The Concussion - Summer 2025 Recap

The Groves might be the finest test in golf, as it continues to produce a wide range of winners. Birdies (23) and Eagles (4) were abundant. That's equates to a lot of fun! Even Big John had two birdies on his way to a +20 (net)!

 

So while we had Gorecki winning last season with a 20 handicap... yesterday Melberg was victorious with only two pops. His five birdies and one eagle vaulted him up the leader board to get his first win in over a year.

 

Troy finished 2nd with nothing worse than a bogey (which I consider "blemish free"), making eagle (net albatross) on the final hole to jump four players in the standings.

 

Overall the scores were much better than usual for The Groves, with only six quads and two maxes. One of those maxes was Faz on #2, who lost 4.5 strokes to the field on that hole alone! And the entire field played holes 14-16 in +5 (gross)!

 

While we'll continue to visit other venues, The Groves is by far the best short course in town.

 

------------------------

 

We're off next week for 4th of July, so enjoy the time with your families. On July 13th we're headed down to Waterlefe for the first time in 3 years. We need to give them an exact headcount a week before... so update your RSVPs now or you might be charged $100.

 

The same thing goes for Celebration on July 27th.

 

See you in a couple of weeks.

Concussion - Summer 2025 Preview

Headed back to The Groves at 9am this Sunday. Looks like we could be dodging rain, especially later in the round.

 

Rate should be about $53.

 

There is a range if you want to get there early to warm-up. 

 

Everyone is on the tips (Blue).

 

Long drive on #16 (par 4).

 

I believe there is a drop zone near the green on #4. It might even be behind the green. We're going to implement our "Huntington Hills local rule": you can't use the drop zone after your tee shot. Nobody has ever attempted, but there have been threats to aim for the green and just go to the drop zone. One issue is it's impossible to see if your ball even made the hazard. So we'll just squash that nonsense now. Feel free to use the drop zone (if there is one) after your 2nd shot.

 

-----------------------------------------

 

As for analysis... the course actually plays quite difficult at +6 median net to par. Troy has won 2 of the 5 events at The Groves. Everyone else has finished all over the board. The course doesn't seem to fit any particular player. Either you're hitting it well or you're buying a pitcher.

 

Good thing they're pretty cheap at The Groves.

 

See you then. 

The Open - Summer 2025 Recap

For most of my golfing life, I've told myself 6 pars would easily break 90. That allowed me to record 3 double bogeys... or a worse blow-up hole... and my 13+ handicap would get me right around even (net).

 

In our first two seasons, when I began my reign of terror, I averaged 7 pars (or better) per round. Today I use the 6-par goal to avoid bad pitchers, which is arguably more important than winning.

 

Topor — with his 24 handicap — made 6 pars yesterday at Countryside (B/L). Sitting at -6 (net) with three holes to go (and 5 strokes!), should have been a cakewalk to the winners circle. But our jolliest Member doubled the final three holes, and missed a 2-foot putt on 18, to share the cake with Billy. It was still an excellent round of golf, but only adds to the "Topor the Choker" legacy.

 

And while Billy was seemingly handed a gift, he also jammed himself by over-sleeping and showing up to the first tee straight from the car. Three doubles and a quad in his first five holes ruined what could have been a career round. He was only 5 over (gross) on the final 13 holes!

 

Reid was also in the mix but basically got what he could out of the round — with both good and bad bounces leading to a solo 3rd. Other honorable mentions go to Buchert who payed excellent and would have been solo 2nd if not for a very confusing 10 on the 12th hole. And Casey had four birdies and an eagle to balance out his three doubles and a triple. 

 

-----------------------

 

I was personally happy with the course on Sunday. The greens were great despite being punched a few weeks ago. And it seems like forever since we've had receptive putting surfaces, where balls actually stop (or spin back) on approach. Countryside still has a few more trees they need to remove... but maybe a hurricane will take care of that this summer.

 

-----------------------

 

We're playing next Sunday at The Groves, at 9am. There are a bunch of open spots so go ahead and bail now!

 

Speaking of open spots... I'm finding more and more courses are pushing hard for us to guarantee player counts. Regardless of our Club policy, if your bailing ever costs us (me) money... you will be charged for it. So if you're on the fence... or you're doing that thing where you're waiting until the last minute to clear it with your boss... go ahead and change your status to OUT.

 

I wouldn't be surprised to have randoms sprinkled in with our group at some point, as courses try to maximize what they call "premium tee times."

 

See you Sunday!

The Open - Summer 2025 Preview

Long Drive #2 

 

Update your RSVPs now! 

 

First Major of the season is at Countryside (B/L) at an early 8:21am start. Thanks to Casey for setting it up.

 

This configuration of TheSide is short, due to the Bay nine having a few target-golf par 4s. We've actually played a Concussion at this location, before Dear Leader put an end to full-sized courses hosting that tournament.

 

It plays fairly difficult (median net score of +6), and Brendan has won both times we've played it. His handicap is currently soft-capped... so look for him to be near the top of the leader board this week too. 

 

Is Countryside a Major-worthy venue? Well... the PGA TOUR did just play a Major at Quail Hollow, which is a regular stop each season.

 

And Countryside is charging us a Major rate... so at least your wallet will feel like it's at an exclusive venue.

 

And that's really what this Club and League is all about. The illusion of exclusivity. Surely the competition, socialization, and quest to improve doesn't matter. What's important is spending a lot of money to complain about the day, the course, the conditions, your lack of skill, your randomized pairing, and how even being there is causing issues at home. That's the real love of the game!

 

Let me know if you want to move back from the WHITE tees. This is an old, but probably accurate scorecard: 

 

 

 See you Sunday!

Skins Game - Summer 2025 Recap

We've now played Seminole Lake three times in Club history, and it has produced a wide range of winners. It's not overly penal, and the main defense is the rock-hard greens (which were re-built two years ago). Eventually they'll be more receptive, and I'd expect the course to finally get them rolling fast... which will be another diabolical challenge — as there's a ton of movement to them.

But in its current state, approach shots are the overall test. This type of set-up can really neutralize all skill levels, since high and low handicappers alike are going to miss a bunch of greens. When this happens... you might as well have a shit ton of strokes in your pocket.

 

So it's no surprise Gorecki won today, as long as he avoided the massive blow-ups. Two of his three pars were net-eagles. Five of his ten bogies were net-birdies. That's impossible to beat. As long as we overlook his 3x disqualification for not turning in a card, grounding his club multiple times in bunkers, and then "signing" an incorrect virtual card over text.

 

Gorecki has now won three times in his last eight events! He'd be a near lock for Rapture Captain if he hadn't also missed 5 tournaments during that stretch.

 

It's the 2nd week in a row he shot a 43 (gross) on the front nine. And he racked up 16 skins which might be a record.

 

-----------------------

 

Melberg finished 5 strokes behind Gorecki, and probably didn't leave enough strokes out there to catch him. It was a solid round even if he didn't seem happy about it.

 

Brendan made par on the final two holes to secure solo 3rd.

 

And Billy tied the bad course record (w/ Danny) at 105 (gross).

 

 -----------------------

 

Overall the course was a great value. I was shocked how good the greens were rolling (albeit slow) for being punched one month ago. And the head pro seems to like us and want us back.

 

------------------------

 

We're off next week for Father's Day and the US Open. See you in two weeks when Casey hosts us at Countryside for our first Major of the season.

 

Be sure to update your RSVP so he can drop a tee time if needed.

Summer 2025 - Week 2

Seminole Lake

10am

Long drive #13

$80ish

 

This course plays fairly easy, especially after they converted the longest par 4 into a short par 5. The greens are firm and will give us the most trouble... and were punched a month ago. But outside of that it's a pretty straight forward course off the tee.

 

Everyone is on the WHITE tees unless you tell me you want to move back... which some of you should. Let me know now since it'll affect the pairings.

 

Scorecard:

 

 

Week 1 Recap

Mother Nature must be a golfer, because she blessed us with some nice weather to kick off the new season. Sunshine, a light breeze, and just enough moisture in the turf to make it feel like a sponge, but not enough to restrict carts—so, naturally, we considered that a win.

Speaking of wins; only ONE pitcher was owed today... shoutout to Big John, who somehow managed to play an entire round of golf without recording a single par on his way to DFL.

Now, on to the real competition—because yes, some people actually came to play golf. Things were tight at the top with Crum (who had 8 pars), Geoff (who opened with four straight pars), and Gorecki, who was in the hunt until the 18th hole absolutely body-slammed his hopes and dreams.

Geoff “The People’s Champion” posted a strong -4 and then proceeded to do what champions do—sit in the clubhouse with a beverage and refresh the live leaderboard like a fantasy football addict in Week 17 to see if he could be caught. Since Crum and Gorecki were both getting 2-strokes on 18, there was a chance...

Gorecki needed a par on the long 18th to tie… but after doubling 17, he would’ve needed a miracle. Instead, he got a reality check. Better luck next time, bud.

But here comes Crum, somehow armed with FOUR sevens on the card, managed a bogey on 18 to sneak into a tie for first—and in a moment historians will remember forever, claimed his FIRST EVER league victory. Congrats, Crum! 

Honorable mention to Reid, who had enough good holes to snag solo 3rd, but his 6 sixes dragged him down like an anchor tied to a rusty pushcart. 

As for the rest of you? Let’s just say… if you didn’t get named here, it’s because your performance was so forgettable, I already forgot it. Play better next week!

Summer 2025 - Week 1 Preview

Long drive #8

We're back with a clean slate, and an old-school tournament this Sunday at Lake Jovita (North). Only 13 players in the field!

 

Now's your chance to show what you learned during the off-season, and to take a large head start over Dear Leader.

 

Don't forget precious Rapture points are on the line!

 

Tee time is 10:30am... and it's NOT a shotgun start, as the South Course is closed due to aerification so the tee sheet is quite full.

 

Rain shouldn't be a problem, and the current forecast is calling for slightly cooler (high 80s) than recent temperatures.

 

I won't be there, so you people will need to do a few things for me:

 

1) Make sure the leader board on GameBook is correct. Double and triple-check it against your physical score cards.

 

2) Have someone from each group text me who won greenies, sandies, etc. If I don't hear from you, I'll assume nobody won anything.

 

3) Tell me who bought pitchers after the golf

 

If you want to change tees from the WHITE base tees, let me know now. The set-up committee is allowing the 25/55 Club to move up to the GREEN tees, and has preemptively adjusted Gary and his older brother Gorecki.

 

Also, update your RSVP for week 2 now. I need to let Seminole Lake know if we're dropping a tee time. By mid-week I'm just going to assume any ???s are OUT.

 

Good luck. We'll be watching.

 

Here's a scorecard: 

Southern Pines - 2025 Golf Trip

Just returned from golfing up in Southern Pines. Here's a review nobody asked for:

Tobacco Road

 

A perfect example of golf course maximalism design, which is difficult to fully grasp without seeing it. Unfortunately, your initial appreciation for the course will depend on how you're striking the ball. Nobody in our group hated it... but only a handful of us loved it (and we played well).

 

It's a pure strategic and execution test. Every tee shot is visually daunting, but there is a lot more room than you perceive. Think of Waterlefe with blind tee shots and giant mounds of deep fescue rough.

 

The opening tee sets the tone.

 

The greens are absolutely wild, with multiple sections that are sometimes barely connected. There are lots of kicker-slopes and punch-bowl areas that lead to birdie putts if you land in the correct spot. What looks like a giant green is actually two or three smaller greens. And what looks like a tiny green is actually a couple of connected microscopic putting surfaces!

 

There are various "dead" areas on every shot. And it's impossible to know where those spots are without playing the course multiple times. So you end up firing at the center of each green and hoping for a good bounce.

 

The approach on the uphill par-5 13th. The green is completely hidden...

 

... and only 20-yards deep with two distinct sections (right and left funnels).

As someone who doesn't often hit shots off-line, I felt the course was "fair." I had no issues looking at the GPS and generally knowing where I should land my ball. Others felt Tobacco Road was completely "tricked up" — which I believe was the entire point: a tricky test you won't find anywhere else.

 

They're currently charging over $300 per round, all day every day. No twilight rates. And the tee sheets are completely filled six months in advance.

The Pines Courses

 

The other three courses we played are all Donald Ross courses from the early 1900s. They were also all restored in the last decade, and felt like a time-capsule in the North Carolina sand hills. Greens fees currently running about $240 per round:

 

Mid Pines

 

Probably ranked the lowest by everyone on the trip, but still a beautiful course. My complaint was there were no real standout holes. Even now I'm having trouble remembering the routing.

 

The par 3s were all very challenging.

 

The rest of the course looked like this. Subtle land movement framed with pines.

Honestly, I got World Woods (RIP) vibes from Mid Pines. If this course was located in Tampa, it would be one of the best in the area. But compared to its NC siblings, I thought Mid Pines was mid.

 

Pine Needles

 

Located across the street from Mid Pines, the property sits on much more dramatic land. There are very few flat lies on the course. It also hosted the 2007 and 2022 U.S. Women's Open — and rightfully so. I found this to be a very difficult test throughout.

 

Downhill tee shot over water, with a sharp dogleg left. Deep bunkers protect cutting the corner.

