March 18, 2013

Gentlemen,

We are thrilled to announce the teams for the 11^th Annual PDL Invitational. These next two and a half months will be extremely important to develop the team chemistry needed to bring home the Fountain Of Youth cup. Please select a team captain and team name by the end of March. The format will soon follow.

Team 1			Team 2			Team 3			Team 4
A	Jeremy Bird		A	Scott Winn		A	Brooks Brown		A	Muscoe Garnett
B	Neil Thomson		B	Michael Palmore		B	Jamie Rankin		B	John Klim
C	Michael Aide		C	Wes Battle		C	Henry Oakey		C	Clark Coulborn
D	Kirk Bedell		D	Bill Wainscott		D	Clay Thomson		D	Dick Massie

 

Team 1 –

Jeremy Bird brings his leading 7-2 overall Ponce singles record to this well-rounded team. Bird is a 4X winner, a landslide MVP in 2004 and has never finished worse than 2^nd. He has all the shots and is the most consistent golfer year in and year out. As evidenced by his incredible Sunday Singles record, he’s next to impossible to beat.

Could Chairman Michael Aide get the monkey off his back and win his first singles match play event? He’s a dreadful 0-6 on Sunday. New Dies or Old Dies? TBD. Glimpses of greatness were witnessed in Scotland. He has the talent to shoot in the mid 70’s. Stay tuned…this could be the year.

Chairman Emeritus and Founder of the Ponce, Neil Thomson, can launch it as far as anyone. He’s a gamer and has had some of his best rounds at the Ponce. Old lefty brought home the MVP in 2010 and also is a 4X winner at the Ponce (3 in a row!). He and Bird could separate from the rest of the pack in overall wins with a victory here in Ponce XI. His teammates are thrilled to have this Ponce legend help them to victory.

Everyone is really looking forward to having Kirk officially join the Ponce in a player capacity. You will recall last year he admirably stepped up in Scotland as the Silver Stick-in-Waiting, and helped facilitate the U.S.-Brit matches. Kirk’s passion for the grand game is genuine, which we all welcome him to the fold. Perhaps a Spirit Award contender as a rookie?

Team 2 –

Scott Winn leads this pack of scrappers. This is a dangerous team…they are “Battle-ready” (pun intended) having won 10 championships and 2 MVP’s among these four. Winn has the sweetest swing and rarely misses fairways. Watch for multiple birdie barrages from this Oregon Duck. We all anticipate he will remain true to form and play 5-6 practice rounds in Richmond / Charlottesville / The Homestead during the week leading up to the Ponce.

Westray Battle and Michael Palmore will consistently amaze their competitors with some of their shotmaking skills. Predictions are that Battle will be very dangerous as he’s fresh coming off his epic leadership in Ponce X Scotland. Look for Battle to have a strong year. Palmore will nip at your heels on every shot. He’s a past MVP and as feisty as they come.

Bill Wainscott “Toaster” comes back to the birthplace of his nickname, which has become legendary at home and in the UK. Early predictions are that Toaster will be on his A game on both the course and at the tables. This team’s only “handicap” is their affinity for late night debauchery. Or will this “handicap” become this team’s weapon i.e.Scott Winn’s enhancement? We just got word from the Greenbrier Pro Shop that they will not accept a return on his square / “toaster” driver, despite fact that the $699 price tag is still affixed to the shaft!

Team 3 –

Interesting group as newcomer Brooks Brown will showcase his 3 handicap and his anchoring abilities on the slick West Virginia greens. NDT raves about Brooks game, but rookies beware…4 days of this level of competition can humble the most talented of golfers. Brooks will prove to be a most Worthy addition to the Ponce.

Rankin and Oakey both are as competitive as anyone in the Ponce. Oakey continues to improve as evidenced by his current 12 index. I have had the pleasure of teaming up with both of these gents and appreciated their competitiveness, game and spirit. These two will be a force.

Clay is my early prediction for MVP. There isn’t a player that grinds harder than Clay. His win in Scotland on Saturday Singles was about as gutsy of a performance as I’ve seen. Clay is not afraid of multiple chest bumps along the way as well. By hole 3 of opening day, his fingers will be bandaged up from all his aggressive swings and grunts. Clay has become one of the most improved players in the Ponce and will be a key player for this team to bring home the trophy.

Team 4 –

Led by Muscie Garnett, an 11 year veteran who holds the best overall record at the Ponce at an impressive 19-8-2 record, this team could be the favorite. He’s streaky and can play lights out.

No one wants to draw Muscie for Singles, as he may be the most clutch player in the Ponce’s 11 year history.

Klim has dropped his handicap to 7.6 and is playing better than he’s ever played. The handicap appears shockingly low – no doubt he has grooved his game with many weekend rounds at CCV’s River Course. If his Ponce play can validate his low index, Team 4 may be hoisting the Fountain of Youth Trophy on Saturday night.

Clarf Coulborn continues to have nightmares from the weather in Scotland and mentally could be in a fragile state. But… he’s a true competitor and knows how to put it all together (part of best team in Ponce history – Black Sunday – followed by Another Black Sunday). Clark is a 3X winner at the Ponce. He’s past Chairman at the Greenbrier and is always a fun competitor to play against. He will be well rested after having gone to Hawaii twice already this year followed by a fishing trip to Costa Rica. He noted that “he’s pretty much not working this year. My boss is going to be real happy”.

As a side note, as this year’s Chairman, I will be sure not to hoodwink a team into wearing aqua and black striped golf shirts that Chairman Clarf ordered in 2011.

Dick is back and ready to bring the title back to Atlanta. Their teammates are fired up to have him back on their squad. Dick’s status as a “D” player only proves just how deep this team is. The only open question is whether he will sign the pending sponsorship deal with Anheuser-Busch and Igloo for this year’s tournament, given his propensity for self-serving of case after case of morning cart brews.

Sincerely,

Michael Aide

“New” Diesel

Chairman, The Ponce de Leon Invitational 2013

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