Par Save Glory

Today I played 16 holes of golf, not 18. Due to the recent snowstorm that hit Atlanta the course that I played had two holes closed because of the snow and ice.  This was a first that I had seen; snow on a golf course in Atlanta. Due to the cold weather and flux of people teeing off at Marietta City Club, my friend and I teed off on the  10^th hole and ran played through 16 holes (not 18) in a swift three hours and 15 minutes.

I bogeyed 10, 11 skipped 12 due to snow; looked like a typical round at this point; I am a decent golfer at best. I work hard at it, but it’s a frustrating sport. I teed off on 13, a par 4 dog leg left that when played correctly the green can and should be easily reach in 2 shots.  I pulled my drive hard right. I was able to punch out back into the fairway leaving me about a 95-100 yard shot to the green. My third shot was a total fluke; I topped it and the ball rolled about 10 yards. In frustration I setup for my fourth shot; setup wouldn’t even be the most accurate term as  I grabbed my 9 iron and was ready to put this hole behind me. Before I hit, the one thing I did take into consideration was that the pin was way back. With a wet ground, I figured I wouldn’t over hit my target. No practice swing or thought process, I swung. As I watched the ball take flight I was thinking: this thing is heading on a straight line towards the hole (a thought process that rarely comes to my mind). The ball landed and bounced in line towards the pin. I realized it was a good shot, but I didn’t realize how good of a shot it was. My buddy was up in front of me and had a really good angle on the ball and at that point let me know it had a shot to fall in the hole. I remember seeing the ball rolling and then disappear. I threw my hat and club and found myself briefly in a state of delusion.

 

A view from where my par save shot was hit.

I did not hit a hole in one. What I did do what save par. Save par from a distance I never thought was possible. I will never forget hitting that shot and watching the ball disappear into the hole; walking 80 yards and retrieving the ball out of the hole was quite a treat. Seeing that ball disappear into the hole was such a surreal feeling.  I play golf almost every weekend and having something like this happen was quite the experience, something I had never experienced on a golf course; something I might not ever get to experience again. 

I teed off on 14 and pulled my ball  way right onto the fairway of the next hole. It only seemed appropriate.