Course: Battlefield Golf Course
Date: September 8, 2021
Time: 8:00 AM
Conditions:
75* & sunny. Perfect.
Played in a Wednesday morning blitz with 3 partners in a 20 man blitz. First time playing in this group.
WITB:
Ping G425 LST 9* (turned to 8*) with Diamana D+ 60X
Ping G400 Stretch 3W 13* (turned to 12.5*) with Diamana D+ 70X
Taylormade SIM Max 5W 18* with Mitsubishi HZRDUS Smoke Black 70 6.5
Mizuno JPX 921 Hot Metal 4-PW with KBS CTaper 130X + 3/4*; 2* Upright
Mizuno MP T20 50, 54, 58 Wedges with DG Tour Issue S400
Odyssey Toulon Las Vegas H7 36”
I want to preface this recap by saying that I appreciate any and all of you who read this. The last post got over 230 views, which is kind of mindblowing. I started doing this for myself and to share with my golf partner, and now it’s just become its own mini-thing. I love doing them, and apparently, some of you enjoy reading them.
Prepare yourself for this roller coaster. I hit a good number of absolutely tour-quality shots, especially off the tee today. I played the par 3s like I was holding the wrong end of the golf club. I have no idea what was going on. I’m admittedly not a great iron player, but holy smokes….I joked that a few holes it looks like a child scribbled on a map with the ugly shot tracking lines on a few of them. Oh well…that’s golf. Played in a great group of older guys, one of whom was the former club champion with a course record of 64!! And I rode with an Englishman from Birmingham who sounded EXACTLY like Nate from Ted Lasso. I hit a bunch of BOMBS off the tee today and he gave me a hilarious “F*cking ‘ell, mate!” each and every time. It was quality entertainment! OK, I’m getting carried away with the intro…let’s get into it.
Hole #1
I’ve been wanting to play in the Wednesday blitz at this local course for a while. I play a ton of solo rounds at my home course because I play early weekday morning golf a lot, but I’ve been wanting to play some kind of competitive golf. Nothing super strict, but something that gets me into competitive mode and playing with some other guys. After signing in, being assigned my Stableford point total (23), and a group, I headed to the first tee. I’ve been hitting it well, so I was nervous about this opening tee shot, but the ball came right outta the middle and I was 40 yards by all my partners, 2 of whom were hitting from up a tee. I was in the left rough, but with a decent lie. Hit an 8i just right of the green that stopped pin high. I hadn’t spent any time chipping and putting before my round, so I opted for a PW bump and run which trickled to about 6 inches. I prayed my partners weren’t thinking ‘sandbagger’ as I tapped in for an opening birdie. Great start!
PS - Two rounds in a row with an opening birdie….we like that!
Score: -1 (-1)
Hole #2
I’ve had a tough time on this hole when I’ve played it previously. Right is dead, and left is the miss, but with my length off the tee, I can end up in the water left if I go too far in that direction. I opted instead for the missile right down the middle. Usually a pretty safe play. A solid gap wedge left me 15 feet for birdie, and I just missed on the low side. Tap in par.
Score: E (-1)
Hole #3
Decided to announce my presence with authority off the tee on this hole. (Kudos to you if you get the Bull Durham reference). Sticking with that theme, I Hit a Nuke right down the middle. It never left the flag and left me a short pitch to the green. Unfortunately my bump and run here didn’t run out like it did on the first hole, so I ended up with 16 feet downhill and it was a slider. Just missed, tapping in for a par. Still rolling at this point!
Score: E (-1)
Hole #4
Your first kindgerten scribble, ladies and gents. I had 148 to the stick and I don’t know what the heck I did, but I hit this ball right in the belly with the leading edge of my…..you guessed it….PW! It flew at the green like a bat outta hell. I hoped out loud that it would hit the flagstick and die, but instead, it flew 30 yards past the green and rolled another 10 after that. Nothin like a 200 yard PW when all ya need is 150….brutal! Lie wasn’t great, and I was hitting lob wedge back toward a green that ran away from me down to water…I babied it, left it on the fringe, My next chip left me 5 feet for bogey, and though it may not seem like a moral victory to you, in a Stableford format, bogey gets a point, where double results in 0 points, so I was happy to make the 5 footer and secure a point after a horrific tee shot. Back to even.
