Conestoga Golf Club, redemption time for round nine.

That was my initial thought going into this round of golf. It’s a course I played and the penalties killed me. Twelve of them I had last time, I can only improve on that number. I did, I went from twelve to seven and that’s still way too many for this course.


I knew within the first ten minutes on the range I was going to struggle with my round. Nothing felt right, and everything I hit was going to the right, and bad. I switched it up and started practicing with my driver first. The last couple of times at the range I hit the ball way better after I sung with the big stick, so I gave it a shot. It didn’t help; I was all over the place. My irons were going nowhere, fat shots, bladed shots, shank shots, you name it, if there was a bad shot to hit I was practicing it.

I was so frustrated with what had been taking place I completely lost track of time and before I knew it we were being called to the #1 tee by the starter.





Me, Mike & Randy ready to go!

 

Since I was hitting everything right I decided to play that way and aimed my tee shot way left. Just like on the range the ball started out and sliced right back into the fairway, almost dead center. I was 255 off the tee with a sliced shot, not bad. That left me 118 to the green. To my surprise I hit a good wedge, the bad was it came up short. It was short and in a green side bunker about 60 feet from the hole. I stepped down in, got in my stance, lined up the shot and hit more than likely the best sand out I’ve ever hit. It came to rest four feet from the pin. Man I was happy with that shot. I got applause for Randy and Mike, raked up my tracks and headed up to the ball to mark it. Knocked in that four footer for a sand save par! That felt so good. That was my highlight of the day.

I did hit nine out of fourteen fairways, but zero greens in regulation. That has to change if I ever plan on shooting lower scores. I had my first blow up hole on 6, I talked about that hole before it’s a beast. I hit a fantastic tee shot that I couldn’t have placed any better and followed that up with an even better 3W that had me about 75 yards away for my third stroke. I hit a really poor wedge shot that went right and short, but left me a very manageable 4th shot that should have gotten me on the green. When I approached my ball I was a bit miffed at myself for choking on that last shot, instead of putting for birdie on a tuff hole I was hitting this next shot. I walked up took my stance and never even realized that my ball was sitting in a soggy marsh land. My feet, where I was standing, were on perfectly solid ground. Not the ball though. I swung and my club hit the ground and slide almost elegantly under the ball not making nearly enough contact to do its job correctly. The ball ended up about 10 feet in front of me. That hurt, now I was hitting my par shot from still way off the green. My chip shot from there left me with a very makeable 20 footer for bogey. That would have been a great result consider the last three shots I had taken, but I decided to three putt the hole instead for an eight!

Another blow up hole in #9 (that’s my new nemesis hole) then one on #11 and #12 I was tearing it up! I scored a nine on the easiest hole on the course, that’s playing well eh! Then Randy said something to me that really woke me up. He could see I was frustrated and struggling to get through each hole. It’s not fun watching someone struggle certainly not when it’s your friend so I was glad he said something. What’s become a joke with us is that he waited to tell me about it until the 14th hole! He says to me “Your hips are really coming though your swing fast.” And he showed me what he was talking about. I got excited, “Really? That’s awesome!” I was glad, that one thing that I’ve been trying to accomplish getting my hips to come through instead of staying back. “Yeah, but your clubface is WAY open at impact.” He replied. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. You stupid dumbass, stop and think about what’s going on and figure it out. I had been hitting the ball, with a slice, right all day long. What cause a slice? Open clubface at impact is a major cause. I wasn’t turning my wrist. It made so much since. I was staying back with my wrist and not letting them come through. I thought back to the range and what was going on there, same thing. Damn it I thought, if that’s it I’m going to be pissed at myself.

The next hole is a blast to play. It’s a downhill par 4 that doglegs left, elevated tee box and we had some wind at our back. That was something I forgot to mention, it was windy as hell out. #15 was the first hole we played that we enjoyed the wind at our backs. So I step up to the tee back and just rip a drive right down the middle. It felt awesome! I couldn’t believe I just hit that good of a shot after I had been playing so poorly for the last 14 holes. “So that was it, the wrist?” Randy asked. “Yeah, it just would have been nice if you would have mentioned that fourteen holes ago Ass Hole!” We both cracked up as we took off after our shots.

The next hole I blasted another shot and was feeling a lot better. I played a poor eighteenth and ended up shoot 110. A stoke worse than the last time I played, but with five less penalty strokes. Go figure. Five blow up holes and six three putts. What balanced that out was I had five one putts.

