Los Lagos Golf Course

Is the name of the course where I’m getting instruction. Wasn’t too happy about my video. I look like a toad trying to swing a fire iron. And next time I guess I won’t chew gum and I should probably wear long golf pants. I forget golf is the King’s sport that teaches you high brow life things like self awareness and humility and determination and forgiveness and ego checking while also imparting the behaviors of gentleman life. Boy do I have a long way to go but where there’s a will there’s a way.
Shazzamo . Ill keep doing what I’m doing even in my middle-aged ness . This dog still has some learning left in him. (Pls excuse typos I’m on my cell)

Happy Saturday!

Golf is about human fulfillment – 1st Day

My first day of golf instruction for 2015. It was all about balance and getting my right knee to behave on time and finishing and holding my pose facing the target. And I guess I’m really tense in my shoulders. I actually ended with a beauty for 110 yard with my nine iron after multiple humbling skulls. Cest la vie. I’m on my way. And I like this coach. Smart and funny guy. And he speaks to my thinking as well as the sport. I’m off to get some club head tape and another paper journal.

It’s time for golfers (or the media) to come clean…

good recap – inquiring minds want to know for sure as i do but sometimes you wonder if its all about getting a higher price for commercial sports news advertising rates, right?

Let's Talk Golf...

Is Robert Allenby telling the truth (does he even remember?) Is there something he wants to hide? And why is the media trying to stir up a scandal? He isn’t the only golfer to have truth issues…

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David Leadbetter – Tips on Golf & Golf Instruction

Continuing with my self-indulgence of documenting my “retro-notes” from my golf and observations notebook from last year – below are some Leadbetter notes that I gleaned once again by watching TV.  I’m not doing this just for grins.  I know I wrote these down because I either found the points interesting or thought provoking but also because I thought they’d be worth remembering as I sought to take my practice regimen seriously.  Of course, at the time – for a variety of reasons including money, time commitment and maybe even a belief that sheer will and desire could help me improve my game along with a little help from TV programs and magazines – I was not willing to entertain formal golf instruction.  That changed towards the end of the year and maybe one day I look back and think of 2014 as a pivotal year in my golfing golfiness apprenticeship journey.

Dave Leadbetter – On Golf Instruction In General

1. First –  analysis has improved – thanks to pervasive video-access and smartphone apps and things like, Trackman.
2. Second – equipment is far more precise and varied to the point that each player can get what fits him/her exactly
3. Third – physical readiness is important (hmm – I guess way more so than just a few decades ago? – golfers sure seem hecka way more athletic these days AND bigger, as in, taller -)
4. Fourth – the common uncommon observation – equipment, technique, physical, mental and nutritional aspects are all important.
5. Tangent – Calvin Peete – a golfer worth looking up and reading about
6. The importance of glutes in your swing?  They let you shorten your backswing.
7. On the backswing – Shorten it. (self note: hmmm really?).  Importance of arms and body to sync.  The swing of the club and the body rotation must sync. (self note:– I guess what he’s saying is it’s better to have a shorter swing and keep everything in sync than it is to try and over-extend the backswing in order to improve something like power.)
8. On the biggest mistakes by Amateurs

• The grip.  Check it.  Grip with your fingers (NOT your palms).
• Keep club head outside the hands – for example like Jim Furyk, Jack Nicklaus or Calvin Peete all of whom kept the club head outside.  (note: he seemed to suggest this is contrary to more classic training methods).
• Pursue a simple back swing – just stand the shaft up.

The French Connection – Snapshots of a Golf Poster

While in the fair city of Paris I kept scouring around for anything golf related since I obviously couldn’t bail on the family to go find a local golf course and practice a bit.  One of these days – but this was not one of them.  So we’re walking along the Seine checking out the street vendors with all their kitch chotskey stuff, paintings, photos and interestingly enough old poster replicas of classic rock bands like the Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendricks and the Beatles and then I stumbled onto 2 posters that I just had to buy.  They had depictions of golfers from back in the day with funny little captions.

• Poorly taken snapshots of which are below for your gandering pleasure.

The Bad Lie

Tee Shot & Bunker Shot

Mysteries of the Bunker

Daily Diary Retro-Notes No7 Feb 2014 – Jarrod Lyle Inspirational Story

Around this time last year this is what I have jotted down in my golf notes and observations book. Hmmm.  Guess I was watching a lot of TV.

From Feb-ish 2014.

1. An Inspiring Golf Story, Jarrod Lyle (from the Golf channel) – Lukemia golfer.
Like this story. Provides a good perspective as a husband, a father and a survivor and lover of golf.
He’s suppose to be making a comeback in late (Oct) 2015 – keep a look out for him

(Epilogue 02/2015 note: I haven’t heard of him in the news or anything…. So I Binged around and found that he made the cut at the Fry’s Open this past fall 2014 here in Napa, CA just a little while north of San Jose. He’s an Australian golfer who was diagnosed with cancer in 2012 – something hard to manage as a family I know – and didn’t know if he could ever return to the Tour – very inspiring.).

Epilogue note#2: Also – if you’re ever in San Jose, Frye’s is a great electronic-gamer-everything computers-superstore – lots of stuff you could never really find in one place and an IT tech-geek’s haven with other consumerables thrown in.  Kind of a rare innovation-meets-consumer-electronics type of a place – purely FYI.

2. Hopkins Golf – I like this concept of a small manufacturer selling custom Tour-level wedges direct. This business model makes sense. And I imagine the product should be good just because the manufacturer is not trying to be all things to all people and has a specific target niche.  Epilogue note #3:  Plus – it’d be nice to get custom wedges one of these days when I’m kickin’ Johnny Walker’s or Matt Kuchar’s butt – hahah!! (Look into this – note to self.)  https://hopkinsgolf.com/page/index
3. The Morning Drive has a new book club (self note: worth checking out, I’m not a big book reader but I can read a ton of golf magazines but maybe a good golf book might change my reading habits).  One recommended book is titled “Arnie, Seve and a Fleck of Golf History: Heroes, Underdogs, Courses and Champions”  Hmmph.

How to get the most out of your golf lessons – part four

Awesome. I got some lessons for the new year after reading from you and others and now I will prepare accordingly . Thankfully, I got fitted for some good used improvement clubs even though I’m missing a driver and SW. All points are well taken. Thanks!

golfhabits

“I wish to emphasize that there are no secrets to golf.” – Ernest Jones

By Ian Hardie

In the first three posts of this series – How to get the most out of your golf lessons, How to get the most out of your golf lessons – part two and How to get the most out of your golf lessons – part three

I outlined the most effective things that golfers have done over the years before they even book their lessons – which seem to help them to get the most out of the time we spend together working on improving their golf during the lesson

As you may remember they were:

1. To make the decision to improve, solve the problem or learn as much as possible
2. To make the decision to set aside some time over the next few days or weeks afterwards to actually implement what…

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