I think I knew it was going to be a special day on the golf course on my second shot.

I was about 170 yards out after a 200-yard drive, sitting on the left side of the fairway and looking toward the green. The flag was in the center of the green, with sand traps both to the left and right of the green and another one behind it.

I've never parred this hole.

[caption id="attachment_1013" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="The first hole"]<a href="http://mikerappaport.net/onevoice/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/20110324_1.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1013" title="20110324_1" src="http://mikerappaport.net/onevoice/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/20110324_1-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a>[/caption]

I tend to hit my approach shots either off to the right, or in the instances I do hit them straight, I leave them short. On the rare occasions I catch it well, I may hit the slick green only to run through and fall into the trap in the back.

Not this time. I hit it straight and I hit it well enough that it stopped near the center of the green, about 20 feet from the cup.

I putted to within a foot of the hole and then tapped in for par.

I parred the third hole as well, but after five holes I was three over par and not doing anything spectacular. Still, I was hitting mostly good shots and feeling really good. I parred six and seven -- both short par fours -- and went into the par five eighth hole on a bit of a roll.

My first two shots weren't great on No. 8, and to attack the cup on my third shot I would have to hit about 170 yards directly over two sand traps. I caught it well and left it about 18 feet from the cup. I two-putted for par and suddenly realized that if I parred the short ninth hole, which I do more often than not, I would break 40 on the front nine.

The ninth hole is only about 105 yards long, depending on the pin placement, and I put my shot 11 feet from the pin.

Then I really surprised myself and rolled in a birdie putt. I had completed the front nine with a 38, just two over par.

When I began playing golf nearly 20 years ago, my dream was to someday break 100, and I remember the thrill it was for me at Empire Lakes in Rancho Cucamonga, California, to shoot 43 on the front nine, 55 on the back and finally score 98.

Then my dream was to break 90. I remember reading somewhere that only about 10 percent of casual golfers in this country ever break 90, and it took me a few more years to be able to do that. The thought of someday breaking 80 was one of those "impossible dreams." I shot an 83 once at Empire Lakes, and then in my best round ever, I shot 81 two weeks ago here at Sun City.

I realized that as long as I didn't have any double bogeys, I only needed four pars on the back nine to shoot 79.

I bogeyed 10 and 11, but I came back with pars on 12 and 13 and a bogey on the par five 14th, the only par five all day that I didn't par.

With four holes remaining, I needed two pars to break 80. The 15th hole has been an easy one for me -- I've even birdied it once -- but I have never parred 16, 17 or 18.

I got my par on 15, but bogeyed 16 and 17 to bring it all down to one hole. The 18th is only 325 yards, but there are a lot of trees on the right side of the fairway, which is where I usually end up. I hit a mediocre first shot, although it was decent enough distance to leave me only about 110 yards away -- behind a tree.

I got my nine-iron shot into the air nicely, but to avoid the tree, I had to also avoid the green. I was off to the left about 20 yards away. If I could get up and down from there, I'd have a par and my 79.

I tried to picture the shot in my mind that I wanted to hit with my wedge. It doesn't always work that way, but I caught the ball just right and it caught the green and rolled to within a foot of the cup. I tapped in for 79 and felt wonderful.

I had done something I never thought I would do on a golf course. I had broken 80.

It's not the longest course in the world. From the white tees it's about 5,850 yards, but what it lacks in length it makes up in extremely challenging greens.

So I broke 80. I hope I can do it again, and it would be especially wonderful to do it when I wasn't playing alone.

Golf can be a really frustrating game, but I have been playing with enough frequency here that I actually think I am improving. I shot 81 two weeks ago, and 44 for nine holes (carrying my clubs on my back) Monday before shooting 79 today. In the last 45 holes I've played, I have had one birdie, 20 pars, 23 bogeys and only one double bogey. It's that last number I'm proudest of.

Of course, the birdie was nice too.

And the 79.