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.)