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GCP Winter Cam

I thought I was prepared mentally for the difference between the balmy winter golf of Phoenix, versus the cabin-fevered inactivity of Prague . . .

I thought I was conditioned by the inexorable approach of winter weather in Prague, the progression from cold and wet conditions to frozen unplayability, to acceptance . . .

But the snow shrouded fairways fill me with melancholy. Then enforced idleness makes my joints and muscles ache even more than the aguing cold . . . My PC Golf games whet my appetite, rather than temporize it . . .

The yearning to play golf itself is intense, but to play these particular fairways, is even more intense . . . in this picture we can see #2 & #9 . . . just as I did last summer, I hunger to hit the big drive past the big tree in the middle of #2, and wedge onto the green, and have another go at a birdie, which so far has eluded me . . . just like last summer, I hunger to hit the big drive and the solid mid-iron across the road on #9, then wedge close for another go at a birdie, which so far has eluded me . . . tho’ once I made a “virtual” birdie, after hooking my 2^nd OB.

gift ideas for Christmas...

A report from our DFW correspondent, my old partner Skipper, with whom I share the honor of being the Frostbite Tournament Champion at Walden on Lake Conroe in February 2004 . . . we were a two-man team and blew the field away with a net-63, but all that’s a story for another day . . . he writes:

 

I had an old Swing Speed trainer that I received as a freebee at an AvidGolfer tournament and made some “timely” alterations.

 

Anyway, thought of you when I was doing this, definitely not PC, but one of my more creative ideas.  Thought you might enjoy the idea.

 

Skipper

Basra Golf Course

Basra Golf Course a Hit With Deployed Soldiers

367th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Story by 1st Sgt. David Bennett

Date: 12.10.2009
Posted: 12.10.2009 02:32

CAMP BUCCA – From the air, the basic outline of Camp Bucca appears as most military forward operating bases in Iraq, except for nine fluttering white flags affixed to poles jutting from the ground.

The flags aren't tokens of surrender but they often elicit cries of frustration from those Soldiers who have thrown their best at this opponent, only to be repelled.

Master Sgt. Brian Franzen, platoon sergeant "D" Co., 132nd BSB, said it's just par for the course.

http://www.dvidshub.net/?script=news/news_show.php&id=42529

2 Birdies, 2 PBFUs for Kvjetaaak

K-taak reports on his round at Golf Club Praha by himself . . .

 

#1 PAR4

Starting from the plastic tee area without proper wooden tee. Being here with my friend that is fully supporting my golf career but never been on the course in his life. My partner for that day was a person that was HCP 15 (I really doubt) and was not talkative at all; boring flight not like with Pukka!

Straight shot (very surprising in my case) and ball end up in middle of the slope and fairway. This is where it get’s complicated as my position was in middle of the hill and I had to play on the other hill to the green; I never know what club should I use. As usual when I don’t know what to do I decided for 7 iron. Probably golf god was looking after me that day and I made it with my 7 iron to the green; 3 or 4 feet down from the hole; for many golf players easy uphill putt. I took my putter with my hand shaking and try to investigate the best way forward (my HCP 15 flight partner was on the green with 6^th stroke). Finally I closed my eyes and made the putt into the hole.

My first 4PAR Birdie ever!

With strong confidence I moved to #2 PAR 4 where I played 9; continuing to #3 PAR3 where I played some beach golf and end up with 5. #4 PAR5 3 wood into the fairway, 3 wood over the road and finally last stroke with 3 wood into the green; finishing with 7 after damn 4 putt.

#5 PAR3 I played with my 6 iron and made it into the green at once. Saved PAR after 2 putt.

#6 PAR4 3 wood from the tee into the woods; 2 strokes to get off there another 3 to get to the green and standard 2 putt.

#7 PAR4 I really hate this hole (Pukka knows what I am talking about). Made the drive with my 3 wood (yes, 3 wood all the time as my driver is broken again J) and saw it flying closer to the left (save) side of the fairway. In fact it hit the trees on the left and luckily for me bounce back into the middle of the fairway. That was again very surprising for me and same as on #1 I was wondering which club to choose as I’ve never been in such good position on this hole; same decision of 7 iron. Coming little bit too short but down the hill and made it onto the green; very close to the hole. Easy putt and my second Birdie on PAR4 hole.

#8 PAR3 Gr8 shot with 6 iron right into the middle of the green. 10 feet put down the slope. I knew it must been an very easy one as the green on #8 is the most complicated in GCP. Played the first putt; missed the hole by half inch and stand looking at the ball rolling down the slope off the green. Second putt was too short and was it a comebacker but completely of the green. I switched from putter to my Sand wedge an chipped that back but coming too short and suffer by comebacker again. 3 following putts and I were done with #8.

#9 PAR5 was my standard with 7 strokes; only I missed the green and was playing to the green #2 that is right next to it and almost killed Mrs.Unger with my ball.

 

So this was probably my best round and at the same time one of the worst. But at least I know how it feels to Birdie two PAR4 holes.

 

Janov

The first hole is a par 5 . . . it doesn't look too bad, with the tree guarding the inside of the dogleg and hiding the OB fenceline. . . I staid well away from the right side, so I was in the rough . . . I didn't know it was the rough until I got down to my ball. . . I didn't think it would matter that much, but the grass was wet and heavy, the turf was very inferior . . . just black dirt under patchy grass . . . so I kinda chunked a 7wood down towards the hole, still in the rough, then chunked an 8iron, then chunked a pw, then bladed a chip over the green, and 2 putted for a double bogey . . .

#2 is a short par 3 back up the hill we just sort of sidled down . . .

I didn't swing well, and chunked and bladed more short irons . . .

I'd already lost interest . . . this is a horrible course .  . .with pathetic miniature bunkers and flat greens flush with the fairway, cowpasture turf, and golf mat tees.

#3 might have been a fun hole if I had been in fine fettle and if I could have known what was going on . . . it's sort of a blind tee shot, and short enough that I put the big dog back in the bag and just kinda bladed a 5 iron out to the dog leg . . .

then I thinned a 3iron just short of the green, bladed a chip over the green, chunked the come-backer, and two-putted for a double bogey.

I was resolved on the 2nd time around to just hit the big dog over those trees that show up on the left of this picture . . . if I was loose at all, I could drive this green, I think . . .
But, as it was, in reality, instead, I was thoroughly disgusted with the course, the weather, my long johns, and my ridiculous scoring . . .

#4 is another hole that doesn't look so bad on paper, shortish par 4, uphill, with sharp dogleg right around some trees .. .

trying to get into the spirit of things, and keep the ball on what they called a fairway, I hit a 7wood at the inside corner of the dogleg with a hook back down the hill to the left side, about a 100 m from the green, to leave myself a full club to that green . . . essentially the same shot as the tee shot on #2.

but I pulled it left and long behind one of those mini-skinny-traps . . .

so natcherly I had to chunk it INTO the trap . . . the sand in there wasn't too bad actually, kinda gravelly, but you can actually play it like sand, so fine . . . but it was just another double-bogey for me, in the end . . . those greens were so hideously grainy, they were like temporary greens, impossible to take seriously, tho' I kept trying.

I tho't maybe I'd finally hit a driver solid on the par5 #5, but it didn't go much further than K-taak's pop-up 3wood . . . even tho' it was in the "fairway" the ball had set down in a cuppy lie like it was in the rough . . .

I still tried to hit a 3wood, and skulled it like a duffer.

so went to a 4iron and bladed that about halfway up the hill to the hole . . .
just kept it out and hit it again to get up to the green . . . couldn't really get down to the ball, because of the poor lie, but also because my swing was just out-of-sorts . . . in the misty conditions, I wasnt going to get up and down, and I didn't try.

#6 is a 200m long par 3, and the only pleasure I can take out of it is that I hit my 5wood solid.

with a pull-hook left of the green, but solid.

I used two hands for the lob onto the green, but I putted with one-hand . . . the other was in my pocket to stay warm.

The tee shot for #7 has a classic look to it, uphill to a crest with the green unforeseen, but there's a nasty looking little water hazard on the left side of the fairway . . . meaning a sump-hole of industrial shape and cess-pool size I suppose you're supposed to go right of, as part of a dogleg or something . . . I landed right by it . . . I have no idea how far I was hitting by then . . . nuthin' felt solid and I still seemed to be miles from the green. . .
I fatted a 5iron, then hit a sparkling 9iron pinhigh, left of the green that kicked straight toward the hole . . . a 2 putt bogey . . . my best hole, but no satisfaction. . .
#8 is the one hole I wisht I'd gotten a picture of . . . it was so f*****d up a design it reminded me of the pilzn course we played, only worse: very short par 4 with a 110 degree dogleg left around a huge oak tree . . . I think there were large oak trees all down the left side from the tee that keep you from just cutting the corner straight at the green. I tho't I might hit a high hook over and around that tree -- I don't know why -- but what I got instead was a medium-high hard hook that veered right into the tree. I tho't it might be right under the tree, but what did I see, or what did K-taak show me is that my ball had caromed down the slope straight at the green, 10m short of the green. . . but it was like chipping thru a dog run with all the worm-casts there, so I chunked and bladed and two-putted to a bogey from there. Fine. Just Fine.

You might think #9 is the signature hole from its position, right outside the clubhouse . . . that is, you have to walk past #9 to get to #1, and you get to finish in sight of the clubhouse . . . I guess that's worth something. I hit a week 9iron slice pin high right of the green 30m . . . Hit the only decent pitch shot of the day from there to 3 ft away. Missed the putt. Did not care.

we stopped here for refreshments, and while we dined, it started raining harder . . . we were already caked with mud from the knees down and cold, so we just called it a day.

