Matt Leaves No Survivors in Valhalla

Matt put on a show at the Victory of Valhalla Match Play, denying Joe T the satisfaction of winning a single hole all day.

I was expecting at least one person to drop out before Sunday, but by the time I was heading to bed Saturday night, everything was looking good.

Then, around 10:30 p.m., the first text arrived. Rob had a family emergency and would not be able to play Sunday.

Okay. We could work around that.

Then came the text I was really expecting—but it came WAY too early. Around 11:00 p.m., Stephen texted me saying he had hurt his “back” and would not be able to play Sunday.

We all know what the code word “back” means, right?

Just like that, two players were gone, and the Match Play pairings needed some emergency surgery.

I couldn't simply put Joe A and Rey together because Joe A would have to give Rey seven strokes. Instead, I moved Joe A into a straight-up battle with Magic Mike, while Rey and Joe V were sent off to battle the dreaded Ghosts of Valhalla.

And with that...

ON TO THE BATTLES!

Adam vs. Iron Mike — Battle for the Ages

This one lived up to the hype.

After nine holes, Iron Mike held a slim 1 Up lead. By the 15th hole, Iron Mike had stretched it to 2 Up with three holes to play.

It looked like Mike had this thing wrapped up.

But Adam is no quitter. Adam won 16. Then 17. And finally 18.

Three straight holes to completely steal the match away from Iron Mike.

Adam wins, 1 Up.

Final Scores: Adam – 69 (78) / Iron Mike – 70 (78)

Same gross score. One stroke difference in the net score. And a match that literally came down to the 18th hole.

That's Match Play.

EJ vs. Joe — The Comeback That Almost Was

Joe was getting his ass kicked early. There really isn't a nicer way to say it.

His driver refused to cooperate, while EJ was absolutely crushing his driver.

After nine holes, EJ was 4 Up, and Joe looked like he might be headed for an early trip to Valhalla.

But something changed on the back nine.

Joe finally started hitting the driver straight—although not particularly far—and relied heavily on his 3-wood and 4-hybrid to stay alive.

Meanwhile, EJ started having trouble with his approach shots.

Suddenly, Joe started winning holes. The impossible comeback was starting to look possible.

But on the 17th, EJ finally slammed the door. He tied Joe on the hole, ending the storybook comeback before it could reach the 18th tee.

EJ wins, 2 Up with 1 to Play.

Final Scores: Joe – 69 (93) / EJ – 69 (96).

Same net score. EJ wins the Match Play battle. Again... That's Match Play.

Joe V vs. The Ghost of Adam

With the late withdrawals, Joe V drew a Ghost.

Unfortunately for Joe V, his Ghost was Adam.

And considering what Adam did on the back nine to Iron Mike, Joe V probably would have preferred an actual dead guy.

Adam's back-nine charge carried over to his Ghost duties, and Joe V couldn't escape.

The Ghost wins, 3 Up with 1 to Play.

Final Score: Joe V – 76 (88)

Joe V came to Valhalla looking for a Viking. Instead, he got a Ghost.

Magic Mike vs. Joe A — The Sorcerer Strikes Again

Joe A was also getting his ass kicked early. After nine holes, Magic Mike had built a massive 5 Up lead.

Joe A tried to mount a comeback on the back nine, but Magic Mike wasn't interested in making this story dramatic. The Sorcerer shut the door.

Magic Mike wins, 4 Up with 3 to Play.

Final Scores: Magic Mike – 71 (84) / Joe A – 75 (88)

Magic Mike continues to prove that his Clash of COLORS victory was no fluke.

The Sorcerer is officially dangerous.

Rey vs. The Ghost of Matt

Rey opened his Match Play round in spectacular fashion—with an EAGLE.

There's just one problem. This isn't Stroke Play. An eagle wins you exactly one hole.

By the end of nine, Rey found himself 5 Down.

He managed to fight back and win a couple more holes, but eventually the magic ran out.

And who was Rey's Ghost?

Matt.

Yeah...that Matt.

The Ghost of Matt wins, 6 Up with 4 to Play.

Final Score: Rey – 75 (94)

Starting with an eagle and still getting crushed by a Ghost seems unnecessarily cruel. Welcome to Valhalla.

Matt vs. Joe T — The Massacre at Valhalla

On paper, Matt vs. Joe T looked like it could be one of the better matches of the day.

In reality... It was a massacre. After nine holes, Matt was 6 Up.

