Day 46: Range - Playing Tierra in My Head

Today I went back to the range with a mission to play Tierra in my head.

After I warmed up and felt good, I pretended like I was stepping up to the first tee at Tierra. I hit my drive well - probably about 260. I then pulled out my hybrid and hit that well, too - probably about 210. You have to make sure that you do not pull your second shot as this could get you all wet with the pond on the left side. I hit my hybrid straight, so I would have been safe. This would leave me about 90 to 100 yards out with the wind coming straight at you. We have played Tierra no less than 20 times over the years and never once has the wind been blowing in any other direction than dead at you on this shot. I grabbed my PW and focused on taking a nice, smooth, crisp swing and keeping my head down well through the shot. The result was a nice straight shot that landed softly. I am assuming in this drill that I am going to 2-putt, so being on in regulation is all that is needed.

The 2nd hole is an uphill Par 3 that has a cross wind blowing from left to right. This is a hole that calls for a relatively full PW - a swing that is crisp, but you don't have to swing 'out of your shoes'. I used my PW and hit another shot just like my 3rd shot on Hole #1. Again, it was nice, high and straight - perfect for landing in the middle of the green and a 2-putt.

The 3rd hole is one of the toughest Par 4's I have ever played. There is a narrow landing area which is a blind landing from the tee box. Is there anything in golf more unsettling than hitting to a blind spot? Nonetheless, I smoked my hybrid again about 210 yards - so if I am able to do this the next time I play Tierra, I know I will be safe. The second shot is none the easier - a 210 tee shot leaves you about 210-215 downhill to the green which has all sorts of trouble surrounding the green. A shot too far left or right of the green has you OB. A shot too short has bunkers all around - it's a mess of a shot from more than likely an uneven, hilly lie. Nonetheless, I hit a 5-iron on the screws. I figure that if I can stay straight, I would much rather be short than OB. This is a monster of a two-tiered green, so depending on the pin placement being short could easily result in a 3-putt. Making Par on this hole is an incredible score.

With the rest of my balls, I went through every hole and every shot. Approach shots that I mis-hit, I would take the necessary shot to get me to the hole. This was a great way to visualize the round and had me hitting a different club almost every single time - rotating me through the bag nicely.

As stated in the post from Day 44, I had 6 penalties in my round on Saturday, so I need to do everything I can to reduce that to 0 - and that is going to take a tremendous amount of sound course management. I need to focus on shots that I know that I can make. Not like my approach on Saturday on Hole 16 trying to reach the green in 2 with about a 2-club wind helping to push my pushed ball OB - stupid decision on my part. I will not make that same decision on Sunday when we play Tierra again. I will do everything I can to shoot under 90. I can do it. I know I can. As we were discussing on Saturday, if I can shoot in the 80's at Tierra, I should be able to shoot in the 70's at Balboa.