Victor Mature Turkey Shootout results

By Ally Wise

Rancho Santa Fe

This world-renown tournament (well, maybe Village-renown) was played at the RSF Golf Club. Yes Golf Club, we pride ourselves on not being a country club. We are golfers.

The agony of defeat and the thrill of victory vibrated through the air. The full spectrum of emotions were felt. But to be more realistic it was the agony of an empty cup and the thrill of the long putt.

Let me set the stage. Not a cloud in the sky, the two teams, RSF Pros and Outside Services, were dressed in their best golf duds. Amazingly spiked hair had grown over night on a once bald Pro. A sea of members were following along with encouragement. Dogs ran the course with reckless abandonment. Some fairways became football fields with long touchdown passes being caught. Eddie was pouring Bloody Marys to keep everyone warm in the chilling 50-degree weather. Silliness prevailed. Joggers on the paths watched with amazement to witness all the rules being broken.

With certainly, I can tell you the best day at the RSF Golf Club is the Victor Mature Turkey Shootout.

It is a dramatic, great golf watching, belly laughing day. The Pros take on Outside Service Crew.

There is a serious financial side. There was one putt worth $3,000! Members chip in money for great golf prowess as part of the holiday celebration.

There are required antics. One hole, the players have to hit the ball like Happy Gilmore while gobbling.

One pro hit it 20 feet. La Granada looked like a driving range after all the running, gobbling golfers drove. Luckily, no windshields were broken...so we think.

There is one pink ball for each team. To win at the end of 18 holes, you must still have the pink ball.

On our signature 13th hole, the cute outside service team hit it into the water. As the pink ball sunk in the stream you could here the gasping from the spectators. The team never lost hope. With much enthusiasm, the team held up a 100 bill for anyone who would dive into the murky water inundated with balls and find the cherished pink ball. Within an instant, Will Appleby had stripped his clothes...appropriately...donned a scuba mask which he happen to have in his cart and did a swan dive into the bluish water resembling Tidy Bowl. In an instant to the crowd cheers, he rose from the muck with the coveted pink ball in his hand. The excitement was building. You could see fear in the eyes of our pro, Scott, who was the MC of the event. He knew he lost total control.

The next day, Maui John commented that even though he benefited with the dramatic retrieving of the pink ball, he questioned if Will had an extra pink ball in his pocket in the beginning of the day. If so, more power to this college student. He will surely make it as a diver or entrepreneur.

As the crowd grew and Bloody Mary’s were being poured stronger, much to everyone’s delight, Chef Larry arrive with pizzas. Even with a sell out crowd for Thanksgiving, Larry found the time to enjoy the day with us. I think he should be included in next year’s tournament. He certainly would add spice...get it?

So after six hours flew by, the Pros won the 2011 coveted Turkey Shoot. And that is why they are the pros!

I can tell you after attending numerous U.S. opens, PGA tournaments and the Masters, I would take this tournament over any of them. Well maybe not the Masters.

Don’t miss it next year. You do not even have to be an aficionado of golf just a good time.

As my new cute husband, Gerry Harney, and I sat at our first Thanksgiving dinner as a married couple, we looked at the burnt turkey that had been roasting all day, dried out stuffing etc. We gazed into each other’s eyes and knew that the memory of this fun-filled day overshadowed this terrible dinner. Gerry will always refer to the Thanksgiving dinner 2011 as Turkey Jerky.

Thank you to our great staff for such a memorable day. It was the best.

See you next year, Ally Wise... oops Ally Harney. Boy, name changes are so difficult to remember unless you are charging something!