8 October 2016
The Quantum Golf Swing
Tap-tap-tap Bang! The
noise a good carpenter makes when setting a nail! It’s just a tool after all,
the hammer or the golf club. No different in principle from an axe or a
crowbar, a hunk of metal on the end of a stick. I’ve never noticed the swing of
an axe or a hammer require taking the tool all the way back around your head
either. It’s usually a fairly moderate yet powerful and effective swing. I
think I might try holding that thought in mind the next couple of trips to the
range or the course.
A perfect point has no
dimension, a line one, a plane two, and a cube three. Movement thru space adds time
to the bundle. Dimensions appear to exist with higher numbers but smaller size.
Do these dimensions include time components as well? Are there possibly higher
or smaller unseen dimensions of time separate from those of space? Is it even
possible to really make a space vs time statement? They are the same thing I
think, or at least you can’t have one without the other. If time did curl up
into smaller unseen dimensions, what might it mean? Is time as quantum on a
small scale as space? Is there a time particle? Do we exist in a ripple in the
fabric of no-time? Am I here, are you there, or did it already happen after all
and we exist in the echo?
These are the things
that trouble my golf swing. I have an overlong backswing that produces a weak
off balance finish, and I feel very out of sequence with the zero dimensional space-time
phase shift as I come through the ball. I think I’m going to schedule a lesson
this week and try to get some of that adjusted. I’ve our OCM week starting next
Friday and the club championship on the Saturday I get back. Maryland in the
October is always a good place to find the first dimension, a line to reality,
a division between the quantum and the solid state.
It happens at the inlet,
that’s where the energy is strongest! An entire ocean trying to fill the bay
through an opening I could clear with a good three wood. The power of the
current is as difficult to truly comprehend as the endless stream of unseen
particles blazing through and past, interfering only slightly with the waves
and foam of reality. The line is there, it divides the bay from the ocean, the
water from the land, the now from the then and future, the waves and foam of
the unperceivable reality with those of what we think we know.
Below the surface hidden
by the reflection from above, what do we really see? We see! We c…
25 September 2016
Played our last club V-Tour round at Valleybrook last Friday. Was not feeling the magic at all, very out of sorts. Tee shots were everywhere but in the middle, straight enough more or less but scattered all over the place. Putter was pretty much spot on! Drained a few nice ones and left most of the rest close enough to make without much stress. Did 4 putt from like 9 feet on one hole, just to make it interesting... Been spending more time knocking balls around on my living room carpet lately. Trying to get a more solid feel in my hands and keep a crisp impact. Note to self, keep doing that! Closed the round out with a solid birdie on 17, crushed a drive down the left side of the fairway and put a 4H to the right of the green. The ball caught up in the mounding and funneled onto the fringe, had a putter in hand for an eagle attempt. Didn't make it but rolled the ball past the hole close enough to at least look good on the way by! What little range time I've been getting in is helping but clearly I'd profit form a little more. Counting down the days to OCM...
22 August 2016
Finally got around to playing Twisted Dune on Sunday! Very nice course, challenging layout and great conditions. Large fairways, big greens and not a lot of places to miss either of them anywhere! Went out as the first group of the day at 6:30 'ish to beat some of the heat, took about 4:20 to make it around. My game held up OK on the front 9 and rapidly turned to week old fish on the back. Eleven penalties on nine holes... Not sure what the record is but that has to be close! You can see the whole stinky mess
Here!
Greens fee is a bit more than I usually spring for but if I can pick up a nice deal on Groupon or something I'd like to play this one again soon. Took some nice pictures as we made our way around, here's a sample and the rest of them are on my
Panoramio page.
11 August 2016
I'm a little miffed over the most recent V-Tour result. Seems I won the event with a triple digit score. It's not that I mind getting a win, I'd just like to shoot a decent score to do it! Results are posted
HERE. Although based on the posted results if I had put up a really good number, I'd have just lapped the field. Because it has been brought up before and to satisfy my own curiosity, I ran a quick and dirty handicap calculation based on my last twenty scores at Rancocas vs. all other venues. My Rancocas handicap is 21.8 as opposed to all other courses where I get an index of 19.1, almost a 3 stroke bonus!
