Written on 9-26-15.
B and I are up at the cabin home again. We “escaped” up here for one night. The fire is going. It’s awesome here. Not bragging, but definitely happy to be here. I’ll start with that one birdie, and then I’ll add another that came in an unexpected, spectacular, free round.
Aztec Municipal Golf Course-Hole #2-Birdie #33 of 2015
Wow! This birdie took place ten days ago. I’m a bit behind. C.J. and I played on a Wednesday. We discovered that Wednesday mornings are our best times for playing, and we can walk a full eighteen on those mornings; we usually start at 8:30. He doesn’t swim on those mornings, and Belinda is at work. I don’t have The First Tee going on on those days either.
This was the day that I played from the blues and C.J. from the whites. I chose my 8-iron from back there, but it was not a great swing. I’ve been thinning my irons frequently lately, but they’re just barely missing. I thinned this one out to the right, but it wasn't too bad, and it ended up past the hole and on the hill. I was in between choosing my A-wedge or my sand wedge. The sand wedge won out because I wanted to give my ball the best chance of not going too far past the hole. It was going way too fast, however, after it left my clubface. It probably would have ended up just off the green if the flagstick had not gotten in the way. My ball hit the flagstick squarely and fell in, surprising me in the process. I played the first three holes in one under again, always a great way to start a round.
I ended up shooting an 85, with a 44 on the front and a 41 on the back. C.J. and I tied with...
six fours on the back nine, and I barely beat him by one stroke.
I earned another birdie yesterday. Tom Yost called me on Thursday. He asked what I was planning on doing on Friday. Besides mowing and trimming the lawn, I didn’t have any imminent plans. Then he asked me if I wanted to play at The Glacier Golf Club. Hmmmm. Did I want to play at the Glacier Golf Club? Did I want to go play golf at a gorgeous, private mountain golf course? Hmmmm. It didn’t take much to mull it over in my head. YES! So, I did.
It was a special event to thank and honor donors and sponsors for The First Tee program. I was honored to be there. I got there 40 minutes before the expected time of 12:30. It took me about ten minutes of driving around gawking trying to find the pro shop, but a girl in a snack cart helped me out. I took the long winding path down to the practice facility until about 1:00. My tee time was at 1:20. I took pictures everywhere I went, including at least one picture on every hole.
I played with Belle (last name), a senior golfer at Piedra Vista who plans to go to the Air Force Academy when she graduates. Belle really is a senior, but she looked like a fourteen year old. She was petite, but her swing was large. She had been a member of The First Tee for a long time, and she guessed she started just three years after its inception in San Juan County. Another girl named Sydney (sp?) played in the group behind us. Tom’s son, Quinn, was the other participant to join in on the fun.
The other two playing in our group were Keith and Shane. They were sponsors or donors or something. Not sure exactly, but they were both very pleasant to play with. Keith was the better of the two. He said he was a 9, and then he blasted his 3-wood off the first tee right onto the fairway. Shane said he was a 16, just one less than me, and then he had a great tee shot onto the fairway as well. I pulled my 5-wood left into the rough. Belle and I both had a rough starting hole. She was extremely nervous and apologetic, and I did my best to make her feel comfortable and relaxed. I wish I could say I purposely got a snowman on the first hole to put her at ease, but that would be a lie.
After we relaxed and got into the rhythm of the round, though, I earned a birdie. I had a great up and down for my first par on hole #4, the Gun Barrel. Then I ended par, birdie, par on the last three holes, Hermosa Cliffs, Cliff Palace, and Marmot Run.
Glacier Golf Club, Cliffs Course-Hole #8-Birdie #33 of 2015
I chose my 8-iron. I was thinking about my 9-iron since the flag was closer to the front, but the water and a little beach were guarding the green, so I thought longer would be a safer play. I was also thinking fade just before my swing, and my ball did fly just to the left of the flag and then gently arched back toward the hole. It landed on the green, but I couldn’t tell how close it was to the hole. It was lost in the shadows and the leaves. Shane played a crazy shot out of the water, splashing one splotch of mud directly onto the middle of his off-white shirt, so I had some extra time to read my putt. Belle made a smooth pitch just to the right of the hole after her tee shot fell into the water. We didn’t see a drop area, so I recommended she drop onto the nearest grass area close to the beach. We were not keeping a serious score. I believe Keith was the only one who scored an “honest” score.
My putt was from the left of the hole, and it was at least twenty feet away. I had to remove some leaves to make a path and that helped me visualize the putt. I saw about two feet of break near the end, and that’s pretty much what happened. It slowed down and turned right before gently falling into the hole. I was so thrilled to get a birdie on any hole on this very difficult lay-out.
I shot a 46, 49 for a 95, but the last nine was incredibly miserable for me. While driving around trying to find the pro shop, I started to see some spots before my eyes from a low sugar/lack of food feeling. Belinda and I have started a new round of better eating and exercise. This was only the third day, so I believe my body was making an adjustment. Because of that, and despite my healthy eating and plenty of water, I started to get a nasty headache on the back nine.
It was laborious to focus. I made it to the end, but driving home I had to stop just past the Bondad Hill turn-off to throw up. It wasn’t much, and it did help me feel better, but gee whiz. I don’t think I’ve thrown up since before my brain surgery. Yuck! I wonder if I would have played better on the back if I had felt better. I didn’t legally finish the first and the last holes due to lost golf balls. My favorite hole was “Cliff Hanger,” hole #7 on the Hermosa Course. So fun! It was beautiful (as were they all) and it was challenging, and it was unique. I wished I had gotten a par, but I missed the par putt. The greens were so fast compared to Hidden Valley, and they were also hard to read.
