Round four of the 2010 Harvest Classic started at 7:30 on the Innisbrook – Highlands South course.  As is tradition, the pairings were made based on the player performance during the previous three rounds.  The final group consisted of Bob Hayes, Tom Hayes, Kevin Hayes, and Vern Shukoski.  The collective group all played well but they were no match for the 2010 Harvest Champion, Robert Hayes.  Bob scored +2 points to his quoted and was the only player to finish in the positive column for the tournament at +6 points.  Tom Hayes, who always performs well at the Harvest Classic, just couldn’t turn his game on this week as he finished in second place at -4 points.  Jim Hayes had the round of the day at +5 points which was also a tie with Bob Hayes for the best round of the tournament.  Kevin Hayes had the second best round of the day at +3 points as he proved why he was worthy of his placement in the final group.  Although Vern played a solid final round at -2 points, he had to skip lunch and take the trophy back to remove his late night engraving from the previous night.

After the tournament wrapped up in the morning, the 12 Harvest participants teamed up for the Saturday afternoon scramble.  The teams consisted of the following players:

Don Hayes, Bob Hayes, Patrick Hayes, Patrick Toney

Tom Hayes, Kevin Hayes, Jeff Riester, Kent Dickson

Tom Duffy, Vern Shukoski, Jim Hayes, Terry Haack

As is tradition, after the 18 hole scramble, all three teams were tied at -8 par.  With the sun setting and daylight running out, the 12 players headed to the practice green for 12 putts at a distant hole, closest putt wins.  Tom Duffy saved his weekend by being the player who hit the closest put, locking in a win for his team.

Another great Harvest Classic has come to a close.  The weekend was a great one, as it always is spending it with family and friends.  Huge thanks goes to the Harvest Group and Vern Shukoski for sponsoring and putting on this great tournament.  Until next year.

Day two of the 2010 Harvest Classic drew to a close as the sun was setting on Palm Harbor, FL.  After 36 holes of golf, the field has separated but Bob Hayes remains atop the leaderboard.  The first round of the day was scheduled to start at 7:30 at the Copperhead course but due to a frost delay, the round started at 8:30.  After a cold round yesterday, the morning round weather was a welcome change as the temperature went up and the wind went down.   Bob Hayes kept his strong play up scoring the most points at even as the rest of the field was unable to make a move.  Vern Shukoski also was even vs. his point quota as he slowly crept up during the morning round.  The highlight of the round was when the second group went to look for their  tee shots on hole #2 at Copperhead, there was a ball located right under the tail of a 10 foot alligator.  Because none of the members of the group felt like verifying the ball type it was assumed that is was Patrick Hayes’ ball and he took a drop.  Later to find out that Jim Hayes got the same benefit in the first group.  See the picture to the left.

The afternoon round the Harvest Classic moved to the Island Course.  Everyone grabbed a quick bite to eat and it was off to the first tee.  The second round brought much of the same as more of the field moved south than north on the leaderboard.  The best round vs. quota points belonged to Dr. Kent Dickson as he scored +2 points.  Vern Shukoski, Kevin Hayes and Bob Hayes all scored -1 points as they held firm to their spots on the leaderboard.

Going into the final round Bob Hayes has an eight point lead over Tom Hayes but there are still 18 holes of golf left to play (see all scores below).  Vern Shukoski has his game dialed in as he was talking smack about making the greatest comeback in Harvest Classic history.  While the group was having pizza Vern was seen driving the Havest Classic trophy to a local engraving shop and having them engrave his name as the 2010 champ.

Stay tuned tomorrow for a recap off all the action and scores here at Hayesvision.com

Round one of the 2010 Harvest Classic is in the books.  The early leader is Bob Hayes who shot a 79 in his round with birdies on #4 and #15 of the Highlands South course at the Innisbrook Resort.  Bobby, coming off a sub-par performance in his warm up round on Wednesday, was happy to be hitting the ball solidly again.  Bobby played with his three brothers, Tom, Don and Jim and showed them that the youngest of the four came to play.  Tom Hayes also put together a solid round of golf shooting a 74 with only one birdie on the par 3 #9 hole where he stuck his tee shot to about 1 foot.

