Progress

Having taken the pros advice and extended my arms a little, things are going great. I've seen some real benefits:

1. I'm hitting the ball straiter (is that a word) than before.
2. I've gained 1-2 clubs distance wise. My pitching wedge used to be 90-100 yards, it is now about 110+ yards.
3. I feel freedom in my swing.
4. I am drawing and fading the ball (I'm not always sure why, but I'm getting there).
5. More confidence at address.
6. When I hit a bad shot I have a pretty good idea why.

Not bad results for such a small tip. I'm going to have to adjust to the changes out on the course. I imagine that I'll fly a few greens trying to figure things out. I'm excited about the driving range results.

And Now There Are Four

The four of us. The new little guy, Owen, is putting a halt to golfing for a while. At least I'm not living in Boston where they are buried under snow so deep they set a new record. That is not right. 

Here's the Scotty Cameron Newport 2. You can see a slight ding on the top... doesn't affect putting in the least. I love how it sets up and it feels puuuuure. 

Still Head - Space Between Body and Hands

So I spent some time at the range yesterday and had what I feel is my best shotmaking day ever. A couple of things come to mind here:

1. I am leaving myself lots of room between my hands and body. This is allowing my lots of freedom to bring the club through and release my hands properly. I was all bunched up inside for the longest time and it made for some really bad results. I made the biggest progress of my short (6 month) golfing carreer with this simple change. All the difference in the world.

The result is that my shots are flying futher and their dispursion, while still unacceptable to me, is much tighter. Not a bad change, I'd say

2. Iacas alluded to this in one of his posts at The Sand Trap. You must allow your shoulder to bring your head up as you follow through on your swing. Keeping your head and spine reletively still (not stiff) is very important to good ball striking.

Even with a good day at the range, at times I felt myself dipping for the ball. Or collapsing my body. My shots when wide right when I did this. Staying upright is crucial.

All in all it was a victory for me. I proved that I can do it and that is important for my confidence. I teed up for the driver a couple of times and had a long string of acceptable drives under my belt before I was done. Now that is a victory. I'd like to make a goal of shooting in the low 90's by this coming summer. Is it possible? Yes. Will I do it? Have to.

Shoulder

I injured my left shoulder lifting weights some time ago and that pain has never fully left me. I think it might be a rotator cuff, I'm actually trying not to think about it. I'm heading in to the doc sometime in the next couple of weeks to have that looked at. I may get sidelined from playing golf in the process. I just want to get back to 100%. I'm sure that the shoulder injury has affected my ability to make a proper swing. I love the game so much I have just played through it. It doesn't really hurt on the course (most of the time) but it keeps me from playing properly, I'm sure.

I'll keep you informed how this turns out. Sure is a good excuse when I'm playing poorly ;-)

The Sand Trap

Well, its official, I've signed on to do my part over at The Sand Trap blog and forum. I've been swollowed up in a merger. I'm looking foreword to being part of something that is going to grow over the coming months and years. So I'm reserving my 18 Friday blog for my golf journal. Any news, highlights, information about the greater golf world will go to The Sand Trap from now on. Can't have split motives now, can we?

See you at The Sand Trap.

A little lesson

Talked to Art, a teaching professional, today. He looked at my stance and determined that my hands were too close to my body. Hey, something to work on! It goes to show that having someone look at what you are doing is way better than "feeling" it sometimes.

Tom Kite back on PGA Tour

Tom Kite will be back on the PGA Tour at least until June. He will be using his top 50 all time money list exemption to get him back on the tour this year. He wants to see how he will fair. In what other sport do you have a 55 year old who found success in earlier days coming back to compete against guys in their early 20's? As I write this blurb he is tied with Adam Scott and Ernie Els. Not only is he competing against most of the greatest male golfers of the day, he's out in the field against Michelle Wie, the 15 year old female up and coming.

What a game! For more on Kite's return see Ed Sherman's article "Kite feeling like a kid again" at golf.com.

Golf Gods

You gotta read this. Posted by The Golf Blog.

Let's try this again Jeff

Stay back... don't sway when you swing.

Keep your head reletively still during the swing... until your right shoulder pulls your head up.

Lessons

That's it! I'm taking some lessons. You get the idea how my practice round went today.

Sony Preview

The Sony Open in Hawaii starts tommorrow and there are plenty of reasons to follow the action. Vijay, Ernie, Tiger, Michelle and a host of others tee it up soon. Sal Johnson's article is a good read in preparation for understanding the players involved and perhaps guiding your fantasy picks.

Golf Snobbery

Let me say, before I get to the article listed at sortagolf.com, that golf snobs should be slapped. Golf is a great game, a game for a working man, millionaires, men, women or a twelve year old kid. What it isn't for is golf snobs. So you play golf... so you might hit the ball well... great... in the words of sortagolf "Get over yourself."

I recently spent a little time in a golf shop north of Seattle (I won't mention their name) and got the distinct impression that the man working the counter felt he was part of the upper echelon of society because he had his prissy little golf outfit on. I'd like to say to this guy, along with all the other golf snobs out there: you put your pants on one leg at a time like the rest of us.

