2013 Playoffs - Round One

The first round of the 2013 playoffs got off to a sizzling start tonight on a few fronts.

Cooling down on the deck following a humid round.

After a summer nearly void of any real heat and humidity it returned with a vengeance tonight as the season and summer approaches an end. If the humidity didn't bother you, perhaps the bugs did as they seemed to be thriving in the weather conditions.

But the weather wasn't the only thing hot tonight as several teams turned in some very impressive rounds to start the short playoff run.

In the "A" Flight the Rolling Stones turned in the lowest team gross of the season shooting an 84 to set the pace. It comes one week too late to claim the regular season prize but it did pace the Stones to a four stroke lead after the first nine holes. The Wedgers sit in second place after posting an 88. The regular season champion Southpaws had a solid round of 90 and trail by six strokes while the Dubbers shot a round of 95 and are 11 shots out of first.

Over on the "B" Flight the Whizbangers who finished the season in sixth place looked more like a team that should be competing in the division above after shooting an 89. This gives them a fairly comfortable cushion heading into next week as they lead the second place KGB by five strokes after they posted a 94. The Fat Shafts struggled and posted a round of 103 and find themselves 14 shots off the pace. The Latecomers who had a very strong regular season faltered on night one shooting 112.

One of the more notable stories for the night was in the "C" Division as the CCCP shot one of their most impressive rounds in recent memory as they scored a 96. Not to be outdone, the Bogies also played well and find themselves one shot back after posting a 97. The Hackers combined to shoot 110 while the Fivesome sit in fourth place after playing to a 111 total.

Norm Toyne had the low round of the night as he helped his Wedgers team by shooting a one under par 26.

Next week we play nine more holes from the White Tees before moving to the Blue Tees for the final round of 18 holes on Saturday September 7th. That will be followed by our annual year-end party and meal.

The Standings after the first nine holes are as follows:

"A" Division

1. Rolling Stones - 84
2. Wedgers - 88
3. Southpaws - 90
4. Dubbers - 95

"B" Division

1. Whizbangers - 89
2. KGB - 94
3. Fat Shafts - 103
4. Latecomers - 112

"C" Division

1. CCCP - 96
2. Bogies - 97
3. Hackers - 110
4. Fivesome - 111

2013 Final Regular Season Standings

2013 Final Regular Season Standings

1. Southpaws (105 pts)
2. Rolling Stones (90 pts)
3. Dubbers (86 pts)
4. Wedgers (83 pts)
5. KGB (77 pts)
6. Whizbangers (72 pts)
7. Latecomers (60 pts)
8. Fat Shafts (54 pts)
9. Bogies (42 pts)
10. CCCP (37 pts)
11. Hackers (28 pts)
12. Fivesome (22 pts)

Individual Low Gross
25 - Norm Toyne

Team Low Gross
87 - Southpaws

That Went By Fast

The final points of the regular season are added up after the round.

Just like that another regular season of Men's League golf has come to an end. We've been lucky with the weather for most of the season and hopefully that trend will continue as we move into the next two weeks of playoff action.

For the second year in a row the Southpaws will be crowned Regular Season Champions. They amassed a total of 105 points this year which was 15 points better than the second place Rolling Stones.

Norm Toyne's single round score of 25 held up as the Individual Low Gross winner while the Southpaws Team Gross of 87 was best for the season.

Wrapping things up tonight, five teams took all six points available in their matches. This included the Fivesome, Southpaws, Dubbers, Wedgers and KGB. The Rolling Stones earned five points and the Latecomers took one point.

The Closest to the Pin winners were Dave Walker on hole #9 and Nick Vangemeren on hole #18. Paul Scobie was this weeks 50/50 winner.

The low individual score of the evening was 27 shot by three different golfers, Kyle Wilkinson, Tom St.Denis and Nick Vangemeren.

The Playoffs start next Wednesday night. The next two Wednesday's will be nine holes each from the white tees with the final 18 holes from the blue tees on Saturday September 7th. This will be followed by our annual wrap-up party.

Good Luck to everyone!

Lost In Transit

Sorry guys but there won't be an update this week.

Rick Dean gets his par on Hole 6.

After getting all the information from the evening's round, I misplaced it somewhere between the golf course and home and can't find it. I'm guessing it fell out of my pocket when I took my phone or keys out.

My apologies. That's the first time that's happened since I started doing this.

All I can tell you is that we have just one week of regular season golf remaining before the playoffs begin.

I also want to congratulate Norm Toyne for winning the Murray Hills Golf Club Championships last weekend. He edged Andy Koetstra by one stroke on the final hole. Also congratulations to Steve Westlake who was this year's winner in the Senior Men's division.

See you Wednesday night.

Two Weeks Left

The bad news was we didn't quite get the round in before it rained. The good news is we did finish the round before the severe thunderstorms and tornado watches rolled into the area.

With only two weeks of regular season golf remaining there isn't a lot left to be decided but there is a battle happening for that final two spots in the "A" Flight. With only nine points separating third and sixth the next two weeks will be crucial for teams hoping to get into or remain in the top division. For the teams sitting from 7th place to 12th, your fate is already decided.

Grabbing all six points in their matches were the Southpaws, Wedgers and Rolling Stones. The Whizbangers took five while the Latecomers and KGB earned four points. Earning two points each were the Fat Shafts and Dubbers while the CCCP took a single point.

Sandy McLeod shot the low round for the night with an even par 27. For the third time in a month Benny Brock had his name drawn for the 50/50. The Closest to the Pin winners were Dave Walker on hole #7 and Ryan Cuculuzzi on hole #16.

