2022 Rapture Dates

Based on the responses, we have a clear choice for 2022 Rapture:

October 6th - October 9th

We'll play the 7th, 8th and 9th (Friday to Sunday). Check in on Thursday, per usual.

Rankings for the event lock after our 3rd event next season. Hopefully by then I'll have a location booked and we can start collecting payments. Draft night will be later in the year.

Blah blah blah you kids know the deal by now.

Jamaican Open - Spring 2022 Recap

I don't believe it's ever too late to "figure something out" in  your golf swing... but Reid's stellar play recently is too late to get his name etched on the Cup. His 79 (gross) on Sunday — despite a triple on #16 and a phantom lost ball penalty on #9 — set a new course record and earned his first Jamaican Open trophy.

Reid only missed one fairway, and recorded 28 putts — his fewest ever in Golfshot. He was also a few inches away from an ace on #8.

Back-to-back checks. One shy of a Tom Emanski.

Birthday boy Danny whiffed on the pinata, making triple on the 259 yard opening hole... only to lose by one. Gorecki was also in the mix, until he made a max on 16 — predictably blaming group-A for watching him play the hole. I guess it is well documented his best scores happen when nobody is watching...

Dave did his part to increase the season-ending drama, scoring zero points and buying a pitcher of beer. Unfortunately, Dear Leader didn't shoot the even-par 71 (gross) needed to stay alive in the standings.

It's a long overdue title for the Irishman. Welcome to the Club within the Club. It was a pleasure to watch such great golf.

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We're headed to Tampa Bay Golf & Country Club this Sunday. It's a private Club just off I-75 (you've probably seen their par-3 course from the interstate). We've tried to go there in the past but were routinely denied. This week they're letting us out after their Members at 11:30am.

I'm sure I played this course 30+ years ago... probably with JW... but I don't know much about it. It's "short" but allegedly challenging. Target golf, it seems. The scorecard on their website is stale so I hope to get some more information on the Black vs. Blue tees.

See you Sunday. It'll probably be raining.

Summerfield - 2022 Scorecard

This should be accurate. Most of you are on the BLACK tees unless you tell me otherwise. I believe you'll get 3+ strokes moving to Golds, and 5+ moving to Greens.

 

As our resident Summerfield expert (JW) mentioned, this course is harder than the scorecard indicates. Tied into the "Slope" and "Course Rating" that we've discussed in previous posts... there's also something called "Bogey Rating" which is not printed on scorecards. It probably should be, but you can find it in the USGA's National Course Rating Database.

Bogey Rating is what a "Bogey Player" — man with a Handicap Index of approximately 20.0 (24.0 for women) — is expected to shoot.

The Bogey Rating on the Black tees is 91.1, and on the Golds is 95.6. It's just math that gets you close to Even-par net.

Someone like Geoff — who is a 20.1 Index — would be +1 (net) if he shot those scores from those tees. You could do a lot of mental gymnastics to think Geoff is better off with the extra 5 strokes... or Geoff could say: "Shooting 96 doesn't sound as fun as shooting 91."

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MOST of you also need to fill out the Rapture RSVP in the previous post. Go do that now.

See you Sunday - 10am - Long Drive on 17 (par 4).

2022 Rapture RSVP

Click the link below. Tell me which of the four weekends you're available for this year's Rapture. Responses will be locked in a week or so, as we need to start booking something soon.

CLICK HERE

Jamaican Open - Spring 2022 Info

Booked us at Summerfield Crossings at 10am - $55+.

Another Ron Garl classic which recently renovated all their greens. We have not played there since our first season of the DPT Cup era (stroke play)... when Faz, Gorecki, Geoff and myself went down after the original Hangover party. Geoff was still drunk, and we played from 5,779 yards (par 71).

Not sure what the setup committee will allow this year, but whatever. Season is over so time to check out some different courses.

See you then. Update your RSVPs, because I'll be dropping down to 20 players the way it stands now.

Hangover Invitational - Spring 2022 Recap

Geoff's personal lowest score (gross) on a par 72 — all recorded rounds, not just Club events — was an 86 at the Summer 2021 Hangover Invitational (Scepter I/O). He tied for first in that tournament.

Last Sunday, Geoff shot his 2nd lowest score (gross) on a par 72, recording six pars and a birdie en route to an 88. It was only worth a solo-2nd finish, but still a noteworthy performance from a guy who doesn't go low very often. Sadly, I'm still going to say Geoff choked at the end. A double on 16 and a triple on 17 — where 65% of the field made bogey or better — cost him a win. He just needed one stroke less to share that victory.

