There is a scene from the otherwise forgettable and disappointing Caddyshack 2 that has stuck with me. As Jackie Mason gets up to tee off in the climactic match, his playing partner turns him 90 degrees from the green and advises him to just try swinging in this direction because he owns, "the worst slice in the history of golf." This was my attitude today.
My slice is getting more pronounced, but I'm taking it as a compliment. Rather than it appearing on occasional shots, it has begun to appear on every shot, which I like - it means I'm getting more consistent with my swing. If it was still just showing up on occasion it would mean that I'm all over the place with my swing. Since it's there on every swing it means that I'm doing something wrong - but at least I'm doing it on every shot. I'm consistent; I take that as progress. So, rather than having to figure out the 15 things that are wrong with my swing, now I just have to figure out the one aspect that is making me slice. The thing about it is that it will take a while to fix the kink in my swing and out on the course is not a place you can experiment (the groups behind you tend to frown upon that kind of stuff). In the meantime, I've taken the Caddyshack method: if your slice is making the ball go right, aim more to the left.
This worked out to great success on the 14th hole, which is the signature hole of the course I played today as I returned for another shot at the back 9 on Lost Brook Golf Club. With the pin placed on the front right of the hole I decided to aim for the back left of the green, hoping that the ball would at least clear the water and stick on the green, giving me the chance to two-putt for a par. Well, it worked out even better as my slice was in full effect. The ball landed dead center of the green and continued rolling to the right and downhill, stopping 5 feet from the pin. Now, I've hit shots that have looked better and I've hit shots that have ended up closer to the pin but I've never hit a shot that was so good looking and close. I even made the putt for the birdie 2.
That was the capper, but the whole round was really good for me. I avoided any really disastrous holes and only carded one 7, which came because I had some issues with chipping near the green. I even had a shot from a greenside sandtrap that landed within 2 feet of the pin. For the day I managed to scratch my way to a 43, which is not that great considering the par was 27, but was 10 shots better than my last attempt at Lost Brook and also under the par for the entire course, which is not always the case.
