The Cobalt Course at Granite Ridge is where I shot my second lowest score ever (on a par 70 or greater). I was 10 over par that day, finishing with a score of 82. When I go back there, which doesn't happen often, I always feel like I could do it again. On my most recent visit, I wasn't close at all, finishing with an even 100. The round included some good shots, but the bad ones were very costly, often resulting in a penalty of stroke and distance.
I actually got off to a good start, with a pair of pars on the first two holes. My drives missed the fairways slightly, but on both occasions, I hit a good pitching wedge to reach the green in regulation. I was in good shape through four holes, before making three consecutive triple bogeys. Holes #2 through #6 wrap around the perimeter of the property, making the left side of that stretch out of bounds. Hole #5 is a par-3, with water guarding the right and front of the green. My first tee shot was OB. Hole #6 is a short par-4, with bushes and weeds guarding the entire right side. Again, my first tee shot was OB. Costly indeed!
I bogeyed holes #8 through #11 with some pretty good shot making. There were a couple of bad shots mixed in there, but on both occasions, I recovered very well. On hole #12, I hooked my tee shot short and into some trees, leading to double-bogey. I almost saved bogey with an 8-foot putt, but just burned the edge. It was that kind of day. Whenever I had a putt of that length to save a stroke, I managed to burn the edge. It happened to me on holes #14, #16, and #17. As a result, I was robbed of a bogey and two pars.
I had every opportunity to break 100, but hole #15 eliminated the breathing room I needed. This is a long par-5 with OB along the entire right side. The left side is peppered with a series of small water hazards. I hit a perfect drive to the centre of the fairway, followed by a solid 5-iron that barely trickled into the right rough at 100 yards out. I had navigated all of the real danger, but then flared a sand wedge right of target, into a lateral hazard. After taking my penalty stroke, the follow up attempt wasn't much better. I was still off the green and needed a chip and 2 putts to finish with a triple bogey.
I bogeyed the next two holes and the same on #18 would have earned a score of 99. Alas, I thinned a sand wedge from 100 yards out, smacking a tree trunk. My next attempt was in a greenside bunker. If I got up and down, I would still salvage 99. The weakness of my bunker play has been well documented, so it wasn't looking good. Sure enough, I barely emerged from the bunker. A chip and a putt later, and it was the dreaded century mark once again.
I'm not too upset. I hit a decent number of shots well – it's just that the bad ones resulted in penalty strokes. I also didn't catch a break with my putting. I feel like I putt pretty well, but the ball just didn't want to drop.
Score: 100
Putts: 37
Fairways: 7
Greens: 3
Penalties: 6
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