Written on 8-7-18.
C.J. and I played today, but Bruce could not, and I am guessing it’s because he is back to work as a technology contractor for Mosaic Academy. We missed him. I hope his new job doesn’t cut into his golf too much, but I am happy that he is working and helping out at Diane’s school.
The golf was fabulous today. C.J. and I became embroiled in a tremendous match, and it came down to the last hole. It’s always better if it comes down to the last hole. He came up with the idea for a game this time, and he chose skins. Because Tiger and Phil will be taking each other on in a promotional match for 11 million, we decided to do something like that. Each hole was worth half a million, and we chose to make the final hole worth two million to have it all equal the 11 million. I earned three birdies during this round, and here’s how it all happened…
Aztec Municipal Golf Course-Hole #8-Birdie #29 of 2018
C.J. was kicking my tail. I joked about how Belinda and I had smelled a skunk last night after we went to bed (true story), and that I certainly didn’t want to smell another skunk today, especially during this match. He didn’t quite get it at first, but then it did click in. I know C.J. is experiencing hearing loss (Bruce and I have both witnessed it before), and today he told me he is going to Albuquerque this Thursday for an appointment. I hope it helps, but he also said he would not wear hearing aids on the golf course. Hmmmm.
At the end of the front nine, C.J. had earned all of the money except for the money for this hole, so this birdie gave me my first win, and I avoided that stinky skunk. Phew.
I used my driver, of course, and it was another good one. My golf ball, another gently used Titleist ProV1X, landed on the fairway and only 135 yards away. My 9-iron got pulled for the approach, and then I pulled my shot way left, even though the hole was...
down in the bowl this time. We saw the guy moving the holes when we played #1, so he had moved it to this better location at some point during our round. My ball nearly made it onto the green, but it stopped on the collar just inches away.
I had two clear options. I could go right at the hole, or I could go out to the right and let my ball roll into the bowl more from the front side of the green. I chose to do the latter. It worked pretty well. My ball stopped seven feet behind the hole leaving me with an uphill putt and very little break. I made that one to finally get on the board. Sadly, I was in the terrible position of having to win most of the holes on the back nine, though. C.J. had 4.5 million, and I only had the half million from this hole. See, he really was kicking my tail.
Aztec Municipal Golf Course-Hole #11-Birdie #30 of 2018
I started well. I got a par on #10 to win that hole, and then I got a birdie on this one. I nearly earned an eagle. My drive put my ball on the green, and it was only eight feet from the hole! The hole was placed close to the middle, but it was in a spot where there was a generous slope. My eagle putt was super fast. I barely tapped it, and it had no problem getting to the hole. No leaving this eagle putt short. I don’t think that would have been possible. My ball rolled over the right side of the hole and stopped a few feet away. I still wasn’t done, but I made that comeback putt for this birdie and another skin.
Aztec Municipal Golf Course-Hole #17-Birdie #31 of 2018
C.J. had opportunities to put the match farther out of my reach, especially on #15 where his second shot put his ball just off the front of the green. I was certain he would get a par or a bogey, and with a pop on that hole, he would have won the money for #14, also. His first putt was well short, just making it past the middle of the green. His next putt came up well short, too, and I think it was partly due to the new claw putting grip he was trying out. He ended up with a double, so we tied on that hole and continued to push the money. We pushed again with bogeys on #16, so this hole was now worth two million.
I used my trusty new 9-iron, and I had a great result. My ball bounced onto the green and stopped close to 15 feet away. C.J. hit the green after a bounce, also, but his putt was from around 20 feet away. His putt was close to the same line as mine, but too far away to really help me get a read. He rolled his ball beautifully, and it looked like it was going to go in, but it stopped just a foot away from the hole.
Now, it was my turn. I detected a bit of left to right, so I aimed a cup to the left. As my ball rolled toward the hole, I swear I could hear C.J. whispering, “Go in. Go in. Go in.”
It did. I earned two million, and I had a chance to win the entire match now on the final hole.
On that final hole, C.J. struggled, and I earned a par. He ended with a double, but he just e-mailed me to tell me he was disqualified for playing the wrong ball. We thought his tee shot might have gone into the ditch. I was certain it did, but he found another Top Flite on the fairway very close to where his ball appeared to enter the ditch. I believed him, of course, but I also thought it was pretty miraculous. Stranger things have happened, though. Before we teed off, I had four million, and he had five. Because this final hole was worth two million, I earned what I needed to win the match. Boy, that was fun!
Until next time…
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