The 2012 Winter Classic Preview 

With just over 3 weeks to go I can’t stop thinking about this years Winter Classic!

This year should be our best tournament golf wise. The gap between everyone is a little bit tighter than in past years and that should make things interesting to say the least. For the last couple of tournaments I’ve had a rather large HDCP advantage that has allowed me to not have a great round but still be competitive in the final standings. During the 2011 Winter Classic there was a nine-point gap between me, the highest HDCP, player and the next closes. This year that gap is less than a point!

To start off the 2012 Winter Classic campaign here is a little info about who’s playing and where were playing.

THE PLAYERS:

• Bill Schaff – HDCP 8.6 – Best round of 2012 was a 78 shot at Wildhorse Golf Club on 8/25
• Randy McClary – HDCP 16.7 – Best round of 2012 was an 86 at Tuscany Golf Club on 7/21
• Patrick Harden –  HDCP 10.8 – Best round of 2012 was an 84  shot on 7/10 at Presidents Country Club in Florida
• Mathew Wangrycht – HDCP 17.5 – Best round of 2012 was an 88 shot during The Death Valley Challenge on 7/28

THE COURSES:

First up will be the very underestimated Primm Valley Lakes course:

We’ll be going back to Primm for the first time since 2009 (When this blog and the Winter Classic very first started) Primm is jewel in the desert that not too many people are familiar with. It’s a Tom Fazio designed golf course that is not only incredibly picturesque but also difficult but very fun place to play. The practice facility at Primm is arguably the best on in the entire Vegas area and if it was just a little closer I’d go there to practice all the time. It’s going to be an excellent place for the first round.

For the second round we will be heading back to the spot where the final round in 2010 took place, The Rio Secco Golf Club:

This is hands down my absolute favorite place to play. I mean FAVORITE place to play. There is just something special about Rio Secco. The course is always in outstanding conditions. The elevation changes are as dramatic as the scenery and the course is run by an amazing staff that makes you feel like you’re in golf heaven. This will be the most difficult course we play and could easily rearrange the leaderboard after day two. Have a bad day here and it might be over. On the other hand have a good day here and you might be able to take it easy come the final round!

Last up we’re playing a course that’s new to the Winter Classic and that is Legacy Golf Club:

Legacy is another track that doesn’t get a lot of credit for being a top-notch course here in the Valley. I’m not sure why, but it’s always listed near the lower half of every rated “Vegas Golf”  list and I just don’t get. Me personally I love Legacy and that’s why it’s been added the rotation this year. I love the layout. It’s long, it’s tough and not very forgiving. One mistake here and you can kiss the Breakfast Ball Cup bye-bye! It is going to be a great venue for the last round.

There’s the skinny. It’s going to be a blast, and with a little bit of luck skill, the Breakfast Ball Cup will return home where it belongs!

As much as I would love to get out and get in a round or two before the Winter Cup gets here, it doesn’t look like that is going to happen. My schedule is crazy busy for the next three weeks and the free time I have is going to be spent knocking out another 3 weeks of INSANITY and spending time in garage working on a few things. Good news is I think my putting woes are behind me. I spent a good amount of time on the practice green this last weekend and the work I put in with Bill was showing some promising results!