I started July with a run of seven golf rounds that were not bad. Six of those rounds produced scores below the century mark, while the seventh resulted in a score of 100 even. There certainly was room for improvement, but I felt like I was regaining some control over my golf game. After my last three rounds, including the latest at Dragon's Fire Golf Club, I'm no longer sure that is the case.
I hit 7 of 13 fairways at Dragon's Fire, which is actually better than usual. Four of these came on the front nine, as beauties on holes 1, 4, 6, and 7 set me up for three bogeys and a par. The par came on hole #7, which is a par-5 that I actually reached in two. Unfortunately, I ended up 3-putting from about 15 feet away. When I missed fairways on the front nine, it was due to a wicked pull that was lost in the trees.
Three of my fairways hit came on the back nine. However, when I missed fairways on the back nine, it was due to pushed or push sliced shots. Once again those balls were lost in trees or water hazards. This illustrates one of my biggest frustrations with the game of golf. Clearly, I was trying to correct the ugly pull shots that I made on the front nine. Unfortunately, I over-corrected and the result was just as bad. All the while, there were some good shots mixed in there to give me the (false?) impression that I'm capable of playing well.
My iron play was just as erratic as my driver. I hit some very nice shots, but I also missed my fair share. Once again, there was no consistency to the misses. I hooked a couple of shots, including my tee shots on a couple of par-3 holes that play over water. Holes #9 and #17 offer bailout areas to the left side and I made full use of them, even if it was unwittingly. My hook shots were mostly smothered and did not travel far. When I tried to fix the hook, the result was excellent distance, but with balls that were pushed well right of target.
I have to say, my play wasn't the only dreadful thing at Dragon's Fire. I played the course right after it opened in 2008 and left with a favourable impression. I liked the large, level tee boxes, and the expansive fairways. The grass looked nice and sand in the bunkers was excellent. I especially enjoyed the par-3 and par-5 holes. Since then, I've played the course five more times, and it's become clear that the design is really quite poor.
The fairways are wide, but there is virtually no rough between them and the treed areas that line the entire course. In addition, the fairways are rock hard. The combination of fast fairways and almost no rough means that any ball bouncing to the side of the fairway will inevitably run straight through into the dense trees. These are not trees with clear ground underneath. The ground under the trees is covered with knee high grass and thick weeds. Any balls that go in there are lost. The course would actually be better if the fairways were more narrow, with additional rough on each side. The extra rough would corral more balls, enabling players to recover from a less than perfect shot. They would be hitting from the rough, mind you, so they would still pay the price for their mistakes, which is perfectly fair.
The greens at Dragon's Fire are hard and huge, which is another pet peeve. Since they are not receptive, balls hit into the greens release off the back frequently. With regular sized greens, these balls would roll into the fringe or rough, but remain relatively close to the flag. However, since the greens are so large, these balls are not only off the putting surface, but also a mile away from the flag! I've come to learn that it's better not to fly balls into the greens at Dragon's Fire. You're much better off hitting bump and runs through the green openings, if possible. I did that a few times during this last round, which worked well.
I shot 49 on the front nine, so I had a chance to salvage a decent score. Unfortunately, I blew up for a quadruple bogey on hole #13, a long par-5. I was flag high in a greenside bunker after four shots. I tried the technique that a fellow Deepwoods member explained to me at my previous round, but I nevertheless sent the ball clear across the green, settling under a small tree. I required two pitches and two putts to finish. It was disappointing, because I used the technique to good effect just minutes earlier on hole #12. In a greenside bunker after my tee shot on this par-3 hole, I hit the best bunker shot I can remember in a long time.
Hole #13 had already sealed my fate, but I exploded for an 11 on hole #18, also a par-5. I dunked four balls in the water on that hole. Three of these came from or near the teeing ground, while the last came from right beside the 100-yard stick. It was a virtual replay of the hole the last time I played it in 2013. Uncanny!
Score: 106
Putts: 36
Fairways: 7
Greens: 2
Penalties: 9
No comments:
Post a Comment