The first 18-hole round of the season is always a momentous occasion. It finally feels like “real” golf.

Although I’m a strong advocate for playing just nine holes if the time commitment is keeping you away from golf, I always look forward to my handful of 18-hole rounds each year.

The scene of the crime this time around was Rose Brook Golf Club in Silver Creek. Nick and I took the short drive out there despite the threat of rain. As it turned out, the weather held up beautifully and it was a perfect day for golf.

Weather, of course, has been a major topic for golf courses in the area. First we had the winter that wouldn’t end. That was followed by a veritable two-week monsoon. Still, Rose Brook weathered the storm (terrible pun alert!) and came out in great shape.

“It slowed us down,” course owner Gary Cerne admitted. “April was a disaster, but May was good. The rain was spotty enough where it didn’t affect play much. It threw our mowing schedule off, but we were able to put in some extra hours and get things cleaned up.”

Just as they’ve been doing since purchasing the course two years ago, Cerne and Myra Pinker have continued to invest time and money into improving Rose Brook.

“We reseeded the greens again last fall,” Cerne said. “We reseeded, plugged and sanded them. They look good. The fairways have already been dosed with lime to enrich them. They’re going to be fertilized this week. We’re moving right along.”

The course had a healthy number of golfers on it the entire time we were there, yet play moved along smoothly. There are few things more frustrating than losing your rhythm because of a slow pace of play, but we had a group let us play through almost immediately, which was most welcome. It was great to see so many people out enjoying golf.

In addition to the course being in great shape, the other golfers being considerate and the weather holding off, I actually began the day with a par – a feat that happens on an embarrassingly rare occasion. The streak of good holes ended at one, but it was still nice to start things off on a high note.

The wonderful thing about golf, though, is that it only takes one or two memorable shots in an entire round to have you leaving the parking lot with a smile on your face. Nick and I each had those moments.

Nick’s came on No. 12, where he accomplished something I’ve never been able to do – birdie a par 3. His tee shot looked fantastic all the way, but I don’t think either of us thought it’d be as close to the hole as it was. Not only that, but he didn’t choke, instead burying the five-foot putt into the dead center of the cup. He’s only been playing golf for two years and this was his first “real” birdie. He had kind of a flukey one in the past, but he earned this one, for sure.

My shot to remember came just a few holes later on No. 14. I had started the back nine with a string of ‘4s’ on the scorecard, which isn’t necessarily “good,” but it looks nice on the card. After my drive hit a tree, I knew I was in trouble. My attempt at an approach shot hit the next tree in line and fell straight down. After a comment something like, “This shot is going to have to be really good to keep my streak of fours alive,” I dropped a 9-iron to within five inches of the cup. And yes, I made the par putt.

A birdie after reaching the par 5 No. 17 green in two shots was another highlight of the round.

The final scores were nothing to brag about. I ended with an 87 while Nick was at 98. That said, those few good shots had us leaving the course feeling great. I tell new golfers all the time to just focus on good shots they had. On this particular day, that was easy to do.

More information on Rose Brook Golf Club can be found at rosebrookgolf.com. The events page is up-to-date with this year’s tournament schedule and more. Be sure to check out this ever-improving course if you haven’t.

Until then, golf is great. Go get some.

Notes: On Thursday, Walt Koba had a hole-in-one on No. 3 at The Vineyards Golf Course in Fredonia. He used a 5-iron to accomplish the feat. It was Koba’s fourth career ace. Witness to the shot were Joe Favata, Dan Allesi and Phil Klerburger.

Stefan Gestwicki is an OBSERVER contributing writer. Comments on this article can be sent to golfersdiary@gmail.com.