The Johnny Boge Classic

Have you ever wondered who Johnny Boge is? Neither have I but the picture on this flyer reminds me of what a co-worker of mine once said when I told her that I played disc golf: "Oh, thats the sport that all those dirty hippies play?" Well a bunch of dirty hippies, lawyers, graphic designers, slum lords, prospective NYC residents and assorted others gathered at Tyler State Park this past Sunday for the Johnny Boge Classic. Conspicuously absent were any Professors of Japanese History on spring break, but alas I guess tournament play is not for everyone.

Mike M and Myself played in the AM1 or advanced division, while Mike W, Dan the Natural and special guest Su Ning prepared to rock the AM2 division. Personally, I should have been in the AM2 as well as, and please excuse my ineloquence, I completly sucked! But fortunately that did not diminish the fun. Su Ning and I were paired with a very chill pro player for the first round and we had a very pleasant time. I was forced to remember not to curse quite so loud, it being a tournament and all, when my putts went awry, and did manage a few nice shots but mostly i just watched in awe as the pro on our card outdrove me consistently with his putter. He ended up taking second in the pro division. Our group was forced into the unsavory role of having to reprimand the group behind us (of guess who) for a few gross violations of etiquette but otherwise they seemed to getting on just fine.

After the first round, Mike M was 5 strokes up on me and both of us were pretty much out of contention in our division. The competition in the AM2 division was heating up however as Su Ning, Dan and Mike entered round two seperated by a mere stroke.

Here is Dan's account of the two rounds:

Fresh from their hour-long backseat huddle, Mike Mills and Weisberg, together with Dan, set off for round 1 with Ben's admonition to "Play the lie!" resonating behind them. The veteran Mills as usual started out slow, but buckled down to finish the round of 27 with a 95. Mills was disappointed with the score, perhaps affected by his swearing off of the forehander, but his numbers held up nicely when the cards were tallied. Weisberg's consistent drives got him some nice looks and a first-ever birdie, but rusty putting drove his score up to a still respectable 114, matched exactly by Dan.

The latter two were pleased to be ahead of, and paired with, Su Ning Strube, aka Strube Doo, in the second round. Guided by the mantra "Toss it high, watch it die; keep it low, watch it go!" Dan improved his drives. His hard chucks proved at least as useful as Su Ning's smooth tosses, and Mike W. would have been right there if not for a few inconveniently placed trees. Coming into the last hole, Su Ning led by a stroke. When Dan well outdistanced her drive, he moved into the catbird seat, secure in the knowledge that Su Ning's putting had been shaky in round 1. But after a sold approach shot, mindful of the day's other mantra, "Pick a link, watch it sink," Su Ning nailed the putt to take the win, finishing the 18-hole second round with a 69, dude.

Editors note: it was a pleasure to have Su Ning out on the course with us - what a damn trooper, not having played in over two years, rallying on less than 4 hours sleep to charge out into the cold PA countryside for a ridiculously long day of disc and to kick some butt in the process. There is no doubt that WHEN she decides to move to NY she will quickly become a force to be reckoned with on tour. Mike M's score was good enough to play on the second AM1 card in the second round but he did not quite turn on the jets enough to finish in the $$.