A great end to the weekend..

20/12/10


Golf forums are markedly different to many of the sports forums which are popular on the ’net. Whilst most sports forums have the posters commenting mostly about the Highest Professional Competition ie AFL, NRL, FA, NBA etc. Golfing forums do cover PGA competitions yet there is a great deal of comment on individual golfers, club and regional competitions. Golfers are not in the main spectators and importantly we are not team members like players of football, basketball, hockey and other sports. This is perhaps self explanatory to why golfers can openly discuss their own performance and not be treated with derision for doing this as most of the readers are not armchair critics who do not play the game and can relate to what is being said.



Getting very close to the end of the season/years postings for 2010 and keeping my list of goals short and sweet in the results targeted has been a success. Well I am calling it a success, the most important goal was to achieve a 16-15 handicap and at the minute I am waiting for the last two rounds played to be loaded by the respective club handicappers. As posted above (yesterday) prior to the round that followed Sunday afternoon, on Saturday I won the Kingston SE Summer Open Div #2 (B) grade with an 88 (69 nett), this was matched with an 87 (68 nett) 41 stableford points in the Robe Club Competition the next day. In the two days I played to a 15-16 handicap and my handicap at the minute was 19 so I expect to drop to 17-18, (have not done the calculations myself for now).



That is good enough for me to accept as a win in achieving a goal. October and November were hard months as my game began to improve and the vital consistency had not established itself. Also the necessary mental adjustments to how I played the game were not strengthened to match ready. This was the most difficult transition to make, being mentally on the same level as my improved playing ability.

It was a difficult struggle adjusting to play in my preferred low risk percentage game whilst the shots the previously were safe, would play too well now, as I could hit the ball so much better. Golf is a game of millimetres and that is how little change in a shots execution can happen to make the result very different. For now though it is time to sit here and wallow in the results and satisfaction of my golf in 2010. Thankyou all for reading and commenting though the season. Best wishes for the New Year and a happy Christmas to all. “Hit ‘em Straight all” Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

KINGSTON Summer Open

19.12.10


It is with a sense of self satisfaction that I can say my year of golf in 2010 has been a success. Yesterday was the Summer Open at Kingston and my score of 88 Gross (69 nett) was good enough to win my first Div 2 (B Grade 14-20 hcp) competition. It has been a good year as always on and off the course and the result yesterday was the culmination of the past 2-3 months of practise and persistence coming to fruition. Avoiding the time honoured golfers cliche “I could have played better” is easy in this “warm fuzzy” moment. There was no moment of ‘Zen’ consciousness when scoring a good result was in my minds eye vision of the achievable. The final score was a result of playing within my limits, not trying to push my limits. When the conservative safer option existed that had a higher percentage of success associated with the effort, I took it yesterday.



A return to the way I played last season has been on the cards all season. To do that had to include the additions to the way I play now; A) Using a Driver off the Tee and not Irons on all holes. B) Using #2 Hybrid on fairways and tees. C) Being able to hit the ball with more consistency and accuracy with all clubs. The difficulty came with being able to accept being a better golfer able to play shots that previously were ‘too risky’ and could now be played with a much higher success rate. This was not easy to adjust to. My confidence was shattered a few times when I played a shot that failed in the main because I was breaking the “what is possible” template from 2009.



The conditions yesterday were not perfect either, with a consistent wind that threw in some very strong gusts out of the blue and an occasional shower. In retrospect today is a crap day, very strong wind plenty of rain overnight and showers predicted for the day. Whereas yesterdays conditions had a beneficial affect in contention on the game, today it is a challenge to be able to lift myself and go out and play in much more adverse condition. I will accept the challenge and that is not because of ego but the desire to enjoy being able to have a crack and push my limit. Winning is a definite bonus that gives a lift in it’s reward for the effort put in over a season. Even though the 88 gross was not my best score off the stick, it is playing to a 16 handicap on one of the 2011 Southern Ports Tournament courses. There is a day between rounds during the actual tournament, today I will be going out and playing 18 holes on another Southern Ports course, in more trying conditions as part of my conditioning program.



Time to start getting ready for the days competition, Thankyou for your time and attention all, Hit ‘em Straight all”
Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

Southern Ports Golf Tournament 2011

Could not maintain the form into Sunday’s round of the past week. So close yet not good enough a gross 92 for a nett 73. Happily I beat my conqueror in the B grade semi final by 1 stroke on the day. It was a good day of company and comradeship and some good golf thrown in as well. What made the day fun was being able top play a game in a very mentally refreshing state, seeing the errors that cost me at the end of the day for the true fault, concentration lapses which for the most part resulted in playing too fast instead of slowing down and taking the time to set myself properly to execute the strokes well. Penalties from 1xOB 1x Lost Ball, two bad pitches, three terrible putts from misread greens was the statistics of faults.

Had a no golf Monday and today played nine holes for a gross 44 with 1x lost ball again include two x 3 putts in that and I am satisfied with the results. Comfortable in the knowledge of where the mistakes came from in my mind and looking forward to the Kingston S E Summer Open on the 18th December this coming Saturday.

A great opportunity to refresh my play on this course which is one of the three in the Southern Ports Tournament Feb 26 to March 5th 2011, 54 holes played over the week at the 3 courses and I am anticipating the challenge to come. Handicaps are A Grade 14 and under, B Grade 15 – 20 and C Grade 21-36 A and B Grade are a stroke competition and the C grade is a Stableford Competition.

I will post further details in coming weeks on the tournament but for any who are considering entry in the event The Secretary is Jennifer Gritton Phone 08 8767 2416 Southern Ports Golf Tournament PO Box 521 Kingston 5275



Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

Kingston SE Summer Tournament

9th December 2010


Into the last month of 2010 and a brief review of the past season is enough to say I improved and had fun playing golf as much as 2009. Just came in from having my best score for 18 holes today, 82 off the stick. The 18th of December is the Kingston SE Summer Open and that is my next serious round and will be a fine way to finish the season for myself. I managed a win in the C grade handicap section last Summer Open, at a course that was also the site of missing the last putt and finishing second in the Southern Ports Tournament in March.



The new 18 hole Kingston course has been completed now and that adds to the anticipation. As well, my own game has began to show an improved consistency and the associated lower scores. Playing on other courses besides the home club has been a major enjoyment and benefit to my golf this year. A definite effect is that course stroke traits that begin to become a factor in a round, are seen for the negative effect they have when used regularly on another course. October and November began as a real struggle with playing well and slowly all of practising with grip, swing, club changes began to have an effect, for the better. Perhaps the most frustrating part of my game now is having to endure the errors I make, that are a result of being able to play so much better. Being patient and stoic is a couple of character traits the if not present in my makeup would have had me join that long line of quitters in life. To all those impatient golfers, please keep on ‘jumping the gun’ any advantage over another player is a bonus in competition.



First meeting of the club season is next Monday and I am almost up to speed with he club operation and the tasks that come with being on committee. It is not all that difficult being on committee, although I had no intention of taking up the secretary position. The fact is I did all of the club/group committee stuff in my 20’s and 30’s. I had no desire to do it again and it took a good speech by the club pres. and concerns on my on part to make me stand up and get involved again. My commitment to the position is one season (2011) perhaps 2012 but that is 90% not going to happen.

PS My entry in the NSW Australia Day - Reel Australia competition has survived the many site cliches. LOL Looked at the site and some film vote scores went from 100 to 4000 overnight. The site admin. sent an email out after removing all votes after it was discovered some entrants could vote more than once for their film. Here is my shameless request to you. Have a look at my entry “Aussie’s Younger Days” View my latest film clip and vote if you like it! (Register and You could win $250 from NSW Australia Day Council for voting TOO!) Oh yeah and pass it on to your friends every vote counts! Or click LIKE on the Facebook Link and feel welcome to comment. Thankyou for your time and attention regards Geoff

AUSSIE'S YOUNGER DAYS
Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

Club Secretary and Short Film Last days To Vote

1st December 2010


This post is the first were I get to discuss my standing for and being elected to the club committee as secretary. The intention was to stand for general committee and go on some sub committees to contribute more to the club. After many years in local government (yes I did do a real job, way back in the last century), my standard response to that endless line of people complaining about how things were done, etc was, “Stand for council and do something about it!”. Hypocrisy is not something I would want to start doing now, so I had to stand up and contribute myself this year. Fact is I have served on enough committees etc in the past and all I want to do is play golf. It is apparent the club needs some fresh perspective and I can do that, as well as do some work as well.



As I was elected unopposed, I did not get to speak about what I identified as action that needs to be taken for the future development and success of the club. There are three things I have identified of interest to me and that must be resolved. Membership needs to be increased particularly active players among the men. Following my suggestion and commitment to do the work, two membership drives were held in the past 12 months that worked particularly well for the women, where as the men had a more moderate success. Next I will propose another membership drive and club promotion plan for 12 months, that will get an even better response.



