Yesterday was a gorgeous day, and once I finished up work for the day, I didn’t let it go to waste. I met up with my lovely lady and our seven-year-old to sneak in nine holes.
The local go-to is Furnace Bay Golf Course because they have the most competitive rates for green fees, and at the same time, offer a pretty challenging course. The front nine is narrow and guarded heavily by trees, water, and hills, while the back nine is very open with more room for error.
With the twilight rate, you can play as many holes as daylight allows. With the young man on board today, I opted to play the back nine primarily. We started on hole one, which met up with hole nine and led us directly to where I wanted to give my full attention. Playing these two holes first gave me a chance to loosen up, given I did not hit the range before we played.
On holes one and nine, I spent a little extra time going over my shots to make sure that I mentally got into a groove and swung hard. I know it is not for everyone, but I like to swing a few shots very hard at the beginning of the round, preferably on the range, to loosen everything up. From there, I can dial back and dial-in. Even though I did not include it in my stats, because I only tracked the back nine, I hit both fairways while recording a bogey and a green in regulation (GIR) par.
I had been striking the ball very well throughout the week at the range and on the course that Sunday prior, so my focus was a little more direct today; nothing above bogey on the scorecard.
I had been putting a little extra practice into the purity of my mid-irons contact over the last two weeks. Most of my attention went into the idea of solid contact, not distance. This sole focus became very apparent yesterday. I struck the ball well off the tee and followed it up with solid shots with my secondary club, but my game with 15 yards fell apart.
I hit five out of eight fairways from the tee box with only one par three on the back nine, which helped with consistency around the second shots. From there, I was able to hit four of the nine greens in regulation. Despite this success in the stats, I finished the nine holes at seven over par. I put so much time into the focus of my drive and approach shots that I neglected the part of the game that genuinely lowers scores: chipping and putting.
I was able to finish the final for holes with three pars and one bogey. In those holes, I hit every fairway and three out of four greens in regulation. These stats again showcase my weak putter. I could get all putts close enough to sink the next stroke, but none made it to the scorecard out of four birdie attempts I had on the round.
Yesterday reminded me that game is mastered on the greens, not in the fairways. Despite a strong game plan and well-executed shots, you can not shave strokes anywhere else but on the green. Hopefully, we have move days like this in October and November before everything turns cold. Winter golf is an entirely different animal.
