If "Once" is regarded as "random"; and "Twice" is regarded as "a trend"; "Thrice" most certainty begins a tradition...Masters Friday was once heralded as the best day of the year, but after our 2010 installment, our fabled one day venue is in jeopardy of forever being renamed "Master's Week!!"
Not that Masters Friday requires a warm-up, but with four esteemed guests (who've just arisen from their long winter's slumber) descending on Houston three nights pre-maturely, it only makes sense that we would play a 3-venue Ryder Cup Match. This contest has been affectionately named: Quakers vs Cowboys. The opening matches at Houston Country Club would all be decided by a dramatic, 20 foot birdie putt on the 18th green by our current, Ozone Cup Champion, Mark Murdock. On the heels of that emotional "tie," the MFC went on to win the rest of the Ryder Cup points...Or something like that.
Never to be outdone (except by himself year after year) Don Vrba hosted all in the venerable "Jones Room South" for another night to remember. Private bottle wine dedications to both Bobby Jones & Walter Smedley Jr, along with another classic Howsy video production (inclusive of a cameo from Ernie Els), sought to once again raise an unraisable bar.
In 2010, our Masters Friday Tournament underwent a scoring system modification. Rather than just pick two PGA professionals and score their Friday round, all participants tendered four Professionals and we scored their Thursday & Friday rounds. Additionally, our Pine Forest Rounds were assigned a 1.5x multiplier to further empower the field. Standing on the lawn of the Murdock cabin early Friday morning, our John "Pro" Phillips held a two-shot lead over Ronny Byrd.
However, that lead would not last long, as Ronny Byrd went on to shoot -14 at Pine Forest, and with the aid of Mickelson, Kim, Mahan & Schwartzel down the stretch, he was able to hold off hard charging Steve Robinson by 4.5 stokes to garner his first Green Jacket from a reluctant Frank McGill. This is back-to-back MFC Majors for Mr. Byrd.
Worthy of note, the MFC was the benefactor of a $1,250,000.00 gift from Industrial Tycoon,
Don Ashley.
PGA Professional, Jeff Maggert (pronounced: Muh-Gert) Wins 2010 Woody Cup
After missing the 2009 tilt due to his required attendance at Q-School, Jeff Maggert vowed to make it back into the field in his continued pursuit of that elusive, Major Championship victory. Sure he's had 12 professional wins, represented the United States in the Ryder Cup 3 times & in the President's Cup once; but with 5th place finishes in both the Masters & Open Championship along with two, top-3 finishes in both the US Open & PGA Championship, it seemed a foregone conclusion that Mr. Maggert would continue to bear the burdenish title of, "The Greatest Golfer Never to Win a Major."
When advised that tournament officials assigned him as a +5 handicap, Jeff figured his fate was once again sealed. However a 7 birdie round of 68 (that included finding a half-eaten deer hoof on the front nine) catapulted him to the top of the mountain. He needed that 7th and final birdie on 18 to avoid a playoff with eventual MFC Ozone Cup winner, Andy Turner.
Mickelson shirked the title at Augusta, and now Maggert does so at the 2010 Woody Cup.