The next point of interest is the club expansion from 14 to 18 holes. This has been in action for the past twenty years and in that time four new holes have been added and two older holes removed. I had written to the committee on the matter earlier in the year and the course development was discussed at the AGM. One proposal brought up was the reduction to a 9 hole course with 18 tees, alongside the same plan that requires additional land to be obtained. The club does have a very solid bank balance but the old plan is going to fail in my opinion. I have since drafted a mud map of the course with 4 new holes on the existing land that can be done. Oddly two of these ‘new’ holes were partially constructed in late 1980 and one tee and green was actually used. Before a club member backlash at it being too hard to play as it was over water off the tee had it taken out of play, I could be wrong. The other is a green situated in the centre of a lake and this was stopped for the similar reasons by a number of members. Fortunately the area was all constructed and all it really needs is a landscaping of the green surrounds a surface and tee to become usable. This is two definite holes ready for completion available after some politicking is done. The next requires an existing par 5 being reduced to par 4 and a par 3 created using the ‘acquired’ land. The fourth is a difficult one as it may not be possible to clear the land due to environmental rulings on land clearance.



Lastly I would like the club to consider establishing a business management plan for the club house, dining, bar and convention centre uses of the club house and course region. At the minute it is run as a typical club with members volunteers to do the bar after comps etc. I have no experience in running a venue but am sure that if a /business professional management plan was established the venue can become an asset that could be improved.





The practise and combined change of shafts on my irons delivered the results in the Robe Village Ambrose. I did not have much to say to the team captain, except I really want us to have a good try at winning. The format was a 5 person Ambrose and our handicap was 7.4, at first glance we had a reasonable mix as well a 6,9,17,19 and 25 handicapper. It worked out well as the group did gel and a team spirit was quickly formed and a bucketload of laughs and fun was had . Best of all the players all did what could be expected the two single digit players dropped a few birdie putts after the rest of us missed, the higher handicappers all had those occasional brilliant shots and we ended up 9 under after 18 holes. Finished in third place after handicap with a 55.4, First Place was 54.3 and second place 54.8.



Sunday was the Robe Village Classic and invitational event for 6 handicappers and under, I spent the day filming the event and do have the winners and all on tape but will follow that up in a later post. The editing is a big job to do in coming days. Did get some great footage of shots and it was a very good trial for the planned Documentary in 2011 at the Southern Ports Tournament.



AUSSIE's YOUNGER DAYS
G’day All, only 3 days to go friends please view my latest film clip and vote if you like it! (You could win a prize from the organisers NSW Australia Day Council for voting TOO!) Oh yeah and pass it on to your friends every vote counts! Thankyou for your time and attention
regards geoff

Create a 2 minute film capturing ' What is the Reel Australia?' Your film should ultimately showcase Who We Are as a nation

Beginning with three flags representing the indigenous people, a state and the national flag, I then recited selected poetry of Australia’s national poet Adam Lindsay Gordon who first captured the utterances of Australia’s forming identity. I chose to use images of monuments to explorers of our nation and immigrants together with a memorial of fishermen lost at sea to highlight the challenge it took to set off to the new lands. Australia is still a young country and the combination of rural and urban life is not hampered by the tyranny of distance as it was no more than a century ago. The view of Lake Albert at Meningie that was shrinking for 2 years, in the space of a month was back to past levels when the Murray began to flow again. Children are the future and being active and having a go is part of the Aussie ethos. Humanity and nature are things Australians do react to and our origins needed action to succeed and that is why I end with another iconic passage of Gordon’s poetry.
Thankyou for your time and attention “Hit ‘em Straight all” Geoff

Vote for my Short film, 3 days to go..

"Aussie's Younger Days"

G’day All, only 3 days to go friends please view my latest film clip and vote if you like it! (You could win a prize from the organisers NSW Australia Day Council for voting TOO!) Oh yeah and pass it on to your friends every vote counts! Thankyou for your time and attention
regards geoff

ROBE Village Ambrose and New Film done...

Been a great week on the course to be honest the enjoyment has been all about hitting the ball well. Have played myself into some good form for the Robe Village Ambrose today after winning the 9 hole Chicken run Friday arvo, 41 off the stick and 22 points. It has rained for an hour and a half this morning which will settle the dust and take a bit of the bounce off the fairways and greens, happy with that I still do not have the ball striking ability to get the back spin on long iron shots developed well enough yet.




The club AGM was on Wenesday night and after listening to the Club President speak, some alien force levitated my arm and I have ended up as the secretary of the club for the next year.

I had decided earlier to nominate for the committee and undertake a dedicated membership drive. Instead I have chosen to get a little more involved as the club is beggining to struggle and like many smaller country clubs is finding active members a scarce commodity. I have done my time on committees in the past and was never going to do it again mainly to avoid the situation that many who do this encounter, nobody else ever stands up to replace them.



I am sure that in coming months I will be more forthcoming on this and what is happening at the club. I have already written a three page letter on major considerations for the club to act upon and things I will do in the next twelve months.



Okay big day on the Golf Course for me In the ROBE Village Ambrose. So for all of you who have not yet had a look at my new film for the NSW Australia Day Committee have a look today and PLEASE VOTE!!! (One lucky voter will get a prizeTOO!!)



Aussie’s Younger Days Some friends have got back to me that the link sometimes goes to a film of a young girl singing that is an occaisional glitch on the site if that happens to you please look at the entrants list for my film name above. And please VOTE one lucky voter will win a prize donated by the NSW Australia Day Committee

Aussie’s Younger Days by geoff dening
Reel Australia
Film Competition
AUSSIEVAULT®© geoff dening
Australia Day Council of NSW. Images are the property of the respective artist(s). All rights reserved.



Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

REEL AUSTRALIA - Geoff Dening's entry

REEL AUSTRALIA - Geoff Dening's entry

It has been a very busy past month with two short film's completed and entered in various competitions. The most recent being the Reel Australia film "Aussie's Younger Days" Please have a look at my entry and vote (Shameless plug - there is a prize for one lucky voter!)

"Beginning with three flags representing the indigenous people, a state and the nation, I then recited selected poetry of Australia’s national poet Adam Lindsay Gordon who captured the first utterances of Australia’s forming identity. I chose to use images of monuments to explorers of our nation and immigrants together with a memorial of fishermen lost at sea to highlight the challenge it took to set off to the new lands. Australia is still a young country and the combination of rural and urban life is not hampered by the tyranny of distance as it was no more than a century ago. The view of Lake Albert at Meningie that was shrinking for 2 years, in the space of a month was back to past levels when the Murray began to flow again. Children are the future and being active and having a go is part of the Aussie ethos. Humanity and nature are things Australians do react to and our origins needed action to succeed and that is why I end with another iconic passage of Gordon’s poetry."


The Reel Australia Short Film Competition aims to encourage all Australians to create a 2 minute film in response to the question What is the Reel Australia? that ultimately showcases Who We Are as a nation. It could be about what we wear, what we say, where we go, how we play...it's completely up to you!




Thank you for your time and attention, Geoff

Reel Australia film production

The past month has been very busy and late last night I finished a 12 hour stint on the PC editing another film project That I was only recently made aware of and in a very short space of time have managed to get filmed and produced before the closing date on the 3rd of December 2010. At this moment all of the work of the past two weeks is now dependent on if it is accepted for the competition. That is the only reason why I have not supplied a link for it to be viewed. If it does pass muster a link will be supplied and yes I did manage to get golf in the 2 minute film.

“Create a 2 minute film capturing ’ What is the Reel Australia?’ Your film should ultimately showcase Who We Are as a nation”

“Beginning with three flags representing the indigenous people, a state and the national flag, I then recited selected poetry of Australia’s national poet Adam Lindsay Gordon who first captured the utterances of Australia’s forming identity. I chose to use images of monuments to explorers of our nation and immigrants together with a memorial of fishermen lost at sea to highlight the challenge it took to set off to the new lands. Australia is still a young country and the combination of rural and urban life is not hampered by the tyranny of distance as it was no more than a century ago. The view of Lake Albert at Meningie that was shrinking for 2 years, in the space of a month was back to past levels when the Murray began to flow again. Children are the future and being active and having a go is part of the Aussie ethos. Humanity and nature are things Australians do react to and our origins needed action to succeed and that is why I end with another iconic passage of Gordon’s poetry.”
 
From time to time this thread will continue to have fresh posts. As the “Another Crack At The Title” film is still being produced there will be updates for readers of the progress and developments associated with it. The pic in the corner is a scan of a recent interview about the Golf Documentary. I am fortunate to recieve such a detailed article in the local media and I would like to comend the reporter who did the job so well.

Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

MOVIE EXTRA Film finalists announced

Thanks to all who viewed and voted for "Another crack at the title" The dates of the competition were changed twice and that threw the marketing and promotional timing out. The 15 finalists are all worthy of success and you can check them out here MOVIE EXTRA FINALISTS No matter, there were more positives than negatives. The Southern Ports Tournament is now being covered by Golf Australia magazine valuable national exposure for free. The popularity among the Australian Golfing community was very encouraging, none of this would have came about if I did not do the re-write and enter the competition! The project will still be going ahead as was planned before being entered in the Movie Extra Competition. Which proves the whole point of the exercise, if you sit back and do nothing that is what you get!


The Movie Extra comp. was out of my readiness zone, for want of a better description. Even so I had to have a crack at it, that is my nature. The filming will still happen next year and at my own pace and level of capability. I was always aware that the topic and format of being an actual documentary was not what others would choose. Fact is the time it takes to write and craft a 7 episode series film is not that easy. I chose to re-write an existing project otherwise there would have been no worthwhile entry available.






The fact that I had the people available who can do the required work in production at short notice was a good thing. Also the support from various people here and across other mediums was much appreciated. Work is a serious business and in this case my pedantic attitude in setting up promotion was definately thrown out. The newspaper article will not be out until this week and that will be too late, “Any publicity is good publicity” is a fact though and this will be good for other work I am doing. As another bonus the Tournament is now being picked up for coverage in Golf Australia magazine which was not on the cards for the organisers until I started my promo works.


It is a lot of fun doing the work and truth be told it is a great reason to have to get out and play more golf.


Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

On the Home straight

What you think I am going to give up now with only two weeks to go to get enough votes to make the finals. Hell I am only a few thousand behind and I am putting in all the effort I can. Heading off to Adelaide today which was unexpected, as important as the film project is a family emergency has precedence. Bit of a bugger as the newspaper article is out today on my project and I had a lot of promotional work planned to get the maximum benefit out of it.




No matter that can always be done when I return Friday, It has been good to see the number of views this thread has (633 at the minute) whick perhaps 30 are from me doing posts replying and editing typos in my posts. It would be great if my work had been good enough to turn the other 600 views into votes for the trailer. There is still time to do that with your help of course you can vote once every day it takes less than a couple of minutes and in two weeks 600 votes from this site alone with my other efforts can get me into a higher ranking.

So go on click the link and vote I promise I have no political agenda at all lol I have too much honesty for that.



ANOTHER CRACK AT THE TITLE

View the trailer here and click on the VOTE button if you like it. For me it would be even more satisfying to produce the full 7 part web series that the trailer is for in the Movie Extra competition. Based at the 36th 2011 Southern Ports Golf Tournament week. every vote you give until then is very much appreciated. Thankyou for your time and attention. regards Geoff Dening

Don't try and be happy...!?

  9/11/10 Somewhere in my way of looking at and living life there is a distinct difference in my character to other people. Not that this difference makes me any better in comparison when it comes to successes or failures than anybody else. It is purely a thing that I notice from time to time when reading, listening or talking about people, that disdain and criticism that is thrown at people who are trying to do something. To use the vernacular "Having a crack at it" is becoming a socially unacceptable challenge for a person to attempt.




I could be totally wrong this is not a simple topic to discuss, among the complexities of the variety and number of individuals this broadly covers. Even so it has became a symptom of the cynical nature that is required to survive in this world today. When the News is actually entertainment, make no mistake I do mean that statement. How often have you been watching/listening to the news, or reading it and an item has been included that is about a person or program that is a feature of that stations scheduling. A recent example of this was the ‘News” that a character in Channel 7’s “Packed to the rafters” was ‘killed in a car crash. It was the character not the actor and a part of the series yet it was included in the regular new reports. It was a publicity and promotional act yet people tuning in to the news were confused, some thought that it involved a member of tennis player Patrick Rafter’s family, others thought the actor had been killed. The same story was aired on 7’s morning show as well in total 8 times for the day, it was not the intent of the station to mislead viewers but it is a great example of not believing everything you hear literally.



The natural disaster in Pakistan in 2010 followed a run of similar disasters around the world and the fundraising efforts for aid were finding that the public were not responding. It would be very rude to say that Australians are not generous in supporting people in need, in most cases assistance is given willingly and without a demand for recognition. This time though the media had to make a concerted effort that got some support flowing there were even media reports of a possible,”Charity fatigue” among Australians and this was hampering the appeal. Then there is the everyday need to manage personal finances, it is a good thing to have food in your own fridge and a roof over your head as well.



Then through the numerous social networking sites on the ‘net, users are subjected to neverending requests to like this, support that, play a game, check a list and all these requests come from our ‘friends’. This is not a new phenomenon getting support for any cause, appeal and even business takes hard work and effort. What we have now is the establishing of a ‘Supporters fatigue” being so accessible to new friends on the internet it is a 24 hour a day effort to maintain the contact and communication to show that we care. Champion surfer Kelly Slater has a passion for playing golf and it has been mentioned that at 38 he is getting too old to keep being a professional surfer. In this mention it was intimated that perhaps Kelly may take up playing golf professionally. This is not easy to do but nothing says he cannot have a crack at it. Yet the number of golfers who spat out the disdain for him to even consider trying to do this was a surprise. Yes it is hard yet golf is a sport that although many try, few do become successful pro’s. Among those that do succeed many continue playing and winning professionally into their 50’s so why shouldn’t a 38 year old athlete consider the sport as a way to continue following a passion as a career.  

Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

GOLF - Robe Open

8th November 2010 Good weather on the day of the open had it set for a good score after my build up over the week. That was not the end result finishing the day with 100 and a nett 81. The two 8's on the front nine had me on the ropes after the front 9 and a 52 off the stick. I still had not given up on getting a reasonable score, a 40-42 on the back nine would have been fine and was the target after lunch. The final score was a 48 yet not a day to forget at all, golf is a social game and the group was a very convivial and entertaining one.




Being my home club open for a change I did not have to leave early to return after the round. I caught up with several golfers who I had played with and met over 2010 playing at their club opens. The experience of playing off the home patch was a major benefit to my game this season.



Five shots were the cause of my high score each and every one was from a bad tee shot that added more strokes to my tally with each error in simple terms, 5 Tee shots x 2 penalties each = 10 and 100 - 10 = 90 and a reasonable round. There is confession to be made I could have held back on my drives and played the accuracy option instead of my less accurate distance off the tee choice. Through the weeks practice my accuracy had been okay and confidence in that was a major reason I took the distance option.



No matter what the occasion the day comes when a golfer has to make the decision to play what they are practising. This time last year I did not even carry a driver in my bag and only played with irons and I won the nett section of the open. I also played with a fella who in March 2010 was doing the same with irons only. Yesterday he had a driver that for the first two holes he hit off the tee. Not well so he put it away for two holes got some confidence with his tees shots them used it well for the rest of the rounds 14 holes. Finished tied in first (second after countback) in the B grade Nett with a 69.



For me hitting a long ball is not a search for an ego booster, I could return to using irons only if I was satisfied with staying at a low 20 handicap. After playing with many golfers of various handicaps and against others in matchplay the advantage of a long drive off the tee has been made obvious to me for lower handicappers. The need for accuracy is crucial and that is lacking at my current standard even though it is improving the hardest factor for me in this is the lack of a driving range to practise on. I can now hit the ball consistently 240-270m and apart from on certain course fairways there is nowhere available to refine this part of my game. The course driving range area is 200m long and is great for developing control and rythym up to that distance. Eventually you have to set up and hit the

ball long to get the ‘feel’ of the changes. I can hit long and straight where the aim is yet still make errors that can be easily corrected in practise. Yesterday the decision was made to ‘practise’ on course. Here is the ego gratification, I easily went past the long drive by 10-15m, the ball just trickled off the fairway on the first attempt. As we play some fairways twice off different tees I had a second crack at the long drive, from a tee 30m further back and fell 2m short of the mark in the centre of the fairway.



