Fall Golf

Well here we are into another fall season.  I usually love to golf in the fall, the air is clear, the bugs are fewer and the courses aren't quite as busy.  Somehow this year we've seemed to go from summer into late fall almost over night!  All of a sudden it's cold!  The wind is blowing and it's raining a lot.  I don't like golfing in those conditions, it just takes all the fun out of the game!

Last year we took a couple friends to a course my husband and I both love, but it was in October.  The sun was shining, but was it ever cold!  The wind swirled around and chilled us to the bone!  Of course we all stiffened up and our game wasn't the best.  Well, that's not that big a deal to me, I just love being out on the course and the score isn't that important to me.  Can't say the same thing for the guys.  When they're not hitting well they kinda sulk...  But don't tell them I said that.  I wonder if I can talk them into going this October?

THE PRE-SHOT ROUTINE FOR PUTTS

I am always looking for good info to post in Lady Golf Pro's Tip of the Week on my web-site.  Here's this weeks tip!

"I believe that having a consistent pre-shot routine is one of the most important aspects of putting.  And no  matter what your routine consists of, it should be repetitive.  In other words, each time you step up to a putt, do exactly the same thing before striking the ball.  This is vital to both your mental and physical preparation - and thus is the key to holing more putts."




Taken from "The Encyclopedia of GOLF Techniques" by Chris Meadows with Allen F. Richardson

Happy golfing!

Picking a Putter

Searching for some good information to put in Lady Golf Pro's Tip of the Week I found this Pro Tip in "The Encyclopedia of Golf Techniques" by Chris Meadows with Allen F. Richardson -

     "Just like any other club in your bag, a putter also has a lie angle, and having the correct one for you is       vital to playing successfully on the greens.  Choose a lie angle that sets your eyes over the ball when you adopt your posture.  That's the secret to aiming correctly."

Have you ever bought a new putter and then found out that it's just not working for you?  The putter angle is all important at the point of contact.  If you're not hitting the golf ball correctly it's going to go astray!  I've also experimented with different degree drivers and the differences in results are amazing!  It all goes to prove that club selection is one of the major factors that will determine how well you play the game!

Rangefinders? Yes or no?

Are rangefinders really catching on?  How many people use them on the course?  If you use one, how much of a difference has it made in your golf game?

These are all the questions I ask when the topic of rangefinders comes up.  I have several available for purchase on my website but have limited experience using them.  Using a rangefinder did seem to make a difference when I golfed with a friend who owns one.  It was very useful knowing that I was exactly 80 yards from the green.  That made club selection easy and gave me the information I needed to adjust my golf swing for the distance required.  And, I made a great shot!  Could I have done the same without the rangefinder information, maybe, but having that exact distance took a lot of guess work out of the shot.

For individuals who golf a lot it might not be a big deal, but for those of us who don't get out near as much as we'd like and aren't the best at judging distances, I think it's a great tool to add to your golf bag!

Unexpected fun!

Work got postponed so we took the opportunity to get in a round of golf last Friday.  I called a great friend of ours to see if she could join us, but she wasn't home.  It was too bad we hadn't planned ahead a bit better!  The three of us started out, myself, my husband and our friend Scott.  Well we hadn't finished the fourth hole when there comes my friend Nancy!  We finished off our front nine in fine style and decided we'd play a scramble on the back nine, me and Scott against my husband and Nancy.

Well we always have great fun when we all play together but this was a riot!  It's so much fun to mix good golf, and maybe some not so good golf, with lots of laughs.  And, we had to play an extra hole to decide the winners!  Both the guys are long hitters and they made some fantastic shots!  And Nancy and I didn't do too badly either!  We both came through with some key shots.  Everyone contributed to the laughter!

Hope everyone has as much fun on the golf course as we do!

I'mmm Baaacckkk

Well it's been a while since I've had a few minutes to sit down and write up my blog post.  Been a crazy few weeks!  I'm going to work on writing on a better schedule!

Catching up...

Wow, what a great summer!  We are having the best summer weather any one could ever ask for!  That of course has good points and a few bad points, very few bad points because I love the hot weather!  But... too much hot weather means there have been a few days it's been TOO HOT to golf!  Can you believe that?

Thankfully I've been able to find a few opportunities to play in some of my match games and even participate in a Senior Ladies Scramble last week.  The scramble is always a lot of fun and I've had the same playing partners for several years.  We always finish somewhere close to the top and this year was no exception!  We shot an even 72 and took 2nd place low net!  The gross winners only shot a 68!  Just think,,,, if we can shave off another 4 or 5 stokes!!!  Seriously, it was great fun and that is always more important than any score.  We got almost a whole nine holes in before the rain started and the rest of the round was a wet one.  Wet or dry we laugh!

