As outdoor golf season is upon us, indoor golf season had some unfinished business at the Yard Friday night. Extremely fitting that the Championship was played at Augusta on Masters weekend.

Team Freese started early and often making birdies on 8 of the first 11 holes in cruising to a team championship with a 5 shot victory over Team Pittman. “Having this group just be able to come together and have success on this type of stage was incredible,” said team captain Ryan Freese. “Never did I expect it to be in such dominant fashion.” Team Pittman struggled through the early part of the course settling for pars much of the night. Team Freese which was made up of Ryan Freese, Scott Gehret, Chris Lambi, and Phil Raccuglia were scorching turning a fairly even match on paper into a no contest.

“I know ratings suffered , but at this point, it was all about the hardware” stated Gehret who found a way to chip close every time he was called upon to do so. “Just proud to have been a part of such a lethal team and a great event.”

Team Pittman, made up of Brent Pittman, Mike Nye, Jeff Schaeffer, and Josh Smeltzer, were very emotional as they head back to the drawing board looking for answers hoping they get another bite of the apple. “A disappointing end of the Winter season but something to build on,” explained Pittman. “We did a little too much thinking and literally some of us crapped our pants.”

SOMETHING IN THE AIR

Last night brought out a gaseous state of events from many of the players. As Chris Lambi brought his usual A game to Virtual golf, he brought his A+ game as he also hid behind a curtain most of the early evening trying not to burn the faces of his teammates. Teammate Scott Gehret adding to the music occasionally and we can only thank god Ryan Freese stayed dormant.

On the other side, both Mike Nye and Josh Smeltzer needed to go basically at the same time with Smeltzer asking to use the women’s facility in fear of not being able to continue. Jeff Schaeffer got it going and when the 6’5” yeti begins his blow up game, it feels like they originate from the depths of hell. He would attempt to go out back to lighten the blow to no avail.

“Without question, the shittiest night ever,” said CEO Phil Raccuglia who found it to be distracting and in his words, “like eating crap at times.”

The Yard has opened up registration to our Spring/Summer Virtual Golf League which opens up Monday May 5th. Contact Phil (484.336.4244) for more information.

Brent Pittman defeated Jeff Broad by two strokes to win the 2024-25 Virtual Golf Championship @ the Yard located in Pizza Como (Temple). Pittman’s road the title as the #6 seed saw him go through some unsettling times but in the end, he came, he saw, and he eventually conquered.

Pittman received a bye in round one while taking out Bobby “Bones”Genslinger by a stroke in round 2. Bobby G needed only a bogey to advance on hole 18 and went into the water twice to have his dreams thwarted. Pittman attended Genslinger’s round that Friday night as the villian… the player no one wanted to see win. He left escaping knowing he dodged a major bullet.

Next up was a matchup vs Jeff Schaeffer, a close friend, who he eventually beat by eight strokes. However, the match was nip and tuck until the 13th hole when Pittman started throwing darts while Schaeffer could not match his shot making that day.

In the Semi-Finals, Pittman found himself in some uncharted waters vs Alex Andre. After 13 holes, Andre was up 26-22 staring at an innocent par 3. Brent made birdie, Alex made double… and that’s where it all changed as Pittman took control of the match for a two stroke victory 32-30.

The finals set up a matchup vs Jeff Broad whose unlikely journey to the Championship was as remarkable as his playing style. Broad’s unorthodox swing netted him three one-stroke victories to the title matchup. Unfortunately, the clock struck midnight on this Cinderella as Pittman played a tactical round discarding any thoughts of an upset disposing Broad by two stokes.

Congratulations and a huge thank you to all 24 players who participated in the Indoor League. Let’s hear it for our 2024-25 Indoor Champion, Mr. Brent Pittman.