A Program for the Ungifted

I am not athletically gifted. Anyone who has known me and spent time with me athletically knows that although I do have an aptitude for activity, I was not born with natural athletic ability. That is probably why I excelled the most in my high school years at cross country and track, sports where perseverance can generally (but not completely) make up for lack of natural ability.

I believe golf is in the same category, some hard work and the right training can make up for lack of talent. There could probably be a bibliography for this post, including Tiger Woods' How I play Golf, Golf For Dummies - 2nd Edition (still on loan from Aaron), and a variety of websites including fitforgolfusa.com, all of which contributed to my next thoughts.

From what I can gather, there are four areas that can be addressed in the off season to help anyones golf game:

1. Balance
2. Flexibility
3. Posture
4. Strength

The majority of the exercises I found are structured such that all golfers can be participants. In other words, my grandmother could probably do most of them. Therefore, keeping in mind I am also training for a triathlon in the spring and my recent fascination with core strength and flexibility, I have weeded through dozens of exercises and stretches to come up with an off season improvement program. I will not clutter this post with the details but it is available at this link along with some instructions for those that are interested.

What I have found that may be of immediate interest is that although my balance, flexibility and strength seem to be OK, my posture is terrible. Oddly, I am excited at this revelation and have included a number of stretches and exercises geared toward fixing it. Tiger Woods swears by physical fitness in improving a golf game. Let's hope he's right. It can't hurt right?

Just Kidding

I had the opportunity to take the last two days off from work. Today was exceptionally nice, so for the first time, I played golf alone. It was a mix of boring and tranquil. Either way, although I didn't post the best score of the year, I am much more satisfied with a 9-hole score of 53 than my 18 hole score at Perry Park (see below). Ironically, my handicap went up. Bring on next year!

Not Exactly the Finish I Envisioned

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to once again play my #9 all time course, Perry Park. The pictures I have posted don't do justice to how beautiful the course is. It would probably be ranked higher on my list if it wasn't so disagreeable to my attempts at unembarrassing golf. I was excited, really excited to play. I had been thwarted more than once in the preceding weeks to play a full round at a nice course. Our tee time was at 12:15. We arrived at 12:20. No time for warmups. No time for testing the greens. The only reason we were able to tee off at all was due to our friend who was a member of the club and frequented the course. We arrived at the tee box only seconds before the group scheduled to tee off behind us. Amazingly and despite our best efforts this group of two senior gentleman and two senior ladies who couldn't get the ball more than 5 feet off the ground were on our heels all day. We were even chastened once by the course attendant. Hardly ideal playing conditions on a fantastic autumn afternoon on a spectacular course.


It's probably already apparent that I didn't play well. I was feeling good with the last 9 holes I played, I scored a 49. I was fully prepared to finally break 100 and have a fairy tale ending to my first season........ Not even close. In fact, I played so poorly I contemplated chalking it up as a freak of nature, never to be spoken of again. Not entirely intentional, I left the scorecard on my desk at home until Stephanie finally threw it away as the trash it was. "Unfortunately" this happened before I could record the stats. : ) But to improve, failures need to be recognized. So my current handicap reflects my 118 score that frustrating day. The nice thing however is that a handicap only uses the 10 best scores of the last 20 rounds in the calculation. And so ended my first season with a 25.8 handicap. Not bad considering my estimated handicap at the beginning of the season was 35.

Although my clubs are packed away in the garage for the winter, I have several posts in mind for the coming weeks and months including a review of a great new golf tips book I found, how I was nearly gored by a buck at Perry Park and a few things I learned about chipping, not to mention my goals and strategies for next year...

A new Top 10

Perhaps it was the Autumn air or maybe the nostalgia of being on the course rather than in the office for the first time in months. Probably it was a combination of the two together with one of the most satisfying 9 holes this year. I finally played a real 18 last week at an unfamiliar course. The Meadows in Littleton, CO is a municipal course. But located just short of the foothills of the mighty Rocky Mountains, the course offers pretty good views. What makes it even better is the course doesn't feel like a municipal course. Rarely are fairways adjacent to one another providing the great contrast of a well manicured course with a rough terrain. Another plus were the huge fairways and few trees. But don't be fooled, the course isn't a pushover. Several dramatic elevation changes and severe doglegs make you think about every shot. The greens were a little sandy and fast, but could hardly detract from the rest of the course.


