GOLF FROM WITHIN
David Fineg has a unique approach to teaching golf, which he describes as "feel good" golf. If you've ever wondered after a particularly brutal day on the course why you "SUCKATGOLF", and why you'll be back for more aggravation next weekend, you will find David's approach enlightening. Not a technical teacher at all, he teaches his students to play by feel and to make peace with their game. The result is usually lower scores and always more enjoyment.
We hope you enjoy David's "rants", we'll be adding a new one every month. If you have any questions for David please send us an e-mail and David will meditate over it a while and then post his response right here! Enjoy!
CLICK TO ASK THE GOLF GURU YOUR QUESTION GRASSHOPPER!
Visit David's website at Tencups.com
ARCHIVE OF PAST RANTS BY DAVID:
Golf is fun, why aren't you having any?
Maximize your enjoyment and ability to improve.
ARCHIVE OF PAST QUESTIONS TO DAVID:
Can your ideas help us women out too?
Hitting irons just slightly off center...
Can't make range swing on course
"STUCK" (Can't turn wrists over)
Shanks and Slices...but not at range?
Humid Air...more or less carry?
Lost my game! (Can't go low anymore)
YOU DON’T NEED ANY GOLF LESSONS
(AND SOME OTHER STUFF YOU EITHER DON'T KNOW OR REFUSE TO ACCEPT)
(NOV 08)
Here at the onset I would like to state for the record that I am not a professional golfer, or a professional golf teacher. It won’t be long before you also discover that I am not a professional writer either. (Note to self- disclaimer out of the way.) I have immense respect for all professional golf instructors. They have devoted their lives to helping you improve your golf and your golf swing. They do this because they love helping, not because of the immense fortunes involved.
The problem is that most of these instructors have been teaching for so long, they are far removed from the beginning golfers point of view. They try to instruct beginners with mechanical swing thoughts when beginners need to be shown and told of the more intangible aspects of the golf swing. Instructors usually want to try to teach you “their” swing, or “the” swing, and are not that concerned with “your” swing. I promise, you will never have anything but “your” swing.
There are only two ways to obtain a golf swing. One is technique and the other is feel. Unless you were five years old, living on number seven at “BLA NA NA” Country Club when you started swinging a golf club, you will never achieve a golf swing with technique. Your only chance of having a swing, if you started later than that, is learning the swing through feel. Technique is easy to teach, but hard to learn. Feel is easy to learn, but hard to teach. You will have to accept two things in order to begin learning a swing with feel.
Your swing is not that big.
This game takes a lifetime to learn. You can’t be in too much of a hurry.
Start with the smallest, slowest, softest swing you can make. Grow your swing out from there.
DRIVERS ARE USELESS—TAKE ‘EM OUT AND LEAVE ‘EM OUT!
(Why do you think they call them woods?)
The driver is the club used by PROFESSIONALS to get below par. It is not required to get to par. If you can’t shoot at or near par golf without a driver, that club will prevent you from ever doing so. When you miss a driver (big) it generally costs you three strokes. Either the lost ball, unplayable lie, “O’Byss”, (out of bounds) or the “hero shot” that didn’t come off. If you miss with the driver three times, you will NEVER break eighty. And I’m “ knowin' your missin' it” more than three times. Answer the following questions truthfully: How many times have you scored a bird or even a par on that long par four, (or eagle or bird on that par five) because you ripped an awesome drive off the tee? How many times have you taken a bogey (or worse) because you pounded a wicked banana into the woods? I bet it is less than five for the former, and more than five hundred for the latter. Isn’t it? Do you see that red flag, there, right in front of your face? GET RID OF THAT DRIVER! GO UP TO THE TEE CARRYING THE CLUB YOU CAN HIT WITH EXTREME CONFIDENCE RIGHT UP THE MIDDLE. And I don’t care how far it goes, as long as it goes up the middle. Now, you’re striding off the tee having had some success. And there is the outside chance you will make a good second shot. And so on… I am not even going to go into the anger mismanagement issues you will avoid by not using that club. (Anger mismanagement can also easily destroy your game) Oh yeah, you will also be saving hundreds or thousands of dollars not buying those drivers that were going to get you those ten extra yards. Which, by the way, they would have gotten you. (ten extra yards into the woods)
IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT BALL YOU USE
When it comes time to renew the golf balls at my range, I always go for the best. Out comes the Rolodex, twisted open to the number for Rage Ranger Inc. I always go for their top of the line ball, the FACET-FLITE SMOOTH-SIDER OCTAGON, in a 25 compression. Then the boys and I will mix a few baskets with a 50/50 blend consisting of the facet-flites and some expensive high quality balls. After watching guys hit out of these baskets, one of the observers stated that he was unable to tell which balls were the range balls and which were the good quality balls. Then we gave out baskets with the same mix except that this time the good balls were all on the top and the range balls all on the bottom. The only thing that came out of that observation was that the average golfer was better off with the range balls, because they didn’t fly as far into the woods. What I am saying here is that if your swing isn’t dialed up you will not be able to see any difference in your score because of the golf ball you choose. One of the retired guys that shags golf balls off the courses and sells them to me, brings many top of the line balls that appear to have been hit only one time. This is an arrows or Indian issue, if ever there was one.
