Biggest News in Golf

April 4, 2015April 4, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 6 Comments

He is back! Tiger Woods announced that he will play in the 2015 Masters! This revelation is not surprising and many people associated with golf are elated the hear that the biggest draw in golf is ready to play. His two month absence has stirred speculation on whether Woods would even return, but now all the musing, nay-sayers and arm-chair golfing pundits can focus on if Woods has a chance to win this year.

Woods announcement was short and to the point. From TigerWoods.com yesterday: “I’m playing in the Masters,” Tiger said Friday afternoon. It’s obviously very important to me, and I want to be there. I’ve worked a lot on my game and I’m looking forward to competing. I’m excited to get to Augusta and I appreciate everyone’s support.”

The short message has fueled a fair bit of speculation because it does not mention that he his ready, is game is in form, or that he expects to win. Actually, his announcement was perfect. His attempt to manage expectations by under playing his current state of readiness will allow for a positive reaction to any number of outcomes. If he wins, he smiles rides the wave of excitement in the golfing world and he lets the media take care of spreading the word that he is officially back. If he plays poorly, he will be considered a tough competitor who understands the importance of the Masters and he was playing for the love of the game. Quite brilliant actually.

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Lydia Ko’s spectacular run to break Annika Sörenstam’s record for the most consecutive rounds under par can to a sudden stop yesterday. After 29 rounds of sub-par play, Ko shot a one over 73 at the ANA Inspiration. It is amazing that anyone would shoot 29 rounds under par, but to be 17 years old, be the number one player in women’s golf, and have an excellent attitude is incredible. Watch her composure below:

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In less than 5 days, the world’s best golfers will tee it up in hopes of winning the green jacket. There have been many great articles already written about the first Major of 2015 and of course the speculation of who is going to win is at the top of the list. One of the best to date is by Brian Penn called 2015 Masters Picks. If you have not read it, I suggest you do because it has a unique twist.

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But, before I head down that path of selecting my picks for the Masters this year, let’s focus on the Shell Huston Open which is still under way. It is quite exciting to see some familiar names and unfamiliar names at the top of the leader board. Although this article will be released before the end of the third round, the biggest news from the Shell Huston Open is the play of Canadian Graham DeLaet. I picked him as a “Dark Horse” for the 2015 professional golf season and winning this weekend will only reinforce my psychic abilities. It is great to see DeLaet playing to his potential!

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There is plenty of news out there! Being bombarded by all aspects of golf is sometimes overwhelming. Personally, I try to focus on the positive aspects of golf, fun topics, great tips, and the ‘good news’ stories. If you find any you would like to share, please pass them on!

This is my 501st article since starting The Grateful Golfer blog and I want to thank everyone who has read, commented, and passed on my articles! Thank you for being part of The Grateful Golfer Community!

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!

YouTube and Golf

March 16, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 14 Comments

YouTube is a fantastic resource for golfers! There are literally millions of videos on every aspect of golf and I am not shy to say that I have watched most of them!!! Many of you are thinking: Now, if I have told you once, I have told you a million times to stop exaggerating!

Okay, back to reality. If you as a student of the game and you are not using YouTube, my question is “Why Not?”

As many of you know, I use YouTube videos extensively in my blogs. I always give the make credit, but like experts to show us their view of golf.

There are many different views about golf and YouTube will show you them all. That is why blogs like mindbodygolf, All About Golf, Hit It Solid, The Goofy Game of Golf Trying to Execute the Answer, Golf is Mental and 36aday (to name a few and I could list many more) help sort out the wheat from the chaff! I subscribe to about 15 YouTube channels and that number is slowly growing.

So as you surf YouTube looking for great golf videos, stop by and check out The Grateful Golfer channel. They are rough and I am just starting, but I think you will appreciate the effort. Here is a quick look at a video I made last year!

Do you use YouTube? If so, what are your favorite golf videos?

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links….in a month!

2015 Toronto Golf and Travel Show – Part Deux

February 24, 2015February 24, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 6 Comments

The second installment of my review of the 2015 Toronto Golf and Travel Show will focus on the other aspects of the event….Golf! There were many opportunities to swing different clubs, win prizes, buy some new toys and see the newest technology at work. The moment my friend and I entered the pavilion, we knew exactly where to go – the demo section! This may have been a crazy plan since we had not swung a club in 4 months, but by beating the rush, we were able to take our time and demo any club we wanted.

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Callaway Big Bertha Alpha 815

My first club was the new Callaway Big Bertha Alpha 815. It had a stiff shaft and was nice to look at during set up. It may sound silly, but some clubs I will not use because they do not fit my eye while standing over the ball. As I swung the driver, it felt very comfortable and loved the feel of the ball off the head of the club. I hit about 10-15 balls and by the end felt very comfortable swinging the Callaway driver. I would consider buying this club in the future.

Next I tried the TaylorMade AeroBurner. It had a new design and it did not fit my eye very well. I guess I am not a fan of the colour white for a driver. Overall, I was not impressed with the club. It is not that it did not perform well, but it just did not fit my swing or comfort zone. I am not sure if the performance of this driver was mental or physical.

R15 Black Driver

Lastly, I hit the TaylorMade R15 460 TP Adjustable Driver. This was a very good club. It too had a stiff shaft. It was easily comparable to the Callaway driver. The dual sliders were set to the outer edges which made the club very forgiving. I liked everything about this club and might be a choice for me in future.

Next we went to the long drive contest. For $5, we received 4 balls. One for practice and three for the competition. We actually tried this twice and my longest drive was 279 yards. My friend, Jean, out drove me by 2 yards. I am sure I will hear about this in the summer when we hit links for real.

