Hit balls last night and while I didn't hit it badly, I usually turn the ball right to left. Last night everything
was left to right. I leave in 10 minutes for an 11:09 tee time, maybe things will revert back to normal on
the range Oh I also learned that I am playing with a former winner from a few years back and a guy
that took 5th last year. Jesus I hope I don't embarass myself. Not knowing where to aim would not be a
good way to head to the first tee. I guess I have 54 holes to figure it out.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Welcome to my game.

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Going for a lesson this afternoon, need to figure out why the fuck I can't stop hooking my irons for the past 2 weeks. Never had this problem before ever, been driving me crazy why all of the sudden this is happening.

Playing Lake Bluff tomorrow morning, hoping it doesn't rain.

Haven't decided where I'm gonna play Sunday yet.

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Had a pretty disappointing tournament with an 80-79-86 finish. My achilles heel showed up yet again when I
play competitive golf, that being the dreaded blow up hole. The brief breakdown of my rounds:

1st round -- Two double bogeys and one missed putt from 3 ft or shorter
2nd round-- Was 3 over with 4 holes to play and finished double, bogey, double, bogey. 3 short putts missed
3rd round-- The most frustrating by far. Tripled the second hole after hitting a shank and losing the ball, after
that I finished the round with two more double bogeys, 4 putts from within 3 ft missed including two in a row en
route to a 4 putt green and I chunked 4 wedge shots from 100 yards in or shorter which I almost never do.

I guess I just try to take something from the experience and trudge forward. Competitive golf is pretty nerve
wracking. Two guys I played with the first two rounds finished 2nd and 3rd so it was interesting to watch them
play. They had amazing short games and kept the ball well within play most of the time. I was hanging with
them during stretches but my inconsistiency killed me in the end. Not playing for almost 3 weeks before didn't
help but I don't blame that. I think my golf brain and skull have the consistiency of a soft boiled egg.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Went to the final round of the Deere yesterday. I'd really like to play that course sometime. Parked for 5 bucks, bought a ticket in the parking lot for 15. Pretty good deal.

Good deal. How were the concession and merch prices? My wife and I are thinking of going there next year. Leave Thurs after work, tournament on Friday, then camp along the river for the weekend.

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Merch prices were high. I saw a shirt I liked....79.99. T-shirt for the wife.....34.99. Walked out of the tent after that. I was thinking they would be marked down on Sunday but I guess not. Beer was 5 for the aluminum bottles, which was a must due to the weather. Soda was 3. Hot dogs were 4. Lot of pretty good priced food options. I highly recommend the Whitey's ice cream.

Don't buy tickets beforehand. They are available everywhere. And don't park in the tourney lots. There are houses right by the course that charge 5 to 10 bucks.

Next year is also the 45th anniversary.

I guess this could be called "The guy who goes to golf tournaments and rates them".

Cool, thanks for the info!

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So had a lesson Friday. Turns out the reason I am hooking my irons is twofold. For one, I am not leading with my left hand and therefore I am closing the club face at address. To top that off, my club face is closed at the top of my backswing. So basically had to change my entire swing. Got it going at the range, helped when he had me trying to hit fades.

Played Saturday at Lake Bluff, got real lucky with the rain. Only felt a little drizzle on 2 holes all day, 5 miles to the south it was pouring and lightning. Played really well, shot a 81, tied for my season low. Only one real bad hook all day, a par 3 6 iron that i put so far left it was safe, but 50 feet from the green. Pulled out my trusty 60 degree wedge and chipped in for birdie....easy game.

Figured I had things figured out so went to Barlett Hills Sunday with the wife. Totally lost my swing. Couldn't get off the tee, slicing every thing. Later had a couple mis hits where the ball didn't even make it to the ladies tee. Despite all this I somehow carded an 88, felt like a 108. My short game has been saving my ass lately. After all the golf I've played I am totally dialed in with my SW and 60 degree. Putting is still not good, but at least the last 3 rounds my putts per hole is below 2.

Gonna head over the Des Plaines range tonight to try and figure out the swing.

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http://www.golfdigest.com/blogs/the-loop/2014/07/report-holly-sonders-leaving-g.html

It is with a heavy heart that I pass along this terrible news.

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2018
#ExtendLafleur
10 More Wins

7:48, same place Saturday. Golf balls don't float, so playing last weekend was damn near impossible.

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10 a.m. tee time tomorrow at Makray. My birthday. Taking off work. Should be a great day.

