England Golf grand medal final - Northampton County Golf Club.

Well this was supposedly going to be a triumphal blog entry about how I conquer all, however it was not to be.

The day started well as I drove the 15 miles from my hotel in Market Harborough to the course, I had driven down the night before so as to be fresh for the competition. Hotels in Northampton were hard to come by and expensive due to the Grand Prix being help nearby by, a Travelodge in Northampton was charging £190 a room!

The course looked in great condition and so after a bacon barm, some time on the range and putting green I was ready for the off.

I started well with a lovely straight drive and got a bogey 6 on the first where my chip which ran right off the back of the green gave an early indication of how the greens would be playing. A nice par 5 on the second was followed by a bogey 4 on the third where I three putted from the back of the green, I left the first way short, scared with how fast the greens were. sadly this trend continued throughout the round. A bogey 5 on the 4th and I was off to a nice steady start.

We had been held up by the group in front on both the 2nd and 3rd holes, but as we had spent time on the 3rd looking for a ball, we were a little behind when we reached the 5th tee. Here were were met by a marshall who told up we need to speed up to catch, as we were lagging behind. This did not go down well and I put my first drive deep into trees followed by a 2nd which found deep rough. I hit a decent recovery and we set off up the fairway, only to be followed by the marshall, this caused us all to rush our shots and also got me really upset by his actions, the hole ended up a disaster with me taking 13 shots, both my playing partners took double figures on the hole as well.

It took a couple of holes for me to calm down and then I settled into playing decent golf again, although the greens still continued to puzzle me and several times I was on the fringe in regulation only to take 3 putts.

I did manage a couple more pars along the way  but it should have been several more. I did slip up on the 16th were a poorly hit approach found a greenside bunker and I took 3 to get out followed by another 3 putt for a 9,

My final score was 105 for a net scored of 90, and although that looks bad I really didn't play badly at all, apart from the 13 and the 9, I didn't have a score greater than 6 on any other hole, I did however play the par threes poorly. I ended up 40th out of 60, some players didn't have the same problems and the winning score was a net 73 against a SSS of 75, CSS was 76, so I will get a 0.1 increase to my handicap.

All in all, apart from the incident with the marshall, I did have a lovely day, and although I think I will struggle to win the medal at Ellesmere this season I would love another chance to try and qualifiy for this again.

Things are coming together nicely

Sunday saw us playing for the Captain's prize to the ladies, a competition that everyone wants to win, Despite it being a very windy day but  I started off really well and but for 2 missed putts of less than 3 feet I would have started with 4 straight pars, however 2 pars in the first 4 holes wasn't a bad start. A thinned chip went a triple bogey on the 5th, but 2 good blows gave me a chip and a putt for a birdie on the 6th. A bogey followed on the 7th, but then on the 8th my drive caught the trees so I had to lay up before the ditch, I was on the green in 4 but another 3 putt gave me a double bogey 7. I had a bit of luck on the 9th when my very wayward tee shot hit a tree and bounced back on to the fairway, but I failed to take advantage and 3 putted yet again for a second successive triple bogey. Despite the poor putting, I still only took 45 on the front nine. I was on the 10th green in but managed to take 4 putts from only 15 feet for a 3rd successive triple bogey, and another drive into the trees meant I double bogeyed the 11th. I parred the par 3 12th, but then another wayward drive left me with another triple on the 13th, I then went bogey, par, bogey, bogey, then on the last I lost my tee shot and finished with a final triple bogey 6. So the back nine score was 51 for a gross score of 96, net 79.
The wind obviously affect everyone and we were surprised to find that my playing partner had won the competition was a net 77, my 79 was the 2nd best score but  I actually finished 4th due to losing the 2nd and 3rd places on card play offs.

On Tuesday we had our day out and went to Helsby Golf Club, Helsby is a nice course, fairly flat, which was good for the older members and well kept. We split in to teams of 3 for a friendly competition, I was pleased to par 8 of the holes but 3 triple bogeys and a few doubles took the shine of the round, even my driving was wayward, which is a bad sigh,

I decided that I needed to try and sort my iron play out, so I had booked a lesson for Tuesday, James my coach got mw to change my posture and it seemed to have a good affect, I went to the range and hit 50 balls and the results were very encouraging.

