And so it begins...

Thanks to my girlfriend's Valentines Day gift, I now own a new set of Affinity golf clubs. And so, I was forced into this painful yet ironically-rewarding game known as golf a few months ago. Here, I plan to share my struggles, triumphs, club throws, and epiphanies as I continue to play.

To catch you up, here is a summary of how things have gone down since I started again...

2009:
End of February: Links at 434 (par 3 course) with partner-in-crime Chris; hit okay for the first time out, manage to hit a ball off a tee block and behind me. Great start.

March 7th: Winter Pines Golf Club; not too shabby for the first REAL time back out, wind up with an 85. Didn't lose any golf balls or clubs, and because I didn't shoot too badly, it means I have to keep golfing...Chris shot a 79 and just hit the ball real well all day.

March 20th: Disney's Palm Golf Course; thanks to my friend Gentry who works at Disney, we get to play The Palm (from the Funai Classic). Very difficult course. I wind up with a 91, and would have shot in the 80's minus a 7 on the last hole. Figured out how to hit my driver straight (enough), and hit my irons really well. Chris kinda lost it today after the first few holes. Gentry kept it in the 90s with some great iron shots as well.

April 11th: Winter Park Country Club; short little 9-hole course that is quite tough. I finish up with a 44, which isn't too bad, even though I parred the first 3 holes. Par 3's seem to give me trouble, since I have hard time getting on the green for some reason in 1 shot. No clubs thrown today though!

April 12th: Casselberry Golf Club; Danny and Leigh come to visit and we go golfing of course. Although the front 9 faired okay (+8, 45), the back 9 treated me much better, with a 36 (+3). Irons and putting kept me in the game all day. Chris shot the ball pretty well too. Danny and Leigh...well they had fun out there...Chris and I both seem to be getting better, which means we have to keep playing...

April 16th: Winter Park Country Club; 9-hole course again with much better result: 40. Nailed two long-distance putts for par and birdie, plus a couple of real nice iron shots from a good length out. Again, no clubs thrown and no windows broken. Julia decides to try playing golf, and, to Chris and I's surprise, isn't half bad for just jumping out there. I have officially sucked someone else into the give-and-take world of golf...

April 19th: Winter Pines; back to the Pines with an 80. Great front 9 (41) with a birdie and great par putts; okay back 9 (lots of par 3's again). Learned a new way to chip (the correct way) when close to the green, which really seems to help when I just miss the green and need to get it close to save par. Katey and Daniel joined Chris and I this day, and it was probably the most fun I have ever had golfing, from swear words to thrown clubs (only one by me), it was quite the adventure.

April 25th: Twin Rivers; disaster strikes finally. After a great drive on the first hole, I put it into one of many bunkers on the day and double bogey the first hole. The rest of the day would go just like that, hitting multiple bunkers in the fairway, around the green, and sometimes in between holes. Stopped keeping score after the 9th hole. Could not hit anything straight or put a putt in the hole when I needed to. I was pulling my head off the ball all day (that's what she said) and was either slicing or bouncing every shot. Chris, Daniel, and Katey all played well considering the difficulty of the course (It's where UCF plays their matches).

April 27th: Southridge Golf Course; relatively difficult course with lots of hills and very bad fairways. Disaster continues with a lot of the same problems: uncontrollable slice with driver, iron shots just seem to die in mid-air, and putting was just okay. Managed a 92, which isn't bad considering the course conditions and all, but my groove is officially gone. Julia plays pretty good for her second time out (first time with new clubs) with a 110 or so. At the rate I'm going, she can beat me within a few weeks, and although I wouldn't mind it...wait a sec, yes I would...

My 5-iron, pitching wedge, and driver were all thrown across the course frequently that day, and after much aggrivation, I bring my clubs to my parents house with no desire to pick them up again. However, I sat down later that night and watched an episode of The Haney Project and realized my swing was not as bad as Charles Barkley's, and if he can still get out and play golf, then so can I. The next day I am at the range for 2 hours making adjustments: swing plane, left-foot positioning, and working on keeping my left arm straight. On a good portion of the shots (in the second bag, mind you) I am able to finally put a draw on the ball (the way your supposed to) with all of my clubs. Am I officially back? Not by any means, but it's certainly a start. Stupid golf...

May 1st: Winter Park Country Club; from the range to the tee, I am off to test my new swing adjustments. My first shot is straight to the left of the green, but in play. As aggrivating as it is to not see the ball go striaght, at least it doesn't right! I pitch my next shot past the hole onto the fringe and follow up with a chip right next to the hole: par! The rest of the day would get better and, even with a few errant shots (to the left!), I end up with a 42. Julia comes out again and shoots a 50, slowly making progress. Chris also shoots a 42 and as Best Ball, we shoot +2.

May 2nd: Casselberry Golf Club; second test for the new swing and first outing with Troy for the summer. The front 9 doesn't go too well, even though I learn to finally hit my Hybrid straight both off the tee and from the fairway, but my putting is terrible: three 3-putts. I flip out after blowing a birdie and par putt on hole 9, to which Chris responds by leaving me to walk to hole 10 (per my request). The walk helps me realize that I still have 9 holes to make the day worth while, and that is exactly what I do. Chris makes a suggestion about moving the ball back in my stance while I put, and I respond by parring the last 5 holes and birdie-ing one, finishing the day with an 81. The back 9 was a complete change from the front 9: I hit my driver straight, my irons stuck the green, and I finally got my putter to cooperate. The swing still needs work, but today was a huge step in the right direction.

Troy and Chris both shot well, with an 85 and 87, respectively. No one harmed or injured during this round of golf (despite some deadly putter throws by me).

So now that we're all caught up, I will continue with posts that cover any new tips, tricks, failures, successes from myself or any of my fellow golfers. One, two, three, fooooore...