Years ago, in this column, I was asked to glean some practical knowledge of the game of golf from our local club professionals and put those thoughts down in the Clubhouse Porch.
It was an interesting departure from the weekly reporting of tournament results. But, as we all know, the game blossomed in the Four Corners, and the demands on local course staff gave me a short window of opportunity to sit down with the pros.
This week, however, with the thanks of Cathy Gaskell of the Dalton Ranch Women’s Golf Association and her weekly email, I was given a chance to pass on some thoughts from DRGC head professional Fal Wood.
Wood, who by now everyone knows, will be retiring at the end of this season. Along with his successor Pier Nielson, Wood gives the Ladies Association some valuable tips on the game each week. Last week, Wood did a clinic on course management, and I would like to share his advice.
There are five key ways to tackle a course:
1. Know your capabilities, and play the course within that framework. The example given was if you know you are comfortable hitting a 150-yard shot to the green from the fairway, then take that shot. Don’t try to play a 151-yard shot to the green, as you most likely will mishit, pull your head, or any other number of messes you can get into.
2. Accept your capabilities, as we all are not going to be as long as our club pros.
3. Practice on the range to learn the distance your clubs carry or chart your hits when you play. This way you know where and how far your clubs will go.
4. Understand the course conditions: Dryness, heavy winds and wet grass all will play a factor in your decisions.
5. Relax. Enjoy your game. It is a game, although there are days we may call it something else.
Great thoughts to live by!
The Bugler, the Member/Guest, will begin Wednesday at the Dalton Ranch Golf Club and will run through Saturday.
The Hillcrest Adult/Junior, sponsored by Coldwell Banker Heritage House Realtors, will be held Sunday. There is $250 in added prize purse with flighted tee times to start at 1 p.m.
The Bank of the San Juans at Dalton Ranch is Aug. 9, with a shotgun start at 9 a.m.
We venture west Aug. 10 to the Medicine Horse Masters Golf Tournament at the 9-hole South Forty course in Cortez.
The annual Dudley Engle Memorial is Aug. 17. This is a fundraising event for the Emblem Club of the Durango Elks Lodge. There will be a shotgun start at 1 p.m., with awards and dinner afterward at the Elks Lodge.
Hillcrest Golf Club
The Hillcrest Women’s Golf Association Tuesday Ladies’ Middle Nine, July 23:
First Flight
1. Daphne D’Agostino, low gross, 42; 1. Robin Cunningham, low net, 35.
Second Flight
1. Laurel Waters, low gross, 43; 1. Macky Headrick, low net, 35.
Third Flight
1. Carol Woodward, low gross, 49; 1. Beverly Ellis, low net, 30.
9-Hole
1. Jean Thweatt, low gross, first flight, 25; 1. Arlene Millich, low gross, second flight, 32.
Dave Bray has covered the local golf scene for 32 years. He can be reached at dbray3751@gmail.com.
