2008 SHELL'S WONDERFUL WORLD OF GOLF
JEFE VERSUS JIMBO
ARCADIA BLUFFS GOLF CLUB
13th Hole: Par 3, 193 yards
YouTube version:
Six holes left. One stroke difference between them. The dramatic 13th hole at Arcadia Bluffs, a 193-yard par 3 over a canyon could be the difference in this match.
The 13th is probably the most oft-photographed par 3 on the course due to the giant canyon you have to hit over and Lake Michigan serving as the backdrop. I believe this hole wasn't quite as dramatic when they first designed it, but the canyon got a little deeper and little wider after about 7,000 tons of soil slid into Lake Michigan after a heavy rainfall during the course construction. Now it's the most intimidating tee shot on the course.
Undaunted, Jimbo fired right at the flag using his...quick, take a guess...his Ping G10 Hybrid. Somebody scroll through the videos and check how many times he's hit this thing? Even Dimaggio's 56-game hit streak will be broken before we see somebody hit hybrid this many times in one round. Just like on the last hole, his shot ran through the green, this time in the collection area behind the green.
Jefe, in complete search and rescue mode of his golf swing, smartly stayed as far away from that lake as possible. Every ball flight is a surprise. 'I can't hit it on the clubface,' he declares. I'm not exactly sure what this means, but no matter what part of the club the ball made contact with, it ended up pin high but well right of the hole.
If Jefe is going to have any chance in this match, either Rick Smith (course designer at Arcadia and former instructor for Philly Mick) needs to be helicoptered in or Jefe's going to have to make it happen with the short game. He had a strange lie on the slope above the hole, but had plenty of green to work with. All he had to do was plop it on the front of the green and let the slopes do the rest. He executed it well and the ball fed to near tap-in range.
Not to be outdone, Jimbo's chip from the collection area cozied up to within two feet. If you didn't know any better, you might think these guys were pretty good. Two pars in a row for both players. Jimbo heads to the 14th with a one-stroke lead.
Jefe: Another flare right and I was looking at a chip down the hill all the way. It was fairly straight though and once I got the ball started it just funneled down to the hole for a relatively short par putt. Jimbo hit a great chip from over the green to save his par.
Jimbo: Bernie told me to hit the hybrid, so I did. I knew it was too much club, but I figured long was better than short. Sure enough, my ball rolled through the green again down into a collection area. Jefe once again took advantage of playing first and applied pressure with a quality chip. My chip wasn't all that difficult, playing back into the wind. I knew I had to land it about half way to the stick and watch it run out. That is exactly what happened and I had two feet left for par, which I made.
After 13 Holes: Jimbo +6; Jefe +7
