Elsie and John rolled into town on Monday, for the traditional back-end of our home-and-home series. It's not quite the like kind exchange it seems, as they invite us into their actual home, whereas we invite them into our rental shack, which have not always been up to the standard of Eider House. Which, of course, is why we keep returning to Eider House....
Before we get to the golf, I failed to adequately pay homage to Elsie's Banoffee Pie. I shan't make the same mistake twice:
Nope, don't like it at all. To think, there's folks that believe I come to Scotland for the golf....
Tuesday and Wednesday were competition days, picking up the thread from Tain some ten days ago. As you might recall, Elsie went medieval on us there, posting a Stableford score in the high 40's. If she does that again, we'll be handing her a paper cup for a sample.
We ended up blessed with two fine days of weather, but only after three days of rain, which softened both course considerably. One gets so focused on front yardages, that I'll admit it took a few holes for me to revert to American-style of golf, firing at the center of every green. On Wednesday I quipped that I had fixed more pitch marks that day than I had in every trip here since 1979, combined.
Soft conditions typically make an course play easier, but on Tuesday the complicating factor was the strongest winds of the trip. The Met Office had indicated winds around 10-12 mph, gusting up to +/-20 mph, and it was at least that. The natural remedy is the ground game, but it was a bit of a bizarro day in that the ground game was not as predictable as it usually is.
Not the worst scenery in the world, no?
That's off the fifth tee, Hell's Hole, look towards the green, though not actually the line you'll choose.
Earlier, I had an opportunity to speak with one of the grounds staff, who confirmed what I'd long suspected. The fifth green is on property the club acquired much later, and the Par-3 6th green, which can be one's target off No. 5, was Old Tom's original fifth green.
On the eye-candy 14th, the ladies hit far better shots than the gents:
Actually, everyone's favorite moment might have been your humble blogger's tee ball on No. 7. It's a short, downhill Par-4 that I've reached in my younger days, but one has to flirt with the eighth tee box to keep it fare enough right. Not sure which was funnier, where it actually ended up or the overly optimistic spots where I first looked for it:
This is how one adapts to the tight lies over here....
A lovely day in which the Simpsons were not remotely competitive. Fortunately, Elsie continued her run of dominance by nosing John out by a single, maddening point.
Wednesday on the Craighead was a different matter entirely. The wind had dropped, but overnight rains had it as soft as we've ever seen, but with only mid-single digit wind. In vacation winddown mode, the camera never left my golf bag and this is all I got with my phone:
I've written of my struggles on the Craighead ad nauseum, though was quite pleased with my play on Friday drafting off of Ross (with the typical exception of the putter). Yesterday was even better, although scoring seemed bunched after the first nine. But, while we all partook of a sausage roll at the turn, only one of us seemed to benefit from it. I came home in two over par for a 78, a score I suspect I won't match again anytime soon. The putter cooperated, though about the only thing I made was a six-footer for bogey on No. 11, which helped keep that inbound nine on track.
The day wound down with our last brilliant meal at The Dory, where we bade our favorite waitress goodbye until next summer (one hopes). The funny bit is that we were sitting at a back table, with Elsie and John facing the entrance. I see John's eyebrows raise, and then Elsie reacts.... A friend of theirs from Strathpeffer had walked into the Dory, about as likely as if we had seen someone from NY.
We haven't used our outdoor space for dinner this trip, but after dinner last night we took advantage of the evening calm and took our wine glasses up there:
We love our time in Pittenweem, but it wouldn't be nearly as enjoyable without our friends sharing it with us. We'll pack them off this morning with a fully-loaded car, and pick up the plot next summer.
Today will be another East Neuk layabout, then one last go at the Balcomie tomorrow. This will conclude my trip blogging, unless something compelling spurs me to revisit the keyboard. But the plan is to be back with you on Monday from the other side of the Atlantic.
Thanks, as always, for reading along with our trip. Cheers!
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