Nothing Like Dropping a Long Putt to Snub the Rub
brinkley | April 21, 2010Yesterday I got out to my home course in the early afternoon. It’s a semi-private club that was the center piece of a development back in the early 90s. On the weekend it’s pretty busy but during the week I can generally get 18 holes in in about 3 hours. On this day George sent me off the back because there was a foursome that just teed of 1 and it was going to be slow. No Problem.
When I round the turn a single was just teeing off. I asked if I could join, or he asked if I wanted to play with him, I’m not sure which, but I teed up and off we went. Standard thing about playing hickories is everyone seems to notice the head first on woods, then the shaft. After the first hole he asks if all my bag is full of hickories? He just shakes his head and we continue on. On this day I’m striking the ball exceptionally well, too well in some approaches to the green. I’m scrambling saving par and the putter is cooperating. On the par 3 4th I hit this most gorgeous 3 iron 196 yards that lands about 4 feet to the right of the cup. He’s yelling it’s going in but I know better. I settle for par and head on the par 4 5th.
On paper the 5th looks easy. It’s only a 343 yards dog leg to the left. And it would be if there wasn’t this whole area of native grass that ends with a steep in embankment 215 yards from the our tee box. You can’t cut the corner easily unless you go over the cottonwood that is 100 yards out on the corner and even if you did the architect created this nice mound of, you guessed it, native grass, that not only prevents a clear view of the hole, but is nasty if you get into during the summer time. So the smart play is up the fairway on the right where the carts are in the picture. But I’m not smart, I’m cocky and I’ve been knocking the cover off the ball today, so even though there is a head wind I figure I can clear the 215 yards and make it over the trash. I hit a perfect 214 yard shot that fades slightly and hits the embankment and settles into the thick grass (which isn’t massively thick this time of year). A draw and it’s over the trash; straight and it’s over the trash. “That was great shot. It made it over didn’t it?”, my playing partner asks. No it’s in the trash. Rub of the Green 1.
The lie isn’t that bad and I figure with a chop shot from my mashie niblick I can reach the green 100 yards away. I can’t see the pin because of the ledge and the mound so I take a quick peek. Unfortunately it was too quick of peek. The hole is protected by the mound and three bunkers: one on the left, which rarely comes into play; and two on the right. Today the hole is tucked back in behind the bunkers on the right. I don’t look carefully enough and think that the edge of the bunker is to the right of my target line. I hit a perfect shot that clears the ledge right on target for the pin then darts into the bunker dead right on it’s first bounce. Perfect shot except that I thought the bunker was not on my line. Visually it wasn’t on my first peek but now I see that is. Nuts! “Man that was an awesome out until it hit that bump next to the bunker”, my playing partner says. Rub of the Green 2.
I’ve become a pretty good bunker player even with hickories. Of course it helps that I have a wide soled Tom Stewart that is 62 degree loft and 6 degrees of bounce. Yes it’s really a Tom Stewart from the 1920s. Now you would think that with that carom I would have a good lie and the ball is setting up but it’s on a hill and my club is at least 8 inches above my feet. I open the club face, aim a little right with the side hill lie and do my soft swing to pop it out to a pin maybe 15 feet away. Problem is the sand here is rock hard and while it hit 2 inches behind the ball the head bounces at ground level rather than floating an inch below the surface like it’s suppose to. The ball comes out hard like a chip instead of a sand shot and flies to opposite site of the green. It really was an amazing sand shot, landed softly, it was just some 45 feet from the pin. “Too bad”, my playing partner says. Rub of the Green 3.
With all the hazards you got the figure the green would be simple and straight forward, but have you ever known a short hole that didn’t have a tricky green? 45 feet right to left break of 4 feet heading towards Pikes Peak. I’m resigned to bogey. Just get it close and get out of here. My playing partner is managing the stick like a professionally caddie and I my strike is about as pure a stoke as possible. It’s a good putt but I’m not sure it’s all that good, but my playing partner is. About 10 feet out he thinks it looks good, at three feet he says it’s in the hole. I’m like right…it’s close but not…PLOP….in the hole. PAR!!!!
I look at my playing partner and smile. There is nothing like dropping a 45 footer to snub a triple rub of the green!