Ok this is a bit insane but I have just got up on a Saturday morning and it’s 3.10 am. The students are just coming home after their parties and I’m now having a coffee writing this blog. The problem is that I set my alarm for 4am and if I set my alarm for 4am then I will wake up earlier. But he ho.
However, the reason I set my alarm that early on a Saturday morning is that I am travelling down to Edinburgh for our MCBA Spring Meeting at Gullane, the first Major of the season for our whacky wee club the MCBA. We are due to tee-off at 10am down in beautiful East Lothian and the weather promises to be fair (not that I necessarily trust the Scottish weather forecast or weather forecasters per se even though I thought Francis was a pretty cool dude as a kid and indeed Michael Fish too, well actually I thought he was a really good old fish if I am entirely honest)
Anyway that’s the programme for today folks. Yesterday I was down at Mortonhall playing my singles tie and it was beautiful and sunny and the sweet smelling furze was ablaze in yellow fire and the sky was blue and occasional wafts of wild garlic oozed out of the musky woods and a pheasant idled around the 8th green and two deer danced down the 12th fairway. But I am being too poetical. I won by 2 and 1.
I played a mixed bag but I probably hit two of the best golf shots of my life and I am being serious here (not that I didn’t win 2 and 1 btw) Firstly a recovery shot up and through a steep grassy bank under a hawthorn tree where I rolled it close and then a low 3 iron draw, Tiger Woods style (pre car crashes), bending it under a cherry tree and over 200 yards to the front apron of the 13th green and I maintain that if it hadn’t hit a tiny bit of full blown blossom then it would have been mightily close and that bit of blossom would still be full blown. I think that was the match winner though. Certainly in my head. It was worthy of Augusta coverage and would have had Peter Allis waxing quite lyrical I suggest, especially the exploding cherry blossom bit.
Anyway , as ever, I am still tinkering with the old swing and have just looked at a video of myself from last week out on the course where I appeared to be a bit too cramped I’m afraid. The arms weren’t hanging Errnie like and I was a bit too steep. Anyhow I will take that on board when I hit the practice range in 5 hours time. Nothing like a last minute swing adjustment just before a Major what.
So wish me luck folks and have a blast of a weekend but watch the cherry trees, especially if you are in Edinburgh at the moment down at the Meadows because they are intensely beautiful.
Up the Hearts !
And fare forward of course
ps I forgot to tell you about a wee phone call I received on the course yesterday. I was waiting to hit my pre-Tiger Woods car crashes Augusta cherry blossom low draw shot, when the estate agent phoned (we are trying to set up a viewing on Monday) Anyway I quickly explained that I would have to whisper as I was golfing. She said ‘what’s your position?’ and I told her that ‘I’m in the middle of the 14th fairway’ to which there was a considerable delay when she tried to take assimilate that comment, at which point I thought I would relieve her of this awkwardness and said ‘just joking’ and she said ‘sorry the line is not great’ which I think was not necessarily the truth. And I quickly added and indeed more to her point that we may be a cash buyer for the flat . And I must say she was a wee bit wrong footed over all this.
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