Chapter 8

The time had arrived, between Thanksgiving and Christmas, for the end of Golf Season. We had three guys that qualified for the regional tournament. They held the regional's at Bay Hill. Arnold Palmer owns the course, and they play a PGA event there every year. We still had to walk, but we played eighteen holes instead of nine, and we had to skip school.

Sean, Tim, and I were representing our school. Tim and I found that we were seated by the members of the Regional Committee in the top ten, and after the regional's finished, the top ten from regionals would go on to the state tournament. Once the round started, I moved out strong, and was doing well. There were fifteen guys within four shots of the leader after nine holes. When I made it to the eleventh hole, the hole that wraps around the lake, you have to decide how much you want to put in to your tee shot, and where you want to place it. The longer the drive, the more water you have to fly over, and the more risk you take. I knew that my long drives could help me, and this hole was one that I could make up a stroke if I could make a birdie. It was important that I landed my approach shot as close to the green as possible. The wind picked up while I was in my back swing, so I pulled a little harder, and it hung out to the left. With those conditions, the ball landed on land, but ended up stuck at the waters' edge, plugged in the mud. It was in far enough that they didn't consider it in the hazard, but it was still an unplayable lie.

That meant that I could drop the ball, but I'd have to take a one-stroke penalty. To give myself some time to think, I picked up the ball, and cleaned off the mud. Then I measured out two club-lengths with my driver, and then dropped the ball between that spot and the water. Much to my chagrin, because I was so upset at the situation, I hit a bad second shot (third with the penalty). I ended-up two putting for a bogey on a hole I should have birdied. As I walked to the next hole, I calmed myself down, and refocused on my game.

For the twelfth and thirteenth holes, I shot a par, and then a birdie on the fourteenth hole. Fifteen is a tricky dogleg right, so I played it safe, and shot my par. On sixteen, I went for it. After a long drive, and a hard three-wood to the green, I two-putted for a birdie. At that point, I knew that I was close, and I was hoping to make the top ten. On seventeen, a par three hole over water, I shot a par.

Coach met me at the tee box at the last hole, and let me know that I needed a par to lock in a trip to Miami for the state tournament. He let me know that Tim was in, and he wanted me to go along. I took a deep breath, and hit a nice drive that went a little right. The distance was fine, but since I hit it to the right, it meant that my approach shot would be entirely over water to a severely sloped green. I didn't want to leave it short, so I aimed for the back of the green hoping to see a nice roll back toward the hole for a two putt, and a par.

I estimated that I was an easy five-iron out, and hit it firm just to make sure. It flew on me, and landed just off the green on the high side. If I chipped the ball, it would catch the down slope, and run to the lake. If I putted, the same thing would happen. I only had one chance to make a par. I had to take my wedge, and swing under the ball lofting it in the air with enough backspin, so it would land between the pin and me, and with any luck, it would stop without running to the water.

You could hear the coaches, parents, and players that were standing around the eighteenth green talking, as I took a couple of full practice swings with my wedge. I stepped up to the ball, and swung a full swing. If I hit it wrong, it would be plopping into the middle of the lake. Instead, it looked, as if it was slow motion, as the ball went up about fifteen feet in the air, and then dropped, froze, and then released to trickle down to within five inches of the hole. The only thing I heard was Tim say, "Fuckin' Aye."

I didn't look at anyone, but instead I dropped my wedge, and I went to mark my ball before it decided to start rolling again. To say that I was a happy camper when my quarter was down, and my ball was in my hand is an understatement. Given my closeness to the hole, I putted last in my group, and had my par. Tim finished second, one stroke back, and eight guys finished, including myself, tied for third,, and all were going to state. After the guys in my foursome congratulated me, Tim and coach Safford came over, and mugged me. Coach said that he'd have kicked my ass if he hadn't just saw the ballsiest and prettiest golf shot he'd ever seen.

Mom had come over to watch, but didn't talk to me while I played. I didn't even know she was there. She came over, and gave me a hug and a kiss before telling me how proud she was, and how scared she was when I hit that shot on eighteen. It was on the front page of the sports section of the Orlando Sentinel even though I didn't win. I was a celebrity for a day. The girls' tournament was the following day, and we had three girls in the tournament. Michelle and Jody made it to state, but Carrie missed the cut. I wasn't happy about it, but I didn't let it upset me either.