I know I have described Rancocas as my 18 hole driving range before. I am trying to shoot a good score every time I play, so it's not like these are practice rounds. I am more aggressive here however, both with my club and shot selection. I'm more willing to try different things based on my familiarity with the layout. Many holes just don't have good misses to play to or great opportunities to make a recovery. I still maintain the middle tees are underrated by at least a full stroke! 68.7/126 just doesn't seem completely reasonable to me and I think I've played here often enough to form a valid opinion. On the other hand, I've seen people go out and shoot a good score here so it's not like it can't be done. About the only thing I haven't tried to date is playing from the tips... I wouldn't shoot a better score, that's a given but 71.5/131 might give me a better differential. Or not, those tees are a ways back on most holes. Hmmmm...
1 August 2016
Wow, have not kept up on this recently... Not really surprised.
Recent scores have been generally satisfactory. Nothing in the 80's but a couple came close. A few shots here or there would make a difference. Mostly it's just a big number on a few holes that tears down an otherwise great round.
Played Wyncote yesterday. Brutal hot round! Probably should have used a cart this time, just about collapsed on the 18th hole and walking back to the truck to stow my clubs was a real challenge. Took some time after the round to catch my breath and recover enough to make the drive home. One of the best things I've gotten from using this site is, I get to play some serious golf with some great playing partners and yesterday was no exception. Heat exhaustion aside, a fun round in an interesting setting. This course is a ways out in the sticks and the back nine had the clop-clop-clop rhythm of Amish buggies on the way home from Sunday meeting as background music. No shade, few clouds and most of the course lies down low. The only breeze was up on the higher elevated holes on the perimeter.
Still trying to get my game figured out. If memory serves me, just about every drive I hit well yesterday was even with or past my playing partners. Some times quite a few yards past! I've been using my yardage watch to keep track of my best drives. Holes 1, 4, 8, and 11 were noteworthy including a 3 wood shot on 8 that was longer than any of my driver hits! 233-D1, 233-D4, 243-3W8, 234-D11. Nice solid draws too! All of my partners shot lower scores than me however. Lost a few shots on poor iron play, I expect to pull short irons left but when I aim right to play the tendency I hit straight. When I aim straight at the green, it pulls left! I know it's probably an alignment problem, just something else to work on. Also missed a few short chip/pitch shots. I've been doing a lot better on these lately in my casual rounds and it was frustrating to find myself hitting double chips to get on the green when it counts. Bladed/thinned a couple of great opportunities with a wedge in my hand, (grr..) Other than two short misses the putting was spot on, would have loved to drop a few more but I'll take a two putt average.
Lost our oldest cat this weekend due to the ravages of age. Taz was a pretty chill feline, we got him as a rescue when he was about a year old and he's been a part of the family for the past 16 years. The last few months he's been struggling and we made the difficult decision to let him go with dignity. This was my "memorial" round to Taz, a true cat's cat! Rest in peace we're going to miss you buddy.
31 May 2016
Well, had the dates wrong for the V-Tour. Thursdays round turned out to be a preview. Felt like I had very little going on except some really good putting, ended up shooting a nice score in spite of myself! Got out to Rancocas on Sunday afternoon to see if I could get a little work in with the driver. Still trying to get a little more accurate... The ongoing quest! Did hit a few good shots, got a perfect centerline hit on the first fairway, crushed another on 9, and went for broke on the dogleg left 14 pulling off a lovely little draw downhill to about 100 yards. Pulled the pitching wedge hard left off the cartpath... That's all I have to say about that!!
So THIS Thursday back to Mercer Oaks for the real V-Tour and see if I can get back in the flow!
