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Visit FlagstickRule.com 03/13/2017
Visit the site flagstickrule.com to read about and sign a petition for the USGA/R&A regarding the one terrible rule in the proposed "modernized" rules for 2019.
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Blackjack Don
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About Blackjack Don
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Perpetual Victim
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At what point do I realize I'm not good at this game?
Blackjack Don replied to breeves's topic in Golf Talk
Amazing comments in this thread. Most golfers will never hear any of this because their golf is strictly on Saturdays with the boys. They don't worry about sucking. That's left for us who have a hundred clicks in their Golf Favorites folder. First, our expectations are always out of whack. We somehow think we can be better than this. Even most of us here don't realize all the moving parts, and getting to the point of forgetting all of them. And what about the mental parts? I'm on top of the mental side--years of meditation practice helps--yet I find it hard to concentrate on the golf moment at a high level. I'm also over sixty. So if I could produce the clubhead speed, on a single swing plane, it's not likely I could concentrate for 18 holes. Believe me, I'm aware of how bad my mind can get at times putting, chipping, pitching, driving. And how much time I need to put into practice. Hundreds of hours over the last year to get to this point. Don't forget to include the yoga practice for flexibility. Still, I'm playing on a rickety frame, not to mention shaky balance issues. I'm not good. Just how good can I possibly be? Good enough to hit that one shot that makes me want to come back and do it again. Since par is out of question, I'm happy to say it's enough to once in a while hit a shot that Jason, Jordan, DJ, even Hidecki in Japanese, would say was as good as they could do. Keeps me coming back, which is really the whole point. You'll stay with it. If you could have quit, you would have already. -
Ah, yes, agree with that. However, given the laziness inherent in all of us, give it time. In time, leaving it in will be normalized. In time, you might be hearing "You can take it out?" more often than "Leave it in or out?" on the apron. I see hitting the flag at anything other than pretty dead on is a random event. As a poker player, I accept random events over which no one can gain an advantage. Everyone has the same luck. I believe thinking leaving the pin in gives an advantage is engaging in too much belief in the power of dumb luck. It's like a superstition more than a fact. Anyone who can use the pin to their advantage probably hits better approaches than I do, too. But it's not like a bank shot-level skill. I could care less about the flag in the hole. I'm aiming at the hole. Does anyone of this make sense? I can understand the traditionalist viewpoint. We are just ready to move on. Best wishes. I find it interesting that the traditionalists seem to vote yes, they think it will stay, not because they approve, but because they feel like a minority. Those who voted no because they think it will not stay but really want it to stay, feel like a minority. Neither side feels they have enough influence to change a result they don't like. So who has the power in golf? Are the traditionalists losing power? Sorry, but I find this fascinating in a Spock sort of way.
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Undecided, too. Knowledge of human nature made me say "no," but personal preference would have been "yes." Experience made me vote "no." For me, personally, it speeds up the game. Leave it in, hit when you're ready, makes the game go much quicker.
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Amazon Prime Day - Anyone find any good deals?
Blackjack Don replied to nevets88's topic in The Grill Room
I came over wondering if anyone found anything. It's not the stuff I need or want, but the deals that are so good I can't pass 'em up. 'Nuffin', man, nada. Lots of hype, no substance. Lots of the stuff I saw wasn't even much off from the regular price. Disappointing, to say the least, after so much hype. -
On Thursday, I shot an 86 at the muni. No blowup holes, no triple or quadruple bogies. Even left a few shots out there, mostly pitches. Could have been low 80's easily. My driver has begun to work. I hit a lot of fairways, no monster slices. My putting was as good as I can do it. I achieved the goal I set out to accomplish last June. I can play a round of golf as a golfer. Still a hacker, but I can laugh at my misses, flubs, and goof-ups. Golf isn't going to kill me anymore. Many thanks to the Sand Trap for advice and tolerance. Best wishes.
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+1
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Not up to me to comment on the hurt feelings of "some of the instructors." I never intended to insult anyone. Just trying to become a decent golfer. I see lots of people struggle off the tee. I have had more troubles than most. I love playing golf, but a driver like mine has been extremely frustrating. Getting a swing in as short a time as I could has been a pretty slow process, by my standards. That has more to do with how hard it is to hit a golf ball. I have no argument with anyone about how hard it is. I've put in hundreds of hours on this journey, process, path--whatever you want to call it since June '16. Hell, it's been as hard for me as having a baby! :LOL: But the good news is I'll probably not go back to what I was doing. I have (or am getting, finally) my driver problems sorted out. I shot a solid 97 on Wed and was quite proud of it. My first drive split the middle. I lost it in the middle, but got my swing thoughts sorted out and banged out several in the fairway, from 240 to 279, probably averaging 250. (Keep forgetting to TAP!, dammit.) By my Garmin S2. Couldn't hit a chip/pitch to save my life, and spent four strokes going from trap to trap. I could have easily saved a half dozen strokes, and I will. The hip turn tip did the trick. I have practiced it enough now to have solved that problem. My two swing thoughts now are don't cross the line at the top, and left wrist leading. When my left wrist breaks down, Fore RIGHT! But I am feeling more confident than ever I'm going to break 90--legitimately, following the rules as I know them--very soon. This is what it's all about, and why I was looking for a way to play, eliminating the source of my problems. Now that I've got the swing nearly sorted out, I'll happily go back to the tee box, as I did on my last round. I'm just trying to enjoy the game. Not spread misery. Why would anyone do that? I get enough pleasure in my life as it is. I'm okay, and hope you are, too, all of you. Especially my fellow jerks. I was seriously considering joining evolvr, but don't figure pyromaniacal students would be welcome. Burning bridges. Who knew how easy it could be! PS--Right now, I've got way too much going on to comment on any other subjects. Everyone knows which side I support. PSS-Eric, I was a reporter. I still think like a reporter. I ask a lot of questions, some of them are uncomfortable. It's how I gain information, knowledge, and understanding. A reporter's curiosity is relentless, and doesn't take anything at face value. Be glad I'm not interviewing you for the Golf Channel. (Oh, wait, they don't have reporters at the Golf Channel!) lol
