November 29th, 2009 / 1 Comment » / by Patrick
At the end of the season last year I was feeling pretty good about my game. My index had fallen to 19. I beat my goals I set for the year. I knew I still had a lot of work to do. My goals going into 2009 were to learn to hit my driver, break 100 regularly, and get my index down to a 16.
One goal affected the rest of my goals. Previously I used a 3 hybrid off the tee. I was fairly consistent with it but the problem was it left me with a long approach shot on the longer par 4s. Learning to hit my driver would shorten those longer holes. I worked on my driver and my weight shift with my instructor since April. Early on it really hurt my game and for the first few months I had trouble breaking 100. I stuck with my driver for the most part as I was dedicate to fixing this. If I kept my driver in the bag, I’d never get better. My higher scores made my index go up, rising to a 24 at its peak. A couple of months ago my instruction finally clicked with me and my driver started working well. I wasn’t getting as much distance as I’d like, but I was hitting it straight. My scores have been coming down considerably over the past 2-3 months. In my last 12 rounds I had three scores in the 80s and only one over 100. This includes some good scores on tough courses. Recently I had a 94 on Sycamore Ridge and a 91 on Prairie Highlands, both of which were the first times I broke 100 on those courses. My index is about 21 now and if I had a couple more months, I’d get it below 20. So while I didn’t meet my goals, I made significant progress.
Positives
1. I’m very happy with my improvement with my driver. I’m not getting the full distance yet, but I will be working on that over the winter. With carry I usually get 220-240 and if I make good contact I get 270 yards. My goal is to consistently get at least 240.
2. Consistency: I feel like my game is much more consistent this year thanks to my swing improving. This allows me to play with more confidence.
Negatives
1. Putting: I am pretty good at lag putting and in general I can get the ball close to the hole. I seem have to issues getting it in the hole (twss). I miss too many putts I should make. In the past few weeks I’ve been working on a firmer stroke on the short putts to take out the break. This is helping so far.
Courses
I didn’t take any golf trips this year so all my play was in Kansas City courses. I tried to get out and play some courses that are new to me and found some I really likes. Winterstone, Swope Memorial, Dub’s Dread and Adams Pointe are now among my favorites.
Memorable rounds/shots
My best shot of the year came in a scramble at Sycamore Ridge. On no. 17, a 175 yard par 3, they had a closest to the hole competition. The group ahead of us had already put a ball about 6-7′ from the pin. I hit my 5 hybrid in a high draw and ended up 3′ from the pin. I’ve been closer on par 3s before, but never one that long. The shot was enough to win the competition which was extra cool.
I had two very memorable rounds. The first was in my 9 hole league at St. Andrews. My partner was very good and could break 40 for 9 often. We were playing a team that ended up winning the league. Normally this would have been intimidating as I’d be the worst golfer of the 4. This time I managed to not make mistakes. I don’t keep my total score through a round, but I realized I was making a lot of pars. Later when I totaled my score I found I was +2 through 6 and ended up with a 42 due to a pair of doubles. This was my best league score by 4 shots at the time (later in the season I put up a 44 and 45). It was one off my best 9 hole score of 41.
My other memorable round was in October. My friend Steve and I played Prairie Highlands. This is an excellent course and forces you play smart. We started on the back and my round was pretty average, carding a 49 for the back. The front has always given me trouble, so I didn’t hold out a lot of hope on breaking 100 for the first time there. My driver was better than ever and I missed only one fairway. I made the mistake of adding my score before the final hole and found I was sitting on a 35. The 9th is a par 5 with some trouble. I thought if I parred this, I’d break my 9 hole score records with a 40. My third shot was 120 yards from the pin with a pond on the front right of the green. I am pretty confident with that distance as it is a full PW for me. I hit it a little fat and landed just short of the green and rolled into the pond. I ended up with a 7 for that hole, a 42 for the front and 91 for the round.
Goals for 2010
Continue to improve my driver and overall consistency.
Sink the putts I should make.
Get my index down to a 16.
Break 80.
I think they are all attainable goals, except maybe the putting. I’ll measure it by lowering my putt total per round. Right now I average about 37 putts per round.
Next year I am planning on joining the Golf Channel Amateur Tour in KC. I doubt I will win anything but it should be a lot of fun. And I am hoping to take one golf trip.