Golf is pure joy at times and these two drives epitomised that. Setting up playing the stroke and feeling every facet of the swing working to perfection, making contact with the ball and watching it soar is a delight. With the commentary of your playing partners sharing the moment, as I have done when seeing other golfers make the perfect shot nothing can beat those moments. It was just timing, rythym and a full swing that felt effortless. Which is where I am finishing todays writings with that moment being refreshed in my memory. Thankyou for your time and attention. Hit ‘em Straight all regards GeoffThankyou for your time and attention, Geoff
 
ANOTHER CRACK AT THE TITLE



View the trailer here and click on the VOTE button if you like it. For me it would be even more satisfying to produce the full 7 part web series that the trailer is for in the Movie Extra competition. Based at the 36th 2011 Southern Ports Golf Tournament week. every vote you give until then is very much appreciated. Thankyou for your time and attention. regards Geoff Dening

Golf - Robe Open omorrow

Played 9 holes at Meningie on Thursday afternoon, enjoyable and great to return to the course and the new greens which have replaced those that were damaged by the salty water last year. Totalled an enjoyable 48. Robe 9 hole chicken run on Friday afternoon with a wipe after hitting the wrong ball on the first and still getting 16 points. Then a quick 9 this morning and a 41 off the stick with 15 putts. Hit 2 of the biggest shots off the tee for my standard both 270m straight and on the fairways.




Very happy with my game in total so if the mind stays focussed tomorrows Open should be a good 18 holes. The work put into practise the last 2 months is slowly improving my game. Of course the spring/summer weather with hardened fairways and hot dry air are certainly assisting the distance and accuracy of shots for me. The same applies to every other golfer as well so it is just a matter of enjoying the game and having fun. Anything else will be an unexpected bonus. Thankyou for your time and attention. Hit ‘em straight all.

ANOTHER CRACK AT THE TITLE






View the trailer here and click on the VOTE button if you like it. For me it would be even more satisfying to produce the full 7 part web series that the trailer is for in the Movie Extra competition. Based at the 36th 2011 Southern Ports Golf Tournament week. every vote you give until then is very much appreciated. Thankyou for your time and attention. regards Geoff Dening



Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

2011 A Golf Odyssey

My passion for golf is more than just the experience of playing the game, like some other golfers it is the esoteric benefits that have me out hitting the little white ball for hours on end. It is the joy of practise that actually keeps me passionate about the game. I can understand how the golfers who go on to professional careers never lose the desire to play. Not to go by the single digit handicap golfers who play for the pure enjoyment of the game as well.




I get a vital benefit from golfing that stimulates my mind and physical activity for work. It is something that is a fortunate blessing and has a lot to do with why I returned to the game seriously after so many years. The creative process for me does not rely upon sitting around reading and thinking it has to involve social and actual interaction with people and activities.



Which is why my liver has stretch marks from the many social activities that involve the casual consumption of alcohol. I have even got the experience of having spent a year getting home when the sun was rising from another session of world series nightclubbing. Partying is flaming hard work and playing golf is a lot more rewarding and generally involves a lot less drinking, most of the time.



The Southern Ports Tournament has a good social atmosphere and with three tournament rounds in the week the socialising is a major plus. Compered to the post match gathering after a weekly club round there are added facets to the tournament post round presentations. One of the newer benefits is being able to check online the post round scores as well and be able to calculate what is needed and a strategy to achieve the target for the next round.



Besides the live round coverage in the documentary the post round clubhouse interviews with the rest of the field is going to be a specific feature. It is not a film about one golfer having a crack, it is about a complete field of golfers and their experience of the 2011 Southern Ports Tournament.



ANOTHER CRACK AT THE TITLE



With a couple of mouse clicks you can give your valued vote to making this Real Golfing documentary a reality in 2011. It would be much appreciated. Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff Dening

Australian Golf Documentary 2011

There are two types of people in the world "gunna's" and "doers" golfers on the most part are doers. There is what seems to be a never ending stream of messages thrown out in the media telling us to do more exercise, get fit, and act, live, healthier and everything will be just roses and butteflies.

Not for me thankyou. I like to live as I please and drink a few beers (to excess at times too) and will get up and take a tub of icecream and a slab of beer back to bed if told to go for an invigorating beneficial walk let alone go jogging! Having seen the looks on joggers faces is enough to make me want to slam my fingers in a car door to avoid going through that torture.

Yet here I am a golfer who will walk around a golf course several times a week, exercising as well as giving myself the many brain explosions that come from playing shots that would do the iceberg that sank the Titanic proud. Yes I am a doer and I enjoy living a life that has no lycra bike shorts, or runners that cost $300. If a jogger was attacked by Rabid Kangaroo thay can only hope to be able to run away faster. As a sedate slob of a golfer I have 13 clubs to defend myself with, make that 12 I am a crap shot with the 9 iron and would probably miss with a defesive swing too.

Being a doer is a good thing and with golf it is also fun as well. So join in as a doer and view and vote for my 2011 Australian Golf Documentary here;

ANOTHER CRACK AT THE TITLE



Thankyou for your time and attention regards geoff

2011 Documentary Movie Extra 'Another crack at the Title"

Golf coverage is of the professional tours. "ANOTHER CRACK AT THE TITLE" is a documentary of the average golfer, ME :) returning to try and win a 3 round tournament. Dening missed the final putt for a win in 2010, in 2011 I have improved enough already and will be playing a grade higher. The 7 episodes of this documentary will be an adventure into Geoff Dening's mind and ability. An entertaining experience of ordinary golfers doing what they love. View the trailer and vote as you see fit.

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After 20 years rehabilitation from accident injuries, an average golfer steps forward to chase his dream of winning the three round Southern Ports Tournament week. Entering in his first year return to golf in 2009, Dening claimed second place in “C” grade, missing the winning putt on the last hole. For the next attempt, 12 months of training, practise and commitment will be completed, already his handicap has improved to enter the “B” grade in 2010.



In his second year of golf Dening will be entering a grade higher, competing and socialising with more experienced and better golfers. All driven with their love and enjoyment of a game that is not only a domain of success for athletes, a sport where skill can match strength.


Dening sees golf as a mirror of life, requiring education, patience, discipline, focus and imagination. Success in golf is invigorating and can deliver the realisation of dreams from youth, no matter what your age or physical condition. The game is fun yet gives the player benefits in overcoming physical and mental obstacles. Will Dening’s passion for the sport, training schedule and commitment, deliver a winning effort?

Please pass it on to your friends, your support is vital. Thankyou for your time and attention. Geoff


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GOLF - a good score at last

26th October 2010 Like most people I prefer life to amble along without much difficulty and minimal brain strain having to be enacted. Fact is that every now and then a smooth path can become a roller coaster ride affected by outside influences. Fortunately these are not often negative events, usually they are invigorating and inspiring activities that are part of work in my case. I admit to relishing this excitement and the effect of creative release associated with these events. Golf is the balm to those moments when everything is travelling along smoothly the game is never a chore or an irritation with the reality that my game is never static. Having observed many other golfer of higher and lower handicaps when playing rounds this game never reaches a level of repetitive humdrum no matter what my ability is going to reach. Which is why golf is an obsession to me and it is a joyful experience even when playing crap.




After the loss in the semi final of the “B” grade club championship my next round was 27 holes at Mt Gambier (16/10/10) in the Spring Carnival. Again my game was erratic and the putting game was a disaster for the round with a 46, 54, 55 split for the three nines. Mind you a very windy day on a course whose greens where much faster than my home course was a testing experience. Also the Driver was a little erratic off the tee at times and made it difficult for the next shot. Even this was not a problem as the past few weeks i have been slowly developing a fuller swing that is more technically correct and accept the inacuraccy for the significant added distance. The improvement is also affecting my iron play and all it is going to require is some dedicated practise to establish the improved swing consistently.



The following Sunday (24/10/10) it was a trip to Penola and the next round that counted in the DK Edwards Trophy. Again a first time experience on the course and a very worthwhile one at that. Having played at eight different courses as part of the Edwards Trophy competition this was a round that showed the benefits in my golf game. The first four holes I played the improved swing off the tee and each ball drew to the left and was long, a little modification and I began to hit fairways. Unfortunately not quite as well as I would have liked but still an improvement. The irons with second strokes on holes and off the tee on par 3’s were the best I could do and together with a short game of pitching and putting being good enough I had a gross 90 and a net 71 the best round for several weeks.



My confidence on the greens was a delight to have back and for a change putts dropped more often than just missing. In recent rounds there has been a lot of almost in the hole putts that have happened because I did not quite hit the ball well enough, as usual practise has helped. Putting is not hard there is a small margin for error and that is the difference in success or missing. Not ignoring that my putting has a long way to go, the minute I am on quicker greens I begin to struggle with reading the distance and 3-4 putts are back on the scorecard. One more round of the Edwards Trophy to go and it is at my home course and even though I have no chance of winning it the experience as been fantastic, socially and practically for my golf. Playing on other courses is without doubt a valuable part of enjoying golf beside helping to improve your own game. Hit ‘em straight all. Thankyou for your time and attention.



