Neil

Thoughts anyone. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/golf/7849800.stm Personally I'm surprised. I think he still has it in him to play at Celtic Manor. By 2012 I think his playing days will have gone and he would then be a perfect captain either for the 2012 event in the US or 2014 which will be in Scotland. I'd have liked to see Sandy Lyle get his shot at captaincy - looks like that will never happen now.

I had a similar experience trying a Rife in shop two weeks ago - Antigua model - I thought the feel was brilliant. I play with a guy quite regularly who uses the 2bar and really likes it. Justin Rose also uses one. I'm currently happy with my PingZing2 but if I look to change Rife are up near the top of my list!

'96 stands out for me. Norman's collapse after playing brilliant all week and Faldo's sheer guts and ruthless determination in the final round - people forget that while Norman exploded Faldo shot 66 to win.

Rotella is definety good. As an alternative I really liked 'How Great Golfer's Think' which was reviewed on this website last year. http://thesandtrap.com/tvmedia/how_g...nk_book_review The book takes the form of a story where a coach delivers lessons to 4 players. The story is pretty terrible but the lessons themselves are excellent - simple and very clear. I think I probably learned more from this than from any Rotella book.

My tip would be to improve your menatal game - you can make massive improvements without doing anything mechanical. One great mental tip I heard was in regard to segmenting your round. Rather than thinking about your score on the front nine and the back nine split the round into 6 sets of three holes. At the outset of the round you should have a target score for each three hole set. Atthe end of the three holes you can reflect on achievement or othewise over the holes. Also at the end of the three you can forget about your score over those holes and start again on the next three. I find this really helpful as it breaks the round down into smaller focused chunks. Often you complete 9 holes and then review progress which can be too late in the day. 3 hole reviews allow you to review frequently and set mini goals/challenges. My handicap is 7 therefore at the start of each round I have the goal of being 1 over or better after each three hole segment.

Slightly off topic but interesting; http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/spo...cle4107900.ece This is an article about Gary Wolstenholme written prior to his participation in th '08 US Open (he ended up playing as 1st reserve). The article mentions how he is at Torey Pines completely broke and unable to afford to feed himself. For me, this shows the dedication you need to achieve his level without major finacial backing. (Wolstenholme is a hero of mine and I wish him nothing but success in his Pro career.)

Great question! I'm 7.2 at present. Target for this year is below 5.5. Ultimately I believe I can get to scratch. Currently I have three young kids but slowly I'm becoming able to increase my golf time and as the next few years pass I shoud get back to playing 2-3 rounds per week. I'm 30 this year and my lifetime golf goal is to be good enough to play in the British Open qualifier for which you must be scratch. If I achieve this I'd love to have a go at turning pro for the UK seniors tour... (You have to have big goals!!!) Short game improvement and increased consistancy from the tee are the keys for me in '09.

Read Stan Utley on the short game. He sets up square to the target, ball slightly forward in stance and weight on the left. His pitch swing then aims to use the bounce of the wedge to brush under the ball by rolling the forearms through the swing... (heck his genius is certainy explaing this swing clearly.) Basically his technique is meant to be natural and flow from the full swing. I've been working on both his pitch and chip shot swings and so far am pretty pleased with the results.

Stick with the US boundary. New York State; Shinnecock Hills and Maidstone on Long Island, then Bethpage, Winged Foot and Quaker Ridge.

Thanks for that - it looks good. My course has really limited practise facilities, so I need something to help my pre-game routine.

Has anybody used this? What is it like? I'm thinking of getting one for myself and another for my Dad at Christmas - is it worth the money? Cheers!

I always carried until around August of this year when I purchased a pull cart. (I'm 29) Since purchasing the cart my scores have improved and I beieve the cart has played a significant factor in this improvement. I'll carry for bounce games, 9-holes etc but for me the push cart is the way to go.

Stan Utley's book on putting is excellent. Dave Pelz short game bible is also very good (but he's wrong about putting...) Also an excellent book on the mental side of the game is Bob Skura's 'How Great Golfer's Think'. The story throughout the book is terrible but the insturctional points are excellent. There is a brilliant tip about goal setting 'mini goals' that has helped my game a lot this year. If you just want to read about Golf then Michael Bamberger's book, 'To the Linksland' is a favorite of mine. That's it for me. I look forward to reading other posts on this topic as I too love reading about golf and learn a lot this way.

