I had the pleasure this week of attending the Grand Opening of "The Challenge Course" at Monarch Dunes. The Challenge Course, designed by Damian Pascuzzo and Steve Pate, is a unique collection of 12 par-3 holes that presents a fun, and very challenging, alternative for players of all abilities. It's a great place to get a little more golf in after 18 or a quick round in when you don't have time for 18. It's also a great place to learn and improve your game! I used just about every club in my bag to reach these 12 large, undulating greens. It was certainly a "challenge."


The Challenge at Monarch Dunes, by Aidan Bradley

The holes range in length from 82 to 242 yards from the back tees. The course is 1858 yards from the back, 1640 from the middle, and 1377 from the front. The tees are arranged on each hole, not only to vary the shot length, but to vary the angle of attack. Players teeing off from the back tees will face the most difficult shot, while those playing from the front tees will have a far easier line to the green. Each hole has at least 5000 square feet of tee space with three sets of tee markers giving players plenty of choice. For opening day, the superintendent presented us with all the toughest pin placements. It was like playing the U.S. Open in miniature. Not one golfer avoided at least a few bogies.


The Challenge at Monarch Dunes, by Aidan Bradley

The greens are what make this golf course so unique and memorable. I challenge anyone to find a course of any length with such large, undulating greens! You'll encounter ridges and swales running through the greens that may change 3-4 feet in elevation. The 12th hole must rise 15-20 feet from left to right! It reminded me of the famous 16th at Pasatiempo, only sideways! To accommodate this type of movement, the greens are about 8000 square feet (or about 30% larger than normal greens). This vast movement in the greens let the designers create some areas on the green that are quite challenging when approached from the back tees. Players will have to think hard about how they want to attack the hole. The challenge isn't just to land the green, but the end up on the tier where the pin is located. Otherwise, 3 (or even 4) putts isn't unlikely. The greens are so large that the superintendent could probably locate pins in a rotation of 8 or 10 instead of the traditional 4 or 6! We found the greens very playable - both receptive and not overly fast.


The Challenge at Monarch Dunes, by Aidan Bradley

The links style golf course has a natural, rugged appearance, which is enhanced by the dunes that were shaped throughout the fairways and around the greens. The golf course was completely constructed by shaping the native sand into the desired features. There are five lakes which come into play. The residential development uses these golf course lakes to handle 100% of the project's storm water. The golf course uses the same turf grass as found on The Old Course, a blend of fescues for the fairways and roughs and velvet bentgrass greens.

It was pretty fun to record a classic like Pasatiempo as my 50th course, then follow that up by making my 51st such a unique new course! In both experiences, the courses won the 1st round. With those tough pins on opening day, I came in with 5 pars and 7 bogies! But I returned the next day and shot 2-over and finally got my first birdie! I'm pretty sure I can shoot an even par round here, but the onshore headwinds on the 5th and 12th require my fairway wood or even driver to hit the green. And they're no easy greens to 2-putt. I'm pretty sure that these 2 holes are tougher par 3's than I've ever encountered on any 18 holer. But I'm up for the challenge!

I encourage you to take "The Challenge" too. In fact, if you're in the area during the week, and my schedule permits, I'll treat you to a round! Afterall, the green fees are only $12 for Royal Rewards members and $18 for non-members. And if you beat me, I'll treat you to a round on the "Old Course" at Monarch Dunes! Just drop me an email.

Labels: Courses, Monarch Dunes, Rounds, The Challenge

Today I played my best round ever, scoring 5 birdies to shoot my first-ever even-par round from the tips at Monarch Dunes (73.0/137). I've scored 1-under and even-par rounds before, but never from the back tees. In fact, my best prior score at this course from the challenging back tees was a 6-over 77! And today's 71 could so easily have been my first sub-70 round.


Monarch Dunes 1st

After playing my last few rounds in unusually cold and blustery winds, today I joined two of my favorite golfers for a round that turned out to be sunny, warm, and breezy. The pace of play was perfect too. We never waited once for players in front of us to clear a fairway or green. Golf on the California Central Coast was at its best today! And so was my game.

My biggest struggle lately has been getting off to a good start. I recently played a round with a triple bogie on the 1st hole, followed soon after by 2 bogies. Instead of giving up though, I fought back from 5-over and finished the round just 3-over par after scoring 3 birdies! Today, things changed. I started right off with a birdie on the 3-handicap par 4 1st from 200 yards out!