25 May 2016
Haven't posted here in a while, lots to catch up on! Getting ready for the next V-Tour tomorrow at
Mercer Oaks East. Had a lesson with Wally yesterday and really felt like a lot of what we have been working on came together. Hit some very solid shots and was able to repeat, it's the consistency that's been so elusive! Looking at the layout for this course, I want about 220 off the tee on many of the holes so I'm planing on hitting driver pretty much all day long. I've been able to keep it straight by trying to hit a draw. Sometimes I actually get a nice tight little draw out of it but the miss is usually at least dead straight. It's a links layout, no tree trouble on most of the holes. Aiming down the right side of the fairway should keep me in play and give me good lines to the greens.
There was a forum topic posted a few weeks back about scoring potential based on subtracting 3 putts and penalties from a round to see what the round could have been. Taking this to it's logically absurd extreme, I've pulled my lifetime Rancocas stats and reached a startling conclusion...
Now bear in mind I play here a lot and these stats go back to when I first joined this site in 2008, that's a lot of rounds, I didn't actually tally up the total. As you can see I have pared every hole at least a few times, that alone sets the bar for my potential score at 71! Even more interesting however, I have made birdie on 12 holes each of them only once. (I'll need to work on that) This means if I par the ones I've pared before and make the birdies I've already shown I can make my potential best possible score for Rancocas is... a 59!! Just something to think about, hmmm..
I suppose it goes with out saying however I do need to avoid adding to the impressive 81 penalty total on Wheaton to pull off this particular miracle!
11 May 2016
Started looking back at my Raven's claw history. Noticed I've made par on a bunch of these holes and missed par on a few I would really like add to the list. 14 comes to mind right off the bat! Bogey on all 5 tries...?? Time to fix that, it looks like such a little nothing special hole might be time to put one close and just make a birdie! 11 is a tough nut to crack, I'd like to get a par here but I'm kind of happy to see the 3 bogies. 4, 10, and 16 are all reasonably straightforward holes, just need to keep it out of the bushes off the tee on 10. Lesson scheduled for tomorrow unless someone reaches out before then to take advantage of the nice $27 deal at 2. In which case I'll reschedule the lesson and go play this one for dirt cheap!
6 May 2016
I'm going to take a little time and break down yesterday afternoons round at Rancocas. My last few outings for one reason or another were pretty dismal and I don't tend to dwell much on the stinkers. They happen, I know they happen and it doesn't do much good to wallow in self pity over what may simply be inevitable. But this last round falls into that middle ground category that may actually be worth pondering over a bit.
Start with the 3 par 5's. One goal I'd really like to achieve this year is making par (or better...) on all three in the same round just once. Don't think that's ever happened before. Didn't happen this time that's for sure... Unlike Wil Wheaton (9) and Beelzebub (13), I don't really have a name for the 1st hole, I could come up with a few names for that dratted Sycamore that sits somewhere around 200~220 depending on the tee markers. It plays every inch of the 560 on the card if the tees are back but just a mere 540 if they get moved up! I've tried 3 wood off the tee here before but it leaves two more long shots to follow and I'd rather just coax a reliable draw into the fairway if at all possible. It can be done, it has been done, just not yesterday when I aimed at the big brute and pulled a little left with no trace of the hoped for cut to be found! A zig here a hybrid there, pulled approach, short chip and a 2 putt. Wheaton was just a weak slice to a bad lie on the lip of the bunker, found the green in 4 which I'll take most days but ended up taking 4 sloppy putts to find the hole! 13 I just lost a banana ball to the right. Bad swing all the way, plugged in casual water/mud and hacked around in the trees for a while. Put a nice hybrid up close to the green to see it clatter off a ditch in the ground under repair fronting the green. (sigh) The guy I was playing with found a green side bunker on 4 decent shots and took 3 tries to get on the putting surface. We were both glad to walk away and not look back! So 8, 8, 10 on the 5's...