I’m going to look at this round as a extremely important learning experience. I have to realize what I’m doing wrong while I’m doing it and fix it. It was a poor choice to just accept the slice and play to it. Not that playing to it was bad, like I said I did hit nine out of fourteen fairways. It was just poor to not know that I had the answer to my error the entire time, I just didn’t see it.

GREEN FEES = 7

CLUBHOUSE/PRO SHOP = 4

STAFF = 10

DRIVING RANGE = 10

PUTTING GREEN = 10

GOLF CARTS = 10

OVERALL COURSE CONDTION = 9

FAIRWAYS = 10

GREENS = 8

BUNKERS = 10

SNACK CART SERVICE = 10

BAR = 0

SCORE = 8.16



I need to add some info when it comes to the score for “The Stoga”

First off it’s still a very new course. The clubhouse is under construction so they are temporarily in a trailer until it’s completed. The greens are still VERY hard because they are so new, once they get some aging they are going to be perfect. Lastly, because of the no clubhouse there is of course no bar, so that will change too. Based on what I have seen from Conestoga as far as the course and its employees and don’t see their score being anything other than 10 when its all done and functional.

An range by some other name.

Yesterday I was supposed to meet up with Randy at Callaway and hit some balls, but he couldn’t make it. The rest of the week for me is as busy as can be, same with Randy he wasn’t going to be able to make it out any other day. So I decided to go anyway, had the clubs in the truck already, and went to Legacy on the way home.

I chose Legacy because on their driving range you face east. Willow, for instance, faces west. Right into the sun and it’s really hard to see where your ball lands. Add in the face that you don’t have to trek your bag halfway around the course, like at Willow, and that their putting green is real nice and my mind was made up.

I got there about five o’clock. The sun was beaming down on the range. My outside temp reading when I got in my truck was 112°! FREAKING HOT! Went inside paid for my balls and went out to the range. Nice thing about Legacy, there are a lot of nice things, is they give you a choice to hit on either grass or the mats. Since I’m playing Sunday I picked the grass. I wanted to get in as much preparation as possible.

I couldn’t hit shit! I started out as I usually do 7i then my 5i and so on. Nothing was working. It was rather embarrassing. I mean these were not even close to a decent shot. Low, to the right, to the left, fat, thin, SKULLED! You name it I was doing it. It was like a display of terrible shots you never want to hit. After about 30 balls, all of which we horrible, I switched to my driver. Thank GOD. First shot I blasted to the far end of the range. I couldn’t help but wonder what the guys next to me were thinking after they witnessed that shot. Again, one after another I blasted shot after shot to other side of the range. Man did that feel good!

Here is a little side story that relates a bit. I work out in my garage with free weights three times a week. I currently have my workouts like this; Mon – Chest/Triceps, Wed – Back/Bicep and Fri – Shoulders/forearms & abs. I used to do my Chest and Triceps workout on Wednesday, but after a couple visits to the range I decided it wasn’t really smart to follow up a chest/triceps workout with a driving range session. So I switched to my current routine. I tell you this because I remembered it after I got done hitting ball and was walking over to the range. Man was I sore and could feel it all over. Dumbass, I thought to myself. I killed myself on Monday night and was sore all day long. I guess I was just too excited to get out and hit some balls that I forgot about my workout from Monday night.

So after I got done smashing some brand new TaylorMade range balls with my driver I went back to hitting my irons. This time I started out with my SW and just started hitting some small 80 yard shots. Much, much better, I worked on my SW for a while the switched to my PW and the 9i. That’s what it’s supposed to feel like. I’m kinda stumped at why I started off so bad. I can blame being tired from Monday’s workout, but I should have at least been making good contact. I was relieved knowing that I did end up hitting the ball pretty good. I think I’m going to start out with my driver Sunday morning before we tee off and see if it’s any different.

I did putt for about twenty minutes. My putter was on! I made about seven putts from beyond twenty feet. Anything that was within five feet was in the hole. That felt great. I started out really crappy, worked through my disaster and ended out the session with some really good putting. I was so exhausted after putting I went in the pro shop just to cool down.

While I was inside the pro shop I picked up a poker chip, When I played Legacy back in July I went from car to #1 tee box so I didn’t have time to pick one up. Now I have one from each round I’ve played now. Except for Las Vegas National and Conestoga, maybe “The Stoga” will have some now that they have been open longer.

