Saturday will see my third round of golf since the turn of the year, and second this month, so I wanted to look back at my last round at Cambridge Meridian to see what I can take forward to this weekend now that the cobwebs have been blown away.
10th March 2012. 11.22am. It had been 9 weeks, almost to the hour, since I had touched my golf clubs in any way, shape or form. The bag had sat in the shed through the cold, wet weeks of January and February and I was glad of the opportunity to get rid of the cobwebs, literally and metaphorically. The chance to play golf was somewhat unexpected and was spurred on by the significant improvement in the weather and the knowledge that my mother-in-law would be around to help out with the kids, so I was determined to get out and play wherever and however I could.
Luckily, Noel was available to play too, so that made for a more interesting day - whilst I would have been quite happy getting out and hitting some balls, even on my own, it's always more enjoyable to have someone to play against.
I was conscious of keeping my expectations firmly in check as we headed for Cambridge Meridian GC, the scene of my irritatingly pyrrhic victory back in October. Whilst my last round of golf (Thorney Park GC, 1st Jan 2012) had produced a very satisfying and solid 75, I knew there were a number of factors which would contribute to making a similar round hard to achieve.
First and foremost would be ring-rust. I hadn't played any golf since trying out Urban Golf in the City of London as a birthday outing on the first weekend of January, so I knew that it would take time to work the stiffness out and re-establish the familiarity with my set-up & swing. I would say the largest problem I have when returning to the game after an extended break is at the set-up i.e. where to stand in relation to the ball for which club, so I was geared up and ready for a challenge in this department.
Secondly was a physical change. I made a conscious decision to do something about my weight at the turn of the year, as I could never have described my physique as 'athletic'. I have always been a graduate of the Colin Montgomerie/Darren Clarke School of Physical Conditioning and I have developed a golf swing to allow for said restrictions. I've even had the pleasure of having my swing videoed and compared to a professional - the player chosen for comparison was none other than the 2011 Open Champion. Since the last time I played, I have lost a fair bit of timber (there's plenty more where that came from) and I wasn't sure what impact this would have on my golf game. I noticed the effect mainly on my timing and swing shape - I struggled to get my tempo correct and also found myself hooking the ball as I was used to having a rounded swing path.
The third factor was one of tiredness. As anyone with small children will know, a full night's sleep is a distant memory for, at best, a matter of months. My daughter arrived at the end of January (a significant reason for the lack of golf since the new year) and, whilst my wife has been taking the lion's share of the sleep deprivation, looking after our three year-old son isn't exactly relaxing. So, I was expecting to find things hard going but not exactly how they actually panned out.
So, what happened out on the course? Well, the front nine was surprisingly good. For the first four holes, it was a battle with the aforementioned factors but I managed to scramble some half-decent scores before hitting my straps for the latter stretch of the outward nine, rattling off a sequence of five straight pars to go out in 39 (+3) for 20 Stableford points. It certainly wasn't textbook golf and included some (very) wayward drives and scrappy approach shots, but my recovery shots were extremely satisfying, as was generally my putting. Due to two especially bad holes from Noel, I found myself eight points up at the turn and this, I feel, made a further contribution to what was to follow.
Having shaken off the after-effects of the 'nutritious' hot-dogs (are they part of the new regime?!) from the halfway hut, I was feeling pretty confident (doh - been here before, haven't we?!) that I could press home by advantage and carry on as I had been playing for the preceding five holes. In the most generous and polite way possible, my golf from then until the end could only be described as crap. Thankfully, from the perspective of the match, Noel's was only marginally less turd. We basically exchanged lazy and tired blows for nine long holes - any time that I opened the door with a wayward shot (especially on approaches to the green), Noel would slam it firmly shut in his own face and, for that, I was extremely lucky. I came crawling back to the clubhouse with an inward nine of 46 (+9) for 15 Stableford points, a grand total of 85 (+12) for 35 points, a winning margin of seven.
Overall, I was pleased with the game as I hadn't played for a long time & a lot of things had changed. It gave me renewed belief that a long break from playing hadn't completely destroyed my abilities and whetted my appetite for getting out to play more often once spring has firmly sprung.
So now I am lucky enough to be looking forward to my second round this month on Saturday. Chirpy-Chops Noel is again my opponent and, all being well, we will be striding out Colmworth & North Beds GC, a venue new to both of us. I always look forward to playing at a new course - the challenge of plotting your way around and finding out the little nuances and intricacies of the holes. To me, this is probably the main benefit to not being a member of a golf club - providing the opportunity to play elsewhere without feeling you are wasting your membership fees.
What will I take into Saturday's game?
Well, I will certainly be more aware of my swing path. Having the understanding that I am physically capable of producing a more upright swing may help to eradicate the rounded hoik/hook that showed its face a couple of times.
Tempo - I will be more conscious of my timing when playing a shot and try to remember the acceleration through the ball, as opposed to trying to hit the cover off it.
Energy levels - the dietary regime has put paid to the traditional mid-round snacks of chocolate bars, fizzy drinks, etc so I will be better prepared with fruit & other fuel sources so that I can maintain my energy levels for the full round.
The final thought for Saturday is one which I have made a real effort to bring in during my golf - smiling and enjoying the simple fact that I am out playing the game. The result of the match and, for that matter, the end score I produce for eighteen holes is largely immaterial, so I shall pledge to have fun, whatever the outcome.
I am the Part-Time Golfer
No comments:
Post a Comment