PS I have just finished the trailer for a golfing documentary film I am producing. Will post details here in coming days.Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

GOLF - 3rd place again

27th September, Monday. The Wilson 1200 blades are becoming very efficient in my hands during games at the minute. This season has had five different sets of irons pass through my bag up until now. Up until the end of March 2010 the Shark XLT Cavity backs had the prime position then I began to expand my search for a suitable upgrade towards a set that did not have as much influence, as the game assistive oversize irons do on shots. It was not a result of change for changes sake on my part even 20 years ago when playing I had been in the first stages of making the transition to a more responsive iron.



Today thanks to the internet and Ebay it is very easy and inexpensive to explore club selection without interference. Not that I would discount going to a professional/club fitting expert to do the same, in this case the distance of country living and lack of choice made the internet an excellent tool. The cost of my club search has been $380 (Less in fact as some have been sold on after being no longer needed.) for two sets of new irons and three sets of used irons. I will continue using all of the remaining iron sets in practise, this is something that I am used to doing now and enjoy The Wilson 1200 will be first choice and in the bag for competition though. My ball striking and accuracy are the obvious improvements from these, the ‘feel’ of these irons is delightful almost like an extension of my hands and arms. Around the greens in pitch and run and chipping the responsiveness and touch of these irons especially has been a major improvement in my game.

Over the past month an error with my long irons has been affecting my game, the result of this was what looked like a pull/draw of 15-25 metres. last week finally I had got on the practise fairway and concentrated on the fault. Nothing major in fact needed to be adjusted, a combination of two faults was the cause. First off was alignment to the target being incorrect a simple drill exposed that and once aware of it correction was easy. A pull is when the golf ball starts off going left of the target line and continues to go left of the target. There is no hook to it; it travels in a straight line (more or less) and ends up left of where the player thought it was going to land. By putting a club behind the ball and lined up to the target and another paralell to it where my feet went I set myself up and looked over my shoulder and it was all wrong. In my eyes it looked like the ball would be hit to the right of the target. Part of my problem was perspective in my eyesight, the second fault was a tendency to close the face of the irons at address. The result of these errors were not catastrophic, more frustration in getting so close yet so far from the target. The important thing is I have made an effort to remove the fault not adjust to it and further hamper my games improvement.

The round on Sunday was enjoyable and a 3rd place finish also included winning nearest the pin. The success on all the par three holes was a result of correcting the aforementioned problem. Unfortunately the driver was another matter and it cost me a few strokes with wayward shots. Again nothing drastic to worry about and in fact I managed to get the correct rythym and swing into my game on the back nine. The killer of my winning the competition (only two points shy of 1st) was 4 x three putts. Not totally my fault the greens had not been cut for 7 days since coring on Monday. Long grass on the greens, bouncing putts and very slow roll was too much effort to adjust for the one round. Call me lazy if you like, putting is not a strength of my game and has been slowly improving through practise. The risk of throwing away that hard earned touch with the putter, all to play on unusual greens for one round was not worth my while. In 2 weeks it is the Club Championship semi-final matchplay round and at this stage I am the favourite for “B” grade. My game is against a 15 handicapper and it has taken hard work and a lot of effort to earn the respect of my opponents as a valid chance. At the minute my 19 handicap is my best ever rank. The other three ‘live’ “B” grade players have all been below that and it is not going to be any reliance on luck that will get me into the final.

This week the course rating is being done under the new system, which will be interesting and to be honest is a little added excitement personally. I believe that my golf is reasonable and that some of the current holes on the course are open to question as to their difficulty and the over all course rating. My opinion has been influenced especially with having travelled and played on so many other courses this season. My home course is difficult to play and it was a surprise to discover how much better I play away on new courses even for the first time. I do go on about my lack of accuracy yet away from my home course I am surprised how this is not a problem in my game. The pressure is not on every hole at home, yet on at least ten holes, if you hit off the fairway the ball is lost, unplayable (if found) or out of bounds. This has had some influence on my fixation with improved accuracy and the associated search for irons. Hindsight is always 20/20 and in this example I am experiencing the benefits of having taken the path towards using blades. At the same instant the other irons used in the progression also benefited my game to various levels that showed me other changes to consider.

If the previous reads a little complicated it is understandable but I made no hurried decisions and it was improved playing technique that was the main factor in my golfing quest. The irons are just tools that do nothing until picked up and swung. A set of sticks are not the be all and end all of playing better golf your own ability is the crucial tool that must be developed.

Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all” Geoff

GOLF - New irons Again

21st September 2010 Did not pick up a stick from last Wednesday until Saturday before Sunday’s Par competition, using a little bit of common sense having a respite from continuous practise and keeping the game in perspective. Winning the club “B” grade championship is an important goal, enjoying playing golf and not getting jaded is just as important. I had a few days away in Adelaide for a break, also the latest addition to my growing selection of iron’s had not arrived. With a couple of weeks break before championship matchplay rounds I am looking forward to the effect from the latest irons.




Not a new set but having since played a couple of rounds with them and finishing all square in 4th place Sunday the Wilson 1200 (under wave) blades felt good and certainly assisted some aspects of my game. Around the green with chipping and pitching concentrated on in practise this has been saving 2-4 strokes a round for me. Using the Wilson blades on Sunday the 7-PW irons were so effective in delivering accurate shots to the hole and felt so responsive in the hands. The 3-6 irons had the same ‘touch’ it is the best experience to hold a club and have it feel so comfortable in setting up and playing strokes.



I did manage to shape a few long iron shots and that added to my enjoyment of the round. This time I played to the new 19 handicap and have kept it a week later unlike the lst time this figure was reached. The fact is these Wilson’s are 15 years old and cost me $30 delivered after purchase on Ebay. They have the counter torque’ twisted’ shafts which look out of place at first glance. I now have 4 sets of irons two are peripheral weighted and two blades. This is an ongoing process towards finally choosing the correct new set for my golfing ability. The grand total for the two sets of blades is $90 and that is a cheap price to help decide upon the final choice to come.



Yesterday was a club working bee to core and sand the greens which had me working with the former 4 handicapper that offered some coaching a few weeks ago. We have arranged to catch up and he can let me know what is causing my current slight problem. Nothing major but serious enough to get fixed if I want to drop another 3-4 strokes. Fortunately this bloke is known as a particularly good iron player and if he was not going blind would still be on a single figure handicap and not 13 as he is at the minute. During a couple of rounds he had noticed the problem but had not offered any tips or advice to correct them at the time. Which is appreciated by myself and the rule book is also adhered too. Simply my swing is fine, grip is fine and my lining up to the target is not. I was aware of this and it is so much easier to actually have a half hour coaching session to correct it and establish the correct set up with a golfing pro or some one who has the same high level of ability to play and coach.



With the final draw for the championships now decided I do not play my semi final until the 10th of October. It is against a 15 handicapper and at my best I can play to 17. This may be good enough but with such a large gap of time available I can have a serious crack at improving two more strokes and have a better chance in the game. My current game is one of consistent bogey golf with pars and birdies thrown in to keep the scores at 87 to 94 off the stick. With the occaisional bad hole due to a wayward drive or second shot I cannot rely upon the “C” grade style where a round of bogeys will win a championship. Pars and birdies are a must to get a win in “B” grade and I am capable of that but the inconsistent lining up is costing me far too many added shots from missing greens 10-20m to the left. My putting has improved but is nowhere near good enough to get consistent “up and downs” in two with a pitch and putt from missed greens. I am certain that those of you reading that play off 16 or less would feel confident in a game of match play off the stick against me. Thankyou for your time and attention. Hit ‘em straight all.

, Geoff

GOLF - Final Championship Qualifying round

14th September 2010. After playing the first championship qualifying round in pouring rain and very uncomfortable conditions, the second and final qualifier was the complete opposite. Sunshine, a pleasant breeze and the course relatively dry, the only real hindrance was patches of long grass on the fairways which could not be cut regularly in the past two weeks. This was frustrating for both finding balls and playing shots but definitely it could have been a lot worse.



The practise of the past weeks did deliver for me on the day finally managed to get the drives off the tee back to an acceptable level of accuracy. The problem of late was a combination of physical restriction in my swing due to injury and a massage on the Monday prior to playing relieved that. Which soon had me able to swing freely on the tee and get rid of the outside in swing plane that causes the slice out to the right. This combined with the short game practise in pitching and putting practise got my score below 90.



I did make mistakes and my gross score of 89 included three penalty strokes, two of those came from wayward second shots that rolled under trees, requiring a penalty drop to be able to play a decent next shot. The other a tee shot that went out of bounds, not by much but out is out. There were other shots that could have been better that effectively had little influence on the final score. As is expected the two shots that really stick in my memory are the pitch in for birdie on the 7th hole and the 6 metre putt for birdie on the last hole. A little disconcerting is I am now unsure of how much my physical injury restriction of the past few weeks has been affecting my game. Even so it is not a major influence I believe for any more than the past 2-3 rounds and was simply a result of it being nothing like the discomfort and restriction of movement that has been experienced previously.