I made sure to get there a little early, eager to shake off the rust. I hit a small bucket and practiced some newly discovered chipping tips at the practice green. But alas, it just wasn't meant to be on the front 9. Although I hit 3 fairways, I had no greens in regulation and four 3-putts. Hardly the way I wanted to start things off, a 55 at the turn.


But with a renewed determination, the course was much friendlier on the back. On the 10th, I was in the rough the entire length of the hole but still managed to be putting for par. A bogey put me in good spirits. The 11th and 12th holes were both made in regulation with a bogey and par. But after a disappointing 7 on the 13th, I came to the 357, par 4 14th. A perfect drive left me 110 yards out and in perfect position. A nine iron approach put me within 10 feet of the cup and I was feeling good. Although I missed the birdie putt, the par left me feeling like I was actually improving. The rest of the back wasn't quite as spectacular but I did finish with a satisfying 49.

So the Meadows Golf Club gets added as my #10 course. I couldn't in good faith bump Perry Park off the list, so #9 Oak Creek in Irvine, an overpriced course that borders an active railroad, gets bumped. Here's to Autumn golf!

Interferences

I seemed to have broken the golden rule of keeping a good blog, that is making regular posts. So to anyone who actually finds this post even if it is 6 months from now, thank you for your loyalty. I really haven't played golf since the end of August, or nearly a month. September is prime golfing weather in Colorado and taking a full month off at the end of the summer is hardly a way to improve at golf. My excuse has led me to once again ponder the relevance of my quest and to add a little caveat to the timing of my goal to become a 5 handicap golfer. My job responsibilities changed about a month ago which necessitated long hours at the office. I certainly could have played and practiced golf during this time, but it would have been at the great expense of time with my family. My original philosophy remains that after all is said and done, golf is nothing more than a hobby and when circumstances involving my family or employment conflict, golf will always take a back seat. So, I have fallen back just a little, but am very close the end of the tunnel with long days at the office. I plan on playing a few more rounds before the snow falls and one more at Christmas in Arizona, hopefully all full 18 hole rounds. My focus is still chipping and pitching with the goal to get closer to a 2.0 average chip/putt per hole.

Out again

Meaning, I have finally gotten out to play again. It has been a most unexpectedly hectic summer, and doesn't show real signs of letting up until the middle of September. But I was able to squeeze in 9 holes this morning. My focus (little as it may be) has been on chipping. I found a great book that I will likely refer to again in the future called "When Bad Things Happen to Bad Golfers" It has great advise for hackers everywhere. One tidbit of information I found helpful was for chipping. Apparently, I have gotten into the bad habit of swaying my body when I chip, a big no-no. By making sure that I have a good amount of weight on my left foot, I have improved my chipping game significantly. There is still work to be done to get my chip/putt average down to 2.0, but a help nonetheless. My plan for the rest of the year is probably one or two more 9 holes rounds, two 18 hole rounds and a final 18 holes at Christmas when we visit Stephanie's folks. I REALLY want to get rid of the ugly (albeit only) 18 hole score for 2008. Any left over funds I will likely spend on a new pitching wedge. Look for another post mid September (assuming everyone hasn't given up on me already). Cheers

Work and Ribs

It has been a while since my last post. I haven't given up on my blog or quest. In fact, I have taken on a new position at work that has demanded more of my time and have had a slightly embarrassing mountain biking accident which cracked a few ribs. I should be healed enough and settled enough at work to start playing again next week. Of course nothing could stop me from climbing a mountain with my brother, Spencer last weekend. (Pictures are on top of Mt. Grays 14,279')

The Keys of Putting

I believe I've reached my first milestone. In the last several rounds I have very few 3 putts and for every 3-putt it seems I have at least one 1-putt. So here it is, my keys of putting. Next on my list is chipping (which is far worse than putting). Enjoy

Keys of Putting

1. The first key is to get to the course early enough to spend a few minutes (3-5 minutes is plenty) on the putting green. Greens vary so much, it is immensely helpful to determine BEFORE the first hole whether the greens are playing slow, fast, wet, hard, etc. This also helps to "remember" how to putt strait.

