Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Boontfling 2010

It started out as an outing amongst friends and ended as a cohesive bonding in revelry as well as consolation.

This post will try (if possible) to recount the events at the inaugural Boontfling Beer Tier event. The first arrivals were A.J., G-Money & Jeremy; all of whom played in the Friday night doubles round. The reports were of a -17 posted. This was an intimidating bit of information for the early morning crew. David and Jim, Matthew and Ryan & Erin all heard the news, picked out a Stalker of their choice and warmed up. Two discs were lost within the first ten minutes. This was not a good omen. Talk turned to the new #2 tee box which very much brought the pond into play for the average hucker. The players meeting was called and the bar was open (8:30 AM). The teams were broken up and off we went. I can only speak for myself when I say that I had a pitiful round. I say that in hindsight because I thought it was only so/so. Upon returning to the clubhouse I learned that Jim, Erin & Greg all scored -5! Well played gentlemen. A.J. posted -2, Matthew -1 & Davey at 0. Jeremy and I were the only MCFC'rs to shoot over par. I was dissapointed, but it was nothing that a little dipping of the ol' figs wouldn't solve. We headed on down to hole #9 and had a dip in the river and a recharge. The next round proved to be a bit more of a challenge due to high temperatures and wind. Erin fired off a -4, A.J. ground out another -2, Davey and I shot -1 together on the same card & Matthew, Greg and Jim fell off. As a team we all rallied together and realized that we were mostly playing well and support would be provided and would lead to a great finish.
The after-hours party will not be reported on here. The only post frolf information to be passed along was that the BBQ was fantastic. Mexi- rice and beans (better than you think and I know you think it was good) carne asada and tortillas with salsas to die for. We ate up and retired to a gentle night of rest (or did we...).
Next morning at ten we met and played the third and final round. Davey took the club weekend honors with a -6, followed by myself with a -3, Erin slowed but finished strong with a -2, A.J. a 1 (I think), Greg 2 (maybe) and Jim and Matthew with higher scores than they would have liked, yet were still competitive.
There were three aces: a one-on-top-of-the-other-first-time-ever-ace-by-good-friends ace and an on the fly Boss flick on 1a (a temporary hole along 128 and under a few oak trees (really, a basket under the canopy of oaks in Booneville?)) by none other than Ryan Magee.
I think the club all really pulled and rooted for each other all the way through the weekend. Guys were picking each other up and showering each other with support. I felt like part of a disc golf club. I think it was a maturing of the club and it would have been all the better with a full turnout. I noticed that being rowdy (as some of us can be) does not have to be negative. We were the merry frolfers and were not afraid to share it. I hope this is a sign of where the club is going. I like the camaraderie we brought with us and it showed in the standings:
Open
Erin Hemmings -11 4th place
AM 1
David Stein -7 3rd place
A.J. Bule -3 5th place
Ryan Magee +1 6th place
AM2
Greg Thompkins +4 6th place

Congrats to the players and thanks for the support. I went from the worst score in the AM1 division to placing in the money. I hope you all enjoyed each other as much as I enjoyed being with you.
Please post your own accounts of rounds, de-constructions of certain holes or just sound offs.
Aloha, pau

9 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. My story is a cautionary tale, my friends. Please read with caution...

    My first round consisted of a simple beer, a bit of sunscreen, a bit of water, and a whole lot of birdie putts. My 9 birdies in 20 holes was, I believe, the best of the MCFC for the tourney, and consisted of very few long putts. I simply drove where I looked, and putted straight. But for one brian-fart on hole 2 (where I threw OB on the second shot) and a horrible piece of bad luck on #6 (one thin branch flicking my twenty-fot upshot to the ground, where it rolled ten feet on level ground, and then down the hill), I would have been tied for the lead of AM1 at 7 down. As it was, my 5 down was good enough for third and a place on the lead card in the afternoon. It felt like my tournament to be had. Then the afternoon came.

