Good, Better, Best

Good, Better, Best

I've hated the 4th hole at the Furman Golf Club for quite some time. Far too many big numbers in the past year. But on Oct. 12, I was swinging the club relatively well, and I knew a good pass would lead to a good score on that day. My playing partners and former college teammates, Alex and Bryce, both hit before me. The 205 yd hole wasn't playing particular difficult, so it was no surprise both guys hit the green. But Bryce's ball, as seen in the picture, was a particularly brilliant shot. Less than 4 feet for birdie. And within our little match, that was bad news for me. So I said to myself, "Gotta have a good one here." Turned out to be the best 4 iron I've ever hit. Struck beautifully, a soft draw that came back to cover the pin. I knew it would be a good shot, but because of the shadow layout around the green, I couldn't tell exactly how it reacted when it hit the green. Then Alex chimes in ... "I think that went in...." Then Bryce "Yea, man. Pretty sure that's in the cup." I, being a realistic pessimist in situations like this that are in limbo, said "C'mon, guys. Let's not get ahead of ourselves." I walked the entire way to the green with my head down, in hopes that I wouldn't see the ball until I looked in the bottom of the cup. And there. she. was. Judging by the trajectory and the location of the mark, the ball more than likely took two hops and jarred immediately.

In the immortal words of Bryce, "I can't believe I hit it to 3 feet and I'm teeing off second."