2017: Year in Review

It's Boxing Day. The first week of winter has been brutal, with temperatures below seasonal and snow littering the streets. The forecast for the coming week is even worse, as 2017 seems intent on going out with a fight. Let's hope that the new year brings a gentler approach. In the meantime, let's reflect on the golf season that was. Without further ado, I present my 2017 year in review.

Like the year that preceded it, 2017 was largely one of stagnation. I finished the year with a 17.1 handicap factor – one tenth worse than it was at the start of the season. So while there was no progress to speak of, there was also no regression. On a positive note, my factor dipped as low as 15.4, albeit briefly. One round after reaching the low mark, my handicap factor jumped back up to the 16.3 level. It crept up to its current level over the last few rounds of the year. Still, 15.4 represents a new personal best – one tenth better than my previous low, which was achieved in 2016.

The highs achieved in 2017 weren't quite as spectacular as those of a year earlier. In 2016, I notched my first ever hole-in-one, a 150-yard beauty at Calerin Golf Club. There was no such feat this year. In fact, I didn't make an eagle of any kind. It's not something I track, but if memory serves me correctly, I've only ever had one eagle aside from the Calerin ace. It was a hole-out from 135 yards on a par 4 at Rolling Hills' former Championship Course (now Bethesda Grange). That was shortly after I took up the game. I've attempted numerous eagle putts on par-5 and even par-4 holes since then, but none have dropped.

My best score in 2017 was 80, which is also my second best ever! My all-time best was 78, which I achieved in 2016 at BraeBen Golf Course. 80 even is a great score, but I was not terribly excited about it because of where it came. It was my first ever visit to Fergus Golf Club. Playing the West and East nines, I found the course was just too easy. It's extremely flat, with few trees or other obstacles to challenge your game. There are some holes where OB comes into play, but the bail out sides are large and present no problem whatsoever. I was striking the ball pretty well that day, but not as flawlessy as the score suggests.

I consider my best result of the year to be the 83 that I scored mid-season at Lakeview Golf Course. I had not played there in many years, so this result was a little unexpected. I limited the damage – not registering any worse than double-bogey on any single hole. At the same time, I collected many bogeys and a good helping of pars, including one on the signature “bell” hole (#12). My best hole was #15, which produced birdie after a spectacular drive that cut the corner of this dogleg left. The round showed me that ball striking doesn't have to be flawless when game management is really good and your short game is on point.

I played 43 rounds of golf in 2017, beginning April 10 and ending November 6. It was an early start, but weather at the tail end of the season was not great. Total rounds played ended up being exactly what I've averaged over the previous three seasons. I'm happy whenever I reach 40 rounds. That seems to be enough to keep my game semi-sharp. There were a couple years when I barely passed the 30-round level, and my results suffered noticeably. Those 43 rounds were played at 33 different courses. The course I played most, with three visits, was Century Pines. Receiving two visits each were: Osprey Valley Heathlands, Westview, Grey Silo, Bradford Highlands, Lowville, Battlefield at Legends on the Niagara, Calerin, and Twenty Valley.

As always, I made a point of visiting some new courses for the first time. Inaugural visits in 2017 were made to: Thundering Waters, Osprey Valley Toot, Fergus, Knollwood New, and Rebel Creek. Osprey Valley Toot was the best of the bunch, which should come as no surprise. All three courses at Osprey Valley are highly touted, appearing on “Best of Canada” lists year after year. I had played Heathlands and Hoot on previous occasions, so it was nice to finally complete the trio. Toot is big and bold, in every sense. The fairways are generous, but bunkers and greens are also ample. It's a great place to play if you like lettin' 'er rip with the big dog. Thundering Waters and Rebel Creek were also courses that I enjoyed very much. I've heard that both were once better than they currently are, but I have no complaints. Fergus and Knollwood are value plays, and in that sense, they're okay. Fergus can be called a cow pasture and it wouldn't be too far off. The New Course at Knollwood begins with a pushover first hole, but quickly presents some challenging holes. I did well to shoot 88 there.

I broke into the 80s five times in 2017, compared to eight times in 2016. This was offset by seven excursions into the 100s, equalling the tally from the previous year. By far, the bulk of my scores were in the 90s (a total of 30). If you're doing the math, that adds up to 42 rounds – one shy of my year total. That's because I played one round at Turnberry – a  par 56 course, and hence, not counted. My average score this year was 95.5 – up from 94.4 last year and 95.0 the year before that. It's another case of stagnation. While I didn't really get any worse, I certainly didn't get any better, either.

Detailed stats further cement the status quo. I averaged 35.4 putts per round, compared to 34.6 and 34.9 over the preceding two years. That's actually a little alarming. Anecdotally, I feel like I putted substantially worse than that. Previously, my missed putts did not follow any particular pattern. This year, it seems like I was pulling my putts more often than not. The only time I missed to the right side was when making a conscious effort not to pull the ball. Aah yes, the classic over-compensation. The last couple rounds of the year, my putter actually looked like it was bent out of shape. I don't know if it actually is, or whether it's just my perception. Either way, I've lost confidence in it and will be getting a new one for next year.

In 2017, I hit 5.5 fairways per round – exactly the same as a year earlier. I also hit 3.7 greens in regulation – down two tenths from 2016. Finally, I collected 3.4 penalty strokes per round – or one tenth more than last year. Nothing to be concerned about here, at least in terms of trending. The overall state of the numbers, however, remains a significant concern. I should be able to hit at least 7 fairways per round, along with 6 greens in regulation. I've been close when it comes to fairways, but nowhere in the vicinity when speaking about greens. This is definitely the greater weakness in my game. The fact is that I miss greens all the time from places I really shouldn't. Even from 130 yards and the middle of the fairway, the putting surface often eludes me. That simply has to improve if I'm to get any better. Lastly, the penalties. There are just too many, end of story. I'm managing my game well enough to reduce these, but when execution is poor, they can't always be avoided.

As for the Deepwoods Golf Association, I had another forgettable season. A mediocre result in Round 1 was followed by a horrible one in Round 2. The former took place at Copetown Woods, which is a course I should dominate. The latter was at Peninsula Lakes, which is a bit more challenging, but shouldn't destroy me the way it did. I started well, but had a blowup on hole #6 and then snapped. Mentally, I took myself out of the round. The hole is a long par-3 with OB left and a pond right. I've had poor results there before and they played themselves out again according to script. That's why I got upset. Pen Lakes became my throwaway round, meaning I had no wiggle room for the rest of the year. Round 3 at Glen Eagle was easily my best of the 2017 Deepwoods campaign. Unfortunately, I followed up with a mediocre result in Round 4 at Grey Silo. Heading into the final round of the year at Hidden Lake, I was still mathematically alive in the hunt for the championship, but practically speaking, it was over. I had another poor round and finished the season 10th overall.

Here's hoping that 2018 sees some marked improvement. The stagnation must be overcome.