Kenny B

I decided not to play today. It's 104* right now at 2pm headed for 108. Same for both Sat and Sun. It's supposed to cool off to 96 on Mon. woo hoo!

Oh, the humidity!

Well, Mizzy told me to go play golf today. So I did. Played a local muni, and since I was tired from traveling yesterday, I decided to play from the Whites. It's a par 70 and I shot 74; 3 bogeys and birdie on both front and back. I was swinging pretty freely and made a few putts. One thing I did today is putt Jordan Spieth style; that is, looking at the hole on short putts. It seems to work for me on putts less than 4 feet, so that's my limit right now. I am going to start a new thread on this and monitor my putting for the next week or so.

Somebody should sell it to California. Could be a money maker.

I love consistency, but I would give up consistency once in awhile for the opportunity to shoot a really low score. Haven't done that in a long time. BTW, in my round posted above, there were two kids, 18 somethings, playing behind us. As we were on the next tee box, one of them hit it to 2in on a 168y par 3. Several holes later after I had teed off and waiting for the other two guys, I watched the other kid from about 80y out in the trees, punch one through the trees, bounce along the ground, roll up on the green and in the cup for an eagle on a par 4. Ahh kids.....

My mom had minor surgery on Friday, so I came for a visit last Wed. Been stuck in the house since then, but I got out at 1pm today to play at the Salem CC in Oregon. Nice old track with lots of trees and the weather was perfect. It's a short course; about 6300y. I played with a couple of members and their son-in-law. He could hit it a mile! Did I mention there are lots of trees... he found most of them, and hit 3 balls OB. I managed to shoot 38/41 = 79 and I birdied the hardest hole! I think I left about 6 putts short in the jaws, so the score could have been a lot better. Just couldn't make myself hit the ball today for some reason, usually not a problem for me.

Let me think... Red? No, that's not it. Hmmm, Orange? Nope! Blue? Yeah, I think it's Blue. Am I right? Am I right?

Drove down to my parents yesterday; mom is having minor surgery on Friday. I had some extra time so I drove the extra 50 miles to Fiddlers Green golf shop outside Eugene Oregon. What a place! I met Mmmmmbuddy, my first meeting with another MGS member. He gave me the tour of their driving range, demo/fitting area, and a quick look around the shop. Biggest shop that I have been in! Oh by the way, I picked up the True Linkswear Oxford Canvas shoes that Nic posted last week. Love them!! Not sure if I will play golf in them, but would be happy wearing them anywhere and then hitting the range.

Boring! Playing from different tee gives you different looks and makes you think about yardages and different clubs. It not only requires different clubs, but also helps with the mind game. I think it also helps with how well your game travels. If you are playing in competition, I think it would be wise to play from familiar tees. I think your opponent was happy to have you play from the whites with less strokes given. Very wise on his part. But if you are not in competition, I would play both sets of tees. Given time, and the correct strategy, you will score better from the Whites.

Very consistent round Foz. Good score! An 83 is just a few putts from breaking 80. That is pretty typical of my rounds. Don't make many birdies unless I know the course really well, but usually don't make DB or worse. I say usually, b/c it can and has happened!

I wish I could be there to join you in Minneapolis. I am headed out tomorrow morning to visit my parents. Mom is having a couple of benign tumors removed; in and out same day. I think I will have time to play a round or two while I am there. Maybe go see Mmmmmmmbuddy at his golf store in Eugene, OR. Best of luck, and I hope you find your answer to the wedges.

I hope the tie breaker rule was stated before the tourney. We have a pro that makes up those rules on the spot after looking at the score cards so he can pick who wins. We've lost numerous times that way.

I have heard of Kenny G. Did he make putter? So, I had to look up Kenny Giannini, and WOW! Simply WOW. That G2 is sweet! I love the minimal look. Now, if they made a heavy version, I would buy it in a heartbeat.

I don't usually play in money games, but thought I would go back 20 years and see how well I play compared to back then. Faired pretty well. It is a totally different game than a fun round with friends or family where there is no pressure. I felt it several times when I was putting, and missed a few short putts that I just didn't get to the hole. I should probably do this more often. Skins are team and individual. From 4 players counting two scores, two birdies on a par 4 is a 6 total; par-birdie is 7. If another team gets a 6, then no skin. In our game yesterday there were only 3 skins, so skins were worth more $ than if there were more. Individuals get KP skins, so my KP on #11 was worth a few bucks, but even though I made birdie, someone else did too, so no team skin. It helps to figure it all out if there is an accountant present!

