Fresh from my success at Blackmoor Golf Club in the Golf Monthly Forum Race To Hillside (Southern Area qualifier) it was back to Royal Ascot Golf Club and the golfing season is starting to truly get under way. Last weekend was the Jack Jarrett Trophy, a pairs stableford event played off 3/4 handicaps with both scores counting.
My regular partner was away sunning himself in the Gulf so I was forced to seek a new partner in Mark Goodall normally off a very handy 17 handicap but down to 13 for this event. I'd only had the pleasure of his company once before but we seemed to hit it off.
It was a testing day with a gusty wind and cold temperatures. I started erratically with two double bogey's but then began to find some consistency. It was one of those frustrating days. I seemed to miss greens from prime position and putts refused to drop. My partner was suffering the same woes and although we kept grinding away, we never really got sufficient momentum to really challenge.
I managed to produce the odd moment of magic including a long bunker shot on the par five fifteenth from 67 yards to three inches for a simple birdie. It was one or two rotations from dropping for an eagle after I'd tried to hit the green in two.
I was struggling with the swing all the way round and the game just lacked a spark. There were too many loose shots, not only compared to the round at Blackmoor but also compared to recent rounds at Royal Ascot. There were just too many missed greens, too many missed fairways and I couldn't scramble well enough or make enough putts. It wasn't a disaster by a long way. I know Mark felt the same way about his game. He played nicely in patches, threw in the odd bad hole, and like me couldn't make the scrambles when required.
Jack Jarrett Trophy statistics
In the end, we finished eighth out of twenty nine teams and so it was a decent enough return with fifty eight points (neatly we both scored 29 points). We were only two points off a top three and six off the winning score so they weren't big margins. It was a pleasure to play with Mark and it's something we both want to do more of in the future.
I felt that I was struggling to get the club in front of me and feel cramped for room at times. It's an issue I've spoken about before and was working hard during the round to feel as if the club was coming from a steeper place and I was striking down on the ball. When I got it right it was good. The bad ones not so good.
I had a lesson last Wednesday night. I gave my teaching professional Rhys ap Iolo some feedback from the two rounds and in particular the issues I had in the Jack Jarrett event. He had a look and tweaked the set up a little and I found that instantly I had more room to turn and particularly clear properly. Everything was back on track.
Cometh the weekend and Saturday was a roll up game with the normal cronies. I brought a guest from the Golf Monthly Forum who is considering joining as his own course (Blue Mountain in Bracknell) is closing down and being developed by Bracknell Council for housing. A very sad and contentious case (http://www.bracknellnews.co.uk/news/bracknell/articles/2014/11/01/105017-blue-mountain-golf-club-to-close-in-six-months/) and (http://www.getreading.co.uk/news/local-news/binfields-blue-mountain-golf-course-7258096)
I played very consistently. There was a much better feel to the swing following the lesson and a much better tempo and groove to the swing. I putted nicely, despite suffering five putts that did a full 360 degree lap of the hole and refusing to drop. I scored thirty six points, bang on handicap. It was encouraging and good enough to pick up a few quid for second place. Onto the first monthly medal of 2015 in a positive frame.
It was very similar to the Jack Jarrett. A round that held some potential undone by a catalogue of poor shots. I started off reasonably but missed the green at the second. I got away with murder as I sculled the chip to ten feet and made a putt for par. The golfing gods equalled the score on the next. I hit a great drive but it rolled towards a fairway bunker and I was left with a tricky stance. I came up short but managed to salvage a net par. A three putt at the next started to set the scene of what was to come. I did the same thing on the next having found the green in regulation.
The remainder of the front nine was a mixture of good and bad but I'd managed to scramble out in a respectable one over handicap 42 gross (+7). The 10th and 11th are a short par four and a par three and represented a chance to get the lost shot back and kick on to try and make a buffer zone or better still a handicap cut.
What followed was a back nine collapse. I missed the green from the fairway and found a bunker. There was little sand in it but I played a bad shot and thinned it over the green to sow the seed of a double bogey. I missed the green at the par three, came up short with the pitch and chipped to seven feet and missed for another double. That isn't where handicap cuts are born.
I scrambled a net par at the twelfth, stroke index one. Again I found the fairway with a great drive, fading gently around the dog left into position A. I was left with 176 yards and took a four iron but carved it way right. It was a poor swing. I hit a reasonable pitch but it came up short and I had a big swinging putt from the fringe. I got it to within two feet and holed the next.
I was still only a few over handicap and a couple of good holes coming home could still rescue a buffer zone finish. I made a par at the fourteenth to keep me going but I lost the plot and finally the will with a debacle on the par five fifteenth. I found a green in regulation, but was twenty five feet away. My first putt was good but came up short and I missed the par putt. Realising I didn't get a stroke and I was now even further from the buffer I was annoyed and tried to tap the ball in from the other side of the hole and barely moved it and so registered another double.
It was very unlike me. New Golf Thinking had strengthened my resolve and I was much more prepared for the battle. Realising now that the game was up, both for a cut (that had long gone) and the buffer zone, I melted a bit. The mind wandered and it became nothing more than a ball hitting exercise. Two more double bogey's at the sixteenth and seventeenth followed and although I got a net par at the last it was too little too late.
In the I came home in a miserable 49 shots (+14) for a grand total of 91, net 79 (+9) and a lowly fourteenth place in division two and another 0.1 on the handicap. I have to be honest and say the swing disintegrated. There was no feeling, no trust and no consistency but that wasn't the whole story. I'd worked in my last lesson on a more conventional chipping action. In fact we'd been working on it for a few lessons but I hadn't always trusted it and had reverted to the linear method. In the medal I tried to stick with the new action and frankly it wasn't fit for purpose. My arms were stiff and each chip felt like an accident waiting to happen. There were so many sculled chip and only a few that were acceptable. I am determined to find something robust and resilient and ideally more textbook with fewer moving parts than a linear chip. Perhaps it was too much too soon or just a sign of a bad golfing day.
I am trying to find a positive spin. There were some good shots but far too many bad ones and it is becoming a recurring theme. Inconsistency. I appreciate I will have bad days and yesterday was just that but when you play well the day before you surely have the right to expect the game to stand up ore firmly, especially on the coat tails of the Blackmoor game.
Monthly Medal Statistics
The statistics tell their own story but you can discount the final few holes as I'd gone into serious meltdown. Had their been a lake I can't guarantee I wouldn't have done a "McIlroy" and chucked a club into the watery grave. I doubt Mr Trump would have paid a diver to rescue it and present it to me either.
So what do we get from this tale. Well, there is still much to be positive about. Despite not swinging well in the Jack Jarrett Trophy I managed to grind out a score and on another day we could have sneaked a top three finish. When I find the groove as I did on Saturday and at Blackmoor, I am good and getting better. I still need to use New Golf Thinking to stop myself getting ahead of everything on the back nine. I seem to just let it happen going out and then by the twelfth or thirteenth start to think about scores, holes ahead and targets. All big NO NO's. It's something I still need to work on but at least I'm in contention. Yesterday was a round from the dark days especially the short game. I've consigned that to the scrap heap and this has been my cathartic, cleaning of the golfing soul.
At the moment the potential is still there and the golfing season has barely started. I start again competitively over the Easter weekend and so can just go out and play next week with no pressure. I can always work on my game, especially the chipping, should the need arise. There is definitely no need to hit the panic button and one bad round doesn't mean the swing is broken and the work I've done is a failure. Not quite the positive vibe I had from the last post but still a lot going right. Definitely more right than wrong and I'm convinced I'm still on the right path. Onwards, ever onwards towards single figures
2015 Starting handicap - 11.7
Current handicap 11.9
0.2 increase year to date
Saturday, 28 March 2015
Tuesday, 17 March 2015
Lightening Strikes Twice
The regular followers will know that I am actively involved on the Golf Monthly Forum and over the past couple of seasons they have run a national competition for the forum members with regional qualifiers before a grand final. This year the final is being staged, as it was last year, at Hillside Golf Club in Southport.
I was fortunate enough to win the Southern Area qualifier on count back last year. It was staged at Camberley Heath Golf Club and I put together one of my best rounds of the season to shoot net 68 (-3 on my handicap) http://threeoffthetee.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/king-of-kings.html?updated-min=2014-01-01T00:00:00Z&updated-max=2015-01-01T00:00:00Z&max-results=32
This year, the Southern Area qualifier was held at Blackmoor Golf Club in Hampshire. Established in 1913 it was originally laid out by Harry Colt. The course consists of two loops of nine holes created from heathland surrounded by heather, pine, birch and oak trees. Colt's design has stood the test of time as golf is still played over sixteen of the holes he created. Blackmoor has hosted regional qualifying for the Open Championship from 1998 to 2003 and regularly features in most top 100 guides to UK courses. It promised to be a stiff examination
The day was bright and sunny and Spring was definitely in the air as forty three golfers nervously congregated to play.
The first hole is a gentle par four playing uphill. However there's a ditch that crosses the fairway that needs to be treated with respect. I took a hybrid off the tee to lay up short and found the fairway. From there it was a simple nine iron into the green. So far so good. However the Blackmoor greens have a fearsome reputation and I three putted, downhill, from twenty feet for an opening bogey.
I started a little nervously. I was hitting the ball nicely but not quite converting early chances. The fourth hole is stroke index one. It usually plays into a prevailing left to right wind and with heather guarding both sides, an accurate drive is needed to leave a mid or long iron into a green protected on the right by water and left by a deep bunker. There is also out of bounds left to really get your attention. I hit a reasonable drive right into the semi-rough but with a good lie. With 189 yards left I hit a lovely four iron, fading nicely into the heart of the green before running up to within five feet. I managed to coax the putt in for a gross birdie and my round was really off and running.
My driving has never been a strong facet of my game but I was driving the ball rather well on the front nine and it was ensuring I was able to make strong progress. The seventh hole, stroke index three is another long par four measuring nearly four hundred yards. There is a bunker to the left of the fairway which needs to be avoided to leave a longish second shot into a two tiered green. I found another fairway and hit an exquisite hybrid into the green finishing no more than eight feet away. I managed to gander another gross birdie. It was beyond my wildest dreams.
I three putted the next, a par five, from thirty feet after a mediocre approach but found the heart of the green at the ninth. It's only a short hole, playing uphill as many of the par three's Colt designed do. I was faced with a slippery downhill putt that screamed caution and I got it down to two feet but only just made the par putt. However it dropped and it concluded an opening nine holes of 38 shots (+3 gross) and twenty one points.