    A few things conspired for the eye-opening result. I had three hours of sleep the night before, on top of a recent trip to Santa Fe where sleep was also not exactly normal. In retrospect, this probably played a role. Secondly, when the temperatures raised into the nineties, my lack of water-drinking began to hit me hard. After going 1 under through my first two afternoon holes, I distinctly recall having the thought: "All I have to do is play my game, and at the very worst, I will still be in the thing to the end. I have figured out this course, and at least 3 or 4 down looks pretty certain. Soon after that, my memory of the round dims precipitously. I remember trying to drink a lot of water, but at the end of the round, I still had half of my liter undrunk, and I never really broke a sweat (not good). My wife uses the term "bonking", which basically means getting low blood sugar and hitting the wall. I don't know if that is the precise term that should be used here, but the combination of heat (which I hate), dehydration, and fatigue from the first round and lack of sleep, all combined to slap me from out of nowhere. The legs went first, and walking between holes got less and less enjoyable. I lost any accuracy on my drives. And then the putter went away. Completely. I missed 5 or 6 ten-foot putts. AJ looked at me like I was crazy. And I was. I have almost no memory of any specific holes after about the first 8 or 9 I played. I remember being a bit dizzy and nervous and odd. I ended up keeping it together through those holes, at around 1 down, and then all hell broke loose, and I had a round I think I can say with confidence I will never have again at that course: I made 6 bogies and a double bogie on the back 9. Complete disc-golfing collapse.

    In retrospect, I should have been pounding water all day. I should have worn a hat during the morning round. I shouldn't have had any beers. I should have gotten lots of sleep beforehand. I should have drunk a bunch of electrolite-rich fluids and other energy-replenishing foods. In short, I should have treated the tourney like an athletic event, instead of a party. I didn't, and I bonked. Despite the disappointment, the excellent collection of friends had me laughing for the rest of the night, until I stumbled into my tent, last to sleep, after 3am. Needless to say, I crippled my round the next day. Of course, if I had known the size of the payout, I might have taken a cue from Davey and left the partying for another weekend. Ah, but it was worth it! And that's all I'll say about that!

    But I look forward to taking that course apart again soon, as I am sure we all do. I learned I can play with anyone, if I've got it going. And that I'm not a camel.

    Until next year....

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  3. man, sounds fun guys sorry i missed it. but i did decently well in visalia at the end of the trail classic. a couple of notes. the courses here were awesome. they are at a 100 year old park with 100 different species of trees, two very fun and challenging courses. a lot of long holes. the payout for this tourney was epic, a good handful of pros came out which was fun to watch, 1800 for open 1st place, baskets for all am winners. i came in third having a round that sounds like jims second, getting dehydrated and all, and still got like 11 discs. wish i could of been there partying with you guys though, but i got some good points for the nor cal series and think im looking good for 2nd for the series, ill be in vacaville this weekend, anyone else want to go play this tourney

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  4. Congrats D.
    We all felt for you Jim. I thought it was your weekend too, after the -5.
    Sarah and I are prepared to put together the final game of the year Giants V. Padres trip on Sunday Oct. 3rd @1:10 pm. I have checked out tickets and it looks like getting any number of tickets together in a reasonably priced section is going to be difficult. The MLB site doesn't allow you to pick seats and it says that there are not sufficient seats available together in the $34-$49 range. It might be best to leave everyone to their own devices for tickets and I was thinking about the ferry. Anyone in?

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  5. In a not entirely unrelated note, there is a now an official speed round record for the full 18-hole FB course.

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  6. Thanks for writing up the weekend Rye Bread. I agree with the camaraderie (It seemed like other frolfers noticed us and felt our positive energy with each other) and it was a pleasure playing with Rye Bread in my second round and Jimmerson in my third round. Jimmy advised me in certain shots including wind shots and I feel that Jimmy took part in my 6 under (best round in Booneville and round of my life). Looking and thinking back on my round I hit HUGE birdie and par putts and I feel like I just missed one putt but there was a branch in my way. It has been crazy and weird coming back into society after the epic weekend of frolf and hanging. Thanks everyone for the good time. Who is going to Splattys tomorrow night for Rosh Hashanah and the opening night of NFL football?

    daveythirdplaced

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  7. Derrick,
    I was looking at the NorCal Disc Golf Series website and saw that you took 3rd place...congrats bro that is AWESOME!

    yodaandjazzysdaddy

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  8. As for Davey's round, I had a front row seat, and yeah, given the fact it was the third round of a tourney, it was probably the best round I've seen Davey play. Definitely the best tourney round he's ever had. No major mistakes, and a few long putts. Great birdie putt on #7, which really sealed the deal. Now we've got to WIN one of these things, don't we??

    Hey, who is in for doubles tomorrow night? I'm down for it, but could be convinced to watch the game instead? Game starts at 5:30, so it's pretty much one or the other...

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  9. OMG, that's my 10 time pro watermelon eagle at the bottom of this psychedelic picture. If anyone sees it let me know.

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