Amesbury & Topsfield Practice

My plan was simple, get up early on Saturday and drive to Amesbury and then Topsfield for some practice rounds. I arrived at Amesbury Pines @9:15 and there were just a couple of people on the course. I did some warming up and got ready to tame this wooded course. The Pines had other ideas, I had 4, fours on the first five holes with the trees teaching me that my intentions were unwanted. In particular I had trouble with the 4th and seventh holes. Four was where I have yet to make a drive past the first trees. The holes are big enough I have just not been able to hit them. On seven I had a great drive but missed a makable put that rolled far enough away that I took a four. The one saving grace on the front was a long two put on nine, for a deuce.
The back half was not quite as bad, on 12 I blew the drive and took a four. 14 was the worst, as I caught an early tree, then landed behind another the third shot just out of range and then a missed put with the old basket rejecting the disc. 15 was a four because I have not figured out the drive yet. A 62 was just not what I was hoping for.

4-4-3-4-4-3-4-3-2-3-3-4-3-5-4-3-3-3-62

Since it is such a short course I decidsed to hang and play a second round. Instead of starting on one I went to Ten, this round went much better, by taking off some of my power attemots and just playing to the holes I was able to remove many of the mistakes of the first round.I had a bogie on 13 but I had a birdie on 16 across the pond with a Rage. so I was even on the back half an improvement of 4 throws from the first round.
The front half was better also but only by a throw, four and seven again were my tough holes. On four again nailing a tree and then not being able to get out clearly so a 5 on the scorecard and then another bogie on seven again with a decent drive bit spit out by the old basket on three. A 57 was more respectable. I can not expect to win anything with those scores in the upcoming tourney but at least there was some improvement.

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I drove off to Topsfield, it is actually on the way home so it works out well. It was in the fifties and breezy with a bright wonderful warm sun. Pye Brook is in good shape and I was happy to get this, first ever third round of the day. I played well there again cruising through the first nine even, with a birdie on six and a bogey on eight. Eight is very important not to end too far to the right on the drive. I had more threes and then a great tee shot on 15 nailing a two. Then things sort of came apart for me. My tee on 16 got too high into the wind and ended up way down in the wood. Getting out cost me and I took a five on the hole. Then 17 is always a tough three so i took a four there also.I threw a diablo behind the hole on 18 but made a three, had the two putt but with the wind it was not close. Still a 56 on this course is a good score. Hole 19 is not properly defined at this point. I did it but did not count it. From the further point back I made a five, I don't really care for this hole.

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Another evening @Devens

Shot out to Devens after work, looking to take advantage of the sunny day in the 70's, So far just a great spring here in New England. A change from most of my experiences I played the first five holes error free and had two birdie chances. Of course I did not hit them but it was nice not having to make tough putts for par. I saw Glenn and Andy ahead of me while getting a four on hole 6 and caught them at #8 after getting a five on hole #7. Played the rest with them. I was cruising along nicely at +2 when on the 14th I hit an early tree with my tee shot. Slipped on my second and hit another tree on the third, I eventually got a six and was bumming that suddenly my round was falling apart. A 4 on the next hole and I was +6. Knowing a four is usually the best you can do on the last hole the pressure was on. I got a 2 throwing an epic hard down the steep 16th and then a 2 on #17 with a light wraith up the hill to within 5 feet of the basket. If I could pull off a four on hole 18 I would break the 60 mark. This is a good goal for me. My drive off the tee was short but in the middle of the fairway. What I needed on the second shot was a fading S that would go left and then fade right. This would get it over the hump and leave it faling towards the basket down the steep hill after the hump. Unfortunately I caught a branch and ended up on top of the hump. I puttered down but it rolled down the hill so I was looking at a 30 foot steep uphill putt for four. I laid up and took the 5. Damn a decent 60 but just missed the goal.
Glen had a great day with a 57 and I think Andy pulled a 63.

Sunday @Borderland with Lee

Sister Lee and i were visiting in her house in Rockland when while shooting around shopping for this and that we made the spur of the moment decision to play a round @ Borderland State Park. Lee has to play lefty sice having elbow tendenitis in her right. Still she is decent playing that way. It was a beautiful day in the 70's and the course was packed with people. We played through seven different groups. It was a good round for me with a 52, and Lee had a respectable 72 on the white to white course.

