Eating is cheating!

This is great, what a wonderful retort. LOL!

I share your thoughts as I often tell our 7 and 8 handicappers that they are often seen smoking soon after hitting a poor shot, thus releasing some chemical in their brain and thus helping to calm themselves down. I often claim smoking is cheating.

The whole issue of knowing what we really want from the game is so important, and it's rarely discussed. I had never given the question much thought until a friend posed it to me on the course a year or so ago.

I'm convinced that a person of average physical coordination can learn to play golf very well--scoring in the low 80s with some regularity, occasionally breaking 80--if they go about it in a sensible way. And the key to 'sensible' is a proper 'psychological' approach to playing. This involves knowing what to worry about and what not to worry about, knowing what shots and skills and so forth to tackle and which to leave to the pros. This relates directly to knowing what you want out of the game, really understanding it.

I think you sold me on the book.

The problem is most amateur golfers (me included) don't play often enough to ingrain these ideas. I play every weekend and a few extra times a few weeks of the year. I can't remember these things.

My handicap index is 14.5, I keep my score low by course management largely. I rarely takes risks and I depend a great deal on my short game. But I've only been playing 5 years and have a great deal to learn.

Mostly I find, I play really well through the first 13 holes and I add a lot so strokes +3 and +4 on a couple of holes starting with No. 14 onwards. I have to be on guard against being tired and loose shots. I keep some oat meal to go things to eat, a large shot of sugar really and that helps me more than anything else.

When you are just not fit, have the stamina, flexibility and what not, thinking alone won't get you very far.

On the other hand, throwing your clubs about, beating the turf, cursing, jumping up and down definitely doesn't help and I see a lot of people doing that. I just enjoy laughing at them, ninety bucks to get mad and pissed off. They could have done that at home just as well!

Still Mr. Skura needs an income as do all of us, so I hope a few of your readers will buy his book, but I won't be. I'll save the money for those oat meal to go cookies. They've saved my round many a time.

I always thought most mid handicappers (10-20) could probably get 4-5 shots better if they keep themselves mentally in check (among players at my club anyway).

On the weekend I was able to hold my self together for most of they day and played 3 under my handicap, but my partners lost it after 2 or 3 holes and gave up on the day, sure I had my share of disasters but I ground it out all day.

A perfect example was on the last, my partner and I both drove into the rough, both had 165yds to the pin, he is a much better golfer but was in a terrible mood, he subsequently tried to smash his shot and ended up in the front left trap, I on the other hand, was calm, stuck to my routine and put in 3yds form the pin two putted for par and won the day.

My index is 16.6 (only been playing for two years) but I think I've got the game for 11 or 12 maybe better, it's got to be down to the mental side of things.