(click small pics to enlarge)

April 26, 2014

     A round of golf at the South Course at Charleston Springs in Monmouth County New Jersey starts with a journey.  While I was paying my greens fee I heard a young guy in his twenties say something like this when asked if he was walking or riding, "Oh riding,  I wouldn't play the game if I had to walk.  I feel bad about all those old gentleman I see walking out there..."  Being in my forties, I took it personally, for a second anyway.  But I know why I walk.  I believe he'll learn.
     The journey isn't metaphysical or spiritual or anything like that.  It's a hike from the parking lot you see in the upper right, to the clubhouse on the center-left, and then across the bridge.  This is about halfway to the tee, and the second half is all uphill, and steep at that.  I am usually breathing heavy on the first tee.
     I played with Steve and Dan, two very friendly guys that were great to golf with.  The drive was with me today.  I found the fairway on 1, though I would've preferred the left side to the right side where I landed my drive.  From 185 or so out I hit a three iron in the stiff wind, but sliced it right further.  I found it and had a lucky look at the green just past some trees and a tractor that was parked.  This tractor was not in the way of golf, by the way, it was stashed off between 1 and 18 in some trees.  I missed it, but searched around it until I found the ball in the long grass, but with a playable lie.  I had a difficult third across the cart path and up to the green, and lifted it with a wedge clear over.  Now coming back, I hit a weak fourth shot that lands just off the fringe.  Five tapped on with a seven iron since I was still in some long grass, and I two putt for seven.  That's a bad beginning.  What kind of round would it be?
    

That must be hard to see but if you click it, you can probably make out the news.  There are two rounds from November (3rd and 18th) 2013, and two from April (12 and 26) from 2014.  The scores are real (real bad--in the realm of 'why do you play'?).  I get it.  But I guess if you are reading this you already know why I play.  The April 26th round was a huge victory for me as I have been pretty consistently hitting 100's and 99's and 103's.  More important than the actual score was the fact that I parred 6 holes this round.  That is phenomenal in my world.  I still hope to one day be embarrassed about that remark.

The second hole is a short par 4, 350 yards with a pond to the right of the green, and fairly reachable if the gold tees are forward in the box.  Today they were forward, but with the wind, and unlike Dan who hit a nice iron to the center of the fairway, Joey Muscles pulls out his driver and proceeds to go all out for the pond.  Of course I was aiming left of center, over the bunker, which puts you on the fairway and close at that, taking the pond out of the second shot.  But I hit it straight down the middle.  Well struck, which is happiness in any case, but too, too deep.  I figure to be in the pond, but by the grace of them, I am on grass, ten yards or so from reaching the pond.  

This photo above is the hole (#2 on Charleston South), but this picture is from November 3, 2013.  That's about where Dan landed on April 26, the subject of this post.  I was all the way up by the edge of the hazard.  But I hit a good wedge 85 yards or so, over the pond, and landed just off the green and just above the pin.  I was on thick grass a foot before the fringe, but the tough part was that the pin was a good bit downhill, so that chip could be difficult.  I make a nice chip, and then sink the three footer for par.

This is from another earlier date, presumably in the summer, but it shows just about from where I was chipping.  Using this pic, draw a line straight down to the bottom of the pic from the pin to where the thick grass starts.  It doesn't appear to be drastically downhill here, but it is when you're standing over it.  So I parred half the holes so far.

Three is the Par 3, 195 which owns me.  I slice a three iron and land in the grass between three and four. In the photo below, again a different date, this tee shot landed where you see the Hole 4 marker and ball washer across the dead patch, a place that is dreadful fescue in season, but short enough to easily find my ball.  Not a great lie, but I hit a brilliant wedge that lands on the green and leaves me with about 12 feet for par, which I miss, but tap in bogey 4.

Four is a difficult Par 4, 432 yards uphill.  I hit a decent drive but worm-burn my second with a four iron from 180 out. 

My third shot looked something like this (above, from 10/12/13).  I made the green but was a good thirty feet away and three putt.

I bounced back on 5, the Par 4 379, with a par.  This included two great shots.  My drive wasn't great but was in the rough to the left of the fairway.  In the photo below, it is somewhat beyond the bunker but left of the cart path.

I had a blind look at the green, about 150 yards, and I ripped an 8 iron.  It looked and felt good, but I couldn't see it land because of the hills.  When I get there, I am thrilled.  I carried the bunker, and judging by where the ball stopped, I must have just made it over that trap.  I was on the green putting for birdie, but a good thirty feet and downhill.  I made a great putt that missed by a foot and tapped in for par.

Six is a Par 5 505, and I had a 7, which included a terrible drive over third base and into fescue.  But remember this is April and the grass was short enough to find my ball.  I played this round with one ball, just as I did on 4/12, and that is something for me.  I saved the drive but couldn't make a good shot.  I landed on the fairway, but still far from the green.  For my third swing, I am still over two hundred away so I try to lay up with a nine iron.  Laying up is smart, but when you miss that shot it makes you want to scream.  I missed it, landing over by some trees.  With my fourth I had to risk threading it through some trees or punch out, so I was already hitting 5.  Blah, 7.