My injuries were the result of a motor vehicle accident 20 plus years ago and the past two years the rehabilitation of these has finally had major improvement in my physical condition. The downside is being inured to pain and discomfort is a habit of mine and I accept the discomfort too often instead of getting it treated. Last year I was laid up for 3 months as my body reacted to the action of playing golf as internal scar tissue was strained and eventually corrected into a semblance of normality. This is why part of my golf practise includes weights and excercise routines, in moderation. The gradual strengthening routines are not targeting building up physique, they target stamina and conditioning to be able to play 18 holes of golf and not have the injuries sap away playing consistency.



The final results after a quick tally courtesy of Golf Link has the B Grade Championship Qualifying Table as follows; 1) 100 5101300281 N N 86, 2) G Dening N N 89, 3) 67 5101300264 N N 92, 4) 33 5101300255 N N 98, 5) 50 5101300267 N N 102, 6) 17 5101300251 N N 109 7) .?.. 8) .?..



I have managed to come in second place which may change as the first qualifier has intimated a move up to play in A Grade. No real difference going to the first qualifying place. Depending on whether any of the “C” Grade qualifiers elect to move up to play “B” grade it is possible I will have a bye in the first round of match play. Several of the C grade qualifiers have good enough scores to move up a grade and they have only moved to the lower grade since the new handicapping system came in. It will be no surprise to me that they choose to play “B” grade and I am confident against any of them. On the other hand having the number one qualifying play move to A grade is a bonus for me I have played with him several times socially in match play practise and the honours are all square. Fact is I have never came close to 80 and at my best could possibly score an 84-85 off the stick and would need him to have a bad round to be in with a chance of beating him at the minute.



That is all conjecture for now and the actual play off table will be available today(Tuesday) or tomorrow and then and will now what the state of play will be. In the meantime a trip away for a couple of days is on the cards and a week break before the first playoff to tune up my match play technique. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all” Geoff

Bordertown Open - A day of good golfing

8th September 2010 It is a very fine line between an enjoyable game of golf in winter weather and an experience in discomfort and misery. The round on Sunday 5th of September at Bordertown was in the former category, a few passing showers, a little bit of trudging through mud and the wind was for the most part enough to be a challenge and not a battle in setting up and playing shots. It is days like that on the course when the conditions add to the experience of playing, making you dig into the lessons and experiences stored away to play the best round possible.




Having now seen the Golf Link rankings after a quick glance through on Sunday of the finished table of results I came in 10th place not 6th as I first thought. Even so, not a disgraceful effort with a front 9 -45 and a back 9 -49 to get a 94/nett 74 playing on a course for the first time. I swear that no performance enhancing substances were taken in the amazing putting performance on the front 9 dear readers, a total of 10! For those who have been regular readers of my writings you will be aware that putting is not a strong part of my game. Yes the practise of late has been increased on the green and the change of putter has also been a gradual process to improve this part of my game and it delivered on Sunday. It was the one putts from 5 metres and in, that dropped into the hole. A definite improvement in setting up for putts and developing the reading of greens skill that made this happen. Not to forget the pitching which was getting the ball in close enough to the hole. All of these were practised with diligence over the past two weeks and it was good to have a glimpse of what is possible in my game.



Once again there was a particular error that cost me on the putting green, playing a putt which is hit too hard and leaves a long putt back to the hole, twice this resulted in three putts. Also one green I read a break and then refused to accept that I was correct and played for the opposite break and was way off target! Good grief is there a suicide bomber attitude in parts of my game which just self destructs for the sake of it. I watched the putt go all the way down the wrong line and knew that was because of my refusal to play the right line the read showed. All I can say is that it was because being able to read a green is still a new facet of my game and in the pressure of a game my composure collapsed. No major problem it was a delight to have putted as well as I did and now be able to build upon the improvement.



I also note that hitting the greens in regulation did not happen but enough shots were close enough that with the pitching made up and downs easy. Unfortunately my driving was off target enough to be into the bushes often and too many second shots were played to get back onto the fairway and not at the green. It became a round of bogey golf and that is representative of my ability with glimpses of what can be possible in a bit more time. Never stopped trying to lift my game and get a run of pars but could not get that to happen. Played many provisional balls off the tee just in case I could not find the first ball and seeing those shots fly straight down the fairway was irritating. Even though I was finding the first ball played, the problem persisted and it is obviously a problem in set up on the tee, with most first drives a slice, fading to the right from an outside - in swing plane. Together with 2-3 Hybrid shots that were pulled to the left and off the fairway, my round had a selection of errors that were not catastrophic but all made it harder playing to handicap.



For the past couple of days my thoughts were considering that perhaps my ability has peaked and this is as good as I can get. If so that is reality and can be lived with. On the other hand in reflecting upon the results of past weeks with scores from 87 to 94 off the stick there is still a little more room to improve consistency at least. Golf is never a stagnant, in my own experience just when it begins to level out and appear to have gone as far in any direction of performance there is another peak or trough in a round. That is one of the factors which make golf such an addictive activity. At the minute I have to consider the most prudent course in developing my game, working on the driver inconsistency and maintaining the current pitching and putting development is the first choice. Also the time is drawing near to make a specific effort to correct this pulling of shots with the hybrid and long irons. As much as this is affecting my game it is not worthwhile risking establishing the consistency and ability of the first choices in favour of correcting this.



The coming weekend is the 2nd round of qualifying for Club Championships and the soaking the course has received in the past week will need to keep draining away and not be repeated for the whole course to be playable. Had a hit on 5 of the more water soaked holes Tuesday afternoon and they were all coming along well after a couple of days drying out. Rain is forecast in the next two days and it will depend upon the level of this how the weekend round will pan out. I have already got a score in and should qualify anyway but would like to have a crack at a better round to improve my standing. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

GOLF - Almost but not quite a win...

1st September 2010 Bugger! Gave it my best on Sunday and fell 5 Stableford points short of winning the John Leake Trophy. Finished the round with 34 points and gross 93 off the stick, rubbing a bit of salt into the wound was going out to a 20 handicap again. Mind you not unduly concerned about the round apart from three duffed pitch shots and 3-4 putts that just missed. Played one shot that cost me a penalty and that was the result of hitting the ball, my aim was a little wide to the left and into the bushes went the ball. Still not quite used to my improved distance and hitting accuracy which is still a problem for me to adapt too. The wildly varying conditions of late have not been much assistance in getting comfortable either. From stormy winds to calm warm spring sunshine together with my own moderate ability the transition into the ‘teens’ is not easy for me.




The putts that just missed were still good just not perfect and that is still an improvement for me.The Mallet/2 ball style putter has helped my game on the green, considering that it took me 2 months at least before feeling capable to use it in competition since purchase is a satisfying addition. The tendency is to still leave a few putts within 5 cm of the hole either alongside or short on the longer putts 5metres plus. Inside that distance though the accuracy is very good. Not exactly certain why I leave a bigger number of putts short with this particular club. The technique is sound and reading the greens is also another skill that has been concentrated upon in practise of late as well. At best I have narrowed down the fault to a tendency to take too large a back swing with the putter and not strike through the ball correctly on some putts. Instead pulling the forward stroke up too soon and losing distance to the hole with the shot. This in itself is not a problem inside 5 metres but totally disastrous up to and outside that distance. One putt is always better than two and it is no surprise that practise is the only cure.



The pitching whilst again improved still needs to go from the practise area to the game. landing and stopping the ball inside that 1-2 metre area around the hole more often. In this area of practise of late my technique has been given a lot of attention. Previously my pitch was a one technique shot with no variation to adjust for different greens and pin placements apart from flat greens and straight ahead shots. Recent practise has been on opening the blade of the Wedge and imparting fade side spin on the ball which has returned higher ball flight and the ball flopping down and not running on far. I have also began to use the 7 iron around the green on the straight flat surface shots to good effect, chip and running the ball up to and into the hole.



Off the tee with the driver has again been causing some problems. I believed that the period of using the hybrid had sorted the issue of trying to hit the ball too hard and causing the fade/sliced tee shots. It had a beneficial effect but was only part of the solution, the other fault was my grip. Yes that same old horse trotted out again but it is crucial to playing accurate shots. Fortunately I have one of those Grip Tools which does a sensational job correcting grip faults. Slipped the sleeve over the grip and hit 20 balls a day for driver practise and soon began to get the consistency back. This has not ended the problem though, it is an ongoing process to maintain and establish the components of my game to a consistent level. At the minute it is very difficult, balanced on that edge of the handicap of “teens” or twenties.



