Paddy’s Day plays

Last Sunday, the second day of spring, a little breezy and cold, and the first real golf tournament of 2021 played at the Little River Golf Course. The Little River Men’s Club put on a fine Saint Paddy’s Day scramble with 12 fourperson teams taking the field.

Players checked in, were assigned to their team, paid the tournament fee and headed for their starting hole to await the sound of a shotgun signaling the beginning or the event. In golf, a scramble format usually begins with a “shotgun” start. The shotgun start with each team starting from a different hole speeds up play and affords a player, who is used to playing the course from the first hole, a different experience. Sometimes horns or other noise makers or just looking at a watch signals all teams to begin.

On this day a real shotgun was shot, the sound reverberated throughout the course and off we went. The shotgun start was first used at a tournament played in Walla Walla, Wash., in May 1956.

Thanks to the hard work of the Little River Course maintenance crew, the course was in fine shape. Enhancing the landscape were many clusters of yellow spring daffodils.

Before the pandemic, players were rewarded with a barbeque at the end of most tournaments which also gave the event coordinators time to go through the cards and determine the winners. The winners were then announced while participants were licking barbecue sauce from their fingers. Due to the pandemic having the postevent barbecue was not possible. Players were asked on completion of their round to turn in the scorecard and amble on home.

Because of this, the tournament winners won’t be known for a few days, so it will be revealed in next week’s

Golf Notes.

Digging deeper into the scramble format, teams are chosen by the Men’s Club tournament committee.

Each team is balanced with a low handicap player and graduated higher handicap players.

Every team member tees off on each hole, then the best drive is chosen.

All players then hit the team’s second shot, and so on, until the ball is putted in the hole. There is only one score, the team score, and each team player must contribute three drives.

Sometimes the team must select not the best drive but a decent drive in order to get every player’s three drives. Not a good strategy to force someone to get their third drive in on the last hole. If the ball is hit outof-bounds or into the woods, the team has no option; they have to play that ball.

Really good to see everyone out enjoying a day on the golf course.