Well no golf this week, as from Sunday to Thursday it rained continuously, but fortunately it was a very light rain most of the time so no major flooding. The temps were between 38 and 45 most of the week, but I am not complaining considering what the east coast went through. The burgh came through again, and avoided truly disasterous weather. I am anxious to play of course, but for a little different reason. I have been swinging the club about the same way for about a year now. Despite shooting one of the best rounds of my life a 4 under par 69 at Rolling Acre, I tweaked the swing about a month after that, because of some research I had done on the function of the muscles of the body. After about a month however I untweaked the tweak as I called it, by going back to the original way I was swinging. Now I am about to tweak the tweak. Only a golfer could know what I am talking about. If this tweaking of the tweak (don’t you just love that) works out I may be ready to reveal what I have been doing the last year. I have been very secretive about this swing thing, only because I want to make sure it is not crap. There is so much out there that is, I do not want to add to the fertilizer. The week coming up is not looking that great with temps barely getting into the upper 40’s but it is suppose to be dry and hopefully I can get out there a couple of times this week. Chomping at the bit, searching for the answer, we’ll see if I get a little closer this week.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
A beautiful weather week that turned nasty on the weekend, so just two rounds of golf played this week. Wednesday went to Quicksilver and pretty much stunk out the joint and staggered around to an 84. On Thursday went ot Butlers Woodside and shot a much better 74. This cold dreary wet weather looks like it is here to stay for awhile, so it looks like there might not be much golf played week this either. As I look back on this year it has been a period of the most solid golf I have played in a long time. Is this due to the new method of swinging the golf club or is it due to the fact that I have swung the same way for over 12 months. That answer will determine how much I write about this new swing thing over the off season. I am optimistic, that there is some golf left for the rest of this season, which will help in deciding what I will do. Mean while, the mental game seems to be as perlexing as ever. This year I will have dropped my handicap from the mid 5’s to the mid 3’s, a definite improvement but I have been there before. I have shot the most consistant golf with many rounds between 74 and 78. I have done all that with suffering through the chip yips and missing more than my share of short putts. So beside putting on some finishing touches on the physical side of the game, I am hoping to find the answer to why we can’t function on the golf course, at times. What makes this game so damn exasperating. The search continues.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
Finally played a new course this week, as we traveled to Norvelt Golf Club, in Novelt, Pa. about a 70 minute drive. This course was a very pleasant surprise. The course plays about 6600 yards from the blue tees has many diverse holes and was in very good condition. The big surprise was the greens were the fastest we have played during this 2 year plus trek, as they ran a solid 9 on the strimp. The greens had some good slope on them too, so getting above the hole was deadly. The fairways were in great shape and the roughs were grown in well. The course was very hilly and had some really up and down holes. The course did have some blah easy holes, but more than made up for it, with some great scenery and some very tough spectacular holes. The greens were the thing. It took 86 courses to finally have truly fast greens. The hot dog at the turn was mediocre at best, but I would rather have great greens. I have already experienced the great dog and just fair greens at Firestone Farms. The only negative note was because of some lack of course knowledge, and some occasional poor ball striking, my 16 consecutive rounds in the 70’s came to end with an 82. Pete had an 84 and with great weather we had a very enjoyable day. This course was worth the trip. Today I went to Rolling Acres and got back in the groove with a 3 over 76 but it leads to talk about what I consider the most frustrating part of this game, namely the short putt. I missed a couple of real shorties today. Even when I shot the 69 at Rolling Acres this year I missed a couple of short putts, with one being around 2 feet. First lets define a short putt. I consider a short putt anything from 18 inches to 4 feet. I probably have even missed putts shorter than 18 inches but lets stick to that distance frame. The two most famous short putt misses in the history of modern golf is Doug Sanders at the British Open in the sixties, and Scott Hoch at the Masters in the nineties. What is amazing about both of those putts, is at the most they were 2 feet, and