However I was acutely aware that I'd only done half the job. New Golf Thinking has helped me stay very much in the moment. There was still work to be done and the tenth is the second hardest hole on the course. It's another long par four that dog legs left to right. Again it has heather running down both sides and with out of bounds right, it needs a good drive, ideally with a fade to leave a chance to hit the green in two. With cross bunkers forty yards short of the green and bunkers left and right the approach to an elevated green has to be well hit. Sadly I caught my six iron fat. It was the first bad swing I'd made all day but I made a net par. No damage done
I made a fine par at the next and then came to the shortest hole on the course. Played over banks of heather there are bunkers left and right to catch an errant shot. I caught my tee shot way too clean and it rocketed through the green and down a steep bank. With the putting surface running front to back I couldn't get too aggressive so opted to get the ball on the green, take the resultant bogey and move on. Not ideal but not a disaster and a pragmatic approach.
I made a bit of a mess of the following two holes. I played the par five poorly, missing the green left into sand for a nasty bogey. Fortunately it was a shot hole and a net par but with only a short iron in I had a great chance to make my par and really keep the momentum going.
The fourteenth is an innocuous par four. Miss the pond to the right at the 230 yard mark and it is a chance to make a par and maybe a birdie. I did the first bit and hit a lovely drive to leave an eight iron in. I hit it fat and again it was a poor shot. It yielded a bogey from nowhere and this time there was no shot on the hole to save the day.
Part of the New Golf Thinking mantra is not spiralling down and letting a bad shot or bad hole lead to another and one poor hole suddenly becoming a run of two or three. The fifteenth, according to the Blackmoor website, is one of the hardest par three's in Hampshire. I'm not entirely convinced I'd agree. It was playing around 185 yards to a green shaped like an upturned saucer with plenty of bunkers guarding the putting surface.
I found the green with a five wood. It ran to the back of the green and I left myself with a nervy three footer for my par. It dropped. A fine time to get a par, net birdie. The sixteenth is another par four that is protected by heather left and right off the tee. The green turns a little to the right and having missed the fairway right, I was faced with a choice. I had a tree in my way. Could I go aerial and make the green or would I have to go low. I decided I was too close to miss the tree and tried to play a very long pitch and run with a four iron from around 120 yards. I wanted to play it to the left to give myself the widest landing area but I made a bit of a hash of the shot and missed the green on the short side and right. My chip and run wasn't convincing but I fluked it to six feet and made another par putt. It was a streaky par but as the old adage goes, there are no pictures on a scorecard.
The penultimate hole is another uphill par three. Again it isn't long, playing around 150 yards to a green protected by deep bunkers all around. I didn't execute and missed short and right leaving a touch pitch over a bunker from a tight heathland lie. It wasn't a time to get cute and fancy and I played a conservative shot to twelve feet. I never really threatened the par putt and it was another single point hole.
The last is Blackmoor's signature hole. Another par four just shy of four hundred yards, and a good drive still leaves an uphill shot. With out of bounds left in front of the clubhouse and a deep pit to the right of the green, the approach has to be deadly accurate. I hit my worse tee shot of the day, a quick swing leading to a low hook into the heather. I was lucky to get a good lie and I advanced it to within seventy five yards of the green on the fairway. The green has a fearsome reputation and is long and heavily contoured. With the flag at the back, the correct shot should have been a low running shot. Instead I hit a high pitch. It landed on the front third and the contours took the ball back to the front edge. It was no surprise my round ended as it has begun with a three putt.
I'd come back in 41 shots (+7 gross) and seventeen points for a grand total of 38. I had broken 80 (79 or +10 gross). To be honest I thought with so many players that would be at least a point shy. Indeed it was and there was a score of thirty eight in. However as the player concerned wasn't entered into the Race to Hillside, he was ineligible to qualify. That meant my score was good enough for second place overall and the Southern Area qualifier for a second year running. Lightening had struck twice. Granted I wasn't the winner on the day and perhaps fortunate to have qualified but in my own mind at least, I had played really well and so perhaps deserved my touch of good fortune. Either way, I'm off to the grand final at Hillside in May.
Golf Monthly Forum Race To Hillside statistics
Without doubt I was very happy with my performance. Over 60% fairways in regulation and a healthy 39% greens in regulation were the building blocks to the good score. A respectable 35 putts, despite several three putt greens on large and undulating putting surfaces was pleasing. However, and you knew there would be a however, I was very unhappy with my iron play on the back nine. I hit a number of heavy approaches, missing the green with not much club in hand. I hit a poor tee shot at the seventeenth and was way short and right. In general the iron play on the second nine lacked any sparkle.
If I was being honest, I think I became acutely aware of how my round was progressing and the fact I was likely to be in contention. I think I got ahead of myself thinking what hitting the green on particular holes would do to the scorecard. On the front nine I was playing with more freedom and just swinging and executing. On the back nine, I almost became to conservative and tried to be too careful. Off the tee I was still swinging without shackles to try and hit the fairway to set up the chances.
Despite that, it was a fantastic performance and I am more than happy, not only to be the Southern Area qualifier for the second year running, but to see how the work I have put in over the winter is beginning to play off. In recent rounds, I have started to play nicely. There have still been a few poor shots and disaster holes to take the gloss off a good round but it is still very early in the season and so there is much to be encouraged about.
I'd like to thank Blackmoor Golf Club for their impressive hospitality and for getting the course looking so good so early in the season. Without doubt in a few weeks time, when the greens are running quicker and the heather grows a little more it will be a brute of a course. Beautiful but dangerous. I'd like to thank all of the Golf Monthly Forum members who played for making it a great day and it was good to catch up with old faces and meet some for the first time. Finally a big thanks to Richard Hart, Blackmoor member, for his hard work organising the day.
I knew I'd been playing well and that the game is beginning to come but I really had no ambitions about qualifying. I wanted to play as well as I could and see what happened but the outcome surprised me. My game is coming and in reasonable shape. Bad shots aren't necessarily round busters and the good ones are now very good. There is still much work to be done on the short game (I've spoken about this before) and it's an area I'll be working on once the clocks change.
For now, I'm planning my trip to Hillside and I guess I better learn some links skills like the long bump and run, low drives and the Tiger Woods stinger. In the meantime, if you fancy seeing what's going on on the Golf Monthly Forum have a look here http://forums.golf-monthly.co.uk/index.php and feel free to join in the fun and games. Who knows, maybe next time I could be playing with you. If that doesn't put you off, there are always games being arranged around the UK and Ireland and Golf Monthly provide a lot of money can't buy opportunities specifically for forum members.
I'm hopeful this form will continue and I'll carry on working hard on my game. I've a feeling I am going to give my ambition of single figures in 2015 a really good run for my money and we'll see how close I can really get.
I was fortunate enough to win the Southern Area qualifier on count back last year. It was staged at Camberley Heath Golf Club and I put together one of my best rounds of the season to shoot net 68 (-3 on my handicap) http://threeoffthetee.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/king-of-kings.html?updated-min=2014-01-01T00:00:00Z&updated-max=2015-01-01T00:00:00Z&max-results=32
This year, the Southern Area qualifier was held at Blackmoor Golf Club in Hampshire. Established in 1913 it was originally laid out by Harry Colt. The course consists of two loops of nine holes created from heathland surrounded by heather, pine, birch and oak trees. Colt's design has stood the test of time as golf is still played over sixteen of the holes he created. Blackmoor has hosted regional qualifying for the Open Championship from 1998 to 2003 and regularly features in most top 100 guides to UK courses. It promised to be a stiff examination
The day was bright and sunny and Spring was definitely in the air as forty three golfers nervously congregated to play.
 |
| My four ball standing on the first before battle commenced |
I started a little nervously. I was hitting the ball nicely but not quite converting early chances. The fourth hole is stroke index one. It usually plays into a prevailing left to right wind and with heather guarding both sides, an accurate drive is needed to leave a mid or long iron into a green protected on the right by water and left by a deep bunker. There is also out of bounds left to really get your attention. I hit a reasonable drive right into the semi-rough but with a good lie. With 189 yards left I hit a lovely four iron, fading nicely into the heart of the green before running up to within five feet. I managed to coax the putt in for a gross birdie and my round was really off and running.
 |
| The view from the 4th tee on the 415 yard par 4. It's a tough driving hole |
I three putted the next, a par five, from thirty feet after a mediocre approach but found the heart of the green at the ninth. It's only a short hole, playing uphill as many of the par three's Colt designed do. I was faced with a slippery downhill putt that screamed caution and I got it down to two feet but only just made the par putt. However it dropped and it concluded an opening nine holes of 38 shots (+3 gross) and twenty one points.
However I was acutely aware that I'd only done half the job. New Golf Thinking has helped me stay very much in the moment. There was still work to be done and the tenth is the second hardest hole on the course. It's another long par four that dog legs left to right. Again it has heather running down both sides and with out of bounds right, it needs a good drive, ideally with a fade to leave a chance to hit the green in two. With cross bunkers forty yards short of the green and bunkers left and right the approach to an elevated green has to be well hit. Sadly I caught my six iron fat. It was the first bad swing I'd made all day but I made a net par. No damage done
 |
| The 10th hole from the tee. Another not for the faint hearted and ideally it needs a fade off the tee |
I made a bit of a mess of the following two holes. I played the par five poorly, missing the green left into sand for a nasty bogey. Fortunately it was a shot hole and a net par but with only a short iron in I had a great chance to make my par and really keep the momentum going.
The fourteenth is an innocuous par four. Miss the pond to the right at the 230 yard mark and it is a chance to make a par and maybe a birdie. I did the first bit and hit a lovely drive to leave an eight iron in. I hit it fat and again it was a poor shot. It yielded a bogey from nowhere and this time there was no shot on the hole to save the day.
Part of the New Golf Thinking mantra is not spiralling down and letting a bad shot or bad hole lead to another and one poor hole suddenly becoming a run of two or three. The fifteenth, according to the Blackmoor website, is one of the hardest par three's in Hampshire. I'm not entirely convinced I'd agree. It was playing around 185 yards to a green shaped like an upturned saucer with plenty of bunkers guarding the putting surface.
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| The 15th. Not sure I'd agree with Blackmoor's claim it's one of the hardest par three holes in Hampshire |
The penultimate hole is another uphill par three. Again it isn't long, playing around 150 yards to a green protected by deep bunkers all around. I didn't execute and missed short and right leaving a touch pitch over a bunker from a tight heathland lie. It wasn't a time to get cute and fancy and I played a conservative shot to twelve feet. I never really threatened the par putt and it was another single point hole.
