This is a remake of a post I wrote back in 2015. The original article had broken links I could not restore. I thought this infographic was still worth sharing.
I found this infographic a Bunkered.com
Thanks Allianz for making it.
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links.
My first round of golf for 2015 is in the books! Before everyone asks how the conditions are at my home course of Rondel Glen, let me stop you right there. This year my first round of golf was played at the Northwood Golf Course at Middlesex, London, UK.
I am on vacation with my darling wife and we are visiting our awesome friends in the UK. As always, Kirk and I take the opportunity to play a few rounds when we are visiting each other and this time things are no different.
Overall, my round was very satisfying and I am very happy with the overall results. I am using borrowed clubs and shoes, but the intent of my round was more about playing golf, than actually scoring. To my surprise, I was able to do both. My score of 78 with 2 doubles and 1 birdie was pretty solid for the first time out.
Northwood was in excellent shape. The greens were freshly cut and rolled. The fairways were in good shape for this time of the year and the sand traps, many were recently reworked, were in awesome shape. I have talked about this course before and it is worth the 28 pounds it cost to play.
For the first round of the year, with no practice yet, I wanted to manage my expectations and make the round as fun as possible. The little bit of rain during the first 6 holes did not dampen our spirits. So as I approached the first tee, I had two thoughts in mind: keep your head down and widen my stance when driving the ball. As it turned out, these were perfect things to think about.
I had 9 chances for birdie. Four of those were within 10 feet. I only made one. This is not surprising because I have not putted on grass since last year. My chipping was on and off, but my driving was very good. I was able to keep it in play the entire round!
I did have one poor hole. It was a par 5, 480 yard dog leg left, reachable par five, if you are in the fairway off the tee. As it turned out, I hit the ball into the fairway bunker on the left side. Confidently, I walked into the sand, pulled out my 5 iron and hit the front lip of the trap. Classic rookie mistake. To make things worse, the ball came to rest beside the front lip. So, grabbing my shovel…. I mean my sand wedge, I hit the ball again and to my surprise, it landed 6 feet behind me IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TRAP. I cannot remember the last time, if ever, I was still in the trap after 2 shots! Taking no chances, I hit my third shot about 25 yards up the rough.
Now here is a lesson for us all, on my third shot out of the trap, I lost my mental focus and did not consider my upcoming shot. I just hit the ball and did not care where it went. So now I am lying 4 behind the trees with no shot to the green. Next time (well actually I hope there is never a next time) I will remain focused and remember that course management is always in play!
So, on to my fifth shot. After three poor shots in the bunker, I executed the best shot of the round. I hit a 3 hybrid in Bubba Watson like fashion around the trees with a big hook and landed 10 feet from the green in the fairway. It was spectacular! A quick up and down, I walked off smiling with a smooth 7!
With those exciting times over, I responded with a par on the next hole. My first round of golf was nothing but fun. I started with a bogey, ended with a birdie, and now have been bitten by the golfing bug. I finished the 2014 golf season and started the 2015 golf season in the UK with one of my best friends! How grateful am I!
I hope to play a couple more rounds while on our vacation, but in case that falls through, my 2015 golf season has started on a high note!
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!
Sounds like an excellent course to play. I will have to see about it if I venture to the GTA.
Cheers
Jim
For the past 5 months, this how I have felt about not being able to play golf!
This his how I will feel tomorrow walking to the first tee!
Have an awesome 2015 golf season!
Have fun and keep your golf attitude factor or GAF high!
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links…..tomorrow!
Former Champion Ben Crenshaw playing in his last Masters!
It is finally here! The news is going crazy, the hype is growing, and the pundits are pontificating. For all golfing fans, the Masters Week is the start of so many things. For those of us living in the Great White North, it means golf season is about to start. For all those others who live in warmer climates, it is an opportunity to enjoy more golf.
The news is full of stories about who is going to win, who is going to exceed expectations, and who is going to struggle! I have already announce my picks for this year, but one topic I have avoided and just cannot anymore.
Yup, you guess it: The Role of Past Masters Champions!
Why would players be given a lifetime exemption for winning the Masters? If you think of the names on the list, only about 7 of the 19 have a chance to win again. Of those, few would be rated as any kind of favorite! Why let these aging players, some were superstars in their day, take a position from a young player who would benefit more from the experience of Amen Corner? Before we go any further here are the past winners playing this year:
After you have given it some thought, what have you come up with? Why let these aging players into the most elusive tournament in the world? Well, let me tell you.
Because they make the game better! These classy gentlemen, although most are past their prime, educate and mentor the younger superstars of today. They add that “savior faire” to an already awesome golf tournament. Some of these great players, like Ben Crenshaw and Tom Watson, are like that favorite uncle we like to periodically visit just talk about life.
These past champions help keep the rich and historic aspects of the Masters alive. They bring their own flair to the event which helps the fans connect to all the players. They become that underdog, who older players like myself can relate to, the fan favorite and unknown that all golfing fans secretly love to follow!
Ben Crenshaw indicated this will be his last year of competing in the Masters. As all the champions will eventually find out, there is a time to take a bow and exit stage left. Ben Crenshaw is demonstrating yet another lesson to the younger players that eventually everything comes to an end. Crenshaw played with class and leaves with class – Thanks for all the great memories.
As this week unfolds, take time to remember the past champions for they bring more to the game than just golf! As they tee it up on Thursday, listen to how loud the crowd cheers when their name is announce! As we watch them tee it up, there is still a small glimmer of hope and the thought that on any given day, anyone can make history!
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links.
The Grateful Golfer 