Right behind Geoff was Dave, who's basically rubbing it in our face with a solo-3rd finish. I'm calling it now... best season ever, regardless of the next two weeks. With [redacted] missing the Jamaican Open, only Chandler (hey, that's me!) has a mathematical chance to derail Dave's historic run. And Dear Leader is hitting the ball terribly right now. For Dave to dominate the field with an 8-ish handicap is beyond impressive, and proof to everyone that low handicaps can win with consistent play. 

 

Next on the leader board was Danny at solo-7th. Shooting 100 doesn't sound good. Making zero pars doesn't sound good either. But it was a gutsy performance hindered by a lack of sleep.

Billy didn't make enough pars to contend — probably due to the quarter-century bike ride in freezing wind the previous night. John really only had one bad hole — a max on the par-3 15th. Gary recorded back-to-back birdies on the front before imploding on the back. JW was in great spirits about his performance, and the course, despite shooting 96. Chandler's Flex Seal sprung a leak on 15, where the bunkers had soft sugar sand unlike the rest of the course. And Moostie seemed to have left his consistency in the car (hopefully still running) during the round.

All the feedback from the course was positive, which still shocks me. Perhaps this is a predictable reaction after six weeks of somewhat tight and penal courses.

Our Club banquet on Saturday was fun as well. The bar was a bit like Grand Cypress... Looks like a shithole when you pull up to it, but pleasantly surprised by the amenities once inside (and the service was much better than GC).

Billy was pedaling home by this point.

No pitchers were owed this week, which previously happened last season at ChampionsGate CC. 

Hey! Reid's at the bar!

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We're off this week for an unneeded make-up in the schedule. Enjoy the break with your family. Since we're playing the final two weeks for pride, fun, Rapture points, and Club Credit... I might get creative with the bookings. Possibly checking out a course we've never visited... and maybe one a little further out than usual for the Major.

Speaking of the Rapture, I'm only just now starting to look into it. I mentioned PGA Golf Club over in Port St. Lucie... but they quoted me $130+ per round. While it's not an automatic "no," the estimated $600 for the weekend is a lot higher than what the Rapture should represent.

 

I'm already fearful we won't be able to fill a 16-person roster as it is, considering 4 of you are automatic "OUTs" due to family. Throw in the typical calendar conflicts (Oct 21st-23rd will probably be the dates), and we might be reducing it to 12 people.

Anyway, that's the current update. I'll be working on other options as time allows.

See you in two weeks!

Diamond Hill - Scorecard

Bar on Saturday - Mackenzie's Sports Tavern - 4015 S West Shore Blvd, Tampa, FL 33611 - 7pm-ish

Golf on Sunday - Diamond Hill - 9:28am (change your clocks forward)

Here's a scorecard for Sunday. I have everyone starting on the WHITE tees, even Dave. Let me know if anyone wants to move. You're only going to get 2 or 3 strokes for doing so.

Also — from Faz — below is a grid of everyone's lowest career scores to par (gross). 55% of these scores happened at an executive course.

FBGC Championship - Spring 2022 Recap

Brendan picked up his sixth TOUR victory and 3rd Major last Sunday, in a dominating performance at Big Cypress. The course is a really good test of shot-making, which was even more difficult in the double-digit winds. Speaking of double-digits... we were on a "good pitcher" watch for awhile, until a quad on #17. As Geoff pointed out, Brendan is a master at shaving a few strokes late into his victories:

May 2015 - Chandler Classic: Brendan smokes the field shooting -16 (net) to claim his first victory. He doubled the final two holes.

 

January 2019 - DPT Open: Win #3 at -4 (net)... despite a 50 (gross) on the back nine. He was +8 on the final three holes alone. This should have been a good pitcher situation.

March 2021 - Hangover Invitational: Brendan shoots -4 (net) for win #4. He had -10 in his grasp until a 6-over performance on holes 14-16. 

May 2021 - FBGC Open: Finishes -5 (net), shooting 6 over on the final four holes.

If almost all of Brendan's victories involve him leaking oil down the stretch, I wonder how many wins he threw away?

Reid choked too, unable to tie Brendan thanks to doubles on the final two holes.

 

And a shout-out to Troy who has played exceptionally well the two tournaments held at Big Cypress.

