Low Round

I finally had a breakthrough a few Saturdays ago when I teed it up with some friends at Metropolis. We teed off at 7:30AM (so much for my Friday night) and within the first 40 minutes I was off to a great start - 3 under par through 5 holes.

I birdied the par 5 first by hitting a great 235 yard cut from a downhill sidehill lie that performed perfectly and nestled at the back of the green, my first ever shot on the course with my new TaylorMade Rocketballz 13 degree 3 wood. I blew my putt by but made the eight foot come backer. I then parred 2 and 3 routinely and sunk a 25 footer on the par 3 fourth for birdie and made another after hitting a poor drive into the trees on 5 but somehow hit my recovery/approach to inside a foot to go 3 under through 5.

It still didn't feel like a typical day even though I 3 putted the 6th for bogey and made a poor double bogey on 8. I drove the ball a bit too far right and settled behind a tree having to hit a low 165 yard shot to avoid branches to reach the green. I hit a good shot towards the green but it took a few hops and went into a swale behind and below the green to a short pin. I poorly got down in 4 from there (first chip didn't quite reach the green) for the double bogey but recovered by almost acing the 9th and made another birdie leaving me -1 going into the back nine.

I continued swinging well on the back nine, propelled forward by a new confidence in putting from a recent putting lesson and two (just two) chapters of Dr. Bob Rotella's book Putting Out of Your Mind. I made five routine pars in a row, and again, almost aced the short 15th for a hole-in-one eagle and made an easy birdie. I chuckle as I remember I failed to birdie the easiest hole on the course, the 480 yard par 5 16th after a poor drive. I got that quasi-missed shot back on 17 after almost holing (really) my approach shot from about 100 yards on 17 and tapped in the easy birdie.

On 18, I knew just a routine par would lead to a 68 and my best score ever. 18 was modified in the offseason - joining the 5th and 18th teeboxes, realigning the hole by lengthening and straightening it. Trees left, through the fairway straight and the range right are all in play off the tee and I was pleased to put one of the best swings of the day on the see shot to leave myself about 160 to the green.

The pin was in the rare front right location, just over a bunker and on a ledge (I wouldn't quite call it a tier). I took an extra club for safety and bunted the 6 iron on the green and it rolled a few feet too far leaving me a challenging 30 foot putt up onto the ledge and then downhill from there. Having played Metropolis many hundreds of times, I had never faced this putt. No surprise, I blew it by 15 feet and almost off the green. I then had a tough uphill right to left breaker for my 68. 69 would still have been a memorable round, but a 3 putt on the last would feel on some level like a failure. Golf is about facing mental challenges and withstanding - a 69 with a three putt on the last, tying my best score ever would always feel weak. I stroked the putt true and it went right into the center of the hole with the perfect speed for the 68 and I may have executed a low-key fistpump.

All told, I hit 17 greens and had 31 putts. I only left 2 legitimate shots on the course - the 3 putt on 6 and the double bogey on 8 (I could have made a five). As I start playing tournaments again, I will be looking to channel what I felt this recent Saturday at Metropolis.