ITgolfHack

I can't stand being at the mercy of the weather when it comes to planning events. I got off work early today and was going to finally play a full 18 holes, all at once for a change. I figured I would run home, eat a light dinner and then hit the course. Just as I'm pulling into the garage, my blackberry beeps and it's an email indicating a sever weather watch. I turn on the TV and there is a beautiful line of storms right on course for my part of the state. The storms should drench the course right around 5:30 which should delay enough golfers with tee times to make playing twilight all but worthless. Guess I'll just head to the range after the storm and hit a bucket. I was also supposed to play 18 with a friend tomorrow morning, but it might still be raining. AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!! I couldn't play at all last week and most of this week because of some foot problems. My foot finally feels perfect and I can't play today and tomorrow morning is looking unlikely as well. I've got other stuff to do the rest of the day tomorrow. I hate playing on weekends because of the crowds and I've got to go to Albuquerque next week for work. WILL I EVER GET TO PLAY?!?!?!?!?! Ahhh, I feel better, rant over.

If they are closer then 250 yards, I'd say they are too close to hit at. Anything less then that I would consider a deliberate attempt to be an AHole and you could expect to hear about it if I was in the group you were hitting at. If your in that big of a hurry or they are playing really slow, there are polite ways to try and deal with it before it's time to be a jerk.

Cool Idea, thanks. I've got a couple blank score cards from my favorite course, maybe I'll give that a try and keep score. LOL, might get some funny looks from other people at the range, but who cares!

I love stories like this; it always motivates me to get out to the range/course more often. Great job man, and work on those putts!!! I want to hear about a 72 in the next few weeks I just want to add my 2 cents to your video comments. I don't think you can over estimate the value of seeing yourself on video. I play pool at a fairly high level and have been recording my practice sessions for most of this year; it has helped my pool game a lot. I'm getting similar results in my golf game. Trust me guys, no matter how much you think you know about what your doing when your over the ball, video will show you exactly what you really did. No amount of having a friend watch you or trying to execute your swing while watching yourself in a mirror can compare to seeing yourself actually striking the ball. I highly suggest adding comments after each swing; this can go a long way to helping you pick up your mistakes. I can't tell you how many times I've said "that one felt great" only to watch the video and see my front heel coming up in my backswing, my left arm bending at near 90 degrees, my shoulders starting to move first in my down swing, etc...... I bought a 2 gigabyte digital video camera (flip I believe) for about $80 bucks in December. It works great for pool, but I'm thinking about getting something with a higher frame rate for golf.

Golf is actually cheaper for me then my main hobby, pool. I drink more when I play pool, I usually eat something at the bar also. Then there is the cab ride home if someone starts ordering rounds of shots, getting my truck the next day, table time, league fees....... I have 3 courses nearby that I can play twilight on for $18 with a cart, that's a cheap few hours even if I do it several times a week.

Are there any requirements for entering those tournaments?

I love playing alone, I try to get in 9 holes alone at least once a week before work and play twlight once or twice a week after work. That being said, twosomes are probably my favorite way to play. I have a fairly flexible work schedule so I'll often try to pressure one friend or another into skipping work and coming out with me to play. Does that make me a bad person?

My dads played for many years, but has never put in the effort that it would take to get his game to the next level. He usually shoots in the mid to low 90's, but has broken 90 many times also, usually while playing against me.

Wow, I never saw that before. I guess when your playing in the masters you do what you have to in order to make the shot. Swinging that club took some serious guts.

Good to meet you teal. LOL, I try not to think about the Lions too much during the summer and winter months. Football season is a bad time for my blood pressure.

