• Still to Come - JMI #9
  • JMI Classic

    JMI Classic

    The official website of the Joe Merrill Invitational Golf Classic

    Thursday, September 13, 2007

    JMI Classic Merchandise Now Available

    Are you tired of watching Team Matero win new hats every year? Had enough of watching friends & family of Bill Higgins winning a spiffy new coffee mug? Well now you can get your own and more! Introducing the official Online Store of the Joe Merrill Invitational Golf Classic, with a little help from Café Press. Here you can get a hat or a mug with the new Official Logo of the JMI Classic. We also offer a variety of shirts and sweatshirts for men and women. I’m especially proud to offer an Organic Cotton Tee Shirt that, from the looks of the sample shown, will make even a skinny Higgins boy look like Rambo.

    Tell your family! Tell your friends! Tell that annoying guy who sits a few cubicles away from you! Then check out the official merchandise of the JMI Classic!

    Labels:

    Candids from JMI #11

    Here are a few candid shots from JMI #11, which was completed over a month ago now. Click on any picture for a larger image.

    Jim Harford of Team Matero starts things off on the first tee.

    John Higgins of Team Higgins finishes high on the first tee.

    Dennis Fournier of Team Merrill searches the Hollyhocks (unsuccessfully) for his ball.
    Drew Turnbull of Team Higgins takes aim at the island green on #5.


    Ed Rutherford of Team Merrill hits from the fairway on #10. Dennis and Ken Fournier watch from the comfort of their own golf cart.


    Team Merrill didn't win anything, but Ed did talk a guy into giving him this spiffy hat!

    Labels:

    Sunday, August 12, 2007

    Yankees Win Again!


    l-r New York Yankee golfers Tim Matero, Greg Day's Hat, David Matero, Jim Harford

    Chanting "One for the thumb," the New York Yankees, as represented by David Matero, Tim Matero, Greg Day and Jim Harford, captured their fifth consecutive Joe Merrill Invitational Golf Classic championship on Saturday. Led as usual by the Brothers Matero (David leading the way with an 83 and Tim following with an 87), the Yankees finished with a score of 162 in the best two balls of four format, edging Team "Two Too Many" Higgins' by one narrow stroke. There was a brief scoring controversy at the end of the tournament that imperiled the Yankees with disqualification, however it was ultimately determined that the Yankee team consulted with the tournament officials and corrected their score card prior to officially submitting it.


    Team Higgins putts the signature island green on the 5th hole at Fox Ridge

    Played under pristine summer conditions at the challenging and picturesque Fox Ridge Golf Club in Auburn, Maine, the 11th annual edition of the JMI Classic featured a number of players entered for the first time. Three of those players were recruited by tournament Chair Joe Merrill in a desperate attempt to return to the winner's circle. Ken Fournier and Ed Rutherford were flown in from Phoenix, Arizona for the event, while Dennis Fournier drove over from Oxford, Maine. Alas, the effort was for naught as the latest incarnation of Team Merrill finished in third place and nine shots off the pace with a score of 171. A reformed version of The Pulverizers, with three first-time players, was next at 177. Team Tavern, a first-time entry representing the Finest Roadhouse in Kingfield, pulled up the rear with a score of 187.

    Despite their last-place finish, Team Tavern brought home many individual awards. Tim O'Neal captured his first Drig Fournier Cup for carding the lowest individual score with a 79. Jean Rappleyea celebrated her first tournament by securing the prize for the lowest woman's score with a 112. Tim O'Neal also dethroned David Hopkins (The Pulverizers) as the long-drive champion on #17, however Hopkins did take a prize for the long drive on the 11th. Two members of Team Higgins won the closest-to-the-pin contests, with John Higgins taking the prize on #3 and Dave Marr knocking it closest on #13. Finally, the two Sandbagger Awards (high score) were presented to Jesse Pulver of the Pulverizers and Doreen Merrill of Team Tavern. Special thanks to Bill Higgins of Team Higgins for again providing lots of prizes, in the form of LL Bean shirts and a variety of tavern glasses.

