Opening Day - a rough one

So - if you would have told me I would be 22 strokes worse on a course then I was the last time I played it, I'd say you were nuts. But thats golf, and on Opening Day the story was a combination of poor driving and chipping along with mediocre putting and iron play added up to a 103, arguably the worst Opening Day I've had in several years. I played at Cardinal Creek, formerly Shady Lawn, after my 1st choice, Tuckaway, was booked till 12:30 when I arrived at 10 AM. The last 2 times I played Shady I scored 81 each time, however those were in August when I had a lot more rounds under my belt. I played with a father-son combo (so I thought), and I'd say I beat the son but lost to the father. We played the Center 9 first and my first shot of the year was a 3W 209 yds. left of fairway. I rolled in a 10-footer for a bogey for my 1st putt of the year. It was my last bogey till 6, with 3 doubles and a 10 putting me 13 over a third into the round. The 6th was also my only fairway hit on the nine, with 4 pulls and a fade the other wood results. I found the water on 4 and twice on 5, topping a 4iron. The other drive yards were 254, 240 and 173. The last 3 played at 4 over to give me 53 with 18 putts, with 1 3putt and 1 1putt. The rain started on 8 and we made the turn in a good hard drizzle. After lunch we hit the South. My drive on 10 again went way left and hit a tree 100yds out. I then got my only par and GIR of the day on 11. The drives from then on improved somewhat, as I hit 3 fairways out of the last 4 driving holes. The yardages were 236, 224, 255, and 168 with a 4iron as I experimented with clubs to gauge distance. 2 triples and 2 doubles were my bad holes, with 4 bogeys adding up to a 50 on the back, a little better but leaving a lot of room for improvement. Almost made a long putt on 17 over tree seedlings on the green, and lost 2 more balls, 1 in water when I could have laid up, and 1 on18 when a 4wood wasnt found near a water area and I took a free drop, as we ascertained it cleared the water.
Shot of the Day: Approach on 3C with a PW, almost blind, put it 20 feet from hole.
Putt of the Day: 1st hole 10footer went in.

Tomorrrows Opening Day

Sunday went to Coyote Run and hit 60 balls with all clubs off soft mats. Hit em a little better this time, as it was warmer and my hamstrings were getting better. Still a little sore after hard swings. Then I practiced putting and found a trick that appeared to work. I lined up the putter with the top edge of the center marker behind the center of the ball, and it appeared to help me hit the sweet spot of the putter, and the ball rolled better. Then Tuesday after work I went to Odyssey and they said no grass for another 4-6 weeks, so went back to Coyote, and hit 60 more balls, working more on the approach shots and general long irons. Didn't get to the driver, as the soft mats seem to lose every tee. Putted again, working on my new gimmick. Anything that helps your confidence is a plus. My relative called and asked if I could play Thursday after work, but I had to take my nephew to soccer practice. So Opening Day will be tommorow, Good Friday, April 14. I'm sure its the first time I've played on Good Friday. In 2004 on Opening Day I had a 10-foot eagle putt at River Oaks that lipped out. In the 80's at Shady Lawn I whiffed my first shot of the year. What memories will be created this year? Stay tuned and hang on - its gonna be a wild ride.

Getting Closer

So we changed the clocks today to Daylight Savings Time, which is basically the start of summer, being that I can now go out after dinner and practice if I haven't earlier. I always prefer earlier, as the bugs are fewer and the setting sun doesn't get in the eyes. My clubs are still in the basement, because the weather still isn't really warm enough, and my hamstrings aren't 100% yet. I really want to be healthy for the season and don't want nagging soreness, hence my patience. I'm shooting for this coming weekend to bring up the clubs for good. Then its at least 4 buckets or practice sessions before Opening Day, hopefully around April 15. If I play more then 1 round in April I'm doing good. Watched Lorena Ochoa come up short vs. Karie Webb in the Nabisco. I was really pulling for Lorena, cause she hasn't won a major yet, but she definitely will in the near future. Watching golf is increasing my desire to play. My next post may be about the Masters.