Moving on

Well that's January over and done. It seemed to fly by although there wasn't much opportunity to get out and play. Progress was hampered by the big snowfall at the start of the month. I was due to play this weekend but there were temporary greens on every hole and the ground was rock hard meaning that everything would have been a lottery. I opted for a range session yesterday and today.

Yesterday was one of those. Sheer frustration. I know what I'm trying to do and what I want to achieve but had no real idea where the club was at any stage in my swing. It was out of sequence, the tempo was lousy and the technique lacking. Not a happy camper. Today was better in patches. I felt as though I'd been swinging too much with the arms instead of swinging the arms, turning and releasing through. Some improvement but all that work I'd done at the start of the month on tempo has completely deserted me.

Rather than self diagnose I've booked a lesson for Tuesday evening. My usual teacher is out of action following a knee operation so I'm going for a lesson with another pro at the driving range I know. I had a lesson with him to cure the dreaded J Arthurs before Christmas so he knows a bit about my swing, my aims for the year and what has been going wrong. He also does a lot of work on the mental side and I was going to use him later in the season for some mental training anyway.

And there we have it. Only two full rounds played. One competition entered and a 2nd place finish. No handicap changes and a swing that still won't behave. At least we're closer to the long nights and warmer weather.

Fings Wot I Learned

Well bless my soul. It only turns out my humble 34 points was good enough for second place in my division in yesterday's stableford. Now while the course was wet, particularly in places, and so played long, I didn't think it was that brutal but CSS was 71 and there were some really low point totals.

Unexpected as the result was it got me thinking about what I'd learned so far on my odyssey.

1) However good or bad you are hitting on the range its what you do when you get on the course that counts. There are lots of scratch players on the range.

2) Keep your mind empty. I'm not sure if it was the fact that only had 4 points after four holes yesterday but I wasn't thinking about what I "need" to do on upcoming holes or having that annoying voice in my head chattering about differentswing thoughts. I literally took one shot at a time

3) Putting practice at home can help. My wife bought me the Pathfinder http://www.improvemygolf.co.uk/acatalog/Pathfinder_Putting_System.html for Christmas and I've been doing a lot of work on my stroke especially from 6 feet and in. I only had 31 putts and didn't 3 putt once

4) Keep grinding. For those that have read my very first post, the aim this year is to be more competitive. No more giving up or watching on as someone snatches the prize. I feel that my approach has been vindicated, at least in part. After such a shabby start, I would normally bemoan my poor play, lose interest and fritter points away coming home with some embarrasing total. Yesterday I kept plugging away and it only took a great pitch at the sixth to act as a catalyst. I didn't even drive the ball that well on the back nine. However I did make some putts and kept it in play and came home in a respectable 20 points

5) Short game, short game, short game. Putting was A+. Pitching was B- (hadn't practiced it much). Bunker Play was C (in two and got them out well to about ten feet but couldn't make the putt). Chipping D-. Very poor technically. What I've learned from my first point is that however many balls you hit working on the long swing, fundamentally its the shots from 100 yards and in that's going to get me to single figure utopia

6) There's still a long way to go!!!!!

Keeping My Head Above Water

A day of firsts today. First round of 2010 on a full course (no temporary greens). First competition and the first chance for the new, more competitive Homer to be released. Mind you the signs weren't that great. Having drawn the first tee time at 8.00am and having arrived in darkness at just after 7.15 there wasn't much prospect of going through my usual pre-round routine unless the club had installed floodlights on the practice ground overnight. I resorted to some stretching and took half a dozen balls out to hit with an 8 iron about 7.40 just to feel club on ball.

For those that don't know Royal Ascot (and anyone is welcome to join me for a game) the first is an intimidating par 3 of 229 yards off the white tees (stroke index 10). There is out of bounds to the right, a pond short left, a line of hedgerow that sticks out on the right about thirty yards short of the putting surface and the ground slopes right to left towards a bunker left of the target. Welcome to your nice easy start to the day.

Another first as it was my honour. Having come up short yesterday in the damp conditions with a 5 wood I opted for a 3 wood. I hit it well with but still ended up about twenty yards short. I hit a good pitch and run to the back edge about fifteen feet from the flag. Then the problems started. A fiery first putt left a testy 4 footer which I failed to convert for an ugly double and a solitary point.

