Round 3 of the 2014 Deepwoods championship took place at Willow Valley Golf Club. I resolved to get less technical about my swing, as that had gotten me in trouble at my last round. I swung freely on the practice range with pretty good results, so I took the same attitude to the course itself.
For almost the entire round, I avoided the blowup hole. For me, a blowup is any score worse than double bogey. On the front nine, I registered five bogeys and four double bogeys, for a score of 49. I only hit one fairway, on a shot that was high and fading fast. Luckily, it remained on the short grass. I also reached one green in regulation, on a very short par-3.
As the numbers suggest, I wasn't hitting the ball particularly well. However, I was at least advancing the ball with every shot. Whenever I found danger, I recovered pretty well. On hole #1, a par-4, my second shot from the left rough failed to clear a pond. That's the penalty for hitting from the rough. After taking a drop, I hit a good pitch and 2-putt to salvage double-bogey. On hole #6, a par-5, I found another hazard. After dropping, I hit a nice 5-wood and 8-iron combination to save bogey. My third penalty came on hole #9. Once again, I recovered well to make bogey.
On the back nine, things got slightly better. I played holes #10 through #17 in 8 over par. Bogey pace is great if I can maintain it over a long stretch. That run consisted of two pars, four bogeys, and two double-bogeys. Incidentally, the pair of doubles came on holes #10 and #11. I hooked my approach into #10 and left myself short-sided. When I got too cute with the pitch shot, I sealed my fate. I also missed a short putt on that hole – the only putt of the day that I was really disappointed with. Hole #11 is a par-5 that I tried to reach in two after a good drive. Unfortunately, my second shot was pushed right and was lost in a hazard that crosses the fairway in front of the green. Luckily, it was my last penalty stroke of the day.
The two pars came on holes #16 and #17. The first of these is a par-5 that I once again tried to reach in two. My 5-wood from 200 yards stopped on an embankment that fronts the green, which sits on a plateau. I pitched on and 2-putt smartly. Hole #17 is a par-3 from an elevated tee. I used the hillside to direct my ball at the green, then made a nice lag putt and tap-in. I hit 5 of 6 fairways on the back nine, but only two greens in regulation.
Unfortunately, a steady round was ruined on the last hole of the day, an uphill par-5. My tee shot found some fescue, so I had to hack out back to the fairway. My fourth shot settled at the bottom of a greenside bunker. If I could get out of the bunker and 2-putt, I would finish with a score of 95, which isn't bad. The only problem is, I have been struggling with these bunker shots for a few years now. Prior to that, I had no trouble with bunkers, but now I fear them completely.
Adding to the drama was the fact that a dozen or more of my fellow Deepwoods members were watching the action from the top of the hillside overlooking the green. It's actually great to have a bit of an audience, as most of the guys in the group are very supportive and will cheer you on in that situation. Unfortunately, I silenced them completely, by taking five shots to get out of the bunker! You could hear a pin drop as the guys in the group no doubt wondered what the heck I was doing. When I finally got on the green, I 2-putt for a final score of 99.
Afterwards, I got a bit of an impromptu lesson on bunker shots from one of the better Deepwoods players, who happened to be in the crowd. He described what the bunker shot should be like, which wasn't very useful to me, as the language of golf is often very imprecise. However, when I pulled out a club and asked him to show me, it became very clear what he was talking about. I was drawing the club back very low, with little or no wrist bend. He got me to raise the club immediately, using the wrists much more. From there, it was a question of slapping the bottom of the club down and following through. I knew that the bounce of the club has to do its job and that following through was imperative. However, I didn't realize how stiff my wrists were and how low I was drawing back the club. I will have to practice what he showed me and see if it helps in the future.
Score: 99
Putts: 35
Fairways: 6
Greens: 3
Penalties: 4
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