baw1

UPDATE: I played today and made a conscious effort NOT to take any divots on practice shots (assuming they were in fairway or off the tee on par-3s). With the exception of one time, I was successful in keeping the club out of the ground and just "brushing". However, some of my iron shots were not great. Gonna keep working on this.

Looks like you are in Canada. Gets pretty cold here too soon (Chicago), but should be able to play October & November.

Just ordered a copy. Looking forward to reading it.

So the better you are the more ingrained it is within you. Especially if you have been playing for a long time. The muscle memory and coordination and "feel" are there so the club knows where to go to make the proper contact with the ball. Is that what you are saying?

Your response makes sense. I guess my main curiosity is how "better" golfers are able to execute their swing without a practice swing or full practice swing (which may include taking a small divot). The touring pros don't appear to do it either. I hit my shots thin when I rush my practice shot or don't at least brush the ground during the practice shot.

Thanks for your reply. I want to "respect" the course and follow proper etiquette. This is the reason for my post. I am relatively new to the game so trying to understand how people deal with this. As an experienced golfer yourself, do you not have the need for practice shots or taking divots on them? Perhaps its just a psychological thing for me and I really don't need to dig in?

Before each shot I take one practice shot. This helps my muscle memory get a feel for the club and distance to the ball/ground, etc.. When I am able to brush the ground or take a divot on the practice swing my actual shot tends to be good. If I miss the ground on the practice shot and then proceed with the actual shot, it is usually not a good shot. I am concerned about violating etiquette by taking divots on the practice swing, but I also want to hit a good shot. Thoughts on this?

I think the popularity of any sport or activity is a result of our culture and what we are exposed to. Perhaps now that Tiger is at the tail end of his career and considering that ESPN (the main Sports channel) only covers golf if Tiger is involved (mostly), popularity is on the decline? Regardless though, I think the difficulty of the game (more so than other sports) will always limit its growth potential. It’s a game of skill that requires training, practice and ample play just to get somewhat decent at. Obtaining a low handicap or shooting par is a whole other category of course.

That's great. It really sounds like swing/mechanics/technique has much more to do with it than "athleticism". This is my observation from the course as well. I frequently see guys with nice driving ability that don't really look that athletic. With that said, however, I presume that the combination of good/proper technique and "athleticism" could be quite deadly.

Understood. 220 is not bad but I would probably be looking at a 7i or 8i in your example. My current range is usually 200-230 though so on a 200 yard drive I am probably looking at a 6i.

This is basically where I am coming from. I do not desire to hit the ball longer for the sake of hitting it longer. I want to use a PW or 9i instead of a 6i (on my approach shot)...

Absolutely @mvmac. Thanks fo r your feedback.

Very interesting stuff. I have thought about getting fitted as well, but want to wait a little longer. This is my 1st real season and I have only been playing really for 5 1/2 months. Great stuff. The journey shall continue.

Interesting. I am not familiar with those apps, but perhaps will acquaint myself soon. I am not quite ready to record all that data though. I use a site called oobgolf to put in my scores. I track penalties, sand shots, putts, and fairway hits. That's it though. For now :)

Thanks for your comments. I am certainly focusing on ALL aspects of my game: putting, chipping, irons...Improving my drives and getting additional distance off the tee is only one aspect

Congrats on winning that long drive competition. Thanks for the advice and words of encouragement. Your estimates seem realistic.

Thanks for your feedback.I disagree that "you are not very good". You are quite good! Relatively speaking to the majority of golfers, you are certainly in the upper bracket. I will continue to refine and develop my swing. How are you obtaining and recording your drive distances and 1st putt distances during your rounds?

So this interesting. I like to think that I am very athletic and capable. I work out regularly and have strong endurance. However, is it really "athleticism"? I mean is Fred Couples who drives the ball 300 and is 54 really "athletic"? I realize he is a super star touring pro, but my point is that it really seems like this is much more technique driven vs. physical/athletic ability.

Better golfer. I am only interested in hitting further off the tee to make the 2nd shot easier or have a better probability of reaching the green. That's really it.

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like mid-200s can be attained, but going up from there will be unlikely.

Your response makes sense, but I wasn't really trying to solicit specific individual swing feedback (although that is appreciated). At least for the purpose of this thread. I am 45, 5'7", 175 ibs. Very good physical condition. Reasonable flexibility. No health issues (knock on wood). practice/play multiple times per week. Strongly motivated to get get better. Does this information help to get to some level of probability?

I am a relative newbie to the game and currently probably drive between 200-230 moderately straight (when I hit well). My longest drive was probably ~260. There may have been some wind or extra roll to help with that one too (don’t remember). I am trying to understand what my realistic chances of getting into the 250-300 range are? It seems like a lot of folks get these kinds of numbers on a regular basis based on my readings in this forum and maybe too much golf channel viewing. However, when I am out on the course and teamed up with other players I rarely see players hitting that far. In around ~60 rounds played this season, I can probably count the people who drove 260-300 on one hand. I want to set my expectations properly for what leads to such driving and what is actually a realistic goal. To be clear, I understand that ultimately ones mechanics and swing are what yield a long drive and I am open to specific advice/observations on the swing itself, but the crux of my question is really more to do with the probability of actually getting there..based on the level of complexity. Thanks for any insights on this!

LOL! What do the rules say about carrying one of these in your bag?

I am in the midwest and leaves started coming down a couple weeks ago. I was a playing a round by myself a week ago and hit a decent drive ~220 and just to the left of the fairway. When I got to the spot, there were 10,000 leaves on the ground and I could not find my ball. I am not aware of the course/committe specific rules hole by hole as they pertain to leaves, but I decided to drop in the approximate location where I thought it landed WITHOUT penalty. Perhaps this is not proper scoring, but in tournament conditions there would be no leaves, the assumption being that the course would be kept pretty clean. Also, I would have found my ball easily if it were a week earlier (before Fall kicked in) or at a similar course in a different part of the country (where there is no Fall). I have heard the argument that the problem with dropping is that you end up giving yourself a better lie. Perhaps, but isn't that the case with hazards as well? It's an approximation at the end of the day. Anyway, with Fall officially kicking in here I anticipate more lost balls due to leaves (that would "normally" be found). I don't think it's fair that we are penalized for this.

What's a good process for doing so? Any tips? So true. This is the true key I believe