YPGA Sweats It Out In NJ

The YPGA was back in action rather quickly on July 19, 2020 as the Tour took to RiverWinds in West Deptford, New Jersey for the annual Delaware Valley Invitational. True to its form, the Tour welcomed 15 of its 16 members (RIP Launi) and invited Mike Adams, a local product from the Lansdale area with a PIAA state football championship under his belt, to round out the groupings. RiverWinds was set up to play very short on this day and almost everyone took advantage as this writer predicted in the Preview.

Three players recorded stellar rounds in the 70s, many players were in the 80s, but the real story of the day was Mike Patitucci showing up a whopping 40 minutes late for his tee time! Patitucci woke up this Sunday morning, checked his portfolio, logged in several games of Golf Clash on his Android device, and failed to do any maintenance on the mop currently residing on his head. Luckily, the Exec Committee was able to adapt and tee off without a hitch.

Jerry, Matt Kelly, and Billy Kelly led the way with gross scores at 76, 74, and 79, respectively. Vince logged in a career low at 83, Musselman went low at 81 (although not low enough for this club tosser), and Carney shot a respectable 85 to position himself at T5 for the day. Pitiful performance were logged by Dave King (97), Ed Grambo (96), Chris Meyer (94), and Andy Kotulka (97).

When all was said and done, Jerry took home the hardware shooting a -7, three strokes ahead of Matt Kelly who finally put up a score worth celebrating. This tournament did not have the drama that the YPGA Open had, but it confirmed much of what everyone is thinking: Jerry will never be given double-digit strokes again.

Group Recaps:

Team Sobo: Vince, Meyer, Sabara and Adams

Team Sobo was mixed bag of good and dreadful. First, the good. After admitting to some nerves at the start, Vince shot a career round en route to an 83 posting, which he could never achieve even at his home course of Pickering Valley. Special guest Mike Adams made his debut on the Tour and also posted the same 83 as his riding mate. Tomfoolery afoot? The same high praises cannot be said about their playing partners. Chris Meyer shot an unconscionable 94 and was bested straight up by Patitucci (yes, you read that right) and Mike Sabara’s biggest achievement was not being drafted last by the Exec Draft as he posted a dismal 117.

Team Carney: Carney, Pook, Musselman, Jerry

Team Carney posted the best four scores out of any group with Carney (85), Pook (88), Musselman (81) and Jerry (76) each taking advantage of the course layout. Carney put up an average front 9 before posting a blistering 39 on the back-9 to climb his way up the leaderboard. Jerry was consistently good all day long with precision tee shots and hitting about 15 greens in regulation. Musselman put up a typical 81 with some solid play all round, however, he’ll be kicking himself for a couple duff shots that could have had him in the 70s. That birdie on the first hole is always the kiss of death. Paul put up a pedestrian 88 on an easy course and his round was rather uneventful. He pussy putted his birdie attempt on Hole 11 and found himself T8 as a result.

Team Pudd: Dave King, Matt Kelly, Greg, Andy

Yikes. Where to begin. Dave King has mailed it in for the year and continues to bask in the glory that is 2019 and his 97 on a very easy course proves just that. But hey, not all of us can sleep at night next to the Exec Cup with our names etched in history. Matt Kelly finally showed up for an event and posted +2 gross score. This is the Matt we’ve all been waiting and rooting for. Greg did all he needed to do to best Sabara in a battle of the high handicappers. Andy, well, not much to say here about Andy other than he showed up where it matters most: the money competitions. Andy took home closest to the pin by dropping one within 4 feet on the downhill island green. Congrats Andy! Buy your wife something nice!

Team Grambo: Ed, Billy, Nate, Patitucci

Team Grambo got off to a helter-skelter start when Patitucci decided to show up 40 minutes late for the 8:10 tee time. In consultation with representatives from the Patitucci camp, Mike has agreed to self-sanction in the form of consuming three (3) shotguns prior to teeing off at the next YPGA sanctioned event. The Executive Committee has accepted Mr. Patitucci’s proposed sanctions and hopes to move beyond this catastrophe. Catastrophe aside, Patitucci was somehow able to post a 92, his best score in his entire history of golf. Billy did what Billy does an casually posted a 79 except it left him T5 and doesn’t help enough to make up for his dismal YPGA Open performance. Nate and Ed probably got caught up in their college glory days as they posted high 90s scores that left them as an afterthought.

Exec Committee Draft Order:

1. Billy Kelly (Team Ed)

2. Chris Meyer (Team Sobo)

3. Matt Kelly (Team Pudd)

4. Paul Koch (Team Carney)

5. Mike Musselman (Team Carney)

6. Greg Tag (Team Pudd)

7. Mike Adams (guest) (Team Sobo)

8. Nate Kraynak (Team Ed)

9. Mike Patitucci (tardy) (Team Ed)

10. Mike Sabara (Team Sobo)

11. Andy Kotulka (Team Pudd)

12. Jerry Margiotti (Team Carney)

Did You Know?

Did you know that this is the first year the Exec Committee has not held a 36-hole event for the Delaware Valley Invitational? 95 degrees and humid is not conducive to 36 holes. You’re welcome, everyone.

Surprise Performances:

1. Patitucci (92) – best round ever! (Jeannie from Van Wilder voice)

2. Matt (74) – thanks for showing up finally!

3. Vince (83) – who knew he had it in him. Has he peaked?

4. Tag (109) – getting close to breaking 100.

5. Jerry (15/18 GIRs) – that will help you win championships

Disgusting Finishes:

1. Meyer (94) – back to back mid-90s rounds.

2. Dave King (97) – quarantine is no good for Dave’s golf game.

3. Andy (97) – but at least he won closest to the pin.

Delaware Valley Invitational Challenges

1. Closest to the Pin: Andy (4 feet from the pin).

2. Par 5 Eagle Challenge: Several eagle putts were had, but no one connected.

Quick Nuggets:

• Players that haven’t looked at their scorecard since the round ended: Dave King, Meyer, Nate, Andy.

• Best Addition to the Round: YPGA Swag! Travis Mathew shirts for all.

• Biggest Complaint: Lack of video documentation of Shotguns at the Turn.

• Weather Complaints: 95, sunny, humid, no wind…. Stop me if I already wrote this in a previous recap…

• Player unlikely to duplicate success: Vince

• Carney v. Sobo Part VIII: Vince by net 4 strokes.

• Tag vs. Sabara Matchup: Tag by 8 strokes.

• Highest Score on a Hole Relative to Par: Sabara, a 9 on a Par 4

• Players trending Downward – Meyer (an 82 at Lederach recently may be an outlier…), Andy, Paul

• Players trending up: Jerry, Vince, Carney, Musselman

• Club Tosses: Musselman (3)

• Biggest Draft Surprise: Sabara being drafted 10th out of 12th!

• Birdies: Carney (1), King (1), Musselman (2), Jerry (1), Matt (2), Billy (1), Andy (1)

Final Delaware Valley Invitational Leaderboard:

1 Jerry Margiotti

T2 Matt Kelly

T2 Vince Sobocinski

4 Patitucci

T5 David Carney

T5 Billy Kelly

7 Michael Musselman

T8 Nate Kraynak

T8 David King

T8 Paul Koch

11 Ed Grambo

12 Greg Taglialatela

13 Andy Kotulka

T14 Chris Meyer

T14 Mike Sabara