50 States and 50 Capitals Golf Trip

[spider]

@Shindig i'm not contacting them.  I'll just replace them.

[spider]

Number 14. Bismarck, North Dakota. Saturday 07/01/2017. I played Riverwood Golf Course, black tees 7066 yards. This was a long course from the blacks. Some of the holes were completely surrounded by very tall trees with areas of  tall stringy rough. I had a 10:28 t-time and got to the course at 8:30 so that I could warmup and practice before the round, which went well. Initially I was scheduled to play with a twosome, but went out with another single instead. I also had intended to play from the blue tees, 6059 yards. Why did I change? My playing partner, Diesel wanted to play from the tips since play was slow, so we played from the tips. Diesel was just getting back in the game and had been practicing, mostly his short game. We started off slowly, but warmed up and began to hit really good drives. looking at the fairway from the tips was like looking down a tunnel. I really enjoyed how the wall of trees surrounded the holes.

Diesel was a hazardous material truck driver, very perky and glad he was playing golf again. He told me that a police officer stopped him for a traffic violation. Diesel told the policeman that he was a truck driver, and the officer said that diesel didn't look like a trucker, he looked like a school teacher, which he does. Diesel, who's real name is Fritz, was fun to play golf with and talk to. His pitching and chipping were beauties.

I've met someone from California at almost every course I've played. One player in Boise from Cal, the pro shop worker in Salem was from Cal, Don in Olympia goes to Palm Springs every year, one of the players in Helena lives in northern  California, Diesel is also from California, and I stopped at a gas station and the clerk was from California.  

We started on the back 48, front 44, total 92.   

  

 

 

[spider]

Number 15. Pierre, South Dakota. Sunday 07/02/2017. I played Hillsview Golf Course, silver tees 6357 yards. This was  course appeared to be wild open with patches of trees  to avoid, but the rough was thick and deep. I had an early t-time because I had another long  seven hour ride to St. Paul. I was joined on the first tee by John, who works for the corp of engineers, gets off work and plays 18 holes before he goes home. He hits a long ball and has a good short game. He pointed out where I should hit the ball, and gave me information about the course. A few years ago the river near the course flooded the course and most of the city. You can still see the water line on the trees, about three feet high. John and his wife moved to pierre from Ohio, they miss home but have adjusted to Pierre.

I played well, no three putts even though the greens were huge. One of the par three greens is the largest in the state. John played well also, and his course knowledge served him well. I know I keep saying it, but it's true, another good day on the golf course with great company.

We finished in about three hours, talked a little while and left of St. Paul, the next stop.   

 I visited the Capital building area before I left. 

 Front 43, back 45, total 88. 

 

 

[spider]

Number 16. St. Paul, Minnesota. Monday 07/03/2017. I played Highland National Golf Course, white tees 6196 yards. At first glance from the pro shop, this course looks flat, it's not. As you make your way through the course the elevations changes, uphill, downhill, left and right curves with slants. I played well, two days in a row, I'm on my way to becoming a pro. I hit many good iron shots, just so-so with the woods. I parred 3 of 4 par three's, and only two bogeys. Played strategic golf, working my way from the greens back to the tee. This worked well and was a fun process. Of course I've known about it, just never used it.  My good chipping and putting continued, and those early round three putts are a thing of the past. I didn't have a playing partner. The front 44, the back 43, total 87. 

When I finished playing I went to Famous Daves Bar-B-Que for my 4th of July meal.  

 Next city, Madison, Wisconsin on Tuesday July 4, 2017. 

 

 

[Shindig]

I notice your scores keep decreasing -- I hope this trend continues.  More importantly, it sounds like you're playing some cool courses and enjoying the trip.  I'm certainly enjoying reading about it.  

[spider]

@Shindig No blowup holes.

[RandallT]

Love the thread- really enjoy the mini-profiles and pics of your random playing partners. Just a great snapshot of the state (no pun intended) of public golf in America. 

More pics. More stories. Great job @spider!

[14ledo81]

Looks like fun.  Hope you keep updating.

[spider]

Number 17. Madison, Wisconsin. Tuesday 07/04/2017. I played Bridges Golf Course, white tees 6093 yards. Just when you think you have broken through, golf lets you know that you still have to keep working and refining your game. My last two rounds were in the 80's, I was going for three in a row, didn't happen. This course is named 'Bridges" because there are bridges throughout the course. There are trees, weeds, reeds, and water areas that look like swamps. Before I started one of the workers , John, told me that the course isn't as simple or as open as it looks. He said that if I hit my ball in the rough I probably would not find it, so keep it in the fairway. John was right. the course was unforgiving if you missed your tee shot, and almost as unforgiving if you missed your approach shot on the wrong side, the weed side. The greens were in great condition and rolled well.

I started out well, first hole a par, then I missed the fairway on the par-5 second hole made a seven. Anytime I missed the fairway I had to reload, the ball was either in the swamp water, weeds or forest area. I played conservatively, using my 5-wood on most holes. I again played the par-3 holes well, my worst holes were par-5's. My chipping was good, nice and smooth, and my putting was great, I saved a lot of bogeys. When I made the turn, I went to my car for more balls, just incase.  

