Damn that is some serious golf, Tbone. Well played.

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Posted my scores from the weekend and I am at my lowest handicap I've ever achieved in my life. I think I am playing more consistently now then I did even in college.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

What is your index? I have been stuck at 7.0 for about 3 weeks. It never seems to move.

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I don't pretend to understand exactly how a handicap works. I know that I play from the same back tees every week and that takes the yardage into account. I'm averaging about 76 this year, but my last 6-8 rounds have been very low and they generally take like the last 10 best of the last 20 rounds or something. Current index is +0.3 and I had a pair of 74s this weekend so that could get a bit better next time it is calculated. Started the season at 1.5 and then it rose to 2.8 by end of May which isn't surprising but since then it's been coming down. Has a lot to do with my current short game. Saturday I was just missing greens but I got up and down 10 of 11 times. Yesterday it was 5 of 5 and also 1 for 2 out of the sand. Been like that the last 3 weeks.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Plus handicap...nice! If you play at a +1 at your course and you don't birdie the 18 handicap hole that's a bogey in an event

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7 more weekends to go for my golf season. I usually pack it in end of October. Lots to like about fall golf other than the leaves.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

102 out on a par 5 this morning and hit a gap wedge in. Heard a huge bang as it was a blocked view over a bunker. Destroyed the front of the cup, hit the pin and stopped 6 inches away.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Well done.

Completely unrelated but I played earlier this week and holed out on consecutive holes. Never happened before and will no doubt never happen again.

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I love fall golf. It is supposed to be a warm fall followed by El Niño winter. I'm hoping the clubs stay out through the end of the year!

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That’s awesome. I’ve played for 40 years and this was the first time hitting the hole on the fly like that. Probably never happen again like you said.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Off work this Friday and playing The Brute out in Lake Geneva. I've heard good things but never been. Thankfully the weather is looking perfect. Playing a round down in IL on Saturday with some old friends from college and then back at the home course on Sunday. The season is winding down quickly here which makes me a bit sad. I looked into a virtual league but just not very affordable for me in my current situation so will have to pass on that. Trying to play through next month but in the past haven't played into October since 2017. I'll have 55 rounds by end of the weekend. Was shooting for 65+ but that could be a stretch depending on weather the next 6 weeks. Going to visit a buddy in Louisville the last weekend of October to golf 2-3 rounds and that will likely be the end for me.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Current stats after 50 rounds tallied on my home courses.... 76.64 average, 41% fairways, 50.44% greens, 61% scrambling, 41% sand saves, 1.6 birdies a round. This is likely the best these numbers will look for 2023.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

that's awesome. But you gotta give us more details than that. How far were you from the hole, what clubs you hit etc.

Last year I holed out 2x greenside in one round which was insane, but not back to back.

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I walked 9 holes this past Saturday at a shorter local muni goat ranch, 2700 yards Par 35. Legit had the course to myself (finally saw another twosome on #2 when I was on #7), and whatever light drizzle there was gone by the second hole. Decent/playable/OK condition, but $14 to walk makes for a great practice round. https://www.paloshillsgolfclub.com/

Since no one else was around I played two balls, went 43-49 with a 9 on a par 5 with the second ball. It was the best I had played in 2+ months. Most importantly, I was able to enjoy playing golf. No birdies, but 6 pars and shanks were kept to a minimum. Tried to really dial in a slower take away with a turn and not a sway, and keeping my head down all the way through the swing. Definitely felt good to his some nice shots. Pulled a few irons but I can live with missing a green or pulling a shot rather than a shank or a top that travels basically nowhere.

I'm really hoping to build on that and maybe enjoy the final few weeks of the season. Went in with almost zero expectations on score and just wanted to hit the ball well.

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I'd recommend checking out the Grand Geneva resort if you want to take a weekend with a significant other or play some golf. The Brute was tough but fair. A lot of shots where you are hitting either up or down to a green. Very rarely a flat lie. Not something I see a lot of usually and was surprised by the elevation changes in that part of the state. Greens were obscenely large and lots of sand. I live relatively close to Lake Geneva but never go. I can see how it might be a fun weekend get away. Carded a 75 which I was happy with from the Gold tees which plays 6544. I could have played it from the back but didn't want it to be so difficult that it wasn't fun at all.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I've picked up a consulting gig for now through Thanksgiving. The money is stupid good for what I'm doing, but the stakeholders I have to interview via Teams have scattered their availability all across the week. It's annoying as hell as my entire days Monday and Tuesday this week except for a single 45 minute call right at 11am.

I'm heading up to Chicago next weekend by car to visit family and friends for a few days, and if the weather is good on the one day where I have a bunch of morning calls I might try to sneak out for 9 holes in the afternoon. But I forgot how relatively expensive suburban municipal golf costs, most places within 30 minutes of Woodfield want $30 to ride for 9.

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"When people want their version of the truth, they go find it, no matter how baseless their beliefs." -- Ken Rosenthal

Beautiful weekend to get out and play, hope some of you got out there. Looks like temps are going to drop 20 degrees for next weekend so gotta take advantage of the handful of nice ones rest of this year. Usually have my clubs put away for the season but going to try to play rest of this month and see how it goes.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Impromptu round of golf at Stonewall Orchard yesterday. Course in great shape and teeing off at 11 we didnt' see another group till #10. We did wait on shots on the back, but no complaints.