Their greens were most like Pinehurst #2 on the trip, with how high they were pushed up from the approach surfaces. Conditions were excellent, and the lodge was the best hangout spot. Overall, a top choice by our group.

 

Southern Pines

 

The newest restoration of the bunch, this course was a lot of fun. Off the tee it was pretty straight forward. But the greens were "potato chips" and sometimes elevated into volcano positions. Overall, these putting surfaces were the most difficult we experienced.

 

Wider than Mid Pines, and more memorable / fun.

 

This place was basically a muni for the last 70 years... and exists as a shining example of what all lower-tier courses should strive for. While a full renovation/restoration isn't always economically feasible, the key components of these old Donald Ross designs can easily be replicated: Wall-to-wall fairway, remove all but the most strategic trees and bunkers, and slap some large wavy greens down surrounded by mounding.

 

 

Final thoughts:

 

The golf was excellent, and better than most of the courses at actual "Pinehurst."

 

The new owners have pumped all their money into the golf. So while the Mid-Pines lodging was suitable for our needs, it was pretty run down.

 

The town of Southern Pines is very small with a few dive bars and a handful of bistros. Pinehurst is only 10 minutes away so it's easy to go hang out there as well with all the other Bag Tag Bros your brain can handle.

 

It's definitely worth a trip due to how easy it is to get in and out of Raleigh.

 

 

Summer 2025 Season

We start up in a couple of weeks at Lake Jovita. It's a non-shotgun start at 10:30am.

We're missing 8 Member's RSVPs for the season, and 5 Membership dues. Check to see if you owe anything and send it over.

 

I'm basically only booking 20 players per event based on historical attendance.

Shrink the Game - Update

I've been working on potential Rapture locations, and figured I'd share what I'm seeing out in the wild.

 

For context, our most expensive Rapture to date was last year at Verandah — $423 per player (inclusive of lodging and golf).

 

--------------

 

Reunion wants to host us, but quoted me $754 per player for 3 rounds and 3 nights. That equates to a 67% increase in lodging and an 18% increase in golf over our round last Summer (four of us stayed the night before).

 

I'm telling Reunion no based on price.

 

--------------

 

Black Diamond just re-opened after renovations. Adam heard it wasn't in good shape at the moment, which I assume is due to grow-in. 

 

Anyway... I noticed they have a new golf sales manager, so I decided to reach out.

 

$325+ for the Quarry and $300+ for the Ranch course.

Even if we only played the Quarry for Sunday Singles... total cost would be an estimated $740 per player (golf and whatever AirBnBs I can find).

Spring 2025 - Champions Dinner

 

Not pictured: Buchert

Big John Hole-in-One

Big John — who you may remember — made a hole-in-one over the weekend on his buddies trip. Enjoy this fun video of him confirming the achievement.

 

Summer 2025 Schedule

Schedule is loaded. RSVP link is active.

 

Be sure to check what you owe for Summer dues and send that over (highlighted red in the "Summer Owed" column). Or if you're retiring let me know so I can cash you out ("Final Balance").

 

-------

 

The current Board has our last meeting this off-season. If there's anything you'd like us to discuss, make a comment and smash that like button. We'll meet in a couple of weeks.

 

Somehow, Crum is the only guy under the 6-tournament (in rolling 2 season) playing requirement, so we need to figure out what his status is.

 

I would have bet there was about 4 guys auto-suspended!

 

-------

 

Rapture dates are tentatively October 9th through October 12th. Location is still TBD.

FBGC Masters - Spring 2025 Recap

As predicted, Calusa Country Club was a windy, dusty mess. The course mixed fun with frustration: firm fairways, even firmer greens (though oddly slow), and OB lines so strange they’d confuse a surveyor. Scores ballooned.

 

Despite Gorecki attempting to get free golf with some convoluted trailer-park story... it seems they'll have us back if we want to try it again in the Summer. Let me know in the comments and smash those like and subscribe buttons.

 

Yesterday was wild: Melberg carded a 52 on the front, avoiding pars until the 12th. The back nine played 3.5 strokes tougher, yet Adam tanked 10 shots worse than his front. And the field failed to record at least 3 pars on five different holes.

 

But Ho won his 7th ever event and 2nd ever Major, from the tips at 7,404 yards, with an incredibly impressive -3 (net) performance. He also shot the low round of the day with 81 (gross). And it should have been better if not for a triple-bogey on the somewhat easy 16th hole. He also led wire-to-wire

 

Off the top of my head, I think this round ranks up there with Dave's 2017 DPT Open victory at Southern Hills — a 75 (gross) in 20-30 mph cold winds.

 

------------------------------------------

 

But all eyes were on the final group, as Chandler, Moostie, and Casey battled for the cherished DPT Cup.

 

Moostie ejected early, hitting his approach shot on the first hole OB and carding a quad. He made a course management error on #2, opting to hit 3-wood off the tee which led to a double. He somewhat put the wheels back on playing bogey-golf for the next nine holes. But all hopes were lost with a disastrous triple on 12, followed by a tee-ball into "internal OB" at 13.

 

Chandler (me?), despite some terrible play early on, figured he had the season won as Casey required a solo-2nd or better to steal. Of course, Casey shot a 39 (gross) on the front with some of the best driving I've ever seen. His entire round felt like he was destined to win the title:

• Hitting over the lake into the wind on #2, leading to an easy pitch and par.
  
• Crushing a drive on #4, getting home with his second shot, and barely missing an eagle. 
• Hooking his tee shot OB on #5, re-loading and driving it to the fringe pin high. He then chipped it to two inches for a tap-in bogey.
• Pulling it less than a foot from OB on the left side of #9. Pitching out sideways while standing on the other side of the black tarp. Hitting his approach to 8 feet and draining the par putt.

At this point in the tournament, Casey found himself in solo 2nd — while Chandler only had 30 of the 49.7 points he needed. Casey also had his sights on catching Ho and winning outright, making everyone else irrelevant. 

 

For whatever reason (we're dumb), the final group thought Chandler needed a T4 or better to overtake Casey. So we really had no idea how close it was. Here’s how it unfolded (assuming the entire field finished each hole at the same time):

 

10th hole: Casey was a foot from driving the green, but turned a 20-foot downhill eagle putt into a par. Chandler hit his approach to 8 inches and tapped in a birdie. Chandler up by 5.4 points.

 

11th hole: Chandler hits his drive left of the fairway bunker and into a lake. Of course... we discover the lake is marked as OB. Taking a stroke-and-distance penalty, Chandler makes a long putt to save double bogey (Casey makes bogey). But because Adam made a net-birdie to tie Casey in 2nd, Chandler increased his lead to 45.4 points.

 

12th hole: Casey drives it into a fairway bunker and has to play his 2nd shot on his knees. He leaves it in the bunker for an Adolf... advances his 3rd shot to 170 out (up hill, down wind)... and nukes a 7 iron 190+ carry into a lake behind the green. I've never heard that sound from Casey's irons. He then makes an insane up-and-down from a blind spot behind the green for a double bogey. Chandler makes a ho-hum par and leads by 144.2 points.

 

Not ideal.

 

13th hole: Adam implodes vaulting Casey back into solo-2nd. Casey's drive went through the fairway and somehow stopped on a steep hill, just feet from OB. As he hit the approach, his Gap Wedge snapped in half. Chandler leads by 33.7 points.

 

14th hole: It's "Gypsy Time" as Chandler yanks two balls long left — which we assume is OB. Both balls are up and there are no white stakes to be found! Chandler flops on from some rotting sod behind a freshly planted tree, and two putts for bogey. Casey 3-jacks from long range. Chandler leads by 22.9 points.

 

15th hole: Chandler was just off the green in two, and used putter to "chip" to a couple of feet for birdie (net eagle). Casey was in a greenside bunker in two... blasted it over the green... chips to 30 feet... and then drains the putt for par (net birdie). Chandler leads by 33.3 points.

 

16th hole: Chandler makes a boring par while Casey finally hits a bad drive - into a lake. A few chunks later he records his only triple of the day. His mood is deflated, and he begins to accept things might be over. Chandler leads by 50.4 points.

 

17th hole: Casey drains a 12 foot downhill putt for par to keep the dream alive, but another boring par by Chandler eliminates some of the drama. Adam and Marcus have now officially ejected from the event, so there's even less people to play spoiler. Chandler leads by 112.9 points.

 

18th hole: Chandler thought he would win the season with a bogey, and lose with a double bogey. This was NOT the case due to another bogey by Marcus on the final hole. Chandler could have made triple on #18 to win the season by 0.4 points!

 

So the finish was anticlimactic for those watching on 18... and incredibly nerve-wracking for the dumb-dumbs in the final group who can't do simple math. For as close as it felt, this was only our 7th smallest margin of victory in Club history. Regardless, someone was going to win the season without an actual win. 

 

Not the Champion you wanted, but the one you deserve.

 

We start back up at Lake Jovita on Sunday, June 1st. Enjoy the extended break.