We passed the $10,000 hole-in-one competition, but did not try it. There was a long line and we decided to spend our money on a 15 minute lesson instead. I will be talk about that experience in my next article.

We walked by the putting contest. It was actually disappointing. The putt was extremely difficult and the prizes were not worth the $5 dollar fee to play. Many were trying it, however it did not peak our interest.

There were 4 different discount stores. They had a variety of old and new clubs, old and new clothes, and other accessories. The price on golf balls was disappointing compared to previous golf shows I attended. My overall impression was that there were deals to be had, but you needed to look. I bought a Drysack Stand Bag Poncho. It was only $5 dollars and worth the price. In all fairness, I was not looking for anything in particular, so the stores did not hold much interest for me.

The TEE CLAW

I did, however, find something I was looking for! The TEE CLAW – “Practice Like You Play” kit was on sale for $13 dollars which included 3 TEE CLAWs, tees, and lanyards. This is something I had researched and was very happy to find them at the golf show! I am looking forward using them on the range this spring.

These above highlights were another small part of the sights I saw at the Toronto Golf & Travel Show. On a side note, I am not associated with any of the products mentioned above. My next post will be about the lesson I recieved that might make my journey to scratch that much easier. So stay tuned!

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!

2015 Toronto Golf & Travel Show

February 23, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 4 Comments

The Toronto Golf & Travel Show did not disappoint. It was a mecca of golf for three days at the International Centre by Pearson International Airport! With 100s of booths, there was something for everyone. As I strategically walked my way through the maze of everything golf, it was easy to get swept up in the excitement of all the golfing possibilities.

There was something for everyone! If travel was your thing, well you could take trips to Central America and Mexico. Of course, the US was well represented. Of direct interest to me was the availability of golfing opportunities in the Northeastern US states. With only a few hours drive from my home, the opportunity to play some great courses for cheap is appealing. But, of all the travel locations, these three were my highlights:

Scotland. The two gents representing golf in Scotland were great. They chatted up the benefits of playing in the country that invented golf. Their bottom-line was, anything you want for golf, they could provide. They understood the value of providing all the transport and accommodations requirements associated with a golf trip and were well prepared. The fact that they gave out a bottle of scotch each day was not the deciding factor as to why I really enjoyed talking to these guys. They just love talking golf. Couple websites to check out are Golf East Lothian and Saltire Executive Golf.

PEI. The folks from PEI were awesome! We talked for about 15 minutes about PEI being an untapped golfing paradise. Within a short drive of Charlottetown, there are plenty of golf courses to satisfy all golfers. They talked about how PEI offers more than just golf, it is a fun family holiday destination. Also, the folks at the Golf PEI booth were giving out fresh oysters…..mmmmm. PEI is on my bucket list of places to golf. Check out Golf PEI if you want more info.

Cobble Beach Golf Course. Warren Thomas and his crew were outstanding! They had a state of the art golfing simulator that garnered plenty of attention. I tried three shots and came to with 8 feet on a 100 yard island green hole. It was very cool. If I only had $15,000 lying around, I could purchase a similar simulator and be set during the winter. Cobble Beach Golf Course, located near Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada, looks like a great course to play. Additionally, they offer a free round of golf on your birthday. What a great deal! I am looking forward to playing Cobble Beach in the future.

An honourable mention goes out to the chaps at Willow Valley Golf Course. They were great to talk too and had a fun game where you drop a chip in the top of a board and watch it ricochet down to a prize. I won a hotdog and pop. I was pretty excited until they told me I had to come to the course to collect! Well, we all had a great laugh and I just might take them up on their offer!

These above highlights were only a small part of the sights I saw at the Toronto Golf & Travel Show. My next post will be about other aspects of the Toronto Golf and Travel Show that may peak your interest. So stay tuned!

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!

Davis Love III – 2016 US Ryder Cup Captain

February 17, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 4 Comments

Davis Love III will be the 2016 US Ryder Cup Captain. This is his second try at the helm; is first being a loss at Medinah in 2012. As a reminder, the 39th Ryder Cup was held at the Medinah Country Club in Medinah, Illinois, U.S. The team captains were Davis Love III and José María Olazábal for Europe. As defending champions, the European team was down 10-6 going into the last day! Depending on which side of the fence you sit, the results were either a miracle or a meltdown! The Europeans rallied and won the match 14 1/2 to 13 1/2. It was the greatest comeback in Ryder Cup history!

There is little question that “how” Love failed to keep his team together on the last day will be a focal point of future conversations. There will be plenty of second guessing and armchair quarterbacks who think they have the answer. But, the decision is made and now is the time for the potential US players to start thinking as a team.

Names like Fred Couples (who I actually would prefer) and Paul Azinger (2008 winner at the Ryder Cup as US Captain) were bantered about. In the big scheme of things…..it does not matter.

Adam Sarson makes a great point:

The role of the captain at the Ryder Cup is to put your team in the best possible place for success. Love did that at Medinah and it didn’t work out, while Watson very clearly didn’t do that and unsurprisingly, it didn’t work either. The PGA of America tried to hit the home run with Watson and it didn’t work, so they went with the safe, reliable play in Love but all of it will mean nothing if the players don’t perform better at Hazeltine and get a little bit of luck along the way as well.

The players have to take ownership for how they play at the Ryder Cup. Past records are fine, finger-pointing is not helpful, and hoping for a magic solution just does not cut it. If the US Ryder Cup Team plans to beat the Europeans in 2016, the players are the ones who have to step up.

The ifs, ands, and buts will change 50 times before they players tee it up at Hazeltine National Golf Club from 30 September to 2 October, 2016. The only thing I am confident about is that it will be interesting to watch Davis Love III navigate his way through all the minutia in attempts to bring the Ryder Cup back to the US.

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!