    Results


    Team Matero (162): Jim Harford (100), Greg Day (97), David Matero (83), Tim Matero (87)


    Team Higgins (163): Drew Turnbull (85), Bill Higgins (108), John Higgins (114), Dave Marr (85)


    Team Merrill (171): Joe Merrill (104), Ken Fournier (87), Dennis Fournier (97), Ed Rutherford (105)


    The Pulverizers (177): Jesse Pulver (117), Uncle John Pulver (104), David Hopkins (83), Don Gullickson (115)


    Team Tavern (187): Tim O'Neal (79), Jean Rappleyea (112), Holly Higgins (140), Doreen Merrill (152)

    Individual Awards:

    Drig Fournier Cup: Tim O'Neal - 79
    Low Medalist - Women: Jean Rappleyea - 112
    Sandbagger - Men: Jesse Pulver - 117
    Sandbagger - Women: Doreen Merrill - 152
    Closest to the Pin, #3: John Higgins - 19' 4"
    Long Drive #11: David Hopkins
    Closest to the Pin #13: Dave Marr, 10' 6"
    Long Drive #17: Tim O'Neal

    Jesse Pulver (kneeling), l-r John Higgins, David Hopkins, Tim O'Neal, Holly Higgins (standing in for Jean Rappleyea), Doreen Merrill, Joe Merrill (standing in for Dave Marr)


    Wednesday, August 08, 2007

    The 11th Annual Joe Merrill Invitational Golf Classic 
    will tee off this Saturday,
    August 11, at 10:00 a.m. The location once again is
    Fox Ridge in Auburn, one of the top courses in the
    state. At the moment we have five teams registered,
    with efforts underway to put together a sixth entry to
    fill the field.

    The current lineup:
    Team Matero: Dave Matero, Tim Matero, Greg Day, Jim
    Harford. Four-time defending Champions. "One for the
    thumb"? I don't think so. In fact, feel free to
    break their thumbs.

    Tim is shooting for a new trophy this year, and
    therefore is going to be dragged behind the golf cart
    with his hands tied behind his back and attempting to
    hit the ball with a stick he found in the woods,
    swinging it from his mouth. Alternatively, he is
    going to be castrated and play wearing a dress. I
    look forward to seeing how he answers the challenge.



    Team Higgins: Bill Higgins, John Higgins, Dave Marr,
    Drew Turnbull. Two-time champs trying to mount a
    comeback this year. Hampered by having too many
    Higginses on the team.


    Team Pulverizers: Uncle John Pulver, Jesse Pulver, Don
    Gullickson, Dave Hopkins. Dave is the reigning Drig
    Fournier Cup winner. The rest are a bunch of
    upstarts. I have no idea what to expect from this
    team.


    Team Nostalgia Tavern: Holly Higgins, Dave J, Brad
    King, Tim O'Neal. Holly and another bunch of
    upstarts. Apparantly David J took up golf as his
    musical career waned. This is another wild card entry
    that I know nothing about.



    Team Merrill: Joe Merrill, Ken Fournier, Dennis
    Fournier, Ken's friend Ed. Yet another group of
    newbies. Team Merrill dissolved from under me within
    the last two weeks, but I was able to land on a squad
    that I think has a real good chance to take the crown.
    I base this on the fact that everybody else on the
    team is a much better golfer than I am.



    New this year, representatives from DavejaVu
    Productions have asked permission to send film crews
    to record this historic event, and I have granted them
    access. Participants may be asked to take a moment to
    be interviewed by the filmmakers. Please treat them
    with all the respect that they deserve. (This allows
    a fair amount of discretion for you to decide how much
    respect they deserve.)

