Scramble yesterday, -10. Five shots back. Missed birdie putts on three holes in a row from inside eight feet on the back, not sure otherwise were we would have done a lot better.

Played a par 3 course today for the first time ever. Was kinda neat but only played 9 holes.

Shot a 38 with 2 pars, 4 bogeys, 2 doubles, and a triple.

4 penalties!

Ball striking was pretty poor. Only hit 1 GIR, and 3-putted from there. Greens were AIDS. Blocked a couple and pulled a couple, bleh. Pitched, chipped, and putted well outside 1 easy pitch that I shanked sideways into water. Made putts from 6, 8, and 10 feet.

Holes were all short so I was hoping to have a few birdie putts inside 20 feet but my only birdie putt was from 44'.

My dad topped his hybrid on the final hole (197 yards) and it bounced literally like 8 feet and didn't leave the teebox. Then he hits his 2nd off the deck to like a perfect line but about 20 feet short of the flag. lol. I told him before his 2nd shot "this is for birdie".

41-43-84. 1 birdie, 5 double bogeys.

Feast or famine. Hit a number of very good shots. Also hit some really awful shots. My short game has AIDS.

Played a 35 par (3 par 3s and 2 par 5s) 9-hole track this afternoon and shot +2. Good to follow up the train wreck from yesterday with some positives. Made 2 birdies, 2 bogies and a double. Hit all 3 par 3s in regulation which is nice. Driver erratic but it's a forgiving track.

Have a round with a client Wednesday - he invited me to play in his member guest last summer so hopefully I keep it together to get the invite again this year.

Playing a ton of golf next week in Michigan.

Anyone play any of the following courses?

Eagle Crest
Shepherd's Hollow
Forest Akers
Hawk Hollow
Eagle Eye
Grande Golf Club

Shot an 85 on Saturday during league play after two straight rounds in the 90s. The rounds in the 90s were super frustrating, not only because I haven't done that in literally years, but I feel like my swing has been improving.

I was really playing well Saturday, but blow up holes killed me. Three doubles and a triple. Two of the doubles were just plain bad putting, third was trying to get tricky by playing another fairway, and ending up in a bunker. Triple was the worst: ball up against the back lip of a bunker on a par three, thought I could get to it, careened it over the green and out of bounds.

45-46 - 91

Didn't play great today. Had trouble hitting fairways until around the 11th hole when I figured something out in my swing plane. Had an 84 going to 18. Drive down the middle, iron just left of the green, chipped on and a ****ING 4 PUTT!

46 (+9) - 43 (+8) = 89 course HC 20
started the round with a three putt bogey after GIR from fairway bunker on the first hole, then proceeded to take penalties on four of the next seven holes, three of those off the tee.

1 birdie
4 pars
8 bogies
5 doubles

33 putts (4 1putts, 13 2putts, 1 3putts)
6 2putt bogies, 4 2putt doubles, 1 2putt par, 3 2putt pars
2 FIR (misses not penal, except for 3 penalties)
5 GIR (three of those on 3pars)
had a nice 6 hole stretch in the middle of the round where i was +1, but meh for the rest

mid to short irons were fine to good (except for the shankappotamus from 100 on the last hole), but pretty disappointed with hybrids. post round analysis (always conducted while trying to fall asleep the same night) makes me think that i've gradually been playing the ball more back in my stance and coming in too steep. need to move it forward, imo.

The world wants to know how you have time to play golf with whoever you played golf with that wasn't Malice and me, but you haven't played golf with Malice and me.

What course?

HA...what's your sleep schedule on weekends?
that was the Reserve North from the whites. I have a vip client that likes to get the first tee time on sundays (and for some strange reason the Reserve's first times during the longest days of the year are at 6:36am and not 5:36am) and scoot around the course in under 3:30. work foots the bill and the hours are included in my total for the week. that plan is also beneficial to the spousal golf equity since i can play 18, grocery shop for the week on the way home, and be back before noon.

you two been getting out in the afternoons/evenings? keep in contact and let me know when you guys have plans. i'm sure i can make something work in the near future.

My "schedule" is lax, so whenever you guys can play, I can play.

I'm likely joining Riverside in a couple weeks (moving to the NE), but I'll still play wherever/whenever and get you guys on as guests whenever its doable.

