and up to 73 feet on #9.

There were only 26 golfers on Wednesday.  The lower turnout was attributed to Fair Day.  Skins went on five holes.  Winners included Stephen David / Wes Arfinson ($55.25 on #2), Scott Maynes / Norm Verboom ($20.00 on #5), Kory Stebeleski / Dick Edgeworth ($55.25 on #6), Terry Brandon / Chris Malchuk ($71.75 on #7), and Kendal Koroscil / Kevin Bartram ($20.00 on #9).

The previously mentioned Kendal Korsocil was closest on both par 3's.  He also a 2 to share the $49.00 deuce pot with Scott Maynes.

Next week we have Men's Night on Wednesday, the Credit Union tournament on Thursday, and the Horse Race on Saturday.  There is still room in both tournaments.  Additionally, I was talking to Joe Shwaluk this morning and he is planning a Night Golf event for Friday, August 16.

Too much is not enough

There were 39 golfers this past Wednesday.  Low score for the evening went to Scott Maynes with a 36.  Scott had a lucrative pairing with the dummy card resulting in two skin wins ($20 on #5 and $55.50 on #9).  Scott also birdied the ninth hole to share the $58.50 deuce pot with Mark Pawluk and Kory Stebeleski.  Kory was closest to the pin on #9 while Ashley Brandon hit it tightest on #5.  The only other skin to go was #1 where Troy Chwaluk and Mike Zenchyshyn won the $20 pot.

Having dispensed with the Men's Night summary I will now turn my attention to my random golf-related topic of the week.

There is a saying that too much of a good thing is a bad thing.  That may be true in some cases but not for golf.  Too much golf is a great thing.  After not playing until late June, I have been enjoying lots of golf.   I have tried to play as much as I can.  And there is more to come as we have Nine and Dine tonight and more tournaments in July and August.

I actually feel that too much golf is not enough.  I played seven days straight recently and felt bad on the eight day when I didn't play.  I initially convinced myself that I needed a break...but I really didn't.  My hands or body weren't aching from overuse.  I wasn't needed at home or neglecting my work.  I just didn't play that day for some reason.  Fortunately, that day was Tuesday and Men's Night was the next day.

The intent of the original phrase is to suggest that even something good can become bad if it is excessive.  It suggests that the quality of something is relative to its quantity.  The assumption is that even excellent things can be terrible if they exist in overabundance.  I get that this may be true in some cases but I disagree that the saying applies to golf.

My first golf this year was June 21st.  While I wasn't terrible, there were times in the first few rounds in which I thought that I forgot how to swing.  I was happy to be playing but not completely happy with how I was playing.  Having been out a bit more regularly, I am feeling more comfortable over the ball, playing better, and enjoying it more.

Sometimes golfing gets a bad rap.  It is seen differently than other sports or leisure activities.  If you walk or go to the gym for seven days straight people commend you for your dedication and activity level.  If you golf every day of the week people ask if your wife is out of town.  For the record, my wife was away this past weekend and I did golf quite a bit during her absence.  However, I would like to think that I would have done so even if she was home...with her approval of course.

So I would encourage you to play as much golf as you as possible.  Or get on the lake as often as you can or get walking every day.  If you have something that gives you great pleasure and does not negatively impact you or others, keep doing it.  We seem to now have four months of good weather per year.  Maximize it.  Think about all those cold winter days when you wished you could be outside.  Now get outside and do something while the weather is good.

On Friday, we held our annual Fundraising tournament.  It was an excellent day for golf.  Thanks to everyone involved in organizing and facilitating this event.

The Horse Race tournament is scheduled for Saturday, July 27.  More information regarding it is found on the web version of this blog.  Contact Stephen David at 847-0161 to register.

Golf and the sleep cycle

Golf makes me wake up early.  I was up at 5:00 am today, partly because of my dog, but mainly due to the Fundraising tournament at 12:30 pm.  Like most golfers, I require 7.5 hours to get ready.  At age 50 you can't simply roll out of bed and hit golf balls.

I wake early on Wednesdays because it is Men's Night.  I wake up early when I am going somewhere to golf or when I am going to buy new golf clubs.  I have also set my alarm to watch the British Open before the sun rises in Manitoba.

The occasions in which I went on golf trips are an exception.  I don't wake up early.  This relates to the fact that I almost don't sleep the night before and waking up early requires previous sleep.

