Club Renaissance is one of the more difficult courses on our rotation, playing
to a +7 median net to par score. It did so again Sunday, with tricky greens
and lots of wind. It was a perfect set-up for Dave... who is so consistent in shit conditions.
The Irishman birdied three of the first four holes, and made the turn at -2
(gross). But every hole at Club Renaissance is a potential blow-up.
Especially on the back nine where it gets narrow and becomes target golf. A
quick glance at the scores show only #1 and #18 could be considered "easy."
Dave finally stepped on a land mine on #11, pumping two balls in the water and
making a quad. Despite shooting +1 (gross) the rest of the way... he couldn't
catch our eventual winner... *checks notes*... Gorecki?
Yep, Mike won his first ever Open, and now has the career grand slam. It was
probably the best lag putting I've ever seen out of him. We're talking 2-putts
from 30+ feet at least 5 times in the round. Many of those were downhill
sliders.
He got the low banana slices going towards the end but they somehow stayed in
play (mostly). And the penalty strokes he did receive didn't result in
anything worse than a triple bogey. Every stroke counts out there (Dave lost
by 2), so here are a few tournament winning moments for Gorecki:
-
Long par-3 7th, uphill and into the wind. Gorecki hits driver short of the
green, but it was a low slicer that rolls into the shit. He takes a drop,
and blades a chip over the green and out-of-bounds into a pool screen.
Drops again and chips to 4 feet. Makes the putt for 6 (triple).
-
Par-3 14th, into the wind. Over-the-top frozen rope pull with a 6-iron (I
believe) to a cluster of trees short-left of the green. Ball hits a tree
and ricochets right, coming to rest on the fringe inches from the putting
surface. Putts (chips) from 25 feet downhill to about a foot and makes
par.
-
Par-5 16th, brutal hole (only two pars on the day, Moostie and Troy).
Slices his drive into the shit on the right. We find it but due to a root
it's not playable. Takes a drop and lays up. Has to lay up again because
he's over 220 out. Then pushes approach shot right of the green into a
waste bunker. Blades a chip over the green, and is now short-sided with a
steep hill in the way. Blades his next chip into the hill... it was going
well over the green... but hits the stick and drops in for a 7 (double).
Realistically that's six shots saved in three holes, by a combination of lucky
bounces, and the will of an elderly man to never give up.
--------------------------------------------
To address the countless people who have texted me... yes, JW completed his
second ever ejection from the property via ride-share. He wasn't playing well,
and the round was brutally slow on the front. I'm pretty sure he had already
made up his mind to leave on the 8th hole... but he almost holed out for eagle
on 9... only to three-putt from about 3ish feet (above the hole) for bogey.
Under our current rules you get a +1 (net) for each hole you skip. This
only brought him to around +23, so two pitchers have been added.
It did speed up a bit on the back. I'm told Group A finished in 4:15... and I
clocked Group E at 4:27. Still, it's tough to wait on every shot, only to then
make terrible swings with a threesome of randos watching behind you. I think
our group (E) hit 12 provisionals on the round... one of those Gorecki had to
drive back to the previous teebox!
--------------------------------------------
We have 23 pitchers currently owed. Some of you people have owed for so long,
I can already hear you attempting to question the count. Let it be known the
count is the count. We'll probably have to allow you to pay debts at the
Hangover. Or maybe we just need to host a going away house party at John's place when he's told to quit the Club. Speaking of...
--------------------------------------------
Other chatter after the round:
-
Lots of talk about who is next to quit the Club. There are many great
candidates to bet on, but I want to state my official position as
Commish/Chairman, in response to John's comment that "your league is
falling apart!":
-
The less people we have, the less work it is for me and the greater
chance I have of winning more Championships!
-
I'd hate to see anyone quit due to jobs, health, family, whatever... but
this is just something dumb we do on the weekends. Those of us that are
going to play golf — regardless if there is a Club or League — might as
well track stats and crown a winner. This was a lot of fun when we had 8
Members in Season 3... and I'm still having fun with 22 Members in
Season 23. Hopefully you are too.
-
There's a nasty rumor that our corrupt Dictator (me?) "coached up" Gorecki
to a victory on Sunday. I'm flattered that I'm getting my flowers as the
"Course Management Czar." But I really just gave him distances and told
the group where the wind was coming from. Like I do every round. I'm
not giving advice on the greens which is a violation of Rule
#16. Gorecki putted and chipped his way to the winner's circle all on his
own.
-
A few people made the comment that Dave "should not be allowed to play
from those tees." However nobody could really tell me how to regulate it
outside of "Index limits" (like we do for the 55/25 club). Tee boxes
should be selected based on length, so Index isn't really the correct
metric. I've met scratch golfers down in Naples who hit a driver 210. They
should not be forced to play back. Our Club codified the "tee-it-forward" initiative, so you have to look at Dave as one
of the many PGA TOUR pros who overpower every golf course they see.
Anyone who chose to move back to Burgundy could have done the same thing
Dave did. That being said... shame on Dave for deliberately driving
past the group in front of him!
- Also, look at where the Burgundy Boys ended up! Dan at T5 with four birdies deserves props! But the rest of you... oof.
- "Ackchyually... moving back wasn't the issue!" - The Rest of You. Yeah... that's why we give you the option to do so for more strokes. Many times this keeps driver in your hand and eliminates awkward forced lay-ups. You're getting a benefit that others of lesser ability/confidence don't. So enjoy your extra strokes and go fix whatever you think the real issue is.
--------------------------------------------
We play this Sunday at Lexington Oaks - 9am... a make-up of the Skins Game. Update
your RSVP now. It's going to be wet and raining. Be prepared.
