Mulligans and Trophies…

 Nothing is better than a warm summer day on the golf course.  A little rusty, I hit the links for the first time this season to participate in the Ashland-Greenwood end of the year golf outing.  Our team has been the female champions the last two years and to be honest, I was kind of hoping to pass the trophy off to someone else this year.  It takes up too much room in the closet, and year after year, I am voted to take it home.   However, my competitive side just wanted to win. Let’s face it…I came to win.  The tournament was a scramble…my favorite way to play golf because chances are, someone will step up and have a nice shot when I inevitably biff it.  It also allows me to play a par game of golf rather than a bogie game.  As an individual I am definitely a bogie, if not double bogie player.  But on a team, the score card looks pretty nice.

I was nervous for my first time on the course this year as I secretly wished I would have at least gone to the driving range.  Ready or not, it was time to tee off.  I was super excited after my first tee shot.  Long, straight and in the middle of the fare way.  A golfer’s dream shot.  Shot number two…long, straight and in the middle of the fare way.  At this point I’m feeling pretty good about myself.  Then, my inconsistency put me right back in my place.  Topping it, slicing it and putting ten feet short of the hole.   I could feel my frustrations mounting as I kept reminding myself that it was for fun and I needed to pull myself together!

The day was full of ups and downs.  A few shots that boosted my self-esteem and plenty of shots that put me right back in my place.  However, I got to play with a great team.  We balanced each other out and hooted and hollered for each other’s good shots and blamed the bad shots on the wind.  Mary and Suzanne nearly perfected the art of picking up a golf ball without stopping…however, Mary’s primary goal was to dump Suzanne out of the golf cart.  Mary hit multiple golf balls into the “raging river” and I was nearly eaten alive by mosquitos.  And at the end of the day, I won a pin prize for the longest drive!   It was a perfect start to the golf season…champions again!