Thursday, August 25, 2016

Double Break Out

OTR finally had winning day with some major help from The Appraiser.  His team posted the amazing score of -26 in 4BB format.  It really helped that The Appraiser shot 86 with 24 strokes.  Yea, I know this isn't supposed to happen, but it did. Plus since they were only a threesome the rotation rule was in effect and they got to count his ball twice on several holes.  The rest of the scores weren't bad, but not even close.  As far as The Appraiser goes that was his best score in a number of years, maybe even the last decade.  So no more tears for OTR.

The star alignment must have carried over to the weather last night.  I think the tornado siren went off at least four times.  I got so interested in the weather geeks on channel 11 (especially when they started using terms like cloud wall and double vortex) I forgot to head for the basement.  As it turned out I didn't have to but that was some nasty stuff that rolled through the area.  I don't know how much rain we got, but I'm sure it was enough to soak the course again.

Taking the day off today.  See ya.

CC

Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Hard Fought

On Saturday DR. AH and I found ourselves down four, yes four, bets after nine holes.  We were puzzled since we weren't playing badly.  However the SD was having an out of body experience and had two pars and a birdie to shot 46.  Now we all know this is an anomally for a high 20's handicap, but all the same it happened.  The pressure was really on us for the back nine since the GWH was due to come out o hibrination.  To make a long story short we clawed our way back and only lost one bet overall.  This was primarily due to skillful play on our part and artless putting by the GWH.  The SD returned to his normal self , but did post a better than average score.

The weather looks great this week.  I'm sure everyone will be honing their game for the JR/SR Championship being held September 8.  Remember the "official" sign-up sheet is on the clip board.

CC 

Friday, August 19, 2016

Totally Frusrtated

That pretty much describes OTR.  He couldn't win, lost a score card playoff for second, and was too good to be DFL.  This all happened after trying to give him a helping hand by giving him a select team (who will remain nameless).  I'm not sure what will change his fortunes with the JR/SRS;  could be it's just his time in the proverbial barrel.

We had another big group yesterday.  The weather cooperated, but it was very humid and warm.  The course is still pretty wet, but starting to dry out.  If we can make it through the weekend without much rain it looks like we could get back to normal for this time of the year.  Only one close call in the SOTD.  Maybe the pot will grow to triple digits soon.

Don't forget the JR/SR Championship on September 8.  There are only a few people who are short of the required 8 rounds, and they should be able to play enough to qualify.  But, remember everyone can play a compete for "skins".

See ya at the training table.

CC

Thursday, August 18, 2016

Some Additional Thoughts

It has become interesting how teams are embracing the concept of DFL.  Yesterday there was great disappointment from one team when they realized their score wasn't good to win and too good to finish last.  They tried to start a movement to pay second instead of DFL.  Of course the two teams that tied for last would have none of that.  As it ended up OTR's team lost in a score card playoff.  OTR exclaimed that when they were bad they weren't bad enough and hadn't won anything all year.  I don't think that's true but I can sympathize with him since I've been there done that.

There were a couple of things I forgot form the "Hopkins".  First one of the UT women gave Gilhooley a new name.  We are all curious where "Hot Stuff" came from.  To top it off he isn't talking.  Something about what happens in .... stays in ....  Item two happened before lunch.  A JR/SR (who remain nameless) responded to the question of would he like something to drink with lunch responded by saying "I've got a house full women and think I need one, give me a Bloody Mary".

The lunch for the grounds crew went well.  Kennel Club was the chef (again this year) and did a great job.  He also demonstrated his skills with a push broom.  Someone wondered if he picked up that skill as a rookie at OI.  He said he didn't start that high in the organization.

Hope the rain is done.  The course is pretty wet.

CC

Sunday, August 14, 2016

And The Winners Are

Bob D, Dr. AH and Pinyada K (Univ. of Toledo) were the winners of the second annual Stephen Hopkins Memorial Invitational.  They shot the low score in a shortened event due to heavy rains and lightning.  The 2016 event had participants from 4 different universities, several staff and 18 JR/SRs.  Kudos to our professional staff and club house staff for making this another successful day.  The perpetual wall plague honoring the winners was unveiled and will be hung in the JR/SR corner of the men's locker room.  Many thanks to Al P for providing his wood working skills in the creation of the plague.  Mark your calendars for the same time next year when are planning on holding the annual tournament.

We also had two other winners this past week.  First TZ hit the SOTD for $52.  That was followed by the SD doing it on Saturday for another $30.  Mind you the SD was rather disappointed when he found out TZ had taken most of the money just days prior to his winning.  There is still $30 left for the next time we roll the bones on Tuesday.

The JR/SRS will again be providing  lunch for our grounds staff on Wednesday the 17th at 11:00 at the maintenance facility.  Kennel Club and I are coordinating the arrangements.  If you have the time we ask you be present so we can show our appreciation for the effort these guys put forth in giving us one of the best golf courses in Norhtwest Ohio.  Golf will follow lunch.

Finally, how about the Olympic golf.  That was a great final round,  Bravo to the medal winners

CC

PS -  There will be a sign-up sheet on the clip board for the JR/SR Championship to be held on September 8.  If you don't know how many rounds you've played (8 required) check the board outside the locker room.

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Bottom Fishing

It used to be that there was always a fight to finish as high as possible during our daily competition.  Now it seems that paying DFL has changed the approach to scoring.  Many now think if they can't be number one it is better to be last and get their money back.  At least that seems to be the approach yesterday.   Three out of four teams were separated by by a mere 2 strokes for DFL.  The first place team ran away and hid from the field due to Bruce F's (aka Bentley) low career round of 91.  His teammates did contribute to help the team post a 2BB score of -22.  Not bad for a three man team.  The course seems to be drying out again and the greens are starting to speed up just in time for the "Hopkins" on Thursday.

Speaking of Thursday.  The pairings are set.  It looks like we are going to have a strong field of college players.  There are four college programs represented,  Plus we have a large group of JRSR's.  If you aren't playing you may want to be there for cocktail's after the round and the trophy presentation.  I expect it will be a fun day and one of the highlights of our season.

It is forecasted to be hot and humid,  Remember to hydrate and seek shade when possible.

CC 

Friday, August 5, 2016

No Dummy

I'll give OTR and Twinkle Toes some credit for thinking quick on their feet.  We had an unbalanced field yesterday and were using the rotation method to give the threesomes their fourth ball in the 2BB of 4 format.  I thought it might be fun to add a little excitement and give everyone the option to use overkill (once and on any hole selected).  I casually mentioned this to the above mentioned pair as they were exciting the 15th green.  Some how they smelled a rat and rejected the idea without out even thinking about it.  Imagine that.  They accused me of trying to pull a fast one on the field.  That wasn't true.  I was just trying to even things out.  It was probably a wise choice on their part since we would have been -4 on #10.  In the end it made little difference since we beat everyone by 4 shots anyway.

It looks like it may cool down a bit.  Still hot and thunder storms predicted.

CC

Monday, August 1, 2016

Bonding Time

Wow last week flew by!  I didn't realize I hadn't posted for a week.  Anyway here goes.

The Nurse, daughter-law, Rabbit Wrangler and Miss Emma headed off to Niagara Falls on Friday.  My son and I stayed at the homestead with the dogs  and did a little bonding while we rebuilt our dock.  The history of my family is these bonding events don't go well.  I can remember my father and grandfather having some real memorable moments during construction projects.  To my surprise we worked well together.  Now it took us much longer than we planned for, but finished before he had to go home.  We did have our challenges with the heat, humidity, rain interruptions and unexpected problems (working in mud).  I don't plan on doing another dock any time soon, but think this one will last a good while.

Golf last week was pretty much the same.  Play seems to be up,  I've updated all the records and new sheets will be on the bulletin board Tuesday. 

Don't forget to sign up for the "Steve Hopkins Invitational"  being played on August !!.  The sign-up sheet is on the clip board.  We are expecting 10 college players, and would like to have 20 JRSRS.  If you have any questions see me.

See ya at the training table,  Stay cool and hydrate.

CC

Friday, July 22, 2016

Survival

We survived the heat and humidity yesterday.  The format of FBT was set up to assist any team that may have a player done in by the heat.  Fortunately everyone made it through unscathed.  Different winners for a change with relatively close scores.  Not much else to say about that.

We had another SOTD winner on Wednesday.  Two rolls for $36.00 by Ron B.  That's a lot of winners in the past month.  Let's hope we have a little break and build the pot back up.  Surprisingly we still have $61.00.  That's due to heavy play over the last two days.

Beware of the heat alert and take appropriate action.  See ya at the training table.

CC

PS - Another great lobster dinner.  Thanks SD for all your work.

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Good, But Not Good Enough

How do you shoot -18 in 3BB and finish 3rd?  Not hard to do when you play with the JR/SR group.  Even the group at -21 was open mouth in amazement when they found out they didn't win.  Needless to say that LTG's team came through again.  Future pairings will take into consideration who his partners were, and every effort will be made to insure they aren't together.

All that said some pretty good golf was played.  Steve S shot 79 and Bob K shot 77.  I'd say that's pretty darn good.  Even most others were right on their handicaps.  The stars must have aligned for a short time.

The lobster dinner is tonight.  A big crowd has made reservations.  North of 100 from what I heard.  I'm sure we'll have a great time.

Stay cool over the next couple of days.  The 90's are forecasted.