MOMENTARY MUSINGS ON THE MANIFESTATIONS OF THE MONKEY MAN’S MISGUIDED MISSION TO MEASURE
Many men have a need to measure things. The problem arises out of the fact that they don’t know what to measure, or they don’t know how to measure it.
It’s not how far down the line the ball goes, it’s how far OFF the line the ball goes.
Men always measure the distance they hit their clubs based on the best swing they ever made with that club. You only make the best swing you ever made one time in your life. It is entirely likely the swing you are about to make is not that “once in a lifetime” swing. You had better take more club than you think you need, so your mind can let you take a swing you can control.
Something like 65% of the score in golf occurs from within 100 yards of the flag. So what if you can hit those 500 yard drives, (which you can’t) they are meaningless when you scull four shots across the green and then six-putt. THE SHORT GAME CONTAINS ALL THE MAJESTY IN GOLF. (And 90% of all the scoring opportunities)
You must watch your tool. NO, NOT THAT TOOL, MONKEY MAN! Have you ever seen a carpenter look away at the instant his hammer was going to strike the nail? You must do whatever it takes to insure that you watch your club do the work you intend it to do! The club must be well past the impact zone before you start your way up to the finish.
BACK TO THE FIRST (and most inflammatory) STATEMENT
Quite a few instructors teach out at my range. Probably because it is convenient, not because it is the finest third rate goat pasture in Bexar county. To a teacher, they all claim to want to get a student with no experience, before that student has developed any “bad habits.” Yet I notice that they are able to help students with bad habits to a much greater degree that those with no habits. I would recommend that you develop a small swing (feel your way) and then let an instructor refine the geometry of your swing. They can all help you, whatever you decide. Remember, I said you do not NEED lessons, I did not say you shouldn’t want some.
I have written another article that helps to describe finding a swing with feel. It is entitled CONTAINMENT THEORY AND THE NONSENSE ZONE.
Remember those four or five swings you make each round when you barely swing at the ball and it leaps off the club? You wonder what it was you did to produce that shot? That was a swing you made with feel, when you had no thought of how you were going to make that swing. That is how feel works. It is wonderful and easy. Ever made a swing like that when you had a mechanical swing thought in your mind? That is what I am talking about.
CONTAINMENT THEORY, THE NONSENSE ZONE AND THEIR EFFECT ON THE GOLF SWING
By world renowned (my world) Containment Theorist, David Fineg
(WITH THANKS TO MY STAFF OF GRAMMARIANS, PUNCTUATIONALISTS, AND SYNTAXERS)
(DEC 08)
Containment theory is simply the application of certain aspects of Zen philosophy ---to golf. You must stay "contained" in order to play golf effectively. The "Nonsense Zone" is that place in your swing, beyond which only nonsense occurs. It is also the place where your ego, and a poor perception of your ability (when you are awake) will take you. We will also discuss "Pure Power" in this article.
Golf is the pursuit for a lifetime. No matter how good you get, you will never be as good as you could be. You cannot be in too much of a hurry to grow your swing. This will actually hinder your progress. You must understand that you are the "grasshopper" This is the essence of Containment Theory. You may find yourself resisting many of the concepts of containment theory. That is your decision. Use these ideas, or discard them, as you will.
I have listed a few of the mantras of Containment Theory below. They help to illustrate how the theory is applied to golf and the golf swing.
- You can't have a whole swing, until you have a half swing
- You will never execute the golf swing at speed, until you can execute it slowly.
- Testosterone is the enemy of golf.
- Mechanical swing thoughts are the enemy of the golf swing.
- The more you want, the less you'll get.
- The slower you swing, the farther they go.
- Straight is always great, and long will often be wrong.
- Purity almost always makes power, and power almost never does.
- When you hit a shot pure, you don't try to hit the next shot more pure.
- Forget about the last one, and think about the next one.
- The more you hit, the better you get.
- Maximize the possibility of success, and minimize the probability of failure.
1. You can't have a whole swing, until you have a half swing. If you looked at a golf swing like is was on a watch dial it would encompass the dial from about 11 to 1. The half of the swing that contains the most important parts of the swing, is the half on a watch dial from about 8 to 4. This area of the swing contains the first half of the takeaway and the club through the impact zone. They are the only parts of the swing that matter. The parts of the swing from 4 to 1 in the back swing, and from 8 to 11 in the fore swing don't really matter that much. If the first half of the takeaway and the club through the impact zone are correct, chances are the result will be something you can live with. The other two sections of the swing can be downright ugly, with a lesser effect on the resulting shot. You must learn the middle two sections of the swing, first.
