Club Championship 28th July 2012

was Club Championship day, sadly not too many entrants in the Ladies Competition, I guess not a lot fancy the prospect of playing 36 holes in one day, I was dubious myself but gave it a go anyway. For the morning round I was pulling my own trolley but one of the other members had offered to caddy for me in the afternoon so that would be a great help.

We started off at 9.15 going out after the men, as it was the Championship, the course had been set up to be as hard as possible, the green were mown as short as possible to make them run very fast, the pins were set in the worst positions, generally at the bottom of slopes or close to bunkers.

Off my handicap, I try to bogey each hole, knowing I can afford a few doubles and hope to get a few pars to balance off the bad holes. Play was slow going in the morning, the guys were in three balls while we were in two balls so we tend to have to wait a lot, but I played OK over the first nine, I did start with 3 doubles but steadied things with 3 bogeys, followed by another 2 doubles but parred the 9^th for a score of 49. On the back nine it started well with a bogey on the 10^th, a hole I cannot reach in two so a 5 feels like a par, sadly I followed that with 2 doubles and a triple but a bogey then 2 pars brought things back on to finish with triples on the par 5 17^th and par 3 18^th, the latter being caused by my tee shot landing on the fringe but bouncing sideways and running back down the steep bang that guards the green.

Still I had a 99, net 76 which was not too disappointing and kept me in the hunt.

Because of the slow morning round, we did not have the expected 1 hour break between rounds and so after a quick sandwich, cup of tea and a change of clothes we were back on the 1^st tee within 30 minutes of finishing the first round.

Now with a caddy and enjoying the experience of just walking and playing shots, I started the second round very well a bogey on the first despite 3 putting, was followed by holing a long put for par on the 2^nd, a bogey on the 3^rd, then another good put for par on the 4^th. A double on the 5^th where I visited 2 ditches was followed by another par on the 6^th. I undid some of the good work with doubles on 7 and 8, and bogeyed the 9^th again due to 3 putting, but I ended up taking 46 on the front nine, the best nine holes of the day so far and I was hopeful of a good second round score.

The final nine started badly with double, triple, double, a nice bogey on the stroke index 1 13^th, but I took 4 from just short of the green for another double on the 14^th, I bogied the 15^th but another 3 putt gave another double on the 16^th. The penultimate hole of the day is a very long par 5, but 3 good shots put with about 30 yds short of the green, the 17^th green is set in a bowl with a steep bank at the front leading down to it. Approaches can be a bit of a lottery as if you hit the bank as the ball can shoot off the bank or sometimes pull up short. Sadly mine puued up so a nice sand wedge finished on the front fringe and again I took another 4 shots to put the ball into the hole for another triple.

So onto the final hole a par 3 over a valley with a steep bank leading up to the green, bunkers left and right and the clubhouse just at the back which is out of bounds. The pin was towards the back and close to the right hand bunker and due to the tee positon behind a large tree. Due to the better front nine I was still looking at a reasonable score in the mid 70s and I hit a lovely tee shot which started out on the pin but unfortunately faded and finished in the right hand bunker. I don’t mind bunkers even though I don’t always get out first time, so I wasn’t unduly worried when after my first attempt, the ball stayed in the bunker, unfortunately the 2^nd and 3^rd attempts to get out failed too, I did get out with the fourth only to overshoot the green and end up out of bounds on the clubhouse flags. So back to the bunker, and finally out another 3 shots to get the ball in the hole for a disastrous 10!, I was distraught, I ended the back nine with a 58 for a 104 net 81, to keep it going only for almost 2 rounds to finish with a 8 and a 10 on the last two holes had me close to tears and convinced I had blown my chance of winning.

Fifteen minutes later however, I was in tears, when I found out that I had actually won the best net score. Fortunately for me everyone found the course tough and my score was the lowest, so I won the Florence Burton Cup and get my name on the honours board in the lounge.

Playing 2 rounds wasn’t as bad as I expected and having a caddy certainly helped at lot.

My course, my game.

I thought I would do a review of Ellesmere Golf club and my approach to the holes so here goes.