CC

Monday, July 18, 2016

Great Final Round

The Nurse and I were riveted to the TV Sunday morning watching The Open.  We were rooting for Phil all the way, and couldn't believe he could play as well as he did and get beat.  That probably was the best final round I've ever seen in a major tournament.  I know Nicklaus vs. Watson was a classic, but I can't say I really remember seeing it.  Wish they all could be as good as the 2016 tournament.  Let's hope the PGA will have as much drama.

The Appraiser did it again.  He rolled five fives in two rolls to win $50.00 on Thursday.  We've had a rash of recent winners, but still have $61.00 in the pot.  Some would say "not worth winning", but personally I never turn down any win.  Wonder who will be next.

The sign up sheet for the Hopkins Invitational is on the clipboard.  If you plan on playing on August 11 get your name on the list.

See ya at the training table.

CC

Thursday, July 14, 2016

The Open

The Open is one of my favorite tournaments.  There are two reasons for this.  I really appreciate the style of golf you have to play to win.  Second I like the links courses they have in the rota.  There is also a third reason which has nothing to do with golf.  I'm an early riser and the TV coverage comes on in the wee hours of the morning.  Normally once I'm awake I'm up for the day.  Today was no exception;  awoke at 5:30 AM and decided I might as well watch the early coverage at Royal Troon.  After hitting the head I found my favorite recliner tuned in to the Golf Channel got up to speed, settled back and promptly fell asleep.  During my "nap" the whole leader board changed.  Woke at 7:00 AM and watched some good golf until 10:30 AM.

The last couple of days have been some real scorchers.  A little uncomfortable to play golf.  But,  since most of us didn't have enough sense to stay inside in the air conditioning there were a couple of "hotly contested" days of competition.    Mostly the same winners.  We finally did get some much needed rain last evening,  and today looks to be pleasant.

Off to the shower so I can get ready for another day of fun.

CC

Sunday, July 10, 2016

The Big Time

I guess we have finally hit the big time when we get local TV coverage for our tennis program .  Granted it was only BCSN, but it was a plus for the club to get that type of coverage.  I know little about tennis, but from what I saw it looked like great fun and well run.  And it doesn't look like the course is any the worse for wear.  Based on the star power I saw on TV I may have to get a few autographs.  Congrats to all who played.

Saturday golf was another hard fought match.  Dr. AH and I were in serious danger of losing a few $ until we managed to pull out a win on the last hole.  I managed to break their hearts when I made a lenghty putt for par to put the match out of reach.  Even though I putted well all day I think that final putt was one of my best all season. 

It looks like summer is here to stay for a while.  This next week is forecasted to be warm/hot and dry.  Perfect for golf.  See ya at the training table.

CC

PS - The sign-up sheet is up for the Steve Hopkins Memorial to be played on August 11.

Friday, July 8, 2016

Pro Day

Where does the time go to?  Seems like just yesterday it was the end of June and we were all getting ready for the 4th of July holiday.  Well that has come and gone and we are well into July.

Yesterday was Pro Day for the JRSRs.  Brad and Mike joined our group for a little fun.  Since we had a total of 15 we paired up into 3 man teams for a 3BB.  Yea, I know it's a tough format, but I wanted to show our Pros how effective their lessons have been.  OTR was overheard to say that he didn't want anyone on his team who had taken a recent lesson.  He said that everyone in that category he was recently paired with couldn't hit a ball past their shadow.  That left a pretty small pool to draw from - myself and one other player (neither one of us was playing worth a lick either).  So I paired him up with M. Stone and Twinkle Toes.  The only big thing out of that group was an ace on #17 by M. Stone (from the blue tees).  Even that couldn't put them in the money.  Brad's team walked away with first place at -3.  It took a scorecard playoff for second.  But my team was a close winner of DFL (and got our money back).  Any way we all had a great time and are looking forward to doing it again.

The Steve H Memorial with the college girls is scheduled for August 11th.  We are expecting a number of players form UT.  We also think Cleveland State to be represented and our hopeful that BGSU will be there.   Details will follow as we get closer to the day.  I finally located my notes from 2015 and finish the trophy (to be unveiled on Aug. 11).

Stay cool and keep hydrated.

CC

PS - Almost forgot.  Kennel Club won $73 in the SOTD (1/2 the pot). 

Friday, July 1, 2016

Winners

Today is the first of July and the time for accounting for the prior month.  For many of you that means bills must be paid.  Well that's true for me also, but it also means it is time to publish an updated list of the leading money winners.  Now this list isn't as impressive as the PGA's but but certainly important to those on it.  Check the bulletin board going into the locker room for the leading winners through June 30, 2016.  Little surprise about who's leading.

We've had a lot play the past couple of days because the weather has been perfect.  The pace of play has been better than average when we are able to play in  threesomes.  It's amazing it's that much faster when you don't have to chase down that fourth ball.  The pairings can be a challenge but should work out if the handicap system really works.

