Who else has given up on scramble tourneys?

[Bob Cat]

[quote name='bub72ck' timestamp='1440208886' post='12186688']
I play in a lot of scrambles with work. It's definitely work and not golf. Four hours with a client or prospect outside of the office is great for me.
[/quote]

Same for me. Around 8 of them this year.
I don't expect to win but must admit I get pretty agitated when a cheater is confirmed.
I generally enjoy myself though.

[billh17]

I still play in 3 a year....only for the charity part of it.Anything other than charity,i wont bother.Its not worth
the frustration..though it usually is good for a few "you're kidding,right" moments.lol

[CEPick]

I played in a scramble to benefit the military and the children of special operators killed in duty. I played with a co-worker who played golf professionally and a kid who just graduated from a Division I NCAA school where he played golf. We had a legit team.

Anyway, great tournament and cause. We get to #15 and the group ahead of us is stopped on the tee. We chatted for a while, listened to their BS and racist jokes, then asked how they were doing... "We're just some hacks here to have fun, you all go ahead of us"..

So they let us play through. In a scramble. We finish up a few holes later with ANOTHER group that had let play through right behind us. That's odd.

We know the tournament director well and this tournament has a ton of gimmicks. When we turned in our scorecard he flat out told us it was the best score ever in the tournament.

So they go to announce the winners and guess who has won? The team that LET US PLAY THROUGH SO THEY COULD WAIT UNTIL EVERYONE POSTED to cheat and win by one stroke. They won for the 3rd year in a row. I was fuming. In a tournament to benefit cholden and the military. Unbelievable.

[WilCox]

I rarely play in scrambles anymore. The "scores" some groups claim are beyond being believable. Worst case I saw was a -24 on a wet course where the greens had just been aerated the day before -- and no one questioned it. The winning group will always have at least 3 eagles on their card. Yeah, sure.

I think the saddest thing is all of these men who will sell their integrity for a few bucks. Personally, I don't want to be around them so I decline most invitations to play in these events.

[beachguy]

I'll play scrambles but the charity has to be something worthy of my time. Cancer, kids health issues, wounded warrior. NOW little league baseball holy #@#& the cheating is unbelievable. Won't do that again. My group would all land green on the par3s but not one ball would stick, actually everything was a 20 ft bounce greens were all like rock On every hole. Every 3 was protected. We realized after 2 holes what was up and had to lay up on approaches to bounce on the green. We shot a 64 and that's with some big drives. low group posted 53 the entire gallery yelled bs at the banquet. to make matters worse. They were the only African Americans in the scramble..One was the town's former police chief.

[beachguy]

I would think that w The number of people in the field and someone does get caught by a host of a scramble or another 4some. The embarrassment and shame would be so overwhelming that the $400 low score prize isn't worth it. The post regarding the low group wasn't meant to be racist. The. Were just harassed by the field and the town's full of racist aholes

[Greenie]

A friend played in the greatest scramble ever. IMO Top three scores were-24,-22,-19...That's some real good scrambling. He was the -19 under so I got to hear all about it next time we got together.

[596]

I played in one years ago that shamed the winners (read cheaters) so bad that they turned their prizes back in.

[BIG STU]

I usually play in only one a year and that is job related. This year it has been whoosh 3 all job related. Down here in spring summer and fall there are at least 2 different scrambles for something every weekend.
There is a group of about 8 guys that go around to all of them and play in them and they are notorious cheaters. We have on several occaisions tried to get them to play for serious money and they will not. At one event the director had gotten word on them and decided to take action. I knew this director and I was one that he called to help police when he mentioned names I was glad to help him. I remember this one group that they put me on. The "captain" asked me what I was doing. I told him I was an event official one of several to police cheaters. He did not like it and told me so. I told him if he did not like it that the road was right there and he could take it or shut up and play golf. they had won the event 2 years in a row with like scores of 55/56 on a par 72. Teehee that year they shot 67 legit. I think the other cheater group shot about the same. People like these hurt the charities events. Actually everyone is on to these guys and they have been barred from some events.
I personally play in certain business related events. Some of the others especially the Shriners I will donate clubs or regrip a set of clubs free in my golf shop that I run on the side. I helped run one today at my home club for a good cause and we had quite a few officials out there and the notorious cheaters were no where to be found because word had gotten out that the event would be policed and they had a great turn out 33 teams in all. If more events would police their events I think they would have better turnout and it would definitely be more fun for all players involved except the cheats

