We started on the third hole and flew out of the gate. A par, followed by a birdie, followed by another par. The best start to a scramble I could remember. I wish you could have seen the second shot into the fourth hole. A par-4 of just over three hundred yards. One of the guys hit his shot to about ten feet left of the pin. Leaving us with a putt moving gradually downhill. The second attempt was rolled in for the birdie. We moved onto the fifth hole feeling good about our beginning. The alarm went off early that Saturday morning, rousing us from sleep just before six. With one of our team being the head organizer of the September tournament. We arrived at Buffalo Peak early, trying to beat many of the participants to the golf course. The previous evening saw us moving a handful of boxes into the golf shop for the Saturday festivities. We used the Friday evening box drop off to spend some time around the facility. A couple of us hit some golf balls at the driving range. For me, the time was spent on the practice putting green. Doing my best to become familiar with the speed of the greens. Hoping to help out the team on the following day, by striking good putts. I took the same approach with the extra time on Saturday morning. Spending time hitting putts on the green instead of firing golf balls off the range. To avoid the feelings of reader suspense, it did me no good, I didn’t make a putt all day.
The sun was shining when we pulled our golf carts up to the third tee box. Still cool in the mid-morning hours. But the heat was forecasted to arrive before long. Leading me to spend time making sure I was drinking some water in the early morning. The third hole was feeling like a good place to begin our golfing day. A short par-3 moving pretty dramatically up the hill. It tends to be a hole I have struggled with in the past. Historically, not taking into consideration the uphill climb from the tee box to the putting surface. I have the tendency to hit the golf ball short, on this particular hole. This time, I took out a golf club, I thought would go further. Attempting to learn from my mis clubbing decisions of the previous rounds played at Buffalo Peak. When I walked up onto the teeing ground, something strange occurred. Following the situating of my golf ball, I stepped back for a couple of practice swings. Noticing something different about the way I took my first practice swing. Right away, my movements felt significantly more balanced. I took a second and third swing before stepping up to the golf ball. Each swing feeling like the first, with more stability than I remembered, from the last day I played golf. The time between rounds hadn’t been long, no more than a few weeks, but something felt different. With more confidence than expected, I stepped up to the golf ball. My shot came out, looking like the best I had ever hit on that hole. Coming to rest on the front portion of the green. Resulting in our scramble team making a par on our first hole.
For me, our second hole started out much like the first. The fourth hole at Buffalo Peak is a par-4 of around 300 yards. The balance found from my practice swings on the previous hole hadn’t left. This time, the stability could be felt during my first couple swings with the driver. My initial thought was that my drive had been pulled to the right, a little too far. I figured it wasn’t going to travel far enough on the line, which I had sent it traveling. The disappointment felt in myself caused me to turn away from the result. When someone on our team claimed to have seen the golf ball bounce in the distance. Our golf carts found their way down to the fairway and his statement was justified. With the added balance in my swing, the golf ball traveled a little further. It received a favorable bounce off the hill and sat safely in the grass. Leaving our team with a good opportunity to hit the green in regulation. We executed a great second shot. Leaving us with about a ten-foot putt to make birdie on our second hole. It only took one person to miss their attempt for the information to register. The second try by our team went rolling down the gentle grade and right into the cup. In all the years I have been going to play in the La Grande scrambles, it was one of the best played holes, I can remember. The fourth hole would yield our only birdie of the day.
The balance I found during those first two holes would last. I felt pleasantly surprised by the power being generated in my golf swing. Including an approach shot somewhere in the middle of our round. The club I chose to hit brought some concern. I can remember beginning my swing with a worry about my shot coming up short. When the ball left the club face, my worry changed to shock. I looked up to watch the golf ball landing on the back portion of the green. My target was a flag stick just a couple paces onto the front of the putting surface. The surprise was felt immediately, as I shook my head with curiosity. The club I had chosen wasn’t supposed to travel that far. The stability in my golf swing has been built up through the training sessions. Using exercises to help me lose some weight and improve my flexibility. Helping my body rotate around itself a little further. The balance to make a bigger turn helps generate more power. It’s one of the concepts I feel most important about exercise. The ability to have purpose involved with spending time inside the gym. While training to elevate my ability on the golf course, we also make everyday life easier. The added balance found in my golf swing. Also helps my physical challenges of cerebral palsy. The stability makes it easier to walk longer distances or move up and down the stairs in my home. The target of sport becomes a tool keeping me in the gym and the results felt when playing the scramble in La Grande, keep me wanting to work with the trainer. It all becomes a positive circle.
