Joey's Golf Bag

Yesterday, I played Indian Creek on the Lakes course. The course was in very good condition, firm and fast, although the greens had been sanded sometime in the last week. I’m a resident, so I get a small discount. Since I usually walk this course, I didn’t notice that there’s a $5 charge for GPS in addition to the cart fee. The cart fee and GPS charge ended up larger than the green fee!

OK, two rants. We were behind a group of golfers that were playing from the tips. At least some of these guys should not have been playing from the tips, because most of them were hitting their second from about where I would hit a 5-iron from the white tees. (I always play from the whites because that’s where my handicap index puts me.) And they were very slow, as our foursome easily kept up with them even though we had a 15-year-old in our group who sprayed balls all over the course. We had to wait on these guys on every hole.

Enough ranting.

Unfortunately, I didn’t keep the scorecard because John turned in the card for his handicap. So I’ll summarize my crappy round (54 on the front, 48 on the back for 102 score).

• Tee shots. I hit about 5 or 6 fairways and two of the par-3 holes in regulation. I had two penalties off the tee into the water. I was really unhappy with my long game on this day. For some reason, I kept chunking shots with my 5-wood, which meant I was effectively hitting a lob wedge off the tee.
• Approach shots. I hit only one green in regulation all day, other than the two par-3 holes I hit off the tee. Because my driving was bad, I was usually short of the green as I didn’t trust my 5-wood into the green, so I often had a wedge for a third shot on the longer par-4 holes. I had one penalty on an approach shot, a badly pushed iron into the water.
• Wedges. I had a couple of good wedge shots into greens (typically for third or fourth shots). On the other hand, when I was using a wedge for a recovery shot, I hit them very poorly. If I ever figure this game out, I’ll let you know…
• Chipping. I only got up and down three times all day. My problem today was if I hit the ball solidly, it was usually short, and if I didn’t, then I chipped it thin way past the hole. This was especially annoying given the amount of practice time I’ve devoted to chipping.
• Sand shots. I didn’t hit into any bunkers, something of a miracle.
• Putting. I very narrowly missed all three of my birdie putts. I had two 3-putts, and got up-and-down three times, so that means I had 37 putts. Terrible.

Well, there you have it. A very poorly played round. I can’t say that anything I did all day was good.

This morning, I played with the Shriners at The Trails of Frisco Golf Club in Frisco, TX. The weather was a bit chilly when we teed off around 9AM, but quickly warmed up to around 80F by the time we finished. The day was sunny and pretty calm to start, but a 1-2 club breeze kicked in at the turn. The course was in very good condition, except for the bunkers, which had not yet dried out from 4 days of heavy rain that ended last Saturday. We took free drops out the bunkers due to their condition.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

Themes:

• Off the tee. I did pretty well of the tee, hitting 8 fairways and three of the five par-3 holes in regulation. I did have one penalty off the tee on the par-5 7th hole, but otherwise kept myself out of trouble off the tee. My best tee shot was a 5-iron to 10 feet on the third hole.
• Approach shots. I didn’t do very well on approach, hitting only two greens in regulation. I didn’t have any penalties off approach shots, though I did have a penalty on my second shot on the par-5 10th hole. I had a very difficult lie and pulled the shot left into the creek (I did manage to recover the ball, so I didn’t lose a ball all day).
• Wedges and chips. I wasn’t particularly pleased with my wedges or chipping today, as I only managed to get up-and-down three times all day.
• Putting. My putting was very mixed. On the par-4 fourth hole, I hit the green in regulation, only to putt off the green, hit a poor chip and two-putt for double. My only other bad putting hole was on the par-4 17th hole, where I three-putted. Otherwise, not too bad. I had a total of 34 putts.

I was pretty happy with how I played today. 91 is my best score so far this year. I wish I’d putted better (especially the one I putted off the green — I would have broken 90 if I’d two-putted that green). A very enjoyable round of golf.

