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Making Par (Birdie) the Hard Way

Hawk

Hawk

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Maybe this will be a lame thread, but it wouldn't be the first.


Over the weekend my playing partners and I joked about how hard was I making things on myself, yet still came a way with par. So, I'll tell my stories and you tell yours.

First one...

Par 5 that is a big dogleg left - like 90°. Hit a perfect drive that cut the corner and was left with 192 yards in some light rough, ball propped up. I was so excited. Legit chance at getting on the green in two, had a club I liked in my hand, great lie, etc. Had to sit and wait 5 minutes or so, at least it felt like it was that long. Really pumped up when I address the ball, take my stance, and give it the old top-a-roo behind a tree to the left :banghead: Next shot is a punch out. Fourth shot is a mediocre wedge shot to 25 feet. 5th was a pretty little putt that dropped right in the hole. Nothing like a 25 footer for par when you've got an eagle on the brain.

Second one...

Shorter par 4. I still could have taken driver, but instead decide to pop up a hybrid. Yay. Take my approach and hit an ok shot, but it goes a little left and I'm severely short sided, with a completely bare lie. As in just dirt. Pin is in a stupid spot, 6 feet off the fringe and the green runs away from it (from where I am). Hit a beauty of a bump wedge that stops on the fringe, just a few inches from the green. This is good since I would have just ran down the green if I'd hit anything other than the fringe. Proceed to make the par putt from the fringe and smile like I meant to do that all along :D
 
Best par I've ever made came a couple weeks ago.

Sitting at a PB under par, I freaking out on the 15th (a very birdieable par 5) and hooked the heck out of my drive into very high grass, with a real unlikeliness of finding the golf ball. Frustrated and upset, I hammered my provisional up the right side and had about 220 left into the hole.

No luck finding my original tee ball, I stepped up to the second drive hitting four, thinking I just needed to get on the green to have a chance at two putting for bogey. Step up, hit the best hybrid of my life, that lands about 6 inches from the cup and stops dead for a tap in par. The hard way.
 
I hit my ball in the weeds on #9 at Castle Stuart and dunked it for eagle from the fescue. Totally meant to do that.
 
I have witnessed two incredible pars in the last year or so.
One, playing with a group of guys on a par 3 over water. Guy plunks his tee shot, reloads and holes out from 178. Hole in 1...Except it was a 3.
Two, playing with Buckjob in AC. Par 4, 380 yards. He topped his drive and then topped his 2nd shot. Then hit a 265 yard 2 hybrid to the green for his third and made a 30 foot putt to save par.
 
Hawk I always say that I make more pars or birdies from places that I probably shouldn't than I do from the middle of the fairway. Subsequently I make more bogey's or higher from the middle of the fairway than anyone I know.

Joking around with dcbrad at True Blue on Weds, first hole is a par 5, I hit left in to the bunker, hit a 7 iron out to lay up and that finds the left bunker still. Take a gap wedge and stick it to 12 feet and lip out the birdie putt. For the week, that was the best I played that hole. The other 2 times I layed up to 100 yards out in the middle of the fairway and couldn't do better than bogey. Another spot at the MC was the 15th on Sunday. Hit a good drive, layed it up to where I wanted, hit a 9 iron in to the green that just missed to the right. Hit a poor chip shot, and drained a long putt to save par.

Couple weeks ago my buddies and I went out for one of our cash tournaments. Dog leg right par 4 that looks longer than it really is. Was swinging the driver good so decided to hit that, and of course pushed it right OB. Go back and take the 3 wood and with an angry swing, I nuke it down the left side of the fairway which is position A. Take a 7 or 8 iron in to the green and make a big breaking putt to save a bogey.
 
Short par 3 with one of most diabolic greens I've seen. Think of a turtle shell. Hit a decent 9 iron a little right of the green. Just a short chip to get on, not a lot of green to work with though. Skulled the chip but the rough slowed it down to a perfect speed and it bent right into the cup for a 2.
 
Short par 3 with water short and left, and bunkers long and to the right. I aim at the right side of the green, and miss right. Land in the bunker, which has a big stupid bush in it, of course I roll under the bush. I have to take an unplayable, and play my 3rd shot from the bunker. I hit a perfect bunker shot and it rolls in for par.
 
Sounds like my dad last Sunday....He had one hole (325yds and narrow) were he shanked it off the tee. Then he punched it straight left through the fairway under a pinetree. Punched it over the green into the bunker and made it out of the bunker for a 4. It was awesome. haha. All looks the same on the scorecard :)
 
Haha this was my round yesterday. I had 6 up and downs in 18 holes. One hole was a 500yd Par 5, a shortie. Cuts right and perfect for my fade. Left myself 210-215 to the flag in the middle of the fairway. Take out my 3i and hit a HUGE cut. It's pretty much a slice. I'm in the trees on the right short of the green. I punch out onto the green and hit it way too hard. I'm way over on the back side now. I hit a nice pitch with my 58*. Have about 10ft left and hole out for par.

Shot of the year - was at TPC Deere Run #11. Skyed my wood, thought I left an idiot mark on my club. Nope I didn't! 200-210 left to the flag. Hit my 4 hybrid and hole out for eagle.
 
Taking the scenic route. I like spicing it up.
 
Exactly.
 
Most recently, I pushed my 9 iron into the left bunker on an uphill par 3. Deep bunker and I could just barely see the top of the flag. Bladed a 58 out of the bunker and it had enough juice on it to fly the green by at least 50 feet - which on this hole would have been OB. Luckily, my ball skidded through the grass fringe right a the top of the bunker which slowed it down enough so the ball rested about eight feet from the pin. I was two inches either way of being left in the bunker or OB long. Sunk the put for par and walked off grinning. I got some grief from my playing partners, and I just said "the card doesn't have a spot for execution, just score."
 
