How'd you play?

[Nolan220]

Played 18 today shot 93 driver was pretty much non existent ..

[BIG STU]

8 hours ago, sirchunksalot said:

 

Thanks guys! I'm already pretty much over the beat down I took him the course after coming home and talking about it with my wife. She thinks I'm trying to fix too many broken things at once and suggested cutting it down into bite sized pieces and going from there.

She's probably right, as always. I've got way too many thoughts standing over the ball and I need to simplify things. I think sometimes the brain gets in the way of progress. 

Yeah the brain getting in the way is called Paralysis by Analysis. I have went through that in the past and somewhat going through it now with my changes. IMHO it is really bad on older guys like me that have developed their own swing and do not rely on mechanics but more or less a natural feel swing. To be blunt I had to do wholesale changes to even be able to attempt to play golf again. When I started back after my accident I had some terrible rounds in fact a 90 or two. I was physically hurting and frustrated too. I was going to quit period and take up fishing which I know zilch about. One of our members his wife put it bluntly one day. She stated that I was lucky to even be walking much less attempting to play golf. She also added as bad as I thought I was playing I could even with a broken healing back I could beat 75% of the players there. She was among a bunch of fellow members that encouraged me and spurred me on. I owe those folks a debt of gratitude I can never repay. MGSer John Smalls knows in person of what I was going through in those days because we played golf. Rather he played and I attempted to play. I did get 12 holes in and watched him play the rest of the round.

I also owe a debt of gratitude for the members on here and WRX who had faith in me rehabbing even when I more or less had given up on myself. I also had to put things in perspective mental wise had the Lord above helping me too. Long before my accident I had quit playing Mini Tours and high dollar money matches and was playing for fun. I have mentally came to realize the great low scoring days for me are over that I will never be the same player that I was even 2 years ago pre accident. I am at peace with it now and accept things. I still have my ultra competitive attitude and want to do my best but have come to realize my best ain't what it used to be. 

I think what happened to me Saturday was a confusion issue mentally. With my changes I was not focusing enough and was resorting to some of my natural things. I practiced on a new to me pre shot routine and basic set up. Also took notes in my notebook. When I took a break and ate my lunch on the patio in the corner by myself I reviewed my notes and went out after a rest to the range again and applied them. I pretty much have the half swing Tony Fineau / Jon Rahm thing going good. It is just the set up position and the narrow closed stance I have to work on. Yep a open wide stance for me with a short back swing does not translate well for me. The reason I think I double crossed myself with my fairway woods Saturday was because of my stance being open I was getting through the ball and shutting the face now. I do know with my shorter swing I can play or hit balls now with no pain of stiffness just got to put it together and think more and try not to be too mechanical

Sorry I got long winded but keep on working and accept things as they are. I also say now stop and smell the Roses. But if you work at it you WILL get better. Believe in yourself. One thing about things now being retired and not being absolutely obligated to anything other than my Wife and my Church work I can practice most days if the weather is ok. When I had Covid in January I lost like 15 pounds. Well I actually felt good after that. I changed my eating habits somewhat. At breakfast I do not eat meat per say anymore. I eat mostly oat meal or grits maybe 2 English Muffins every now and again. If I eat say a big late lunch I do not eat supper. Now I am not starving but feel satisfied. Checked last night and had lost an additional 3 pounds. My wife (bless her) has been encouraging me and has no problems with me being out 6 or 7 hrs on weekdays and playing the Shootout Saturday. I had been off the painkillers and opioids since like July of last year. Had been doing CBD gummies and a toke of two off the left handed Marlboros for pain or stiffness when needed. Ever since I got over covid I have not did even that stuff because I have not had any pain or stiffness. Now I do take ibuprofen as a preventive to get my joints going but that has been it for now going on a little over a month. 

[Tom the Golf Nut]

15 hours ago, Lacassem said:

It amazes me to see how the grass goes dormant down there completely like that,

I'm about 2-1/2 hours from @sirchunksalot. We have the same type grass in my area. Nothing worse than getting excited to go to the course and you pull into the parking lot and all you see is brown dormant grass. My course keeps it short so it's a tight lie shot all the time when the grass is dormant. You have to be a good picker! sometimes the ground is pretty firm under that brown stuff.

15 hours ago, sirchunksalot said:

 

Thanks guys! I'm already pretty much over the beat down I took him the course after coming home and talking about it with my wife. She thinks I'm trying to fix too many broken things at once and suggested cutting it down into bite sized pieces and going from there.

She's probably right, as always. I've got way too many thoughts standing over the ball and I need to simplify things. I think sometimes the brain gets in the way of progress. 