    Sunday, August 20, 2006

    Materos Capture Fourth Straight

    Auburn, Maine, August 19,2006

    The Team Matero juggernaut continued to roll on at Fox Ridge Golf Club in Auburn, today capturing its fourth consecutive Joe Merrill Invitational Golf Classic with a four-stroke victory in the 10th-annual playing of this historic tournament. The foursome of David Matero, Tim Matero, Greg Day and Jim Harford were led by Tim Matero, who shot an 82, and again demonstrated their brand of consistent team play for the four-stroke victory. Following the unique best-two-balls-out-of-four scoring system, the Materos finished at 161, the equivalent to 17 strokes over par. Again finishing as runners-up, Team Higgins team was hampered by the inability of ace Drew Turnbull to break 80 on the afternoon, as well as the twin-Sandbagger performance of the Higgins brothers, both of whom carded the high male scores of 111. Third place went to the Pulverizers, led by David Hopkins who shot an 81 to capture his first-career Drig Fournier cup. In fourth place was the squad fielded by the tournament founder, a team that fought gamely against its own incompetence but could not avoid falling 34 strokes off the pace at the end.


    Team Matero: Greg Day, David Matero, Tim Matero, tournament orgainizer Joe Merrill, Jim Harford.

    Two tournament rookies collected individual awards on the afternoon. Tim O'Neal from Team Higgins has the drive closest to the pin from the elevated tees on the signature 13th hole, while Krista Hopkins from the Pulverizers finished closest on the Par 3 third hole. Krista Hopkins also made it a family affair to capture the low score trophies (in her case, an "MX" championship hat), as she was the low medalist among females with a 122. The long-drive contests went to repeat winners this year. There was no consensus winner on the 513-yard 11th, as last year's winner Tim Matero set a standard that was equalled by Joe Merrill (who hit the longest drive on this hole in 2004) in the following group. Because the balls were several yards apart in the fairway, members from both teams surveyed the results and concluded that neither ball could be definitively determined to be longer, and thus the first tie in the history of the tournament was declared. There was no contriversy on the 17th, however, as David Hopkins again hit an implausible 300-yard uphill drive to run away with the prize. Hopkins has hit the longest drive on this hole in each of the three years the tournament has been played at the picturesque and challenging Fox Ridge layout. The final award on the afternoon was for the female Sandbagger (high score), captured for the first time by Doreen Merrill of Team Merrill.

    Results:

    Team Matero (161):
    Tim Matero 81, David Matero 91, Greg Day 99, Jim Harford 105


    Team Higgins (165): Bill Higgins 111, John Higgins 111, Tim O'Neal 87, Drew Turnbull 86


    The Pulverizers (173): Al Hopkins 96, Holly Higgins 130, Krista Hopkins 122, David Hopkins 81


    Team Merrill (195): Doreen Merrill 143, Ralph Barker 107, Joe Merrill 108, Brian Ketchum 100.

    Individual Awards:

    Drig Fournier Cup:
    David Hopkins, 81
    Low Medalist - Women: Krista Hopkins, 122
    Sandbagger - Men: (tie) Bill Higgins, John Higgins, 111
    Sandbagger - Women: Doreen Merrill, 143
    Closest to the Pin, #3 - Krista Hopkins 27' 6"
    Long Drive, #11 - (tie) Tim Matero, Joe Merrill
    Closest to the Pin, #13 - Tim O'Neal 17' 8"
    Long Drive, #17 - David Hopkins



    (l-r) Doreen Merrill, Joe Merrill, Tim Matero, Krista Hopkins, Tim O'Neal, Bill Higgins, David Hopkins, John Higgins

    Thursday, August 17, 2006

    Formatting

    I'll fix the formatting below later. Too late now.

    JMIX will tee off at 11:00 on Saturday. It looks like five teams right now:

    Matero (defending champs)
    Higgins (gunning for the crown)
    Higgins 2 (bringing ringers this year)
    Fournier (hoping to have fun)
    Merrill (don't count them out)

    I've been too darn busy this summer to get the blog up-to-date, for which I apologize. But I have 7 of the 9 tourneys updated, so that's good (right?).

