2020 Golf Thread

BaseballJones

ivanvamp
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Oct 1, 2015
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Weather can easily make this possible in Scotland. A few years ago I played an inter-club match at Dunbar which I won despite shooting approximately 96 - it was so windy that three times I putted into bunkers. (Twice from more than 60 yards from the green, because putting seemed more sensible than any other option, but still.) But that's not really what you're talking about, is it? My condolences...I certainly know what it's like to feel so helpless on the course like that.
It was not the weather sadly. It was just gross incompetence in every facet of the game. I hope it’s another 40 years before I see anything like that again.
 

TFP

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So I'm not the best golfer here, but I wonder how many of you have the full range I've got (anything from a 75 to a 107 in a 10-month span)???
Professional golfer and 2 time major winner Martin Kaymer went 66-82 this week. It's golf.
 

jercra

No longer respects DeChambeau
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Jul 31, 2006
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Yeah good idea. I’ll wait til next week to pick the clubs up again.
I'm not sure it's all that far off but I've had 68 and 87 in the past 3 months without weather being much of a factor. I don't have a 69 in that span but I think I have shot every other score in between. Some days everything is working. Some days everything is broken. Usually it's somewhere in between. I have found that taking time off has no impact. I can shoot 85 in the morning and 72 in the afternoon. Nothing makes consistency. That's why I'm not playing Harding Park tomorrow morning. Just play if you can. Do t worry about your last round. The next could be your best ever and it could be tomorrow or 3 months from now.
 
[DISCLAIMER: it does feel terribly self-indulgent for me to post about all of my rounds like I do in this thread. I remain under the impression that some of you are interested in these posts, though, so I'll continue - although I'm happy to stop if others feel otherwise!]

I had a very incident-packed tournament round this morning at Dunbar in perfect golfing conditions. In the first five holes I made three 10-footers and a 6-footer to get to -2, and on the 6th I left a 30-footer for birdie two inches short, right in the jaws - needless to say, my putter was white-hot. I bogeyed the 7th and parred the 8th, and then as I was climbing the hill in front of the 9th tee, the battery on my electric trolley conked out. When I got home, I discovered that the battery charger wasn't properly connected to the socket in my living room, so although I'd thought it had been charging over the past two days, it hadn't. So I had to push my quite heavy trolley around the rest of the course...and worse, my trolley actually has built-in GPS to measure distance to the front/middle/back of each green, and so suddenly I didn't have my yardages available to me. Luckily I had previously downloaded a golf GPS app to my phone, but trying to figure out how to use it while pushing my trolley and not hold up the rest of my group was a complication I could do without.

Still, I turned in one-under, and although I bogeyed the 10th, I managed to par the next six holes and stood on the 17th tee still at even par. The 17th at Dunbar is a short par 4 which shares a wide fairway with the 6th hole on the left, and with the beach and ocean way to the right. Standing on the tee I saw that the flag was on the left side of the green, and I was in attack mode, so instead of aiming at the bunkers between the two fairways (which I could easily carry today) like I often do to be safe, I aimed down the right center of my fairway to get a better angle on the appproach - I'd driven the ball beautifully on the back nine, so why not? Of course, I promptly block-sliced my tee shot a good 30 yards right of my aiming point and into heavy grass between the beach and the hazard/penalty area markers, couldn't find the ball, had to go almost back to the tee for my third shot after a drop and half-topped an iron only 100 yards up the fairway, pushed my fourth to the right of the green, chipped poorly and then had my 8-footer for double unluckily kept out of the hole by the flagstick. And the worst thing is, when I got up to the fairway I realized that back on the tee I'd been looking at the yellow flag on the 5th green, not the white flag on the back-right of the 17th green - I should have aimed down the left all along! The whole thing felt like an out-of-body experience, and although I played the 18th better, I pushed my 4-footer for par and finished with an utterly maddening 75 (+4). This one is going to hurt for a while; at least I didn't do this during my club championship qualifying round in two weeks, but that's the only way it could have felt worse.
 

BaseballJones

ivanvamp
SoSH Member
Oct 1, 2015
24,376
Oh man that’s a crazy great/awful story. But I for one love this thread and like reading everyone’s golf stories, good and bad.
 
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FWIW, I finished T8 scratch and T9 handicap out of 144 players in the competition today, and had my handicap cut by 0.3 (to 4.7). If I had finished par-par, I would have finished T1 scratch (and won on count-back) and T3 handicap, which is infuriating. But I am heartened by the thought that with the club championship qualifier coming up in two weeks, and the top 8 going through to match play, I'm right there within range of where I need to be to have a chance.
 

Over Guapo Grande

panty merchant
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Nov 29, 2005
4,461
Worcester
I was able to take a good half hour before my round to make an adjustment to my putting stroke. I got closer to the ball, and a bit more upright. And then, idiosyncratic me .... I line everything up with the left hand off of the club, and then when the left hand comes on, that is the trigger to fire. Correlation <> Causation, but the 25 footer(ish) for par and the 45 footer for birdie (i actually paced that out). Like @BaseballJones was lamenting... If i could have been hitting the ball as well as I did last weekend, and putted as well as I did today..?! I guess that is why I don't play it for a living....
 

BaseballJones

ivanvamp
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Oct 1, 2015
24,376
If you (this is to everyone) could only play one course the rest of your life, which course would it be? I'd put up a poll, but (a) I'm not sure how to in a pre-existing thread, and (b) there probably are way too many to list in a reasonable poll.

I'd think many of us wouldn't just pick the most amazing course out there, because we'd end up shooting like 120 every time on some of these PGA-elite courses, and that would get old pretty quickly. But it would be better if we used member tees, so who knows.

Keep in mind if this is the only course you'll ever play for the rest of your life, you kinda need to live near there. So for me, Augusta is the *course* I'd most want to play forever, but I would NOT want to live there. At all. So that makes this a little harder of a task. (Assume your job can travel wherever)
 

Papelbon's Poutine

Homeland Security
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Dec 4, 2005
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If you (this is to everyone) could only play one course the rest of your life, which course would it be? I'd put up a poll, but (a) I'm not sure how to in a pre-existing thread, and (b) there probably are way too many to list in a reasonable poll.

I'd think many of us wouldn't just pick the most amazing course out there, because we'd end up shooting like 120 every time on some of these PGA-elite courses, and that would get old pretty quickly. But it would be better if we used member tees, so who knows.

Keep in mind if this is the only course you'll ever play for the rest of your life, you kinda need to live near there. So for me, Augusta is the *course* I'd most want to play forever, but I would NOT want to live there. At all. So that makes this a little harder of a task. (Assume your job can travel wherever)
Of courses we've played before or hypothetical?

Played before: Pac Dunes; runner up Harbor Town
Hypothetical: Pebble; runner up Shinnecock

To the bolded, yeah they'd be hard, but courses aren't generally setup or kept in same condition for members as they are for tournaments. Which isn't to say they're easy, but the greens aren't always glass and the rough shin deep, so to speak. And an angle of a closer tee box can make a hole completely different.
 

BaseballJones

ivanvamp
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Oct 1, 2015
24,376
It can be anything you want, @Papelbon's Poutine. So given the question, I think Augusta is out for me, because no way in hell I'd want to live in Georgia.

I'm thinking Pebble Beach or Cypress Point - I've heard from a friend who has played both that Cypress is nicer. Amazing golf courses in a great part of the country.
 

TFP

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By the by, this diversion probably should have gone in the normal Golf Thread rather than the PGA Tour thread. (No big deal, though.)
Agreed.

The answer from me is probably Mid Pines in Pinehurst. Maybe the most fun course I've ever played. Bandon Dunes (the original course) is a close 2nd, although I don't think I could live there permanently.
 
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jercra

No longer respects DeChambeau
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Jul 31, 2006
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Bandon is hosting the US Am this week btw. Not sure the tv schedule yet but should be great.
TV schedule is posted on the USGA web site. It's not televised until Wednesday. I leave Wednesday morning for a Member/Guest in Portland so it's going to be 18, 36, 36, 36, 18 followed by watching the US Am at my buddy's house in the evenings. Should be a good weekend.

And it if it's one course, it's probably Cyprus. If it's resort, it's Pinehurst (never played it, but the weather and proximity to a real city beat out Bandon).
 

RedOctober3829

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Jul 19, 2005
55,299
deep inside Guido territory
Going to Vermont with the better half for a week. Staying around Burlington, trying to find a couple courses to get some early AM rounds in, but nearly everything I've found is either closed or private. Any Vermonters know a decent track or two within an hour of Burlington? I'd hit up some of my old QC courses if the border were open

edit: Jay Peak 80 min away may be my best bet
edit 2: Stowe Country Club looks public, $100 to walk it and 40 min away. The pickins are slim
CC of Barre is a nice course. So is Kwiniaska.
 

FL4WL3SS

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Andy Brickley's potty mouth
This is a tough question because the course I want to pick is in the north and can only be played Mar to Oct. Ideally for this exercise I'd want to pick a course that can be played year round.

So ignoring weather, it's The Golf Club in Columbus Ohio hands down. Accounting for weather, it's probably something in SoCal.
 

patinorange

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Aug 27, 2006
30,662
6 miles from Angel Stadium
I was lucky enough to play Riviera in 1998. I still think about it. Its' about 35 miles up the road, I would make the drive everyday if I could.

We did a Northern Ireland / Ireland tour a couple of years ago and Royal Portrush was fantastic. (as they all were)
I think I could play there everyday if I was living close by.
 

FL4WL3SS

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Andy Brickley's potty mouth
I was lucky enough to play Riviera in 1998. I still think about it. Its' about 35 miles up the road, I would make the drive everyday if I could.

We did a Northern Ireland / Ireland tour a couple of years ago and Royal Portrush was fantastic. (as they all were)
I think I could play there everyday if I was living close by.
Was just thinking about Riviera, that might be my nice weather choice.

I definitely don't want a course that is going to beat me up every day (either weather-wise or difficulty-wise). There are so many great courses out there that I'd love to play occasionally (and have been fortunate to have played a lot of them), but not every day.

We have this argument at my club all the time. I live right next to the best course in WA (the Augusta of the PNW as the crazy locals will call it) and have played it several times, but choose to be a member somewhere else that is more fun on a day to day basis (with much better scenery).
 

jercra

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We have this argument at my club all the time. I live right next to the best course in WA (the Augusta of the PNW as the crazy locals will call it) and have played it several times, but choose to be a member somewhere else that is more fun on a day to day basis (with much better scenery).
Inquiring minds want to know... What's the Augusta of the PNW?
 

Freddy Linn

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Jul 14, 2005
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Where it rains. No, seriously.
Inquiring minds want to know... What's the Augusta of the PNW?
Waverley.

Waverley’s green jacket for the Blyth champion started in 1930 and is said to be the inspiration for Augusta National.

Chandler Egan, who was Alastair Mackenzie’s design partner (and also partnered on Pebble), did Waverley. So there is something there.

Edit: read about it here https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/championships/2017/u-s--senior-women-s-amateur/articles/senior-women_s-amateur-adds-to-waverleys-impressive-history.html
 
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I've played both (humblebrag), and Cypress is *much* nicer. :)
First of all, I'd like to apologize for this incredibly douchey post yesterday. I stand by what I said - Cypress Point is much nicer than Pebble Beach - but certainly not how I said it! I think the karma gods struck back during my round at Dunbar this morning, which got derailed first when I wasn't able to hit any practice putts and then when I came up behind a really slow fourball while I was on the 2nd green and they were just teeing off at the par-3 3rd. One of the guys said I could play through on the 3rd, so I rushed my four-footer and missed it...and then I stood stewing for 5-10 minutes on the 3rd tee as the group finished the hole and never waved me on. Maybe the guy who said I could play through never told his partners? I did play through on the 4th, but by that time my rhythm was shot to hell and I never got it back - I generally find playing through another group to be a horrible experience, because you're just trying to rush to get out of their way and not paying attention to your golf, so to have that same sensation on three successive holes at the start of a round is exponentially worse.

Anyway, I think if I were to pick one course to play forever, it'd have to be somewhere that the wind can blow but doesn't consistently blow super-hard, which might rule out the likes of Cypress Point and Shinnecock (probably my two favorite courses I've ever played), or any of the Bandon courses, or places high on my wish list like Sand Hills in Nebraska. Augusta National is a very tempting pick, even given how short the season is to play it...but really, I can't choose just one. Maybe Muirfield, to pick a course here in Scotland? Although Machrihanish is certainly my favorite course which I've ever actually been able to play every day without restriction - it ticks so many boxes for me.
 

Over Guapo Grande

panty merchant
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Nov 29, 2005
4,461
Worcester
As far as courses I have played, I would go with Pau Golf club, in the foothills of the Pyrenees. It is, if I remember correctly , the oldest course in Continental Europe. I played there in '97, as I was doing the stereotypical backpack through France thing . There was a (brace yourself) strike going on with the conductors of the trains, so I had a day to burn in the city. Walked on, rented some clubs, and had an extremely memorable round. It was my first (and only?) experience playing in metres, so I slowly figured out to add 10% to the number to get a yardage.... not that it really mattered. I can skull a wedge from 90 yards or 90 metres, makes no difference to me.