 

@sirchunksalot don't sweat the small stuff ( like a round on dormant turf ) Let it go. I know you are better than how you performed this time. The hardest thing to do is eliminate all the swing thoughts. Focus on one thing at a time. Listen to your wife ( can't believe I just said that, I never listen to mine). But she was right, break it down into bite sized pieces. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither is a repeatable golf swing. You are always welcome to come back up my way to work on some things if you want to.  

  

[Rickp]

This morning 7:00am Tee Time 60* gentle breeze and sun coming up!!  Hitting ball much better today but putter was DOA.  Can’t blame greens they were over seeded and running true, I couldn’t figure out the breaks.  Finished with a +5.

[Kenny B]

20 hours ago, sirchunksalot said:

 

Thanks guys! I'm already pretty much over the beat down I took him the course after coming home and talking about it with my wife. She thinks I'm trying to fix too many broken things at once and suggested cutting it down into bite sized pieces and going from there.

She's probably right, as always. I've got way too many thoughts standing over the ball and I need to simplify things. I think sometimes the brain gets in the way of progress. 

You know she's right.  Stick with it.  Any Nicklaus course is a wonderful treat, but it's also difficult if your game is not up to the challenge.  Just remember the course and not the shots; one of these days you will go back and the course will seem much easier as your game improves.

Many years ago when I was a 20-something 'cap, I played the Bear Trace at Cumberland Mountain near Crossville by myself.  I was on a business trip and had the weekend off.  It must have been in the fall because there were leaves everywhere!!  I remember the course being gorgeous and very difficult for me. I have no idea what my score was, but I'm pretty sure it was a ton!!  I would like to go back to see it again... maybe this trip to TN in a few months.

Speaking of which, I am definitely planning the TN trip for early June.  I'd like to hook up with you and @Tom the Golf Nut.  Probably flying into Knoxville and seeing buddies near Greeneville and Johnson City, but will spend several days running around the area.  Don't have dates yet, so if some dates work better than others, let me know.

[sirchunksalot]

1 minute ago, Kenny B said:

You know she's right.  Stick with it.  Any Nicklaus course is a wonderful treat, but it's also difficult if your game is not up to the challenge.  Just remember the course and not the shots; one of these days you will go back and the course will seem much easier as your game improves.

Many years ago when I was a 20-something 'cap, I played the Bear Trace at Cumberland Mountain near Crossville by myself.  I was on a business trip and had the weekend off.  It must have been in the fall because there were leaves everywhere!!  I remember the course being gorgeous and very difficult for me. I have no idea what my score was, but I'm pretty sure it was a ton!!  I would like to go back to see it again... maybe this trip to TN in a few months.

Speaking of which, I am definitely planning the TN trip for early June.  I'd like to hook up with you and @Tom the Golf Nut.  Probably flying into Knoxville and seeing buddies near Greeneville and Johnson City, but will spend several days running around the area.  Don't have dates yet, so if some dates work better than others, let me know.

Let us know when you'll be in town and I'd love to meet up with you. I have a feeling we'd all have a great time getting together and playing. 

[Tom the Golf Nut]

24 minutes ago, Kenny B said:

You know she's right.  Stick with it.  Any Nicklaus course is a wonderful treat, but it's also difficult if your game is not up to the challenge.  Just remember the course and not the shots; one of these days you will go back and the course will seem much easier as your game improves.

Many years ago when I was a 20-something 'cap, I played the Bear Trace at Cumberland Mountain near Crossville by myself.  I was on a business trip and had the weekend off.  It must have been in the fall because there were leaves everywhere!!  I remember the course being gorgeous and very difficult for me. I have no idea what my score was, but I'm pretty sure it was a ton!!  I would like to go back to see it again... maybe this trip to TN in a few months.

Speaking of which, I am definitely planning the TN trip for early June.  I'd like to hook up with you and @Tom the Golf Nut.  Probably flying into Knoxville and seeing buddies near Greeneville and Johnson City, but will spend several days running around the area.  Don't have dates yet, so if some dates work better than others, let me know.

Looking forward to it. I have a week booked in Myrtle Beach the end of May. June looks like it is wide open. 

[chisag]

On 2/21/2022 at 6:17 PM, Lacassem said:

It amazes me to see how the grass goes dormant down there completely like that, uo here it’s still partially green. 

 

... One of the things I fell in love with after playing Phoenix courses in winter is how the dormant Bermuda frames the fairways and greens:




 
 

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

18 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... One of the things I fell in love with after playing Phoenix courses in winter is how the dormant Bermuda frames the fairways and greens:




 
 

That is absolutely beautiful 

[chisag]

6 minutes ago, Lacassem said:

That is absolutely beautiful 

 

... Took that picture today. $24 muni with a senior city card at twilite.   Most other courses are charging $150-350 during the winter and don't have views like Aguila. No homes either and I never take the views for granted. Add to that the birds, roadrunners and abundance of rabbits that live on the course and it really is a little slice of golfing heaven. 


 

 

 

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

12 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... Took that picture today. $24 muni with a senior city card at twilite.   Most other courses are charging $150-350 during the winter and don't have views like Aguila. No homes either and I never take the views for granted. Add to that the birds, roadrunners and abundance of rabbits that live on the course and it really is a little slice of golfing heaven. 


 

 

Some of the best stuff in golf are the views and wild life. Can never take it for granted. Few years back in NH couple black bears decided to cross the 1st fairway while we were on the tee box, just so cool and the views there don’t hurt either (didn’t get a picture of the bears though)

wish there were courses here for 35 never mind 25! Steal!

[chisag]

1 minute ago, Lacassem said:

Some of the best stuff in golf are the views and wild life. Can never take it for granted. Few years back in NH couple black bears decided to cross the 1st fairway while we were on the tee box, just so cool and the views there don’t hurt either (didn’t get a picture of the bears though)

 

... So true and what a great experience! My ex and I were playing first thing in the morning at a resort in Galena IL and on the elevated 3rd tee box we could see the green we just played maybe 15 yards to the left of us when 3 fawn and a doe came out of the woods and the fawns started playing with each other on the green and in the bunker. We watched for about 5 minutes when they all took off like an alarm sounded and flew into the woods on the other side of the course in a flash. Then a huge buck came out of the woods where the others came from, trotted down to the green and looked at us like "Kids. What are ya gonna do?" and then casually loped into the woods behind them. 

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

9 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... So true and what a great experience! My ex and I were playing first thing in the morning at a resort in Galena IL and on the elevated 3rd tee box we could see the green we just played maybe 15 yards to the left of us when 3 fawn and a doe came out of the woods and the fawns started playing with each other on the green and in the bunker. We watched for about 5 minutes when they all took off like an alarm sounded and flew into the woods on the other side of the course in a flash. Then a huge buck came out of the woods where the others came from, trotted down to the green and looked at us like "Kids. What are ya gonna do?" and then casually loped into the woods behind them. 

Still waiting for my moose sighting. Hopefully someday

[Kenny B]

1 hour ago, chisag said:

 

... One of the things I fell in love with after playing Phoenix courses in winter is how the dormant Bermuda frames the fairways and greens:




 
 

My favorite course in Phoenix was the old Thunderbird course... the Thunderbirds that put on the WM Phoenix Open.  It was on South Mountain... off Baseline up 7th St; I think their First Tee course is still there, but not sure.  The course was eventually turned into houses.

They never overseeded their course, so it was all brown except for the greens which I think they dyed green.  I actually loved playing on that course; no houses, lots of wildlife, and green fees were less than $50 with a cart.

[Shapotomous]

Jekyll & Hyde golf today.  3 lost balls and had a smooth 47 on the front nine and followed it up with a 36 on the back 9. 

What a crazy game!  

My favorite shot of the day wasn't the up & down from 100 yards to save par on 5, or the chip in birdie on 10 or the 9i from 130 to 4' on 11.  It was a 20 yard chip shot from a pile of leaves about 2' deep over a trap that ended up about 4' on 7.  I had to chop it because there was a 3' log about 1' behind the ball (which is what the leaves were piled against).  I half figured the club would go right under the ball through the leaves but I caught the ball first landed close to the target spot and got lucky with the roll out!  And yes of course I missed the putt since it was the front 9 and i was destined to shoot 47.  

[BIG STU]

22 hours ago, EasyPutter said:

Paralysis by Analysis, love it and new one for me but captures it in 3 words entirely.  BIG STU no worries for long winded, of everyone on MGS your stories are the most informative and entertaining.  I choked on my coffee when you wrote that your terrible rounds recovering were 90, my few rounds that low were the accident I experienced as healthy  as I am.  But it is the details in your writing that has me sitting looking at your club face with ball strike marks and feeling the relaxed nature of range practice pace and sitting at lunch with notebook that put me right there where John Smalls has been physically in that same peaceful place and for me that is what golf is all about.  

Very thankful for your recovery going so well and your spirits being so high.  We are fortunate to have wives who "push" us out the door to golf.  

Couldn't agree with you more.  Like I tell people who watch my relatively short routine, if I stand over the ball very long my brain starts thinking so I don't give it the opportunity, it's just set-up, relax, then swing and usually a playable ball before most in my playing group knows I already hit.

For most of my golf days I was always quick to pull the trigger--- I have been playing with new folks and pull the trigger and they say "sorry we were talking" No problem I was not paying you any attention. I was always a natural feel and instinct player and I set up to the ball and aimed point and shoot. Now days with the new " mechanics" ( man I hate that word golf wise) I have to think about setting up to keep me from injuring myself. And yes for me now it is hard for me to drop back and smell the roses so to speak. I was a WFO person no matter what I did whether it was life golf or racing.

[Kenny B]

13 hours ago, Shapotomous said:

Jekyll & Hyde golf today.  3 lost balls and had a smooth 47 on the front nine and followed it up with a 36 on the back 9. 

What a crazy game!  

My favorite shot of the day wasn't the up & down from 100 yards to save par on 5, or the chip in birdie on 10 or the 9i from 130 to 4' on 11.  It was a 20 yard chip shot from a pile of leaves about 2' deep over a trap that ended up about 4' on 7.  I had to chop it because there was a 3' log about 1' behind the ball (which is what the leaves were piled against).  I half figured the club would go right under the ball through the leaves but I caught the ball first landed close to the target spot and got lucky with the roll out!  And yes of course I missed the putt since it was the front 9 and i was destined to shoot 47.  

Lucky to find the ball in those leaves!  Congratulations on turning around your play on the back nine.

[LeftyMatt89]

43/38 today. I started with two doubles and a bogey through 5 so pretty happy with how I came home even when the front was a struggle. All with only one birdie or could’ve been the best round of the new year so far. What’s really helping is this honeymoon period with the new triple diamond. I am hitting a lot of fairways and giving myself good opportunities to score. 

[Grand Stranded]

I played in our Tuesday member league yesterday and placed 3rd in the A flight with a net 75. The only thing that stands out in what was a really tough day with the irons was the way I fought to finish with a sub 90 round. (you low caps might not relate, but at my level, that’s the goal when things are off kilter)
Oh yeah… and even though I’ve been lights out with my putter lately, the inevitable meltdown took place on the 14th hole, where I 4 putted (3 from inside three feet) and 3 putted from 15 ft on 17. I’d usually be furious after that, but I was stealing strokes all day with my wedges and putter, sooner or later you have to pay the fiddler.

Tomorrow is the last round of the 4 week 2 man combined net tournament I’ve been boring you all about. My partner and I lead our 16 team flight by 7 points in the team comp. In the individual, he’s one behind in 2nd place, there’s a two way tie for 3rd place 2 behind the leader, and I’m in 5th, 3 points behind, so there’s a lot to play for.

We’re playing the Dye Club which is a tough course, and things can change quickly in this format as net eagle 4pts, birdie 3, par 2, bogey 1, anything higher -1. It’s going to be a fun day, I just hope this story has a happy ending!

 

Edited February 23, 2022 by Grand Stranded

[Kenny B]

1 hour ago, Grand Stranded said:

I played in our Tuesday member league yesterday and placed 3rd in the A flight with a net 75. The only thing that stands out in what was a really tough day with the irons was the way I fought to finish with a sub 90 round. (you low caps might not relate, but at my level, that’s the goal when things are off kilter)
Oh yeah… and even though I’ve been lights out with my putter lately, the inevitable meltdown took place on the 14th hole, where I 4 putted (3 from inside three feet) and 3 putted from 15 ft on 17. I’d usually be furious after that, but I was stealing strokes all day with my wedges and putter, sooner or later you have to pay the fiddler.

Tomorrow is the last round of the 4 week 2 man combined net tournament I’ve been boring you all about. My partner and I lead our 16 team flight by 7 points in the team comp. In the individual, he’s one behind in 2nd place, there’s a two way tie for 3rd place 2 behind the leader, and I’m in 5th, 3 points behind, so there’s a lot to play for.

We’re playing the Dye Club which is a tough course, and things can change quickly in this format as net eagle 4pts, birdie 3, par 2, bogey 1, anything higher -1. It’s going to be a fun day, I just hope this story has a happy ending!

 

I'd wish you good luck tomorrow, but that seems like the same as me picking a PGA player to win; mostly they don't do very well... so you're on your own!! 

[BIG STU]

4 hours ago, Grand Stranded said:

I played in our Tuesday member league yesterday and placed 3rd in the A flight with a net 75. The only thing that stands out in what was a really tough day with the irons was the way I fought to finish with a sub 90 round. (you low caps might not relate, but at my level, that’s the goal when things are off kilter)
Oh yeah… and even though I’ve been lights out with my putter lately, the inevitable meltdown took place on the 14th hole, where I 4 putted (3 from inside three feet) and 3 putted from 15 ft on 17. I’d usually be furious after that, but I was stealing strokes all day with my wedges and putter, sooner or later you have to pay the fiddler.

