30/7/11 Have maintained the 9 hole rounds through the week just gone getting in 4 sessions playing the course instead of range practise. The downside is only the amount of time it takes to play 9 holes as opposed to hitting balls on the practise fairway. Fortunately my longer irons and drivers have a good quality about them at the minute thanks to the practise so far this season. I put in a lot more time with the short game as this is going to take the most adjustment while using the old set until the AP2’s turn up. The Bridgestone J33’s have been given a final clean and are now on the market. Unfortunately the MB pitching wedge in the set is very different from the Karsten look a like and it took a lot of practise to get some touch back by Friday.
"Golf Ethos". We all have one that is created from our experience in the game. Some people have a parrot fashion recital of a PGA Champions words, others have a short statement on the game and many have an unspoken opus in the mind every time the clubs are touched or the game is thought about.
Mine is simple to me as I have lived it and written it, yet to speak it is not a brief dialogue. The short version is , "I am not the best golfer, I am the best I can be."
In addition to the short game practise a lot of time was put into the exercise routines given in the coaching session last week. Spent some time on Monday making a short (1m) club to do the swing plane and wrist rotation exercise. Did this routine daily, as well as the hip rotation and leg follow through exercise. Created a few stiff spots on the ribs, the body was not used to the pure extension of the various muscles so often.
The return is in the game though and playing in the Friday, “Chicken Run” off a 10 hcp as opposed to my official 14, went out a stroke after the Lucindale CavPower Open last weekend. Finished with 18 points with 40 gross strokes and wiped one hole. I will take that score any day and being a very enjoyable social comp is an added bonus. The day was won by our club President who is in his 70’s (years) and played off single figures for 50 of them. At the minute off 13 he came in with 21 points. Playing in the same group it was a fun round and was a little surprised at the end to be complimented on the quality of my short game.
This got me thinking. There is a fault that can ruin many a golfers game, “blurring the line between expectations and capability”. In retrospect the very different feel of the old PW and the J33 PW distracted me from seeing the actual quality of chip shots played. Five were 2 m or less from the hole, no birdies in the round but some very good up and downs for par made easy with short putts. In essence the shots were very good, yet in a strange way I was so focussed on how the club felt in my hands than the shot results were lost on me. I did make some mistakes early in the round though that had my attention so narrow in its focus to avoid making them again.
I am still coming to terms with the change to an attacking game strategy from playing the percentage game strategy. Made one mistake in this transition which very nearly caused another wiped hole. Playing a 2nd shot from tight under a tree, tried for distance instead of clear and onto the fairway. Nearly an airy and topped the ball just enough to have a clear swing for the 3rd which made the green and a long putt for par. The wiped hole was on the 2nd one played and again tried too hard for the pin instead of making the green while under trees. Hit the ball thin and shot across the green like a rocket. It is very hard making the transition as I have not yet found my comfort zone with being aware of the best shot to play. attacking golf is about being clever not trying to shoot the lights out of every hole.
Out and hitting some balls later today, tuning up for the Kingston Open tomorrow morning. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”, Geoff
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Got the game mojo back...
27/7/11 The golfing form is back in the bag again this week, it needed an increase in practise time since the coaching last Thursday, well worth the effort for the results. Having the coaching session was a good way to end the break from the heavy practise routines and start again. With new exercises to establish and maintain the corrections made to the swing, it is a refreshing motivation to up the ante with practise again. Made the first step yesterday, going out and playing 9 holes instead of range work. Total of 43 off the stick and a relaxing walk on the course.
Playing holes instead of hitting balls to the target on the practise fairway was fun and did get the game brain working also. It was also a partial lack of hole play that made Sunday so difficult. Since taking the coaching advice on board and making the swing changes that comfortable ‘feel’ in stance and with the sticks in my hands had gone. Having a social hit with no scoring pressure was the way to get comfortable again. Given my standard as a golfer I feel that a 5 day turnaround is a good result. Two things have been very noticeable, 1) definite decrease in distance with irons 2) hitting the ball thin. Neither of these are negatives, give me the delight of the ball going straight and the removal of the slice any time. The first 6 drives were all straight to the target on the fairway yesterday, Greens in regulation on 3 holes the rest no more than 3 metres off the green. Taking a club more than before is no loss for that return and it will revert in time to the previous status quo.
Hitting the ball thin may be a partial result from hitting off the mat in recent practice. I have been using a door mat, putting the ball on it while at the practise fairway. Simply to save making divots on the practise tee block. The ball is raised at least 2-3 cm above ground level where my feet are and this may be affecting the ball striking. Hence yesterday I made sure to hit a good number of irons off the ground after the practise 9 holes. Need to put some extra effort into putting this week also, no major problems the opposite in fact. The touch around the greens has been good of late, even last week at Lucindale which was a real battle on the fast greens. Again a result from a coaching session a month ago, together with the chipping.
My game has always benefited from considered coaching lessons. I have always gone with specific attributes of my game in mind to be analysed. Presented the problem to the Pro and taken in the advice and practised what was given. Since 2009, I have had 5 or 6 sessions including group clinics and compared to others who were on the same handicaps as me at the time I am at least 10 strokes improved (out to 14 after last weeks round). There are no quick fixes in golf and never just one thing that will get your game right. Yet golfers continue to trumpet that they have found the way to success this way.
Time to get out and hit some balls later today, in the meantime thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all” Geoff
Playing holes instead of hitting balls to the target on the practise fairway was fun and did get the game brain working also. It was also a partial lack of hole play that made Sunday so difficult. Since taking the coaching advice on board and making the swing changes that comfortable ‘feel’ in stance and with the sticks in my hands had gone. Having a social hit with no scoring pressure was the way to get comfortable again. Given my standard as a golfer I feel that a 5 day turnaround is a good result. Two things have been very noticeable, 1) definite decrease in distance with irons 2) hitting the ball thin. Neither of these are negatives, give me the delight of the ball going straight and the removal of the slice any time. The first 6 drives were all straight to the target on the fairway yesterday, Greens in regulation on 3 holes the rest no more than 3 metres off the green. Taking a club more than before is no loss for that return and it will revert in time to the previous status quo.
Hitting the ball thin may be a partial result from hitting off the mat in recent practice. I have been using a door mat, putting the ball on it while at the practise fairway. Simply to save making divots on the practise tee block. The ball is raised at least 2-3 cm above ground level where my feet are and this may be affecting the ball striking. Hence yesterday I made sure to hit a good number of irons off the ground after the practise 9 holes. Need to put some extra effort into putting this week also, no major problems the opposite in fact. The touch around the greens has been good of late, even last week at Lucindale which was a real battle on the fast greens. Again a result from a coaching session a month ago, together with the chipping.
