Jim Grosjean
February is an important month for MPMGA golfers. By now, the competitive juices are starting to boil, even while the outdoor temperatures are still rather frigid. The annual blood-letting known as the Javelina Cup will be played on Feb. 19 at SaddleBrooke One and on Feb. 20 at MountainView. The battle royale between MPMGA and SBMGA golfers will determine who has bragging rights for the next year. In a stunning upset last year, SBMGA squeaked out a narrow victory, but as I recall, there were weather problems that caused a shortened event. Just as MPMGA was mounting a historic comeback, Mother Nature intervened, and the cup found a new home in SaddleBrooke One.
Later this month is The Stampede, a two-day, two-man event which is notable mainly for the lunch with beer after the second day of play. I note the post-tournament festivities, because that’s usually the highlight for me after a couple days of brutal golf.
The Mars-Venus Tournament was played earlier in February, but the results are unknown, since I’m writing this article in January. I do know that it’s always fun to partner with the ladies in this two-day event.
Congratulations to Dave Quesnell for his overall victory in the 2025 Tournament of Champions! He came out of the fourth flight to take the victory over John Brubaker, Pete Gregor, and Ron Pozzi. They all shot 2 under par, one stroke behind Quesnell’s 3 under. I must mention that cold weather pushed back tee times to the extent that we could only play nine holes before we had to begin our luncheon. I feel strongly that I might have been able to pull myself out of last place if we had played 18 holes.
At the aforementioned Tournament of Champions luncheon, another less prestigious award was handed out. January’s McDivot award was presented to Glenn Deutsch, a truly deserving winner. After an errant shot on the par 3 13th hole at MountainView, Glenn was able to find his ball in the desert. Unable to see the green, he asked his playing partner Angelo Klousiadis to spot for him. Little did he know that he then became Glenn’s true target. Of course, Glenn hit a great shot, which hit Angelo in the chest just as he was turning around to watch. Angelo probably cost Glenn a chance for par. No medics were called and, luckily, there were no practicing lawyers in the group.
Most recently, the MPMGA attempted to complete its Member-Member Match Play Tournament on Jan. 16. Once again, Mother Nature interfered in the form of a cold wind that made the thought of playing golf untenable. The final matches were postponed, and the Whiners Tournament for all the match play losers was canceled. However, Doug Anderson was still able to celebrate his hole-in-one in an earlier match, as he will be presented with $100 from an envious MPMGA!
As always, joining the MPMGA is as easy as shooting an email to davidquesnell77@gmail.com for details.