Pushoff was precisely on time today but then it always is with Barney running the ship—tight, real tight. We pressed the golf-cart pedals at 8:50 a.m., except for those same two carts that prove the rule. Do you suppose these slow pokes get out to their holes and wait for the shotgun? Do they listen to Barney's instructions? Do they hear what Craig Hanlin has to say? Do they create the stop-and-go that ripples through our 30-group field?
You have to love the climate hereabouts and at this time of year. The round started at 74 °F, partly cloudy with a slight breeze out of the north. It ended at 86 °F with scattered clouds and a brisk 14 mph ENE wind.
Barney was ecstatic. The members and staff at Osprey Cove tripped over themselves helping to make this event an unqualified success. From bag drop to awards, the experience was ineffably superior.
TODAY'S ACTION
Playing with us for the first time, Fritz Skeen (SG) plopped his tee shot closer to the flagstick on No. 7 than anyone else in the field. Yours truly is willing to bet $5 it'll be at least five years before Fritz does it again. But then, they say lightning strikes twice.
San Jose made the biggest move on the leader board, jumping two places by dint of a 41-point spurt over last month's performance. Four teams—St. Johns, Eagle Harbor, Deercreek, and Marsh Creek—rose one place; six teams remained in place; three teams dropped a place; and we dasn't mention Hidden Hills.
SCORER'S TABLE
Our Handicap and Tournament Chairman, Barney Poston (HH), is grateful for the efficient work of ten volunteers in today's scoring area where your scorecards are handled in the following order.
Readers: Bill Martin (OC), Alan Finger (OC)
Scorers: Tony De Marco (OC), Glenn Dobrick (SG)
Tallier: Jack Garrity (EH)
Runners:Jack Hoey (OC), Peter McVeigh (OC)
Posters: Craig Hanlin, PGA, Director of Golf
Adam Stuck, PGA, General Manager
Sorter: Ray Hein (OC)
Pit Boss: Barney Poston (HH)
THE SHAKY LADDER
Orange Park Country Club
With 288 points, Orange Park played the role of a spoiler in taking first place by a six-point margin while maintaining next-to-last place on the season ladder. Down but not out, Orange Park has three matches left to close their 189-point gap from first place: double points on December 10. That's four scoring occasions. Today's gap between first and last place was 47 points. Four 47's are 188: that's pretty, pretty close to 189.
Captain Joe Pierce anchored his team while John White took the honors with a resounding 49 points, his highest production in 19 outings and 9 points greater than his previous high.
The team average, 41.1 points, was today's highest but they were also nearly the most dispersed (s=5.3 vs 6.3, the latter honor belonging to Hidden Hills who finished in next to last in today's field).
Osprey Cove Golf Club
With 282 points, Osprey Cove won second place in a tiebreaker with San Jose. Captain Jack Hoey was not in the lineup but Russ Campbell pulled an amazing 51 points in his 31st outing, ten points greater than his previous high.
The team average, 40.3 points, was second highest. They didn't budge from 13th place on the leader board.
San Jose Country Club
With 282 points, San Jose got the short end of the stick in the tiebreaker with Osprey Cove—the home team gets the advantage. Captain Bill Basney pulled his point-quota while Steve Vining came in with a huge 48 points in his 24th outing, five points greater than his previous high.
The team average, 40.3 points, matched Osprey Cove's as second highest but was slightly more widely dispersed (s=5.0 versus 4.9) than Osprey Cove. They climbed two rungs on the season ladder, a scant 57 points out of first place.
Queen's Harbour Yacht & Country Club
With 281 points, Queen's Harbour lamented their slim distance from second or third place. Co-captain Ray Mantle tallied 45 points while co-captain Bill Bremner pulled his points and an extra four to boot.
On this occasion, Queen's Harbour stalled in third place but stayed just 19 points out of first place.
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE
Eagles: 1 Jack Garrity (EH)
Hole 8, 6-Iron, 149 yards
Birdies: 51 Almost three per hole!
Strokes: 74 Gary Owensby (EH)
88 MSIS Average
111 Name withheld
Points: 52 Arch Copeland Jr (DC)
38 MSIS Average
22 Name withheld
CLOSEST TO FLAGSTICK
Hole 4 John Tancredi (ML) 2' 9"
Hole 7 Fritz Skeen (SG) 2' 8"
Hole 11 Bob Porteus (SJ) 5' 6-1/2"
Hole 17 Paul Rothstein DC 3' 11"
ALL-TIME MSIS LEADERS
A small round of applause, please, for the top ten players in terms of most rounds played.
Name
Club
Rounds
Wib Finch
JG
86
Odie Skeen
MC
82
Barney Poston
HH
80
Dave Spring
MC
72
Mark Snitzer
DC
71
Tom McWade
PV
71
Gary Owensby
EH
70
Jerry Meyer
OP
69
Jim Bryce
PV
67
Jim Brindle
OP
66
DIFFICULTY RELATIVE TO PAR
How are your strokes allocated? Consult Section 17 in the USGA Handicap System manual. You ought to get strokes on those holes where you most need them but those are not necessarily the most difficult holes.
Today's Toughest Holes
Hole
8
9
10
13
15
17
Hcp
1
15
8
2
4
10
Par
4
4
4
4
4
3
Avg
5.08
5.00
5.14
5.24
5.26
3.99
Rank
4
5
3
2
1
6
Today's Easiest Holes
Hole
1
6
7
11
12
14
Hcp
17
11
5
18
16
12
Par
4
5
3
3
4
5
Avg
4.75
5.86
3.65
3.37
4.80
5.82
Rank
16
13
17
18
15
14
PACE OF PLAY
Here it is, one week away from the September equinox and we're left with 12h 21m of daylight. Why do slow pokes use the lion's share of those twelve hours?