This dogleg left tempts you to hit your drive towards the 150 marker, but a slight mishit left or short finds the lake. Instead, I played well right today, leaving a 3-hybrid approach into this well-guarded green. I put my hybrid right on line, landed just short of the green and ran up 8-10 feet past the hole. Using my new Odyssey Black Series i#9 putter, I drained the putt!

I just bought this putter a couple weeks ago at a 70% discount from my x-brother-in-law, who works in the IT department at Callaway. I absolutely love it! I can assure you, that's the first time I've ever said that about a putter! It's made me a good putter.

I gave myself another good birdie attempt on 2, but barely missed and happily tapped in for par. I then got up and down on 3 from just off the green, but missed an easy 2-foot putt on 4 to 3-putt, producing my first bogie. Even with this new putter, those short putts can get me.


Monarch Dunes 6th

I got that stroke right back on the 140 yard par 3 5th, sinking a 20-footer for my 2nd birdie! I parred 6, then made an impressive up and down again on 7 to stay 1-under par. On the 200 yard par 3 8th, I landed the difficult upper-left tier of this green, rolling to about 12 feet from the pin. I made a good putt, but had to settle for par.

I then hit a perfect 6-iron into the 9th green from 190 yards out, landing short of the green as expected, and running onto the green to leave me with another makable 10-12 footer. I took my time reading the putt and decided to aim a ball outside to the left. The downhill putt tracked perfectly and went right in. I was now 2-under on the front nine, hitting every fairway and 7 of 9 greens in regulation while recording only 14 putts!

I was relaxed and enjoying the round. My playing partners, who knew I'd been struggling with my game over the past month, were certainly giving me a hard time for saving my best golf for beating them. I was just grateful for the good company, perfect weather, and speedy pace of play. They figured I'd come back to earth on the back nine. I decided to just keep playing one shot at a time and enjoy myself, detached about whether I could keep it up or not.

The back nine starts off even harder than the front with a 2-handicap par 4 dogleg with a split fairway. I hit a monster drive, but caught a bad lie in the mounds between the two fairways. I had to punch out with a wedge. This shot caught another fescue-covered mound beyond where the fairways meet. I managed to get my 3rd shot up close to the green. I then got up and down from there for a respectable bogie.

The downhill 200 yard par 3 11th is a real test. Others in my group decided to hit 3-irons, but I tried to smash a 5-iron into a mild headwind. Unfortunately, I pushed the shot way right into a ditch that borders the green. I was left with a testy downhill lob shot over a large mound. My lob landed just short of the green as planned and barely rolled off the upper tier to continue down to the lower tier just 8 feet right of the pin. The putt was exactly like the one I had on 9, a downhill putt, breaking right about a cup out. I drained another one for an impressive par.


Monarch Dunes 11th

Three great shots on the par 5 12th led to another par, but my 8-iron approach on 13 drifted left, leaving a difficult pitch to a tight left pin. My shot was near perfect, but I barely missed the return putt, resulting in my 3rd bogie, letting my round get back to even par.

But another huge drive left me just 130 yards out on the par 4 14th. I put my pitching wedge just 6 feet above the hole and made another breaking downhill putt for birdie, getting me back to 1-under!

At this point in the round, I knew I was playing well and was probably under par, but I really had no idea of my exact score. I did know that this was only the second time I had ever scored 4 birdies in a round at this course. I only average about 1.5 birdies per round and depend on pars to keep my scores under control.

I followed my birdie with a poor 5-iron into the 200 yard par 3 15th. The shot was so bad that it didn't even make it to the bunker on the right-front corner of the green. But from the rough, I made another excellent pitch shot to a tight front pin and made the easy 2-footer for another par. Still 1-under.

Another good drive on the par 4 16th left me just over 100 yards out. A strong lob wedge left me with a 12 footer that I misread but left me with an easy tap-in in for par.

Over the past month, in addition to shanking short lobs and chips, it's been these long wedge shots that have given me the most trouble. Just last week on the range, a local pro saw me shanking some shots with my wedge and came over of offer some help. He noticed I was not only swaying too much, but was rerouting my downswing too far inside, bringing that hosel into play. He had me practice hitting balls right up against the 2x4 board separating each practice tee. I tried to keep the club in line with the board on my backswing and downswing. It felt weird at first, but I'm now using this new swing with all my irons. I'm just letting my hands and the clubface fall naturally from the top of my backswing. It's almost effortless.

But as solid as my wedge play was today, this was proving to be one of my best driving rounds ever. Up to this point in the round, every drive had been long and straight. I'd only missed 1 fairway so far, the one that barely missed on 10. I kept my drives going on the 490 yard par 5 17th, leaving me with a 6-iron in from 190 yards! I had to hit my 6-iron uphill and well right of the green to avoid a big eucalyptus tree in the middle of the fairway. The shot ran up the fairway and hooked nicely left as it rolled up onto the green, past the hole. This left me a steep 30 foot downhill putt breaking a few feet to the left. I ran my eagle putt just past the hole, but made the 3 foot comeback putt for my 5th birdie, getting me back to 2-under par!

This was the first round I'd ever scored 5 birdies at Monarch Dunes. I'd shot 5 birdies 3 other times on easier courses, but doing so here was quite an accomplishment for me.


Monarch Dunes 13th

So, I approached 18 knowing I was under par, and had a sense I was on track for my first-ever sub-70 round. I knew I had 5 birdies, but couldn't remember whether I'd bogied 2 or 3 holes. I knew a par on 18 would probably get me under 70. I think it was here that I left the present moment and let myself drift into the future. I knew better, but it had been quite some time since I'd had such an opportunity to make such a breakthough.

I stayed calm and hit a strong drive. But tension must have crept in because I pulled my drive a little left. A subsequent bad bounce to the left then threatened to even put me out-of-bounds. Fortunately, I found the ball near the cart path, just 5-6 feet in bounds. I was about 105 yards out, downhill to the green. My lob wedge came up a little short out of the rough, leaving me with 10 feet of fairway to putt or chip across to reach the green. I decided to putt. I underestimated how hard I needed to stroke the ball to get through the longer grass. I did get on the green, but came up at least 15 feet short, leaving another testy downhill putt with a few feet of break. I was feeling my nerves at this point and could tell I'd lost the relaxed and confident putting stroke I'd enjoyed all day. I putted 3 feet past the hole. 3-footers always give me fits, but other than the single miss on the 4th, I'd avoided any other 3-putts. But frustrated that I'd already let par get away, I lost my relaxed focus and missed the comeback putt. I'd actually 4-putted from just off the green, giving me a disappointing double bogie from only 100 yards out!

But I was quickly lifted from the despair I felt when these good friends reminded me what a great round I'd just played! They didn't let me dwell for a second on how it ended, but helped me celebrate a great accomplishment! After all, I beat my best-ever score from the back tees by 6 entire strokes. I finished the round hitting 11 greens, 11 fairways, and with only 29 putts. With the difficulty of the course, my even-par round added a score of -1.6 to my handicap, which for the first time has now broken through 3, to 2.7!

Although, like every round, there were plenty of opportunities to score even better, I played my best-ever round, stayed present for practically every shot, and was able to share it with good friends on an extraordinary day. For that I am grateful. It was a lot more fun getting 5 birdies than it was hitting 5 shanks a few weeks ago!

So, after 3 years of play, I finally got down to a sub-3 index and shot my first par round from the back tees on a championship-level course, and even flirted with my first 69. Before I turn 50, I'm hoping to break 70 and perhaps get down to a 2-index. Whether I reach that goal or not, I plan to focus entirely on just being present and enjoying the game. It's been an extraordinary journey of growth and learning, a journey that certainly doesn't stop here.

Labels: Monarch Dunes, Rounds

Within 21 hours, I experienced my worst and my best golf on the same course. In my Tuesday night 9-hole men's league, I continued a slide in performance over the past 2 weeks with a whopping score of 51 to loose my match! 21 hours later, I shot 34 on the same front nine, followed by a 37 on the back to tie my career best 71 at Monarch Dunes Golf Club (70.7/135).


Monarch Dunes 13th by Aidan Bradley

After a run of scores in the 70's in 11 out of 13 rounds, I'd failed to break 80 in my past 7 rounds! In a few of these rounds I was flairing my drives out of bounds to the right. In other rounds I'd shank or scald my wedges. Failure to get out of sand traps with any success and my common 3-putts plagued me in most of these rounds.

I then decided I needed some practice. I'd gotten back in the habit of playing instead of practicing when some time opened up to head to the course.

On the range, I made some minor adjustments to my posture - butt out and chin up. I had recently purchased a book on golf fitness and got the impression from browsing it's photos that I needed to make this adjustment. It seemed to work on the range, however, I learned after my round of 51 on Tuesday night, that lifting my chin up was probably responsible for all my scalded wedge shots. In yesterday's career round, I kept my butt out, but let my head return to its more comfortable position, more in line with my spine angle. That worked!

More importantly, I made a rather obvious discovery when I was practicing my putting last Sunday. It's something most golfers already do, but I never tried it. I've always tried to keep an image in my mind of the desired path the ball will travel when I putt. I'm a path putter and go by feel once I'm over the ball. But with the hole as the eventual target, I think I unconsciously start the ball on a line more towards the hole instead of the path's apex.

Instead, after reading a putt, I'm now picking a very specific spot on the green or blade of grass that is located in line with the apex and is just before or past the hole based on slope or speed. Now when I putt, I let go entirely of where the hole is and simply maintain an image of that spot in my mind and commit to it when I take the putter back. I then succeed in starting the ball on the correct line, and assuming I read the break correctly, the ball just drops in the hole!

I know what you're thinking, "duh, you could have figured that out a long time ago if you'd just take a lesson!" I guess I'm just stubborn and like to experiment and figure it out the hard way!

Anyway, I really concentrated yesterday on just trusting my ability to putt to a very specific spot on the green and to let go of any attachment to making the putt. On all 18 greens, I putted exactly where I intended to, I just happened to misread a few breaks by a small amount.

I finished each nine with only 12 putts!

This is quite a breakthrough for me since I rarely come in with less than 34 putts. I'm the only 4 handicapper I know who putts more like a beginner! I depend entirely on hitting fairways and greens. If I miss a green, I nearly always 2-putt for bogie. If I hit a green, I usually 2-putt for par, but often 3-putt for bogie. An occasional lucky birdie is required to keep my score under control.

Yesterday, I only hit 6 fairways and 8 greens in regulation and managed 3 birdies with my 24 putts! The last time I shot 71 on this course - nearly 8 months ago - I hit 15 greens and 12 fairways with 4 birdies and a whopping 34 putts!

It was simply an amazing round. I had four quality birdie opportunities inside 10 feet and only missed one. I only failed to get up and down for par on 2 holes. I hit 2 extraordinary lob shots to within tap-in distance. One was a blind shot over a mound to the upper tier of a downhill sloping green. I heard others in my foursome sigh after my ball reached the green. I thought their reaction was because I'd almost succeeded in keeping the ball on the upper tier - a nearly impossible outcome - but that it barely rolled down to the bottom tier, 4 feet below. When I walked towards the green, I learned I'd nearly holed the shot, finding the ball inches from the hole!

After birdies on 5, 6, and 11 and a single bogie on 9, I walked up to the 16th tee only 2-under. One of the guys in my foursome - a major league baseball pitcher who recently retired after returning too quickly to play after elbow surgery - asked me if I knew I was currently 2-under. I did of course know, but had succeeded in paying little attention to my score up to this point. His comment inadvertantly removed me from the "zone" I was in and I double-bogied the easy 16th. I immediately realized what had happened and got back to my detached shot-at-a-time routine and nearly birdied 17, barely misreading the putt. Then on 18 I came up a little short on my approach, but nearly holed my chip. Pars on 17 and 18 gave me my career tying round of 71!

I was seriously close to putting the clubs away for a month or two after Tuesday night, but had already committed to playing the next day. As a friend shared after the round, "the Golf Gods suckered me back in big time."

Labels: Monarch Dunes, Putting, Rounds, Self Coaching

I've had a few bad starts in recent rounds, but kept the faith that better holes were coming. I remained patient and refused to give up. I was rewarded each time.


Golfers Don't Give Up by lolla_sig at flickr.com

I played in a men's tournament last Sunday on a blustery day and struggled to hit many greens in regulation. I only hit six greens! I missed a few too many fairways too. Just to make the day even more challenging, the greenskeeper gave us some pretty nasty pin placements too.

On the par 4 seventh, a golfer in my foursome with a 3 handicap got on in 2, then 5-putted! Any missed putt just wouldn't stay near the hole. On the following hole, the pin was placed on the upslope in the back-left corner of the green. I missed my 8 foot birdie putt by inches and rolled down the bank 4 feet from the hole. I barely missed my return putt, and rolled back to the same spot. I made my third putt for bogie. I added one more 3-putt on the ninth for a double bogie after getting my first birdie on the par 3 eighth.

For a stretch of seven holes in the middle of the round, I went 7-over. I went into fifteen 9 over par - not the kind of round I was hoping for, and certainly not in the running for a top-three finish. Still, I was pretty sure, the majority of the field was struggling for pars right along with me, thanks to the wind and challenging pin placements. I hung in there and pared the long par 3 fifteenth from off the green.

But I hit a horrible drive on sixteen, landing way right near some bushes, just a couple feet from a small shed. I managed to move the ball forward about 20 yards with a pitching wedge and ended up on the upslope of a huge mound in long fescue. The mound was so large that it obscured my view of the flag. I was only about 85 yards out, but knew I'd need a huge swing with a sand wedge to get the ball loose. I picked a spot on the top of the mound to fly over and let it rip. The ball flew so high up in the air, I knew I'd hit it pure. I ran up to the top of the mound to watch. It finally landed on the back fringe above the hole and rolled back to the middle of the green to within 4 feet of the pin. I made the putt for par! I made another par on seventeen. At least I was keeping the round under control.

Then I hit a bomb on eighteen, carrying a ridge about 240 yards out in the fairway with plenty of room to spare, allowing the ball to catch the downslope to run towards the green. I'd hit good drives here before, but this was among the best I'd seen. I got to my ball and found it about 20 yards short of the center of the green. I'd hit a 365 yard drive on this 385 yard par 4! I pitched up and made another 4-footer for birdie!

I came in with a respectable 8-over 79. Only 3 golfers in a field of 40 shot lower rounds that day.

Tuesday, I played the course again with my regular foursome. I started off worse than Sunday. The winds were even stronger and it was noticeably colder. My score reflected it. I finished the front nine 6-over after shooting 2 bogies and 2 double bogies. I failed to tally a birdie.

I made a good par on ten, one of the hardest par 4's I've ever played, hitting a good drive and approach into a strong headwind. I decided right there to keep at it. If I finished the back at 2-over, I'd still be able to break 80.

I followed with another par on the par 3 eleventh, another difficult hole with a strong headwind off the ocean, and one more on the twelfth.

I finally landed an approach close to the pin on thirteen and made the 5-footer for my first birdie. I followed that with great recoveries on fourteen and fifteen for pars. My first bogie on the back then came on sixteen after failing to hit the green from a fairway bunker. So far, I'd kept the back nine to even par.

After finally learning to finish strong in the past month, I knew I had it in me to come in with a good score, but I surprised myself on the next 2 holes.

I nearly hit a 300 yard drive on the par 5 seventeenth and hit the green in two with my 5-wood. Two putts later I had another birdie. I then hit another extraordinary drive on eighteen, just 10 yards short of the drive I hit on Sunday! I pitched this approach to 2 feet and made my second birdie in a row and third birdie in the last 6 holes, finishing the back 2-under!

This became my fourth-ever 75 at Monarch Dunes, second only to my one and only par round, which I shot just last week. I'm especially happy about this round because I didn't give up after such a poor start and after only hitting 8 greens and 8 fairways all day. The round also lowered my index to an all-time low 3.4!

Labels: Disciplines, Monarch Dunes, Rounds

My perseverance with putting paid off yesterday. I shot my first par round ever at Monarch Dunes Golf Course!


Monarch Dunes 15th by Aidan Bradley

As I shared last week, I've struggled with my putting over the past few weeks and have felt that my putting really hasn't improved since I started playing golf. I decided it was time to take action.

I spent time putting in my living room last week and immediately became aware that I was thinking too much. Instead of focusing only on the target and intended path, as I do before striking the ball, I realized I was thinking about things like taking the putter back slowly, taking the putter back on a straight line, and following through down the line I'd chosen. I also noticed that I decelerated through the ball when I was indecisive about the break, or when I lost my focus on the hole due to letting my mind think about the mechanics of the putting stroke.

It occurred to me then that I should try putting the way I take a snapshot in hockey, taking the club or stick back a short distance and then accelerating through the shot. I gave it a try. I focused on the hole, took the putter back slowly, then confidently stroked the ball down the line towards the hole. Right away I noticed a difference. Everything about my stroke felt better. I became confident with this putting stroke after only a little practice.

As if life was confirming my newfound (and rather obvious) discovery, I then received a comment to my recent post about my putting struggles from a reader, Alexis, who shared what she had learned in a lesson that helped her improve. She was instructed to "make sure your backswing is shorter than the follow-through. You should tell the ball where to go, by hitting it, instead of letting the putter head fall on the ball."

I got a chance to try out her advice over the weekend in my monthly Men's Club tournament. I noticed a vast improvement. Although I made a couple poor lag putts down the stretch due to some competitive pressure, I didn't miss a single short putt. I even made a 40-foot putt for eagle on the par 5 ninth! I finished with a respectable 5-over 77.

Yesterday, I got another chance to try out my new "snapshot" putt. My weekend golf partner had the day off work and asked if I'd play. I invited another friend who I play with during the week to join us. This was the first time I'd played a round with both my weekend and weekday partners, and the first time they'd met.

The windy round got off to a good start with 4 straight pars and a birdie on the par 3 fifth. My ball striking and putting felt solid. On the par 5 sixth, I missed my only fairway of the round, landing in a eucalyptus grove along the right side of the fairway. My only feasible shot was to aim between two large trees and try to carry a large lake to get back to the fairway. This would leave me an easy approach to get on in three. I hit a perfect 5-wood through the trees and carried the lake with 10 yards to spare. My wedge from 105 yards in landed about 15 feet past the hole. I made the putt for my second birdie in a row.

My good fortune ended on the par 4 seventh. I hit a good drive, but it faded slightly and a strong crosswind carried the ball over the fairway into a large tree. The ball luckily bounced 90 degrees left back into the fairway, loosing only distance. My approach from there landed the green about 15 feet from the pin, leaving me a decent chance for my third birdie in a row. I got the putt to the hole, but it ran about 2-3 feet past. I was left with a breaking downhill putt for par. I hit it firm to take out the break, but lipped out and ended up 4 feet below the hole. I missed the return putt and ended up 4-putting for double bogie. Instead of getting to 3-under, I was back to even. I learned a valuable lesson though - to aim inside the cup on a firm putt within 3 feet. I had aimed right at the edge of the cup, thinking it would at least break a fraction of an inch. A costly lesson.

I put it behind me and made a good par on eight and bogied nine to end the front 1-over. Even though I recorded 18 putts on the front, I putted well other than the 4-putt on seven. The ninth was the first green I missed in regulation. I landed the front of the green from 175 yards out, but it still rolled off the back.

I saved par on the long par 4 tenth, playing especially hard yesterday into a strong wind off the coast. I then parred the next 4 holes as well. On fourteen, I duffed my 3-wood off the tee, but hit it far enough to land the beginning of the fairway, leaving me 200 yards out. I hit my hybrid to about 12 feet and sunk the putt for my first birdie on the back. I was back to even!

After another par on fifteen, I hit a 300 yard drive on the short sixteenth to 50 yards out and made par. I followed that with my best drive of the day on the 480 yard par 5 seventeenth to 170 yards out - a 310 yard drive! I then struck a 6-iron to the edge of the green and rolled up left of the pin and 2-putted for birdie. Now 2-under on the back, I teed up on eighteen at 1-under for the round, my best ever round after seventeen.

I hit decent drive and left myself inside a full sand wedge to the green. But I duffed the approach shot so badly, the ball only traveled about 10 yards! I got on with one more try and nearly sank a 15 footer for par, but ended with bogie. I had shot my first-ever even par round at Monarch Dunes, lowering my index to an all-time low of 3.7!

This was not only one of my best ever rounds striking the ball, it was without doubt one of my strongest rounds putting. I made 4 birdie putts and only missed one short putt, which lipped out. For the first time I can remember, I felt relaxed and confident over every putt. What a breakthrough!

Thanks again to those of you who shared your valuable putting tips in my previous post!

Labels: Awareness, Disciplines, Monarch Dunes, Perseverance, Putting, Rounds

I was planning to take this weekend off from golf because rain was forecast, but a friend called this morning when the weather appeared to be clearing, so I agreed to join him. It turned out to be a perfect day - blue skies with big cumulus clouds and mild winds. If anyone spent the day watching the AT&T at Pebble Beach today, you got a glimpse of how nice it was here on the Central Coast. I live about two and half hours south of Pebble Beach. The recent storm passed and left us with a gorgeous day.


Monarch Dunes 9th, photo by Aidan Bradley

We played Monarch Dunes Golf Club in Nipomo which is located just 4 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean and Guadalupe Dunes, south of Pismo Beach. The eleventh tee provided incredible views of the dunes and ocean today.

I was especially excited about playing today too after getting some good suggestions from a couple golfers who posted comments on yesterday's blog entry. I've been collapsing at the end of some great rounds lately, and I was eager to try out their advice to finish strong.

I started with a good drive on the challenging first hole, followed by a 5-iron in which landed on the right edge of the green, 50 feet from the pin. I made a great lag putt, leaving me with an easy 2-footer. I missed it to start off with a 3-putt bogie.

My drive on 2 ended up just right of the fairway, behind a tree. I cut a wedge around the tree from 120 yards out and landed short of the green. I pitched up to about 3 feet, but followed with another missed putt for bogie #2.

I didn't get discouraged and focused instead on how great it was to be out with a good friend on an empty course and on such a beautiful day. I decided right there to let go of any concerns about score and to just enjoy the round. I knew a great round would eventually come, I just needed to stay patient.

I parred the next 4 holes, then birdied seven after sinking a 25-foot putt. I parred eight and nine, and finished the front just 1-over!

I hit a pretty poor drive on the par 4 tenth, leaving me about 230 yards out with an uphill approach into the wind. I hit a great 3-wood, but came up short of the green. I pitched my third shot over a bunker to about 4 feet and made the putt for par.

I hit a 6-iron into the wind on the downhill 180 yard par 3 eleventh overlooking the ocean, to about 6 feet from the pin. I made the putt for another birdie, getting me to even par.

At this point in the round, I didn't know my score. I took the advice of one of my readers and didn't tally my score until the end of the round and just kept taking things one shot at a time. I usually don't record my score on a scorecard, but keep track in my head of how many strokes I am above par. Today I decided to write down my scores on each hole, but not keep track of the total. This seemed to help me remain unattached and unaware of my score throughout the round.

I shot another par on twelve, but managed another 3-putt on thirteen for bogie, missing another 2-foot putt. I came through and followed up the bogie with pars on fourteen and fifteen.

So, I walked up to 16 just 1-over par, but at the time unaware of my actual score. I knew I had a good round going, but didn't focus on that. I actually didn't realize I was scoring this well, since all I remembered was all the missed short putts. On the sixteenth green, I remembered the advice from another reader who suggested I treat the last 3 holes like a new round. I did just that. I made a mental note that I'd just finished a good 15 hole round and was starting a new 3-hole round. I wasn't feeling any pressure to score.

I shot a par on both sixteen and seventeen. I'd now played the last 15 holes in 1-under par and was 1-over for the round! I walked up to eighteen unaware that I was shooting my best-ever round. Although I shot a 1-under 71 a couple months ago at another local course, it was from the white tees with a slope of only 124. Today, I was playing the gold tees on a harder course, with a slope of 135. Being 1-over after 17 at Monarch Dunes is quite an accomplishment.

My drive on 18 faded a little too far right, but stayed out of the eucalyptus grove bordering the fairway. I hit a sand wedge from 106 yards out just a little too strong and ended up on the upper tier of the green, above the pin. I made a pretty nice downhill sloping putt from 30-40 feet, leaving my ball just 3 feet below the hole for par. Unfortunately, I missed the putt slightly right and ended with bogie and my third 3-putt for the round.

I then tallied my score and learned I'd shot 1-over on both nines to end with a 2-over 73, beating my previous 3 best rounds of 75 at this course! The score was rated with an index of 1.9, beating my previous best 2.1 from the 1-under round just mentioned. I can't help but consider what could have been if I hadn't missed 4 putts from within 3 feet. Nevertheless, I'm thrilled!

My index has now trended down to an all-time low of 4.1. Thank you to Nolan and Greg, whose responses to my last post helped make this career round possible!

Labels: Courses, Monarch Dunes, Rounds

A good practice session yesterday paid dividends today. I worked on becoming aware of the errors I've been making in my swing and putting stroke in order to improve them.

A large component of my goal to shoot scratch golf is to do so without instruction, in order to prevent the endless cycle of depending on others to find and fix my problems. This goal requires that I develop a keen sense of awareness.

Many golfers resist awareness since no one really likes to look at his weaknesses. In fact, the more you develop your awareness, the more weaknesses you find and the more it appears that you're getting worse instead of better. But awareness also highlights and develops your strengths, resulting in increased confidence, inspiration, motivation, and satisfaction.

Dan Millman explains in Body Mind Mastery that "life is a great school, and nature is the ultimate teacher - but without awareness you can't hear the "teacher." Awareness transforms life's lessons into wisdom; it can translate confusing circumstances and events into useful knowledge. Awareness, then, is the beginning of all learning.

So I headed out today to my great school, Monarch Dunes Golf Club, and joined up with a threesome including a father and son. I was eager to try out a few things I discovered during my practice yesterday that I hoped would improve my putting.


Monarch Dunes Golf Club 9th

I started strong with a par on the very difficult opening hole, another par on 2, and birdie on 3 with a nice 10-foot putt. I hit a wayward wedge on the approach to the par 5 4th and recorded my first bogie. Another par on 5 kept me at even par. I hit a fairway bunker on 6, then mishit a 170 yard approach shot and bogied.

Now 1-over, I parred 7, then put a 6-iron on the par 3 8th to 5 feet for a great birdie attempt to get back to even, but left it short dangling on the lip of the cup. However, the tap-in par began a streak of 9 pars in a row. I made several key putts to save par during this streak.

I stepped up to the par 4 16th still 1-over for the round and cut the dogleg with a great drive to 65 yards out. I began to consider that this might be the round that I beat my best-ever round of 75 at this 135-slope course. I'd had one other opportunity not long ago when I got to 17 at 1-over, but choked with a triple bogie on 17 and double bogie on 18 to finish with a 6-over 77!

Letting myself leave the present moment cost me again. I scalded my sand wedge to the back of the green and failed to get up and down for par.

Now 2-over, I launched a drive on 17, but pulled it and rolled across the fairway into a lake bordering the left-side of the fairway. I nailed a 5-wood after taking a drop, but landed the huge bunker guarding the green. I got on from there, but lipped out my short 2nd putt, resulting in my first 3-putt and first double bogie for the round.

Refusing to finish with another 5-over on the last few holes, I buckled down on 18 and finished with a par to get in with a 4-over 75 round, tying my best round at Monarch Dunes.

Letting my mind leave the present moment cost me a stroke on 16, and letting myself try to make up for it on 17 by over-swinging cost me another stroke and poor putt on 17.

At least I got another glimpse of the kind of round that's possible if I can learn to stay present and finish strong. Most importantly, I met my immediate goal of improving my putting. I only missed one putt that I should have made, and that was due to my mind lapse at the end of the round when I got preoccupied with the outcome.

Labels: Awareness, Body Mind Mastery, Books, Dan Millman, Disciplines, Monarch Dunes, Rounds

The primary motivation for many golfers is to earn recognition from others. For these golfers, what others say about them is more important to them than improving and developing their game. Rather than being lost in the thought of hitting the precise shot they want, these golfers often become indecisive and uncertain with the club in their hands - a quick way to unravel a golf swing.

In contrast, some golfers have as their primary incentive a desire to learn, improve and excel. A focus on learning and personal development is inconsistent with worries about how our results will be viewed by others.

In both these cases, a golfer's attention is on things related to hitting better golf shots - strategy, course conditions, tempo, and location of hazards. But the golfer intent on learning and improving is better able to stay focused and remain composed during their round.

And it's a pretty good bet that they're enjoying themselves a good deal more and worrying a lot less than their self-obsessed and self-conscious counterparts.

According to Dr. Gio Valiante in Fearless Golf, "these Mastery golfers get lost in the details, puzzles, and mysteries of the game, and they see their task as mastering those details and understanding the game's mysteries. Because they view mastering golf as a constant challenge, they find it easy to become fully involved in what they are doing, whether practicing chip shots or putting in competition. Their motivation for playing is not for awards or approval from others. For mastery-oriented golfers, the shot matters much more than the consequences. Awards, trophies, and public recognition are seen as natural consequences to excellence, not the primary motive for achieving that excellence."

Today I had the unique experience of playing a round with a local golfer who I just met last week online on a new golf community website. It turns out we both spend most of our time playing Monarch Dunes Golf Club - a new golf course designed by Damian Pascuzzo which was recently rated the top new course in California by Fairways & Greens magazine and among the top 10 new courses in the country by Golf Magazine. So, after a introducing ourselves via email, we decided to meet and play a round at our favorite course.


6th Tee at Monarch Dunes Golf Club, Nipomo

He had read my profile online which included information about my relative success in lowering my handicap from 16 to 4 in my 21 months of play, so I was a little concerned that I might feel a little pressure to live up to that level of play - and instead choke.

Instead, I stayed focused and relaxed, committed to play for my own enjoyment instead of impressing him or anyone else. I played well, hitting only a few poor shots.

However, going into the last hole with a chance to shoot a 76 with a par, I saw a couple course employees by the clubhouse, watching groups come in on the last hole. I had 180 yards in and thought to myself that it would be nice to give them a nice approach shot to admire on this hard-to-hit green. With that grand thought in my mind, I hit my 6-iron right into the lake well in front of the green. In all my many previous rounds, I'd never hit a ball into this lake! I dropped at 160 yards, hit a nice 7-iron to about 15 feet, but barely missed my bogie putt to end the round with a double-bogie 78. Argh.

Seems every round I play presents me with a new little opportunity to grow! I guess that's one of the reasons I play.

A funny side note is that when I finally met this new online friend face-to-face today before the round, I immediately recognized him. Someone in my group had rudely, but accidentally, hit into his foursome that was ahead of us a couple weeks earlier. He recognized me as well.

Labels: Books, Courses, Disciplines, Dr. Gio Valiante, Fearless Golf, Monarch Dunes, Motivation, Rounds