Thursday, the start of a spell that's will see me play 10 times in 9 days, was a medal competition and my partner and I went out early to avoid the forecasted rain in the afternoon. the round was very pleasing  and my iron play held up well, my putting was mostly good and I holed a couple of decent putts. I had 6 pars and also just as importantly importantly only had 2 double bogeys.

On Friday I went up to Garstang for a golf day for Blackpool FC supporters, despite the weather it was a good day and although I didn't score well on the first nine, the second was a lot better and I went round in a reasonable 89.

Thursday's round.

Hole 1, A bit of a wayward tee shot, but I chipped on and 2 putts gave me a bogey 4.

Hole 2, A nice straight drive and a good 3 wood to the right of the green, I chipped over a bunker to a couple of feet and holed the putt for a par 4.

Hole 3, My drive was left and caught some trees, but a decent 2nd left me a chance to get close to the green, sadly  I mishit the ball and found the ditch, a penalty drop then a nice 8 iron found the back fringe, 2 putts for a double bogey 7.

Hole 4, A pulled 4 iron left me a chip over a bunker which I thinned across the green, a chip on and 2 putts for a double bogey 5.

Hole 5, A high drive meant I couldn't reach the green, but a decent 3 wood left me a 60yard chip to the green, I chipped on and 2 putts gave me a bogey 5.

Hole 6, Again not the best of drives, but a nice 3 wood left me a pitch to the green and 2 putts gave me a par 5.

Hole 7, a better drive but a little to the right, a 8 iron found the fringe and a chip and a nice putt gave me a par 4.

Hole 8, A good drive into the wind but then a mishit 3 wood found the ditch, after a penalty drop I found the green with a 5 iron and 3 putts gave me a bogey 6.

Hole 9, A 9 iron found the back fringe of the green, a bit of a tentative downhill putt and I missed the 2nd so a bogey 4.

3 pars and 2 double bogeys meant 44 shots for the first 9 which was about on handicap.

Hole 10, A nice drive then a 3 wood to just short of the green, my chip was a little short and 2 putts gave me a bogey 5/

Hole 11, Not a great drive but a decent 2nd left a 6 iron to the green, I found the green but left my first putt short and my 2nd finished right on the edge of the hole so a bogey 6.

Hole 12, My drive finished just off the green, I chipped to a foot and holed the putt for a par 3.

Hole 13, A nice drive and a good 3 wood found the green, 2 putts gave me a par 4.

Hole 14, A poor 5 iron off the tee left me short and wide of the green, mt chip ran to the fringe of the green and 2 putts gave me a bogey 4.

Hole 15, A reasonable drive and 3 wood left me about 30 yds from the green, I thinned a 6 iron which fortunately ran through a bunker, a chip on and 2 putts for a bogey 6.

Hole 16, A decent drive found the fairway but overhanging branches meant I didn't have a clear shot to the green I hit a low punch towards the green then my pitch ran through the back, I chipped to 1 foot and holed for a bogey 5.

Hole 17, A good drive then a 7 iron pay up in front of the ditch, I hit a good 3 wood that held up in the wind just short of the bank leading down to the green, I chipped on and 2 putted for a bogey 6.

Hole 18, A lovely 6 iron off the tee found the green and 2 putts gave me a par 3 to finish.

3 pars and nothing worse than a bogey gave me a 2nd nine score of 42 for a gross round of 86 and a net 69. CSS was increased to 73 so I had a handicap cut of 1.2 down to 15.6 and then a further ESR of 1 shot to drop make my new handicap 14.6. A nice consistent round which was very pleasing as was the cut although with my England Golf Grand Medal final on Saturday perhaps not the best timing.