Hole 1, par 3, 147 yards (162 whites)

You drive across a valley to a green with bunkers both left and right, there is no great problem in being short but the are bushes just over the back, I take a 5 or 6 iron and am pretty confident of hitting the green, as it’s the first though I am happy with a 4 or even a 5.

Hole 2, par 4, 362 yards (399 whites)

You drive of a slightly elevated tee over a ditch, with big bushes close in on the left as a result I usually aim to the right where the fairway is reasonably generous, the fairway is uphill with a bunker on the right that normally doesn’t come into play for me but probably does for longer lady hitters or from the men’s tees. An iron for the 2^nd shot usually sees me within 120 yds of the green protected by 3 bunkers, the fairway runs down to the green for the last 100ds. I am more than happy with a 5 on this and a 6 is ok.

Hole 3, par 5, 424 yards (504 whites)

The second longest hole, the fairway is slightly down hill and tree lined on both sides ,fairway, with bunkers both left and right, these are just out of my range but I sometime get near to them. 120 yds from the green is a broad ditch and the shot to the green is uphill. If I hit a decent drive and 2^nd shot I am usually between the 150 marker and the ditch so I am fairly confident of being on or around the green in 3, so I disappointed not to get a bogey here and a par is a possibility.

Hole 4, par 3 132 yards.(259 Whites par 4)

Supposedly the easiest hole on the course, the hole is slightly downhill, but the fairway slopes from left to right so a ball that bounces short of the green will normally kick to the right. There is also a bunker short left of the green. I struggle with the right club here, a 7 iron will land short but the kick on landing is unpredictable, a six iron can run through or off the green to the right leaving a chip up onto the green plateau anything from a 2 to 4 is possible from a decent tee shot.

the mens tee on this is an almost blind drive with a nasty carry.

Hole 5, par 4, 353 yards (371 whites)

A slight dogleg, with a lateral water hazard down the right and a narrow ditch about 200yds from the tee, a bunker about 50yds from the green makes it a true dogleg for me on a hole I cannot reach in 2 I play 2 shots before being able to play a short 3^rd into the green, which also has 3 hidden bunkers along the right hand side of the green. Again a 5 is good, a 6 ok. A hole I haven’t managed to par as yet.

Hole 6, par 5, 393 yards (417 Whites par 4)

A straightforward hole a flat fairways slopes down to an upturned saucer shaped of a green, with lateral water to the right. 2 decent shots and I hope to have a good chance of hitting the green, although the ball will often roll off it. Anything more than a 6 is a disappointment and I hope for a par here.

Hole 7, par 4, 325 yards (349 Whites)

The fairway runs down hill towards the green but a ditch running across in front of the green presents a problem, front right of the green is a stand of trees and there is a big drop behind that is classed as a lateral hazard. If I can drive down the left far enough I have a chance of going for the green but if I go right or am short I have to lay up. I am sometimes tempted to try and clear the ditch when I shouldn’t with often the predictable result. I look for a 5 but not too worried with a 6. A good drive and I am hoping to have the chance of a par.

　

Hole 8, par 5, 383 yards. (439 whites par 4)

A long straight hole with the broad ditch again a feature about 130 yards from the green. A good drive and I am tempted to try and clear the ditch with my second, this can be a problem as the bank leading out of the ditch is rough and it takes a good drive and good second to clear this too. I am usually tempted if my drive is on the fairway. Probably the sensible option is to lay up but unless I can hit the 20 yds of fairway from the 150 marker to the ditch, I cannot reach the green in 3. I often mess this hole up because if this and a 7 or even an 8 is not unusual, despite a 6 being relatively simple to achieve. I tend to score best her e when I missed the fairway with my drive.

Hole 9, par 3, 104 yards (180 whites)

A lovely little hole, which is a lot longer from the yellow or whites. The hole is in a little valley with rubbish all down the right on the other side of a stream that runs upto and then around the right and back of the green. A bank down the left can deflect the ball towards the green but there is rough there which also catch the ball too. I usually take an 8 iron and expect to hit the green, The green itself slopes towards the stream so if up are above the hole it can be a tricky putt. This hole is a good par opportunity.