    JMI #7

    Bath, Maine, August 16, 2003

    After six long years, Team Matero returned to the winner's circle in the Seventh Annual Joe Merrill Invitational Golf Classic. Winners of the initial event in 1997, the Matero squad suffered through perennial runner-up status before finally capturing their second crown over the rolling fairways of Bath Country Club. Led as usual by Tim Matero, who carded an 83, and his brother David (92), the team also benefited greatly from the play of now-regular team member Greg Day, who finished with an 87, and Jim Harford, late of the Merrill squad, who shot 100. The steady play of the Matero entry enabled the team to cruise to a five-stroke victory over the defending champion Team Higgins, which was unable to overcome a poor front side by all team members that resulted in an 18-over-par 162. Higgins' case was not helped any by John "Weak Link" Higgins, who captured his first Sandbagger Award (men's division) with a 124. An unexpectedly high 86 from Drig Fournier doomed the Merrill entry to third place, one stroke behind the Higgins team with a 163 as none of the other team members could step up their play to compensate for an off day from their ace. Greg Collins rounded up a solid team that finished fourth with a 172. All team members shot in the 90s, however the lack of a fourth player proved (as usual) to be too much of a handicap to overcome. An entry from Bass Shoe followed with a 175, led by Charlie Sullivan's 81 and Cheri Tate's low women's round of 106. The Ward squad found themselves a true ringer in Ed Piirainen, who captured the Drig Fournier cup by six strokes with a 75. Piirainen carried the otherwise uninspired play of his teammates to a sixth-place 176. Finally, Team Fournier reunited and overcame a 94 by Don Fournier to defend it's position in the cellar. Sharry Fournier reprised her Sandbagger Performance, even managing to add a couple of strokes in the process.

    While the Materos regained the crown, the team again failed to capture any individual awards, after several years of domination in these categories by Tim and David Matero. Some have whispered that Tim Matero has "eased up" his play to allow others to win some prizes, but as someone who has known Tim for many years, I can assure the reader that this is far from the truth. Long drive awards were both captured by members of Team Higgins, with Drew Turnbull taking the honor on #7 and Dave Marr hitting the longest shot in the 18th fairway. Cheri Tate of Team Bass was closest to the pin on #9, while Brian Ketchum of Team Merrill knocked one stiff on #13. Marr and Ketchum also proved to be prescient in predicting their scores of 82 and 93, respectively, while Penney Ward of Team Ward was furthest ahead of her prediction (9 shots better). On the other hand, let's just say that Sharry Fournier's prediction proved to be a bit on the optimistic side and leave it at that. Everybody had a good time, as usual, even though Team Kwiatkowsky chickened out at the last minute and didn't participate. Bath Country Club was again a wonderful host for the event, and their "Three to Go" special proved to be a wonderful innovation. Special thanks to Drig Fournier, and especially to the members of Team Higgins, who generously donated prizes this year, including Nike, Izod and Cole Haan gear. Finally, thanks to all who participated, and I'll see you all again next summer.

    Team Matero (157)

    David Matero

    92

    Tim Matero

    83

    Greg Day

    87

    Jim Harford

    100


    Team Higgins (162)

    Drew Turnbull

    85

    David Marr

    82

    Bill Higgins

    106

    John Higgins

    124


    Team Merrill (162)

    Brian Ketchum

    93

    Joe Merrill

    100

    Drig Fournier

    86

    Alan Lipman

    108


    Team Collins (172)

    Greg Collins 98
    Keith Hillock 93
    Frank Cushing 91

    Team Bass (175)
    Charlie Sullivan 91
    Steve Maier 97
    Holly Pulver 143
    Cheri Tate 106

    Team Ward (176)

    Ed Piirainen

    75

    Beth Piirainen

    124

    Penney Ward

    136

    Tony Ward

    112


    Team Fournier (189)

    Aline Fournier

    144

    Sharry Fournier

    160

    Don Fournier

    94

    Doreen Merrill

    122


    Individual Awards:

    Award

    Winner
































    Drig Fournier Cup (Low score)

    Ed Piirainen - 75
































    Low Score - Women

    Cheri Tate - 106
































    Sandbagger - Men

    John Higgins - 124
































    Sandbagger - Women

    Sharry Fournier - 157
































    Ringer

    Ed Piirainen (37 below closest teammate)
