Posted in: Golf
July 12th, 2009 / No Comments » / by Patrick
This summer I am trying to play a lot of the local courses I have never played before. This weekend I played Swope Memorial Golf Course for the first time. This is one of the KC metro’s oldest courses, opened 75 years ago in 1934. It was designed by the famous designer AW Tillinghast. Being an older course it is a little shorter, 6274 from the tips and 5770 from the white tees. That being said, it was not easy. There was a lot of elevation changes and a strategic layout. On the first hole, a 344/372 yard par 4 uphill. If you land on the right side of the fairway, your ball will roll down the hill to a collection area, leaving you a 250 yard 2nd shot instead of 170 yards. There is very little water but a lot of bunkers.
There were a couple of things that were surprising. One, on a Saturday afternoon in the middle of July, the course wasn’t busy. They space their tee times by 10 minutes which helps reduce the congestion. There were groups ahead and behind us, but it often felt like we had the course to ourselves (except for the pair that teed off into us on the 7th hole, but that is the only time). Second, I saw a marshall on the greens fixing ball marks. I thought the greens were in great condition and this is probably why.
We walked the course and didn’t feel too worn out at the end. I shot a 102, which is about what I expected. I’ll do better the next time I play. I had a great time and I really liked the course.
Here is a shot from the 17th fairway. In the distance you can see the KC skyline.
Posted in: Golf
July 5th, 2009 / No Comments » / by Patrick
I had the day off on Thursday and decided to play two courses I had not played before.
My morning tee time was at Dub’s Dread Golf Club in Kansas City, KS. I was playing as a single as none of my partners were willing to get out that morning. The first thing I noticed was the clubhouse, which was much nicer than most of the clubhouses around here. I paid my green fee and the starter told me to go ahead and head to the first tee. There were a couple of groups ahead of me and they’d probably let me play through. The course is tree lined, lush and green with gently rolling hills. There are some elevation changes, but nothing too drastic. I had to club up on several holes. There isn’t much water on the course, a couple of ponds on about 4 or 5 holes. The greens were very fast. The course website even lists a daily stimpmeter reading. The course was in good shape. There were a few patches where the zoysia still hadn’t recovered from the winter damage. The greeens were in excellent shape.
I had a great time playing Dub’s Dread. The course is a little longer than I usually play, 7230 yards from the black tees, 6277 from the white tees. Probably my favorite shot was when I caught up to the group ahead of me off the third tee. They were hitting their second shots as I got to the tee box. They moved back and waved for me to play through. So I have four guys waiting and watching me tee off with my driver, which hasn’t been very dependable. I ripped my tee shot down the middle and ended up close to where they were waiting.
At the end of the round I felt like I had played well and was surprised my score wasn’t lower (99). I really enjoyed the course and will be back.
One other note about the course, they have a very nice bar and grill attached to the clubhouse. I could definitely see taking a foursome here and getting lunch after the round.
My afternoon round was at Winterstone in Independence, MO. I played with a friend from work. The first thing I noticed was the elevation changes on the course. It looked like every hole I could see was hilly. The clubhouse was pretty standard. There is a nice pavilion were you could get food and drinks. We teed off from the back nine, as they were having leagues that night. It felt like every hole needed me to club up to reach the green. We started off walking but by the turn we were gassed and got a cart. I would recommend riding instead of walking. Some of the hills are very steep. If you do walk, you’ll get a good workout.
The course is a little shorter than my usual courses, 6752 from back tees and 5611 from the white tees. There are some holes with some interesting features. I believe no. 17 has an elevated green with the rock wall surrounding the green and a creek running around it. I think we both lost a ball in that creek in spite of having about 50 yard pitch shots. No. 12 was a very short par 3, only 77 yards from the whites. It would seem like it was an easy shot, but there were bunkers in front and the pin was close to the front. Neither of got a GIR on that hole. That hole felt a little gimmicky, but to each his own.
There was some lingering winter damage on the fairways. The greens were in very good shape.
I struggled with my game much more here than in the morning round and my score was actually better than I expected (105). My driver which had worked so well in the morning, turned into a slice. I ended up switching to my 3 iron and that helped my score. I will play Winterstone again.
Posted in: Golf
May 15th, 2009 / No Comments » / by Patrick
Today I volunteered at the Mercedes-Benz of Kansas City Championship in Leawood, KS. I had never volunteered for a tournament before and didn’t know what to expect. I was assigned to the scorers tent and took the scores from the players. This ended up being a pretty cool job as all of the players had to stop by when they were done with their round. The first group to finished around 11:00 and Caroline Larsson from the current of season of the Big Break sat across the table from me. Over the next two hours I got to see players like Jill Frantz (from my old stomping ground, Iowa City), Ashley Prange, Susan Choi, Amber Prange, Dana Bates, Rachel Bailey, and Charlotte Campbell. Very cool. I have to say my favorites were Susan Choi, Charlotte Campbell (though I didn’t recognize her at first) and Stacey Bieber. They seemed the friendliest, though all of them were surprisingly friendly. There was one, Stacey Bieber, who I swear I know from somewhere, but I could never figure it.
