The course was the same they had often played, the pin placements were pretty standard. This was not a championship course by any stretch of the imagination, and the shots they played and tried to execute were not always the most precise.
Some holes they played well, and some they butchered. Balls were lost in the water, and putts were badly struck.
On each day they played this 9 holes, they had this little game to see who might win that particular day. Not a game for any monetary prize, just the friendly competition between a couple of golfers.
I must note here the point game played. Players earned points for:
1 point for a greenie (on the green closest to the pin on a par 3)
1 point for a sandie (a par made on any hole that involved a shot from a sand trap)
1 point for a birdie on any hole
2 points for an eagle (never has happened for us)
1 point for winning the hole with a par or better
Minus 1 point for a double bogey or worse
Sounds complicated, but isn't..
On this day, they both played well and parred the first hole with a pair of 5s.
The round progressed with several ties and some lead changes that brought them up to the last hole, a par 3 across the water.
Player A was ahead in the match by 1 point as a result of a greenie on the last hole.
Player B hit first and landed in the front trap.
Player A followed suit and ended up in the same trap.
No greenie on this hole today, but a possibility for a sandie for each player.
Both blasted from the trap, Player A ending about 6 feet from the cup with a downhill roll. Player B's ball came to rest about 10 feet above the hole.
Both players had a chance to win the match. Player A would win if there was a tie on this hole. Player B could win with a par putt that would give him the sandie and the win, if Player A did not make his par.
Player B putted first and made the putt. He was happy. It was a pressure putt and made A's putt seem longer and trickier.
Player A putted, and the balled clunked into the cup
Both had responded to the supposed pressure, got out of the trap, made their putt, got the sandie and the match ended.
Sure, A had 1 point more than B, but both had done what was needed on the last hole. They had played their best.
We just looked at each other as the second putt rolled in, smiled, did a fist tap, and walked off the green together knowing what had just transpired. It was one of those special moments where you can just appreciate the play on that hole, on both sides.
It was good just to be able to share it.
It won't make ESPN, or even the Brunswick News, but it was good.
A simple golf story, but worth a memory...
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