As you move away from the club house, you move into what looks like a jungle, where golf holes have been strategically cut out. I really enjoyed playing this course. There were no holes that you could relax on. It forced me to take my driving range swing to the course. The Tailormade M2 woods that I use are not forgiving on off-center shots. My slice slices hard, and my hook hooks hard, but when I hit them square, they are beautiful long straight shots. Love it. When I get home I will look to play more courses like this, and I will have some less expensive balls incase my game is not on point. It hurts to see those new Prov1x balls go to the land of no-return.

Front 48, back 44, total 92. 

  It's July 4, 2017 and I'm spending the next 2 days in Chicago, seeing a few relatives and resting. I'll play in Springfield, Illinois on July 6, 2017. I have 8 more capitals to play and this will be the turn homeward.

A few side notes.

(1) I have t-mobile. Driving from Bismarck, ND to Pierre, SD, I had absolutely no cell service.

(2) In Illinois I went through 4 toll stations from Madison to Chicago, at a cost of $1.90, $3.00, $1.50 and $1.50. It was funny to me as I told each attendant that Chicago had gone "Gangster" with the tolls. They all laughed.   

 

 

[spider]

Number 18. Springfield, Illinois. Thursday 07/06/2017. I played The Oaks Golf Course, white tees 5608 yards. I spent two days in Chicago with my aunt, and visited with my niece and nephew, well needed rest. As I mentioned in number 14, I've met many Californians, and met another one today. The of The Oaks is from California and worked at Rancho Park Golf Course in Los Angeles. He played golf with Bill Russell and Smokey Robinson and other celebrities. The owners name is Danny Pesh, a PGA Professional, and really nice guy.

I drove 4 hours from Chicago to Springfield, starting at 3 a.m., getting to the course just when a regular group was going out, so I started on the back alone. The course does not have a driving range. Dan said the back was harder than the front. The back 9 was flat, with wide fairways and very few hazards or trouble on most holes. There were some between holes out-of-bounds and sand traps. If you missed the fairway you could recover to the green or just short of the green, even from another fairway. In short, not very difficult, from an 18 handicapper. I shot 44 on the back, parring and bogeying my way to a 37 going to number 18 hole. I hit my drive which sliced to the left, staying inbounds, about 112 yards from the green. There were two tall oaks between me and the green. I eye-balled it and thought I could get a pitching wedge over the trees and close to the green. I played the ball forward in my stance, took a smooth swing and watch the ball fly high over the trees. I thought, "what a beautiful shot." I looked under the trees to see where it would land. I saw it come down and disappear, and then I saw a stream of water shoot straight up. The ball landed in a water hazard. I didn't see water hazard stakes, but when I got to the area, there was water protecting the green. I took 7 on the hole with a bad chip for, 44 on the front. I made the turn and while waiting to start on the front, Dan came out. I asked him why there were no stakes around the water hazard on 18. Dan said , "no money in the budget for hazard stakes." We had a big laugh. 

I played 7 holes of the front with a retired soldier, a lefty, named Dwight. He caught me on the third hole because there was a threesome and a foursome in front of me. We had fun cheering each other on. Dwight played from the forward tees, but he had good distance. On hole number 9 I hit "that drive", the shot that we say keeps bringing you back, long and straight down the middle. I hit a pitching wedge to 12 ft. Dwight was also on in two, with a 30 ft putt. We both made par, but I didn't leave my birdie putt short.

40 on the front, 44 on the back, total 84. Front yardage 2468, back yardage 3140.

I went to the Springfield State Capitol building. It was a beauty. I then went to Abraham Lincoln Museum and saw the interesting exhibits of Abraham Lincoln's life. I bought a book from the gift shop entitled "The Wit & Wisdom of Abraham Lincoln". I've got to publish my book, hopefully by next summer, it's entitled "Spider's Book of Poems and Words of Wisdom."  

I'm having so much trouble attaching pictures.

[MasonAsher2014]

Know where you are playing in Indiana yet?

[spider]

@MasonAsher2014 I'm not playing Indiana this year. I'm doing east of Mississippi River next Spring/ Summer. The weather is so unpredictable, I'll be moving based on the weather. I'm playing Coffin Golf Club next year.

[spider]

Number 19. Des Moines. Friday 07/06/2017. I played Waveland Municipal Golf Club, white tees 6282 yards. The Waveland is the exact opposite of The Oaks. The Waveland has hazards and trouble on every hole and everywhere on the hole. You are either hitting down hill on the fairway and up to the green or you are hitting all the way up the fairway and up to the green. There are dog legs left and right which break up or down hill, with blind spots. the rough is over three inches, the brush is a combination of trees, bushes and water hazards. It has large greens that are a challenge read the breaks and speed. The course is a visual challenge. Having said all of that, it's a beautiful course with great views from the top and bottom of holes.