2. I have found that there are two main tenants of quality putting.... seeing and then hitting. For improving at putting I recommend being sure you are hitting correctly. The best way to test this is to hit the putting green at a driving range, find a flat putt and practice putting, starting at 3 feet and progressively moving back to 10 feet. Nine times out of ten, you should sink the putt, if not, the putter is not hitting the ball squarely creating a mishit. I found this was easily corrected by practicing my putting stroke against a wall, being sure my putter was the same distance from the wall from back swing to follow through.

3. Once I was confident I was hitting the ball squarely, I could focus on hitting the correct distance. I did find that a correct putting stroke needs the same distance from back swing to follow through, meaning it should be a true pendulum swing. Many of my missed putts were a result of either accelerating or decelerating through the swing creating a greater or shorter distance in the follow through in comparison to my back swing. This can also be practiced and corrected on the putting green.

4. The fourth key is reading the greens correctly. The best way I have found to do this is to get different perspectives. Depending on time and pace of play, I will try to get three perspectives on my putt, from behind my ball, from the middle and from the other side of the cup. I confirm in my mind which way the green is sloping and how much break there is.

5. Once I have read the green I will pick a target, which usually isn't the cup. For instance if I have read the green to be sloping uphill and breaking to the right, I will pick a target on the green above the cup and to the left and line up to hit that spot.

6. Now its time to hit the ball. I will take two practice swings, the first while looking at my target, judging how hard I need to hit the ball. The second is looking at my swing making sure I am swinging the same distance from back swing to follow through. Then I step up and hit the ball, trying to make it as smooth a hit as possible.

I know this sounds like a lot. And nobody likes a golfer who takes way to much time on the course. But it really isn't. While you are waiting for others to hit their putts, take a look at the 3 perspectives. I can't promise these keys will work for everyone, but it has certainly worked for me. And notice, I have taken about 10 strokes off my handicap as a result. Bring on the wedges!

A commercial farce

"it's gotta be the shoe" can't apply in golf. It just can't. How much of a difference does the shoe make in a round of golf? I'm suggesting it has no affect at all. At the beginning of the season I noticed my feet hurting after wearing my golf shoes for a round of golf. Since then I have worn my running shoes without any incidents of sore feet. And I have no reason to believe my game has suffered even the slightest. Even early in the morning when the shoe retailer will tell you golf shoes are needed the most, I have not noticed any slipping or any other reason to pay $60 to $200 for golf shoes. Perhaps professionals or "scratch" golfers would notice a difference, but for someone at my level, golf shoes are a waste of money and comfort. What an amazing marketing campaign though. To have the majority of the amateur golfers in the world sold into thinking it is a necessary part of the game. Kudos for that.

On another topic, I have continued to improve my putting game. I am nearing my goal of a 2.0 putting average. In fact I have only one 3 putt in the last 2 rounds of golf. I believe I may have my first real break through in bettering my game and becoming a more consistent golfer. But I don't want to jump the gun, I am going to wait a few more rounds before posting my findings.

More Bitter Than Sweet

I played my first 18 yesterday. The plan was actually to play an early 9 holes, but circumstances allowed us to extend it to a full 18 holes. The first two holes were deceivingly good to me, but I should have noticed the signs of things to come. The first hole, a 510 yard par 5, I was within 10 yards of the green in 2 shots. After a two chip and two putt, I bogeyed the hole. The next hole was a long par four, again close to the green after two shots, and again a two chip and two putt. The rest of the front nine was abysmal, easily my worst 9 hole score of the year at 60. The back nine was a little better, at 51 for a slightly embarrassing 111 score. The good news? I did drop my putting average, which really is my goal right now. My statistics, which are updated to the right, are telling. The glaring weakness in my game is approaching the green. But I am still going to stay focused on my short game with the ultimate goal of bringing my putting average below 2.00. Stinkin' wedges.

