Life in the Fast Lane

AM1, Pro, and AM2 winners

Like the Big Lebowski said, “I had a rough night and I hate the... Eagles, man.” I couldn't agree more, but “Life in the Fast Lane” seems like a fitting description of the current state of the Green Mountain Points Series. Wrightsville is still a beautiful place and I still hate playing disc golf on buckets, but the tournament was quite a success. Props go out once again to Colin and Al along with all the other locals who have spent countless hours on course work. Most importantly, yesterday's results managed to really shake up the point series races. So here we go.

Men's Pro Open

Coming into Wrightsville, Emmett Cosgrove had the division lead despite not having a tournament win this year. Chris Young and Dave Frothingham were right behind him. It looked to me like it was going to be a three man race to the finish. That's now right out the window. Jeff Spring (next year's predicted point series winner) isn't waiting until 2012 to mix things up in the division. Two solid rounds with scores of 52 and 53 carried Spring to his second point series win of the year.

So, I left Wrightsville saying that it was now a four man race. But, after talking to Chris Young, I have to agree that it's probably a five man race. Johnny Betts isn't out yet. Young says, “If Betts were to win the last 2 [events] he would be at 450 [total points]. It's never ever over.” So there you have it. The Pro Open division is a five man race. Right now Emmett's still in the lead. He's got 437.27 points. Young is in 2^nd, just a tad over 6 points off the lead. Frothy is about 18 points off the lead and Spring is now 33 points off the front. Betts is 126 points off but currently has scores of 33.33 and 27.27 that he hasn't dropped.

Bottom line, this division is going to come down to the last two tournaments. So keep your eyes peeled for what happens at Lydon and at the Finals. 100's win and these 5 players will need to make sure to lock another one down before its too late.

AM 1

The division where that action isn't, I think not. Jon Moorer has been cruising for a while. Having missed Wrigthsville though, he left the division open for the taking. Rang Duce didn't let the opportunity slip, and neither did a few other players in the point series.

Wrightsville once again hosted a legendary set of playoffs. Rang Duce and Dave Carter ended up tied at 110 after both shooting hot second rounds. Rang Duce carded a 53 and Carter a 51. Rang Duce knocked him off on the 2^nd playoff hole to take down the win, his 2^nd of the season. This puts him at 436.72 points, about 9 points ahead of Moorer.

Anne Lewis and Seth McQuade, as predicted by Emmett Cosgrove, both made huge moves this weekend. McQuade now sits in 3^rd place with 401.31. Matty O. is 4^th, Christian Keidel is 5^th and Anne Lewis is 6^th.

This division is also going to come down to the wire. Rang Duce is the first double 100 Am 1 player, but the race isn't over yet. Moorer, McQuade, Matty O., Keidel and Lewis probably aren't going to let him off easy at Lyndon and the Finals.

AM 2

Whenever I try to get out, they keep bringing me back in. I try not to publicize this division, but they're really making it impossible for me. After two Wrightsville rounds Andy Powell and Ira Divoll were tied with 122 total strokes. Ira knocked down a solid 3 on the first playoff hole, putting the pressure on Andy to make a 15 foot bucket putt to push the playoff to a second hole. When Powell's putt hit post below the bucket, Ira had his first ever GMPS win.

I played with Ira for his first ever round of disc golf, which doesn't seem all that long ago. I also remember a day last year at Maple Hill where we all realized Ira was the real deal. It's nice to see his progression and he's a refreshing addition to the GMPS scene. Big ups, Ira.

Murray Junod still leads the division, but he's less than one point ahead of Powell. Kevin Mize is still 3^rd, but Ira Divoll is now in 4^th. Justin Devico rounds out the top 5. You know I love those 100's and Murray's got 3 of them already. Powell has 2 and Ira's got 1 now. If Andy or Ira can win Lyndon, it's going to really make the Finals exciting.

Extras

*The Green Mountain Disc Golf club still has Fly 18 tee pads to install at Center Chains. About half of the material was used for the first set of pads. We still need to get the rest installed. Some of the tee pad areas are going to need fill before the pads go down. I think it'd be great to have them in for the Ace Race. Who's going to head up the work day and organization?

*Wrightsville scores, on the whole, weren't spectacular. There were some hot rounds though. Dave Frothingham's second round 50 was a course record at Wrightsville. Nice work. Dave Carter shot a 51 on his second round. Spring had a 52 and a 53. Rang Duce and James Beaulieu shot 53's. There was only one round in AM2 that was under 60, and that was Andy Powell's 59.

*It sounds like Lydon will be in top shape for the tournament there. Cement tee pads? Crazy. That will be a welcome first for Vermont, but I must admit, it's an odd place to see it happen.

*Yesterday I was asked if my opinion of playing on buckets had changed. My answer is no. I have to admit, it was cool to get zoned in putting on those buckets (ask Aaron Moore, he saw me do it). But, I'm standing with my original opinion. Baskets make disc golf. I think Emmett said it best. “Shooting on buckets is a hobby, shooting on baskets is a sport.” Wrightsville is a really special place. It's going to be a premier Vermont disc golf course when it gets baskets installed.

*I heard at least a little grumbling during tags and award ceremonies, about how things were done. That wasn't cool. If you don't like how something is done or if you want to comment on someone's minor mistakes, maybe you should think twice. Or better yet, step up and take charge of something on your own.

*If you're not following the linked text in the blog, then you're missing half the fun.  Make sure to click those links.

*Al Rosa deserves the final word for all of his hard work yesterday. Bravo, sir. We appreciate it. Colin has done tremendous work at Wrightsville. Ira continues to step up with tags and score checking. You guys are top notch.