I should say that I was dressed well at this shop and didn't give the appearance of being the trailer trash my friends accuse me being (perhaps I should look for new friends but that's another subject). This guy just smelled of snobbery. The kind of attitude that says, "I can hit the ball 50 yards passed you, therefore, you are a twit."

I won't be buying anything from that shop.

The guys over at sortagolf got me riled up and I had to vent before I included their article on Golf Connoisseur.

Sand Trap

There is another fantasy league shaping up at the pgatour.com fantasy page. The fellas at The Sand Trap (which, by the way, is a great blog and forum) are putting together the league on their Forum. I encourage you to stop by pgatour.com/fantasy to sign up for the fantasy league and then listen for news here at the forum.

2005 on the PGA Tour

Gary Van Sickle had some good things to say about the 2005 PGA Tour. I agree that this is going to be a great year. He points out in his article "here to stay" that Tiger seems to have come to grips with his swing and is poised for a great year. Vijay proved he isn't going to quite, Ernie proved he is a hunter, and Tiger was there minus great putting. These are a couple lessons we learned from the Mercedes Championships. I'm curious about how Phil Mickelson will do in 2005. He proved to everyone that he can handle his new sticks when he fired a 59 in the PGA Grand Slam. I'm hoping that his new on course strategy is going to add up to osmoe success for Phil. Bring it on!

Scotty Cameron Newport 2

I've got a Newport 2 on the way! I hope I have chosen wisely. After doing my best to get comfortable with the Mezza Monza, I believe I've given up on it in favor of a blade. As I have said, more than once I'm sure, over at The Sand Trap Forum I can "feel" distance so much easier with a blade. The more time I spend with a mallet head, the more comfortable I get but there seems to be a more precise or intuitive feel for distance with a blade. I'll be able to compare an excellent blade ot the Mezza soon.

Tiger a little tense day three of the Mercedes Championship

I really enjoyed reading about Tiger coming completely unstuck after the cumulative effect of his bad putting. Here is some pretty funny stuff:

Woods, meanwhile, had a meltdown after more putting problems. He missed from 10 feet on No. 3 and cursed, from 8 feet on No. 4 and pursed his lips, then compounded matters with a three-putt par from 35 feet on the fifth. When his 10-foot birdie on the next hole turned away, Woods came undone.

Holding his putter by its head, he took a full swing into the side of his bag -- forward, then backward. He ripped off the cover of his driver and threw that to the ground. And after a big tee shot, he smacked his driver into the cart path.

I think he was a little tense. You can read the whole story here.

Block Bad, Harness Good

Had a great 9 holes today. I hooked up with a buddy of mine and we play a similar game to one another. We pushed each other the whole way. We were tied until the last hole and then I choked it for a 47. For me it was a very good round. I kept my composure most the way (minus the last hole), drove well all day and just had a good time. I felt like I was starting to do just about what I needed to to prevent messing the whole thing up. I'm very pleased! I generally don't play well around others and I proved I could get it done if I "block the bad and harness the good. Block bad, harness good."

More proof that the short game is where its at... I chipped very well today and had quite a few one and two puts. I choked the last hole but that wasn't the whole round.

What Should Be In My Bag

Driver: Ping G2
FW: Taylor Made V-steel
Irons: Mizuno MX-23 3-PW
Wedges: Mizuno MP 52, 56, 60
Putter: SC Newport 2.5

Balance and Timing

I think several things are coming together for me at once right now. Those of you who have walked the road ahead of me might just not your head in agreement when I say I'm slowly starting to feel all the pieces work as one. You start to play this game seriously at 32 and you frankly need more time to fit the puzzle together. Several things are on the forefront of my mind now. Pick the ball off the carpet, stay back throughout swing, and tempo. As I said previously a slow, deliberate takeaway has helped my game immensly. All of those little details are adding up to more balance and better timing for me. I'm still not there, but feel that we're gonna get there.

Now, if I could just afford my dream equipment!

Balance - hold yourself back

The Sand Trap referred to balance as a key to shot consistent making. I believe I was able to achieve that today on the driving range by telling myself "hold yourself back" particularly on the downswing. At address I am putting more weight on my back foot, looking at the ball with my left eye (a Nicklaus trick) and then attempting to hold that weight back so that my hips don't sway. When I don't I have a terrible habit of sending the ball far right.

None of these things are to be exagerated mind you, they are guides and preshot thoughts. If I overdo it I send the ball left. It has been a good corrective move for me and I feel with enough practice I will be sending the ball down the middle of the fairway on a more regular basis.

Gadget alert

I might grab on of the "line 'em ups" from fine tune golf. Anything to get the putting on track. Anybody put a line on their ball?

Ha!

Check out some funny crap at the divot.

Video Instruction at PGA.com

I think you'll really enjoy some of what they are including in the way of instruction at pga.com's instruction page.

