Game On

 

The skins game is now part of the Bandon tradition. The majority of players come in a day early to play and this is followed by a welcoming dinner. A chance to see who is back from previous years and catch up. This year Pete Wlodkowski, the tournament organizer recognized the new participants, (it looked like 30% were new), those who had played in all events over the last 12 years and graciously introduced the Canadian table. Mcguire has played in 11 of the 12 years!Again Jake Weise, a Bandon native acted as the Tournament Director. He recounted a charming tail of being a caddy for the forst 4 some which included Mike Kaiser, The Mayor, the chief of police and the fire chief from Bandon.

 

This year, the skins were worth $250.00 and Ivan, who I have nicknamed Rodney (caddie shack), won 2 of them ! We naturally informed him of the ruling that sharing was mandatory and after dinner Mcguire and I escorted him to the bar in a scene reminiscent of how the speaker of the House of Commons is introduced. Each of us took an arm and marched him into the main clubhouse. He graciously funded a fine bottle of champagne.

Above Ivan Holding Court

 

Round 1 was played at Old Macdonald. We of course played it yesterday and with the the same caddie,Rob, things should have been familiar. Of course the wind was blowing from a different direction and it was literally a different course! We were hot , 3 under after nine but the struggled. We were not alone, scores were high and we are 6 back, and not out of it.

We had a most unusual experience. We started at 10:20 am, the first 5 holes were balmy, light wind and temperature about 20 degrees C. As we walked onto the 5^th green, the temperature dropped by 20 degrees without a change in the wind. It was if we had walked into a meat cooler! This weather persisted for the rest of the round with a fog drifting in. I have never experienced such a weather phenomenon.

On the third hole there is an ancient and dead tree which acts as a target for the drive which needs to clear a 40 foot hill. One of the players hit the tree dead on, the ball bounced straight back and everyone in the foursome swore a puff of smoke emanated from the tree. One of the caddies known for his understanding of native American spirits yelled “oh No! You have awakened the spirits!” As the foursome mounted the hill they encountered the weather change.

Forecasts remain optimistic as we do.

Bandon Dunes is one of my favourite destiniations in the world. The brain child of Mike Kaiser,it has legitimately grown to be recognized as the premiere golf destination in North America. It is a pure example of " build it and they will come". The 4 golf courses are unique, provide stunning vistas and of course are challenging by design and the ever changing weather conditions.A good read on the building of Bandon is a very informative book, " Dream Golf",by Stephen Goodwin.

This is the fourth year that I have come to play in the Amateur golf.com two man best ball tournament. This year we have 6 players from Point Grey and again I am paired with the ever entertaining Butler. Historically we have driven here in by "Burgundy Bus", my '97 suburban which is large enough to carry 4 of us comfortably and can easily accommodate the packing idiosyncrasies of McGuire.This year due to other commitments Butler and I flew, first to Portland the a 3 hour
 layover in before boarding a 9 seat cesna via Seaport air. The only hooker was having to retrieve our bags and check in again due to a lack of baggage agreement between Seaport and other airlines.

The landing in Coos Bay was into high winds and the small plane was buffeted , the skill of the pilot very apparent.A short 30 min drive from the hotel shuttle, accelerated check in and we were on the tee by 4:30. The wind was howling! Par a very elusive score and bogies and doubles the norm. After 5 holes we caught up to a somewhat slow group and Doug, one of the Marshalls , took us to #10, we were able to complete 18 holes in 3 1/2 hours and meet up with Brian Mcguire, Bayne Boyes,Ivan Bern and Ted Williams.

I was buoyed by the earlier success of my Habs being able to tie their playoff series and we settled to watch the Canuck, San Jose game. It ended in an overtime loss, and me down $10.00 on various bets.

It is different flying in and joining the others who had driven to the resort, playing Chambers bay and overnighting in Portland. The bonding of being in the bus does indeed make a difference.
That is not to say Butler and I did not visit the bar for a night cap and met up with George Stevens, one of the founding players in this tournament and recent Oscar winner! A true gentleman and as always, modest of his accomplishments,





Today is the skins game, Butler has had repeated success in this venue, mine mixed.So far the wind is calm but it will be up this afternoon, and Old Macdonald will be at it's toughest.

Butler appears prepared, calm and clearly well rested!!