Round #7: Chateau Elan Woodlands Course

THE GOLF:

45 minutes north of Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia, sits Chateau Elan Winery and Resort. The resort is home to 2 David Griffiths designed courses: The Chateau Course and The Woodlands Course. The Woodlands was the course of choice today since the Chateau greens were being aerated. My round began on a 530 yard par 5 - not long by any means. The hole played into a 4 club wind. Following is my club selection for the first 3 shots of this hole, all of which were were well struck: driver, 4 iron, 5 wood. I was still short of the green. These 3 clubs, hit in secession on a day without wind, would net me roughly 680 yards. I missed an up and down chance on number one and exited the hole with bogey. Unfortunately, things did not get better from there. My best shot of the day was a 5 wood on the 190 yard par 3 2nd hole which landed to 12 feet. As expected, I missed the birdie putt. I blame the wind.

The wind was abusive - leaving me with little chance of making par on most holes. This was one of those rounds where every hole seemed to play into the win. I must have followed the driver up with a 4 iron second shot 80% of the time. Also abusive were the 6 foresomes ahead of me keeping me from playing through. The two players I was to be paired with did not show, leaving me with approximately 10 minutes between shots. A rhythm was difficult to establish and my score was affected. I came back to the clubhouse with a 95 and memories of a round that I would like to soon forget.

Today's Round: Chateau Elan Woodlands Course
Score: 95
Handicap: 8.5
Overnight Location: Atlanta, GA
Tomorrow's Course: Chastain
Tomorrow's Overnight Location: Atlanta, GA

THE BLACK CROWES

I had little time to reel from my golfing debacle this afternoon, as I was told to prepare for the Black Crowes concert in downtown Atlanta. The band hails from Atlanta so the show would be a homecoming of sorts. My familiarilty with the Crowes extends no farther than a few songs and a knowledge of their southern roots. Regardless, I was excited to see them at such an intimate venue as The Fox Theatre which has a capacity of around 3,500 people. Also attending the show were my friend Jeff Weekley, and his 2 friends Dan, and Nick. The show was good as was the company. The sound from Chris Robinson's microphone made it difficult to understand his vocals, but this was of little concern as I didn't know the words their songs anyway. For over 3 hours, The Fox Theatre was filled with the sounds of these Southern Rock legends. The audience left exhausted and fulfilled. My only complaint was the band omitting She Talks to Angels from their setlist. It is one of the few Crowes songs I know and I was hoping to hear it live. After the show, we waited for crowds to clear from the parking garage by bidding our time at a bar next door. The bar was swanky. Dan and Jeff found this out when they tried to order a Bud Light only to be told that they do not serve Bud Light, only Amstel Light. What kind of bar doesn't serve Bud Light? That's like Sam's Club not carrying economy size items. It just did not make sense. After leaving we took a great picture outside the Fox Theatre that makes it look like are excited from just having witnessed Lord of the Dance. Actually, all this Black Crowes banter is merely a ruse to hide my insatiable appetite for Irish River Dance.

Jeff is taking the afternoon off work tomorrow to join me in the round at Chastain. Our tee time is scheduled for 1:30. Let's hope the wind is a bit more agreeable then. Cheers...