neither player even touched the hole. I’m not being critical because I do this all the time. So what is it about the short putt, that even brings golfers at the top level to their knees. I am going to touch upon some things that make short putts unique and hope to have some answers to the problems, which I do not have now. The short putt puts you in the “should” mode, like you should make it. If you miss a putt in the 5 to 10 foot range, even though you may be disappointed you still know that it can happen. But when you get inside the 4 foot range, then you think you “should” make all of them, and when you don’t, it can be a confidence shaker. The short putt increases your decision making processes. On a longer putt you are thinking optimum speed. If you miss it you want the putt to stop close to the hole. But on the short putt you got to think about hitting it a particular speed. The two extremes would be to die the putt in the hole or bang it in the back of the cup. This also will affect the way you read the break of the putt. Finally, the short putt, is just flat out, the most important shot of the hole. It is the final, hopefully, shot of the hole. Miss this and there is no tomorrow. Golf’s version of sudden death. Except it can happen 18 times and the death is your score. Well, with that happey note, I will leave you for another week. Eighty six down and fourteen to go.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
Back in the Burgh after a great week in San Diego with the grandkids. The best part of the week was that I got to play golf with my daughter on Monday morning with the kids in school and pre school. We played 9 holes on this executive course which had three par 4’s and six par 3’s. My daughter did amazingly well considering she had not played in about 5 and half years. She was able to muster up a 42 thanks to some great tee balls and very nice chipping. She had 2 pars and did have some bad holes but overall played very well. I shot an even par 30 with the help of some great putting. Got back to Pittsburgh very late on Friday night and was in no shape to play on Saturday but got to Scenic Valley today on a very nice fall day with temps in the mid 70’s. It was a very ho hum day with 7 bogies and a chip in birdie for a 78. This week I should get back into the swing of things and may even be adding a new course or two. The weather is looking pretty good for mid October. The search for the answer will continue in earnest this week.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
The blog is coming from San Diego tonight, as I am visiting the grand kids and golf will be taking a back seat for the next week. Did get in two rounds this week and they were quite contrasting rounds in play and venue. The first round was at Scenic Valley, and was highlighted by some good solid ball striking with many short putts missed, but some lengthy putts made for birdies, which resulted in a nice solid score of 74. Then I traveled to Bedford Springs for some R and Rm, and played a course called Down River. This course was in very good shape and very flat and pretty wide open. The course was fairly long from the blue tees playing about 6700 yards to a par of 72. The greens ran a 6 on the stimp and were very smooth. I played this course the next day after Scenic Valley, and it was a completely different round. Terrible ball striking with only 5 greens hit in regulation, but the short game which has been a problem all year, jumped into high gear and I managed to shoot a 77 which featured 3 up and downs from sand traps and numerous good chips and pitches from some very difficult positions. Bedford Springs is about a 2 hour drive, so Down River does not count as one of the 100 courses, but it was a very nice course to play at a very reasonable rate of 25 with a cart. This is another example of just how goofy this game can be. Even though the scores were only 3 strokes apart there was no comparison on how I struck the ball. I will be getting back home on Friday so again I will only be playing one or two rounds this week. The search will continue with the emphasis now on the mental game. I think there are three areas where the answer to this game lies. One, a permanent solution to the yips. Two a permanent solution to the shanks. Three the solution to the proverbial choke. I don’t mean even the tournament choke, but the choke we all do when we are close to shooting one of our best rounds and we fold up in the last 3 holes. The solution to these problems have not been found and may not even be close. Please don’t mention that Haney book on yips. A complete waste of book binding. So the search will go on with some hope, but with knowledge that it may never be found.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
Did not play any new courses this week and in fact because of weather played less than ususal. Three rounds all in the 70’s but nothing spectacular. Started off with a 76 at Riverview, a 78 at South Park from the blues, and today at Highland Springs in Wellsburg, West Va. shot 77. I’m in one of these spells right now where I am doing all right but make one or two big mistakes which takes me out of shooting a really good round. Tried a new old putter the last two rounds which did not help at all so will be going back to the putter I have used for almost the whole year except for about 4 rounds. The swing really came together today put the putter really let me down, so again the score was not as good as it could have been. No new insights on the mental game to report on either. Obviously the American Ryder Cup team does not have any new insights either. How about Rory showing up about 10 minutes before his tee time and still playing well. That goes to show you it can be done on any level. Just show up on the first tee and give it a bang. Going to be playing a new course this week for sure but it will be too far away to put it on the list. Hopefully the weather will be a little better but we are getting into that time of the year where it could be anything, but hopefully we have a lot of golf left. We will see what another week of playing this goofy game will bring. By the way I will be writing the blog from San Diego next weekend as it will be grand kids time again.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
No new courses were added this week, but a busy week none the less. I played solid if not spectacular golf all week with scores of 77, 77, 73, and 75. My swing is slowly getting back to the feel of mid summer. This week I would like to write about what I feel is the real key to having success with the less than full swing game and putting. This has nothing to do with technique or a certain method. The key to success in both areas is to make sure that you do not look up to see where the shot is going until you can focus on the spot where the ball use to sit. You do not too be overly conscious of the ball, just the spot after the ball leaves. In the case of putting you should clearly see the blades of grass that were underneath the ball before you look up to see where the ball is. In the case of the less than full swing you should clearly see the grass that was disturbed by the shot before you look up. In the case of 40 to 80 yard pitch shots you should clearly see the divot before you look up to see where the shot went. Besides seeing a big improvement in the results of your shots you will discover one other amazing thing. Despite not looking up until you focus on the grass where the ball was, you will still see about 75 to 80 per cent of the shot. For example on a putt about 20 feet, you stroke the ball, focus on the grass, then look up and you will still see the ball about 14 to 15 feet from the hole. On chips and pitches you will notice the same phenomenon. What this means of course, is this really doesn’t take very long. Like a lot things in golf this sounds easier than it really is but if you consciously try this you will see a great improvement in that area of the game . Like everything else, this is a process and will take some time but if you really do this, the results will come. What’s great about this is you will improve with no change in your technique. I do not recommend for the full swing because it will restrict your swing too much. Try it you’ll like it see you next week.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
Just got back from watching the Steelers thrash the Jets 27 to 10 and since I am on this high, thought I would get the blog done tonight rather than wait until tomorrow. Played course number 85 this week, Stoughton Acres in Butler Pa. which is a 65 minute drive. This course is one of the best bargains of all the courses we play. We only had a threesome when we played and even though they do not charge half cart fees, we played 18 holes and had lunch for 23.50 apiece. We could have had a bowl of soup, hot dog , chips, and a can of pop. We did not have the soup but the hot dog was very good and you could not beat the price. This was the course we tried to play a few weeks ago but the greens were top dressed but they healed up real well were running a 6 on the stimp and were in great shape. The course was 62oo yards and played to a par of 72. The clubhouse is more like an antique store than a pro shop but does have some cool golf stuff. The course is hilly but very playable and was in good condition with the fairways full and the rough was grown in nicely. This course we tandomed up with Lake Arthur for a very nice day. The course is worth the trip for a 36 hole day. The group played ok as I had a 79, Pete had 84 and David 89. I had a real good round out of the blue on Thursday at Indian Run, shooting a one over 72. I shot 77 at Lake Arthur and today at Scenic Valley a very non-describt 79. I have been doing this swing thing now for almost a year and overall my game has come back from the ashes. Since I started this my index has gone down from 5.7 to its current 3.0. At one time this year I was down to 2.1. The last month or so has been a little frustrating. I seemed to have lost something with the swing the last 6 weeks or so. Its been a bit of a mystery. Every time I think I am back in the groove I have a setback. The good news is this is the longest I have ever swung the club basically the same way. When I made the slight change in the swing the middle of this summer and then went back to the way I was doing it before, I just can’t seem to keep contol of the swing like I did before. We will see what the next 2 months bring. That is just about what is left of this golf season. The search will contiue as I have fifteen courses to go.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
Played course number 84 today as we went to the Phoenix at Buffalo Valley. I had thought that I had never played this course before but when we pulled into the parking lot, I was beginning to recognize some things and sure enough I had played it once before about 5 or 6 years ago. Another senior moment had occured. I did remember the holes as we played them, but I still don’t remember driving there. This course is located in Freeport, Pa., about a 60 minute drive. The course played about 6400 yards from the tees we played from and can be stretched to amost 6800 yards and plays to a par of 71. This course is pretty narrow and has a good variey of holes with water and lots of trees. The course is very hilly with some blind tee shots. Unfortunately the course was in just fair shape to say the least. The fairways were really bad and the rough was ok but had many bare spots and weird grass growing in some spots. The greens were slow barely make a 4.75 on the stimp. They putted smooth enough but at times they seemed that they needed rolled because a lot of putts really seemed to wiggle back and forth. The hot dog at the turn was pretty good but overpriced. This course was the 84th course we played and that is pretty close to where it will be ranked at the end of the trek in the bottom 20. Obviously this course is not worth the trip. The group had a so so day as Tony and I shot 79, and Pete and David had 87 and 88 respectively. On Monday and Wednesday I shot 79 and 81 and did not have a lot of confidence going into the South Park Senior Championship. But some conservative thinking and a white hot putter (25 putts ) helped me stagger in with a one over 73 and a top 6 finish. This is why I call this game goofy. Needless to say I have not fixed what is ailing my game lately. Other than the tournament I have not broken 79 for about 6 or 7 straight rounds. I will be adding some more courses this week and hopefully can start to play better. Eighty four courses down and sixteen to go.
The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer
Played two new courses this week as we had a very nice 36 hole day on Wednesday. First we played Pittsburgh National in Gibsonia, Pa., about a 45 minute drive. We played from tees that played about 6400 yards and the greens were running a nice 6.5 on the stimp, and were very smooth. There are tees that will stretch the course to 6900 yards. The course was in very good condition over all and was very challenging. It had a great variety of holes and played to a par of 72. The course was tight in some places and was hilly. Lots of trees and some water that came into play. This course was worth the trip. The hot dog at the turn was just fair and it took awhile to get it, and this was around 1:30pm. The group played ok but none of us scoredvery well. I shot 83, Pete 85, David 93, and Tom 90. Then three of us went up the road to play Saxon in Sarver, Pa. This course is what I call the perfect community course. First of all it is very flat which makes walking a breeze. The two nines have quite a contrast with the front being wide open and the back tightening things up just a bit with some tree lined fairways. The course played about 6600 yards from the blues to a par of 72. The greens were not quite as good as Pittsburgh Nat. as they ran about a 5 on stimp and had some bad spots. The fairways were a little long but were fine to play the ball without getting any bad lies. This course is not worth the trip but if you live within 20 to 25 minutes of the course, this should be your go to course when you don’t want to make a trip. The hot dog at the turn was superior to the one at Pittsburgh National, with a great taste and some fine condiments. I really enjoyed this course despite some of it short comings, and again I did not score very well. I shot 82, Pete 77, and David 87. My scoring problems continued the rest of the week. I shot a 79 at Indian Run of Thursday and an 80 at Pittsburgh North today. Putting and some poor club selections on iron shots has been the main culprit for the high scores. This week with weather permitting I am playing tomorrow, Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday. I am hitting the ball reasonalbly well but even that took a bit of decline this past week. Will see what happens this week, as on Thursday is the South Park Seniors. Eighty three courses down and seventeen to go.
The Goofy Game of Golf/Life Searching for the Answer 