Highs and Lows

On Monday we had the next match for the Shield team, this time home to Whitefield, looking to make it 5 wins out of 6 for the team. I had a lovely game which I managed to win by 5&3, again I played steadily keeping my good run of form going. The team won the match 5-2 and we are very close to winning our group now, although we have two tough away matches left at the moorland courses of Oldham and Saddleworth. However the way the other results have been going in our group, there is a good chance that we could lose them both and still finish top.

On Tuesday three of us went down to play the Portal Premier course in Tarporley ahead of the clubs match there in the Archie Preston, Manchester and district mixed knockout. Portal is a really nice course, it is set on a ridge with great views over the Cheshire plain. The course itself is an undulating course, in great condition, with some very interesting holes, including the long par 3 15th, which is the picture at the top of the blog. We were fortunate with the weather, little wind and lots of sunshine and all in all it was a very enjoyable day.

As I haven't been happy with my longer irons, I decided to give in and buy another wood, so after trying a few out I decided to but a Wilson staff 26 degree fybrid, which I was hoping would give me around 140 yards to negate the need for using my 5 or 6 iron so much. On Thursday I took it onto the course for the first time in the Ping 4 ball better ball qualifier, My partner and I won this qualifier but did not have sufficient points to make the finals as only  the top 132 from all the clubs in the country  actually make the finals, so if we won this year I was hoping for a better score.

I played my best round of the season with 3 birdies and 7 pars and for once I kept it going through out the round. The conditions help and I even hit 2 par 5s in 2 shots, both resulting in birdies and also holed a couple of putts from the fringe. Unlike last week when I played well but struggled to get up and down from close to the green, I chipped a lot better too. The result was that we scored 45 points off 3/4 handicap. The scoring was good all round, and two other pairs also scored 45 points, we actually came second on card playoffs and our scores will go forward to see if we make the finals this year, we certainly have a better chance than last year, so fingers crossed.

Friday saw me playing in the Flixton team open, Flixton is a 9 hole course and is rather flat, also the greens are not in the best condition and are not even paced. I didn't actually play that well, although I did have a nice birdie where I hit my new wood to with 4 feet of the hole. Despite me not playing very well my partners play well and we came 2nd, which was nice.

Saturday took us back to Portal for the Archie Preston match, I played with the same man I had partnered in the previous round. We started well with a par followed by a birdie where I hit a lovely wedge to about 6 feet, but some poor holes around the turn saw us fall to 2 down with 4 holes play. A superb tee shot from my partner on the 15th gave us a conceded birdie and we followed that with a win on the 16th, where I hit a lovely 5 wood to the back fringe of the green, so we were all square with 2 to play. Sadly, despite me holing some nice putts throughout the round, I missed from 18 inches to go one down and a superb chip to 6 inches on the last gave our opponents a win by 1 hole. The team match came right down to the final couple on the last hole and fortunately the Ellesmere pair won to give us the match 4-3 and see us into the last 16.

All in all a bit of a mixed week, where I followed my best round so far, with a couple of indifferent displays.

My round on Thursday.

Hole 1, Hit new wood to front fringe, chipped on and 2 putted for a bogey 4.

Hole 2, a decent drive then found the green with my 3 wood, 2 putts for a par 4.

Hole 3, 2 decent shots but mishit a 5 wood , chipped on and 2 putted for a bogey 6.

Hole 4, A 6 iron tee shot found the front fringe but I holed a long putt for a birdie 2.

Hole 5, My drive was a little left then a 3 wood left me 40 yards from the green, I chipped on and 2 putted for a bogey 5.

Hole 6, A good long drive followed  by nice 3 wood which hit the green, 2 putts gave me a birdie 4.

Hole 7, A drive a little right and then an 8 iron to the fringe, chipped on and 2 putted for a bogey 5.

Hole 8, A good long drive and a lovely 3 wood found the green, 2 putts for a birdie 4.

Hole 9, A 9 iron off the tee found the fringe, I chipped a little long but my partner had a 3 so I didn't need to putt, 2 putts would have given me a bogey 4.