The last is Blackmoor's signature hole. Another par four just shy of four hundred yards, and a good drive still leaves an uphill shot. With out of bounds left in front of the clubhouse and a deep pit to the right of the green, the approach has to be deadly accurate. I hit my worse tee shot of the day, a quick swing leading to a low hook into the heather. I was lucky to get a good lie and I advanced it to within seventy five yards of the green on the fairway. The green has a fearsome reputation and is long and heavily contoured. With the flag at the back, the correct shot should have been a low running shot. Instead I hit a high pitch. It landed on the front third and the contours took the ball back to the front edge. It was no surprise my round ended as it has begun with a three putt.
I'd come back in 41 shots (+7 gross) and seventeen points for a grand total of 38. I had broken 80 (79 or +10 gross). To be honest I thought with so many players that would be at least a point shy. Indeed it was and there was a score of thirty eight in. However as the player concerned wasn't entered into the Race to Hillside, he was ineligible to qualify. That meant my score was good enough for second place overall and the Southern Area qualifier for a second year running. Lightening had struck twice. Granted I wasn't the winner on the day and perhaps fortunate to have qualified but in my own mind at least, I had played really well and so perhaps deserved my touch of good fortune. Either way, I'm off to the grand final at Hillside in May.
Golf Monthly Forum Race To Hillside statistics
Without doubt I was very happy with my performance. Over 60% fairways in regulation and a healthy 39% greens in regulation were the building blocks to the good score. A respectable 35 putts, despite several three putt greens on large and undulating putting surfaces was pleasing. However, and you knew there would be a however, I was very unhappy with my iron play on the back nine. I hit a number of heavy approaches, missing the green with not much club in hand. I hit a poor tee shot at the seventeenth and was way short and right. In general the iron play on the second nine lacked any sparkle.
If I was being honest, I think I became acutely aware of how my round was progressing and the fact I was likely to be in contention. I think I got ahead of myself thinking what hitting the green on particular holes would do to the scorecard. On the front nine I was playing with more freedom and just swinging and executing. On the back nine, I almost became to conservative and tried to be too careful. Off the tee I was still swinging without shackles to try and hit the fairway to set up the chances.
Despite that, it was a fantastic performance and I am more than happy, not only to be the Southern Area qualifier for the second year running, but to see how the work I have put in over the winter is beginning to play off. In recent rounds, I have started to play nicely. There have still been a few poor shots and disaster holes to take the gloss off a good round but it is still very early in the season and so there is much to be encouraged about.
I'd like to thank Blackmoor Golf Club for their impressive hospitality and for getting the course looking so good so early in the season. Without doubt in a few weeks time, when the greens are running quicker and the heather grows a little more it will be a brute of a course. Beautiful but dangerous. I'd like to thank all of the Golf Monthly Forum members who played for making it a great day and it was good to catch up with old faces and meet some for the first time. Finally a big thanks to Richard Hart, Blackmoor member, for his hard work organising the day.
I knew I'd been playing well and that the game is beginning to come but I really had no ambitions about qualifying. I wanted to play as well as I could and see what happened but the outcome surprised me. My game is coming and in reasonable shape. Bad shots aren't necessarily round busters and the good ones are now very good. There is still much work to be done on the short game (I've spoken about this before) and it's an area I'll be working on once the clocks change.
For now, I'm planning my trip to Hillside and I guess I better learn some links skills like the long bump and run, low drives and the Tiger Woods stinger. In the meantime, if you fancy seeing what's going on on the Golf Monthly Forum have a look here http://forums.golf-monthly.co.uk/index.php and feel free to join in the fun and games. Who knows, maybe next time I could be playing with you. If that doesn't put you off, there are always games being arranged around the UK and Ireland and Golf Monthly provide a lot of money can't buy opportunities specifically for forum members.
I'm hopeful this form will continue and I'll carry on working hard on my game. I've a feeling I am going to give my ambition of single figures in 2015 a really good run for my money and we'll see how close I can really get.
Monday, 2 March 2015
What About Me?
Despite recent posts about Woods and testing the latest Titleist gear, there has been very little mention on here about my own golf and my pursuit of the golfing nirvana of a single figure handicap in 2015. In truth there hasn't been a whole lot going on, certainly in terms of individual performances and certainly no qualifying events to affect my handicap.
However fear not. There has been plenty of other activity. I've been playing in the Winter knockout at Royal Ascot Golf Club. I've got a new partner this year, as my previous partner inconveniently decided to move house and joined a club much closer to home. To be fair, the course he's at, Blackmoor in Hampshire is a gem. A heathland course it has some testing greens and is a tricky layout. If I lived closer, then I'd be considering it. However out with the old and in with the new and my new wing man Adam O'Neil playing off a dangerous fourteen handicap has been a revelation.
In our third round game we had a difficult looking game. In the end, our opposition were sorely out of touch and we managed to run out comfortable 4&2 winners to book a quarter final berth. In the end, that match was a bridge too far and we were trounced by a very efficient pairing. Truth be told we didn't really gel on the day and didn't make enough putts at crucial times. As I'd never progressed beyond round two before this was a new experience. We've definitely sown some healthy seeds and there is much potential in our partnership.
Away from that, I've been showing now healthy shoots of progress myself. I've been playing some nice golf in our usual weekend roll ups. I've managed to take some money from the Saturday crowd. Practice has been going well too and I've been focused more on tempo than anything too technical and it is paying dividends. It hasn't all been milk and honey and I'm still making errors on the course. In terms of the short game, I've reverted to the linear method (http://threeoffthetee.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/chipping-linear-method.html) and to be honest, I'm finding it consistent and reliable especially off the tricky, muddy wet ground around the greens. Winter golf.. Don't you love it. It isn't how I'd like to chip and have always considered myself an orthodox player but I am struggling with conventional methods and seem to fill the head with too many thoughts. The linear way lets me make a bigger move and to be honest I can control it a lot easier. With my par scrambling figure for the season to date around 31% compared to 16% for the whole of 2014 and you can see my issue. Stick with something a little way out, not widely taught but clearly working or try and knuckle down and chip in a more conventional manner. The idea for my 2015 season is KISS (keep it simple stupid).
At the range I'm working much harder on the fundamentals, especially my address position. I was getting the shoulders too far forward over my shoes and not giving myself room to turn properly. Stand taller and I can make a fuller turn. So basic but so easy to slip into bad habits and so hard to spot if you aren't working on the basics all of the time. I'm happy with the work I'm doing in practice. There's much to do especially in the bunker, around the green and putting but with the facilities at the course sometimes being shut for frost, time has been short. We are officially in Spring now and so it won't be long before I can invest an hour a night after work. Nearly there.
I managed to get my ugly mug in the latest issue of Golf Monthly magazine. Sorry for those of a nervous disposition but it isn't a flattering shot! It was a piece following up the day I spent at The Grove in Watford working on New Golf Thinking (http://threeoffthetee.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/the-secret-is-out.html). It really has been a worthwhile exercise and is a great tool for helping clear my mind before a shot. It can also help stop the "downward spiral" where one bad shot leads to another and then another. In all there are seven techniques to utilise and it's available on Kindle or in paperback via Amazon. The piece in the magazine was a follow up to see if any of the test panel were still using the system and how had they found it. The author John O'Keeffe took to Twitter too (https://twitter.com/NewGolfThinking/status/571675619429355520). I have found it excellent. It has really cleared my mind on the course, given me clarity and the ability to cope with bad shots.
The new season is nearly upon us, certainly here in the UK. I've got a stableford event on Sunday, a day out at Blackmoor on the 11th with the Golf Monthly Forum, the Jack Jarrett Trophy (a pairs stableford event, combined scores, and I'm having to use another partner as Adam is away), and then the first medal of the year at Royal Ascot. Plenty to be getting my teeth into. That will show how much the Winter work has helped and I'm hoping for a fast start of the current 11.8 handicap and down to that elusive single figure mark.
I'm convinced I can do it and recent form has shown that it's in there. I've played well under pressure and made some good scores but have still thrown one or two bad holes in these rounds so that needs to be eradicated. It's a problem that blighted my game last year and is something New Golf Thinking will hopefully help stop. I need to. So many potential cuts or handicap buffer zones were tossed aside last season with bad shots at the wrong time. Not in 2015.
It might have seemed that it's been quiet but rest assured I'm working hard behind the scenes. Constructive practice, not just bashing balls and working hard on the building blocks of the swing. I've worked hard on path and keeping the club in front of me and not getting trapped and having seen it on video after a recent lesson, it is coming. There are still several idiosyncrasies that I don't think will ever go entirely but I've built a swing around those. I can trust it and it seems to be more robust and repeatable. Let the new season play out and see where it takes me!
However fear not. There has been plenty of other activity. I've been playing in the Winter knockout at Royal Ascot Golf Club. I've got a new partner this year, as my previous partner inconveniently decided to move house and joined a club much closer to home. To be fair, the course he's at, Blackmoor in Hampshire is a gem. A heathland course it has some testing greens and is a tricky layout. If I lived closer, then I'd be considering it. However out with the old and in with the new and my new wing man Adam O'Neil playing off a dangerous fourteen handicap has been a revelation.
In our third round game we had a difficult looking game. In the end, our opposition were sorely out of touch and we managed to run out comfortable 4&2 winners to book a quarter final berth. In the end, that match was a bridge too far and we were trounced by a very efficient pairing. Truth be told we didn't really gel on the day and didn't make enough putts at crucial times. As I'd never progressed beyond round two before this was a new experience. We've definitely sown some healthy seeds and there is much potential in our partnership.
Away from that, I've been showing now healthy shoots of progress myself. I've been playing some nice golf in our usual weekend roll ups. I've managed to take some money from the Saturday crowd. Practice has been going well too and I've been focused more on tempo than anything too technical and it is paying dividends. It hasn't all been milk and honey and I'm still making errors on the course. In terms of the short game, I've reverted to the linear method (http://threeoffthetee.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/chipping-linear-method.html) and to be honest, I'm finding it consistent and reliable especially off the tricky, muddy wet ground around the greens. Winter golf.. Don't you love it. It isn't how I'd like to chip and have always considered myself an orthodox player but I am struggling with conventional methods and seem to fill the head with too many thoughts. The linear way lets me make a bigger move and to be honest I can control it a lot easier. With my par scrambling figure for the season to date around 31% compared to 16% for the whole of 2014 and you can see my issue. Stick with something a little way out, not widely taught but clearly working or try and knuckle down and chip in a more conventional manner. The idea for my 2015 season is KISS (keep it simple stupid).
