Luck. Most people have their fair share of it. Some people have more than others. When it comes to prizes & competitions involving nothing more than chance, I'm not usually holding my breath to be involved. So when I saw a tweet offering a free round of golf at a nearby course this caught my eye and got me out on the fairways (well, some of the fairways) for the second time in two weeks. How lucky would I be?
Following on from my half-decent performance (literally - front 9 good; back 9 terrible) against Noel at Cambridge Meridian, we had discussed at length the prospect of getting out to play again and when. The earliest available date was the 24th March and I stumbled across a tweet from Julie from Colmworth & N Beds GC, offering a free round of golf as part of their Test Drive event on the...24th March. This seemed too good an opportunity to pass up, considering a) the proximity of the club to my house; b)the fact I'd never played the course before (hangs head in shame given point a) above); c) it was free; d) there was a prize draw for a month's membership and; e) it was free.
Names duly registered for the event, we patiently waited for the arrival of the confirmation email on Friday with our tee time - ok, I'm not the most patient of people (don't all gasp at once) and I will admit that I toyed with the idea of booking a tee time at a different course in the middle of the week...sorry Julie!
Waking up with a stiff neck on Saturday wasn't part of the carefully & meticulously planned preparation - not that this is in any way an excuse for what followed but, suffice to say, I didn't play very well. The fact that I was even in the match after 9 holes was more due to the generosity and, on occasion, comical golf of my playing partner. Any time I made a hash of a hole and leave the door open to put me to bed, I was repeatedly reassured to see Noel stumble at the crucial moment - be it a duffed chip, a dribbled putt or (a personal highlight) taking 6 to get down from 75 yards on the 12th after I had shipped two tee shots OB and picked up.
In the end, Noel walked off with a fully deserved victory, by the same margin as I had inflicted upon him two weeks before. My earlier post about that round outlined what I wanted to take into this game, so let's review it:
Swing Path - more upright and less rounded to eradicate the hoik/hook. Did I remember this? Er, no - the stall was set out with my opening tee shot which was a bona fide, 24-carat hoik into the shrubbery on the right. Fail.
Tempo - accelerate through the ball and not hit the cover off it. Did I remember this? Er, no - I struggled with my timing for most of the front 9, particularly with the shorter irons. Fail.
Energy levels - be prepared with suitable food through the round. Did I remember this? Er, no - I didn't bring anything out with me aside from a bottle of squash and was pretty tired by the end of the round. Fail.
The final element was to smile and enjoy the game. Did I remember this? Yes - I thoroughly enjoyed it and loved the course. It's not the longest but what it lacks in length it certainly makes up in tightness, dog-legs and quick, quick greens. Additionally, some of the pin positions wouldn't have been out of place on a final round at a Major - very tight with little room for error, which was certainly challenging at times!
I started this post about luck and how some people have more than others. I have been the recipient of plenty of luck on the golf course in my time and Noel has, on occasion, been known to have the 'luck of the Irish' too (Are those trees between me and the pin? Best aim at them - I'll get through...) but I paid little attention to the prize draw element of Saturday's Test Drive event, primarily because I didn't expect to win it. As the afternoon drew on and the conversation flowed with Julie, Duncan & Kevin (great to meet fellow Twitterers) and others, the prospect of my name coming out of the hat diminished in my eyes.
Imagine my surprise when Julie announced that I had won the draw - a truly unexpected bonus and a tailor-made reason for temporarily abandoning my status as a Part-Time Golfer and getting back out to Colmworth over both of the next two weekends.
I am looking forward to learning more about this hidden gem of a course - the aggressive lines to take, the right time to play it safe and how to tackle the speedy greens. Fingers crossed for a spot of rain over the next few days as they could do with slowing down a bit.
Thanks to Julie for organising and hosting a terrific event, as well as donating a great prize!
I am the Part-Time Golfer
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