[KYMAR]

Your team paid a grand to play in a scramble? Holy hell

[unclebeejo]

I'm with you. I thought I was going to win ld the last scramble I played. I hit it pretty long, during awards ceremony a lady in her late 50's, early 60's claims the prize. The women's tees were maybe 30-40 yards in front of us. (Passive brag) I doubt she hit it over 280-290. Our team also shot -18 and came in 5th.

[Galiant50]

I go to a scramble for the door prizes and to try and win. Haven't done either, but that won't stop me.

[Roody]

[quote name='Greenie' timestamp='1440255755' post='12188842']
A friend played in the greatest scramble ever. IMO Top three scores were-24,-22,-19...That's some real good scrambling. He was the -19 under so I got to hear all about it next time we got together.
[/quote]
I've played in a bunch of LPGA pro-ams over the years, and the lowest score I've seen is -21. And this is with 5-player scramble teams, with every team having a PRO on it. Most years the winning score has been -18, -19.

That must have been one easy golf course to get the types of scores you mention.

[cphrey]

[quote name='unclebeejo' timestamp='1440282489' post='12190696']
I'm with you. I thought I was going to win ld the last scramble I played. I hit it pretty long, during awards ceremony a lady in her late 50's, early 60's claims the prize. The women's tees were maybe 30-40 yards in front of us. (Passive brag) I doubt she hit it over 280-290. Our team also shot -18 and came in 5th.
[/quote]

Was that at Green Valley Ranch in Colorado by chance? Because that exact same thing happened. 75 yards closer from her tees and she had long drive by like 40 yards. Arent those supposed to be on different holes for this exact reason?

[cardoustie]

I used to play in a bunch of fall ones. Always 8-somes or six-somes. Would never pay large cash without markers or another team with each group

It got to be a bad bet ... even with me and 3 guys at +3 or better .. our team would cost 2k to buy in the calcutta, plus food, entry of 200/man, booze, hotel, skins, gas .. etc ... so say cost was 850-900 per man

We won a few times tossing down -18 the second day .. only twice over 22 years ... at the main one mind you. It was just a crap shoot in the Fall weather up here

If your team won you usually got 1400-1800 each. Those are crap odds / payouts with 20 out of 40 with stacked teams. If you were not top 3 you didn't get your cash back

Summer charity ones are a joke. Flagrant cheating. Four 20 cappers dropping -19? Really?

We won one this summer for testicular cancer. -20 with a bunch of mullies (sigh) and a guy that swings 127 on our team. We almost got our entry back (as it should be)

[farmer]

[quote name='deadsolid...shank' timestamp='1440194650' post='12185400']
[quote name='MadGolfer76' timestamp='1440193523' post='12185292']
Scrambles are not competitions. They're fundraisers.
[/quote]

We play a lot of scrambles that aren't fundraisers. They're very competitive tournaments. Our stroke play events have basically dissapeared, and that's what we have left.
[/quote]When I first played in tournaments 40 odd years ago, every weekend there was an individual tournament somewhere at one of the little local clubs. Gradually, they went away and became low ball two man partnerships. Those became two man scrambles. Now, it's all 3 and 4 man scrambles, play it up everywhere, multiple mulligans and gimmies galore. Now, I play in one local scramble that is a scholarship fund raiser for home town kids, although you can win some money. Even given the purpose of the event, every year there are groups that engage in some generous interpretations of the few rules that are in place.

[kekoa]

[quote name='highergr0und' timestamp='1440178920' post='12183768']
I love scrambles. Day off work, some money to charity, usually some beers, and smack a ball around with no pressure. I don't give a rip what the other people are doing.

Scrambles with big entry fees for big cash prizes should have score keepers on each hole or even one per group. It would take what, $500 to $1000 out of the pot to ensure honesty?
[/quote]

I'm with you man. Anytime I can have the day off work and play some golf with upper management in a fun/laid back environment- I'm game. Throw some beers and cigars in there as well.