I had three birdies two of them were on hole I very seldom go under on, hole 1 a 330' downhill shot through a tree alley. Also on hole eight a 285' elbow with a mandatory wall to clear. There have been times when hitting the many trees I have had 6,7, or 8 on this hole, so I was thrilled that with an audiece of four other player I threw a perfect S to within 8 feet of the basket.

I actually sponsored this hole in the Spring Fling coming in June in the hopes of creating some good Karma with it.

Amesbury Pines with Elisa

OOOOOOOOOO....I got to play with my darling wife again. We did a combination trip of going to the Amesbury Pines course and Plum Island that way we each get a bit of what we love. We started at the discgolf course. On the weekend it is very busy and it was this day. I had only played the course once and was nhot sure making my way around the slightly confusing layout. It is also a tight course, and I am with the limited ability to hit the gaps so the game was not great. I shot a 59 and looking at the Adv. Masters scores from last year's Open the low 50's is more what you want to do. Still considering it was only the second round I have every played there I think I can live with it. Tournament there is May 18th so a have a bit of time to get a couple more round in.

Elisa being the trooper she is shot a 91. I really appreciate her support me and playing with me. We went off to Plum Island and had a nice walk on the windy cold beach and also ate at the Grog in Newburyport before heading home.

Playing @ Pye Brook Park

Yesterday after work I drove the traffic from Waltham to Topsfield for a game of DG @ the Pye Brook course. I had a quarter tank of gas and figured I could get gas at the stationright near the course. Leaving work at three I had to get right on the highway or get caught in traffic. Ended up in it anyway because I passed two different accidents that had me crawling along. 128 to 95 north to exit 53 rte97 towards Topsfield. When I got to the gas station it had no gas. Can you believe that? So with my gas light all the way on I went all the way to route one for a fill up. So close I swear I was running on fumes the last couple miles. I was a bit frazzled but on such a great day I could not stay that way. It was sunny with temps around 67 degrees and enough of a breeze to keep me honest.

I like this course it works its way along the edges of some playing fields in what used to be a landfill. A lot of the baskets are on slopes so putting can be tricky bit the tees are good and for the most part it is a wide open course. Last year I won my first and only (so far) tournament there and shot a second round 53, in the 777 tourney. Next month I will play in the Eastern MA Championship 3 there so some practice at the course is important between then and now.
On my first drive i was off and had a long approach up the hill but still parred the hole. On two I had a great drive but was bad, going for a slanted downhill putt and ended up down the hill and taking a four. I should have laid up and taken the three instead of going for the risky putt. I strung together 5 pars after that with three missed birdie chances. On nine I blew the drive then mad a great tomohawk to within a foot of the basket but it hit a tree and rolled away so I had a long putt which I missed and took a bogey.
I cruised the back half having all threes with one birdie mixed in and came away with a very good 56 for the round. Traffic home was a pain in the ass. I will have to remember next time to stay for a second round so it won't be so bad.