Still the new Homer wasn't going to let that get him down. I stood on the 2nd, a dog leg right, par 5 with OB tight down the right hand side. Picking my target on the left edge of the fairway I drew my driver back. I struck it beautifully. No change that, I flushed it. Trouble was I also hit it straight right. Reload and a lost ball. Even my new hardnosed persona was a little put out and I failed to trouble the scorer on the hole. By the time I stood on the fourth fairway I was in a spot of trouble. Still I only had 112 to the flag from the middle of the short stuff. A pushed 9 iron later into a bunker, a reasonable bunker shot to 8 feet and a missed putt I had the grand total of 4 points from 4 holes. Hardly the stuff of single figure handicaps.

And then I started to play. I was using the new Callaway Tour i (x) I had been given to trial for them (part of a GM Forum giveaway) and having hit my tee shot at the par 3 sixth way right I was faced with a pitch from wet rough over a bunker to a pin at the bottom of a slope. Fat and it was bunkered. Strong and it would hit the slope and run. Opening my 58 degree wedge it flew high and soft and landed perfectly at the top of the slope. It spun on landing and gravity took it down to within a foot of the hole for a par. I repeated the trick with a 95 yard wedge to 4 feet at the 7th for another up and down and limped out in a total of 14 points.

I hit a great drive at 10 to set up a routine par and made an ugly bogey on 11 (although I got a shot) with a rubbish chip. Another great drive down 12 was followed by a huge hook left with a 5 iron. When I got there it was sat on top of the wet leaf litter which was hardly an appetising prospect but somehow I managed to play a great chip and run to around 6 feet and the putt kindly obliged. I was way offline at the 186 yard par 3 13th (in fact I was about six inches from a hole in one on the temporary green!) but got onto the green and drained an outrageous ten footer to save par again. Steady if unspectacular until the 17th tee (2 points per hole) I came to one of my nemesis holes.

Another tough par 3 of 218 yards (SI 13) it has OB tight left and elephant country right. I usually take a four and run. Five wood in hand I aimed as usual for the right hand trap hoping my usual snap hook had disappeared like the snow. It was more hooky than I wanted but it kept its head up and found the putting surface. Two putts later (and a tiny fist pump) and I'd got a par. A poor drive down the long par 5 eighteenth meant I had to play for a 6 (nett five) which I got.

One of the things I am really working hard on is trying to take it one hole at a time and not worry about what has been and what could be. I have to say I achieved this really well today although how much my ropey start and poor front nine had to do with it is an unanswered question. Will I still be able to do it if I know I'm playing well with a good first nine score?

And the conclusion. Well I was still clubhouse leader in my division as I left about an hour after I finished. I hit the buffer zone so there was no damage to my handicap. My driving is inconsistent, my chipping rusty but I guess the thing is I ground a score out which is one of the big aims for the year. Not a bad way to start.

Fairways hit = 6/12
Greens in regulation = 3/18
Number of putts - 31
Sand saves = 0/2

Total number of lost balls in 2010 = 2

Strange Day

If you had asked me at lunchtime about my golf and ultimately my goals for the year, the reply would not have been pretty. Frustrated, I'd come home from a terrible range session where every iron shot seemed wrong. Most were weak slices (not a normal shot for me) and there were no two consecutive shots that seemed to go in the same direction. Strangely the longer clubs and in particular my 3 wood and driver were behaving impeccably.

I'd already decided I was going to play nine holes at Royal Ascot if only to see for myself how wet the course was before the monthly stableford tomorrow morning. It was with little expectation that I teed my 5 wood up on the white tees at the first. I hit a decent enough shot, a little right and short, but it hadn't been an embarrassment. I hit a great pitch and putted out for par.

As I continued, I managed to get the ball into play off the tee but it became obvious my irons were still letting me down. A pushed 5 iron at the second, a fat approach at three and a pushed wedge at four had done nothing to improve my mood. Add a mis-firing short game into the equation and scoring was not pretty. I'm glad its not medal tomorrow.

I did managed to make a decent par at the last hitting a good drive down the right side of the fairway and a low 4 iron onto the front left of the green. At least I could feel I had made progress. As it was still light enough I decided a little short game practice was in order. Working more on a rocking shoulder motion and trying to keep the wrists passive I felt I'd made a couple of tiny steps forward.

