2016 The Youngs Comeuppance

The “Youngs” Comeuppance

The 4th Annual Cider Cup was once again played with great weather and a renewed sense of urgency from the “Youngs” who were trounced the previous year 21 ½ to 13 ½ , giving the Senior Citizens a 2 to 1 lead overall.

The Captains had earlier decided that they would expand the rosters to 16 each, which is double from when the event began in 2013. The young team would be made up of 4 rookies….Jason Works, Trent Harris, Rus Whalen and Chase Wachter. Fans will remember that Chase was scheduled to play in 2014, but decided to have an automobile wreck instead….landing him in this and parking on one of the CCC expensive shrubs.

The Geezers countered with 1 rookie themselves in Jamie Case. As most of you that have played before know, the “Olds” struggle with uniforms, Red Stag, Homeless Dave, people not showing up on time, etc., etc, etc. The 2016 Cider Cup started off as expected…..more issues from the “Olds”. I received a call an hour or so prior to tee time from Brad Marshall stating that he was having dysentery issues. (We believe he had eaten at the Asian Buffet to celebrate Cider Cup Eve and the Sweet n’Sour Chicken turned into Sweet n’Scour Chicken). This news shook Lee Kendall to the core and while he wanted to believe that last minute substitute Grant Howard would suffice (he did by going 2 and 2) the look on his face says otherwise.

Off we go, with the Best Ball Format being first up. The Youngs defeated the Olds 5 to 3. There seemed to be some dissention in the ranks as Joseph Ammerman called out Rob Ogden for losing his opening match to Sparks/Henson. The picture below reeks of cold shoulder as you see the two passing like ships in the night.

The afternoon matches were an absolute disaster for the “Olds” as the second group of the session, consisting of one of our most successful pairings McIlvain/Varner, experienced the “shot heard round the world” as Gary Varner collapsed to the ground in pain immediately after hitting his 2nd shot. As Varner rolled around for several minutes in obvious agony, McIlvain, using the wisdom of a doctor, waited until just the right moment to intervene. Once Nooch had miraculously willed himself to stand and while still in tremendous pain, McIlvain made sure to brush off the dead grass from his shirt. Their opponents Ammerman/Rus Whalen were also concerned as evidenced by the text they sent to their teammates…….It read….”Nooch is literally on the ground in pain…not sure he’ll be able to play. BTW we eagled #2 and are up 1”. While Varner could only chip and putt the rest of the Scrambles match, he and McIlvain somehow took Ammerman/Whalen to the 9th hole. This grit and determination is what the Cider Cup is all about, and while it was certainly inspirational it did little to right the ship for the “Olds” as we were whitewashed in the scrambles 7-1. History will not be kind to the pairings I put out that afternoon, but thank goodness for Robbie Cox’s chip shot and Fred Caudill’s putt on #9 to get us our only point.

Points

After the Saturday matches, the Youngs had a commanding 12-4 lead. The disappointment from the “Olds” was short lived though as once again we had a great evening at the Cider Cup GALA hosted by the Prizing House. The atmosphere, food, fellowship, and money raised for charity once again exceeded my expectations.

Sunday morning started with Larry Bishop leading us in an “Arnold Palmer themed” devotional and prayer which was yet another highlight of the event.

As we started the new format Alternate Shot matches, the “Olds” were optimistic but knew we had to win at least 5 of the 8 matches to have a legitimate chance to mount a comeback. We fell just short of those 5 points, winning 4 ½ to 3 ½ but the most interesting match saw the team of Mike Lenox/Lee Kendall spank the Whalen brothers sending Gerald into a profanity-laden tirade at his grandsons that prompted Cider Cup security to escort him from the grounds. This obviously had an impact on the lads as they both lost their singles matches later in the afternoon. The prospects of no Christmas presents from the Whalen Patriarch seemed to weigh heavily on both as Lee Kendall pummeled Hank and Jamie Case did the same to Rus. Historically, the “Olds” had won or tied 25 of 34 Singles matches and as the event began, we won the first 3 and 5 of the first 7. This brought the point total to 17 ½ to 13 ½ with 9 points still up for grabs. It would be the “Youngs” day, though as they needed only 3 more points to win the cup after Letcher, McCauley and Ammerman won 3 in a row, they were champions. Of the 6 matches still out, several went to the final hole and as Frank Henson commented…”After hearing the roars, you kind of knew we were beat and I didn’t know what to expect when I topped the hill from the #9 tee….I was shocked and pleased to see everyone still hanging out at the green.”

So the Cider Cup now stands tied at 2 wins each and win or lose it’s still the most fun golf I have ever been involved with. My hat’s off to all of you.

Thanks to:

Mike and Grant for their work getting the course in shape….it was perfect.
Amanda and Conner for their help.
The Prizing House – what a great GALA. I can honestly say I’ve never been sung to before every course.
The Auction – thanks to those that donated items and those that purchased them. After the dust settles we will have raised in excess of over $5000.00 this year, bringing our 4 year total to well over $12,000.
Larry Bishop for the devotion and prayer.
Our wives, friends and families for allowing us to spend a few days chasing around a little white ball acting like we’re playing in the greatest golfing event in the world…(which it is).
To the players. The Cider Cup would not be what it has become without your participation, enthusiasm and passion. There was some fantastic golf played out there during the event. I witnessed great shots by several of my partners and competitors (Dang you Bill Meeks) as well as just watching other matches. As several of you mentioned, the pressure of the Cider Cup wears on you as you grind over every shot. It’s awesome and you guys responded with great play.
I want to also publically thank Stephen McCauley for everything he does for the event. He’ll humbly tell you that he has a lot of help and support, which he does, but he is the “straw that stirs the drink”. He’s constantly going above and beyond with everything he does for the Cider Cup. Without him, this event would not be what it is….so thank you Stephen and congratulations to you and your team.

As I lick my wounds this winter, I will take comfort in the fact that the “Olds” battled diarrhea, sciatic nerves and the loss of Tyler Gossett (which enabled the “Youngs” to find a better golfer) and yet still took so many matches to the final hole. We did not give away the Cup (although my scramble parings didn’t help), they just played better than we did. Our hats are off to the “Youngs” and I’m proud of the way my team played. I’ll also be comforted by the friendships that have deepened and begun because of the event and the families we’ve been able to help.

To steal a line from the Reverend Bishop, I’ll close with the Arnold Palmer quote;

“The most rewarding things you do in life are often the ones that look like they cannot be done.”

I must admit that if someone had told me 4 years ago when 16 of us gathered on that frigid Saturday that this……..

…..would’ve become this, I would have never believed it.

Thanks to all

Congratulations to the “Youngs” and looking forward to 2017.