Kingsbarns live web cam 18th green Saint Andrews golf course.

18th Hole Kingsbarn St Andrews Golf Course
Nothing on tv to watch or you enjoy watching the grass grow even. Of course there are the times when you can actually watch the hole being worked on by ground staff and people playing golf on the course.

Don't expect to be entertained with non stop action, even golfers canot play during the night.  
Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

GOLF - Achieved first goal of 2010 Season

After 6 months of seriously trying to improve my playing handicap ,the target of 20 has finally been reached. In that time I have dropped 5 strokes through a combination of professional lessons/coaching, practise, practise, a bit more practise and last but by no means least equipment changes. Also included in the mix is the Mental conditioning and thought put into the game when playing and practising.

To finally reach the target has been a concentrated effort on the course and ignoring the “IF” factor. It is nothing new in golfer’s language we have all experienced the “IF’s” during a round of golf. Those shots that “IF” they had done this instead of that and hence saved a stroke here or there, your score would have been better. There is nothing wrong about the IF’s of the game in many cases, they can be inspiring and give the little bit of belief and confidence boost to improve your game. On the other side of the coin the IF’s can become excuses and the beginning of a litany of hard done by tales why a golfer never manages to play as well as they think they can.

Imagination is a part of golf usually about the visualising of shots to be played, this is not fantasy and the “IF factor being used as an excuse is a fantasy and never a reality. Results are what matter on the scorecard not what could have been the score “IF” something had been done different. In the round this weekend that finally got me to the 20 handicap I had a 10 on the par 5 first hole which after my handicap allowance deduction was 4 strokes over. As I have mentioned previously I break a round of 18 holes up into 4 parts. The first four holes, then the next five to complete the front nine. The next four holes is the 3rd section of a round with the final five holes played at my best possible standard to get the score I am chasing. It was very plausible for me to use that first hole hole score as; “IF it had not happened my score could have been better”, excuse.

Instead my approach was to put my head down and attack the next 17 holes and not go over my handicap allowance. Playing off 21 minus the 4 strokes over on the first hole I had to play bogey golf for the rest of the round and try to get a few pars along the way. I went one better on the ninth hole and scored a birdie 3 which was the equivalent of an eagle with my one stroke handicap allowance. On the front nine I had a 47 off the stick which is acceptable and I came home with a 45 on the back nine a Gross 92 for a nett 71 with 33 putts. I finished 3rd in this medal round one stroke behind the second place getter and five shots behind the winner on a nett 66.

What cost me a better score was not the 10 on the first hole, through the next 17 holes it was the short game, which I have just began to practise with more preference than the long game. I have reached a standard off the tee and with the second shot to be either, 5 or less metres off the green and on in regulation occasionally. Not being able to stop the ball within the 1-2 m area around the pin often enough, more concerning is missing the close putts from 30-60 cm, (two misses in the last round) are what I have to improve now. With a very good selection of clubs at my disposal, my first choice is to practise and refine my technique, not select a particular club to cover my lack of practical ability in pitching.

Making the improvements to the golf game I play has been successful for several reasons. One of them is that after reviewing my games standard, the corrections were targeted one at a time and not all at once. In effect each time one fault was corrected or execution of a shot became consistent through practise, my game stabilised a little more. When it comes to golf, my knowledge is at the level my handicap in playing represents. A playing handicap of 15 is the current goal, I have enough knowledge and developing ability to reach that over this season, together with another couple of coaching lessons and the observation of playing partners games.

The round was also the first in a best two of three, Club Sponsor's trophy and I am 5 strokes behind the current leader. Next week is the 2nd round of another best two of three Sponsor's trophy which I am currently leading. This time last year was about learning to play the game let alone being able to think about having a dedicated crack at winning club trophies until the end of the season. This year I am using these trophy competitions as added incentive to maintain and improve my playing standard. It seems to be working and the success is a bonus with the satisfaction of playing better golf all up. Thankyou for your time and attention. Hit ‘em straight all

Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

Golf - Winning is better than coming second

Play Your Best Golf - Break 90 Vol 1
28th June 2010 Experiencing the personal reaction to a performance in a competition is a many faceted journey for me, this weekends round in the Keith Open was particularly stimulating on review. Managed to play under my handicap again in consecutive weeks and this should see me dropping to a playing handicap of 20 and another step closer to my goal for the season. Did not win either major prize in the “C” grade, missing out on the gross score runner-up by 1 shot and finished 3rd only 2 shots behind the winner and the Best Nett score was a fourth place finish on a countback. With a front nine 43 off the stick, the back nine resulted in a 48 with 34 putts for the day. Not a bad result for a “C” grade golfer, considering this is the first time on the course and having a few additional challenges that affected the round.




