I know y’all have been waiting to hear the details of this year’s 25th annual Goodboys Invitational weekend, so consider this post everything you’ve been waiting for and then some!

A great weekend was had by all. First of all, the weather cooperated quite nicely for us once again. It started out steamy on Friday but we got some nice cloud cover to keep the heat down, and the same held true for Saturday when we lucked out having a bad thunderstorm dissipate as it passed north of us. Sunday started out sunny and oppressive, but the clouds came in again and made it very comfortable for playing, so the boys couldn’t use the weather as an excuse, that’s fer shure.

The three Plymouth, Mass. courses picked by last year’s Exec-Comm were (at least in my view) the best combination of courses we ever played. Waverly Oaks was a banger’s course but you still had to bring your short game. The Nicklaus course at Pinehills was as nice a course as the GBs have ever played – although a “Jack track” it allowed for a lot of imaginative shot-making as it weaved it’s way through pine forests. And while CrossWinds G.C. featured the same kind of rolling hills as Pinehills, it had generous fairways and terrific greens. It wouldn’t bother The Great White Shank none to play one or two of these courses again next year.

As mentioned below, a big fat “Congratulations!” to the team of “Deuce” Doucette and “Goose” Dwyer for achieving the highest level of golf excellence possible and the title of Exec-Comm for 2016. Not only did they win the coveted Spielberg Memorial Trophy and a chance to don those nifty polyester jackets, but their mugs get to adorn the Goodboys Nation blog for the next year. It was great to see Goose win his first Goodboys championship in fifteen – count ’em, fifteen! – tries, and for Deuce it he’s now a two-timer in the Goodboys winner’s circle. They finished seven strokes ahead of the second-place team of yours truly and “Cubby” Myerow (as the late, great Mel Allen used to say, “how about that!) and as for the other teams, I mean, who cares, right?

If there was one disappointment for the weekend it was the food. The one thing all Goodboys hope for going into the 2016 Invitational is that this Exec-Comm will find us some better places to chow. (Which is not to blame the outgoing Exec-Comm for their choices – given their location I probably would have picked them as well.) The East Bay Grille was beyond horrible – we waited 2 1/2 hours for bad food – and while Isaac’s gets points for at least delivering our food two hours earlier than the previous night, that’s about it. There seems to be a lot of cool places to eat once you get a block away from the touristy harbor locations, so that’s something I’m sure will get consideration in the 2016 plans.

All in all it was a great weekend – lots of laughs, great golf, and a joy to see everyone again. Let the countdown to 2016 begin!