2. You will never execute the swing at speed, until you can execute it slowly. When you are swinging slowly, you are more likely to be swinging correctly. Ask any researcher, and they will tell you that when you are trying to learn something, you must go slowly. Otherwise your mind won't be able to "watch" you execute. Anytime the mind doesn't see what is happening accurately, it makes things up to fill in the gaps. Therein lies the problem with swinging at speed from the get-go. You must swing slowly at first, so your mind can watch what your doing, and commit this correctness to memory.
3. Testosterone is the enemy of golf. Testosterone destroys fluidity and tempo. It creeps into your golf swing and forces you to add unnecessary power and club head speed to your swing. Fluidity and tempo are the two things that might have mitigated the results of an otherwise poor swing. One way to get rid of the testosterone stored up in you, is to transfer it to your playing partner. When they ask you what club you used on that 185 yard shot, tell them it was a pitching wedge. TRANSFER COMPLETE.
4. Mechanical swing thoughts are the enemy of the golf swing. Everybody and their mother wants to tell you what is wrong with your swing. DON'T listen to them. (Hey buddy, you DO know your not cocking your left side shift plain, don't you?) Anybody that offers you swing advice, when you haven't asked for any, has not been playing golf for very long. You will hardly ever see better players offering unsolicited swing advice. (especially when they were not asked for any!) Even if a person has a swing, that does not mean they can tell you what is wrong with your swing. You will find that you have to pay good money for good swing advice. (Professional instructor) A poor swing usually has one mechanical component that is not being executed properly. But your lightning mind is making five changes, (during the swing) to try to correct the situation. Few amateurs are capable of spotting that one component. When you latch on to a mechanical swing thought (whether it is the correct swing thought or not) you do it at the expense of all the other aspects of the swing. That's why things generally do not get any better. Any time your shots start going awry; some aspect of your swing has outgrown your ability to control it, and it doesn't even matter what that aspect is. Remember, you are the grasshopper. Your swing is not that big yet. To get your swing back, simply shrink the swing back down to whatever size will restore the desired shot shape. (You know, straight) Once you have restored the desired shot shape, grow the swing back out slowly until you are close to the point where the results started going badly. This is the size of your swing at this point. Go past this point and you have entered the nonsense zone!
5. Straight is ALWAYS great, and long will OFTEN be wrong. Once you stop worrying about how far the ball is going, that is when it will start going far. But that is not the point of this concept. The only way you will ever shoot a low score is when every shot taken heads on a line toward the hole. The distance those shots go is less important than the fact that they go straight down that line. Ever been soundly waxed by a golfer in their 60's or 70's that could not hit any club in their bag more than 200 yards? How many times have you seen the young buck convert that rare 300+ drive into a par on that long par four?
6. The more you want, the less you'll get. A few of these concepts tie in with the testosterone issue. This is one of them. Do not let "need" creep into your golf. Play within your ability and don't try to make shots you are not completely sure you can make.
7. The slower you swing, the farther they go. Why? A ball hit correctly with a slower swing speed will go farther than a ball hit incorrectly with a faster swing speed. The highest swing speed you can muster is useless, if you miss the center of the club face. It is said Isaac Newton had a problem with this concept. Until he started playing golf.
8. Purity almost always makes power, and power almost never does. Again, hitting the ball on the center of the club face (purely) imparts huge amounts of impact energy with a slower swing speed. Golf, like life, is a search for the power of purity. When you stay contained, purity graces you with its presence.
9. When you hit a shot pure, you do not try to hit the next shot more pure. Purity is as good as it gets. Do not let "need" work its way into your golf.
10. The more you hit, the better you get. Your swing can be the worst technical swing on the planet. If you make a billion swings with it, and you can rely on the shot that swing makes, then it is a good swing. If your swing is performing, then what do you care what it looks like?
11. Forget about the last one, and think about the next one. Try to see how many good swings in a row you can make. If you make a bad swing, forget about it. If you can't put a bad swing out of your mind, it will be there to have an effect on your next swing.
12. Maximize the possibility of success, and minimize the probability of failure.
HOW TO FIND YOUR SWING AND HOW TO PRACTICE WITH IT
Remember the maximize/minimize tenet? It can play a key role in your practice. Maximize your possibility of success by eliminating variables in your practice. Practice is the principal by which you attempt to get better at something.
Variables occlude the righteous path of practice.
Eliminating variables allows you to focus on that thing you are trying to get better at. "That thing" we are talking about is a golf swing.
