By Billy Condon
Yesterday I got my first real taste of competitive golf, playing in the MGA/MetLife Public Links Qualifier at Mohansic Golf Course in
The last “serious” stroke play event I played in was when I was around 13 at the local nine-hole course, where I came away the winner, but where the One-Ball Rule and Doubt as to Procedure were not in anyone’s vocabulary.
As a 2008 P.J. Boatwright intern, I worked on the other side of MGA tournaments setting up courses and giving rulings. Being on the other side of the ball was intimidating. After warming up on the range, I arrived at the first tee with my caddie. A deep breath and a swing later I had missed the fairway left, but I was relieved I didn’t whiff. Salvaging a bogey, I was just glad that the first hole was over. The next six holes were a struggle as I only made one par but I started hitting my stride after parring the eighth and ninth holes. At this point, my caddie and good friend Jason stepped in and made sure that I was loose and not worrying about numbers. His tactic worked as I started hitting fairways and greens, including a near hole-out for eagle on the 15th that came to rest a foot from the hole.
After a 43 on the front nine, my game came together on the back nine as I came in with a 37 and finished with an 80 on the day. It wasn’t good enough to qualify but respectable enough to get the thumbs-up from friends and coworkers, even those who lost the office pool by picking the “over.”
1 comment:
hey you must have a good caddie to settle you down like that. Bill, it was a pleasure looping for you. It was an easy task, although I wanted to swing the clubs myself too. The near hole out was a great shot, by the way and would have been all the more sweeter had it dropped, but alas nothing like a tap in birdie.
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