Score: +1 (E)
Hole #5
This was the first not great tee ball of the day. Though you can’t tell in the photo above, the stuff left of the cart path is long, thick grass and it’s dead if you go in there. Additionally, with a really good drive, you can roll down into the water with a drive down the middle. I probably should have hit 3w and just taken an aggressive swing, but instead, I took an indecisive timid swing and flared one out right out of the heel. In the thick rough, I didn’t get any roll, but was thankful for that because it kept me from getting into more trouble to the right. I hit a great 7i to the left fringe of the green and putted from the fringe, tapping in for par. After a weak tee ball and water lurking right of the green, this was a solid par.
Score: E (E)
Hole #6
Scribbles return! I hate this hole. It should be so easy, but when you stand on the tee, you’re looking straight downhill at this green with water right and everything slopes down to the water. I always aim left and today I misclubbed and hit 8i too far. Another chip into a green running away from me down to water, and another babied first chip that hung on a slope just off the green. Hit a decent little bump and run, but the green was really fast and it took me two putts to get down from 22 feet. Bad double bogey here, but nobody ever seems to play it well.
Score: +2 (+2)
Hole #7
Weird hole here. I probably could have hit fairway wood or even driver here, but opted for the safe play…and it blew up in my dang face! Though it shows 81 yards, the 4i I hit off the tee was melted, and actually flew about 240 yards and splashed into the water just right past the bunker. This water, I discovered, is called Benelli’s Bayou because apparently last year some guy named Benelli made a 17 in the club championship when he went all Roy Mcavoy and kept deleting balls into the pond. On a normal day, I probably would have taken another iron, hit it into the fairway, and then wedged my way onto the green. In Stableford, double bogeys are the max and they don’t hurt they just don’t add any points, so I had only one option: Go for it! I grabbed 5w and smoked it just at the right edge of the green. Unfortunately, the green is a little bit of a turtle shell here, and when it hit, it bounced down right. I hoped I wasn’t in the water, and when I got up to the green, I was not. I did not have a good swing at the ball though as some rocks around the edge of the green kept me from swinging at the flag. I had to go to the middle of the green and I left myself 14 feet for bogey. It just slid by and I tapped in for double.
I still think 4i is the right play here, I just aimed further right than I thought I was, and I left the face a little open. The ball was crushed, and pretty straight, just started too far right.
Score: +2 (+4)
Hole #8
This was a BIG tee ball. I was a little angry about the double and I had room to miss right which is big for me. It allows me to swing with a ton of confidence, and this one came right out of the middle and seemed to have another gear to it. When we drove up to it, I knew I had hit it well, but 318 is pretty strong. I had a partial wedge in, clipped it pretty good, and just missed the first putt from 15 feet. Tap-in par got me back in the right direction. As I improve inside 100 yards these holes have to start becoming birdies.
Score: E (+4)
Hole #9
Another great tee ball. This was into the wind but came out flat and beat the wind to leave me just 60 yards from the stick. I had a pretty tight lie and wanted to nip it perfectly to try and start taking advantage of the great drives I was hitting and make some more birdies. Instead, I stuck my wedge in the ground and laid sod over the ball, barely advancing it 20 yards. I was PISSED at this point, hit an average wedge on and 2 putted for bogey. I don’t remember much on this green except seeing red. Zero reason to make a bogey after a drive like that. Wasted opportunity.