ALWAYS practice on a mat, if one is available. WHY? A mat is the same lie, the same footing, and the same alignment for EVERY SINGLE SWING! Most practice facilities (mine included) are a lunar landscape where not one swing to the next is the same. Lie, footing, and alignment are the big three variables! Eliminate them. Now you can work on your swing. ONCE YOU HAVE A SWING, IT NO LONGER MATTERS WHAT THE BALL IS SITTING ON. Are you more concerned with how well you hit the ground, or how well you hit the ball? I have heard it all. "I don't hit off plastic!" or "You can't take the mat with you to the course". Guess what? Every golf course in the world gives you a mat for your round at no extra charge. They just call it the fairway. Don't tell me about how you would never hit off a mat and then in the same breath say that you really want a better golf swing. Of course, if you have the luxury of practicing at a country club, where they have the "cake" to repair the hitting line after the excavators carve it out, then by all means... But if it is the difference between the linearity of a mat, or the non linearity of the cratered surface, the mat wins every time! It's called science, maybe you have heard of it.
ALWAYS start your practice with a middle iron. WHY? Because the length of a 6-7-8 iron is right in the middle of the lengths of all the other clubs. They probably fit you the best. You are more likely to find your rhythm, and a manageable swing quickly with these clubs. Once you have found your swing with a middle iron, then you can get out a club you are less capable with. You must be confident with your swing before you attempt practice with a less familiar club. If during your practice with the less familiar club, your shots start going, (poorly) put the club down and get back to the middle iron. The worst thing you can do is begin your practice with a driver. Never try to locate your swing with the lowest percentage club in your bag! Almost every day out at the range, someone will show up with only a driver in hand. They tell me they just bought it and want to see how well they can hit it. For me, that is a dead giveaway. This person has no idea how to practice. (To say the least)ALWAYS choke up on the club you are beginning practice with. WHY? The less club you have in your hand, the more control of that club you have. You have seen hitters chocking up on the bat when facing a fast pitcher. Why is that? Is it because they want more control of the bat? You bet it is.
Always start your practice with the
"THREE S"
Swing in Mind!
(SMALL-SLOW-SOFT)
Try to make the smallest swing you can make. Try to see how slowly you can make that swing. (Whenever I am talking about slow swings in this article, I am referring to club head speed and not the rhythm of the swing. Tempo never changes no matter the size of the swing.) Try to see how softly you can hit the ball. This trains you to be conscious about the half-swing that is most important. Once you find the power of purity with the "3's" swing, see if you can repeat it many times. Then you begin to grow your swing a very little bit at a time until you reach a point where you start losing control of the result. This is the size of your swing at this point. Strive not to go beyond this point. This is the boundary of the NONSENSE ZONE. You will find that whenever you are trying to grow out your swing, it won't grow. If you try not to grow your swing, and stay in control of the swing you do have, that is when it grows.
For the first 10 or 15 swings, try not to look at the shots you are making. Try to keep looking down at the impact area and concentrate on the swing only, with no concern for the result of the shot. This does two things. It keeps your maximizing concept intact. Your swing only takes a few tenths of a second, but the ball flight could last ten seconds. That's as much as a 10/1 time ratio of bad to good. If you're watching the resulting shot shape of your first swings you may be altering your swing to suit bad shot shapes. This will mislead you in your practice.
Once you are warmed up, the first target you should aim at is one at about your pitching wedge distance. Shoot at this target with a 6 iron first. When you are landing them accurately with the 6 iron, then switch to an 8 iron. Shoot at the target with the 8 iron until all is going well. Finally take shots at this target with the wedge. What this is doing is further reinforcing the memory of the half swing that you must have first, and allowing you to grow the swing out slowly. It is also teaching you club control. With your last 5 balls make the wildest, hardest swings you can make. This does two things. First it allows you to forget about how well the last shots of your session go, (performance pressure reducer) and second, it is a subtle push of the envelope for the next practice session. Whenever you can, tape the face of your clubs with masking tape or impact tape. Keep an eye on the size of the impact pattern. The impact pattern of the better players is no bigger than the size of a dime. If your impact pattern grows beyond the size of a quarter, you are missing the power of purity; your swing is too big! Shrink it down!
NOTE: I should have warned you a little ways back that I was going to start talking about concepts you are going to find yourself resisting. What is it with a guy that he would resist things that could actually make him better because of the way it might make him look to his pals? I would have thought that you would want to be the bigger man on the course by waxing your friends with a good score. If you would just give up the manhood at the range you might be able to improve to a point where that would be possible. Here is a little more "resistance" for you to contemplate.