Two weeks later, we played the state tournament at the Blue Monster at the Doral Country Club. The guys played on Wednesday, and the girls played on Thursday. We'd be there for both days, so I was glad we'd be finished first. I didn't have any blow up holes, penalty stokes or miracle shots. I played well, and finished two over to stand alone in third place. Tim found himself tied with three other guys at three over for fourth place. Two guys tied at one over, and had a play-off to see who won. I played my best, but it just wasn't good enough. The thing that I was happiest about was that I didn't beat myself. I just wasn't the best golfer on that day.

Tim and I went out, and had fun that night. We weren't old enough to drink, but we had fun anyways. The next day he walked with Michelle and I walked with Jody. She was doing well, and was in and out of the lead. One of the parents of the girls she was playing with made a comment about her being a dumb blonde, and it upset her. She was a beautiful girl with long blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. I didn't know her well, but had gotten to know her over the season. She messed up the next drive, and grabbed her bag in a huff.

I stopped her, and said, "Jody, you can par this hole. That person you're trying to beat is the kid of the lady that made that comment. They're trying to beat you in your mind because the girl isn't good enough to beat you on the course. Don't let all you worked for slip away because of some heckler. If they say anything else, I'll kick their ass, but don't believe a word of it. You're a smart, beautiful, sexy, caring, mature, and funny blonde. There isn't anything dumb about you except that person following you around watching you beat their kid."

She hit a second shot to the front of the green, and got up and down to save par. She smiled at me, as she walked off the green. As the crowd funneled through to go to the next green, I stepped in front of the lady that had said the remark about Jody. "If you make one more comment about my friend in trying to help your kid try to win, I'll make your life a living hell, and heckle your skanky slut of a daughter the rest of the tournament. I expect you to apologize to her after the round or I'll meet you in the parking lot. I don't usually threaten ladies, but I don't consider you a lady after the crap you pulled."

She stepped back, and then rushed past me in fear. I saw her point me out to her husband, but I didn't care. I stayed near Jody, and I continued to encourage her between holes. I didn't hear anything more from that lady, and she stayed right next to her husband. I saw her talk to Jody after the round, but didn't hear what they said. Jody won the state championship by a stroke. I got a big hug from her after the round, and since it was late, we had all planned to stay one more night. Coach Safford, Coach Henry, Tim, Jody, Michelle, and I went out for a nice dinner. The school wasn't paying for it, but I picked the place, and picked up the tab. I told them that my mom had sent money, and told me what to do with it, and they all thought it was great. The coaches split a bottle of wine, and after dinner, we went back to the hotel. We were going to meet for breakfast at eight in the morning.

Jody and Michelle came to our room. Tim and Michelle were dating, and Jody wanted to thank me. She asked what I had said to that lady.

I said, "I told her that if she said one more thing to you that she'd regret it. Then I stayed close enough to you, so I could hear if she tried."

"She said she was sorry, and to keep you away from her."

"You can ask Tim, and he can tell you that I don't like it when someone comes after one of my friends."

She looked at Tim, and he was nodding his head. Michelle said, "If there's one thing in this world that I'd never do, it would be to do something malicious against a friend of Dons. I've seen how he reacts. It's like a mother bear protecting her young. I can think of better ways to die."

Jody came over, and gave me a hug. She felt good, and I wasn't letting go until she pushed me away. To my surprise, she didn't push me away, so when she looked up, I kissed her nose. She liked that, but instead of pulling away, she moved her lips to where her nose was, and we started to make out. We broke apart long enough to see Michelle and Tim on his bed doing the same thing. Jody asked if I wanted to stay in the room or go to her room. I didn't think we were that far along, but I wasn't going to turn her away, so I told her we could do whatever she wanted.

We looked over to see Michelle taking off her top. Jody started to pull her golf shirt over her head. When she was down to her underwear, and I was standing in my shorts, I had to stop, because she had the body of a model. I couldn't decide if her blue eyes or her breasts were her best feature, as both were stunning. She asked if I had a rubber, and I went to my travel kit, and pulled out a strip of three. She said that was even better. I was filling my second condom, as she screamed, grunted, and shook through her third orgasm. The applause from the next bed was almost as good as my miracle shot at Bay Hill. Jody blushed, but didn't try to cover up. We looked over to see Michelle perched on Tim's cock, and she was pinching her nipples, as she moved gently back and forth.