Alignment, are you doing it right?

I haven’t been out to the range in a few weeks. I’ve been really busy. I had to fly up to Boise last weekend and help my Mom out before she had knee surgery this past Monday. I had to get ready for that trip so my normal Driving Range Thursday had to be postponed due to packing.

So I found some time to break away from my weekend chores to go to Callaway for a bit and see what I could accomplish in a few hours. If you are not familiar with Vegas and August, it’s hot. Real hot! I left the house around 10:30am and it was already 102° out. Needless to say the range was empty, let alone the 9 hole course. Probably the least amount of people I have ever seen there, which makes it nice. I got my bucket and headed out to the mats.

I started out with my 7i. I hit it pretty good, wasn’t getting the good snap of the club hitting that ball, but I learned a while ago I have to warm up with swings before I start criticizing myself too much. I went from my 7i to my 5i, hit it for a bit then switched to my 9i. I was really happy with the way I was hitting the ball, some fat shots but not nearly as many as I’ve been hitting in the past. Broke out the big boy next, and man was on with it. I’ve been so happy with the way I’ve been hitting my driver of late, I was glad to see that my progress is moving forward consistently, not the two steps forward three steps back routine I’ve come accustomed to. This was at least the third time in a row, well actually fourth time, Legacy, Wildhorse and the last two times at the range, where I’ve been killing it with my driver. Today was no different. My accuracy is what I need to work on. 250 is nice but 250 where I want to be is way nicer!

After I finished up with my driver I went back to my 5i. This has been a problem club for me for a while. I just can’t get the ball to jump off the club like it does with my 7i, 8i or 9i. Not sure what it is, but its driving me crazy. I was hitting my 9i 150 (with wind at my back) and it was beautiful. My 5i on the other had been landing 160 to 165 on the fly. Not where it should be. I need at least another 20-30 yards out of that club. So that’s something I need to work on.

After my 5i I went back to my 8i. This time I grabbed one of my alignment rods and used it to align myself up with a target at 150 yards. I never use these rods and after today that’s going to change. I used a club the last time I went to the range, it helped. I have a flaw where I line myself up and I think that I’m aimed at my target, but I’m not. I figured this out the last round I played when, after hitting a ball dead left, one of the other members of our foursome said “Right where you were aiming.” What? That was not where I as aiming. That’s why I pulled out a club, laid it on the ground and started the process of correcting my alignment.

Well, today I made even more sense. I laid down my alignment rod. Ok, a side note, don’t be suckered in to purchasing these expensive alignment rods at golf retail stores. I got four bright yellow rods at Lowes for .94 each. After I laid down that rod I addressed the ball like the rod wasn’t there and was shocked when I looked down. In comparison to the rod I was aligned so far to the right. So I made the adjustment, boy did it feel weird. I felt so awkward; no way did this feel right. Took a swing and oh my God, right where I was aimed. So shot after shot I was hitting it right where I was aimed. As awkward as it felt I obviously was correct. I decided to give it a shot with my driver and see if it made a difference. As I addressed the ball I did the same thing that I had done with my irons. Laid down the rod and acted like it wasn’t there. Again, I was aimed to the right, by quite a bit. So I made the adjustment and while I was making my adjustment I noticed something that I had never noticed before. On my driver there is a small Callaway logo (the chevron looking logo) that is there as an Alignment tool. I never realized it. Complete dumb ass on my part to never realize that. I don’t know what made me look at my hand at that moment, maybe it was because I was really focusing in be aligned correctly that I notice I wasn’t using what was there to help. My thumb was to the right if the mark. I always grab my driver and apply my grip before I place it on the ground. I never looked at my grip once it’s on the club, sad that I’ve been gripping the club in the wrong place. So, with that adjustment along with utilizing the rod I swung the club. Straight as ruler and right where I was aimed. HOLLY SHIT! Was that it, was that the cause of so many of my problems, alignment? Let’s hope so. I’m playing Conestoga again next weekend. Going to go to the range on Tuesday or Wednesday this week with Randy, will be interesting to see what he thinks about it.

Range Night at Willow

Well yesterday at the range was a great experience. Normally when I go to Desert Willow after work there is a Jr. Golf Academy class taking place. They split the kids up into two groups and take half to the chipping area and the others work on the range. Not last night. No class last night so the range and the chipping area was a ghost town.

