Shoutout to my Kiddo

[Smiter]

Just wanna brag up my middle son a little. His Freshman HS season is over. He didn’t advance to the state tournament, he fell apart the last two weeks of the season and posted some rediculous scores for him. Not surprisingly it coincided with my accident. Hard to golf with a ton of stress in your life.

What he did accomplish was being our schools first ever Freshman to 1. Make All Conference and 2. Lead the team in scoring average despite his last two weeks scoring 20+ strokes higher than his season average for 18 holes. He also tied for the win in his first ever tournament, the county JR, which is open to anyone and had some ringers come in from well out of the area. He lost in a sudden death playoff in a downpour because he three putted for bogey from 12ft out. The other kid got up and down.

The wheels came off at the end, but I sure am proud of him. Well done Colin!

We’re gonna work some this fall and next spring on course management. He has an amazing short game but left himself in the wrong spot quite a bit. The greens around here slope quite a bit on most courses and for whatever reason they’re running fast as all get out this year. You miss high and/or short sided and you’re likely chipping again. His second chip from the right place was usually at kick in range but he made a lot of bogeys because he missed in the worst possible area. His coach is going to get him involved in some Jr PGA events next spring too to get him in with the best the area has to offer. He played anywhere from the 1 spot to the 5 spot this year (6 varsity spots, 4 scores count for team totals). He played much better when he was playing with the 1’s. I.E. the best golfers from the other teams. He tended to play down to the competition some when playing with lessor talented golfers. A lot of it was pace. The 1’s always had an open course in front of them and generally the worst scores they turned in were 80 or so for 18. The 5’s were stuck behind everyone and I saw some 150’s turned in. The 1’s sometimes finished 2 hours before the 5’s. He hates slow play and waiting, gee, wonder where he gets that from, lol.

Anyways, I hope he sticks with it and I’m so proud of him. He also has kept his grades at a 4.0 even with missing 10-12 days to go play golf instead of playing school. Most weeks he was only in school for 2-3 days due to all the tournaments.

Thanks for reading and if this isn’t the appropriate forum, please feel free to move it Mods. Photo is him hitting his second shot to 12ft in the County Tournament in a downpour.

 

[DG_1234]

Great stuff, thank you for posting.

 

[donny475]

Well Done Colin, Well Done!

 

[Brassie]

yes! very happy to read about this! Thanks! and make sure it stays FUN.

 

[GraniteRoost]

Well earned accomplishments, and those experiences will serve him so well. Fantastic job Colin!

 

[Parrot]

That's fantastic, thanks for sharing it with us.

 

[tahoebum]

Yes, congrats and thanks for sharing. I also have a freshman and her golf season will start in April. She was able to play in a couple of varsity matches last year and it will be fun to watch her play and improve. She's my youngest and last hope for having another golf nut in the family.

 

[Smiter]

yes! very happy to read about this! Thanks! and make sure it stays FUN.

Very very key point there. It’s more serious than an afternoon round with dad, but at the end of the day, it should be fun.

Quick story. The kid is one of the few that aren’t glued to their phone. He’ll go outside and chip or play “around the house” golf. Start at the junction box and have to hit it to hole out. No flopping over the house (for my windows sake). We’ve set the par as six as I have a couple 2ft windows between trees and tons of trees everywhere. When we play this, you’re allowed a hybrid and a wedge.

Sidetracked, anyways the story. His practice ends at 430 on days they don’t have matches. I arrive at 4:30 and there is no sign of him. Storms are rolling in. I go into the pro shop and ask if they know where he’s at and they told me a group of the kids went out to play nine. Coach left promptly at 430 every day. Anyways by the time he gets to 8’s teebox, which was the first place I could see him, the wind is whipping around 30-40mph. I yell from 200 yards away but he didn’t see nor hear me due to the wind. As his group was hitting their seconds into this long par 4 a huge touchdown lightning strike hit within a mile of us.

The other three kids in his group see it and grab their bags and make a beeline for the parking lot. He’s unfazed and I watch him and see him make par on the #1 HC hole on the course a 480 yard par 4. He tees off on 9 a shorter par 5. Hes 600 yards from me. He hits his 2nd into 52* wedge territory and there are lightning ? strikes touching down all around. As he gets to his ball to hit his third in I yell “hey dummy, get the hell to the car before you die!” He ignores me and hits his wedge to 12ft or so. I yell at him again, again I’m ignored except he jogs the 100 yards or so with his putter in hand. He sinks the putt for a birdie.

I ask him exactly WTF he was thinking and he said “dad, that was my personal best nine ever”. I told him he’d beat it at some point in the future anyways and to never screw with a lightning storm.

But that’s the kind of kid he is.

 

[Smiter]

Yes, congrats and thanks for sharing. I also have a freshman and her golf season will start in April. She was able to play in a couple of varsity matches last year and it will be fun to watch her play and improve. She's my youngest and last hope for having another golf nut in the family.

