I think it sucks big goats, that seems to be the consensus of the Jeopardy community as well. No plans to try for this iteration anyway, need to see how the endgame plays out and how much money can actually be won. If it's enough then I'll map out a plan assuming they have another series. One of my trivia strengths is I can prepare tons better for various games than most.

BO

I hear ya.

Have you ever tried to get on jeopardy?

I still watch that every night.

Yep. Passed the online test many times, been to two auditions, never got the call. Will keep trying. IMO, Jeopardy is good trivia. You've got to flat out know answers unlike Millionaire where it was multiple choice. How many times watching Jeopardy have you gone "I know this, it's... it's..." and by then it's too late.

BO

So many times, but im terrible at it. Im that guy who gets hype when its teen week so I can actually get some questioms right. I also get hype when theres a sports category. They are few and far between though. My wife on the other hand is really good. Rustles my jimmies on the regular.

Did you see the tournament of champions a couple weeks back with the high school history teacher? If so, how about those facial expressions! Lol

Good luck man, it would be awesome to see you get on and ken jennings the damn thing

Played the Byron Nelson pre-qualifier today, 295 guys split between two courses, Lantana and Bridlewood. The low 19 guys and ties at each course advance. I shot 71(-1)at Lantana, exactly 19 guys shot -2 or better. Mother****er.

30 guys advanced at Bridlewood at -2 or better as well but it's an easier course.

Hole by hole sadness to follow.

BO

Paired with two kids in their 20's, one of them called me sir. Polite, but **** that.

10, 395 par 4. Uphill and into the wind, pin in the back just on top of a tier. Drive in dead center of fairway 159 to hole. Punch 7-iron to 8 feet. Drano. Birdie. Only 5 birdies on that hole.

11, 181 par 3. Downhill and into the wind, pin front right. Low 6-iron to 10 feet. Putt on line but definitely left it short and started walking, I got to the hole about the same time the ball did. Birdie. Shaking head and laughing.

12, 414 par 4. Hard dogleg left with fairway bunkers everywhere. Good drive leaving 149 uphill into the wind. 8-iron to 12 feet above the hole breaking pretty good to the left. Putt on line but definitely left it short, and this one did in fact stop 10 inches short in the jaws. Par.

13, 529 par 5. Slightly uphill into the wind with lake looming a foot right of the fairway. Good drive to left center but with a front bunker didn't think about going for it. Trying to play to my strong wedge game. Laid up to 64 and then fanned the wedge leaving it 25-30 feet short. Drained it. Bonus birdie.

14, 436 par 4. Drive uphill then downhill to green fronted by water, wind right to left and slightly hurting. Tagged a drive leaving 141 hole. Didn't want to force a wedge so tugged a feathered a 9-iron to about 18 feet but left a downhill slider. Just missed on high side. Par.

15, 162 par 3. Downhill, downwind, island green with pin front right on a severely two-tiered green. Again kind of torn between wedge and 9-iron but with the wind behind didn't mind just nuking a wedge. Unlike some, I tend to hit it better when I go after it. Left it about 14 feet below the hole with a right to lefter but the putt fell off before the hole. Par.

16, 580 par 5. Good drive but can't really reach, tugged the layup a bit but still in the fairway leaving 91 hole. Hit it to 6 feet, hit the putt exactly how I wanted by caught the low edge and spun out. Par.

17, 442 par 4. A little downwind, not a solid drive but straight leaving 156 hole. Tough pin position tucked in the left corner up on a small ledge. Kind of a bad break with my lie as it's significantly above my feet. Decide to use the lie to sling a big draw into the pin but made poor contact and left it on the front right of the green with a tough 2-putt from probably 60 feet. Left the first one 8 feet short and then didn't hit the best second missing just left. Bogey.

18, 436 par 4. Downwind with a pond about 320 out which is probably reachable with driver. Hit solid 3-wood but it didn't roll out as much as I thought leaving 186 to a green with water hugging the left edge. Hit a holder 5-iron to take the water out of play, good line but a little too low as it lands by the hole and skips a good 35 feet past leaving a slippery downhiller. Knocked it 6 feet past and then hit the 2nd putt where I wanted and watched it turn away just in front of the hole. Bogey.

1, 389 par 4. Dogleg left, 3-wood in good shape leaving 106. Didn't quite squeeze the wedge and left it 14 feet short or so. Basic right to left putt, watched a guy on the same line leave it well short. So naturally I did as well, dead in the jaws. Par.

2, 425 par 4. A little peeved I smash a drive down the center line leaving 114 hole. Accessible pin front right and I stick it to 2 feet. Did not leave it short. Birdie.

