Quaich Throwback - April 2004

It was ten years ago that Team USA won it's first Quaich at Kingsmill in Virginia.  Team USA has seen change since 2004, and only 4 of the 8 members of the 2004 American squad will represent their country once again in 2014.  Team Scotland has enjoyed more continuity.  Only one member of the 2004 Scottish squad will not also be in Inverness in 2014.  What ever happened to "The Russler"?

Preparing for the Quaich

Here are some key exercises for the players to do in the weeks leading up to the 2014 Quaich

USA Captain Announces Last Minute Line-up Change

Palm Beach Gardens, FL

April 11, 2014

It is my great pleasure to inform everyone that Team USA has a new member, Ray "Mundo" Bonilla.  Mundo comes to us by way of the Guvna. They are old friends going back to the days when The Guv

worked for Senator Lloyd Bentsen of Texas and Mundo, having just hunk up his spikes (soft spikes hadn't been invented yet) after making a go of it on what eventually became the Nike Tour, decided he would go back to the best University in America, THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN, for his law degree. While Mundo had to dedicate himself to his rigorous legal studies, he never lost his love for the game and learned he had another secret love, single malt scotch.  In a cruel twist of fate, Mundo is now the General Counsel for the Texas A&M university system where he was most recently successful at keeping the Heisman winning Johnny "Football" Manziel eligible for another year of college ball -- despite his own best efforts to screw up his college career.  Mundo is married and has two lovely teenage daughters that he will never be introducing to anyone on Team Scotland -- especially TTTTony....

When Johnny Football was asked why he sometimes refers to Ray as "Mundo" he replied, and I quote, "Mr. Bonilla has a magic touch whether on the golf course or arguing why the rules shouldn't apply to me in front of the NCAA.  He is formidable, tenacious, focused and clever.  He is never to be underestimated, for those that do are quickly vanquished.  That's why we all him "Reymundo or King of the World" or in our case, just "Mundo" which, being only one syllable, is just easier for us Aggies to handle". 

Despite Mundo now playing to a wee higher handicap, that's just the type of person that Team USA needs to fill T-bones' big, flat footed shoes, so he was quickly signed.  His airline ticket is purchased (arrives on Monday so he'll be appropriately climatized) and I've been told he's already been practicing one of his favorite shots from his old tour days, a knock down 7 iron bump and run.

I know I can speak for Team USA when I say that we are all looking forward to being in Scotland soon and to having Mundo become an important part of securing Team USA's fourth consecutive victory!

Cheers,

Swayze 

T-Bone Out Of Quaich With Back Injury

Tiger Woods T-Bone's future as a major player looks bleak after back surgery forces him to miss Masters Quaich

Woods T-Bone’s pursuit of Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 major titles a 5^th Quaich point isn’t just on hold. One can argue whether it is finished. His back is the latest body part to fail him.

BY Hank Gola

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Dominance? Intimidation? Those are words no longer associated with Tiger Woods T-Bone. They will play the Masters Quach without him for the first time in 20 2 years this week in June but in essence, the indomitable Tiger Woods T-Bone hasn’t shown up at the majors Quaich for quite some time.

Some insist Woods T-Bone has 10 more good years left. Hank Haney Eric Silagy, his former swing coachCaptain, isn’t so sure.

“Facts and history don’t really support the theory even if he was healthy . . . and he isn’t healthy,” says Haney Silagy. “No matter how much time you think he might have to catch Jack get a 5^th point, the clock is going faster and faster now. Tiger T-Bone is hurt and wasn’t playing well before he had surgery. Maybe his poor play is all related to his back. It doesn’t really matter because he is losing time, the clock is moving.”

It’s an endless cycle, Haney Silagy explains.

“He needs to practice and not rehab but he has to rehab before he can practice and this has been going on since 2008 with regularity,” adds Haney Silagy. “Tiger T-Bone will tell you what he wants you to hear, but that doesn’t mean he can or will do what he needs to do. He needs to get healthy, stay healthy and have the desire to practice like he used to. If he does those things he will catch Jack Nicklaus get his 5^th Quaich point. Those are three big ifs and the one I worry about the most is the last one, does he still have the desire?”

Nick Faldo Jamie Moreland, a six-time major winner Quaich participant who didn’t doesn’t waste much time leaving the golf course for the CBS broadcast booth practicing, points out that players start feeling their age once they hit 40.

“It starts to feel like you’re training hard just to stay even. The 40s can be hard work,” he said. “There’s a lot going on with what’s happened the last years . . . the personal strains, the body strains, the golf strains and now surgery.”

Haney Silagy points out that Woods T-Bone did very little work on his game going into 2014, which began as one of his worst even before he was hurt. And he says he’s seen a decline in desire from Woods T-Bone starting in 2007.

“Even if the desire was there, will his body allow him to practice like he needs to? If you look at the tournament and practice time that Tiger T-Bone has missed, it will amount to two years of the last six if he returns at the earliest predicted time from the back surgery,” says Haney Silagy. “Ben Hogan used to say that the first 500 balls you hit each day gets you back to where you left off yesterday. When will Tiger T-Bone be able to hit 500 balls in a day again and will he want to?”