Tuesday 11th Feb 0830L. Cold (for Vegas), mega windy (also for Vegas) and stuck in roadworks (always for Vegas). Today's destination a course I've never played before, the company I'll always want to play with.
The Las Vegas Golf Course is a grandiose title for what is a municipal community course far removed from suburbia-snaking treelined fairways of the private courses and home to the golfing elite. That said it didn't disappoint. What a surprise and what a day.
My first round since last Saturday with only a couple of hours in the bay since then. Perhaps it was the wind rocking the car en route or the fact the assistant in the prop-shop was dressed ready for Everest but the first tee, usually my nemesis*, didn't phase me at all. My round starting off with a healthy par with a birdie just around the corner.
Scores on the doors time. I finished 11 over par, admittedly not a round that is going have the PGA or R&A checking my instagram account but even so, given the conditions the round oozed potential. What's even more important is that I was happy, confident and felt a sense of belonging that has escaped me for some time.
I left the course today once again reminded that life experiences don't have to start with valet parking and 2020 first-world finery. It turns out I can park the car just fine on my own. Sometimes the simple things can be as equally rewarding - a nice Ph test of where one's life is and an opportunity to make changes as required.
Huge thanks to Ryan Hardenbrook (@Ryan.golfs) for convincing me to step away from the courses that to date have been the go-to option.
*The Bleacher effect. A pulse racing, sweaty palm phenomenon that renders many a golfer completely bereft of any skill. This phenomenon simply brought about upon the realisation that people are watching. Sad, but true.