Al Fuego Invitational

August 9, 2008

Quail Valley Golf Course (Banks, OR)

Format:  two-man best ball with modified Stableford scoring

Banks, OR -- There were vacations, weddings and, unfortunately, a funeral that kept players away from the 2008 Al Fuego Golf & Good Time Bonanza.  In fact, there were only ten players entered to play one week prior to the event.  Thankfully, some last minute scrambling built the field to 14 players as Bryan Norris and Jeff Albright attempted to defend their 2007 championship.

The Hillsboro Air Show was occurring on the same day and a number of players were impeded by the traffic on Highway 26.  Few of the competitors had the opportunity to properly warm their muscles and hit balls prior to teeing off, although Andy Rader and his partner -- the previously unknown Mark Buckwald -- managed to arrive early and pound practice shots into the cloudy Washington County sky.  Tour mainstay Lance Meyerink was a late entry into the field and a made a late entrance at the golf course.  The local tabloids had been filled with rumors of domestic strife and a possible detainment by law enforcement on the tournament's eve but he showed up to the golf course in a sporty hounds tooth hat, pink trousers and a gleam in his eye.

Once fees were paid and commemorative can koozies were distributed, the players made their way to the first tee.  Norris and the Albrights (Jeff, Bob and Tim) were off first and play was underway.  Thatch Moyle and Jim Rader each made birdie on the first hole in the second group to score the initial points of the day. They were joined by their partners, Tommy Berry and Tim Tyvand respectively.  Play slowed as groups stacked up on the second hole, a short par 4 over water where many players attempted to reach the green with their tee shot.  Jeff Albright hit his hybrid on a straight line to the pin only to see it catch the front side of the green and roll back towards the hazard.  Buckwald hit a driver that landed a mere 15 feet from the hole and calmly two-putted from there to score his team's first points. 

Buckwald birdied the third hole and made a natural eagle on hole #5 that shook the confidence of other competitors in the field.  Rumors began flying that he was not, in fact, a 6-handicap player.  "I heard he played with Tiger Woods at Stanford", said one unnamed opponent.  "He is 8-under par after three holes", was an unfounded claim made by another.  Buckwald was indeed a good player, but his net double-eagle on hole 5 would prove to be the highlight of his team's day and account for half of their total points.

Jim Rader and Tyvand were hot early and birdied each of the first six holes.  An eagle by Jim on the ninth hole gave his team the lead at the turn with 19 points in the modified Stableford scoring system.  The team of Norris and Jeff Albright team finished their nine holes with 13 points, as did the Andy Rader and Buckwwald pairing.  Berry and Moyle had 9 points at the turn, Meyerink and Larry McKenna totaled 8, Bob and Tim Albright made 6 points and the team of Brendan McMullen -- playing with a newly purchased Callaway driver -- and Nick Mann brought up the rear with a mere 4 points thanks to one birdie made by each. 

The 19 points by Jim Rader and Tyvand seemed insurmountable but Norris and Jeff Albright vowed that they wouldn't go down without a fight.  The defending champions combined to make birdie on six of the first seven holes, giving them hope of retaining their title.  Andy Rader and Buckwald seemed to be in good position to make a charge but took a bogey on the difficult par 3 thirteenth hole to derail their round.  Berry and Moyle made five birdies on the back nine to get to 19 points, a fine number but not good enough to take the championship. The team of Meyerink and McKenna made five birdies as well on the final nine holes to reach a score of 18 and give Meyerink the respectable finish in a Tailgate State Cup event he had been sorely missing.  Tim Albright's eagle on hole 14 took he and his father to a total of 12 points with four holes left to play but three consecutive bogeys to finish the round left them out of the hunt.  With the lowest handicap in the field, Mann seemed to be a great choice of partner for McMullen, but the lack of strokes he would receive led to his team's downfall.  McMullen recorded birdies on five of the final nine holes but his team's poor start left them at a mere 14 points when all was said and done. 

Norris and Jeff Albright entered the 17th hole thinking they had to make eagle to get back into the race.  Albright delivered that eagle to his partner to get his team to 30 points for the day.  Unbeknownst to them, Jim Rader and Tyvand struggled to break par on the back nine and took two bogeys to ultimately finish with 25 points.  Riding a wave of adrenaline, Albright made birdie on the 18th hole for two more points and his team was confident that their total of 32 points would hold up, as they had won the previous year's event with a score of 31 points.

Once scores were tallied, Bryan Norris and Jeff Albright learned they had successfully defended their title and shared a warm embrace on the Quail Valley patio.  They each won an elegant Callaway watch with their triumph but, more importantly, the respect of their peers.  The are the second and third people to successfully defend a title on the Tailgate State Tour, after Jason Wold's two-year reign as "Coaches for Cageys" champion.

With only the "Rinker Rodeo" left on the 2008 Tailgate State Cup schedule, players are scrambling for points and positioning.  The inauguaral version of Meyerink's tournament is sure to be a pressure packed event with a star-studded field and the last chance for competitors to build their resume as potential Tailgate State Cup champion.