It is nice when we play golf and win. It is nicer when this winning repeats itself. During my weekly Tuesday golf with my group, I returned as the champion for two weeks. What brought about this change in fortune after the disastrous Annual Club Championship outing not too long ago?
My glasses. My prescription glasses were giving me problems because the prescription was no longer correct for my vision. And I find it irritating when I play golf, especially when putting. The vision was blurred, and this affected my concentration. But all this discomfort is a thing of the past with a pair of new glasses.
The icing on the cake was the Interclub match over the weekend against the visiting club, Royal Perak Golf Club. It was a four-ball Best Ball format. My partner and I returned as the Best Pair from our club. We both played well, taking turns to score points on each hole. Both of us combined for a best-ball score of 47 Stableford points! Woo hoo.
A dozen new balls! Nice
I’m glad I discovered and rectified the problem affecting my golf performance over the past few months. The game is enjoyable again because I have a clear vision and better concentration to play well and win.
I have mixed feelings about the Poh Kong Ladies Golf Series 2.0 tournament that concluded last week. The golf course was lovely, and my flightmates were quite fun, but the disorganization of the assigned lockers marred the experience.
After I completed my round, the crew member called me and said I was assigned Locker #67. Strange, when a friend told me earlier that she saw Locker #25 had my name! Nevertheless, I had a number by now, so I went to the Ladies’ Changing Room to see the correct unit and collect the remaining goody bag.
To my surprise, someone else was using Locker #67 as I walked in! I was like, “Huh?! Did she open and close locker #67?” So, I asked her, to which she acknowledged. I told her nicely that the locker had my name on it.
And you know what was her answer? She thought it was her name! Oh, my goodness. The names may look similar, yet they are not – how could she be mistaken? Argh, I was speechless!
I then asked her what was her locker number, and she wasn’t sure! The nightmare repeats itself here. I called the crew member again and asked what was the locker number assigned to the other lady. Can you guess? Number 25. What a merry-go-round.
I roll my head, looking back at this experience. With an inadequate locker availability to cater to 120 ladies, unlike in the Men’s Changing Room, all the assigned lockers are too close. The crowded space makes it hard to locate an assigned locker properly. And even then, some of us had to use the lockers at the gym on a different level. Sigh.
The consolation from this outing was making new friends and achieving the Novelty prize of Nearest to Line/gold bar. I think it will be some time before I participate in another ladies-only golf tournament.
It was a golf tournament that I was looking forward to participating in, having missed out on it last year. The Poh Kong Ladies Golf Series 2.0 promised to be better, but was it? Quite the contrary.
I carpooled with a friend to KLGCC, the premier golf course hosting the event. We arrived early, but there was no organizing crew in sight nor any event directional signages setup, save for a makeshift backdrop at the buggy station.
So we had no choice but to wait. By 6.30 am, there was some activity and people. We quickly joined the queue to collect our tournament things before it got longer. It wasn’t smooth, as there were a lot of puzzled looks and frowns. And so it began, the disorganization of the situation.
When my turn came, it became chaotic because I was not assigned a locker! How can this be? What a stark boo-boo for a tournament of this level. I was not the only one, as I found out later.
I patiently waited and waited. I collected my goody bag from the next counter, then waited again for advice on my assigned locker. It never happened.
It wasn’t even seven in the morning, and already I was riled and cursing. What a horrible experience before tee-off. I walked off to have my breakfast and returned afterward to resolve the mystery of my missing assigned locker.
A crew member approached me to locate my assigned locker together, but we couldn’t find it in the changing room. At this point, I don’t know what to say! She suggested we go to the gym’s changing room to locate my assigned locker. Let me tell you, it was futile.
I decided to keep all my things in an unassigned locker at the gym to save myself further distress. It was pointless to be a headless chicken before a golf tournament.
While the golf course was enjoyable, and my flight mates were good company, the disorganization of locker assignments in the morning marred the experience.
