Folks—
Guess this s Post #164. Will be brief again.
Since my last post on 11/25/22, I have played 4 courses for the first time. One included a highlight worth mentioning.
On 12/1/22, i left early in the morning for a 3:30 or so drive to Charleston SC…to play the Ralston Creek Course at Daniel Island Club, just north of the center of Charleston. My long time caddy at Brookline, Jeremy Brofsky is working there and joined me for 18 holes. Ralston Creek is hosting the 75th US Junior Amateur Championship in 2023 and I needed to play it to extend my USGA Championship Host EVER play list through 2023. We tee off and moved quickly until getting behind some foursomes at the 9th tee…so we skipped ahead, played 13-18 and then circled back to the par three 9th. WE both watched my tee shot which was headed right at the flag (hit an 9-iron but hole length from this tee is now classified…you may find the answer in Joe Biden's Corvette). It looked to me like it was about 6” right of the hole but it then disappeared behind a small mound on the green. Jeremy though it was in but he could not be sure, so we hopped into the cart and drove top to the green. He got out of the cart first and got the first look and told me to come up...see below:
(do not know how to post video...sorry)
So now, in 67 + years of golfing, I have spent maybe 10-15 days in the Charleston area…and both of my holes in one happened in Charleston’s northern suburbs (#1 happened on Wild Dune’s Harbor Course in 1987). Feeling somewhat proud, first call was to the wifey…proud owner of three holes in one. Her response was immediate and appropriate…”keep it going sweetheart, if you make another, maybe you’ll catch me.”
Anyhow, we got all 18 in, and I finished 2022 with 1522 courses lifetime including 137 (2405 holes) for the first time in 2022. Including replays, I played 161 different courses in 2022. So far in 2023, I have added 3 courses in NC…the best of which was Carolina Golf Club in Charlotte…and I stand at 1525 lifetime.
Pat and I are in Los Angeles right now, on our way to Melbourne, Australia and the North Island of New Zealand. We will get back to NC on Feb 23. Playing 8 courses in Australia. Three of the 8 I have played before and 5 will be first time for me (one of which is a 9 holer). In NZ, we are playing Tara Iti (both of us played it in 2016) and the all new Te Aria South (I hope to play South 2x). I also expect to be able to walk the site of Te Aria North…a Doak design still under construction. Additionally, I am scheduled to play Alistair MacKenzie’s Titirangi on February 18 after landing in Auckland. This will be my 5th golfing trip down under and Pat’s 3rd…and there is a reasonable chance it will be the last trip there for both of us. We love it in both countries.
Two other things:
1. in my last email I cited 2022 highlights through November 25, but neglected to mention my round at The Floridian on February 23…getting up and down from a bunker on #18 (by pouring in a 12 footer for a 77) and finally shooting my age playing with others and having an attested scorecard! Driving the green on the par 4 sixth hole and canning the 12’ eagle putt helped!
2. Yesterday morning I got up at 4:45 and drove down to Orange County. In November 2022 I had run out of daylight playing El Niguel Country Club and could not play holes 14-18…thereby keeping me from completing the 1966 and 1967 Golf Digest USA 200 Toughest lists which were listed alphabetically). I arranged to play just the back 9 starting at 7:30am…was done by 8:50 (had to keep behind the morning maintenance crews) and had a good 41 on the back…with 4 bogies on the holes I has played before (10-13) and then a birdie, two pars and two bogeys on the 5 new hoies for me (14-18). Finished with a par on #18. This is also meant that I have now played every course included on any USA Top 200 listing EVER.
But now it is time to get to LAX and spend 18 hours on a flight to Melbourne!!
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