After the first wave was done, I wandered and saw Kim Welch, Bri Vega and Brenda McLarnon playing. Unfortunately the Kansas weather got the best of them and they suspended play before the second wave finished. And I got to see Lori Atsedes call for a ruling. How ironic. Ashely Prange had the lead of the players who finished with a 72.
I really enjoyed watching the women play. They all seem to have such smooth and easy swings. They make my swing look like I am chopping wood and missing the tree.
If you are a fan of the Big Break, you’d be a fool to miss a Futures Tour event in your area.
It was a lot of fun and I will volunteer again next year. I might even try to get into the pro-am, but I’d have to see how much humiliation I could take.
Posted in: Golf
March 26th, 2009 / No Comments » / by Patrick
Since I started playing golf a lot of people ask me why I like it so much. Tuesday night was the first night of my league and it provides a good example of why I am hooked. It was a miserable night to play. When we started at 5:30 it was 50 degrees and very windy. It got colder with each hole.
I have been working on my driver swing and don’t have much confidence in it yet. It is improving but the change isn’t natural to me yet. That being said, I step up to the first tee without much confidence and too many first tee jitters. The other team hit theirs right of the fairway leaving some tall trees between them and the green. My partner hit his in the fairway but it ended up running off the left side into a tough lie. My turn to tee it up. I stand behind my ball to take the view of the fairway and aim my shot. I swing and hit a decent shot, a little lower than I’d like, but the ball goes straight down the middle and farther than anyone else’s ball other than my partner. On the first hole there is a creek that divides the fairway into two sections. My second shot would have to clear 185 yards to safely cross the creek. I can hit my 4 iron that distance, but it isn’t a very safe shot, so I layup with a 9 iron. My second shot was perfect and comes to rest right before the creek. My third shot was about 155 yards to the green. I hit a nice shot but the wind pushes it left of the green.
Before this post becomes a shot by shot recounting of my round, I’ll explain. My first three shots were not perfect but very good. Even though I chipped on the green and then three putted for a double bogey, those first three swings had me feeling very good and confident. On the second hole I two putted for a bogey. All my shots were decent. On the third hole I started with a good tee shot in to the fairway. For my approach I hit an 8 iron. I had a nice clean lie and good look at the green. My swing was perfect. It felt like I hardly hit the ball and had that great sound when you hit it pure. The ball looked beautiful as it flew and landed on the green. GIR!! Woo-hoo! My 20′ birdie putt came up short and left me with a three footer for par, which I made. On the 4th, a short par 3, my tee shot was very good, landing on the green. I ended up three putting for a bogey, but it still felt good to start with a good shot. Through four holes I was +4. I felt I was playing about as well as I could (maybe not putting) and that gave me a lot of confidence. The next day I still felt great from my round. Imagine that, a few swings that take only a few seconds can make me feel good a day later.
The reverse is also true. If I had played terrible and struggled the entire round, I’d probably feel down the next day. I do think I’ve grown to handle the lows better. It is easier for me to chalk up poor play to having an off night or my general lack of experience. Which is probably the better way to view it. The highs are so good that it keeps me struggling through the lows. So golf is sort of like crack.
Posted in: Golf
March 14th, 2009 / 1 Comment » / by Patrick
Looks like the spudboys from Ohio are back in the studio:
Devo whipping up first album since 1990
Sweet.
Posted in: Entertainment
March 13th, 2009 / No Comments » / by Patrick
I was never happy with the Democrats in Congress during the Bush years. They were too easily cowed into submission by the Republic Party and never seemed to provide much opposition to Bush even later when the public turned sour on his policies.
I have watched the Republic Party since Obama took office and I’ve found their opposition … interesting. Rush Limbaugh, the de facto leader of the Republic Party, has openly declared he hopes Obama fails. I remember under Bush that any criticism of the administration was questioned as being unpatriotic. You are either with us or against us. If you disagree you are providing aid and comfort to the enemy. Isn’t this a case of massive hypocrisy? The Republicans would rather Obama fail and the country fail along with him, just so they can be right? Wow. Maybe they are the Republican’t party. I guess they just hate America.
Posted in: Politics