My game has always benefited from considered coaching lessons. I have always gone with specific attributes of my game in mind to be analysed. Presented the problem to the Pro and taken in the advice and practised what was given. Since 2009, I have had 5 or 6 sessions including group clinics and compared to others who were on the same handicaps as me at the time I am at least 10 strokes improved (out to 14 after last weeks round). There are no quick fixes in golf and never just one thing that will get your game right. Yet golfers continue to trumpet that they have found the way to success this way.
Time to get out and hit some balls later today, in the meantime thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all” Geoff
Footyheads Review Rd 18 Carlton V Essendon
On the home straight towards the finals series. The draw in round 4 was turned around with a 12 goal win by the Blues. A game of highlights, Eddie Betts 8 goals, Judd on fire around the ground, Andrew Walker flies for mark of the season.
Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff
Monday, July 25, 2011
Cavpower Lucindale Open competition
25/7/11 Lucindale Cavpower Open day did not get a promising start with steady rain from 5.30am before leaving on the 80km drive. Thanks to the internet a quick look showed it was going to be 1 degree warmer and only shower,s instead of the thunderstorms at home. Made one oversight and forgot to pack the golf shoes which meant buying a new pair at the open and happy to be lighter in the wallet with the forced purchase. Had been considering getting a lighter pair and better waterproofed as well and this was an accident that paid off. Cannot fail to mention the fantastic lunch put on after 9 holes and afternoon tea once the round was played. Cannot go past country hospitality. The field of 54 golfers was down on numbers with an intra region comp. at Horsham between the Wimmera and South East of SA.
Unfortunately the golf played had no such good fortune. Did not play well yet not too disapointed with the result considering the amount of changes that were a result of the coaching session on Thursday. Importantly I did not revert to the ‘old’ way to try and improve the performance in the comp. Finishing the day with a 97 gross 84 nett started on No.10; 50 back 9 & front 9 47. Tee shots were affected with 4 very odd skied drives, straight thankfully but short distance forward and bemused me at a time when I did not need the problem. Struggled with distance all day in part from the changed swing plane and other improvements, together with being a little lacking in energy. A matter of more practise than usual in the two previous days there was a noticable lack of energy in the tank, with some unsual stiffness and sore spots.
The round had one birdie (chip in) 2 pars the other 15 holes were bogies and double bogies. There was not a slice/fade in the round showing that the changes have worked. Not being able to get the distance right with the clubs wounded my game, the short game killed it. Pitching and chipping a strength for so long had no consistency all day. Putting was not a disaster, two 3 putts on greens that were fast even with the soaking from 2 days of rain. Too fast for me on the day a lot of breaks that had several near misses to end with only three one putts shows where the damage was done.
Sitting here now I can see the benefits of the day outweighing the negatives of the performance on the course. Continued the attacking shot play which given that my game was erratic was another relatively new facet that was maintained on every hole. It is very satisfying now to realise that it was a small number of mistakes, 13 or so that cost me a handicap result (B Grade). The table finish has me at 11th out of 22 in the gross and 16th in nett. Threw everything I had into the game and was lights out by 8.45pm on getting home, totally knackered.
Getting up for the coming Kingston Open on Sunday is going to take a committed effort this week on the training track. Moving back to the heavier training regime is going to be one change plus play more holes instead of so much range work. It is going to be a fun week again on the golf course. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all”
Geoff
Unfortunately the golf played had no such good fortune. Did not play well yet not too disapointed with the result considering the amount of changes that were a result of the coaching session on Thursday. Importantly I did not revert to the ‘old’ way to try and improve the performance in the comp. Finishing the day with a 97 gross 84 nett started on No.10; 50 back 9 & front 9 47. Tee shots were affected with 4 very odd skied drives, straight thankfully but short distance forward and bemused me at a time when I did not need the problem. Struggled with distance all day in part from the changed swing plane and other improvements, together with being a little lacking in energy. A matter of more practise than usual in the two previous days there was a noticable lack of energy in the tank, with some unsual stiffness and sore spots.
The round had one birdie (chip in) 2 pars the other 15 holes were bogies and double bogies. There was not a slice/fade in the round showing that the changes have worked. Not being able to get the distance right with the clubs wounded my game, the short game killed it. Pitching and chipping a strength for so long had no consistency all day. Putting was not a disaster, two 3 putts on greens that were fast even with the soaking from 2 days of rain. Too fast for me on the day a lot of breaks that had several near misses to end with only three one putts shows where the damage was done.
Sitting here now I can see the benefits of the day outweighing the negatives of the performance on the course. Continued the attacking shot play which given that my game was erratic was another relatively new facet that was maintained on every hole. It is very satisfying now to realise that it was a small number of mistakes, 13 or so that cost me a handicap result (B Grade). The table finish has me at 11th out of 22 in the gross and 16th in nett. Threw everything I had into the game and was lights out by 8.45pm on getting home, totally knackered.
Getting up for the coming Kingston Open on Sunday is going to take a committed effort this week on the training track. Moving back to the heavier training regime is going to be one change plus play more holes instead of so much range work. It is going to be a fun week again on the golf course. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all”
Geoff
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Coaching sessions always valuable...
21/7/11 It is fortunate that my confidence is not tainted with arrogance, particularly when dealing with golf. The satisfaction with ‘fixing’ the problem with the mid-long irons was a shallow feeling. Fortunately the trip to Adelaide with a bit of rushing early in the day opened a window to get to Drummonds and get the driver regripped. Plus time to get to the range and book a coaching session.
The first bit of good fortune was that the store was not overly busy and one of the good natured staff (as i have always found them to be in fact) when I asked if it would be possible to have a session with the ‘computer swing testing thingo’ said no probs. Even though it was not usual for some one not getting fitted for clubs.
Would have been totally satisfied with finding out my swing speed, yet we went the full enchilada in the end. First of all something that had been in my mind since January was shown through the test. Swing speed 75mph not fast enough for stiff flex iron shafts which have always been suggested as what would be best for my game. 80mph plus is best for stiff flex so although it is not a big gap it is enough to affect performance.
Then it was possible to trial a set of Titliest AP2’s which have been one of the considered choices for when I reach 10. This time with regular flex shafts the accuracy was significantly better and distance as well to what stiff flex give in a comparison on the readout. Amazingly was the backspin result, something which has only began to be a consistent factor in my game in the last 2 weeks. All from changing the eye to ball target point from; back of the ball to the top centre.
The mid to long iron accuracy problem was identified as, outside to in swing plane. I suspected this but that is not my issue with the cure I had enacted. I need to get to a pro coaching session have and expert analyse the whole process and set me some exercises to fix the problem.
Which I did in the late arvo, problems were 1) Swing plane. Then other probs in tandem with the fault; 2) Not rotating at the hips, getting right foot turned, up and on toe 3) Not rolling the wrists 4) Gripping the club too tight.
Left after a coaching session with the problems perfectly explained and the practise routines in hand to use that will assist in improving my swing. I play with several golfers who play with a swing fault that causes a slice or hook and allow for it. Which is fine until they do not do it, hit the ball straight and into disasterous trouble. Follwed by a tantrum on how shit their golf is. Fix your problem it is not that hard, if a golfer makes excuses and is pig headed then it is impossible.
Since getting home I have constructed a short practise club to do the swing plane/wrist rotation exercise, the leg and hip rotation exercise needs no tools. Since the coaching session I have put in 4 hours of practise which should have my game at a similar standard to post coaching. The grip strength is another gradual improvement concentrating on the pressure and keeping 3/10 strength will eventually establish itself. There will still be faults, except that now it is from a correct basis of a technique and not error based.
It is going to take time and I have 3 months to get it right with the new awareness and practise routines to fix the problem. All I want is to hit the ball straight, get that settled and I will get to that ten hcp goal. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”
lol PS anyone wanna swap; MY set of Bridgestone j33’s 2-PW combo set with TT S300 stiff shafts for the same in Regular flex shafts :)
Geoff
The first bit of good fortune was that the store was not overly busy and one of the good natured staff (as i have always found them to be in fact) when I asked if it would be possible to have a session with the ‘computer swing testing thingo’ said no probs. Even though it was not usual for some one not getting fitted for clubs.
Would have been totally satisfied with finding out my swing speed, yet we went the full enchilada in the end. First of all something that had been in my mind since January was shown through the test. Swing speed 75mph not fast enough for stiff flex iron shafts which have always been suggested as what would be best for my game. 80mph plus is best for stiff flex so although it is not a big gap it is enough to affect performance.
Then it was possible to trial a set of Titliest AP2’s which have been one of the considered choices for when I reach 10. This time with regular flex shafts the accuracy was significantly better and distance as well to what stiff flex give in a comparison on the readout. Amazingly was the backspin result, something which has only began to be a consistent factor in my game in the last 2 weeks. All from changing the eye to ball target point from; back of the ball to the top centre.
The mid to long iron accuracy problem was identified as, outside to in swing plane. I suspected this but that is not my issue with the cure I had enacted. I need to get to a pro coaching session have and expert analyse the whole process and set me some exercises to fix the problem.
Which I did in the late arvo, problems were 1) Swing plane. Then other probs in tandem with the fault; 2) Not rotating at the hips, getting right foot turned, up and on toe 3) Not rolling the wrists 4) Gripping the club too tight.
Left after a coaching session with the problems perfectly explained and the practise routines in hand to use that will assist in improving my swing. I play with several golfers who play with a swing fault that causes a slice or hook and allow for it. Which is fine until they do not do it, hit the ball straight and into disasterous trouble. Follwed by a tantrum on how shit their golf is. Fix your problem it is not that hard, if a golfer makes excuses and is pig headed then it is impossible.
Since getting home I have constructed a short practise club to do the swing plane/wrist rotation exercise, the leg and hip rotation exercise needs no tools. Since the coaching session I have put in 4 hours of practise which should have my game at a similar standard to post coaching. The grip strength is another gradual improvement concentrating on the pressure and keeping 3/10 strength will eventually establish itself. There will still be faults, except that now it is from a correct basis of a technique and not error based.
It is going to take time and I have 3 months to get it right with the new awareness and practise routines to fix the problem. All I want is to hit the ball straight, get that settled and I will get to that ten hcp goal. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”
lol PS anyone wanna swap; MY set of Bridgestone j33’s 2-PW combo set with TT S300 stiff shafts for the same in Regular flex shafts :)
Geoff
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Slow and Steady is working well...
19/7/11 In hindsight the Club Captain’s decision to call off the round on Sunday was fantastic. Even though I mildly disputed his call and was one of only 3 golfers revving to go out in the rain. It was only because the ‘game face’ was on, once normal brain transmission resumed it was much better not out there on the course. There rescheduling of the round is going to cause some ructions. For me it will be a hard choice to not play on the 31st yet my plan has always been to play the Kingston Open on that day. The preparations for the next two weekend open competitions have all been done and my game is travelling well.
This morning was the best yet for the improvement of playing the mid to long irons. The problem was never a major one and the cure was something very minor, caused by a bit of laziness on my part. All along the error had been when addressing the ball I had began to ‘drop’ my hands and bending over at the hips, causing me to ‘swipe’ around at the ball instead of an upright stance with a back and through swing. Once the stance was corrected the pulling to the left with the 3-4-5 irons was gone and back to straight accurate shots to the target. Not perfect of course but good enough for a player of my standard.
Then a bit of good fortune came along as I was finishing the practise. A couple of visitors whom I had met yesterday at the club and had given therun through on green fees and buggy hire were finishing their front nine and asked if I wanted to join in the back nine. Intending to head home and work for a few hours then play nine,I made the better choice of a social nine with the guests. A pleasant amble chatting and golfing is never a bad idea, this was the perfect solution to get out and have a relaxed round in company instead of a solo round. The golf was not bad either 41 off the stick and it was effortless. Plenty of errors and they did not matter, that is a score I will take as acceptable. Social golf is fun, taking experimental shots that in a game would not be considered is and important part of this game.
Tomorrow is time to travel again up to Adelaide and returning on Friday. Saturday at home then Lucindale on Sunday, all is set up and ready as I can be. Now to get out at midnight and do the sunshine dance under the full moon later on tonight so it is not raining on the weekend and that will fix the weather. Thats how to play golf, practise the skills, no superstitions, and plenty of pagan religious rites. All perfectly acceptable as far as I am concerned if it gets pars, birdies and stops the ball from going into the twilight zone. Thankyou for your time and attention all, “Hit ‘em straight” Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff
Friday, July 15, 2011
Practise makes my golf better...
Nine holes and 9 very good shots using the 4-6 iron getting either GIR or 1-2 metres off the green. The Chicken Run comp. is a fun round and I do put in a serious effort, use it as a good tune up for the 18 hole round on Saturday or Sunday. Hence I do not concentrate 100% on all shots and participate in a lot of chatter, joking, sledging and general fun. With all the mucking around and playing off a 10hcp and not my official 13hcp with 3 wipes (Stableford) a total of 12 points was okay. Missed three putts due to having more fun than being dead serious and could not care less as the purpose was to see if the long iron practise had worked. Not ignoring the missed putts though, not following the regular set up for putting cost the points.
A little good fortune on my part in hindsight has been the program error which listed the CavPower Tournament this Sunday at Lucindale when it is actually next week. Will give another week to tune my game up, could see that a little more preparation would be a bonus and now have it. That means playing at the home track in a rescheduled Monthly Medal and 1st Round of the Caledonian Inn Trophy on Sunday. Looking forward to a stroke round and defending the title from last season, hopefully the weather will be mild and not influence the golf too much.