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I strongly disagree with the statement the rule changes will make the game easier. The rules make it harder. Nothing makes it easier. Technology should make the game easier, but it doesn't. Yesterday I was reading Bobby Jones, at 14, was winning tournaments against grown men. His personal best score was 74. Tiger Woods might have been breaking par at 14, but not because the rules were changed. The fact is scores haven't gone down as much as the cost of clubs and balls has risen. Nothing is going to make golf easier. Making the experience better is a worthy goal, and except for not changing stroke and distance, the consensus is they've done a good job. My old man has a saying he's fond of repeating: When the world looks out of step, check your own. You guys are bucking the tide here. It would seem for the wrong reasons. When someone figures out how to make it easy for someone to get a square club face on line at impact, then the game will get easier. Nothing in the rules makes the ball go in the hole. The golfer who needs the game to be easier isn't likely to hit the pin from above the hole. The rule change of leaving the flag in the hole isn't going to make it easier for him, and could make it easier for you, assuming the flag will stop your ball from going twenty feet down the hill. That's where mine often ends up on our bikini-waxed greens. The changes of the ball hitting the flag are 2%. That's not going to make the game easier, for anybody.
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Got this in the mailbox and felt I had to come back and praise this post. Nicely done. If the USGA had done the sensible thing and leave the rules as they are for "tournament" play--and for anyone who wants the stiffest of tests--and done separate rules for the rest of us, we could have addressed this. Marketing, I think, or media, is the only way to get people to play their game and not the pro game. "Tee it forward" didn't exactly get the word out. Nobody told me that the red tees are ladies' tees. Nobody ever explained to me that par is meant for the expert golfer. I heard yesterday that only 3% of golfers ever break 80. From the stats, with my driver speed, the best I can reasonably hope for is low 80's. Maybe I can do better if I have a great short game, but that's just me. Not sure how dedicated the average golfer is to developing their game. The rules, and the marketing of the game, need to focus on what the average 50 year of male needs out on the course. If it's more beer, then that's okay, too. My point has been in all of my posts is make it easier for the average guy who gets to play twice a month, at best. The guy who is easily breaking a hundred, ninety and eighty will take care of himself. Good job, Lihu. Good stats always make for better understanding. Peace.
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Why are you here? Gator, that 30k to 60k. Is that for full time? I have been working on call, which is now no more than 30 hours a week, for three years. It's taken that long for my seniority to get high enough to bid for a full time shift. I have to go to swing shift from day shift, which is going to suck for me, except I'll have more time for golf. Is there any way I can prove my working class cred with you? Finally, a big thank you and apology to Mike and Erik. I finally had another lesson with my pro, who is no longer our head pro but owes me another lesson, still. I had to drive two hours to get the third of the four, but it was worth the trip. You were right. He finally got me to stop sliding my hips. I didn't get it. Now, I do. Lots of drilling. I hit a driver on one hole 294, which is pretty good for an old man, I think. My average drive is around 250. I'm hitting all my clubs better, but as everyone knows, I'm mostly stuck on the driver. Turning my hips is now my numero uno priority. It's nice to finally understand. I'm sorry I didn't understand what you were saying. It took more than an hour, and a stick in the ground for me to really get it. Thanks for the effort.
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That was a dumb comment by me. I don't know what I was thinking, or even if I was. (Legal substances here in Nevada do tend to work against thinking sometimes, thank god.) Just dumb and regrettable. When 90% of a group thinks nothing should change, and that a shrinking base is not a problem, that's a place where my liberal, populist opinions aren't going to be, well, popular. I want to see more people playing this wonderful game. I remember when Bushwood was the rule, and the only minorities you'd see were carrying bags. But as long as I can find a place to play that I can afford, I'm going to keep playing because I love the game. Perhaps not all of the traditions, but still, the game is unique. I am often wrong. I find I learn more when I'm wrong than when I'm right. I rarely learn anything when I'm right. I don't care about being right, just getting it right. Being wrong is on the way to getting it right.
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A poll in another thread shows me that I don't have an audience here. I guess I'm a thorn that doesn't need to be in the paw. If none of what I've said makes any sense to anybody here, which 90% disagree with, then I'll shut up. I am pissing into the wind.
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It's become a cliche. Even the USGA acknowledges the three challenges to the game: It's hard, it's expensive, and it's time consuming. Golf Now helps a lot, but it might not be the best for the courses. Golf Now does make it less expensive. Yes, you're second quote doesn't make sense. Not the first time for me. How about you?
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Seriously? Expensive is exclusive and exclusive is expensive. The base of golfers who can afford PB--and who can convince their wives--is tiny. If shrinking it that much is okay with you, how did you miss the polo boom? And you know I have no problem playing anywhere it's good for me. Duh. I could not agree more.
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Because we know from playing full courses. Par 3's suck! We duffers rarely hit the green, no matter what. We rarely par one. If I have ever birdied one, it was total luck. I do. Most don't. The game is populated by people who don't. My guess is they don't know any different. They are without clue. Fix that, and it might go a long way to stop the bleeding. 600,000 people is a lot of greens fees.