Finally, let's look at a few of the statistics of golf. When you do you discover some interesting things. It turns out that the fewer clubs you use, the lower your score is. Some clubs turn out to be totally useless to all but the most advanced golfers. It is actually worse than that. These clubs COST you strokes, and never SAVE you any. They keep you from going to the next levels of the game.
The one I want to talk about is the DRIVER. The driver is the club that permits professionals to go below par, and prevents amateurs from ever even getting close TO par! If you are not at least a 5 handicap or better, the driver IS USELESS to you. It probably costs you 30 strokes for every 1 it ever saves you. (If it ever saved you any) The moments of majesty will never compare to the hours of anguish. Take it out of your bag and leave it out for 3-4 years. Start playing golf with only a 4-7-PW-Putter. Using only these clubs will help to teach you feel for golf shots and control over the golf club. Spend a year filling out your irons. After 2 years you can put a 5 wood in your bag and see if you can make it score for you. After another year, put a 3 wood in and see how it performs for a year. At the end of 4 or 5 years you might see if you can get a driver to help you with score. I am here to tell you that you probably will never be able to get a driver saving strokes for you. This is only bad news if you refuse to accept it.One final golfing insight is a concept known as course management. Every golfer has a club that he or she is supremely confident with. It is usually a middle iron. If that golfer would play golf from the flag stick back to the tee box, (strategically speaking) he or she would discover that the yardage of that favorite club subtracted from the total yardage of the hole makes a driver unnecessary. Lastly is the fact that 60 percent of the score in golf, occurs within 100 yards of the flag. If you are not practicing your chipping and putting 60 percent of the time, you can forget about score. Blasting tee shots into the weeds, chugging a beer, and hollering "You da man!" is not what golf is about.
Take a methodical approach to improving at golf. You will get to a place where you can enjoy the game all that much faster. One of the greatest golfers of all time, summed up the essence of golf best. "A man has got to know his limitations." Harry Callahan.
ALL TEN CUPS ARTICLES PRINTED ON "SEPTIC SAFE" PAPER
A GUESSTIMATION BASED ON THE EXTRAPOLATION OF OBSERVATION
BY: DAVID FINEG (MY) WORLD RENOWNED CONTAINMENT THEORIST
Golf is the game for a lifetime. It can (will) take you all that time to achieve your potential in this sport. You will never be as good as you know you could be. That is one of the truly sublime things about this game. This article will attempt to identify and describe the fifteen levels of achievement in golf. It will also give you an estimate of the time required to get to the next level, depending on the amount of work you can put into it. The extent of your desire to get to the next level is also very important.
The reason I have chosen to entitle this article a “guesstimation”, is because according to my own estimates, I am only at level eight (O. K. 7.5) myself. Everything beyond that is based on what I have learned about the work that was required to achieve the levels up to that point. In other words, this is far from exact science.
--SIDEBAR—
The best golf I have ever played was a round where I was 3 under for 13 holes before I collapsed. The best score I ever shot was a 77. I was so outside my skill level that day…man, I could be good at this…my shots look like the ones the pro’s hit…(I thought to myself)…
How bad do you want to be good? How much time do you have to put into it? Answer these questions by selecting the appropriate “Calculations Required to Achieve Proficiency” index. Use the C.R.A.P. index to determine how long it will take you to get to your desired level. Some levels will take time as well as strokes.
C.R.A.P. TABLE
| Index 1. | Players that play 5 times a year-practice 20 times a year. |
| Index 2. | Players that play 20 times a year-practice 100 times a year. |
| Index 3. | Players that play 100 times a year-practice 200 times a year. |
Index 1 is what I would consider a recreational golfer. This golfer might play a little more often than 5 times a year, but probably will not practice much more than 20 times a year.
Index 2 is golfer that is devoted to the game to the extent that he/she can be. Considering that they have a full life going, this is about as much as they can devote to a leisure pursuit.
Index 3 is a person that can devote full time to golf. (You know, wealthy-unemployed-retired-living at home)
LEVEL 1
The first level of golf is attained when the player gets his or her own clubs. They are now no longer renting or borrowing clubs. This is important to the extent that the beginning of a repeatable swing can now be worked on. It is also important because the distance you hit each club can now begin to be determined. Golf clubs should always be fitted to the player, but if your clubs do not fit you, you have still eliminated a variable that would have had a negative effect on your practice or play. Before I go on to any of the higher levels, I should point out that progress speed can be increased by any index golfer. This is accomplished when that golfer comes to realize a few things about how the game is played. That golfer must also be contained enough to accept a realistic assessment of his or her skill level. More on this as it becomes pertinent.
Level 2
The second level is breaking 100. Shooting 99. Once you have clubs of your own, you can achieve this level in fairly short order.
Index 1: 4.5 Years
Index 2: 3.5 Years
Index 3: 2.5 Years.
