Goodboys Invitational 2014 Friday will be played at Sagamore-Hampton G.C. in North Hampton, NH, a course the Goodboys have played just once in their history, back in 2010, the last year legendary Goodboys “Dandy” Drewett (center front) and “Crusher” Spielberg (back, 2nd from left) were part of the proceedings:

It was truly the end of an era.

I expect like last time the Goodboys will be playing from the blue tees, measuring 6,013 yards, a 70.7 rating, and a 121 slope. Personally, I love this course, not because it is particularly memorable – at least as far as golf courses go – but, rather, because it doesn’t pretend to be anything than what it is: a pretty, if nondescript, humble little layout with a no-frills clubhouse that (at least to me) is a welcome change from the kind of clubhouses you see at all too many golf courses these days that can’t seem to decide whether they’re in the golf business or the wedding reception business.

Perhaps its just me, but whenever I step on the property I feel as if I’m transported back to an earlier, simpler time when one would “summer” by the Atlantic seacoast, spending long afternoons relaxing with a book and/or friends and a pitcher of lemonade on a porch under big leafy trees, waiting for a late afternoon sea breeze or thunderstorm to cool the sweat on one’s brow.

Sagamore-Hampton features two fairly distinct nines: the front (par 35) pretty much a wide open cow pasture with a few annoying water hazards; the back (par 36) starting with a long, downhill par 5 that then winds its way through woods before emerging out into the open at the end.

While not specifically part of Goodboys Invitational history, Sagamore-Hampton does have its place in unofficial Goodboys lore. Many – and I do mean many – moons ago, the team of “The Funny Guy” Andrusaitis and The Great White Shank played fellow Goodboys “Killer” Kowalski and “Gaylord” Perry on a steamy summer Friday. Just when it appeared that TFG and TGWS had their match firmly in hand, out of the blue, Gaylord sunk nearly-identical (and nearly-improbable) 30-foot putts on 17 and 18 to win the match. The foursome then gathered at the Carousel Lounge at Salisbury Beach, where “The Unforgettable Fran Owens” proceeded to serenade Gaylord as only she can, as a reward for his hand in the victory. Unfortunately, Gaylord was not amused, and “UFO” let him know it. Ahhh, thems were the days!

I think Sagamore-Hampton is a great Friday venue for the 2014 Goodboys Invitational.