cfritchie

Typically golfers are responsible for damage they cause. If your ball hits a window and breaks it then typically you are responsible. It could be argued the cart was negligently placed in the "line of fire". I read a little more and there is some California case law that doesn't hold the golfer responsible unless it is intentional, of course if you signed a cart sheet it could have wording about being responsible for damage. I know the course I worked at years ago had a sign that stated golfers were responsible for broken windows....yet we told homeowners they needed to protect their own property.

My father was a life member of the PGA and a very respected teacher. He believed if you couldn't hit a "half-swing" why would you ever try the whole thing! Hitting punch shots really helps develop the hitting area and teaches could impact. Keep working on it...he'd have me hit 100's of balls with a swing that never got above parallel on the take away or follow through. I resort back to that when my swing leaves me. Then I slowly just start swinging longer. For me the key to hitting the punch shots is staying down and extending the arms long in the follow through. It helps maintain spine angle and gets rid of some of my other bad habits.

Don't forget, it is very helpful on the driving range to verify distance. I practice at a couple different ranges, mostly depending on wind conditions. I don't trust the markers they have and besides from different angles it helps to know the exact yardage. This will help you develop your iron game when practicing as you will know exactly how far you are at least hitting crappy range balls.

It'd be hard not to give the coverage on the Golf Channel a bit of credit, I'm not that much of a "Big Break" fan but it does seem to peak a little bit of interest in the ladies game as they are a bit more visible. If viewers are like me sometimes I'll just leave the GC on and not really pay much attention to what the current broadcast is covering. If it is the LPGA I might stop down and watch it for a few minutes, the Morning Drive tends to have quite a few of the top ladies visit the show on a regular basis. For me to get interested in the LPGA it will be because I "like" some of the players in the field. For a typical 18-50 viewer it is sad to say but it helps if they are well spoken, attractive, have a bit of a fun personality and understand I don't want generic answers about golf. Let me get to know the player and if I find them interesting as a person I might stop down for a few minutes and see how they are doing in a tournament. Clearly Michelle Wie is the biggest example of that for me, she has a lot of fun with Charlie Rymer as well she did a fun interview with Ferhety. Anytime the "top" players are not grabbing the headlines the media will l look for other interesting stories...so does it help that not very many of the top players are doing much, and that Tiger is out...yea it is a factor, but I don't think it is "the factor."

Played many many rounds of golf, was a scratch back before my 8 year layoff...never had one! AWESOME FOR YOU!

When I quit due to some medical issues about 8 or 9 years ago I do so when I reached my goal of getting my handicap card in the mail and it having a 0 on it. It was bittersweet as I'd accomplished a goal that took about 3 years of really hard work...after working hard on my game for 5-6 years before that. I'll be 50 this year and was in my early 40's when I got to a 0, I picked up the clubs again and have worked my way down to a 2.9 as of this week. When I can back it didn't take long to be at a 5.2, just a couple of rounds and hitting a bunch of balls. My point for sharing this is when I got to a 0 I wasn't shooting par every time I went out. I'd suspect I shot even one out of every 3 or 4 rounds, the others were never above 3 over. I hovered around par on every round of golf I was playing no matter the course. I'd have really bad days and shoot a 79..right now my really bad days are 85 and my good days are even to 4 or 5 over. I wasn't much difference then everyone else, I started as a hacker and played many years just figuring out the game, once I got to a 12 I got very serious with lessons and playing or hitting balls on a daily basis. Even now that I've been back playing since October it is rare that I don't swing by the course and hit a few balls or putts daily, I can get a bit OCD. Part of my progression to a zero was two fold, completely understanding the golf swing and analizing many many other players when watching golf. The other part was spending 2 years off and on taking lessons at the Hank Haney Golf Ranch in McKinney. I'd take at least one lesson a month, sometimes 2. After the two years of working on my swing it then took another year to get the technical thoughts out of my head and "trust it" to get to a zero. Do I think anyone can get to a zero? No I don't, I think it takes a bit of OCD and some a fair amount of athletic ability. It is not about distance, I have never been a long hitter, sure hitting it 250 is not a problem but under "normal" conditions I'm not going to hit it 300..yea hard fairways a little wind and sure, a lot of people can do that. What I focused on was a golf swing that I knew I could keep the ball in play and a VERY GOOD short game. I wasn't a great putter but I could get up and down from just about anywhere and NEVER made double bogeys. My really good rounds were rounds I'd have 3-4 birdies and 3-4 bogeys. My bad rounds would be no birdies and 3-4 bogeys. I'm confident I can get back to a 0 even at the age of 50, if I can get past some injuries (bad tennis elbow in left arm) and get the old bad habits out of my full swing I have no doubt I can get there again.