At the range I'm working much harder on the fundamentals, especially my address position. I was getting the shoulders too far forward over my shoes and not giving myself room to turn properly. Stand taller and I can make a fuller turn. So basic but so easy to slip into bad habits and so hard to spot if you aren't working on the basics all of the time. I'm happy with the work I'm doing in practice. There's much to do especially in the bunker, around the green and putting but with the facilities at the course sometimes being shut for frost, time has been short. We are officially in Spring now and so it won't be long before I can invest an hour a night after work. Nearly there.
I managed to get my ugly mug in the latest issue of Golf Monthly magazine. Sorry for those of a nervous disposition but it isn't a flattering shot! It was a piece following up the day I spent at The Grove in Watford working on New Golf Thinking (http://threeoffthetee.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/the-secret-is-out.html). It really has been a worthwhile exercise and is a great tool for helping clear my mind before a shot. It can also help stop the "downward spiral" where one bad shot leads to another and then another. In all there are seven techniques to utilise and it's available on Kindle or in paperback via Amazon. The piece in the magazine was a follow up to see if any of the test panel were still using the system and how had they found it. The author John O'Keeffe took to Twitter too (https://twitter.com/NewGolfThinking/status/571675619429355520). I have found it excellent. It has really cleared my mind on the course, given me clarity and the ability to cope with bad shots.
The new season is nearly upon us, certainly here in the UK. I've got a stableford event on Sunday, a day out at Blackmoor on the 11th with the Golf Monthly Forum, the Jack Jarrett Trophy (a pairs stableford event, combined scores, and I'm having to use another partner as Adam is away), and then the first medal of the year at Royal Ascot. Plenty to be getting my teeth into. That will show how much the Winter work has helped and I'm hoping for a fast start of the current 11.8 handicap and down to that elusive single figure mark.
I'm convinced I can do it and recent form has shown that it's in there. I've played well under pressure and made some good scores but have still thrown one or two bad holes in these rounds so that needs to be eradicated. It's a problem that blighted my game last year and is something New Golf Thinking will hopefully help stop. I need to. So many potential cuts or handicap buffer zones were tossed aside last season with bad shots at the wrong time. Not in 2015.
It might have seemed that it's been quiet but rest assured I'm working hard behind the scenes. Constructive practice, not just bashing balls and working hard on the building blocks of the swing. I've worked hard on path and keeping the club in front of me and not getting trapped and having seen it on video after a recent lesson, it is coming. There are still several idiosyncrasies that I don't think will ever go entirely but I've built a swing around those. I can trust it and it seems to be more robust and repeatable. Let the new season play out and see where it takes me!
Sunday, 22 February 2015
Golf Monthly/Titleist Demo Day
I was fortunate to be selected by Golf Monthly magazine, via a competition on their forum (http://forums.golf-monthly.co.uk/) to go to Silvermere Golf Centre in Cobham, Surrey on Thursday (19th) to test the latest Titleist range. This included the latest drivers, irons, Vokey wedges, and the latest Scotty Cameron putters as well as the brand new ProV1 and ProV1x golf ball. Not a bad prize for a free to enter competition.
Titleist are very excited by their product range for the new season and are planning around 350 demonstrations around the UK to allow as many golfers as possible to try them and see for themselves how well the perform. Let me say right here, if you get the opportunity, this is one test day you really should go along to. All the dates and venues are in the link:
(http://media.titleist.com/images/titleist/files/UK/Trial%20Titleist%20Schedules%202015.pdf)
I have always has a perception (wrongly as it turned out) that Titleist products were only for the better player and that only those around the single figure bracket would maximise the potential of these clubs. That may have been true a few years back but the latest range has something for everyone and it really does have a broad appeal across the handicap range.
Golf Monthly have already produced a behind the scenes report on the day, and they can do it far more justice than I can so I'll let you peruse it here (http://www.golf-monthly.co.uk/galleries/events-galleries/behind-the-scenes-trial-titleist-day-66599)
We were split into two groups and I started the day learning all about the ProV1 and ProV1x ball, the history of the brand a little. From there, we had a brief one to one discussion with a fitter to ascertain the best ball for out own game. The difference between the Titleist philosophy and those of other brands is that Titleist work from green to tee, rather than basing a fitting on swing speed or compression. In simplistic terms, it starts with wedge play and how much spin a player generates, goes back to mid-iron shots and looks at accuracy and preferred ball flight, and then back to the tee and driver spin and distance requirements. For more information, have a look at the online selection tool on the website at (www.titleist.co.uk/ballfitting)
From there we took some courtesy balls in our preferred model out to the putting green to try the new Scotty Cameron putter range. I was interested in the counter balanced range as these seem to be everywhere at the moment and I wanted to see how a top end version compared to those from other manufacturers I'd already looked at. (http://www.titleist.co.uk/dual-balance/) The Newport 2 was everything I hoped. A classic shape and a buttery smooth feel off the face. I found it easy to swing and the extra weight didn't impact the strike or the stroke in any way. To be honest, the entire range, including the Go Lo mallet range, similar to my current Odyssey Protype #9, were equally as good.
The only downside is the price. They are expensive but you are paying for top quality putters, and naturally that comes at a cost. Are they worth it? Now there's a question. I would say if your fundamentals are poor then it won't make any difference if you use one of these or a bargain bucket flat stick. However if you are a competent putter looking to upgrade, while they won't eradicate the dreaded three putt, there will be a range to suit your own putting style. They have a very good feel off the face and are wonderfully balanced. When you consider how many times you have a putter in your hand per round, then perhaps the cost doesn't seem so extravagant. It's such a personal part of the game it isn't for me to say but I would urge you to at least consider these and definitely give these a go (ideally on grass and not an indoor putting mat).
Following the ball and putter testing, it was over to the range to try the clubs. Now as many regular followers will know, I was custom fitted for my clubs, originally at Pachesham Golf Centre in Leatherhead, Surrey. At that time I got a full set of Ping G25's including woods and irons but I never really felt happy aesthetically with the irons, especially when chipping, and found looking down on a meaty top line off putting. In the end I changed to a set of I25 irons, fitted at Downshire Golf Centre by the golf professional I have lessons with (Rhys ap Iolo). To be honest, I've been quite happy with my bag set up and my swing is now a lot more consistent although I was interested to test my Ping against the Titleist offering.
The bay was fitted with a launch monitor and although we were using range balls, it still gave enough viable data between the two makes to show how each performed. I was interested in the irons in particular and gravitated to the smaller headed offering the 714 AP2. They have a cavity back to give a degree of forgiveness and are designed to give higher flying longer irons and a more shallow flight in the shorter ones to give a set giving good carry distance and better distance control
I started with a DG R300 shaft and to be fair, despite hitting these solidly and enjoying the feel off the centre of the club, there wasn't any significant difference between the performance of these and my own I25's. The fitter tried a DG S300 shaft as my swing speed suggested I needed the extra firmness but I struggled a little. It's perhaps a club that would suit a solid ball striker. Although I hit it pretty well, the off centre strikes were punished perhaps a little more than my current I25's.
We changed to the AP1. This is a slightly larger headed club but it didn't look to bulky behind the ball. It's designed to be a little more forgiving and would appeal to a large number of golfers. It is a very solid looking club and the ball feels as if it flies off the face with meaning. Again we started with the DG shaft but the spin numbers in particular weren't fantastic. There wasn't anything to show an improvement on my own. However with a tweak, the fitter put in an XP95 shaft and suddenly it felt like a different club. Spin numbers changed and the ball fizzed off the face. Dispersion narrowed and I was getting an extra 5 yards over the I25 and 4mph in terms of swing speed (average).
I was pleasantly surprised. I thought the AP1 would be like the G25's I had and yes they are a big headed club and the top line is relatively thick, but when I looked at an 8 iron, a club I would use for chipping, it didn't look chunky. I could definitely use it around the green without any negativity about the looks.
From there it was time to try the 915 driver range. I am very happy with my G25 and I've worked hard to improve my driving and keep the ball in play more often. I hit a few with my Ping to get some base numbers. I started with the D3 range which has a compact 445cc head in 10.5 degrees of loft . This looks a very traditional and old school looking driver and oozes class. The pear headed driver is set up to produce a lower trajectory compared to the D2.
The 915 range is like a lot of modern drivers and offers a range of set up options but despite a few tweaks in the settings and several shafts, I struggled to hit this with any degree of regularity. The spin numbers were too high for optimum performance and while the good ones were very good I was punished with bad shots and the high spin exaggerated my errors.
We swapped to the D2 also 10.5 degrees. This is a larger head at 460cc and is designed to be higher launching than the D3. I felt more comfy with the bigger head, much more like my G25 but again on standard A1 fitting and with a standard shaft I was still getting too much spin. The fitter got to work and tweaked it to a B3 (closed) position and put in an Aldia Rogue Black S70 shaft in. What a difference! I was bombing it straighter and in a much tighter area. Even the bad shots would have been in the light rough and not in a different time zone. Comparing like for like, I was getting an extra 7 yards on my G25 when looking at the best strikes and 2-3 yards on those not quite out of the sweet spot. Spin numbers were reduced immensely and the ball stayed in the air longer and so went further. Simple.
It was a fantastic event and once we had finished hitting balls, it was back to the sanctuary of the club house and a debrief. I would like to convey my thanks to both Golf Monthly and especially Titleist for the opportunity. We came away with a goodie bag including a dozen of the new ProV1 balls, a tour cap, alignment sticks and other bits and pieces. A lovely touch by Titleist and very gratefully received by everyone. As I've said, it has shattered the illusion I've had for years about the performance of this brand and their target market. The day was filmed and Golf Monthly have put up a report on their website with some comments from those testing, including some from yours truly, so you can see exactly what others thought of the clubs and how they performed. I don't think I was alone in having my point of view shifted for good (http://www.golf-monthly.co.uk/news/notice-board/golf-monthly-readers-experience-exclusive-trial-titleist-launch-66577)
So what did I learn. From a Scotty Cameron point of view, not much. I knew they were a fantastic make and the range coming out in April (in the UK) only add to the brand. They are definitely worth a look and if you can get past the price tag they are worth a go. I'm afraid though my Odyssey Protype #9 is too similar and so I won't be making the switch.