This morning, I played the Grapevine Golf Association tournament, an AD/BC 2 best ball event. Our “C” player didn’t show up. The weather was quite cold and windy, though the sun was out. At times, the wind was really howling. We went off just after our scheduled tee time of 8:52AM and finished up at 1:25PM. The first couple of holes were backed up, but it was pretty smooth after about the fourth hole. We played Pecan followed by Bluebonnet, from the blue tees. We were the seventh of 30 groups to play.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

Themes:

• Tee shots. Not good. I hit only four fairways and one par-3 hole in regulation. I had two penalties off the tee, one into the water on the third hole of Pecan, and one into the woods on the seventh hole of Pecan. My best tee shot was a 7-iron to 12 feet on the eighth hole of Bluebonnet; this shot had me closest to the hole at the time.
• Approach shots. Not good. I hit only one green in regulation on par-4 and par-5 holes. My misses were all over the place, but mostly short due to the wind. I had three penalties on approach shots, two of which were on the seventh hole (a grand total of three penalties on that hole alone).
• Wedges. I had very few wedge shots today, as I was usually chipping. I don’t really recall any bad ones.
• Chipping. What the heck? My chipping was very poor early (I had two dead shank chips within the first 3 holes). After that, my chipping was better and I managed to get up and down 4 times (one was a putt into the hole from the fringe). I was really disappointed, as I spend a great deal of time in the two weeks leading up to this tournament on chipping.
• Sand shots. I hit into two greenside bunker and got out cleanly from one and launched one over the green on the other. I also hit into two fairway bunkers, one was well-struck and the other a bit fat.
• Putting. My putting ranged from very good (putting into the hole from the fringe on the eighth hole of Pecan for par) to very poor (missed a 2 footer for bogey on the first hole of Pecan). I had three 3-putts and 34 putts total today.

I was really disappointed in how I played today, but considering the weather conditions, it wasn’t really bad, just bad.

Update: I finished one shot out of the money (104 was good enough for 4th place in D flight).

Update 2: Best ball tournament was cancelled as 42% of the 4-man teams had no shows. Tournament was transformed into a stroke play event.

This afternoon, I took the afternoon off from work to play a practice round at Grapevine Golf Course. The weather was sunny and warm, with a variable breeze from almost none to two clubs. I didn’t get a chance to warm up or putt, and we went off on Mockingbird just before 1PM. We finished our round in three hours and 45 minutes, playing in a foursome.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

Themes:

• Tee shots. Today, I used my driver on any par-4 or par-5 where driver could be used. I hit five fairways and had two penalties off the tee. The first was a pulled driver that hit the cart path and jumped into the woods on the third hole on the Mockingbird course and the second was a shanked iron into the hazard on the 7th hole of the Mockingbird course. Most of my drives with the driver were well-struck, but I had a lot of difficulty with the 5-wood today. I didn’t hit any of the par-3 holes in regulation.
• Approach shots. I hit four greens in regulation and had another three penalties on approach shots. I didn’t strike my irons very good today, and my hybrid, though well-struck, was often pulled left badly.
• Wedges. I didn’t hit a lot of pitches or full wedge shots today. I had a nice approach wedge up the hill on the short par-4 2nd hole on the Bluebonnet course after a really good drive, though I narrowly missed the birdie putt. My main issue today was hitting the wedges too high and too short.
• Chipping. My chipping was pretty good today. I got up and down six times, but not always for par.
• Sand shots. I hit into two fairway bunkers and one greenside bunker. My first fairway bunker shot on the first hole on the Mockingbird course was pretty well struck with a 7-iron, but I had to lay up because the lip wouldn’t allow me to go for the green. My second fairway bunker shot on the 6th hole on Bluebonnet was plugged and I was happy just to get the ball out cleanly with a sand wedge. My greenside bunker shot on the 8th hole on Bluebonnet was terrible and didn’t get out, so I had to do it again. The second one flew the green. 🙁
• Putting. With the exception of two holes I three-putted, my speed was good all day. I even nailed a 60 foot putt for bogey on the 6th hole on Bluebonnet. I think that’s the longest putt I’ve ever hit, and I knew it was going in when it was 20 ft from the hole. I had a total of 33 putts today.

While today was not my best golf, at least I was able to get the driver going a little bit and hit a few good chips and a few good putts. I also broke 100 for the first time since I injured my shoulder (it didn’t really bother me today at all). We’ll see if I can get it going this weekend in the next Grapevine Golf Association tournament.