    Long Drive #7

    Drew Turnbull
































    Closest to Pin #9

    Cheri Tate - 38' 11"
































    Closest to Pin #13

    Brian Ketchum 9' 3"
































    Long Drive #18

    David Marr
































    Score Prediction

    David Marr, Brian Ketchum
































    Furthest below prediction

    Penney Ward
































    Furthest above prediction

    John Higgins
































    JMI #6

    Bath, Maine, August 24, 2002

    With a new look and a fresh new attitude, the Joe Merrill Invitational was a stunning success in its first year at its new venue - the picturesque Bath Country Club in Bath, ME. After a five year run at the Willowdale course in Scarborough, the tournament organizers decided that a change of pace was in order for "JMI #6", and the resulting change in venue was well received by all participants.

    The tournament Championship was captured by the foursome of Team Higgins (Bill Higgins, John Higgins, Drew Turnbull, Dave Marr). The Higgins brothers reunited their original lineup of ringers that had successfully captured the crown in 2000, and once again were led by Drew Turnbull, who captured his first Drig Fournier Cup (awarded annually to the individual with the lowest score) with a 79, narrowly besting his teammate Dave Marr by one stroke. Led by the two low-handicappers, Team Higgins lowered the 2000 version's tournament record score by two strokes to 151. This score represented a seven stroke victory over Team Matero, aka Team Bridesmaid, who finished in the runner-up position for the fourth time since capturing the crown in the inaugural version of this tournament in 1997. The members of Team Bridesmaid (David Matero, Tim Matero, Greg Day) played their hearts out but were unable to compensate for the late defection of their fourth.

    Following Team Bridesmaid was the defending championship Team Merrill squad. The Merrill team, which also entered as a threesome this year, was handicapped by the fact that Drig Fournier (after whom the low score award is named) was recovering from surgery and unable to compete. Still, all three members of the squad managed to score below the century mark, and Team Merrill came in with a respectable 168 to capture third.

    There was also a titanic competition on the other end of the spectrum between Team Ward, which had set the tournament high score record in 2001, and the latest Team Fournier entry featuring three first-time participants. In the end, it was the Ward squad who improved their play by nine strokes to finish fourth with a score of 206, while Team Fournier straggled in with a 220, the newest tournament standard for high scoring. When a 69-year-old woman is throwing her clubs into the swamp, you know things aren't going well. Despite the letdown, Team Fournier was all smiles when they returned to the clubhouse, as were all other participants! We should make special note of this year's Sandbagger Award winners. Sharry Fournier challenged the one-year-old record for most strokes in the tournament (and set one for most moose sightings in the swamp!), while Tony Ward's 119 was impaired by an injured shoulder that will require surgery. Of course, there was no problem with the shoulder in 2001, as is evidenced by the fact that Tony shot three strokes better last year!

    Team Higgins (151)

    Drew Turnbull

    79

    Bill Higgins

    107

    John Higgins

    108

    Dave Marr

    80

    Team Matero (158)

    Tim Matero

    83

    David Matero

    85

    Greg Day

    88

    Team Merrill (168)

    Brian Ketchum

    89

    Jim Harford

    96

    Joe Merrill

    97

    Team Ward (206)

    Penney Ward

    146

    Tony Ward

    119

    Sue Robinson

    153

    Steve Reed

    93

    Team Fournier (220)

    Doreen Merrill

    126

    Aline Fournier

    142

    Sharry Fournier

    157

    Don Fournier

    103

    Individual Awards:

    Award



















    Winner

    Drig Fournier Cup (Low score)



















    Drew Turnbull - 79

    Low Score - Women



















    Doreen Merrill - 126

    Sandbagger - Men



















    Tony Ward - 119

    Sandbagger - Women



















    Sharry Fournier - 157

    Ringer



















    Steve Reed (26 below closest teammate)

    Long Drive #7



















    Joe Merrill

    Closest to Pin #9



















    Bill Higgins - 22'

    Closest to Pin #13



















    Drew Turnbull - 5' 3"

    Long Drive #18



















    Steve Reed

























    Sunday, June 04, 2006

    Mark Your Calendars - August 19, 2006

    We've set a date and secured tee times for the 10th annual JMI Classic. August 19, 2006 at Fox Ridge Golf Club in Auburn. Tee times begin at 11:00. Most of the usual characters plan to return, and I've recruited a couple of new suckers to join the mix. Fresh blood! I hope you all can make it and make the 10th anniversary a true classic!