But there is light at the end of the tunnel by an unexpected achievement. I struck gold figuratively when I achieved the Nearest to Line (NTL/gold bar) Novelty with my ball landing four inches from the rope in the middle of the fairway. I didn’t expect a cheer-up feat after all that morning chaos.
I have mixed feelings about this golf outing. Was my locker issue resolved eventually? No. Stay tuned to find out!
I picked up a new injury from golf! It is the abductor pollicis brevis of my right hand. Uh oh. I don’t know how or when, but the game on Sunday resulted in a lot of pain.
I could not chip or putt as I could feel the muscle pulling. I couldn’t even hold the clubs properly. Ouch, that’s how bad it felt. A few days of rest did not even help. Today, I had a game I had already committed to before the injury – I felt trepidation. Will I be in pain?
So, I took some preventive measures by applying a pain relief cream and taking a painkiller. Did these measures help? A little.
My golfing buddy gave me the Perskindol Cool Spray to use on my hand, which helped a lot more. However, I had to modify my gripping the clubs to reduce the pull of the muscle. Sigh, all these injuries and so much golf still to play.
I must learn to manage my pain and injuries; otherwise, no more games and rest to heal. Golf is so damaging, not just to the confidence in our ability to play well, but also to our bodies.
After last weekend’s Annual Club Championship disaster, I played two weekday games with redemption! I could not believe that I could not play golf. I had to purge myself of the horror.
Last Tuesday, I played at a different golf course, and everything worked! Golf is strange. I played one under my handicap for that day! I did 32 putts, so much better than the 43 putts on Sunday. I’m a happy camper with the recovery for putting.
Then, on Thursday, I returned to my club and played a round with hubby and his friends. Guess how I fared? I played to my handicap and 20 strokes better than the results of the ACC! Unbelievable. Redemption was sweeter as I managed 30 putts, which was 13 strokes much better!
Golf is strange – one can be demoralized and broken in a tournament. Then, on the next outing, one can heal with redemption. It’s a love-hate activity.
The Annual Club Championship golf tournament is over. Brutal is all I can say.
On Day 1: By the end of the first nine, my handicapped was all used up. Luckily, in the back nine, I recovered to minimize the damage with some respectable results. And I managed 30 putts, which was good.
On Day 2: Nothing worked! It was a day when everything could go wrong, went wrong. Numbing is the only way to describe my outing. I did 43 putts: no words to describe this, and no need to elaborate further.
I came back crushed and broken, but wallowing will not erase this. Then again, I ask myself, maybe I am not cut out for competitive golf anymore, but to remain a social golfer.
I have a non-competitive round this coming Thursday on the same course where I got beaten to a pulp. I hope to fair better to purge myself from this dreadful episode. I know I can; we shall see.
After the recent Interclub trip to Jakarta, I now focus on my club’s Annual Championship, which will take place over two days on the Hills and Lakes courses. So far, I have put in two games to fine-tune my weaknesses.
And it must be something I did, for I can see the difference. I have gained back my distance upon tee-off, a timely confidence booster. And shots with the woods and irons are good, likewise, my short game.
Furthermore, putting with the Scotty has been reliable for the last few games. So, I am ready to take on the challenge, having missed the tournament last year. My only minor setback is the right heel, which will ache if I exert too much. I have to manage.
On Sunday, our final day in Jakarta, we had our Interclub game against members of Jakarta Golf Club (JGC). It was my first time playing in such an old golf club, established in 1872. Matured trees lining the side of the fairways made the course narrow and quite challenging.
The hospitable host welcomed us with a hearty buffet breakfast before teeing off. JGC is a walking course – and almost everyone walked, save for a few who needed the buggy. The mode of play for the tournament was Texas Scramble, which was very enjoyable.
Awesome prize but no Hole-in-One that morning.
The halfway huts provided all sorts of beverages for all golfers to enjoy that morning, and everyone took advantage of it! Initially, I opted for lemon juice, but as the weather got hotter, I decided a cold Bintang beer would do me wonders. Two Bintangs later, I was teeing off further with my “Bintang power” – and it did feel like my ball flew further. Hahahaha.
