A Very Disappointing Fairway Wood Shot.

This story is not one for the weak of heart.

I was a senior at the University of Tennessee. I went to play in a big state tournament in Nashville. There were over two hundred of the best amateurs from the state competing in the tournament. My game was very sharp preparing for this tournament, I was driving the ball very well and my short game was almost flawless. I had total confidence in my ability to win the tournament.

I knew that there were some of the top players in Tennessee competing in this huge State event, and even though it was just an eighteen-hole event, I knew that my game was suited to fire a very low score. Although I never played the course, my teammate at UT told me all about the course, and which holes to hit a one iron off the tee for position.

I teed off late; probably around one-thirty. My first few holes game me even more confidence about winning the tournament. I started off birdie, birdie, par, birdie. "Wow," I thought three under after four holes. Keep it going, John.

I did just that, I birdied the seventh and ninth hole to shoot a thirty-one on the front nine. I was definitely on a roll when I drained a thirty footer for birdie on number twelve. That put me six under for the day. I was totally focused on winning the tournament. I made par on thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen. When I approached the sixteenth hole, it was a one hundred and ninety five yard uphill par three. I stood on the tee with the tournament within my grasp and pulled out a four iron. I nailed it and hit a hard draw to within ten feet. I was in the zone and when I stood over the putt, there was little doubt that I was not going to get it seven under. BINGO. Drained it to go seven under.

Now I stood on the seventeenth hole with the lead by four shots and getting ready to play a dogleg right par five at 535 yards in length. I drove the ball down the right side of the fairway about 280 off the tee. I had about 255 to the green and since I was already seven under par, I thought to myself, "What the hell, pull out the three wood and knock it on and make eagle!" I mean, wouldn't you do the same thing if you were seven under with two go?

Well, if you are standing up while reading the next couple of lines may I suggest that you sit down.

I somehow got too excited on my downswing and totally blocked it right, not just right, I am talking way right. So far right that the damn ball went out of bounds. No problem, I dropped another ball down and kept the same club in my hand and set up and made my backswing and somehow on my way down I knew that something was wrong. Bang, another ball OB I ended up making a ten on the hole. So I dropped from seven under par to two under par. I eventually made par on the last hole and finished second at two under, while the winner, a teammate of mine shot a three under sixty-nine

That seventeenth hole was the absolute worst breakdown of my golfing career.

As sad as this true story is, I wanted to share it with you because every golfer undergoes some difficult times. Let this be a lesson to you. If you ever get it to seven under par, don't go for the green on a par five at the end of your round if you have a four shot lead!

I sure wish I had my new maraging face Tour Limited fairway wood back then!

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