Your Best Start In Golf

[Alex Miller]

Taking the uncoveted 24th response spot...

I played Arcadia Bluffs (Old) once about 15 years ago and started with four straight birdies.  I think I shot 75 for the day, and I'm pretty confident Bill McBride was a playing partner that day.

You starting birdie birdie par at Stone Eagle the first time we played together was very impressive (and intimidating) as well Mr. Kirk. And you beat 75 that day too.

[Connor Lewis]

I don’t know my best but I will never forget my worse. I was playing the the US Hickory Open years ago. I had just pulled my opening tee shot a hair when a fellow competitor (not even in my group) asked me if I wanted to know what I did wrong?


I said no thank you and he preceded to tell me that my body was pointing to the left.


I tried to get his comment out of my head but then pushed the next shot right of the green and took a bogey. On the 2nd hole I yanked two OB and took a quad, the next hole another OB and took a triple, then a double then a bogey.


I calmed the storm and on the back recorded an eagle, a couple of birdies and some pars.


I was out of the tournament but looking back I shouldn’t have tossed that scorecard in anger. How many rounds have you seen with a Quad, a Triple, a Double, a Bogey, a Par, a Birdie and an Eagle???


PS that same guy won the tournament. Assuming he may have saw me as a risk and blew me up. Shame on me for being a mentally weak golfer.

[Peter Flory]

I had a round a few years ago at Butterfield where I started with 6 straight birdies, all of them with about 10-15 foot putts.  It was an early morning round and there was some dew on the greens and I could see ball tracks from other groups that helped with the reads on a few of them.  Then the dew burned off and I was back to reality.  I don't remember my final score, but I think that it was back up around even par and didn't include any more red numbers. 

[Brent Carlson]

GCAer Michael Essig was -6 through 4 in the Kings Putter at Chambers Bay.  Best start I've seen.


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[Mark Chaplin]

Years ago at Royal Cinque Ports a chap started 4, 3, 2, 1, 10 and retired to The Chequers the pub that was walking distance from the 5th green and 15th fairway.

[Phil Burr]

I had the opposite of Tim Leary’s.  I shot 41-31 at Laguna Seca.  Tripled the ninth hole to cap off my front nine; then went four under on the back with a double bogey on 11.

[archie_struthers]

 


First year as assistant at PV got to play with some of my favorite guys from New England who I had caddied for for years. All pretty good players. Shot about 85 in morning with them, with a bunch of one putts. Absolutely stunk it up... so embarrassed.


They were going out for  nine holes late in the day and asked me to join them again. So I totally reversed what I had been working on (hook)  and sliced it around in 31 with six birdies  and two bogeys , best nine I ever had there. Crazy game

[Michael Felton]

I don't think I've ever started better than three birdies. I did start birdie, birdie, par, birdie one time, then on the 5th (stroke 1 hole) I buttoned a drive up the middle, it hit the marker post and bounced 60 yards back towards the tee and I made 5 and the magic was gone.


One of my friends at the same course once started 3, 2 (par 5 and drivable par 4) and then hit his approach on the third to an inch, so he was one revolution from starting eagle eagle eagle. Still he was -5 after 3, which is not a bad start all told.


One of the times I started with three birdies was the second round of a two round tournament. I had shot 67 in the first round. Then in the second round the longest shot for a birdie I had was a 12 foot putt. I made five of them and missed four of them for a 31 and 98 for 27 holes. Quite pleased about that one.

[Anders Rytter]

I have started Eagle-Eagle (par 5 - par 4)
And on another ocasion, 5 concecutive birdies.

[Tommy Williamsen]

I don't remember my best start, probably because none were memorable. I do remember my best turn around. Lou Graham was the asst pro at Ft. Meade when I was a kid. He was already a standout in the Mid Atlantic. This was before he won the Open at Medinah. He invited me to play in a pro-junior. I hit my first shot shot OB and proceeded to shoot 49. He calmed me down and shot 35 on the back. I was 16. It was at Argyle CC. I've never been back.

[Kalen Braley]

Where is Barney when you need him, is this thread an attempt to shame higher caps?   