The week preceding had the unpleasant suffering of an abscess in the mouth from Monday morning until the eventual tooth removal on Thursday. The second setback was the result of a bit of an oversight on my part, having felt particularly good physically for the past 3 months prudence suggested it would have been a good time to have a tune up from my Bowen Therapist and get the back and hamstrings all moving freely without any tightness. I didn’t have the tune up and after the front 9 and sitting down for lunch following the 90 minute drive to Keith, my back went stiff and my swing was affected enough to make the round a battle. Even with these matters considered it is not possible to feel negative about the result, to do so would be just irrational carping the equivalent of winning a lottery and complaining about the tax you pay on the earnings!



It was confusing for me to have done well and not feel satisfied until the obvious was realised, I did want to win and to have came so close and falter in the last nine holes was the irritant. Not only did my game falter, for the first time in my golfing career I experienced playing on greens that changed dramatically during the course of the round. The front nine had greens which were quite fast not overly so but the pace of them was totally different slowing down a lot in the afternoon nine. Not being experienced enough to be able to adjust my putting while struggling with the stiffness in my back which had my tee shots with an outside in swing plane and slice taking me off the fairways. This added a stroke to several holes having to play recovery shots to be able to play at the green with the third shot and this is a long playing course with five par 5 holes and par 4 holes of 370-400 metres. The distance tested my mid iron accuracy and pitching ability and I am not adept to make the ball stop with my wedge and in many of the back nine holes I needed one putts for bogey and did not get them, 34 putts tells the story on the greens (2 x one putts and the rest 2 putts).



Once again the benefits of playing at another club’s Open Competition were more than just refreshing skills and game approach on a different course. For the second time I played in a group with a 4 handicapper who I had the pleasure of playing with in October 2009. A very sociable and chatty fella who revels in the game it was interesting that on the front 9 we were invariably playing our second shots from similar parts of the course. Not that I was trying to follow, he was teeing off after me. Once my ability to play accurately off the tee went in the back nine I fell away at the end of the day it was good to know that my game plan was similar to this players and that is very satisfying. There was also a 6 handicapper in our group and he had a 37 off the stick on the front nine (square with the card), on the back nine he started with an 8 on the par 5 tenth. He could have easily avoided this by playing safely when his drive went among the gum trees, playing sideways onto the fairway as opposed to taking the riskier shot towards the hole which hit trees and left him still among the timber. No wonder I feel tired after a round of competition golf, my brain is going flat out on my game and observing everything from the markers shots the rest of the playing group, the course and the nuances of the fairways and greens.



If I had played this inaccurately at my home course my score would have been in the 100’s after the back nine. No matter what I did though it was just not possible to get my swing right on the back 9 off the tee, it felt odd to realise that I knew what was going wrong only 6 months ago I would not have had a clue!? Booked a “tune-up” appointment for Thursday and getting ready to have a crack at the Monthly Medal this Sunday. “Hit ‘em Straight all” Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff

Golf - Setting up for your swing

Play Your Best Golf - Break 90 Vol 1

If you're not hitting the sweet spot on the clubface, you're probably not driving the ball well. One reason why you could be missing the sweet spot is that your head is over your back knee at address. This might not seem like much, but it affects everything else in your swing. The most efficient--and fastest-- swing rotation occurs when your lower body is stable. You can only achieve this by being centred and balanced at address.


Below are seven keys to a power-laden setup:

1. Widen your stance at address
2. Shift more weight on your right side
3. Keep your chin up to allow for the turn
4. Make a full 90-degree shoulder turn
5. Hover the club head above the ground
6. Sense your right forearm crossing over left
7. Finish high and in balance with your swing

A balanced, centred position starts at address. A good setup allows you to make a good turn away from the target, yet still remain behind the ball at the top of your swing, with your weight over your back foot.

But it's not uncommon for a golfer to create extra side bend at address by moving his head over his back knee. This imbalance ends in a setup that results in (1) a slice causing-reverse pivot at the top and (2) too much "hang-back" at impact.

Since your right hand (left for lefties) is below your left hand on the grip, tilt your back shoulder down the same amount. You want to feel as if you're on top of the ball, with your head just slightly back of centre. If you tilt too far back, you throw your entire swing off.

We all want to drive the ball longer off the tee. Hitting driver/8-iron into the green beats hitting driver/4-iron into the green every time. But you must be centred and balanced at address to do this. If you are, you're in great position to hit a bomb. Thankyou for your time and attention, Geoff