The second and thirds groups did not bring much to the table today.  The field, aside from Bob and Tom, are all in a pack at between -3 and -7 points.  For those of you confused by the point scoring system you can read more about the Chicago points system here (although it is slightly modified from this description).

The first round was a cold and windy one and the forecast tomorrow looks much the same.  We will be playing two rounds tomorrow so look for updates tomorrow evening.  You can review all of the round one scores below as well as some of the images captured from the course.

It is that time of year again when the Hayes clan gets together for a weekend of fun, sun, and golf. This year’s Classic will again take place at the Innisbrook Resort, where defending champ Tom Hayes looks to continue his dominance over the rest of the field. There are a number of talented golfers in the field, but the early Vegas odds are on a repeat by Tom. With all the talent in the field this week, there is one Hayes brother who failed to make the cut and won’t be competing this week. J.P. Hayes, while having an amazing start to his 2010 PGA Tour season, was not able to put together the score needed to get through Harvest qualifying. In all seriousness, J.P. is having an amazing year on tour and we wish him continued success.

Patrick Toney will be returning to the field this year off a knee surgery that kept him out of the field in ‘09.  Patrick’s best finish came in ‘07 when he finished second at Ventana Canyon.  He is hoping his new knee can carry him to his first Harvest victory. Vern Shukoski has not been heard from yet this year which is not normal.  He normally holds at least one press conference before the tournament.  Sources say that he is so dialed in on his game, he is going to let the clubs speak for themselves.  Terry Haack and Tom Duffy will be joining the tournament again in ‘10.  Both men had great qualifying rounds and are excited to bring some non-Hayes golf into the mix.

The tournament format will be the same, one round on Thursday, two rounds on Friday, and the final round of competition on Saturday with a scramble to follow.  As always you can follow along right here at Hayesvision.com for all your scoring updates and higlights for the days’ action.  Don’t forget to vote for who you think will win the ‘10 Harvest Classic on the right sidebar.

Another 5:45 wake up call for a 6:30 departure has become commonplace for Fridays and Saturdays at the Harvest Classic. The groups were all well rested and ready to attack the South course which was the site of round one. The competition was fierce but mostly amongst the leaders in the final group. Jim Hayes shot a 75 scoring 7 points landing him in a two way tie for third with Kevin Hayes who shot a 76, scoring him 3 points for the round. Bob Hayes also shot a 75 scoring 9 points and catapulting him into solo ownership of second place. The story of the morning belonged to Tom Hayes who proved to the group why his is a past champion. Tom shot a 68 knocking down five birdies and scoring 10 points for Saturday’s round. Tom ended up with 16 points for the tournament 5 points ahead of second place finisher Bob Hayes. Great round and tournament Tom!

After competition ended it was time for the players to gear up for the annual 18 hole scramble tournament. The weather was once again perfect for competition, 82 degrees and moderate wind. The teams were selected the previous evening which were as follows:

Team One: Tom Hayes, Jim Hayes, and Vern Shukoski
Team Two: Don Hayes, Bob Hayes, Jeff Riester, and Kent Dickson
Team Three: Tom Duffy, Kevin Hayes, Terry Haack and Patrick Hayes

Because Collin Hayes was unable to attend the tournament, team one was allowed to rotate the fourth shot between them throughout the round. The groups battled throughout the afternoon with the lead changing hands a number of times. Each group ended the 18 hole scramble competition at 8 under par in a three way tie. As in previous years this meant a sudden death playoff between the three teams. After the first hold team one failed to make birdie which left only team two and three. The teams traded pars through hole #4 where the teams decided to have a putt off to determine the winning team. In the putt off Patrick Hayes stuck the 80 foot putt to about 8 feet solidifying the win the scramble for team three.

