Peoria Ridge - 6/26

Kade and I played the good ol' P-Ridge today. I hate playing out there. I never ever shoot well out there (not that I really shoot any better at other courses, but still...) That course seems to intimidate me, for some reason. But, I had a gift certificate still from Valentine's Day, so we decided to go. Normally when I play out there, I start off horrible, then manage to string together a few good holes for a decent back nine to salvage a score in the upper 90's or low 100's. (I told you I was a stud!). However, today, I nailed a drive down the middle of #1 (a par 5), then hit a 5-wood dead straight to within about 75 yards, and had an easy wedge to the green. My birdie putt stopped about an inch short, leaving me a gimme par. I was literally an inch from being under par for the first time in my life. Had I made that putt, I probably would've walked off the course and never played again, ending my golf career with that one shining moment of (semi-) glory. Anyway, I had a birdie opportunity on #2 as well, a chip from the fringe on the backside of the green, and managed to make bogey after my par putt missed short. (The greens were in terrible shape and the speeds were very hard to read). I played around bogey golf for the next 5 holes, then on #7, I hit one of the more remarkable shots I've ever hit.

I drove with a 5-Wood (the hole is a short par 4) about 200 yards and off to the right, between the cart path and a fence that marks OB, in the rough, and about 20 feet shy of the creek. Guarding said creek are a line of huge, tall trees, probably 75 feet tall. So, after debating my options of a) turning left and punching out into the fairway (the sensible thing to do) and b) using a sand wedge and trying to clear the trees with something straight up in the air, and I decided on c) none of the above, and went with the 'Tin Cup' mentality of "grip it & rip it." I took a pitching wedge and hit the ball straight up in the air, carried the trees and hit the back side of the green, about 125 yards on the fly. This was remarkable for a couple of reasons. 1, I usually don't get that much air under my PW that fast. It was almost like trying to hit the ball out of a silo. 2, I usually don't carry my PW more than 100 yards, and when I do, it's because I've bladed it and it never gets more than probably 20 feet off the ground. To hit it that high, that straight up, and that far, was nothing short of remarkable (for me, anyway). The ball left about an inch deep divot and bounced about 4 feet, stopping about 50 feet from the pin. I got in in two for my par. 

The rest of the round, I pretty well lollygagged my way to some unremarkable bogeys and even a couple pars here and there. We really didn't keep score very accurately on the back nine (or really even that correctly), but I carded a really bogus 92. I hit 48 on the front nine, which was actually legit (I fell apart on holes 4-6 and 8). 

Anyway, with my finances on lock down in preparation for saving for a Yankee Stadium trip in about a month, that's probably the last golf I'll be getting to play for a while. Maybe I'll find something else to entertain you all with (both of you!) for a few weeks.