Bignose

I'm surprised no one addressed this in the thread. The problem is that by grounding your club in a sand trap, you can test the consistency and wetness and fluffiness of the sand. You gain information the rulemakers have decided you should only learn by hitting the ball -- and a little by taking your stance. Now, there is a dumb part of this rule, too. I specifically mentioned sand above, but the rule talks only about hazards, which of course, also mean water hazards. And, should your club accidentally touch the surface of the water, that's grounding it even though it isn't the ground, and of course the two stroke penalty. But, water is water -- there is not fluffiness or consistency or wetness of water -- even across the wide range of temperatures playable for golf, the properties of water change only a tiny, tiny, minuscule amount. Unless the water is really slush or icy, there is no consistency to water -- so by "grounding" the club in water, there is no additional information to be gathered. The rules give you a loophole for this one. Everywhere except in a hazard, you haven't taken your address until you ground your club. That means, you can stand there a long time and let the wind blow your ball so long as you haven't grounded your club. As soon as you have grounded your club, it is presumed that your action has moved the ball. Whether the movement is caused by an earthquake or rabid wildebeest or wind after that point -- ground your club and it presumed to be your fault. Don't ground the club and it is not presumed to be your fault. Now, if the ball should move, it can still be ruled to have been your fault, but it is not presumed to be your fault until you've grounded you club. So, if you are playing on a windy day and you are on slick greens, I'd recommend practicing hovering your putter. If it happens to you a lot you'll either learn to hover the putter or accept those penalty strokes. But, this is a case where the rule is written to be strict one way, but they also give you an out. As bluenoser pointed out, this was just an additional bonus to the way Jack Nicklaus addressed the ball (I think he felt it reduced the tension in his arms, not primarily because of the grounding rule -- that was an added bonus). I actually would like to see this rule go the other way. Maybe limit the pros to 10 clubs and then you won't have to trick up the courses to 7500 yards and 6 inch rough. Bring back some classic course like Augusta National back when there was no rough -- er, I mean second cut. ------------------------- My vote for the original question would be stroke and distance for OB as well. The Palmer quote sums up the situation perfectly, in my mind. The USGA actually does suggest playing OB like a lateral water hazard if the course is busy and/or you are a high handicapper. Obviously, if the course is really busy, you should hit a provisional if there is any doubt at all. If the penalty was just distance, the provisional system would still be played exactly the same way, just one less stroke. I think that the same penalty, distance only, should be for lost balls, too. In many ways, we hackers at the muni aren't playing the same game as the pros -- they almost never lose a ball because of forward spotters. Someone always as a good look where it went into the 5 inch rough, whereas we can easily lose it in 2 inches if the grass lays just right. I think that there should be a leaf rule of some kind, too. In the fall, there are always those 2 weeks or so where the leaves just fall like rain, and it really doesn't matter how often the groundskeepers get out, there will always be a significant number of leaves on the fairway or just off the fairway. Losing a ball in those leaves is the worst, because you can see it go right in the pile but it doesn't seem to matter how many you swish around, your ball just won't show up. Again, this probably won't affect the pros much with their spotters and perfectly groomed courses, but it would make the game for us lowly amateurs a little fairer. Just make it a free drop one club length from where the ball entered the leaves or in the most likely spot the ball ended up in the leaves. At the very least, if a lost ball was only a distance penalty, not stroke and distance, losing a ball in the leaves in the fairway wouldn't be nearly as painful to the scorecard.

