Have you ever been in the situation where skipping your ball across a water hazard was the wisest courses of action? I can honestly say that over all my years of playing, I have never needed this shot. I have skipped my ball across a hazard accidently the odd time, but to intentionally to attempt this shot would be considered pure folly. This would be poor course management to even try. I mean, why would we need this shot in our bag?
Continue readingThe Chances of Making A The Right Golf Shot At The Right Time
At one time during your next round of golf, you will be called upon to make the right shot at the right time. This specific scenario is inevitable and might happen several times over the course of 18 holes. The expectation is that as your lower your handicap, lets say to single digits, you will make this needed shot more often than not. Well, I am here to tell you that the pressure of making the right shot at the right time does not diminish the better golfer you become. An yet we do succeed more that higher handicappers….why is that?
Continue readingEating Healthy = Great Golf
If only my title was that easy. Time is a critical factor in every golfers life. The effort to balance family, work, golf, and eating healthy (and about 100 other things that vie for your attention) is a monumental challenge sometimes. It is not that we do not want to eat properly, but when we juggle a million things on any given day, something has to give…..or does it? I believe that eating healthy 80% of the time is important to my golf game. The proper nutrition gives me the energy in the last four holes of my round to finish strong and stay focused. However, eating to fuel my game cannot happen once in a while, it is a conscious decision that does take time; in my opinion, I receive 10 times the benefits for every second I dedicate to eating healthy.
Continue readingAny New Ideas About How To Improve Our Golf Game?
It is time to innovate golf. I figure that the readers of The Grateful Golfer blog are about the smartest people on earth and can come up with something to change the face of golf. I mean, if you search ‘golf innovation” only 134 million possible websites show up in 0.42 seconds. So, if they can do it, than so can we. Stop holding out, share your big idea! Who knows, it might be worth something.
After playing for 45+ years, I can honestly tell you that I am tapped out. I have nothing that would remotely be considered innovative. I do alter drills and concepts slightly to adapt them to my game, but nothing that would change the face of golf. Although the task would be daunting, and IF we came up with something, how would we break through the white noise spewed everyday on virtually every topic.
I constantly look at possible avenues of success with respect to improving my game. It is a challenge and I rarely find anything substantive. Most of the ideas or concepts require a great deal of practice and patience if I want to follow their path. I do not have a problem with that, however blindly delving into the unknown is just not my style. I have to think things through before moving forward. If I cannot see a distinct advantage in my mind, I will never find one in my swing.
Having said that, I am not adverse to receiving advice on the finer aspects of my game. A friend of mine, Andre Martel who recently became TPI Certified and Precision Nutrition Certified (congrats again Andre), is a player I would listen to if he offered me advice. He and I have different games, but his new knowledge would make him a valuable resource to improve my game. Andre has offered some advice in the past on putting and increasing distance that I found helpful. It is sources like Andre that I find the most valuable in refining my game. On a side note, if you have any questions about the TPI program/certification, Andre says you can as questions directly to him at martelpi@gmail.com
Searching on the internet for solutions to your golf challenges is a great way to pass time. However, I would caution you that making wholesale changes in your swing without proper instruction can be much more damaging than one would think. My friend Brian Penn from All About Golf suggested I take an e-lesson and provided a website. I have yet to do this, but given the current COVID restrictions (and it is the dead of winter), it might be the only way to improve my swing in the off-season. Brian, I am still pondering – don’t give up hope on my yet.
Coming up with ideas to innovate golf (or our swing) is challenging. It takes a tremendous amount of dedication, openness, and foresight. I know for sure I am not the person to make this happen, but maybe you are the next Harvey Penick. If you are, please remember to share you brilliant ideas with the rest of us at The Grateful Golfer. Who knows maybe we can help. 😉
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!
Different Colour Golf Grips – Important or Not?
As golf evolved over the past 45+ years that I have played, much of the equipment has changed. The clubs today are nothing like the sticks of old and that is okay because technology has leveled the playing field somewhat. The clubs look different, feel different, and definitely perform differently. One of the big changes that makes zero impact on my game is the colour of the golf grips. Where black was the traditional colour when I broke in to the amazing sport, now there does not seem to be any limitations. I am not sure if this is important or not, but personally I still like the old school colour with some minor modifications.
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