UK Golfing Adventure – Part 1

November 29, 2014 / The Grateful Golfer / 3 Comments

Waiting in the Cold at Heathrow Airport!

Arriving at Heathrow Airport on 30 Oct at 7 am was the start of my thrilling four-day golfing adventure with my best friend, Kirk. The arrangements were made and he was at the airport (with coffee in hand), waiting to pick me up. Have you ever heard the saying, “don’t change the plan!”, well if not, then let me explain!

Foolishly, I left the arrival area thinking I could help the situation by going to the car pick area. Yup, I left the arrivals and went…. I bet you can see where this is going! After two hours of standing in the cold, my phone rang and it was my buddy questioning where I was. He was in the lower level and I was at the upper level of the same terminal waiting for each other. There is little question I was to blame for “changing the plan” and everyone has had a great laugh at my expense since. I will again apologize to my friend for being dopey!

Borrow Clubs at the practice range!

After a rough start, things went famously. We quickly visited his darling wife to say hello, hit a few balls at a range and then headed to the Northwood Golf Club. I was borrowing his son’s clubs (and golf balls) while I was on my adventure which worked out better than expected.

The next day we headed to Hampton Court Palace Golf Course. After playing 18 holes on Henry the VIII old hunting grounds, I was a bit overwhelmed by the majestic nature of my surroundings! Having dreamed of playing in the UK (and other parts of Europe) for ever, I was finally crossing this off my bucket list! Kirk told me I was going to get the “royal treatment” and he was absolutely right!

The next two days were spent golfing and hanging out! Having been to London before, I enjoyed exploring the Middlesex area by looking at the old architecture and relishing in the local colour. We ate at the local restaurants, drove by places like Moor Park Golf Club, and just enjoyed hanging out!

The Royal Treatment!

On the last day it rained, but this did not stop the competition for the duck. I wrote about that earlier and will recount some of those adventures later. But, let’s just say I am still the holder of “the duck“!

Over the next few articles, I will provide more details of my UK Golf Adventure. These adventures will include a couple of course reviews and more tidbits of my awesome time in the UK.

Thanks Kirk for “the royal treatment”! I look forward to repaying your kindness very soon!

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

Golf Report Card From 2014

November 24, 2014 / The Grateful Golfer / 12 Comments

Back in April, I reaffirmed a plan for my 2014 golf season. The intent was to improve my overall game to help achieve my goal of being a scratch golfer. My plan was met with varying success; so I thought I would share the goods, bads and uglies with you.

I have four main focus areas that help guide every golf season. With a plan in place, I am usually ready for anything on the links. Here is my plan:

get fit – focus on exercises designed to improve my golf game;
research – the drills and techniques required to improve my game;
practice – dedicate time to practice to improve my game; and
compete – either formally or informally compete every time I hit the links.

The Grateful Golfer in 2014!

Well I can say that my overall fitness for the golf season was pretty good. I felt strong during most rounds and rarely waned heading down the home stretch. I could have improved on my physical strength, but that is what this off-season is for. I would rate my fitness a B+.

My research on drills and techniques continued all season. I improved my chipping, widened my stance, and found better methods to score low. I have shared these tips and drills through the year in my blog, and they might be worth taking a look at. Interestingly, I improved more in the last two months of the season because I started hitting the ball farther off the tee. I will continue researching better ways to improve this area this winter. I would rate my research as a solid A.

Practicing was up and down this year. I started off extremely strong, but slowed during various times in the season. When I did practice, I felt rushed and unfocused. I write about practicing with intent all the time and should heed my own advice. I would rate my practice as a C+.

I did compete a bit this year, but mostly in fun tournaments. This type of competition is not good for my competitive edge, but it is competition. I played in 2 stroke events and was underwhelming. My competitive edge was not as sharp as in years past, but keep in mind that my criticism is relative to my handicap. I would rate my competitive edge as a B.

So overall, my season was about average for sticking to my plan. It is amazing how quickly the season passed and by not staying focused, I think that I missed some opportunities to improve. However, the most surprising aspect of my entire 2014 golf season is that I dropped my handicap from 4.7 to 2.8!