Just Not in the Cards

Golf took a backseat the last couple of weeks to make way for a rare vacation without the kids. Stephanie and I took a week off and went to Costa Rica. So of course, the weeks before were busy with preparations and long hours at the office. For a more detailed synopsis of the trip you will have to refer to Stephanie's blog (check for an update in a few days). I diligently tried to find a way to play golf while I was down there, but to no avail. There were a few obstacles, the most formative being the serious lack of golf courses in Costa Rica. I really shouldn't have been so surprised. Golf truly is a luxurious hobby and I was humbled at how much we have in the United States compared to less fortunate countries. A thought crossed my mind once or twice of how I could play golf when there is so much poverty and those without. But it didn't affect me so much as to give up the game and donate the money to a Costa Rican charity, just a thought of gratitude I suppose for how much we really have in this country. Maybe I'm not sensitive or mature enough to make a serious change, and right now I am OK with that.

The other formative challenge was that the few courses we would be passing by or near were just outright expensive. The only real option I had to play would have cost nearly $250 with club rentals, cart, a riders fee for Stephanie, and transportation to and from the course. I probably could have rationalized taking half of that from the golf budget and half from the vacation budget, but I just couldn't do it. We saw some lava and went surfing instead. But I am rested and ready for a great season. Tune in for more frequent entries as I hope to play a little more in the coming weeks.

Not a bad start

I finally played my first 9 holes this morning. It was a beautiful morning in Colorado. My only qualm outside of my inconsistent putting was the greens were being aerated, meaning the greens were very bumpy and sandy, so I would like to think I would have putt better on a nicer surface. Here is the number of putts for each hole (3, 4, 2, 3, 3, 1, 2, 3, 2). A lot of 3 putts in there. I also tried a new putting grip on the first 4 holes, a reverse putting grip that was supposed to reduce the amount of mishits. I hated it, so went back to my old grip. Overall, the day was pretty good though, I hit 4 fairways off the tee and had three greens in regulation and already had my first birdie of the year! A 312 yard uphill par 4. I'll take it. The new scoring system I am using (www.freegolfinfo.com) tracks my stats but won't give me a handicap until I have ten rounds of golf in. So I also entered my score into the yahoo golf handicap tracker which had scores dating back to my time in California. By multiplying my score by 2 to get an 18 hole equivalent, my handicap stands at 26.5 according to yahoo. I could have eliminated 6 strokes with better putting (or 12 strokes for 18 holes!)

First Things First

Now that the weather is encouraging and the grass green at the local courses, I have to ask myself, what first? There are so many aspects of the game I need to improve upon, and I know I can't do it all at once. Tiger Woods suggests improving from the green backwards and I have seen some statistics showing that more than half of golf strokes in a round are using the putter. I realize that eventually I am going to need some lessons to correct flaws in my swing. But that will have to wait for now, I am going to focus on my putting. After a little research I have broken putting down to four very basic skills:

1. See the line
2. See the distance
3. Hit the line
4. Hit the distance

Sounds easy doesn't it? But you all know how frustrating a 3 putt can be. So to begin the season (which I hope will be this week) I will research some drills to improve each of these skills for the goal of significantly decreasing the number of 3 putts. I am also toying with the idea of a new putter... not sure if its worth the money yet.

