Masters Back to Back

I played two rounds of golf on what ended up being the final weekend of the season. Both rounds were played at Lionhead Masters, which I seem to have played quite often this year. Here's how it all went down.

Frosty First Nine

The last round of the season was played in bitter cold conditions. I dressed for the occasion and was able to keep my body reasonably comfortable. What I could not do was keep my hands warm. For much of the round, I could not feel the club in my hands. It was impossible to tell whether I was holding the club gingerly in my fingertips, or clutching it with the grip of death. Needless to say, I didn't score well. Opening with four double-bogeys in a row, I shot 65 for the first nine holes.

Perhaps because it warmed up a degree or two, or possibly because I abandoned any hope of a good score, I played much better over the last nine holes. I birdied hole #7, a 369-yard par 4 in textbook style. I also made par on hole #3, a par-3 measuring 138 yards. It took a nice up and down from just off the green to do so. Six bogeys and a lone double-bogey rounded out my card on the back nine, for a score of 43. I was very pleased with this result, given the conditions.

Score: 108
Putts: 37
Fairways: 7
Greens: 2
Penalties: 7

Foggy Few Holes

For late November, the temperature was actually pretty nice. Unfortunately, fog was covering much of the course when we teed off. The first three holes were played in the thick of it. Not surprisingly, I made a quadruple-bogey on the opening hole. More surprising, was the fact that I managed par and bogey on the next two holes. After that, the fog lifted and we were fine for the rest of the round.

As soon as the fog cleared, I rattled off three pars in a row on holes #13 through #15. In each case, I was aggressive off the tee, hitting driver even though the big stick is not required. The drive on hole #15 felt especially good, as I landed in the centre of the fairway, less than 100 yards from the pin. I struggled on hole #16, which seems to bring either feast or famine, depending on the alignment of the stars. After that, I re-grouped and played solid golf the rest of the way.

Score: 92
Putts: 31
Fairways: 5
Greens: 5
Penalties: 4

I Know I Can

I may have been a little harsh in my last post. I'm referring specifically to my choice of musical accompaniment. Fortunately, my latest round of golf was a lot better than the previous one, so this time I've chosen some music that's a little more positive. Enjoy!



Now, about the golf. I ventured out to Hidden Lake Golf Club on a cold November weekend. With very chilly temperatures, I was not expecting to post a good score at all. I was simply glad to be playing and decided to let the score take care of itself. As it turned out, I posted a final score of 87, equaling my second-best score of the season! An 85 at Osprey Valley Heathlands earlier in the year was the only result better than this one.

I hit nine of thirteen fairways, with six of those coming on the back nine. When I missed a fairway, I was able to recover quite nicely. I simply took what the situation gave me and never tried to do too much. I didn't hit many greens in regulation, but my chipping and putting was better than usual. Consistency was the name of the game, as I avoided 3-putts and penalty strokes entirely. That makes a huge difference!

Score: 87
Putts: 32
Fairways: 9
Greens: 3
Penalties: 0