The worst event of the week was leaving the house early in the morning and not checking Golf Equipment for Sale listings, a 420cc Bridgestone J33 Driver was sold that I had not seen before. Not that having a matching driver to go with the set is important. I use a 380cc Driver much better than the 460cc one previously, the opportunity to add a 420cc one to the bag was missed.
No matter the world is still turning and the Open at St George’s is giving great entertainment on the TV. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em Straight all” Geoff
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Another stroke dropped....
12/7/11 The score at Kingston SE on the weekend finally tipped my handicap down another stroke to 13, the past 8 weeks of extra practise delivered a result on all the set targets. One statistic in particular is inspiring, on the 5th of January my playing hcp was 19 and since then 6 strokes have been dropped off to the current 13.1 exact. Looking at the improving handicap on Golf Link since 2009 the progress this year is on a par to when I went from 32 down to 22.
Even with the optimistic attitude toward reaching the target of 10 in the future, it would be a lie to deny having not thought that this would be beyond my golf ability. I do believe it will happen and put in the effort that is designed to make this a reality. It is still an interesting trait of mine that thinking like a 20 handicapper and playing percentage golf is the biggest hurdle in reaching the goal. The practise routines on the range and practise green are all standards that many golfers have done. The vital game change is between my ears and the mental side of playing golf.
It is not by chance that the recent training was planned to have me playing better at the minute. The coming weekend round is the Lucindale Cavpower Open. "UPDATE" The club program had a typo and the CAVPOWER event is next Sunday, the Caledonian Inn Trophy Round is being moved to this weekend. I will not be defending my “C” grade victory of 2010 now that I am into “B” grade it will be an attempt to win this grade. The next weekend after on the 24th is the 1st round of The Caledonian Inn Trophy (defending my 2010 title) and then the Kingston Winter Open (Division 2 r/up in 2010). This is how I approach playing competitive golf, wanting to win is motivation. Maintaining the inspiration by defending titles won is how I continue the push to reach the handicap target by focussing on the rounds not the hcp. target. The base of my golf enjoyment is that every round played is really good fun.
Today the weather is a bit crap and getting the days work out of the way is going to take up time until 2pm, hopefully the rain will be clearing and the wind stay moderate. Then out onto the range to begin the next planned training routine. The last one was to get my game consistent with all the equipment and target perceived weaknesses. This has been used since 2009 in preparing for the Southern Ports Tournament, which physically and time wise I cannot maintain all of the time. Now I am adding a 4 week less strenuous regime that is for “conditioning”, using less clubs with more precise targets set for each session. Mental practise is now a must with visualising the courses to be played and the shots required on each hole, this is making up for less time physivally hitting the ball. Strategy is a definite help in playing rounds that I particularly want to play well in. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all” Geoff
Even with the optimistic attitude toward reaching the target of 10 in the future, it would be a lie to deny having not thought that this would be beyond my golf ability. I do believe it will happen and put in the effort that is designed to make this a reality. It is still an interesting trait of mine that thinking like a 20 handicapper and playing percentage golf is the biggest hurdle in reaching the goal. The practise routines on the range and practise green are all standards that many golfers have done. The vital game change is between my ears and the mental side of playing golf.
It is not by chance that the recent training was planned to have me playing better at the minute. The coming weekend round is the Lucindale Cavpower Open. "UPDATE" The club program had a typo and the CAVPOWER event is next Sunday, the Caledonian Inn Trophy Round is being moved to this weekend. I will not be defending my “C” grade victory of 2010 now that I am into “B” grade it will be an attempt to win this grade. The next weekend after on the 24th is the 1st round of The Caledonian Inn Trophy (defending my 2010 title) and then the Kingston Winter Open (Division 2 r/up in 2010). This is how I approach playing competitive golf, wanting to win is motivation. Maintaining the inspiration by defending titles won is how I continue the push to reach the handicap target by focussing on the rounds not the hcp. target. The base of my golf enjoyment is that every round played is really good fun.
Today the weather is a bit crap and getting the days work out of the way is going to take up time until 2pm, hopefully the rain will be clearing and the wind stay moderate. Then out onto the range to begin the next planned training routine. The last one was to get my game consistent with all the equipment and target perceived weaknesses. This has been used since 2009 in preparing for the Southern Ports Tournament, which physically and time wise I cannot maintain all of the time. Now I am adding a 4 week less strenuous regime that is for “conditioning”, using less clubs with more precise targets set for each session. Mental practise is now a must with visualising the courses to be played and the shots required on each hole, this is making up for less time physivally hitting the ball. Strategy is a definite help in playing rounds that I particularly want to play well in. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all” Geoff
Sunday, July 10, 2011
No excuses in playing to win
10/7/11 After the week away and making a reasonable effort to stay golf free to recover from the effort of eight weeks dedicated practise, the call of the sticks was too much to withstand in the end. Apart from an hour Friday at the Drummond range in Adelaide, giving the 460cc driver its first decent hit in 6 months and the Knox blades to get my swing tuned up, no golf was in my week. Had the crucial one hour massage to work out some strains and muscle stiffness before hand, first rub down in 3 weeks and not much damage to repair, another good thing.
That 460 cc driver is still staying out of the bag, do not have the time to put into getting my swing right with it at the minute. Regretful decision in this case, the range proved that I am taking 20-40 metres off my drives using the smaller 380cc driver. The accuracy is what matters most in my game plan so the current equipment is staying in the bag. Worked with the mid to long irons on the range #3 to #5 mostly and the #8. As I was not intending to play any golf even at that stage the PW did not get an airing, came back to bite me that omission.
Headed of Saturday morning to return home in no hurry with the idle thought that having a hit at Tailem Bend or Meningie might be fun on drive. Was raining in Tailem Bend and still wet and drizzling in Meningie, with only my basic travelling set no water proofs playing in the rain was never going to happen. Knowing that Robe would be a wet track on Sunday the only problem was my brain had started to think about golf and that pretty much had the addiction in full flight. Considered turning off and heading to Keith or Tintinara along the Coorong as I knew that Kingston’s field would be most likely tee’d off when getting there. I weakened and put the foot down and cut 5 minutes off arrival time and that was enough, catching the last two groups at Kingston and joined the Par round competition for the day.
My motivations for playing were different to the usual. Had the blades with nike shafts and not my preferred set, used the #3 metal after the one and only drive on the first with the Cobra made the hole a struggle and had the old brass PGA putter. Jumped straight from the car had a few putts and was on the tee. Why play a serious comp. round in this case, as I am on the mission to get the handicap down? To prove that the reasons of not having my perfect gear and pre-round warm up were no excuse for having a crack in a round of golf.
