Hey everyone on TST. My name is Jesse and I'm about to separate from the military and head back into the civilian life. I started playing golf while I was stationed overseas in Japan. Once or twice a month my co-workers and I would schedule an early Friday tee time. I didn't take it too seriously and was shooting mid 90's. It was more of a social time for the entire shop to relax and unwind.
Fast forward 4 years and I moved back to the U.S. My golf clubs sat in my garage for years collecting dust. About 3 months ago, one of the young guys at work expressed interest in golf. I ended up selling my set of clubs to him. He starts going every weekend and soon enough we get out of work early on Friday and four of us book a tee time. Just like the old days again, or so I thought. 130+ strokes later, I realized that it was not like the old times. After that embarrassing outing (I sliced one ball so hard it didn't hit anything.. because it went completely over it into an empty field.) I was determined to take this sport seriously and get better. I wanted to shoot under 100 by the end of the year.
Being in the military definitely takes its toll on your body. I wasn't nearly as flexible or spry as I used to be. I realized that if I tried to swing like I used to swing when I was younger, I'd probably tear something in my worn out shoulders or blow out my back. I decided to make some swing changes and try to swing like the old guys do at the range that make it look effortless. I started going to the driving range almost every day after work. I'd usually try to get in a round on the weekend if the wife would let me. I started reading books and watching Youtube videos. Every time my wife walked by, she'd see I was looking at SOMETHING related to golf, and just shake her head. Eventually you would think I was cheating on her with golf books with some of the looks she gave me. Almost 2 months of practice and I wasn't shooting any better. In fact, it seemed like my swing was getting worse. Too much analyzing. 50 swing thoughts going through my head at the same time on the backswing. Then I found TST.
I started reading the instruction forum. I learned what to practice and more important HOW to practice. I wish I could take back all those mindless range buckets I hit those balls with no real plan or purpose other than to test my patience. Today, I hit my goal. I shot a 97. It was looking like getting under 90 would be possible also when I hit the turn at 9 over. Then it started falling apart. I ended up with four 3 putts on the back nine alone. Thankfully I managed to hold it together and break 100.
I apologize for the long story, but I just wanted to say thank you to everyone here at TST for the vast amount of free knowledge just waiting to be soaked up like a sponge. I figure the least I could do is tell my story and let you know that you've definitely helped me out. Hopefully it was entertaining to read. Now I have a new goal for the end of the year and that's to break into the 80's.
Best regards,
Jesse
