The tee-time deals have cooled off a bit now that the weather's gone all hot and nasty, but I'm still surprised at what we're getting away with over here. The cost-of-everything is going up all the time isn't it? But I'm glad to report that my golf expenses lately are down to circa-2006 levels. I pushed my way through some massive tourist-herds on the ferry and made it across the water to Silver Lake.
The mower was busy today; the fresh-cut grass smell was out of control.
I started the round with a piped 3-wood down the middle, then a 9-iron over top of the flag. Okay, so I three-putted the green, but the two swings felt fantastic and that seemed to start me off on an unusually calm note which I sustained for most of the day.
Dammit if this was not the best I've played all year, even if the scorecard says 82 and looks middling through and through. Screw the numbers! You had to be there. Not even the senile, mobility-challenged foursome in front of us could bring me down. At the turn I calmly asked the starter if I could jump ahead into the three-hole gap created by those old folks and he gave me the greenlight--he had watched my opening tee-shot and I think it might've earned me some cred.
I got roughed up in a few spots and made a handful of double bogeys. But hey, that is par for the course for double-digit cappers, right? (Well not literally I guess.) For reals though, it was a seriously tasty sampler platter of good golf. Of course samples are not ideal--you'd rather fill up your fat face at the buffet-line and then keep going back for more. But sometimes, you make a meal out of the hors d'oeuvres and it can be frickin' satisfying enough. Booming tee balls, pin-seeker approaches, bread-and-butter chips, tasty short-side scrambles, smart lag putts... I got a little taste of almost everything.
It is always disappointing to limp in with a weak (double/bogey/bogey) finish but look at this round from a distance and it appears to be another tiny half-step forward. A) It's my lowest score at Silver Lake and 2) I am no longer a 'teen handicap. Now I am a pre-teen. Yay! To understand this smug self-satisfaction you have to remember that a few months back I was splitting my nutsack and not even breaking 90. Perspective.
I did blow another good opportunity to break 80. But I knocked on the door again at least. I just have to keep knocking, like a pest and sooner or later I'll get the damn thing open. And once it's opened I am going to keep it propped open, with my shoe if I have to.
That's the spirit we have come to know. The door will be knocked off the hinges soon.
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Thanks man, for taking my metaphor and raising it up a notch, literally. I am starting to see the game more in this way, and less in the take-a-swing-leave-the-rest-to-God kind of way.
DeleteThat grass looks pretty healthy and the greens look good too. Has there been a significant change in the weather or maintenance procedures, since you showed us what looked like a moonscape, not too long ago (probably not at the same course, though)?
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a fine course and more importantly a fine round by you. Welcome back to the pre-teens, Mr Legit!
You bring up a good point man. I tend to be quite quick with the snarky put-downs or lurid full color photography in my endeavors to expose the crappy turf conditions around here to the entire world. But I probably don't give much credit when things are in a good state. It's true. Silver Lake in particular is looking alright and the greens are rolling fairly true. Yay.
DeleteGood stuff. My hcap is going in the wrong direction, hope I can turn it around like you, soon. Like SJ said, Silver Lake looks pretty lush for a muni.
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