I play in about 7-10 of these events a year and they aren't even worth winning. The best prizes are normally won in the raffle.

[VNutz]

I'm all for charity/fundraiser scrambles. Generally a relaxed environment, fun, not so much about winning as it is enjoying the day and supporting a cause. If you win something it's a bonus.

The scrambles for money I don't really care for anymore. The only way to keep it legit is to have 2 foursomes together, and the last one I did took over 6 hours, no joke, with the other team in our group agonizing over every single shot. I don't mind a slow round of golf if it's your own group, but when you're waiting on an entire other group to think over every shot from every angle it's too much. And if it's not that way then the suspicion of cheating is rampant.

[unclebeejo]

[quote name='cphrey' timestamp='1440512699' post='12205078'][quote name='unclebeejo' timestamp='1440282489' post='12190696']
I'm with you. I thought I was going to win ld the last scramble I played. I hit it pretty long, during awards ceremony a lady in her late 50's, early 60's claims the prize. The women's tees were maybe 30-40 yards in front of us. (Passive brag) I doubt she hit it over 280-290. Our team also shot -18 and came in 5th.
[/quote]

Was that at Green Valley Ranch in Colorado by chance? Because that exact same thing happened. 75 yards closer from her tees and she had long drive by like 40 yards. Arent those supposed to be on different holes for this exact reason?[/quote]

No. It was in Hawaii.

[cphrey]

[quote name='unclebeejo' timestamp='1440526062' post='12206460']
[quote name='cphrey' timestamp='1440512699' post='12205078'][quote name='unclebeejo' timestamp='1440282489' post='12190696']
I'm with you. I thought I was going to win ld the last scramble I played. I hit it pretty long, during awards ceremony a lady in her late 50's, early 60's claims the prize. The women's tees were maybe 30-40 yards in front of us. (Passive brag) I doubt she hit it over 280-290. Our team also shot -18 and came in 5th.
[/quote]

Was that at Green Valley Ranch in Colorado by chance? Because that exact same thing happened. 75 yards closer from her tees and she had long drive by like 40 yards. Arent those supposed to be on different holes for this exact reason?[/quote]

No. It was in Hawaii.
[/quote]

Then it sure does happen EVERYWHERE!

[WalleyeDave]

Like so many others have said. I just play them as a way to donate money to whatever the charity is. So just have fun with it. Good golfing boys. And gals.

[the700level]

I play scrambles for charity and to drink all the beers on the course .. no real golf intended

[LeoLeo99]

[quote name='highergr0und' timestamp='1440178920' post='12183768']
I love scrambles. Day off work, some money to charity, usually some beers, and smack a ball around with no pressure. I don't give a rip what the other people are doing.

Scrambles with big entry fees for big cash prizes should have score keepers on each hole or even one per group. It would take what, $500 to $1000 out of the pot to ensure honesty?
[/quote]

I love scrambles, too, and was hoping to play a big charity one in two weeks but instead of playing, I've been offered the opportunity to volunteer as a "scorekeeper" stationed at the longest drive or closest to the pin holes to ensure everything is on the up and up. In fact, they are having two scorekeepers on each prize hole to ensure everyone's honesty.

[rainkingjr]

I usually play in the FOP tournament each year. I never take that one serious. I just go to have a good time and it's good entertainment seeing some of the guys I work with who don't play golf to begin with, actually play hammered. Annoying, but still funny.

The one and only scramble I absolutely look forward to is one called The Mean 18 held at Pilgrim's Oak GC in Peach Bottom PA. Played from the tips with extremely hard pin placements, hence the name Mean 18.The highest my group ever placed was second about 8 years ago with an -11 score. Prizes weren't bad. We each received $90 credit to the shop and a voucher for Green's fee with cart. It's gotten pretty competitive over the years with some serious players showing up. Pretty sure some of the College kids from Franklin and Marshall have entered a few times. Entry fees aren't bad at $500 per team. Best part for me is that it is a dry course. It's funny though, because for as great of a scramble as it is, I have a harder time assembling a team each subsequent year. I reserved a spot for this year and so far my team consists of mean. It's 6 weeks away.