Score: +1 (+5)
Hole #10
This hole is slightly deceptive. The hole plays quite a bit uphill and this drive was well-struck, but a little spinny and it didn’t get a great kick off the mounds on the right. I could only see the top of the flag from the small valley I was in, but hit a great gap wedge to the left edge of the green and trickled my first putt close. Tap-in par. Ho-hum, but solid start to the back.
Score: E (+6)
Hole #11
I can’t quite describe with words how ugly this tee shot was. The wind was into us and I opted for a hard 8 instead of a smooth 7. I don’t like taking distance off a club and prefer to try and get a little more from an iron. I get lazy with my arms and body when trying to smooth an iron shot, so I prefer aggressive swings. Well, I got aggressive here, but stood up out of it and hit it off the end of the toe of the club and sliced it way right. My playing partner let me know he’d never seen anybody where I ended up on this hole haha! I grabbed my 58* and lofted one up over the slopes and left myself 36 feet for par. Missed the lag putt on the low side and hit the comebacker for bogey. Ugly, but bogey was good after the horrible tee ball.
Score: +1 (+7)
Hole #12
While this looks like a miss left, I actually hit it exactly where I wanted to. I wanted NO PART of the water right, and a bomb up the left would leave me a great angle into the green, and it was cut fairly short over there. On this line, I could swing aggressively and if I missed either way, I’d be ok, and a good tee ball left me in great shape. I hit a really good one and had the approach angle I wanted. Unfortunately, with the wind into me and not the best contact, the wedge came out dead and I left it just short of the green. It rolled back down the slope and I had about 20 yards. I grabbed PW and went for another bump and run, but when this hit the slope, rather than checking up and trickling to the hole, it took off on me and ran 20 feet by. I lagged the first putt to the hole, leaving it just right of the cup and tapping in for bogey. Another missed opportunity.
Score: +1 (+8)
Hole #13
No, you’re not experiencing deja vu. I hit this ball off the planet right too. I think at this point I was just in my head on the par 3 tee shots. I hit my irons well the rest of the day for the most part, but off the tee on par 3s, I was lost today. I mean to miss this badly with a short iron/wedge is insane. I grabbed 58* again, floated one onto the green again, and two-putted again for bogey. If you’re keeping track at home, that is four Par 3s, ZERO GIR, and FIVE OVER PAR. Good grief. Embarrassing.
Score: +1 (+9)
Hole #14
This is where the wheels could have really come off. I peppered this drive into the wind 280 and left myself about 200 into a par 5 from the first cut. I grabbed 5i because long was dead, and hit it right at the pin, leaving myself just off the green. Definitely thinking birdie, but after a bad bump and run a few holes earlier, I thought I’d putt this one from off the green. As I walked over the ball with my putter, I immediately regretted that decision. I was uphill into the grain and it was a little soggy where I was located. I wanted to grab my wedge, but my partner had driven the cart around and was 50+ yards away. Instead of holding up the group, I ended up just hitting my putter. I was never committed to it and left it a solid 8 yards short of the green. It just didn’t go anywhere. My next shot was with putter too and it hit a wet area and didn’t even make it to the green. I was reeling. So now I had another putt from off the green (3rd putt from inside 20 yards if you’re counting) and left it 3 feet from the cup for a tap in bogey. What an absolute disaster. It was a two-fold problem: putter was the wrong club, but mentally I never refocused and committed to the shot. Wrong club or not, I could have definitely found a way to make this par at worst, and instead, I made a few back to back to back dumb plays.
Score: +1 (+10)
Hole #15
An interesting hole here. The tee box is tucked back into this little cove and tees were up today. I knew the driver was too much, but with the wind into us, I wasn’t sure what to hit. I opted for the G400 Stretch and hit a great shot that landed just left of the green, pin high. Right is dead, so left is definitely the miss here. I grabbed my 54* and hit a great pitch to about 6 feet. I watched two other putts speed by and I got scared of it, so babied mine and left it on the right edge. Tap in par that should absolutely have been birdie. Another missed opportunity.