Apart from the first hole 7 after a poor drive with the Cobra, the Shark XLT #3 was bloody brilliant off the tee. This club has a large head and regular flex shaft and was the stick that in January kept me on track carrying the back injury that could have derailed the Southern Ports Tournament preparation. Had two poor drives after the 1st that were no great problem in scoring. Putted very good, dropped a sensational birdie on the third hole, 10m downhill, two tiered green, followed with happy dance. Missed two putts that cost me on the day but no 3 putts in the round, the destroyer was the short game. Even the mid irons were okay considering this has been the problem of late, using unfamiliar blade irons made me concentrate to good effect. Chipping though added 5 shots to my round and even though I ended the day Square, with a gross 86, nett 72 (front nine 44 and -1, back nine 42 and +1) Seeing as the next flagged score to drop off is when I was on 17 and played to 12, the handicap predictor has flagged this round and I will drop to 13.2. Very happy with the result considering the circumstances of my preparation and equipment.
Particularly satisfied that I did not have a raft of pretentious excuses in my mind to excuse not playing better. Instead I attacked all day and can recall 3 shots that went so close to perfect execution that even with the 5 short game errors would have had me +3 at the end of the day. Nowhere near the prizes though +6 for first and two golfers on +5 for 2nd and 3rd, (including my mate in golf at his home club) also to note that the top three golfers included a 9 and 15 handicapper for 1st and third place.
The other bonus on a day with challenging conditions weather wise was my playing partners a 7, 10 and 30 handicapper. The former had been down to 4 and the 10 handicapper had not played more than 3 rounds in 6 months. I do not try to match playing partners shots yet once again I noticed that particularly the 7 marker and myself took the same line off the tee. Except the dogleg par fours where a 230 m drive would cut the corner. There is a typical benchmark of the difference between a 14 handicapper and a single digit golfer. With my Driver I have now began to consider that option on par fours, can count on one hand the number of times that I have actually taken that shot, twice at Kingston previously and twice at Naracoorte. It worked but gave me brain ache on the tee and afterwards my ability is only just able to pull it off and on the one hole at my home track where this is a playable option I have tried it once in a competition round in 3 years. Five times it has been a successful shot but only played after a lot of consideration. If I had not played with the low handicap golfers I would not have even considered playing the shot in hindsight. Given my very conservative “percentage golf” game plan of the past years, too much risk would be the decision in looking at that choice.
Day off the track today though and a good choice to play yesterday with the weather at the minute. And g/f here for a couple of days and golf free will get me smiley faces. Hard choice even so as it is a round of John Leake Trophy and I would like to have a crack at the title and will have to play in the next two to have a chance. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all” Geoff
That 460 cc driver is still staying out of the bag, do not have the time to put into getting my swing right with it at the minute. Regretful decision in this case, the range proved that I am taking 20-40 metres off my drives using the smaller 380cc driver. The accuracy is what matters most in my game plan so the current equipment is staying in the bag. Worked with the mid to long irons on the range #3 to #5 mostly and the #8. As I was not intending to play any golf even at that stage the PW did not get an airing, came back to bite me that omission.
Headed of Saturday morning to return home in no hurry with the idle thought that having a hit at Tailem Bend or Meningie might be fun on drive. Was raining in Tailem Bend and still wet and drizzling in Meningie, with only my basic travelling set no water proofs playing in the rain was never going to happen. Knowing that Robe would be a wet track on Sunday the only problem was my brain had started to think about golf and that pretty much had the addiction in full flight. Considered turning off and heading to Keith or Tintinara along the Coorong as I knew that Kingston’s field would be most likely tee’d off when getting there. I weakened and put the foot down and cut 5 minutes off arrival time and that was enough, catching the last two groups at Kingston and joined the Par round competition for the day.
My motivations for playing were different to the usual. Had the blades with nike shafts and not my preferred set, used the #3 metal after the one and only drive on the first with the Cobra made the hole a struggle and had the old brass PGA putter. Jumped straight from the car had a few putts and was on the tee. Why play a serious comp. round in this case, as I am on the mission to get the handicap down? To prove that the reasons of not having my perfect gear and pre-round warm up were no excuse for having a crack in a round of golf.
Apart from the first hole 7 after a poor drive with the Cobra, the Shark XLT #3 was bloody brilliant off the tee. This club has a large head and regular flex shaft and was the stick that in January kept me on track carrying the back injury that could have derailed the Southern Ports Tournament preparation. Had two poor drives after the 1st that were no great problem in scoring. Putted very good, dropped a sensational birdie on the third hole, 10m downhill, two tiered green, followed with happy dance. Missed two putts that cost me on the day but no 3 putts in the round, the destroyer was the short game. Even the mid irons were okay considering this has been the problem of late, using unfamiliar blade irons made me concentrate to good effect. Chipping though added 5 shots to my round and even though I ended the day Square, with a gross 86, nett 72 (front nine 44 and -1, back nine 42 and +1) Seeing as the next flagged score to drop off is when I was on 17 and played to 12, the handicap predictor has flagged this round and I will drop to 13.2. Very happy with the result considering the circumstances of my preparation and equipment.
Particularly satisfied that I did not have a raft of pretentious excuses in my mind to excuse not playing better. Instead I attacked all day and can recall 3 shots that went so close to perfect execution that even with the 5 short game errors would have had me +3 at the end of the day. Nowhere near the prizes though +6 for first and two golfers on +5 for 2nd and 3rd, (including my mate in golf at his home club) also to note that the top three golfers included a 9 and 15 handicapper for 1st and third place.
The other bonus on a day with challenging conditions weather wise was my playing partners a 7, 10 and 30 handicapper. The former had been down to 4 and the 10 handicapper had not played more than 3 rounds in 6 months. I do not try to match playing partners shots yet once again I noticed that particularly the 7 marker and myself took the same line off the tee. Except the dogleg par fours where a 230 m drive would cut the corner. There is a typical benchmark of the difference between a 14 handicapper and a single digit golfer. With my Driver I have now began to consider that option on par fours, can count on one hand the number of times that I have actually taken that shot, twice at Kingston previously and twice at Naracoorte. It worked but gave me brain ache on the tee and afterwards my ability is only just able to pull it off and on the one hole at my home track where this is a playable option I have tried it once in a competition round in 3 years. Five times it has been a successful shot but only played after a lot of consideration. If I had not played with the low handicap golfers I would not have even considered playing the shot in hindsight. Given my very conservative “percentage golf” game plan of the past years, too much risk would be the decision in looking at that choice.
Day off the track today though and a good choice to play yesterday with the weather at the minute. And g/f here for a couple of days and golf free will get me smiley faces. Hard choice even so as it is a round of John Leake Trophy and I would like to have a crack at the title and will have to play in the next two to have a chance. Thankyou for your time and attention, “Hit ‘em straight all” Geoff
Thursday, July 07, 2011
Go mental and play golf at the same time...
7/7/11 Day four of no golf, have not broken out in sweats or tremors from withdrawal. Physical condition is better without the hitting of golf balls every day, the continuous wrist pain of the past two weeks has gone as have various other strains and aches. Do miss being out side and enjoying the exercise of developing the fluid rythym of swinging golf sticks. Even in the gale strength winds, rain and cold conditions during the past two months that did not stop me from getting out and practising each day.