I got my normal large bucket and went through my routine. It always seems like the first 5-10 balls I hit are horrible shots. Chunk here, shank there. Need to figure something out, either warm up better or something. Once I got into a good rhythm I was real happy with how the rest of the bucket went. Really trying to stay focused on my new back swing. I started applying it to my Driver swing and was having some success. The ball was flying tonight! I have to admit, I’m really happy with the way I’m hitting my driver.

What I usually do when I’m done with my bucket is head over to the putting green and putt for a while. Tonight though with no one on the chipping green I went there instead of the putting green. Two hours later I was walking back to the truck. WOW. Can’t believe I chipped and pitched for two hours. That was honestly the most fun I have had on the range in a while. I was taking three clubs, my 60° Cleveland wedge, my 52° ping wedge and my SW. I’d hit twelve shots go get the balls and hit twelve more with the next club. This was from about 50 yards out. Then I just made my way around the green in different spots chipping. Man that was fun. Some if the best feedback I have ever gotten from a range session. Why haven’t I been doing this all along.

So I’m definitely looking forward to my next range session. I feel like it’s starting to come together.

Wildhorse Golf Club

To say I’m upset with myself would be a gross understatement. I played really bad today. Not as bad as Revere, but way worse that what I had shot at Legacy just ten days ago.

First off I hit my driver very well. You might not think so because of the lack of fairways hit (3) and playable balls (7), but I really was hitting it good. An issue that I had was the rough. A lot of my tee shots rolled through the fairway and ended up in the rough. I guess it’s called the rough for a reason, but at Wildhorse is no joke! Their rough is very difficult to hit out of and it tested me all day long! So many poor shots out of the rough made my round look really bad.

My putting saved me on a couple of holes. I nailed a 35 footer for a 7 on hole #13. Nothing to be proud of, the seven that is, but it was nice to see that putt drop. On the other hand I did have eight two putts from within ten feet. That’s not going to get it done. Only 34 putts, one of my better total putts tally, and only one 3 putt.

So with all that goodness I just spoke of what went wrong?

It was my iron play, again. Piss poor irons shots one after another. I can handle the poor shots out of the rough, that’s something, I hope, will come along with time. It’s the middle of the fairway after a nice tee shot that’s killing me. For example on number three. I hit an fantastic driver 250+ yards down the middle of the fairway. It was a great shot, and I was excited about it. It left me 130 to the green, straight on, with no obstacles in my way. Second shot “FAT”. It ended up way short and right in the rough behind a big ass tree. I tried a soft punch shot just to get back out the fairway and try to salvage the hole. That shot was “FAT” again and went about five feet, the next stroke was better but still chucky and it came up short of the green in a nice muddy, short grass area bellow the green. I made a great chip out of that crap and left myself seven feet for double bogey. Missed the putt and had my seven. It was just awful, not acceptable by any stretch.

The next few holes didn’t fair any better. Back to back blow up holes on 4 & 5. I hit a nice tee shot on the par 3, 6th that carried the green and landed in a bunker. A terrible sand out, which I’m normally very good at, and another two putt from within ten feet and I had recorded a double bogey.

I shot 55 on the front and 50 on the back. That stinks because there are three par 3’s on the front and only one par 5. Where as on the back it’s a normal par 36 configuration, with two par 3’s and two par 5’s. I had eight penalty strokes which is a lot considering that last four rounds I played I tallied 4, 4, 3 & 4. I haven’t had that many since my round at The Stoga back in April.

I liked the course. Randy’s not a fan of it, but I like it. The have one of the best holes in the Valley, it used to be the finishing hole, but they really have changed the place and bunch and now its hole #9, bad move in my opinion. The range is nice, and the putting greens are nice too. For the $41.00 green fees for locals I think it’s a great deal. I definitely play here again sometime, it was a lot of fun and I had a blast playing with Dan. He’s a big cigar aficionado so he always brings some good ones with him when we play, that’s always a good perk! HA

GREEN FEES = 10

CLUBHOUSE/PROSHOP = 8

STAFF = 6

DRIVING RANGE = 8

PUTTING GREEN = 10

GOLF CARTS = 8

OVERALL COURSE CONDITION = 7

FAIRWAYS = 7

GREENS = 7

BUNKERS = 7

SNACK CART SERVICE = 5

BAR = N/A

SCORE = 7.5