Bonus Day, Then Tragedy: Our Greens Are Closed for the Winter

Jalgaon P1110218On Thursday afternoon, Bob G., Peter A., Paul, and I played a bonus round in fog that gradually got worse. We saw Jack, Mike J., and Mrs. Mike on the seventh hole (see photo below), but other than that we had the course to ourselves.

Mrs. Mike practically holed this bunker shot.

Tongchuan Mrs. Mike almost holed this bunker shot. The air in Beijing looked almost exactly like this when I was there.

While we played, some guys with heavy construction equipment were working in front of the clubhouse. The widow of a member had wanted to do something nice for the club, which her husband loved, so she hired an architect to redesign the entire main parking area, which was a mess, and then paid for the construction, tree work, landscaping, and so on. Needless to say, she will be receiving a complete set of Sunday Morning Group branded merchandise for her personal use.

The new parking area, under construction.

The new parking area, under construction.

Gary, our superintendent, told us he was going to pull the flags after our regular game on Sunday, but then we got “wintry mix” on Friday night and he had to close the greens first thing Saturday morning. Tim, Austin, and I played on Saturday anyway, using the temps. We played cross-country, making up the holes as we went along. We each carried just one club. Because Tim had played nine holes by himself, in the rain, on Friday, he gets solo credit for the last official round of 2013.

Tim & Austin, playing from the No. 6 temp to the No. 4 temp, Saturday, December 7.

Tim & Austin, playing from the No. 6 temp to the No. 4 temp, Saturday, December 7.

December 7, in addition to being the first day of the 2013 post-season season and the seventy-second anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, was my dog’s fourth birthday. Happy birthday, Henry.

Henry

9 thoughts on “Bonus Day, Then Tragedy: Our Greens Are Closed for the Winter

  1. “Mrs. Mike almost holed this bunker shot. The street across from my hotel in Beijing looked almost exactly like this.” More questions than answers with this statement I’m afraid – what was Mrs Mike doing in Bejing at the same time as you? Was she wearing a red hat instead of a white one? Was the sand a different colour? Did all the players have Chinese caddies? Is Bejing where you went to arrange for all the leaf imports a few weeks ago? If only I had the answers I could sleep better tonight…….

    • My fault. the Beijing comment was just about the fog. The smog in Beijing was so thick a couple of days when I was there that I couldn’t see the buildings across the street. And, sad to say, I was there on a New Yorker assignment: no golf. I’ve rewritten the caption. Thanks!

      • Don’t worry, I got it! Chinese smog is world famous. I thought you might reply that the only difference was none of the above mentioned but that Mrs. Mike actually holed the shot!

  2. The sign says, “no one allowed on course.” Even if there is no snow cover? Do you still sneak on? Drop a ball and play out of the rough, aiming for bunkers?

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