My partner and I had many good opportunities approaching the greens and putting, as our partnership worked well together. And we returned with a much improved second-nine score compared to the first-nine. However, our opponents fizzled out due to tiredness when we crossed over.
When everyone completed their rounds and returned to the clubhouse, a sumptuous buffet lunch spread welcomed us. But our entourage had a plane to catch by six (the earliest batch), so the program went by quickly, and we could leave the club by 3.00 pm. There was no outright winning club for the Interclub Texas Scramble tournament, only winning pairs, which was enough to make everyone happy. We had a police outrider again to ensure our two buses arrived at the airport on time.
This trip did not start well for me but ended on a good note. Each day, the games improved. I played my personal best game during the duel with the hubbies. And I thoroughly enjoyed my time with my micro group of golf buddies.
As for food, opportunities to try different things were scarce due to time constraints and transport logistics. Nonetheless, I managed with all the chili and spicy offerings, and more importantly, I did not experience any tummy ache.
Hotel breakfast was standard choices, but the chili condiments caught my eye! Soto ayam (top right) was a must for dinner.
While there were some shortcomings in managing 60 golfers, it did not put a dampener, and I can file this trip away on a good note. I await the next Interclub trip organized by my golf club again.
On the third day in Karawang, we played our second game at Lotus Lakes Golf Club, and it was a late morning tee-off. The cloudy atmosphere was perfect for golf, so the umbrella did not come out. The company was enjoyable, but the game was challenging, whereby we ladies were battling with our husbands. Losers had to buy drinks.
There was much back and forth. We fought hard to narrow the gap from three down to one down, but running out of holes to win. That morning, my short game was sensational, likewise my putting. I was on fire! We had to win the last hole to call the duel a draw.
At the last hole, there was a lot of drama. You could tell the fight was very intense. My partner’s hubby sent his ball into the water on the right with his third shot. Then my partner sent her ball to the water on the left as well! Oh no.
Hubby and I were on the fairway, 60 meters from the green. It was a Par 5, and anything can happen. And it did! Hubby unexpectedly chunked his fourth shot to three feet in front. Gaining confidence from his misfortune, I sent my ball flying towards the pin and landed four feet from it! Yes, maybe we can still pull it off and win.
Soon after, the other two were on the green with their fifth shot. It was a do-or-die situation at this point. But I had a slight advantage over the rest, being the only one on the green with my fourth shot.
Hubby struck his ball but missed the cup, creating an opening for us!
My turn to putt. My line was perfect as my ball rolled towards the cup. But it stopped two inches from falling in. Nooooooooo. I tapped in for a bogey. What a bummer.
My partner two-putted for a seven, like hubby, but her spouse rammed his ball into the cup from six feet for a bogey to square the hole. And we lost.
The adrenaline was exhilarating! What a game, what a duel. I played my best game that morning. Golf can be arduous, but it can be rewarding as well, despite the circumstances sometimes.
Traveling with 58 other golfers is very challenging, especially for the organizer. There were, at times, miscommunications or ignorance that delayed everyone being on the two buses on time. We had a 7.15 am tee-off for the first game. The late check-in the night before did not help!
I was constantly taking big and deep breaths to stay calm and take things in stride. I focused on my micro group of friends to make the most. I didn’t even drink! That’s how focused I was.
The first game in Karawang was terrible for me. I could not find the golf course on my Hole 19 app as the Palm Springs Golf & Country Club that appeared was a different one, located in Nongsa, not in Karawang. So, I played without the app and relied on the caddy instead. It worked out well, but I had so many three-putts–38 putts in total–it was rather demoralizing! Luckily, my flight mates made up for the putting yips; they were most entertaining, and we laughed more than golfed.
Later, after requesting Hole 19 for a mapping update, I discovered that the course was previously known as Sedana Golf & Country Club. No wonder I could not find the golf course! This info is now updated, thanks to me!
Angieneering 
Remarks