Made birdie on the 14th though, that felt pretty good. Interesting thing on that one. Hit a great 3 wood off the tee, put it right past the 150 stick. A little down hill and still a bit shook from the last hole I took more club than I needed, hit it thin and weak, ended up 8 feet left of the cup. What I call a good miss! Had a couple of those actually. Made a couple of 'hero' shots too. 16 I nailed a drive but got no cut at all, dead straight and real long left me with a sizable tree between me and the green. Flag tucked back left to boot. Sitting fluffy in the rough, almost teed up I tried taking a 9 iron over the top. Cleared the tree with a few feet to spare but pulled a bit left of the green. Wasted a real nice flop onto the green with a 3 putt from 15. The other was 18, absolutely crushed a 3 wood off the tee. Wanted a draw and just got straight that kept going, through the fairway, through the trees past the fairway, across the cart path on 9 in the rough. Tried a punch back through the trees and got a ricochet instead that left me nothing except another punch or a sliver of daylight under one tree and over the other... It's 18 what did I have to lose, right? Gave an 8 all I had, clipped a branch up high and lost sight of the ball. I knew it started to the left but I never saw it come down. The branch tipped it right and ended up on the green! Gotta love when a plan comes together... Don't want to count on the heroics on a regular basis but it's nice to pull one out once in a while!
So Raven's Claw is up next weekend. Time to call Wally and get a little adjustment in. Raven's Claw is a little more forgiving and I should be able to put up a good number. A few holes I'll hit driver on but plenty of shorter control holes with a chance to put a 3 wood or hybrid where I want it and have a shot at finding the green. Feeling like I'm getting a little closer to where I wanted to be after this last round, just want to keep moving in the right direction!
2 May 2016
My last three rounds were all above the century mark. The first two didn't surprise me too much. I had 4 AM starts at work and by the time I hit the golf course the fine motor control is pretty much shot. The last round however I was well rested and hitting good shots on the range. It just didn't carry over onto the course. Very pedestrian round, nothing major just little slices off the fairway. A few big misses but mostly just off by enough to miss everything. Irons too, a little left, a little right... A few good chips and decent putts but not enough to save the round.
18 April 2016
The following is my self review of Linfield National. Great day for some golf at long last and I'm very happy with my play and the score. That said, shots were left on the course! That's why they make tomorrow... Only a few bad full swings, most from loss of tempo and a couple of horrid short putts caused by not taking the time to line up and take a short putt seriously. Played with Will and at one point I was very happy to hear him comment that my swing was like a metronome!
Anyway I am not going to complain about either finally playing golf in shirtsleeves or breaking 90 on my first official round of the season!
Linfield National – Play Review
1. 355 on the tee - 3 wood fairway, 159 – 5 iron uneven lie downhill ball above, miss right, relief from man made obstruction, chip to 2 feet 54 degree wedge. Par save!
2. Driver slice right, 294 – 5 iron fairway, 142 – 7 iron GIR front, 3 putt from 42 feet.
3. 130 on the tee– 9 iron, short right bunker, 2 putt from 24 feet past.
4. 425 on the tee (dogleg) 3 wood fairway, 169 – 6 iron right rough, ran off the back of the green on approach. Hit a great chip and missed an easy putt.
5. 304 on the tee (dogleg) hit 2H fairway, 135 – 7 iron uphill approach, missed the green but don’t recall where, so-so chip and a 2 putt from 27 feet.
6. 311 on the tee, 2H in the fairway, 7 iron approach from 138, missed a little short I think, good chip to 6 feet, putt should have bent left to right but tracked straight down the line of aeration punch holes.
7. 8 iron from 130 on the green, 3 putt from 21 feet
8. 311 on the tee, 3 wood pulled hard left, pitching wedge on the green from 108, whiffed a tap in 2 putt from 18 feet.
9. First bad shot of the day, chunked a 6 iron, 58 deg wedge uphill from about 70 yards, aimed at the flag but played my miss to the left off the slope, tap in par.
10. 310 on the tee, 2H downhill to 110, pitching wedge just on the front of the green, tap in 2 putt from 42 feet.
