Scottsdale Golf Trip

I stepped up to the 16th tee at the TPC Scottsdale on a perfect, 70 degree, cloudless, Sunday afternoon last weekend.  The grandstands completely encompassed the 150 yard Par 3 that is dubbed the "loudest hole in golf."  They had begun building the stands that would house the most highly attended PGA Tour event of the year in December, 3 months before the tournament.  The crowd, consisting of my Dad, our forecaddie Chris, Franco the real estate investor from Calgary, and his wife Haley, attempted to replicate the sounds of the 20,000 person crowd that would fill the seats in little over a month.  Chris informed us that during the FBR Open, an event that over 500,000 people attend, fans will regularly boo and heckle the golfers on this hole.  When the players enter through a tunnell, fans will sing the fight song of the players respective university.  With a crowd of 4 and few uninterested birds and rabbits, I was still nervous.  The thought of hitting a shot in front of 20,000 innebriated spectators waiting to boo even an average shot is beyond me.

Here is a video of one pro on the wrong end of the fans boos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdgFLrSoaCE

So I grabbed my 8 iron, placed the ball on the tee, and tried to think about the tips the golf pro had given me during my one-hour lesson the afternoon before.  I made sure my grip was correct and addressed the ball nervously, shifting my weight back forth from one foot to the other trying to get comfortable.  I took the club straight back and tried to focus on pushing the club through with my right hand on the downswing (all things the pro had taught me).  I made great contact and watched the ball take off.  I could hear the crowd erupt in my mind with multiple "GET IN THE HOLE" cheers.  The ball landed pin high about 15 ft from the hole, a shot that probably would have drawn more boos than cheers during the tournament.  SUCCESS!

I stepped up to the green and two putted, something that I only did a few times the whole round, leaving me with a par on one of the most famous holes in golf!  I won't say what my score was for the day, but I can't wait to watch the tournament and criticize eveyone who makes worse than par with a snide, "Hell, even I parred that hole."