I thought the AP2 was a lovely looking iron. Small headed, with a small cavity it looks beautiful and feels great. Sadly they weren't for me. However the AP1 was a real revelation and a make I'd not considered. My error. This has a wide spread appeal and if you head towards one of the demo days in the UK Titleist are arranging (and you should) then I would start with this model and go from there. You won't be disappointed.
I didn't expect to even consider making a driver change but you can't ignore the statistics and the D2 is without doubt the best driver I've trialled (and there have been many) in a long time. I have a difficult decision to ponder on now and whether I can justify the cost to get one in my bag. It definitely is a step up from my G25 and longer and straighter. It also looks fantastic. I'm tempted to go back to another demo day somewhere locally and try it again with the same shaft and set up and see what happens but it's definitely on my radar (just don't tell the wife!)
As I said in the very beginning, (and in the Golf Monthly video) I always saw Titleist as a better player brand and one that I couldn't play successfully at my level. This quite simply isn't the case. Go and try. It's as simple as that.
Titleist are very excited by their product range for the new season and are planning around 350 demonstrations around the UK to allow as many golfers as possible to try them and see for themselves how well the perform. Let me say right here, if you get the opportunity, this is one test day you really should go along to. All the dates and venues are in the link:
(http://media.titleist.com/images/titleist/files/UK/Trial%20Titleist%20Schedules%202015.pdf)
I have always has a perception (wrongly as it turned out) that Titleist products were only for the better player and that only those around the single figure bracket would maximise the potential of these clubs. That may have been true a few years back but the latest range has something for everyone and it really does have a broad appeal across the handicap range.
Golf Monthly have already produced a behind the scenes report on the day, and they can do it far more justice than I can so I'll let you peruse it here (http://www.golf-monthly.co.uk/galleries/events-galleries/behind-the-scenes-trial-titleist-day-66599)
We were split into two groups and I started the day learning all about the ProV1 and ProV1x ball, the history of the brand a little. From there, we had a brief one to one discussion with a fitter to ascertain the best ball for out own game. The difference between the Titleist philosophy and those of other brands is that Titleist work from green to tee, rather than basing a fitting on swing speed or compression. In simplistic terms, it starts with wedge play and how much spin a player generates, goes back to mid-iron shots and looks at accuracy and preferred ball flight, and then back to the tee and driver spin and distance requirements. For more information, have a look at the online selection tool on the website at (www.titleist.co.uk/ballfitting)
From there we took some courtesy balls in our preferred model out to the putting green to try the new Scotty Cameron putter range. I was interested in the counter balanced range as these seem to be everywhere at the moment and I wanted to see how a top end version compared to those from other manufacturers I'd already looked at. (http://www.titleist.co.uk/dual-balance/) The Newport 2 was everything I hoped. A classic shape and a buttery smooth feel off the face. I found it easy to swing and the extra weight didn't impact the strike or the stroke in any way. To be honest, the entire range, including the Go Lo mallet range, similar to my current Odyssey Protype #9, were equally as good.
The only downside is the price. They are expensive but you are paying for top quality putters, and naturally that comes at a cost. Are they worth it? Now there's a question. I would say if your fundamentals are poor then it won't make any difference if you use one of these or a bargain bucket flat stick. However if you are a competent putter looking to upgrade, while they won't eradicate the dreaded three putt, there will be a range to suit your own putting style. They have a very good feel off the face and are wonderfully balanced. When you consider how many times you have a putter in your hand per round, then perhaps the cost doesn't seem so extravagant. It's such a personal part of the game it isn't for me to say but I would urge you to at least consider these and definitely give these a go (ideally on grass and not an indoor putting mat).
Following the ball and putter testing, it was over to the range to try the clubs. Now as many regular followers will know, I was custom fitted for my clubs, originally at Pachesham Golf Centre in Leatherhead, Surrey. At that time I got a full set of Ping G25's including woods and irons but I never really felt happy aesthetically with the irons, especially when chipping, and found looking down on a meaty top line off putting. In the end I changed to a set of I25 irons, fitted at Downshire Golf Centre by the golf professional I have lessons with (Rhys ap Iolo). To be honest, I've been quite happy with my bag set up and my swing is now a lot more consistent although I was interested to test my Ping against the Titleist offering.
The bay was fitted with a launch monitor and although we were using range balls, it still gave enough viable data between the two makes to show how each performed. I was interested in the irons in particular and gravitated to the smaller headed offering the 714 AP2. They have a cavity back to give a degree of forgiveness and are designed to give higher flying longer irons and a more shallow flight in the shorter ones to give a set giving good carry distance and better distance control
 |
| The AP2 iron, very stylish |
We changed to the AP1. This is a slightly larger headed club but it didn't look to bulky behind the ball. It's designed to be a little more forgiving and would appeal to a large number of golfers. It is a very solid looking club and the ball feels as if it flies off the face with meaning. Again we started with the DG shaft but the spin numbers in particular weren't fantastic. There wasn't anything to show an improvement on my own. However with a tweak, the fitter put in an XP95 shaft and suddenly it felt like a different club. Spin numbers changed and the ball fizzed off the face. Dispersion narrowed and I was getting an extra 5 yards over the I25 and 4mph in terms of swing speed (average).
 |
| AP1 - a bigger club but when you put the right shaft in, it performs. It really performs |
From there it was time to try the 915 driver range. I am very happy with my G25 and I've worked hard to improve my driving and keep the ball in play more often. I hit a few with my Ping to get some base numbers. I started with the D3 range which has a compact 445cc head in 10.5 degrees of loft . This looks a very traditional and old school looking driver and oozes class. The pear headed driver is set up to produce a lower trajectory compared to the D2.
 |
| Driver set up chart |
We swapped to the D2 also 10.5 degrees. This is a larger head at 460cc and is designed to be higher launching than the D3. I felt more comfy with the bigger head, much more like my G25 but again on standard A1 fitting and with a standard shaft I was still getting too much spin. The fitter got to work and tweaked it to a B3 (closed) position and put in an Aldia Rogue Black S70 shaft in. What a difference! I was bombing it straighter and in a much tighter area. Even the bad shots would have been in the light rough and not in a different time zone. Comparing like for like, I was getting an extra 7 yards on my G25 when looking at the best strikes and 2-3 yards on those not quite out of the sweet spot. Spin numbers were reduced immensely and the ball stayed in the air longer and so went further. Simple.
 |
| D2 Driver - with the right set up and shaft it's a mighty beast |
So what did I learn. From a Scotty Cameron point of view, not much. I knew they were a fantastic make and the range coming out in April (in the UK) only add to the brand. They are definitely worth a look and if you can get past the price tag they are worth a go. I'm afraid though my Odyssey Protype #9 is too similar and so I won't be making the switch.
I thought the AP2 was a lovely looking iron. Small headed, with a small cavity it looks beautiful and feels great. Sadly they weren't for me. However the AP1 was a real revelation and a make I'd not considered. My error. This has a wide spread appeal and if you head towards one of the demo days in the UK Titleist are arranging (and you should) then I would start with this model and go from there. You won't be disappointed.
I didn't expect to even consider making a driver change but you can't ignore the statistics and the D2 is without doubt the best driver I've trialled (and there have been many) in a long time. I have a difficult decision to ponder on now and whether I can justify the cost to get one in my bag. It definitely is a step up from my G25 and longer and straighter. It also looks fantastic. I'm tempted to go back to another demo day somewhere locally and try it again with the same shaft and set up and see what happens but it's definitely on my radar (just don't tell the wife!)
As I said in the very beginning, (and in the Golf Monthly video) I always saw Titleist as a better player brand and one that I couldn't play successfully at my level. This quite simply isn't the case. Go and try. It's as simple as that.
Sunday, 8 February 2015
Tiger, The Open - It's All Kicking Off
Wow, what an epic few days. I leave you alone and it all kicks off. We've had Tiger posting his worse professional round and then pulling out injured this week. The R&A, golf's governing body have announced a TV deal in the UK taking live coverage to Sky Sports and away from terrestrial TV viewers for the first time. Both have sent social media, the press and TV into a frenzy.
Now the dust has finally settled on both Woods and the Sky deal, let me give you my perspective. I'm nothing more than a fanatical weekend golfer and these are purely my own views. Let's start with Tiger and that second round at the Waste Management event.
I'll start by being brutally honest. Tiger is in a mess. Whatever he's been working on with the latest swing coach and however bullish he's been in interviews, it was apparent in the first round that it wasn't working. My own short game woes are well documented on here but Wood's chipping was as bad as I've seen any professional golfer execute...ever. He seemed totally messed in the head, with a thousand thoughts going on over the simplest of chips and his technique seemed shot. I've no idea why the best player of a generation with one of the best short games ever would want to make such a dramatic overhaul. Of course, many thought, myself included that he was perhaps just a little rusty. The second round dispelled that. Whatever the reason, it isn't working. It was proper car crash TV watching him rack up those numbers. To his credit, he played until the inevitable missed putt conclusion and was honest and eloquent post round but you could see the hurt and embarrassment in his eyes. I don't think he had a clue what had just happened. It took a lot of class to give those interviews. I loved his "I'm only here so I don't get fined" quip.
I tuned in on Thursday to the Sky Sports (more of them later) coverage from Torrey Pines. My first glimpse of Woods was thinning a green side chip on his opening hole. Nothing too different to the previous week. I'd already seen a clip of a shanked chip in practice and knew that a number of tour professionals were trying to give him advice. How did it get so bad? We're forever told that the top pros are forever working on the short game and even after his last back operation, I'm sure the first thing he'd have been given the green light to work on would have been the chipping and putting. He simply cannot be that rusty. It seems a major overhaul and something that would seem to be very much a work in progress at best.
As the coverage continued, it was apparent he was injured. He was spraying to parts of the course not on any caddy's yardage chart. Again not too different to the Waste Management event. However it was clear a few holes in that this was different and the way he kept reaching for the back after every drive showed he was struggling. He couldn't even get the tee peg off the ground and grimaced to get the ball out of the hole. I went to bed (it was late UK time) before he pulled out but wasn't surprised to see this news the following morning when I awoke.
And then social media went into meltdown. Forum boards (Is Tiger Finished?) Twitter, Golf Channel, the press. It was everywhere and everyone had an opinion. I'm a simple man and probably far from qualified to offer my own, but it's my forum, my rules so here it is..
