October Means Some Endings and New Beginnings...

Each year when October rolls around, I'm usually feeling a sense desperation as our golf season in Minnesota is coming to an end.  Some years I might find myself playing into early November (and there was that one time in December!), but sometimes Mother Nature closes the window of opportunity sooner rather than later.  This year has been a great Fall in northern MN and just yesterday I made a quick road trip to Giants Ridge...it's usually a goal to get there at least once a season, but it took me until yesterday to find the time to go.  And it was so worth it!!

The September/October time of year is also the ending/beginning of the PGA Tour season.  I'm still not sure I've accepted this new "wrap around" season, but I think it's here to stay.  I'm not sure it's a whole lot different than it was before other than the events in the fall now count towards FedEx cup points for next year, which helps what used to be the fall finish for those players trying to get into the Top 125 and keep their card for next year.  (If you know me you can guess I'm still a bit bitter about the loss of Q-school and the Fall season, but I'll save that for another day!)

To stay positive, I do like that even coming into the Tour Championship there are at least 5 guys that control their own destiny to win the FedEx Cup so it's not a foregone conclusion before things even start.  As was my MO for most of the year, I didn't watch much if any PGA Tour golf on TV this year (with notable exception being The Masters)...so even coming into the final event of the season I  didn't find myself on the edge of my couch waiting for the outcome.  (I'm not sure what's happened to me there, either)  BUT, I'm thrilled for Jordan Speith!  I'm a fan and I think he is a great boost for the game of golf.  As if he didn't already have a season to remember he gets to add the FedEx Cup, Tour Championship, AND player of the year to his resume.  So good!!

Some other fall news and notes that caught my eye:
Jason Day - it was only for a week, but he was the best player in the world!!  I've been a fan of Day for several years (those Aussies!) and it was wonderful to see him play so well recently.  

Captain's Picks for President's Cup - oh it's so fun to read the social media responses sometimes!  I was happily surprised to see Phil Mickelson as a captains pick, even though his statistics may not have justified it. A quick look into his stats revealed his was 61st in FedEx Cup points, 38th on the Money List, no wins on Tour this year and 24th in the World Golf Rankings.  But what you can't quantify is Phil's competitive spirit, passion, and ability to motivate and lead in a team situation.  I'm excited to see him representing Team USA this weekend!  I was also a little surprised to see Bill Haas as the other pick...again, happily surprised!! I'm not sure who would have better replacements for either of them, but I'm sure we'll hear all kinds of Monday Morning Quarterbacking after the event is over, but for now I'm going to be excited about it!

Suzann Pettersen and the the putt that wasn't conceded - I didn't see it, I only read about it and man, did people have things to say about it!!  Once again, there doesn't appear to be one right answer to this one, but it's been interesting to read about all of the different points of view.  Did Alison Lee make a mistake by picking up her ball without a definitive "that's good"?  Absolutely.  Would she have made the putt?  Highly likely.  Did Pettersen walk away before Lee approached her ball?  Yes.  Did USA win anyway?  YES.  I get gamesmanship...and mistakes happen.  And I think the whole thing is a message more on the people than what happened.  I think the whole episode just reinforced some opinions on Pettersen and was a lesson learned not to take anything in competition for granted.  Oh, and then there was that Karma thing. <grin>

Even though it's a year away, Ryder Cup fever is hitting Minnesota (and the world I guess!).  Me and a couple hundred thousand other people got in the lottery for Ryder Cup tickets for next September.  It won't be cheap, but it will be an event to remember and an honor for Minnesota!  I'm already saving up for my Merchandise Tent purchases!!  I need a new lanyard. 

I know I'll have to look back on my predictions at some point (never usually a fun thing for me to see how wrong I was) and get some new ones out for 15-16, and it's always a great way to recap the past season.  I wish I could say I would be a committed Fantasy Golf player this year, but honestly, it's hard for me to remember sometimes!  And once you miss a week, you're just not coming back.  (Have a mentioned that I still miss Kerplookee lately?)  But I'm sure I'll give it a shot again because I love picking Brendon deJonge!!

It was great just to sit down and write again...I've said it at least a dozen times since June...I need to blog more!  I need to catch up on golf happenings, the PGA Tour, and what in the world is going on with Steve Stricker.  

There are some new clubs in my bag after bargain shopping on Ebay and I was sad to see the end of 3Up Golf as we knew it.  I ventured in the world of range finders and now I'm wondering what took me so long!  

The geese are driving me CRAZY at our golf course, but I keep hoping for just one more week of playable weather to keep my golf spirit alive. We've said good-bye to the 14-15 PGA Tour season and we say Hello to the President's Cup, the new members of the PGA Tour, and more golf just around the corner.  

I've realized I've got a lot more golf on my mind, so I'll be back soon!  Thanks for stopping by and catching up with me.