Third hole - Again a nice drive, iron and pitch onto the green leaving me with about a 90 foot putt. Speed was the key here, nice easy lag putt with a short tap in for a bogey.
After the third hole, things took a turn for the worse. I was +2 after 3 and it finally hit me that I was playing at Pebble Beach, where the legends and greats play. Wrong thought. Holes 4-9 were a nightmare. Didn’t help that the wind picked up as we played along the Pacific. Between #4, #5 and #6 I had a total of 5 sand shots.
#6 the Signature Hole, a par 5 with the ocean on the right and the famous Cyprus tree protecting the uphill green. I again found the sand on this hole, pulled a Jean Van deVelde – first sand shot went nowhere, second one I blasted only a few feet to the uphill of the trap, third one finally out. I hate when that happens. Finally on the green. I know that wind can change the direction of a ball in flight, but I had never seen the wind blow a golf ball during a putt. Like he had for every other hole, Tommy cleaned my ball, handed me my putter and showed me the line. I two putted, again just missing a great putt and tapping in. Picture is from the left rough with tree in background.
#7 is a "fun" 100 yard par 3 with the ocean on the right. The wind was so strong that the flag was actually bent. I aimed 15 yards to the right of the pin, directly into the ocean and the wind still blew the ball to the left trap. Another fun time in the beach - another 3 stokes to get out and 2 putt for a 6.
#8 - Highlight was another great putt thanks to Tommy's advice
#9 - Was able to turn things around and get a bogey.
My goal for the day was to break 100 at Pebble. Front nine I ended up with a 5o, 17 putts. I wasn't happy with the sand play, costing me 8 strokes on the front, but the short game and the putts were better than I had expected.
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