Tomorrow is the last round of the 4 week 2 man combined net tournament I’ve been boring you all about. My partner and I lead our 16 team flight by 7 points in the team comp. In the individual, he’s one behind in 2nd place, there’s a two way tie for 3rd place 2 behind the leader, and I’m in 5th, 3 points behind, so there’s a lot to play for.

We’re playing the Dye Club which is a tough course, and things can change quickly in this format as net eagle 4pts, birdie 3, par 2, bogey 1, anything higher -1. It’s going to be a fun day, I just hope this story has a happy ending!

 

Man it was beautiful today wasn't it? Played 18 myself slipped in between the Tourons with a bud of mine. I had made a few equipment decisions even though I had been hitting the M-6 ok and finding fairways I put my old dependable Honma G-1X driver in the bag. I always had hit it pretty straight and thought with my cut back swing it would do really good and it did. I also put the old V-Steel 9 wood in the bag. Good decision there because I can hit several different shots with it. can hit it higher than the 5 iron and stop it. Pretty decent day did my new pre shot thing and paid attention to how wide my stance was. My bud has played a lot of golf with me in the past so he knows my swing. He said I never pulled it back more than 10:00 all day long. Yep I hit it solid and again I did not get any pain or stiffness. Ended up shooting 77 (+5) from the senior tees with no birdies which i will take smiling all the time. And yes it was a 5 hr round

[Grand Stranded]

3 hours ago, BIG STU said:

Man it was beautiful today wasn't it? Played 18 myself slipped in between the Tourons with a bud of mine. I had made a few equipment decisions even though I had been hitting the M-6 ok and finding fairways I put my old dependable Honma G-1X driver in the bag. I always had hit it pretty straight and thought with my cut back swing it would do really good and it did. I also put the old V-Steel 9 wood in the bag. Good decision there because I can hit several different shots with it. can hit it higher than the 5 iron and stop it. Pretty decent day did my new pre shot thing and paid attention to how wide my stance was. My bud has played a lot of golf with me in the past so he knows my swing. He said I never pulled it back more than 10:00 all day long. Yep I hit it solid and again I did not get any pain or stiffness. Ended up shooting 77 (+5) from the senior tees with no birdies which i will take smiling all the time. And yes it was a 5 hr round

That’s a great round Stu, and it’s nice to hear you’re feeling better. I went through something as serious as your accident years ago when I dislocated my right hip. (That’s the same injury that immediately ended Bo Jackson’s career) To this day I have to work really hard to convince myself I can transfer my weight onto my lead side in the forward swing. What was once a  movement I could make in many sports without even thinking about, became a constant battle that I couldn’t always win.

Cold damp days are the worst as far as the pain goes, but like you, I’m pretty lucky overall. When I woke up in the hospital the doctor told me I’d probably need to have my hip replaced in 5 years. My immediate reply was “why didn’t you just do it now if that’s the case?” It turns out I’m happy he didn’t. It’s now 15 years later, and the hip has outlasted a lot of the ones my friends have.

As far as the tourons be patient my friend. They’ll be gone in a month!

 

[BIG STU]

8 hours ago, Grand Stranded said:

That’s a great round Stu, and it’s nice to hear you’re feeling better. I went through something as serious as your accident years ago when I dislocated my right hip. (That’s the same injury that immediately ended Bo Jackson’s career) To this day I have to work really hard to convince myself I can transfer my weight onto my lead side in the forward swing. What was once a  movement I could make in many sports without even thinking about, became a constant battle that I couldn’t always win.

Cold damp days are the worst as far as the pain goes, but like you, I’m pretty lucky overall. When I woke up in the hospital the doctor told me I’d probably need to have my hip replaced in 5 years. My immediate reply was “why didn’t you just do it now if that’s the case?” It turns out I’m happy he didn’t. It’s now 15 years later, and the hip has outlasted a lot of the ones my friends have.

As far as the tourons be patient my friend. They’ll be gone in a month!

 

May need your input on the hip thing. Bear's brother we call Checkers was supposed to have hip replacement surgery last week but due to the circumstances with Bear's health and eventual death it was put off until April. He was always a good player and was at least 20 yards or more longer than me off the same tees. He is 76 now and is still one hell of a man on the upper end he is built like a Stevedore. When he turned 70 and moved up to the super senior (green) tees he was pure hell. We won a lot of scrambles and had some folks raising hell. In fact he had to show his ID at an event (not at Indigo because no one there gives 2 rips) to prove he was 70. In those days (pre accident for me) you did not want to leave either Bear or myself a 8 iron or less into a par 4 much less a birdie putt within 10 feet. In fact at the event at Founders when he had to show ID Bear another guy and myself would just send him forward to hit and we sat back. We never pulled the driver all day. The group in front of us said we was pushing them and every time they looked we were behind them in the fairway. The Pro at the time who was a friend of mine knew what was up and told them. I heard part of it and told them it was easy when you had one player bombing it and hitting it in the fairway every driver hole and the other 3 sitting on a cart on their arsses drinking coffee and smoking cigars. Funny thing was that same bunch of young guys were the ones that brought up the ID issue because we had blown their butts away at Indigo 2 weeks prior. I got that info a week or so later from my pro friend and he knew Checkers was over 70. But yeah he is a realist and smart and not hard headed I think he will be ok but it never hurts to get some experienced input.

