newtogolf

Good Luck. I just started a few weeks ago and found an instructor I like that seemed reasonably priced ($45 per 1/2 hour lesson). After first lesson he had me hitting my 7i pretty consistently about 150 yards straight which was a great improvement over my 100 yard slice I had before the lesson. My cousin donated a set of graphite Callaway X-12's to my cause until I figure out what clubs I should invest in. My friend who's been trying to get me to play for years bought me a Nike Sumo SQ driver for my birthday and I've added a few Cleveland wedges and Nike fairway woods (used from Golfsmith) along with a new putter. It's easy to get hooked on weekly trips to the store for more gear, but I'm set for now, I think. It seems like a very challenging sport, and is completely different from my other hobby (long distance running) which I like.

It's a matter of public interest, he increases the number of viewers. When Tiger is in contention non-golfers are more likely to watch than when he isn't and only the die hard fans watch. Same happened in the World Cup. Prior to the US elimination, everyone was talking soccer, once they lost, it was as though the World Cup ended, no one was talking about it on the news or sports radio.

Yes it was, but not to the level it is today because of Tiger. Tiger attracts a different level of fan and support because he's a household name. People either watch to root for him or against him, but the key is they watch. I mentioned what the NBA went through with Jordan, and NASCAR has been suffering as well due to the economy and passing of Dale Earnhardt Sr. They are hoping Jr is the cure, but he hasn't established the level of dominance his dad had yet. Marketing dollars for commercials are based on ratings numbers, ratings go down, so do the prices the networks can charge for a 30 second commercial. If the networks see a dip in ratings and marketing dollars they will bid less on the next television contract or air less tournaments. How many times do you think we'll see Cleveland in a nationally televised NBA game without King James, I predict once at best, when they play they Heat.

Are you playing with handicap factored in? I just started getting serious about playing, so I never worried about my score and my friends didnt worry either since they knew it was about having a good time and not competing. It sounds like there's some confusion on both your parts about what the purpose is of playing, bragging rights or just two friends having some fun. If there's money or bragging rights involved, then factor in your handicap so he has a shot. If it's just for fun, then just worry about your score and not his.

That article is a bit old, since then Golf Magazine published an article stating that Phil helps ratings alot as well. The sport seems to suffer most when both Phil and Tiger aren't near the top of the leaderboard.

If Carwin gets a rematch he'll have a great shot at beating Brock. As pxc stated, if he didn't gas and have an adreneline dump he would have been able to finish him. Brock was turtled up and waiting for Carwin to gas, he was fortunate the ref didn't stop the fight due to the total number of unresponded to punches Carwin threw. Cain could have a good shot at beating him, but Cain's smaller stature might be a problem if Lesner takes him to the mat and ground and pounds him. I dont think Junior Dos Santos or Big Country have much of a chance either.

I'm in, NFL.com or Yahoo are good free leagues. I like Yahoo cause of the iPhone app.

I have the same blister location except on my right hand because I'm left handed. It's definitely from my grip (tooo tight) and lack of calluses in the area. I also wasn't wearing a glove for the first 1/2 of my practice session and my hands were real sweaty which I'm sure didn't help.

I agree 100%, wasn't how I conduct myself, just an example of the mentality.

Oosthuizen averaged 319.3 per drive 55/64 fairways hit, and 60 GIR while Casey averaged 313.6 51/64 fairways hit, and 61 GIR over the 4 days.

I don't think arrogance has a demographic. In my experience arrogance appears more of a mindset that might be intensified in a country club environment. Seems whenever people pay a premium to do something their expectations are higher than normal because people establish a sense of entitlement. I dont really think about the temperture of a hamburger from McDonalds, but f I'm paying $70 for a steak it better be cooked how I want. Those paying $20,000 to be part of a private country club in this economy believe they have entitilements as well, i.e. the least they can do is clean up my messes for the money I spend here. Then there's the guy that acts arrogant in the club so he can impress his friends with his "status". I've seen it first hand, reallly nice guys outside the country club transform into idiots once they walk in because they think their membership fees entitle them to act that way.

No question the sport will go forward without Tiger, the question is how many less people will be watching until the next "Tiger" hits the scene. I haven't been to a PGA tournament since Tigers indescretions surfaced, but prior to that, his galleries were 10x the size of anyone elses with maybe the exception of Phil. People I know who didn't follow golf would comment on how he played because it was all over the news. Even my dad who hates golf knew how Tiger was in playing every tournament, that's market influence. It will be hard to quantify the impact Tiger has had on the sport, how many people are playing today because of him, his impact on television ratings, equipment sales, etc. Nike hasn't had a great selling basketball shoe since the Air Jordan, will they continue to have the market share they do in golf if Tiger isn't out there as their representative?

I agree, although Tiger is still relatively young, but he's got alot of miles on his body, and it's starting to break down. The PGA cannot continue to build or even sustain the sport around Tiger. The NBA tried to with Jordan, and when he fell from superstardom there was a vacuum that no one was able to fill for a few years and resulted in alot of poor ratings because the non-die hard fans weren't interested any longer. There seems to be alot of young players ready to step up and the PGA needs to start promoting them.

I've watched golf for alot more years than I've played it. As a new player I thought it was great that a relative no name could dominate the big guns the way he did. Seemed most people expect / hoped Louis would choke on Sunday, but he never did. Those that trailed tried to make things happen but it seemed to mostly backfire on them, especially Phil. It seemed the tee off time played a much larger role in players performance and scores than usual. I realize that it could happen at any course but it seemed much more severe at St. Andrews with the wind. I can see why the press felt it was boring, they want tight scores with big name golfers at the top, and this had none of that.

Thank you for the response. It's likely both since I just started to play two weeks ago and I definitely have been gripping the clubs too tight. Maintaining a soft grip has been the toughest thing for me to overcome so far.

I've been using a FJ WeatherSof, but have been getting nasty blisters. Is that an issue with my grip, glove or both? Being a lefty, glove choices aren't great in stores.

I don't have a bag recommendation, but I would suggest you verify with the airline the cost of taking your clubs. My friend was told it would be an additional $100 to take his clubs each way on a discount airline because of the weight and other bags they checked. Minimally you might want to opt for a soft-side just to reduce the additional weight, leave any extra clubs home, and purchase balls at your destination if the fees for overweight bags are high.

TaylorMade Rossa Ghost putter, glove, and Nike hat at Golfmmith.