It seems that there are usually 2 kinds of people when it comes to sports/hobbies. My dad has golfed on leagues and in outings for well over 30 years. He's almost 60 now. Despite having a large yard, he has hardly ever practiced in it and he hardly ever goes to the range. I don't think he has ever taken a lesson either. He practices putting in the house on a very nice putting mat that his children bought him for Xmas a couple years ago, but never more then 30 mins in a week. His lack of practice has nothing to do with money or available time or love of the game. He hates to lose, but he just doesn't want to put the effort in that it would take to make him a much better golfer then he is today. Now compare my father to yourself or to me. Until this year I never played more then once or twice a season. I played on a league one time but hated it because I didn't have enough spare time to focus on getting better. This year I'm getting to the range several times per week, I'm using my dad’s golf net in his backyard and practicing for hours at a time. I'm video recording my practice sessions so I can identify what I'm doing wrong so I can try to correct it. I'm trying to play twilight golf after work a couple times per week. I'm hitting 20 to 50 putts per day on my carpet. When I feel like I've taken my swing as far as it can go, I'll get some lessons. I'm studying every book, video, article that I can get my hands on. I simply cannot stand to compete unless I know I'm doing everything in my power to win. I have to be able to walk away from a round and know that there was nothing else I could have done to get ready for that round. I'm terrible right now, but I expect to break 100 before the middle of the summer and I hope to get at least one round in on an easy course where I break 90. It comes down to what you want from the game and what you expect from yourself. Some people are content to know that they could be better if they put the time in like my father is; others, like myself and I suspect sid77, have to know how good they can become. Even though I expect to beat my father on a regular basis before the end of the season, it doesn’t mean that there is anything wrong with the way my father or anyone like him chooses to pursue this sport.

Hello everyone, I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm a 35 year old IT professional. I’m single and back in college pursuing an electrical engineering degree on a part time basis. My main hobby for the last 15 years has been pool. I've been playing on 3 8 ball leagues and small tournaments for the last 12 years and for the first time in my life I'm feeling burned out on the game. Some friends suggested that I might give golf a try and backoff on the pool game for awhile. Until this year I've only played once or twice per year over the last 4 years, but I did play on a league one summer. I'm pretty much terrible at this point. My best score for 9 holes is a 54, I have a wicked slice that definitely needs to go, I duff about half my fairway shots, and on average I 3 putt most of the time. All that being said, when I commit myself to a new activity I put in 100% of my effort into improving. I've been borrowing books and instructional tapes and DVD’s from my dad. I'm devouring every online source I can find for written and video instruction, and I'm video recording my practice sessions so I can correct my swing problems. I usually stop and hit a small bucket of balls on the way to work and on my way home and I putt on my carpet at least 20 to 50 shots a day. Once I feel I've got my swing about as good as I can make it, I'll look into getting lessons. Nice to meet you all.

Great story man, but it's only one night of playing. Just be thankful that either or both those guys didn't try to set up another time to play or something. I have a friend who is exactly like that. We have never played golf together, but whatever we are talking about or whatever we are working on, it's like he is just waiting for you to make one small mistake or error so he can correct you. It drives me up a wall, but he's still a good guy.

The one thing I don't like about golf is being at the mercy of the weather. I hate it when I get some friends together, make the tee time, and then wake up that morning to see pouring rain. It just seems to suck the life out of me for the rest of the day. The good thing is, at least you made it off to play again. I've heard more then a few scary weather stories from long time golfers.

Hi guys, I've recently recaught the golf bug and I've been practicing like mad. Last Sunday I set up the golf net and hit my driver for about 4 hours while recording my swings. I took 15 minute breaks to review the video before whacking another 20 to 30 shots. Monday and today, I find that I've got some fairly sharp foot pain. It's hard to describe, but I'll do my best. I'm right handed so my back foot is my right foot. The sharpest pain is felt on the top of my foot a couple inches behind my small toe. While the ball of my foot doesn't hurt at all, I get the sharpest stabs when the ball of my foot initially makes contact with the floor. When I lift my foot up, I also feel it the instant the ball of my foot leaves the ground. Once I'm up and walking around, it settles into a dull ache and I'm not forced to limp, the sharpest pain is only after I've had the foot up or been sitting for awhile. Has anyone had any experience with this? Did I just overdue it a bit on Sunday? My shoes are on the old side, so I'm going to get some new ones tomorrow. I'm scheduled to play 18 holes on a par 3 course tomorrow (Wednesday), should I cancel or try to play through it?

I'm kind of an all around IT guy at a small health clinic. The term jack of all trades, master of some applies very well to me. In a given week I'll, run cable, program, script, repair/replace hardware, perform data analysis, data mining, write SQL queries, and at least 20 other things that I can't even think of right now. I'm extremely busy everyday, but I love it.

Play at least 3 times per week score below 100 before the middle of the summer score below 100 more times then not before the end of the season regularly hit more good shots then bad get rid of all 4 putts Beat my father, then beat my cousin, then beat my friend ryan

I'd have to go with fat businessmen, it puts the least amount of pressure on me. I'm fairly certain I can perform better then someone who is horribly out of shape and hardly ever moves around.