Another Rough Day at the Range

I went to golf league last night at the Piers. The good news is that I could see how far good players can hit the ball with an 8 iron and a driver. The bad news is that I wasn't able to do it (last night).

I'm going to try to stay positive. I'm playing the game because I had such a wonderful time the first time I played Flushing Meadows PNP. For my birthday, I'm treating myself to 2 new clubs I found online at Callaway Pre-owned: a Mizuno MX 25 gap and sand wedge (already shortened by an inch). This is to renew my love of the game -- even though the season is almost over. According to the reviews I have, the feel of these clubs is even better that the MP 60s. I have the MP 60s and they're great so I'm looking forward to seeing if they are actually better. I'm also getting Tom Watson's "Lessons from a Lifetime", DVDs, which I've held out on buying until now.

I've also picked up and started to re-read Dave Pelz's Short Game Bible. I have a lot of books that I bought over the last several months that I'd like to, but I think it will be inspirational to re-read it. I'm determined to cut down on my golf spending on equipment next year, and focus simply on practice and play.

Learning Curve

Today was a rough day at "golf league". I'm trying to fix my grip, and it's been at least 2 weeks and I haven't felt as if I've improved. I feel as if my fundamentals are so poor that the instructors don't want to spend any more time on me. Oh well, I'm confident that I will improve eventually. I just wish I could feel I was getting better instead of worse. But that's the learning curve: I have to get "worse" to break bad habits and improving my golf fundamentals.

Why I Play

I've been very enthusiastic -- if not fanatical-- about the game over the last year. I'm approaching one year of continous play. I've progressed more then I would have imagined. I got out and played several courses this year, and started to build both my confidence and skills.

I wanted to reflect for a moment about why I play the game of golf. There are many reasons, but I'd guess the most important one is to focus on improving myself (i.e. becoming a better player and a better person overall). Golf is a way for me to keep connected to my friends, who have played for a very long time. Also, it's a way for me to develop acquaintances and friendships with other golfers who want to improve their game. A round of golf is a journey. You see how well you can get through the course. I'm pleased with my performance this year overall -- though I may have gone a little overboard with all of the golf stuff I've bought: clubs, bags, shirts, pants, shoes, balls, gloves, training aids, books -- I've definitely added to the golf economy!

This year I want to focus on not spending so much money on equipment. I have all that I need to be a very good player. So, it's now all about practice and play -- whenever I can make it out to the course.

I also want to remember that I have a rich life outside of golf. If I hadn't discovered other interests such as theater, music, dance, and technology, I may have missed a lot of enriching things -- which I now enjoy in addition to golf. But, at the moment, golf is a primary focus as a means to health, fitness and sport.

No Golf for One Month

I haven't been to the range in about a month. It's not because I've gotten lazy. It's just that I made a commitment to helping out on a musical as company manager. So, golf hasn't been the #1 thing on my mind. That said, I do pick up a putter about once a day just to remind myself what I miss.

I'm also hoping that this upcoming Labor Day Weekend I can get a few rounds in. If it was my choice I would play Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday straight. But, I'm going to try to play on Friday -- one day early on the Labor Day weekend -- maybe two rounds if possible.

Rough Day on the Range

I made it out to the range this morning after a week of high heat in the 90's or above. (I did not golf at all last week). I was really struggling today. I could not keep the ball straight from my 4 hybrid on up. I did take out the 5 wood for a few swings, but I was shanking the ball horribly. The problem seems to be with a stiffness or tenseness with my right upper arm. It's not releasing at all and I'm really spinning the club in my hands and pushing it left.

I guess I need to slow down and work on a slower smoother swing that releases.

Progress - 3rd Round of 18

I finished my third round of 18 this afternoon with a score of 107. I didn't feel that I played as well as my previous round a week ago, but my scorecard tells me that I dropped three strokes from last week (May 7, 2011), which had me finishing up with a score of 110.

I did poorly off the tee -- I sliced almost every tee shot, but I guess my short game was good. I remember two iron shots from the fairway, one with a 5 iron and another with a 7 that I felt very good about.

I did some practice on the driving range with my pitching wedge. This is a club that I think will come in very handy.

Progress

I rediscovered my blog, and decided to post an entry just to check-in on my progress. I've been working on learning golf for about six months now. Of course, this is all during the off season -- I really haven't played much since last November, except for once on the pitch-and-putt in March and once on April 2nd, where I scored my first legit golf score(more-or-less): 126 at Wente Vineyards Golf Course. (I have a long way to go to break 100).

Now, I'm working to fix my slice. I think I'm not far away from gaining some consistency. At least as of today, I've been seeing myself hit to 150 yards consistently with a 6 iron, which is which is about right for the average golfer.

Moving forward, I'm going to try hard to get on the course, and maybe find a person to be a golfing parter to keep myself improving.