ET's Info-Stew

Golf has probably been the hobby that I've enjoyed the most over the last few years. I began playing golf in August of 2002 (when I was 22) when I signed up for the 8900 Open, which was an anual tournament run by my department at work. My main goal was to use the tournament as an opportunity to network with fellow workmates, as I was a new hire. After shooting a 62 for nine holes (my first ever round of golf), I was off and running.

I've improved significantly over the past few years. Now I regularly shoot in the mid to high 80's and low 90's for 18 holes at the local courses. My unofficial but properly computed USGA handicap index is currently 14.1. It has recently gone down because I've been shooting some excellent scores due to recent improvement in my all-around game. My lowest score for 18 holes is an 80, and for 9 holes a 37, both shot on December 23, 2005 at the Sunol Valley Golf Club, Cypress course. This course is a little too easy to count much, so my best score at a more difficult course is an 83 at Saddle Rock Golf Course in Aurora, Colorado, the second hardest course I've ever played. Normally I play as a single paired with strangers. But a few times a year I get to play with my best friend Cy Lin and we have a lot of fun. I think he brings out the best golf in me even though I'm not really a competitive sort of guy. He's a good golfer himself, but miraculously we've both played at about the same level since we've played together. Our scores are generally very close, and we cheer eachother on.

My irons are the most expensive clubs in my bag. I have the Tour Edge Bazooka JMax Iron-woods, though I only play the 5 iron through pitching wedge. I have three MAC Burrows Tour Bounce wedges, at 60, 56, and 52 degrees. I have a Odyssey 2-Ball DFX putter, a heel-shafted mallet putter cut short to 30 inches. I have a King Cobra Baffler 3R fairway wood that I use for all long shots not off the tee box. I drive with my Bazooka JMax F4 Heel-weighted 3 Wood and my King Cobra 460SZ 10.5 Degree driver. I play with whatever balls I get as gifts, but if I buy balls, I get Top Flite Complete, Straight balls. I also play with four FootJoy Weathersof ML Cadet gloves. I play with four because my hands get sweaty quickly, hence slippery, so I change the gloves often to keep a good grip. The final complement are my FootJoy golf shoes. I'm pretty happy with my clubs at the moment, though I could probably benefit some from a new 3-wood after I gain a little more consistency.

Since golf is my primary hobby, I put a lot of time and effort into it. I have a log book where I keep track of ideas, rounds, and analyses. Though it is really geeky, it may be a big reason why I am improving. I try to keep some stats from my games to see how I'm improving, but I haven't come up with good statistics yet. Greens in regulation, putts, and fairways just don't tell the whole story. I keep a running spreadsheet of all my round scores so that I can keep my index accurate. It's actually a slick spreadsheet designed so that anyone can use it for any and all USGA rated courses they play.