DogbertBH

I just came across this post and I'm wondering how the OP made out? About 10 years ago I toiled away at golf. I took some lessons that completely revamped my stance and swing (grip was fine but my legs were too wide and I was hunched over). I still have some casting issues and come over the top occasionally, but I implemented what I was taught, played 2-18 hole rounds and 1-9 hole round every week and practiced EVERYTHING else as much as I could. Putting, chipping, sand shots, etc. In my 9-hole rounds I frequently played with only 1 club. 7 iron tee shot, 7 iron pitch and chip shots, etc. I didn't even bother putting. Just worked at getting better with whichever club I had. Sometimes I chose a PW, sometimes a 9 iron. If the water carry was too long I would walk to the other side, drop and hit. I haven't played much over the last 6 years since my son was born, but now he's old enough to take on the course and I'm able to play a few times a Summer on a par 3 course nearby. This Sunday, someone invited me to play at a nice country club about an hour away from home. I'd never been there but saw they had a par 72, 69.8 rating and a slope of 124. Looked tough, so I went to the range once, played the par 3 once and when I arrived at the course I practiced putting for 45 minutes before we started. They didn't have a range, so I couldn't get any practice in... Just putting. My first tee shot went about 15 feet into the pond in front of the box. My buddies offered me the 'Breakfast Ball' and I re-hit, made par and moved along. The 2nd hole I got on in 2 and made a terrible lag put. 3 putt for bogey and am now sitting +1. I did NOT take the Mulligan and instead I kept my score, and my head - made a few really good putts and a sand save, and finished the round @ +3. On the back 9 I kept it @ even until the 15th & 16th where I went bogey, double bogey. Made a birdie on the par 3 17th and even on the par 5 18th. So I finished @ +6 and a total 78. BEST round I've ever played. 3 double bogeys, 3 bogeys and 3 birdies. Shooting below 80 doesn't have to be perfect. I'm living proof. For the players who've done it - what happened at your next round? I wanted to get back to my crappy play right away... a friend said to savor it for as long as I would typically not play. I did email a thank you message to the PGA pro I took the lessons from, though! -h

Years ago there was a commercial where I guy needed to know what to think about during a swing. I'm fairly sure it was Tiger in the commercial - but I don't remember who it was for. The thing that sticks out in my mind is as he rattled off the 'few' things to keep in mind, little lines above the guy's head appeared, almost like thought bubbles, and it became a LOT of things very quickly. At the end, Tiger says something like "And don't forget the fans" and with the flick of a switch you see a giant cardboard cutout pop up from the ground leaving a very small hole to hit through up the middle. The guy hits the ball and knocks part of the cutout off. Does anyone else remember this? Where is it? Can't find it anywhere! -Bobby

Take a boat, plane, anything and get to SCOTLAND!!!!

I think that since the comments in the testimonials are after the fact and they just watched it on a monitor or something it reminds them they were mad about something and they try to 'seem' mad. I'm sure Derek just didn't want to lose to Blair because so many other people have underestimated her and lost. Long putts, good bunker shots, etc. She doesn't seem to get fazed by hitting bad shots. It seemed like the gallery was almost split. Like the early exits were on the Blair side and the later ones were with Derek.

+1 Get fitted

I must have been mistaken. I though Tiger was leading when the 3rd round concluded. I don't think I've ever seen him win a major when he wasn't in the final group with at least a share of the lead. Not saying he sucks or anything - I'm a fan. Just saying he's a definite front-runner in the major tournaments. Roger has faced adversity and come back to win numerous times and I think that deserves more merit than he's being awarded here by being immediately dismissed as having an equal accomplishment. I keep seeing the argument that Tiger plays 130 guys - but those guys aren't right there, stopping him from doing well. They're ALL playing that course that day. Some might have a better eye for that particular track. Federer has a guy on the other side of the net trying to stop him. And in some cases, it happens. Again. I voted tie. Tiger could (and will probably) potentially win majors well into his 40's. It's MUCH harder to win tournaments as you get older in tennis than in golf. Below is a list of the times he HAS won a tournament without the 54 hole lead. Year Tournament 54-hole Leader Margin Runner-up ==== ========== ============== ======= ========= 2007 WGC-Bridgestone Inv. 1/Rory Sabbatini 8 strokes Justin Rose, Rory Sabatini 2007 Wachovia Championship 1/Rory Sabbatini 2 strokes Steve Stricker 2007 Buick Invitational 2/Two Players 2 strokes Charles Howell III 2006 Deutsche Bank 3/Vijay Singh 2 strokes Vijay Singh 2006 Buick Invitational 1/Two Players Playoff Jose Maria Olazabal 2005 WGC-American Express 2/John Daly Playoff John Daly 2005 Ford Championship 2/P. Mickelson 1 stroke Phil Mickelson 2005 Buick Invitational 2/Two Players 3 strokes Three Players 2001 WGC-NEC Invitational 2/Jim Furyk Playoff Jim Furyk 2001 Memorial 1/Paul Azinger 7 strokes Paul Azinger, Sergio Garcia 2001 Players Championship 2/Jerry Kelly 1 stroke Vijay Singh 2000 AT&T; Pebble Beach 5/Two players 2 strokes Matt Gogel, Vijay Singh 1999 WGC-American Express 1/Two players Playoff Miguel Angel Jimenez 1997 Mercedes Championships 4/Tom Lehman Playoff Tom Lehman 1996 Oldsmobile Classic 1/Four players 1 stroke Payne Stewart 1996 x-Las Vegas Invitational 4/Ronnie Black Playoff Davis Love III

I use a little groove cleaner with a metal tip and a wire brush. I cleans the grooves and gives a little bit of an edge to the grooves.

