IP(A) Cup Standings After Shocking Feb 18 Edition

There is a new entry in the top three all-time 18th hole meltdowns in golf history. Dropping to third position is Roy McAvoy's 13 at the US Open, spurred on by repeat attempts to reach the protected green in two. Roy carded a 13, lost the US Open, but I guess some small consolation is that he got the girl (seen in distance at the center of the frame).

The notorious implosion of John van de Velde at the 1999 British Open once topped our charts. Needing only a double-bogey to win, van de Velde carded a triple bogey 7 after pushing his drive right, careening his second shot off of the grandstand, and putting his third shot into a hazard. Still, he made it to the playoff that included Justin Leonard, and lost to eventual winner Paul Lawrie. His consolation? A 305,000GBP payout for being the bridesmaid after a disastrous 18th hole.

But now, after February 18th, we find ourselves with a new all-time meltdown leader. After a remarkable front 9 where his consistent play landed him firmly in the driver's seat at 41 - even before factoring in his cap - Ched arrived on the 18th tee at this IPA Cup Round at TPC Scottsdale Stadium course with a healthy lead. Needing only a snowman or lower to tie or win outright, Ched found the desert rough and the desert oasis, and fell from first to third by the time the hole was over.

Carding a 10 on the last hole, Ched blamed his caddie, the lack of caloric intake on the course attributable to the Featherweights, and some talking to himself in his back swing. Trainers believe that his issues started with his exuberant birdie bull ride on the 5th, where slow motion replay caught signs of Ched wincing when he violently stuffed his 8-iron between his legs to start the celebration.

Speaking to Harris after the round, he noted that he struggled to find practice time this week and blamed the lack of variables like snow, ice, and frozen ground as factors that contributed to his low placing. Harris did contend that he still has a shot at a Cup win if only he can dial in his short game.

Shooter's birdies on 17 and 18 pulled him into second place on the day and shows that when he finally finds that positive mindset, he is a real threat on the links. When asked about what could have been, Shooter said, "four double bogeys on the first six holes is not how you win championships. My team and I are going to investigate options on how to block out the bad early in the round, even if that means jeopardizing my long-term health by hitting the green cans a few hours before tee off."

Champion and new Cup co-leader Marooned remained generally unphased by his performance. "I've come to learn that in this cup season, you just have to play your game, even if it starts off crappy, and let the other players come back to you. I mean, I have the best job in the world: I play a game for fame, fortune, and an unlimited supply of Titleist Pro V1's (TM). I couldn't ask for anything more than being out here in the fresh air, competing with the world's... best?"

The Cup leaderboard has seen a shake-up due to Basil's absence. The race tightens with only weeks to go.

Next's week's edition will find us at either Champions of Omaha (Blue 6,611, White 6,158) or Vidanta Vallarta (6,793/6,221) on Thursday, February 26th at 6:00pm Pacific.

Updated Cup Standings as at February 11th

The temporary conditions didn't significantly impact play, but much of that might have been related to the slightly shorter tees. Calm but risky conditions led to some good golf and many bull rides to celebrate birdies.

Results from Riviera, Forward Tees:

Name Score Points
Ched +12 (83, NET 76) **WINNER 10
Basil +5 (77) 7
Marooned +6 (78) 5
Shooter +10 (81) 4


Ched's remarkable play down the finishing stretch allowed him to fend off the unwanted advances of Basil. Marooned's triple late on the front nine dropped him out of contention and Basil and Ched didn't open the door to let him back in.

Cup Standings Through February 11th

Rank Name Points
1 Basil 34
2 Marooned 24
3 Shooter 23
4 Ched 15
5 Harris 0


Basil's consistent play has made him almost untouchable in the lead position. That said, it's entirely possible that this insurmountable lead can simply be chalked up to good attendance. The race for second place looks tight. Next week's edition - which Basil has indicated he will miss - stands to separate the wheat from the chaff and put some pressure on the leader. Ched may have shown up to take this week's win just to gain enough points to retain his tour card, but his steady performance has made fellow competitors on the tour wonder what would have been. Harris made a brief appearance at Royal Pine this week to preview the course and sign autographs; he smashed a few 7 irons, waved to the crowd, and disappeared.

Introducing the IP(A) Cup Standings

Wow, a long hiatus on this blog!
A quick summary of where the Royal Pine Virtual Golf Tour's IP(A) Cup standing lie as of today.

Date	15-Jan	22-Jan	05-Feb	Total
Round	1	2	3
GM	10	7	10	27
BK	7	5	7	19
CR	4	10	5	19
TK	5	/	/	5
CH	/	/	/	0

Basil has won two of the first three tournaments, with Marooned taking the third. Shooter has shown consistency but has yet to find the winning touch. Ched has been busy lighting up the Liv Tour and doing Axe Body Spray ads, which has meant he's only made one round, and that leaves him alone in 4th place. Harris has been sidelined by an injury and his multi-sport commitments make him questionable for the remainder of the Cup sessions.

