Tour Members,

Welcome to 2022 YPGA season! After a blustery and long winter without steady golf, it is an exciting and welcomed (unwelcomed for the WAGs) sight to see our first event approach. This season will certainly bring new changes and new members to the Tour. First, there will be no minor tournaments – only team events and majors. Second, there will be one closest to the pin hole contest and donation to the Exec Cup purse based on our revamped points system. Third, welcome Anthony Fucinari to the most prestigious Tour in the Delaware Valley!

March 12th will be our first event and it will be our YPGA Cup (Ryder Cup) team event. Yes, we know, the weather will likely consist of rain. Thank you for the screenshots and complaints about the weather. We don't know what we'd do without you.

Round Details:

Course: Pickering Valley Golf Club

Location: Phoenixville, PA

First Tee Time: 10:00am

Opening remarks by the YPGA Chief Operating Office: 9:40am on practice putting green next to Hole #1.

Rules: YPGA Winter Rules* in effect; unlimited Shotgun-Mulligans off the tee only. You must do your shotgun prior to hitting the mulligan shot.

Monetary Payment: $10pp to Ed Grambo via Venmo ($5 closest to the pin; $5 to Exec Cup). Due immediately. Pay him. Now.

Closest to the Pin: Hole 16. ($90 purse) - must make par or better.

Event: Ryder Cup 2-man match play (2 vs 2), best ball net of handicap. Please know what this means so we don’t have to explain.

Handicaps: Whatever the Grint says (Anthony - download "The Grint" asap so you have the scorekeeping app in advance of Saturday).

Official Scorekeepers: Ed, Nate, Vince, Billy and Sabara will need to keep the official scorecards for their groups.

YPGA Exec Cups: 500 points to each player that wins their match. 250 points if you halve your match.

Driving Range: Yes.

Putting Green: Yes.

Post Round Drinks: Sedona Taphouse (“Serious Food and Hundreds of Craft Beers”), downtown Phoenixville. Immediately after the round.

Groupings/Tee Times:

Late scratch: Matt Launi

*YPGA Winter Rules:

We won’t know the exact condition of the course and it is still winter with drastic changes in the weather. We want people to not be penalized as a result of weather conditions at this time. As a result, we have our version of winter rules:

1. Lift, clean and place: if there is mud on your ball, you may lift, clean and place if the ball is in the fairway. Please don’t utilize this for every single shot.

2. Gimmes: gimmes can be taken if your putt is within a putter’s length of the hole. Does not apply to birdie or eagle putts. No gimmes at all on the last 3 holes (16, 17, 18).

3. Embedded ball: Embedded ball relief can be taken anywhere in the fairway, or first cut. Lift, clean your ball and replace it nearest to original spot.

4. Embedded ball in the rough: Embedded ball relief can be taken in the rough as well, except that you must lift, clean and DROP. You shouldn’t have to hit a plugged ball, but you shouldn’t get a preferred lie either.

5. Embedded ball that can’t be found: Your opponents need to agree that your ball should have been found in order to get a free drop in the general area where the ball was lost. (i.e. likely will only apply if you’re 5-10 yards into the rough and the ball is completely plugged and unfindable; does not apply when you hit the ball 100 yards into the woods)

6. Pooled water: if your ball or stance is in pooled water, find the nearest dry spot, no closer to the hole. Basically, move backwards or to the side to find a dry spot

7. Bunkers: Who knows what condition they will be in. If there’s sand, you hit out of bunker as usual. If your group deems the bunker as “Ground under Repair,” put your ball in the grass behind the bunker.

8. Do I get to move every ball to a preferred lie? No, you don’t. If there’s no mud on the ball and the lie is dry, play it as it lies.

