New Season Low at Carlisle

One week after posting a season low at Lochness Links, I repeated the feat at Carlisle Golf & Country Club. Lowering my season best by two strokes, I managed to post a score of 83. This was my third best score of all time, behind an 81 at Deer Creek South and an 82 at Granite Ridge Cobalt. The round was booked at the very last minute, so I'm definitely glad I managed to find a tee time.

The funny thing about great rounds is they don't always include remarkable or noteworthy shots. Instead, they usually consist of shots that are merely good, but which are sustained over the course of eighteen holes. That was certainly the case at Carlisle. On the North nine, I hit only four of seven fairways. While not bad, that's nothing to write home about. Similarly, I only hit one green in regulation. However, I had no penalty strokes and only 3-putt once. Basically, I avoided getting into trouble. One can easily find out of bounds on North #5 and #6, or have trouble on the tee shot on #7. I seemed to pick those times to hit good shots. The rest of the time, I placed balls somewhere near the greens, chipped on comfortably, and putt adequately. After nine holes, I was shooting a respectable 43.

Riding the confidence from the front nine, I proceeded to the East nine, which I had never played at Carlisle. i was told that the East nine is the easiest of the three, which psychologically must have helped me. In spite of a poor second shot on East #1, I managed to par the par-5 hole. A 3-putt led to bogey on the second hole, but this was followed by nice pars on holes #3 and #4. The third hole is a par-3 over water, which I barely cleared. Fortunately, I took advantage of the lucky break. The par on the fourth hole was of the textbook variety. It feels good when you don't have to scramble to save par. The sixth hole produced the only blemish on the East nine scorecard, resulting in a double bogey due to a pulled tee shot. No worries though, as I rattled off three impressive pars in a row to finish the round.

When all was said and done, I scored 40 on the East nine and 83 for the full round. It just goes to show that boring, consistent play produces the best scores. My ambition is to play like this every round.

Score: 83
Par: 72
Putts: 37
Fairways: 9
Greens: 8