The highlight of the scramble happened on hole #8 where a roar was heard from team three. When the group caught up Vern Shukoski was grinning from ear to ear. It turns out Vern pured his seven wood and knocked it in the hole for a hole-in-one. When ask for his thoughts Vern said “Since I don’t owe this one to my long putter I guess I just owe this one to the Miller Brewing Company!” Congratulations Vern, it couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.

Another Harvest Classic is in the books. Thank you goes out to the Hayes brothers and the Harvest Group for putting on the tournament. It was a perfect weekend and a great opportunity to catch up with to boys. Patrick Toney and Collin Hayes were remembered in spirit but were sorely missed from the field. We look forward to seeing them both again at the ’10 Harvest Classic. Till next year.

Day two of the Harvest Classic was a roller coaster ride of golf. The first 18 holes were played on the Copperhead course and it was in tip top shape with a week to go until the Transitions Championship. We arrived at the course for breakfast at 6:30 and waited for the sunrise which occurred at around 7:28 just prior to our 7:30 tee time. The best score of round one belonged to Jim Hayes scoring 3 points and he, along with Kevin Hayes (+2 points), were the only players in the field to score positive points during the round. Tom Hayes and Vern Shukoski hung with the leaders both scoring -1 points during the first round. Terry Haack decided to live up to his name scoring -10 points and bringing up the rear for round two performances. Terry was joined at the bottom by Kent Dickson who just couldn’t get his game going scoring -9 points for round two and bringing up the rear through round two.

After a quick bite to eat at the Island Course Restaurant, the Harvest Classic field took to the first tee on the Island Course for the second round of the day and the third round of the tournament. The groups were again randomly selected as the golfers reapplied sunscreen and went for a second dose of golf punishment. The best round three performance went to dark horse Vern Shukoski scoring 3 points and solidifying his fifth place position going into the final round of the ’09 Classic. Vern was quoted as saying “I owe it all to the long putter and the Miller Brewing Company!” Bob and Tom Hayes both scored 2 points and solidified their place in the final group for the fourth and final round. Kevin continued his consistent play and is just two points behind father Tom going into the final round. The entire field all had a reality check as we check J.P.’s score during the round and digitally witnessed him knock down five consecutive birdies putting him in 25th place in the El Banco Popular PGA tournament in Puerto Rico. Needless to say we won’t be far from our PDAs tomorrow.

The pairings have been set for the final round of the ’09 Classic. The first group will be Kent Dickson, Terry Haack and Jeff Riester. The middle group will be Patrick Hayes, Don Hayes, Tom Duffy and Vern Shukoski. The final group of leaders will be Jim Hayes, Bob Hayes, Kevin Hayes and Tom Hayes. Stop by Hayesvision.com tomorrow to see who captures the coveted Harvest Classic trophy for 2009.

Round one of the ’09 Harvest Classic is in the books and like previous years the leaderboard is tight. As the Vegas odds predicted Tom Hayes owns a share of first place next to brother Bob Hayes. Tom shot a one under par with two birdies and one bogey to score 5 points. Bob having only played a half dozen rounds of golf since the previous Harvest Classic was pleased with his first round performance. Bob shot a 78 scoring back-to-back birdies on holes 7 & 8. The four Hayes brother played in the final group and all played quite well winning the team game for the first round without much competition.

Tom Duffy having not played a in a Harvest Classic since 2003 shot a five over 76 to score 4 points and own 3rd place by himself. Duffy knocked down four birdies as he carried the second group on his back. Jeff, Terry and Kent spent the better part of their round commenting on how nice the weather was.

Vern Shukoski, Kevin Hayes and Patrick Hayes had the first tee time for the first round. The group struggled during the first 5 holes but picked up the pace as the round progressed. Vern, having trouble deciding between two sets of clubs, decided to flip a coin prior to the round to see which sticks he would use. Vern had no comment after his first round and he went to his room to mentally prepare for Friday’s rounds. Kevin Hayes scored 2 points and holds the fourth place position. Kevin’s best hole was the par 5 hole 13 where he stuck his second shot to about eight feet and missed his eagle putt by inches.