Pickering Valley Shotgun Classic Preview

The 2022 iteration of the YPGA Cup has some notable personnel changes. Andy, Meyer and Sabara have been traded to Hybird Putter Fire in exchange for Musselman, Patitucci and Tag. We’ll let the pundits decide who won that trade. However, the great equalizer is the handicap strokes, which Hybird Putter Fire has a plethora of. Let’s take a look at the matchups:

Andy/Meyer vs. Wayne/Ed

May as well label this matchup as Team Veggies vs. Team Meat. This girthy matchup will kick off the 2022 season and features players with polar opposite games. Andy and Meyer will look to play a nice conservative game of shaping the ball and keeping it front of them, while the huskies will try to bash the cover off the ball and shorten the treacherous Pickering Valley golf course. If Wayne and Ed are accurate with their drivers, they’ll be playing their second shots with wedges all day and having great looks at birdie. This matchup could be over early on the back nine. Hate to see it. While in between swings, though, they’ll all come together and compare Peloton scores and discussed who recently PR’ed to Cody Rigsby’s hip hop 90’s ride. Edge: Wayne/Ed

Fucinari/Pook vs. Patitucci/Nate

Perhaps a very even matchup in this foursome. Newcomer Anthony Fucinari will get his first taste of tour action alongside battery mate Paul Koch, who comes off an impressive winless campaign in 2021 for the YPGA Cup. No one really knows where Anthony’s game is at right now so he’s a true wildcard. Sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe shit! One thing is for sure – half of Anthony’s shotguns will end up down the front of his shirt. Can Paul carry the load in this one against Stealth Tucci and Old York Nate? It’s a tall task with a history of failure for Paul. Michael has taken his golf game up a notch in equipment and price point only by purchasing new irons and hybrids (welcome to the Taylormade family, Michael), and likely a new putter since his current putter is listed on Facebook Marketplace ($30 if anyone needs a 1996 Odyssey putter). Nate promises to be the steady hand in this foursome, however, without a round logged in since November 2021, who knows where his game is at?? Nate has the strokes and solid game to ultimately win his team the point in this one. Very Slight Edge: Patitucci/Nate

Vince/Gerard vs. Carney/Matt Kelly

This promises to be the marquee matchup of the afternoon and will be followed closely be our telecast. Vince enters the matchup in fine form, although admittedly less prepared than he was a year ago. He has a new (like, actually new. Not “new” as in he purchased it from Karen off eBay. New as in he actually went to a store that sold golf clubs and purchased a new, unused driver for the first time in his life) Callaway driver and 3-wood. He’s hitting both well as you’d expect but the iron game is still his bugaboo. He features well in a team match play and will complement Gerry well. Offseason knee surgery will have the tour wondering that status of his health as he enters the season. Surely, he worked hard in physical therapy in order to get in shape in time for the start of the YPGA season. Carney and Matt will have little room for error in this matchup and that could be problematic for Carney who is sure to have 3-4 blow up holes, per the usual. Matt will need to not suck like he normally does in order to keep things even until Carney figures out his game for the day. This is an even matchup and could go a lot of different ways, likely ending up in a seesaw battle all the way to the end. Slight Edge: Carney/Matt

Jay/Dave King vs. Musselman/Billy

First, Matt Launi’s late scratch due to his inability to utilize a calendar had Team Hybird Putter Fire scrambling and it has really affected their lineup top to bottom. As a result, instead of Jay and Launi, Jay and Pudd are now paired against Mike Musselman and Billy Kelly. On paper, a lopsided affair. Jay’s unimpressive performances in Scottsdale has his confidence shaken and he may not be able to pick up where he left off in 2021 when he was casually breaking 80 as a 14 handicap (must be nice). Dave King, though, thrives in team play competition mainly due to his excessive strokes and ability to string together about 9 great holes. Michael and Billy should ham and egg it all day en route to an easy victory, even though Billy’s game is still a bit flimsy at this point in time. Even still, Michael and Billy have enough talent to coast, leaving Jay and Dave confused about how to play the rest of the round. But hey, beats a day in the office. Big Edge: Musselman/Billy

Mike Sabara vs. Greg Taglialatela

We can already hear Sabara and Tag saying, “again?!?” But, yes. The people want it another version of this budding rivalry. While Sabara and Tag may be getting tired of the constant matchup, but it’s actually starting to get interesting. Both started out terrible and have drastically improved their game to the point where this could soon be a must watch matchup. Greg has added some new clubs to his arsenal, but it could be some addition by subtraction as the message boards have been talking about a recent broken club incident at xGolf Garnet Valley… Things have been quiet out of camp Sabara this offseason. He could be getting lessons, buying new clubs, practicing regularly, or doing nothing but biking all over the city and taking pictures of signs. We don’t know! Stay tuned on this one. Could be a massacre for all the weird and wrong reasons. Pick ‘em.