I'd have the history of an old course, plus lovely climate, as well as living in southern France.
 
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ezemerson

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Jan 19, 2013
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just wanted to chime in here - not really related to dream courses (although i have a few but need more time to think), but about courses i haven't played.....during this pandemic i have been more adventurous when picking courses to play rather than going to my mainstays that i usually frequent. I have really tried to branch out and explore as many different courses that i have not played before and i have really enjoyed seeing a bunch of new places. I have also embraced, more than ever, this summer the 9-hole outings as i usually have to play by myself. I have probably played around 6 new courses this summer, that were all shockingly close to where i live. So my message is to get out there and explore new places.....on to the next one
 

FL4WL3SS

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Andy Brickley's potty mouth
Waverley.

Waverley’s green jacket for the Blyth champion started in 1930 and is said to be the inspiration for Augusta National.

Chandler Egan, who was Alastair Mackenzie’s design partner (and also partnered on Pebble), did Waverley. So there is something there.

Edit: read about it here https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/championships/2017/u-s--senior-women-s-amateur/articles/senior-women_s-amateur-adds-to-waverleys-impressive-history.html
Didn't know that about Waverly, very interesting and would make sense. Unfortunately it's more superficial than that. It's Aldarra, which is meticulously kept and the membership has a sense of superiority (hence the reference to Augusta).
 

jercra

No longer respects DeChambeau
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Jul 31, 2006
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Didn't know that about Waverly, very interesting and would make sense. Unfortunately it's more superficial than that. It's Aldarra, which is meticulously kept and the membership has a sense of superiority (hence the reference to Augusta).
Yeah, going to have to read up on Waverly. That's pretty cool.

@FL4WL3SS I thought you were talking about Aldarra. Having played there and your course, I prefer your course. Aldarra was perfectly kept and really interesting, but there are a few fairly goofy holes.
 

TFP

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The back 9 at Aldarra is the best 9 holes between the two courses. But the front 9 is the worst of the 4.
 

Gunca

New Member
Mar 5, 2020
44
I’ve been having some issues on the greens this year after putting lights out (for me) last season. Last season I was using a Piretti Cottonwood II CS putter, but this year something felt “off” with it.

A few weeks ago, Piretti took to social media and made some racist comments. He doubled and tripled down when questioned. Now I definitely can’t use it, too much bad juju. I’ve been switching putters frequently since then trying to find “The One.”

Cameron, Odyssey, L.A.B, Seemore, you name it. The flavor of the week is a Bettinardi Arm Lock. Let’s see how this experiment goes.
 
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Phragle

wild card bitches
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Jan 1, 2009
13,154
Carmine's closet
I’ve been having some issues on the greens this year after putting lights out (for me) last season. Last season I was using a Piretti Cottonwood II CS putter, but this year something felt “off” with it.

A few weeks ago, Piretti took to social media and made some racist comments. He doubled and tripled down when questioned. Now I definitely can’t use it, too much bad juju. I’ve been switching putters frequently since then trying to find “The One.”

Cameron, Odyssey, L.A.B, Seemore, you name it. The flavor of the week is a Bettinardi Arm Lock. Let’s see how this experiment goes.
I'm the guy to talk to if you like no offset putters. I have a SC 2.6 that I love. It looks similar to your Piretti but maybe with a little more toe hang. Could be worth a try
 

Gunca

New Member
Mar 5, 2020
44
I'm the guy to talk to if you like no offset putters. I have a SC 2.6 that I love. It looks similar to your Piretti but maybe with a little more toe hang. Could be worth a try
I get along well with no offset putters being right handed and left eye dominant. That one has always been on my list to try out.
 

Phragle

wild card bitches
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Jan 1, 2009
13,154
Carmine's closet
I get along well with no offset putters being right handed and left eye dominant. That one has always been on my list to try out.
Yeah I'm RH and left eye too. I usually don't like center shafts but I couldn't find much that fit my specs and was heel shafted. I picked up the 2.6 to try and I loved it immediatley. I still keep an eye out for putters I may like better but it's going to be hard to beat out of my bag. The only issue you may have is finding one. I believe mine is from 2013 and they don't offer them in the current line so you'll likey have to buy it used

Hey that's mine!
 