Aces Were Wild Tonight

Terry Hore & Carl Troke celebrate their Hole-in-One's in the Clubhouse

It usually happens a few times each season that a league member will get a hole-in-one. It's always special, especially when it's that golfers first ever. But how often does it happen that two golfers get their very first aces on the same night just minutes apart? Not very often for sure. Add to the fact that tonight those two golfers play on the same team and the odds grow significantly.

That was the case this evening as both Carl Troke and Terry Hore of the Bogies sank their first ever hole-in-one's within minutes of each other. Carl's ace came on the 126 yard 15th hole using an 8 iron. Although his fellow golfers knew it was in, Carl had to wait until he looked in the cup before he would let himself believe it had actually happened. As it turns out it was also the Closest to the Pin hole on the back nine so Carl had a bit of a bonus.

Terry Hore removes his ace from the 16h hole.

Terry, who only moments earlier had been discussing with yours truly how he'd never had one in all his years golfing, stepped up to the 108 yard 16th hole with a pitching wedge and settled his tee shot onto the green. He then watched as it rolled right to the hole and quickly disappeared into the cup leading to a long awaited celebration. Congratulations to both Carl and Terry!

The other Closest to the Pin prize went to Dave Reid who stuck his tee shot close on hole #6. The 50/50 winner for the night was Matt Kearns. Tim Donaldson had the low round for the evening shooting an even par 27.

The point totals for the night went as follows... The Southpaws and KGB each took six points while the Rolling Stones and Whizbangers earned five points each. The Bogies and CCCP took four points while the Latecomers and Fat Shafts each grabbed two points. Single points went to the Dubbers and Hackers.

Don't forget just three weeks of regular season remain before the playoffs begin.

That's More Like It

After suffering through sweltering heat last Wednesday night, the change in temperature was welcomed by all of us as the humidity has left us for a while. This made for a much more comfortable round of golf.

With only four more weeks of regular season play remaining, the playoff positioning is becoming more clear and the chance for teams to make moves is quickly running out.

Four teams swept all six points in their matches tonight. They included the Whizbangers, Southpaws, Dubbers and Rolling Stones. The KGB grabbed five points while the Wedgers earned four points. The Latecomers took two points while a single point went to the Hackers.

Nick Vangemeren had the low round of the night with a 28. Kevin Wadsworth was this weeks 50/50 winner while the Closest to the Pin winners were Michael Walker on Hole #5 and Paul Dicrescenzo on the 15th hole.

Holy Heatwave Batman!

The suns rays shine through the trees on the 17th green.

I'm going to hazard a guess that our round of golf tonight was one of, if not the hottest nights of golfing we've had in all my years of playing in the league. Perhaps someone older and wiser can recall a round that was more hot and humid without a breath of a breeze in the past but I can't imagine it being any worse. On the positive side, although we might have finished the round soaking wet, it wasn't due to any rain storms. Actually, some precipitation would have been welcome. And surprisingly the deer flies and mosquitoes were noticeably absent as well. They were probably drinking beer in the shade some place watching and laughing at us.

Lyle Williams grabs a seat in the shade on Tom St.Denis.

The hot weather seemed to work to some players advantage tonight while others struggled to keep their grips dry and hold on to the golf club. Okay, I'm talking about me. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

Sandy McLeod shot the low round of the night posting a one over par 28. The Closest to the Pin winners were Matt Couperus on hole #13 and Jim Conley on hole #4. For the second time in two weeks Benny Brock won the 50/50 prize.

It was almost an all or nothing night for the matches as five teams swept all six points up for grabs. They included the Dubbers, CCCP, Whizbangers, Southpaws and Wedgers. The Rolling Stones earned 4 points and the Fat Shafts grabbed two points.

Lyle Williams and Mark Kennedy rest in a shady spot.

We've Been Lucky

The boys share some laughs after a hot night of golfing.

I think it's safe to say that we've been very fortunate this season to avoid the nasty weather on Wednesday nights so far. I hope I didn't just jinx us. Once again, threatening skies and a severe thunderstorm watch never developed into anything and other than the dampness caused by the humidity, it was another hot and dry night for golf.

The standings are still crowded in the middle of the pack with several teams competing for the last spots of the "A" division but time is running out to make a move. If the top teams keep playing well then jumping divisions could be a difficult task.

Improving their chances tonight by taking six points were the Latecomers and Fat Shafts while the first place Southpaws also grabbed six in their match. The KGB and Wedgers each earned five points while the Rolling Stones took four points. Also earning points tonight were the Hackers with two while the Fivesome and Dubbers each grabbed single points.

Andy Koetstra turned in another low round of 26 coming shy by one stroke once again of tying Norm Toyne for the Individual Low Gross.

Lyle Williams tee shot on hole #3 barely crept past Mark Kennedy's shot to take the Closest to the Pin on the front nine while Norm Toyne stuck his shot close on hole #12. This weeks 50/50 winner was Jeff Istead.

Welcome Back Humidty

I think we finished the weeks of 18 holes just in time as the summer humidity appears to have finally made it's sticky return to the area. It makes for a bit of an uncomfortable round but I think we can all agree it's still better than rain. However, we end the round just as wet.

Al Wilkinson had the low round of the night as he shot his way to a 28. I also heard that Marty MacDonald had a strong outing with a 30 which was made all the more exceptional by the bank shots he made off several trees in the process. That's what you call "course knowledge."

Three teams took all six points up for grabs tonight as the KGB, Dubbers and Rolling Stones won their matches. The Fat Shafts had a five point night as the Fivesome earned a single point. Elsewhere the CCCP took four points, the Wedgers and Southpaws each grabbed three points and the Hackers earned two points.

Ron MacDonald was the Closest to the Pin winner on Hole #2 while Kyle Wilkinson took the honour on Hole #11. This week's 50/50 winner was Benny Brock.

Brian Moelker, Steve Powell and Andy Koetstra relax on the deck after a warm round.