Mike wins the Shootout.

It was a cool, cloudy morning, and the wind was a little harder than most of us anticipated.

A few golfers were ahead of us, and a small tournament would not start until 12:30, so we would be good to go.

Joe T had the week off, Adam and Stephen remembered they had golf tournaments on Sunday, and JT was sick. That left us with nine Golfers, three tee times, and lots of free points.

Front Nine:

1st Place:  Dustin – 32 (50)

1st Place:  James – 32 (39)

3rd Place:  EJ – 35 (53)

4th Place:  Rob – 36 (45)

5th Place:  Matt – 37 (46)

5th Place:  Mike – 37 (42)

7th Place:  Rey – 39 (50)

8th Place:  Joe V – 40 (42)

9th Place:  Joe – 41 (53)

Dustin and James came out swinging for the fences, trying to make the most of the easy front nine by shooting three under.   James had 2 Birdies and 4 Pars, while Dustin played bogey and double Bogey golf, limiting himself to only one triple bogey.  Even EJ was shooting Par at the turn.

Rob, Matt, and Mike were trying to keep it close. 

Every time I saw Rey, he was walking, so he was probably just a little tired. 

Once again, Joe is off to a very slow start. He is trying to find his swing and maybe a little confidence. Joe V cannot be playing well if he is just above Joe. 

I do know that Joe V tagged a drive on the 4th hole because he drove on us at about the 340-yard mark.

The easiest hole on the Front was the Par 3, 5th Hole, which played just over half a stroke over Par.  The hardest hole on the Front was the Par 4, 6th hole, which played 2 Strokes over Par.

As a Group, we shot two over Par 37 with our Handicap (47).

Back Nine:

1st Place:  Mike – 35 (40)

2nd Place:  Joe – 38 (50)

3rd Place:  Rey – 39 (50)

4th Place:  James – 40 (48)

5th Place:  Joe V – 41 (43)

5th Place:  Rob – 41 (50)

7th Place:  Matt – 42 (51)

8th Place:  EJ – 43 (61)

9th Place:  Dustin – 47 (65)

It was a different story on back nine with the narrow, treelined doglegged fairways, which sometimes included water.

Mike has six pars, 5 of them in a row on holes 1 through 5. 

Joe has 2 of his own pars and four bogeys, but he found lots of trouble on the 16th hole.   Rey is right behind Joe. Rey also having trouble with the 16th hole. 

Now it’s James and Rob with the 40 and 41.  Joe V shoots another 41. 

Matt starts the back with two pars but then runs into deep trouble at the Par 3, 13th hole.  EJ finds trouble with 10, 11, and 16. 

Dustin finds a world of hurt at the 16th and 17th holes.

At one point, at the 11th & 12th hole by the water, we were looking for a couple of misguided balls.  For whatever reason, there must have been at least eight golf balls in the area.  This is why marking your golf ball with your initials and a number (1,2 or 3) is essential.  The Titlist blue/red 1 isn’t "marking" your ball.

The easiest hole on the Back was the Par 4, 12th Hole, which played one stroke over Par.  This really isn’t surprising since they moved the white tees all the way up.  The hardest hole on the Front was the Par 4, 16th hole, which played 3.2 Strokes over Par.

As a Group, we shot five over Par 41 with our Handicap (51) and a Final Score of 78 (98)

Final Score:

1st Place:  James – 72 (87)

1st Place:  Mike – 72 (82)

3rd Place:  Rob – 77 (95)

4th Place:  EJ – 78 (114)

4th Place:  Rey – 78 (100)

6th Place:  Dustin – 79 (115)

6th Place:  Matt – 79 (97)

6th Place:  Joe – 79 (103)

9th Place:  Joe V – 81 (85)

As you can see, it was quite a Shootout.

We have our first 1st Place tie of the year.  Rey, EJ, and I discussed the Put-Off, but James and Mike just asked for a coin flip.  You can’t ask for a quicker or easier way to find a winner….

I pulled out my trusty John Daley coin. James gave Mike the call, and Mike called Tails. Tails it was, and Mike now has a BJG Trophy in 2024.

Of course, with everything going on during the weekend, I left the “Woods” trophy at home, so I had to borrow a trophy from Agawam. Mike, I’ll have your trophy at our next event.

Yes, EJ tied for 4th Place, not 5th, as I had said at the Clubhouse. It seems Math is not EJ’s strong suit.  Remember, scores are not official until I enter them into the computer.

With four golfers out, the points were going to be very good. I was also giving out One Point for wearing Tiger’s signature Red Shirt and Black Shorts or Pants. James and Matt were close in their chosen attire but not close enough for the point.

Wood Shootout Points Plus Red & Black

1st Place:  Mike – 15 + 1 = 16

2nd Place:  James – 13 + 0 = 13

3rd Place:  Rob – 12 + 0 = 12

4th Place:  EJ – 10.5 + 1 = 11.5

4th Place:  Rey – 10.5 + 1 = 11.5

6th Place:  Dustin – 8 + 1 = 9

6th Place:  Joe – 8 + 1 = 9

8th Place:  Matt – 8 + 0 = 8

9th Place:  Joe V – 6 + 1 = 7

BJG Fed Up Cup Leaderboard

1st Place:  Matt – 72.5 Points

2nd Place:  Joe T – 71.5 Points

3rd Place:  Adam – 65.5 Points

4th Place:  Rey – 59.5 Points

4th Place:  Rob – 59.5 Points

6th Place:  Joe – 52 Points

7th Place:  EJ – 51.5 Points

8th Place:  Dustin – 44 Points

9th Place:  Mike – 39 Points

10th Place:  James – 38 Points

11th Place:  Stephen – 35 Points

12th Place:  JT – 26 Points

13th Place:  Joe V – 14 Points

Matt is now our Points Leader after Joe T and Adam took the weekend off.  Joe T and Adam each only fall one spot to 2nd and 3rd.  But what DID happen was that the gap between 3rd and 4th is now manageable.

Rey remains at the 4th spot, with Rob moving up one spot and now in a tie with Rey.

Joe, EJ, and Dustin remain in the same spots, 6th, 7th, and 8th.

Mike and James move up from 12th and 11th into a tie for the 9th spot.

Stephen falls from 9th to 11th, and JT falls from 10th to 12th.

Joe V remains at the bottom, but he is gaining points.

Rob won the Closet to the Pin (again) on the Front, and Joe V makes a little money on the back.

In other Golf News from the weekend:

Former champion John Daley withdrew from the PGA Championship on Friday with what he said was a thumb injury.  He shot 82 in the first round at Valhalla without making a birdie.

Tiger Woods missed the cut after the second round Friday at Valhalla Golf Club.  Woods made TWO triple bogeys on his first four holes en route to a 6-over-par 77 in the second round.

It might be time for John and Tiger to join BJG.

Next on the schedule is the Championship of the World, which will be played at Pine Knoll Executive Golf Course in East Longmeadow on 6/2/24, followed closely by our 2nd Major, the Fathers & Uncles Invitational on 6/9/24 at Tekoa County Club in Westfield.  Yes, that is back-to-back Sundays.

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Memorial Day weekend.  

Respectfully,

Broken Joe

Commissioner