Senator Donut

post-Domer
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Apr 21, 2010
5,500
For those in MA, how is your course dealing with the new governor's orders effective this week, specifically "Alcoholic beverages may only be served for on-site consumption if accompanied by food prepared on-site." Piles of french fries ready to be served at the turn?
 

cshea

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Nov 15, 2006
36,047
306, row 14
Chance to break 90 on the 18th tee today. Needed a 5.

Popped up drive.
Chunked 3-hybrid from 210.
Decent wedge that came up a tad short of the green
Chipped to 6 feet
Burned the edge.

90 it is. So close.
 

Light-Tower-Power

ask me about My Pillow
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Jun 14, 2013
15,948
Nashua, NH
For those in MA, how is your course dealing with the new governor's orders effective this week, specifically "Alcoholic beverages may only be served for on-site consumption if accompanied by food prepared on-site." Piles of french fries ready to be served at the turn?
They're doing prohibition down there now? I don't usually play in MA but I'd probably just put ice packs and beers in the bag.
 

patinorange

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Aug 27, 2006
30,662
6 miles from Angel Stadium
Chance to break 90 on the 18th tee today. Needed a 5.

Popped up drive.
Chunked 3-hybrid from 210.
Decent wedge that came up a tad short of the green
Chipped to 6 feet
Burned the edge.

90 it is. So close.
Golf is awful
Yesterday I had a shot at 79. On 17, a long par three, I hit the same shot I have hit the last five times I have played this course, a five hybrid into an impossible trap, right, 35 yards short of the green. No tracks in the sand, I am the first guy in there all day. My sand play has been pathetic. I hit the best sand shot of my life, 6 feet from the pin and another miracle, I made the putt. Standing on 18 needing only a bogey for 79. Fairly straight forward par 4. Shit drive short and right, but a miracle 3 wood, dead straight, ending up 65 yards from the hole. I normally would hit a full 60 wedge, but since I shanked that club earlier in the day, I decided on an easy sand wedge. Of course I decel and advance it 20 yards. Complete whiff. I chip to 10 feet and putt it right into the hole, around the rim and out.
I wanted to break every club in my bag and throw them into a lake, even though the 80 was my lowest score since the Covid 19 shut down.
Can't wait to tee it up Saturday!
 

ernieshore

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Aug 24, 2006
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The Camel City
Broke 80 for the first time in a while today - on a par 73. Played the back in 2 over and parred the last three holes for a 79, knowing my score. I made an testy 5-footer on 18 to do it, so that feels good.

But the funny thing is, it didn’t feel like I played well. I just didn’t have awfushots that cost me to blow up a hole. I didn’t drive well , but was never far off the fairway. Didn’t put well, but didn’t three-putt. Chipped OK and saved a couple pars, but nothing spectacular.

It’s also a city course where rounds can take 5 hours - but we played it 3:20. Now enjoying a post-round pint on a nice, quiet outdoor patio.

Gotta say it was a good day.
 
I had a remarkably ho-hum 75 today, in my last tune-up round before my club championship qualifier on Saturday - 14 pars and 4 bogeys. Missed a two-footer and a three-footer, and also toe-shanked a driver off the deck that went only about 120 yards into the rough, so that's three of the four bogeys right there...so it might sound like I was very close to a great round, but in truth I never felt like I had my swing going. It was a really damp and murky day, and the ball wasn't flying or rolling at all (by links standards), and my swing was so flawed that I was barely hitting it out of my non-existent shadow - my average drive was probably like 210 yards long. I did make a few longer par putts, and also had a 40-yard bump-and-run with a 6-iron on the 11th which was going way past the hole but hit the stick and stopped a few feet away, so I did have a few breaks go my way. But the weather forecast for Saturday is for steady winds of 20 mph gusting up to 35 all day, and if I hit the ball then like I did today I'll probably shoot 85 instead of 75.

By the by, I did play in our medal competition this past Saturday, but I did so after not getting home from my commentary assignment on Friday night until after 1:30 in the morning (after a three-hour drive), and I wasn't feeling great in the morning. I gave it a go, but after starting +5 after 6 holes I withdrew, and just in the nick of time given how desperate for the bathroom I was on my walk back to the clubhouse. So that sucked, particularly as there wasn't a lot of wind and the course was there to be had - e.g., four players broke par (scratch).