Joey's Golf Bag

Yesterday afternoon, I played 18 at Coyote Ridge Golf Course on a warm, sunny day. We went off at about 12:15PM and finished four hours later. I arrived early to warm up, and I was pretty pleased with it. I’ve been working, almost exclusively, on getting good impact on the ball, specifically, keeping my hands ahead of the ball at impact. I had varying degrees of success.

My round:

• First hole. I hit a 7-wood off the tee into the left side of the fairway, and hit a good 7-iron to about 35 ft left of the hole. Unfortunately, I three-putted for bogey.
• Second hole. I pushed a driver well right of the fairway. The ball ended up nearly on the 8th fairway. From there, I hit a pretty good 4-hybrid just short of the greenside bunkers. From there, I hit a good pitching wedge about 35 ft left of the hole. Again, I three-putted for bogey. Yeech!
• Third hole. I hit a 5-iron pin-high, but 35 ft right of the green. I used a sand wedge to chip onto the green, and the ball curled in for birdie. Woop!
• Fourth hole. I pushed my driver a bit right and ended up as usual in the big ditch to the right of the fairway. I chunked my first hybrid about 30 ft, then hit a good shot into the center of the fairway. From there, I had a 7-iron into the green, and I hit it to about 25 ft. I missed the putt and tapped in for bogey.
• Fifth hole. I hit a seemingly perfect drive right over the left fairway bunkers, only to find my ball about a foot to the right of the fairway bunker another 40 yds beyond the first two. I had no choice but to punch a ball as far as I could, as my feet were a good 2 ft below the ball. I chipped short and two-putted for bogey.
• Sixth hole. I hit another long drive, but it hit the second fairway bunker. I pulled my 8-iron over the green, chunked my first chip, then hit a second one to about 6 ft, but missed that putt and tapped in for double.
• Seventh hole. As I hit the shot, the wind strengthened in my face, and I hit the ball short left into the bunker. My bunker shot wasn’t close to the hole and I two-putted for bogey.
• Eighth hole. My drive was pushed well right to the right of the third bunker. I hit a 5-iron very thin short of the greenside bunker. I shanked my wedge into the bunker. I hit my bunker shot about a foot short of perfect, and it hung in the fringe (another foot, and it would have run down to the hole). I putted from the fringe long and hit my return putt for double.
• Ninth hole. I hit a very nice 7-wood off the tee into the right side of the fairway. My second 7-wood was about 40 yds short of the green. My pitch was well short, and then my putt was well short. I finished the front by three-putting for double.
• Tenth hole. I hit a very nice 7-wood perfectly into the preferred spot on the fairway. My next 7-wood was very poor, going through a small tree and ending up right of the cart path. I had no shot to the green due to another tree, so I hit a lay-up with the pitching wedge to just in front of the creek in front of the green. Here, I hit my worst shot all day, a topped pitching wedge into the creek. My next pitching wedge was hit into the deep greenside bunker. I hit another (nearly) perfect bunker shot that, had it gone one more foot, would have rolled right down to the hole. Instead, again, it hung on the fringe and I two-putted from there for a baseball team.
• Eleventh hole. My 5-iron was hooked well left of the green on a steep down slope to the green protected by a bunker. I used a lob wedge to pitch over the bunker, but the ball didn’t stop on the green but rolled down the slope on the other side of the green. I was left with a very steep shot up to the green. I hit a pretty good chip using a sand wedge to about 7 ft and made the putt for bogey.
• Twelth hole. My driver was hit well but right into the first fairway bunker on the right, up against the lip. I tried to get a pitching wedge on it, but the ball hit the lip and ended up between the second and third fairway bunkers. I hit a pretty good iron from there just short of the green. I chipped to about 4 inches and tapped in for bogey.
• Thirteenth hole. I hit a decent 7-wood just left of the fairway in the rough. I hit a poor 7-iron just short of the right greenside bunker. I hit a pretty good pitch with the sand wedge to about 15 ft and made the putt for par. Woop!
• Fourteenth hole. My 7-iron was hit weakly right into the deep greenside bunker. I shanked my sand shot and had to hit another one, this time going past the hole about 8 ft. I missed the putt and tapped in for double.
• Fifteenth hole. I popped up my drive but into the fairway. My second shot with the 4-wood cleared the two center bunkers, leaving me an approach wedge to the green. That shot was short and left. I chipped from there to about 10 ft and missed the par putt and tapped in for bogey.
• Sixteenth hole. My 4-wood hit a tree right of the fairway and dropped into the rough. My iron was poorly struck and ended up under a pine tree, so I had to take an unplayable. My fourth shot was not well-struck and ended up well short. I hit an approach wedge 30 ft short of the hole. My putt was nicely judged but missed and I tapped in for triple.
• Seventeenth hole. My 7-wood ended up just right of the fairway but with a clear shot to the green. I hit a 9-iron pin-high but just right of the green. My chip was left a little short, and I missed that putt and tapped in for bogey.
• Eighteenth hole. I badly chunked my tee shot with the 7-wood. My next 7-wood ended up at the top of the hill. My pitching wedge from there went just over the green. My chip was good, but my putt wasn’t, and I tapped in for double.

Fun day of golf, really only got irritated on the 10th, when I chunked the ball into the creek, and my series of bad shots on 16. I can see a bit of improvement, despite very limited practice time.