OOOOHHH it’s proper wet! Proper Welsh wet!
Paul and I were both keen to get our game
done today as we have pretty tight schedules so we arranged to try to get our
game done in the forecast gap in the rain.
In the August Medal on the previous day I
had zero confidence in my full swing with my driver so I popped to the driving
range on the way to the Coed and ironed out my issues so that I knew I could stand on the 1st tee and smack the dimpled white sphere down the
fairway (or at least to the right and not left and lost).
The wet weather gear was donned and we were
off for what turned out to be a ridiculously high-quality game. I just can’t
get over how well Paul chips the ball!
The first was 3 points for par each after I
missed a 3 foot chance for birdie and had my first taste of the quality of Paul’s
chip shot. I knew the pressure was on from there and managed to hit the green
on the right level for another missed birdie chance on the 2nd hole
while Paul scrambled very well for a 4 and two more points for his tally.
My nice drive into the valley on the third
left me a sand wedge to the green which I buried into the wall of the wet
greenside bunker. It was properly buried and could only be seen from the angle
it went in! Paul hit a nervy drive to the plateau and left his approach short
to show off his chipping skills again and a bogey 5. I smashed my 60deg into
the wall of the bunker just below the ball and managed to get it to pop out for
a chip up and down to match Paul’s 5.
The 4th green was a little wet
still, but that is no excuse for 3-putting from the middle of the green for a
bogey 4 while Paul (the scrambler) matched my 4 from long and left. Playing
from the yellow tees, the 5th fairway can be driven through so I chose
my hybrid and hit a lovely shot to the middle of the fairway and Paul sociably
put his ball within 3 feet of mine so that I could show him the way to the
green. I fluffed my approach and left it just short of the bunker and had my
own up and down to walk off with par while Paul hit the green and 2-putted to
match my par.
Still my honour on the 6th and I
pushed my 4iron to the right of the fairway leaving a gap wedge to the green
around a small tree from the rough stuff which left me a 12 footer for birdie.
Paul popped his tee-shot in the long distance green-side bunker and nicely
splashed out to make his par. I missed my birdie chance (again) and settled for
‘just a par’ (I wish they were ‘just’ pars! Always pretty excited by Par!).
The 7th tee saw me teeing off
first with a single point advantage over Paul. I slap-pulled my 4 iron left and
found it just in the foot-long rough protecting the neighbour’s house. Paul’s
first was lost further into the rough and his provisional was in position A.
The rough grabbed my club and turned it over leaving me to push the ball out of
the rough with my usual 2nd shot distance as my third shot. I
stiffed my third onto the green, missed the par attempt and tapped in for a 5
and two more points.
Paul had a fantastic shot at a birdie on
the 8th after a member’s kick from the tree to the left of the green
had him about 10 feet away (un)fortunately he missed the putt and tapped in for
a great par. I had to chip on from above the green and limped to the 9th
tee with a 4, a single point and the loss of the honour. Paul chose the hardest
lay-up on the course and had to drop after finding the pond on the corner. I
took on the corner and found the fairway. I thought it was possibly long so I
hit a provisional and had totally miscalculated the wind. My drive was fine and
my provisional was way short and gone. I came up short with my approach shot
with my 60 deg wedge. Really does feel like missing your mouth with a spoon! After
dropping from the pond Paul scrambled for a point and I limped off with a 5 and
2 points. At the halfway mark Paul amassed a total of 17 points and I had 19.
Quite a ridiculous total playing off ¾ handicaps! I really felt like I had left
a lot of points on the course too!
10 was into the wind and we both managed to
keep our drives playable, missed the green with our approaches and we walked to
the 11th with a 6 and 5 and I increased my lead a little more. The
11th hole plays MUCH shorter from the yellow tees and my 9 iron left
me with a long birdie attempt. Paul managed to find both bunkers on his way to
a double bogey 5 and I got my par after leaving my birdie attempt 4 feet away
from the hole.
My driver was still being my friend on the
last of the railway holes into the breeze and I found myself in the fairway
needing an 8iron to the green. I chose my 9iron, came up short and used 3
unconvincing shots to get the ball in the hole for a 5 and 2 more points. 2, 3,
2 (points) on holes 10, 11, 12 is nothing to be sneezed at and I’ll take it any day! Paul took
the scenic route to the green via the woods and
came to the 13th tee with another single-pointer.
A big drive on 13 gave me the opportunity
to hit the green in two on the par5. My 3-wood was a little slappy and came up
very short, but clear of 'the tree' and Paul and I were both on the green in
regulation. Paul’s birdie attempt from over 10 yards was excruciatingly close
and a tap-in par was the result. My own long range birdie attempt wasn’t as
close but I still managed to go to 14 with a par and a smile. For the first
time in competition I chose to hit my hybrid on the short par4 14th.
It was a good choice and left me a nice 7 iron to a tight green which slid just
to the safe side, off the green, pin high. Pauls approach from the short rough
left him almost chipping in from the front of the green and my two putts gave
us both par4’s and 3 points each to go to the par5 15th.
Into the wind and the rain had started in
earnest again. So close to a birdie on 15 for Paul and a scrambled bogey for me.
Paul was fighting back! His run of 3 point holes had him back to within 4
points. The rain was quite persistent now with a little bit of surface water
starting to re-appear after drying out for our first twelve holes. I got to try
out my FJ rain glove! It’s awesome! And I hope I am never without one in the
rain again! If you haven’t tried one, get one.
16, 17 and 18 were quite uncomfortable
holes. The weather was getting to us a bit and we just wanted to get it done.
My pull-hook into the trees on 18 was less than inspiring and the lucky kick
out into the valley was a god-send. I still tried my best to not score any
points on 18 by hitting my next shot into the rough on the right and snagging
the club while duffing out onto the fairway to leave myself an up and down from
40 yards for 2 points. Pauls’ last chip of the day was another awesome effort
leaving yet another tap-in for 2 points giving him a total of 33 points, which
on a normal day would be enough to win on ¾ handicap. My long putt through some
standing water miraculously found the bottom of the cup and I finished my best ever
round of golf after my 80th stroke giving me 37 points off ¾ of my
handicap! I had a great time today playing with a great sport and a very decent
golfer who will not be playing off 20 for much longer I’m sure! Speaking of
handicap reductions, I better get this card to the committee for my own
reduction. The journey to low single figures continues!
Round 4 is next Monday at home against Graham Gregg from Burnham and Burrow. Hope the form I just found isn't temporary!
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