Tournament couples at Top Golf. Not pictured: H and Vickie Opitz.
Melissa D’Onofrio
Since 2016, a group of PebbleCreek (PC) couples have been attending the annual “Post-Tax Couples Golf Tournament,” conceived, planned, and hosted by Rick Goodwin and Mike D’Onofrio. The event was created to give couples a chance to spend a few days golfing, having fun, and socializing away from the hood. The two-round tournament is competitive, but the emphasis is on having fun and making it enjoyable for all levels of golfers. The prize purses are intentionally kept modest to avoid letting the pursuit of a big payday interfere with the lighthearted spirit of the games.
Fun and sometimes silly games are employed to take the pressure off our less-experienced golfers, but the games are balanced to ensure the contest remains somewhat of a challenge for the better golfers.
This year’s attendees were: Janice and Rick Goodwin, Melissa and Mike D’Onofrio, Sandi and Bill Harrell, Tammy and Scott Wood, Vickie and “H” Opitz, Sheryl and Tom Dobbin, Pam and Dan Grimwood, Michelle Moskos and Steve Davies, Pat and Bjarne Kaer, and Leann and Don Drummond.
The tournament weekend kicked off on the evening of May 21 with a cocktail party, followed by a delicious group dinner in the private room at Ember, the We-Ko-Pa Resort’s fine dining venue. On Sunday, May 22, the couples played an 18-hole round of Minnesota Two-Ball on the beautiful and difficult Saguaro course. Following the awarding of prizes in the Golf Course Grill, couples regrouped for our customary pre-dinner cocktail party at the resort. Everyone then boarded a reserved van for a ride to Sapori d’Italia in Fountain Hills, where we had an absolutely delectable Italian dinner. After dinner, the group was transported back to the resort for “final-finals” before retiring for the night.
May 23 was a day of rest for our couples who pursued their own recreational diversions for the day. That evening, the group hopped on a reserved van for a ride to Top Golf where we enjoyed two hours of golf, a BBQ buffet, and cocktails. The van transported us back to the resort where, after another round or two of “final-finals,” folks retired for the evening.
The last day of our tournament on May 24 saw our couples playing a “scramble with tricks” format on the Cholla course. Risk/reward options were in play on many of the holes in order to compel the couples to think their way through the course and to help ensure a level playing field. The result was a very balanced leader board at the end of the round. Later that evening another cocktail party preceded our final group dinner in WKP, the resort’s sports bar.
As the tournament event ended and couples headed home, their thoughts of convivial times and deepened friendships confirmed that the original aspirations for the Post-Tax Couples Golf Tournament had been realized.