Its hard to put a finger on what's wrong with my swing and in particular my irons today. I'm hoping it was just a bad morning at the range or at least if not, the problem is only small and a quick lesson will fix it. I'm not looking to set the world alight tomorrow and have no expectations to necessarily play well. The new more determined Homer will get his first outing and I'll be grinding for every single point but I'm realistic enough to realise my game isn't where it would have been without the snow putting a kybosh on everything.

It will be good to get out and actually play a full game and on proper greens (I'm done with temporary greens thank you very much). I know the course is very wet in places and so keeping it on the short stuff and taking advantage of winter rules will be key. Not putting any pressure on myself might be way forward as well. Either way I'll be sure to let you know, warts and all, how the first competitive round of 2010 went.

Happy golfing

Two Steps Back

The sun was shining, it was warm and I was up for the work. What could possibly go wrong? Whilst I'm probably being over critical, todays range session was not great. There were way too many inconsistant shots, fading off right, turning over left and just the odd moment of joy as I got one to rasp straight and true from the sweetspot. I never felt in control of the swing throughout and the frustration I felt yesterday from the enforced layoff was still there today.

I'm hoping that the course may open again next weekend so I can just go out and play. Maybe I'm worrying too much about the swing again and need to just "grip it and rip it". However the forecast for the week doesn't look great with more rain due so I'm still dubious about my chances of getting out.

On the plus side I've got a flexi afternoon off work on Tuesday so I might go and hit a few balls at the range. I have a feeling I was trying to work on too many things at once and fell between several stools. I need to work on my initial takeaway I think as per my recent lesson. I was trying to concentrate on that, turning properly on the inside of my right foot and swinging with a slow, smooth tempo. Way too much for my tiny brain. It's annoying that one of the teaching pros watched me on the 5th and said I was striking it great and today I struggled to put two consecutive shots together. Still no-one said golf was easy.

Finally.....back to swinging a club

At last. Managed to finally get to put club to ball down at Maidenhead Golf Centre. Not quite the horror show I thought it might have been but I wasn't swinging as well as I was on the 5th when I last managed to practice. There are still a number of ongoing issues. I'm working on the takeaway and grip change as per my lesson on January 4th and I know I wasn't making a particularly good turn. Contact with the ball was pretty reasonable but I was "directionally challenged" and seemed to be hitting a number of big hooks. I'm frustrated that my hard work has been compromised but feel that I'm ready to play well if and when the course ever re-opens (famous last words). I'm going back tomorrow to work on it so I'm hoping it'll click back into place.

To be honest it was just nice to be out and not running the gauntlet of the local supermarket on a Saturday morning. I managed to swing past Royal Ascot on the way home. The first two holes are still frozen and the back nine requires scuba gear as it's heavily waterlogged. No play until at least Monday and even then I think they are being optimistic.

I did manage to look at the 2010 Footjoy catalogue in the pro shop. Those who know me will be aware that I have a Ian Poulter like collection of shoes but to be honest I was disappointed in the majority of Footjoy's 2010 offerings. It looks very much like they are going for the trendier, younger end of the market. I'll have a closer look in the next few months but initial impressions are not good.

Watched the golf from South Africa earlier and it was great to see Darren Clarke back to form. One of golfs real nice guys who has struggled in the last few years with his game but has battled hard to find something that works for him. I really hope he does well tomorrow and it would be nice to see him win again.

Green grass has been sighted

Whisper it quietly but the snow is going. Royal Ascot remains under a blanket of white and not looking to be open, at least not tomorrow. I imagine it will struggle to deal with the excess water and so likely to be flooded in places. The glass half full in me is hoping it'll be ok as I've got a game pencilled in for Sunday, but the glass half empty guy on the other shoulder is shouting louder and telling me to stop dreaming.

Either way I'm off to find a range that's open tomorrow and get back to work on my swing. The frustrating thing is I was making real progress and beginning to hit it well and on a regular basis before the latest interruptions. I'm not sure what to expect tomorrow but just hope I haven't lost too much impetus. I hope you get a chance to get out and swing whether on your course if its open (lucky so and so) or down your local range.