Event 13 – Results – Friday, October 28 –Arrowood GC – “Championship Finals” Seacoast Cup playoff round
Welcome to the 13th event of our golf season ! Today we held our 5th playoff post season round. Our top 2 remaining players who survived the “semi- finals” round are now set for the battle to see who will win the Championship Finals. Here’s who in contention for the 2016 Seacoast Championship Cup:
Match 1
Player Notes:
Ebin Smith – this Seacoast golf season Ebin has been improving monthly. His short game has tightend up along with his lengthy drives down the middle, have most certainly have helped lower his monthly index. It’s been reported that Ebin has been putting in extra practice rounds at various courses around the county to get himself in tip top shape for the championship round. Secret video footage was obtained that shows Ebin purchasing extra golf gloves which substantiates his frequent visits to the golf range. Various players whom have played recent rounds have reported that Ebin’s mind set has been more focused. He has been mentally training himself to focus on each individual shot. It’s been also reported that you can sometimes see Ebin mentally visualizing his golf shots. If he should make any mistakes, he brushes them by and refocuses on that challenge before him. Ebin will be tough to beat today, as he is on a role and his momentum in the playoffs may just carry him to the trophy.
Scott Jordan – has been also working diligently on his game. GolfTec lessons were instituted earlier this year, and the “southpaw” player has experienced some major strides in improving his game. Scott admits the professional lessons have helped him find extra power by improving the mechanics of his swing. As a result of all the indoor video training practice, Scott has gained more confidence in both his short and long iron play. His putting has even improved to the point where his monthly index began to drop to a low 13. His left handed driver needs to be intact today for him to be competitive today. If he should succeed in getting off drives that find the fairways, he will be there to the end. Scott has a very steady hand (but of course…he’s a dentist)..and his putting is very true. He rarely 3 putts and he’ll be quite the contender today if his putter gets hot. One big asset that Scott possesses is his mental toughness. Scott never gets flustered. After checking in with all the opponents he has faced, they all have reported an amazing ‘calmness” regarding Scott. He is so steady and even tempered, it will be interesting to see if this “calmness” holds out under the pressure of “Finals Championship Match Play.”
Match 2 – Consolation Match
Due to a scheduling conflict, Kent Coykendall could not make the match date. He willingly conceded this match to his opponent, Peter Andrew and Kent respectfully gave 3rd place honors to Peter.
A Big Congratulations to our winners:
Low Gross Winners
Congratulations to our low gross winners:
Flight A – Chris Fenimre (75)
Flight B– Michael Gibbs (86)
Flight C – John Riggs (88)
Our low net winner is: John Riggs who posted a low net 63.
Below are the results:
The Match Details:
The Match
Hole #1 – both players had their game face on as they approached the first tee box. Ebin won the honors and successfully hit a 3 wood right down the center fairway. Scott “Lefty” seeing a magnificent shot, got all set up, and pulled his first shot to fly right of the fairway into the hazard area… leaving him with a 170 yards to the green. Scott took a deep breath along with his 2nd shot penalty and proceeded to hit his 3rd shot right onto the green. Ebin realizing that Scott just pulled a magical shot out of his bag, tried earnestly to place his 2nd shot from 148 yards to the green, but he then “chunked” his shot advancing his ball only 40 more yards towards the green. The nerves were taking over Ebin’s swing and it wasn’t a good start. Ebin finally got to the green after 4 shots, and putted out for a disappointing double. Scott took the early gift with his bogey and a 1UP lead.
Hole #2 – Both players were a bit nervous now with this shaky start. Scott’s drive was down the left side, which ended up settling down the middle of the fairway. Ebin then hit his tee shot drive down the middle, but a slight fade in his ball rotation made the ball drift to the far right side off the fairway near the bunkers. Ebin’s second shot flew left and ended up in the left bunkers, while Scott flew his second shot to within 120 of the green. Ebin was 148 yards away in the bunker and got his ball just off the green, leaving a downhill chip shot to save par. Scott nicely placed a 9 iron to within 15 feet of the hole. Ebin’s chip shot rolled long leaving a lengthy bogey putt. Scott calmly 2 putted for par giving himself a 2 UP lead.