On the other hand my mind is working flat out on my golf swing , if anything this is an unforeseen bonus that is new territory in my golf. Visualising the swing and shots about to be played has not been a major facet of the game on my part. Do make the attempt to use mental pictures in practise and rounds, it has been on the back of the priority list when it comes to getting better. Yet once I cannot play the game as I have forced myself to do this week the situation has released a deeper concentration and thought process, being unable to play has helped.
I recall reading this tale of a US Pilot. “During the late 60’s when the U.S. was at war in Vietnam, U.S. Air force col. George Hall, was a pilot who was shot down over Vietnam and captured as a prisoner of war where he spent 7 ½ years in p.o.w camp. Before capture, he weighed better than 200 pounds and was an avid golfer who had gotten himself down to a 4 handicap. The first thing he wanted to do when he was released was to play a round of golf. He was invited to the 1973 pro-am New Orleans PGA Open. And he shot a 76! After not having played golf for 7 ½ years, and losing a 100 pounds, he played to his handicap the first time out. After the round, some members of the press came up to him and asked him “so, was that beginner’s first time luck?” He says: “luck, I never 3-putted a green in the last 5 years!”
What was he talking about?
He spent those years in prison playing golf in his mind. Yep, it’s for real. The first couple years he reported that he replayed rounds that he had already played in his life prior to being captured. And then the next few years he played new rounds on courses that he knew and some that he didn’t.”
My mind the past three days has been continually going over my set up and swing with the driver, this club I have been working very hard on improving this year. The last couple of round off the tee with this club has been very good and reflecting the benefit of dedicated practise and making a serious effort to correct faults. In essence the fault that had been making the tee shot erratic was caused by standing too far away from the ball and stretching out to get the club face behind the ball at address. Standing a little closer has removed the outside in swing plane, hitting across the ball and slicing tee shots is now replaced with hitting through and balls going straight and the draw is back in my tee shots.
I am now doing the same with the current malaise of too many second shots going off course. Replaying the last round errors with these strokes through the mind and attempting to define the fault. As it stands at the minute, again it may be from standing too far away from the ball in address. The whole problem in both cases has the taste of mental pressure making me try to set myself to swing wide and hard when playing competition. The problem is not on the practise fairway and in fact has been worked on technically there and only rears its head in the pressure of trying too hard in competition.
Interesting to be able to now have the time in playing golf to be able to work things out this way. I have tried to instil these mind exercises as workable tools over the past seasons and this has taken root in my realm of golf possibilities. The progress in getting better takes time and patience is the most valuable asset in my nature. Slowly and steadily the handicap has improved in step with my awareness of how to play the game. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em Straight all” Geoff
On the other hand my mind is working flat out on my golf swing , if anything this is an unforeseen bonus that is new territory in my golf. Visualising the swing and shots about to be played has not been a major facet of the game on my part. Do make the attempt to use mental pictures in practise and rounds, it has been on the back of the priority list when it comes to getting better. Yet once I cannot play the game as I have forced myself to do this week the situation has released a deeper concentration and thought process, being unable to play has helped.
I recall reading this tale of a US Pilot. “During the late 60’s when the U.S. was at war in Vietnam, U.S. Air force col. George Hall, was a pilot who was shot down over Vietnam and captured as a prisoner of war where he spent 7 ½ years in p.o.w camp. Before capture, he weighed better than 200 pounds and was an avid golfer who had gotten himself down to a 4 handicap. The first thing he wanted to do when he was released was to play a round of golf. He was invited to the 1973 pro-am New Orleans PGA Open. And he shot a 76! After not having played golf for 7 ½ years, and losing a 100 pounds, he played to his handicap the first time out. After the round, some members of the press came up to him and asked him “so, was that beginner’s first time luck?” He says: “luck, I never 3-putted a green in the last 5 years!”
What was he talking about?
He spent those years in prison playing golf in his mind. Yep, it’s for real. The first couple years he reported that he replayed rounds that he had already played in his life prior to being captured. And then the next few years he played new rounds on courses that he knew and some that he didn’t.”
My mind the past three days has been continually going over my set up and swing with the driver, this club I have been working very hard on improving this year. The last couple of round off the tee with this club has been very good and reflecting the benefit of dedicated practise and making a serious effort to correct faults. In essence the fault that had been making the tee shot erratic was caused by standing too far away from the ball and stretching out to get the club face behind the ball at address. Standing a little closer has removed the outside in swing plane, hitting across the ball and slicing tee shots is now replaced with hitting through and balls going straight and the draw is back in my tee shots.
I am now doing the same with the current malaise of too many second shots going off course. Replaying the last round errors with these strokes through the mind and attempting to define the fault. As it stands at the minute, again it may be from standing too far away from the ball in address. The whole problem in both cases has the taste of mental pressure making me try to set myself to swing wide and hard when playing competition. The problem is not on the practise fairway and in fact has been worked on technically there and only rears its head in the pressure of trying too hard in competition.
Interesting to be able to now have the time in playing golf to be able to work things out this way. I have tried to instil these mind exercises as workable tools over the past seasons and this has taken root in my realm of golf possibilities. The progress in getting better takes time and patience is the most valuable asset in my nature. Slowly and steadily the handicap has improved in step with my awareness of how to play the game. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em Straight all” Geoff
Monday, July 04, 2011
Stand up and put words into action...
4/7/11 The home track at Robe has one weather feature which really swings a round of golf into the course's favour. What sarcastically can be termed a "delightful sea breeze". Sunday was a tossup to play until the sun rose after the nights storm unveiling a course that was wet. Not saturated to the state of being better suited for the running of Messiah Footraces over 300m of water.The odd feature was that the wind was coming from the direction North West as opposed to the prevailing South Easterly gales.
One unexpected addition to the day was the late arrival of a golfer who is a country member who started playing at the same time as myself and has the same dedicated obsession to the game. The progress through handicaps are literally in unison since we were on 36, at the minute my 14 is leading his 15. There is no competition between us apart from when in the same competitions. Playing a round together we both have very similar analysis of golf and how to improve our games and philosophy of golf enjoyment. As we ambled around on Sunday the discussion, sharing the experience learnt from playing with single digit golfers, catching up on where we were both at golf wise at the minute, oh yeah and also playing some golf at the same time was a hoot. Managed to fill in at least four holes of dedicated banter on the “aggressive / attacking game strategy.