So after 3 birdies and a par, and  assuming 2 putts on the 9th I would have had a 2 over 38 on the front nine.

Hole 10, After decent drive although a little short, I hit a 3 wood to just short of the green, chipped on and 2 putted for a bogey 5.

Hole 11, I hit a lovely straight drive and decided to take on the ditch in front of the green, I cleared it but was a little left and caught a tree, chipped on from off a bank and 2 putts gave me a par 5.

Hole 12, My tee shot was left and a poor chip only found the fringe but I holed the putt for a par 3.

Hole 13, My drive was left and my 5 wood 2nd missed right and found trees, I tried a low chip but it ran over the green into a bunker. I got out first time and 2 putted for a double bogey 6.

Hole 14. Hit my new wood of the tee and was right of the green, I chipped to 3 feet and holed the putt for a par 3.

Hole 15, My drive was OK and a 3 wood left me an 8 iron to the green, I found the fringe and 2 putted for a par 5.

Hole 16. A lovely straight drive left a 9 iron to the green, I hit the green and my 20 foot birdie putt just rimmed out so a par 4.

Hole 17, Another good long drive, so I didn't need to lay up and cleared the ditch with my 2nd, unfortunately I thinned my 9 iron which shot through the green and down the bank, I chipped back and 2 putts gave me a bogey 6.

Hole 18, My 6 iron ran off the back of the green but I chip to 2 feet and holed for a par 3.

So a good score of 40 shots on the back 9 for a theoretical round of 78 only 6 over par, by far the best I have played and although it doesn't count it just shows me what I am capable of, if I can play like that consistently.

Getting more consistent.

After a golf free weekend, although I did spend Saturday at the club helping out for Presidents Day, Monday saw the next game in the handicap shield league. This time we were playing Oldham at home and it was a match we were keen to win as they, like us, had won 3 out of their 4 previous matches. I was receiving one shot of my opponent and we both played steadily over the first nine holes at which point I was just 1up. Fortunately for me my opponent then went off the boil  a little and I won both 10 and 11 to go 3 up. After sharing the 12th, I received my shot on the 13th which I also won to go  4 up and then a par at the par 3 14th won me the match 5 & 4. The team match was very close and but we won that 4-3 to leave us in a good position with 3 matches left although we still have to go to  Oldham and Saddleworth which are both hilly moorland courses quite unlike Ellesmere.
The particularly pleasing aspect of my match was that I was a lot more consistent than I have been with 5 pars and nothing worse than a bogey over the 14 holes we played.

After a practise round on Tuesday, I decide to go and look at maybe getting a 7 wood, as I had found the one that I had borrowed was a useful club to have. I went down to American Golf and tried a 26 degree hybrid which I found I could hit well. I didn't buy one as there is also a 23 and 29 degree version and I am unsure which will serve me best. I am even considering buying 2 but that would mean would I have to drop an iron from my bag and I have always thought it was a bit of a cop out to used high lofted woods instead of irons. However I am still not too confident with my irons so maybe woods are the way to go.

The weather finally broke for Thursday's competition, a medal, and so we set off in the rain, I was playing with one of our older members, a lady who had been as low as 9 but was now playing off 23. You could tell she had been a lot better than she is now as she played some delightful shots.

I didn't start very well, 3 putting on the 1st green from 4 feet and then double bogeying the 3rd but then I steadied and 3 pars in a row saw me on level 5s after 9 holes and 3 more pars coming home negated the 2 double bogeys and I finished the round bang on handicap with a net 72. This proved to be enough to win the competition in a reduced field as several players were put off by the weather.

Friday saw the Ellesmere team going to Greenmount to play in the next round of the Bell Cup. Like Thursday the weather wasn't great and the match didn't start until 5pm so I was a little worried it might be rather dark towards the end of the rounds.

