Fresh Nine at Mill Run

Playing with the wrong personality type can have a negative effect on my golf scores. I recall a round last year at Glen Eagle where I got paired up with three guys who were just out to have a good time – bring on the beer, music, and a lot of horsing around. I played nine holes with them and shot 52. We parted ways and I joined up with a husband and wife team for my back nine. They were friendly, but also focused on their game. It was a much better fit for me and I shot a blistering 36.

Coincidence? I think not. My last round at Mill Run also began with a boisterous personality playing alongside me. As the round progressed, I began to tire of his incessant chatter. I played some good holes, but also a lot of bad ones, and ended up shooting a miserable 105. It was my worst score of the year. Luckily, I had time for nine more holes, and he didn't. I headed out to the Grind nine as a solo. Not surprisingly, I was back to my usual self, shooting 45 on the strength of one par, seven bogeys, and just one double-bogey.

The par was on hole 5, a short par-4. I hit 3-iron to the left rough, followed by a lob wedge to a bowl in the green where the pin was located. My uphill birdie putt from 8 feet was hit to the centre of the cup, but stopped right on the lip. This followed a couple of beautiful shots on hole 4, a 161-yard par-3 over a deep valley. Accounting for wind, I opted for 6-iron and hit a perfect shot that carried three yards onto the green and released forward. I was disappointed that the ball rolled off the back edge of the green into the rough. I could not hit a better tee shot. The green slopes from back to front, so a chip from behind is very delicate. I hit a perfect one that barely carried to the top of a mound and trickled in the direction of the cup. It missed the hole by an inch to one side, but stopped 9 feet below the hole. Again, I could not hit a better shot than that. My par putt barely missed the hole left, stopping on the lip. End result was a bogey, but I really hit some good shots there.

Other notable shots were sprinkled throughout most of the bogey holes. After mediocre tee shots on holes 1 and 2, I recovered with good second shots. On hole 1, it was a 7-iron from a fairway bunker to just in front of the green. On hole 2, it was a pretty 3-wood that travelled straight, high and deep. On hole 6, a par-5, I hit two wonderful 5-wood shots to begin the hole. It's a pity that I thinned my approach with the pitching wedge over the back of the green. I hit a great drive on hole 8 to the centre of the fairway. Sadly, I messed up an 8-iron approach shot. On the last hole of the day, I hit a sweet 7-iron from the right rough to just left of the green.

Thank goodness I was able to play Grist. It took some of the sting out of my play on the other nines.

Score: 45
Putts: 17
Fairways: 3
Greens: 1
Penalties: 0