Golf in 2020 has been challenging, but it's so good to be back playing.

It's been a really weird year for golf. Every player, from the weekend duffer to the scratch golfer, the 28 handicap hacker to the pga tour player has had a strange and surreal 2020. For amateur players like me, the year was cut short. We literally had the best March and April in my living memory and not a single birdie put was attempted, no quadruple bogey ruined a card, no not a dickie-bird. The only golf I saw was a few chips in my back garden during those early days of Covid-19.

It was the best ever Spring weather for golf in our emerald isle. Then in true Murphy's law fashion, the heavy down pours came, as the courses opened back up. Just today I got an email from my own local course, saying that it is preferred lies, pick, clean and place on fairways until further notice. That is a message you expect to receive in October or November, not in the summer month of August, or is it Autumn, well you get what I mean!

When I first went back, it was like I had to learn the game all over again. I think I scratched around 6 holes that first day, and there have been worse rounds since, I scratched 4 in a 9 hole competition on Monday evening! Brutal. But there was a ray of sunlight the guy I was playing with pointed something out to me that was pointed out many times before. I was swinging the club far too aggressively and fast - "trying to kill the ball" - as the expression goes. This guy says to me, hit it slower and it will go further. It seems very counter intuitive to me, but it was absolutely spot on. I swung slow for me tee off on the next three holes and bombed each one long and most importantly on the fairway.

Hitting a fairway is worth its weight in gold these days. There has been that much rain, and occasional sunshine, which is causing unbelievable growth and our rough is as lush and thick as I can remember it being. If the ball is lying down, something 7-iron is as much as you can dare to attempt, unless you want that ugly chunk that goes 50 yards and perhaps into or behind a tree.

Do you golf?

What's it been like at your track?

Thick lush rough?

Did your game desert you for a while?

I'd love to hear about it. Until next time.

Peace Out.