I've never met anyone who improved because of a lesson...they improve because they took something from a lesson and engrained it into their game...they worked on it... You can lead a horse to water...

I'd have an injury...!

Played front nine twice..one ball OB and managed a 75...didn't hit the ball that great...but putted well....sometimes scoring is better then you deserve..I deserved an 80.

yea....because when a student fails it's the teachers fault...but when the student wins it is his talent.... If you've never taken a lesson from Hank, or sat in on his lessons you wouldn't have any idea how well he does or doesn't teach. Thanks to Hank and his guys I was able to get my handicap to a zero...then take off for 8 years and come back to instantly playing to a 5. I've been around a lot of teachers..my father was a great teacher....Hank and his minions are about the only ones I'll trust...

If you don't play in high wind...in Texas you don't play... You just have to take advantage of the wind when you can and know you'll pay for it later. Sometimes a par 5 becomes a par for and a 4 a 5.

I think there is a "known" standard...ask the courses what the expectations are, 4 hours with a max of 4.5 is the standard. Does that mean on a Tuesday at 3:00pm you shouldn't complain if that one foursome of old guys won't let you play through and they are on a 4 hour pace? No, you should complain. No different then doing the speed limit in the fast lane...I can't stand the jerk who takes the stance that "I'm doing the speed limit so I ain't moving over." No difference on the golf course and the freeway...show some respect, watch ahead AND BEHIND, move over when there is room to let someone by. If it is bumper to bumper and you are keeping up with the flow and there is no place for you to go....then sit back and enjoy the ride....

Why would you think he is a troll? I didn't see anything crazy about what he was asking.... A little sensitive?

Other then interrupting my nap...which sometimes it can be a good thing the pace of play on the PGA tour is slow...I don't miss many holes between dozes... I don't see how speeding up the pace of play on the PGA tour is going to change my Saturday morning foursome. What will impact my Saturday morning foursome are a couple of things. 1. The local course make it very clear what the expectations are for a round of golf, my course does a decent job. 2. Empower the marshals to be able to penalize golfers who fall behind, I've yet to see a course really do this. 3. Education by the local course to it's clients. I don't believe the problem is a PGA Tour Problem or a USGA problem. I would seriously doubt 1 player has quit playing golf because Kevin Nah took 60 seconds instead of 45 or because the last US Am took 5.5 hours to play. Where it cause people to quit the game is when their local course accepts 5 hour rounds and does not treat them with respect. I would even goes as far as saying most private clubs are pretty strict about pace of play...last thing you wanted to do was take longer then 3.5 hours at a private course I was an assistant at in East Texas back in the early 90's. The members would have your head...

If someone is holding the flagstick and they are right there...walk up, tap it in...then hold the stick for someone else.. No it's not that big a deal or time killer...but over a round of golf with 4 people it can sometimes be the little things that make a difference.

No it wasn't in response to you, lol... I honestly don't care how many clubs someone carries when we have a game on. 15, 16, 25, 3 putters...it doesn't matter to me. I believe in what I'll shoot and your (not you Fourputt, but you as in any golfer) handicap is your handicap. If you got there bumping balls, carrying 19 clubs and not taking full relief it will catch up to you when we do play by the "rules."

Sounds to me it isn't an issue of "hitting it bad off the tee", it is more of an issue of it may not be the right club for you. Take it to the range and learn to hit it, once you've developed the right mindset and confidence then give it a try.