Thanks Malice. I have a couple of friends that play out of Riverside, but i've had conflicts every time they've invited me and I've yet to play there.

I've logged my best 2 rounds the last couple weeks and I've been itching to get back out but it's been raining or threatening to rain all week. Might try to play tomorrow but I'd expect the course to be super soggy.

I know you can free drop from casual water, but is "lift, clean, and place" such a thing if you are in the fairway? Or does that only apply to pros? The course is a cheap place (though well maintained) with a 20 year old kid who doesn't play golf in the pro shop so if it's up to the course I highly doubt he'd be of any help.

If the ball is picking up mud then play lift clean and place.

So it's up to me to determine LCP? Not the course? And LCP is only if my ball is in the fairway, right?

I play LCP everywhere if it's muddy. I once hit a ball so high it landed in the rough and embedded all the way into the ground. At least 3 inches below the earth. I'm supposed to play that?

Sometimes there is a local rule for free relief from embedded balls through the green, but when there's not, you are only entitled to free relief from an embedded ball in the fairway (the exact wording is in closely mowed areas).

In the situation above, you would have to take an unplayable lie and receive a penalty if you wanted to move it, unless it embedded due to casual water in which case you would get free relief.

Well, a public course is not usually going to post if it's LCP (although some may). I think it's pretty easy to make a determination if LCP is reasonable for that day (.ie it's wet to the point where your ball is picking up mud almost every single hole).

And if I am not mistaken, in some cases where it is extremely wet, even on the PGA tour they have played LCP through the green, which includes the rough. Not 100% on that one though.

After giving you ****, now I'm the one who has to say that my schedule is pretty booked for a couple weeks. Actually, maybe the week after the 4th might work. Still want to play Langdon.

I'll be joining you at Riverside, Malice, but probably not until spring (maybe winter) given my commitment to Rock Creek. Since moving to NE my play out there has DEFINITELY dropped off.

I'd suggest playing the ball down always unless every shot is plugging. Learning to hit a ball with a bit of mud on it is part of improving your game.

Shouldn't walk 18 and carry my bag on no food all day but I did b/c I am cray sometimes. Last 4 holes I was getting lightheaded but was able to finish up OK. Met up with some guy who said he was overseas for 4 years and didn't get to play at all and this was like his 5th round back. He struck the driver and his long hybrids/irons pretty well and said he's trying to get his game back but I said I can see that he must have gotten pretty good before the layoff and he said he was a 5 handicap. His short game and putting was really, really bad. And overall I probably beat him by ~10 strokes today. But he was grooving a pretty good power draw off the tee.

48-46-94 (93 ESC)

Course was really soggy but not as bad as I expected. only saw casual water in 2 spots. Did LCP on my fairway holes as there was visible mud on ball but outside this I only had a couple true mudballs today. Flew a green with a gap wedge (lol though I was further out) and my ball plugged a couple inches in the grass beyond the green. Dropped without penalty but from the sound of it I'm supposed to penalize myself. F that. This was a standard trajectory ~100 yard shot that just got buried.

3 fairways
2 greens

Ball striking was pretty bad. Driver was bad and my miss was left, right, low, or high. Bounce digging into the soggy fairway hurt me a couple times on some fatish pulls. Windy as ****. 3 clubs in some instances and I don't really ever try a knockdown shot. Course is like less than 10 miles from Galveston Bay which is attached to the Gulf of Mexico. Wind is always brutal here esp. since the trees are mostly short/bushes. Approaches were long or short all day.

2 pars
12 bogeys (lol)
3 doubles
1 quad
2 penalty

No birdie putts from inside 20'.

Putting like a beast, though, at least on lags. 15 2-putts and 3 1-putts. 7 first putts from beyond 20'. Burned edges in the makeable range but killed it just past hole. Lipped out a couple putts. Made a 7' and 14' putt.