11. Juiced a 54 deg from 99 yards on the green, 2 putt from 18 feet
12. 404 on the tee, 3 wood in the fairway, 183 lay up short of the hazard with a 54 deg, right rough from 88 off the slope to the right of the green and off the left rear, decent chip and 2 put from 8 feet.
13. 325 on the tee, 3 wood in the fairway, 124 approach slight uphill 8 iron, 10 feet below the hole, birdie!
14. 113 on the tee, pitching wedge on the green, 12 feet below the hole, slid past on the right, tap in par!
15. 294 on the tee, second poor shot of the day, lost tempo and chunked a 2H short off the cart path into left side hill rough, 2 punches to get out, wedge to the green, 2 putt from 12 feet, triple…
16. 266 on the tee, wrong club, wrong line, 2H tailed right off the cart path into the lateral, found the ball and tried to play out, severely above my feet, chunked badly, still in the hazard played out to the fairway, wedge short, chipped to 15, 2 putt from 15 feet for another triple.
17. 498 on the tee, driver down the left side didn’t reach the fairway, 5 iron from 294 bounced off the cart path to 85 yards, 54 wedge hit soft and right short of the green, chip to 8 feet and 2 putt, double.
18. 353 on the tee, driver left into GUR, drop in fairway, 9 iron from 124 pulled left and favorable bounce just off the green, chip ran well past, 2 putt from 12 feet.
16 April 2016
It's finally time to play some golf! Been a long, hard, lonely Winter, but today the sun is bright and warm and once more shall I stand and receive its benevolence, drink in the peaceful blessing, and savor the simple tranquility of green grass and good company. All that has come before leads to the moment, all that will transpire in the future awaits. The simple instant of the moment, the here and now, becomes the all...
Peace!
14 April 2016
I kind of had a feeling... Not a problem, just a challenge!
13 April 2016
Great lesson with Wally yesterday, weather cleared up right on time. Warmed up with a few shots on the range then went out and played a few holes on the front 9. Really feeling good about how I'm striking the ball and looking forward to starting the season off with a solid number at
Linfield on Saturday. Got some great feedback from Don Pierce on my
overview blog too. Cleared up some questions I had gave me some great pointers on the layout. Daughter called last night to tell me The
Subways are playing at
Milkboy tonight!! If you have no idea who or what either of those are I understand but I'm looking forward to a good show tonight!!
12 April 2016
Lesson today if the weather forecast holds up, getting ready for the snow delayed start to my season. I'm hoping to go over shots for some of the holes at Linfield Nation that look as though I might have trouble pulling off. A bunch of the holes look pretty straightforward, just pick the right stick and stick the ball in the fairway. A few seem like they might be more interesting...
9 April 2016
Well the soft spikes I ordered for my snowshoes didn't get here, so I'll reschedule Linfield National for next weekend. I did finally get this weeks lesson in yesterday. Warmed up on the range then headed over to the practice green to get my short game tuned up. Make some subtle tweaks to my body and club face alignment. My two biggest short game problems are leaving the first chip short and pulling my chips inside to the left. The short chips are mostly taking too much back swing and slowing down at impact to try to control the distance. That results is a lot of stubby chips that go nowhere. Trying to find the sweet spot in the tempo to get the club accelerating through the ball without flailing at it. The alignment issue is I'm lined up too far right and pulling my swing across my body, pulling the ball to the left. Worked on getting the face to the target and the feet/shoulder line back on the target line. Toward the end of the lesson I was hitting a variety of shots with more confidence and much better results.
6 April 2016
I don't care if I have to wear soft spike snowshoes, I'm playing GOLF on Saturday!!!