We had gone to Janov with coupons we'd gotten for placing in the last tournament in Motol . . . in fact we had 6 coupons in all, so we had planned on free 18s, but with those conditions, free 9s was plenty. The part that grated on me was driving 5 hours to play 2 1/2 hours of bad golf, shooting the whole day . . . there's not many days of golf I will admit to have been a total waste, but this is one of 'em. . . 8^/ . . . the weather conditions sucked, the playing conditions sucked, and my physical condition sucked . . . so a new rule of thumb . . . 3 sucks and you're out . . .

GCP Tour Final 2009

#2 & #9 from the Verandah at Golf Club Praha (GCP) .  .  . tho' the weather is glorious Babi Leto (Indian Summer), I found myself a little melancholy after the round, after eating, nursing my cognac and smoking a cigar, overlooking this vista. . . the end of golf season in Prague . . .

Gearing up for the final tournaj of the GCP Tour, I had made a grim assessment . . . my performance in the A group was disappointing, to put it in the best possible light; Evidence of the Choking Dog, if I am honest with myself. Had not even come close to shooting handicap in 3 tournajs; one blow-off, in my first attempt, since I was nervous, for reasons I cannot comprehend; a 4^th place finish – I felt I was unlucky, so many times it’s not really bad luck anymore, if you see what I mean; another poor finish when I twisted my left knee . . . if I had just taken an ibuprophen, I could have returned to form.

So I had low expectations and a bulldog determination going in. Long story short, shot 50-44=94, with 6 pars, 7 missed birdies, 4 3 putts, with an 11 on a par 5 and a 7 on a par 3. . . . 35 stableford points . . . .3^rd place . . . Hadn’t played in 2 weeks . . . which doesn’t really bother my game tee-to-green, but my shortgame always suffers . . . didn’t make a putt all day . . . left 2 birdies on the lip . . .

After a strong start on #1 . . . hooked my drive so far left it caught a treetop instead of finding the wide-open rough, but I then hooked a 4iron onto the green, a shot so good I was willing to overlook the 3putt finish.

On #2 my drive was so center-cut it was behind the big tree in the middle of the fairway, and I guess I was thinking about that, when, as I crossed the road that bi-sects the fairway, I slipped on the steep wet slope, rolled over my ankle and chicken-winged my knee . . . the weight of my bag I carry kept me from falling gracefully . . . I musta laid there for 30 seconds . . . my partners all turned around and walked back toward me, but I managed to get up and limp thru the rest of the hole for a par, by virtue of a pitch to kick-in distance.

I took an ibuprophen right away this time, but my leg from my knee to my ankle throbbed – I still had my mobility, but it was always an uncertain proposition making my swing . . . there’s so many moving parts, there’s a lot to go wrong if I feel good, never mind when there’s pain to ignore. . . I blocked several shots right after that just from not being able to get back to my left side during the swing. Took 40 yds off my drives . . . but just by doing “arm-swings” on my irons I could get by . . .  in fact a couple of downhill wedges I pureed over the green by swinging easy. Maybe that bad leg was helping me stay behind the ball? . . . 8^D . . .

K-taak had a miserable round . . . in fact, as he put it, “My Personal Worst” . . . it didn’t matter . . . he’s achieved his goals for his first year of golf . . . his handicap is down to 25, he won a tournament (maybe two, and a couple of places or shows), and . . . drumroll, please . . . he won the GCP tour’s overall first place for most stableford points . . . he averaged 37 stableford points each tournaj, and he showed up every time . . . last year he didn’t even play and this year he’s a certified, prize-winning, golf-nut . . . 8^D . . .  first prize included an interesting trophy – painted, not silver or gold and a certificate for a all-expenses-paid golf trip to Tunisia . . . I looked it up . . . there’s 3 golf courses of note in Tunisia . . . who knew?

He broke another driver, tho’ . . . his 3^rd this year . . . the first two down by the hosel, but this one in the middle of the shaft, during a practice swing . . .

The tournaj always includes a lunch ticket . . . today’s lunch was duck leg with red cabbage and dumplings . . . the cuisine at the club is always good, even very good . . . I have assembled the array of possibilities: hezky/petky (nice), dobry (good), welme dobry (very good), vyborne (excellent), and parada (excellent and exciting) . . . if you can figger out where to insert Super! And Perfekt! Into that array, those words are in common use also, to describe golf shots or food, or anything . . . so I am just saying that the food is welme dobry, but not vyborne (well, maybe), but for sure not parade . . . if you see what I mean . . . 8^D . . .

But my leg hurts like heck now . . . I can’t sleep . . . .