1
6i fairway, 131 out straight into wind I hit an 8i (last week I had same distance into wind and hit 9i just short and rolled into lake). Pin high to 28' left. 2 putt. E

2
Drive well right, 5i punch up short/right of greenside bunker. Nice pitch over bunker to 19' 2putt +1

3
9i pulled way left like 30+ yards as wind helped it too. Nice SW pitch to elevated green to 22'. 2-putt +2

4
Mash drive pretty well but left of FW. P-wedge just left of green. Baby my chip........settles in grass just short of green. Chip to 7' and drain putt for bogey. OK. +3

5
Crappy slice barely fails to clear lake. Gotta drop way on this side since that's where it crossed. This is a long par 5 so I try to mash a hybrid and top it like 40 yards. Then again I hit it hard but it's a low slice that feels like I have an Arnold Palmer finish that luckily lands quickly and the soft ground keeps it from running up through the dogleg. Debate between 7i and 6i but there's a big tree just short/right of the green and I want to make damn sure I clear that. So I pull the 6i and hammer it but block it right of green long. Whatever. Ball in soaked grass and my SW carves into the ground and shank my pitch right to the top of the hill. OK. Chip to 11' and miss. Quad. Yuck. ESC calls it a triple, at least. +7

6
Hammer a good drive but it clips leaves overhanging the box (tees were way back), somehow it gets through and down to probably ~215 in the fairway. Lucky. Like 165 out straight into strong wind so I hit a 5i and pure it and it falls just short of green. Sigh. Go to chip with my 60d instead of my SW and I duff it. Wonderful. Chip to 8' and miss. Double. +9

7
Awful drive straight pull low that hits a tree and deflects into the lake. Jesus. I need to hit less than driver off this tee but I need to practice those shots. Third shot I can't really reach the green from this angle so I P-wedge up to a good number but it clips some leaves overhanging (lol 3 shots on last 2 holes hit leaves/tree). Left with a 9i into the wind that I hit well to 25' then 2-putt double. +11

8
Punish this drive but straight-pull it a bit and it's up left of fairway well past 270. Some tree canopy is overhanging leaving me nothing but a punch shot if I want to get it up to a wedge out (par 5). So I hit a terrific 5i punch shot from downhill lie right into center fairway a P-wedge out. Hit great P-wedge to 21' then 2-putt for par. +11

9 par 3
4i into wind struck well but fades right/short of green. This is where you want to miss if you do. Pitch to 20' then 2-putt. +12

10
Guy I'm playing with and I debated playing the whites this time. Course is so short that I play blue/blue all the time. So he says sure let's play blue again. I top my 6-i tee shot and it literally settles between the 2 white tee markers. So I'm like "Yeah looks like I'm playing from the whites this time." 7i from the deck high crappy fade into the wind well right of fairway. Rip a wonderful 8i into wind straight on line that settles 21' past hole. 2 putt bogey. +13

11
Terrible drive low left that bounces left of some bush thank God. 291 yard hole and I'm like ~200 yards out. I just grip and rip a 4i that settles right of bunker again. Pitch over bunker safely to 22' and 2-putt. +14

12
Good 9i just barely short/left of green. Chip to 10' and 2-putt. +15

13
Toe a low draw that rises a bit over the trees and then kinda toe-dives into the ground. Distance is pretty good though and I shortened the hole a great deal. I think I'm like ~100 out so I hit my gap wedge and fly the green and embed the ball. Partner was in fairway and had a yardage app and said I was only like 80 out. Ups. Pitch to 13' and 2-putt for another bogey. +16

14
Pop up drive (never hit these) dead straight to middle of fairway at least but distance isn't great. Pure the **** out of my 4i and fly it over a tall tree way up ahead. Ball settles gently in middle of fairway. Just an outstanding shot. Partner rips his 2nd shot over the same tree and his ball settles like 8 feet left of mine same distance out. I said "it looks like we're playing on TV." lol. Pretty fun when both players look like they know wtf they are doing. Now I'm a P-wedge out in the fairway and I make double. Fat-pull my shot short/left. Baby my pitch to the top of the hill. God dammit I do this far too often. Nice chip to 10' and miss for double. Unreal. +18

15
Hammer high fade wind carries well right of fairway. Actually in adjacent fairway and have a shot but again it's into the wind (almost every damn shot on this course is). I mash a 4i but hit it too high and it gets chewed up well right/short of green. OK. Like a full lob wedge out and I never hit these good and this is no exception as I somehow just don't commit and leave it like 8 yards short of green. Chip (yes, chip) to 14' past hole and somehow drain it for bogey. lol. +19