Score: E (+10)
Hole #16
Tees were up again here too, and I was less than thrilled about it because the wind was helping and I was between clubs. PW was too much, Gap wedge was probably the play, but the wind was hard to judge. I hit a soft GW and like I mentioned earlier, I got a little lazy with it and the wind died a bit and I left it short. I didn’t have a great lie in the rough and my chip stayed on the fringe. The next bump and run ran way out, leaving me 18 feet. My first putt ran by about 5 feet and I rushed, didn’t take my time, and lipped out the bogey putt. Double. Five Par 3s, ZERO GIR, SEVEN OVER PAR. SEVEN.
Score: +2 (+11)
Hole #17
Came to this tee box pretty ticked off about the double and my abysmal Par 3 play and just didn’t really think as I was preparing my tee shot. There is literally 500 yards left that you can miss on this hole, but I decided to aim up the right and make my first really bad driver swing on the back 9. I deposited a tee ball in the soybean fields to the right, which happens to be one of the only places on the course with OB. I was seeing red when I reteed and hit a bomb that cut from the middle of the fairway to the right first cut of rough. I forgot to select the club to the shot in the screengrab above, but I hit a great 6i to the front of the green and gave myself a chance for par. I trickled the putt toward the cup, which was downhill quite a bit, and tapped in for bogey. Just a dumb decision on the tee. Gotta aim left here. Could have been an easy birdie. Instead bogey. Not great, but again, in Stableford, not the worst.
Score: +1 (+12)
Hole #18
Melted this ball with the driver up the right into the wind, leaving myself a short little wedge into the green for my 2nd. The wedge shot was delicate because I had a bunker to cover, but not a lot of room between the bunker and the pin. I got greedy and tried to sneak it in, but hit the top of the mound behind the bunker, and it slowly, painfully trickled back and down into the bunker. I splashed out well, but missed the first putt and tapped in for bogey.
Score: +1 (+13)
Total Score: 83 (+13)
Lots I could say about this round. I shot 83 with three double bogeys and playing the Par 3s in +7. I can honestly say I’ve never done that before. Other than the stupid alignment mistake on 17, I drove it like a pro today. Everything was crushed and left me in really good spots with great angles in. I just wasted a ton of opportunities and my play around the green was horrific. I will say, not as an excuse, but something to note: the grass around the greens at Battlefield is very different than anything I normally play. It’s all bermuda and it’s very grainy and tightly mown. I misclubbed a couple of times, mishit a couple of times, and misjudged a couple of times. But to think about how poorly I played around the greens and on the par 3s and then realize I still shot 83 says a lot. My game is coming along and my driving is becoming a weapon.
I mentioned to my golf partner via text that this round felt like it “should have” been 75 or 76. I’m more used to rounds that “could have” been. Maybe that difference doesn’t make sense to you, but in my head, it makes perfect sense. I’m putting myself in good spots much of the time and I know I have all the shots I need to play 70s golf consistently. Both penalties were avoidable with better alignment, and the 3-putt was really just sloppy. I really should have shot 75 today as well as I drove it.
I did hit my point total of 23 for Stableford, but it should have been much more. I left 2 or 3 birdies out there that were just lost by poor short game play.
All in all, some positives to take away, and some things to think about and work on in my short game. Five 2-chips might be some sort of record. It’s disgusting. Need to be sure that never happens again. Positive strokes gained everywhere, and losing more than 4 shots around the green kept me out of the 70s. The blitz was a great time and I’ll be back. I’m not sure I can talk my wife, or myself into a 2nd golf membership, but it’s pretty cheap and all-inclusive (range balls, cart fees, etc.), so if I’m going to be part of the regular Wednesday game, we’ll see.
Potentially playing again tomorrow after work with a buddy. My son has a sleepover Friday night, so a Saturday morning round is possible, and Monday celebrating my playing partner’s birthday with a round with he and another good buddy. Lotta dollar bets on the horizon!