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Tournament @Tully Lake

Yesterday I played my first NEFA tournament of the year. New England Flying Disc Association is a group that sponsors a point series in disc golf for all us Yanks. There have already been several in the series but this was the first one I played in. I need five decent finishes to make it to the Finals tournament in NEFA so I take these somewhat seriously.
It was a cool and rainy day, the temperature about 47 degrees and the rain light but persistent. My elbow has been bothering me so I got a brace for it making the throwing a bit easier. Still it was painful whenever I used force which is most throws. A side effect of the brace was that it constricted circulation so I had to keep taking it off between holes. It was also my first time at the Tully Lake dam. I walked the course, tossing a few before the contest started. At least I would know where I was going. The course is mostly wooded but with some open holes few and far between. Control was more important than distance as the underdeveloped fairways meant you were in big tangled trouble if you got off them.
In round one Tex Long and I started on hole 17, a short looper with lots of trees. Two guys on the card failed to show due to the fact they were assigned to two holes. We played 17, I had a three, my two bid deflected by a pine branch. On 18I had a nice drive through the pine filled fairway and pocketed an easy three. When we reached the first fairway there was a backup, so at this point the Tournament Director added a guy to our team, Justin as you are not allowed to have groups of two in tourney play. When finally we got to go on the wide open hole one I was nervous. It is a downhill shot with a tree in the middle and a lake on the left. You can anhyzer to the left or take the safer but round about route to the right. I took the safer route and nailed a beauty. unfortunately my second shot was week as I worried about the water behind the hole from where I putted and then had to take a four. Missed a put on hole 2 and took a four there also. Then I strung together 6 tyhrees in a row before Taking a four on the long hole 9. Hole ten is a down hill nightmare with just a dirt road to negotiate and steep drops to both sides. I laid out a first shot with a medius midrange, keeping it low and fading into the center of the road. Now I was looking downhill at a long ride to the hole. I used a sidewinder and laid down a great second shot. left it about 30 feet to the right of the basket. Still my putting range is not so great so I two putted for the four. Thing came apart from here on out, a 3 on 11 but then a horrible bounce off a tree on the unfair hole 12 and I played bonk the tree on the way to a 6. On another tree filled hole 13 I got a good drive and then made a long putt for a two. On 14 though I again had an awful drive and bounced around for another six., a five on the next hole and I was feeling pretty abused. Finished the last hole missing a two by a fraction and had a not so great round of 65. This put me at the bottom of the second card.
I rested listening to music beforte starting on hole 12 in the second round. Since I had a six here the first round I was determined to improve. I did on those four hole where in the first round I was 6-2-6-5 this round I started with 4-2-4-3 an improvement of 6 strokes. Overall in the second round I felt focused and sure I could do better than the first. although I had a few mistakes I felt I put together a good round at 62. Now getting off the second card and moving all the way up to tie for second was just what I needed to feel good about the day. I took $50 in funny money and went home with a smile. The winning score was this guy Paul Heaton who blistered the course and beat me by 13 throws. WOW!

RESULTS:

Pro Open
1 Jack Nickel 49 54 103 $250 -11
2 Greg Wintrob 51 53 104 $170 -10
3 Mike Dussault 50 55 105 $117 -9
4 James Lane 50 60 110 $85 -4
5 Jason Southwick 59 54 113 $65 -1
6T Larry “Bear” Dunn 58 56 114 0
6T Josh Rogers 56 58 114 0
8 Timothy E. Walsh 60 57 117 +3
9T Brian Harrington 58 61 119 +5
9T Gary Cyr 59 60 119 +5
9T Joe Yaskis 60 59 119 +5
12 Jerel Davis 61 61 122 +8
13 Phil Vilmorin 65 62 127 +13
14 Jay Ballard 65 68 133 +19

Pro Masters
1 Daniel Marcus 54 51 105 $185 -9
2 Jim O’Hara 55 60 115 $120 +1
3 Rick Belhumer 61 56 117 $85 +3
4 Davis Johnson 59 59 118 $60 +4
5 Brent Sanderson 58 62 120 +6
6T John Hart 61 62 123 +9
6T Sean Breslin 62 61 123 +9
8 Steve Ditter 63 61 124 +10
9 Dave Boliver 60 67 127 +13

Pro Grandmasters
1 Mike Connell 62 61 123 $80 +9
2 Bradley Arnall 60 64 124 $46 +10
3 Rick Williams 67 69 136 +22

Advanced
1 Matt Medeiros* 57 60 117 $180 +3
*Won sudden death playoff.
2 Mathew Heenan 57 60 117 $116 +3
3T Jasin Bayer 60 58 118 $63 +4
3T Chris Piaseczry 56 62 118 $63 +4
3T Eric Kaplan 59 59 118 $63 +4
3T Nic Willard 57 61 118 $63 +4
7T Kelly Conroy 60 64 124 $36 +10
7T Sandy Redd 64 60 124 $36 +10
9 Justin White 65 60 125 $30 +11
10 Andrew Streeter 63 63 126 $29 +12
11T Jeff Chauvin 67 60 127 $22.66 +13
11T Shaun LaForce 61 66 127 $22.66 +13
11T Clayton Davidson 71 56 127 $22.66 +13
14 Steve Solbo 65 63 128 +14
15 Mark Valis 65 64 129 +15
16T Drew Austin 59 71 130 +16
16T Robert Direnzo 66 64 130 +16
18T Mike Murphy 66 65 131 +17
18T Tushar Patel 70 61 131 +17
20 Chris Irvine 66 66 132 +18
21 Ian Thurston 71 65 136 +22
22 Nick Jennings 70 68 138 +24
23 Jon Duefield 70 73 143 +29

