Yes, I was back at Riverbend again this week. No sleep due to an arrival home from the Drive-In at 4 AM meant that it should be a rough round, and I was right, for at least the first few holes. Our 6 AM tee time was bumped forward by the pro shop, which left no warm up time or putting practice. Sometimes you just have to make due though, so off to the tee I went. Keep in mind, I also was in a cart for the first time in forever and was carrying my Wilson 8813 putter for the first time in 15 years – not the day to be on no sleep and no warm up. Oh and to make matters a bit rougher on myself, I was playing from the tips, or adding about 700 yards to the course today. Really, once I was in the back tee box on 1, the only thing that mattered was that the weather was gorgeous and I was on the course.
The 347 yard par 4 first still played wide open off the tee. A short, 250 yard driver off the tee left me an even 100 yards in to the flag. My 54 degree wedge settled on the left side, where I proceeded to run my put about 8 feet past. I missed the comebacker by about 6 inches and tapped in for a 3 putt bogey. The second hole was playing almost 50 yards longer than the whites, at 423 yards, it was a long way down the fairway before I could see the green. I played a 1 iron off the tee, but pulled it slightly into the left rough. I played a draw with my 3 iron to run up to the front of the green before a chip and 2 putts to escape with another bogey. The par 5 3rd hole was stretched out to 504 yards, which actually played much better for me than the usual distance did. I hit driver off the tee into the left fairway bunker. A 7 Iron played perfectly to 100 yards out before my 54 degree wedge landed about 15 feet from the pin. A two putt par left me 2 over after 3.
The 4th hole was another that was stretched to new lengths for me. At 438 yards, this hole could have been a par 5 for some shorter hitters, but as it sat, it just made for a 50 yard longer approach shot for me. A good drive found the fairway and my 7 iron found the green in two. Two putts later and I was off to the 5th with a par. The part 3 5th was playing 136 from the black tees, so I chose my 135 yard, 9 iron for the tee shot. I must have hit it perfectly or my yardages are way off as I flew it all the way to the hill on the back of the green, or about 7-10 yards further than it should have gone. I didn’t get my chip close enough and left myself a very tough side hill putt that I wasn’t able to make. A tap in gave me a solid 4, but it should have been a better score given the shots I hit. The 6th didn’t want to give me much either. Walking on to the tee box, I found myself staring down a 544 yard par 5. My driver sailed right, into the second fairway, but still was very playable. I managed to play a perfect 5 iron over the trees to 100 yards out, which left me a perfect 54 degree wedge in to the green. Two quick putts and I was off to number 7 and only 3 over after 6.
I continued the decent play into the par 4 7th. Playing 314, this hole retuned the round to a bit of a normal feel. My 1 iron came off the club a bit lower than normal, but left me about 90 yards to the flag. My 54 degree wedge found the back of the green and a 2 putt netted me my 4th par of the front side.8th was definitely a longer play than normal, but at 180 yards, I was hopeful that my 7 iron would find the green. It was the right club, but the shot went left of the green where a spectacular chip saved me and gave me a tap in par. The The 9th hole also played very familiar from the back tees, with them only adding about a single club to my approach. A good 1 iron down the middle left me about 140 in. I once again pulled my 9 iron (135 club) and proceeded to knock it clean over the green. A difficult pitch shot left me a two putt for bogey to finish out the front at 4 over par, 40.
Moving on to the backside, the 10th hole was playing 377 and laid out very similar to the 25 yard shorter boxes that we would normally play. A 1 iron and a sand wedge, along with chip and a 1 putt had me start off the back with a par. The 11th wasn’t quite as kind with the backs playing 2 full clubs longer than normal. I hit a strong 1 iron off the tee, but came up just short of the green on my 8 iron approach. A chip and 2 putts later, I left the hole with a rough bogey. The 12 played much more friendly as a low draw found the fairway 235 yards out. That left me 135 to go on the 364 yard par 4, which was a solid PW with a bit of extra. I had learned my lesson from the earlier holes that the 9 was carrying out to 145 instead of 135. 2 putts later, I had another par.
The 13th was playing like a beast. At 166 yards, it was a solid 2 clubs longer than normal. A very solid 7 iron didn’t fade for me and I found the left side rough. There was no green to work with from my position, so I played it safely down from the trees to the front edge of the green. 2 putts later, a bogey was on my card and I felt a bit lucky to have it. The 14th was a magnificent hole to look at from the back tees. At 573 yards, it seemed to go on forever. I pulled the driver to hit as far down the fairway as possible on this one, and I hit a perfect right center drive that ended up in the fairway bunker. A quick 7 iron out of there and a 54 degree wedge and a chip from the left fringe got me within inches of the hole for a tap in par. The par 4 15th was also playing 2 clubs longer, and looked much narrower from the back. My 1 iron found the left side of the fairway, but left me a very difficult shot over the greenside bunker to have any chance of getting on the green. This was where my one swing mistake of the round happened, a chunky 6 iron that just fluttered down the fairway about 100 yards. A lob wedge got me up to the green, but a difficult line on my putt left me with a bogey 5.
Moving on, going back across the bridge to 16, I really wasn’t a fan of what I saw. This painful par 3 had been drawn out to 195 yards or about 2 and a half clubs more than usual. That half is the real problem as it put the distance square between a 6 iron and a 5 iron. For some reason, I went 6, but managed to hook the ball left into the rough. A chip out and a two putt left me with a bogey 4, but it was ugly. I couldn’t have drawn up 17 any better than I played it. A perfect 1 iron off the 383 yard par 4 left me 125 yards to the hole. A solid pitching wedge landed left of the flag for a two putt par. It was a well played hole. Finally the walk back to the 18th tee box was scary – and I mean scary – as the black tees had me marching 4-5 clubs further back than the rest of my group. That’s right, 60 yards from the rear, I hit my driver – and not well – out into the fairway. My second shot was a draw 3 iron to the edge of the water. A little 54 degree wedge and a few putts and my round was finished at 8 over par, 80.
For having no sleep and being in the car for 10 hours before my round (It was an hour and a half to the drive-in, 5 hours of movies and an hour and a half back – plus the fact we got there so early) and no warm up, I would consider an 80 from the tips pretty decent. I will be venturing back to them next round just to see what I can do from them on a normal day. I have a feeling that I shall return to the 70’s next round, but we will see. We’re planning on hitting Willows Run’s Eagles Talon course on the 7th of July if everything works out for that outing. Of course, playing somewhere new always has challenges, but we will see what comes of that. For now, I’ll be back as a single digit handicapper on the 1st of July!
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