Dear readers this is not something that I am worried about, all that can be done is to continue plugging away practising the fundamental techniques as in the past. So far in the past year and a half this has worked, changing something that is proven to work so well over time is just foolish. This week has been a little restricted the course has been very wet and muddy played a couple of 9 hole rounds and apart from the driver practise and some long irons so far that has been all I have done. Some pitching and putting practise will be done before the end of the week, this will have me tuned up enough to play in the Bordertown Open on Sunday. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all” , Geoff

GOLF - WInning is easy in the sunshine

23rd August 2010 Monday; A win on the weekend, all a result of the preparation over the past month. This was proof that golf is not a game of ‘luck’. Four weeks ago I began to improve my game and fitness for the final rounds of the Caledonian Inn Trophy on this past Sunday and next weeks, John Leake Trophy. There was finally a change in the weather and to not be playing in pouring rain and gale strength wind gusts was a delight. Yes dear readers, I was beginning to dislike playing golf after going through the past three weeks of weather conditions. A note of interest, thanks to referring back to Golf Link competitions played details, in the previous two weekends playing in terrible weather, I finished in 3rd place each time.




The result on Sunday with a Nett 67 gave me a one shot win for the day and tied the best two of three rounds result with 134 apiece for the Caledonian Inn Trophy. The final placing is still to be decided and I do not know how it is done. Hopefully it is based on all three rounds, as I had Nett 67, 72, 67 and the the other golfer had a Nett 66, 75, 68. Either way the competition was sensational fun. I do not attribute luck too much importance in playing well, I never discount that it does happen. On the 18th hole my opponent hit his drive out of bounds it bounced three times down a bitumen road and then rocketed to the left back into play, leaving him a 50-60 m shot to the green which he made in regulation, a 1.5 m putt for birdie which he just missed gave me the day. After I sank a 5 m putt up a two tier green on the 18th, it was one of those rounds where the pleasure of playing far outweighed what was being played for.



Golf is fun to play, if it was not then the game would soon lose its appeal to me. You have to make your own fun as well, it does not just happen we had a lot of good natured banter to make it fun and not a dull boring game. I definitely believe the improved weather had a lot to do with the happy nature of all the golfers playing on the day. Also I had three days away from the golf sticks (Wed,Thurs. and Friday) and that helped my game as well. The weight training benefits were obvious in my consistency with irons and driver golf swings and playing some of the more delicate pitch shots onto the green. All I do is a series of routines with 25kg each day now, to start with it was 15kg every second day taking no more than 20 minutes. It is a very minor gym commitment designed to do exactly what is being delivered, built stamina and stop those mishits caused by tiredness during a round. During this time I am continuing the daily excercise routine with the Chest Expander and Hand Grips. this is far easier to do in the comfort on my own home. The weight training takes an extra effort but after another 4 weeks will be almost finished with being done as a particular excercise and can be reduced to every second or third day by then if not sooner. I have to be on the ball at the minute, after last week when I realised that I had over done “golf” and had a three day break. This is recreation for me not a job so even though it is a happy obsession, it is still fun, not a must do activity.



It was well worth the experience of the past two weeks, only using a #2 Hybrid off the tee and not carrying a driver, this week the big stick came back into the bag and produced good results. The short game, pitching especially, was very good from the practise and weight training. Putting was good for my expectations at least and will be a particular training focus for coming weeks. As regular readers are aware over the past three months my irons have been reshafted three times. This experiment has been completed and last week I reshafted the Presto periphally weighted irons again. I now have the original shafts in these irons to the #7. The #8 iron has a heavier True Temper Dynamic shaft and the #9 iron has an #8 iron shaft the PW has a #9 shaft and SW a PW shaft. It has been crucial to establish a set of irons that benefit my game and has not been expensive less than $200 to purchase a new set of Presto Irons, and two second hand iron sets that also gained me two new putters and a 60 degree lob wedge. This way of setting myself up with the irons that I need and am well suited to use is just that way I chose to do it. I do not recommend it for everyone, I now can plan on purchasing a set of new blades in the future if my game continues to improve.



Here is the proof of my success, on January the 3rd., 2010 my handicap was 25.2, today on the 23rd of August it is 19.4, six strokes better over an eight month period is a safisfactory result. There has been a lot of work put in and my target of reaching 15 is still in reach before the end of 2010. That I will get to the goal is not certain, the most consistent handicap I have played to in competition is 17 when breaking 90 (gross). While doing the maths is easy, to figure out what is possible, playing golf well enough to reach 15 is more than calculation, it takes action. Fact is I may not be good enough to play to 15, that is not defeatist that is something that may be a reality. A golfer at our club once wanted to make single figures, 9 or less. He reached 12 and could not drop those last three strokes no matter how much he practised or played. It was his own choice to stop and this was a fella who had 10 acres with his home and had built a practise area for driving, fairways and pitching/putting. Now playing and satisfied with his handicap he said to me that at the time it was irritating but simply he did not have the talent to get to single figures.



I have no delusions of my ability only the and desire to see what I can do on the golf course. This year will have me in “B” grade for the club championships and that alone requires me to improve a lot. Club Championship opponents in “B” Grade are far more experienced golfers than I and many have been Penant and “A” grade golfers to boot, that is something that can put their actual handicap into a lower figure during matchplay based upon the knowledge they have. Hence I have chosen to bolster my playing stocks with fitness and practise to try and be able to compete and succeed in this seasons games. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em Straight all” , Geoff

Golf - splashing around in the rain

16th August Monday. Beginning to become tired of playing in the wind at the minute, nothing in the comment in fact just the usual winter doldrums getting vented. It may appear that for an amateur I am being too serious about improving my golf game, that is not the case. It is not easy taking the next step down the handicap figure in my game, a slow process though is the reality of getting the improvement in so many facets of my game consistent features in rounds. Having worked on one part of my game at a time, now starting to get the overall benefits is the reward. This takes a level of commitment and focus that usually would only be used in my work. There is nothing natural about a ‘golf swing’ so it is a matter of teaching your body to react as it should for a good swing plus it is “a game of millimetres”. Using a stick to make a little round ball fly through the air and land it on a target and having to co-ordinate so many facets of your body to do this as perfect as possible. The add to this activity the mental challenge of competition and all the nuances this brings out in individual personalities and there is the essence of why this game hooks players.




The winds and rain continued throughout Sunday, fortunately I hit off an hour and a half earlier to go around with another player who had to head to Adelaide and wanted to get a qualifying round in. The weather conditions decided an acceptable target of a 95 off the stick for me would be a good round. Not playing at my best at the minute, still tuning my game on the green and around them at the minute. The #2 Hybrid was used off the tee all day and the Driver was not even in the bag.



That said I came in with a 98 off the stick with 34 putts and one lost ball penalty, as my playing partner commented it was one of those days where a little luck went a long way. Not being a player who relies upon luck to do well but never rejects it, a few strokes especially on the green could have used some good fortune. One putt finished with part of the ball hanging over the lip of the cup, the wind was strong enough to hold it there and I had the good humour to laugh at that. Another two putts stopped just shy of the rim of the cup. That is just golf and not a concern , the other three putts that took off like a space shuttle and rocketed way off course to boot were a problem. The cause though was from my weight training and having increased the routine, it happened previously in my golf game and for a week or two my ‘touch’ with the putter will be a bit sensitive. Accepted the 98 which with a 10 metre birdie putt dropping in on the 18th was given a lift. Having finished at 2 pm and the rest of the field still had 9 holes to go I do not know how my score fared in comparison but from some chat know I was by no means the worst score in the first qualifying round for the club championships.



Importantly I have a score on the board and with another qualifying round to go and many golfers skipped the day due to the weather. I can pull the stops out and have a real crack at getting up the table for the match play seedings. Today I played a casual 9 holes with my set of blades which felt good and I hit the balls well. Even the adjustment needed to counter the shorter shafts on them was no problem, again I realised the benefit from improved technique and the weight training adding another 10 m to these irons. Used the Cobra driver for a few hits and that will need a bit of work before the coming round, Hit is poorly with a slice but not too hard to correct with a bit of diligence in practise. On the 22nd it is the 3rd and final Caledonian Inn Trophy match, myself and two others lead this and I will be trying hard to win, as well as the following weekend when the same three are all in the lead for the John Leake trophy. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”


Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

GOLF - it is better than doing nothing

14th August Saturday. Strong wind warning out for the region together with showers of rain passing through because the wind is blowing the clouds over so fast there is no time for it to get saturated underneath. Living here on the Limestone coast a drought for us is what many would still call above average rainfall so it is a good thing that the rain is passing over to fall inland. Another plus is that it will not be another drenching like last weekend and to be straight to the point, it is enough to make me leave a round halfway through in those conditions.




This weekend is the first qualifying round of the club championships so the water would have to be above my ankles on the whole course to stop me completing a round. The last two weeks of using the #2 Hybrid off the tee and leaving the driver out of the bag is definitely a decision that is going to work in my favour. Played in the nine hole Chicken Run yesterday afternoon and did not miss a fairway and set myself up for an easy bogey on every hole. Was not quite on the pulse with my seconds only hit one green in regulation (got the par though) and my pitching was just a little unsettled. In that it was to be expected practise of the ‘Flop’ shot and dropping the ball onto the green with minimal run has only been a recent addition to my game plan. Just came inside from an hour of practise of this shot and pitching putting drills to get them a little better. Also set up and hitting into the wind for a while as well to get my game tuned for tomorrow.



Putting was concentrated on, still not satisfied with my shots on the green, yet that is not detrimental just a real assessment of my ability. As the next few months pass by this part of my game is going to be better than now and that is the goal. Having changed to the Proline Mallet style putter that previously I had no skill with and putting just as well as before if not better, proves that practice not preference for a club is the key.



Over all feeling particularly good with my game and the developing fitness level with the addition of weight training this week already showing benefit. Next week I will be upping the ante with the training until Wednesday when I go away for a couple of days which will let my body recuperate from the weight training. Doing weights is not harmful and those who have not done this would not be aware of the fact that after doing the repetitions your muscles let you know they have been exercising in short order. It is not pain as such but a feeling of soreness as your muscles respond to being specifically exercised and it soon goes. I have been very gradual in my start and set up as my body is not in prime condition and overdoing it will result in stiff and tired muscles and not benefit my golf as it has with the sensible informed approach this week.



Nobody has to do this sort of training to play golf it is my own choice and has a purpose in achieving personal goals. It is like playing football, you go to training once or twice a week and do the fitness and skills work to get into the team on the weekend. Just because golf is not a team sport or seen in the weekly media coverage except on the international news or in the brief results section in newspapers, does not mean individual amateur players cannot take it to this level. This works for me and I need the additional health benefits besides the pleasure of playing and competing at a good level. Thankyou for your time and attention “Hit ‘em straight all”Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

Adam Lindsay Gordon Committee AGM

http://www.adamlindsaygordon.org/
An absolutely lousy day winds gusting and rain falling at the minute I should be on my way to the Coleraine Races for the Adam Lindsay Gordon Commemorative Committee AGM. It is one of the benefits of the spirit of Australia's national poet that permeates the committee operations, that the AGM is held at a race meeting. Aside from the fact that Gordon was a champion jockey as well as a member of Parliament, mounted Trooper and other more colourful personal traits which when combined with his use of language became Australian poetry, he most likely rode at Coleraine in his career as well.

Sitting here and busying myself with other tasks and feeling a little guilt at not being at the AGM it is not the end of the world. The past three years have been the least number of performances I have done in any medium for a long time. Fortunately the film making developments and educating myself into this medium kept my creative juices lowing and invigorating my character with the vigour that artistic endeavour give me.

With a documentary project up and runing for the next 9 months plus live performances scheduled for October/November this year it is great to be back into the game again. Standup is still a passion that I have not organisd any shows for yet and will get itself an airing once I finish the writing of the next pile of material into a usable form. Best of all is the gradual peeks of an onstage persona that is poking it's head and mouth out from time to time of late and getting some laughs. Who would have ever thought that being a fool took so much effort!

Thank you for your time and attention, Geoff

GOLF - Practise time it never stops...

12th August Thursday. Winter is making it’s presence felt this week with the wind still delivering strong gusts during the day. At least rain has been bearable and not a continual downpour drenching anyone who steps outside. Practice has been concentrated on the short game of pitching and putting drills. Gaining a little more variety with pitching to the green and being able to stop the ball from running though too far past the hole has been a major success. Never really had the confidence to try and play anything but the most basic of shots until recently and still do not vary far from “hitting the ball straight” for the most part. Playing with a conservative frame of mind with regard to attacking golf is still the main base of my game strategy. Improvement in my stroke play now has shots what would have been discarded as ‘too risky’ only a month ago, now I play them. Certainly many golfers would look at my deliberations over shot choice and decide to play what I call the risky one straight away. This is a slow decision for me as I come to terms with being able to play strokes consistently and not mishit as many shots.




I have persisted with last weeks decision and left the Driver out of the bag and used a #2 (16 degree) hybrid off the tee. Losing 20-40 metres distance is balanced with the accuraccy and fairways hit. The perceived effectiveness of this club in the windy conditions was always a reason behind the purchase of the hybrid. Last year I used my #3 Iron, the hybrid gives better distance and burrows into the wind on and off the tee block. As to whether using the driver would be just as effective is not an issue, I am hitting more fairways and that is enough proof for me and not having to create shots from difficult positions is a bonus. There is another factor which is benefiting my game at the minute, adding weight training to me excercise routine.



As written previously the past month has included regular excercise routines using hand grips, chest expander and yoga leg lifts. This week I began a regular weight regime for increased stamina during rounds. Starting off with 20 minute sessions every second day using 15 kg on the bar and three exercises this will become a daily routine in a couple of weeks. Not after any spectacular changes or improvements the results are already being delivered in the first week. The effort to swing a club is barely noticeable and yes I have become consistent with striking the ball and the benefits of this include confidence personally as well as results with the ball.



Putting is still a little bit erratic on occasion but this will be dealt with in time with more practise. Still a little surprised how the transition to the new mallet style putter has evolved and how badly I used this putter previously yet now am much better with it. Through research and reading what other golfers said about changing putters, then opinion of coaches and professionals and their attitude to using new clubs of any type that gave me the idea to seriously do the ‘change putter’ experiment in the first place. It comes down to ‘How little people like change’ the old adage of ’better the devil you know’ also comes into consideration. I am of the opinion that a good number of golfers are monkeys and have no idea what they can or can’t do on a golf course and perpetually sell themselves short. Yes I do make a particular effort to play a lot of golf and am in a position to do so. Yet I have heard many golfers rave on about their game and never act upon what they say is needed to be done, even better is the number of golfers who have had lessons and roundly criticised the coach as not having a clue. When all it has been is they do not want to accept the advice and change how they have (incorrectly) played strokes for so long.



Every golfer is going to do what ever they want to, that is the only fact that never changes in the game.

Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

GOLF - webbed feet would not have helped

9th August Monday Time to relax and recharge the energy after a very draining day on the course in the competition on Sunday. One of the rare occasions when I had a care factor of zero for the result and continuing the round, brought on by a continual downpour for the first 6 holes. Not a skerrick of enjoyment in those holes there were moments when it was bearable, mostly nothing but getting drenched. Being a par round and nothing more than a game with no importance in the end result apart from the final score my concentration did wander for a space of four holes and if any less effort was put into them would have been better played by a coma patient. The day was won with a score of minus 2 and my score was minus 5 so not too far off the pace even though no effort was put into the game for four holes.




On reflection as the field only had four golfers in total it shows that my commitment was better than many. Maybe having played so much during the week was a detriment to my interest in the game, although it was a very good week of development for my game. Currently planning on increasing the gym work another level with weight work together with the low impact excercise routines of the past month. The playing technique improvement with setup, swing and short game can still improve over time, with the coming club championships I will need more advantages to succeed.



Unfortunately the fact is that as much as I improve, having now gone up into “B” grade, opponents will be far more experienced and consistent in their golf game. The improvements to my game skills will be a benefit of course but I am going to add a higher level of fitness in particular stamina/strength conditioning to counter some of the advantage other players have over me. This approach has previously delivered consistency on the golf course in my game and that is going to be vital in the qualifying and matchplay rounds if I make it though. It was interesting that my playing partner persisted in saying I use the Driver off the tee Sunday. I stated that would not be happening at the start of the round and it was replaced with the #2 Hybrid. Lost about 30-40 metres on the drive distance and the accuracy gain was well worth the sacrifice. Playing from the fairways is much better than having to construct shots around, over and under obstacles on either side, or losing balls.



As I understand it the grades for the Championships are suggested to be “A” 0-14 “B” 15-22 and “C” 23-36. In which case I will be in the high figure section of “B” grade. The best I have done in competition is play to 17 handicap, without lost balls and out of bounds my scores can get to the 15-16 handicap figure. Even so it is going to take a lot more than that to win against most opponents in the grade. The short game is the key, being able to get up and down in two shots for pars and making more birdies is the only way to be able to win. At the minute my ability is better but nowhere near good enough to be able to defeat several of the “B” grade regulars. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em Straight all”

Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff