After more than six months without swinging a golf club, I headed out to Victoria Park East for my first round of the season. I had planned on visiting the practice range a day earlier, but ended up taking care of some chores instead. I arrived at the club well before my tee time, which allowed me to practice some putting and chip shots. After a few air swings to complete the warm-up, I proceeded to the first tee.
My mantra for the season is plan conservatively, execute aggressively. In years past, I improved my play substantially, merely through game management. When I focused too much on swing mechanics, I had less success. After a dip in performance over the past couple of years, I feel it's time for a renewed focus on decision making. Specifically, my aim is to make the right decision before every shot. Usually, that means opting for the conservative play.
The new wrinkle is to follow up those decisions with aggressive execution. I'll have more to say on this as the season progresses, but it's basically about commitment. If I can make the correct decision every time, then I should have no hesitation when I step up to take the shot. It's also about being fearless. If I don't fear any particular outcome, then I should be able to approach the ball and let 'er rip. Whatever the outcome, I should be happy, as long as I've made the right decision and committed to it.
Now, the course at Victoria Park was not in great shape, owing to the long and difficult winter we've had. A couple of temporary greens were being used, while others were partially tarped off. Since I hadn't golfed in ages, I elected to play the white tees at about 6,100 yards.
On the first hole, a par-5, my approach into the green disappeared over a group of trees on the right side. There is lots of room there, but I wasn't able to find my ball. After taking a penalty, I butchered a couple of pitch / chip attempts, en route to a quadruple-bogey 9. In fact, my chipping was poor the entire round. It's not surprising, as this part of the game is largely feel, and is the last piece to come back after a winter without practice.
Fortunately, I was able to put the bad start out of my mind immediately. I was 8-over for the next eight holes, finishing the turn with a score of 48. The stretch included two pars, four bogeys, and two doubles. I didn't hit a lot of fairways, but was often in fine shape just a yard or two into the rough. The couple of times I did find the fairway, I did so with beautiful, deep drives. Oh what a feeling! My mid and short irons were also very good. I hit a couple of pure irons that were all over the flag, or actually carried further than my usual distance.
Things continued to roll along over most of the back nine. I was 7-over for holes 10 through 17, with two pars, five bogeys, and one double. A couple of bogeys wold have been pars, if not for missed putts in the 4 to 5-foot range. For the entire round, I calculate that I missed five of these very make-able putts. One came on a 170-yard par-3, after a really nice tee shot and lag putt. Much like chipping, putting takes some time to come back after a long break.
I messed up the final hole by recording a triple-bogey. My tee shot flared to the right of the fairway, behind some trees. I decided to forgo the green entirely with my second shot, choosing a pitching wedge to get the loft required to clear the trees. It was the right decision, but I didn't factor the soft, muddy lie that I had. Instead of getting compressed, the ball dug into the mud and came out low, ending up a few yards ahead, stymied by another tree trunk. After a chip out to the fairway and a lob wedge to reach the green in four, I added a 3-putt. My lag was actually good, but I missed one of those pesky 4-footers!
Overall, I'm happy with my play and with the result. 93 ain't bad, considering how poorly I played last year, not to mention the winter layoff. I stuck to my new mantra and it seemed to help. My driver and irons were working and I limited my penalties. I need to get my chipping and putting feel back, which I'm confident will happen.
Score: 93
Putts: 36
Fairways: 4
Greens: 2
Penalties: 2
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