Putting and Feel

I'm coming to believe that putting is feel. It is understanding the connection between you and the ball. If I may be so bold: "Be the ball." Working so hard with the Taylor Made Mezza I have come to appreciate feel quite a bit more since Taylor Made's "chunk of metal on a stick with a soft plastic insert that gives you no feel" hasn't quite won me over. I will say I'm starting to see the putting line better with this putter but I'm still not there. It's all about the intangibles when putting and feel is a key ingredient to the intangibles.

One more time (repost)

1. No reverse pivot... keep hips still or even slide them slightly (1-2 inches) back on the backswing. Stay back on the downswing and let arms pull you foreword.

2. Position chest above right foot.

3. Close club-face slightly at address.

4. Swing from the inside.

Mallet or Blade?

Well, I keep trying this crazy center shafted mallet putter I got for Christmas and I seem to be getting better with it. The thing I should remember about my blade putter is that I spent a lot of time with it getting into a groove and understanding alignment and the feel of my swing. Having moved to the center shafted mallet during my living room practice at least has involved quite a few changes. The mallet is heavier, alignment is different because the shaft is at the center of the putter, the grip is much smaller than the Winn grip I had put on the blade a couple of months ago, and the look is entirely different.

One of the keys really is believing in your equipment. The more time I spend with the Mezza the more confidence I have in it, although it still doesn't feel like my go-to putter yet.

The biggest problem I have is with distance. It has been very difficult for me to get a feel for distance. This probably has to do with the heavier head and the soft insert that they put on the face of the putter. I suppose it takes time. I've been so up and down, back and forth with this putter. I feel like I'm starting to understand what needs to happen to make an effective and consistent stroke with it so I'll give it a little more time and then we'll see.

Tad Moore Putters

I am on the hunt for a putter. I'm fairly certain that center shafted putters aren't for me. After spending some more quality time with the TM Mezza tonight I think I almost give up. I prefer the look of a blade really. I discovered Tad Moore putters and thought the TMX3 looked nice. Admittedly, it's not a forged blade, but budget is the bottom line right now. Sure hope I can find one to try around here.

Attitude

A good attitude... positive and loose goes a long way at this miserable game we play. A positive outlook coupled with a killer instinct make for good golf.

Third 9 holes of the weekend

I was back to Nisqually Valley Golf Course and yes, it was dry compared to the soup I was tramping around in at Avalon GC in Burlington, Washington. Good to be on the home course. I'm managing the course a bit better these days, but my ball striking was less than desireable at times today. I think I was too tight. It threw me way off the game. Stay loose, stay relaxed.

Groove?

Could it be that I'm getting closer to having a grooved swing?

Hope says, "Every confident swing breeds your next confident swing. The more you play, the better your chances of lowering your score."

Reality says, "Are you kidding me bucko?! Even the best players in the world are searching for more consistency. Consistent is for God and machines. You are neither."

I'd like to believe that I'm getting closer to a swing I can trust from the putter through the driver. I'm gonig to believe hope.

Avalon Golf Club, Burlington, WA

Well, turns out I was only able to play the "North 9" at Avalon, but really enjoyed the experience. There were two par threes in the mix and some fairly long shots too. Almost 600 yards from the blue tees on #3. I, of course, was playing from the white tees once I figured out that the concrete blocks were the white tees and the pieces of wood were the ladies tees. Oops on hole #1. I discovered this when I flew the green on #2 and felt like where I was standing couldn't be 140 yards. After moving back to the proper tee, I stuck the green with a dart :-) .

The conditions were extremely wet. Not as bad as Overlook Golf Course (no website to my knowledge) I had played the day before. Overlook was on the verge of being a mud pit most the way. I suppose that's just the way golf on New Year's Day in Washington is going to be. At any rate, Avalon was beautiful to walk and offered plenty of challenge while affording good rewards to well struck shots.

Water came into play on a couple of holes and there were an adequate number of bunkers to deal with. I ended up in the bunker on a dogleg left and hit a well struck 7 iron out of it. The sand was too hard to expect to approach the sand shot in a conventional way (digging in ahead of the ball). It called for a proper chip - just grazing the sand while striking the ball directly. I found this out on the first bunker I ended up in. I was only in two bunkers by the way.

I expect that Avalon will make a fine destination when summer greets us. I look foreword to getting there early and playing all 27 holes. Well worth your time.

The "North 9" gets 4 stars.

This weekend

Well, I had a good weekend on a couple of differnet courses. I'll comment on the courses themselves later but let me say I was pretty pleased with my play this weekend. My scores weren't much better than usual but I'm beginning to "see" what I need to do in the way of swinging and managing the course. I was driving well today which I'm really happy about. I'm starting to feel proper balance and timing with the big club. Yes!

My chipping wasn't super confident for some reason today. I chalked it up to the super soggy course conditions we were playing. The greens putted like a wood floor which is remarkable given the sogginess of the fairways and tee boxes. I'm used to slower greens and that hurt me on the dance floor. That's it for now.