RWC

The Warren Course at Notre Dame is a great track. US Senior Open will be there in 2019.

Couple of things jumped out at me. Didi seemed to keep the ball in front of him, pretty consistent with driver and 3 wood which seemed to be his typical combo for playing most holes (Driver, 3 wood, chip). For those of us who are distance challenged, video seemed to reinforce the need to hit more shots solidly and worry less about distance. Secondly, his short game seemed mucho strong ( got up/down on 7 of 11 holes). Not sure that is repeatable but maybe so. Clearly it would take more work on my part. All in all, its a good reminder that the scorecard doesn't have room for pictures and we can all do better maximizing our scoring regardless of our swing eccentricities.

What a great, touching and sad topic. At 65, I share your pain and your joy. I am seeing older golfing buddies drifting away into the Super Senior group and then into the Bar Stool group. After playing for over 55 years, I'm still trying to get better and I hope that desire will help me weather the natural erosion of skills that are inevitable. Love the idea of a Memorial Tournament to honor, remember and celebrate those who played before us. Enjoy playing with some of the younger golfers (especially when I use words like "balata" and they look at me like I'm from another planet) when I use my hickory shafted clubs. Can't match them off the tee but Inside 120 yards, I can still pull a rabbit out of the hat occasionally. All in all, glad we are all still grinding over that putt!

First round of the season for me here in chilly Chicago. Course was a little damp and windy but it overlooks Lake Michigan. Put together an 84 with couple of 3 putts. Avoided any doubles and no penalty strokes. All in all, I'm pretty pleased. Now the key is to try and get better this season.

I play hickories pretty much all the time and its typical to play with less than 14 clubs. My normal set is a Brassie (2W), Cleek (4W), Jigger (4i) Mid-Mashie (5i), Mashie (7i), Mashie Niblick (9i), Niblick (SW) and Putter. Depending on the course I may also add either a Mid Iron (3i) or Spade Mashie (8i). The loft gaps seem manageable and sure make walking and carrying my bag a lot easier. My Index (14.3) using hickory is a few shots higher than with modern clubs, but I attribute that more to the challenge of hickory shafts and pure blades as opposed to number of clubs in the bag.

I fight tightness in my shoulders. If I try to take the club back too far- then I have a tendency to lose my spine angle with bad results. Basically, I try to stop my swing when my shoulders stop turning - its resulted in shorter backswing but I was starting to see better ball contact / more consistency at the end of last season. Still dealing with Winter here in Chicago so haven't had chance to do much this season other than few sessions indoors. Good luck with your swing!

I also play a hybrid set of tees. Playing hickory clubs, a good tee shot for me is around 180-190 yards (carry about 160yds). My normal course doesn't really have a single set of tees that matches up - so I play a combination of Red and Gold to get distance at about 5,200 yards. Using the USGA charts, I can adjust the slope and rating to post scores.

I broke 80 while a teenager ( several ice ages ago) and came close to breaking Par (+1) several times over the years but just never could get over the hump. 65 now and working to break 80 again while playing with hickory shafted clubs - came close couple of times last year and I'm convinced I can do it this year!

Tried this today - seems spot on for my swing as well. As I moved into my 60's I started trying to focus more on a solid hit and less on backswing length. When my should stopped turning then I tried to stop the swing. Blessedly have dodged the back issues (but have plenty of knees and feet issues). The shorter swing didn't seem to impact my "average" driving distance that much - actually lost a little max distance but was so much more consistent that it seems I'm longer off the tee!

2018 Goals: 1. Keep working on my flexibility - turning 65 was a real challenge. 2. Walk more rounds - even if I only have time for 9 holes. 3. Keep working on "Lowest Score Wins" - make those bad shots just a "little less bad." 4. Finally break 80 playing with my hickory shafted clubs ( close several times in 2017).

I have bifocals for off-course use. On the course I have a pair of glasses ( with distance prescription only) with the transition lens which give me the sunglass lens in the sun. Only challenge is when I'm posting a score on the scorecard - sometimes have trouble seeing I recorded a "3" when I meant to put down an "8"

I've been working one this since reading LSW earlier this year. A full swing with my 8-9-PW tended to turn into a pull which generally ended up past pin high in the inevitable left green side bunker. Now I'm working on a 3/4 swing and flighting those irons (added 7i to the mix) and I've helped reduce the pulls - but I counter by thinning around half the shots. Now I seem to have a nice a straight ball flight - just some are waist high as they scream over the green. Oh Well, at least I have something to work on during the winter ;-).

Most of my rounds this summer have been as a walk up single, so I've been grouped with many different players with a variety of skill levels and personalities. I'm fairly easy going and tend to block out the noise and movement, but I've played with a number of golfers who seem to hear the bird chirping 4 blocks away and can't pull the trigger on a shot until they have absolute silence. When you play a course along Lake Michigan in Chicago - it's never quiet! Can make for a pretty slow and teeth grinding round

Could you explain difference between "straight fade" and push-fade.

For me, I try to stop the backswing when the shoulders stop turning. This seems to help me keep my spine angle in tact and has improved my consistency.

if you look at the hosel you can see the shaft is narrow going into it which indicates its the Pyratone coated steel shaft. A hickory shaft would have a much larger hosel and the shaft would actually get larger as it went into the hosel as compared to most of the length of the shaft. Those early steel shafts tended to be pretty stiff when compared to modern steel shafts but can be fun to play with when paired with some classic old persimmon woods and a nice bullseye putter!

Me as well. I'm 65 and tried the wider stance but it just seemed to make me sway back and forth through the ball. The narrower stance and the flared feet seem to help me turn. Focusing on a slightly shorter more efficient swing has seemed to be the answer for keeping power as I get older.

Guess this is why I like playing with my hickory clubs. Hardly seems right for a great course to have a hole designed for a Driver and 3i approach when it was built in the 30's now being reduced to a hybrid or driving iron off the tee followed by a lob wedge approach. I understand this is a case of "each his own" so enjoy those 7,500 yard courses - maybe it will open up more tee times on the shorter older classics for people like me.

Older article but still great list of items to consider!

Living in Chicago we do get our share of winter. I try to play as much as possible - even if it's only to walk 9 holes. Hitting balls in a dome or on a simulator are nice, but I tend to get sloppy with my swing so I try to limit it to a small bucket and a few swings with each club. Most of all, find a way to keep moving and walking during the winter and I focus on my stretching exercises. Good luck!

My Medicare card came with arthritis which helped shorten my swing. Now I focus on making a shoulder turn, swing till I get tight and make the bad shots "less worse". Overall I'm trying to be more efficient with the shorter swing, more hits in center of the club and less fats/thins. While my scores aren't reflecting it yet, my ball striking seems to have improved and I spend more time on the short grass.

Just finished my first read through the book. Outstanding! Now I'm going back through it making notes and forming a game plan. As a senior with a few health issues, not sure I can expect major changes in my swing, but I know I can make my bad shots less bad and use a game plan to score better. Thanks for a great book!