On to the important stuff, executing the attacking game plan. Pulled all the stops out in taking on the course, on a day that was definitely not the best to have a crack. In essence that was important ,after all picking and choosing what day to play is not really the spirit of competitive golf. My game stood up to the effort in every facet, except the one weakness that has been afflicting it of late. The damn “second shot screw ups” five par 4 holes were subjected to this malaise. Still managed to score 1 par, 2 bogies and 2 double bogies out of the errors. In fact I was making a serious charge on the back nine and the 10 scored on the 13th hole was in part a result of taking an aggressive shot choice twice. After the only poor tee shot on the day instead of playing safe I chose to attack instead of play safe acknowledging that I could destroy the whole round with that decision. My mind was totally into this attacking frame of golf and even after scoring the ten my only thought was five pars on the last 5 holes is the goal. Managed two pars two bogies and a double bogey. Two second shot screw ups added some pressure to my game in the last 5.
Even so I knew that my round of 88, nett 74 with 30 putts was in the conditions better than the rest of the field. Eventually holding out two 25 plus handicappers for the win at the end of the day, second place in the putting to my mate in golf, who also trumped the NTP on the day as well. For the first time out with the changed attitude there was one bad choice made, in time I will manage to get the balance back with the attacking game strategy. This is a major alteration of how I play golf and expecting this to not have some growing pains would be ignorance at its best.
The “second shot screw up’s” are another matter all together, have been getting to be a regular feature of my game and at this stage I conclude that it is a mental fault. Partly caused by the increased effort to hit greens in regulation together with the lack of consistent ability to play the required shot. Hence it is not an impassable obstacle just a matter of building the bridge with golfing ability to counter and remove the affect it has in my golf.
Oh yeah and the secret key that unites my mate in golf and myself and our progress toward lower handicaps, practise, practise, practise. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”Geoff
One unexpected addition to the day was the late arrival of a golfer who is a country member who started playing at the same time as myself and has the same dedicated obsession to the game. The progress through handicaps are literally in unison since we were on 36, at the minute my 14 is leading his 15. There is no competition between us apart from when in the same competitions. Playing a round together we both have very similar analysis of golf and how to improve our games and philosophy of golf enjoyment. As we ambled around on Sunday the discussion, sharing the experience learnt from playing with single digit golfers, catching up on where we were both at golf wise at the minute, oh yeah and also playing some golf at the same time was a hoot. Managed to fill in at least four holes of dedicated banter on the “aggressive / attacking game strategy.
On to the important stuff, executing the attacking game plan. Pulled all the stops out in taking on the course, on a day that was definitely not the best to have a crack. In essence that was important ,after all picking and choosing what day to play is not really the spirit of competitive golf. My game stood up to the effort in every facet, except the one weakness that has been afflicting it of late. The damn “second shot screw ups” five par 4 holes were subjected to this malaise. Still managed to score 1 par, 2 bogies and 2 double bogies out of the errors. In fact I was making a serious charge on the back nine and the 10 scored on the 13th hole was in part a result of taking an aggressive shot choice twice. After the only poor tee shot on the day instead of playing safe I chose to attack instead of play safe acknowledging that I could destroy the whole round with that decision. My mind was totally into this attacking frame of golf and even after scoring the ten my only thought was five pars on the last 5 holes is the goal. Managed two pars two bogies and a double bogey. Two second shot screw ups added some pressure to my game in the last 5.
Even so I knew that my round of 88, nett 74 with 30 putts was in the conditions better than the rest of the field. Eventually holding out two 25 plus handicappers for the win at the end of the day, second place in the putting to my mate in golf, who also trumped the NTP on the day as well. For the first time out with the changed attitude there was one bad choice made, in time I will manage to get the balance back with the attacking game strategy. This is a major alteration of how I play golf and expecting this to not have some growing pains would be ignorance at its best.
The “second shot screw up’s” are another matter all together, have been getting to be a regular feature of my game and at this stage I conclude that it is a mental fault. Partly caused by the increased effort to hit greens in regulation together with the lack of consistent ability to play the required shot. Hence it is not an impassable obstacle just a matter of building the bridge with golfing ability to counter and remove the affect it has in my golf.
Oh yeah and the secret key that unites my mate in golf and myself and our progress toward lower handicaps, practise, practise, practise. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”Geoff
Saturday, July 02, 2011
Attacking golf the way to win...
2/7/11 The 5am starts on Saturday and Sunday to drive around throwing out papers in the comfort of a Smart Car takes a bit of a kickstart in the winter weather. The hour and a half of uninterrupted thinking time while doing this pays for the effort tenfold. I do not think about work whilst doing the round that usually ends up with a lot of people complaining that their paper has not arrived. Which needs UN intervention to calm down the victim whose start to the whole day is ruined when the paper is not on the doorstep.
Fortunately this time is perfect for deep thought on important issues, stuff global warming, ending world hunger and refugee arrivals, I have a golf game to consider. The cerebral part of my game has been getting its weekly practise between 5 and 6 am for two seasons now and so far has worked well. Today was a review of the transition through “C” and “B” grades to the “A” Grade levels and the significant mental attitudes that I have held and altered at the various stages of the progress.
“C” Grade was focussed on just getting on the course and establishing some basic game consistency. Played more golf rounds then than now, usually 3x 9 hole and 1 or two 18 hole rounds each week not very much driving range practise at all mostly chipping and putting. Working on getting fit with all the walking and still lost 2 months with various golf related injuries. This all worked out well enough getting to 25 by December 2009 from the 36 hcp start in March. Only used irons in that first season, started hitting a Driver in November during practise. Strategy wise I looked at doing nothing more than trying to play handicap golf, with a particular focus on ‘percentage golf’ always playing the easiest low risk shot every time to make sure the next shot was sitting as best it could. Copped a fair bit of baiting over that and laughed it off. Winning the club handicap championship, and 3 monthly medals and many weekly comps was a great return for the season. Set me on the path to play the Southern Ports Tournament in March 2010, for second place in “C” grade on a 20 handicap.
“B” Grade was when the struggle side of golfing first affected my game. The adjustment to having to play bogey golf took a significant change to my established practise routine. By the end of 2010 it was more practise range work and less hole playing mostly 18 holes a week occasionally a second one if playing in an Open Competition with one or two 9 hole rounds more often playing 3-4 holes instead. The hole play was replaced with range practise 4-8 hours a week hitting drivers, irons and putting. I was now in the place other golfers on lower hcp. were to me previously in club competition. Being beaten for a win by higher handicappers, with the large number of golfers going out from the high teens to the mid twenties in the new system. Instead of seeing the negative of the handicap adjustment I took another path. During a comp. I generally know that my score is around the mark and on track for playing to handicap and that 3-4 under for any golfer on the day is a definite win. I could still get scores like that in rounds, happy to be on handicap though. In the move down the high teens my game was moving out of the established ability, increased range practise routines were the only way to improve. This set up my gradual change from always taking the easiest safe shot to having a more attacking shot with a greater chance of success due to the practise.