Love III for me too. Fantastic fluid swing and a stylish guy. Also when coming down the stretch I like to try and think like Faldo in his pomp. True grit, determination and the ability to hit solid shots when it counts.

I caddied for a friend at the 1998 US Open qualifier at Bethpage, he had a 0.2 index and shot 87. I couldn't believe how tough the course was that day.

Thanks. For me, the Obama socialism thing doesn't wash, but nevertheless that's nothing to do with my reason for liking him. I like his attitude to the global situation, his green outlook and his thoughts on the situation in the middle east. That said, I think John McCain is a good person and would make a good American leader, so long as he can keep the republican hawks at bay, not to mention the grim reaper - Sarah Palin scares me!

It's fantastic news that Trump's proposals have now been approved and the development will go ahead. Over the past 6 months there have been so many reasons he could have ditched Aberdeen and gone elsewhere and I'm absolutely delighted he hasn't. I truly hope he delivers on his promise. As for all the anti American jibes on this post, I love America, great country, great people. I just hope you all get it right today and elect Obama!!!

Depends on so much. If he's playing well, feeling good go for it. If he's feeling a little tweeky lay up. In an ideal world he'd try to lay up to a distance/shot he felt comfortable with - it's the Zach Johnson approach from Masters 07. (I love a half swing with my 56 degree wedge and feel very comfortable when hitting this shot.) Let's be honest though, as stated above we all kniow what we should do...

My 2008 goals; 1. Play more regularly 2. Reduce handicap to single figures (started season at 11.5) Happy to say I achieved both! I've played at least once per week since April (the most I've played in 7 years) I played pretty poor through the summer and was really struggling on goal 2 but since September I seem to have made a huge breakthrough (thanks to Stan Utley's putting book). I shot a 2 over 70 a fortnight ago and on Sunday a 1 under par (!!!) 67. My handicap is now 8.2. I can't wait for '09. I'll definetly set some more specific goals, probably looking at improving up/down percentage, GIR's, and putting.

I reached my 2008 goal at the weekend! My goal was to get to an 8 handicap (started season at 11.4) and after yesterdays round my handicap is now 8.2. I'm over the moon. Putting has definetly been the biggest improvement in my game. I read Stan Utley's book on putting in July and the difference I've seen since working on his methods has been amazing.

I broke par for the first time ever shooting a 1 under 67! (We were off forward/winter tees but their was no run on the fairways at all.) First time I've broken 70. First time I've broken par And cut my handicap to 8.2 which was my No1 goal for the season All in all my best golfing day in a very long time.

There is no better advice than this. Utley's book is superb.

I thought he'd go Casey and Clarke. Poulter and Casy is no big surprise, both top players who play well in match play and have had reasonable seasons. Clarke's two wins put him well in contention but in fairness Poulter's 2nd at the Open was probably the equal of Clarke's wins (especially given the manner in which he fought for the title down the stretch.) Monty was never going to make it, poor and inconsistant all season. Nic Dougherty was more likely, what a charge he made yesterday. Europe will win this one comfortably - I think the USA will need to rope in South America and Canada to help them out...

Anyone any good hints tips on the following mental problem. My handicap is 11 and my average score over the past 10 rounds is around 82 (par 68 course). I have the usual short game problmes, stubbed chips, three putts etc and I hit my fair share of wayward tee shots however I think my main problems are mental. I have a good looking swing and hit the ball long and high with a pleasing draw. Indeed I look the part of a much better player than my handicap suggests. I think I am a better player!!! Anyway, when I play in a competition I often sense my playing partners thinking this guy's a shark playing off 11 and for some reason I start hitting wayward shots or crappy chips etc just so that I can shrug and say, 'that's why I'm, off 11.' My problem is that instead of proving to myself I'm better than 11 I try to prove to others that I am worthy of 11. Anyone suffer from the same type of problem - any hints, tips or thoughts?

My ultimate golfing goal is to get low enough to have a shot a qualifying for the British Open. You have to be under 0.5 (currently I'm way off...). Regardless of whether you've got a genuine shot or not what a fantastic thing to have a go at. I once caddied for a friend at a US Open qualifier at Bethpage - he didn't break 90 but it was a great experience.