I recently traveled to St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands where I was able to play a round of golf at Carambola Golf Club. My hostess Jen has a few friends who work at the club and were gracious enough to help me out with a tee time. I have to say thanks to Carl and Scott for hooking me up! Stephanie and Jen weren't thrilled about waking up at 6:30 am so that I could make my tee time, but they were going to hang out at the beach, which was some consolation. Thanks Ladies!
The weather was perfect. When I arrived at 7:30 am it was 75 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. I paid $35 to rent my clubs, and the pro shop threw in some range balls and tees as well. The clubs were Top-Flite XL 5000's. Not that it mattered to me or my score, but they were a decent set of clubs. I hit them well enough on the range (even the driver) and felt ready to tackle the course. I walked over to what I thought wasthe first tee and smashed a drive about 270 yards right down the middle of the fairway. I ended up making a seven on the hole and then moved on to number 2 which I realized was actually number 11. I was riding around as if I'd never been on a golf course before but, since I made a seven, I decided to find hole number one and start my round over. On my second first hole, I hit my drive a little right and off the fairway. I was about 140 yards from the flag with a tree between me and the green. At first I thought about taking a low lofted club and hitting under the trees. Then I realized a real golfer would go over the trees. So I grabbed my 9 iron and stuck it about 12 feet from the flag. I actually felt like I knew what I was doing. That feeling lasted all of one hole. I two putted for par and moved on to the real number 2. This is whennovices including myself completely forget everything we think we know and start hitting golf shots that look like slap shots in hockey with every club we swing. I did this for the about seven holes. I seriously couldn't get the ball off the ground. I'm an admitted badgolfer, but when I go from hitting a Mickelsonesque shot over trees to impersonating Sidney Crosby with a driver, it's still frustrating.
Finally, I looked around and remembered that I was on a beautiful island surrounded by picturesque mountains, and playing a $35 round of golf on a top notch course. Life is good. Once my perspective changed, I was able to recall the few fundamentals that I practice constantly on the range at home. I choked down on my 7 iron took an abbreviated swing and started making crisp contact. After a while the other clubs felt better in my hands as well, and the round was generally more enjoyable because I remembered that I'm not very good and stayed within my limitations!
The moral of the story is to always enjoy the round of golf you're playing because it is a fun game, and a blessing to have the time and physical ability to play. I also learned that my game travels well. I can shoot a 100+ at any course in the world! Until next time......hit 'em good!
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