Vancouver Invitational

This past week the elite golfers of the Champion's League were invited by the Royal Disc Golf Society of British Columbia to participate in an exclusive invitational at Quilchena Park in Vancouver, BC. The trio decided to arrive a few days early to hit the slopes of Whistler where fortune blessed them with heaps of delicious fluffy powder to romp through and apres ski delights galore. After four days of smiles at this little slice of heaven their legs may have felt like strawberry jam but their souls were refreshed and fully prepared for the competitive rigours of the Vancouver Invitational Tournament. They did not dissappoint.

The trio finished in the top three in both the morning and afternoon 36 hole sessions. In the morning session, Maddog steadily pulled away from Mike and Ben with his plodding efficiency, finishing with an impressive +3. Mike and Ben battled for second and on the final hole an unlucky OB shot by Ben gave Mike the edge, +7 to +8. Round 2 started in the rain but our heros from the North East were not dissuaded. They charged back onto the course and were rewarded with sunshine after about 6 holes. Still some sloppy disc took place in the meantime and after the first 12 holes the scores stood tied at +4. The sunshine, fresh air and mountain views had a delightful effect on Goldman as he stepped up his play to build a lead during the second set of 12 holes: +5 for Ben, +7 for Dave and +8 for Mike. Still, it was anyones game heading into the final twelve holes and the gallery was scrambling to get good views of the lead card. The reigning champ did not dissapoint, pulling out all the stops for the enthusiastic crowd by devirginizing three previously unbirdied holes with fantastic drives to build a 5 stroke lead over Maddog. Goldman's cries of "I'm the Juggernaught, bitch!" rang through the upscale Vancouver neighborhood as he took control. Sadly, Guns wilted like a delicate flower after a spring frost, having left most of his will to dominate up on the slopes, unable to call upon his energy reserves for a late charge. When all was said and done Ben coasted to victory with a +3 (including a -2 for the final round and with a score as high as +6 at one point), Dave had a respectable +8 and Mike finished with a dissapointng +14.

Notes: Late in the second round Guns showed off his fiery temper, almost coming to blows with the Tournament Director when he suggested that Mills may want to rest in the car while Dave and Ben finished the competitive aspect of the round. Guns retorted "It will be a cold day in hell before I take a DNF on my card...although a nappy poo with my bah bah would admittedly be nice." Dave had this to say about the course and the city of Vancouver "I am moving here, no doubt about it. Three courses in the city limits, a sushi restaurant on every corner and I can climb atop a mountain or gyrate against a tree every day? What more could a man want!?". Further demonstrating just how cool this city seemed, just after flying in we of course squeezed in a quick nine holes (in the cold rain mind you) before driving up to Whistler. Also on the course out discing it up in such conditions was a twosome of cute girls. And they were legitimately cute too, not just from the skewed vantage point of my notoriously generous disc golf goggles.