Golf Confessions

Tiger Woods  will need a miracle to continue his win streak.  Geoff Ogilvey has had to fight the field and the weather in his pursuit for the title at Doral.  With nine holes left this morning, Geoff will be looking to continue his fine play to win for the first time since last year’s U. S. Open victory.

Vijay Singh is continuing his fine play and showing why he is such a world class player.  Vijay went back to his long putter and it seems to be paying off. 

We are in for an exciting finish.

To play better golf is something we would all like to do no matter what your handicap.  I beleive the biggest problem in golf may be that we try to hard to hit the ball rather than let things happen.  To let it happen in golf sounds simple enough but our hit instincts come into play and we get in our own way.  If someone told you to take a ball and throw it at an object 10 yards away, you would problably hit or come close to the target every time.  On the other hand if that same person bet you on how close you could come to the object and the amount of the bet was out of your comfort zone, then you might start aiming and not releasing your throw.  When you start aiming and trying to throw you will probably grip tighter, not finish your back swing and try to hit the target.  All of these same things happen when we get a golf club in our hands and we try too hard to make a swing.  Most everyone makes a pretty good practice swing, but things get wild when you put a ball in the equation and you are asked to make a swing that will reslut in a good shot.
 
There is no pressure on a practice swing and there are no resuts that you have to worry about.  When you are hitting the golf ball to a target don’t let results become the focal point, just make the swing and let the shot happen.  Do your mental preparation before the swing and once you get over the golf ball trust your preparation to give you the best results.  The same idea is true on the practice tee and you hit shot after shot, there is no consequence to a bad shot as there is on the golf course.  If you miss hit a shot on the practice tee, you just rake another golf ball over and try again.  You should try and practice as though you are playing golf and see if you can get the same consistancy.  Understand where the club head is and the relationship of the club head and your hands are during the swing, especially in the contact zone with the ball.  It does not matter what kind of backswing you have as long as you can deliver the club head back to the ball in a manner that will produce the shot pattern you want.
 
Relax, let things happen, don’t get caught up in the results and enjoy the game of golf.
 
See you on the next tee. 

Most golfers have a variety of pains.  What most golfers do not realize is that a lot of this pain begins in the feet.  The feet are your skelton foundation and support all the bones in your body.  When the feet get out of alignment the rest of the body can suffer from this misalignment.  An expression heard often is when your feet hurt you hurt all over and this is true because the feet are effecting the alignment of the body.  The back, knees, hips, ankles and the entire body may get relief from wearing orthotics.

One problem so many golfers suffer from is heel spurs which can be very painful. 
 
Golfers find themselves walking up and down slopes getting to tee boxes and greens.  The feet need the support that an orthotic provides to stabilize the foot properly.  The support from the orthotic can help eliminate pressure points and correctly align the feet.  With proper alignment you may also receive the benefit of better balance which is always important in your golf swing.
 
See you on the next tee.

Note the new rule change in regards to the ball hitting you or your equipment.  RULE: 19-2

Golf can truly be a game for life.  No matter whether you are playing at the finest private club in town or you are trying to get into a game at the city park golf course.  You  will see golfers of all ages and sizes.  The game of golf has a way of making friends of total strangers when they are matched up in a foursome.  It has always amazed me whenever you meet people from different backgrounds the game of golf has a way of evening the playing field for all of the participants.  It does not matter if the foursome is made up of business executives, truck drivers, preachers or whatever their background they all love the game and play by the same set of rules.
 
The game is so fascinating to such a variety of people and is used for so many mutual benefits.  Almost every Monday at so many clubs there is a fund raiser being held to benefit different groups and organizations in every town across America.  Most all sporting groups, school, medical groups and just about any organization that gets involved in fund raising sooner or later they will have a golf tournament to raise money.  Many people owe their educations to golf because of so many scholarships  that golf provides.  The golfing community has been well represented in the relief efforts to the  tsunami victims. 
 
