Joe Freezes the Competition at the 2021 Winter Classic Championship

Initially, we were supposed to have four groups with 15 golfers, but Juan let me know that Tim was not coming, and Rock probably told me earlier that he was not coming, but I missed it. Rock did remind me on Saturday afternoon. With two spots open, Dave is back in and Alex is invited to the WCC.

At 2 am on Sunday morning, I get a text from Jon saying that he is sick, and will not be attending the WCC. Jon's posts on Facebook determined that was a lie.

We are now only missing one golfer, so that isn’t too bad, especially for the WCC.

The plan is now to move Bryan up to the 3rd tee time and EJ & Alex to the 4th group with Matt T, but we will see how things play out on Sunday morning.

I arrive around 8:30, but Matty Ice is already at Veterans working hard on his putting.

As time rolls on everyone shows up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed on this beautiful fall day, well, Juan was a little rough.

It did not feel like a normal winter classic where we are not only fighting each other for the win but also fighting the late fall, cold, wet weather.

As we are getting ready to move to the tee box, I finally accept the fact that Bryan and Matt T have ghosted us and they are no-shows.

I move Jake back to the 3rd group and move EJ and Alex up to the 2nd group with Adam and Dustin. And just like that, all is right with the world again.

We are now ready to play our 10th Annual Winter Classic Championship where Rey will lead us off the first tee box.

Front Nine Scores:

1st: Dave – 44 (41)

2nd: Jake – 46 (44)

2nd: Joe – 46 (46)

4th: Adam – 46.5 (52)

5th: Matty Ice – 47.5 (54)

6th: Cody – 50.5 (43)

6th: Juan – 50.5 (54)

8th: Rey – 51 (48)

9th: Alex – 53 (62)

10th: Dustin – 53.5 (59)

11th: EJ – 55 (64)

12: Chris – 61.5 (62)

Dave is leading the pack with his 6 pars but the top 5 golfers are close, and Joe has the lone front nine birdie. Matty Ice has trouble with the first hole (9), while EJ has some trouble with holes 2 and 3 (11 & 12). Chris, still only having the use of one arm, is having trouble with the par 5s.

In one of the rarest events that I have seen since Cody has joined BJG, Cody hit a big miss right on the 9th hole. Listen, when I say right, I mean right and far. Cody’s ball went past the 2nd tee box and probably into the woods by the first fairway. Even with 2 strokes for a lost ball, Cody gets an 8 on the par 5.

Back Nine:

Cody starts the back nine with 2 pars and 2 birdies. Cody knows that he needs to make his move from the middle of the pack. On the 14th hole, Cody loses his 2nd ball of the day, and that is enough to allow Joe to keep it close.

I'm starting to think that Cody is looking to adjust his 2022 BJG handicap...

Chris, showing the heart of a lion, figures out what he has to do to make his one arm swing work.

Rey gives it a gallant effort, but the plus 6 handicap is too much for him to overcome.

Dave and Jake fall off the pace that they set on the front nine, and EJ again has some big numbers on the first 3 holes on the back nine (12, 10 & 13).

Back Nine Scores:

1st: Joe – 44 (44)

2nd: Cody – 45.5 (38)

3rd: Chris – 47.5 (48)

4th: Rey – 48 (45)

5th: Adam – 50.5 (56)

6th: Jake – 51 (49)

7th: Matty Ice – 51.5 (58)

8th: Dave – 52 (49)

9th: Juan – 52.5 (56)

10th: Dustin – 56.5 (62)

11th: Alex – 57 (66)

12th: EJ – 64 (73)

Final Scores

1st Place: Joe – 90 (90)

2nd Place: Cody – 96 (81)

2nd Place: Dave – 96 (90)

4th Place: Adam – 97 (108)

4th Place: Jake – 97 (93)

6th Place: Matty Ice – 99 (112)

6th Place: Rey – 99 (93)

8th Place: Juan – 103 (110)

9th Place: Chris – 109 (110)

10th Place: Alex – 110 (128)

10Th Place: Dustin – 110 (121)

12th Place: EJ – 119 (137)

Once again, the scores were close with 4 sets of ties. What a great way to end the season.

Cody and Joe have been battling all year, but Joe was finally able to put a decent round together with the help of his driver. This was also a round where we saw Cody lose 2 golf balls.

This is Joe's 3rd time winning the Winter Classic Championship.

It was originally reported that Joe had scored an 88, but after certifying the scores, I found that what originally looked like a 3 was actually a 5.

Alex and Dustin pick up where they left off at the President’s Cup,

and it is truly unfortunate that Rey peaked just a little too early and watched his handicap blow up, but he wasn’t the only one that happened to in 2021.

EJ finally comes back to earth after having an incredible season for a first-time golfer.

We did have some challenges this year, but I think we are on track with our handicap system, and hopefully, it will be just a little bit better next year.

Now it is time to take some well-earned time off and spend the holidays with your family. Maybe when you have a couple of minutes to yourself, you can think about how you can “play better golf” next year.

Meanwhile, I will be working on the 2022 schedule and 2022 handicaps. I will also get with Dan to make the final purchases for the 2021 season, so stay tuned in because I will be in touch.

Thank you.

Broken Joe

Commissioner