I absolutely get that Tiger had to make swing changes following his injury issues and surgery last year. I get that he wanted to find a different coach to get him back to full fitness and playing and competing. We all want to see Tiger in the mix in majors and big events on a Sunday afternoon. However all this talk of him wanting to bomb it more and "I've got all my power back" seems to have done nothing to fix the issues. As far as I can see, this new swing, with a dramatic loss of height, is doing nothing to relieve the impact and stresses on the back. I'm not surprised it gave up again. He seems to be struggling so hard to get the club back in front of him and anywhere near square at impact.
Is this change and pursuit of distance what he needs? Surely after all the toil on his body with the knee surgery and back operation he needs to find something that lets him play and swing as easily as possible. Looking at the driving accuracy and GIR figures from the Waste Management event, it's apparent to even an armchair fan like me that it's not working. Keep it in play and find a short game close to where it was and so what if you lose a few yards? Not everyone has to be a Bubba Bomber. At the moment nothing in his game is firing.
So where does Tiger go next? I'm not sure another coach is the way forward, unless he was to go back to Butch Harmon but I can't see that happening on both sides. Too much water has passed under those bridges but he's the only one I think knows, really knows Tiger and his mind and would find a way to get him swinging and protecting his body. I'm not convinced Chris Como is producing the goods. Clearly on the TV evidence we've seen and despite protestations that all is good behind closed doors in practice, it isn't transferring to the course. He needs to empty his head and simplify it. That's something that is drummed into all of us weekend hackers, that we can't play good golf with a head full of swing thoughts. We're also told to do whatever we need to do to keep it in play. The same applies to Woods. Give up this pursuit of power, get back to basics and get back to the top level of the game.
I fear that if the body gives in again or his form continues to nose dive that he'll walk away. It would be a sad climax, Seve like almost, to a glittering career and I don't think it needs to be a story coming to the final chapter. There's definitely a lot more to come on this and whenever he gets back onto a course in a tournament, I'll join everyone else in seeing exactly how the short game works under pressure and whether he can keep it in the same time zone off the tee.
We then had the news that the R&A, the governing body had sold the TV rights to the Open (it's not the British Open!!) to satellite TV broadcaster Sky. It's a five year deal starting from the 146th Open at Royal Birkdale in July 2017. The only way those that don't have a contract with a satellite provider or want to pay to view via the internet is to watch a highlights package on the BBC each evening. It was a bit of an understatement from Barbara Slater, Director of Sport at the BBC " We're obviously disappointed to retain TV live coverage of the Open Championship."
Personally I don't agree with her next statement. "We're pleased to be continuing our sixty year partnership with the R&A and feel that a comprehensive two hour highlights programme, a format which has already proven successful, in a prime time slot over four days allow us to continue to bring all the best action and key moments from the Open to a large free to air audience on TV, radio and online". Surely most that want to watch it will know the outcome (it'll even make the news) so while they may get to see the best bits and key moments, they'll know the effects these had on events.
Now I've no idea how many of you reading this (very welcome as you are) get your TV coverage of the Open, especially if you are in foreign fields. However in the UK, it has always been on the BBC and this has caused a huge issue and split opinion down the middle. I've an example here of how the Golf Monthly Forum has seen it - The Open on Sky
From my own view point I am very happy with this news. Yes, the BBC has always had the rights but to be honest, golf gets no more than lip service from the corporation. Yes, they give wall to wall coverage but aside from the Open, and the last two days of the Masters there's virtually no other top class golf coverage. Their presentation hasn't changed in years and I'm sorry but head commentator, Peter Alliss, iconic though is, has been off the pace for a few years and the other members of their team are very poor.
There's an argument been put forward that many people can't afford Sky and so won't be able to buy it, especially for the golf. A quick surf on the internet reveals that around 8.8 million already have Sky. My guess would be that a large percentage of those already have the sport channels even if it's for the football alone and therefore as sport "fans"would be able to watch the Open anyway should they feel inclined. In these austere times, let's say for arguments sake millions more can't afford to buy a Sky package. It will be shown at golf clubs, driving ranges and many bars and clubs the length and breadth of the country. If you are really that interested to see it, you don't need to put yourself out too much to find it on somewhere. With golf participation numbers in decline, where are all these new viewers going to be coming from anyway?
Sky has already paid their dues as far as TV coverage is concerned giving the armchair viewer week in, week out coverage on the European tour as well as all the action from the USPGA and other tours. It already has three of the four majors and coverage of the Solheim and Ryder Cups. It has been innovative in the coverage, I think the fact that Barbara Slater is happy with the highlights package shows that the BBC heart really hasn't been in it for a while and even they saw the writing on the wall.
So what about all the ad breaks? So much a bug bear of Sky coverage and yes they are annoying but as part of the Sky deal the R&A have insisted in these break kept to four minutes per hour with each break lasting no more than 60 seconds. Granted it isn't the ad free coverage on the beloved BBC but hardly it's hardly going to be wall to wall adverts and we all need a comfort break once in a while or a refreshing cup of tea to accompany our viewing.
So have the R&A sold their soul to the devil? Of course not. "We believe this is the best result for the Open and for golf" says Peter Dawson, R&A Chief Executive. I agree. This is perhaps a once in a generation opportunity for the R&A to take this large influx of money and invest in the game at grass roots level in the UK and across the world. However, and arguably more importantly, this deal gives both Sky and the R&A the opportunity to rid the golf with the stuffy, archaic image so many non-golfers still have about this game we all love. Of course. if this fails to transpire, then serious questions need to be asked of the R&A and their ability to continue to govern, and to Sky for selling out. Until then, I'm prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt.
And there you have it! What a strange few days, and perhaps more questions than answers on both counts, certainly in the case of Woods and his career, but also how the R&A and Sky will deliver coverage fit for ever changing broadcasting landscape. Of course, these are only my own points of view and I'm sure many will disagree, maybe even have polar opposite opinions. That's fine and natural and I'd love read any comments you want to post on here with your own thoughts. As for now though, I really hope Tiger gets sorted and that cometh the time Sky and the R&A deliver on their words and the money spent.
Now the dust has finally settled on both Woods and the Sky deal, let me give you my perspective. I'm nothing more than a fanatical weekend golfer and these are purely my own views. Let's start with Tiger and that second round at the Waste Management event.
I'll start by being brutally honest. Tiger is in a mess. Whatever he's been working on with the latest swing coach and however bullish he's been in interviews, it was apparent in the first round that it wasn't working. My own short game woes are well documented on here but Wood's chipping was as bad as I've seen any professional golfer execute...ever. He seemed totally messed in the head, with a thousand thoughts going on over the simplest of chips and his technique seemed shot. I've no idea why the best player of a generation with one of the best short games ever would want to make such a dramatic overhaul. Of course, many thought, myself included that he was perhaps just a little rusty. The second round dispelled that. Whatever the reason, it isn't working. It was proper car crash TV watching him rack up those numbers. To his credit, he played until the inevitable missed putt conclusion and was honest and eloquent post round but you could see the hurt and embarrassment in his eyes. I don't think he had a clue what had just happened. It took a lot of class to give those interviews. I loved his "I'm only here so I don't get fined" quip.
I tuned in on Thursday to the Sky Sports (more of them later) coverage from Torrey Pines. My first glimpse of Woods was thinning a green side chip on his opening hole. Nothing too different to the previous week. I'd already seen a clip of a shanked chip in practice and knew that a number of tour professionals were trying to give him advice. How did it get so bad? We're forever told that the top pros are forever working on the short game and even after his last back operation, I'm sure the first thing he'd have been given the green light to work on would have been the chipping and putting. He simply cannot be that rusty. It seems a major overhaul and something that would seem to be very much a work in progress at best.
As the coverage continued, it was apparent he was injured. He was spraying to parts of the course not on any caddy's yardage chart. Again not too different to the Waste Management event. However it was clear a few holes in that this was different and the way he kept reaching for the back after every drive showed he was struggling. He couldn't even get the tee peg off the ground and grimaced to get the ball out of the hole. I went to bed (it was late UK time) before he pulled out but wasn't surprised to see this news the following morning when I awoke.
 |
| The pain was etched all over Tiger's face on every tee shot at Torrey Pines |
And then social media went into meltdown. Forum boards (Is Tiger Finished?) Twitter, Golf Channel, the press. It was everywhere and everyone had an opinion. I'm a simple man and probably far from qualified to offer my own, but it's my forum, my rules so here it is..
I absolutely get that Tiger had to make swing changes following his injury issues and surgery last year. I get that he wanted to find a different coach to get him back to full fitness and playing and competing. We all want to see Tiger in the mix in majors and big events on a Sunday afternoon. However all this talk of him wanting to bomb it more and "I've got all my power back" seems to have done nothing to fix the issues. As far as I can see, this new swing, with a dramatic loss of height, is doing nothing to relieve the impact and stresses on the back. I'm not surprised it gave up again. He seems to be struggling so hard to get the club back in front of him and anywhere near square at impact.
Is this change and pursuit of distance what he needs? Surely after all the toil on his body with the knee surgery and back operation he needs to find something that lets him play and swing as easily as possible. Looking at the driving accuracy and GIR figures from the Waste Management event, it's apparent to even an armchair fan like me that it's not working. Keep it in play and find a short game close to where it was and so what if you lose a few yards? Not everyone has to be a Bubba Bomber. At the moment nothing in his game is firing.
 |
| An injured Woods maybe but the short game is way off and he can't find a fairway |
I fear that if the body gives in again or his form continues to nose dive that he'll walk away. It would be a sad climax, Seve like almost, to a glittering career and I don't think it needs to be a story coming to the final chapter. There's definitely a lot more to come on this and whenever he gets back onto a course in a tournament, I'll join everyone else in seeing exactly how the short game works under pressure and whether he can keep it in the same time zone off the tee.
We then had the news that the R&A, the governing body had sold the TV rights to the Open (it's not the British Open!!) to satellite TV broadcaster Sky. It's a five year deal starting from the 146th Open at Royal Birkdale in July 2017. The only way those that don't have a contract with a satellite provider or want to pay to view via the internet is to watch a highlights package on the BBC each evening. It was a bit of an understatement from Barbara Slater, Director of Sport at the BBC " We're obviously disappointed to retain TV live coverage of the Open Championship."
Personally I don't agree with her next statement. "We're pleased to be continuing our sixty year partnership with the R&A and feel that a comprehensive two hour highlights programme, a format which has already proven successful, in a prime time slot over four days allow us to continue to bring all the best action and key moments from the Open to a large free to air audience on TV, radio and online". Surely most that want to watch it will know the outcome (it'll even make the news) so while they may get to see the best bits and key moments, they'll know the effects these had on events.
