I can’t be sure, but I think standing on the 13th tee, I looked out into the Pacific Ocean and saw a pod of whales call a meeting and start to migrate further north.
It’s that sort of a day at Wollongong – the type that farmers dream about; that golf tournament officials dread.
It’s not torrential rain, nor fleeting – and while it’s a tad windier than the Illawarra’s “cow cockies” might find ideal, it’s not strong enough to blow the clouds away.
The rain is light but constant – the type that soaks to the core – and shows no signs of abating.
Locals say there is a weather “bubble” around the ‘Gong. If inclement weather threatens from the west, the Illawarra Escarpment can – and often does – deflect the worst away from Wollongong.
But when issues arise from the south-east, as is this week’s predominant forecast, those same spectacular cliffs and hills to the city’s west tend to lock in the dodgy weather.
It’s the bubble.
And it is chock-a-block today.
For golfers, it goes without saying, it’s a nightmare.
There are those at the Ford Women’s New South Wales Open who are lucky enough to have a caddie as an extra pair of hands to keep things dry, or relatively dry, as the case may be.
Ford Women’s NSW Open – Leaderboard
Their players are the ones who look as if they’ve gone three rounds with Mike Tyson in his prime.
Those without caddies appear to have gone the full 12 rounds.
Obviously, some things in this scribble are exaggerated, but I’m duty-bound to tell you that the next one is gospel truth.
One caddie came off the course as the siren was blown to suspend play and ask in the pro shop if he could put his underwear in the pie warmer to dry and thaw out.
If you’re a Wollongong golfer who likes the odd sausage roll, don’t fret, he was turned down.
When play was suspended, joint leader Alexandra Forsterling described it as arguably the toughest round of golf she’d ever played.
Which says a lot when she’s been practising in the depths of a German winter.
There had been 35.6mm today when the horn sounded, but as the players came back to home base, it may as well have been 100mm.
The players could easily have been extras for Gene Kelly (YouTube “Singing’ in the Rain” if you’re under 60).
It was, simply, drenching.
When we look back at this leaderboard next week and beyond, it will pay to remember the brave souls who fought five hours through the teeth of the conditions that also featured winds gusting up to 50km/h at times.
Any morning scores here under 75 are exceptional. Seriously good.
And we can put a line through form analysis of scores for those whose aspirations for the Jan Stephenson Trophy were, quite literally, washed away. They were winners just for completing their rounds.
Some days just aren’t built for golf. Or even whales.
Live: Wollongong Golf Club
Sat 28th – Sun 1st
12:00 pm – 5:00 pm