Playing the same course round after round tends to produce a stale golf game. My membership at Osprey Links is fantastic and the value for my money is definitely there; however, I do find that my game does following similar paths each time I tee it up. So, yesterday I decided to do something different to shake up my play and I am happy to report that I was successful in my endeavour.

Our round started as per normal with Rick and Fernando. Fernando arrived just on time to play and Rick had his breakfast ball ready to go. 🙂 Okay, that was just a minor jab to my buddies and of course I am telling a tale, but a small one. 😉 Our round did start as per normal and I was in play set up perfectly for my next shot. As I continued through my round, I kept thinking that nothing really has changed with my round that was much different from any other round. I plodded along to a ho hum score of 40 with two bogies and a double. As I prepared for the second round, I decided to shake my game up and I benched my driver and 3 wood!

The back nine at Osprey Links is not overly long and precision on shot location is the key course management approach that helps me score low. Given these two points, it was an easy decision to approach the back nine by hitting my 3 hybrid off the tee was an easy decision. What this decision really did was force me to hit different clubs during approach shots. Some were longer and others were shorter. I actually had to think about every shot and focus on where I wanted each shot to finish (of course the putts I wanted to finish in the hole).

As the round unfolded I found that my focus on my approach shots became sharper and sharper. By the 16th hole, I felt like I was back in mid-season form. On the uphill 95 yard approach shot I hit a 52° to four feet. I hit the right distance and my ball rolled out pin high left. After a smooth putt, I shot my first birdie of the day.

Standing on the 17th hole, I selected a seven iron because the pin was in the middle of the lower third of the green. I hit it very well on a straight line just left of the pin. I had a six foot putt for my second birdie in a row. Well, as luck will have it, I hit the center of the cup for my second birdie in a row. Walking to the 18th tee, I was two over for the back and hoping for the birdie trifecta.

Hitting my tee shot on the 360 yard par 4, 18th hole, I was left with 130 yards to the green. It was the best hybrid I hit all day. I did finish this hole with a birdie, but I did walk away with my par. My change to hitting hybrids off the tee worked out well as I felt rejuvenated after the round. Hitting a different club off the tee was a great move mentally and for my score. Finishing my round with a six over par 77 was the minor victory; taking a different approach to my game and being successful was the real victory.

As I wrote yesterday, I was out to play a fun round of golf. I was successful for sure. Rick and Fernando helped as they always do because they kept things light and fun. Yesterday’s round was perfect…..now if could only have rounds like this all the time.

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!