B and I are up at the cabin home again. We “escaped” up here for one night. The fire is going. It’s awesome here. Not bragging, but definitely happy to be here. I’ll start with that one birdie, and then I’ll add another that came in an unexpected, spectacular, free round.
Aztec Municipal Golf Course-Hole #2-Birdie #33 of 2015
Wow! This birdie took place ten days ago. I’m a bit behind. C.J. and I played on a Wednesday. We discovered that Wednesday mornings are our best times for playing, and we can walk a full eighteen on those mornings; we usually start at 8:30. He doesn’t swim on those mornings, and Belinda is at work. I don’t have The First Tee going on on those days either.
This was the day that I played from the blues and C.J. from the whites. I chose my 8-iron from back there, but it was not a great swing. I’ve been thinning my irons frequently lately, but they’re just barely missing. I thinned this one out to the right, but it wasn't too bad, and it ended up past the hole and on the hill. I was in between choosing my A-wedge or my sand wedge. The sand wedge won out because I wanted to give my ball the best chance of not going too far past the hole. It was going way too fast, however, after it left my clubface. It probably would have ended up just off the green if the flagstick had not gotten in the way. My ball hit the flagstick squarely and fell in, surprising me in the process. I played the first three holes in one under again, always a great way to start a round.
I ended up shooting an 85, with a 44 on the front and a 41 on the back. C.J. and I tied with...
six fours on the back nine, and I barely beat him by one stroke.
I earned another birdie yesterday. Tom Yost called me on Thursday. He asked what I was planning on doing on Friday. Besides mowing and trimming the lawn, I didn’t have any imminent plans. Then he asked me if I wanted to play at The Glacier Golf Club. Hmmmm. Did I want to play at the Glacier Golf Club? Did I want to go play golf at a gorgeous, private mountain golf course? Hmmmm. It didn’t take much to mull it over in my head. YES! So, I did.
It was a special event to thank and honor donors and sponsors for The First Tee program. I was honored to be there. I got there 40 minutes before the expected time of 12:30. It took me about ten minutes of driving around gawking trying to find the pro shop, but a girl in a snack cart helped me out. I took the long winding path down to the practice facility until about 1:00. My tee time was at 1:20. I took pictures everywhere I went, including at least one picture on every hole.
I played with Belle (last name), a senior golfer at Piedra Vista who plans to go to the Air Force Academy when she graduates. Belle really is a senior, but she looked like a fourteen year old. She was petite, but her swing was large. She had been a member of The First Tee for a long time, and she guessed she started just three years after its inception in San Juan County. Another girl named Sydney (sp?) played in the group behind us. Tom’s son, Quinn, was the other participant to join in on the fun.
The other two playing in our group were Keith and Shane. They were sponsors or donors or something. Not sure exactly, but they were both very pleasant to play with. Keith was the better of the two. He said he was a 9, and then he blasted his 3-wood off the first tee right onto the fairway. Shane said he was a 16, just one less than me, and then he had a great tee shot onto the fairway as well. I pulled my 5-wood left into the rough. Belle and I both had a rough starting hole. She was extremely nervous and apologetic, and I did my best to make her feel comfortable and relaxed. I wish I could say I purposely got a snowman on the first hole to put her at ease, but that would be a lie.
After we relaxed and got into the rhythm of the round, though, I earned a birdie. I had a great up and down for my first par on hole #4, the Gun Barrel. Then I ended par, birdie, par on the last three holes, Hermosa Cliffs, Cliff Palace, and Marmot Run.
Glacier Golf Club, Cliffs Course-Hole #8-Birdie #33 of 2015
I chose my 8-iron. I was thinking about my 9-iron since the flag was closer to the front, but the water and a little beach were guarding the green, so I thought longer would be a safer play. I was also thinking fade just before my swing, and my ball did fly just to the left of the flag and then gently arched back toward the hole. It landed on the green, but I couldn’t tell how close it was to the hole. It was lost in the shadows and the leaves. Shane played a crazy shot out of the water, splashing one splotch of mud directly onto the middle of his off-white shirt, so I had some extra time to read my putt. Belle made a smooth pitch just to the right of the hole after her tee shot fell into the water. We didn’t see a drop area, so I recommended she drop onto the nearest grass area close to the beach. We were not keeping a serious score. I believe Keith was the only one who scored an “honest” score.
My putt was from the left of the hole, and it was at least twenty feet away. I had to remove some leaves to make a path and that helped me visualize the putt. I saw about two feet of break near the end, and that’s pretty much what happened. It slowed down and turned right before gently falling into the hole. I was so thrilled to get a birdie on any hole on this very difficult lay-out.
I shot a 46, 49 for a 95, but the last nine was incredibly miserable for me. While driving around trying to find the pro shop, I started to see some spots before my eyes from a low sugar/lack of food feeling. Belinda and I have started a new round of better eating and exercise. This was only the third day, so I believe my body was making an adjustment. Because of that, and despite my healthy eating and plenty of water, I started to get a nasty headache on the back nine.
It was laborious to focus. I made it to the end, but driving home I had to stop just past the Bondad Hill turn-off to throw up. It wasn’t much, and it did help me feel better, but gee whiz. I don’t think I’ve thrown up since before my brain surgery. Yuck! I wonder if I would have played better on the back if I had felt better. I didn’t legally finish the first and the last holes due to lost golf balls. My favorite hole was “Cliff Hanger,” hole #7 on the Hermosa Course. So fun! It was beautiful (as were they all) and it was challenging, and it was unique. I wished I had gotten a par, but I missed the par putt. The greens were so fast compared to Hidden Valley, and they were also hard to read.
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