Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Golf Resolutions for 2014

It's that time of year when I reflect on last year's golf goals and set new ones for the upcoming year.




How did I do on last year's resolutions?
Resolution #1: Get longer. I wanted to average 200, but after a back spasm in the spring and shedding a few pounds, I actually lost yardage. All summer long, I was only batting aound 170-180, though this seemed to pick up in the fall, thanks to taking up core-strengthening pilates.  
Resolution #2: Enter a hole-in-one million-dollar shootout contest. Still haven't been able to find one, but perhaps this year I will.
Resolution #3: Break 80. Not even close! Sorry to say, but I did not even break 90 once this whole past year. I did manage to score in the mid 90s most of the time though.
Resolution #4: Join a women’s league. Again, didn't do it. However, I did meet a defector from one of the local ladies leagues, and judging from some of her war stories, it sounds like perhaps I shouldn't want to join a women's league after all. 
Resolution #5: Play another bucket list course. Yes, finally a resolution that I achieved, Hubby and I played Torrey Pine North Course and South Course this past year, in addition to some other lovely courses.

So I fulfilled only 1 out of 5 resolutions. That sucks. Maybe it's time for me to set more realistic resolutions. If at first you don't succeed, lower your standards!

Here's my new list of resolutions for 2014:

Resolution #1: Stop obsessing about getting longer. If there's anything I should have learned by now, longer drives do not necessarily translate into lower scores. In fact, the defector from the ladies league only drives about 160 but consistently breaks 90. Part of this is due to her dead-on approach shots and one-putting. I need to stop chasing yardage and start working on my short game.
Resolution #2: Enter a hole-in-one million-dollar shootout contest. If one comes along, I will go for it, but it might be a better bet to just buy a lottery ticket.
Resolution #3: Break 80 (or at least break 90 again). I am keeping this resolution on the list since scoring low is always the goal. I broke 90 once before, and I know I can do it again. Here's hoping to breaking 80 too.
Resolution #4: Make new golf buddies. Golf buddies are literally fair-weather friends, so it's nice to have a lot of them in case someone can't make the tee time. However, I would also like to be able to play alone more often.
Resolution #5: Play another bucket list course. I believe this is doable since there are so many once-in-a-lifetime courses to play in the world. The only question is where to go next. And since I just bought my hubby a new Bushnell range-finder for Christmas, I am sure he's as anxious as me to hop a plane to a sunny fairway. It might be a month or two till our work schedules allow it, but in the meantime maybe a warm winter day will come along so I can get started on my other golf resolutions!