16
Another high fade that wind chews up and shoves right. Debate between 9i and P-wedge and decide I'm in the rough, I have a giant tree that I HAVE to clear just short of green, and I'm into the wind so let's just be safe and hit the 9. I mash it and it flies the green. Wonderful. Good pitch to 15' and 2-putt. +20

17
Drive is a low cut (wtf? never hit this...) that settles in right rough and not too long. Lay up with a 7i back into fw but pro-thin it and pull it a bit so it runs through fw into left rough. Ugg. P-wedge out and I have a shot and hit a good one that lands on green and barely rolls off back. Flag isn't far from me maybe like 30' with not much break at all so getting up and down here shouldn't be too hard at all. Then I baby my chip and leave myself 15' out. 2-putt. Bogey. +21

18
Terrible 4i that slices from the get-go into the trees and miraculously bounces back into white tee box. Got lucky. I'd left my bag way up by the green (I always carry it back to tee box but was lightheaded so the 1 ****ing time I leave it...) so I am now much less than a 4i out but I've got tree canopies blocking my line to the green anyway and a bunker left of green. My punch shot it usually pretty slicy so I decide to punch my 4i and aim at left bunker and I hit a good shot that does what I think it will and slices to just right of green. Not bad. Ball in basically mud-grass, but I pitched from similar spot first time around so I hit the same shot and it's to a foot for the tap-in bogey. +22. This was actually a pretty elite pitch b/c the tree canopy overhangs the green and the green is elevated so I had like a 10' window but the flag was kinda far back. So I gotta keep this low but at the same time elevate enough to land on green or else it hits berm and rolls back. It clears the berm by about 6" and lands on green shortly thereafter and runs the rest of the way up the green all the way to the pin. Pretty sick esp. from that lie (my shoes were sinking while I addressed ball.)

So... my putting is getting really good. I'm seeing 20 footers now and I'm not even worried about lag speed. I'm thinking I will scare the hole on like all of these - and I am. I only made a couple putts but there was never a doubt of 3-putting today, which helps a TON. For how bad I drove the ball today and how much the wind screwed with my approach club selection, my score was not bad at all and it's basically due to lagging with confidence. The guy I was with today even remarked about how my speed was right all day. Only a couple lines were way off.

I am trying to shorten these write-ups - I really am I realize it's obnoxious for a player of my caliber to write this much about his round.

HC down to 24.9! 9 of last 11 rounds are HC rounds. So I'm trending down to probably a 22 or so. Would love to get to like 19. This is only my 4th season and I've logged only 68 rounds. Never go to range anymore or practice at all other than mayyybe pitching and putting a little before a round but that's very rare. I did today since I wanted to see how soft the grass/greens were with all the rain.

Arod, I love the write ups. It makes me feel like I'm there with ya. Great stuff! One of these days I'm gonna get down to Houston and play a few rounds with ya.

Yeah definitely. I've played with a 2p2er once and have a standing offer to another who lives one state over.

37-44-81. No birdies, 2 doubles.

Started strong, hitting every fairway and green through 6, but gradually lost focus with heat and slow play. Nice double double finish.

Played Golf Club of Dallas today sight unseen. Wind was blowing 20mph+ and the rough appeared to not have been cut in a couple weeks, was very thick for a Texas summer.

Course is 6700 and I played it tipped out, really tough track with small greens and a lot of greenside rough/bunkering. I feel like I played well but believe I shot 77 (+7) 39-38. I hit some incredibly good shots that turned out to be in mediocre spots.

Think I could be 3-4 shots better just knowing the course and then another 3-4 without the wind, it's definitely not hard if they cut the rough, wind dies down, and not every hole is played from the back edge of the back tees. Also it was as brute to walk, I need to get a pull cart ASAP.

I'll be playing the mid-am qualifier there in about a month, still have a lot of work to do on my game. Have to get better from inside 120 yards, just have no idea how far my wedges go at the moment.

Does playing "from the tips" mean playing from the back of the longest tee box? Or just playing from the longest tees? I always assumed it meant playing the longest tees but reading that it sounds like you tee it up in the very back even if it's well behind the tee markers...