My Golfing Passion...

10/3/12 Saturday. Returned from Naracoorte after the first round of the Summer Open in a good frame of mind and a little bemused that I did not perform better. The gross score of 92 (79 nett) came from poor putting, could not get the confidence to get the ball up to or past the hole with the first crack. Dropped all the second putts except for one hole and that was an expensive 8, two other holes with a 7 and and 5 were where the damage was done. The first two were the only holes where the drive went into the tree lined fringes and the recovery shots failed.
It was a day where I played conservatively and took no risks, to get myself into position so many times and have the putts fall short and 3 times literally only another roll or two would have dropped into the cup. With a playing group including a 2 and 3 handicapper the round had many examples of the game I need to develop. The Driver and Iron play was all good enough in the main. The chipping was an obvious difference I could not get the ball inside that 1 metre circle around the pin like these fellas could. A lot easier to one put from there than 4 metres away from the hole.
If, Buts and Maybe’s do not count and as excuses mount up in a golfers recollections there is no chance or commitment to improve.
At a course which has severely slapped my game around in the past it was a lack of confidence and ability with the flat stick that shot down my chances today.
Tomorrow I will be out again and will be trying to go better on the day. The experience today was valuable, I am inspired by the effort and pleased that the failing on the green was the game fault. Still a way to go in my golf, today was another step towards improvement.

12/3/12 Monday.

It is great to be this early in the golf season to come and be already able to review the results of the coaching and practice since January with optimism. This seasons coming experience, even with the knowledge picked up in the past three years, is going to test my ability to the limit. Now in the “A” Grade, at the back end of the handicaps there is no room to put faith into luck getting me to a competitive standard. My initial target of having a crack at the Nett Handicap sections of the various open events that will be played in during 2012 is going to take every bit of knowledge picked up in the past three seasons.



This weekends Naracoorte Open has been particularly beneficial, following on from the recent Southern Ports Tournament. This time two consecutive days of competition golf at a course which when played last year exposed all of the shortcomings of my golf at that stage. The inconsistent driving off the tee, fairway shots that were erratic and poorly thought out strategically, short game chipping that was woefully under prepared and putting that was in the same condition. These faults previously were not major concerns when playing through the handicaps on the way down to my current level. Once the handicap is 15 or less the consistency of a golfers game is vital to improving. Whilst I could play myself into a state of good form and get a score comparable to a 10-11 handicap, the following week that could blow out to a 20 handicap level.
It may seem odd to readers that for me it has been a matter of not knowing what was my golfing capability, whilst playing for 3 years. This was never possible until recently when during the last three months coaching sessions established a setup, swing and stance that is reliable and effective with all clubs. The result is that no longer creating different circumstances with irregular stance and setup positions, every shot now has the same swing and power/energy delivered to the ball. All that is different is the club used and that is what creates the desired effect to get the ball to the target.
Following the round on Saturday, it was a golfer with a purpose and confidence that returned the following day. With a front nine score of 43 with 16 putts it was the best round I have had at Naracoorte. The second nine was a failure, not getting a par until the 18th hole finishing with 47 strokes and 18 putts. That was the final confirmation that the flat stick is a major failing in my hands. This was realised early in the round and after that I just played on enjoying the good shots played off the tee, from fairways and chipping to the pin. That I could not get the putts into the hole with consistency did not affect the round. I just kept on playing as well as possible satisfied in the knowledge that after the round I knew what was needed to improve.
There was no despair and nothing but happiness through out the round on my part, the group all enjoyed the company and the banter. Golf is fun, I did not even consider trying to change anything during the round to improve putting results. That is what practise and coaching sessions are for. That the issue is in part to do with confidence and needing to improve my chipping as well as putting practise, playing the round still gave me my best return on the course. A year after the first destructive experience on the Naracoorte course, my game is much improved because of that. That I was up at 5am each morning and worked until 6.30am before leaving on the 120km drive to Naracoorte perhaps added a little to the result. Nothing of consequence in my opinion though, if anything this added mental motivation that countered the physical effect.
Hence I am really looking forward to the coming season and the practise on the putting green while tuning up my mind to be a confident putter. Thankyou for your time and attention. “Hit ‘em straight all”