Rory McIlroy: One of the Nice Guys in Golf

June 25, 2013 / The Grateful Golfer / Leave a comment

Sam at 3underthru2 posted this personal account of Rory McIlroy. He really captured the essence of the world’s number two golfer. Thanks Sam, it is a story worth repeating.
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!

3underthru2

Ever since his $250 million move to Nike, Rory has endured a rather torrid time on and off the course. He has received a lot of stick from the press and I imagine from his fellow players too for his current disappointing form. Questions concerning his move to Nike and for spending so much time with his Tennis star girlfriend, Caroline Wozniaki, must have developed into a continual weekly annoyance. However, despite the money, the glitz, the glamor and change in lifestyle, Rory still remains the same young man who grew up in the other Hollywood, Northern Ireland.

View original post 558 more words

Phase One Half Complete

June 20, 2013 / The Grateful Golfer / 4 Comments

A follow-up to my earlier post, Shooting to Make the Team, I completed the first of two aggregate rounds of golf to make our Base team. Using some great advice from Brian at All About Golf and Pete from White Dragon Golf, I hit many fairways and greens and reminded myself to have fun.

As it turns out, I am leading the competition. Of the 15 players trying out, I have a very strong lead that I should be able to maintain. Although the conditions were windy and dry, I managed to keep my composure and record a reasonable score. It is my belief that you can win and lose a two-day competition on the first day.

I struck the ball well. I even poked a drive out 282 yards! That is huge for me. I hit 13 of 18 greens in regulation. I had one penalty stroke for a ball in the water; I was hitting three from point of entry which resulted in my only double of the day. So for the most part I struck the ball fairly well.

Where I struggled was putting! I had 5 three putts to help make my total number of putts as 35! I missed 3 putts under 3 feet. Needless to say, I was not happy about that part of my game, but still managed to shoot 81. So I bet you can guess what I am working on this week! Ian Hardie’s Putting 101 is a good place to start.

I am one step closer to qualifying for the Regional Competition. Day two of the Base Playdowns is next Tuesday. Unless I do something really crazy, I will make the team.

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

Final Round U.S. Open GIFs

June 17, 2013 / The Grateful Golfer / Leave a comment

Great shots from Adamsarson.com. They are great highlights I thought would be great to share! Thanks Adam.

AdamSarson.com

Justin Rose came away victorious Sunday at the U.S. Open, and he got quite emotional about the whole thing. He will be heavily featured in the final round U.S. Open GIF Roundup.

For previous U.S. Open GIF posts, see Rounds One and Two here and click here for Round Three.

View original post 168 more words

Taking Your Medicine At The US Open!

June 16, 2013 / The Grateful Golfer / 3 Comments

Wow what a finish! The US Open was a race of endurance and skill. Congratulations to Justin Rose. I was rooting for Phil Mickelson, but he was destined to finished second for the sixth time!

The US Open did not disappoint any viewers this year. It was excellent to watch the best in the world play on of the toughest courses laid out for the US Open Championship. The rough was extremely long and greens crazy fast.

It was amazing how often players had to just get their ball in play after hitting it into the rough. The USGA stated that the penalty should add about one half stroke to someone’s score if someone had to play out of the rough. This year, according to the TV announcers, the penalty was a full stroke. Talk about taking your medicine. This is a strong and important message to all amateurs who find themselves in trouble on the links. The pros understanding of course management is a tribute to the pursuit of excellence.

The following are my highlights of the US Open this year.

Image from: http://caddieworld.me/about/

John Dempster, Caddy

Thanks to John Dempster, from Caddyworld, for providing thegratefulgolfer.com with an update on Peter Hedblom after a partial finish of the second round. It must have been difficult to play split rounds and then wait to make the cut. Congratulations to Peter Hedblom for making the cut; this is an accomplishment that is rewarding in itself.

An additional thanks to Rick Williams at mindbodygolf for discussing the pre-tournament aspects of the US Open. His insights were helpful and I am grateful for him sharing what he saw!

Mike Weir. He finished tied for 28th. This is a great finish for Weir. He has struggled over the past years and as one of the last entries, he demonstrated that he belonged with the best players in the world. Also, being Canadian, he is an automatic favorite of mine!

Phil Mickelson‘s shot on the tenth hole from the rough in the fairway was exceptional. It was one of those once in a lifetime shots that could have been a total game changer. Unfortunately, Merion was too much of a lion and he could not fully recover from two double bogey’s on the front nine.

Shawn Stefani‘s hole-in-one. It was awesome! This shot will be all over, but watch it at the National Post. Kissing the ground where his ball hit the bank and shot to the right and rolled in to the hole was very humorous. It was the first hole-in-one at the US Open when hosted at Merion Golf Club.

Lastly, amateur Micheal Kim. He played like a seasoned professional. Finishing tied for 17th, it was great to see a non-professional play with poise. Accomplishments like his offer hope for us hackers!

The US Open is a great tournament! This year, all golfers were not disappointed! For this and many other reasons, I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!

It is a New Record!

June 9, 2013December 27, 2017 / The Grateful Golfer / 7 Comments

Today I set a new record on the golf course. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, I saw a cool turtle and I golfed with some great friends. As the day unfolded, we teed off at 6 am and cruised around the course. The mosquito population seemed to dwindle over night and the wind was cool and refreshing! Does this not sound like an awesome day on the course! I am so grateful to have decided to hit the links this morning!.

I guess you are wondering about my new record? Yup, you guessed it, I fixed 45 ball marks today and 15 divots. I realize that many players have bad backs and cannot bend over to fix or replace damage to the course, so I decided to help them out today….ok I will stop.

But seriously, golf is a fantastic game. We all love to see a ball land and hold on a green from 125 yards. Usually, such a shot makes a divot and a ball mark. It is important that all golfers take pride in themselves and the course they are playing by repairing their own blemishes. I generally try to fix mine and another ball mark on the green. It keeps the course in great shape all summer and helps the maintenance crew keep the course lush and enjoyable for everyone.

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