Day 170 at The CC of Virginia - pure

Posted by Jamie on 24 June 2010 | 0 Comments | Tags: Virginia, Country Club, hickory, transfusion

puregolf2010 arrives in Tobacco Country!  After a fine evening last night with the Inmans, we readied Dodgy for his first foray into Virginia.  Destination: Richmond.

Steve DeWalle was one of the first Americans to contact us, way back when, extending a very kind invitation to stay with him and play at The Country Club of Virginia.  The 19th of June those many moons ago seemed like an eternity away, but as we all know time creeps up on you â?? particularly when every day is a jam packed one!  We met Steve at his apartment in The Fan area of Richmond, a quaint district with a residual flavour of Bohemian times gone by.  My kinda place.

Steve's an interesting chap to be sure.  Although heâ??s played golf for many years, heâ??s only in the last few years begun to take it somewhat seriously.  In that time his handicap has come down and his collection of golf memorabilia has grown.  I'm always loathe to pin the "golf nut" label on the donkey, but even Steve would find it hard to argue against.  And why not?  What I like most about Steve though is how he has so many strings to his bow, defying pigeon holing based on occupation.  The man dabbles in advertising, provides some sort of installation service for high end stereo systems, probably consults for NASA and, I imagine, invests in obscure stocks in emerging markets.  A chameleon.  A chameleon who seems to do quite well for himself.  Anyhow.  

The golf?  CCV has 3 courses: one in town, and a couple 15 minutes or so away.  The River Course for whatever reason has the best name, and thatâ??s the one we were fortunate enough to play.  Sounds to me like the members get a pretty sweet deal, being able to play 3 fine tracks within a stoneâ??s throw of each other (and of course use the rather decadent amenities).  Our fourth â?? Berno â?? has been a member since Moses struck The Rock, and why wouldnâ??t you?  The atmosphere is pitched nicely to balance laid back and good tradition.  For example, you can wear jandals in the clubhouse; but you must take your hat off when you go in and your cellphone must be on silent.  

We got another scorcher.  My glove was soaked after hitting 50 balls on the range.  I was also sporting one of those lower back sweat patches that you usually only associate with guys that weigh 300 pounds.  Mmmm.

The River Course doesnâ??t actually border the river (you donâ??t see it at any point, as far as I could tell) but itâ??s the closest of the 3 to the river and takes its namesake thus.  So there you go.  From the first tee you look out from your perch over the surrounding lowlands.  A nice view.  Your eyeâ??s also drawn to a lake guarding the left hand side of the green, which comes into place more than youâ??d think because the greens are so dam fast.  (The member / guest is here soon, so the greenkeepers have got the place in tip top shape â?? a real treat).

Like the Country Clubs weâ??ve played of late â?? Charleston, North Carolina â?? the setting is a serene one.  Very mature deciduous woodlands; gentle undulations; stately residences tucked carefully away, partially hidden from view.  The sort of place that anyone â?? whether theyâ??re a golfer or not â?? could happily walk around for hours.  

Both 9s were good, but I had a slight preference for the back (which has more undulation).  10 is a lovely dogleg left with a partially blind tee shot; 11 is a driver and a flip to an impossible green; 12 is a brute of an uphill dogleg right, commanding a pinpoint tee shot; 13 is a driveable par 4 with a treacherous green; 14 is a 220 yard par 3 over a huge ravine, with out of bounds left; 15â??s another driveable par 4 with a creek running up one side and bunkers up the other â?? a great little hole; 16 (pictured twice above) might just be one of the most picturesque holes weâ??ve seen this year, a downhill dogleg left par 5 framed by bunkers and a narrow entrance to the green; 17â??s a long par 3 that you just canâ??t miss; and 18â??s a great risk/reward par 5 with a  raised green.  When you remember every shot on every hole you know youâ??ve been fortunate to play a good track.

There may have been another reason I enjoyed the back 9 so much.  At half time Berno ran into the sheds and emerged with 4 red concoctions in hand.  Transfusions.  They look and taste as ominous as they sound.  On a hot day like the one we had, youâ??ll be hard pushed to find anything as refreshing.  Equal parts vodka and sprite, and a dash of grapefruit juice.  Try it.

The match went down the final hole.  Despite being up for most of the round, Steve and me found ourselves 1 down after 17, after a couple of brain explosions.  Then Goldy did what he likes to do from time to time and drilled a driver 330 yards up the fairway (it was partially uphill), leaving a mid iron into the par 5.  In the end the hole was halved in pars, but the baddies took the honours.  

To celebrate / commiserate we sat on the deck looking out over this beautiful place, and swapped more lies while the sun was dropping towards the oaks.  I also had a nice surprise in the form of a phonecall from my mother, whom I hadnâ??t spoken to for some weeks.  

Then came something a bit special.  Hickory golf.  Steve has a set heâ??s been adding to in recent times, and we couldnâ??t resist the prospect of going out on the back 9 to hit a couple.  Heâ??s even got the proper balls and everything...  I have to say they werenâ??t as difficult to use as Iâ??d suspected.  Swing smoothly and the ball tends to behave; swing like Tiger and things get a little messy.  My favourite weapon was The Jigger, although the Mashie Niblick was a nifty piece of work too.

Berno joined Michael and me for dinner in a funky little neighbourhood bar / restaurant in The Fan â?? The Sidewalk Café â?? where the pastas could feed an army.  Seriously, I got a quarter of the way through my spaghetti and had to pull pin â?? a pathetic effort.

Another cracking day on the road.  Great company; a beautiful place; a golf course in perfect condition; and a Transfusion or two to add to our glow.  Lifeâ??s good and weâ??re lucky boys.

Thanks to Steve for being a wonderful host!

JP