On Sunday, I played nine at North Texas Golf. The weather was warm and sunny, with a strong breeze from the east. I warmed up quite well, using Tour Tempo and hitting my short irons quite solidly. Unfortunately, it didn’t transfer to the course.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

My round:

• Tee shots. I hit three greens in regulation, though I really only consider one shot well-struck, the 8-iron into the wind to 12 ft on the fourth hole. I hit two other greens in regulation, the second hole, which was well short and below the ridge that runs across the green, and the ninth hole. On that hole I hit a worm-burner 7-iron that somehow came to rest 18 ft below the hole. It wasn’t a pretty shot at all, but at least I got my par.
• Chipping. My chipping was pretty good, except for the first hole, where I chipped over the green. My second chip on that hole was good, but I missed the three-foot putt. AAAIIIEEEYYY!!! 🙁 I managed to get up and down three times for par.
• Wedges. I didn’t hit any wedges as I was close enough to chip on all the greens I missed.
• Sand shots. None.
• Putting. Pretty good, except for the first two holes. On the first, I missed a three footer, and on the second, I completely misread the break and lipped out the second putt. Otherwise my speed was good. I had a total 16 putts.

I was OK with the way I played on Sunday, as my short iron practice and my short game practice before playing was quite good. Unfortunately, the short irons didn’t transfer to the course, although my chipping was pretty good.

This afternoon, I played 18 at North Texas Golf, going around twice on a cool, breezy, but sunny, day. As the course was not crowded, I was able to go around in a little over 2 hours.

I’ve had very poor practices for the last two weeks, but this afternoon, I got out Tour Tempo and got things mostly straightened out with respect to getting the club on the back of the ball. I’m hitting off a pull, so my distance is about a club shorter than usual. I’ll get that worked out, now that I realize that tempo was the main issue for the last two weeks.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

Themes:

• Tee shots. For the first couple of holes, I came up short on many holes, due in part to hitting off a pull, and also due to the strong wind. I hit only two greens in regulation on the first nine, but improved after I clubbed up on the second nine to where I hit five GIR. I had one bad chunk on the front and one on the back, and also flew the green on the last hole, about two clubs long. My best shot of the day was one of my best ever, an 8-iron to 2 feet on the 4th hole.
• Chipping. I got up and down five times. My chipping was pretty good, except for the 2nd hole, where I hit the ball thin over the green.
• Wedges. I didn’t have any wedge shots today, as all my tee shots were close enough to use a chip shot.
• Putting. I had a total of 32 putts today. I didn’t hit any putts longer than 9 ft and didn’t miss any below 5 ft. My speed was good except for the two holes that I three-putted.

I was pretty happy with the way I played today, considering how poorly I practiced for the last two weeks on my long game. My tempo was off, and Tour Tempo was able to get my swing back to something resembling a golf swing. Once I get my swing path fixed (really, really don’t want to play off a pull, as that causes loss of distance), I’ll get back to hitting the ball like I did last summer when I was occasionally breaking 90.

This afternoon, I played 12 holes at Coyote Ridge Golf Club. The weather was sunny but cold, around 50F. There was only a little wind from the south. I warmed up pretty poorly on the range, hitting a lot of fat short wedges and short irons. Longer clubs were pretty good. I didn’t get a chance to putt before playing. The course was very firm and fast, and the greens were speedy. We played from the blues, which I don’t usually play, but since I’m playing the GGA tournament next week, need the practice playing a longer course.

My round:

