Dazed and Confused

I know...someone used it for a movie title ( I didn't see it) but it completely describes my mindset after the Singles Championship at BHCC this weekend.

I went into the weekend, as I said in my last post, expecting to struggle a little on the first day, and then improve on Saturday and Sunday. That's how it has worked every year that I have played in this event. But that's not how it went this year...

This year I started off badly and continued to get worse as the weekend went on. By the time it was over I had finished 18th in a field of 21, and the DFL guy didn't show up on Sunday after shooting 90 something on Friday and 1-0-something on Saturday.

How did this happen? I have no idea... The triple-bogie I made to start the day on Saturday certainly didn't help. And the Snowman I made on the 11th hole Sunday, followed by a two stroke penalty - 8, I made on the 14th, kind of made for a long weekend.

And that was the whole problem. Most of the time I didn't play too badly. I should have been 2 over after six holes on Friday, and started off with three pars on Sunday. I just started having these ridiculous holes every once in a while, where I would make double or triple for no apparent reason. Here's what the front side looked like on Friday: par- bogey-par-double(lost ball off the tee)-par-bogey-double-double-par. Did you see the "double-double" thing? On the back side I made three more doubles and finished with three straight pars for a sizzling 89. Two triples on the front side Saturday for a 91 and the aforementioned disasters on Sunday for a 93.

Then last night I went out to play a nice, quiet nine holes with my wife. Left the driver in the bag and used a 4 wood off the tee. I shot 38.

Dazed and confused.

Stepping out this weekend

It's been quite a while since I've posted here, and I'd like to say that I have a good excuse. Unfortunately, I don't. The truth is that I have not been in the hospital, have not been locked up or otherwise incarcerated, and have not forgotten my passwords. I simply have not taken the time to sit down and try to put my thoughts on paper. Or in this case...the blogosphere.

This weekend, however, will be different. This weekend is "The Singles Tournament" at Berkshire Hills Country Club in Pittsfield, MA, and once again I am cleaning up the irons and buying a new sleeve of Pro V's, and trying my luck at this three day tournament.

I've been playing in this tournament for the last 5 years, and though I've never placed near the top of my division, I keep coming back because it's a real test of my ability to control my game and my emotions. The first few years I finished near the bottom; always blowing up badly the first day, scoring somewhere around 90, and then playing better each successive day; giving myself the belief that if I could just eliminate that bad start that I could play with these guys. The last couple of years I've done better, finishing in the middle of the pack. This year my goal is to place somewhere in the top third.

We'll see how it goes.

I'm feeling good about my game right now. Struggling a bit with the driver (aren't we all?), but I'm hitting my irons well and chipping it about as well as I'm capable. So, if I can keep it in the low 80's for the weekend, or possibly, something in the high 70's (which I have never done at BHCC) I should reach my goal...finish out of the money...but in the top third...and have a great time doing it.

I should acknowledge here that my lovely wife, who I absolutely adore, is encouraging me in this adventure, even though it starts on our 16th anniversary! A golf widow on our anniversary...maybe she's giving me a not-so-subtle message. Ya think?

Stay tuned...I'll let you know how it goes.