HOT OFF THE PRESS- SEASON POINTS UPDATE!

Do your own analysis, boys.  Can anyone close the gap on Dino? If Camomot falters like he did at the Quail,  Brown, Cummins, Geer, and Walton could all have a serious opportunity to position themselves moving into the TC.

As far as the TC Cut Line goes, Weining and Nacrelli can make a legitimate case by posting in the top 5 and Weber fails to crack the top 10. Kremer, Boeving, and Wolf have an outside chance if they can crack the Top3 and Weber totally tanks and finishes outside the top 13.

Must-Win-To-Qualify: Fetter, Herp, Deetsch, Corso, Holtzmann, Nett**

(** Nett is in familiar territory: circa 2012 he made the move from Last Place to the blessed land of TC by winning the Prestige in September. i.e.- it can be done!)

The 2013 Match Play Championship got started with a bang on Saturday, as 3 matches were decided at Oxmoor Country Club.  Holtzmann defeated Fetter 4&3.  Weber defeated Brown 3&2.  Kremer defeated Herp 5&4.

2012 KAGT Champion Jeff Cummins provided the highlight of the day on the front nine, when he neglected to engage the brakes on his pull cart as we approached the green on #6.  Gravity took over & his clubs went careening down a 6 foot ravine.  Thankfully, none of his clubs were damaged b/c the impact was softened by a foot and a half off creek water.  His smokes did not come out so well.  Of course, Cummins tried to play it all cool, like it was his plan to clean his clubs that way & all the popular kids are doing it.  To his credit, he shook of the embarrassment, bummed a few smokes from Fetter, and proceeded to finish his round by playing the type of championship golf that we have grown accustomed to seeing from him.

Tradition.  Honor.  Prestige. These words are synonymous with The Bluegrass.  If there were ever any doubts, The Bluegrass most certainly cemented its status as the most highly regarded non-major after a change in venue to Kearney Hills.  To think that The Bluegrass could out-class a tournament that dares to have “prestige” in its title (Schroeder/Wolf Prestige aka the Southwest Prestige) was inconceivable  at the genesis of the KAG Tour.  The rise was not by mistake; countless hours spent on meticulous planning,  sponsorship deals, and swag  procurement have vaulted The Bluegrass into a category all its own.

Special thanks to CH Robinson for sponsoring some swag and to all of those who made the trip.  We had fantastic weather & I heard nothing but positive feedback on Kearney Hill.  The rough was unforgiving, but the track was great.

I was lucky enough to witness a performance on the course that may go down as one of the best ever in KAGT history.  While there was some chatter that Cummins’ preplay at +2 might just be enough to win, Brown dismissed the notion with ease and a certain steadiness that only Steve can deliver.  Congratulations, Steve!  You join some pretty heady company, as a Bluegrass Champ (Weber ‘10, Balbach ‘11, Tindall ‘12).

Here is some commentary on Brown’s round from the tour’s very own chronic underachiever, Brian Fetter:

Record Setting Performance:

1) Low Gross Score in Tour History: 73

2) Largest Margin of Victory in Tour History: 7 strokes

3) Tie Low Net Score in Your History: -6

Steve would have tied for 1^st even without his handicap strokes.

He did in typical SBrown01 fashion hitting nearly every fairway (even used Driver more times than 3 Wood, I think) and a bundle of GIRs. No Double Bogeys, No Three-Putts, only 27 putts on the day total, and 3 Birdies (including a statement birdie on #18 when the Tournament was already locked down- No Fear on lowering the hdcp a little more!)

Seems to me Steve had grown tired of the talk on Tour- that he was washed up, a has-been, that he dominated the Tour back when the caliber of player was lower than today’s challenging fields, that he couldn’t beat Cummins… NO MORE… this statement victory will surely set off an unprecedented race to the Season Title. It’s already tight at the top with Cummins, Buzzell, and Holtzman battling out in the top three slots. Kremer and Tindall remain strong and you never know when Fetter could make a run (oh, wait…). Brown’s victory catapults him into (or nearly into) the Top 5 and obviously secures his presence at the TC- where anyone within 150pts should have a chance.

The greens were slow, but the dough still flowed and first time KAGT winner, Rob Holtzman, walked away with his first Tour victory and a strong $85 cold-hard cash after a steady,  well played round of +2. Rookie Hotlzman posted low net and gross (82) in the first Major Championship of the year. Several players had a chance down the stretch as Champions Pointe played tough to it’s reputation. Unsurprisingly, Buzz Buzzell challenged till the last hole, coming up just short for his second straight 2nd place tournament finish, just one stroke back. It was an Open for rookies as Johhny Quintana held on for third  at +5 after a blistering front nine 38. Jeff Powell was is strong position before fading down he stretch. Cummins also hung around before unraveling, still posting top 5.

Beautiful day for golf (and thanks for paying)!

Next up: Bluegrass Stakes, Sunday May 19th

A Sudden death putt-off, an 18^th hole choke job, and some pretty bad golf highlighted the 4^th Annual Highlands Classic.  Seneca was a testy broad on Saturday, leaving a lot of us some serious room for improvement after our first event.  Congratulations to Jeff Cummins, 2012 KAGT Points Champ, for picking up right where he left off last year.  His clutch stroke in a 3-hole putt-off with Geoff Buzzell broke the tie at the top in what may be titled “the most anti-climactic tiebreaker of all time”.  But, before we crown Cummins the 2013 points champ, we can’t deny that he got some lucky breaks along the way on Saturday.  A lost ball by Buzzell off the tee on the 18^th opened the door for Cummins.  But the real story may be the choke job by Robbie Tindall on the 18^th.  He was firmly in control, but from 20 yards out on the 18^th, it took two chips and two putts for him to close out the hole.  Tindall was clearly rattled by the rowdy gallery of criminals and ne’er-do-wells that lined the green at the 18^th .  I imagine that if he were at Vettiner, he would have taken home the coveted Highland Classic Coffee Mug.

As always, the newcomers to the tour buckled under the pressure of the KAGT.  Holtzmann was the highest-placed w/ a stunning net 85.  But, don’t worry rooks; you are not the first to fold like a cheap suit on the KAGT & you will not be the last!

Thanks to all for coming out & thanks to Steve for hosting a great outing.  Our next event will be the Indiana Open at Covered Bridge on Sunday, April 21^st.  More details to follow.