• First hole. I hit my hybrid thin and straight at the tree on the right of the fairway. I’ve been in that spot many times it seems. My 6-iron from the rough was hit thin and struck a branch on the tree. The ball ended up in the middle of the fairway, but only advanced about 20 yds. My third shot with a 7-iron was hit thin as well and over the green. I putted from the fringe to about 3 ft and made the putt for bogey.
• Second hole. I hit a thriver to the right side of the fairway. My second shot with the hybrid was pushed right into the rough. My third shot was high and short into the bunker in front of the green. I got out cleanly but short of the green. I putted from the fringe to about 4 ft, but lipped out the putt and tapped in for double.
• Third hole. I pulled my hybrid tee shot from 190 yds left of the hole but pin-high in the rough. My lob wedge was struck thin and over the green into the bunker, where it embedded in the sand below the lip. I had an extremely difficult shot, which didn’t get out of the bunker. My fourth shot was hit thin and over the green and put an X on the scorecard so as to not hold up play.
• Fourth hole. My tee shot with the driver was well-struck but right of my target line. A bad bounce put the ball into the ditch. My second shot with a 7-iron was well-struck but rolled into a grass bunker on the left side of the fairway, leaving me with a 9-iron into the green. My shot was hit a bit fat (that’s an improvement over thin) and short. My chip was pretty good, to about 4 ft, but the putt lipped out and I tapped in for a disappointing bogey.
• Fifth hole. I hit a nice drive into the center of the fairway, but my second with a 6-iron was right and short into the bunker. My bunker shot was fat and short. I chipped poorly and compounded it by three-putting for triple.
• Sixth hole. My driver hit the center of the fairway, but my second shot was left of the green. I chipped nicely to about 5 ft, lipped out the putt and tapped in for bogey.
• Seventh hole. I hit a 7-iron short into the water. My third was hit onto the green but well right of the pin, where I three-putt for triple.
• Eighth hole. I hit a long drive over the two bunkers but into the rough. My second shot was pin-high right into the greenside bunker. My bunker shot was hit thin over the green into the long rough over the cart path. My fourth with a lob wedge struck the flag and ran about 9 ft past the hole. I two-putt for double.
• Ninth hole. I hit a perfect 5-wood right into the center of the fairway. My second shot with a 5-wood came up just short of the green. I chipped poorly to about 30 ft, but nailed the long uphill putt for par.
• Tenth hole. I hit a hybrid left of the fairway just in front of the creek. Since I was behind a tree, I had to hit a 7-iron to get over it. My shot hooked way left of the fairway. I was too long to go for the green, so I hit a pitching wedge layup shot. My fourth shot was into the greenside bunker. I got out cleanly but just short. I putted from the fringe and then tapped in for double.
• Eleventh hole. I hit a well-struck hybrid onto the green but about 35 ft from the hole. My birdie putt didn’t break as I expected and was left with about 6 ft, which I read perfectly for par.
• Twelfth hole. My driver was perfectly struck into the center of the fairway. My second with an 8-iron was nicely struck leaving me about 12 ft for birdie. My birdie putt didn’t break at all and I tapped in for par.

Other than the ball I hit into the water, my tee shots were pretty good, hitting five of nine fairways, and one par-3 hole in regulation. My approach shots still leave much to be desired, as I hit only one green on par-4 or par-5 holes. My sand play was just terrible. I had a few good chips and a few left well short. My putting was mediocre, other than the 30 footer I nailed on the ninth hole and the breaking 6 footer on the 11th. I only got up and down three times on 12 holes (only once for par).

I’ll spend the week working on chips, pitches and wedges. My long game (driver, thriver, 5-wood, hybrid) is pretty respectable right now, but my poor iron play into the green puts too much stress on my short game. I’ll spend what practice time I have this week on short irons, chips, pitches and wedges, along with lots of putting practice.

My goal for the next tournament is to break 100.

This afternoon, I played a practice round at the Grapevine Golf Course in preparation for the January GGA tournament. We played the Mockingbird and Pecan courses, the same courses that will be used for the next tournament. We played from the blue tees, as that’s where the tournament is played. The weather was very nice for January, mid-60s by the afternoon. There was a strong wind on a couple of holes, but mostly light and variable.

The course was playing firm and fast, greens very fast.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

Themes:

• Tee shots. I hit 7 of 14 fairways and one par-3 hole. I had two penalties off the tee, one an unplayable lie under one of those ball-eating grass bushes (9th hole Mockingbird), and one dunked in the water (9th hole Pecan).
• Approach shots. Not good at all. I didn’t hit a single green in regulation, except for the par-3 hole. I had two penalties on approach shots, both balls lost into the woods. I did have a few shots that were pretty good and just off the greens.
• Chips and short wedges. My chipping and pitching was very mixed. I got up-and-down four times, but I thinned two or three chips over the green.
• Sand shots. I was in two greenside bunkers, and got out cleanly from both, though I didn’t get up and down on either one.
• Putting. Pretty pathetic. Aside from a 12 foot putt, I didn’t hit any long putts at all. I three-putt my only green in regulation, and added four more three-putts to go along with it. 36 putts total. Yeech!