As our golf day continued, the temperature kept climbing. Getting to the point of becoming a factor for us to contend. The summertime in La Grande is known to be quite warm. With much more heat than I experience on the western side of Washington. When traveling over during the first weekend in September, I have found the days haven’t yet cooled. The temperature can dip during the night. As I noticed a dramatic cooling when the sun fell behind the mountain range, but the days remain hot. The September trip provides a contrast from the trip to La Grande in June. Which normally presents inconsistent weather, with cooler temperatures. When we arrived at the club house, following the first seven holes of our day, the heat was up. We were working against the draining impact of the hot sun, with the temperatures approaching ninety. There was plenty to drink from inside the shop, but lunch wasn’t quite ready for consumption. Our group moved onto the tenth tee box, with plans of eating after the golf. Food was looking like it would have to wait twelve more holes. The situation was nothing new for me, to experience on a golf course. Having played plenty of holes on an empty stomach, with only something to drink. But the sunshine was taking too much of a toll. When we arrived in the middle of the fourteenth fairway, two of our teammates needed a break. They needed some food to replenish from the taxing heat of the day. For the next three holes, we played a two-man scramble. Before they returned on the eighteenth, ready to play our final three holes.
The full team was intact for my favorite section of Buffalo Peak. When playing the first hole, I thought about the placement of the first. The unfortunate aspect of the beauty of a hole played so early in a round. You see, the first hole is the best hole on this golf course. The unfortunate part is people don’t tend to spend much time enjoying the first hole of a golf course. Most are busy trying to get their bearing and a feel for their game. When I play a golf course, the first hole usually vanishes from memory. I’m too busy with my head in the game. Thinking about just trying to hit the golf ball, solidly. This was one of the great aspects of the September scramble, this year. With our day of golf starting on the third hole, in a shotgun format, the first hole was going to be our seventeenth hole, of the day. Meaning all my golf kinks would be worked out by then, and I could take time to enjoy being on the hole. The first hole is great because it overlooks the entire golf course. Buffalo Peak is set inside of a bowl like piece of land. To arrive on the first tee, the player climbs up a relatively steep hill from the club house. Standing on the tee box, you look out and down on the other seventeen holes of the course. The same view can be captured in the middle of the first fairway. As the short par-4 fairways runs about two hundred yard out before tumbling down to the right, where the first green awaits. The sights from the entire hole are awesome.
The views from the first hole, which was our seventeenth were better in September. My observation was one I had mentioned during the first couple holes of our day. When we were playing the third and fourth holes, both along another elevated position of Buffalo Peak. The fescue grass, which borders many of the holes, providing the barrier between the fairways, appeared dried out. The heat of the summer had given it a more gold color, than it appears in June. The dried-out color causes the green fairways to pop out, like painted paths among the golden fescue grass. I felt like a kid, looking forward to playing each of the green fairways in my view. It painted the picture of warm summers in La Grande. The September day we were enjoying provided a small taste of those warm summers. The air loosened the aches of my body, allowing me to swing with freedom. While demanding we pay attention to the hydration levels of ourselves. The day was fun, even with most our good shots happening before the air got warm. We managed to keep the fun going when two of our members had to replenish. Welcoming them back for the stretch run of the tournament. When the golf ended, I dove right into a couple of sandwiches and a Gatorade. Enjoying every small bite, after playing in the heat of a big blue sky. Our score might not have drawn much attention, but it was another fun filled La Grande scramble.
A Journey With Cerebral Palsy 