June 25
Chris Deinlein reports: Twenty-six players met in the North Carolina foothills at Mimosa Hills CC for the second annual Mike Just North South Challenge Matches. Unfortunately, there were not enough players from the northern tier of states to field a full team. To compensate, the field was divided by handicap. A flip of the coin determined which side would be labeled North or South. Our host, John Greene, “lost” the flip and headed up the North team. Tad Moore served as captain for the South.
The Ryder Cup format was used with foursomes going off on Friday morning. The North started strong and finished with a 4 to 2 lead. After a short lunch break, the four ball teams went out. The South came back strong with a 3 ½ to 2 ½ advantage but remained 1 point behind the North at the end of the day.
All players competed on Saturday in the Singles matches. Most of the matches were close and went to at least the 17th hole. Tad Moore’s team prevailed with 7 ½ to 5 ½ points on the day, resulting in a 1 point victory for the tournament.
Many thanks to John Greene and Mimosa Hills CC for the hospitality they showed all participants.