31 March 2016
Tick, tick, tick... counting down the seconds until the season starts!! Lots to catch up on since my last post. Started my lesson package with Wally at Rancocas on Tuesday. The March winds were howling!! Bag blew over twice before I just gave up and left it on the ground. Pretty much went through the whole bag, discussed last years issues, this years goals, and how to get from here to there. Made a tweak to my shoulder alignment to help fix the slice and try to move towards a reliable draw. Next week will be short game stuff, mostly chips & pitching over on the practice green. We talked about going out and playing a few holes after that to see how it all comes together on the course.
I did get 18 in last Sunday late afternoon and the scorecard pretty much showed what my real needs are. Ten holes with double or worse, if I save just one stroke on each of those holes I'd shot a 90 instead of the 100 I carded. Most of what hurt was in close around the greens. Gotta get the chips on the green and a lot closer to the hole to have a fair chance of a bogey at worst. At least it seems like a good concept to me... So, goal there is get off the tee and either find the fairway or at least a survivable miss, find the green or at least a survivable miss, then get in the hole... Easy, right?
Played an open house event yesterday at Merchantville Country Club. Very nice private 9 hole course that dates back to 1892! Alternate tee boxes and greens on a few of the holes allows it to play as 18 with different front and back 9 layouts. Very innovative I think. Not very long, lots of trouble to be avoided, nearly pristine conditions and it's only late March! Greens are amazing, very smooth, fast without being impossible, and consistent. The fairways were immaculate and although I didn't personally sample any of the bunkers they looked very inviting. I did try out the hazard running down the right side of 9, haven't quite tamed the slice completely it appears. The only real blemish on an otherwise tidy 9 hole scorecard. Great clubhouse, spectacular view from the deck outside the upstairs bar. Talked price with Karen, just out of reach this year what with a daughter to marry off in May but I'll keep it in the back of my mind for future reference! Also talked to the head pro, Ethan Pauths, who was very receptive to the idea of hosting one of our club events perhaps next year. I'll be bringing this up with our club chairmen shortly!
26 March 2016
Got an after work round in last Thursday, no great shakes but did make a nice tap in par on Wheaton! Some things I've noticed I'd like to fix. My miss from about a 9 iron in tends to be a pull to the inside, especially on a full aggressive swing. Naturally every time I try to take the miss into account and aim just to the right of the green I hit it dead straight. Same issue off the tee box just flipped to the other side. My dependable miss is a baby slice, but when I play it to the left side I'm hitting dead straight again. Had like three or four of each last round. By and large they are good misses and I'm not leaving myself in jail, obviously I'd love to start tweaking the aim a little and start finding shorter grass on the first try... Putting is going pretty good, the greens have not started growing back in and remain either slick or very bumpy. Short game from off the green is still hit or miss. My good chips are much better so far but the stubby misses are still a frustration.
Late afternoon round booked with Jimmy today and I'm going to remember to bring my little yardage watch. I was skeptical it would do me much good here but I did like having a quick read ability when I've used it at other places. I think it might be a benefit here as well. I'll also have a chance this afternoon to see how our friend, Mr. Beaver is progressing... Spotted him as I was finishing up my round Thursday. Always great to see new wildlife on the golf course but I'm curious how having a beaver damning up the drainage culvert is going to work out!!
And a scenic early evening view of the 13th green while waiting to tee off on 14. My new arch enemies... Beezlebub & Baal!!! (double/double Thurs. BTW)
24 March 2016
Got confirmation back from my pro Wally. First lesson of the year set for Tuesday. Time to start looking at last years results and see where I want set goals for this season. I played 39 recorded rounds last year and half of them were at Rancocas. That should be about right for this year as well. I'll be trying to sort my goals into several categories and some of them will be specific to playing Rancocas since it makes up such a large part of my season. It also gives me a good reference in terms of how I plan and play certain holes and some specific flaws in my game. Don Pierce, who I play with several times a season, has noted that Rancocas is a "draw" layout. Holes 1, 3, 4, 8, 10, 14, 16, and 18 all play easier if you can work the ball to the left. That's 8 of the 14 long holes on the course! They don't all require hitting driver, but shaping the ball to the left takes a lot of trouble out of play. Hitting a reliable draw from the tee remains a priority goal for me!!
