Whispering Lakes Saturday Men's Club

Update 10/21: While the course has shown some improvements the last couple of weeks, especially on the greens with the exception of a couple holes, the chances of getting the club championship scheduled and played in time for our representative to take part in the SCGA tournament of champions appears to be out of the question. Instead, we will continue this weekend with a two-man blind partner tournament. We will still have our annual luncheon and it will occur in December following our Beat the Hack tournament.

In a better turnout than recent weeks, Rico Ramos and Lou Casselle drew the proper partners who offset each other's bad holes to capture the victory in this month's tournament. Rico and Lou shot a net 61 but it was Rico who really stepped up on the backside to prove the difference. His two net eagles paired with four other net birdies proved the difference with the pair shooting a nine under par net 27 on the back nine for the victory. Rico did have two blow-up holes on the back but those two holes were picked up by Lou with a net par and a net birdie.

Hot on Rico and Lou's tails was the pair of Al Nagac and Juan Moreno. Juan was on fire this week shooting a net 66 on his own ball. But despite four net bogeys on their card that were made up for with four net eagles between them, the pair shot net 62 to finish in second behind the top pair by a single stroke. Like Rico and Lou, Al and Juan lit up the back nine with their seven under par net 29. Coming in third was the team of Tom Chesler and David Oshiro with net 63. And that net 63 came with two net pars on the final two holes which were the only holes with scores of fives on their card for the day. Otherwise, they would have been right there with the winners. Rounding out the top five were the teams of Jason Sgrignoli and John Hennes, and Craig Whitehead and Dan Farris who scored net 64's to finish in a tie for fourth.

Next on the tournament schedule is an individual low net tournament with one minor alteration. In light of the fact that this year's club championship has been canceled, in this tournament the two low gross scores will also walk away winners. Played from the white tees on November 22nd, other than recognizing the two low gross winners, the rest of us will play in our standard flighted format based on the tournament entries to determin the A flight from the B flight. Set your calendars and we hope to see you all there.

All existing members needing to renew their memberships or any new members wishing to join our crazy group can now do it all online as a part of the SCGA website by clicking here. This is a new and completely optional way to pay your annual dues. Existing members and those wishing to join may still pay in person either in cash or by check if you prefer. If you have any questions, feel free to either email us or track down on Saturday morning and we'll do our best to answer them.

Congratulations go out to John Hennes for his hole-in-one on the seventh hole and becoming the third member to capture the hole-in-one pot! The previous winners were Bill Barry on #3 and Mark Carlton on #16. On this one, John's playing partners raved at the perfect shot that took one hop and disappeared into the hole. What this means for the rest of us is that it's time to re-enter with the hopes that we can join that elite group.

If interested, contact Bruce Wilder to get signed up. The $10 entry is a one-time payment good until another ace wins the pot. The hole-in-one must be scored at Whispering Lakes on a Saturday morning during regular men's club play. Click here to see who's already on board.

With the club growth we have experienced in the last year along with the limitation of required tee times, it has become necessary to establish some guidelines on bringing guests to join us on Saturdays. First, guests can only be accommodated on a space-available basis. The first priority for tee times must be for club members. Second, no guests should be brought on any tournament day. Tournament days have bigger draws and especially with different tournament formats, it is not the opportune time to bring non-members. Finally, we are going to begin limiting the number of guests to one per member on any given week. If any member wishes to bring multiple guests, a guaranteed tee time cannot be determined until Friday morning when the groups are established and shared. If there is space available at that point, the multiple guests will be welcomed. If you have multiple guests and require a guaranteed tee time, it is suggested that you contact the pro shop and get a time outside of the men's club set tee time reservations. Thank you to all for your understanding and cooperation in this. It is appreciated.

Handicap index calculation for members is changing beginning January 1st as the new Rules of Handicapping are introduced and implemented in the United States. First, your index will be based on the 8 best scores out of the past 20 posted scores rather than the lowest 10 scores out of the last 20 as it currently does. This change should be minor but you may see a change in your index after the 1st of the year even if you haven't played.

Additionally, the maximum score for each hole will now be limited to a Net Double Bogey. This can be calculated as par + 2 + the number of handicap strokes you receive on that hole. This calculation will be the same for all golfers and there are no longer different maximum scores based on a range of values that an individual's current handicap fits within.

Finally, beginning January 1st, handicap index updates will be made daily so your handicap will change the day after you post a score. On days you don't play, obviously no update will take place. As for player handicaps used for weekly and club competitions, our Men's Club will continue to update and post players' indexes twice a month on the 1st and 15th of each month. So for side games within your foursome, it will be up to you whether you use each player's current index or their posted index. But for participation in our group side game and tournaments, all players will play to the handicap posted in the pro shop. If you have any questions, please feel free to speak with Bruce Wilder, our handicap chairman and resident expert on these changes!