Yeah I was really hoping my oldest boy would play. He’s not as good as my middle son, but I think with daily practice all summer long he could be pretty darn good. He’s 20 months older than my middle son but only a grade ahead of him. He can get his CHS into the low 120’s so he can smite the snot out of a ball.

He chips and putts with the same finesse as he hits driver but I really think he could be good if he’d just practice. I think he’s worried about his younger brother overshadowing him more than anything. But he also hasn’t spent 100’s of hours working on his game. He’ll go out an play a round here and there but for the most part, he just doesn’t have the desire to be good. Which is fine, he’s usually fun to have on the course no matter if he’s chasing a PB or a 120.

I hope your daughter sticks with it and has the same love of the game as you exhibit.

I’ve got 3 boys so I have a foursome for life. My little fella only putts but he’s kinda the Kim Jong Un of kid golfers. He has a record that will never be topped. 18 holes in one in one round. Granted he made most of them from a foot, but no one can ever do any better, lol.

 

[Parrot]

Very very key point there. It’s more serious than an afternoon round with dad, but at the end of the day, it should be fun.

Quick story. The kid is one of the few that aren’t glued to their phone. He’ll go outside and chip or play “around the house” golf. Start at the junction box and have to hit it to hole out. No flopping over the house (for my windows sake). We’ve set the par as six as I have a couple 2ft windows between trees and tons of trees everywhere. When we play this, you’re allowed a hybrid and a wedge.

Sidetracked, anyways the story. His practice ends at 430 on days they don’t have matches. I arrive at 4:30 and there is no sign of him. Storms are rolling in. I go into the pro shop and ask if they know where he’s at and they told me a group of the kids went out to play nine. Coach left promptly at 430 every day. Anyways by the time he gets to 8’s teebox, which was the first place I could see him, the wind is whipping around 30-40mph. I yell from 200 yards away but he didn’t see nor hear me due to the wind. As his group was hitting their seconds into this long par 4 a huge touchdown lightning strike hit within a mile of us.

The other three kids in his group see it and grab their bags and make a beeline for the parking lot. He’s unfazed and I watch him and see him make par on the #1 HC hole on the course a 480 yard par 4. He tees off on 9 a shorter par 5. Hes 600 yards from me. He hits his 2nd into 52* wedge territory and there are lightning ? strikes touching down all around. As he gets to his ball to hit his third in I yell “hey dummy, get the hell to the car before you die!” He ignores me and hits his wedge to 12ft or so. I yell at him again, again I’m ignored except he jogs the 100 yards or so with his putter in hand. He sinks the putt for a birdie.

I ask him exactly WTF he was thinking and he said “dad, that was my personal best nine ever”. I told him he’d beat it at some point in the future anyways and to never screw with a lightning storm.

But that’s the kind of kid he is.

 

[Brassie]

Very very key point there. It’s more serious than an afternoon round with dad, but at the end of the day, it should be fun.

Quick story. The kid is one of the few that aren’t glued to their phone. He’ll go outside and chip or play “around the house” golf. Start at the junction box and have to hit it to hole out. No flopping over the house (for my windows sake). We’ve set the par as six as I have a couple 2ft windows between trees and tons of trees everywhere. When we play this, you’re allowed a hybrid and a wedge.

Sidetracked, anyways the story. His practice ends at 430 on days they don’t have matches. I arrive at 4:30 and there is no sign of him. Storms are rolling in. I go into the pro shop and ask if they know where he’s at and they told me a group of the kids went out to play nine. Coach left promptly at 430 every day. Anyways by the time he gets to 8’s teebox, which was the first place I could see him, the wind is whipping around 30-40mph. I yell from 200 yards away but he didn’t see nor hear me due to the wind. As his group was hitting their seconds into this long par 4 a huge touchdown lightning strike hit within a mile of us.

The other three kids in his group see it and grab their bags and make a beeline for the parking lot. He’s unfazed and I watch him and see him make par on the #1 HC hole on the course a 480 yard par 4. He tees off on 9 a shorter par 5. Hes 600 yards from me. He hits his 2nd into 52* wedge territory and there are lightning ? strikes touching down all around. As he gets to his ball to hit his third in I yell “hey dummy, get the hell to the car before you die!” He ignores me and hits his wedge to 12ft or so. I yell at him again, again I’m ignored except he jogs the 100 yards or so with his putter in hand. He sinks the putt for a birdie.

I ask him exactly WTF he was thinking and he said “dad, that was my personal best nine ever”. I told him he’d beat it at some point in the future anyways and to never screw with a lightning storm.

But that’s the kind of kid he is.

Ha! Good story and I saw myself at his age doing the same thing. In fact, living in south FL (lightning capital of the USA), I was guilty of the same thing. When you're playing well, you don't want to stop.

 

[6ixOhFore]

That’s great motivation, for him. Thanks for sharing. Loved playing HS golf myself.

 

[Smiter]

My school didn’t even have HS golf back then. I played football. Probably still would have played football, but who knows since I didn’t play football until my Jr year. If I’d have taken up golf back then as a Freshman it may have stuck. I loved smacking the snot out of balls on the range, so I might have played?