December in the Desert: Part 2

Dec 10-15: Marana, Arizona (Tucson) - Golf Channel Amateur Tour Arizona Open (12/14-12/15)

Part 2:

Day 1 Practice: Dove Mountain - Wild Burro and Saguaro nines with my Dad.  The Tortolita nine, where the tournament would be played, was closed due to recovery from frost conditions!  Dove Mountain's grounds crew was very sensitive to course conditions given the WGC was coming in February: corporate tents were already under construction. We had frost delays during the tournament.  My ball striking was very good during this round, hitting 11/14 fairways; had 3 birdies and shot 76.  I told my Dad during warmups that I typically swing well early in my 'defrost' from New England; then as I swing more I get too big and reach for "extra".

Day 2 Practice: Gallery - North Course with my Dad, friend and competitor Gavin from Massachusetts, and new friend and competitor Bob from Denver.  On the practice tee, my swing started to feel forced and hard working, getting stuck at impact.  I hit 8 fairways and made 3 birdies on my last 6 holes to shoot 80.  It was a struggle until the final 6 holes.  The group dynamic was so much fun.  My Dad and Bob ('the old guys') teamed up against me and Gavin ('the young guys') on the last five holes.  It was non-stop heckling and seriously focused team strategies.  On 14th hole, Bob birdies.  On the 15th hole, my Dad birdies.  What the heck, two down. On the 16th hole, I made birdie.  We are 1 down with 2 holes to go.  On the par-4 17th, Gavin and Bob are out of the hole, leaving me with a 12 foot par putt and my Dad with a 10 foot par putt.  I missed my putt slightly outside the left edge.  My Dad runs his putt down a slippery slope into the cup for birdie.  We lose 2&1.  Ahhh the old guys win!  My Dad goes 1 under on final 5.  I birdied 18.  Best ball of the four was 5 under on last 6.  Great golf and strong competitive juices were flowing.  We enjoyed a beer together and laughed about all the in-round memories.  Bob and Gavin are great guys.

Day 3 and 4: Tournament Rounds at Dove Mountain (Gallery North and Dove Mountain (Saguaro/Tortolita).  Good weather, mid-60s, sunny, light to medium winds.  My swing slipped to an over-the-top, weak shots to the right, most notably in the tee shots with the driver and long irons.  I was able to work okay with wedges and mid-irons.  No ability to pull trigger freely after hitting multiple shots in the desert on the same hole!  I had some very big numbers, including a 12 on a par-4.  When you are teeing up your 4th tee shot on the same hole and the group behind you pulls up watching, its more nerve racking then most golf situations.  The desert won.  I hit 3 fairways each round.  I hit 12 greens and 9 greens and did not break 90.   Pic to the Right: #3 Par 3 210 yards at Dove Mountain (Saguaro). Pretty nice, right? Look for the Top 64 players in the world here in February 2014!

The take away from my tournament experience was that I must work on an in-course adjustment plan if my driver goes bad and I must be reflective on my feelings experienced during a round so I understand myself better the next time.  If I pull back to a hybrid or 3 wood early, would I have hit more fairways and kept myself away from large numbers?  Taking a risk to make an adjustment is a difficult step when you think the next swing you make will be the good one.  Next time, I will try picking out a target a few feet in front of my ball and I will set the expectations of hitting the shot at 50% of the max distance.  I expect this would improve my alignment and shorten my backswing.

Once you finish a round, make sure you reflect on what you did well and poorly during it (for both swing mechanics and mental mechanics).  I am going to make a point of doing this in 2014 to improve my game.

Happy 2014!

Kurt

December in the Desert: Part 1

Dec 10-15: Marana, Arizona (Tucson) - Golf Channel Amateur Tour Arizona Open (12/14-12/15)

Part 1:
My Dad and I traveled to sunny, dry Tucson AZ for a mix of leisure and competitive golf and relaxation.  It was a father-son bonding time.  It was a chance to get away from the New England cold.  It was a chance to play golf in the desert.  Tucson is a golfing destination, retirement spot with temperatures in mid-60s during December, mountains, cacti and other spikey vegetation, wild animals, and good hospitality.  We were lucky to get sunshine everyday.  The mornings were cold enough to layer up (low 40s) and the afternoons warm enough to sit by the pool (high of 70).  We played Dove Mountain, home of World Golf Championship Accenture Match Play tournament, and The Gallery, a highly-respected private course nearby Dove.  Personally, I thought The Gallery was the better of two courses; beating Dove in condition, layout, and overall experience.

During the trip, we made it a point to experience activities beyond the golf course.  Our trip included a visit to Biosphere 2, which is the world's largest facility to study Earth systems.  In other words, the team at Biosphere works to recreate Earth life under a fully enclosed roof, with different climates and plants; studying water; air quality, plant science; etc.  We listened to a native Hohokam brave play a flute that echoed throughout the mountain.  I was accidentally stabbed by a jumping cactus bush after looking for my golf ball!  A bird flew into my hotel room; that was not easy getting it out, when it was stuck, flapping around in the blinds (yikes).  I spent time watching a 9 year old tortoise from Africa named Wambi eat grass and apples.  She was 30 lbs.  She started out the size of a silver dollar and will likely live to 100 and grow to 100-120 lbs!  Fat and slow!  We saw a Javelina (not friendly).  We ate at a local steakhouse called Li'l Abner's that served Mesquite wood smoked steaks.  Saloon atmosphere; we stuck out like sore thumbs.

The hotel we stayed at inside Dove Mountain was as good as it gets from a service standpoint.  The staff was friendly, attentive, professional, accommodating (after being stuck with only a king bed on our first night!), and knowledgeable.  One exception was a recommendation to try a local Italian restaurant.  The staff member said it was the best in town, even Sicily certified.  If it was the best in town, it would be the worst in town in Boston.  Bad bad bad.  CORE Kitchen Restaurant was very solid; its very pricey, but if you have one nice meal in your budget, this is a good choice.  Excellent salmon and mac/cheese.  My Dad had a nice steak too.  They don't shy away on portions out here and they like to offer a burger/shake combination.

Golf courses we played were beautiful.  Dove has 27 holes and Gallery offers 36 holes.  The two pictures are from Gallery GC - North Course.  The greens were in almost perfect condition and running at 10-11 on the stimpmeter.  The bunkers are not filled with much sand which gives you easy escapes from the fairway, however, the challenges lie in the pure quantity of bunkers (everywhere) and the deep faces.  The desert is in your face and mind all day; on your tee shots and for your general observation.  Keep your tee shots in the green grass!  The Golf Shop picture is at Dove Mountain Golf Club.

Good practice facilities included grass tees, chipping greens, putting greens, and fairway bunker practice spots.  The Gallery driving range was special.  The hitting area was carpet-like and the green targets were ample at varying distances and looked like real manicured greens.

Part 2 will cover our practice and tournament rounds.

Brrrr its cold in Boston,
K