Would you be so kind as to provide a source for that? I don't think that any rules have been in place yet. See this recent blog on this exact issue for example: http://www.golfdigest.com/equipment/...ht-talk-o.html The ruling may come soon or may come a lot later, but I don't think anything definitive has been made yet. I admittedly don't follow everything on the Tour, but I really think that had this been made an official rule I'd have seen it by now. I also can't find anything in Google, though I fully admit I may be looking for the wrong things. So, if you could provide a link showing the rule on the PGA Tour banning them, I'd very much appreciate it.

pom, I don't want to say that you are lying, however, your story there is only anecdote. The tests reported in the article were performed in a closed, controlled environment, using a robotic tester. You're going to have to provide a lot stronger evidence than "this is what I do" Again, like I said above, golf is an awfully mental game, and I don't think that you are counting the placebo effect enough. That is, you have in your mind that high humidity means one full club difference, so your brain makes it happen. But, the controlled experiments don't reflect that. Unless you think that there was something wrong in the way the test was performed, I'm going to put a little more faith in the objective test than your personal experiences. Just to be clear, this is not a personal affront on you or your opinions, but I am going to side with science and objectivity over anecdote.

Dave Pelz has a book called Damage Control that is all about avoiding disaster holes. I haven't read it, but the book can only be purchased off of Dave Pelz's website, not through a bookstore or amazon.com or anything like that. I am curious if there is much in the book, or if it is a lot of common sense type things. I think that the biggest thing you can do, Dave, is some self-review. If it is really your course management skills that are holding you back, with the clarity of hindsight, you should be able to spot a fair amount of the mistakes you've made. Review the round as soon as you can... when you get home, or at the 19th hole. Make notes on the scorecard or on an extra piece of paper. Review them before your next round. You have to learn from the mistakes. Then, before you play a new course, or maybe even with the courses you are familar with, check the course website. A lot these days have hole diagrams on their pages. Look at the diagrams and plan ahead. Often there are photographs with the diagram so you can see some semblance of the slope/hills/etc. Sure, it isn't perfect, but it is good to have a game plan going in, especially on some of the tougher 2 or 3 holes you think are going to give you problems. With the hole diagrams you can plan where you think the good places to lay up are, where to be aggressive, where you need to drop down to a 3 wood or 5 wood or hybrid when you have to get the ball in play off the tee. But, I realy think self-review is the key. You need to know your game, and be honest with yourself over what mistakes you made. Once you identify them, you should be able to start to remedy them. If you have the opportunity when the course is pretty empty, if may be interesting to play a 2 ball with yourself. Play one your old method, and really concentrate on playing the other with an eye towards the smart shot -- the conservative shot -- the shot that eliminates as many of your old mistakes as you can. This is a problem I have, too. I play way too aggresively, and rarely does the 'hero' shot work. A lot of it for me is to see if I can pull it off or not. I know full well that it may only be a 1 in 10 or a 1 in 25 chance, but I like to see if I can too it. I know that I give away strokes, but I also like to have fun out on the course, and trying those hero shots -- especially when they work -- are definately great fun.

There was a good mini-article posted last year right before the very hot and humid PGA Championship: http://www.golfdigest.com/golfworld/...0803pgaweather The effects weren't as large as most assume, though the article only dealt with the change in ball flight due to the change in the fluid properties of the air. In summary (all based on a driver swung at 109 mph): 5000 feet of elevation (less pressure) = an extra 10 yards. A change in 10 degrees Fahrenheit = a change in the same direction of 1.3 yards (i.e. 10 degrees warmer means 1.3 extra yards and vice versa). And only 1 to 2 yards difference between 100% relative humidity and 0% relative humidity. The other points in this thread are very valid, as well, though. A colder ball will be less efficient and having to wear more layers will restrict you. Don't discount cooler muscles being more tight instead of loose in the warmer weather, and even the psychology of being cold. Golf is a mental enough game and so if you think how the cold it going to make the ball flight that much shorter, your body will figure out a way to make it happen. Many, many factors and I think that every one of them play a small part and add up to the whole significnat difference that is reported in the anecdotes.