　

Hole 10, par 4, 366 yards (419 whites)

A drive back over the broad ditch along an undulating fairway to a raised green should not present too many problems. Unfortunately it does, there is a dip in the fairway where my ball usually lands and often gets thrown to the right, leaving a 2^nd shot from the rough and often with trees in the way unless I can hit the left of the fairway, which I rarely do. So another hole where a 6 is not a disaster and a 5 feels like a par. A par is so far unknown and a 7 is often likely.

Hole 11, par 5, 406 yards 4(36 Whites par 4)

Quite similar to the 8^th, although the green is just over the ditch and has a narrow entrance with bunkers left and right at the front, so it takes an accurate 3^rd shot if I get within 150 yds in 2. I hope to have the chance of a par but a bad 3^rd shot can put me in trouble.

Hole 12, par 3, 191 yards (206 whites)

A long downhill par 3 which is out of my range, with trees down the left and rough down the right. I have stopped using my driver here because I normally end up in the right hand rough, so a 5 iron off the tee and hope for a good chip, a 5 is more frequent than a 3 here for me.

Hole 13, par 4, 355 yards (409 Whites)

Again similar to the 10^th but a flatter fairway with a bunker down the right, just out of my range, the green is not as raised as the 10^th but has bunkers both left and right. Stroke index 1 and again a 5 feels like a par, which I have not had yet.

Hole 14, par 3, 143 yards (153 Whites)

Slightly uphill par 3 over mostly rough to a green guarded around the front with bunkers. I can hit the green with a good 5 iron but often end up a little short which leaves a tricky chip depending on the lie , I do expect a 3 or 4 on this hole.



Hole 15, par 5, 410 yards. (536 Whites)

This is a slight dogleg with a sloping fairway front right to left, although the direct route is to the left the lie can be poor due to work done laying a pipeline under the course. So a drive to the right is ideal but there are a lot of trees along the right of the hole so care is needed. This also means the drive is uphill. The green is 2 tiered with bunkers front left and also to the right so care is needed with the approach as there is also a steep bank leading down from the green on the left, with a lateral hazard at the bottom, and due to the shape of the hole is often approached from the right. Again 2 good shots will give me a chance of hitting the green in 3 but due to the green’s protection leaving the 3^rd short but central is not too bad. I do often get a par here but occasionally mess it up too.

Hole 16, par 4, 311 yards (388 Whites)

This is an fairly easy hole although the fairway is tight with trees down the right and a lateral hazard down the left over which there is quite a drop to the 14^th fairway and also a thin line of conifers overhang the fairway right down to the green, a bunker protects the front right of the green. Because of the possibility of a wayward drive which has cost me in the past, I now take a 5 iron off the tee, which gives me a chance of reaching the green if it’s a good drive. I do look for no maoe than a 4 or a 5 here but the green is very long and 3 putting is a good possibility depending on where the pin is.

Hole 17, par 5, 478 yards (503 Whites)

The longest hole from the red tees, a slightly uphill drive with bunkers left and right before the fairway slopes down unevenly towards the ubiquitous broad ditch 150yds from the green. The green is set in a bowl with a steep slope leading down to it. A stream runs along the left side of the green and around the back with a steep rough bank with bushes immediately behind it. My best hope on this hole is to get as close to the ditch as possibly in 2 to have any chance of reaching the green in 3, so far I have not achieved this although I have been on the slope which sadly had a lot of grass on it which held the ball up. I normally hopr for 2 decent shots which leaves me a 3^rd over the ditch to leave a chip down to the green, due to the nature of the bank a run down it is unpredictable so I like to get near enough to be able to play a short sand wedge and hope to hit the green and not run much. A 6 here is great, although a 7 more usual sadly and often more than that.

Hole 18, par 3, 122 yards (157 whites)

A lovely finishing hole but not as simple as the yardage suggests, the tee shot is over a valley with a steep rough bank leading up to the green from a stream, there is lots of rubbish on the right and bunkers both left and right. Also 2 big trees growing from the bank leaving a tight line to the green through the gap between them there is also very little room at the back of the green before the flags of the clubhouse which is out of bounds, also the putting green is back right and also out of bounds. Anything landing short of the green is liable to end up at the bottom of the steep bank or in the stream. I hope to hit the green with a 6 or 7 iron depending on pin position on the undulating green, but any score is possible depending on the tee shot, I have birdied the hole but also and a 10 and even a 14 after trouble with bunkers and out of bounds.




My golf is a bit mixed, my driving is a little erratic, I can follow a nice straight drive with a bad slice or hitting one off the heel without, in my mind, doing anything differently, this is very frustrating and I intend to have a videoed lesson to see I I can find out what is going wrong. I expect to hit a good drive 160-170 yds although with the wind behind me I have topped 200yds a few times.

My irons are the strongest and most consistent part of my game, I expect to hit 140-150 with my 5 iron, my 5 iron is my most used club as despite a lot of practise I cannot hit woods off the fairway with any sort of consistency and so it is not worth using them in Competitions. As for my other irons I am fairly confident of my distances, which drop 10yds per club down to 100 yds with my pitching wedge. I believe I can hit my sand wedge about 50 yds but I do lack the confidence to use it fro that distance.

My chipping is not too bad but again it can be great one day and not so good the next, I tend to chip and run with my 8 iron and I am quite happy to play my sand wedge over obstacles. The use of my wedge has been a bit up and down but recently I have been using it a lot better and am now fairly confident with shots below 100yds

Bunkers, are again a problem, I am always confident going of getting out but occasionally I have bad days and have once taken 10 shots to get out.

So finally putting, this is really where my problem lies, the number of times I have been on the green in regulation on ly to 3 or even 4 put are too many to recall them whole. I struggle with judging distant, one hole leaving a put woefully short, the next far too long and then leaving one stone dead. It is very frustrating and at the moment is preventing me from getting my handicap down further, the problem is I don’t think its something you can be taught how to do. I do also sometime struggle to hole puts of under 3 feet, this is probably more about alignment and something I need to work one.
Well that’s my course and my game at the moment. I tend to score better on the front nine than the back nine. So far my eclectic score for the season is 76, which shows my potential if I could just do it all on the same round. My best competition round so far is 95 although I have broken 90 in a practice round. I feel it is within my current ability to get my handicap down to 18 if I can cut out the inconsistancy, but I need to be able to putt better to get it below that.





Well that brings things up to date so now I can keep the blog current in future.


　

　

　



Recap of the season so far

So it was the day of my first competition, a monthly medal, and I set off with Pat, one of the ladies I had played with before. My round was a liberal mix of bogeys, doubles and triples but I finished with a respectable 107 for a net score of 73. We hold presentations in the evening after the competition and I was very surprised to hear my name announced as the winner, I also had my handicap reduced to 33, too say I was pleased would be an understatement.

The 2^nd competition was a Stableford, this is where points are scored on each hole depending on how you score, it has the advantage over stroke play in that anything over a net bogey scores no points so a disastrous hole doesn’t ruin your card, it also have the advantage of speeding up rounds as you don’t have to finish the hole once you cannot score on it. I played with a lovely lady who sadly is not very good and finds partners hard to get as she does take a long time to play a round and so Stableford is ideal for her. I played very steadily despite a couple of bad holes, I pared two holes and finished with a birdie for 42 points, which I knew was a good score and so I wasn’t surprised when at the presentation it was announced that I had won again, I was very pleased, if not a little embarrassed at winning my first two competitions, I was also pleased to see my handicap reduced again, this time to 29.

The next competition was another medal round, and after a poor first nine, I had 3 pars the 2^nd nine and scored under a 100 for the first time with a 99 for a net score of 70. At the presentation that evening I really was embarrassed when I found out that once again I was the winner . Happily the others seemed genuinely pleased for me, as was I when I found out that not only had my handicap been reduced again this time to 26, but due to having 2 good rounds in succession I was also given an extraordinary scoring reduction to drop my even lower to 24. The problem now was to try to play to it.

Following my wins and handicap cuts I was asked to pay in the clubs team of four for a Lancashire ladies qualifying event, my inclusion was also down to the fact that I didn’t mind turning up in East Manchester early in the morning, something that put a lot of members off.

The round was a bit of an eye-opener, it was played at Saddleworth GC near Oldham and the course is on a hillside. Some holes looked short on the scorecard but ended up being up steep hills, Holes that weren’t uphill saw your ball bouncing down the hill when they landed, It was a struggle to play there for the first time and the strong wind didn’t help either. I ended up with a net 82, joint best score of our 4 but not a great round. It was a fascinating course to play though and I would like to play there again.

The following Sunday was the first or the clubs “majors” where the winner gets their name on the honours board. I was hopeful of doing well in light of my earlier wins but I came down to earth with a bang playing badly and finishing with 14 strokes on the last hole after taking 10 to get out of a bunker.

After my early successes in club competitions I started to have more mixed results, finally hearing someone else’s name being announced as the winner was a pleasant change. I did win another medal with a net 71 which saw me reduced to 22.4 (playing handicap 22), but since then my game has gone off a bit.

I find I was getting very inconsistent and my driving and putting particularly suffered here. As a result I had a couple of 0.1 increase so at the time of typing I am up to 22.6 (playing handicap 23)

I am playing at least 4 times a week so getting great value from my membership, although I do wonder whether this is making me a bit stale. But the main this I am enjoying it despite several soaking in this awful weather we have had, including twice at events organised through websites. It is nice to play new courses though.

I have also played in a couple of mixed events at the club, the first one we came were only a couple shots behind the winners but sadly it was my putting that let us down.. I hope I can get myself a regular partner as these events are fun and quite different.

I played in our club’s open and out team came 3^rd our team also came 2^nd in the clubs day out, so not all has been doom and gloom.

Starting out, joining in.

After deciding to retire early following being made redundant, I decided I needed something to occupy my time. I used to play golf a bit when I was younger and thought this would be a good way to keep myself busy and also provide exercise too.

My first job was to go to the local driving range to see if I could still hit the ball OK. Happily I could, so I went to buy a cheap set of clubs. The best laid plans don’t always work out though and after trying out various ones I ended up spending far more than I intended but got a set that I liked.

The next question was where to play, I knew about a localish 9 hole course so I headed there, I had a couple of rounds but the course was in poor condition and very wet. I then found out about a privately owned non members course and tried that, it wasn’t bad but it was rather featureless and at £15 pound a round would prove expensive if I played more than a couple of times a week. So I thought I would enquire at local private courses. The nearest to home was literally round the corner so that was my first port of call, but although the professional told me they were keen to get new lady members the secretary was far from welcoming, just thrusting a membership form into my hand without any welcoming words.

I then remembered a course about 3 miles away that I had played years ago and went to enquire there, the pro asked for my name, address and phone number and a few days later I was invited to attend a new members meeting, where I was welcomed to the club. The fees were reasonable working out at only £10 a week and so I became a member of Ellesmere Golf Club.

I had been told at the welcome meeting that the ladies generally held a roll up on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. A roll up is when everyone turns up at the same time and then go out in drawn pairs, it’s a great way to meet the other members and is generally followed by lunch in the club house. So off I went, at little apprehensive, but everyone was very welcoming and I soon had loads of names to try and remember.

It was early March when I joined and the proper season had not yet started, and knowing that once people started playing in competitions, partners would be harder to find to decided to try and get a handicap so I could join in the competitions. Several of the ladies offered to play with me while I put the qualifying cards and as I hadn’t been playing very long, my scores were not great and I was given an initial handicap of 34.

I went on holiday before the season started but returned, looking forward to joining in.

Better than being a golf bore.

Since taking up golf earlier this year, I find I like to tell people about my golf, sadly most people soon get fed up with a golf bore, so I have decided to record things here. The first few blogs will record the last few months and then I will update it on a regular basis.

So if you happen to stumble along this I hope its not too boring and self indulgent.