The final of the 2023 Niakwa 2-Man Best Ball competition was played yesterday between the team of Dustin Marks/Carson McCallum and the team of Brandt Butt/Brendan MacDonald. We did have some delays in getting the final match played this year due to some injuries and work commitments….. but the wait was worth it as we had two good teams in the final. Both first-timers I might add!!!
Dustin/Carson started out very well winning the first three holes to quickly go 3-up. Carson was still probably feeling that “high” from coming off a top 10 finish in the Club Championship the previous weekend….. but Butt/MacDonald settled down and won the 4th hole….. and the teams tied the next three holes. But Dustin/Carson finished off the front nine in style winning both the 8th and the 9th to take a 4-up lead.
Butt/MacDonald came out firing on the back nine and won both the 10th ….. and then the 13th …. to cut the deficit to only 2-down and the battle was on!!
The 14th hole is the shortest hole on the course….. but it always seems to have a lot of “drama” to these matches as usually all four competitors are putting for the win. There were several birdie attempts but none went down…. and Carson won the hole with a par to give them a 3-up lead with 4 holes to play. Needless to say….. the 15th hole was played by BOTH teams with no regard for playing it safe and there were some tee shots that I am sure showed up on the NASA equipment. Dustin’s blow will stick in my mind for a long time…. but the hole was tied so it was off to the 16th with Marks/McCallum holding on to a 3-hole lead with 3 holes to play. While Butt/MacDonald did have a chance to win the hole and prolong the match – the hole was eventually tied and Marks/McCallum won the match 3 and 2.
So another 2-Man Best Ball competition has come and gone and I want to congratulate the winners….. but also want to thank ALL the competitors for signing up and getting in on the action.
Harold
The final of the 2023 Niakwa Bissett Trophy competition was played today between Brian Mackenzie (a +2 handicap) and Jason Macdonald (a 6 handicap). It was a beautiful day for golf and the caliber of the golf was at a high level.
Jason was able to get out to a quick 2-up lead and was able to maintain that for most of the first nine. But his tee shot on the 9th was truly outstanding and he had a kick-in birdie that gave him a good lead after the front nine was over. Brian hit some “monster” drives on 10/11/13 but….. Jason was able to keep the pressure on by his steady tee shots that always seemed to give himself a chance to make a par and force Brian to go for birdies. Jason won the 13th and the match concluded on the 14th.
This concludes the Bissett Trophy competition for 2023. Thanks again to ALL of you for signing up and participating this year. I hope you enjoyed the opportunity to meet some new club members you have not played golf with before….. and you got to enjoy the fun of match play golf.
Enjoy the rest of the golf season at beautiful Niakwa Country Club!
Harold
