tdiii

Of course. But we've been working at this problem for a couple of months. There's been some improvement but not a lot. He seems to shrug his shoulders, say that this is the biggest struggle he sees for mid handicappers, and that it will take time. I've worked on drills he's given me, found some others and checked with him to see if he's okay with them (he is), but not totally convinced that we are on the right track.

Yeah, working with the instructor at my Club. And I think you are right -- it is an effect not a cause.

Drills or thoughts that helped you with this bugaboo once and for all? Struggling with this and it really is an issue with driver and 3W. I think it is closely related to poor sequencing; i.e., if one initiates the downswing with the lower body there's less chance of extending early. But really interested in input from anyone who truly struggled with this and eventually overcame it. It is one of those things I don't feel as I do it and only realize after the fact. Thanks!

Barbell squat and deadlift. Everything else is child's play.

He's wrong. It is a "limit" only to the extent there is a tax liability if you exceed it. There is no rule absolutely preventing the gift in excess of that "limit". Yes, the IRS "may" consider it income, but that does not make it income. The donee could show it was a gift.

Still no. As there is no limit. And, the IRS is crystal clear -- the donor has the tax liability. The recipient never does. Now, maybe Sumner 1099s them, but that would be fraudulent unless there was an agreement that they'd be compensated to, ahem, "accompany" them.

Nope. You can give something like $14k tax free. Above that you pay a gift tax. Bill Gates can give you $1B (I wouldn't hold my breath). But he'd have to pay gift taxes on the amounts which exceed his annual and liftetime exclusions.

These are gifts. The donor (i.e., Redstone) has the tax liability, not the donees.

Crying shame she got killed off in The Americans. Great show, BTW.

"Before I start, let me say as clearly as possible that I agree with the scientific consensus on climate change. If science says something is true – according to most scientists, and consistent with the scientific method – I accept their verdict." Above is the opening two sentences of Adam's blog. But, climate change is not susceptible to testing in accordance with the scientific method, so he's missed the mark from the start. And this is something the scientific community needs to admit, be open about, and work through. There is no testing of the hypothesis that man made activity is contributing to observed increases in temperature by doing an experiment. I am a skeptic. With that said, I think there's a very strong chance that man made activity is contributing to climate change. And that this strong chance, suggests taking precautionary steps. I mean, there was a small chance the Russians would launch nuclear warheads, and to deal with that, we developed our own arsenal at huge expense. But the climate change movement is so politicized and intellectually dishonest, that it is always easy for me to dismiss it (at my peril, I guess). If the climate change scientists would be open about the limitations of the scientific method, and the fact that there are open questions, I think they would make more headway.

I live in Sonoma County. With several hundred wineries within 20 minutes of my house, I don't really try many WA, OR, French, Italian, or even Napa Valley wines. I like most varietals -- really depends on the day, what it is presented with, the quality, etc. I am not a fan of most merlots, syrahs, and cab francs. Love petite sirah, cabernet, pinot, zin and malbec. With whites, I don't like the oaked and/or butter chardonnays -- I like the stainless ones best -- Matanzas Creek (2 minutes from my house), is nice and pretty widely distributed. Not really a fan of sweet whites so usually not a huge gewurtz fan, although I had a Halleck Gewurtztraminer this past weekend which was excellent. Someone mentioned Silver Oak above for cab. I sadly think it has slipped in the past decade or so, but it is still really good. Just not the price/value bargain it was several years ago. I prefer the Alexander Valley over the Napa and always have -- a bit softer on the palate, at least for me. Several years ago, I received a double magnum (i.e., 4 bottles) of Napa 1997 Cab from a broker as a thank you for a deal I'd worked on. I babied it for many years but it was corked when I opened it in 2007 or 2008 -- heartbreaking. In any event, Jordan's cab, also from Alexander Valley, is pretty good and a bit less expensive. Over in Napa, Sequoia Grove is pretty widely distributed and a better value play than Stag's Leap, Mondavi and some of the other big boys. A tiny producer over there to check out is Trujillo. Awesome stuff. I cannot really say I prefer California Pinot over OR, but I know California's better. I'm not a huge fan of Carneros Pinots, but usually like Russian River, Sonoma Coast and Anderson Valley (which actually is in Mendocino County) if they are made well and the year is not tough. I've liked many Central coast wines, but just don't have a lot of familiarity. Generally, you can't go wrong with Kosta Browne, Paul Hobbs, and Williams Selyem. Had a great one this past weekend from Claypool Cellars (Les Claypool of Primus fame). Dry Creek Valley, outside Healdsburg, is home to some of the best Zinfandel in the world. Rafanelli is pretty amazing stuff. Bella Vineyards makes some great zins and is a really fun place to visit. Wilson, which probably is not distributed widely, makes a bunch of nice wines. St. Francis, although not in Dry Creek, makes a great, reasonably priced zinfandel that is readily available in most markets (all its stuff is great quality and price competitive). Many producers, unfortunately, are letting the sugars and consequently alcohol levels get too high and those zins are too hot for me. With all that said, Turley over in Napa may make the best zins there are. I am pretty fond of bubbly. We have several good producers in the region although the one that comes closest to approaching French quality is Domaine Carneros in Napa. Iron Horse, outside Sebastopol, is pretty good and also a fun place to visit. But, sadly, California cannot really do the job as well as the French so if I'm drinking champagne it will generally be French and probably a Brut Rose. Billecart Salmon is my go-to brut rose. I write that like I drink it daily -- maybe twice a year.

