Guide for Beginning Golfers

This has been a very controversial topic in sports in years past. Many sports fans, less than a few decades ago, believed that golf  was not an athletic sport and it required no skills or strength to play the game well. In the past fifteen or twenty years that perception has slowly changed and the truth has been revealed as to the true athletic ability required for golf. It is a game that requires dedication, practice and athleticism if one is to master the sport and play it with any degree of expertise. Anyone can swing a golf club but striking the ball with the precision and timing it takes to attain the proper distance and accuracy is a horse of a different color, to quote a line from the “Wizard of Oz”. If you are a disbeliever in what I am stating, visit the nearest driving range and try hitting golf balls and see how well you do. You may be surprised  to see how difficult it may be to accomplish the golf swing without extensive reading, practice or taking golf lessons of any kind.

Golf is a game where it is just you against the golf course or another golfer with whom you may be competing with. There is no one to blame, no team mate to vent on if something goes wrong and the ball is mishit. You alone must take responsibility for your failures, but on the other hand it is you who will revel in victory when you hit a career shot to a tight pin placement, score an eagle, birdie, hole in one or any other milestone achievement which the game will provide you with an opportunity to accomplish. It is the one great shot during the golf round that will keep you coming back for more. If you are competitive, golf is a sport which will keep your interest piqued as you will always have chances to better your last score and you can set that goal in your sights. If you discourage easily if you don’t succeed initially at golf then it may not be the game for you. Many have tried and failed and given up before ever really giving themselves a chance to see if they could improve and play better. Most of the people who fall into this category are the first ones to say that golf is not an athletic sport and it is a silly game. I’ll be the first to admit it is not easy to hit golf balls consistently well time after time. I will never say it does not require skill, stamina and athletic ability to play well because all three components are very much required to play the game of golf with any degree of skill. I have been trying to improve my golf game for over thirty five years now and counting and will probably never quit attempting to shoot par on a regulation 18 hole golf course. This is on my bucket list as I have come close a number of times but I have some work to do if I am to accomplish this goal in the next few years. I am nearing sixty and the physical stamina and strength required for a good golf game fades a bit each year as a person reaches a certain age.

One of the greatest aspects of Golf is that it can be fun no matter what the skill level or age of the golfer may be. It is also human nature to enjoy something more if you are proficient at the techniques or skills necessary for the sport. The young man in the photo above is my nephew James Hopkins, who is in excellent physical condition and is now twenty years old and ready to take on the world. He won the Mr. Teen Long Island contest in his first attempt a few short years ago and will be competing again in August 2010 as an adult. I can attest first hand that he will give any competition a run for the money and I will be surprised if he does not take home the winners trophy in his class becuase he has the proper mindset required for a winner – He believes in himself. I am presently showing him some of the techniques and strategies required for golf and imparting some of the knowledge gained from my thirty plus years of experience playing this incredible sport. He has tremendous potential and the one component that will allow him to succeed is his desire to play well, his enjoyment of the game of golf and as stated previously, the belief in his ability to succeed. I knew of another young man, who entered the golf scene in 1997 and who believed in his abilities like no other since Jack Nicklaus, and that youngster was none other than Tiger Woods, if you did not already guess.  If you want to be successful in golf or in life itself, DO NOT GIVE UP and BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. Happy Golfing to All!

More than half the strokes of a persons golf score is made on the putting green. So for better scores it pays  to dedicate a fair amount of practice time working on your putting skills. In the past I have been a streaky putter. Some days I can’t drop one for nothing and others I sink every putt I hit into the cup. The latter is naturally the preference and since I made some adjustments in my set up and putting technique they have made me more consistent on the green.

Direction and speed are the two key components to the putt. It may take some time to be able to read the slope of the green to determine direction. This ability will come from practice and experience as you play. Some techniques I now utilize to aid with consistency in putting are the following:

1) Line up the writing on the golf balls and place your ball on using this line in conjunction with the read you determined after viewing the slope of the green.

Read more…

I’ve always been a practitioner of golf etiquette from my initial introduction  to the game and my first time playing golf. It seems at times that new golfers beginning to play and sometimes even experienced golfers are devoid of the etiquette associated with this challenging sport. One of the many courtesies I observe frequently being overlooked is allowing a single or solo player to play through or asking them to join you if there are only two or three players in your group.

This breach of golf etiquette became more blatantly apparent this past weekend when I was the single and two groups in front of me were ingnoring the common courtesies associated with the game. I played the first six holes alone and finally caught up to a twosome and played behind them for a number of holes. I approached the tee and even thought they were still on the teebox they never asked if I would like to join them or play through until about four holes later. I finally played through and was behind a foursome who was more discourteous than the twosome as they never even acknowledged that I was waiting indefinitely on each hole as they proceeded to hit golf balls, one shot worse than the other. I finally left the course around the 17th hole because I was waiting at least 20 minutes on each hole for them to clear the hitting area. This amount of time was well above the average total of  about 15 minutes normally allotted to play an entire golf hole. If it were a beautiful sunny day like the previous weekend I may have hung in there but the cold blustery conditions made it tough to wait so long for each shot.