The seventh is an easy one, Par 4 311 yards.  I smartly hit a four iron, but not well.  It is a low liner, but stays on the fairway; lousy shot, good result.  With a nine iron about 128 yards out, I flub.  I end up with a six here, and I don't really even want to discuss the 8 on the next hole, the Par 5 8th, 503 yards of misery.

The 9th hole owns me, I must have mentioned before.  It is a Par 3 158, but has fescue and hills and lions and tigers...not today.  I par this hole, and the great thing here was the putt.  I hit a seven iron way right of the green.  I chip up nicely over a bunker (many times that chip goes right in like a magnet) and land about ten feet from the hole.  I putt, concentrating on the line in the center of the putter's head, and nail it.  Seemed like I hadn't sunk a good putt in a while, so burying a ten-footer felt great. 

This pic above is the 9th on another day.  I included these pics only because I have them, and had an interesting 4 on that day.   To the left of the green is a steep drop.  On the day of this photo I mis-hit a weak seven iron and land forty yards in front of the green:

 From here I make another lousy shot and I land down that steep drop you can barely see to the left of the green (probably drops 12 or 15 feet below the green):

Then, hitting three up that slope, blind (it's so steep you can't see the top of the flag even though it's twenty feet or so away), I land it here:

Tap in four.  Why play?  It's for these rabbits (pulled out hats?, hehe..eh, ok)

Back to April 26, I hit a decent drive on the short Par 4 10th, 294 yards.  The green is well guarded by bunkers:

Photo is from Oct 2012

My drive left me 125 or 130 out, so I hit a nine iron and that landed between those two bunkers, but up closer to the green.  With my trusty 7 iron, I tap on and stop six feet or so away.  Again, using the trick of the line in the center of my putter, I nail it for par.  Four pars on the day is huge for me, but I wasn't done.

Twelve is a Par 4 412, and a tough uphill slog, with lots of woods if you really miss left with your drive.  But I hit one square down the center of the fairway, and end up with a shot similar to this photo (from, you guessed it, a different day)

Yesterday was about the same shot as on the day of this pic, back in August of 2013.  I didn't hit the green with my second, instead letting go of the six iron halfway through the swing, and squirming one to the right, leaving a shot like this:

You're not going to believe this but this photo above is a different day (9/16/13).  I finish here with a 5.

The 13th is a Par 5 499, and has a pond.

I hit another good drive here. For my second shot I aimed for the fairway but landed here instead, which is way right.  I hit a good nine iron though, fearlessly clearing this pond and landed just short of the green.  I tapped on with my fourth shot, but two putt for bogey 6.

The fourteenth hole is short Par 4, 336.  I hit a fine drive here, and land my second shot on the green, done like a golfer should do it.

This is almost like what I saw (I decided to stop saying, 'on a different day'  (9/16/13)).  The good news is I putt for birdie, bad news is I missed it, tapping in par.  The 5 par day is my best in years.

The 15th is the most difficult hole on the course.  It is a Par 4 407, but a large pond covers your drive and forces you to aim right, which leaves you a good 200 from the green depending on how far right you land (also know as 'how yella' ya are!).  But I can't aim, or can't hit where I aim. I aim for a little supply shack that's out there toward the right (between this 15th and 5th holes which run side by side each other) and hit it at the pond instead.  It is a low liner, but stays safe, clearing the approximately 200 yards needed to carry the pond.  I am just about 200 out, and instead of composing myself and taking advantage of the mis-hit drive that turned out ok, I slice a three iron. Be-joinks go the nerves, and I end up with a seven when all is settled.  Not happy.

I manage a seven on the next hole, pictured below, eh, some other time:

This is a Par 5 543, and pretty in November (2013).  I finish it with a seven after a decent drive and two or three extra lousy shots.

The 17th is a blind Par 3 182, uphill.  I have a horrible 5 this April 26th, but I will tell a story about last year since I'm here and I have pictures.  Last year, in November, I am playing an afternoon round, all by myself.  I hit a dribbler off the tee with my four iron, and scream inside.  There was no one in sight, so I tee up another ball and hit it just fine.  I walk up forty yards or so to my original tee shot, and hit a nine iron reasonably well.  The green is still blind to me because it's uphill.  When I get to the green this is what I see: 

Are the golf gods real?  Do they mess with you?  Yes and yes.  I made both of those, so one was a par and one was a birdie.  Not technically, because I hit some extra shots and all, but you know...

Anyhoo, back to live action: on my final hole, the 18th, I hit a great drive down the middle of the fairway.

This photo taken 4/26/14, really

Wanna see a picture from last November, same hole?  Thought so:

Freakin' gorgeous!

My second shot was not perfect.  In fact it was not good, a shanked 9 iron.  But it was fairly straight and landed here (live photo):

That is Steve on the left, Dan in middle, and me way on the right.  I putt that on and left myself four or five feet for par, and make it!  Triumph.  A 96, with six pars.  Six!  I'm a third of the way to being a pro.  Tough getting my head around that one.

I had my share of bad scores in this round, four 7's, and one 8.  That will give you nightmares, but as a weekend golfer, six pars and mid nineties (legit) is fine for now.  If I top this, I will blog about it (and point out the photos that are not from that day).