Back at it!

Finally returned to the course after 86 days. To be honest, I didn't feel an extreme urge to tee it up during the MCO / CMCO. But gosh, did it feel good to be golfing again. 

Couldn't have asked for better weather and the course was in good shape. Glad my first tee shot found the fairway but it was such a comedic / appalling round. Clearly the rust had set it and I did my part, contributing 8 balls to the course. 

Getting used to the new SOP but still, it was great fun. Looking forward to the weekend!   

The new normal

The last few months have been anything but normal.

When the Control Movement Order was announced on 16th March 2020, Malaysians in every part of the country were left rather somewhat clueless. The Covid-19 Pandemic was spreading at a dangerous rate and we were headed into unprecedented and unknown times.  

It's been an odd time to say the least but fast forward two months later and we now find ourselves adapting and adjusting to the new normal. Wearing a face mask before going out is now automatic and washing your hands (or sanitizing) has become routine.

On the golf front, golfers too have started returning to the course (from 12th May 2020) albeit with new conditions and regulations. That said, I have self imposed a break from golf until the condition movement control order expires on 9th June (or longer if it is extended). 

I envy my mates who have started teeing it up but I tell myself "there's plenty of time in the future for golf". Perhaps I am in denial, but I guess there's no harm in playing it safe for now. 

In other news, the PGA restarts the season in a few weeks at the Charles Schwab Challenge. All top 5 players in the OGWR (Rory, Jon Rahm, BK, JT and DJ) have committed to play so it promises to be a deep field. Haven't read about fan policy but it's definitely something new. I guess if I am not playing, it will be nice to watch some golf on the telly. 

Stay safe everyone. 

World Handicap System

https://www.golfchannel.com/news/what-you-need-know-about-new-world-handicap-system

Am I the only one confused about this new world handicap system...?

Matchplay time

It's Matchplay Time!

The KGS-Obyu inter - team matchplay tournament started two weeks ago and Team TOC (Tee Off Club) were in the fray. Yours truly made the line up during our first scheduled match up against the formidable team HKH (due to a scheduling conflict, a few of our first team players were unavailable) and I was raring to go.  

Took the field in the final four ball grouping and sad to say we were beaten rather comprehensively (5 up I think it was). 

There were a couple of missed opportunities for us. As a pair, our putting just wasn't as sharp that morning (I missed a 3 foot birdie putt to win the hole .. gah) but our opponents were the better team on the day, so kudos to team HKH. 

Plenty of golf left to be played, so it's time to regroup and come back stronger this weekend. 

Happy New Year!

Fore! 

And just like that, we said farewell to 2019 and welcomed 2020. 

It's been raining cats and dogs since Christmas, so the golf courses here have been inundated with water. Last Saturday, the course at Samarahan (though playable) was wet and soggy in several parts. The weather forecast looks bleak tomorrow, but hopefully we will get some good weather to kick off the 2020 golf calendar. 

But it's not all bad news. Titleist ran a sweepstakes on Instagram in December, offering a Team Titleist Cap and a choice of a dozen Pro V1/V1x balls to two lucky winners.

 

All you had to do was tag a friend and post your choice of balls and guess what? I was one of the lucky two! Yeahhoooo! 

Thank you Titleist! Good start to 2020 I have to say. 

Christmas Medal - Brain farting

Joined the Christmas Medal tournament over the weekend at Samarahan Country Club and there was a very good turn out with over 100 golfers participating in the last tournament of the year.

Pimp my ride?

I am currently playing off a 14 handicap (still don't know how it's dropped that low. For my game that is) and it's been a challenge playing to it. That said, the game felt pretty good leading up to Saturday so I was raring to go. 

Alas, it was not to be (surprise surprise!) 

It was a rough start from the get go. Starting off on the precarious 10th hole, I managed to put two balls into the hazard to card an ugly massively deflating "8". From there, it was all about damage control.  

My very colourful scorecard. *sigh.

On a positive note, I managed 2 birdies (including a sandy birdie on the 16th) and left a couple of pars on the course. Considering the horrid start, I guess coming back +1 wasn't too bad... 

What pisses me off about the round is that I haven't had problems with the 10th hole over the last few rounds.  Plus, bad drives off the tee basically led to implosions on holes 7, 10 and 13. "If only". Well, that's classic brain farting for you. 

But it wasn't all bad. My three flight mates all went back with a prize. Not to mention, our 13 year old (1 handicapper) snagging top honours with a gross score of 72! talk about talent. 

On that note, we will be welcoming the new year in just over a week. Time really flies and as I mentioned in the last post, 2019 has been a fantastic golfing year. 

From (L-R) : Justin Thomas signed CIMB flag, Rory McIlroy signed 2014 Open flag, TW signed Masters flag (GOAT) and my HIO ball. 

Didn't go for any golf trips outside of Malaysia this year though. So that's probably something I want to pick up again in 2020. Would love to golf in Chiang Mai or any other place in Thailand for that matter. 

Until the next post, always remember to fix your balls marks, speed up play and I wish you the best in 2020! 

The Hole-In-One

The odds of an amateur golfer ("hacker") making a hole in one is 12,500 : 1

I have been playing golf as a serious hobby for some years now (since 2012) and it has always been a dream to hit that coveted shot.  

That day finally came on 3rd August 2019, during the Pusaka Golf Tournament at Kelab Golf Sarawak. 

It was a shot-gun start that Saturday morning and our flight teed off  on the par 3, 17th hole of the Demak Nine. There was a Proton Saga up for grabs for an ACE and I didn't even find the green. So it wasn't quite the electric start I was looking for.  

We prodded along and the swing had warmed up so I was starting to hit solid iron shots. Eventually we arrived at the par 3, 6th hole of the Siol Nine. A fairly long-ish hole that played 165m from the blue tees with some water on the right, just before the green.

It was a yellow flag setup (middle) and I decided on my 6 iron. A solid strike would get me on the green comfortably. "LFG!" 

Walked up to the tee, did my pre-shot routine and aimed at the flag. Exhaled and it was off to the races. I struck the ball and immediately knew I hit a beauty. Off the screws and on a seemingly good line. 

I hold my finish as I watch the ball sail through the air magnificently. Where's Top tracer when you need it. 

The ball lands before the pin ("Hmm not bad, close." I think to myself) and starts rolling towards the hole. "Surely not." I continue starring. A few seconds later, my ball disappears. Time stops and I-am-stunned. My flight mates erupt in cheer and rush to hug me. I am in sheer disbelief. 

I quickly look to the spotter standing by the right side of the green and he's waving his hands in the air and as he starts walking towards the hole, I screammmmm! my hands raised, goosebumps all over. I could not believe it. 

Needless to say the ride to the green was a noisy one and that walk up the green was surreal. Still couldn't believe it when I saw the ball at the bottom of the cup. Golfer's Euphoria.

Like the other par 3s, this one came with a pretty nice prize. So it was doubly sweet. 

I was still on a such a massive high when we left the green. To be honest, I didn't give a crap how I was going to play the remaining holes but as it turned out, I played pretty good (an 83 / - 8) and ended up in second place in the gross category. 

An Ace, a prize for the Ace and a TV. Talk about a triple celebration. 

What an incredible day and what about the ball? Well if you know me, I had it framed up with the score card and it's hanging nicely in my office now. 

A hole in one and getting to meet Tiger Woods. Suffice to say, 2019 has been an awesome golfing year and I can now die in peace. 

Until the next post, here's hoping you get an Ace too.