I have to say that today I played one of the toughest rounds of golf I have ever played !!!

It was closing day at our course in Barrie (Vespra Hills). Three of us teed it up on a cloudy day with the temperature hovering around 6 degrees Celsius. A few holes in, the sun poked through the clouds but the wind picked up significantly. We needed three extra clubs to combat the wind. I reminded me of my round at Carnoustie where a solidly struck drive would only go about 220yds. Then the clouds came in and we played two holes in hail and sleet. Our bags were covered in ice and the pellets hitting us in the face were actually painful. Fortunately that blew through and we carried on in some decent weather. The winds died down significantly so we only needed one extra club to reach the greens. We made it to the back nine and were doing well until we got to the 15th hole. There the hail started again with a vengeance. on the 16th through 18th, the hail turned to snow !!! It was quite something. I teed it up on the 18th hole and my feet slipped during my practice swing. I looked at the soles of my shoes and had a quarter inch of slush built up on the bottoms of my shoes. Knocked that off with my club and managed to take a solid enough stance to hit a great tee shot. Once we got to the green, one of my playing partners had a 12 foot putt across a snow covered green. By the time his ball got close to the hole it had built up a layer of slush heavy enough to stop it from reaching the cup.

What a way to finish the season. I was thrilled to shoot an 82 given the conditions. I have played in some tough weather, but this was simply an exercise in perseverance :)