Now I've no idea how many of you reading this (very welcome as you are) get your TV coverage of the Open, especially if you are in foreign fields. However in the UK, it has always been on the BBC and this has caused a huge issue and split opinion down the middle. I've an example here of how the Golf Monthly Forum has seen it - The Open on Sky
 |
| Has the R&A sold its soul to the devil? |
There's an argument been put forward that many people can't afford Sky and so won't be able to buy it, especially for the golf. A quick surf on the internet reveals that around 8.8 million already have Sky. My guess would be that a large percentage of those already have the sport channels even if it's for the football alone and therefore as sport "fans"would be able to watch the Open anyway should they feel inclined. In these austere times, let's say for arguments sake millions more can't afford to buy a Sky package. It will be shown at golf clubs, driving ranges and many bars and clubs the length and breadth of the country. If you are really that interested to see it, you don't need to put yourself out too much to find it on somewhere. With golf participation numbers in decline, where are all these new viewers going to be coming from anyway?
Sky has already paid their dues as far as TV coverage is concerned giving the armchair viewer week in, week out coverage on the European tour as well as all the action from the USPGA and other tours. It already has three of the four majors and coverage of the Solheim and Ryder Cups. It has been innovative in the coverage, I think the fact that Barbara Slater is happy with the highlights package shows that the BBC heart really hasn't been in it for a while and even they saw the writing on the wall.
So what about all the ad breaks? So much a bug bear of Sky coverage and yes they are annoying but as part of the Sky deal the R&A have insisted in these break kept to four minutes per hour with each break lasting no more than 60 seconds. Granted it isn't the ad free coverage on the beloved BBC but hardly it's hardly going to be wall to wall adverts and we all need a comfort break once in a while or a refreshing cup of tea to accompany our viewing.
So have the R&A sold their soul to the devil? Of course not. "We believe this is the best result for the Open and for golf" says Peter Dawson, R&A Chief Executive. I agree. This is perhaps a once in a generation opportunity for the R&A to take this large influx of money and invest in the game at grass roots level in the UK and across the world. However, and arguably more importantly, this deal gives both Sky and the R&A the opportunity to rid the golf with the stuffy, archaic image so many non-golfers still have about this game we all love. Of course. if this fails to transpire, then serious questions need to be asked of the R&A and their ability to continue to govern, and to Sky for selling out. Until then, I'm prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt.
And there you have it! What a strange few days, and perhaps more questions than answers on both counts, certainly in the case of Woods and his career, but also how the R&A and Sky will deliver coverage fit for ever changing broadcasting landscape. Of course, these are only my own points of view and I'm sure many will disagree, maybe even have polar opposite opinions. That's fine and natural and I'd love read any comments you want to post on here with your own thoughts. As for now though, I really hope Tiger gets sorted and that cometh the time Sky and the R&A deliver on their words and the money spent.
Saturday, 24 January 2015
2015 - The Season Start Here
The astute will notice that there has been a lack of updates since the turn of the year. Fear not. I've been working as hard as I can, given the winter conditions, freezing temperatures and gale force winds that have gripped Berkshire in the last few weeks.
I've had a couple of lessons with Rhys ap Iolo at Downshire Golf Centre but not had much opportunity to venture onto the course. The lessons have been focussed on making the club more stable through impact. It's been a tough period with a lot of range time and work on the practice ground at Royal Ascot Golf Club. Progress has been slow but gradual and I was working towards a competitive debut for the year in the monthly stableford last Sunday.
Warming up before the round I felt in good shape with a nice tempo and hitting some good shots. It was bitterly cold with a light drizzle in the air. I was partnered with Gordon Barr, a fine six figure handicapper with a lovely languid action. He is always good company and I was looking forward to the day.
I'd managed nine holes the preceding Sunday afternoon. My first shot of any description on the course at Royal Ascot in the new year found the green on the par three opening hole with a solid five wood. I was therefore full of confidence standing on the tee and looking to a fast start to my year and my bid to get to a single figure golfing nirvana.
What transpired in the next few moments rocked my golfing world to its core. The opening competitive shot of 2015 was a block right, purely struck but straight right and out of bounds by a comfortable margin. Having let my partner play his shot, I reloaded. I was still confident in the work I'd put in. However, the second attempt was a horrible swing and the result was the same. Two shots played in anger and both out of bounds. Not the start I'd had in mind.
I consolidated over the next few holes although in truth I was fighting the swing on every shot and it felt all of the hard work was falling apart. I was trying to stick with what I'd been doing with Rhys in the lessons without consciously thinking about in and filling the head with swing thoughts.
I made a sloppy double bogey at the fifth, a long par five of 503 yards. I only had 101 yards left for my third but pushed a wedge into the right had green side bunker. A poor bunker shot off the wet, compacted sand sent the ball across the green into another trap. A better execution to four feet followed but I missed the putt.
The sixth would have been described as a nemesis before I discovered New Golf Thinking (available on Kindle as an e-book). These days I think of it as a hole owing me a par or better. However the tee shot I made was frankly as poor as it gets. It was so far off the toe of the club I barely made contact and the ball shot off out of bounds right. Again, the second attempt wasn't great although in play.
Golf has a habit of testing you and if you hit a bad shot with a particular club you can be sure you'll be asked to use the same implement again very soon afterwards. In this case it was the hybrid I'd failed with off the tee on the sixth and I needed it for a positional shot off the seventh tee. At least this time I made better contact although it missed the fairway left.
In the end, I managed to struggle out in fourteen points, or four over my handicap. Given I hadn't scored on the first and sixth, the other holes were actually reasonably consistent. The back nine started with a slight hook into the left semi rough. I actually made a good swing with a seven iron but my approach just missed the green right leaving a short chip, having short sided myself. I played a chip and run with the seven iron and nuzzled it next to the hole for a tap in par.
I missed the green on the par three eleventh although it was a better swing. Again I had a chip with little green to play with and a dip in the ground to negotiate. Again I played a chip and run with the seven iron. It wasn't as good as the previous hole and ran out to six feet. However a single putt rescued another par. I got shots on these holes and so I was starting to make inroads into the deficit from the front nine.
I played the twelfth poorly. It's stroke index one, the hardest on the course. It has been made even harder in recent weeks. The club has invested heavily in drainage works and there is now a new ditch that runs down the right edge of the fairway. It use to be possible to take the carry on over the trees that protect the right edge. It's still possible but the ditch now ensures the player has to make sure the strike is flush as the carry has increased and there an increased element of risk/reward in taking it on
I missed the fairway, hit a poor second from a heavy lie in the rough and then pulled a nine iron left and long. Again I had a chip and run to play. This time I went for more loft and played it with a nine iron. It was a good shot to within four feet and made another single putt to rescue a bogey (net par). I found the green at the 178 yard thirteenth for a safe par.
On the fourteenth I hit a good drive but was blocked out by the trees at the corner of the dogleg. I tried to thread a hybrid low and under the limbs but missed the green right. It was an ambitious shot, not really one to take on in a competitive round. I was left with a pitch over a bunker off a bare and muddy lie. Not one for the faint hearted but I played it well to six feet and made another solid putt to secure an unlikely par.
Suddenly I was only a shot behind my handicap and a chance to post a good score. Sadly, I made a terrible three putt from thirty five feet for a bogey at the next, a careless double bogey at the sixteenth having laid up after missing the fairway right and then missing the green from 105 yards with a pull left with a wedge.
My issues at par three holes continued at the penultimate hole. I hit a top into thick rough some fifty yards in front of the tee. A decent recovery to the front edge and two putts for a bogey but it was third consecutive single point hole.
I saved my best drive of the day for the last hole, nailing a great shot down the middle of the fairway. My second was also solid but too far left into the heavy rough. I was left with 116 yards from a poor lie. There's a pond to the right of the green and I was acutely aware of its proximity. In the end I baled out left into a bunker. I hit an exquisite escape to four feet in full view of the masses already in the 19th. Sadly I couldn't finish it off with a putt for par.
Below are my statistics for the round. It's something I'll be doing on a regular basis to add some meat to the bones of these post and highlight the good and bad parts and pick out any trends that may be forming.
Monthly Stableford Statistics - 15th January 2015
In the end, my thirty two points was good enough for twelfth place in division one and a solid mid table finish. To be honest, given how inconsistent my swing had been all round, and the fact that my short game had held the round together around the turn it was arguably a better return than I deserved. There was definitely room for improvement and it was disappointing that all the hard work I had put in along with the tuition hadn't given me a more solid basis and that the first time out in 2015 hadn't gone better. Still it's important to remember it was the first round, conditions were difficult with a lot of wet and muddy lies and there was a degree of rustiness to the performance.
Perhaps the most annoying aspect wasn't the number of poor shots and the fact the bad ones were really bad, it was getting another 0.1 back on the handicap and the fact I missed a buffer zone by a point. With three single point holes in the last four, two holes I didn't score on at all, it's irksome that I could have and should have made the buffer. Last season was blighted by rounds of this nature where a cut or buffer zone was undone by several poor shots to ruin lots of good, solid playing. It cost any chance of reaching the nirvana of single figures and I don't want this year to be a repeat.
So what can I take away. The short game, so often a short coming last year, was solid. It bodes well. I holed out well and made several clutch putts from three to six feet. There is some good stuff in there. The longer shots are still an issue and perhaps there wasn't the trust, sub-consciously at least, in the work I'd put in and the changes I made.
I've been back to Rhys this week for a debrief. I showed him the numbers and explained I wasn't totally comfortable with the new swing. I wanted to revert to the one I'd had while still retaining the control of the club head through impact. Talk about wanting it all.
We've done some work. I'm infinitely more comfortable utilising the swing I had and we've taken out my strong grip and weakened it off significantly to introduce an degree more control. I'm fresh from a range session (in minus temperatures) on Wednesday and feel the grip is starting to feel more natural in the new position and that I can still make significant impact. Using the launch monitor in the lesson last night the distances were at least ten yards down on what I had been averaging. However Rhys was more interested on club path (in to out) and club face at impact. We were getting a much better relationship between these two figures. The work tonight has strengthened this work and the distances were beginning to return.
I am confident that majority of the errors were a result of pushing too big a swing change through too late into the winter programme of lessons and it left me between a rock and a hard place and a state of flux between what I'd been using and what I was trying to change to. Going back to a swing I trust 100% and adding some elements of control will leave me in a strong position going forward as the season begins in earnest.
I'm still in a happy place and my determination to reach single figures burns as strong as ever. It'll be a long road and for someone for whom golf has never come naturally, there will be some lows as well as some highs. I hope you'll stick with me on the journey and that if you like what you're reading that you'll take the time to share this, post comments on what you think on each post and generally get the word out there about this blog.
Rest assured there's more to come as well as more general posts about what being a member of a golf club means in 2015, the challenges faced and my take on some of the talking points around golf. Keep golfing!
2015 Starting handicap - 11.7
Current handicap 11.8
0.1 increase year to date
I've had a couple of lessons with Rhys ap Iolo at Downshire Golf Centre but not had much opportunity to venture onto the course. The lessons have been focussed on making the club more stable through impact. It's been a tough period with a lot of range time and work on the practice ground at Royal Ascot Golf Club. Progress has been slow but gradual and I was working towards a competitive debut for the year in the monthly stableford last Sunday.
Warming up before the round I felt in good shape with a nice tempo and hitting some good shots. It was bitterly cold with a light drizzle in the air. I was partnered with Gordon Barr, a fine six figure handicapper with a lovely languid action. He is always good company and I was looking forward to the day.
I'd managed nine holes the preceding Sunday afternoon. My first shot of any description on the course at Royal Ascot in the new year found the green on the par three opening hole with a solid five wood. I was therefore full of confidence standing on the tee and looking to a fast start to my year and my bid to get to a single figure golfing nirvana.
What transpired in the next few moments rocked my golfing world to its core. The opening competitive shot of 2015 was a block right, purely struck but straight right and out of bounds by a comfortable margin. Having let my partner play his shot, I reloaded. I was still confident in the work I'd put in. However, the second attempt was a horrible swing and the result was the same. Two shots played in anger and both out of bounds. Not the start I'd had in mind.
I consolidated over the next few holes although in truth I was fighting the swing on every shot and it felt all of the hard work was falling apart. I was trying to stick with what I'd been doing with Rhys in the lessons without consciously thinking about in and filling the head with swing thoughts.
I made a sloppy double bogey at the fifth, a long par five of 503 yards. I only had 101 yards left for my third but pushed a wedge into the right had green side bunker. A poor bunker shot off the wet, compacted sand sent the ball across the green into another trap. A better execution to four feet followed but I missed the putt.
The sixth would have been described as a nemesis before I discovered New Golf Thinking (available on Kindle as an e-book). These days I think of it as a hole owing me a par or better. However the tee shot I made was frankly as poor as it gets. It was so far off the toe of the club I barely made contact and the ball shot off out of bounds right. Again, the second attempt wasn't great although in play.
Golf has a habit of testing you and if you hit a bad shot with a particular club you can be sure you'll be asked to use the same implement again very soon afterwards. In this case it was the hybrid I'd failed with off the tee on the sixth and I needed it for a positional shot off the seventh tee. At least this time I made better contact although it missed the fairway left.
In the end, I managed to struggle out in fourteen points, or four over my handicap. Given I hadn't scored on the first and sixth, the other holes were actually reasonably consistent. The back nine started with a slight hook into the left semi rough. I actually made a good swing with a seven iron but my approach just missed the green right leaving a short chip, having short sided myself. I played a chip and run with the seven iron and nuzzled it next to the hole for a tap in par.
I missed the green on the par three eleventh although it was a better swing. Again I had a chip with little green to play with and a dip in the ground to negotiate. Again I played a chip and run with the seven iron. It wasn't as good as the previous hole and ran out to six feet. However a single putt rescued another par. I got shots on these holes and so I was starting to make inroads into the deficit from the front nine.
I played the twelfth poorly. It's stroke index one, the hardest on the course. It has been made even harder in recent weeks. The club has invested heavily in drainage works and there is now a new ditch that runs down the right edge of the fairway. It use to be possible to take the carry on over the trees that protect the right edge. It's still possible but the ditch now ensures the player has to make sure the strike is flush as the carry has increased and there an increased element of risk/reward in taking it on
I missed the fairway, hit a poor second from a heavy lie in the rough and then pulled a nine iron left and long. Again I had a chip and run to play. This time I went for more loft and played it with a nine iron. It was a good shot to within four feet and made another single putt to rescue a bogey (net par). I found the green at the 178 yard thirteenth for a safe par.
On the fourteenth I hit a good drive but was blocked out by the trees at the corner of the dogleg. I tried to thread a hybrid low and under the limbs but missed the green right. It was an ambitious shot, not really one to take on in a competitive round. I was left with a pitch over a bunker off a bare and muddy lie. Not one for the faint hearted but I played it well to six feet and made another solid putt to secure an unlikely par.
Suddenly I was only a shot behind my handicap and a chance to post a good score. Sadly, I made a terrible three putt from thirty five feet for a bogey at the next, a careless double bogey at the sixteenth having laid up after missing the fairway right and then missing the green from 105 yards with a pull left with a wedge.
My issues at par three holes continued at the penultimate hole. I hit a top into thick rough some fifty yards in front of the tee. A decent recovery to the front edge and two putts for a bogey but it was third consecutive single point hole.
I saved my best drive of the day for the last hole, nailing a great shot down the middle of the fairway. My second was also solid but too far left into the heavy rough. I was left with 116 yards from a poor lie. There's a pond to the right of the green and I was acutely aware of its proximity. In the end I baled out left into a bunker. I hit an exquisite escape to four feet in full view of the masses already in the 19th. Sadly I couldn't finish it off with a putt for par.
Below are my statistics for the round. It's something I'll be doing on a regular basis to add some meat to the bones of these post and highlight the good and bad parts and pick out any trends that may be forming.
Monthly Stableford Statistics - 15th January 2015
In the end, my thirty two points was good enough for twelfth place in division one and a solid mid table finish. To be honest, given how inconsistent my swing had been all round, and the fact that my short game had held the round together around the turn it was arguably a better return than I deserved. There was definitely room for improvement and it was disappointing that all the hard work I had put in along with the tuition hadn't given me a more solid basis and that the first time out in 2015 hadn't gone better. Still it's important to remember it was the first round, conditions were difficult with a lot of wet and muddy lies and there was a degree of rustiness to the performance.
Perhaps the most annoying aspect wasn't the number of poor shots and the fact the bad ones were really bad, it was getting another 0.1 back on the handicap and the fact I missed a buffer zone by a point. With three single point holes in the last four, two holes I didn't score on at all, it's irksome that I could have and should have made the buffer. Last season was blighted by rounds of this nature where a cut or buffer zone was undone by several poor shots to ruin lots of good, solid playing. It cost any chance of reaching the nirvana of single figures and I don't want this year to be a repeat.
So what can I take away. The short game, so often a short coming last year, was solid. It bodes well. I holed out well and made several clutch putts from three to six feet. There is some good stuff in there. The longer shots are still an issue and perhaps there wasn't the trust, sub-consciously at least, in the work I'd put in and the changes I made.
I've been back to Rhys this week for a debrief. I showed him the numbers and explained I wasn't totally comfortable with the new swing. I wanted to revert to the one I'd had while still retaining the control of the club head through impact. Talk about wanting it all.
We've done some work. I'm infinitely more comfortable utilising the swing I had and we've taken out my strong grip and weakened it off significantly to introduce an degree more control. I'm fresh from a range session (in minus temperatures) on Wednesday and feel the grip is starting to feel more natural in the new position and that I can still make significant impact. Using the launch monitor in the lesson last night the distances were at least ten yards down on what I had been averaging. However Rhys was more interested on club path (in to out) and club face at impact. We were getting a much better relationship between these two figures. The work tonight has strengthened this work and the distances were beginning to return.
I am confident that majority of the errors were a result of pushing too big a swing change through too late into the winter programme of lessons and it left me between a rock and a hard place and a state of flux between what I'd been using and what I was trying to change to. Going back to a swing I trust 100% and adding some elements of control will leave me in a strong position going forward as the season begins in earnest.
I'm still in a happy place and my determination to reach single figures burns as strong as ever. It'll be a long road and for someone for whom golf has never come naturally, there will be some lows as well as some highs. I hope you'll stick with me on the journey and that if you like what you're reading that you'll take the time to share this, post comments on what you think on each post and generally get the word out there about this blog.
Rest assured there's more to come as well as more general posts about what being a member of a golf club means in 2015, the challenges faced and my take on some of the talking points around golf. Keep golfing!
2015 Starting handicap - 11.7
Current handicap 11.8
0.1 increase year to date
Thursday, 1 January 2015
Back In Safe Hands
I thought I'd start 2015 with a story from my own golf club, Royal Ascot, based a nine iron away from the world famous race course. We've managed to get back a trophy that was last held over a hundred years ago and was seen by one of the members for sale on e-bay.
The trophy which was originally presented to Mr HS Ferguson in 1908 for winning the a bogey competition. For those that aren't familiar with this rarely played format, it is basically the golfer playing matchplay against the course. A net birdie is a win, a net par is a half and anything above that is a loss. The player with the best score against the course wins.
Some 108 years after it was presented a group of twenty or so members of the club grouped together to buy it back
The trophy was presented back to club captain Roger Wing and general manager Alison Hall following restoration at the AGM and it has been decided that it will now be presented annually to the player scoring the best round in the Haig Cup, the bogey competition the club runs every Easter.
The original recipient, Harold Ferguson MBE was born in London in 1851 and served in India with the Royal Artillery. He eventually became director of the state museum at Trivandrum in south-west India. He was a gifted footballer, playing for Scotland against England in 1871 & 1872 and he retired to Ascot where he lived until his death in 1921
The trophy which was originally presented to Mr HS Ferguson in 1908 for winning the a bogey competition. For those that aren't familiar with this rarely played format, it is basically the golfer playing matchplay against the course. A net birdie is a win, a net par is a half and anything above that is a loss. The player with the best score against the course wins.
Some 108 years after it was presented a group of twenty or so members of the club grouped together to buy it back
 |
| Club Captain, Roger Wing (front left) and member Andy Davidson who found the trophy for sale and some of the members that helped buy it back and get it back to the club |
The original recipient, Harold Ferguson MBE was born in London in 1851 and served in India with the Royal Artillery. He eventually became director of the state museum at Trivandrum in south-west India. He was a gifted footballer, playing for Scotland against England in 1871 & 1872 and he retired to Ascot where he lived until his death in 1921
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