Since I am already up, I might as well quickly do the Men's Night recap.  Usually, after writing my weekly entry, I send group texts to tell people the blog has been updated.  I will wait until after 8:00 am to do that so I don't wake anyone with the text notification.  Just because I am up early doesn't mean others need to be as well.

This past Wednesday was airplane night at the golf course...due to the seven 47's.  That represented almost 20% of the 39 scores entered.

Skins went on two holes.  Chris Kimpinski and Kory Stebeleski both birdied #1 to claim $36 while Mike Zenchyshyn and Ron Huberdeau combined for two pars to win $116.63 on #5.

Closest to the pins were Dale Martin on #5 and Phil Ostash on #9.  Neither converted their birdies which opened the door for Jason Hunter to claim the $58.50 deuce pot when he eagled #2.  Jason also had the low round for the evening with a 37.  He celebrated by keeping his group out until 9:30 pm without turning in their scorecards.

We were short $10 for the entry fee.  If you or someone you loved forgot to pay, you can add it to the pot next week.  If someone you know intentionally skipped paying, you may report them at 1-800-CHEAPO.  All calls will be kept anonymous unless required by law.

Please don't cheat

I am going to flip things and report on Men's Night first and then speak to my topic for the week.  That way if you just want to know what happened or see your name noted for some accomplishment, you will be done quickly.   On Wednesday, there were 33 golfers.  It was a beautiful evening so every group played some extra holes.  However, almost all turned their cards in early which made doing the scores and the prizes relatively easy.

Skins went on four holes.  Winners included Joel Ostash / Jason Gorrell ($20.00 on #1), Blake Hunter / Theoren Hunter ($45.25 on #2), Jamie McCutchin / Phil Ostash ($34.00 on #6), and Pete Ostash / Chris Kimpinski ($34.00 on #9).

Closest to the pins were Jason Neufeld on #5 and Zach Bartram on #9.  Neuf converted his birdie for the only deuce of the evening and the accompanying $49.50 pot.

Okay...there's the recap.  If you are leaving the blog now, have a great Friday.  If not, please read on.

The vast majority of golfers are honest people...which is important because the game is based upon the honour system.  Unfortunately, some golfers take more liberties than they should.  Sometimes this is done with intent while at other times it is done due to lack of understanding of the rules.

Men's Night is pretty casual but there is still an expectation that people play by the rules.  It is not unusual for people to do some things during the practice round that they would not do during the scoring round.  This past Wednesday I moved a few balls early in the afternoon to have a full swing.  During the Men's Night round, I had to punch a few shots around trees because I was playing it where it lied.

I am not calling out any of my golfing partners here because I play with an honest bunch.  And I am not just talking about the more egregious examples of cheating like dropping a ball and pretending it was the one you hit in the bush...or intentionally marking the wrong score on your card.  I am also referencing the subtle things that some golfers do that they should not.  Assuming noble intentions, it is possible that some aren't even aware of their infractions.  The intent of today's blog is to clear up some of the possible misunderstandings.

I will start with some simple ones.  Mulligans during a practice round or a friendly round are okay if agreed to by all parties.  Mulligans during Men's Night are a complete no-no.  And if you ever choose to take one it is only first shot on first hole of the round.

Moving a ball on the fairway slightly is completely acceptable.  On our scorecards it notes that "winter rules" are in play which allows you to improve your lie on fairways only.  Moving or fluffing up a ball in the rough is not allowed.  In fact, if you are off the fairway and sitting on a small spot of dirt you still can't move it.  You may ask a playing partner whether the area of dirt constitutes ground under repair.  If so, you may take a drop without penalty.

One thing that may be challenging for some people is how and where to mark a ball.  The simple rule is to put your marker immediately behind the ball then pick it up.  When replacing the ball to the ground, put it where you picked it up...not 2-3 inches in front of your marker.

When putting, gimmies are okay during Men's Night but they have to be reasonable.  The usual standard is about two feet.  The one thing you should not do is give yourself the gimmie.  On close putts, you may mention how quiet it is but you need to wait for someone to give you the putt.  Also, you should neither give nor take gimmies on birdies or eagles.

Next is the foot wedge which is a little further down the despicability scale.  Don't do this.  It is bad.  If you are beside a tree don't kick your ball to somewhere else.  Take your lumps and try a shot to get yourself in better position.  If you use the foot wedge you are a cheater and should go to confess to whomever it is that works at the church where you got baptized.

