Last Round of the Season

Enough of that.  On to golf…

   The last time I played, I was selfish and did not call Terry.  I wanted to play with my “regular” group one last time, just Bruce, C.J., and me.  I wanted to play eighteen holes, but it was getting windy and nasty, so we all stopped after eleven. 

   After having lost badly the last few times playing with Bruce and C.J., I was hoping for a win this time... This literally was the last round of the season since our seasonal memberships expired the very next day on Halloween. 

   We didn’t pick a game right off on the #1 tee.  I took a mulligan (especially allowed and okay with them on this round since they had played the day before).  From there, I made a great drive and earned a birdie.  I suggested Stableford as we walked up the fairway since we had not played that all season.  The points were eagles: +10, birdies: +5, pars: +3, bogeys: +1, double bogeys: -1, and anything worse than that was only -2.

Hidden Valley-Hole #1-Birdie #25 of 2010

   I used my driver off the tee.  I know I have written somewhere in one of these diaries that I would not count birdies after a mulligan, but I changed my mind.  They count because it is fair to all who are playing in my group.  They count because we have no driving range.  They count because I never take a mulligan again for the rest of the round.  Pros get plenty of time to warm up on a range to see their ball flights and find their swings.  We don’t have that luxury at Hidden Valley Golf Course.

   My drive was fairly long and left.  It was on the fairway and it was a 7-iron away, so it didn’t quite make it up to the cottonwood.  My 7-iron put my ball to the right of the green and even with the hole that was on the top right side, kind of in the middle of that tier. 

   My chip came out low.  I used a toe-up, toe-up chip, letting the club release.  It was not a “pop shot.”  The ball hit the hill that was over there protecting the flag and rolled out onto the green.  It was not pretty, but it got the ball within six to seven feet.  This was my first putt of the day, and it was mostly straight.  It rolled straight in.

   After that hole, I was ahead with my five-point birdie.  Bruce earned one point for a bogey, and C.J. earned three with a par.  A guy named Cody joined us.  C.J. tried to explain the game to him, but I don’t think he cared.  I cannot picture this guy in my head.  Maybe as I write about it, his face will come back to me.  Our airplane is heading down (just getting ready to land), so I am going to stop for now.

   Okay, now I am on a flight to Orlando on United.  We finally got the okey-dokey to sit back and relax, the old “cruising at altitude speech,” so I am writing again.  I should have two hours of uninterrupted writing time, but we’ll see how much I get done.  What a treat!

   I’m listening to the music on the plane.  A film is about to start, but I don’t know what it is.  The cart is coming around, so I will get a drink soon.  I am trying hard to relax, but it’s been go, go, go ever since I got a new mentee, Valerie (last name), at school.  Okay, the movie is Ramona and Beezus.  I haven’t seen it, but it’s not good enough to stop and watch.  It looks pretty bad.  That’s good for writing then.  

*More coming in the next post.