It really felt like another Dave day... until the Irishman blew his first tee-shot into a lake and made a triple bogey — on what should be an easy hole. I told him on the first green he didn't need to worry about winning the tournament anymore. He then shot +3 (gross) on the remaining 17 holes.

Only 9 people remain mathematically capable of winning the season. But let's face it — Dave has this locked up. It might go down as the greatest season ever. It's the first time our Membership is maxed out (24 players), our average field size is the largest ever, the schedule is probably the most difficult we've ever faced, Dave has been around an 8 Index the entire time, and his finishes are: 1st, 6th, 1st, 3rd, 2nd, 2nd.

Contrast that with last year's Champion, Travis, who in four events has placed 16th each time. His season might challenge Gorecki's Summer 2017... when Mike earned a total of 15 DPT Points despite playing in all nine events.

 

Conditions at BC were as good as ever. All the feedback I received was positive. Especially from the ex-BGR guys who discovered an $8.50 six pack deal. I'm still trying to wrap my head around that, after Darren paid $23 for six 12-oz cans at Glen Lakes.

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Even though the season looks to be wrapped up, we still have to go through the motions for the sake of history. This week is the Hangover Invitational at Diamond Hill - 9:28am and $53ish.

We have never played this course in the stroke-play history of our Club. We did go there once in our 2nd season of 2-man Scramble... back in March of 2012. There were a lot of calls to give it a shot based on the "interesting" layout and proximity to Tampa-proper.

I already regret booking it.

Larry — who I think is the GM — told me the greens were the "best in the area." Larry is a liar... or blind. They are "fine." They are "decent." But they are by no means "best," especially compared to Big Cypress which is right up the road.

I guess it'll be a good course for the Hangover, since the 1959 layout leads me to believe Chic Adams — who also did Seminole Lake — was heavily on the sauce.

More on the course later. The bar Saturday night will be at Mackenzie's Sports Tavern. I've never been there, but our Social Chair says it's good. It's also within walking distance of Green Iguana Westshore and Dead Bob's Too... so we can hop if we need to.

I'll get there around 7pm to check out their wings. See some of you then.

FBGC Championship - Preview

I really like Big Cypress, mainly because of their greens. They're always in excellent shape, they're pretty quick (a touch slower than Club Renaissance), and they have a lot of obvious breaks. There's not a flat putt on the course, yet they aren't gravity defying like Southern Hills.

So the greens are awesome. What about everything else?

Well... it's a Ron Garl... so it's got some bullshit baked in: 

 

- A few cart paths right up the center of the fairway. 

 

- Some overly tight tee shots — although thankfully it's really just the 2nd and 4th holes. You could argue the 3rd, but I'm not buying it. 

 

- His version of "The Great Hazard" (12th hole) — which originated as a Tillinghast template at Pine Valley, and copied by Garl and Tom Fazio in almost all their designs. Needless to say, this hole should NOT exist on a 55+ community golf course.

- Sneaky OB (we've been saying this a lot recently). If you hit near a house I recommend reloading.

John doesn't think anyone cares about the architect column of the Courses tab, but a quick glance shows that Ron Garl also designed: Bloomingdale, Lansbrook, University Park, Huntington Hills, Northdale, Rogers Park (current iteration), Eaglebrook, Summerfield Crossings, Babe Zaharias, The Eagles (Forest), and Buffalo Creek! What a list!

But let's focus on the good! All the par 3s are excellent, and with varying length. The course isn't long by any means, and with a good tee shot you can consider going for three of the par 5s in two. Most of the holes have more room you can't see off the tee. The 18th hole is one of the best designed holes we play on TOUR. And the trailer park is top-notch. I look froward to visiting some of you there in a few years.

 

The below scorecard should be accurate. The usual suspects are on the BLACK tees. Everyone else is on the GREEN. Tell me otherwise if you want to move.

 

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Tee time is 10am. Price should be $46+ tax. If it's not, be sure to tell them "Alan" hooked us up with that rate. There is a range (balls cost extra). I recommend the grill if it's open. Last time we were there it was closed due to COVID. Please don't catcall the ladies at the pool.

There is not a "good" long drive hole out there. So let's use 16. You all can yell at me later.

 

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For the Hangover (March 13th) we have 20 spots booked. That means at least one of you ??? people are going to be booted. The first 20 people to RSVP "IN" are... you know... in.