I get what you are saying...I also get what the "OCD/Purist" think about the rules. Thank goodness none of the guys that are that smitten with the Rules of Golf are our pastors! LOL! I'm capable of having 15 or more clubs in my bag and "designating" one as "not in play" and not using it (if it is a serious money game we'll even turn the club upside down.) Same way I am able to accept a buddy kicking back a 4" putt and counting it and would never consider myself a "cheater." Tossing around that word in what is supposed to be "fun" is a bit over the top. I've been in the golf business, I only needed my oral interview for my Class A..I've had to lecture members on why they can't turn in a card when they are playing mulligans, not going back and re-teeing after finding a ball out of bounds (which is damn near impossible to do and not piss off the groups behind you) and other rules violations. When playing in a tournament there just isn't any room for "fudging" the rules...most people get it. You'll never win an argument with those who take rules as it is the only way to play the game. Thank goodness these guys are not the ones in charge of marketing the game.. Personally I hit the ball where it lies...won't post a score if I couldn't re-tee a shot found to be OB..take proper relief and I don't take mulligans. With that said I'll post my score if a buddy kicks back a ball within a foot of the hole....pace of play is a big deal...

How do you hit the 3-wood at other times? Say on a second shot on a par 5? You didn't mention what your miss is? I use the 3-wood everyone now and then but I either don't tee it up or put it barely off the ground on a tee. I have confidence with it on par 5's with my second shot so I vision that same swing when using it on a tee box.

I have a somewhat flexible schedule so I find myself with an open afternoon or early evening. GolfNow works well to find what is available if I want to try out a new course or am just tired of playing my home course. It's great for a single and has also worked well for a few groups. More information the better, plus it never hurts to save a little money.

I use the PGA Tour Caddie App.. It's not cheap but once I figured it out the stats are really good and takes no time at all to enter between holes. I really like that I don't have to enter anything later. I wish it did have an export option.

I'm not a big of Pete Dye courses, with the exception of Piatue Golf Resort in Vegas...I really dig this layout. One of the courses I play on a regular basis is Stonebridge Ranch - The Dye Course in McKinney. I don't mind difficult or challenging, but what I don't like is when you miss the fairway or green slightly and there is almost zero chance of finding your ball due to the type/height of native grass. It is impossible to play a true round of golf at the Dye course because going back to the tee and hitting a second ball is just not an option due to pace of play.

Get in some money games...not $1.00 or $2.00 but enough to make you care. How much did the tournament cost you? If the tournament cost you $100...find some guys to play with and play where losing might cost you $100...I know those games in the past really helped me prepare... I'd also ask about your tournament preparation, did you play a course you are familiar with? If not how many practice rounds did you play. Do you have a plan...did you have a plan B if your plan A wasn't going well.... For example maybe your plan was to hit driver on a par 5...but plan B might have been 3 iron, 3 iron, 8 iron...thus helping you make 3 nice swings with little risk and building confidence. Learn to play holes in different ways.... I do know if you develop a strong short game based on very good technique this can really take a lot of pressure off your long game. You start hitting it bad you are less likely to worry if you know you are not going to make big mistakes with your short game. The last thing to remember you never have to shoot as low as you think you do to finish well in a tournament.

Biggest difference is the misses..when they miss they have a human backboard to stop the ball or a million eyes to find the lost ball in deep grass. How often do you see a "lost ball" at a PGA event...almost never. On a "goat ranch" most PGA players would score better then you think..on a real tough course I think they'd score well but probably would have a few more "penalty" shots because the gallery doesn't save a ball or they can't find a big miss in deep grass. But...they are tour players for a reason...they don't need cushy lies to hit off of. My brother could have played the tour...serious talent. He could hit a driver off a sidewalk 250-275 yards and not put a scratch on the club..I know this because it was always my damn club he'd do it with! LOL (back in the persimmon days.)

One way a "hooker" can hit a slice with his driver is to tee the ball very low aim left and hang on to the club a little tighter. This isn't the "technical" way to hit the shot but hitting a driver off the deck or teed really low is not easy to hook. Learn this shot and it could be your "stinger" fade. maybe hit it out there 220 or so. Since it is hit low maybe there would be a little less chance of missing it big right. I've known a lot of really good players who use this shot (driver off the deck) to get out of the trees and hit a low screamer that curves right.