November 29, 2010 - Buenaventura Golf Course, Ventura, California

At long last we have come back to our "home" course, Buenaventura in lovely Ventura, California.  Buenaventura Golf Course  It's where I started playing again and where I broke 100.  I've missed playing here, although it's been lots of fun playing on other courses too.

The very interesting sculpture at the Buenaventura entrance.

I was worried about the weather - it's been very cold and windy, but by the time we ate our tuna sandwiches at home, it had warmed up for us and our 12:21 tee time.  

Stan on the first tee.

The first two holes were great for me, I bogeyed them both, and I felt that I was on my way to a great game.  Stan didn't do as well, but he is usually a slow start on a course and does better later on the front nine.  The third hole wasn't so good.  We both hit right into the trees and just couldn't recover.  I hit a 9 and Stan an 8.  The 4th hole was a series of blips and limps along to the green.  The scores were the same as the third hole; not a very good sign.  By then, Stan was ready to go home, but we persevered and "stayed the course."  

I am usually the Queen of the Threes at Buenaventura.  I have birdied the 11th hole a couple of times and made par on other threes at the course.  I just didn't have the touch on the front nine today and shot 5 on both par threes.  Very, very disappointing.

Last week we had a short game lesson at River Ridge with Joe.  He gave us very good pointers on how to chip low and then roll or chip high and have it stay put.  He also gave us a short putting lesson.  I was looking forward (with a bit of anxiety) to testing how well I'd learned what he had taught me.  I had a real chance to try it on the 9th hole.  I made a low chip from atop a small hill.  It hit the green and seemed to be going straight.  It wavered a little and straightened itself out, seeming to go right to the hole.  I was cautiously hopeful that it would go into the cup, and I was jumping up and down just a little bit in anticipation.  Well, the impossible happened.  The chip shot went right into the cup, and I bogeyed that hole!  Stan let out a whoop - he was so excited for me!!!  It wasn't the only time that I was able to use my new chipping skills.  There were several more opportunities, and the ball actually went where I wanted it to go.  My putting was better today, too!  Fantastic!!!  Thanks Joe!!

Even though I had a good score on some of the holes on the front nine, I didn't do better than bogey and wasn't happy with my play.  It was very disappointing to have two good holes at the beginning and then to have two 9s and an 8.  My drives were not great, I chunked and topped a few fairway shots and just didn't like how I was playing.  Stan played slightly better than me, and he was more consistent.   


Somehow I was able to make a change on the back nine.  I'm not quite sure how it happened, but I felt something click on the 10th and 11th holes.  I was keeping my legs bent and driving the ball, watching it leave the tee and/or the ground and following through.  The "woosh" as the club traveled along the grass and smacked the ball was something I could feel happening, and every stroke, every fairway shot, every pitch and chip was going just right.  

I had some problems with the 12th, 13th and 15th holes, but otherwise, I was doing well.  I made par on two of the remaining par threes (the Queen of the Threes was back!), and bogeyed the 11th and 18th. 

Stan had beautiful, beautiful drives on the 16th, 17th and 18th holes.  The 16th hole for him was a mixed bag, though.  His fairway shots were bad, then good, then bad.  We wound up with the same scores on these three holes; double bogey 6 on the 16th, made a 3 par on the 17th and bogeyed the 18th with a 6.  


I actually felt like I was starting to manage the course for the first time.  On the 18th hole in particular, I had a great drive and first fairway shot.  On my second fairway shot, I decided to use my 5 iron in some long grass because I was pretty sure I could dig it out with that club.  Unfortunately I needed a longer club to go a greater distance, but I didn't have one, so I made the safe choice and aimed to the left to avoid water and sand on the right.  Wouldn't you know it, the ball actually went where I wanted it to go!  Amazing!  I then had a chip shot.  I took a look at the hills around the green and the green itself to see where I wanted to hit the ball.  I used my 9 iron so that I could hit it fairly low and have it roll on the green toward the pin.  And, incredibly enough, the shot went to the spot and at the speed I intended it to go.  I was so excited by this!  It was a very fulfilling end to an up-and-down game.

My score was 110 and Stan's was 105.  When you consider that I had two penalty strokes and no longer go by the double-par rule and count every stroke, it was a pretty good day.  Stan lost 5 balls and had 5 penalty strokes. 

We are playing Buenaventura again on Wednesday, this time with Mike and Bill.  I hope to do better, as always. 
 

November 23, 2010 - GolfTec Lesson, Oxnard, California

One of the things that Stan and I have done to try and improve our golf game is to take lessons.  Before I would even go back on any course, I wanted to try and correct old mistakes.  We took three lessons from Bogey Bob in Newbury Park which got my confidence up enough to pick up my clubs and start golfing after 6-1/2 years.  After playing a while, Stan signed us up for a diagnosis of our swing at GolfTec in the Golfsmith store in Oxnard.  GolfTec  After the diagnosis, we signed up for lessons with Joe Dougherty, the resident pro.  jdougherty@golftec.com  What can I say?  We love Joe, not only for what he has done for our game, which is plenty, but because he is a great guy and a terrific instructor.  

Stan and Joe in one of the GolfTec bays.  Notice the GolfTec hat which Stan received after breaking 100!

Golftec offers a terrific environment to learn golf.  Not only do we have Joe's instruction, but we have access to our lesson, drills and comments on our personal website.  Joe is accessible and is able to translate a complicated game into words and concepts we can relate to and use in a practical setting.   

A video comparison - my swing to a pro's.

We were lucky to have him play 10 holes with us on our trip to La Quinta in October.  We are going back to La Quinta this weekend with GolfTec (a great deal - $450 per person for two nights at La Quinta Resort and unlimited golf on beautiful - and tough - courses), and we hope to play with him again!

November 19, 2010 - Tierra Rejada Golf Club, Moorpark, California

Happy Anniversary to me and my wonderful husband of 23 years!  Every day with you has been a gift.  I love you very much and look forward to sharing more laughs and love and creating more memories (golf and otherwise).


My last full blog entry was riddled with frustration.  I was so upset about my game that I almost didn't want to play today.  But I went to the driving range yesterday and practiced some of the new techniques I had learned from Joe.  I was feeling better about my game and hoped I would show some improvement over the last time I played.

We golfed with Seth Perry (for his birthday he received a round of golf at the Tierra Rejada Golf Club) and Bill Switzky.  Seth is a personal trainer and is married to Amy, who runs the awesome boot camp I go to three times a week.  She has changed my body (and Stan loves it as much as I do).  Amy's Boot Camp  Wouldn't you know it, but today's boot camp was particularly tough.  The one day I didn't want an arm workout . . . that's what I got.  I prayed my arms wouldn't be shaky the rest of the day.

The weather report wasn't great.  No rain was forecast, but it was very gray and rain was expected from Saturday through Monday.  Cloudy weather is great for boot camp (it keeps the sweat factor down), but I wasn't excited about playing golf in the cold.  So, I got home, showered off the sweat and the sand (our boot camp was on the beach today), threw on a few layers of clothes and brought along a jacket for good measure.  Stan picked up Bill and Seth while I was prepping, and I jumped in the car for the ride to Moorpark (about 45 minutes).  Along the way drizzle happened.   I wasn't happy about the development, and Seth asked me if I would melt in the rain.  I confirmed that I would, but we were committed to playing golf no matter what.  Stan reminded me that we had played in the rain before.  Yeah, but that was in La Quinta and Hawaii and it was 90 degrees outside, not 60 degrees!  I admit that I am a fair weather athlete.  I like perfect conditions while playing tennis or golf, and I want my pool or ocean water to be in the 70s or 80s before I get in.  You can't always get what you want.

Moorpark is a very nice area - part agriculture and open space, part suburbs.  Our daughter and her new husband got married at beautiful Walnut Grove just last July - a left turn off the same exit that we turned right on.  Walnut Grove at Tierra Rejada Ranch  Moorpark is a nice venue for a golf course.  Tierra Rejada Golf Club

A light rain was now falling as we went to the clubhouse to check in (a special rate of $50 per person, including the cart), but that didn't dampen our spirits, by golly!  We went to the driving range where we made a sorry attempt to warm up by stretching a bit (we had to - we had a personal trainer to try and impress), and by the time our game started the rain had stopped.  I forgot my cell phone at home, so I didn't have Evernote to chronicle our exploits.  I'll have to rely on my extremely poor memory to recount the day.

Stan, Bill and Seth - all smiles.

The first hole, a par 5, was a monster.  Seth played from the blues (580 yards), Stan and Bill from the whites (544 yards) and I played from the golds (511 yards).  If anyone had played from the blacks, they would have had 610 yards to cover.  The hole was very pretty, though.  There was a pond and babbling brook by the green, although it took forever for me to get there.  The front nine is chock-full of par 5s, three to be exact, and they are long ones.  The merciful thing about that is that there are only two of them on the back nine.  

Our tee time was around noon, and we were pretty hungry by the time we were finished with the first hole.  That could also be because we were exhausted from the distance we had to cover just to get to the second hole.  Bill did an instant replay of the sandwiches he made last week, with a no-onion adjustment to my sandwich.  He claims he has it down to a science, and I'd have to agree - yummy sliced turkey piled high with cheese, lettuce and a smear of both dijon and mayonnaise.  Thanks again Bill for being a sandwich maker extraordinaire!  Stan and I supplied drinks, carrot and celery sticks, apples and the ever-present Lays potato chips.  

 The second hole was a par 3.  Stan made par (yay!), Seth and I bogeyed and Bill shot a 6.  On the 3rd hole, a par 4, I made par!!!  I was starting to feel my way around the course, even though this was one of the tougher courses I had played.  It reminded me a bit of the course in Paso Robles.  I have to make a note here that Bill shot a 14 on this hole.  He was bound and determined to finish, and was in good humor about it.  He cracked a few jokes here and there, which continued onto the 4th hole.  But things were not going well for our friend, and we were concerned that Little Billy might make an appearance.  

This course has a lot of elevation changes.  There are many holes played uphill and many played downhill.  There are blind spots off the tee, a ravine or two and very narrow fairways.  The designers have given each hole cute little names like "Opening Belle," "Lily Pond" and "Ridgeline."  The name for the 4th hole is "Bootleg Hill."  I have renamed it "Implode."  Each and every one of us (except Seth) shot a 10.  At least that's where I stopped counting.  It's a sharp dogleg right, and I cannot remember how many shots it took for me to get to the green.  To be honest, I don't even remember if I picked up the ball because I had no chance of even making double par.  Seth birdied the 5th hole, I shot an 8 and Bill and Stan shot 6.

Stan and Seth bonded over the incredible chasm that was the 6th hole.  To have to shoot over that seemed next to impossible, but they both did it.  

I made it too!

Bill's frustration level was starting to elevate, although I have to give him credit for keeping things under wraps.  He decided to pack it in after the 6th hole.  He stayed with us until after the 9th, when we dropped him at the clubhouse where he could have a drink and keep warm while the three of us finished off the rest of the course.  We were sad to see him go, but it was certainly understandable; who wants to be upset for another two hours?

Seth is a beautiful golfer.  I know he wasn't happy with his play today, but to me he was terrific.  He has great form, hits the ball solid and far and looks every part like he could be on tour.  Even better?  He's a lot of fun to play with.  He is leagues above us, yet never made us feel that we were dragging him down in any way.  

Stan has been playing great golf lately.  I do believe he has turned a corner.  Not only did he shoot a 96 the last time he played, but Mike Mahr just told me that Stan had a 40 to 50 foot putt that he sank on the 18th hole that day.  Stan has been driving, approaching and putting very well today.  I'm very happy for him that his game is improving.  It makes it so much more fun to play when your ball goes straight, far and where you want it to.

The back was better for Seth and me.  Stan shot about the same.  Although I shot a couple of 8s, I made par on the 11th and 14th and bogeyed the 12th.  Stan made par on the 14th and bogeyed the 11th and 13th.  Seth made par on the 12th and 16th, bogeyed the 11th, 13th, 14th and 15th and birdied the 17th.  And we did enjoy the beauty of the back nine.

Seth near the water's edge.

Enjoying the beauty of the course.  I really am happy even though I don't look it!

I would love to come back and try this course again.  There is something about it that is very inviting.  I don't know if it's the rolling hills and natural beauty, the smell of the California Bay, the challenge of the course or that I think I can do better, but I want to give it another go.  I was fairly happy with my play considering the length and unfamiliarity - I shot 117.  Stan shot 109, absolutely marvelous, and Seth the Wonder Boy shot a very disappointing (to him) 89.  Oh brother!