Golf Tip for the day {Fore: Observe Golf Etiquette and allow a single to join you if you have three or less golfers in your group. Also let a single player or  twosome play through if you notice them behind your group and waiting on every shot.}

I was hoping to be writing about the continuance of the impending Cinderella Story and an incredible NewYork Jets victory over the Indianapolis Colts but alas, it was not meant to be. The Colts offense and defense was well armed and prepared by their coaching staff, which allowed them to disarm the Jets by the end of the second quarter. The Jets left for half time reeling after an incredible possession and score by the Colts during the last three minutes of regulation play in the second quarter.

After play resumed in the third quarter the Colts continued their dominance over New York and a disappointed Mark Sanchez and coach, Rex Ryan. Peyton Manning can never be taken lightly and he showed why he is perhaps the best quarterback in football by his incredible play and dominance over the Jets in the second half. The Jets will be getting their golf clubs and heading for some rest in the off season after the Pro-Bowl next week. I wish them well as Mark Sanchez did his team proud as he stood toe to toe with the Colts but the Jets defense could not hold off the charge of Peyton and the rest of the Colts team. Go Jets in 2010! Happy Golfing to All!

Tiger Woods larger than life personna has exuded an almost god like aura to us mere golfing mortals for the past dozen years or so. Now, almost everywhere you turn for the past 12 days, the hottest topic of conversation on Radio, TV, Cable, Newspapers, and even the casual gossip amongst friends has been focused on Tiger Woods, the premier, yet besmirched golfer, of the modern era. His supposed squeaky clean reputation as a golf athlete proceeds him and I, for one, would never have suspected Tiger to ever become embroiled in this type of controversial dilemma. I would assume that in general, the golfing and non-golfing public alike would surmise that an athlete of Tiger’s caliber and success would want for nothing. He has a beautiful wife, two adorable children, some of the most notable sponsors in golfing history, virtually all the money he could ever ask for and his achievements in golf history are rivaled by no one, but yet something was still missing in his life.
I am not making excuses for Tiger, but number one, he is a male and a rich and successful one at that. Combine that with the fact that he’s a world renowned athlete and you have an irresistible attraction for many members of the opposite sex. Given the fact that he is on the road away from his family much of the time, the premise can be a bit tempting to say the least. Once again, I am not condoning his actions by any means because he is a supposed role model for many youngsters. That is part of the responsibility that you assume when you are gifted with the caliber of talent that he has and are constantly in the public eye. But who are we to judge him as far as the whys and wherefores of his actions? If the president of the United States can get caught with his pants down so to speak, and Clinton will not be the first or last, who will cast the first stone?  Not I, for I am not privy to any of the REAL information regarding the circumstances that may have led up to this unfortunate incident that has become fodder for comedic retorts throughout the media. If you tune in to the news or read the newspapers or tabloids, it would appear that almost every famous actor, actress, or politician is involved in one way or another in some sex related daliance. From Pam Anderson, Tommy Lee and Paris, to Spitzer and John Edwards, who are we to judge? It seems like sexual proclivity is the latest trend of the rich and famous who live life in the fast lane. Is this a strategic ploy to revive one’s career so to propegate more money, or is it the intense craving for the limelight that many stars, politicians and athletes are addicted to?

In Tiger’s case one may speculate that he was alone, away from home and the male ego got the better of him. Or maybe he was bored and the excitement of the chase and the possibility of getting away with it was the driving force behind his actions? Could it be that there is something missing in his relationship at home or a void he is trying to fill since the loss of his dad a short time ago? The possibilites for what has occurred are endless so let us speculate no further. This incident occurred and I’m sure he’s sorry for his actions as he’s already expressed openly to the public. I wish him much success in his efforts to mend his relationship with Elin. Tiger has a long road ahead but I am still a huge fan and the world of golf would be remiss if they did not forgive and forget this unfortunate occurrence in the life of the world’s finest golfer. His sponsors should cut him some slack to give him the benefit of the doubt and forgive this digression from his long standing status of role model for the golfing public. What is the saying ? “To Err is Human, To Forgive Devine.” and he deserves another chance. Having his reputation tarnished in this manner and the repentive road back to mend his relationship with his wife and family are punishment enough for him to deal with at this critical time in his illustrious career.   

I’m looking forward to Tiger’s return, with his golf clubs in hand, as his presence on the links would be sorely missed if he could not overcome perhaps the greatest challenge of his career as a sports legend. Tiger, we wish you well. Happy Golfing to All!