Dj's tee time was 7:40AM first group off of 10 tee. Bob and I got to the course and made it to the tee with around 4 minutes to spare before tee off. DJ was paired with Greg Chalmers, a lefty from Australia and Scott Piercy from Las Vegas.
All three players hit 3 woods on the short and tight 10th hole and split the middle. All 3 players hit the green with DJ's putt around 12 feet and Scott's put was around 15 feet. After Greg putted it close from around 30 feet, Scott hit a solid putt with good speed that just missed. Dj hit a good putt and caught some lip but it spun out. Hole one had 3 pars for a good start.
Number 11 is a 231 yard par 3 that played all of it as the pin was dead back on the top shelf around 15 feet from the back of the green. Chalmers knocked the pin down and just trickled an inch or two into the fringe. Piercy hit it just as well and ended up around 5 inches off, almost directly behind Chalmers ball which had to be moved for Scott to putt. DJ hit a real good 3 iron to around 12 feet, just short of the hole. Piercy center cut it for birdie, and Chalmers and DJ both made good puts that could have dropped but didn't.
Chalmers had It 5 under for 17 and bogeyed number 9 (their 18th hole) for a 4 under 67 (par is 71) which is the same score Piercy shot. DJ had it 2 under through hole 7 (his 16th ) and bogeyed the last two to end up even par. Scores were low (Steve Stricker and Jim Furyk are tied at 8 under 63) as the weather was bright and sunny and the wind was nothing more than a breeze for most of the day. Chalmers and Piercy's 4 unders have them tied for 13th and Dj's even is tied for 65th. DJ will have to play hard as 70 and ties will make the cut to play the weekend.
DJ played a real solid round and if you watched it you would be hard pressed to believe he shot even par. He started on number 10 and hit 6 of 7 fairways and 9 of 9 greens in regulation. He had 18 putts. On the front side he hit 4 of 7 greens missing 2, with a pull into the left heavy rough, both around 10 feet off the fairway. On hole 6 his drive ended up around 1 foot off being in the first cut. He hit 6 of nine greens and had 15 putts which is even par for putts.
DJ's Totals for round 1: 11/14 fairways; 14/18 greens in regulation; 33 putts. For round 1 DJ was T23rd in driving accuracy; T13th in greens in regulation; T90th in putts per round and T74th in putts per green.
Overall, DJ had a good round for ball striking in hitting fairways and greens, but got no love form the greens. He hit a lot of good putts that caught apiece of the hole or lipped out that could of gone in but didn't. Conclusion; hit it good but and putted it well, making 3 good putts in the 5 -8 foot range for pars, but only made two for birdies. Overall his lag putting was good. This was a good round that went flat, with him bogeying the last two holes hitting two pretty good putts of 6 and 8 feet that missed.
DJ was quite disappointed and frustrated but not angry, as he played a pretty good round of golf and just didn't get the ball into the hole. We had a quiet and calm lunch, and then headed to the range to practice. He hit one bucket, from wedges to drivers quite well, and declared that he saw no reason to beat balls swinging so well. I was OK with that and we headed over to the short game area, hit some pitches and bunker shots and then headed over to the putting green where he did his chalk line, make 30 in a row and you can go drill, and then decided that was enough.
His good friend Charlie Hoffman (the pro with the long blond hair whom I call 'Surfer Dude') showed up as he finished the 30th putt and they putted a little and talked a little about some band (I never heard of) was doing a concert in Boston. Sergio Garcia was putting nearby and heard their conversation and he said he had heard that band in Madrid and it was a real good concert and worth going to. Even with Sergio's recommendation, Charlie and DJ passed on going.
When Charlie finished putting I asked him if he would do me a favor and sign a personalized autograph to the wife of a friend of mine who has adopted Charlie as her number 1 pro. I handed him a note pad I carry so I can write memos and info so I won't forget good ideas. He said that wasn't good enough and pulled the glove he played with out of his back pocket and wrote Charlene a real nice message on the palm and signed it. Bob and I ran by Allendale CC where we knew Charlene was playing and gave her the glove, which made her day. Charlene gives Charlie and great BIG THANK YOU as do I.
With the glove signed, Charlie went to the range. DJ decided for us to meet around 10 tomorrow for practice before lunch as he is teeing off at 12:10 on number 1 tee. With the big decision made for tomorrow's meet time on the range, DJ and Todd headed to Boston and Bob and I headed back to Dartmouth.
The Surge!