I found myself having to give 4 shots to my opponent but  pars on the 2nd and 3rd gave me an early lead and although I lost the 4th to a par I was 1up going into the first two holes where I had to give shots.  I managed to half them both to preserve my lead, a par on the 8th then put me 2 up and I won the 9th with a bogey to be 3 up at the turn. We both had pars the 10th then I also parred the 11th to go 4 up.
Up to this point I had barely hit a false shot, but then I hit my tee shot on the 12th off the toe of the club and went out of bounds to lose the  hole. My opponent then won the 13th with a par following my drive being too long and finding deep rough, so I was back to just 2 up.
We both missed the green on the par 3 14th, but my opponent messed up a chip and I won the hole with a bogey and after my opponent found the out of bounds on the 15th I won the match 4&3.
Again I played pretty steadily certainly for the first 11 holes over which I had 5 pars and 6 bogeys.

The match result turned out to depend on the last match out and we had a long wait before the match finished with our girl winning 2&1 to give Ellesmere the match 4-3 and so putting us into the last 16 of the cup, further than we have been before. A match against Blackburn or Wilmslow now awaits.

So overall for the week I played 47 holes of competitive golf which yielded 16 pars and only 6 holes of double bogey or worse, which is certainly the most consistent I have played. If I can improve my up and down rate from close to the green I can see more improvements ahead.

My medal round in detail.

Hole 1, Not the best  tee shot and then my pitch to the green got held up by standing water, I chipped to 4 feet but knocked the putt 3 feet past the hole and missed the return for triple bogey 6.

Hole 2, I hit a good straight drive, but then topped a 3 wood, I hit a good pitch to fringe, chipped  to 3 feet and holed the putt for a bogey 5.

Hole 3, A Wayward drive into trees meant I could only play out sideways back onto fairway, I hit a good 3rd but topped the 4th, I then chipped onto the green and 2 putted for a double bogey 7.

Hole 4, My tee shot went through green, but I chipped  to 3 feet and holed the putt for a par 3.

Hole 5, A lovely drive left me in perfect position and I hit a good 5 wood that just ran off the back of the green. I  chipped to 2 feet holed out for a very pleasing par 4, as it was the first time I had parred the hole in a competition.

Hole 6, Another good drive, then a 3 wood to 10 yds short of the green, I then hit a weak chip but 2 putts gave me a par 5

Hole 7, I hit a good drive followed by an 8 iron to fringe of the green, I chipped to 3 feet, and holed for par 4.

Hole 8, After a good drive, my 2nd was off line and caught the branches of a tree and fell into a hazard, I chipped out then found the green with a pitch from 80 yards, 2 putts gave me a  bogey 6.

Hole 9, I hit my tee shot right but luckily had a reasonable lie, a chip on and 2 putts for a bogey 4.

So despite a poor start I took 45 shots for the first 9.

hole 10, A good long drive, then a 5 wood just right of the green, chipped to 3 feet, but missed the par putt so a bogey 5.

Hole 11, A reasonable drive and a  good 2nd, left 80 yards, my pitch just short of the green, a chip to 4 feet but again missed the par putt so a bogey 6

Hole 12, I hit a wayward drive then under hit the pitch, a poor  chip on  and 2 putts for a double bogey 5.

Hole 13 A good long drive, then an 8 iron to the  fringe, I putted to 2 feet and for par 4.

hole 14, My tee shot ran to the back fringe, I badly overhit the putt and missed the return so a  bogey 4

Hole 15,A  good drive, but thinned the 2nd, a nice 5 wood went through back, but another poor chip and 2 putts for bogey 6.

Hole 16, A lovely long drive left an 80 yard pitch, I found the green and 2 putts gave me a par 4.

Hole 17, I hit a good drive but  thinned my lay up, a poor 3 wood followed then a pitch to fringe, my chip was long so 2 putts for a double bogey 7.

Hole 18, A lovely 6 iron to 8 feet, I missed the birdie putt so a par 3.

3 pars and 2 doubles gave me a 44 for a total of 89, which less my handicap of 17 gave me a level SSS of 72.

Things are looking up

Whitefield Golf Club

This week has been another busy week and I have played 2 new courses, also happily I have managed to get another handicap cut.