It was a major struggle to keep going at times with consecutive weeks of poor scores as I established the confidence and self belief that I could play attacking shots.Sticking to the new path was difficult, as the established mind set was to play much more conservative golf. Once December 2010 began it was into the Southern Ports tournament training. Following on from the previous seasons dedicated practise. This time though it was much more focussed on playing all clubs and with definite targets of improvement set. This worked again with another second place this time in a grade higher. Dropping 5 strokes off my handicap from December to March showed exactly what is possible with practise with a purpose.
“A” Grade In the highest portion of this handicap group at the minute and only a chance in the Nett section of graded competitions is the fact. This morning I decided on what is going to be the mentality to go with the physical practise toward the target of a 10 hcp. To quote RTL (Steve Bowditch) in a recent post that I have copied to my golf file, It all comes down to what you really want shoot.. ( your goal) once past that you have to use the great line.. Fuck it!!.... You have to want it and have to be prepared to crash… Do not ever let fear hold you back!!! Having played with several single digit golfers and gleaned some valuable knowledge of their approach to playing the game, I can put his words to faces I know and how they play golf.
It has been very gradual in becoming a part of my game and the round at Kingston last weekend had one of those moments that a goal has been reached. On the par 5 18th hole my drive finished resting on the side of one of the mounds put in as an obstacle for golfers. I chose to play the #3 metal and go long, instead of playing a shorter iron shot in deference to the lie. Hit the ball damn well but the angled lie influenced the flight to the left and the ball rolled out of bounds. Even so I did not change to an iron then but played the #3 again with a very average result. End result was an 8 on the hole for a nett 71 and playing to my handicap on the day. Attacking the hole was the choice made, a par would have made me the winner on the day, 3rd place was a satisfying failure.
Number wise most Opens are won by 6 or less handicap golfers in the region. On 14 at the minute and 8 strokes shy of even playing to that, never broken 80 in comp. yet with a 78 social round the best score. My mental attitude is to drop 4 strokes off my current 9 hole score, 38 instead of 42. The improved putting and chipping is all directed at this possibility, I go for the hole with both these strokes now. Doing this alone has delivered Par scores instead of bogies. The weakness is still the longer GIR shots from 140-170 m too often miss the green and are chip to the hole, not a putt. In all a very brief summary of the hour of thinking on the morning drive that has devised a golf strategy for the rest of the 2011 season. Thankyou for your time and attention “Hit ‘em straight all”Geoff
Fortunately this time is perfect for deep thought on important issues, stuff global warming, ending world hunger and refugee arrivals, I have a golf game to consider. The cerebral part of my game has been getting its weekly practise between 5 and 6 am for two seasons now and so far has worked well. Today was a review of the transition through “C” and “B” grades to the “A” Grade levels and the significant mental attitudes that I have held and altered at the various stages of the progress.
“C” Grade was focussed on just getting on the course and establishing some basic game consistency. Played more golf rounds then than now, usually 3x 9 hole and 1 or two 18 hole rounds each week not very much driving range practise at all mostly chipping and putting. Working on getting fit with all the walking and still lost 2 months with various golf related injuries. This all worked out well enough getting to 25 by December 2009 from the 36 hcp start in March. Only used irons in that first season, started hitting a Driver in November during practise. Strategy wise I looked at doing nothing more than trying to play handicap golf, with a particular focus on ‘percentage golf’ always playing the easiest low risk shot every time to make sure the next shot was sitting as best it could. Copped a fair bit of baiting over that and laughed it off. Winning the club handicap championship, and 3 monthly medals and many weekly comps was a great return for the season. Set me on the path to play the Southern Ports Tournament in March 2010, for second place in “C” grade on a 20 handicap.
“B” Grade was when the struggle side of golfing first affected my game. The adjustment to having to play bogey golf took a significant change to my established practise routine. By the end of 2010 it was more practise range work and less hole playing mostly 18 holes a week occasionally a second one if playing in an Open Competition with one or two 9 hole rounds more often playing 3-4 holes instead. The hole play was replaced with range practise 4-8 hours a week hitting drivers, irons and putting. I was now in the place other golfers on lower hcp. were to me previously in club competition. Being beaten for a win by higher handicappers, with the large number of golfers going out from the high teens to the mid twenties in the new system. Instead of seeing the negative of the handicap adjustment I took another path. During a comp. I generally know that my score is around the mark and on track for playing to handicap and that 3-4 under for any golfer on the day is a definite win. I could still get scores like that in rounds, happy to be on handicap though. In the move down the high teens my game was moving out of the established ability, increased range practise routines were the only way to improve. This set up my gradual change from always taking the easiest safe shot to having a more attacking shot with a greater chance of success due to the practise.
It was a major struggle to keep going at times with consecutive weeks of poor scores as I established the confidence and self belief that I could play attacking shots.Sticking to the new path was difficult, as the established mind set was to play much more conservative golf. Once December 2010 began it was into the Southern Ports tournament training. Following on from the previous seasons dedicated practise. This time though it was much more focussed on playing all clubs and with definite targets of improvement set. This worked again with another second place this time in a grade higher. Dropping 5 strokes off my handicap from December to March showed exactly what is possible with practise with a purpose.
“A” Grade In the highest portion of this handicap group at the minute and only a chance in the Nett section of graded competitions is the fact. This morning I decided on what is going to be the mentality to go with the physical practise toward the target of a 10 hcp. To quote RTL (Steve Bowditch) in a recent post that I have copied to my golf file, It all comes down to what you really want shoot.. ( your goal) once past that you have to use the great line.. Fuck it!!.... You have to want it and have to be prepared to crash… Do not ever let fear hold you back!!! Having played with several single digit golfers and gleaned some valuable knowledge of their approach to playing the game, I can put his words to faces I know and how they play golf.
It has been very gradual in becoming a part of my game and the round at Kingston last weekend had one of those moments that a goal has been reached. On the par 5 18th hole my drive finished resting on the side of one of the mounds put in as an obstacle for golfers. I chose to play the #3 metal and go long, instead of playing a shorter iron shot in deference to the lie. Hit the ball damn well but the angled lie influenced the flight to the left and the ball rolled out of bounds. Even so I did not change to an iron then but played the #3 again with a very average result. End result was an 8 on the hole for a nett 71 and playing to my handicap on the day. Attacking the hole was the choice made, a par would have made me the winner on the day, 3rd place was a satisfying failure.
Number wise most Opens are won by 6 or less handicap golfers in the region. On 14 at the minute and 8 strokes shy of even playing to that, never broken 80 in comp. yet with a 78 social round the best score. My mental attitude is to drop 4 strokes off my current 9 hole score, 38 instead of 42. The improved putting and chipping is all directed at this possibility, I go for the hole with both these strokes now. Doing this alone has delivered Par scores instead of bogies. The weakness is still the longer GIR shots from 140-170 m too often miss the green and are chip to the hole, not a putt. In all a very brief summary of the hour of thinking on the morning drive that has devised a golf strategy for the rest of the 2011 season. Thankyou for your time and attention “Hit ‘em straight all”Geoff
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