Chapter 6: Dancing on the Devil's Pulpit

Dave woke early and after showering, he went to the Tim Horton's. He was surprised how busy the street was for the early morning hour. He thought about both B.C. and Quebec and how both of those places had been much quieter. He briefly thought about the Asian triplets two years earlier and then about Jennifer the previous year. Finished reviewing the warm memories, he got his mind back on the Canadian Amateur and got focused on his upcoming round. After having a hot chocolate, he met his parents in the hotel restaurant. They ate a healthy breakfast before heading to the course. Dave had a nine o'clock tee-time, so they arrived at the course at eight. He hit balls for a half hour before putting for another thirty minutes. When the starter called his name to go to the first tee he was confident and ready.

Dave was introduced to his two playing partners, one was from Quebec, and the other was from Manitoba. Dave was the first to tee off and he stood on the tee feeling nervous but still confident. The first hole was a long par-four with a split fairway separated by sand traps. The raised tee made for a spectacular view - lush green fairways separated by white sand traps bordered on the right side by the deep blue pond with the green countryside visible for miles. Dave stood high on the tee and looked at the areas of risk. He chose the safe side of the fairway on the left side of the sand traps. The fairway on the right side was narrow with water running along the right and the sand traps on the left. Dave first teed up his ball and then stood behind the ball and focused on his shot. He addressed his ball and aimed over the sand traps separating the two fairways. He hit a high solid draw safely down the left fairway.

He felt good about his swing and he felt his nerves quickly float away after his good drive. He watched the other two players hit before he and his dad/caddy walked down the hill to the fairway. His mother followed close behind. Dave had hit the longest drive so he had to wait for the other two players to hit before he reached his ball. He watched the Manitoba player miss the green left while the Quebec player hit his second shot onto the green, thirty feet from the hole.

Dave had one hundred and seventy-yards to the pin. He decided that his eight-iron would not be enough so he selected his seven iron as his father described the green. Dave listened carefully then stood over his ball ready to take a little off the seven-iron. He aimed just right of the pin and hit the ball perfectly. The ball sailed over the pin and stopped twelve feet past the hole. Dave happily handed his club to his father and strode towards the green. The Manitoba player chipped and two putted for bogey before the Quebec player rolled his first putt four feet past the hole. Dave and his father lined up his putt and talked about the slight right to left break. When they were both happy with the line, Dave stood over the putt and stoked the ball smoothly. The ball rolled towards the right side of the hole and held the line for a long time until it suddenly caught the top lip of the hole and dropped in. Dave mentally said, "Good start, Dave!" but on the outside he looked almost emotionless as he confidently walked to the hole and pulled his ball from the cup. He heard congratulations from the other two players and he thanked them.

The Quebec player made his par putt before Dave followed the Manitoba player to the next tee. Dave pulled out his three-wood and looked down the hole. He pushed his tee deep into the ground with the ball on it before he chose his line. He aimed down the right rough and took a smooth full swing. The ball started out just left of his line and drew nicely into the fairway; he ended up on the left side of the fairway with ninety yards to the hole. The other two players hit decent drives with the Quebec player in the middle of the fairway and the Manitoba player in the right rough.

Again Dave was the longest off the tee and he had to wait for the other two players to hit. The Manitoba player missed the green again, while the Quebec player hit his shot fifteen feet from the hole. Dave selected his pitching wedge and he briefly thought about his time in England the previous year when he perfected the partial swing on his wedge. He knew he had to swing the club to ten o'clock on the swing dial. He confirmed the line with his father and he stood over the ball confidently. He put a perfectly smooth swing on the club. The ball flew right at the pin, landed ten feet long before sucking back six feet. He only had four feet for his second straight birdie.

Dave passed his club to his father and, without emotion, nodded at him then advanced to the green. The Manitoba player made his up and down this time for par before the Quebec player lipped out for birdie and tapped in for par. Dave rolled his short birdie putt dead middle.

Dave finished the front nine with one more birdie and six pars for a three under par thirty-two. He continued to strike the ball well on the back but he didn't make many putts. He two-putted the eighteenth hole for par and one under par thirty-five back nine for a total of sixty-seven. As he was walking up the last hole he noticed several camera crews taping the golfers as they finished play.

He knew the first two days were mainly about qualifying for the match play and he was sure a sixty-seven was a very good start. He suspected that a few players would get hot and shoot the lights out, but his goal was to complete two solid rounds without taking huge risks. He expected that another round under seventy would give him a top-ten seed and that was his goal.

He left the course with his parents and they went out for supper. Both his mother and father congratulated him on a good round and he thanked them. His father knew of his goal for two rounds under seventy so they never talked about that. His tee time the next day was later in the morning so he and his parents decided to go see a Toronto Blue Jays' baseball game. The game against Boston was an exciting two-one pitcher's duel; it was a fantastic distraction for Dave. He relaxed and briefly forgot about his golf but, as soon as he left the Sky Dome, his thoughts returned to golf.

He arrived back at the motel late and Mike was sleeping due to his early tee-time the next day, so Dave quietly slipped into the room and went to sleep. He heard the phone ring early for Mike who quietly slipped out of bed. Dave fell back to sleep and woke an hour later. He had a relaxing shower before going to the Tim's down the street. He rolled each hole through his mind as he got ready for the day. He was relaxed and focused when he left the coffee shop. His parents were waiting in the hotel restaurant when he arrived. He ate a large meal before they all left for the course.

Dave went straight to the leader board to see where he stood. He was happy to see there were only four players ahead of him. As he expected, an Ontario player had an incredible round of sixty-three. There were two players with sixty-five and one player with sixty-six. He looked to see how his teammates played and he was pleased to see Mike had shot seventy, Jeff seventy-one, and Dustin Carragher seventy-nine. Dave looked to see the team standings and was very happy to see the Island team was sitting in third. The Island team had never finished in the top five and Dave was hoping they could change that. He went to the practice range and prepared for his round.

He was putting on the practice green when called to the first tee. He got to the tee and met his playing partners for the round. One was from Ontario and the other was from Newfoundland. Dave was hitting third so he watched the other two players tee off before he moved to the tee. Both players found the left fairway. Dave again chose the safe line and hit a good drive down the left side well past both of his playing partners. His approach shot to the green landed fifteen feet from the hole and he two-putted for par.

The Ontario player made par as well and he hit first on the second hole. Dave hit second because the Newfoundlander made bogey. Dave birdied number two and continued consistent play for the rest of the round. He made three more birdies and one bogey for a very good round of sixty-eight. He was in one of the later groups of the day so he checked the leader board when he finished and was very pleased to see he was in fourth position overall. The leader was the Ontario player who shot the same as Dave, sixty-eight in round two, and was leading by two strokes. Dave checked the team board. He was happy to see Mike shot seventy-one while Jeff shot seventy-four. Dustin shot eighty-two. There were still a few provincial team players on the course but the Island team was looking good for a third place finish. The Ontario team was dominating and the BC team was close behind with the QAI team fighting with the Quebec team for third.

Mike joined Dave at the leader board. He congratulated, "Good round, Dave. We both qualified for the match play. Jeff is close but it doesn't look like he will make it."

Dave thanked, "Thanks, Mike; great round yourself. How many groups left to come in?"

Mike replied, "Eight more groups; the top seven players from yesterday are all in, so you should be safe for fourth place. I should be in the middle of the draw. I will likely have an early tee time while you will have a late one again. Did you get back to sleep this morning?"

Dave nodded, "Yes, I did. Thanks for being quiet."

"Just returning the favor; I hardly heard you, yesterday."

Dave nodded, "Thanks, I'm going to supper with my parents again but I should be back to the room early. I'll see you later."

Mike replied, "I'm staying until the draw for tomorrow is completed so I will let you know when you tee off."

Dave thanked Mike again then found his parents and they went out for supper.

Dave returned to his room early and Mike told him that his tee-time was eleven-forty while Mike had to tee off at eight-twenty. Mike further explained that Jeff finished sixty-third and teed off two groups behind Dave against the number two seed from B.C. Dave and Mike watched television for a couple hours before they went to sleep.

Dave again heard the wakeup call for Mike very early and again he managed to go back to sleep. Dave woke at seven o'clock and spent a half hour at Tim's getting ready for his first round of match play. He reflected on his previous matches in the Tuesday group and he silently thanked the pro at Hornsby who gave up his place in the Tuesday group so Dave would play match play on a regular basis. The group included most of the top players at Hornsby and they played match play every week. Dave learned a lot about the totally different game of match play. Your score over eighteen holes was totally irrelevant in match play. Each hole was like a separate game and the player who won more holes than the other player won the match. If a player was leading by more holes than remained to be played, the match was immediately over. When a two number score is given in match play, the first number is the number of holes won and the second number is the number of holes still to be played. A player was either up - meaning he was leading, or down - meaning he was losing. So if a score were four and three, that meant the player was four holes ahead with only three holes remaining - the match was over.

Dave returned to the restaurant and ate breakfast with his parents. They left for the course at eight o'clock but didn't arrive until just before nine o'clock. Traffic around Toronto was unlike anything Dave had ever seen - it was bumper to bumper on the in town lane but luckily they were going against the traffic. Dave could not imagine living in such a crazy environment.

When they arrived at the course, Dave went straight to the practice range and hit balls for an hour. After putting for another hour, he went into the clubhouse and ate a quick sandwich before he met his father at the first tee. Dave hadn't talked strategy with his father because he didn't want to go with a set plan. He wanted to adjust his play based on his competition and the situation.

Dave was introduced to his opponent, Kevin Much, an Ontario player who wasn't on the provincial team but qualified through a local tournament. Dave was the lower seed so he teed off first. He stood on the first tee and looked at the right fairway. He reconsidered it but chose the left fairway. He pushed his tee into the ground and focused on his shot. After his pre-shot routine, he stood over the ball and hammered a huge drive down the left fairway. Kevin hit his ball down the left side as well but far short of Dave's mammoth drive. Kevin then missed the green left. Dave's ball was inside the one hundred and fifty yard marker so he pulled out his nine-iron. He put a perfect swing on the ball and it sailed over the pin and sucked straight back. The ball finished one foot from the hole. Dave strode to the green confidently, he was about to mark the ball when Kevin said, "That's good."

Dave nodded and picked up his ball. Kevin now had to make the chip to halve the hole. He hit a good chip but the ball rolled past the hole. He picked the ball up and followed Dave to the next hole. Dave was one up. The front nine went well for Dave; he had two more birdies and six pars. Kevin felt the pressure and gave up five more holes on the front. He was very intimidated by Dave's huge drives so Dave focused on hitting fairways and greens - he let Kevin lose the match on his own. Dave made a par on number ten while Kevin bogeyed. Dave was now seven and eight. All he had to do was halve two holes or win one and the match was over.

They both made par on eleven which left the match dormie which meant that Kevin had to win every remaining hole to tie the match. Extra holes would then be required to determine a winner. Dave again hit a solid drive on eleven and Kevin hit a good drive as well. Kevin thought he needed a birdie so he went right at the pin. He hit his best shot of the day and it finished two feet from the hole. Dave stood over his one hundred and thirty yard shot and hit a solid wedge to seven feet. As they neared the green Dave could see that Kevin's ball was very close. Kevin had putted fairly well all day so Dave simply nodded at him and said, "Pick it up, Kevin." Kevin nodded and picked up his ball.

