Always a bridesmaid, never a bride. That statement doesn’t accurately depict my MGA career, but that’s the thought that will always play in my head when I look at my second place trophy at the 2023 MGA World Championship.
My third trip to the WC came after a #3 overall finish in my chapter, the first time I had qualified without a victory during the year to guarantee my spot. I finished 5th in our last chapter event thanks to some poor approach shots and missed putts. Due to MGA handicapping rules, my mid 90s round erased my penalty strokes going into the WC allowing me to head into the event without having to chase any strokes.
My group started day 1 on a short par 3 over water. After watching the A group struggle with the green we weren’t too enthusiastic about the task at hand. My tee shot hit short of the fringe and kicked back, landing just in front of the rock wall surrounding the pond. A nice chip and a short uphill bender and I was in for par.
My swing felt good all day and other than a few missed putts I was happy with my early play. Some extremely friendly bounces off hazards and the cart path on a few holes allowed me to sneak in a few pars and saved some bogeys that otherwise would have been doubles or worse.
Hole 16 on the Concord course is my nemesis. A medium length par 3 with serious trouble behind and along the right of the green. A 5 foot drop off into a wash at the back of the green has swallowed up my ball both times I’ve taken it on. Leading up to the hole I made the mistake of talking about it with my group. My tee shot landed about 1/3 of the way up the green, just off the left into some medium length rough. Nothing too nefarious. Until I smoked my chip across the green and found myself in the wash yet again. An unplayable lie, 2 chunked chips, a 3 putt and I earned myself an 8. A +5 on a relatively simple par 3. My prior two attempts at this hole I was already well out of contention and the fuck up didn’t make any difference for my score. The 8 stung for sure, but I was having a good round and wasn’t going to let one shitty hole wreck my round. I would soon find out how much it’d really sting.
I finished day one with a 91 and tied for 22nd place. First place was currently sitting at an 86 and I felt good about where I was. I’m a consistent mid 80s scorer. Low 80s are in my arsenal and 5 strokes didn’t feel insurmountable. I just needed to swing the sticks, not take big chances, and make the putts that couldn’t be missed.
My foursome for day two was the best group I’d been with at the MGAWC. They were all solid golfers who were just there to have fun. They acknowledged their mediocrity, and I didn’t have to listen to how they were an MGA +8 and this was the worst they’ve ever played. One golfer from the LA area shot his best round ever the day before and was happy he wasn’t already in 100th place. He was a riot and an enthusiastic fan of Fireball! I’d love to get a chance to make a loop with him again.
I didn’t have the same luck with my bounces as the day before. Thankfully, I only had a few errant shots and was able to save myself with some putts. I managed a bogey on a par 4 after taking a drop and then sinking a 20 foot putt over a ridge. This turned out to be one of those putts that couldn’t be missed.
I carded a couple birdies and nothing worse than a double on this round. We reached our last hole and in my head, I knew I was having a fairly good round. I don’t add up my score until the end of the round. Knowing my score as I’m playing is a huge mind fuck for me. I hit a decent tee shot. My approach landed just short of the front of the green. A chip passed the hole left me with about a 12 foot downhill right to left breaking putt for my par. I rolled it in for par.
Quite a few groups were passing by our hole back to the club house and stopped to chit chat and grab a few last drinks from the cart girl. A fellow Reno MGA was in the group and I said to him I carded an 86, I did what I needed to do and gave myself a chance.
Without the penalty strokes my tournament total was 177 (91/86). The championship was decided in a playoff the year before. There was a crowd waiting near the club house and there was a stir of energy and anticipation. This year, most of the crowd was already on the buses or loading their gear into their cars. I found a couple of the Reno guys and we discussed the hole in one that one of our crew carded (the first ever hole in one at the MGAWC).
They headed off to load their stuff in the car and I was packing a couple things back into my golf bag when the MGA President walked by carrying a laptop and I heard him say we got a play off. As he walked further away I heard him say one of the names and people scrambled to locate him as he had already boarded a bus to head back to the hotels. I was getting ready to look for an Uber when I heard my name. I looked up thinking maybe one of the members of my group from yesterday or a previous year were trying to get my attention. I realized it was the President looking for me as the other participant in the playoff was me. I stood where I was confused for a second before making my way over to where he was standing. I said I think you’re looking for me and after a quick introduction, chaos ensued.
Another member of my Reno chapter heard my name as well and saw me and asked what the fuck was going on. I said I’m in the playoff for the belt. He had a good buzz going and must have said holy shit at least 20 times. He quickly called the rest of the group who were in varying stages of trying to get back to the hotel.
I was nervous stepping onto the 18th tee box to start the playoff. I bogeyed the hole about 30 minutes prior. Now the sun was directly in our faces, I was in a playoff for the title, and the President of the MGA was live streaming the playoff on Instagram. A tee was flipped, and I was second to tee off. My opponent pushed his tee shot a bit left. I set up, 5 wood in hand, and stared into the blazing sun. I couldn’t see well enough to pick a solid aiming point. My tee shot prior had gone right and landed in some longer rough, leaving me a tough approach. As I went through my pre-shot routine I felt surprisngly calm. My calm faded as I pulled my tee shot well left. We all heard it hit something solid, possibly a home or the large retaining wall down the left side of the course. Thanks to the sun, nobody could see where it ended up. I took my drop in the fairway and 2 penalty strokes. An 8 iron into the green left me about 35 feet from the hole. My putt was online but came up a little short. Tap in for 6 and I was at the mercy of my opponent. He took care of business, and his bogey made me the #2 in the world.
Disappointing as it was to come in second, Reno took home the Chapter Cup (awarded to the chapter with the 3 lowest scores over the tournament) for the first time. We only brought 7 to the tournament this year, down from 23 the year before, making the Chapter Cup victory that much more impressive.
MGA24 I’ll be ready.
