Round Review - 3/9/2016 - Tega Cay Golf Club - Cove Course (Fort Mill, SC)

Since my last round here on Friday, I hadn't done much with my game.  I wanted to get back out and get in some practice, so I decided to take some time today and hit Tega Cay for another quick 9 hole round.

When I arrived, there were a few groups ahead of me, so it was going to be awhile before they could get me out.  To offset some of that time, I decided to just hit a small bucket of balls and putt a bit.  By 10:40am, I was on the tee and ready to go.  

Game Golf Round Review

Scorecard

Hole #1 - Par 3 - 186 Yards

When I tagged the flag with my rangefinder, it said it was playing about 178 yards.  I wasn't sure that was accurate and I didn't want to go long, so I decided to use a 6 iron from the tee.  I pulled it slightly and watched as it finished over the trap on the left side.  When I got up to the green, I saw my ball was pin high, but off the left side of the green.  I hit a decent chip, but it never really got close, leaving me about 14 feet for my par attempt.  It never threatened the hole and I opened with a bogey.

Hole #2 - Par 5 - 448 Yards

Unlike the last time I played, I had some troubles today.  They started on this hole.  From the tee, I hit what I thought was going to be a very good shot.  It had started where I wanted and I had seen it come down right in line with the tree I was aimed at.  Unfortunately, when I got up there, my ball was nowhere to be found.  I assume it had to have run through the fairway and into the leaves, never to be seen again.  I went back, hit another shot and watched it split the fairway.  Trying to 'make up' for that lost ball... I decided to go for it with my 3 wood.  That was a mistake.  I almost missed the ball, barely clipping the top of it, and advanced it only a handful of yard.  My next attempt wasn't much better as I push-sliced it to the right.  I watched it hit a tree and drop down in the rough to the right of the cart path.  My shot with a sand wedge from there got to about 21 feet, but I left the putt woefully short.  From 5 feet, I was good and carded a triple bogey on a fairly simple hole.

Hole #3 - Par 4 - 428 Yards

It's never fun to write about holes like this.  From the tee, I wildly sliced a ball into oblivion.  I put another ball on the tee and did the same thing.  Knowing I didn't want to go through a dozen balls on this hole alone, I elected to drop a ball up in the fairway where I typically end up with a normal drive.  From there, I topped a 5 iron that ran to about 40 yards short of the pin... I pitched up to about 12 feet and needed 2 putts from there for a 9.  If I were playing with the Golfweek Amateur Tour, it would have been a triple bogey max, so I wrote both numbers on my card and headed for the 4th tee.

Hole #4 - Par 4 - 376 Yards

I tried to shake off the cobwebs that were forming in my head after the last 2 holes.  I wanted to play a little draw around the corner, but instead, I played a straight shot that hit into the bank on the right and hopped into the leaves.  I was able to find it because I knew where it went in, but I had no option other than to punch out to the fairway.  I did so with a 7 iron and that left me 98 yards to the pin.  Because it was uphill, it was too much for my gap wedge, so I used my 50 degree wedge.  I hit it a bit thin and it was a lower trajectory than I wanted, but it still finished in decent position 13 feet from the hole.  My putt for par was always high and a little strong, but I was able to make the 3 footer coming back for bogey.

Hole #5 - Par 4 - 310 Yards

When I arrived to this tee, the group in front of me waved me up and said I could play through.  They joked that I shouldn't be nervous and I joked back that I'd show them exactly what not to do.  I proceeded to hit a solid 4 iron that looked like it was going to be in the middle of the fairway, but instead kicked a bit left into the rough.  My approach wedge from there clipped an overhanging tree branch in front of me and killed it, otherwise it was going to be really good.  I was left with about 55 yards, and I already had my gap wedge in my hand, so I used that.  I hit a shot right over the pin, but slightly long.  I was left with a par attempt from about 27 feet that was left the entire way.  I made my 5 foot bogey attempt and moved to the next tee.

Hole #6 - Par 4 - 312 Yards

I wanted to get comfortable with using my driver, even on tight holes, so I went with that here.  I made solid contact, but the ball was left to start and stayed there.  I hit a provisional that was right in the middle, but I didn't need to.  My initial ball was found in the trees on the left.  I had a tree in front of me and attempted to punch-hook it around that tree, but as it started to hook, it caught a mound that kicked it right.  The ball finished in the fringe and left me a fairly straightforward chip.  I didn't catch it well and left it about 12 feet shy.  I didn't give it enough from there and tapped in from 2 feet for another bogey.

Hole #7 - Par 3 - 195 Yards

On this tee, I noticed that the pin was way right on the green and I didn't want to mess with it, so I aimed my 6 iron to the center of the green.  I didn't go through my full pre-shot routine and ended up pulling this one.  It hit a tree left of the green and dropped down into a poor lie.  I was left with a good 40 yard pitch up a hill to the pin.  Because of the poor lie, I got it thin and the ball ran over the green into the rough.  My chip from there was a little longer than I wanted and left me about 14 feet for bogey.  My putt never came close, so I tapped in from 2 feet for double bogey.

Hole #8 - Par 3 - 149 Yards

This pin was in the same spot that it was on Friday night, 137 yards from the tee.  It was slightly downhill and the wind was helping and from our left.  My 9 iron was a little left and a little long.  My chip from there got to 4 feet, and then I made my weakest putting stroke of the day, leaving it short and having to tap in for another bogey.

Hole #9 - Par 5 - 488 Yards

I wanted to do the same thing here that I had done the last 2 times I played it and draw the ball around the tree on the left side.  I did that, but I over-cooked it and finished in the leaves left of the cart path.  I had no real shot from there, but I decided to try the and punch-hook again.  I tried with a 5 iron, and I pulled it off... almost.  It hit a mound and stopped it from hooking, so it ran up into the rough along the right side, leaving me about 100 yards to the hole, up a hill.  The ball was above my feet, so I caught it a little heavy with my approach wedge and left it in the bunker.  I was able to blast out from there to about 13 feet, but I couldn't convert the sand save and had to tap in to close with another bogey.

Recap

While I was hoping to come out and repeat the 40 that I posted on Friday, I kind of knew that I wasn't capable of that yet.  Still, it was disappointing to have those 2 loose holes early on.  I didn't hit anything else overly poor (except for the 6 iron from the 7th tee), but it was all off just enough to cause me to be in some trouble and have to punch out.  This led to no scoring opportunities, and I wasn't able to convert any of my up & down opportunities.  I plan to hopefully get out again either tomorrow or Friday for another 9 holes before the tournament round on Saturday at Cowan's Ford.  

Until then...

Round Stats

• Score - 51
• Penalty Strokes - 3
• Putts - 18
• Fairways - 0 of 6
• Greens in Regulation - 0 of 9
• Up and Downs - 0 of 6
• Sand Saves - 0 of 1