And they're off!! Kikakee Tees kicks off 2018 season with win in Hawaii

With fantasy golfers rushing to their private jets in the 11th hour and making the trip to Hawaii many were uncertain if the big guns of the First Timers League would be polished enough to pull it off. Just days before the opening tee shot there was confusion in the air as fantasy play was somewhat up in the air for the 2018 season. But things came together and the Race for the Jackson Cup is off and running as 24 teams are letting it fly in their pursuit.

Despite the winter snows that lay thick throughout the Northeast it is in fact golf season somewhere. The boys of endless summer have been going at it for nearly three months now as the wrap around season got underway in late September. Both Justins (Thomas and Rose) have already been victorious along with a host of first time winners (sounds familiar, ie 2016). Strategies will be test once again but this time there won't be experience to rest easy on. With no substitutions plaguing the league much of the attention will be in using your player starts appropriately (7 starts this year instead of 10) and making sure all 7 players make the cut. The C group will be the problem child as many names will be unfamiliar and untested on the big stages. This is where long deep hours of research OR sheer luck will pay off. Your choice.

There's $1,200.00 up for grabs this year with weekly payouts to the winners, segment championship prizes, bigger paydays for the majors, WGCs, PLAYERS and FedexCup Playoffs. As well as money to the top 3 finishers overall. It's time to get down to business which is exactly what Kikakee Tees did at the Sentry TOC.

This is the 2018 tee time. Now on the tee, the 5th annual Race for the Jackson Cup. Take it, if you dare.

Winner's Press Conference

Kikakee Tees sent a shot across the bow of his fellow competitors with a win on Sunday. He wants folks to know that his unfortunate slip in the standings during last year's final weeks was just a fluke and that he'll be in the showdown come September. He stamped his ticket back to the Tournament of Champions early by winning it to start the season. It's always nice to get off to a good start and Kikakee has done just that. In the end it was a close one as he pulled it off by just one point over his arch rival That's Wet. If you remember back to September, That's Wet eclipsed Kikakee in the final weeks to take away his second place finish. It was a good opening battle between to league heavyweights.

There were some big hitters finishing in the opening week's top 10 as That's Wet came up just short to finish in second while Eat My Grind staked his claim on an early Top 3 finish in 3rd. As folks start to settle into the new strategy of picking players it'll be an adjustment but we'll see the contenders start to emerge around week 5.

Good luck to all as you begin your 2018 pursuit of the Jackson Cup!