    JMI #5

    Scarborough, ME August 18, 2001

    Under the sunny skies of southern Maine, the Championship Crown for the Joe Merrill Invitational Golf Classic returned to the rightful heads of Team Merrill today. In one of the closest tournaments on record, the squad of Joe Merrill, Drig Fournier, David Fournier and Brian Ketchum eked out at two-stroke victory over perennial bridesmaids Team Matero. Led once again by Drig Fournier, who captured the Cup carrying his name as the low scoring individual, Team Merrill captured its second crown in four years with a score of 163 in the unique best-two-of-four balls format.

    The Matero squad, revamped for 2001 with the addition of Becky Perry and Greg Day, was once again led by the Brothers Matero, Tim and David. Their typically strong play led the team to a narrow second place finish ahead of the upstart Team LaFrance. The Matero team was, however, able to salve their wounds with two individual awards - long drive (Becky Perry) and closest to the pin (Tim Matero) on the front nine. One member of the LaFrance team, Bob Langlois, also was able to capture a long drive award as the upstart entry finished at 166, a mere three strokes off the pace.

    The defending champion Team Higgins also submitted a revamped entry but was unable to match its previous success despite another strong round from team ace Drew Turnbull, who carded a round of 85. Alas, it was for naught, and the defending champs finished with a pedestrian score of 173. However, another new entry kept the Higgins foursome from finishing at the bottom of the list. Team Ward, comprised mainly of Oxford Hills High School alumni, straggled home with a tournament record high score of 215, as no member was able to best the century mark. Alas, two members of Team Ward also took consolation in the receipt of MI5 hats for their long day on the course.

    Team Merrill (163) :


    Brian Ketchum (93); David Fournier (123 ); Joe Merrill (104 ); Drig Fournier (82)


    Team Matero (165): Becky Perry (114 ); David Matero (90); Tim Matero (85); Greg Day (99)

    Team LaFrance (166): Brian LaFrance (127); Bob Langlois (91); Steve deCastro (88); Rick Martel (95)

    Team Higgins (173): Andrea Higgins (125); John Higgins (112); Drew Turnbull (85); Bill Whitmore (91)

    Team Ward (215): Sue Robinson (167); Tony Ward (117); Penney Ward (147); Greg Collins (100)

    Individual Award winners:

    Drig Fournier Cup (Low Score): Drig Fournier (82)
    Sandbagger (High Score) : Brian LaFrance - 127; Sue Robinson - 167; Penney Ward - 147 (honorary)
    Long Drive, 2nd hole: Becky Perry
    Closest to the Pin, 7th hole: Tim Matero
    Long Drive, 10th hole: Bob Langlois
    Closest to the Pin, 15th hole: Bill Whitmore


    B. Langlois, T. Matero, B. Lafrance, S. Robinson, P. Ward, B. Whitmore, B. Perry

    Sunday, May 14, 2006

    Road Trip Golf

    This week I took a trip to Portland, Oregon, and was able to take advantage of the fantastic weather to slip in my first nine holes of the year (actually, my first 13 holes of the year) on Tuesday afternoon. My buddy Ralph and I teed off on the Great Blue Course, a Robert Trent Jones, Jr. layout at Heron Lakes in Portland.


    Ralph chips one close.


    The course is pretty wide open, with a lot of water, rolling hills and fast greens. There are not a lot of trees that come into play. It's a fun layout that is reasonably priced and with a very friendly staff. It's a pretty course, too, with the back nine featuring impressive (and gorgeous) views of Mount Hood 45 miles distant.