Last Thursday, downhill par 3 that plays shorter than its length. Fescue front and right, woods behind the green. Second I hit my wedge, I knew it was short. It came down in the fescue short right, but hit a rock, shot straight up in the air, and landed in play just left of the fescue. Chunked a wedge from there to just on the green, and then dropped a 30 footer for par. Pretty much my typical route on that hole.
 
Haha I am a master at these. After I hole out I say "Just how I drew it up!"
 
The oddest par for me, last year on a 170 par 3. Push my tee shot into deep rough. Tried to flop it out and bladed the ball and it shot 45* to the right into shaggier rough. I then bladed my chip shot right into the cup.
 
The one that sticks out most in my mind was the 17th hole at the New England Invitational. 8th hole on the Jones Course

jo_08.jpg

Par 4, 373 yards - very straight forward. I decided to make things interesting for myself an hit about a 50 yards drive to the left - my worst drive of the day. Ball was in the rough but had a clean lie and was still over 300 yards to the green. Took the 4 wood and hit a beautiful shot that put me about 50 yards out on the right side of the fairway. Pin was in the back left of an undulating green, so I take out by 55* wedge and proceed to fatty fat fat the shot onto the front right of the green leaving me a run of the mill 45ft triple- breaker for Par. I line up the putt and give it my best effort and just as the ball begins to lose steam it dives across the front of the hole, catching the lip and falling in for Par.

Just how I drew it up on the tee box.
 
Happened to me on Monday...

par 4 11th, 295 yards with 2 huge trees in the middle of the fairway...3H tee shot that went about 195 yards but ends up with the trees blocking my view, with a little gap in between them and a line to the green. Try to punch a wedge low between the trees. The between part was ok, but the low part failed and the ball ricochets off a branch and ends up in the bunker next to the trees. Scramble from the bunker and a nice putt for par...

view of the hole and tee shot:
hard-par_zps20e5e130.jpg
 
I'm pretty much a pro at this, it's my newest strategy and about the only way I roll. In Wichita Saturday on #9, short, tight par 4. Hit a long drive that hit the side of a hump, runs down a slope and across the cart path to sit in twigs and rough. 2nd shot was a long, 50 yard, super high floater that landed just on the high fringe just off the green. Chipped close and tapped in.

Playing with THP'ers the same weekend, hole #10. Drive was a push fade landing close to OB and get there to find it was in fact out. Not going back, I hit from there, lol, pushed the next one almost out. Hit a high flop from there that went in!! The guy's were rolling at that point. Not too legal, but cracked us all up.
 
My thought is that any time you make a long putt for par, you made par the hard way and I putted lights out my first five holes and walked away with five pars. Only #4 was done with the conventional on in regulation and two putt, and I didn't make that one easy. I was never in "trouble" on any of the holes but messed up enough to have to make a one putt to save par on four of the holes.

#1 I hit a great drive but my approach was a little long and a little left. I blade my wedge onto the green but 45 feet away and I sunk the putt for par.

#2 I hit a pretty good drive, and a pretty good approach that left me with a chip to a back pin. MY chip just got onto the green, but I made a 50 foot putt to save par.

#3 and #5 were a par 3 and a par 5 that I made a 8 foot and a 5 foot putt to save par after not getting on in regulation. Not exactly the hard way but was included in my hot streak of putting.

#4 was a par five I got on in three but left it 30 feet short. This is the same hole I got on in two a couple weeks ago and three putted from the same distance for par. First putt I hit on the right line but wussed it 10 feet short. Made the 10 footer for par. The putt had three feet of break in it from where I left it.
 
I've had two UGLY pars this year that quickly came to mind.

Par 5 hit into the woods twice, hybrid just left of green on 4th and had a lucky chip in for par.

Par 4 drive into woods, hit a tree on first punch out attempt and made it to the fairway on next attempt. Holed out from about 50 yards.
 
I still say the best birdie I ever saw came from TMex in the Morgan Cup last year...#15 par 5 plays right at 570 from the whites.....He pulls 4W and takes a HUGE swing only to top it about 3 feet dead left off the tee into the rough.....walks over and rips 4W down the middle for his second shot....we get to the ball and grabs 4W again and pounds another one and it hits the green about 8 feet from the cup and he drains the putt for birdie!!....guess he was just laying up with the first tee shot.


I made par on the 4th hole at my course about 3 weeks ago the really ugly way.....pushed my drive over the water to the right into an adjacent fairway, hooked my 3W back across over the fairway into the thick rough to the left of a fairway bunker, hit 8 iron from 141 and caught a flier and took over the right side of the green into the pond that sits right next to the green.....so I drop just off the green and then hit a pitch shot that takes one bounce and goes right in the cup for a par! My buddies just started laughing.
 
Par 5 playing with my dad. I am on the green in 3 with a 25 footer for birdie. Dad is hacking all over the place, finally hitting his 4th shot into the sand filled woods behind the green. He is 25 feet into the woods, which are 12 feet above the green with the green running away from him. I figure he is looking at a 7 in a best case scenario. Dad hacks it out, and miraculously doesn't hit any trees on the way through. It lands on the fringe and trickles 30 feet into the hole for a routine par. I 3 putted for a bogey.
 
I had a crazy one last year. Its a par 5 and I hammered my drive down the middle and left myself about 250. I ripped my 4 wood at it and ended up short of the green and short of the two large bunkers facing the green. So I'm thinking just pitch this close and get a birdie. So I step up and flub my chip and fortunately it lands in the narrow patch of grass between the two bunkers. Frustrated I step up to try again. I catch it clean this time, it rides a ridge and tracks 15 feet right to drop for a birdie, the hard way! I've still never had an eagle...
 
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