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-- source

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Got out yesterday morning just after 6am. I hit the ball pretty solid overall but as usual the bad holes
continue to kill me. Shanked one OB on the 2nd and had a lost ball on the 4th hole. Made the turn at
40. Put one in the water off the tee on a par 5 and made an awful 6 on a short par 4 after a good drive.
Thankfully I made 3 birdies. Shot +7 79 with four double bogeys. Happy I broke 80 but frustrating and
I continually shoot myself in the foot.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

88 at Coyote Run. 3 holes killed me. Double bogey with 2 sand shots on #2, triple bogey on par 3 #5 after chunking my tee shot and the subsequent chip, and a double bogey on a par 3 #13 after missing the green and hitting a poor chip. Also missed 4 putts on the back 9 that were a combined length of about 20'. So that was the ugly. I hit 8 greens in reg (which for me is outstanding) and stuck 4 different iron shots within 10' of the pin, so that was really nice.

It sucked having no birdies with all of those good shots, but overall it was the best that I have hit my irons this season. If I was able to manage just single bogeys on those 3 holes I sucked on and sunk even one of those short putts on the back 9, I'd have put up an 83 instead of an 88. If I can just avoid those goddam blowup holes, I'd be shooting low-mid 80s pretty regularly.

edit- Me and TBone have the same problems at times Stupid game

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Seems to happen to me without fail at some point. Even when I try to play a tough hole
intelligently, something happens to ruin it. I was -1 on the other 14 holes. Geez, now I am
starting to sound like shakes

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I did not win Masters practice tickets for 2015

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Whoever said Mission Hills isn't worth the $79 price tag is 1000000% correct. Luckily I only paid $25, thanks to Groupon. That course is a shit show. And what the hell is up with having 4-5 water stations throughout the course WHEN YOU HAVE NO WATER JUGS. Same thing happened at Arlington Lakes. Oh yeah, they didn't have a beverage cart running either. The random who played with us says he's played there 20+ times and has never once seen the beverage cart. I saw it...sitting at the clubhouse with nothing in it. Never playing MH again. Luckily I brought my own water and Anti-Hero. Nice operating, jamokes.

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-- source

yep, that was me who gave you the heads up. I actually said its barely worth the $25 you paid for, that's what a dump the place is. Personally I would only play it for $25 if it was a last minute afternoon booking and I was in the area and happened to have my clubs in the car and nothing else to do.

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Yeah, I knew nothing about it but the $79 listed by Groupon. Ridiculous.

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So I completely lost my swing for 2 weeks. The lesson didn't really help. Played Friday and shot a 95. Then went to Mistwood for the first time Saturday and shot a 94. Great course btw, one of the few in Illinois that is actually worth what they charge ($90 which comes with cart and range balls).

Sunday went to the range and finally figured it out.....I started thinking about the changes I made in my swing last year and how that swing looks nothing like the swing I have now. SO I went back to my old swing and things got a lot better. Also got rid of the severely closed stance I have on the teebox. As a result I had far less iron hooks and a lot less sliced drives. Also made a huge change in that I put my $350 Scotty Cameron putter in the closet and brought back my Odyssey black and white thick blade from last year. Played Bonnie Brook with the wife after the range....sunk a 12 foot birdie on #1. Played much better and shot a 83.

Yesterday got out in the afternoon and played Lost Marsh, home of the hardest 5 hole opening stretch of golf I've ever played anywhere in the world. Shot a 93, but actually played a lot better than that. Hooked 5 of the 11 hybrid shots I took which led to 5 lost shots. Uncharacteristically had trouble with my wedges. Was 10 feet from the green on hole #3 and ended up with a triple. Next hole I was 100 yards from the green in 2 and ended up with a double. Next hole I was 60 yards away in 1 and once again a double. Played #2-#5 at 9 over despite doing well on every tough shot on those holes. But the important thing is that I see the light at the end of the tunnel after getting so low I was considering putting the clubs away for a week or two. Only 1 hooked iron all day yesterday and had several straight drives.

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Lost Marsh is a really nice course.

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Definitely. Was even nicer last year when it was $40. They raised the rates to around $50, but its still a great course at that price. My only complaint is I wish they made the greens a little faster.

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Have you played Makray? I played there for the first time last Friday. Holy hell, fastest greens I've ever played by miles.

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-- source

How was Bonnie Brook looking? I was a member there one year about 20 years ago. I haven't been out there for
a few years now but always enjoyed that track.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Mission Hills is back in today's Groupon. They slash out the $158 (for two rounds) and offer it up for $55. I'd play twice there if it were $5!

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-- source

Played it once last year, really nice course if you can get it a little cheaper than normal rate. First hole is easy, but #2-4 are ridiculous. If you combined the greens on 3 and 4 you might have one normal sized green.

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For a northern muni I liked it. Greens were in good shape, but slower than they should be (pretty common at norther munis). Fairways were a little shaggy, but not bad. I liked the layout. Overall, for the $38 I paid I thought it was a very good course. If it was $50 I wouldn't have felt that.

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Yeah, that is about what it should cost to play there. It is a fun little course, I should play out there sometime. I was
in a tournament out there when I was 16 or 17. I shot 32 on the front and then proceeded to triple bogey number 10
on my way to a 41 on the back. Tied for 1st place and lost on the scorecard.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami