Written on 6-24-18.
I’m back home after just watching the end of the San Juan Open. Yesterday, I watched by walking backward from #18 to #13 and then following a group from #10 to #13, but today I camped out at #18 to watch the final five groups finish their rounds. Yesterday, I wanted to see Calum Hill, last year’s champion, but I followed some other group by mistake instead. After I got to #13 yesterday, I walked back to #10 hoping to catch Calum’s group making the turn. I asked a lady with a clipboard if she knew where his group was, and she told me they had just teed off on #10, so I took off after them. Then I saw some guy helping out on the fairway on #10, and it turned out to be Mike Goen. When I asked him who Calum was, he pointed out one of the players on the green. That turned out to be someone else, though. Not sure who that guy was, but he was a great player, and I shook his hand today and told him he played well. He was very appreciative and thanked me for coming out to show my support.
I just looked at the names of the pro’s from the San Juan Open site, and I randomly chose to google Nick Mason. It was just a guess, but it ended up being the guy...
I followed yesterday and the one I shook hands with today. According to the link, he was the winner of the 2015 New Mexico Open.
Today, I got to see Notah Begay, too. He got up and down from the front of the green on the last hole, and he walked right by me on the way to the green and on the way back to his cart. I saw him sign an autograph for a fan when he was done, too. He looks really trim, so I didn’t know it was him (sorry, Notah) until I asked another spectator which group just finished. Good for him! I know he had a heart attack back in 2014, and he has since returned to broadcasting. I did not know, however, that he was still playing. He was not the winner, though.
This years’s San Juan Open winner is Sam Saunders. I know this, because I saw him finish on #18 and raise his arms in victory. He also got many hugs from either friends and/or family after holing out. I do not believe he is the grandson of Arnold Palmer. I found another Sam Saunders who attended La Cueva High School and UNM and grew up in Albuquerque. I believe he’s the one who just won the San Juan Open, but there is another Sam Saunders who is the grandson of Arnold Palmer and plays on the PGA Tour. I’ll find out for sure later.
In other golf news, I am very close to buying a new set of irons. I’m seriously considering a new set of single length clubs called Sterling Irons from Wishon. Why? I’ve given three demo clubs a serious trial, and I like what I am seeing and feeling, especially from the 9-iron. I’ve also used the 7-iron and the 5-iron.
With that 9-iron, on the very first round I played with those three demo clubs, I hit the green and double-putted for par on holes #2, #4, and #6. I scored a 39, and those par three scores really helped. When I was in Las Cruces for Kyle’s rocket launch and the Spaceport America Cup, I went to the range at NMSU’s course early on the morning of the launch to give them more of a thorough look. A serious problem plagued me, though. The range faces east and the sprinklers were going the entire time I was there, so I could not see where the range balls were landing. I couldn’t see them at all. I took swings to the left and the right, but that didn’t help me with their distances, so I tried again yesterday at Pinon Hills after watching the tournament.
I got some very consistent results this time. The 9-iron landed just past the 100-yard marker when well struck, so it consistently went 110-115 yards. The area where I was swinging was between five and ten yards back from the zero marker. The 7-iron went right up to, or just short of, the 150-yard marker with consistent swings, and the 5-iron’s carry landed the range balls past the 150-yard marker by five and ten yards. With the strong wind I was facing, those yardages would probably be longer, but it was blowing into my face consistently most of the time I was there.
What I liked was that every swing felt the same, and that’s because the clubs have the same length, weight, and lie angle. That’s the whole idea behind those types of clubs. Also, I didn’t pull a single shot. The 5-iron would come close to moving the ball right to left, but it never did.
So, why new irons? I think golf is difficult enough. If these irons make it simpler and easier, I am all for it, and if I get these irons fitted to my height, grip, and lie angle, I’ll have continued improvement and consistency.
The shocker is that Belinda has given me permission, so that makes it harder. She’s leaving it all up to me. Ack! It’s not really a shocker; she’s always very supportive, but I don’t really need new irons, I just really want them. Sure, we can afford them, but I just paid for my membership at Aztec Municipal Golf Course, new golf grips, Bridgestone golf balls, and two new Under Armour gloves, and I have a business trip to Orlando coming up on July 6th that will be expensive, too. We have already paid for the flight and the hotel, but…what I’m saying is guilt is involved here.
I’ll probably get them, though. I am so selfish. I’m addicted to golf again, so now is the best time. Another bonus about getting them right away is that Don is going out of business, and he has generously discounted the set by 30%. If I wait, it will cost me much more if I end up buying them from someone else, and I am a big believer in Wishon clubs.
I got another birdie when C.J. and I played again this past week. Bruce is still in Las Vegas with Diane to take care of Reilly. Sadly, the prognosis is still looking bleak. In the last report, they were using something to suck mucus out of his lungs, his kidney function was down to nearly zero, and they are using more oxygen than they would like to support his breathing. Ugh. Sigh. We continue to send positive thoughts their way. It’s all very depressing, and although I know they are not religious, I am praying for them all as well.
Aztec Municipal Golf Course-Hole #2-Birdie #11 of 2018
C.J. and I played the Stableford Game, and this helped me get on the board and take the lead right away. I used my pitching wedge, and the hole was on the front left side. My new yellow Bridgestone golf ball landed and stopped four feet short of the hole. The greens are getting faster, and I aimed at the top right side of this hole. It fell in without an issue. I earned seven points with this birdie.
Overall, I played well for the rest of this round, shooting an 84, and that was with an eight on hole #9. I shot +5 on the back for a 39. I ended up beating C.J. this time 42 to 28 with the game we chose. Bogeys were worth one point, pars three, birdies five, and eagles ten. A double bogey or higher deducted one point and one point was added if a player won a hole. Points were pushed if we tied. I was due for a win. He beat me five to four in a G.I.R. Game the last time we played.
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