Hole #3 – Scott now feeling some momentum in his game confidently put his tee shot to the green 20 feet from the cup. Ebin took in a deep breath to calm his nerves but his tee shot fell short of the green and Ebin had to scramble to save a bogey. Scott confidently 2 putted to take a 3 UP lead.
Hole #4 – The number 2 handicap hole now faced the players. Scott could not imagine that he’d be leading by 3 after three holes, and now with this hole he felt some padding to his scorecard with an additional stroke on this hole. But the tee shot he fired off sliced hard left, forcing him to take a provisional ball as his first tee shot looked like it was gone. Scott’s next shot went perfectly straight but now he potentially lied 3. All this extra activity gave Ebin some time to recap / regroup his game….and he determined to just take his game to “One Shot at time”…”One Hole at a time”….there were plenty of holes left….but he needed to win a hole to turn things around. Ebin hit his drive long..but it faded right into the right rough. Ebin found himself with a difficult approach shot from 170 yards, but successfully got to the green….Scott now felt the pressure as he couldn’t find his first ball and had to play the provisional. His 4th shot flew long right and now it was scrambling time. The extra stroke he had was no longer factor, as Ebin saved a bogey and Scott had to settle for a 7….taking the match to a 2 Up lead for Scott.
Hole #5 – The short par 4 turned out to be a turning point hole for Ebin as he made an amazing par save from 2 separate bunkers, while Scott ended losing his tee shot to the wild preserve area on the right. Scott’s drives were not flying straight and scoring a double bogey didn’t help his cause. Ebin was now making a move and Scott’s lead was now only 1 UP.
Hole #6 – Another short par 4 hole where both players played it safe and hit perfect tee shots to give themselves less than 80 yards to the pin. Both players played their second shots to the hole and both were able to get up and down to par and halve the hole. The match play score remained Scott Jordan 1 UP.
Hole #7 – Both players hit poor tee shots, and scrambled to get their 4th shots to the green. Then it became a putting match. Ebin got his putt to within 4 feet, while Scott came out short and left himself a long 8 footer for a double bogey. He missed the putt and had to settle for a triple. Ebin focused and got up and down and saved his double on a great 4 foot putt to win the hole and take the match to ALL SQUARE.
Hole #8 – This tricky par 3 now became a new battle ground as both players realized that the match was up for grabs. Ebin had rebooted his game and now felt that his game was back on track. He calmly hit his 8 iron 20 feet above and right of the cup. Scott missed hit his tee shot and the ball ended up in the left greenside bunker. Scott drew a great lie in the bunker and smoothly placed his sand shot 2 feet from the cup. Ebin carefully lined up his putt but was too careful in thinking the sloped green would roll his ball to the cup. Leaving himself a 5 footer for par, Ebin missed the putt and had to settle for a conceded bogey. This left all the pressure on Scott to sink his 2 footer, which he confidently made to again take a 1 UP lead.
Hole #9 – Scott still felt some shock from giving up a 3 Up lead in 3 holes..but now he realized that he could make it a 2 up lead if he should take this hole. Plus, the only thing he needed to do was get a decent drive onto fairway. With that he took the tee box again, and hooked his drive to the right . Ebin was able to successfully get a decent drive off down the middle. Scott had to take a drop and so he found himself laying up with a utility rescue club that went 210 down the middle leaving him about 120 yards to the cup. Ebin also laid up leaving himself his favorite 110 yard shot. Ebin was able to get his ball right of the cup for a 18 footer birdie try. Scott amazing got in tight to 4 feet from the cup with a bogey saving putt opportunity. Scott successfully made an amazing putt to save his bogey, but Ebin calmly two putted to par and win the hole…The match was again ALL SQUARE.
Hole #10 – With the match all tied, Ebin felt some relief that he had overcome the 3 down deficit, and now he had to refocus and see if he could take the lead. Scott calmingly told himself that even though he had the lead, he was still in control as he had two more stroke holes, and going into the back nine he felt he had control of the match. Ebin hit a long shot off the tee..but the ball fell short of the end the hill and stopped in the bunker. Scott crushed his tee shot down the left side of the fairway, and the ball caught the hill and rolled 40 more yards, leaving him 30 yards from the cup. Ebin began to feel the pressure as he realized that his opponent just wouldn’t let up and kept producing amazing shots at the right time. Trying to get to the green from the bunker Ebin blasted his 130 yard shot out of the bunker but pulled the ball left short of the green. Then his chip shot from the fairway found the bunker. Ebin again had to produce a shot to put pressure on Scott. But Scott pitched his short 30 yard shot just 10 feet above the cup. Ebin got out of the greenside bunker to 3 feet from the cup but it wasn’t good enough as Scott almost dropped his birdie attempt and was conceded the par putt for the win and a 1 UP lead.