I think Brandel is a good analyst. I think Tiger's chip yips are, sadly, not a thing of the past.

Really liked his move with driver a lot. Looks to me at least like less head dip and smoother transition. Irons were pretty good. Putter was pretty good too, evidenced by all the birdies. Shortgame is still a problem. Looks a bit twitchy or mechanical to these eyes. Two chunks that I saw, a thinned bunker shot, and several times he could have chipped/pitched, but putted instead. Tiger of old wouldn't have putted most of those. I hope I'm wrong, but those demons don't seem to be that far under the surface.

Yes but that is in the stroke play section of the rules.

That rule doesn't seem to address team match play, does it?

Can a person who is away have his teammate, who is closer and on the same line putt first and otherwise out of order so as to get a read?

I'm 6'6". Say you're 5'10". My eyes are 8" above the ground farther than are yours. Probably 9" farther than the ball than are yours. Put another way, I'm 13% farther from the ball than are you -- so that I'm not hunched over. And, as previously mentioned, I play clubs that are 2" longer than normal. My 9 iron is the length of your 5 iron -- and I'm 13% farther from that ball too. Do I have a length advantage? Sure. Is the game tougher for all outliers (i.e., folks beyond the 5'10" to 6'2" or so sweetspot). Of course.

That's nonsensical.

Wrong. Draw a rectangle. The diagonal is longer than the vertical or horizontal. I'm 6'6" -- the recommendation is +2" for me. In Callaway and Ping. So, 9 iron to 5 iron.

You're the one who made the comparison. My eyes are at least 8" farther away than the 5'10" -- a bit more because of the diagonal. Of course you can hit both solidly, but you are more consistent with your 7I.

Thank you for making my point for me. My misses with a 4i are huge compared to my misses with a 7i. Same with everyone I know. And it is not an inch or two. If you are 5'10" and I'm 6'6", I'm 8" farther away from the ball than are you. Maybe even a bit more because the ball is probably farther away from our feet.

Shaquille? Andre Drummond? Wilt? Big centers have notoriously struggled with free throws as compared to point guards. I'm a lot closer to a nail than I am a golf ball. And you are a lot closer to a golf ball than am I.

Taller people, like St. Bernards and Great Danes, don't live as long as short people. I'm 6'6". The long arc is an advantage in length, but the errors get magnified. I think tall folks struggle with tempo more too.

A buddy of mine always brings his. I'm not a huge fan but it also doesnt bother me. I played at a club in San Jose earlier this year and we ended up playing with another pair -- the guy was playing opera in his cart. Not blasting it, but it was audible. I'm not an opera fan, know nothing about it, but have to say I really enjoyed it.

I'll write this and it won't be believed, but I will try nonetheless. And I, too, am not a doctor nor do I pretend to play on on TV. Squatting and Deadlifting. Heavy. That's the answer, the magical elixir. Obviously, not right away. Do a linear progression squatting 3 times a week 3 sets of 5 and deadlifting 2 every 3 weeks, 1 set of five. By linear progression I mean starting light and gradually increasing weight over time, every work out. Full range of motion (i.e., past parallel). Eventually, you'll get to where you fail and do some re-sets back to lower weights. And after 4-6 months you can look at modifying this program. Herniated dics here at L4 and L5. I did not have a pain-free day between the time I was 18 and hurt myself (rowing in college) and age 42 or so. I did cortisone shots, physical therapy, and I stopped playing golf for 8 years. My second year in grad school I missed classes about 1/3rd of the time because I couldn't sit. And then I started squatting and deadlifting at age 41. It was rough at first. And scary as hell. But the amount of core strength you develop from these movements makes any situps, crunches or other core workouts look like a joke. Think about the core strength it takes to stand with a bar with 300 pounds on your back. By using proper range of motion, you also enhance hamstring flexibility -- I refuse to use the now-popular word, "mobility". Make sure your form is dead-on perfect and work with someone who knows what he/she is doing at first. A great book is Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe. He's curmudgeonly and politically incorrect as hell, but his website is hugely informative as well. My life is completely different than it was from age 18 to about 42. I can backpack. I can sit in a car for 3 hours, get out of it play a round of golf, drive home and be fine. Not even stiff. I yell this from the rooftops, but either no one believes me or folks are afraid of really hard work. If you research you will find thousand of folks out there like me. Good luck. Back problems are absolutely miserable and carry over to your relationships, your work life, and, obviously, golf.