Last Saturday dawned with cerulean blue skies stretching as far as the eye could see, zero humidity and a light, beautiful breeze. I think you’ll agree it was nothing short of gorgeous. In my book, there is no better way to spend such a picture-perfect day than out on the golf course. Which is exactly where my co-workers Brian Golden, Pat Newell and I were on the beautiful morning in question.
With my friend Julie Gates rounding out our foursome, we were one of 33 teams to enter the Brandi Estelow Nursing Scholarship Fund tournament at Blue Stone Golf Course in Oxford.
Do the quick math and you’ll realize that translates into roughly 130 golfers on the course. Which is why it may very well have been the longest round of golf in the history of man. Just over 6 1/2 hours, if I recall correctly. Not that we minded, though, because it was an absolute blast.
Thankfully, I had lots of sunscreen with me, not to mention a cooler filled with cold libations. (All purchased on premises, thank you very much.)
Because the turnout was so high, we were sent out in eight-somes. I’m not sure that is actually a word, but it definitely accomplished what it was intended to. Everyone moved at a good pace, with little to no waiting. And, perhaps most importantly, everyone made it out alive, since you had more than just your teammates to chat with.
Our other half - better half, really - consisted of four fabulous ladies from the Sherburne area: Dena, Laurie, Pam and Kathy. (All of whose names I have probably spelled wrong, by the way.) They were all phenomenal golfers, and quickly put us to shame. Well, at least they put Brian, Julie and I to shame. Pat rocks.
I really shouldn’t sell our little Evening Sun team short, though. We each contributed some good shots, and worked really well together as a whole. Although, we did gang up on Brian a little bit. But, hey, he should be used to that by now. Right, newbie?
As I mentioned, Pat was nothing short of phenomenal all day. (The lousy show off!) But we ladies held our own, too.
I started out with some great drives which, thanks to the advantage from the women’s tees, put us in good shape. And just when I started to flag – which, incidentally, coincided with the emptying of the cooler – the token non-ES staffer hit her stride.
Julie was once an avid player, but a few years ago she suffered a back injury. As a result, she packed up her clubs. It’s a testament to her support of the Estelow/Diamond/Mack family that she pulled them out on Saturday. (And I know she paid dearly for it for a few days afterward.)
She was a bit rusty when we started out. But once she warmed up – wow!
I can pinpoint the moment, actually, when It was on the 14th hole which, since we started on 9, was our sixth of the day. (We won’t talk about how long it took us to get there.)
Pat had put us on the green with a terrific chip shot, but we were still 12 to 13 feet from the hole. Mentally, I was already counting it as a par, thinking it would take us two more strokes to get it in.
My short game leaves much to be desired even on the best of days, and therefore I was first up. The theory being that I would show my teammates “the line.” Unfortunately, my speed was way off, so my attempt didn’t have its desired effect.
Julie was next, and she showed them the line, all right. By holing it.
Of course, we were jubilant. We were still celebrating both the putt and the corresponding birdie when I plucked her ball out of the cup.
