I made my second ever visit to Settlers' Ghost and the weather was perfect. The course was in great shape, except for one critical factor. The greens had recently been aerated and top dressed, making for terrible putting surfaces. I've played on aerated greens in the past, and it's usually pretty manageable. Rolls are never true, but once you adjust to the speed, it's really not that bad. These greens were so heavily top dressed however, that the ball was skidding rather than rolling. I could deal with some bumpiness, but the speeds were so inconsistent that it really had an impact on the game.
I started the front nine by hitting the first fairway and green with a driver, 9-iron combo. Of course, I 3-putt on the bumpy, sandy green to finish with a bogey. On hole #2, a 200-yard par-3, I hit the front of the green with the 5-wood. Next came another 3-putt bogey. As you can see, the effect of the greens was immediate. The rest of the front nine produced lots of good golf, including three pars and a couple more bogeys. Two of those pars came after up and down plays. The bogeys came despite making a miss hit on each of the holes. In each case, I recovered strongly. Unfortunately, the two remaining holes produced triple-bogeys. In both cases, I got into the fescue and struggled to get out. This was compounded by further mistakes approaching the greens. I was shooting 46 at the turn.
Two bogeys started off the back nine. The one on hole #10 was well earned, as this is a 558-yard par-5 that is uphill all the way. The one on hole #11 was disappointing, as I hit the green on this 158-yard par-3, only to 3-putt once again on the sand covered green. The next two holes were the greatest struggle of the round. Hole #12 is a downhill par-5. I hit a terrible drive off the heel of the club, diving into the fescue left of the fairway. A few shots later, I pushed an approach shot into a water hazard. It took a miraculous chip from off the green just to save a double-bogey. Hole #13 was worse, as this is a simple and short par-4. My tee shot landed on the downslope of a steep mound, just two or three yards left of the fairway. It was an impossible stance and I duffed the shot. I continued to mess up on subsequent shots, leading to a triple-bogey.
I made bogey on four of the last five holes. A couple of these involved recovery shots after poor tee shots, so I was doing well. Unfortunately, this stretch also produced another triple-bogey. It was on hole #17, which started with another excursion into the fescue, thanks to a shot off the heel of the driver. I really was not driving the ball well all day, with just a couple of exceptions. This time, I made a great out to get back to safety. Stupidly, I duffed a wedge from the middle of the fairway, 60 yards from the green. Then the green added to the misery, as I hammered a long lag putt well past the hole and right off the green.
Considering how poorly I was driving the ball and the condition of the greens, my overall score actually wasn't that bad. Unfortunately, my handicap factor jumped to 16.3 – almost a full point increase.
Score: 96
Putts: 33
Fairways: 3
Greens: 4
Penalties: 3
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