Can give you a funny one on the Saturday Shootout Scrambles at Indigo. Most of the players are regulars even the Snowbirds who play every year. Now we have some interlopers mostly young flat bellies thing they can slide in and kick butt. LOl we had some slide in the New Years thing and I know they had to be Tourists. Dressed to the 9s and a couple of them had those new Ping Flowey bags with matching head covers. The other 2 had Ping Staff bags. Really out of place there in the normal gist of things. We were chuckling among ourselves. Someone asked if they were lost and could not find MBN or something. My other running partner Big Bear cracked in his dry Pennsylvania tone " as much as they spent on all that fancy crap they probably could not afford to play anywhere than here" . I remember they evidently did not do as good as they thought or kicked the old farts butts because they never turned in a card or stayed for the free lunch afterwards. I can remember and I am a jokester and will put the needle in the drop of the hat. One of the regulars said where they could hear us nonchalantly "huuh I guess the young guns are here to kick our butts? I told him and they heard me they do not intimidate this fat boy in the least. Lots of times it is a set up because all the local guys know I will come up with some kind of saying and everyone will laugh. My bud Big Bear is just as good and IMHO he is better with his dry Pennsy drawl. Give you another one. A lot of the friendly tourists especially females will say I can tell you are not from up North. I will say contraire dear (if it is a lady) I am from up North--- NORTH Charlotte NORTH Carolina. Cracks everyone up. Now I got set up the other day by one of our members. I have long shoulder length dark hair with no gray due to my Native American Heritage and it looks a lot better than that mess on Tommy Fleetwood's hair. I keep it cleaned tangle free and brushed down. One of the members sent his SIL who I did not know to ask me who does my hair because it looks better than hers. I started to explain in earnest that I did my own hair nothing special that I was blessed. Everybody cracked up and someone yelled "Gotcha Stu"--- Indigo Life ain't nothing like it.

[chisag]

On 2/22/2022 at 8:32 PM, Kenny B said:

My favorite course in Phoenix was the old Thunderbird course.  It was on South Mountain... off Baseline up 7th St; I think their First Tee course is still there, but not sure.  The course was eventually turned into houses.

They never overseeded their course, so it was all brown except for the greens which I think they dyed green.  I actually loved playing on that course; no houses, lots of wildlife, and green fees were less than $50 with a cart.

 

... Kenny you are not alone as many people here have mentioned they loved that course. Aguila is only a few miles away but not as close to South Mountain but you can see it in the distance and it frames several holes. Sounds like a course I would have enjoyed playing but it was gone long before I moved here. 

[BIG STU]

Ok guys have a good one for today with practice no play. Beautiful here again mid 70s no joke. Went out real early to my side of the range hit balls some and as SOP for me. Took a little break and did short game and then broke to eat lunch. About the time I finished the ladies group came in and this is where it starts.

Now bear with me here and this may be a first on here or any Golf Forum there will not only one but 2 disclaimers before the post

#1 Disclaimer Ok Mods if this violates some moral clause or something I am sorry. I guess if you need to smack me across the knuckles with a S-300 takeout shaft or something. If I get suspended I will be back when they let me back no hard feelings.

#2 Disclaimer I have never considered myself a knock out hulk like guy like Freddie Couples or Robert Redford. I guess my attraction to women comes from my mannerisms and treating a lady like a lady

On the level I think this was a joke set up because all the Lady Members I know them and their husbands and all of them know I am happily married have been for 34 years this July Lord willing. One of the ladies called me over and said she wanted me to meet her sister. She told her " This is Stu he is a fixture around here All the men around here want to be like him and all of us Ladies want to be with him" OMG! I was in shock. Her sister said yeah I would love to take you home and play with your hair all night. The Stu mind works fast when it works--- I shot back at her I am happily married but if I were not and you took me home we would do more than you playing with my hair. It did not phase her and all the ladies howled. She said dammit all the good ones are taken or drink too much. Now for her age (69) and she was a Fox for her age had I been single yeah I would have took her up I honestly admit. Come to find out she is American born and bred but married a Frenchman and moved to Quebec. She spoke English with a French accent sexy I tell you. She had been widowed for about 3 years now. I still believe it was one of the joke set ups Indigo is known for. I know the ladies call her Frenchie because of her past. One of the member males quipped " are you going to take Frenchie home? I said no I already have one at home. He said I did not know your wife was French"? And he was a serious as a heart attack. I told him naah but I already have a Frenchie at home and he is a male and has 4 feet and fur and weighs 30 lbs. Of course as a good husband I excused myself and went back over to the range and after another bucket and then straight to the car.

