As silly as it sounds, the first week of September signals the downhill slide of my yearly golf season. The weather starts to get cooler, wetter, and more unpredictable. After just returning from a two week trip (hence the zero articles), it is time to make the most of the good weather both on and off the golf course. As it turns out right now, I am playing in Men’s Night at my local course if it stops raining. Regardless, it is good to be back and I am ready to play. The question for me today is how am I going to approach my first round since in over two weeks!?

In the past, I would come up with this elaborate plan on how to take it easy, focus on my short game, and stay focused throughout the entire round. Of course that is still true, however I am playing in a scramble and will have little control on where we are playing the ball from each time. Additionally, I will always have a good lie and that is an important factor. So, how am I going to approach this round? That is easy. Stay loose and have fun!

I always have a great time with my playing partners (Charlie, Mike and Barry) because they are easy going players who have lots of skill. Therefore, all I have to do is show up and relax. That makes golf so much more interesting as the pressure to play my top game is reduced. Of course I want to play very well, but it is not an overriding issue always in the back of my mind when I hit a poor shot.

There is one thing I do want to focus on moving forward and that is to work on my tempo. I will be playing in the Ontairo Hickory Open:

Golf Historical Society of Canada (GHSC) is pleased to present the third annual “Ontario Open Hickory Golf Championship.” We welcome our GHSC members and guests to this two-day historical golf competition, which takes place at Whirlpool Golf Course on Saturday, September 20 and Sunday, September 21, 2025.

You can find more information about the Ontario Open Hickory Golf Championship at a previous post.

After today and two rounds on Wednesday and Thursday, the rest of my golf will be with my hickory sticks. I have not played them as much as intended due to life events, but I am ready to get down to business. For today, it is all about having fun and hanging with some friends!

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