The golf course at Hockley Valley Resort is one I've played a fair number of times – eight times, to be exact. My ninth visit to the course ended up being my best, though it really didn't feel like it with a final score of 98. It was only when I sat down to write this blog entry that I realized I had never before broken 100 at the Orangeville area course. Final scores of 100, 101, 102 were the norm in my most recent visits.
I joined up with a threesome who must have thought they were playing with a scratch golfer after the first hole. One of them sliced his tee shot into the woods, while the other two found the right side of the fairway on this 380-yard par-4. I found the centre of the fairway, 50 yards ahead of my playing partners. My drive was straight as an arrow, just missing the tall trees that protect the inside of this slight dogleg left. From 125 yards, I hit a gap wedge to 10 feet. The birdie attempt was a downhill breaker that I judged well, but just missed on the high side. A final tap-in locked up a seemingly effortless par.
Alas, the illusion of playing with a scratch golfer was quickly dispelled with my tee shot on hole #2. I hit the ground behind the ball and barely made it to the fairway on this par-4. With lots of danger near the green, I was forced to hit a layup. From 100 yards, I then caught the ball thin, with the ball coming to rest in some mounds in front of the green. I finished the hole with a double-bogey. The double-bogey train continued for three more holes, as I alternated between good shots and poor ones. At times, the short game failed me, while at others, it was the long irons. On hole #6, a par-5, I blew up for a quadruple-bogey by adding a 3-putt to the mix.
Hole #7, which is the #1 handicap hole on the course, was a thing of beauty. Stretching out to 430 yards from the gold tees, this par-4 features a huge gulley right and short of the green. After a 280-yard drive to the right centre of the fairway, I hit a lovely 8-iron that carried over the gulley and landed softly near the flagstick. Full iron shots that threaten the hole are some of the prettiest shots in golf and this was no exception. I missed the 10-foot birdie putt, but was satisfied with a tap-in par. I also made par on hole #8, before closing out the front nine with a double-bogey and a score of 50.
Hole #10 resulted in a disastrous score of 8 on this par-3. Like all of the par-3 holes at Hockley Valley, this one begins from a massively elevated tee. It's all carry to the green, with bushes and trees forming a thick covering on the slope down to the putting area. From the gold tees, this hole normally plays a tame 134 yards. On this occasion, the golds were back with the black tees, at 171 yards. I don't recall ever playing this hole from back there, so visual intimidation was a big factor. Anyway, I lost two balls off the tee and the related penalty strokes inflated my score quickly.
I played the rest of the round at bogey pace, which I absolutely needed in order to break 100. The run consisted of one birdie, five bogeys and two doubles. I hit a lot of fairways, as I had on the front nine, and my irons were decent as well. The difference is that I avoided penalty strokes and my short game improved. Ironically, my only 3-putt during this stretch came after a perfect drive & sand wedge combination to reach the green in regulation on hole #15. I left the uphill birdie putt woefully short and the par attempt wasn't any better.
Hole #16 merits some discussion, as it is a tricky one, well deserving of its ranking as the #2 handicap hole on the course. At 487 yards, it's not exceptionally long for a par-5. However, if your tee shot is not placed perfectly, the woods that pinch in from either side will make you think twice before getting aggressive with your second shot. My drive was almost perfect, a 290-yard laser that trickled about two yards into the left rough. I was on a mound with the ball below my feet, but the ball was sitting nicely. From 195 yards, I launched a 4-iron that skirted past the trees on the left, cutting back slightly to the left side of the green below. I wasn't even sure if I caught a piece of the green, but when I approached to search for my ball, I found it smack in the middle of the green, 12 feet from the hole! Hitting a par-5 in two shots is another of golf's great feelings and I certainly let it soak in. I studied the eagle putt well and made a good stroke, but missed on the high side, settling for birdie.
I've spoiled sub-100 rounds at Hockley before with poor play on the last hole. This time, I kept it together reasonably well and walked away with the reward. The final tally of 98 is nothing special, but I'll take it on this difficult course.
Score: 98
Putts: 35
Fairways: 9
Greens: 4
Penalties: 6
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