I played an early afternoon round at Shawneeki Golf Club. Conditions were ideal, if a little warm. I was paired up with a nice couple and together we tackled the first hole, a short par-4. My drive found the left fairway bunker, but from there, I hit sand wedge to the right fringe. After a good chip, I made an 8-foot putt for par! The couple said there was free space ahead of us, so I was welcome to play ahead. I didn't want to prolong my time in the heat, so I thanked them and pushed on alone.
As it turned out, the second hole was the only one I had all to myself. After a good drive on this par-5, I wasted four strokes by hitting two consecutive 5-woods into a pond directly ahead of me. From the tight lie of the fairway, I could not get the ball elevated using that club. When I switched to a 7-iron, I proceeded to finish the hole without incident. Unfortunately, the damage was done, as I carded a 9 on the hole.
On hole #3, a par-4 on the edge of the property, I had to wait in the fairway after my drive to allow a threesome ahead to clear the green. When they did, I hit my 9-iron a little long, finding a greenside bunker. I blasted the ball well past the hole and had to work hard to 2-putt for a bogey. When I approached the teeing ground at hole #4, the threesome was still teeing off. They were playing the white tees, while I was playing blue, but they never even acknowledged my presence.
And so it continued for seven more holes. They teed off on every hole with me standing a few yards behind them. Not once did they even make eye contact, much less exchange greetings. And they certainly didn't offer to let me play through. On hole #7, I figured out what was going on. Ahead of this threesome of men was a threesome of ladies, of the same visible minority. This was a group of men playing together behind their wives, presumably to act as a buffer between the parasol-carrying ladies and any golfer who might push their pace from behind. So sad.
If they were going to let me through at any point, it would be after nine holes. No such luck, so I waited a minute on the eleventh tee and allowed the couple I had started the round with to join back up with me. I had shot 48 on the front nine, which wasn't bad. Aside from the poor 5-wood attempts on hole #3, there were only two mistakes. One was a horrible chip from just off the green on hole #4. It was a side hill lie and the ball went 45 degrees left of my intended line. The other was a drive that caught the club face low on hole #8. It had been a long wait on the tee, so no surprise there.
On the back nine, I started to get a little more sloppy, as I waited around before every single shot. I topped my drive attempt on hole #10 and failed to shape the ball correctly off the tee on hole #11. The hole is a par-5 with a dogleg left. Unless you lay back a lot, you really have to hit a draw to get around the trees and keep your ball in bounds. I tried the draw and actually hit a slice. A large tree was the only thing that prevented my ball from going out of bounds. I recovered well to earn bogey.
The bogey train continued through hole #14, which is a par-3 over a creek. Actually, I did very well to earn bogey on hole #13, the toughest on the back nine. The tee shot is full of danger, with a pond left of the fairway and out of bounds on the entire right side. I found the right centre of the fairway and from there it was pretty smooth sailing. Not so on hole #14 though. The “gentlemen” ahead of me were about 60 yards from the green, walking back to the next teeing ground. I smothered my 6-iron off the tee, sending a low, hooking shot right in their direction. Fore! Fore! Bang! The bang was the sound of my ball smacking their cart, followed immediately by an expletive from one among the group, commonly abbreviated as SOB! Apparently, they spoke English after all.
Well, that got their attention, unintentional as it was. One of the men lingered in the spot until I passed by. Of course, I apologized for the wayward ball, after which the man said, “You almost hit him.” Really, Captain Obvious? Maybe that's why I was yelling “Fore” like a madman. If you weren't in your own little world, you might have heard me. Sigh. That was the end of that exchange. I played the ball as it lay, pitched on and 2-putt for bogey.
By now, the heat was getting a little uncomfortable and it was hard to stay focused with all the waiting around. I topped another drive attempt on hole #16, leading to double-bogey. I bogeyed hole #17, but another poor drive on hole #18 put me in a tough position. From the blue tees, you absolutely must draw the ball. My shot went straight, finding trees on the right side of the hole. I had no opening back to the fairway and had to play toward hole #16. I actually hit a great 6-iron from just ahead of #16 teeing ground to find #18 green. Unfortunately, I then 3-putt for triple bogey, shooting 51 on the back nine and 99 overall.
It was a decent performance, but scattered errors came in different areas of the game. Sometimes it was a bad drive, while other times it was a poor chip, bunker shot, or lag putt.
Score: 99
Putts: 36
Fairways: 6
Greens: 2
Penalties: 2
No comments:
Post a Comment