Now like I have always done I do not keep secrets from my wife and the same with her I told her and she cracked up. She always said basically I was dumb and did not know when women were flirting with me. She will tell anyone that all older women , dogs and little children adore me. This one older widowed lady at my former church used to flirt with me and my wife told her after services on Sunday. Go ahead and take him home because after putting up with him 15 minutes you will bring him back in a hurry. My wife says she knows of no set up no one had called her and she laughed at the whole thing. She knows after 36 years total of being together I am not going anywhere

[Rickp]

21 hours ago, BIG STU said:

Man it was beautiful today wasn't it? Played 18 myself slipped in between the Tourons with a bud of mine. I had made a few equipment decisions even though I had been hitting the M-6 ok and finding fairways I put my old dependable Honma G-1X driver in the bag. I always had hit it pretty straight and thought with my cut back swing it would do really good and it did. I also put the old V-Steel 9 wood in the bag. Good decision there because I can hit several different shots with it. can hit it higher than the 5 iron and stop it. Pretty decent day did my new pre shot thing and paid attention to how wide my stance was. My bud has played a lot of golf with me in the past so he knows my swing. He said I never pulled it back more than 10:00 all day long. Yep I hit it solid and again I did not get any pain or stiffness. Ended up shooting 77 (+5) from the senior tees with no birdies which i will take smiling all the time. And yes it was a 5 hr round

MB this time of year, yup 5 hours typical.

Nice shooting!

[chisag]

... Same ole story, finally had a good round after struggling all week. 55* with no sunshine and 15mph winds yesterday with a windchill in the 40's so canceled my round and just did my speed training session. Warmer today at 55* with bright sun and 3-5 mph winds and played well shooting 1 under with an eagle on the 10th. Left 3 makable birdie putts a few inches short that were right in the middle but drove the ball really well and looking forward to playing tomorrow. 

... Interestingly I played with a 50yr old already retired guy playing a Stealth Plus with a Kaili x-flex and he was just killing it. Said he struggled the first 2 rounds but today was his 3rd time using it and it was just silly straight and long. Hit a few pushes off line that got him in trouble but other than that he was money all day. Said it was the best he had ever driven the ball and he was soooooo glad he bought it. The crown cracked on his Sim and they sent him a Sim2 that he traded in for the Stealth. Sound was more of a crack than a thud but definitely a more muted sound. 

[Kenny B]

On 2/23/2022 at 12:01 PM, Grand Stranded said:

I played in our Tuesday member league yesterday and placed 3rd in the A flight with a net 75. The only thing that stands out in what was a really tough day with the irons was the way I fought to finish with a sub 90 round. (you low caps might not relate, but at my level, that’s the goal when things are off kilter)
Oh yeah… and even though I’ve been lights out with my putter lately, the inevitable meltdown took place on the 14th hole, where I 4 putted (3 from inside three feet) and 3 putted from 15 ft on 17. I’d usually be furious after that, but I was stealing strokes all day with my wedges and putter, sooner or later you have to pay the fiddler.

Tomorrow is the last round of the 4 week 2 man combined net tournament I’ve been boring you all about. My partner and I lead our 16 team flight by 7 points in the team comp. In the individual, he’s one behind in 2nd place, there’s a two way tie for 3rd place 2 behind the leader, and I’m in 5th, 3 points behind, so there’s a lot to play for.

We’re playing the Dye Club which is a tough course, and things can change quickly in this format as net eagle 4pts, birdie 3, par 2, bogey 1, anything higher -1. It’s going to be a fun day, I just hope this story has a happy ending!

 

 

 

[Grand Stranded]

Okay the Battle of Barefoot is in the books, we played our final round today on the Dye Course in Barefoot.

We started on hole #11, where after hitting a great drive, I bladed a 9 iron through the green and into the edge of a wooded area. I chipped out onto the fringe and realized…. I didn’t have my putter in my bag!!! I had to use my SW, and 4 putted for a -1. You can’t make this s**t up! We called the Pro Shop and they sent out a LH rental before we got to the 2nd green.

The story gets better… about 5 holes in, a Ranger pulls up to me holding MY putter. It turns out I took it with me when I had to punch out of the trees on my first hole, and left it there. For the life of me, I have no recollection of doing that. Getting old isn’t easy.