Monday saw a handicap shield match away at Whitefield, a course I have not played before, we are doing quite well in our league so we were looking for another win. We found out that Whitefield had just beaten the previously unbeaten Oldham so a win would see us go top of the group. I was giving my opponent a shot and we exchanged holes early on, I got my best game going though and with the help of two birdies managed to win my match by 3&2, the team also won 5-2 so we are now top and we entertain Oldham this coming Monday.

I am also in the team that play in the Bell Cup, a knockout competition and our next match is against Greenmount near Bury, so on Tuesday, myself and another of the girls in the team went over to play the course. To say Greenmount is quirky is an understatement, I have played it in the past but probably about 15 years ago, when it was a nine hole course. Since then they have extended the course but despite adding 2 new holes the course is still really a nine hole course. However 2 of the holes are now played to different greens on each circuit, so that the 2nd is played to one green but the 11th is played to a different one, similarly the 6th/15th have different greens. With changes to the tees on some of the other holes they have tried to make the 2 nines as different as they can. One sad aspect was that the greens were in very poor condition due to the fact that they have had a disease and so there are bare patches on most greens, hopefully there are local rules that allow the ball to be repositioned if the bare patches affect the putt. The course was certainly a challenge and I do think that local knowledge could be important when we play our match there next Friday.

So onto Thursday and our weekly competition, this week a Stableford. I played indifferently over the  first few holes, with a par but also 2 double bogeys, but a run of birdie, par, par, birdie from the 6th gave me a good outward score. I had a triple bogey on the 12th but then parred 14, 15, 16 and 17 so was looking at a very good score until for the 2nd week running I had a triple bogey 6 on the last. I did however still score 41 points, which gave me a handicap cut of 1.2 and earned me an additional exceptional scoring reduction of 0.5, so my handicap is now 16.8. I also came 2nd in the completion, only beaten by a great score of 43.

Friday saw me visit the 2nd new course of the week, when my partner and I went to Crompton and Royton to play in the regional final of the Lancashire Ladies Scott Leggatt foursomes competition, sadly we didn't play our best and our score of 28 points left us well down the field. I was pleased with my driving but my short game wasn't as good as it should be. We found a lot of bunkers and didn't hole a putt longer than 3 feet all day, with several just lipping out.

I have to say that both Whitefield and C&R were a pleasure to play and I look forward to playing both again in the future.

So onto the competition round.

Hole 1,  I pulled my 6 iron left of the tee, but a chip and 2 putts gave me a bogey 4 and 2 points.

Hole 2, I hit a decent drive a little right, then hit a nice 3 wood to front fringe of the green, chipped to about 10 feet but 2 putted for a bogey 5 and 2 points

Hole 3, I good drive, then a 9 iron to short of the ditch, left about 140 to the green, I didn't hit it great so was about 20 yards shot on the green but I chipped to 3 feet and holed the putt for a par 5 and 3 points.

Hole 4, Another tee shot pulled way left onto rough, hacked it out then my 3rd ran over the green, chipped back on and 2 putted for a double bogey 5 and 1 point.

Hole 5, A poor drive short and left, then a decent 3 wood which left about 100yds to the green, mishit my pitch, but then put my next on the green, 2 putts for a double bogey 6 and 1 point.

Hole 6, A reasonable drive but a bit right, then a 3 wood to just short of the green, I chipped to 4 feet and holes the putt for a birdie 4 and 4 points

Hole 7, A decent drive and a 5 wood to the green, 2 putts for a par 4 and 3 points.

Hole 8, A Good drive and a nice 3 wood to just short again, chip was a bit short but 2 putts for a par 5 and 3 points.

Hole 9, For the first time in a few weeks I hit a decent 9 iron which found the green and I holed 20 foot putt for a birdie 2 and 4 points.

So, thanks to a good finish I  only took 40 shots on the front nine for 23 points.

Hole 10, I hit a good drive but then topped a 3 wood, I hit a good 9 iron to the green and 2 putted for a bogey 5 and 2 points.

Hole 11,  A good drive but I had to play a 9 iron short of the ditch in front of the green, I then hit a lovely 2nd 9 iron which just ran off the back, a poor lie on a bank meant  I didn't  get the ball near enough and 2 putted for a bogey 6 and 2 points.

Hole 12, An awful drive way left and onto the fringe of the 11th green, I over hit my chip, then after finding the green with my 3rd managed to 3 putt for a triple bogey 6 and 0 points.

Hole 13, A good drive which didn't get a great bounce and finished up just in front of a bunker, my 5 wood to the green, caught the top of the bank of the bunker and went to the right behind trees, I tried to chip over the trees but failed, on the green in 4 and 2 putts for a double bogey 6 but has this was my 2 shot hole I scored 2 points.

Hole 14, In an attempted to find an alternative to my longer irons I had  borrowed 7 wood and I used this on the tee and found the green, 2 putts gave me a par 3 and 3 points.

Hole 15, A lovely drive and a decent 3 wood left about 70 yards to the green, my pitch finished about 20 feet from the hole and 2 putts gave me a par 5 and 3 points.

Hole 16, I hit my drive right and though some trees into rough, I chipped out onto another fairway about 60 yards from the green and hit a lovely 52 degree wedge over a bunker to 3 feet and holes the putt for a par 4 and 3 points.

Hole 17, I hit my best ever drive on this hole and decided to try and find the fairway over the ditch, that I would normally lay up in front of, I hit it very well and it found the fairway about 60 yards from the green. I chipped on and 2 putted for a par 5 and another 3 points.

Hole 18, I decided to try a 3/4 hit 7 wood and although I hit it ok it caught a tree guarding the green and fell back down the bank into the ditch so took a penalty drop then hit my next over the back of the green, I chipped on and 2 putted for a triple bogey 6 and no points.

So I took 46 shots on the back nine for 18 points, and a grand total of 41 points, my score of 86 was also my best ever round in a competition. Despite the 2 triples on par 3s, I was very happy with my round, especially the 7 pars and 2 birdies, After an indifferent start to the season I am now starting to ply like I know I can and there is plenty of room still for improvement. I do still need to sort out my longer irons as I am still only really comfortable with my woods and wedges, and although getting a 7 wood would help a lot, I think it would be a bit of a cop out, so a visit to the pro for a lesson is in the offing.

Still struggling to see it through.

The week started with a visit to Lymm golf club on Bank Holiday Monday, with some of the Golf Monthly forum. Two of the guys I was playing with were having a grudge match which provided some hilarious moments. As Lymm is one of the courses in our order of merit, I elected to use this round as my card for Lymm.

It wasn't the best of days although the forecasted rain did hold off for the first few holes and I started the round very well, in fact after 13 holes I had scored 33 points off full handicap, helped by an unprecedented 3 birdies, sadly my tendency to fade kicked in and I only managed 7 points over the last 5 holes and needless to say my shank reappeared on the 16th which ended up being the only hole I failed to scored on. 40 points was very pleasing though on a course I had never played before and even off 7/8 handicap I scored 38 points for the OOM.

Tuesday was my first round in the Hebblethwaite Trophy, the club's pairs 4BBB knockout. I didn't play in this last season and I was looking forward to it. My partner played off 26 and our opponents were off 12 and 21. I started steadily and although my partner struggled early on the match was very close with no more than one shot in it all  the way round. Sadly on the back nine I started 3 putting and we found ourselves down with a few holes to go, but fortunately my partner found her game and she won a couple of holes for us to be one up with just 2 holes to play. I was getting a shot on the 17th so was confident but I played it very badly, including the dreadful shank. One of our opponents got a very good par so we were all square playing the last. My tee shot found a bunker and my partner was through the back of  the green with one of our opponents on the fringe. My partner chipped to 3 feet and the girl on the fringe putted about 4 feet short, she missed the putt and my partner held her nerve to hole her putt and give us a hard fought win of 1up.