Looking at a hole-by-hole summary of Rancocas reveals a few issues I'd like to fix this year. I've made remarks before about declaring the 9th hole my 'mortal enemy' and naming it Wil Wheaton. The name still stands but the extra attention I've paid to this hole has generally paid off I think. I still rack up my share of penalties and big numbers on 9 but overall it's the least troublesome of the three par fives on the course. I'm going to shift my focus to the real troublemakers on my score card this year and try to deal with the double disasters of 13 & 14. I'll start by naming them "Beelzebub & Baal" mostly because it sounds scary and these holes are! I could easily drop 5 strokes every single round by simply making bogey on both...
20 March 2016
I've been an airplane buff for a lot longer than I've played golf, took flight instruction when I was 17 and joined the Air Force largely to just to be around aircraft. It never occurred to me I suppose how often the two seem to intersect however accidentally...! Minor injuries in Wichita resulted from this recent mishap and looks like the aircraft may be out of action for awhile!
19 March 2016
Got my USGA gear in the mail today, I'll try to focus on that and overlook the snowstorm tomorrow!! I have an invitation to visit the nearby Merchantville Country Club on the 30th. Not that I anticipate joining but no harm in getting informed. Nosh and drink after 9 holes, check out the facilities and see what's what. Daylight has officially overtaken darkness here in the 39 latitude, I'm starting to see green shoots and sprouts, time to get some seriously motivate grass growth in gear!
17 March 2016
14 Days to the start of the season! Plenty of time...
15 March 2016
Quick recap of last weekend. Got out twice in pretty much great weather, a couple of sprinkles at the end of both rounds but still nice to be playing in March!
Mentioned wanting to get to know Wyncote recently and Don was nice enough to respond. Went out there Saturday for the first time and found an interesting mix of links style golf and zombie apocalypse.. The course burns out the tall grass at the beginning of the season and the charred remains of half melted golf balls provided a stark commentary on the transient nature of existence! Or something philosophical like that. Shot a 103, which is my standard number for a first time play, so no surprise there.. Got paired up with Joe, younger fellow, hit the ball well but what Don and I referred to as a 'deliberate' type of player. Took this guy forever to hit a shot, it was painful to watch! Played Valleybrook on Sunday morning with Jimmy and had better results. Either a 91 or an 89 depending on whether I believe my new golf watch score or the score card. Still figuring out all the buttons on the watch so I went with the card, doesn't really matter for another few weeks anyway. Six pars and made a few nice putts. Paired with Chaz! About my age, retired high school principal who gave Jimmy a copy of his book for his aspiring teacher daughter to read. I should write a book!!
Both rounds showed about the same flaws and strengths. Had lots of trouble early in the round across the board. Full swings, short game and putting all showed lots of rust. Later in the round all three phases showed lots of improvement. Lots of toe hits on the irons, a few stubby chips that just drive me nuts, the slice still shows up now and then but I've been keeping the left arm straighter and the back swing is more controlled. The draw on demand is still very elusive! I don't think I've lost too much ground over the Winter months and look forward to getting the index back down below 20 and keeping it there this season.
11 March 2016
I'm going to experiment with a more traditional blog this season. I have a plan... I always have a plan! So I want to keep track of how things play out and see if the plan actually works.
Fortunately I have better things to do on my weekends than prank a cat, even if I do admit this would be awesome to do... once!
First off, surprise-surprise, I'll be playing a lot of Rancocas this season. Still too good a deal at a tough to score course to pass up. The big push this season is going to be a lesson plan. They finally have a teaching pro as of last season and I plan on taking advantage. I want to start off with a weekly 3 lesson package to start the season then go with every other week. If possible all the way through to October.
This is going to read as a "bottom up" format, new posts will be at the top. I will try, mostly for my own use, to post summaries of lessons, goals made and achieved, rounds played, problems encountered or conquered, maybe practice notes... Whatever else comes to mind...