Making a bogey and writing down par...or shooting a 45 and adjusting it to a 41 should both be fineable offenses subject to public flogging at noon on a Friday in downtown Shoal Lake.  While we are playing for fun we are also putting cash in and there are prizes available.  If you "win" a skin due to cheating you will likely spend some time in purgatory before they decide to send you up or down.

If you lose a ball please don't drop one out of the hole at the bottom of your pocket and pretend this is the original.  If you do this, please take your clubs and throw them in the lake and take up another sport.

So in summary, please don't be a score-eraser, a ball-dropper, a foot-wedger, or a pretend-to-not-know-the-rules guy.  Also, don't use the line "I would have made that anyway" after missing a putt.  You missed it so putt again and add the extra stroke.

And for those of you trying to keep the game honest, always be wary when someone says "Put me down for a 6".  This should trigger some suspicion and cause you to add up their shots again just to confirm.  If your total is higher than the 6 that they declared, you can remind them that they actually lost two balls and had a triple.  

Keep enjoying golf and keep it honest!

Glad to be golfing

Generally I write about generic golf-related things before noting what happened on Men's Night.  Occasionally I reference my personal experience to a greater extent.  This is one of those times.  Please don't begrudge me.  I am simply happy to be golfing again and want to share the good word.  That being said, if you want to skip the preamble, scroll down to the paragraph starting with "On Wednesday...".

My dog wakes up early...around 5:00 am when it just starts to get bright.  I feed her, she goes out, comes back in, and falls immediately back to sleep.  Not me.  I take my phone and read the whole internet.  Usually, this goes until 6:30 am on weekdays.  Today I made it to 7:00 am because it's Saturday.

This morning I read stories about golf.  I also played a golf game on my phone and checked out some golf products on the Sportchek website.  Obviously, I am thinking about golf a bit.  This relates to me finally being able to swing a club.

I spent the previous month going to Men's Night for a ride along...joining friends to watch them golf.  The first two weeks were fun but the last two less so.  Going to Men's Night to watch people golf but not playing yourself is akin to being a designated driver at a New Years' Eve social.  At the start it is okay but once everyone gets going, not so much.

This past Wednesday was my first Men's Night of the year.  I did play a single round back during spring break but for all intents and purposes, this was my first golf of the 2019 season.  I didn't score very well this week.  I lost a few balls.  I got snaked several times and had to pay once.  I hit six tee shots during the practice round that I could walk to retrieve.  I was low man on the tics at the end.  But despite all of this, it was awesome.

There were a few instances in which I caught myself almost complaining or making excuses but was able to refrain from doing either.  I realized how great it was simply to be out hitting golf balls and visiting with friends on a nice summer evening.  In the end, that's all that really matters.  Sure it's nice to score well, to win a skin, and to hit it closest to the hole.  But the best part is simply being out there.

Having a chance to finally golf, even when golfing relatively poorly, is fantastic.  I once again am looking at weather forecasts with intent.  Tomorrow looks good for my first Sunday golf of the year.  The weather for Wednesday looks very promising or just okay depending on which weather app you use.

On Wednesday, we had 28 golfers.  Skins went on four holes.  Winners included Robin Kimpinski / Blake Hunter ($46.88 on #1), Ron Susinski / Jamie McCutchins ($20.00 on #3), Kevin Bartram / Norm Verboon ($28.75 on #7), and Theoren Hunter / Morgan Geekie ($99.39 on #9.  That's three weeks in a row for Norm getting a skin.  He's a bit of a force.

Low round for the night was Robin's 35.  Closest to the pins were Robin on #5 and Ronnie on #9.  Robin converted the birdie to share the $86.30 deuce pot with Ron Huberdeau and Dale Martin.  Interestingly, all three of these gentlemen paired with someone who scored a 5 on the same hole which paved the way for Theoren and Morgan to win the skin.

I heard that Morgan rated winning the hole as the second greatest thing that ever happened to him.  He placed it just behind getting drafted into the NHL and just ahead of winning the Calder Cup this year as a member of the Charlotte Checkers.  I completely understand his perspective.  I had closest to on #5 back in 2013 and feel that it was one of my life highlights...right up there with both my wedding day and that night at Joe's garage when I caught a straight flush.

Well...people are starting to wake up at my house so that's a good time to wrap it up.  Have a great weekend...and enjoy golf no matter how you play.