The Thursday competition this week was a medal, I played very steadily taking 44 for the first nine including a double bogey 5 on the par 3 9th and taking 44 for the 2nd nine including a triple bogey 6 on the par 3 18th. My gross 89 (net70) was good enough to win the competition and also give me a handicap cut of 0.6, although at 18.5 my playing handicap is still 19.

On Friday morning I played the next round in the club's singles knockout, I was playing this year's most successful golfer and was giving her shots on 2 holes. The match didn't start well for me with my opponent holing a 30 foot putt on the first to win the hole and despite me winning the 2nd I played very poorly over the next few holes and found myself 4  down after just 7 holes. One interesting thing did emerge during these early holes though, I hit what I have been calling a shank, however there was still  dew on the ground I could see the path of the clubhead which showed that as opposed to a shank I had in fact hit the ball off the toe of the club, so maybe I can now work out how to stop doing it.

I did rally later on in the round and although I missed a short putt to get a hole back on the 10th I did manage to get 2 holes back as we reached the 16th, where after both of us having problems, I was far nearer the hole and had taken a shot less, but again my opponent holed a long putt to be 2 up with 2 to play and a good bogey on the last to my 3 putt gave her the match 3&1. The result was disappointing but she played very steadily and deserved to win so I have no complaints.

This weeks medal round in detail.

Hole 1, I topped my tee shot, but a good pitch found the green and  2 putts gave me a bogey 4.

Hole 2, I hit a decent drive and a nice 3wood found the fringe of the green, 2 putts gave me a par 4.

Hole  3, A good drive then a  lay up short of the ditch but I  topped the 3rd, my pitch was short but I chipped to 3 feet and holed the putt for a bogey 6.

Hole 4, My tee shot was just short of the green, a chip and 2 putts for a bogey 4.

Hole 5 I hit my drive into ditch so had a penalty drop, a nice 3 wood was just short and a chip and 2 putts gave me a double bogey 6.

Hole 6, My drive was a bit right and I was lucky that the tree I landed next to was staked so I had a free drop, I hit a  good 3 wood and a chip and 2 putts gave me a par 5.

Hole 7, After a good drive I found the green with a 9iron and 2 putted for par 4.

Hole 8, A reasonable drive and a 3 wood, left me a pitch to the green but I was just short, I hit a  poor chip but  2 putts gave me a bogey 6.

Hole 9, I topped a 9 iron into the ditch, so another penalty drop, then a chip and 2 putts for a double bogey 5.

Despite the 9th, 44 shots on the first nine was under my handicap.

Hole 10, My drive went  right but a nice 3 wood was just short of the green and a pitch and 2 putts for a bogey 5.

Hole 11, I hit a good drive and  laid up with 100 yards of the green, I pitched to the  fringe and 2 putted for a par 5.

Hole 12, I hit a poor drive but chipped on and 2 putts gave me a bogey 4.

Hole 13, A decent drive into the right rough followed by 3 wood to 80yds I pitched on and 2 putted for a bogey 5

Hole 14, I hit my tee shot to the right of the green a chip and 2 putts for a bogey 4.

Hole 15, A good drive and a decent 2nd left a pitch which a little fortunately finished  6 inches from the hole, a tap in for a birdie 4.

Hole 16, A good drive but found a  bunker with an 8 iron, my recovery came out too cleanly and shot over the green, a poor chip on and 2 putts gave me a double bogey 6.

Hole 17, Despite a good drive, a poor lay up meant I could not reach the green, I hit a 3 wood short then a chip and 2 putts gave me a bogey 6.

Hole 18, On what was the last full shot of the round, the bad shot finally arrived and I hit the ball way short and right of the green, I managed to get the ball up over the steep bank under the trees but found a bunker and took 2 to get out, 2 putts followed for a triple bogey 6 and an awful way to finish what had been a good round.

I still only took 45 shots on the last 9 to give a total of 89 for the round but it was so disappointing, after having held the round together so well, to drop 2 or even 3 shots on the last hole.
One pleasing fact was that  I didn't 3 putt, but I do need to consistently  get my chips a lot nearer the hole.