Lakeside Lodge - Lodge Course - 23/06/16
I've had a few good rounds recently but this morning I couldn't seem to do anything right. My drive on the 1st drifted right and just failed to clear the tree line. I took a provisional, which I ended up playing as the first had indeed gone into the trees, which are out of bounds. The provisional had landed on the path, so I dropped and played a good hybrid followed by a good 5-wood to put myself about 30 yards from the green. The pitch was short and I needed three putts to finish, giving me a 9 for a nett triple bogey.
It didn't improve on the par 3, 3rd. My 5-wood off the tee went wildly right only just avoiding going out of play. The ball was in very heavy grass and the approach to the green needed to stay under a low-hanging willow. My first attempt with a 20 degree hybrid didn't get far through the grass. I then tried a 7-iron, as I had a bit better view of the green, but it went too long. The 7-iron back onto the green was also long, needing another putt back on. One more putt for a 6 meant yet another blobbed hole - nett double bogey.
The 4th is a tough hole but I started well, as after a good drive and two hybrids I was about 30 yards from the green. Unfortunately the gap wedge was short and I needed to putt on, with two more putts for a 7 - nett bogey.
I took the driver on the par 3, 5th and just got away with it, landing to the left of the green on the upslope of a bank. I took a gap wedge but dug in, the ball only travelling 6 yards. Another gap wedge left me with a reasonable putt, which I made for 4 - nett par (at last!).
The improvement continued with the 6th. A drive followed by a hybrid put me off the green to the left, but pin high. A 7-iron and one putt gave me a 4 - nett birdie.
A 172 yard drive on the 7th followed by a 3-wood, which again didn't really outperform my 5-wood, left me 90 yards out. My 9-iron was pin high but again off the green to the left. The 7-iron chip on was long and I needed two putts to finish for a 6 - nett par.
On the 8th I had made 290 yards after a drive and a 5-wood but I was heavy on the next hybrid shot and needed another 9-iron to get me to the green. Just off, in fact, from where a 7-iron and a putt gave me another 6 - nett par.
On the par 5, 9th a drive, which landed just short of the fairway bunker, and two hybrids set me up about 60 yards from the green. My 9-iron made the green but was a long way from the pin, and I needed three putts to finish with a 7 - nett bogey.
The 56 today was disappointing, but it really all comes down to some very bad tee shots on the early holes. I felt that perhaps I had allowed my ball positioning to drift too far back in my stance, as on later holes I realised this, and corrected it, after which I had much better drives. As I said at the beginning, lack of concentration during set up. The 3-wood failed to do better than the 5-wood again. I will give it one more try, perhaps off the tee next time, and if it continues to offer no advantage it will come out of the bag.
Game Golf scorecard:
