Walk into almost any golf club across America and undoubtedly you will here someone cry, “What’s the name of this game?” Followed by a, “You got to be kidding me, no way.” (The real quote is not suitable for my readers innocent ears.) I’m talking about the card game Gin. An all consuming contest of wit and skill, and yes money, that can take a hold of players like a plague. Below is the former Canyon Creek Country Club “Rookie of the Year”, Marc Lohnes.
He has held that “Rookie of the Year” status for close to a decade. He’s also the youngest player of the bunch, that is until I showed up on the scene 6 months ago. That’s right, I, Grant Stinchfield, am the new “Rookie of the Year” but I’m also the only new player to join the group since Marc showed up 10 years ago. But make no mistake, inside these walls is not all fun and games, and being a “rookie” is just like it sounds. Take a look at these two bruisers… they take pleasure in beating up on young rookie. Yes, I have beaten them before. No they won’t admit it.
They like to bark orders at me like General Patton organizing an invasion. That’s John Milano on the left and David Sonnenmair on the right. They consider themselves at the top of the Gin tier, but then again everyone in this room considers themselves at the top of the Gin Tier. For some reason there are more “Gin Club Champions” in this room then there were actual “Gin Club Championships.”
While playing Gin here I routinely have four guys “sweating” my hand, watching and critiquing every move I make. It’s like having Mike Ditka standing behind you complete with running commentary. Make a wrong move and you’ll hear a series of snorts and grunts that sound more like a pack of wild hogs then a room of gin players.
My grandfather once said a baby was, “So homely it’s cute.” Some of these guys can be, “so grumpy they’re funny.” Remember when George Castanza said, “The sea was angry that day my friends, like an old man sending back cold soup at a diner.” I think George may have played gin at Canyon Creek!
But when Happy Hour is over and all the cards are put away, surprisingly I find myself coming back over and over again. This group of guys are the most entertaining, funny and yes even kind hearted bunch of gamblers I have ever met. They have become my friends and I look forward to their company every day. I also eagerly await the day I can beat them into Gin submission so I too can call myself, “The Canyon Creek Gin Club Champion.”
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His scraped knees and busted bones are his bike polo battle scars worn like a badge of honor. He is an NBC5 Photographer by day and an “extreme biker” by night. But most of all he is a gladiator who calls bike polo, “The Sport of Warriors.”
