I’ve said many times that my favorite form of competitive golf is match play. It was in a match play format in 2005 when I won my (first) club championship at River Oaks. That’s the proudest moment in my personal amateur golf career. I made birdies on 17 and 18 to win 1UP. That same season I made the championship match at another club, Meadowbrook as well. That match was 27 holes, and I was 2UP after 18. My opponent, a former pro, rattled off five five birdies in a row.
I’ve had many matches over the years and each match has its own personality. Some great, some not. One great one was one I lost to a guy who I witnessed shooting a 62 on my home course. In that match I made five birdies. All were tied. I played great and lost. All you can say is “well played. Good luck in the next match!”
This afternoon I have my first gross match at Bonneville, one of my three home courses. This one is a gross match against a player who carries about the same handicap I’m carrying right now. My handicap is inflated from high scores this spring as I shook off the rust. Then again, my opponent’s might be as well. I don’t know my opponent. Should be fun. The winner of my match today will face the #1 seed, a +2.9 handicap. Strictly by the numbers it sounds like 2nd round exit for one of us, but you never know. We are all human.
For fun I also entered the net match play at Bonneville. I don’t have much of a chance in this one as I’ll be giving up a lot of strokes to my opponents. As one of the four lowest handicappers in the field, I got an automatic bye in the first round. The net match play is 9-holes, with the final being 18. Ask me if it was fun after my first match. We’ll see if I’m too irritated about giving up shots!
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