    I shot a 51 on the front (mid season form!), striking my drives well and struggling a bit with my short game (mid season form!). Although I had to cut my round short due to dinner obligations, it was a lot of fun to get out. I would definitely recommend Heron Lakes to anybody playing in the Portland, OR area.

    Mt. Hood looms.

    Golf Course Links

    Place holder for Golf Course Links

    Record Book

    Place holder for JMI Classic Record Book

    JMI #4

    Scarborough, Maine, 8/12/00.

    The fourth installment of the historic Joe Merrill Invitational Golf Classic (JMI 2000) proved to be a record-shattering event. Under partly cloudy skies that defied the dire predictions of rain, a course softened by the wettest summer in recent memory yielded unprecedented low scores under some intense competition.

    Team Higgins, a foursome of strapping young gentlemen appearing for the second time after failing to field a full squad the previous year, led the assault on the storied Willowdale Golf Course. Behind the steady play of Drew Turnbull and Dave, whose last name escapes me, the Higgins team fired a total of 153 under the best-two-balls-of-four format, shattering the tournament record by six strokes and besting the second-place finishers, Team Kwiatkowsky, by eight (also a tournament record). Brock Kwiatkowsky, the captain of the team bearing his name, realized that the core of his team needed some help if they hoped to contend. And help he did find in the person of Mark Hall, the first professional ever to enter this event. Mr. Hall shot a 74 to brake the long-standing tournament record, previously held by Drig Fournier, by one stroke and capture the coveted Cup bearing Fournier's name, symbolic of the low gross score for the tournament.

    Led, as always, by the Brothers Matero, Team Matero, heretofore perennial runners up after capturing the inaugural event, followed with a 163, good for third place. Despite missing the crown once again, Tim Matero continued to fill out his golfing paraphernalia with a variety of JMI 2000 prizes, thanks to his long drive and closest-to-the-pin awards. Team Fournier led the second division teams, finishing fourth with a disappointing 169. The disappointing play of Drig Fournier, who struggled to an 87, cost the team any real chance to compete. Following in fifth place was Team Collins, a beefy crew indeed who came in at 172. Last place, alas, was left to Team Merrill, captained by Joe Merrill, the tournament's visionary, who once again failed to field a squad of effective ringers. As putt after putt failed to fall on hole after hole, the heroic struggle was lost, and the Merrill foursome staggered in at 173.

    All in all it was a grand day of competition, as not only did the winning records fall, but the scores on the high end of the spectrum were also lower than ever. Evidence Team Merrill and the Sandbagger Award, captured by Dave Fournier at 116, the first time no player in the tournament exceeded 120.

    Following are team and individual scores and awards:

    Team Higgins (153):

    Dave Marr (80); John Higgins (108); Bill Higgins (105); Drew Turnbull (77)

    Team Kwiatkowsky (161): Earl Conrad (106); Colt Kwiatkowsky (102); Mark Hall (74); Brock Kwiatkowsky (98)

    Team Matero (163): Scott Sancomb (112); Tim Matero (84); Dave Matero (86); Doug Austin (107)

    Team Fournier (169): Dave Fournier (116); Don Fournier (93); Drig Fournier (87); Alan Lipman (106)

    Team Collins (172): J.P. (110); Greg Collins (94); Russ (89); Frank Cushing (99)

    Team Merrill (179): Joe Merrill (105); Rick Martel (100); Paul Fazio (103); Rich Stanley (91)

    Individual Awards:
    Long Drive, 2nd Hole: Drew Turnbull
    Closest to the Pin, 7th Hole: Tim Matero
    Long Drive, 10th Hole: Tim Matero
    Closest to the Pin, 15th Hole: Greg Collins
    Sandbagger: Dave Fournier
    MVP (spread vs. teammates): Mark Hall, 24 strokes
    Drig Fournier Cup (low score): Mark Hall


    (Mark Hall, Tim Matero, Greg Collins, Drew Turnbull)