Hole #11- 13 – Both players traded great putts to win holes and the match sea-sawed back and forth…and by the time the players reached hole #14, the match was again ALL SQUARE.
Hole #14 – This hole represents the pathway back to the clubhouse via some of the most difficult holes on the golf course. This hole will allow you to score well provided you perfectly place your shots. Unfortunately, both players missed their opportunities on their drives and both scrambled to see who could save a bogey. It turns out that both players ended up on the green hoping to make their putts, and Ebin found the line to sink his putt to save his bogey. Scott missed his attempt and this allowed Ebin took a 1 UP lead.
Hole #15 – The difficult par 3 awaited both players. Scott fired a perfect shot that just missed the pin 12 feet above the cup. Ebin sliced his shot and ended up way short in the greenside bunker. Being 45 feet from the hole, and in a deep bunker, Ebin managed to splash his ball out from the sand bunker to just 3 feet. (Wow!) It was the bunker shot of the day. Scott missed his birdie attempt and tapped out for par. But then Ebin fell into a nervous trance and missed his short sand save putt to virtually give Scott a win and again the match was ALL SQUARE.
Hole #16 – One of the most challenging holes on the course with a “island like” protected green, both players now had to figure out their strategies to survive this difficult hole. Scott took out his driver and hit a solid shot, but it appeared to take on a “power hook” trajectory and landed on the far right side..very close to the fenced area. A provisional was taken and Scott “power sliced” his provisional into rocky cliffs on the left side…(ouch !)…Seeing all of this, Ebin put his driver back into the bag, and decided to play it safe with a 5 iron off the tee. He hit a winner that went straight down the middle. Scott fortunately found his first ball but it was in an unplayable lie position and so he had to give up his stroke and take the penalty. Realizing that getting to the green from 180 yards out was too risky, Scott took a lay-up shot and rolled his ball to 130 yards out. Ebin also took the safe route and put a short iron to his ball to lay up 120 yards out. Now it was a dual for who had the nerves and mental strength to pull off their shots to the green. The pressure must have been too much for them as Ebin and Scott failed to get shots across the water and both fell short into the water. Each had to take a drop with a penalty . Finally the hole was tied by Ebin who inched out a double bogey to tie Scott’s triple…and the match remained ALL SQUARE.
Hole #17 – Both players now realized that it was coming down to the wire…one bad mistake could mean the whole match. Both players nailed their drives to give themselves a very good look at the elevated green. Scott hit his 2nd shot long as the wind carried the shot above the cup just off the edge of the putting green. Ebin successfully placed his 120 yard approach shot just 12 feet left of the cup. Scott had a difficult down hill putt and the putt worked itself just off the lip of the cup and settled 7 feet past the cup.(it actually caught the edge of cup and almost dropped). Ebin two putted for par and all the pressure went back to Scott to make his 7 footer. The nerves of steele were manifested in Scott as he calmly sank his 7 foot putt to keep the match ALL SQUARE.