False Start

About once a month I have to travel for a day or two for business. The locations vary from Des Moines to D.C. A few weeks ago, I had the rare opportunity to travel somewhere exotic, Maui. I really tried to find a way to get Stephanie to come with me, but the logistics just wouldn't work. Naturally, one of the first things I thought of was to look up what Maui had to offer for golf. I found that Kapalua, the home of the Mercedes-Benz Championship, the opening tournament of the PGA was on Maui. I would be arriving in Maui on a Monday around 2pm. The fee to play a normal round at Kapalua is $295 or about half of my yearly budget! But they offer a twilight, nine hole rate for $75. It was a rare opportunity, so I made a tee-time for 4:30, knowing it would take an hour to drive there from the airport. Plenty of time right? Not if the airline loses your clubs! By the time I realized my clubs weren't coming out of the baggage carousal, and filling out a claim ticket it was 3:30. The airline offered to pay for rental clubs, but I hadn't even gotten my car yet. As it turns out, Aloha Airlines discontinued just about all of their flights as of this week, so maybe I would have never seen that money. It took 30 minutes to get my car, and by that time, it was just too late. Nuts. I called and canceled my tee time, and the course was kind enough to waive the $25 cancellation fee in light of the circumstances. I had a little extra time after getting my work done while down there, but not enough to get to Kapalua. The airline did get my clubs to me the next day. Thanks a lot.

Daly Exercise?

No I didn't forget the "i". I am not entirely convinced physical fitness is a requirement for a good golf game. If my goal were to improve in any other sport, my first item of business would be to improve my physical fitness. I am not so sure with golf. Take John Daly for example, although wildly inconsistent, he is still a professional golfer...and look at him! John Kruk and Cecil Fielder aside, could this happen in any other sport? Most golf books, including How I Play Golf by Tiger Woods suggests flexibility and physical fitness are important aspects of the game. But what about the Senior PGA? I mean, come on.. these guys are well into retirement and are playing at a level I can only dream of achieving. But maybe these guys are just freaks of nature, or a more politically correct term would be "naturals". I can buy the notion that the golf swing is an athletic motion and the seniors have kept themselves physically fit and flexible. So then maybe John Daly has just been blessed with an uncanny ability to avoid his belly when swinging. How he manages to walk 18 holes without requiring CPR is beyond me. Considering his extremely unhealthy habits off the course, I am inclined to lean toward the freak of nature theory for him. Tiger on the other hand has got it figured out. It is obvious he has natural ability. But so do the other professional golfers. He has taken his game to another level and he claims the building blocks of improvement is physical fitness. Him I will believe. Working out is generally good practice anyway and at the very worst, couldn't hurt my game. Just like my golf game, I am very inconsistent in working out as well. So I'll start with improving the consistency of my workouts. I found a pretty good site that explains how physical fitness can improve a golf swing. I haven't followed the workouts at this site, I believe a simple program that involves a mix of cardio and core/balance strength training is good enough. If anyone really cares, let me know and I'll send you my workout plan.

Putting for Eagle

I have been a casual golfer for about 7 years. The game has put me through some serious ups and downs (more downs really). I take issue with how much it costs to play an entire round, both in time and money. At the end of each season the frustrations of my inconsistent game lead me to vow to either cut back or not play at all in the future. "What a waste of time and money" I say. But every spring I am inevitably drawn back. It could be a number of things that bring me back; friends, being outdoors, or the renewed prospect of playing a little better than last year. My guess is its probably a combination. This year though, my goal is to stop the cycle of frustration. Spending more time or money on the game doesn't make very much sense to me and to be honest there are a lot more important things than golf. But I believe, and which I hope to chronicle in this blog, is that a regular hack like myself can improve to become a respectable golfer if not good, on a modest budget and with minimal time away from the family or other commitments. My goal is to become 5 handicap golfer on $600/year. For those of you that have played with me before, I will give you a few minutes to stop laughing........
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Now that everyone is back with us, I can get down to the nitty gritty. I don't expect this to happen over night. In fact I don't even expect to come close to this for at least 5 years. The $600 will cover all greens fees, equipment, range balls, cart fees, etc., etc. I will play mostly early morning rounds of 9 holes to minimize perceived time at the course. My plan is simple, focus on one aspect of my game at a time, searching for the most inexpensive and effective way to improve, really so I can have more fun on the course. I hope this blog can become a forum for suggestions, keeping in touch, and maybe, just maybe, can provide a little encouragement to other hackers out there who just want to have fun, get better at the game and still have money for lunch.