Michelle said, "I wouldn't want to cross Don, but I wouldn't mind being a close friend. He seems to take care of his friends very well."

Jody agreed, so we rested, and watched Michelle and Tim finish their fun before the girls went back to their room. When Coach knocked on the door at midnight, I called aloud enough for him to hear through the door, 'to hide in the closet', before I opened it, and smiled at him. He asked if he needed to look, so I told him that we sent the girl's home twenty minutes before he knocked. He told me that we had done well, and that he'd see us in the morning. I asked if I should check on him and Coach Henry in an hour, and he said that I shouldn't even go there.

Tim and I finished watching the Late Show, and went to sleep. The next day the ride back was uneventful. After I put my clubs in my trunk, I talked to Jody, just to make sure we were both on the same page about our relationship. She looked at the ground, and then said, "I kind of have a boyfriend, but he's away at college. Please know that I wanted to do what we did, and I don't regret it, because it was great, but becoming your girlfriend isn't on my agenda. If I led you on, I'm very sorry."

"I had fun too, but I didn't want to have to break up with you before we became an item. This is something that I'll always remember, but pretend it never happened. You're a sweet girl, and a rocket in bed. I'm glad I got a chance to light your fuse."

"You were the one shooting off, but I had fun too. Thanks for being my friend, and standing up for me. It really meant a lot to me, and I wouldn't have won if you hadn't stepped in."

Since school was still in session, when we returned, Carrie came up, and she congratulated Jody for winning the state and as an afterthought, congratulated me on third place. I wasn't sure if it was sincere or a snub for not doing as well, so I thanked her, and left, leaving Jody to talk with her. I walked into my last class as the Attendance Assistant. Mrs. Harvey laughed, and said, "I see that you've missed the entire day, and then show up for last period to help me. I survived the last two days while you were goofing off. Go home, and I'll mark you excused. Congratulations on the third place finish."

I thanked her, and drove home. Mom had the day off, and we sat down to talk. I told her about the golf tournament, and the girls round. She was happy to hear how well I'd done. We got around to work, and she said, "Don, I was thinking about the tutor, and what we'd do. I wasn't keen on paying someone to drive around with you, and try to teach you on the road. If you were to take the class in summer school, it would be six weeks of classroom work to pass the class. You're half way done, so in the end, we should have around three weeks' worth of work or twelve to fifteen days left. We can figure out a schedule to do a day or two a week, three full weeks or whatever fits best for when you're home."

"I think the next quarter ends just after Christmas break. Maybe we can have the tutor in, and by the time February rolls around, I'll be done. The trade show is in March."

"I like that idea, and it will mean that you're done with school before you start on the road. If you pass then you can go to work. If not you stay home."

"Deal. Have you found a tutor yet?"

"I needed to figure out the schedule first. If it was after school every day we could use a teacher, but since it will be a one month assignment during the school year we'll need to find someone who had free time to teach, but still meets the requirements."

"You should check the colleges. If a professor teaches a few classes a week they could work around that schedule, and I could study or work on papers in their class or at the library when they were on campus or something like that."

"I'll call Rollins and Valencia tomorrow to see if they have anyone."

Dan came home later, and congratulated me on the golf. It was Friday, so he was going to take Christy to dinner and a movie. Dad was out-of-town for the weekend or for the last week and next week at the facility in Phoenix. I asked Mom if she wanted to go out to dinner with me. She thought that would be a nice idea.

I got dressed up a bit, and took her to the Club for dinner. We talked about how her babies were growing up. She had a couple of glasses of wine with dinner, and a Manhattan before dinner. We talked about my job, and how very conflicting it was for me, because I had to deal with not going to college, but making so much money. We talked about Dan and Christy. She asked about my love life and me, so I told her that I wasn't ready to settle down, but I was playing the field. She sat up at that, and asked if I was dating, because I didn't have a girlfriend that she knew of.