Advanced Masters
1 Paul Heaton 55 59 114 $105 0
2T John Holston 64 63 127 $61.50 +13
2T Ed Hovestadt 65 62 127 $61.50 +13
4 Craig Pizzotti 66 62 128 $38 +14
5T Seamus Scanlon 65 65 130 $30 +16
5T Chris Long 63 67 130 $30 +16
7 James Beaulieu 66 65 131 +17
8 John Vermynck 66 66 132 +18
9T Steve Guiliotis 65 68 133 +19
9T Gary Stansfield 66 67 133 +19
11 Paul Sullivan 63 71 134 +20

Advanced Women
1 Heather Eng 69 70 139 $29 +25
.
Intermediate
1 Mike Mason* 66 64 130 $85 +16
2 Derek Brazauskas 62 68 130 $50 +16
3 Greg Aucoin 70 61 131 $38 +17
4 Glenn Hulleck 77 71 145 +31
5 Eric Sandberg 80 78 158 +44
6 Josh Bergman 82 82 164 +50
*Won sudden death playoff.

Recreational
1 Bob Picard 70 71 141 $26 +27
2 Chris Carr 79 72 151 $16 +37
3 Ryan DiPrizio 78 76 154 +40

Playing @Devens

Today I went to Devens Disc golf course. This large hill has a very tight wooded course. It requires controlled drives and precise releases because of the trees and elevation changes.
When I arrived in the parking lot their was this guy getting ready to go out. So I introduced myself, his name was Andy and we were later joined by another guy Glenn. We played together and were pretty abused by the course. It was a beautiful day with temps in the high 60's and full sun. Could not ask for a nice day. The course was dry and really the only factor was a healthy amount of old leaves on some of the tees.
This is the first time I have played since the Minuteman Classic because I have had a very sore elbow. Something is not right in there and I figured I just strained some tendon or something. I thought a few weeks of rest would help it get better but that has not been the case and I think after the Tully lake tournament this weekend I will see a doctor about it. I hate the idea of the doctor because I don't want to miss play time during the NEFA season.
Certainly I knew that the pain was here to stay in warming up in the field before we started but was determined to get a round in before this weekend. I lead off on hole one a gap shot onto a tree filled side of a hill. I missed the gap and had a long second shot then missed a putt to get a 5 to start. This is a pretty tough coourse so this was not the way to start. I managed a 3 on the second and third holes which is more about luck than anything, then muffed another drive on the 4th hole to take a 4. Another 3 on 5 after getting into trouble and not staying on the dirt road fairway I had a good through the brush on the right to set up a putt to save 3. Great drive on the uphill dirtraod fairway on 6, but I blew the second shot which should have been easy and ended with a 4. Totally blew my second shot on the 7th and got a 5 there. Sitting at +6 on hole eight I had a killer drive up the hill and actually had a two putt, although I missed it the 3 was one of the nicer holes of the day. Using a putting on the short steeply down hole 9 I got close to an ace and tapped in the birdie. So I was at +5 a 32 for the first half. Andy and Glenn struggled too and sat at 34 and 36 respectively.
The second have started with a couple 3s and I for just a second could recover from the not so great front half. It was not to be though, after a really nice looking drive all the way to the bottom of the hill on 12. I found myself in the thick of a thicket with little hole of getting out easily. What could have been a nice three on a tough hole turned into a 5 nightmare. I made up for it on the next couple of holes though, on 13 I threw a laser right through a grouping of trees passed the basket and setting up a short two putt. Then on 15 which is long and uphill a great drive allowed me to get a three. Another 3 on 15 and I was looking decent for the round at +6. Unfortunately that was the extent of my good game, I had a diasterous finish with a 5,4,5 and finished the day with a 65. Andy had a nice back half and finished at 66 and Glenn working off the effects of a hangover struggled throughout for a 74.