We had a great first 9. He played so solidly I felt my stress ebbing away with every carefully struck and securely placed ball. 42. That’s a good local tour score for Rob on significantly shorter courses. We were going along so well. Then we made the turn.
Max’s instructions (carefully drawn up on the yardage book) were explicit : right and short, definitely not left and long.
So how about left and in the water ?
The next 4 holes were downhill from there caught up in the vicious circle of focus issues and whining. Sand trapped us, unlucky bounces plagued us. Trees took direct hits despite explicit directions in Max’s yardage book.
We wait on a tee box for the people in front of us. He and a playing partner throw pebbles in the lake and fool around unnecessarily close to the muddy rim. This annoys me intensely but I leave it be, he probably needs the diversion.
In the end I’m happy. He shoots his best score in a regional (this being only the 3rd he has played). Expectations must be tempered – he has not even played golf a full year yet and this tournament fields some of the best in the country. We qualify only because of his older brother.
It is the experience of parents who have done this far longer than me : the more you play these tournaments, the easier they become. For a newcomer they can be horribly difficult and intimidating, but you have to start somewhere, and the earlier the better. At this age, experience is everything.