Next week's session will return to an off-site location as Royal Pine is still recovering from the multi-casualty greens punching incident that has left them hunting for a new greenskeeper, Facility Manager, and Director of Operations.

Hiatus... now past tense.

Exactly two years ago today was my last blog post. So much to cover, but such little time. It almost warrants a word cloud.

Speedway - Again

Another visit to Speedway in late July. Again, took no trad gear, as the time spent fiddling with the gear does not seem to be worth it given the grade. If you are comfortable with the 30' runout to the first bolt on the crux pitch, then you are laughing.

Another duo from Vernon set out ahead of us, but we passed them on the 4th pitch as they followed what was likely the old Becky Line. We waited for them at the top, and discussed options and possibilities of this 'easy' scramble to the top. We opted to rap down the route, and the Vernon duo set out to reach the summit.

We topped out in about 90 minutes, which had us at 2.5 hours return, and 6 hours return to the car. We noticed that the Vernon duo turned back from their attempt to get to the top, and we waited for a while for them to get to the base of the climb. But then, we noticed that they were rapping on only one rope. Not the end of the world, as you may be able to link up the bolts to make for mid-pitch rappels, but definitely a hairy way to travel. They were slowly picking their way down the line, but were not stuck, so we moved on.

Yak Peak Speedway

Up the SouthWest Side of Yak/Nak Peaks on the Coquihalla last Sunday. The climb is called Speedway, running 11 pitches up into what's supposed to be a scramble to the top (yeah,right).



The toughest pitch goes at 5.8, and after the warm welcome of the lower pitches, it catches you a bit off guard. The 2 bolts on the crux pitch seem a bit run out when you start to tighten up, but given that there are maybe 6 bolts on the whole climb, I guess it's on par with the whole route. Nice rests at the stations, which are mostly rap hangers.



Can't wait to get back on the granite there. I miss the slab climbing of Squamish, and will gladly drive the 2 hours to get some more of Yak.

First World Problems

Yes, we have a suspended Parliament, and a government that may fall on January 27th. Still, when put in perspective, these are definitely first world problems.

(Except for the notion that one measure proposed by the Conservative Gov't was to prevent women pursuing pay equity recourse to the Human Rights Coalition - doing so by making pay equity a parliamentary matter.)

To put our political "crisis" into context, let's take a look at recent news around the globe:

Acid attacks by men on women are a common thing. Exerpt: "Since 1994, Ms. Bukhari has documented 7,800 cases of women who were deliberately burned, scalded or subjected to acid attacks, just in the Islamabad area. In only 2 percent of those cases was anyone convicted. " That's just under 2 attacks per day, every day, since 1994, in just one city.

The CDN military may have been ordered to ignore cases of childhood sexual abuse. Exerpt: "Whispers of sexual abuse allegedly perpetrated by Afghan soldiers against young boys have been commonly heard among Canadian troops, with many referring to such incidents as "man love Thursdays."" Chances are, if there's a saying for it, it happens.

Survey Results! We're Not Prorogued!

So, here are the results! 30 respondents in total. Thanks All!

1. Do you support the Liberal-NDP-Bloc coalition?

Yes - 50%
No - 50%

I can't believe this was an exact tie.

2. If you voted no, what are your reasons for not supporting the coalition?

Stephane Dion / Jack Layton / Gilles Duceppe: 7 of 14 who answered the q.
Coalition has no mandate from CDN Voters: 11 of 14
The presence of the Bloc: 8 of 14
The presence of the Liberals: 1
The presence of the NDP: 3
The presence of any three of the parties: 3

Best Other for Q2 (2 comments): "Conservative have not had time to prepare a budget."

3. If you voted yes, what are your reasons for supporting the coalition?

Conservatives no longer have the mandate to govern: 5 of 13
Conservatives didn't cooperate in Parliament: 11 of 13
Coalitions work in other countries - why not ours?: 3 of 13
Anything must be better than this: 5 of 13
Stephen Harper: 8 of 13

Best Other for Q3 (out of 5): "Why not? This could be interesting!"

4. The Top 3 Additional Comments:

3: "It's a little embarrassing when the incoming US government is more liberal than the party in power in Canada."
2: "The Harper government is working on plans for economic stimulus give him time. WHAT IS THE ALTERNATIVE>>>>>>>>>The 3 stooges????"

... and what I believe is the best comment...

"Regardless what happens, the sun will rise, the sun will set and in ten years this whole situation will be an interesting historical event from which future politicians, political theorists, historians and all Canadians (and maybe even some other countries) can learn.........something!"