Yours truly was privileged to start at the first tee and play the course as it was laid out. Approaching the five-hour mark, our group aimed for the tree in the middle of the 15th fairway, wondering if the osprey nest on the right was empty and enjoying a colossal view across the dusky, surreal marshland to the south. We were looking past St. Mary's River into Florida when the feeling struck: I'm a guy who used to carry his bag and finish in 3h 45m. Looking into Florida suddenly
made me homesick. Why was Georgia taking five hours and more out of my life? Damn those guys who fiddle and diddle for no good reason!
PAIRINGS PROFILES
Today's field consisted of 120 players from 15 member clubs, that is, eight men per team. How many four-man groups can be formed from a field of 120 players? Easy for those skilled in combinatorics! The rest of you: Go purchase a copy of the "CRC Handbook of Combinatorial Designs."
There are 8,214,570 ways (120!¸4!116!) for Barney to establish our four-man groups. Within those possibilities, he ensures no team members play in the same group. He also makes sure new players are in the rider's seat, not in the driver's and scorekeeper's seat. Now and then, someone asks Barney to flip it all around and swap him into another group. Hey,
Barney, I don't want to play with a joker, a smoker, or a real slow-poker…don't put me with a democrat, a republican, an anarchist…. Yours truly says, "Grin and bear it for once in your life."
NEXT MATCH
Eagle Harbor Golf Club, A Clyde Johnston Design
9:00 a.m., Tuesday, October 5.
JOHN BRADY CUP MATCH
Our planning time grows shorter as we look ahead to the John Brady Cup Match on the Ocean Course at Ponte Vedra Inn & Club. The date of the match is December 10, 2010 with a 9:30 a.m. shotgun start.
What should we buy for the BIG DOOR PRIZE? Two years ago we awarded an $800 vacation at Fairfield Mountain Resort near Lake Lure, NC. Last year we gave away an $800 vacation at Amelia Island Plantation. We should have close to the same money to spend this year. Give us your idea for a BIG DOOR PRIZE in the same price range. Barney wants to hear from you real soon.
Also, be thinking about what your club might donate as a prize. Forward that and any other thoughts you may have pertinent to this season's wrap-up event to Barney.
ANOTHER SECOND-HAND STORY
by A Fly on the Wall
Barney Poston goes by the initials BP as in British Petroleum of Deepwater Horizon infamy. In that sense, Barney is a disaster waiting to happen. As noted above, he's played in 80 MSIS events, which means 243 MSISers were pleased to be a member of his four-man group starting off the first tee. Which also means any one of us had a 12 percent chance of playing with Barney. The point is, only a few of us know what Barney's capable of doing. Don't bet against him on the basis of his
modest handicap index! A few weeks ago, Barney birdied holes 16 and 18 on the Stadium course at TPC Sawgrass. He also dumped one in the water on 17--the island hole--but that was just to throw you off the scent.
SCORE CARDS
For the umpteenth time, the X exclusion was ignored by an invincibly ignorant few. Please, please! Do not enter an X in any cell on the score card unless it is your legal mark on the signature line. Score-card infractions can result in disqualification.
LAPTOP COMPUTER
Our recently purchased eMachine Netbook performed flawlessly today. This relieves most of the anxiety we feel each month at lining up three computers to process your cards in the scoring area. Not too long ago, the scoring operation used as many as five PCs.
Our process adheres meticulously to USGA guidelines and includes an extra step, a post-round audit comparing hole-by-hole scores on your cards with the computerized data entries.
The eMachine is really nifty, weighing in at under 3 pounds and using up a very small footprint on our usually tight quarters. We'll probably buy another netbook in the near future, if a good price is available, as the purchase has already been authorized by the Team Reps.
Your tax dollars at work...........
FINANCIAL NEWS
Our AdSense account earned $13.62 since the last check was issued. The latest check, $102.72, was deposited on 08-03-2010. Google has paid us $408.99 since our account with Citibank was opened in January 2007. Our account balance at Citi Bank is $2355.49. Click here to see our latest financial accounting.
WEB SITE
Support fellow-competitors who sponsor our web pages. Notice the advertisements posted by Lewis Blinn on our Home Page and Jock Ochiltree on our Results Page.
Tex Blinn plays out of Hidden Hills Country Club. He's a top-notch contractor, ready to serve your remodeling needs. Give him a try.
Jock Ochiltree plays out of World Golf Village. He's a long-time webpage sponsor, providing market statistics and featuring a house each month near our tournament site. Check him out. Just click on his ad where it says "Click here".
You can also track MSIS at the JAX365 website. It's bold, it's clear, it's in synch. JAX365 can help you keep up with the entire Jacksonville scene!
ARTICLES SOLICITED
Please submit material for an article that might interest our members. Come on! You've seen or heard something during an MSIS match that would interest all of us. Humorous stories about things that happened on the course are a staple. Everyone loves a chuckle although a groan is sometimes more instructive.
Your story needn't be the absolute truth! Why not brag about a tricky hole or a great shot? Stretch the facts or share the pain with the absolute truth.
Feel free to submit an opinion or suggestion for improving our competitions. Whatever you submit needn't be related to golf. All we need is a rough draft or a slim outline.
