Golf Tips & Quips

It was another hot one yesterday. The Doctor and I played at Stonecreek Golf Club, and to our surprise, despite the 110 degree weather, the course was pretty packed. Usually we play during the week when everyone else is working and as a result, we have the course to ourselves. Just the way we like it. No waiting on the group in front of us and no pressure from a group behind.

We figured that with the high temperatures we would be able to get around in three, three and half hours. This was not the case. We teed off a little after noon thinking that no one would be as crazy as we were, but we were wrong. We were in for a long day.

Fortunately we were paired with Terry and Bob, a couple of gentleman who made the wait between holes and the high heat a bit more bearable. While I like playing with the normal crew(The Doctor, Bryce, and Patrick)I like playing with new people. Golf is an individual game, but I find it more interesting to play a course with others who just love being out there like I do.

We played from the gold tees, which on the scorecard measures 6322 yards. The key is taking advantage of the front nine which 288 yards shorter than the back. Unfortunately, I didn't do that. This is only my second round in the past sixteen days so I was a little rusty to start out the round. The Doctor and I were noticing that when we play a lot, we continue to improve, but when there are too many days in between rounds, it's like starting all over again.

My biggest problem on the front was with my chipping. I had three double bogeys due to poor approach shots followed by poor chips trying to get it close to save par. My first solid hole didn't come until the 9th, on which I hit the fairway, was on the green in regulation, and then two-putted to make par. I finished the front nine with a 45.

I picked it up on the back nine by shooting a 39. This was mainly due to better approach shots which avoided the bunkers and gave me great chances to make par. Stonecreek is a pretty well maintained course except for bunkers. Because of the extreme heat, it is like hitting out of rock hard clay. They need to be watered and properly raked to give golfers any real chance of scoring well. Getting up and down out of these hazards could be deemed by some as a true miracle.

Going into the 16th hole, the sun was starting to wear on us. Stamina always comes in to play over the course of eighteen hole, but when the mercury hits triple digits, it is especially noticeable.

As we were about to tee off on the longest par 5 on the course, we could see that the sprinklers were on full blast around the green. The group of ahead of us looked like they were pondering whether or not to play the hole. Usually the sprinklers come on for about five minutes and then they shut off, but not today. Major malfunction, but ironically, a major blessing.

The Doctor and I ran through the sprinklers and finished the hole. We were soaked but it felt so good. The thing is, with no humidity, and the fact that it was so hot, we were dry in literally fifteen minutes. When we caught up with the foursome in front of us, they said that they were thinking about complaining so that they could get a free round A free round would have been nice, but honestly, the sprinkler mishap was a welcome relief.

All in all, it was a good round. I need to work on my chipping and continue to work on my putting. I struggled off the tee on the front, but missed only one fairway on the back. It is a lot harder to get motivated to practice when it is above 100 degrees, but that's the only way I can continue to improve. Looks like, I'll have to get up earlier so that I can get out by 5:00AM when it is only 85 degrees. Gotta love the summers in the Valley Of The Sun. Have a great round and always hit your target.