How Much Have I Really Played?

To say that I was discouraged after my last two rounds would be an understatement. What bothered me most was the sobering thought that almost anyone could pick up a set of clubs, walk on to a golf course for the very first time and achieve similar scores - yet I've been playing for years!

Which begs the question, "How many years have I actually been playing?" I've been asked this question in the recent past and my answer has consistently been "five or six years." This was based on my best recollection, but memory is often imprecise, so I decided to find the definitive answer.

This turned out to be very easy, since I always pay for golf with a credit card, and also have at least a decade's worth of credit card statements neatly filed away. After about ten minutes, I had the information I was looking for. The results, presented next, were somewhat surprising.

Total Rounds by Year

1999: 3
2000: 0
2001: 2
2002: 13
2003: 13
2004: 18
2005: 30
2006: 31 (so far)

I knew that my first round ever was played in 1999 and that I played a couple more times that year. However, I was surprised to see that I did not play at all in 2000 and only twice in 2001. I would have guessed that I played about three rounds in 2000 and a dozen or more in 2001. In fact, I did not start playing regularly until mid-July of the following year (2002).

In actual time, that means I've been playing regularly for just over four years. You could also say I've been playing regularly for five seasons. Either way, that's somewhat less than I had imagined.

I was also surprised at the number of rounds played in 2002 and 2003. I would have guessed that I played closer to twenty rounds in each of those years. Perhaps the more vigorous golf schedule of the past two years skewed my memory of prior years.

Here are some other interesting tidbits that this little exercise revealed:

Start/End of Season by Year

1999: May 2 - May 30
2000: Not Applicable
2001: Jun 23 - Jun 30
2002: Jul 13 - Dec 22
2003: Apr 26 - Oct 5
2004: Apr 25 - Oct 10
2005: May 23 - Oct 29
2006: Apr 2 - ???

The December 22 end date in 2002 is not a typo. I remember that day very well. I was playing at Richview Golf & Country Club, located in Oakville, Ontario. The course no longer exists, but back then it was one of the few clubs that stayed open very late into the season. On the first hole, I hit a drive into the middle of the fairway. Next, I hit an iron to the front centre of the green. In the summer, it would have been perfect, but on that day it bounced about fifty feet into the air and continued bouncing right off the back of the green. It was literally like golfing on a hockey rink.

Total Rounds by Course

11: Bloomington Downs
7: Hornby Glen
7: Kedron Dells
7: Saw-Whet
5: Bushwood
5: Granite Ridge
4: Carrying Place
4: Rolling Hills
3: Banty's Roost
3: Cardinal
3: Highlands
3: Richview
3: Seaton
3: Tyandaga
3: Watson's Glen
2: Brookside
2: Deer Creek
2: Glen Cedars
2: Grey Silo
2: Hidden Lake
2: Hunters' Glen
2: Indian Wells
2: Lakeview
2: Oakville Executive
1: BraeBen
1: Burlington Springs
1: Carlisle
1: Century Pines
1: Copetown Woods
1: Glen Eagle
1: Guelph Lakes
1: Hockley Valley
1: Horseshoe Resort
1: International of Niagara
1: Kleinburg
1: Lowville
1: Maples of Ballantrae
1: Mayfield
1: Mill Run
1: Mystic
1: Peninsula Lakes
1: Royal Woodbine
1: Shawneeki
1: Tangle Creek
1: Unknown*

* Unable to remember the name of this course.

There were no surprises at the top of this list. I was surprised by some of the courses in the middle of the pack. Places like Tyandaga, Watson's Glen, Glen Cedars, and Hunters' Glen seem very familiar to me, yet I've only played them a couple of times each. Go figure.

Anyway, to sum it all up, I haven't played as much as I thought I have. However, I have still played enough that I should no longer be scoring in triple digits.

The 2006 season will soon wind down. Let's hope I end the season on a positive note.