Anyway, we were paired with the team right behind us in 2nd place, and they took it to us right from the start. They cut our 7 point lead down to 2 points when we finished 18 and turned to play our final 10 holes.

I was in a groove pretty much all day, but my partner was struggling. I birdied the par 5 8th but he had a minus, so our combined 3 points vs the 2 net pars the other team made gave them the lead with only #’s 9 and 10 remaining to be played. As it turns out, #9 decided the tournament.

Its a tough hole, with a waste area up the left and water on the right the last 150 yards. I hit what was one of the best 3 woods of my life off the tee, about 225 in the bottleneck between the sand and water. My partner was about 25 yards behind me, back with our opponents. He got 2 strokes on the hole and he steeped up like a champ, hitting the green from 175 out with his 5W. The other team put one ball in the water right, and the other went way left of the green, then skulled a chip across the green into the water.
I hit my second shot just short, putted to 4 feet and made par, as did that feisty 25 cap partner of mine! My net birdie and his net eagle were worth 7 points and their -2 total made it an unheard of 9 point swing. The match was all but over with one hole to play. I made par and my partner might still be out there trying to get in the hole if he didn’t pick up for a -1. No worries though. He came through big time the hole before when it mattered.

A quick word about my pard. He’s the first friend I made down here and he fights harder for every point than any 25 cap you’ve ever seen... I love the guy. It was a ton of fun seeing the look on my boy Frank’s face when they announced us as the winners. He told me the only two times he’s ever won a tournament he was playing with me, and they were the highlights of his golfing life. That was worth way more than the trophy and prize money we won (well, almost ). 

As for the singles , I came in 3rd, 3 points back. I would’ve loved to catch the leader, but he played very well. After 4 rounds it’s amazing that the top 3 players were separated by 3 points. That’s a credit to the man who flights this tournament.

I hope you guys enjoyed reading these recaps half as much as I enjoyed playing with my friend. I’ve played way too much golf the last three weeks, and I’m pretty sore. After I play with my Saturday league tomorrow, I m going to rest up a few days.

 

 

Edited February 25, 2022 by Grand Stranded

[BIG STU]

5 hours ago, chisag said:

... Same ole story, finally had a good round after struggling all week. 55* with no sunshine and 15mph winds yesterday with a windchill in the 40's so canceled my round and just did my speed training session. Warmer today at 55* with bright sun and 3-5 mph winds and played well shooting 1 under with an eagle on the 10th. Left 3 makable birdie putts a few inches short that were right in the middle but drove the ball really well and looking forward to playing tomorrow. 

... Interestingly I played with a 50yr old already retired guy playing a Stealth Plus with a Kaili x-flex and he was just killing it. Said he struggled the first 2 rounds but today was his 3rd time using it and it was just silly straight and long. Hit a few pushes off line that got him in trouble but other than that he was money all day. Said it was the best he had ever driven the ball and he was soooooo glad he bought it. The crown cracked on his Sim and they sent him a Sim2 that he traded in for the Stealth. Sound was more of a crack than a thud but definitely a more muted sound. 

Ok man I am playing good but with all of that you gotta give me 3 up a side if we ever meet up!!! For once maybe I can give you some advice. Watch those speed trainers with the back. Which for you may be different but I hurt myself (post accident) with mine and the Skilz Ball trainer. Mine was all inferiority complex me trying to pull the club back and far. Trying to get more distance. Was pulling my back on both ends and of course stressing it. Of course as a rule you are smarter than me anyhow. But after getting the physical things figured out I came to accept that now I am a 64 year old with a bad back and that is the way it is. I did have to re do and think my course management some. I quit using both of those training aides for now and went back to the way I always did it warming up and timing it up using my wedges. 

Your 50 year old sounds like our buddy Uncle Cardy from WRX--- Cardy is 54 and is still long and a heck of a player. Even though I had been finding fairways with the M-6 I ended up putting the Honma back in the bag. Something on the M-6 and it may have been me was not feeling right. I know it is not cracked because I can not swing hard enough to crack an egg now much less a driver. I think it may be something having to do with my short swing and the Twisted Sister face. Then again it may be in my head. The Honma may be 5 yards shorter but I can stand up on the tee and absolutely know where I can hit it. Not sure I may be tangling with some flat bellies today myself. One of my buds who is still a good player at his mid 50s wants to play today. His son and his bud are down from college. They play for a smaller college up the road from us. I know his son is a good player. More than likely we will play the blue ( back ) tees at Founders club south of me. I love that course but it will be a stretch for me back there. I put my realistic goal of breaking 85 for me from there. When Cardy was here we played my home course from the mid tees. He did not push me on that but I did it anyhow. Basically jump started me on my course management attitude change. And no I am not going to push it. I now know my limitations and I am ok with it