[eddiebigeddie]

I agree with mostly everyone here. I play in about 6-8 scrambles a year, all for charity or work related where its just to get out & have a good time. I usually get a pretty good team together (usually a low digit guy, a high single & 2 12-14 cappers). Almost every tourney we play there are "Skirts & Mulligans" & 1 of them has those stupid gimme's. Just played in one this past Friday that had all 3 of those & we shot a 50 (-21) on a par 71 course (with 2 pars). "we thought" we would actually have a shot at making top 3....boy were we wrong. A 45, 46 & 48 won it.

Last year at another scramble my team shot a straight up -15 on a really hard course where they had just played the govenors cup (still had pin placements) and the winning team shoots a
-17....a team with 4 60+ dudes that couldn't hit it 220 and no way they were reaching greens like we were.

The only way for scrambles like this to work are for 2 teams to be placed together on the same holes or for the tournament to have scorers at each hole. Other than that, just show up for a good day away from the office, golf & hopefully good times.

[TMBob]

You mentioned 2 man scrambles.....must be a one day event and put together your own foursome?

All the 2 man I play in are pretty darn legit and are usually a 2 day event with different pairings

[br61]

[quote name='unclebeejo' timestamp='1440282489' post='12190696']
I'm with you. I thought I was going to win ld the last scramble I played. I hit it pretty long, during awards ceremony a lady in her late 50's, early 60's claims the prize. The women's tees were maybe 30-40 yards in front of us. (Passive brag) I doubt she hit it over 280-290. [b]Our team also shot -18 and came in 5th.[/b]
[/quote]

-18 for 5th, I can believe that. Couple years ago, my team shot -19, tied for 3rd and lost out on tiebreaker. Also shot 51 twice which is only good for 2nd place.

My home club has two big fundraising scrambles every year, one of them with a prize of 714 AP2. Last year a 4 man team that I know cheats often, turned in a 51( -21) while we(all scratch players) played very well with a -19, 53. No way we could've scored any better on that tough day. So my club pro decided this year to put 2 groups together this year. Paired my team with that team. They shot a 59 this year while we shot 53 again on a much easier scoring day.

I play in lot of scrambles, mostly to have a good time with beers. Of course, I've played in lot of them when we played awful but had a good time anyway because they're fundraisers.

[Roody]

Every year my company does a golf tournament for the employees. It's always a scramble, and 90% of the field are total hacks who are just there to enjoy the free day off of work. There are usually only about 4 teams in the field every year that have a legit chance of winning, my team being one of them (we've won it three times over the 9 years I've been with my company).

Anyways, 3 years ago we started a new thing where we sell raffle tickets and mulligans. The winning team gets to pick a charity to donate those proceeds to. We have a budget to go out and buy a few nice prizes like a new iPad or TV or something, so we usually raise about $1000-$1200. I was pretty stoked when my team won it this year and I was able to get some money to a charity I care about.

[PepsiDuck]

I'm playing in a modified scramble tomorrow that has a pretty interesting twist called "drop-out scramble." Of course it doesn't prevent cheating and doesn't really limit teams that have three or four good players, but on each shot, the person whose shot is used cannot hit the next shot. So it prevents one person from carrying a team while also limiting the number of shots after the drive to three chances per shot.

Another modification that's even more draconian might be to limit each player to one shot [i]per hole[/i]...or if you're over four strokes for the hole, everyone has had their shot count at least once on the hole.

Either way, this should be interesting.

[PepsiDuck]

[quote name='PepsiDuck' timestamp='1441385209' post='12263482']
I'm playing in a modified scramble tomorrow that has a pretty interesting twist called "drop-out scramble." Of course it doesn't prevent cheating and doesn't really limit teams that have three or four good players, but on each shot, the person whose shot is used cannot hit the next shot. So it prevents one person from carrying a team while also limiting the number of shots after the drive to three chances per shot.

Another modification that's even more draconian might be to limit each player to one shot [i]per hole[/i]...or if you're over four strokes for the hole, everyone has had their shot count at least once on the hole.

Either way, this should be interesting.
[/quote]

And the winning score was a 51...