St. Patrick’s Play

There was a nice turnout for the Stableford format last Friday, St. Patrick’s Day. Fourteen players marched to the course not to the sound of bagpipes nor to drive out snakes but to try and shoot the best score possible. I was honored to play with an authentic Irishman, Neil Blaney, and a half and half-Scotch/Irishman Jason Carmichael. Neil paid respect to St. Patrick gathering forty Stableford points to tie Roland Johnson for first place Stapleford individual. Neil went on to draw Jim Corsar and as a team took second place. The first-place Stableford winning team was Butch Carlstadt, garnering thirty-five Stabies and Roland Johnson. Together they accumulated seventy-five points., first place by a mile. Butch, who hadn’t played a round of golf in a month came back to shoot his age first round out, a ninety. Welcome back, Butch. Nice round.

As an aside remember green is the color on St. Patrick’s Day. Wearing no green you can get pinched. Standing on the third green with Irishman Neil discussing the nature of on-the-green-putts. Neil observed that the uphill putt is the most desirable, smack it to the hole. On a sloped green, like three, the downhill putt would be the next choice. Availing myself of the present Irish green wisdom I asked Neil if he was climbing a mountain would he prefer going up or down? “If I was climbing a mountain I would be traversing, back and forth, up or down.”, Neil answered. Very smart Neil, back and forth. On a sloped green, the traverse, or side slope putt is the most difficult. Not only the speed but the break has to be calculated and executed. Sometimes the putt must be hit on an angle-up slope using gravity to carry the ball back down and hopefully in the hole. On a mountain traversing is the easiest route on a sloped green it is the hardest route. Neil spared me the pinch. I was not wearing any green. According to the folklore of St. Patrick’s Day wearing green makes you invisible to the leprechauns and leprechauns loved to pinch people on St. Patrick’s day.

Once again due to rain the postponed St. Patrick’s Day Scramble scheduled for last Sunday, March 19th had to be postponed. The following Sunday, March 25th, and Saturday, March 24th, the Little River Golf Course is closed for a private disk golf event. Tentatively the tournament will be rescheduled for Sunday, April 2nd. The Little River Men’s Club will officially notify golfers by posting the next date for the St. Patrick’s Day Scramble on the Pro Shop bulletin board.