Had one of the craziest rounds of my life. Started with a 48 on the front with 5 double bogeys. That all changed on the back where I put on one of the greatest putting displays the game has ever seen. at one point I drained 5 straight putts only one of which was a gimmie. 3 of them were in the 15 foot range. Then I 2 putted #17 but then drained another 15 footer on 18. Ended up with 8 putts over the final 7 holes. Shot a 37 on the back for a smooth 85.

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Nice shooting shakes, I've played out there a couple of times and it is one of the tougher tracks in the Chicagoland area, in my opinion at least.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

yea was very happy with that 37 on the back. Was even on the 17 tee box, looked at my scorecard and the of course fatted the tee shot and left it 30 yards short of the green and in the thick rough. Would've been nice to play the entire back at even par. Only did that one time, but that was at Lawsonia Links and I had that course dialed in like no one else. Shot 74 out there twice back in 2019 which is 3 strokes better than my best at any other course.

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I've had one par the last 36 holes I've played. Its been brutal.

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Looking like a rainout this weekend so likely will cancel my tee times this afternoon. Taking a road trip down to Louisville in two weeks to visit a golf buddy that moved down there. Going to try to play 36 each day for a couple days and head back home. That should be the end of the season. Probably try to play my home course the 21st and/or 22nd. Been a good season but will be a bit sad to see the golf go away again.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I'll give you the same advice my buddy gave me a few years ago when i was going through a rough patch. he told me, "take 2 weeks off and then never fvkcing play the game again"

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I did not get to play when I was in Chicago a couple of weeks ago, but coming back with one of my cousins we stopped in Winston-Salem for the day last Tuesday and played at Tanglewood just outside of town. The Champions course is a former PGA Senior Tour stop. It was a fantastic course for the money ($37 riding for 55+ weekdays). I hadn't touched a club for four weeks but after a few holes I started playing well (for me). Unfortunately my lower back started really bothering me on 13 and 14 so I just drove the cart for the last four holes. Certainly driving 2000 miles in the previous ten days including 350 the day before didn't help.

T-Bone, this would be a great place to take your mom the next time you are in Charlotte. For me it's an 85 minute drive, so only ten minutes more than the Pinehurst area courses, and for $37 I will definitely put this in my rotation and stop in Winston-Salem or Lexington for dinner.

Thursday we got rained out, but Friday instead of playing we went to the Champions Tour SAS Championship in Cary. The weather was perfect (it poured the next day) and we walked about eight holes and then sat in the bleachers on the 18th green for an hour. Lots of guys I watched on network TV in the 90s and early 2000s - we missed Monthomerie and Singh but walked for a few holes with Rocco Mediate who was smoking a big expensive stogie between shots and was dressed in a hoodie and expensive sweat pants.

Fall has firmly entrenched itself down here, snow in the mountains last night. I'm hoping that my back improves in the next 48 hours so I can play on Thursday afternoon.

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"When people want their version of the truth, they go find it, no matter how baseless their beliefs." -- Ken Rosenthal

I'll have to keep that in mind Chet. Usually we just stick around the Charlotte area. I have a supplier from work that I have known for years that is a member at Sedgefield in Greensboro where they play the Wyndham at the end of the PGA Tour season. He always invites me to play when I am visiting but never make it up that way. He also owns a place in Pinehurst and has invited me to stay but never done that either. My golf season will be over on October 28th but weather looking good in Louisville end of next week and we have two days of 36 holes booked up.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Tomorrow is my last round of the year at my home course. It will be 54 rounds for the season out there, I was shooting for 60. Probably the best golf season I've had in almost 30 years and maybe my best ever. Sorry to see the golf go. I should eclipse 60 total rounds for the season after my road trip next week. Re-joined the gym a few weeks back and I have been making it 3x a week in the mornings to start. I need to try to ramp that up by end of month.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Got 9 holes in solo behind a couple of foursomes. Nobody behind me so I could really focus on shot strategy. Shot an almost clean 51 on what is a hard course for me (68.4/124 off the senior tees) - a couple of mulligans when I looked up to follow the ball with nobody else around and thus mis-hit. Even had a legitimate par on a par 3 - 3wood, pitch, 3 footer.

My back started tightening up on 8 and 9 and since the back 9 was going to be another 2.25 hours, I decided to stop after 9.

I've become the old guys I used to play with at Billy Caldwell in the late 70s and early 80s. My best drive was 165, but nothing was OB or dribbled 70 feet, even though my two drivers are still from 1997 and 2007. And I was able to hit some solid 3 woods with the Mavrik I bought from Callaway Pre-owned at the end of 2021.

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"When people want their version of the truth, they go find it, no matter how baseless their beliefs." -- Ken Rosenthal

Nice job Chet. Sounds like you could potentially break 100 if you put it all together. That is awesome.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

TBone, I am constantly amazed and a little envious at your devotion to golf. 54 rounds in a year is awesome. I don't think I have played 54 rounds in the last 5 years

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

If I get in 72 holes next week like planned, the total will be 62 rounds for all the courses I've teed it up at this year. I'm really not like this with anything else in my life, definitely takes a commitment of getting up early every weekend from April until end of September. There is some motivation after I buy my yearly pass as well to make it worth my while.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami