Golf Overdose Part II

My last posting was about the golfing binge I did with my mates to Malaysia when my wife was away. I only managed to cover the first part of the month before my wife and kids went back and life began in full swing.  There is something about having a full time job, homework support duties for daughter #1 and #2 and backup babysitting duties for daughter #3 that just sapped the creative juices out of me so that's my long-winded excuse of the month.

Suffice to say that the rest of the December during my temporarily single lifestyle was a flurry of driving ranges, golf courses and of course pizza for dinner (I've gone back to my slightly disgusting single-guy habit of buying large pizza and make it last for 3-4 dinners. Saves money). I went to play in Palm Villa with Christo, an ex-colleague of mine, where I scored a very nice birdie from the fringe with a 9 iron because I was too lazy to walk back to the cart to get my 7 iron which I normally use for chipping. It was also during this round that my friend scored 38 on the front 9. I'll never forget the elation and joy that we felt when we got drinks at the clubhouse during the turn, and the horrible meltdown and ego bruising that we both experienced on the back 9 (he scored a 54 and change, and my score is unprintable, there might be children reading this). 16-stroke differential between the first half and second half of a round is something that happens to the best of us, but you can bet it will be that career-best 38 on the easier front 9 that will be burnt in my friend's psyche for as long as he plays golf. Magical moments like that are the thing that drives the golf industry. I remember the image of my first birdie as clearly as if it was an hour ago. It was at the Executive Golf Course in Singapore 5 long years ago, when my used Dunlop ball flew off my 7 iron and landed a metre away from the hole. You can say that that all my subsequent golf purchases and green fees has been driven by that one moment, to recapture that flash of sheer brilliance. Fortunately for the golf industry and unfortunately for me, it's proven to be an elusive task so far.  

I also got the chance to play in Tanjong Putri (thanks to Wendy and Ernie's help as members) at Johor Bahru with Christo, David and Anton,a work mate who used to play with Rory Sabbatini. He's the first single-digit handicapper I've played with, and needless to say he totally kicked my ass but I completely enjoyed the experience. The golf that is, not the ass-kicking. Tanjong Putri is a very nice golf course. The clubhouse with its tin roof is nothing to shout about but the two courses are pure bliss. If you want a real challenge, try the Straits course,  with its signature island green (see last posting). I didn't do that well in that course I must say but to actually see Anton get on in two on a par 5 to see him actually line up an eagle putt brings a tear to my eye.  Another brilliant thing about Tanjong Putri is that geographically speaking it's just right next to Sembawang so you can save on mobile phone charges. Don't tell Malaysian Telecom :)  

So that's my wrap up for the month of December.. next posting REAL SOON NOW is about what happened to me in February.. stay tuned..