Posts Tagged China
Chip-in Birdie @ Palm Island Resort, China
It was a cold day at the annual United Hearts Charity Golf Tournament in Palm Island Resort, China. Maybe it was for charity, so we were lucky it only started raining after our round. On our fifth hole B5, a short 150 yard Par 3, we took a 7-iron and thought we had a pretty good shot. Damn, forgot about the wind and landed almost 20 yards in front of the green. With the pin in the front, we chose to bump and run with a pitching wedge. A good bump and boy did I run! Straight at the flag…then bang! Ouch! Hit the flag and right into the hole. Lucky, otherwise I could have been off the green.
110318 Palm Island, B5 (Par 3)
First Birdies of 2011 @ CITIC Chang Ping, China
Already into the 20th day of 2011 and four rounds later we finally broke the drought and had our first Birdie of the year.
On the 2nd hole of Course B at CITIC Chang Ping Golf Club, China, our drive was heading towards the right fairway bunker. Fortunately I stopped just short and was in the rough with 110 yards to go. A pitching wedge got me nine feet from the hole with a straight uphill putt. Bang, right in the middle of the cup. What a relief. And it didn’t stop there. Right on the next hole, a Par 5, we nailed it down the fairway and had 260 yards to the green. Taking a 5-wood we knew we wouldn’t reach it but it was well struck nonetheless. 50 yards to go to the front pin. A nice 3/4 swing with the 60° ended up just five feet past the hole. A delicate downhill right to left breaker managed to find the target. Very sweet.
Not bad considering the drought that we had. Two Birdies in a row made up for it. Now don’t let it stop.
110120 CITIC Chang Ping, Course B Hole 2 (Par 4)
110120 CITIC Chang Ping, Course B Hole 3 (Par 5)
Birdies at Reunification Cup @ Lotus Hill, China
We were at Lotus Hill, China for the Reunification Cup tournament. It was a two day stroke play event between the American Club, Chinese Recreation Cup and the Country Club. We played for the Country Club.
On the first day at the signature hole #17, a picturesque Par 3 with a huge rock formation surrounding the back of the green, we hit a solid 9-iron to the 130 yard pin. We had just eight feet uphill for our birdie. We almost won the nearest-to-pin but was beaten by one inch! Luckily we got the nearest-to-pin on the second day at the 161 yard 11th, but unfortunately missed the birdie putt.
Also on the second day, on the par 5 18th (our 9th), we hit a perfect shot leaving us 210 yards to an uphill back pin. This was a bit further back from the previous day when we tried to go for the green and ended up in a sandy patch in front of the green-side bunker. We ended up bogeying the hole so we were a bit more strategic this time. Moreover, there was a strong wind against us, so we took a 6-iron and laid up to 60 yards (65 to be exact). A perfectly struck 60° got me just nine feet from the hole for a sweet birdie. It felt good to be rewarded for smart course management. Maybe we should adopt this strategy more often.
Although we didn’t win this year (we haven’t for a long time) we had a great time. Congrats to the American Club who played flawlessly on Sunday to win.
101211 Lotus Hill - Hole 17 (Par 3)
101212 Lotus Hill - Hole 18 (Par 5)
Double Birdie @ Genzon Golf Club, China
Previously the CITIC Green Golf Club, the Genzon Golf Club in Shenzhen, China is now a 36-hole facility under new ownership and the conditions are first class. The fairways and greens are in top condition…maybe one of the best in Southern China.
We played the A Course in the monthly Jinmin tournament and had a rare birdie on the first hole, a short 327 yard Par 4. A 5-wood tee shot landed just past the trees on the right and into the rough. Sitting nicely, a pitching wedge got me pin high and with the greens running true, a good stroke got the job done.
Then on the 200 yard Par 3 8th, with strong winds against us, we chose a 3-hybrid and knocked it pin high…just seven feet from the hole. Again, one putt sealed the deal. We ended up winning the nearest-to-pin prize too 
Maybe we were too excited as we forgot to take a photo of the hole!
101208 Genzon - Course A, Hole 1 (Par 4)
Birdie on 502 yard Par 5 – Mission Hills, China
The 502 yard Par 5 on the 7th hole on the Duval Course at Mission Hills, China was one testing hole. The long downhill drive meant we could probably clear the bunkers on the right, but a sharp dogleg right turn meant that the landing area was too narrow for comfort. Nevertheless, a good whack with the driver got us half way there, 250 yards to the hole. As the green is further downhill, we tried to kill a 5-wood to get me close to (or even on) the green. From where we were, it looked like we missed by just a few yards, but we were in fact about 40 yards from the front pin. We tried to be too cute with the chip shot and duffed it. Damn. Now we’re still not on the putting surface and lying three. But a miraculous chip caught the sharp break right and rolled right in the bottom of the hole. Very sweet.
101125 Mission Hills - Duval 7 (Par 5)
