It has been two months since my thumb surgery. At our last meeting, Dr. Lipson told me that on December 14, I was released from all restrictions. I have two appointments tomorrow, one with the Physical Therapist, who will force me to do something painful, and then tell me to go home and do it three times a day... She's not that bad. Then with the doctor, whom, I presume, will tell me to have a good life, and to never darken his door again.
I have been the perfect patient, to this point, I've picked up a golf club twice, taking slow, gentle swings, in reality, just making arcs in the air, as opposed to a real swing. I have tried to limit the weight I carry in my left hand, but the hand strength has surprised me over the past two weeks. I've rubbed cocoa butter salve into my surgical scars, pretty much, twice (sometimes thrice) daily. The wrist scar is almost invisible, and the one along the thumb isn't really noticeable. In short, I was ready to take a full swing with a golf club, and today was the day I could.
I went to Cypress Lakes, still an Air Force recreation facility, but allows certain privileges to the local, non-military golfers in Vacaville, since the closing of Green Tree Golf Course three years ago. For a price, admittedly higher than Active Duty, Retiree's, and DoD Affiliated people, Joe the Ragman can buy an Annual Green Fee, which entitles him to play any day the course is open, and not playing host to a tournament. Same as me. Personally, I think it's great, but then I get a benefit to the course being available to the "unaffiliated" people of Vacaville. The closure of Green Tree was done brutally, and Fairfield wasn't going to offer any deals, so it was great that Cypress Lakes opened up a little. It was also very profitable for the course. Because of a regular inflow of "unaffiliated" golfers, who pay more for their rounds than those of us eligible to use military recreation areas, the cost to the military affiliated folks stays low.
I took a 56-degree wedge, and a shag-bag full of golf balls, and decided my first swings would be simple "pitch shots," aimed at a practice green. I did my normal stretch, made sure I was nice and loose, and took about a half-dozen practice swings. Then I put the first ball down, 20 yards away, took a nice easy backswing, transitioned into an easy, perfect golf swing. The ball went 15 yards.
Second and third shots I missed, hitting them thinly, and lining them to the other side of the green. The fourth was a little better, and the fifth was spot on. There were holes (3) in the green, but no flags, thanks to COVID, so they were very hard to see. I didn't put it in any of the holes, but it was a perfect distance, just off to the right. The fifth was also a good on, that hit about six feet in front of the hole, hitting the false-front of the green, and only releasing three feet towards the hole, but right on line.
Of the next five, I skulled one across the green, and put the other four within six feet of the hole, one long, three short, but all on a direct line with the hole. I should have stopped then, but hit ten more balls, some good, most... Meh. My left hip began to hurt a little, so I stopped at 20. I went back to the car, traded the wedge for a steel headed 3-wood that I was wanting to try. I hit some nice shots, but mostly bounced the clubhead off the mat before hitting the ball, resulting, mostly, in low shots of little distance.
Today's take-away: Get back to finding that blade of grass directly behind the ball, and focusing on that point, rotating the entire swing around a still head.