Actually it is Stewart Cink at 6'4" - Davis Love, Els, Bubba and Stenson are 6'3" Furyk is 6'2, as is Vijay. Tiger is 6'1. So was Byron Nelson. It does surprise me when I find out how tall some of these guys are (or aren't) Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer are 5'10 Corey Pavin, 95 US Open winner is only 5'9 Fred Funk is 5'8, same as Bobby Jones Ben Hogan was 5'7 - pretty big game, though!

PLAY FEWER HOLES!!! If you're shooting 114 for 18, think what you'd shoot for 14!! You'd be WELL under 100! In my case, I took lessons for the basics, developed a (mostly) repeatable swing, then had clubs fitted to that swing. Went from a 30+ to a 12- Good luck!

I would guess the winner doesn't get any money until the show is over on Monday. That way they don't see someone spending like a drunken sailor holding a bag full of Adams clubs.

Tiger's accomplishments are GREAT. Roger's are too. I voted TIE. For those more toward the golf side. Roger Federer had to come back from 2 sets and a break down to Tommy Haas in the French open (Former World #2) and win that match in 5 grueling sets. Has Tiger ever come from behind to win a major?

Did anyone here get one of these Garmin units?? Looks slick & it's down to $399 at Golf Galaxy

The SkyCaddie, etc. has a +/- margin of error. Regardless of how small that margin may be, they'll lose their job if they're a yard off and it costs their pro hundreds of thousands if not more. Typically you'll see caddies go out in groups of three or so with laser range finders and use each other as targets. It's much too tricky to shoot at the front of a bunker, but it's easy to hit Jim with that laser. I think a lot of pros use their GPS in practice rounds when their caddie isn't there. Playing on their home course alone, etc.

I know I've mentioned it in every other post I've made, but my fitting last year knocked my driver back into the fairway. I was using a Callaway driver that I hit decent, but had anywhere from a hard slice to a controlled fade. With my new driver, fitted to my swing, I'm able to keep it in the fairway more often. Even my REALLY BAD shots don't go as far into the woods as they did before. I recommend it fully.

I play the Noodle Long & Soft Plus. Last year I got fitted for clubs and this was the ball that reacted best with my swing. They're pretty inexpensive ($19/doz) and putt like a ProV

I am a 12 who plays a lot of single digit handicaps. I do well against them for 2 reasons. #1: I'm a better putter than they are. I leave most putts (that don't go in) very close. #2: Course Management. I beat a guy with nothing but my 7iron just to show him it could be done as long as you don't have a +150 carry :) I play with myself - I think it's good advice. I hit the middle of greens when I can and try to avoid trouble. I'm not up for the risk that's involved in getting my reward :)

Shot a F()@&ing; 80. Yes EIGHTY DAMMIT!!! WTF!!!!!!!! The last shot was a tap in birdie..... DAMMIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not that I'm bitter about it. 2nd best was 81, but that was in Aruba playing the same 9 from 2 tees, so it doesn't count.

I agree. I am reaping the benefits of understanding things I learned in 5 lessons I took 4 years ago. I finally got my swing to a place where I could repeat it and then made the necessary changes. When I took the lessons I was a 28 HCP and now play at a down trending 12. Lessons and club fitting are the two things that got me here. Oh.. and a little bit of PRACTICE!!! (And a LOT of Tiger Woods PGA Tour - Got it for the Wii now!!!)

I still disagree. (Did you notice you wrote "almost" in there) I agree.

I disagree. Isn't it possible the new irons have a forged head instead of cast? Different kick point on the shaft? Lighter shaft? Heavier shaft? Thicker shaft? Heavier clubhead? thicker sole... Thinner sole. etc........ There are a TON of reasons you may hit the new irons better. If you've ever been through a club fitting you'd see there are a lot of differences in every club. Pros go through intense club fitting. I was hitting my PW about 100 and my 9 about 130 with everything else 10 yards more. I took 3 & 4 out of the bag entirely - couldn't get a shot to go anywhere. I started playing a lot of tennis last August and right through the winter. My first time at the range I noticed I was hitting my PW about 130 and my 9 about 150 and everything about 10 yards more. It's stayed that way so far. Imagine going to sleep and waking up with 30 more yards?!??!?!!! That's what this felt like after a grueling Boston winter!

He might start after this event!

David Feherty is a genius. Johnny Miller is giving us what he has to offer. His own experience as a perspective. I like Faldo alot though. He had me laughing when he was showing O'Hair and Watson on the telestator saying 'Sean, this is Bubba. You guys won't ever meet on the FAIRWAY - but this is him WAAAAYYYY down there about 40 yards in front of you.'

Used to be I hit a PW from 100yards and that was that. NOW I've been hitting everything about 30 yards further, so it's my 52 deg gap wedge from 120 and in. I hit 2 flagsticks from inside 100 with my 56 sand wedge in the last 3 weeks. Maybe that's my new fav!!

Why didn't you just write "You're a liar" in your post. That's pretty much what you're saying to me there. You're right. I don't play 80 rounds in a year. I don't know anyone who works outside the sport and puts in 50+ hours per week who does. I play a little more than half of that. BUT. I sell cars. I walk all day every day. Uphill and down around our lot. I also wear these dress shoes (Two pair, one black, one brown) any time I go out where I need to wear a suit. Your $100 shoes will NOT last you 7 years, You're entirely correct. You have spent $700 over the last 7 years on shoes and own one pair. I spent $570 on two pairs and still have them both and they're as comfortable as they've ever been.

Played in the rain yesterday morning and shot 89. Was pretty happy with the result and more satisfied with my drives than in a long time. www.Atkinsonresort.com Blue tees: Rating 72.1 / 135 Slope