I wasn’t particularly happy with the way I played. I didn’t use the driver or thriver at all, as my practice time has been very limited and I’ve been fighting big hooks with these clubs. My 5-wood was used on almost all of the par-4 and par-5 holes. I’m going to have to get the driver and/or thriver to work. Having long irons or hybrids into most of the par-4 holes is quite challenging.

Still, I did manage to shoot 5 shots better than the last time I played this course.

On Sunday, John and I played 14 holes of match play at Coyote Ridge Golf Club. We went off at around 2PM on a 50 degree day, cool but sunny with barely any wind. The course was playing very firm and fast. Unfortunately, we were behind some very slow groups and were only able to complete 14 holes.

My round:

• First hole. I hit a 5-iron thin off the tee, leaving me an 8-iron from behind the tree to the right of the fairway. I hit that one very thin and was left about 15 yds short of the green. I then shanked a lob wedge right of the green, chipped on and two-putted for double. Halved the hole.
• Second hole. I hit a perfect drive right down the center of the fairway, and then a perfect 8-iron layup to about 95 yds to the pin. Unfortunately, I hit my 3/4 approach wedge thin and long, leaving me with a downhill lie in the rough above the hole. I hit a chip long and two-putt for bogey. John hit a stellar chip to about 4 ft and nailed the par putt to go one up on me.
• Third hole. I hit a 5-iron 10 yds short and right of the pin. I hit a good chip about 6 ft by the hole and nailed the par putt. John just missed his par putt and I got the match back to even.
• Fourth hole. My drop-kicked drive was in the center of the fairway. I hit a nice hybrid shot to about 75 yds from the green in perfect position to fire at the pin. I hit a sand wedge to about 20 ft and two putt for par. John also hit the green in regulation, but left with about a 35 ft putt for birdie, which he ran 3 ft by the hole. He made the par putt to halve the hole and leave us even.
• Fifth hole. I hit a nasty duck hook into the left rough no more than a 100 yds from the tee. From there, I pulled a 6-iron into the left rough. My wedge from there was short, and I chipped poorly and two-putt for double. Fortunately, John didn’t play the hole any better and we halved the hole to stay even.
• Sixth hole. I popped up my 5-wood into the fairway. My hybrid 2nd shot was pin-high just left of the green. I chipped long and two-putt for bogey. John chipped nicely and nailed his par putt to go one up.
• Seventh hole. I misjudged the wind and overclubbed, going well over the green. However, John hit virtually the same shot. He hit a low chip that ran well past the pin, but on the green. My lob wedge was hit short, so I had to chip, but went about 9 ft past the hole. I two-putt from there for double. John two-putted from a longer distance and won the hole with bogey to go 2-up.
• Eighth hole. My 5-wood tee shot was well struck, but was right of the fairway. My second shot was a little short. I hit my pitch to about 12 ft and three-putted for double. John’s second shot was in the bunker to the right of the green and it took him two to get out. He two-putt from there to halve the hole, but he was still 2-up on me.
• Ninth hole. I hit a perfect hybrid off the tee to the center of the fairway, then a nice hybrid just short of the green. I hit a nearly perfect chip from there to less than 2 ft and was conceded par. John had hit his tee shot into the pond left of the fairway, but he played the hole well from there and managed a bogey. I made the turn down 1 hole.
• Tenth hole. I hit a hybrid off the tee a bit left of my target line. My hybrid shot from there was in the center of the fairway, but with a lengthy third. My third was thin and left. The ball hit a tree left of the green and fortunately stopped in the rough without rolling into the creek. I hit a decent wedge from there and just missed my par putt and tapped in for bogey. I don’t recall what John scored on the hole, but I won the hole to even the match.
• Eleventh hole. I hit a 6-iron off the toe short of the hole. My chip didn’t go far enough up the ridge, and rolled back nearly to the spot I’d hit from. My second chip was much better, but I missed my bogey putt. John played his hole much the same way and we halved the hole to remain even.
• Twelfth hole. I hit a perfect 5-wood into the center of the fairway, leaving me with a 7-iron to the green. John hit an iron off the tee and had a 5-iron. His shot was well left of the green but pin-high, mine was just right of the green and pin-high. John chipped onto the green, but misread his putt and made bogey. I hit a very nice chip to about 4 ft and nailed the par putt to take my first lead in the match. Alas, it didn’t last.
• Thirteenth hole. I hit a fat 5-wood well right of the fairway, leaving me behind a tree. John hit an iron into the center of the fairway. I had to lay up as I didn’t have a shot at the green. I hit my 7-iron thin and low, hitting a branch. The ball ended up right next to John’s ball, but he hadn’t taken his 2nd yet. My third shot was badly pulled and should have been lost in the woods, however, it hit a tree solidly and trickled back into the fairway below the hole. My 4th with a lob wedge was struck thin and well over the green. I conceded the hole as John had a short putt for par.
• Fourteenth hole. The flag was well up, as was the pin. John hit his tee shot into the bunker very close to the edge, leaving him with virtually no shot. I took that as a sign to hit the ball into the center of the green. However, my pitching wedge was hit very high and the ball ended up in its own crater. Even though it took John two to get out of the bunker, my own shot was hit thin over the green, where the ball rolled well down the hill. My lob wedge was short (again!) and I had to concede the hole when John rolled in his putt. I was one down at this point.