Dave and his father eyed up the putt and, when they had settled on the line, Dave stood over the ball. Dave was confident he could make the putt. He focused on his usual, "Straight back; straight through" then stroked a solid putt dead middle. The clunk of the ball hitting the back of the cup was truly sweet. Dave did a very simple hand clench as he nodded and whispered "yes" - he didn't do any hand pumps or any hoorays. He then simply walked to Kevin and put out his hand.

Kevin congratulated, "Good round, Dave. You were too much for me today. Good luck in the next round."

"Thanks, Kevin."

Dave then turned and shook his father's hand. "Thanks, Dad."

Dave, his father and mother and Kevin walked back to the clubhouse together. Mike was standing on the balcony waiting for Dave. Dave simply smiled at Mike and Mike put a thumbs-up to indicate he had advanced as well. When Dave reached the balcony he asked, "Any word on Jeff?"

Mike nodded, "Jeff was one-up through ten holes. He's always tough in match play."

Dave nodded as he knew full well how good Jeff was at match play. Both Jeff and Mike played in the Tuesday group and they had played some great matches against each other over the summer. Dave told his parents he wanted to wait and see how Jeff did before they left. They all went to the restaurant in the clubhouse and ate. It was well over an hour when Mike and Dave saw Jeff playing down the last hole. Word quickly spread that the match was all even. Jeff's opponent hit his second shot twenty feet from the hole. Jeff's drive was farther and he hit his approach shot second - his ball stopped twelve feet from the hole.

Dave thought that Jeff was in the driver's seat because he had the shorter birdie putt but his opponent sank his twenty-foot putt first. Jeff's twelve-foot putt suddenly seemed like forty feet. He stroked it solidly but the ball rolled over the corner and past the hole. Jeff turned to his opponent and shook hands - he was out of the tournament.

Dave and his parents went out for supper before returning to the hotel early. Dave had to play early in the morning and if he won the morning match he would have to play another match in the afternoon. Mike was already in the room and they talked about their matches and their opponents the next morning. They both went to sleep early.

The two matches went well the next day for Dave. He led both matches early and never gave up the lead. The morning match ended four and three while the afternoon match appeared closer at three and two. Dave's opponent in the afternoon match knew all about Dave's golf the previous year at the Canadian Open and seemed distracted from his own game. Dave played conservatively after he was up two holes and matched his skilled but distracted opponent, easily.

After shaking hands to concede the match, Dave's opponent asked him about playing with Vijay Singh and Mike Weir. As they walked back to the clubhouse, Dave told him all about the Open and described playing with the pros. They shook hands again at the clubhouse before Dave went looking for Mike. Mike had won his morning match and, like Dave, made it to the final sixteen - but his afternoon match was against the sixth seed and he struggled. He lost four and three. Dave found him and Mike described his round to Dave. Dave consoled Mike but Mike was pleased to make the top sixteen. He told Dave to keep grinding and win it all for the Island.

Dave again left the course with his parents - they went to supper. They arrived back at the hotel at nine-thirty and Dave went right to bed.

He woke the next morning early and went to Tim's. He decided to continue his conservative, consistent play in his morning match. He met his parents at the restaurant before going to the course. Dave practiced hard and was ready when his name was called to the first tee. He again had honors because he was the lower seed, so he stood on the tee and hit a solid drive down the left side of the fairway. His ball stopped one hundred and sixty yards from the hole.

Dave's opponent was Ben Carson from B.C. Ben stood on the first tee and hammered a solid drive down the right fairway and his ball stopped one hundred and thirty yards from the pin. Ben's aggressiveness surprised Dave and Dave immediately felt as if he had been thrown back on his heels. He only hit a fair approach shot thirty feet from the hole while Ben stuck his shot at six feet. Dave two-putted for par before Ben knocked his birdie putt in for a one-up lead. Dave was trailing a match for the first time at the Amateur.

Ben hit a good drive on number two before Dave hit a poor three wood. He ended up in the rough on the left side then missed his approach shot to the right of the green. Ben hit another great second shot to eight feet. After Dave chipped to six feet, Ben rolled in another birdie - Dave was two down through two holes.