3, 583 par 5. Can't get there today, could during the practice round with firmer conditions and more wind. So with water hugging the left just hit 3-wood off the tee, layup to 92 yards with the pin tucked back left on a firm little plateau. Bailed slightly right but good distance control leaving about 8 feet right to left. Solid putt but it held it's line missing on the high side. Par.

4, 227 par 3. Tees way up today though, 169 hole into a bit of wind. Choked a 6-iron to about 18 feet but downhill. Thought I hit it firm enough but it pulled up short. Par.

5, 421 par 4. Uphill and into the wind, for some reason driver does not suit my eye on this hole. Jungle on the right can sneak in close, just feel more comfortable drawing a 3-wood into the fairway so that's what I did although I didn't hit it very well. Had 188 uphill, into the wind to a pin tucked on the back right. This is a tricky green, big ridge diagonally through the middle with the back several feet higher than the front. So if you leave it on the lower tier you've got a next to impossible 2-putt. If nothing else I would rather miss over leaving a basic chip. Tried to slide a high 4-hybrid in there but double crossed it left into a bunker. Not the place to be, straight downhill, sort of sidehill to the pin. Catch a little too much ball and it goes deep into the far fringe. Take the safe play and putt it through 8 feet of short grass and snuggle it next to the hole. Bogey.

6, 448 par 4. Uphill on the drive, into the wind, toughest hole on the course. Not much choice, just gotta suck it up and hit a good drive otherwise you're in trouble. And that's what I did, didn't miss my line by more than a foot. Kind of hit into an upslope and didn't roll out but no matter. 183 hole, solid 5-iron about 10 feet above the hole. Putt doesn't look like it could ever stop short of the hole, but it did. Right in the jaws. Par.

7, 553 par 5. Funky hole, tough to hit the green in two due to angles and bunkers. Was playing this tee shot by ear and decided to go with 3-wood and play to my wedge strength. Smash the 3-wood and am sitting right at the 250 plate, but hold true and hit what I thought was a nice layup. But it didn't go near as far as i thought it would and still had 114 into some wind. Didn't want that much as the pin is tucked 4 from the left. Good line but didn't catch it all and the wind did the rest, left it about 25 feet short. 2 putts. Par.

8, 184 par 3. Tees up today leaving 163 hole to a green with water 2 feet from the front and right of the green. Pin in the back though. Tried to choke a 7 but hit it pretty chunky leaving it 30 feet short. Good line on the downhill slider but (surprise) left it just short. Par.

9, 342 par 4. Pond 230 of the tee, a little fairway right of it if you want to squeeze driver into a small spot. 4-hybrid just short of the pond where I wanted it. 141 to a hole on the back right on top of a ridge so can't leave it short. Ball a little above my feet but need to hold a tiny 9-iron in there, wedge would just bring the ledge into play. Pulled it quite a bit but held it straight and had proper distance, about a 20-footer left. A little downhill, little left to right. Walking up on the green I know the number is going to be -1 or -2, no clue which. So how to play this putt? Cozy it up there for the sure par and hope or try to force it in for the sure thing which brings 3-putt into play? Things like this is why golfers go bald at an early age. In the end I was a little more aggressive, if for no other reason I've been leaving putts short for a lot of the round. Good speed, just fell off right at the end, it had a chance. Par.

Sign the card and study the scores. Only 5 guys from the morning wave which had to play yesterday between storms and finish up early this morning were at -2 or better, but there were already 8 or 9 guys from the afternoon wave (which teed off this morning after being pushed back all day yesterday) at that number. Since it's obviously playing easier today and there's half the wave yet to come in I'm not feeling very good about it.

Since there's no playoff I decide to drive home and just check online when I get there. Good thing I didn't stick around as it appears as though the next to last group had the final qualifier. Wouldn't want to go all Nancy Kerrigan on a fellow competitor.

So in the end I missed no fairways and one green and failed to qualify. That sucks. I didn't really putt bad but just didn't make enough. Two reasons why, 1, I still can't just free it up with the putter in competition like I can with full shots. Am scared to run it past the hole and face the comebacker. 2, I play most of my golf on greens that aren't near as fast or firm, then when I play on tough fast greens I can't get comfortable with proper speed. Don't do very well on marrying speed and line. Low score today was -5 at Lantana and feel that if I could have just freewheeled with the putter I would have blown that out of the water.

But hey, this 45-year old can still compete at a pretty high level. So I've got that going for me, which is nice.

BO

First time seeing this thread. Very good read, hope you keep posting updates.

Thank you for the report !

BO,

This got washed out in the Jeopardy Thread when I asked but have you ever thought of auditioning for The Chase on GSN?

Cool story bro.

What do you think about the last dude ( think he was Asian) on Jeopardy that killed it like seven or eight days straight? Trebek got all bent because the guy jumped around the board and didn't play the "traditional" way. I think Alex is being a nit dick. Your thoughts?

Arthur Chu actually won 11 games. He played the game great, the conventional method is strategically unsound. People make too much of some of the things Alex says during the game.

BO

Honestly don't know anything about it, will do some research.

BO

Pretty solid playing BO, like you said... not bad for a 45 year old man

Bo have you at any time held a course record?

When I was 19 shot a 66 in December in the midwest for a CR at my home club that lasted a couple of years. On the minis shot a 63 for a CR that lasted less than a minute when a traveling buddy who teed off at the same tee on #10 threw a 62 at me. Dick.

Couple of years ago shot 60 at my current home club in a wolf game but didn't hole every putt, so it doesn't qualify. Shot three 62's there the last year or so, the CR is 61.

That's all I've got, none currently.

BO

what does the ntnBO come from? I know we call you nitbo (for obvious reasons LOLOLOLOL) but can you break it down to what it actually means?

NTN is the stock symbol and used to be the company name of Buzztime Trivia (that stuff you see at Buffalo Wild Wings and other restaurants/bars) which I used to play incessantly leading to quite a few major trivia successes. Bo is a nickname since college and the handle I use to play the trivia.

BO

Earlier in itt you wrote that you think you would have to improve your ball striking, but were satisfied with your short game if you were to make another "run".

This round seems to indicate the opposite.

Was the round an exception? Or have you have had many other rounds in competition of 17 gir ( had many / any 18 gir ?)

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I can personally feel your pain somewhat about the fast greens. But 17 gir is something I've never even approached.

Many years ago I qualified for my provincial amateur championship. I was a member at the time of a decent private club, which had "medium-private-course-speed greens"

The tourney course however had the fastest greens I'd ever seen (Beacon Hall). (Comments that day were ~12 on the stimp). I wimped out on many short putts that day

In retrospect the big mistake I made was spending ~5 hours hitting balls on the range the day before, instead of on the practice green. (LOL spent maybe 20 minutes total there).

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So how much time did you spend on the practice green?
Was the practice green speed similar to the course ?

---------------
You mentioned Moe Norman. Did you ever play with him? Or see him play?

I saw him play way back in the 80's, and saw him occasionally at local ranges / tourneys in Toronto.

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Do you have any plans to try for the senior tour ?


Mike

At present, I'm having zero difficulty freewheeling with full shots and wedges while I can't free it up as well around the green.

I can't remember ever hitting 17 greens in a competitive round, especially on a 7000+ yard course.

Funny thing is, I absolutely love fast bent grass greens. Make lots.

Never in person. Watched many videos, examined stills, and have his biography in my library. The #1 ball striker by a large margin ever.

Yep. Already starting to think about what I need to tour over the next 4.5 years to get there.

BO

U.S. Open local qualifier today at Old American Golf Club. It's a links style course situated on a lake. Wind blowing 25-30mph today, not gusting. Blowing. Course 7000+. Fun times.

Shot 77(+6), did not qualify, finished T21 of 108. Got plenty of breaks, bad breaks that is. 6 spots available, 73 got in. One guy broke par.

Here's the yardage of each hole and stroke average. http://www.ghintpp.com/txga/TPPOnlin...ts.aspx?id=730

Here's the final standings. http://www.ghintpp.com/txga/TPPOnlin...ke.aspx?id=730

Detailed recap to follow.

BO

Only played it once, but thought it was a pretty tough course. And yeah it was blowing hard today. Kinda surprised 74 or even 75 didn't make it.

How were the greens? Every course I've played this spring with Bermuda greens has been terrible.

They weren't terrible but nowhere near like they were last summer. Thin around some edges and they haven't been able to cut them down yet due to the cool nights we had in early spring.

But yet, almost every course is currently having issues. Even Cowboys which is always perfect is struggling with theirs.

BO

1, 420 par 4. Wind left to right, bunker in the middle of the fairway. Aim left edge of the bunker and figure it'll drift a little right of it, regardless it's a small bunker. Naturally I rip one so well it doesn't drift, hello sand! Clean lie, 149 a little uphill, solid 8 iron about 25 feet short. Have decided to putt aggressively after the last wimpy qualifier, made easier by the fact the greens are slower but a little grainy. Good putt but just didn't get there up the hill, tap in. Par.

2, 487 par 4. Downwind, dogleg left with bunkers on both the inside and outside of the dogleg. Turn a hot 3 wood around the corner absolutely perfect. 156 to a front pin, flat and open in front. Chip a little 9 iron so it lands short and hops on the green. Good distance but tug it a bit about 18 feet. Wind is howling and just can't get solid on my setup. Fan it well right and past but hole the 4 footer. Par.

3, 580 par 5. Wind right to left. After two holes I've decided I'm not comfortable wearing a hat as hard as it's blowing, don't want it to blow off in the middle of a stroke. Stash the hat in the bag, so as I type this the upper half of my forehead is sunburned while the lower half (where I applied sunscreen with my hat on) is normal. Sexy look, but I digress. Could reach with a good drive but fan it up into the wind in the right half of the fairway. Decide on an aggressive layup with a 5 wood which brings another bunker in the fairway into play. Hit a solid shot and then watch the wind throw it straight left into the ****ing sand. Good lie, 101 to pin, 52 degree wedge on good line but about 25 feet short. Good putt just missing. Par.

4, 175 par 3. Wind directly in, nasty back right hole location. Low 5 iron safely left to the fat part of the green, about 20 feet for birdie. Good putt just missing low. Par.

5, 475 par 4. Wind right to left, dogleg left with fairway bunkers everywhere. Just makes for a funky decision off the tee. Drill 3 wood to the right of the fairway bunker leaving 194 to a front right hold location. Tried to hold a high 5 iron but got over it a bit and hit a bullet towards the left edge. No way it's going to stop but ends up in a chipping area with plenty of green to work with. Low spinner right at it, pulls up 4 feet short. Left half putt but again couldn't stabilize with the wind and pushed it just enough to miss low. No excuses, just a bad putt. Bogey.

6, 206 par 3. Wind howling directly in. Pin tucked back right behind huge bunker. Hazard right and over. 2 group wait on the tee for some reason. Well struck 5 wood but over cooked it a bit left missing the green by a little. Touchy chip, gotta land it on top of a ridge and then feed it left to right down a slope. Hit it just where I wanted to and watched it pull up about 14 feet short on the edge of the downslope. Seriously? Ugh. Good putt but missed it just high. Bogey. Only lost .01 strokes to the field!

7, 506 par 5. Dogleg right, wind straight in on the tee ball then left to right. Didn't quite get through the drive and cut it into yet another fairway bunker. Layup with a 9 iron short of another ****ing fairway bunker. Try to hold a wedge from 104 into the wind but it drifted right about 15 feet pin high. Bad putt. Par.

8, 192 par 3. Only playing 165 hole into a gale with the pin front right. Fanned a 5 iron a little short and right. Decide to use the putter from about 25 feet off the green, not a very good effort leaving 6 feet but hit a solid putt dead center. Par.

9, 371 par 4. Dogleg left, kind of a layup off the tee to the end of the fairway. Downwind off the tee, then left to right into the green. Fairway ends about 280, hit 4 hybrid about 15 yards from there but in perfect shape leaving 86 hole. Hit solid 60 degree right at it but about 18 feet long into the fringe. Touchy little putt down the slope, left it just right of the hole. Par.

10, 452 par 4. Dogleg right, wind in off the tee, left to right and in on the approach. Such a sharp dogleg that it really doesn't matter how far the tee ball goes, just that you're in the right part of the fairway for a shorter approach. Hit bullet 3 wood just where and how I wanted leaving 181 to a tucked front right hole location. Hit 4 hybrid trying to turn it over into the middle of the green and just didn't turn it, missing the green pin high but 10 yards right leaving tough little bump and run. Was either too aggressive or just didn't judge the bank well as my ball shot up the slope and 40 feet past the hole. Terrible 1st putt stopping 7 feet short but gutted that one in dead center. Bogey. Pick up .05 strokes on the field though!

11, 484 par 4. Wind in and from the right. Solid drive leaving 181 hole. Well struck 5 iron but a little too high not reaching the green. Straightforward little pitch to about 4 feet and drilled it. Par.

12, 232 par 3. Win a little in, mostly left to right with pin tucked on the left. Tees up playing a little less than 200. Solid 4 hybrid but leaks right of the green with the wind. Plenty of green to work with but have to deal with a slope in the middle making distance tricky. Good pitch that went about 8 feet past but a dead straight uphill putt. Drilled it dead center. Par.

13, 409 par 4. Mostly downwind, a little from the left. 3 wood short of fairway bunker complex leaving 166 hole back right on a tier. Don't want to risk landing a shot on top and bouncing over downwind, so take one less club (8 iron) and hit it lower trying to skip it on top. Hit the shot as planned but didn't get all the way on top leaving 22 feet or so. Not a good putt. Par.

14, 588 par 5. Dogleg right, not reachable. Wind in and from the right off the tee, dead into the gale the rest of the way. Since I'm just trying to get position for the 3rd shot hit 3 wood off the tee in the right center of the fairway. Ball above my feet and have to hit a slight cut around a funky fairway tree. But I've got this shot and hit exactly what I wanted with a little 3 wood, down the right side since the fairway slopes left into a hazard. But my ball isn't in the fairway, somehow it bounced right more than once and is now next to a pine tree. A lefty would have no issues, this righty is ****ed. USGA official is within 30 yards and I'm dropping f-bombs like a sailor, can't believe this happened. Wind is blowing the limbs away from my swing path most of the time so I'm thinking I can advance it down the fairway 100 yards or so. I'm good as this sort of thing, mostly just hand-eye coordination and committing to the shot. But not this time, can't really explain what happened but I might have moved the ball an inch. Step away for a moment and quickly drop a dozen more f-bombs. Get back in the bush and advance the ball about 8 yards into the fairway. Add about 8 more f-bombs. Not that loud, the official may or may not have heard them, but I was PISSED. So now I'm hitting my 5th shot into a hurricane from 150 yards. Choose 6 iron and stripe it at the flag. Comes up 10 yards short. Are you kidding me? Wobble my way to the green reeling from what has happened. Almost hole my chip though and tap in for a crowd pleasing 7. Double-bogey.

15, 488 par 4. Dead into this never ending wind. Tees were way up though bringing a fairway bunker into play. Try to turn a 3 wood off it but hang it a bit so that it misses the bunker by about 15 inches. Again, a lefty could slop this on the green no problem. A righty though is standing 3 feet below the ball. Not much else to do but grip down to the steel on a 5 iron and advance it 100 yards or so down the fairway leaving a tough pitch to a back right hole location. Not the best pitch but safe about 20 feet short and left. Decent putt but pulled up short. Bogey. Gained almost .2 strokes on the field though! Yep, this par 4 played almost 5.2 strokes for the day.

16, 351 par 4. Now the last three holes are quite benign and none into the wind. I'm thinking birdie birdie birdie and I've still got a decent shot. Rip driver left of another one of these fairway bunkers right in the middle of the fairway. 75 hole downwind and left to right. Just jumped at it and blew it 25 feet past. Putt wasn't close. Par.

17, 158 par 3. Pin just off the right, wind howling straight right to left. Watched the other two hit and the wind just bitch slapped their balls so far left it was laughable. So I hit a punchy little 7 well right of the green on watched the wind bring it all the way back and then some. Solid shot leaving 22 feet or so. Knew I needed it to have any chance at all, made an aggressive putt that ghosted the right edge and went 6 feet past. Return putt wasn't close, not that it mattered. I still gave it 100% though. Bogey.

18, 553 par 5. Straight downwind, water all down the left side. Good drive leaving 232 to a hole tucked in the left corner behind a bunker. Actually turned a 4 hybrid hard enough right to left to bounce it around the bunker but it was too hot and skittered well over the green. Good lie though pitching straight into the wind. Average shot to about 9 feet but made it for my lone birdie of the day. At least I avoided the bagel. Birdie.

We waited on every shot until 14 and 15 where two of us had major difficulties, including a couple of ball searches for the other guy. So we were behind when we finished and the USGA doesn't like this one iota. An official brought it up as we were signing our cards, but in a surprisingly gentle and fair way. I explained to him the issues we had and our cards could attest to this. He seemed satisfied and that was that. Think our threesome played those two holes in a combined 8 over.

Just didn't hit it as pure today, and in this kind of wind it really shows. A ball mis-hit even a little will just get destroyed by the gale. And my wedges were not sharp so didn't have many good looks at birdie. Freed up my chipping really well today though and it showed. Putting was some better but not a free as I'd like to be.

So even though I didn't qualify I feel some more progress was made mentally. And finishing top 20-25% when not near at my best isn't dreadful but just nowhere near where I know I can be. Maybe I'll finally get this all figured out by my 50th birthday.

p.s. just before midnight the weather channel says it's currently blowing 25mph!

BO

Well, now I can say I've got one, at least for the time being. Shot 61 at my home club today. 10 birdies, 8 pars. 8 of the birdies were from inside 4 feet, the other 2 were about 10 feet. 4 lipouts on the back, one of them an eagle chip, another resulting in a 3-putt par. None of them cruel, probably evening things out for 3 putts falling on the front that could have easy spun out.

Must be something in the water here on 2+2 lately, lots of good stuff happening.

BO

Congrats, Bo