Stayed tuned tomorrow to see how your Harvest Classic competitors handle the Copperhead course as they prepared it for the PGA Tour Transitions Classic which will be played next week.

With all of the trash talking over e-mail in the books, it is time once again to see if there is any game behind the smack talk. Today is the Wednesday practice round which has become a great opportunity for those golfers from the north to develop some bad swinging habits prior to competition.

I will be joining the group for round one which will begin tomorrow morning at 10 EST.  The Vegas odds are on a repeat by three time champion Tom Hayes.  Tom has already told the field that the Harvest trophy will be remaining safe and sound in his home in Pensacola, FL.  Vern Shukoski was spotted this morning at the beach in Palm Harbor getting his palms read.  After forking over 100 bucks to his psychic advisor he was quite optimistic about his chances of winning the title in ‘09.   Witnesses spotted Jeff Riester up early this morning refining his magical “lunge” which he believes will carry him through to victory this year.   But the true dark horse might just be the infamous Kenny.  With his name tag firmly applied to his golf shirt he is a true force to be reckoned with.  Time will tell who will emerge from this cast of raw talent to have their name etched on the only trophy that matters in all of sports, the Harvest Classic Title.

As always there will be one round played on Thursday, two rounds on Friday and finishing with round four on Saturday. After Saturday’s final round the Harvest Classic is concluded with an 18 hole scramble.  You can follow along at the end of each day as I will be posting commentary, photos and scoring updates.

For those of you following the ‘09 Harvest Classic I will be posting entries and photos following each round with scoring updates.  Those posts will appear chronologically below.  If you would like to go back into the Harvest archives simply click on Harvest Classic under categories to the right and you can read all of the historical posts.  As always feel free to comment on any of the articles below!

(AP) March 5, 2009 – With just one week to go until the 2009 Harvest Classic the question on everyone’s mind is can Vern Shukoski defy all odds and take home the Harvest title? Time will tell if the midnight putting sessions or the newly installed driving net in the backyard will push him to the top of the leader board.

The 2009 field is stacked with talent as Tom Duffy rejoins the field having last competed in 2003 and Terry Haack rounds out the field placing 12th in his last outing in 2007. The Hayes boys will all be present (minus JP) and if the trash talking is any indication, this year is sure to be a doozy.

Reigning champ Tom Hayes has been in rare form over the e-mail airways trying to capitalize on his psychological warfare strategies. After talking smack about brother Jim, he fire back with the following; “You are quite correct and have a good memory for an older guy. I have started strong in many Harvest events only to fade as the tournament went on. Concerned about this, I confided in my sports psychologist over the summer to see if I could figure the problem out. He told me I suffer from “golfer’s empathy.” The malady occurs when a superior ball striker plays with rinky-dink partners. I start feeling bad for my playing partners and my sub-conscious tells me to bring my game down to their level. In an effort to be a good partner, I back-off my usual dominant performance and sink to the level of my cart-sharing hackers. I think it’s the same reason JP doesn’t like playing pro-ams. He’s afraid his game will slide to the lowest common denominator. I can only suggest that I believe my therapy has been very successful. I will put on a blindfold following my shots so I don’t have to watch numerous shanks, heel shots, duck hooks, etc. I think you will see a new player this year. I don’t mean to be callous and I certainly will be polite and friendly following each round. However, on the course, I will be mean and nasty. So, get your A game ready. I won’t let it bring my game down. I’m only interested in pristine ball striking, not being a friend to all who participate.”

Will Tom repeat his 2008 performance or is this the year of the Riester? The 2009 Harvest Classic tees off on Thursday, March 12. Follow along with all of the action at www.hayesvision.com.