LinkStur News

An unseasonably cold and rainy morning greeted the LinkStur’s at Pickering Valley on May 20^th. Despite the harsh weather conditions all 15 expected players made it to the golf course. Are these dedicated players or what ??? In fact the drive to course proved very eventful to a few groups who dared to reach the course using the ‘open only on Saturday’ road. As Bob Welc (driving) and Dick Blystone were riding on Whitehorse road, with Ron Jones closely following, the sight of a lift truck carrying a drainage pipe the width of the road steadily approaching them brought a familiar flutter to Bob’s heart. As Bob relates the story, he immediately applied the breaks forcing Ron to also take evasive action, ending up, after a few spins, parallel to Bob’s car. I guess that explains why Ron was wearing shorts on a cold day, eh! As the guy in the lift truck approached he simply raised the pipe and continued on his merry way, probably laughing hysterically.

False Bravado?

Even before the first match was started the conditions began to deteriorate as the intensity of the rain increased. It was interesting to watch each player prepare to function in these conditions. The number one priority for most was to cover up their golf bags to keep their clubs as dry as possible and then resurrect the oversized umbrellas and jackets which have been dormant since last season. One player in particular, Bryan Baquer, looked very dapper in his color coordinated rain suit attire. As the first grouped teed off the question on most minds was, ‘What the #$%& are we doing here?’ Roman Hrycushko summed up everyone’s feelings by saying that “since we drove all the way up here, lets get it over with, because I don’t want to have to drive back again”.

Ron Jones reflecting on his harrowing ride in

Dick Blystone taking a ‘watery’ divot

As the first group approached the 3rd green while the second group was in the 3rd fairway and the third group finished the 2^nd hole, Doug Perks, in the fourth group, had the courage to question the sanity of continuing. A steady down pour had finally saturated the greens to a point where the standing water was making them impossible to putt. Rain checks were issued and each pairing was asked to replay their match before the next match at Westwood. As we were leaving the course there was a ‘thunderous noise’ in the background, not Mike Fuller’s golf clubs, but a bolt of lighting striking. Looks like a wise decision to cancel the round after all!!

A Division Matchups

After a slow start, Doug Perks came back to take 4 out of the last five points to win the front nine over Bryan Baquer, 5/4. Doug closed out the back nine by winning the last three holes to win 6/3, taking all three points. Bob Welc HUMBLED Dick Blystone by taking the front nine, 7/2 and eased up on the back nine, 6.5/2.5, taking all three points. Rumor has it that Dick has been in seclusion all week to refocus on his next match. I'd sure hate to be the guy playing Dick at Westwood (Good Luck Ron)!! Herman Ellzy and Roman Hrycushko had a tight match going early on the front nine until Herman put together three par's to take the front 5.5/3.5 . Roman played tough on the back nine to earn a 4.5/4.5 draw. Herman ends up winning 2.5 points and more importantly adds another stroke to his handicap for his big match with Bob W. Roy Craig and Ron Jones had the closest match of the week with Ron winning the last two holes on the front nine to earn a 5/4 win. Roy returned the favor on the back nine by winning the last three holes to steal a 5/4 win. For their effort Roy and Ron ended up with 1.5 points.

B Division Matchups

Tom Dushkewich and Mike Fuller played a 'survival of the fittest match' with Tom taking the last three holes on the front nine to win 5.5/3.5. After splitting the first two holes on the back, Tom went on a four hole rampage and cruised the rest of the way for a 5/4 win, earning his first 3 points as a LinkStur. Bob Perks started fast in his match with Vince Caligiuri, winning the first three holes, cruising to a 5.5/3.5 win. Vince shrugged it off and toughed out a 6/3 win on the back to earn two points. Steve Margetich and Mike Brychcy played their usual knock-down / drag-out match with Steve stealing a 5.5/3.5 win on the front nine when Mike's short game betrayed him. Things didn't go much better on the back for Mike (consistent drive) with Steve (without a drive) somehow winning 6/3 to sneak out with three points. This leads us to the first controversial match of the season between Kevin Stevenson and Max McHenry. Max opened the front nine by taking 5 out of the first 6 points for a relatively easy 5.5/3.5 win. Kevin woke up on the back nine and took a 4.5/3.5 lead into the infamous 18^th hole. As the story goes, Max had an errant shot that ended up somewhere in the deep rough. After a thorough search Max found a ball and continued on his way to the green. Kevin (aka, Eagle-Eye) noticed that the ball on the green which Max was playing was a Titleist. Apparently Max had declared at the start of the match that he was using Maxfli's, which would mean that either Max hit the ball so hard that the logo changed in mid-air or that he had mistakenly hit another ball. According to Bob (USGA) Welc, hitting the wrong ball on a hole results in the automatic loss of the hole. If the ruling stands, Kevin wins the back 5.5/3.5 and ends up tying Max for overall points.

Closest to the Pin Winners

Front Nine: (hole#2) ----------

Back Nine: (hole#10) ---------

Due to the rainout, the closest to the pin money for week #2 ($32) will be put back into the ‘prize money fund’ for the tournament at the end of the season.

Sandbagger of the Week

Bob Welc has to get an Honorable Mention this week for shooting an 85. That’s right, Herman, an EIGHTY-FIVE, in a steady rain on Saturday, May 27. Not bad for a guy with a 20 handicap, eh? In all fairness to Bob, his drives on the 11^th and 12^th holes were wicked hooks which were targeted for the woods but somehow ended up ricocheting into the fairway, both leading to par’s. The other SIX pars he had were legitimate.

Handicaps and Pairings at Westwood

1^st Group

Bryan B. (12) vs. Roman H. (24)

Vince C. (31) vs. Mike B. (36)

2^nd Group

Roy C. (25) vs. Doug P. (22)

Tom D. (36) vs. Kevin S. (29)

3^rd Group

Dick B. (15) vs. Ron J. (17)

Max M. (30) vs. Bob P. (28)

4^th Group

Herman E. (14) vs. Bob W. (19)

Steve M. (31) vs. Mike F. (36)

Closest to the Pin Holes

Front Nine: Hole #5

Back Nine: Hole #13

Remember: next gameday is June 17^th , at 5 Ponds. Be ready to tee off at 9:45am. Call the course at (215)-956-9727 if you require directions.

Volume 3, Issue 3 June 3, 2000