And the great thing about these events, the young and old can tribute to the success in equal proportions.  It does not matter if you have a +1 handicap or you have never broken 100, these outings bring people together.  Something that has always caught my eye at golf courses all over is when you see two or three generations playing together.  No matter the level of their skills these generations can compete with each other with their handicaps and have a very competitive match.  It is also interesting to see so many people that take up the game much later on in life, it is never too late to get started. 
 
See you on the next tee.

Have you ever stood on the last hole with a two footer to win the club championship?  This putt the day before in a practice round was routine and maybe your buddies said that’s good, pick it up.  But, today with the championship on the line there are no gimmies and the putt looks a mile long, you see all the ball marks, the little pebbles, and all those spike marks look two feet tall and your mind is racing.  The fear that you feel is the same for most all of us that have ever played golf.  The championship that you are playing may not be for the US Open, but it may be you trying to break 100 for the first time or the first chance you have ever had to beat your buddy.  Rarely can you stand on the eighteenth tee knowing that par on the hole will allow you to shoot your best round ever and be able to pull it off.   
 
It is amazing the pressure we are able to exert on ourselves.  I believe this pressure comes from within and is mostly due to the lack of confidence we have in ourselves.  The way we feel about our ability and our fear of failure and sometimes the fear of success.  When we are put into positions that we may never have been in before this can cause an overload on our bodies and we loose the ability to control our actions.  This probably happens to everyone in all walks of life, whether we are in our comfort zone or not.  A business person can stand up in front of a large audience and give a presentation and never have a drop of perspiration appear upon his brow.  But you can put this same person on the first tee Saturday morning with his buddies that he has never beaten and pretty soon that Izod is soaking wet.  The hardest thing for us to remember and realize is that everyone gets these same feelings.  The pressure may be on your buddies to play well and not let you win for the first time.
 
We may feel this rush of anxiety because of the way we feel about ourselves.  There are many things that can go through your mind that causes you to tinse up and loose your ability to free swing it.  You cannot worry about the out come of your shot and get caught up with the results of your actions.  Once you stand up over the ball and make your swing the rest of the shot is completely out of your control.  This tension and anxiety can be created when you let your mind wonder about what others may think about your swing or did I wear the right shirt with these pants.  You may also loose your ability to play your own game and worry about what everyone else is hitting off the tee. 
 
I have gone to tournaments and qualifiers and played some really great practice rounds where the putts could not avoid the hole and my drives would never think of missing the narrowest of fairways.Then comes the day when it all counts and the hole on the green looks like a thimble and my golf ball looked bigger than the fairways.  I know the hole really did not change in size and the fairways were the same size as the day before, but I was not able to turn it loose and let it happen.  My problem was that I  worried about the outcome.  This same phenom happens to all level of players.  A player on the Champions Tour would play practice rounds with his best friend almost every week and one player was always trying the latest technology trying for more distance off the tee.  Each week the player with the latest technology could never out drive his friend in the practice rounds and he would take a lot of ribbing.  But each time when his buddy would kid him about his new club or shaft, he always had a pat answer–you just wait till they ring the bell and put that 300 pound pencil behind your ear and we will see who hits it the furtherst.  The point was that pencil really caused the one player to tighten up and loose his ability to turn it loose and worry about the results.  This lack of trust and confidence comes from within and these demons try to attack everyone that plays the game, no matter what level of competition. 
 
Don’t let that 300 pound pencil keep you from getting the most out of your own personal ability.  Keep practicing and play within your capabilities, and don’t worry about the results before you ever hit the ball.  Let it happen.

Share your experiences. 
See you on the next tee.

In the late seventies I had an opportunity to play Pebble Beach and Spy Glass.  I had seen both of these great courses on TV the many times I had watched the Bing Crosby tournament.  As usual when I have had the opportunity to see something in real that I had seen on TV, TV had not done it justice.  I could hardly concentrate on my golf as I was way to busy looking at all of the spectacular scenery all around me.  Although I will admit to taking a few pictures as we played along and time permitted as we waited on the many foursomes in front of us who seem to take a picture of everything.  Even though I had seen the courses so many times on TV, I could not believe the beauty that surrounded both of these spectacular courses.
 
I realized instantly why I had heard Jack Nicholas and Tom Watson say that if they had one round left to play that they would like to play Pebble Beach.  You could feel the rich tradition of all the great championships that Pebble had hosted and all of the great champions that had walked these fairways.  No matter where one is in the world and Pebble Beach is mentioned every golfer knows what you are talking about.  Through golf and the sharing of these wonderful places, golfers feel a bond that will be reflected on for a lifetime. 
 
Little did I know at the time, but I would be back at Pebble Beach to caddy for a friend in the US Open the year Tom Watson would over take Jack to win the tournament he cherished so much.
 
If you are looking for a golfing trip, I would highly recommend going to the Monterry area and experiencing the golf and the beauty.
 
See you on the next tee.

You may be able to hit your driver as straight as your wedges.  The more loft you have on that new titanium driver the straighter you should be able to hit it.
 
Most golfers are able to hit fairway woods better than there drivers and there is logic to this delima.  Fairway woods(metal) have more loft and are not going to put as much side spin on the ball as does the less lofted driver.  The straighter the face of any club will naturally promote more side spin and miss-hit shots will curve off line more. The bigger drivers which can be legally up to 460cc, more loft has also come about.  When metal headed drivers first came upon the scene, most golf enthusiast wanted very little loft.  Unlike the high degree of loft that had been prevalent on wood head clubs the loft for most golfers had to be around 10 to 11 degrees for the player  to get the ball airborne.  The balls of this era also were not designed to go as high as they are today.
 
Then came the phrase launch angle, this terminology got the golfer thinking about how far he could carry his tee shots.  The longer the carry the farther you can hit the ball.  For most golfers he needs the proper shaft flex and higher degree of loft to maximize his abilities.
 
So the next time you get the itch to try a new driver you should find where a club or driving range is having a demo day and try all of the latest technology.  Usually a shaft that is lighter, has a lower kick point and probably not a stiff as your old driver and also has 9 to 10 degrees of loft may do the trick.  Hit em long and straight.
 
See you on the next tee.

I think it is too bad that most golf courses have to rely very heavily on the cart revenue for survival.  The youth of this country would be served really well if they had the opportunity to caddy at their local clubs.   I can remember the first time I caddied and almost fifty years later that experience brings fond memories.  In my home town which was in the middle of the east Texas oil field a large oil industry golf tournament was played each summer.  Players came from all over the united states and there was a large calcutta with the golf tournament that also included the cream of the college crop each year.  I was encouraged to go to the local club by some of my friends that caddied in years past and see if I could pick up a loop.
 
 
When I got to the course I was lucky that there were players looking for caddies so I got a job.  The gentleman that asked me to caddy introduced himself and told me he was from Chicago.  Well for a ten year old  I thought Chicago was about as far away as you could get from east Texas.  After the round my player gave me five dollars and asked if I could be back the next day and do it again.  That night at supper all I could talk about was that my player was from Chicago and could you believe I got to caddy for someone so far away. 
 
If more young people had the opportunity to caddy I believe they would develop a better understanding of the game and learn some valuable people skills dealing with a variety of people.  Most of the early greats of the game got their first taste of the game as a caddy.  They got to play sparingly and spent their free time practicing with hand me down clubs and more often than not had to improvise with the one and only club to make a variety of shots.  Many stories have been written about Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson and  most recently Sevy Balesteros, all great players who started as caddies.  All of these great players learned how to hit different shots with different clubs because they hardly ever had the opportunity to play with a full set.
 
The clubs could have inter club competitions among the kids that were in the caddy program.  A caddy master who would probably be one of the assistant pros could teach the youngsters the finer points of caddying that would help them become better players and hopefully develop a love for the game that can last a life time. 
 
See you on the next tee.

Tiger won #5 on the PGA Tour yesterday in Orlando.  Competing in Arnold Palmer’s invitational, Tiger continued his dominance of the PGA.  One of Tiger’s goals is to break Byron Nelson’s 11 in a row.  In my personal opinion, I do not think this record will be broken.  As in any tournament, one shot or a single swing can make the difference to determine the outcome. 

What do you think about Tiger breaking Lord Byron’s record of 11 in a row?