Sven and I was joined by my brother in law's brother in law for a round of golf today at my home course in Port Alfred.. Yes, you didn't misread that - Hanno is the brother in law of my wife's brother :-).
Hanno is about a ten handicap and it shows in his style and easy swing. However, he played with borrowed golf clubs today (my dad's), on a strange (to him) and challenging course with a strong westerly over the last nine holes. Even though Hanno's score was only a couple of shots more than ours he'd prefer that it not be published... Enough said on that topic!
Sven pitching out of "Hippo's Bath".Synopsis I played a round of 102 (27 Stableford points). Sven played 98 (Stableford 29).
My performance on the first five holes is reason for hope. At that rate I may be down to the mid nineties in the not too distant future. My course management wasn't too bad, but can be improved. My putting slipped a bit today and kept me from dipping below 100 again. Another factor was the very strong wind over the last nine and my insufficient sleep the night before. My 5 on the (par 3) 6th and blackout on the (par 3) 8th were disappointing. Both are probably psychological failures and I have to try and get my mind around those holes. Drives into the bushes at the aforementioned 8th, short of the fairway on the 10th, into the bushes at the 12th and twice into the bushes at the 15th cost me dearly.
Hanno drives on the 2nd.A more detailed description of my round follows below:
A very promising start
For me the day started very well. I have this tendency to mess up my first hole and more often than not I end up with a ring 6. This may have a lot to do with not warming up before teeing of... However, today I managed to hit the fairway - which is always a good start. I scored 5 on the par 4 (for 2), followed by 5 ( par 4 for 3), two more 5's (both par 4's for 2's). The last good hole in this opening streak was a 6 for 2 scored on the stroke 2/ 413m/ 5th hole (Mullins). Thus after five holes my Stableford score was already an impressive eleven! If only I could continue the streak...
Hanno tees off on hole 1Happy Valley (6th) slows me down
In golf you should never count your chickens before they've hatched. The next hole was a ominous sign of things to come. Relative to my normal performance on this hole, I actually didn't play too badly. Compared to my start over the first 5 holes today though, it was downright depressing.
Royal Port Alfred's par 3 holes (four of them) are really quite well designed. Three of the four reward good shots but severely punish bad ones. The most forgiving is the par 3, 13th. But I found myself on the 6th. Happy Valley is one of those holes which should in theory by easy. Somehow the shrubby coastal bush in front of, and to the side of the hole tend to draw bad balls in and swallow them whole... Luckily a played a 'half-bad' shot that at least carried over the latter but my ball ended up plugged into the rough 30m short of the hole and probably 30m below as well (very steep gradient). A simple chip was not an option, I had to punch it hard and overflew the green and down the back on a similar gradient. Luckily closer and not plugged in this time. The third shot reached the green and I two putted for 5 (for 1).
Sven a little higher up the slope than I was...Shelly Beach is a hole that tends to really cost me. It is a par 5 / 456m hole. The distance is obviously not too daunting and in all fairness the width could have been less. The problem is that it is extremely uneven (typical links type fairway), sloped steeply to the right, with a narrow rough before you end up in coastal shrubs or -God forbid- go out of bounds over the fence line 3 metres further. It is stroke 6, which for me -at my current handicap- can result in a nauseating score of 8. Today I managed to hit the fairway with my drive. Thereafter I zig-zagged across the remainder of the hole but at least scored 7 (for 2).
Another par 3 nightmare at the 8th
The 8th at Royal Port Alfred is once again a par 3 that rewards good shots and mostly punish bad shots severely. Its a 144m hole where one tees off from an elevated tee. While there is limited fairway in front of the green, none of it is visible from the tee. The thick coastal bush between you and the green is very intimidating and once again swallows many a poor shot. Today the markers was set back, making it about 150m to the flag. I faded both my drives badly into the bushes on the right of the hole. Ring 5...
Sven tees off on the 2nd hole.1st nine in the pocket
I finished the 9th hole of quite well, scoring 6 for two on the stroke 8 par 5. That gave me 49 on the 1st nine. For me that's a satisfactory score, although judging by my first five holes I did loose the plot along the way. At one point a 46 was well within reach... I did score only one ring and had a Stableford total of 16 - not bad.
The wind picks up...
As is probably true of most coastal courses, the wind -particularly the westerly- can be a major factor. At this point in my game the westerly was beginning to show it's bite. That and probably a lack of concentration and some fatigue after less than 5-hours' sleep. The 10th & 11th went quite well. A 6 for 2 on a par 4 (stroke 3) and 4 for 2 on a par 3.
Hanno lining up a put.Nosedive at the 12th
I messed up the 12th without any help from the wind mind you. Teeing off from a very elevated tee, I managed to connect the ball too high resulting in a top-spinning diving ball. It ended in the bushes. My 2nd drive (3d shot) was a beauty, but a little late... The fourth shot ended short in the rough and eventually I ring 6'ed the hole.
Battling cross-wind on 13 & 14
We were all a little sceptical of the lines given by our caddies on the 13th hole, par 3. They wanted us to aim way left. My two buddies both ended up to the right of the hole, compensating for the caddies' dramatic lines. I saw the results and planned not to repeat their mistakes - except that I dovetailed my drive into the rough and short of the fairway... All the same I was actually in a better position and ended up just missing a ring while my buddies were less fortunate.
My caddie Eric is closest in picture with the red shirt.On the 14th the wind did not bring back my ball onto the fairway as I expected and my ball flew straight where I aimed it - into the rough behind some trees! I dug myself out of the situation fairly well on my 2nd shot, just to see my 3d end up to the right behind some more trees. From there I sliced my 9-iron shot and took to more poor chip shots to reach the green. The only thing that saved me from a ring was a long range put that found the hole.
The last four holes
I once again messed up two drives in a row to 6 ring the 15th, par 4. The 16th hole is stroke one, thus statistically the most difficult hole on the course. However, straight good shots will give you a good result. My drive was one of the best of my day. I scored 6 which on this particular hole is a good result for me. Then I managed to repeat a good showing on the (par 4) 17th. The latter two holes has sunk many a promising round. They're long par 4's (17 being uphill and into the prevailing wind). Hole no. 18 should have been plain sailing, but I maxed out on 7 (par 5).
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