My last round of the season was on October 29th at Glen Eagle Golf Club. They have 27 holes, but on this occasion, the Original 18 were in play. It was a little chilly and overcast, with an occasional light drizzle. I teed off on the first hole and played the entire round alone. Normally, that helps me focus, but it was hard to do so because of course conditions. Leaves were everywhere, even in fairway landing zones and on the greens. Speaking of greens, they had been aerated, which is to be expected at this time of year. However, there was an inordinate amount of top dressing on some greens, making it near impossible to get the speed correct.
Once again, I focused on the wrist roll during my swing. A few rounds ago, it was working wonders, but it got a little shaky at my last outing. This time, I'm sorry to say, it was a little worse still. With the driver in hand, it produced a few high pop-ups to the left side. Perhaps I wasn't rolling the wrists enough, leaving the club face open at impact. Combine this with my typical outside-in swing path, and the result is not good. I popped up drives on holes #1, #7, and #10. At other times, I caught the ball near the heel of the club, producing an even worse result. That happened on holes #4, #7, and #12. Hole #7 is listed twice because I hit my third from the tee after a particularly horrific attempt. I had some good drives, but they were few and far between.
With irons in hand, the results were better. I shanked a 7-iron off the tee on hole #3, but after taking a penalty and re-teeing, I hit a fabulous one to within 5 feet of the pin. It seems when I miss with this wrist roll, it's always because I fail to execute it fast enough, leaving the face open at impact. This was an extreme case, but when I adjusted, the result was fantastic. I also hit some great recovery shots with the irons. I had to punch a couple of low shots due to tree trouble on hole #2, a par-5. I managed to get near the green after three shots, then pitched and 2-putt for bogey. On hole #4, also a par-5, I hit another pair of punch shots to get to the green in four. The last of these was particularly impressive, threading through a thick strand of tree trunks to find the green edge.
I was shooting 55 at the turn, thanks to a pair of triple-bogeys and a massive blowup on hole #5, a short par-4. My tee shot found a fairway bunker on the right side, and I had trouble getting out and through some trees directly ahead. I took an ugly 9 on that hole. All of this meant I had a lot of work to do on the back nine to salvage a respectable score. Four pars and a birdie helped immensely, as I tallied 41 on the back nine to walk away with an overall score of 96.
I still had some issues with the driver, but I hit it well on holes #11, #13, and #16 – all of which produced pars. While the drives got me off to a good start, it was really the irons that earned those pars. Even when I made bogey, I displayed some nice control with the irons. There were multiple occasions where I had to shape a shot in a particular way, and I managed to do so nicely. On hole #10, I was well left of the fairway, with massive trees blocking out the green. I aimed the 9-iron well left of the green to get over the treetops, looking for a cut to bring the ball back near the putting surface. It worked just as I envisioned. On hole #13, I needed a low hook on my second shot to get around and under some trees and keep the ball in the fairway. I did exactly that. On hole #15, I was right of the fairway, with tall trees blocking the green once again. This time, I hoisted an 8-iron over the treetops, drawing it back to just in front of the green. That one was most impressive of all.
Even when I didn't need to shape a shot, the irons were working well. I hit a nice pitching wedge to reach the green in regulation on hole #11. On hole #14, a par-3, it was a 6-iron off the tee that did the trick, finishing flag high. On hole #16, I hit a wonderful 5-iron that was all over the flag. I let out a yell of satisfaction after that one. I didn't even care about my score or round at that point – I just loved the shot. On hole #17, a short par-3, my pitching wedge was also perfect, setting up a 6-foot birdie putt that I drained with confidence.
In the end, I was happy that I managed to get on track over the back nine. I'm still committed to the wrist roll, even though it's been shaky, at times, over the last two rounds. I just have to remind myself to commit to it. That way, I won't leave the club face open when it strikes the ball.
The season is over. Soon, I'll have to reflect back and write my year-end review.
Score: 96
Putts: 34
Fairways: 1
Greens: 5
Penalties: 2
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