The Golf Thread 2009

[riverc0il]

Scramble today at Owl's Nest in Campton, NH. Very difficult course with a lot of dog legs, elevation changes, OOB indents, water hazards, etc. Our team was made up of all 100+ golfers without a ringer but we held our own getting it onto the green for a par putt more times than not (though we rarely made that par putt!).

I swung exceptionally well considering that was only my second game of the year and only fourth time swinging the clubs. Focused on my take away and not trying to rip the downswing. Still don't have anything but the irons working well, so I generally only hit with my irons.

Clocked the piss out of the ball a few times including a 180-190 tee shot with my 6I which is normally my 160 yard club. Just WOW. o: Effortless swing, ball went 100% perfectly straight without my normal fade/slice, just total money. Split the fairway for a perfect follow up shot onto the green and that would be the only hole we made par on. Had another great tee shot with similar ball flight and feeling but it landed in the sand. Those two shots made my day. Most people probably would have thought I was daft for screaming out a WhooHOOOOOO!!!! on a 180-190 drive off the tee :lol:

Feel SO much better today with my irons. I gotta just play irons off the tee from now on... it is so hard to get over that mental hurdle of not reaching for a longer club but a 6I straight beats a sliced 3H or 3W every time.

 

[riverc0il]

So I have read a TON of golf books this past year. Currently working on Joe Dante's "Four Magic Moves". Page 15-17 had an eye opening revelation when Dante tries to dispel generally accepted golf gospel that is in fact not true. This section was dispeling that "Turn the hips to the left" is at best an incomplete statement of advice. Dante does an amazing job of describing the lateral hip move that other authors have referred to as the "bump" which I never really understood what they were talking about... this whole "bump" thing simply alluded me. So I get up and try starting the downswing with a lateral move of the hips instead of hip rotation and it just feels RIGHT. Like WOW. I want to hit some more balls right now to try this out!! The most interesting aspect of this change is that the shoulders and arms turn themselves in a sense with this lateral bump whereas before I felt like I was making a huge initiation of the turn and swing, and I know standard technique is that you shouldn't be forcing the arms like that. Its like getting a missing piece of information at long last.

 

[drjeff]

So I have read a TON of golf books this past year. Currently working on Joe Dante's "Four Magic Moves". Page 15-17 had an eye opening revelation when Dante tries to dispel generally accepted golf gospel that is in fact not true. This section was dispeling that "Turn the hips to the left" is at best an incomplete statement of advice. Dante does an amazing job of describing the lateral hip move that other authors have referred to as the "bump" which I never really understood what they were talking about... this whole "bump" thing simply alluded me. So I get up and try starting the downswing with a lateral move of the hips instead of hip rotation and it just feels RIGHT. Like WOW. I want to hit some more balls right now to try this out!! The most interesting aspect of this change is that the shoulders and arms turn themselves in a sense with this lateral bump whereas before I felt like I was making a huge initiation of the turn and swing, and I know standard technique is that you shouldn't be forcing the arms like that. Its like getting a missing piece of information at long last.

Run with it Riv, if how it was described in the book makes sense to you and gets you thinking in a way that the swing makes sense, go with it! Get to the range and get some muscle memory going as soon as possible, since with the golf swing, I've always been a HUGE proponent of the less things you think about (meaning its mostly second nature for you), the better you're game will be. For me atleast, the worst thing is when I go into a swing trying to simultaneosuly think about hips, back, shoulders, arms, head position, grip pressure

Nowadays, all I'm thinking about swing wise (once I've committed to my club selection/target line) is keeping my belt and shoulders on a plane parallel to the ground throughout my swing. If I'm doing that, then I'm usually getting a good weight shift and finishing with my weight on my left side (where it should be for a righty like myself)

 

[drjeff]

Scramble today at Owl's Nest in Campton, NH. Very difficult course with a lot of dog legs, elevation changes, OOB indents, water hazards, etc. Our team was made up of all 100+ golfers without a ringer but we held our own getting it onto the green for a par putt more times than not (though we rarely made that par putt!).

I swung exceptionally well considering that was only my second game of the year and only fourth time swinging the clubs. Focused on my take away and not trying to rip the downswing. Still don't have anything but the irons working well, so I generally only hit with my irons.