Remember this is the holiday weekend.  Besides the club's big party (650+ reservations) there's a lot going on in the area.  Hope everyone has fun.

CC

PS - Did you see the picture in The Blade of the wanted bank robber.  Has anyone seen Slap Shot recently?  There sure looked like a strong resemblance to the suspect.  Plus there was a rumor he was seen walking around with a big bankroll.

Monday, June 27, 2016

Drive Much?

Last Thursday I decided not to play golf for the third day in a row, but I did come to lunch.  When I walked to my car when leaving I was met by by our pool manager and one of the life guards.  The like guard  had a paniced expression and the pool manager was really puzzled.  They inquired if I knew whose car was pinning the life guard's car in.  While parking about an hour earlier I had noticed a big, black Lexus at an odd angle and up against a van on the far side of the lot.  At the time I didn't think much of it, just thought it odd.  After taking a few seconds to think about it I concluded there was only one person who could managed this feat.  Right, only Dr. J drives a big , black Lexus.  And only he would probably forget to take the car out of gear when parking.  For the life of me I couldn't understand how it could roll across the parking lot.   I guess everything worked out and there was no damage to either vehicle.  I also understand Dr. J now knows there is a hiddren key in the fob for emergencies (ask him).

Twinkle Toes was the hit of the evening at the Canvas and Cocktails event.  While drawing rave reviews foor his art work he also impressed the crowd with his attire.  I have a picture of him I'll post as soon as I can get some technical support form the Nurse.

Looks like it will cool down tomorrow and great for golf.

CC

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Strike While Hot

Steve S walked in after playing and said he was going to strike while hot and win the SOTD.  Guess what?  He did, rolling five fives in two rolls (keep the fives).  That certainly was the icing on his cake.  He shot a smooth 78 to help his team win by one (and beat mine by one).  Overall there was a lot of good play yesterday.

Not much elese to report.  See ya at the training table.

CC

PS - That's two times in a row that fives won the SOTD.

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Not A Sniff

We played well, and were -14 in a 3BB format, but weren't even close to being a winner.  The LR Dr. must have had the whip out as he worked his crew hard to win.  The scores were much better than normal.  I can't figure out whether we are getting better or the course is getting a little easier.  Maybe today will give us a better clue.

Old Pal season is here, and the initial matches must be completed by Sunday.  Congrats to Twinkle Toes and TZ for out lasting their opponents to win one up.  I understand it was a hard fought match.  I also understand that OTR has thrown is partner under the bus after bowing out in the first round.  Trust me LTG and I know what he feels like.  We haven't ever been able to get out of the first round.

Another great golf day today.  See you at the training table.

CC

Monday, June 20, 2016

Congrats

Kudos to Dustin Johnston for winning the US Open despite the USGA.  At the time of all the confusion I said all he has to do is win by more than one shot, and that's exactly what he did.  I have a pretty good understanding of the rules, but for the life of me I didn't see where he caused the ball to move.  Nor did the walking rules official since he didn't invoke a penalty at the time.  If he isn't competent enough then why have him out there.  Remember the USGA puts their best people with leading groups. 

Golf Saturday was a lot of fun.  Our worthy opponents were on their game, the course was super and the weather was very summer-like.  It couldn't get much better, especially when you win $$.  We put a dent in the SD's anniversary fund.  Let's hope we can keep it up.

I paid OTR his SOTD winnings Saturday night.  I had trouble finding an envelope large enough to hold all the ones.  That should keep Otis and Ozzie in horse treats for the rest of the year. 

See ya at the training table,

CC

Friday, June 17, 2016

Horse Treats

OTR said he was going to stop at Luckey Farmers on his way back to the ranch and pick up a bag of horse treats for Otis and Ozzie (his horses) with the $148 he won from the SOTD.  He had five fives ("remember keep the fives") in two rolls to become the most recent winner.  Question.  Is he really buying horse treats or is the money going into the pony fund?  Only time will tell.

We had eleven players yesterday who watched the darkening skies.  I'm sure some were hoping for a rain-out since they weren't really a factor.  Because of the odd number Kennel Club was the designated floater.  Twinkle Toe's thought they had a sure thing since they only needed to pick up a couple of shots to be in first place.  What they didn't count on was Kennel Club having an off day and not giving the help they desperately needed.  That was great for my team since they were trying to catch us.  We gladly gave KC a full share for his effort.

Will they play the US Open today?  That was some monsoon that came through and washed out everything.  I'll bet the grounds guys will go beyond normal and have everything ready.  Now can the players adjust to a different course?  Plus conditions will change daily as it becomes hot and humid over the weekend.  At the end of the day the course will probably be the winner.

CC