Each week commenter Clarence Swamptown sends us the UNVARNISHED TRUTH according to him, we clean it up to avoid trouble, and you still laugh. Let's try it again, shall we? Clarence:

---------------- It's never enjoyable when a hard-working, likable coach loses their job. By all accounts Todd Richards is a nice guy. I'm a Gopher hockey rube so I wanted him to be successful, but I agree with the decision to let him go. I've heard the reasoning for why he should have been kept. He inherited a bad roster, the farm system is weak, he deserves one more year, etc… Obviously the Wild roster lacks talent, and that's still Doug Risebrough's fault. But Doug Risebrough has already been fired. Unfortunately they cannot fire him again. Modern NHL rosters are difficult to turnover, and the complexion of the league is always the same. There are always 5 really good teams, 10 above–average teams, 10 below-average teams, and 5 truly bad teams. It breaks down that way every season. Those 10 below-average teams have almost identical rosters full of quasi-stars, career role players, potential-up-and-comers and a few heartwarming-but-ultimately-transposable 27-year-old rookies. Their uniforms may be different, but these 10 below-average rosters are essentially interchangeable. Of these teams, only a select few make the playoffs, and the only thing that separates the playoff teams from the non-playoff teams is coaching and health. That's it. For far too long the Wild have lived in this self-perpetuating bracket of below-average teams. They're never bad enough to draft a superstar, but they're always too far up against the salary cap to sign quality free agents. They're trapped in below-average purgatory, and probably will be for some time. You can't do much about injuries, so if the Wild are going to make the playoffs they need a coach who can boost them to the top of that below-average bracket. [Proprietor note: And more North Dakota players, right Clarence?] When Richards started, he took over a Wild team that had finished with 89 points and 9th in the conference, just missing the playoffs. Under Todd Richards the Wild have finished 13th in the conference with 84 points, and 12th in the conference with 86 points. They're treading water. Very few players are developing, and some are regressing. In two years Todd Richards has not shown any sign he can boost a below-average roster to its maximized potential. He had a few good months, but it was never sustained. It's not necessarily his fault, very few coaches can do that. He was a rookie coach who was given a shot and it didn't work out. Enough time has passed to see that now. It's time to move on and see if someone else can breathe life into this below-average roster for an entire season. I welcome any arguments for why Todd Richards should have been kept. I want to be wrong. But please begin your case by explaining exactly what progress has been made under Richards' tenure. I just don't see any. But enough about people getting fired. Let's talk about drinking and golf. * Outstate Golf Course of the Week: Yellow Lake Golf Course, Danbury, Wisconsin. It's been a few summers, but I assume they're still open. Please describe the course: This flat 9-holer is located just off Highway 35, between Danbury and Webster. It is affectionately known as a "pasture course" because there are no traps and there is no rough, just ~2,700 wide-open yards and the only sand greens I've seen in the last 30-years. There is a length of rope tied to a heavy 4' section of carpet used to re-surface the greens when you are done putting. I pull the carpet and pretend I am a Zamboni because I am a dork. Please describe their signature hole: The ~350-yard first hole fairway is bordered by approximately 20 mobile homes from an adjacent trailer court. It's not the 16th hole at the Phoenix Open, but don't be shocked if you get heckled by a few tipsy cheesehead goobers sitting on a makeshift patio in their plastic lawn chairs. More importantly, please describe the beer cart girls: There are none. There is no starter, and there are no rangers. You pay at the bar (see below). It's about $10 for all-you-can-golf, and another $10 gets you a mid-century 3-wheel Harley Davidson for the day. Do they have a website? Sort of. Can I bring my own beer? Sure. Amongst my friends we have trouble putting together a twosome under 450 lbs, so we're already testing the critical shear thresholds of those old golf carts. If you're like us, a few clubs may need to be sacrificed to make room for beer. It's like a long-range bombing mission--all nonessential weight should be abandoned. In fact, only bring a 5-iron that everyone can share. Do I have to wear a shirt? No. You're in Wisconsin. Anything else I should know? The course is attached to a terrific bar called… * Outstate Bar of the Week: The 10th Hole Bar, Danbury, Wisconsin. What is the bar famous for? Well, I suppose they're famous for having one of the last remaining sand green courses in the Upper Midwest. Can I watch the game there? Yes. Show up when they open and play a few rounds, watch the ball game over lunch at the bar, play another round, and then stay for the 4pm meat raffle. That's a nice little Sunday right there. Can I watch the NASCAR race there? Yep. They have a huge Miller Lite NASCAR hood on the wall. Do they have a website? Yes. What bar games are available? Darts, pool, drunken golf, cheesehead goober MMA on the first fairway. *Country & Western Song of the Week: Boys Will Be Boys by the Gear Daddies. Your thoughts on Todd Richards, sand greens and meat raffles are welcome in the comments below.