August 9, 2021.
Mick writes, with a light editing hand from Mark:
Brutally hot. Ninety-eight degrees. The air, from the fires in the Western States, was the worst in the world that day. No kidding. The worst air in the whole world. Worse than Mumbai. We soldiered on, though the haze and the heat.
The four Colorado Arrows … DeVine, Hanson, Rennich and Rinerson … found themselves playing at The Ridge at Castle Pines North, Harley’s home course. We played from the Silver tees. 6002 yards. Mr. Hanson warned that playing golf, in Colorado, in August, in air thick with wildfire smoke and haze, was a bad idea. He finally caved and reluctantly agreed to participate in the Arrow August outing. He was right. Might be the first time that we all agreed on something … it was too hot! The conditions were almost too much to overcome. In fact, it was too much for Mr. Hanson. More about that later.
Given the conditions, the play was relatively decent. Everyone broke 100. Mick was medalist with a 90. Harley right behind with a 91. Among the group, there were 12 pars and one birdie (Rennich birdied No. 8, a 395 yd par 4 named “Pikes Peak”). Mark actually posted a two-under par 70. He was DQed, however, as he refused to play after Hole No. 13. He claimed that he was too hot, that we should never have played in August and that he was right. Rather pompous, that guy. Right, but pompous. Against medical advice, the round continued with the threesome.
A special shout out to the turkey playing with us on #12 … no not Mick … a real, live turkey. As we are very astute, we named #12 the Turkey Hole. On the Turkey Hole, Mr. Devine deep in the trap to his thighs, from a lengthy trap shot, with the turkey watching, the ball perched precariously on the rim of the trap and holding the club below even the bottom of the grip, hits it to within 8 ft!!! He missed the putt, however. Nevertheless, the bunker shot was amazing and figured prominently in the decision to award Deac the Rino Cup. See the photo, below.
In addition, #13 will be remembered as the hole that Mark almost hit Katie, our delightful cart girl, with his shot to the green. It was the last hole he played.
The awards ceremony lasted a bit longer than usual. The bar was, of course, air-conditioned and no one was eager to leave its comfort. We had a bite to eat and then the lobbying began. Here we go.
Shot of the day - Harley. A spectacular 210 yard 3-hybrid on #3 to within 15 feet. Although he missed the putt, the shot was pro-quality and the clear winner of SOD.
Longest putt - Harley. He knocked in an 18 footer for par on #9.
Rino Cup (best short game) - Deac. For his short game body of work and especially for the shot on the Turkey Hole.
MVG - Harley was voted MVG. Despite not playing often, his game was steady. He had only one recorded 7 during the round. He shot a 91, and even though we did not keep track of chits (they are always waived anyway), it is calculated that he would have won that too. Harley also received the new MVG cap to go along with the MVG trophy. The cap was a gift to the group by Mr. Hanson. It could stand for Mountain Vista Golf, but with this group, it stands for Most Valuable Golfer. Go. Harley!
Miss C - Mark. This was a close vote as both Mark and Deac received support. Mark won the tie-breaker for his ”Compliment Circle” idea, which, while playing, left Rennich in tears and Harley speechless. He also purchased the new MVG cap, which effort, was a fact that we all considered while voting. Mark also drove the greatest distance to play … 88 miles each way!
Though one or more of us likely contracted some sort or other of pulmonary disease or complications from heatstroke, it was another fun time, and probably worth it.
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| Still crazy after all these years! |
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| Notice the turkey in the background? In the background, I said! Devine lines up the shot. |
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| Mickster doesn't age-- he just forgets stuff. |
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| The secret elixir. Rhymes with "risky." |
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| Greetings from the WHS Class of '71. Harley cops a 'tude! |
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| Harley is a better mood with his hardware and a snack. |