Since I am on vacation until I retire on Sept 21, I decide to go back to the club where I started playing golf 24 years ago and play in their Friday gangsome. I only recognized 3 guys that were playing when I played in that gangsome a long time ago. Back then I was probably good for 3 pars that didn't help the team, but it was fun anyway. Today, I played with 3 guys that I didn't know. I shot 40/37 for 77 for my best round this year. It could have been even better but it took several holes to get the speed of the greens right. I left 2 par puts short in the jaws by an inch, and lipped out a downhill birdie putt that had 2 feet of break. We played a $10 Nassau and $2 skins; we didn't win front or back, but won the total. I had 2 birdies, a tap-in after just missing an eagle chip, and a KP on the par 3 11th; a 2 footer with break. I won $48 which covered my green fee and the $12 for the game. I had to pay for the beer I drank! Hope I can keep it going for awhile...

Many years ago when I was just learning the game, I got sucked into a big money game. It wasn't big money when it started though. I routinely played with a bunch of guys in the gangsome that were pretty good; around scratch. They were the captains of the gangsome teams; I was the "D" player, and usually when they picked teams, it was "... and you can have Kenny." I was lucky to make a few pars in 18 holes that actually meant something to the team (counted 2 scores per team). Well, after the gangsome ended and everyone had a few beers at the clubhouse, another game got started. The club pro (who was a Washington state amateur champion and played in a few web.com tour events, or whatever they were called back then), another pro, and a few Ams that could shoot under par. One held the course record at 61. Two teams, and I got asked to play and like an idiot I said OK. $10 game right? For 9 holes, late in the afternoon. My team didn't do very well on the first hole, so there was a "press". I had no idea what a "press" was. Actually, if I remember correctly, there were 5 "presses" in the 9 holes. I am not sure how much money that added up to in the end, but on #9, in the dark, I made about a 25 foot left-right breaking putt for par that someone said was work $150. NEVER again! I was waaay outa my league!

Yep! I shot my best round (69) with 3 buddies on an Arnold Palmer course. I had no idea what my score was; just out having a good time. I knew I had a few birdies, but never kept track. My buddy really surprised me with the scorecard! To paraphrase a Kenny Rogers song "... there's time enough for countin' when the golfin's done."

Wow! 6 horseshoe putts in a round!! Well, to take words from Tiger... you're close!

Just for something different on Sunday, my wife and I went to Echo Oregon to play their 9-hole course. You play from the white tees for the first nine and the blue tees for the second nine. We've played it several times and although it is relatively short, it is always in good shape, and you don't need tee times. The greens are very small but roll nicely. I have never played this course very well, because the two par 3's are long uphill shots and my short game wasn't up to saving my approach shots to the small greens. Before my knee replacement, this was the course that my wife beat me for 18 holes. Well yesterday, my game was on and I played the first nine in 3 over with one birdie but had a DB on a long par 4. The second nine was not quite as good with several bogeys and one birdie. I had a fairly straight-forward chip on the long par 3 that I put pin high about two feet away, but the slope was so severe, the the ball almost came to a rest by the hole, then trickled down hill about 7 feet away! I called unfair and missed the par putt! We never got to finish the round because a T-storm hit us while on #15 and we got drenched driving back to the clubhouse. Just didn't have time to wait it out, so we left. But I can definitely say that my wife wasn't going to win!

Thank you! Thank you very much! I find that it works well with hydrocodone to ease those aches and pains from old age that I mentioned in that other thread. I am not sure why the pill bottle says not to take with alcohol.

I really like a nice straight shot. I have found that I don't get in too much trouble when I hit the ball straight. However, my "go to" shot is Glenmorangie.

Welcome Silvia! Sounds like you have the opportunity for some great experiences. I like Myrtle Beach; lots of great courses. I was at the WorldAm many years ago, and was amazed how many people from all over the world were there. Unfortunately for them (and me) it rained a lot! If you have any questions, just post them and the great MGS crew will respond. Good luck in your travels!

Seems like it is time to try something different when you get to the back nine. Is it putting? Driver? Hazards? What ever it is, analyze where the dropped shots are coming from and play the holes a little differently to avoid the miss. I find that just changing something... anything will reset your mind and creates a new feeling for the shot. Try it a few times and see what happens. It gives you a different perspective on the course. Then you can go back to your current approach with a different outlook. Always think positive; don't dwell on previous shots. Good luck! Once you get there, it will seem much easier after that.

When I started playing golf 24 years ago, I shot scores that start with 7... for nine holes. Nice round! I am a 9.4 and shooting a score that starts with a 7 is rare for me. However, I am going to say that it makes a difference if you play the same course all the time. Other than my 9-hole practice course, I don't think I have played the same course this year more than 4 times, but I have played 17 different courses!

I find it really amazing that we can sit down at the end of the day and remember the shots that occurred on each hole; at least I can. In some cases I would like to forget them but they linger on. However, when my wife and I play, she can't remember anything after the round. She's a good golfer, 19 HCP and has been playing since she was 8 years old. Her dad was a scratch golfer and club champion at three country clubs in Spokane and Hayden Lake. She had 5 brothers and an older sister and they all played golf. So why can't she remember the shots that happened 5 hours after the round ends? We talk about the round in the evening and she doesn't remember the shots she took that saved par on the hardest hole on the course. I guess playing around with me is not that memorable.