Match Play format is a duel between two golfers where anything can happen. As it turned out, my match yesterday against JC turned into a hole by hole battle where neither of us could break our opponents regardless of what we threw at each other. The round had a few surprises, but mostly it was 18 holes of great shot after great shot. JC and I both finished with 4 over par 78 with no doubles. It seemed that when one of us gained a slight advantage, the other responded to half the hole. Overall, it was the most fun I have had in a match in a very long time.

JC and I have very similar games. We are not overly long and we hit the ball very straight. We did have some difficulty on approach shots, but most of those were shots that landed on the green and rolled off the back. The greens were hard which produced a nice roll on the ball while putting.

There were some great shots made by both players. JC had the one of the greatest shots I’ve seen in many many years. It all started on the 4th hole when JC pushed his ball to right and was blocked by the trees in the distance.

JC had a blind shot with 110 yards to the pin. Unfortunately, he duffed his shot which landed in a water hazard. His point of entry was 75 yards from the green and it was still blind. I was in the fairway 90 yards from the pin. I hit my wedge to 8 feet and was feeling very confident that I was going to even up the match (I was one down at this point). Before JC hit, I went to look for his ball on the other side of the hazard just in case. It was not there.

Instead of conceding the hole, he yelled up that he was going to hit up in case he got lucky and holed his shot. I heard his club make contact and I picked up his ball sailing comfortably over the trees. I watched his ball land just on the green and roll out towards the pin. As I watched, I thought that JC’s shot would be very close. It was very close alright! I watched his ball hole out for a par!!!! I hooted with excitement and congratulated him on a fantastic shot. After a smooth two putt, I was still one down.

We each won four holes, two on each side. Surprisingly, each win was because the other player made a very poor shot (except for the 4th hole); usually it was a poor chip or putt. Not bad considering the pressure we were putting on each other. I would say that JC made the most save putts of the day. He was a gritty player that never stopped playing.

Our matched went to one extra hole. It was the par 5 first. It is an open hole that both of us were playing well during the round. We both hit long tee shots, but we were in the rough. I chose to hit my 3 hybrid because of its ability to easily slide through the rough. JC did as well. I hit my ball to within 15 yards of the green on the left. JC’s ball went right and stopped directly behind a tree about 20 yards from the green. It was the most unlucky result possible short of hitting the ball into the woods. After two shots, he had a 10 foot putt for par. I hit my ball to 12 feet and was away for birdie. I was conservative with my putt and he conceded my 6 inch putt for par. JC lined up his putt hit a perfect line. Unfortunately, he was 8 inches short! Thus, I won the match which means I am in the finals for the club championship.

The match against JC yesterday was the most fun I had in competition in a very long time. It was a dog fight where the slightest mistake cost the hole…..such fun! Not only is JC a great golfer, he is a gentlemen as well. I enjoyed our conversations as we looped around the course and hope we can find time to play again this year.

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