Super Bowl Sunday

We went over to SO's mother and stepfather's house to watch the Super Bowl with their friends. It was not quite as exciting as the previous year when the hapless Arizona Cardinals made an unlikely trip to the Super Bowl and almost came away with the victory.

Before the game, we played our "traditional" Super Bowl golf at Greenfield Lakes Golf Course. Greenfield Lakes is a nice little 3,626 yard, par-62 executive course with some water hazards and even two relatively short par-5 holes. The par-3 holes range from 92 yards to 180 yards. I needed a little massage to my ego after Saturday's poor play at Camelback Golf Course. I hit the ball really well and shot a 72 with two double bogeys, one birdie, nine pars and seven bogeys. On one of the double bogeys I mis-clubbed and hit a good tee shot that flew over the green by 15 yards. Although I did not keep track, I probably hit 13 greens in regulation and I lipped out a couple of putts and one chip. I three-putted three holes! I did not realize it at the time, but executive courses can be input for USGA handicap index purposes. I have now accepted that I cannot hit my sand wedge 100 yards and I was using my pitching wedge for the 100 to 110 yard shots and hitting the middle of the greens. But our third player had a set of Ping G10 irons and I hit a few shots with his clubs and my ball traveled about an additional ten yards!

The Super Bowl was a well-played game. I like both teams and both quarterbacks but I was rooting for the Saints. Other than the obvious big plays like the on-side kick to start the second half (gutsy call by Sean Payton!) and the interception and return for a touchdown by Tracy Porter (the same player that picked off Brett Favre's last pass in the NFC Championship Game), I thought that the turning point in the game was after the Colts stopped the Saints on the two yard line with 1:30 remaining in the first half, the Colt's overly conservative three-runs up the middle series and the Saint's field goal to end the half. The Colts had all of the momentum, two or three timeouts and arguably the best quarterback to ever play pro football. The rookie coach should have shown confidence that Peyton Manning would not make a dumb mistake from his own end zone and opened the offense to try to score and put a dagger into the Saint's heart before halftime. Although Peyton Manning did not show it, I am sure that he was seething at the coach's decision to try to run out the clock.