Wait, before you say not nice things to me, I cannot believe it either. I had a 4 week period where I could do nothing wrong and I actually broke par once. From a pure handicap perspective, 2014 was a fantastic season.

Hopefully, I will build on my successes from this year and achieve my overall goal of being a scratch golfer.

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

Golf is All About the Memories!

November 21, 2014 / The Grateful Golfer / 8 Comments

About 20 years ago, my Mom decided I needed a special gift to commemorate the milestone of ten years service within the Royal Canadian Air Force. As I continue to serve to this day, golf has provided many exciting experiences through the years. I have talked about those times before and continue to think fondly of those memories. Of all the golfing ‘stuff’ I have collected or received, this putter, which she had specially made, is one of my favorite and cherished mementos.

I am pretty sure most avid golfers have a collection of golf paraphernalia that makes them proud! It might be a signed hat; their hole in one ball displayed on their mantle or a picture or selfie with a golfing celebrity. Regardless of what the unique object is, it is special to the owner because of the memory it invokes. There are many fanatics who collect lots of golfing ‘stuff’ and love each and every piece, however, as much as I love the game, I have only a few cherished treasures.

Old RCAF Collar Dog inlaid in the face of the putter.

Wooded headed putter hand made.

For me, it is not really about the physical items, but more so, the memories. I can remember my first hole in one, golfing with an astronaut, and teaching my daughter to swing a golf club, like it was yesterday! I can remember winning golf tournaments with my Mom and how excited she would get when we played together (win or lose). All of my memories bring a smile to my face, and help me remember why golf is an important part of my life.

Looking at my collection of special golfing mementos from time to time, I always fade to the memories associated with them. For me, it is not about the stuff, but the joyous memories they hold.

For those collectors of all things golf, what memories are associated with your ‘stuff’?

What is your favorite memory – we would all like to know.

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

Thank You Golfing Bloggers!

November 18, 2014 / The Grateful Golfer / 14 Comments

Many golf bloggers have a small group of fellow fanatics they talk to regularly. I am no different. Daily, we share our thoughts and views about all aspects of golf. Sometimes the conversation leads to differences of opinion, but mostly we talk like sportsmen and I always leave with a positive vibe.

For the past two years, I have been fortunate to interact with people from New Zealand, U.K., USA, Canada, Ireland, and many other places. Golfers from 112 countries have graced my blog with comments, likes, and some were just looking. How cool is that!

Blogging about golf has helped me through some trying personal challenges, frustration about my golf game, and to keep a real perspective about what is really important! For those who are wondering, it goes in this order: family, health, friends, golf! Without the first three, golf is really not important to me at all.

The greatest rewards of having a golf blog is the connections I have made over the past two years. Some connections have faded, but are not forgotten. Routinely, I talk to my e-friends (because we have not met yet) about golfing news, tips, techniques, our ups and downs on the links and how to steadily improve our scores. Not surprisingly, all the great advice and encouragement has improved my golf game substantially! For that, I am grateful to my e-friends.

There are about 10 of you I talk to on a regular basis and you know who you are! To you and all the others who take the time to connect with me, I am grateful. Your perspective on golf and life is refreshing.

Thank you for all the advice, help and friendship! Because of our positive interaction, it is easy to be a grateful golfer!

The Blanket of Snow Ends Golf For the Year

November 14, 2014 / The Grateful Golfer / 9 Comments

All my hopes of sneaking out for one last round is officially over for another year. As the weather started its slow march towards zero, we golfing fanatics always kept that glimmer of hope for a warm front one last time! Well, that pipe dream is in the books for another year.

As I lazily got out of bed this morning, the sun was shining, the air was crisp and as I looked out the window…GASP! A light snowfall had covered the ground!

Out My Back Window. First snow of the winter.

As I slowly recover from the shock, my thoughts will eventually turn towards the off-season. I have written about preparing for the off-season before and will likely build on my previous successes. For now, I will lament over the cold days to come and dream of the warm days to come.

In the near future, I will focus on my new training goals for the off-season and my expectations for 2015. For now, it is time to grab a cup of coffee and enjoy the day!

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