Fastest round of golf I’ve ever played. Compared to the 7 hour marathon at Van Cortlandt, the difference was night and day.

Although this past Wednesday was wet and rainy, I arrived at the Rutgers Golf Course at 7:30am because I had an 8:00am tee time. When I got there I only saw 4 cars in the parking lot, which meant 2 things: 1. The golf course was open 2. People called it quits due to the weather. When I got to the pro shop to check in, the lady confirmed that there were a lot of cancellations, and even though they don’t usually let singles go out on their own, today was okay. I purchased a couple of tokens and headed to the driving range to practice first, and then started my round.

The round was great! With no one in sight, it felt like I was playing on my own private course. And since there was no rush, on some holes I hit 2 balls to simulate 2 players in order to squeeze in more practice. Now I kind of wish every round was like this.

(Photo courtesy of innovativebusinessgolf.com)

Today at the Rutgers driving range, I saw Jeremy Ito again. For those of you who don’t know who he is, his immortalized field goal against #2 ranked Louisville may be the most defining moment in Rutgers Football.

Watch the kick here.

I’ve been practicing a lot lately and at times I feel as if no matter what adjustments I make, I’m not improving. One thing I heard before was that what the body feels like it’s doing and what it’s actually doing can be two totally different things. That’s why I decided to start up lessons again. The knowledge and objectivity of an instructor are things practicing alone can’t replicate.

For my first lesson my instructor provided a few small tweaks in the grip and posture and almost magically, I was hitting the ball more solid than before. With less effort, my shots were going further. Although small, the changes make the overall feel of my swing significantly different and I’ve been trying to familiarize myself with the new mechanics. Along with more solid contact, my shots have also been hooking to the left far more than before. Hopefully the next lesson will cure that.

The maximum number of clubs allowed in the golf bag is 14. I only had 12. Maybe that’s why… nevermind. I’m not going to make excuses.

I accumulated some gift cards while working at my previous job and decided to finally use them this past weekend. The gift cards were for Austad’s Golf and I had a good idea of what I wanted to get.

This 500 count bag of 2-3/4″ tees for use with the driver will last me a long time.

This 100 count bag of 2-1/4″ tees for use with irons will also last me quite a while. I chose white for the long tees and the natural wood color for short tees so that if I reached into my golf bag and grabbed a handful, I could easily differentiate them.

This may be the best $4.50 I’ve spent. Hitting balls with a club that has grass and dirt in the grooves isn’t a good idea. The buildup may change the trajectory of the ball as well as hinder the effectiveness of the grooves to add spin to a shot. This simple contraption is a small water bottle with a scrub brush head used for cleaning golf clubs, balls, etc. Simple yet effective. I used this for my round today and I miraculously I shot my personal best. Coincidence?

I needed another wedge to fill in the gap between my pitching wedge and sand wedge so I purchased this 50 degree standard bounce from Cleveland Golf. I already had a Cleveland wedge and I liked the feel so I decided to stick with more of the same. The CG12 is similar to the CG11, and with Zip Grooves, allow for more spin around the green.

Summer is just around the corner so here is a reminder to put on that sunblock when you’re out and about - especially when you’re playing 5 hours of golf in the scorching sun.