To top off playing in the rain, one of my playing partners took off into the club house with my car keys... without telling me she had them!  Ok, I opened the trunk to put my clubs in, I know I had them, how could they be lost here in the parking lot?  I searched that golf cart ten times!  I checked in my golf bag, I checked the ground, I checked inside the car.  No luck so finally I figured I'd have to check with my partners, though I couldn't imagine why they would have them, but sure enough as soon as I entered the clubhouse - oh, Sue has your car keys!  Which turned out to be a good ending to a damp day!

Happy golfing!

Match Play Results!

After losing the first four holes we figured we were in for an old fashioned whupping, but we started tying holes, and then winning a few and by the time we reached 18 we were all tied up!  And then it came down to the very last put, which I missed!  AAARRGGGHHH.. oh well, we had a blast with the other couple we were playing with and that's much more important than winning!

Me? Use a rangefinder?

I invited an out of town friend to join me at our weekly ladies golf night this past week.  She always has gadgets and the like, which I often scorn!  Why would any one need that stuff?  Can't you just figure out how far you are from the pin by using the fairway markers?

Well, we were on a par three, with no fairway markers and my tee shot had gone astray, (that's a nice way of saying I had an absolutely awful tee shot!) My friend pulled up that rangefinder and said" fifty-four yards out".  OK, I know how I should hit with my wedge to cover 54 yards... adjusted accordingly, and BINGO, right onto the green not too far from the flag!  So, ok, maybe I should get my own rangefinder!

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Surf's up!

Well I missed our Tuesday evening Ladies League play to go with my daughter to Lawrencetown Beach in Nova Scotia.  My daughter learned to surf during her time in Australia and hasn't had much of a chance to keep it up since she's come home.  It was great to watch her catch a wave and ride her board, she's pretty good at it, even though she is a bit rusty!  As much as I love golf, spending the day with my daughter was even better!

Match Play

Hubby and I just won the first round of mixed match play for this season at our club!  We played against a great couple of people, who by the way, whupped us last year!  It's always a lot of fun, no matter who wins and I enjoyed our round today immensely!

Sometimes it's hard to find the time to get these games in, but it's so worth it!  We get to golf with other people we might otherwise not play with, and we get to have a lot of laughs!  It's an alternate shot format, I'm sure I have my husband hitting from places he's never even seen on the course before!  All in all, a great day.

Tips on getting your kids started!

In teaching and coaching juniors here are some things that parents really want to be aware of. One, make it an environment that is safe for them emotionally as well as physically. In this game you are going to hit a lot of bad shots and you will probably lose more tournaments and events that you actually play in. So can you actually have an emotionally safe environment where you get rewarded for trying, doing the right things and continuing the process. That is what the real aspect of playing golf is and those are the real skills you can learn. The other thing is can you teach the kids to have fun playing the game. I like to have them play early and learn late. What I mean by that is have them get out and experience playing the golf course, hitting the ball around, even if the do not have the prefect grip or the perfect posture or the perfect swing. They can learn that as they go along, they can learn it later, perhaps when their bodies are bigger and stronger and more mature, better able to handle the swinging of the golf club.

Read More: Video Golf Tip | Teaching Your Kids Golf http://www.golflink.com/tipsvideos/video.aspx?v=66834#ixzz1zqozXABS

Laird Small
Pebble Beach Golf Academy

Match Play

I'm scheduled to play at 9:30 am in something new for our club, Ladies Match Play.  The female membership at our club has been growing steadily over the last few years, thanks in great part to the very welcoming atmosphere our ladies create!  It's a great place for beginners or anyone who is working on improving their game.  We have a lot of fun and that's usually more important than whatever shows on the scorecard!

What's more important than golf?

I'm really not getting out to the course near as much as I'd like to so far this year.  Just too much going on!  It's hard to believe that June is drawing to a close and we're into real summer.  While I'm not getting to do a lot of golfing I have been getting in a lot of beach time, with my three year old grandson!  We go about twice a day (we live right by the water) and he just doesn't want to leave!  I've built sand castles and jumped in waves and made sand roads and rescued him from dreaded seaweed!  Some things are more important than golf........

www.ladygolfpro.com Tip of the Week

"The perfect golf swing is full of contradictions.  None of which is more important, or more baffling, than the need to focus and relax at the same time.  Some golfers actually practice mental exercises such as meditation to help them achieve this difficult balancing act.  The best way to start is to master the technical aspects of swinging a golf club first. Then you can concentrate on making a natural, fluid swinging sequence.
<br><br>
The first technical aspect to learn for a good golf swing is correct posture.  Many golf pros often stress that proper stance makes all the difference between a good and a bad swing.  The swing should be a natural movement of the body, during which the clubhead happens to make contact with the ball.  The starting position is therefore essential for making a good swing."

master golf
mark wood PGA Professional
Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.

How do I make my five iron work?

A few years ago my 5 iron was one of my best clubs, meaning I got consistently good results when using this club.  My set of clubs got replaced and instead of 5 and 6 irons the new set had 5 and 6 hybrids.  I adjusted, but after awhile I decided I really missed my 5 iron and started dropping hints... lo and behold, next birthday I received a lovely Callaway Ladies 5 iron.  That first season I walloped the ball with that club!  Now, for some reason I can't seem to hit with it at all, and no, I'm not blaming the club!  I just can't figure out what I'm doing differently?  I'd love to have some suggestions!

Love a fun scramble!

What a great time!  Last Friday evening I played in a 9 hole mixed scramble, just for fun!  there were great shots, good shots, terrible shots and everything in between!  But it was amazing how each hole got played, one member from our group always came through!  Someone would have a fantastic approach shot or sink a long putt and we came in 3 under par!  Even more important, we had a lot of laughs doing it!  Can hardly wait for the next one!

Courses I've Played!

I started listing all the courses I've play and posting them on Pinterest last night.  I started with one of the courses I played while I was in Australia.  The Byron Bay Golf Club is beautiful and the staff was super friendly.  I just kept thinking, OMG, I'm golfing in Australia!  What an awesome experience!

Fairway Markers!

Fairway markers

Fairway markers indicate the distance from the marker to the center of the green. Some fairway markers give the yardage. Most are color-coded as follows: yellow=250 yards, blue=200 yards, white=150 yards, red=100 yards. These colors are not standardized and may vary based on the specific course layout.

It's taken me a while but I think I finally have this info down pat!

www.ladygolfpro.com

Busy Busy Busy!!!!

Wow, it's been a busy time!  I haven't had any time to golf, or blog!  The weather hasn't been co-operating either!  Rainy and miserably cold, but that is suppose to change tomorrow!  Keep your fingers crossed!

The new Tip of the Week is up on www.ladygolfpro.com -


According to LPGA Hall of Famer Kathy Whitworth:

"The golfer's left side must be the dominant part of the swing.  This is the only way to get maximum power and accuracy.  If the right side takes over, there is no golf swing."

Obviously, if you're a lefty you would need to apply this principle to your right side!


Check out www.ladygolfpro.com for great deals for Lady and Junior golfer!

A great video to watch!

Here is a link well worth watching!  Several very true observations about our game!
http://www.flickspire.com/m/hwnw/GolfQuotes

Handicap? What's that?

I overheard a conversation between two fellow golfers the other day, one was trying to explain the handicap system to the other.  It made me think, how many of us, excluding the real pros and the super duper avid amateur golfers, know how handicapping works?  So, I went to the web and found this information at http://www.usga.org/Rule-Books/Handicap-System-Manual/Handicap-Manual/

1-1. Purpose

The purpose of the USGA Handicap System is to make the game of golf more enjoyable by enabling players of differing abilities to compete on an equitable basis. The System provides a fair Course Handicap for each player, regardless of ability, and adjusts a player's Handicap Index up or down as the player's game changes. At the same time, the System disregards high scores that bear little relation to the player's potential ability and promotes continuity by making a Handicap Index continuous from one playing season or year to the next. A Handicap Index is useful for all forms of play, and is issued only to individuals who are members of a licensed golf club.

Two basic premises underlie the USGA Handicap System, namely that each player will try to make the best score at every hole in every round, regardless of where the round is played, and that the player will post every acceptable round for peer review. The player and the player'sHandicap Committee have joint responsibility for adhering to these premises.

A Handicap Index, issued by a golf club or authorized golf association(through its member clubs), indicates a player's skill and is a number taken to one decimal place, e.g., 10.4.

A Handicap Index compares a player's scoring ability to the scoring ability of a scratch golfer on a course of standard difficulty. A player posts scores along with the appropriate USGA Course Rating and Slope Rating to make up the scoring record. A Handicap Index is computed from no more than 20 scores plus any eligible tournament scores. It reflects the player's potential because it is based upon the best handicap differentials posted for a given number of rounds, ideally the best 10 of the last 20 rounds.

