On Friday July 31st, the two teams that the Nevada bookies are saying are odds-on favourites to meet again in the WATERFIELD Final, played Round 1 of their possibly marathon competition. TT/GMcD came in at 3-0 while the Maestro and the Doc started the day at 1-1. Tom and Steve got 3 strokes from Glen, Gord got 6. It should have been a close match, but ...
First the headlines:
G/S TAKE 3 LESS STROKES NET, MAKE 3 MORE PARS AND DOUBLE THE BIRDIES OF THEIR OUTCLASSED COMPETITION
GLEN PLAYS 5-9 IN EVEN PAR AND 12-15 IN 1 UNDER
THEN STEVE MAKES NET BIRDIE ON 16 TO PRETTY MUCH CLINCH IT
GMcD HAS HIS WORST-EVER ROUND IN THE WATERFIELD
TT HITS IS DRIVE ON 9 ALMOST TO THE 200 THEN 6 MORE TO GET IT IN THE HOLE
ONLY ONE 4-PUTT ACTUALLY FIGURED IN THE RESULT
Clearly, only one team was solidly on their game. TT/GMcD never really had a chance. Or did they ...?

And now the very highly summarized details:
#1 Glen on in reg. Makes par. TOM makes a good chip and sneaks the putt in for net birdie. TT/GMcD 1 up. But not for long.
#2 Glen and Steve show how it’s going to be. Two 2-putt pars tie up the match.
#3 Bogeys or worse. No blood.
#4 Glen takes 6 shots to get on the green. Steve only needs 5. Their doubles are no match for GMcD’s gimme par and ever-so-briefly TT/GMcD are back to 1 up.
#5 Tom and Steve match net birdies to beat Glen’s legit par. No blood.
#6 Glen is now on fire. He is about to crush the opposition with a steady stream of very solid golf. He starts with a no mistakes 2-putt par to beat everyone and tie up the match.
#7 Glen follows that up with another green in reg and an easy par. GMcD is just off right, 41.5 feet from the hole. He hopes to get it close.He gets it very close and it almost drops. Wait a minute! It DOES drop! Birdie! And briefly, TT/GMcD take their third lead of the day. But it wouldn’t last - not even to the turn.
#8 GMcD is stroking but with two attempts, he can’t get even one to stay on the golf course. Three bogeys mean no blood.
#9 Steve and Tom crush their drives. Steve’s second finds the front trap. As does Tom’s third and GMcD’s third, both from well inside the 100! Pitiful. Tom eventually gets on in 5, 30 feet away and cards a 7. GMcD only one better. Steve makes the best bunker shot and makes par. But none of that matters. The on-fire Maestro, who has missed the green long, knocks it up and in for Birdie! (His first but by no means his last of the day.) All Square at the turn but TT/GMcD are struggling.
#10 GMcD wastes another of his rapidly dwindling supply of strokes. Three bogeys and a net bogey. No blood.
#11 GMcD is 18 feet away. TT just in front, Steve wide right, Glen bunkered. Tom makes an excellent chip. Gord makes a close-but-no-cigar effort for his second par 3 birdie. Two pars beat two bogeys. For the very last time in the match, TT/GMcD have the lead - 1 up.
#12 It didn’t even last 15 minutes. Glen makes par, no one else does and it’s back to All Square and the previously-undefeated team are on their way to oblivion.
#13 Once again, Glen makes par. So does Steve. But Tom coaxes one in from under the hole and keeps his team tied, for the moment.
#14 Steve and Gord both butcher the hole. but their partners both have birdie chances. Both coulda/shoulda but didn’t fall. Still All Square. But that was all about to change.
#15 Tom pulls out his driver and pays for that decision when he goes long right. Steve is also in trouble and out out of it. GMcD’s drive is so short that he has to lay up. Glen is an inch (okay, that’s 2.54 cm) from the rough but he hacks it well over to 75 yards. Meanwhile, GMcD has hit a good shot to the middle of the green and should make par. But that won’t be good enough. Glen hits a beauty to 14 feet and then jars the putt for Birdie! And for the first time all day, G/S have taken a 1 up lead. There would be no looking back. Well, not much looking back.
#16 We all know what happens - Steve hits to just short of the green, rolls it up to gimme distance and has the net birdie. Glen takes the hole off. Unfortunately, so does TT who, after hitting it to 160 needs 3 more just to get it to 30 feet. GMcD has hit a good drive and actually got his second onto the putting surface a little ahead of Steve. He watches Steve‘s masterful putt. Then he tries to duplicate it. He doesn’t. Not even close. He is still 12 feet below the hole. G/S are about to go dormie 2. But the Golf Goddess isn’t done having some fun with this match. She allows GMcD’s next putt to fall in on the low side for par/net birdie. TT/GMcD are gasping for breath but still have life. They are 1 down with 2 to go.
#17 Glen puts an exclamation mark on the match by hitting the green in reg, albeit somewhat above the hole. His careful putt stops still somewhat above the hole. But not his second putt. It stops somewhat below the hole. To mix things up a little, Glen’s third putt stops somewhat beside the hole. His fourth is squarely in the middle of the cup. Meanwhile, Tom is just off right but makes a less-than-fabulous putt that stops somewhat below the hole. He is thrilled when the putt is conceded after Glen misses his third. And, incredibly it’s All Square coming to 18.
#18 Steve hits the front green with his second again. GMcD his the willow (hard) with his third. Glen and Tom are in good position after two shots. Tom goes first and hits a clutch pitch to 10 feet left of the hole. Does Glen buckle under the pressure? He does not. He leaves it 12 right of the hole. Meanwhile, Steve has made a good sand shot, a good lag putt and he has his par. That fact stays in Glen’s brain for the briefest moment and then it is gone. He carefully babies his birdie putt to a foot short. Oops! And now the stage is set for Tom’s 10 foot straight putt for birdie and the improbable win. It starts a little right. It stays a little right. No birdie. No win. But no loss. Tie ballgame!

Glen 39-41 80 net 73
Steve 42-45 87 net 76
Tom 42-41 83 net 72
GMcD 49-47 96 net 81