Some Thoughts on the Game

It's amazing to me to think how popular the game of golf has become. We pay anywhere from $15 to $500 to walk around a nice looking lawn for more than 4 hours trying to put a little ball in a little hole. But let's face it, golf is a lot of fun. I don't know if its the social aspect of the game (how many of you have played alone?), the prospect of bettering our game every time we play, the aesthetic beauty of a well maintained course (few things are more appealing to me than the contrast of a green course to a rough landscape like the mountains, ocean or desert), or maybe in today's media frenzied world of entertainment, its the nostalgia of being outdoors and active. Its probably some combination. But I have 2 problems with golf... time and money. I consider myself a family man and losing 4 or more hours on a Saturday does not sit well with me and more importantly my wife and kids. And again, let's face the facts, golf is expensive. Golfers spend on average about $1,000/year according to NGF! Avid golfers spend on average close to $2,500/year! Both are too much for me, so much so that I have considered on a few occasions just giving up the game completely. But every spring, without fail, I am drawn back. My solution then? That is part of my quest, to keep both time and money down. I really enjoy an early 9 holes of golf. It's cheap and if you tee off at 6 am can be done by 8:30 very easily. There has got to be some kind of balance that allows us hackers to better our game, maybe even get good at the game without spending our kids' college funds and probably more importantly without spending our free time that is also rightfully theirs. That is my quest.

The History of My Game

As anyone who knows me can attest, I have a terrible memory. Not selective like some, just porous, I forget the good with the bad. Having said that, the earliest I remember playing an actual round of golf was as a sophomore in high school in Littleton, CO. I had a good friend who was already into golf, thanks to his dad. I started off hitting golf balls out of his backyard into some "woods". Looking back, this probably wasn't the smartest idea as the "woods" were mearly trees that provided a buffer zone between the backyards, a small canal and then some commercial buildings; and probably not more than 200 yards away from my friends yard, a very busy street. (Broadway for anyone familiar with Littleton) Luckily for the oncoming traffic, we were only using a 7 or 8 iron and rarely got the ball over his fence. I eventually picked up some used clubs at a garage sale and my friend and I would frequent the municipal course at the Littleton Golf and Tennis Club. I can't begin to imagine how many of my tee shots were swallowed by the small lake to the right of the fairway on the first tee. I survived off finding errant range balls and lost golf balls throughout the course.

Not long after getting my first set of clubs I recognized the need for additional practice on my own. My two younger brothers remember me taking them to the local park and having them retrieve my golf balls while I practiced. Ahh the joys of being the older brother. Keep in mind during this tenure of my game, I wasn't even good enough to keep score...let's put it that way.

After high school I left for a year of college and then to serve a mission, all the while my mother was selling my golf clubs at a garage sale. I didn't pick the game up again until I became seriously involved with Stephanie and found out all of her brothers played. After we were married, I picked up my second set of golf clubs at a used sports equipment store. I played off and on at Nelson family gatherings. My move to sunny Tucson, AZ found more opportunities to play with some friends and it is probably here that I really started keeping and paying attention to my scores. I won't mention what they were out of self preservation! I played some great courses here, including the #1 on my all time favorites, Starr Pass.

Moving to California is were it really started. Firstly, the job that took me there was to work as part of the Golf Group at PWC. We valued golf courses for a living. I traveled the country inspecting and analyzing golf courses. The guys I worked with all played, and I played often with them. This is where I really started becoming self conscious of my game as they were all much better than I. In fact this is where I started leaving my driver in my bag and even on one occation teed off with my 7 iron the entire round. (My driver didn't reimurge until only very recently) This was also the time of my first real job and my first real paycheck. I had a little discretionary income to play with, and I did, mostly with my good friend Aaron who would come play an early 9 holes on a Saturday morning with me often. Just prior to moving from California to Colorado I was probably playing my best golf. It was at that time that I recorded my best round, albeit 9 holes, but a 38! (I've never come close since).

In Colorado I have found several friends to play with and which brings me to my current standing in golf. An estimated 35 handicap and other than my wedges, a bag full of used clubs. Not that I am complaining, I like my clubs just fine, you just need to know what I am working with here.