A Handicap Index is portable from course to course, as well as from one set of tees to another set of tees on the same course. A player converts aHandicap Index to a Course Handicap based on the Slope Rating of the tees played.

A USGA Course Rating is the USGA's mark that indicates the evaluation of the playing difficulty of a course for a scratch golfer under normal conditions based on yardage and other obstacles that affect scoring ability. A Slope Rating is a measurement of the relative difficulty of a course for players who are not scratch golfers. Each course is rated from each set of tees for both the scratch golfer and the bogey golfer. The USGA Course Rating and Slope Rating together reflect the difficulty of the course for a player who is not a scratch golfer. The greater the difference between the scores of the scratch and bogey golfers on a certain course, the higher the Slope Rating will be and the more strokes players will receive. Conversely, the less the difference, the lower theSlope Rating will be and the fewer strokes players will receive.

Each player locates the Handicap Index on the appropriate Course Handicap Table and finds the corresponding Course Handicap. ACourse Handicap Table can be found in the clubhouse or near the first tee of a golf course. There will be a Course Handicap Table for each set of tees used by men and by women. The number of strokes a player receives (Course Handicap) is based upon the relative difficulty (Slope Rating) of the course.

Use of this manual, which provides a detailed description of all aspects of the USGA Handicap System, will make all competitions more enjoyable.

There's a great article about reading greens in the recent Golf Link Newsletter!

Rain, rain go away!

All set with a free afternoon to golf and today it rains!

Tip of the week!


When you're hitting a lot of balls in one session, remember to take a break between swings. You will avoid mental and physical exhaustion and can use the time to process what you've learned or accomplished. Remember, you're not out there to hit a thousand shots, rather a few beautiful ones. Hitting 20-30 balls at a time is sufficient practice, especially if the majority of these are struck on the sweet spot of the clubface.

Ode to Golf

Author Unknown

In My Hand I Hold A Ball, White And Dimpled, And Rather Small. Oh, How Bland It Does Appear, This Harmless Looking Little Sphere. By Its Size I Could Not Guess The Awesome Strength It Does Possess. But Since I Fell Beneath Its Spell, I've Wandered Through The Fires Of Hell. My Life Has Not Been Quite The Same Since I Chose To Play This Stupid Game. It Rules My Mind For Hours On End; A Fortune It Has Made Me Spend. It Has Made Me Curse And Made Me Cry, And Hate Myself And Want To Die. It Promises Me A Thing Called Par, If I Hit It Straight And Far. To Master Such A Tiny Ball, Should Not Be Very Hard At All. But My Desires The Ball Refuses, And Does Exactly As It Chooses. It Hooks And Slices, Dribbles And Dies, And Disappears Before My Eyes. Often It Will Have A Whim, To Hit A Tree Or Take A Swim. With Miles Of Grass On Which To Land, It Finds A Tiny Patch Of Sand. Then Has Me Offering Up My Soul, If Only It Would Find The Hole. It's Made Me Whimper Like A Pup, And Swear That I Will Give It Up. And Take To Drink To Ease My Sorrow, But The Ball Knows ... I'll Be Back Tomorrow.

Rainy day = no golf

Here I am, ready to golf this afternoon and mother nature decides to send rain our way.

Played my first 18 holes of the season yesterday, it's great to be back on the course!  Our club only has 9 holes so we often just go out for a quick 9, playing 18 gives me a chance to try to better my score on the back 9, which I'm happy to say I was able to do yesterday!  By 7 strokes!  Yes, I said 7.  You know what that means?  My front 9 was awful!  Oh well, it was fun and I can hardly wait for my next round!  Happy golfing everyone!

Lady Golf Pro's Tip of the Week!

Shaft Options - The Basics
The two differences in golf shafts that beginners should keep in mind are shaft composition (graphite or steel) and shaft flex (the amount of bend in the shaft during your swing). Steel is sturdier and cheaper, but graphite is lighter, so it will generate more swing speed. Women and older players will benefit most from graphite shafts that have a softer flex. Stronger, younger men may go with regular or stiffer shafts, but remember that many teaching say too many golfers use shafts with too much stiffness.

Taken from "Lady Golfers Guide"
You can get your own copy of "Lady Golfers Guide" at www.ladygolfpro.com

First game today!

I'm so excited!  My first game of the season is this afternoon! Right after lunch with some of my best friends on the planet!

My uncle, who has golfed all his life, has his own definition of the word G.O.L.F.: Getting Old and Living Fine!
http://www.badgolfer.com/