Better but nothing to get excited about

There is always something uniquely satisfying about having a day off from work and knowing you'll be going to the golf club for a game. After waving the wife off to work, I enjoyed a nice long lie in and eventually got to the club around midday with the intention of working on my chipping which is still giving me grief. After a fruitless session where I made no forward progress I adjourned to the bar for some lunch.

Suitably fed and watered I wandered out about 2.00pm to an almost deserted front nine. Although sunny, the wind was still keen although nowhere near as fierce as yesterday but the scoring conditions were still going to be testing. If the practice green was anything to go by, the ones on the course would be as quick as they had been in the medal yesterday.

Clearly without a card and pencil in hand there was a lot less pressure but I started off much better than the previous day and even managed a bidie at the second with a great pitch from around 75 yards to within two feet. The putter was enjoying a rare hot day and I single putted the 5th, 6th and 7th to save par twice and make a bogey at the short but challenging 6th after a poor tee shot short of the green and a pitch that flew in the wind and didn't check on landing and ran through the back.

There is a deja vu moment coming. I started off the back nine poorly and hit a poor tee shot at the par 3 eleventh way right but then redeemed the mistake with another good pitch but missed the putt. However when I carved my tee shot way right at the next I started to fear a repeat of yesterday's shenanigans. However it wasn't to be and I made a par at the long par three thirteenth thanks to an up and down and then hit a fairway and green in succession at the next. I even finished with a fairway splitting drive and a two putt par up the last.

Frustrated that despite a number of scrambles it was more a case of solid putting than chipping it stone dead I wandered back onto the chipping green. I've had a eureaka moment and a simple change to my set up and a more simplistic address position seems to be bearing dividends. I only managed about twenty minutes practice but really felt at the end as though I finally had some semblance of control over the club. Sadly work beckons tomorrow and I can't even throw a ubiquitous sickie or I'd be back up there working on it. All I have to do is remember what I did when I next get a chance to play or practice.

Total number of lost balls in 2010 = 7