That was one ugly match play, but I greatly enjoyed being out on a gorgeous, if chilly, afternoon. The only bad thing about the day was the very slow pace of play of the groups in front of us. John and I both like to play fast and we can finish nine in an hour and a half if we don’t have to wait. But wait we did, so long that we didn’t get our match completed.

This afternoon, I played a nine-hole Skins Game with three friends. We went off around 3PM and finished up as the sun was going down. The weather was excellent, about 70 degrees, with a soft breeze from the southwest.

My round:

• First hole. I hit a five-iron off the tee into the right fringe, about a foot off the fairway. I hit a 7-iron onto the green, but I three-putted from about 35 ft for bogey. No one won the hole outright.
• Second hole. I hit a 5-wood with good distance over the left bunker. I had 240 left to the hole, so I hit a layup shot to about a 100 yd shot just in front of the first greenside bunker. From there, I hit a fat approach wedge short of the green, but I hit a really good chip to about 6 ft and hit the putt for par, to win the hole and two skins.
• Third hole. I hit a poor tee shot short and right. I chipped poorly to about 20 ft, but ran the downhill putt well by the hole and ended up three-putting for double. Dean won the hole outright with a bogey.
• Fourth hole. I hit a long tee shot with the 5-wood, but it kicked right into the ditch on the right side of the fairway. From there, I chunked a 7-iron into the pond, took a drop, chunked a 9-iron into the pond and took an X on the hole, since one of my competitors was on the green in two. Dean, who hit the green in two, two-putted for birdie to win the hole outright.
• Fifth hole. Hooked my tee shot out of bounds left. My third shot was hit thin and left. My fourth shot was on the green, and I two-putted for double. Dean won the hole with par.
• Sixth hole. I hit a good tee shot just to the right of the fairway bunker, hit my approach pin-high, but left of the green. I hit a poor chip well past the hole and two-putted for bogey. John hit a nice putt from the fringe to win the hole with par.
• Seventh hole. I hit a 7-iron onto the green 25 ft below the hole, and two-putted for par to win the hole. All three of my competitors ended up in the left hand bunker and they weren’t able to get up and down to tie the hole.
• Eighth hole. I popped up my drive, which ended up in the left hand rough. I hit a five iron into the right hand rough, then hit a poor lob wedge short, hit a mediocre chip and two-putt for double. Two of my playing companions tied on the hole, so no one won the hole.
• Ninth hole. Hit my drive right near the out-of-bounds. Hit a 5-iron right, where it hit a mound and bounced into the center of the fairway. My third shot with the approach wedge was on the green 30 ft left of the hole. I two-putted for bogey and won the hole outright for two skins.

I ended up winning five skins. I was pretty happy with the way I played, given that I’ve been able to practice due to my sore shoulder until yesterday.