Even worse? Joe T had not won a single hole.

Surely things would get better on the back nine. They did not.

Matt continued the destruction and officially closed out the match 8 Up with 6 to Play.

And because apparently that wasn't enough humiliation, Matt later drained a LONG par putt on 17 just to add a little more insult to injury.

Matt wins, 8 Up with 6 to Play.

Final Scores: Matt – 63 (83) / Joe T – 78 (100)

Matt didn't just beat Joe T. He denied him entrance into Valhalla.

Valhalla Match Play Points

Fortunately for everyone who got slaughtered in Match Play, we still had our regular BJG points to count:

2 Points for Winning a Hole / 1 Point for Tying a Hole

1st Place: Matt – 29

2nd Place: Magic Mike – 22

3rd Place: Adam – 19

3rd Place: EJ – 19

5th Place: Iron Mike – 17

5th Place: Joe – 17

7th Place: Joe A – 14

7th Place: Joe V – 14

9th Place: Rey – 10

10th Place: Joe T – 7

Valhalla Match Play Points

1st Place: Matt – 66

2nd Place: Magic Mike – 62

3rd Place: Adam – 56

3rd Place: EJ – 56

5th Place: Iron Mike – 48

5th Place: Joe – 48

7th Place: Joe A – 40

7th Place: Joe V – 40

9th Place: Rey – 34

10th Place: Joe T – 30

Longest Drive / Closest to the Pin

Congratulations to Adam (Longest Drive) and Rey (Closest to the Pin) for winning this week's money.

About That Golf Course...

Now, I am not one to complain about a golf course... BUT...

When a golf course charges you full price while you're basically putting on a fairway green, I think we have a problem.

And that wasn't all.

The back-nine greens were absolutely soaked. Balls weren't just leaving ball marks—they were plugging DEEP into the greens.

The funniest part happened before we even got there.

A guy at the breakfast place told us he had played the course on Saturday and said it was awful. Of course, we thought he was just being uppity.

Turns out... He was right.

Race to BIG Y (Dubai) Leaderboard

After surviving Valhalla, here is where everyone stands heading into the final Major and the final round of the regular season:

1st Place: Matt – 493.5 Points

2nd Place: Magic Mike – 441.5 Points

3rd Place: Adam – 430 Points

4th Place: Iron Mike – 369.5 Points

5th Place: EJ – 357.5 Points

6th Place: Rey – 348.3 Points

7th Place: Joe – 345.5 Points

8th Place: James – 330 Points

9th Place: Joe A – 311 Points

10th Place: Joe T – 266.3 Points

11th Place: Stephen – 249 Points

12th Place: Rob – 239 Points

13th Place: JT – 188.3 Points

14th Place: Joe V – 132 Points

15th Place: Dustin – 89 Points

The Race to the Playoffs

There is no change in the top three. Matt continues his dominance, sitting comfortably atop the leaderboard with 493.5 points. Magic Mike remains second, with Adam right behind him in third.

But after those three? Things get interesting.

Iron Mike moves up one spot into 4th Place with 369.5 points, but he better not get comfortable. EJ, Rey and Joe are all within 26 points of Iron Mike. That means 4th Place is absolutely up for grabs.

Expand the picture to include James in 8th and Joe A in 9th, and suddenly we have six golfers separated by only 58.5 points from 4th through 9th.

One big round at Airways could completely scramble the standings.

Joe T moves up two spots into 10th, while Stephen and Rob the Gate Keeper each fall one position to 11th and 12th.

And that makes Rob's position very interesting because 12th is the final playoff spot.

JT is officially on the outside looking in at 13th, followed by Joe V in 14th and Dustin in 15th.

And by the way, JT will be playing in the BJG Championship !!

There is only one regular-season event left.

One More Battle Before the Playoffs

We started the season months ago.

Now it all comes down to 36 holes at Airways.

The BJG Championship will be our final Major AND the final round of the 2026 regular season.

Sunday, August 23rd, 2026 at Airways Golf Course. Round 1 Tee Time: 6:56 a.m. and Round 2 Tee Time: Noon

Thirty-six holes.

Double round.

Final Major.

Final chance to earn points and just maybe a first round bye.

Final chance to make the playoffs.

Matt may have control of the Race to BIG Y (Dubai), but from 4th Place down to the playoff cut line, there is still plenty left to decide.

Valhalla has spoken.

Now it's time to find out who survives Airways.

Respectfully,

Broken Joe

Commissioner