I played with two guys, John and Ulhri, who were from Boise, Idaho. They were in Des Moines for a family reunion. Uhri's wife and John's girlfriend's family. So they got away for a round of golf. Not knowing the course, we played okay, but we did allow two groups to play through, and added a fourth guy to our group, Jay, for the last 3 holes. John shoots in the 80's, but shot 90 this round. Ulhri shoots 90 plus, but has a great short game. He was hitting great pitch and chip shots, but couldn't get his putts to the hole. Ulhri's last pitch shot on number 18 was inches from the hole. My game was one of survival, only 4 pars. Front 46, back 46, total 92. Fun guys to play with. We had a drink at the 19th hole, talked and I left them there, taking as much time away from the family reunion as they could.

[spider]

Number 20. Lincoln, Nebraska. Saturday 07/08/2017. I played Holmes Golf Course, blue tees 6420 yards. The course was flat, wide open, not many hazards and the putting was good most of the time. I played alone and moved pretty quickly. I shot a 42 on the front, parred the tenth and then bogeyed, doubled, doubled, and tripled 11, 12, 13 and 14. I closed with three pars and a bogey for 45 on the back, total 87. After a tough round the day before, this was a welcome round. No cell service in Lincoln from t-moble.

[jiminyv]

Man i wish i would have seen this before you hit ND! Riverwood is a great course but Hawktree in bismarck is where its at, plus you drove right by Bully Pulpit at Medora. Good luck on the rest of your journey.

[spider]

@jiminyvThanks

[spider]

Number 21. Jefferson City, Missouri. Sunday 07/09/2017. I played Oak Hills Golf Course, par 70, blue tees 5802 yards, these are the back tees. The course as you see is short, but the teeth of the course are the sloping fairways. Most of the fairways slope, which makes ball placement difficult. If you don't hit it high enough on the slope, you're in the rough on the low side. There are trees and brush everywhere, but you can recover from some areas in the trees. The greens were not fast, but I understand that's due to the rain, normally they are very fast, so I got lucky. 

I started the front nine with Dave. He normally plays from the forward tees, but decided to play from the back with me, and actually played better than I did. You need course knowledge to know where to hit your ball, and dave was my course knowledge. He did a good job of instructing, and I did alright placing most shots. We did have one hole of miscommunication. Dave told me to hit the ball to the left of a certain tree, and I did it perfectly, resulting in my ball in the trees. Dave said that he meant the right side of the tree. I thanked  Dave for the bogey. 

Dave stopped after playing the front nine holes. The foursome in front of us had become a threesome and I joined them for the back nine. The younger of the group, Dan played from the blue tees, the other two, Kenny and Jeff played from the white tees. Kenny was too long to play from the white tees, and here again was another guy with a great chipping game. We had a bet going for the 18th hole, which I won. My drive on 18 landed in the rough behind trees. I hit a high wedge over the trees onto the the green. This seems to be one of my specialties. The cold beer hit the spot.  

I shot 43 on the front and 41 on the back with two birdies, one on a par 4 and the other on a par 3. Total 84. Good round on a short course, and a very nice looking course. 

[spider]

Number 22. Topeka, Kansas. Monday 07/10/2017. I played Cypress Ridge Golf Course, par 70, blue tees 6188 yards, these are the back tees. The course is also a par 70 similar to Oak Hills, but this course has four par 5's, Oak Hills has three par 5's. and is little shorter. Cypress Ridge is not nearly as difficult as Oak Hills, nor is it as beautiful, but it does have some nice views. The rough is the only issue with this course, if you find the rough you may not find your ball, and if you find your ball, getting it back to the fairway is a great shot.

I got to the course early so that I could play quickly. I had to make the eight hour drive to Denver after the round. I followed a single walker, and even though I had a golf cart, I never caught him. I spent too much time looking for my balls in the rough. I saved pars and bogeys with good chipping. I'm getting a little cocky with my chipping. Last year I was just hoping to get the ball on the green with my first chip, now I'm expecting my ball to get within ten feet, and then expecting to make the putt. What a difference a year makes. Also watching the good chippers I've been playing with and copying their smooth tempo hasn't hurt. 

I took the time to practice two playing strategies. My largest scores have come on par 5's, my major blowup holes. I've decided to play 7-wood, 7-wood, short-iron on all par 5's. I get 200 yards with my 7-wood. The other strategy is to use my 56 instead of my 60 degree wedge. I'm constantly grabbing the 60 for short shots and coming up short. Today these strategies worked great. On the first 527 yard par 5, I hit 7-w, 7-w. The second 7-w found the rough. I was within 150 yards but I knew that I could not get to the green so I wedged out to the fairway. Now from this position I would normally use my 60 and come up short of the green, instead I used my 56 and the ball was within a foot of the hole, for par. On the 552 yard par 5 I played 7-w, 7-w, 7-iron. On the green in three, missed birdie putt, made par. These strategies eliminate my stress when playing par 5's and pitch shots that I know should be on the green, not short of the green. I'm learning many things about my game and what changes I need to make to play better, which clubs I actually use, such as my 50 degree wedge. I have not used that club on this trip, and rarely used it at home. I need my 4-iron which i don't have with me. Out goes the 50 in comes the 4-iron.  

It's good to be out here alone, where the only voice I hear is my own.

Front 43, back 41with one birdie, total 84. The same score as Oak Hills, also a par 70.