6:39 Bushnell confirms to me he was indeed hoping to use the cart path on that shot!

6:34 Something you don't see very often. Mike Bushnell ended up in the parking lot on #18. His closest area of relief was in the back by the banquet hall. He had to hit a shot about 70-80 yards over the score tent, but with a huge tree blocking his path to the green. He hit a ball just to the right of the tent, bounce off the cart path (I think intentionally) and onto the green, where he proceeded to hit the putt to save par. Larry Martin and other observers are calling it one of the most memorable shots in City Tournament history.

6:32 Smith, Scott and Parigian par the par-4 13th. Smith still holds a one stroke lead over Scott.

6:31 Weather update: The sun is pretty much gone and the wind is picking up and cooling off. We'll be very fortunate to avoid rain this time, and the last group still has 6-holes to go.

6:20 Smith, Scott and Parigian all par the 12th, keeping the status quo.

6:18Mount Pleasant's Jim Moriarty and Nabnasset's Kevin Galipeau sign and turn in their scorecards. Galipeau submitted 78 (235)...Moriarity 85 (243)...the 3rd member of the group, Ray Costello carded and 85 (243)

6:15 Another round of final scores: Bill Lindquist 84 (243)...Chris Prince 88 (247)...Eric Quinn 83 (242).

As you can see, early predictions of high scores due to the conditions are proving very accurate right now. Then again, most of us can only dream of shooting 80's at Vesper in any condition, so I guess it's all relative.

6:08 More final scores: Dan Crowell 92 (252)...Mike McCann 80 (240)...Paul Burke III 73 (232). Burke's +1 is the low score of the day and his 232 technically makes him your leader in the clubhouse.

6:05 For those wondering, here's what happens in case of a tie: There will be a sudden death playoff. The hole numbers in order are #1, 2, 17 & 18. (In case of darkness or weather, they come back tomorrow)

6:03 Scott and Parigian birdie #11. Smith pars it. Scott back within a stroke. Parigian is now 5-back after his first birdie of the day.

5:54 More final scores to report: Chris Osborne 88 (252)...Rick Moreau 81 (243)...Marc Turgeon 91 (253)...Bob Ryan 87 (248)...Robb Burndrett 82 (244)...Ken Gys 78 (238).

5:48 Perhaps the turning point of the day. Scott double bogeys the par-4 10th. Meanwhile, Smith holds par to open up a 2-shot advantage. Parigian bogeys the hole and is pretty much out of contention at this point.

5:45 As you can see, the crowds are really starting to gather around the 18th green and score tent area. Should only get larger as more and more groups come in and the workforce beats traffic.

5:33 Let's update some final scores for the day here so you can keep track of your favorites (tournament totals in parenthesis): John Miller 89 (258)...Fred Wilkie 84 (256)...James Gaffney 86 (251)...Marcel McQuiggan 85 (250)...Mike Mullavey 92 (261)...Jason Howarth 86 (253).

5:24 The top three all hold par on #9. The leaderboard remains unchanged with Smith and Scott tied, Parigian 5 back.

5:20 OK, here we go. Keith Micavich posts a 39 after nine. Steve Perrin matches that. Dean Demitropoulos scores 41. I'll update the leaderboard in a few.

5:16 Just received another weather update. A large band of thunderstorms is expected to move in about 2-hours from now. This bears watching, because the lead groups are still playing on the 9th hole.

5:10 The third-to-last group has just completed the 9th hole. John Micavich shoots 44...Mike Schnyer 36...and George Popp 39.

5:07 Smith and Parigian bogey #8, while Scott pars the hole. We have a tie atop the leaderboard again, with Parigian 5-strokes off the pace.

5:02 In response to a question about the demeanor and interaction among the leaders, it's all business right now as the group is trying to keep it together in this stifling heat and tough course conditions.

4:56 OK you Scott Pare fans. Here's your update: Pare 38...John Breen 43...Steve Jackson 42. Your boy turned in a nice front nine in these conditions.

4:53 All three members of the Top 3 par the 7th hole to keep the status quo. Smith leads Scott by 1, Parigian by 4.

4:41 Still waiting for the second group to complete their round, but they're nowhere in sight. Seems the fact Packy and Stark played as a twosome after Bergeron dropped out really speeded up their pace.

Meanwhile, nine hole scores are in for Peter Harrison with 43...Keith Caples 42...and Dean Koravos at 38. Seems I'm the only Greek golfer in the city not playing today!

4:33 Scott bogeys #6 to drop a stroke behind Smith again. Smith and Parigian par the hole.

4:25 More 9-hole scores: Keith Stone 41...John Dixon 37...David Walshe 38.

4:15 Packy cards a 42 on the back, giving him an 11-over 83 on the day and score of 256 for the tournament. Joel Stark comes in at 52 on the back, 97 on the day, 277 for the tourney.

4:14 Packy Emerson just misses his birdie putt on 18.

4:11 The all clear sounds. Play has resumed.

4:07 When play was suspended, Joel Stark and Packy Emerson were about to putt on the 18th hole. Packy's is for birdie. He looks and sounds like he's having the time of his life!

4:06 Some more 9-hole scores to report: Ray Costello 44...Jim Moriarty 40...Kevin Galipeau 37...Mike Bushnell 36...Dan Villemaire 38...And Ryan Friel shoots a 1-under 35 on his home course here at Vesper. That's the low round of the day and moves him to +11 for the tourney, two shots behind Keith Micavich for 6th place.

4:05 Lost in all the weather excitement is the fact Shawn Scott birdied the par-5 5th to move back into a tie with Phil Smith. Parigian and Smith held par on that hole.

4:00 While I have a minute, kudos to Dave Pevear who is calling in at the completion of every hole, plus he caught up with the 2nd to last group so we at least have their scores through 5-holes right now.

Also, the weather appears to be improving. It has not rained yet, but there was a lightning strike in the area which automatically sets off an alarm here at Vesper. The strike starts a counter, and if there isn't another one for 20-minutes, then we are given the all clear and play can resume. Al Kaprielien...eat your heart out!!!

I'll get caught up on posting some other 9-hole scores as soon as I can.

3:53 The sirens and horns have sounded. Lightning is in the area and play has stopped for the time being.

3:48 Quick weather update: The clouds are rolling in. The thunder is rumbling in the background. And if I had to guess, we're going to see some rain in the near future. If I stop updating, it means my computer has gotten wet or I've been electrocuted...which one would you prefer?

3:38 Bill Lindquist 42...Eric Quinn 41...Chris Prince 43.

3:37 Watering down the 18th green while waiting for the first group to approach.

3:36 In response to another question on the comments page, the stimpmeter reading on the greens today is 10.5...whatever that means. But hey, we aim to please!

3:29 Vesper's Paul Burke III is turning in the best score of the day thus far, shooting a 1-over 37 after 9. The rest of the group has Mike McCann at 43(+7) and Don Crowell at 47(+11)

3:27 Phil Smith sinks a 6-foot putt on the par-3 4th hole to regain the lead. Scott and Parigian make par.

3:15 Robb Burndrett shoots 42(+6) on the front, as does Ken Gys. Rob Ryan cards a 45(+9).

3:13 Smith and Parigian bogey #3. Scott pars it, moving into a tie with Smith for the tournament lead at even par.

3:11 My apologies for not updating the second to last group. We don't have anybody following them at the moment, so we can't provide a hole-by-hole update on them. I'm working to get you periodic updates before they reach the 9th.

3:03 More 9-hole scores: Chris Osborne 42(+6)...Marc Turgeon 44(+8)...Rick Moreau 42(+6)

2:59 Smith, Scott and Parigian all par #2

2:55 Jason Howarth turns in a 9-hole score of 43(+7)...Marcel McQuiggan a 45(+9)...James Gaffney a 41(+7)

2:54 Tom Bergeron just came walking off the 18th hole. His day is done, but he does look OK. Still not sure if an alternate has been located, but if you're wondering how this affects team scores, they only count 11 of the 12-scores, so Nabnasset's round is still intact.

2:45 Smith, Scott and Parigian all par the first hole, with Smith and Scott doing a bit of scrambling to avoid giving back a stroke.

2:41 Another 9-hole score to report; Fred Wilkie and John Miller card a 46(+10), while Mike Mullavey struggles in with a 49(+13). All three are well off their pace heading in. The course and Mother Nature continue to take their toll.

2:23 A call goes out over the speakers for a Nabnasset alternate. Jim Bergeron is having some trouble on the course. An alternate has not been found. Bergeron, who is currently on #11 will continue to play for now and walk off if he can't continue, but the weather is already exacting a toll.

2:08Nine holes down, nine more to go for the first group to tee off. Nabnasset's Joel Stark shoots a 45(+9). Jim Bergeron, also of Nabnasset matches him and Mount Pleasant's Packy Emerson checks in with a 41(+5).

1:52 The first group to tee off today (Bergeron, Stark & Emerson) has just reached the 9th tee. We'll have their scores for you in a few minutes. I'm curious to see their numbers, as they may offer our first clue as to how the course and conditions will affect scores.

2:21 The leaders heading into the final round, Phil Smith, Shawn Scott and Doug Parigian enjoy a lighter moment on the first tee.

2:16 The second to last group, Keith Micavich, Steve Perrin and Dean Demitropoulos is just teeing off, about 24-minutes behind schedule.

1:45 To answer a question posted in the comments section, the course is not roped off right now. However, when the final two groups head out, they will be followed by youngsters setting up barriers to keep the crowds a safe distance from the golfers. Also, the pace has slowed a bit (no surprise there). The 1:28pm group of Eric Okvist, Mark Lemond and Jeff Monahan are just walking down the first fairway.

1:22 The crowd seems pretty large for such a blistering day, but that's par for this year's tournament. Larry Stowell, a LongMeadow member and scorekeeper today, tells me the attendance at LM Saturday was the largest he's seen in years, indicating interest in this event is growing.

12:56 If you're interested in the pace of play thus far, I can tell you that things are moving along quite nicely. The first threesome is already on the 4th hole. The groups are spaced 8-minutes apart, and right now the trio of Ray Costello, Jim Moriarty and Kevin Galipeau were just called to the first tee. Their scheduled tee time? 12:56pm.

Don't know about you folks, but the courses I normally play at, a 12:56 tee time means put your ball down at 1:15...the earliest!

12:50 While we wait for the action to heat up, let me invite all you first time visitors to poke around the blog. We have all the local teams pretty well covered here, from the pros right down to the schools, so we'd love to have you chime in on the other posts as well.

12:21 A little explanation of how we're going to try to work this; We won't be able to track the scores of everyone out on the course, but we will get updates after the front nine and when the 18th hole is completed.

We WILL try to provide a hole by hole update of the final two threesomes (consisting of the top six on the leaderboard). The Lowell Sun's David Pevear and Rick Harrison will be following these groups, so I'll keep in contact with them and provide details on their progress. Should any golfer ahead of them make a charge on the leaderboard, we'll try to track them for you as well.

12:00 The first group is on the tee. Jim Bergeron, Joel Stark and Packy Emerson have just hit, and away we go.

11:32 Speaking with Larry Martin, he rates the course a 13 on a scale of 1-10 in terms of difficulty. Martin, a 6-time champion in his own right, says the greens are lightning fast and will pose the biggest problem out there. Asked what the biggest change in the tournament is from his playing days, Martin cites "the young kids who are absolutely fearless."

11:30 The golfers are beginning to fill the parking lot and practice areas. As they greet everyone at the scorer's table, every one of them is commenting on the weather. No doubt mother nature will be a factor out here today, as it will only get hotter in the late afternoon.

 11:15 Welcome to our live final round coverage of the Lowell City Golf Tournament. The first group is scheduled to tee off at noon.

The weather is what meteoroligists refer to as 3H...hazy, hot and humid. Just sitting here in the score tent, I can tell you it feels like 120-degrees in the shade. At last check, it was actually 91-degrees and climbing, which should make for a difficult day on the course for the players.