Hole #18 – Going into the final hole, both players acknowledged that they both had a great day of golf and competition and wished each other well. It was great to see such sportsmanship between two competitors. Scott went first and hit his drive solid, but it drew right and fell into the bunker. Ebin knew he had to get the ball down the fairway and executed a great drive that landed right down the middle leaving him a 140 yards to the green. Scott knew he had to go for it, but being in the bunker with a lip and hitting into a steady 1 club wind called for a precise and accurate shot. Scott did his best , but missed the shot, and the ball barely cleared the lip and rolled 10 yards, leaving him 130 yards to the cup. Ebin sensed an opening after seeing Scott miss his shot. Realizing that he didn’t want to be short… Ebin clubbed up and solidly hit his approach shot long and right sailing it over the green. Scott then realized that Ebin didn’t hit the green… this gave him hope that if he got up and down from his missed hit bunker shot, he would still have a chance. Scott pulled out his 8 iron , but sliced the shot but he had enough to get over the water…but the ball settled onto the hillside next to the green leaving him 75 feet to the cup. It took a full a few minutes for Ebin to find his ball that settled just under a tree, and he was forced to make a difficult shot with his lob wedge. His shot went long but hit the green but rolled all the way down just off the green near the water leaving 60 feet to the cup. Scott took aim with his shot and lobed his pitch shot to stop just 7 feet from the cup. Now it was a battle of who could make the putt. Both players now mentally exhausted, but still working hard at focusing on the shot. Ebin knew he had to get it close to avoid a 3 putt situation. He dug in and focused and rolled his putt to about 18 inches from the cup. Scott then sized up his situation and made a great stroke that rolled right to the edge of the cup but instead of dropping in…it unfortunately lipped out. Ebin told Scott to pick up his missed bogey putt as he realized that he now had an opportunity to win. To avoid too much thinking and analyzing the putt, Ebin quickly stepped into his putting stance and stroked the ball precisely on line to find its way to the bottom of the cup! The battle was over and Ebin successfully wins the last hole to win the match at 1 UP. Both players embraced and congratulated each other for a fun and well played match.
Ebin Smith becomes the 2016 Seacoast Cup Champion.!!!
Post Match Interviews:
In the post match interview room, Scott explained, ” I just couldn’t believe that this battle went all the way to the last stroke of the match. When I got the 3 Up lead, I was quite surprised that Ebin had given me that lead so fast. Both of of us had shackey holes, but I somehow pulled out the wins early on. But to his credit, he kept composed and worked his way back into the match. We battled back in forth on the final 9 holes but in the end, one of us had to become the winner. At the beginning of the match Curtis mentioned how he hoped both of us played well …but in the end he wanted to see the winner be the one who played the best golf. Toward the end of the match we both pulled off some great shots to tie each other. But Ebin made fewer mistakes in the end, and deservedly has earned this win. He played like a champion today !”
Ebin was kind of enough to stay for a few minutes to discuss his round today with all the excitement surrounding him...”I really started out in a bad way. I totally got away from my game plan, and before I realized it I was 3 down. My short game seemed to have left me. I finally regained some confidence on hole #4 and then I felt settled down after the 5th hole. I kept telling myself to just play one shot at time. I missed several short putts today, and I felt so much pressure during the round that I was actually shaking with my mind racing while standing over the ball on the green. I didn’t realized how much pressure one can face during match play. It all came down to the last hole and I somehow was able to survive all the pressure that #18 hole can throw at you. Scott had so much grace and sportsmanship today and I totally admire how he handed his loss today. He is a true gentleman and I’m so happy to be part of this great group. I look forward to defending my cup for 2017.”
Player’s Bracket Results
Next Event : Friday, November 18, 2016 Place: Twin Oaks, GC 7:30a start
Quest for the 2016 Seacoast Cup– This year will be been full of fun times on the golf course. We have added a new dimension to our club’s monthly event play by having Match Play events beginning September 2016. Twenty players will earn their way to this year’s match play event. Points are earned by finishing well in both individual low gross and low net score postings. Also points are earned in different team and individual events ranging from match play, 4 man team best ball, and 2 man best ball events. Net Skins are also another category that allows players to add points to their monthly points.
Also this year we have added additional “Major” events which will have increased value in scoring for that particular event. These events will take place in April and July 2016.
Remember only those players who have an Official SCGA or USGA golf index qualify for low net play and compete in Seacoast Christian Golf Club Points System. Players who participate in our events who do not have an official golf index / handicap, will be assigned a “Flight” depending on their level of play. These players also may be assigned a course handicap and may participate and qualify for team net play points . For information on how to obtain an official golf index contact Curtis Chan and visit : Membership and SCGA
Leader board – We have now completed our Championship Finals. Congrats to Ebin Smith for making to the top and earning the 2016 Seacoast Cup Championship. Below are the final standings. A big congrats to Ted Clinite who also battled to gain need playoff points to rise to the top of the “Player’s Bracket” and earn the “2016 Player’s Cup Championship.” There were at least 4 players who were in contention for this title, but in the end Ted took the honors. A big acknowledgement to John Riggs for earning 1600 points on the last event to take runner up honors. In the end, we all had a great time this year and much more fun golf lays ahead !
