Golf Tour 2007
Wednesday, Dec. 5 -- This is another course that was high on my list of places I wanted to play. And for the most part, it lived up to expectations. The were a few ordinary holes, but there were also a lot of exceptional ones.
Executive summary -- A struggle for much of the round, but also moments of brilliance!
Played from the blue tees, I'm not sure why, as it was a little long for me. Or, more accurately, there were 2 par 4's that were definitely too long. And 3 of the par 5's were on the long side, although the problem with them was more how I played them than the length. 6,479 yards, par 71 (so equivalent to a 6,600+ par 72 course), 70.7/126. The rating and slope were certainly not unreasonable. I think it was just that my game was a bit lacking.
Another good day, a bit overcast and chilly to start (upper 40s) but the sun came out after a few holes and it felt quite balmy. Also a steady breeze from the west.
1. Par 4, 411, into the wind. Drive was right, not well enough hit to reach the bunker. Good 5-wood, but still 40 yards short of green. Left first chip short of green, second one to 3' but missed putt. Double to start....
2. Par 5, 574, into the wind. Long hole. So-so drive, terrible 5 wood way right, hit tree and dropped, kept it out of thicker stuff. Good 5 iron, wedge from 100 was a little left and strong and on back fringe. Putted to 6', so now I'm looking at starting with 2 doubles and just before I putt, Gail farts, and I ask if that indicates what she thinks of my golf, and we laugh, and I roll it in dead center, and we walk off the green both feeling better.
3. Par 4, 355, uphill. After two nothing special holes, things got interesting. Dogleg left. Perfect drive, lined up just right for second shot. Perfect 7 iron, landed right by pin but took a hard bounce, 2 putts from 35'. Par, that's better.
4. Par 3, 170. The yardage book's advice was, "Hit it straight." Didn't. A little right, caught the tree front right and dropped down on the front right fringe. Could have been much worse. Putt from 50' rolled stiff.
5. Par 4, 464, with the wind. But still long, especially if you play it badly. Perfect drive, right up the middle, but still 230 to the green. Another awful 5 wood, way right, in the trees. 9 iron through only opening to maybe 20 yards short of green, chip to 9', 2 putts. Another double.
6. Par 4, 359. Good drive but just in the right rough, so shot to green had to be over a couple of trees. Hit absolutely perfect 9 iron from 125, high, straight, perfect, right at the pin, except for the noise it made when it clipped the very top of one of the trees. Dropped down 5 yards short of the green, then my usual, so-so chip, 2 putts from 12'.
7. Par 3, 189. Hooked 5 wood, 5 yards left of green, lousy chip, 2 putts from 20'.
8. Par 5, 481. Interesting hole. Looked narrow off the tee but there was room. Ok drive, just in right rough. Yardage book said to hit second shot to right part of fairway for a better look at the green, so I aimed right, over a couple of knolls and some brush, hit the ball perfect, and heard the miserable sound of the ball hitting branches. Seems I misread the map as to just how far right the fairway went. Never found it. Provisional 5 iron was in left rough, wedge to 25', and then rolled in the downhill putt to salvage a bogey.
9. Par 4, 430, uphill into the wind. Long. Ok drive but not long, good 5 wood, still had 60 yards. Left pitch short of green, but then chip was stiff. So 45 for the front side, definitely a struggle. Looked like breaking 90 might be difficult.
10. Par 4, 350, dogleg right. Perfect drive, 9 iron to way back pin, 2 putts from 14'. First putt was short, never had a chance.
11. Par 4, 370, dogleg right over water. Perfect drive. Between clubs from 145 with a tailwind, hit 7 iron well, bounced just over. Poor chip, 2 putts from 14'.
12. Par 3, 175. Island green, though a big green. Pin was up, tailwind, solid 6 iron just hooked a little, on the green but 60' from pin, sidehill/downhill putt. Hit it hard enough to go 70-75', it hit the hole absolutely dead center, popped up in the air 4 or 5 inches (more than I've ever see a ball do), and dropped in. And I just stood there laughing.
Easy game.... Gail got a nice 3, her much shorter birdie putt just missed.
13. Par 4, 362, dogleg left. Good drive, a little right to be safe (a pretty good carry over water, became a lot longer carry if you went left). Pretty good 7 iron up the hill, but pulled slightly, just caught the bunker. Had about 25-30 yards to the pin. As I walked into the bunker I was thinking, "Kevin (our pro back home, who gave a bunker lesson a month ago that has only helped me occasionally) would say I should use my pitching wedge for this distance, not my sand wedge. And Kevin would say I ought to be able to hit these shots close." So I took my pitching wedge, and opened the face way up, and made a nice swing, and hit it to a foot. Par. :-)
14. Par 3, 151, front pin. Hit a solid 7 iron, good I hit it solid because I also hit it a little right so it needed the distance to carry the big right bunker. Putt from 60' (my distance?) just slid by the edge.
15. Par 5, 540, double dogleg. Now the course seemed to get tighter and tougher. Pulled drive a little, almost into the woods, but it was by the cart path. Had a swing, but not a good angle, weak 5 iron but in play, still 200 yards to the green over some trees, no way, 9 iron lay-up, but then left sand wedge on front fringe and pin was way back. First putt ended up 9' away but somehow made that. A struggle for a bogey.
16. Par 3, 148. Narrow chute, very, very tilted green. Lousy 8 iron, but ended up ok, on the upslope short of the green. Ok chip, below hole, 2 putts from 9'.
17. Par 4, 395. Tough hole, dogleg left, very tight off the tee, needed a fade, not my shot. But I tried anyway, and did it, didn't hit it real solid, but in the fairway which at that point was 11 yards wide. 5 iron needed to go over the corner of the brush, must have flinched, hit it high and right. But good chip from about 30 yards and rolled in the putt from 9'.
18. Par 5, 540, uphill, into the wind. A bad hole all the way. First really bad drive in a couple of days, way right. Provisional was perfect. But actually found the first one, in the open, playable. Topped 5 iron, hit ok 5 wood, but into right rough, lousy 7 iron short and sharp left, Still 40 short of green after 4 shots. Thought I hit pitch ok, but it was 40' short. Morale was sinking. Gail said this was my range. Didn't make it but at least knocked it close to salvage a 7. And 39 for the back side (that just sounds better than a 40) and 84 for the day. Considering how many poor shots I hit, the score was better than I deserved. Goes to show what making a few putts can do.
Still, a pretty neat course. Would play it again gladly.
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The Pit, Aberdeen, NC