One of my best starts ever was shooting 1 over par on the front 9, which IIIRC involved 1 birdie, two bogeys and the rest pars.... but then not breaking 80 by the time it was all done.

However, I did do way better later in the round once.  After shooting like 12 over or something on the front, I shot 2 under on the back 9. 

[Mark Kiely]

I've eagled the first hole twice. Once was the first time I'd ever holed a bunker shot (greenside bunker on a par 5). The other time was with a golf group I was new to. Me and my cart partner who I'd just met both hit great approach shots all over the flag on the long par-4 first, which was playing straight into the wind to an elevated green, so we couldn't see the cup. On the way up to the green, I joked to him, "I hope that hole is big enough for both of our balls." Sure enough, I'd holed out and he was just a couple feet away.


I may have started birdie-birdie a time or two but don't recall specifics.

[Carl Johnson]

Maybe 10 years ago at a maybe a 20 handicap.  Even par through 8 (one birdie, one bogy and six pars).  Ninth is a par four, fairly short, but with a stream directly in front of the green.  Approach into the stream (did not account sufficiently for the wind in my face).  Dropped, then next shot over the green into a bunker, ended up with a quad eight.  What a nine it might have been for a high handicapper!

[David Cronan]

A few years ago we had a club event, with the usual "A", "B", "C" and "D" players, where we counted the lowest two net scores of the group. Of course a shotgun start and, although I was a 2 handicap, I got off to a start that I wasn't accustomed to in the least. -4 after 5 holes. On our 6th hole, I was in the middle of the fairway with a wedge in hand. I don't remember the particulars or the exact clubs, but I do remember that I started walking 3 holes previous, no doubt channeling my inner Ben Hogan in order to put me in as serious a state of mind that I can achieve. Which ain't serious. Anyways, as everybody else hits, I'm surveying my next shot. My cart buddy, and a good friend and great guy, came driving up in the cart with my clubs. I picked my weapon figuring that with my adrenaline and spectacular shotmaking that I possessed that day I figured I hit something very hard. As I was walking to my ball, my buddy said in a hushed, laughing tone, "Man, do you know you're 4 under?" He was excited for me. Like I said, he's a great guy.


Not a shocker that I bladed my shot so badly, that I had pretty much a full shot from behind the green. No clue as to what I shot that day but suffice to say, it was nowhere near -4.

[Tom ORourke]

My wife and I went to Streamsong last year. We started on the Blue, but on the tenth hole. My wife hit a five wood on the green and in for an ace on the first shot of the trip. Her third ace, and a perfect start to the week.

[Dan_Callahan]

At Enniscrone last Friday, with a steady 15-20 mph breeze, I started par, birdie, par, birdie, par, eagle, birdie. I can't remember ever having a start better than that.

[Adrian_Stiff]

7 under for 10, chipped in at 1, holed a pitch at 3, holed a huge putt at 7 and another huge one at 9. Finished 4 under which is my best.


Can think of half a dozen times I have been -2 for 1

[Tim Leahy]

Remembered another great start at least for me. I was teaching a friend of mine to play golf and took him out to Griffith Park in LA to play his first regulation course. I holed a putt for a birdie on the first, a par 4 and then holed a wedge for a 2 on the second, a par 4, while my friend took 16 shots to complete the same holes. I had to assure him the game was not that easy and not to give up as he would get better and I would get worse.

[JHoulihan]

I started the round eagle/eagle (both dunk approach on par 4s) standing on 3 tee box 4 under at Desert Mountain Chiricahua. Played ok the rest of the round finishing at 79.


Justin
Phoenix AZ

[Chris Clouser]

Best I ever had was in a high school match.  Birdied the first hole in a normal fashion.  Chipped in on 2 for a birdie.  Cut the corner of the dogleg on the third to land near the green and got up and down for a birdie.  I promptly tripled the fourth hole... :'(

[Brad Lawrence]

Birdie, double eagle.  I’ve been -9 thru 13, and -13 thru 16.  My bad days have been equally spectacular. In college tournaments, I shot 75 with a ten, 79 with an eleven, and 66-78.  In an amateur tournament I shot 79-65.  Rocky steady, I am not.