Clocked the piss out of the ball a few times including a 180-190 tee shot with my 6I which is normally my 160 yard club. Just WOW. o: Effortless swing, ball went 100% perfectly straight without my normal fade/slice, just total money. Split the fairway for a perfect follow up shot onto the green and that would be the only hole we made par on. Had another great tee shot with similar ball flight and feeling but it landed in the sand. Those two shots made my day. Most people probably would have thought I was daft for screaming out a WhooHOOOOOO!!!! on a 180-190 drive off the tee :lol:

Feel SO much better today with my irons. I gotta just play irons off the tee from now on... it is so hard to get over that mental hurdle of not reaching for a longer club but a 6I straight beats a sliced 3H or 3W every time.

Sounds like you experienced the pure joy of a flushed, sweet spot shot there! And IMHO, in a way it's pretty darned close to that feeling one gets when floating effortlessly through DEEP powder - i.e. about as good a feeling one can get with their clothes on

 

[riverc0il]

Sounds like you experienced the pure joy of a flushed, sweet spot shot there! And IMHO, in a way it's pretty darned close to that feeling one gets when floating effortlessly through DEEP powder - i.e. about as good a feeling one can get with their clothes on

That's crazy talk right there. It felt good but it didn't feel that good! :razz:

 

[Warp Daddy]

I find clearing your mind while playing and only focusing on just one thing when addressing any shot works BEST for me . The KISS Method

 

[Trekchick]

Have any of you heard about the Sports Diamond that Weems has in his Brilliant Skiing Everyday book?

He talks about how we use all the corners of the diamond for different parts of skiing, life and other sports.
The corners of the diamond are:
Power = gear, technique, body,
Purpose = I want to get from here to there and make an arc(or I want the ball to go in that direction with this loft)
Will = the gumption to get out there and do the tough stuff
Touch = when you have to let it all go and just feel it


I have used this a lot in my golf game this year and have forced myself to forget about the power corner, which is where I get hung up. I'll actually say to myself, as I approach the ball, "go to the touch corner and enjoy it"

I've also been walking the course a lot and that has given me a whole new feel of the game, and has encouraged me to keep it straight(who wants to go looking for a ball when you don't have a cart to go on the hunt.)

My balls have been straighter and cleaner, but they lost distance.

 

[Warp Daddy]

Have any of you heard about the Sports Diamond that Weems has in his Brilliant Skiing Everyday book?


I've also been walking the course a lot and that has given me a whole new feel of the game, and has encouraged me to keep it straight(who wants to go looking for a ball when you don't have a cart to go on the hunt.)

My balls have been straighter and cleaner, but they lost distance.

Yep great exercise and you get teh FEEL for teh place . Distance is fine but accuracy is better IMO and apparantly your scores are coming down too

So keep playing and as my friend and one great golfer "Jaime" an Ecaudorian says to me whenever i experience slippage and starting thinking too damn much " JOOST heet de Ball Warpie"

 

[riverc0il]

Run with it Riv, if how it was described in the book makes sense to you and gets you thinking in a way that the swing makes sense, go with it! Get to the range and get some muscle memory going as soon as possible, since with the golf swing, I've always been a HUGE proponent of the less things you think about (meaning its mostly second nature for you), the better you're game will be.

Recently, I have been killing myself with paralysis by analysis. Got to the range today and was knocking the piss out of my 9I. Consistency was WAY up and I honked a few balls +10-20 yards beyond my average and +30 on one really smooth hit.

Was having a hard time going slow with my balls. It felt so good I kept cranking them. So it didn't take long for my back to wear out, especially after having hit over a hundred balls yesterday while playing. So I started hitting some bad shots after the first 1/3 or so that I was clocking. Really felt good to have worked out that part of my swing but now I need a lot of reps to "own" it. The body knew when it felt right and when it felt wrong... but it was not automatic and I was over doing the move I incorporated sometimes which was getting my off balance.

The best thing was I started topping the ball! LOL. I have always been a digger. So that was interesting having to work that one out... which didn't take long. Just had to adjust a former compensation.

Woods still were not working and I was getting back into my old habit of pushing the ball (both straight and with a slight fade, but the push was the main issue). Something weird is happening with my shoulders. If I can get that resolved, I think I'll have my swing issues down to somewhat tolerable inconsistency rather than not knowing where any given shot will go.

 

[riverc0il]

Oh jeez, there was another interesting aspect to this move I incorporated... I had to REALLY work on not over swinging. That lateral bump of the hips got my body turning WAY too fast if I even tried to "swing" the club instead of letting the swing happen by the motion of my body. I took some BIG whiffs due to falling into old habits of trying to swing with my arms while also incorporating the body. Amazing how much power can be generated from such a simple move!

 

[riverc0il]

Back at the range today. WOW. What a difference. Between starting the swing with a lateral hip move and getting some tips on grip and club face angle during the backswing (http://www.youtube.com/user/clubfacegolf), I was drawing my low irons. Draws!!! More consistency too with slightly more distance. And DRAWS! That only worked for LW-7I... once I got to my 6I, I started having trouble. But I fixed that by disconnecting the head from the shaft on my 6I and giving up on that club. Oops! Now I HAVE to buy that new set I was looking at as my original set of irons only has 9-7 now. Oops...

I think my back was just getting tired with the 6I. Couldn't get the hybrids to go either. Just tired from hitting over 70 balls without much rest in between. The trigger for me was really feeling the "connection" between the left arm/shoulder and chest. It created a great frame of reference and I felt like I was in great position to "bump" the swing into motion. Just wow. Now I just need to figure out the hybrids and woods and perhaps the driver, LOL.

 

[campgottagopee]

2009 Club Championship in the books-----Double J is our repeat champ followed by Dr. Vodka and "Gut" who both lost on the second playoff hole to a fantasic bird. Yours truly cam in solo second in the first flight w/ scores of 79/77. I'm happy with my play for the weekend, yes it would've been nice to play in the Championship flight but needed my 77 the first day to qualify. Still came in the top 8 overall which qualifies my for the "Inner Club" which I haven't made in 2 years so I'm STOKED for that.

Next up---string of pro-ams!!!!!

How was your weekend golf???

 

[Warp Daddy]

2010 Club Championship in the books-----Double J is our repeat champ followed by Dr. Vodka and "Gut" who both lost on the second playoff hole to a fantasic bird. Yours truly cam in solo second in the first flight w/ scores of 79/77. I'm happy with my play for the weekend, yes it would've been nice to play in the Championship flight but needed my 77 the first day to qualify. Still came in the top 8 overall which qualifies my for the "Inner Club" which I haven't made in 2 years so I'm STOKED for that.

Next up---string of pro-ams!!!!!

How was your weekend golf???

Campster that's farking awesome my man !!! you should be stoked . I played thurs, fri and today . 86 ,88 and todays 89 ( 41/48) . Today i was skitzo front nine was an ok for me 41 and as 35 for first damn 8 holes back nine i imploded my last 10 holes were FUGLy

And to make matters worse my lower back is in need of an ADJUSTMENT , ususally get one once a year from my ace chiropracter a trim fantastic looking woman who my ski and golf buddies always say " She can squeeze my buns anytime" -

 

[drjeff]

2010 Club Championship in the books-----Double J is our repeat champ followed by Dr. Vodka and "Gut" who both lost on the second playoff hole to a fantasic bird. Yours truly cam in solo second in the first flight w/ scores of 79/77. I'm happy with my play for the weekend, yes it would've been nice to play in the Championship flight but needed my 77 the first day to qualify. Still came in the top 8 overall which qualifies my for the "Inner Club" which I haven't made in 2 years so I'm STOKED for that.

Next up---string of pro-ams!!!!!

How was your weekend golf???

Solid play there Camp!

Played Monday, and I was just a smidge off with my swing plane for my irons Consistantly hitting them a touch heavy, and you'd think that after a couple of swings in a row with a big 'ol hunk of turf flying up at impact that I might have done something like choke up on the club just a touch Ended up with an 83 and got a whole bunch of practice at the pitch from 10 yards short of the green shots

Actually though felt nice to be playing golf in my neck of the woods when it actually felt like summer out!

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

I played wednesday with my dad. It was at a course here in virginia that has a 800 yard par six. I played pretty shitty but had a few pars. We were matched up with random golfers who were really annoying. They talked alot and spent way to long searching for lost balls. My enthusiasm for golf is no longer there and i dont see myself playing much in the future.

 

[riverc0il]

Finally, sunshine and no rain! Up here in NH, I don't even remember the last day it was sunny all day and no rain. Waited for the sun to go do and hit up the local par 3 for $10. Sun was a factor on some holes.

I played very well at times and extremely poorly at others. Normally, my putting saves me but not today. I hit 1/3 greens off the tee. But I three putted more often than I care to admit. Despite scoring a NINE on hole two after hitting out of the woods and four putting, I still managed to walk away with a 45 out of 27 par. Had I parred that 2nd hole instead of hitting into the woods and four putting, I would have just missed a boogie golf round. Amazing what a single blow up hole can do to your game.

Lots of victories today. My first tee shot was a three wood on a 210 yard par 3 and I hooked it WAAAAAY left into the woods. Say WHAT? Nice. Third hole I put it perfectly within 10 feet of the hole. Fourth hole, I launched my 5H as far as I have ever hit it. *Swing* *Swosh* "HOLY SHIT!" WOW! Didn't find that ball but man did I ever crunch it. Hole five, seven feet from the pin off the tee, I thought I had a hole in one. Both of the last holes, I teed off and landed in the fringe and three putted.

Amazing how well my iron game is coming together. Got the bump down and now I am focusing on the backswing... not going back as far (instead of "KILL IT!!!!") and focusing on a flat left hand wrist at the end of my back swing. And really focusing on the left arm/shoulder connection. All these things have really helped me get more inside out on my swing path, to the point that I am starting to draw a lot of my shots. Really cool to see a draw... though it is an unfortunate shot when I set up expecting a fade/slice :lol:

 

[Warp Daddy]

Really bizzarro round today

We cut it short after 9 holes due to frakin monsoon !!

I was on fire thru first 7 holes even chipped one in from 35 yds with my choked PW and was even par thru 7 . Then i got stung on the ear lobe by a small bee on the 8th fairway . It swelled up like a friggin UBANGI , itched like hell and to add insult to injury i double bogied the last 2 holes so ended up 9 at +4

Then the monsoon hit and it was time to Bolt to dodge the electrical show that was on the way about a mile off . Mt ear lobe is still swollen but down considerably after taking some benedril

 

[drjeff]

Really bizzarro round today

We cut it short after 9 holes due to frakin monsoon !!

I was on fire thru first 7 holes even chipped one in from 35 yds with my choked PW and was even par thru 7 . Then i got stung on the ear lobe by a small bee on the 8th fairway . It swelled up like a friggin UBANGI , itched like hell and to add insult to injury i double bogied the last 2 holes so ended up 9 at +4

Then the monsoon hit and it was time to Bolt to dodge the electrical show that was on the way about a mile off . Mt ear lobe is still swollen but down considerably after taking some benedril

Sounds like a round of BIZZARRO GOLF there Warp! Hope the ear's better!

Played pretty well today, except for the 2 balls that I lost out in the middle of the right rough NOT near any trees/sand/junk In spite of 3 doubles (those 2 random lost balls + a 75 yard long bunker on the 4th hole of my course that I'd prefer NOT to think about ) shot 76 with all the "bad" on the front nine with a 42 and then lit it up for a -2 34 on the back! I was just hitting my approaches to the proper place and the FINALLY there was some consistant life in my putter today!

I figure after how I played the back 9 today that I'm in for some abuse from the golf gods tommorrow Then I'll put the sticks in the travel bag and bring 'em down to Florida for 3 rounds with my Dad the end of the week at his course which has 4 holes on it that even after playing them about 25 times I still haven't figured out the clubs to use off the tee to make the hole feel somewhat comfortable Oh well, I'll just be doing my part to help the golf ball industry The worst thing though will be after finally getting the putter going on some nice smooth, quick bent grass greens here in CT, I'm going to likely get used and abused by some SLOW overseeded, heavily water Florida Bermuda grass greens this weekend :blink:

 

[Warp Daddy]

Sounds like your game is ON TARGET doc !! a minus 2 is outstanding and of course a 76 on any course is amazing . Glad u got the ugly stick working too .. Have fun in Fla. Be sure take some $$$ off 'dem ole Gators !

Thanks for asking BTW, my ear lobe is almost back to normal size now still looks swollen but no longer like a side show freak

 

[campgottagopee]

Anyone going to Turning Stone to watch Tiger??? Few of us heading up to check it out. Only 3000 ticket to be sold so should be great chance to "get close" to the world's #1

Check it out http://www.turningstone.com/resortnews/foundationchallenge/index.php

Warp, not far from you---real close for me :beer: