Tate's opening tee shot was a sign of things to come.  Missing the fairway to the right of the 18th from the 1st tee was not the start his partner, Nance, was looking for.  The opposition, made up of Fat-Boy and DJ, were rubbing their hands with glee.

Some time later, Tate was playing his approach to the first green.  Loud cries of "sit" followed, indicating either a flyer from the rough, or maybe he was using a 3-iron from 50 yards.  It became apparent, a few holes later, that Tate wasn't shouting "sit", but that he'd developed a speech impediment, and was unable to pronounce his "h"'s.

It was fortunate that Nance had brought a semblance of a golf game with him, and as a result, Nance and Tate were able to take a 3 shot lead into the sandwiches.

There was doubt as to whether Tate would last the full 18.  A Mr.Grumpy-like retirement was thought likely on 13 after Tate managed to pull his tee shot into the middle of a fir tree.  However, un-Grumpy-like, Tate decided to persevere for the final 5 holes.

And it was on the final 5 holes that Tate found his golf game once again.  A drive and 3 wood to the green, 2 putts later for a 4 nett 2 and 4 points looked like cementing victory of both 9's for the good guys.  However, it was not to be, with DJ and Fat-Boy fabricating a late recovery to halve the back 9, and thus limiting the financial impact.

Fat-Boy, feeling flush from his recent OGC draw winnings, clearly wanted to share his good luck with the other Muffins.  So, generously, he picks up the camels on 17, and decides to put a provisional into the brook on 18 for good measure.

Nance completes a decent performance with a gross 73 for 38 points.  We may not see Tate for some time, however - another temporary retirement involving multiple trips to the driving range, should be anticipated.

In a parallel universe, somewhere, Mr. Grumpy and Turbo are victorious on the 1st round of the Summer 3-ball, beating Hanksy (without Big-Man) 4 and 3.