Well, as been said grip pressure is probably the prime culprit here. I don't completely like thinking about a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10; if only because what one person thinks of 10 is different from another. I like Sam Snead's old quote about gripping it like you would a bird. Tight enough that the bird isn't going to get away but loose enough that you don't crush and kill the bird. But, that really is just a starting point, you need to find what works for you, though I wouldn't go too much tighter or looser from Snead's basis point. Also, not just your starting grip pressure, but your grip pressure throughout the swing can affect this too. A lot of people grip down tighter on the transition from the backswing to the forward swing. It really should be the same all the way through. A nice drill is to swing back and forth, a little more than half way each way, and concentrating on keeping the exact same pressure you had when you started the entire way through. That is, if you started with a 5 (or a 4 or a 2.5), then when you swing back make sure you are still at 5 (or 4 or 2.5) and then on your way down make sure you are still at 5 (or ...) and then at the end once again make sure you are still at 5 (or ...). If the club is moving at the transition, and that's making you re tighten you grip at the top, that can definitely cause blisters. Lastly, I want to explain a little why too tight is very bad for a golf swing. The muscles in your forearms and wrists tighten up when you grip something, and hence there is a loss of flexibility. You don't want to lose flexibility in your wrist cock, for example, because that is the source of generating lag in your swing which turns into power. In a book written by Cochran and Stobbs called Search for the Perfect Swing they measured how large the range of motion in the cocking-uncocking direction correlates with grip tightness. A maximum tight grip has a zero degree range, as you might expect. Three-quarters maximum has a 26 degree range, half maximum tightness has a 57 degree range, one-quarter maximum tightness has a 70 degree range, and no tightness at all had a 77 degree range. You can see how too tight can really disrupt the cocking of your wrists and rob you of power. Ultimately, you'll probably learn how everything seems to work better in the golf swing if there is a looseness or a flow to the swing. It is a hard habit to overcome, but there is also some truth in the saying "give up control to gain control" That includes holding on to the grip really tight.

Putting is always an interesting stroke, because it is one of the very, very few places on the golf course where you can almost be as individualized as you want. Almost every variation you can think of has been done. From players who intentionally cut the ball, or intentionally pull them, or long "gravity driven" swings or short jabby swings, they are all out there, and they all work for certian people. Not to mention, the very wide variety of ways to grip the club -- reverse overlaps and normal overlaps, and left-hand lows, and claws, and giant fat grips, etc. In putting, the 100% most important aspect is consistency. You have to know what the ball is going to do with your stroke, whatever that may be. Now, knowing the fundamentals of what kind of swing you want to accomplish can help with that consistency. But, the biggest thing is practice. Lots and lots and lots of practice. Putting can be a lot more about individual style because of the wide design of putter out there and because the goal of putting is different than a lot of other shots in golf. Putting is about getting the ball rolling in the right direction with the right speed. A lot of the other shots in golf is about hitting the ball hard and accurately. In order to hit the other clubs consistently, you have to swing them on plane and hit the center of the clubface. With putting, it helps to hit the center of the face, but it isn't an absolute necessity -- there have been players who putt of the heels or the toes of their putters, for example. They could do that because they knew how the ball was going to roll off the toe or heel, from loads of practice/experience. I think that the most important thing is to pick one method that you like and them give is a good long chance to work. Exact same thing with a putter. You have to give yourself a chance to get used to your stroke and your putter -- constantly changing to chase the perfect stroke or feel you'll never get used to one. Unless you are a putting natural, it's probably going to require lots of practice and work to perfect your stroke. Like most everything else in golf, there isn't really a shortcut.

Let me just echo that McCord's Golf for Dummies is excellent. Don't discount purchasing him a lesson or two with your favorite local pro, too. Not that I am saying that anything will definately happen, but sometimes family members teaching each other lead to some friction, and having an outside source can be good. Also, there are many different ways to skin a cat.. errr.. swing a golf club, and the way you want to teach your father may not be the best way for him. An outside teacher may be able to better work with him and his abilities. Other good beginner books are Julius Richardson's Better Golf , and Hogan's Five Lessons , though it is worth nothing that Richardson and Hogan advocate two fairly different styles of hitting a golf ball. Neither one is fundamentally better than the other, both methods can hit a golf ball long and hard and accurately. There are many others good books out there, a trip to the library should reap vast rewards -- one of the many different kinds of books and styles should jive with your dad.