Level 3
The third level is breaking 90. Shooting 89. These 10 strokes will be probably half again as hard to get out of your game as those strokes from anywhere you started, down to the 100 score level. You are now finding out about how enjoyable the game of golf is. You are occasionally pulling off the one or two shots per round that are pure majesty. They look just like the shots the pros are making (you think to yourself). Yeah man, I could be good at this. All I have to do is make more of those shots per round. HMMM… So what if it is a LOT more of those shots per round.
Index 1: 2.5 Years
Index 2: 2 Years
Index 3. 1.5 Years.
Level 4
The fourth level is shooting 85. These 4 or 5 strokes are where you begin to notice how hard each and every stroke is to carve out of your score. It takes a serious effort to avoid costing you strokes. You realize you are going to have to start thinking more strategically.
UH-OH ! Here is one of those realizations I spoke of:
It is called course management. It is a whole ‘nother article. But suffice it to say you must be able to consider the possible outcomes of shots so you can plan your attack of the particular hole, according to its layout. You then start to consider the fact that certain clubs don’t perform well for you.
UH-OH! Here is another one of those realizations I spoke of:
Its called “knowing your limitations”. Until you realize that certain clubs do not do the things everybody says they do, (at least not for you, they don’t) and take them out of your bag, you will be needlessly growing your score and your disgust level. (Many men will resist this realization, putting off the changes to their game it calls for. This will cost them valuable time wasted on the climb up the level ladder. It’s a man thing to resist changes that could make you better because of the way it might make you look to your pals). This is one of the (many) places in the journey, where women make a quantum leap over men in terms of their rate of improvement. The sooner you come to these realizations, the sooner they will take you to the place where you want to be. You will improve your swing and your game faster with these concepts than without them, I promise. Now, back to our regularly scheduled…
Index 1: 2.5 Years
Index 2: 1.5 Years
Index 3: 1 Year
Level 5
The fifth level is deciding to count every stroke and play it as it lies. You are discovering the wonder of golf. You are recognizing how difficult this game is. You have decided to stop lying to yourself (and your friends). You have heard that “bogey” golf is pretty good golf and you want to see if you really can shoot an 85. The “time and stroke penalty” for each index of golfer is dependant on how much of a MONKENATED MULLIGAN MAN you are. If you are a big liar, this level will cost you 20 strokes. If but a tiny liar, the level will cost
10 strokes. (Women, much less prone to “Misrepresenting”, can skip this level.)
Index 1: 2 Years
Index 2: 1 Year
Index 3: .5 Year
Level 6
The sixth level is shooting 85. (FOR REAL) To reach this point has taken the following times:
Index 1: 11.5 Years
Index 2: 8.0 Years
Index 3: 5.5 Years
It will only get harder to achieve all subsequent levels. Index 1 golfers may not achieve more than one or two more levels in their lifetime. (Most Index 1 golfers started playing the game very late in life, otherwise they would have found a way to become Index 2 golfers)
Level 7
The seventh level is breaking 80. Shooting 79. I have read somewhere that only 5% of all golfers score under 100. I believe that 50% of that 5% is probably lying. If you have achieved this level of golf, you are truly a gifted athlete. Many golfers will never shoot a score like this, no matter how long they play. I will list Index 1 golf time estimates for this level, though I don’t think it is likely many will get here.
Index 1: 2.5 Years
Index 2: 1.5 Years
Index 3: 1 Year
Level 8
The eighth level is shooting a 75. These four strokes take major effort to carve out of your game. You are hampered by the one or two bad swings during every round that you can’t recover from. It only takes two medium to medium-bad shots to keep you from playing the best golf you have ever played. (As far as the scorecard is concerned) Then one day you put it all together. Congrats!
Index2: 2 Years
Index 3: 1 Year
Level 9
The ninth level is shooting a 75, walking. Golf at the competitive level, is played by golfers walking the entire round. At the competitive level the golfers generally do not carry their own clubs, but they still require the stamina to make 18 holes of good shots. If you began playing golf walking, then you can skip this level. The ninth level is the level where you decide that to truly test
yourself against the better players, you must play the game walking. (The purest form of golf) If you have been playing golf from a cart up to now, this will turn out to be an expensive level for you. What kind of shape are you in? Can you even walk 5 miles on the street in your neighborhood? You are going to find fatigue creeping into your swing after 5 holes. By the time you reach the back nine, you will probably be down 40% on the swing reliability meter. The last 5 holes will be the rubber arm ballet. The “level penalty” at this point is hard to gauge. Only you can judge this. I will bet the average player will experience a 10 stroke/one year minimum. I hope you are physically prepared to go on. Try to start walking well before you reach this level. (If you do reach it)
Level 10
The tenth level is shooting par golf, walking. It will take you about a year to shoot a 75 walking. Since you have taken about a year to get into the shape it takes to play good golf walking, it should only be another six months to get the last three or four strokes out of your game. Once again, anyone achieving this level of golf is in the top 1 to 5 percent of all golfers worldwide.
Levels 11 thru 15
The last 5 levels are competitive levels of golf. The closer I got to these levels, (Writing about them in this article, that is) the more apprehensive I became about claiming I would know how long it would take you to get to any of them. I have decided to claim that I only know what each level is, not how long it will take you to get there. Every one of them involves hitting golf shots (one after another) in front of progressively larger and more discerning collections of strangers. Over the years, as you climb the “level ladder”, you learn to deal with people watching you hit a golf shot or two. In the beginning, these people are generally familiar to you. They are less judgmental. There are only a few of them. There is no money on the line. Hopefully, this decade or two (yeah, that’s how long it will take you) on the gallery learning curve will teach you how to handle the pressure associated with competition. You might be an awesome golfer with your buddies around and only a $2.00 bet on the line. Think of the performance anxiety issues you will feel when lots of strangers are watching…(you play golf).
Level 11. Making the “cut” in a municipal amateur tournament.
Level 12. Making the cut in any “organized” professional tournament with cash prizes leveraged against the expense money out of your pocket.
Level 13. A top 5 finish in a mini-tour event. (if you place fifth in an
event, you are probably capable of beating those other four guys, on another day.)
Level 14. Making the cut in a top tier tour event.
Level 15. A top 5 finish in a top tier tour event.
ALL TEN CUPS ARTICLES PRINTED ON "SEPTIC SAFE" PAPER
GOLF IS FUN, WHY AREN'T YOU HAVING ANY?
By David Fineg
How often do you find yourself leaving the golf course, after having spent about $50.00 and 5 hours of your valuable leisure time, gripping the steering wheel so hard you almost tear it off the steering column? That’s great! I mean, you did go out there to age a little before your time, elevate your blood pressure, and locate a little anger. Right? Or, did you go out there to get away for a few hours and enjoy the companionship of your friends or spouse, while communing with nature for a while? How about the attempt to get some relaxation and relief from the stress that builds up inside of you all week long? Where did your good intentions go wrong? I’ll tell you where they went wrong. On the very first tee, that’s where! Before the first swing, you lost sight of your intention to relax and enjoy yourself. You were supposed to be going out there to have fun, REMEMBER?
Golf is the hardest sport on the planet to play at the highest level. It is the easiest sport on the planet to play at the enjoyment level. Remember, you went out to the golf course to enjoy yourself. To achieve success, (enjoyment) you must minimize the pressure associated with high level golf. Why? Because pressure destroys enjoyment. The finesse and precision required in golf (on every single shot) yields up more than enough pressure to destroy the days enjoyment. The best way to avoid feeling the pressure is to maximize your potential for success, and minimize the probability of failure. You could also say you want to maximize your possibility of enjoyment, and minimize the potential for misery. Once again, this is about having fun. There are many things you can do to help realize this goal.
HOW TO PLAY THE GAME
THE TWO BAG THEORY
The two bag theory is something I thought up to help with your confidence on the course. It states that you should have two golf bags for your clubs. Bag one is called the “game” bag. Bag two is called the “range” bag. The range bag holds all the clubs that have not “proven” themselves at the range. These clubs have not earned the right to go into the game bag. They do not go to the course. The game bag holds only the clubs that deserve the right to play at the course. They have proven to you that they can perform at a high level when called to do so. You have confidence that you can hit them well. The number of clubs you have confidence with may not be more than 4 or 5 clubs. This is okay, because you don't need more than that to play an enjoyable round of golf. There is another concept known as the Ten Club Corrolary. It states that ten clubs take up as much room as a thermos of martinis or four beers. This concept allows for a lighter load, and increases the things your hauling that bring enjoyment. It is also permission to be carrying only 4 or 5 clubs.
So now you can consider leaving all the “W” clubs at home. Leave the “flop Wedge” at home. It’s the club that produces nothing but “flops” when you use it. Leave the "big Wood” at home. Why do you think they call them woods?
FORGET ABOUT THE SCORE!
1. Use the scorecard as a map to the next hole. Keep score on only every fifth round. It is no problem to chart your improvement with scores from every fifth round. Play the other four rounds with the goal being to make as many good swings in a row as you can. When you make a bad swing, forget about it. Start the count over again.
2. Take LOTS of balls with you. That way, when you hit one out into the "O'BYSS" you won't even have to go look for it.
(This will allow you to avoid the anger mismanagement issues) Walk down the middle of the fairway and drop the ball where you figure it would have landed, had it been hit well. Hit off perfect lies on every shot. (By the way, why would you want to pony up $50.00 and then hit off the dismal lies that you find yourself on? Lunar landscapes exactly like the lies you hit off at my range, and that cost about 5-7 dollars. Remember, your mission is to maximize your potential for enjoyment. This will allow you to enjoy the round and get some quality practice in as well.
3. Play all rounds from the forward tees. (They are NOT known as the women’s tees, unless you are a disrespecting monkey man) Once you are having some success (fun) from those tees, then move back to the next set. Once again, the mission to maximize…
4. Play other games of golf that don’t have anything to do with the score. For example, your group could play a scramble--except that the best ball would select the next shot based on the most difficult lie within 25 feet of where “best” landed. Surely one of you would pull off a great shot, and these would be the things you remember from the round. You would also probably play a round faster than normal. No holding other groups up, either.
WHOM TO PLAY THE GAME WITH
Most people with an opinion about the caliber of player you should be playing with, say you should be playing with golfers that are better than you are. I disagree with that. I think you should be playing golf with golfers no better than you, or maybe a little worse than you. Why? If they are better than you are, you will find yourself feeling the pressure to perform at a level beyond your ability. This will have a negative effect on your potential for enjoyment. When you play with golfers only as good as you are, there will be no “need” creeping into your efforts. You will not need to perform at a higher level than you are capable of. Less pressure= more potential for fun. If one of the players is having a good day, this will only make you feel good for that player. It will have less of an influence on your play because you know that this person is “Just having a good day.” Once you have had a little success, you may choose to test yourself against players more skilled than you. I am not saying that competitive desire is a bad thing. It is competitive desire that will propel you to the higher levels in most everything. What I am saying, is that the person you should be trying to win against, is YOURSELF! That is the person it will turn out to be hardest to beat.
MANY MORE MULTIPLE MYRIADS OF
MARVELOUS METHODOLOGY
(That you can use to get better, and insure you have some fun)
The newest and most exciting principal now on the lips of all golfers (and others trying to achieve a level of proficiency) is a procedure known as PRACTICE! Maybe you have heard of it. It can help you find a better swing, which helps with your performance anxiety issues. Thusly, allowing you to have more fun. See how easy this is.
Be realistic about your goals. Are you looking to go on the tour, tearing up the links worldwide? An uncontrollable grin on your face as you cruise to the bank to cash those five foot long checks? Or, are you just looking to have some fun and happy times between the torture sessions at your job? How about getting a couple of really great shots in while you are there? I would call this “a whole ‘nother level of wonder”. As to the first thought; the only tour most golfers find themselves on is the tour of the golf course. Not a great tour, to be sure. Complimentary chiggers, and all the disgust you can swallow. Getting back to the car and commenting that you missed the “Signature hole” you saw in the brochure. As your buddy tells you ”that was the hole you tried to cut the corner on, and found yourself in the woods”. Hearing him say, “the waterfall was beautiful, and they even had some mermaids in the pond serving free margaritas. You should have seen it!” By the way, ladies, those might have been mermen.
As a beginner, you should buy some clubs from the pawn shop. Have no more that about $3.00 in each club. That way when one of the clubs gives you a bad day, you can leave it right there on the course and head straight for the 19th hole with no concern for that problem club. There is some joy in that.
Golf is a game that can provide your mind and body with all kinds of healthy input. It can also be a game that elevates your blood pressure, and ages you before your time. Getting what you want from golf is easy, and entirely up to you.
One more thing: Really good players could not care less how ugly your swing (or game) is. If you endeavor to be up on the rules, and know how to behave on the course, you are IN with them! They will want you as a playing partner every time. I guarantee this. So don’t feel any pressure to perform for them. They are just out there to enjoy themselves and their friends, and make one or two good shots if they can. Same as you.
Good luck and go have some fun!
(by David Fineg) April 09
Ah, this takes me back. In one of me previous incarnations, I was a member of the "Early Earls", an irish bowling team, that invented the game of golf. I remember helping “scthye” out the fairways, and sanding the teeth of the Mooflong sheep we used to mow the greens. But, back to me tale. One of our first courses was this elevational challenge, on the edge of the scottish highlands. And, as it happened, also in the middle of the great prussian wild boar’s territory. In no time at all it had become common practice to warn other golfers, (that may not be looking,) that a boar was coming their way. Any decent gentleman would holler “BOAR! there....BOAR! there...” Without this warning, unsuspecting blokes could be (and often were) chewed up. Golf was no longer an important part of their lives. This would result in the loss of critical numbers of golfers. We had so very few golfers to spare. It became so important to warn fellow sportsmen, that if you didn’t yell “BOAR!” you would be set upon by the surviving golfers instead.
Once, when I were playing with some of me cousins visiting from the lowlands, one of the lads hit an errant shot that was headed right for me mate’s noggin. With more than a wee bit of fright going, I cried out “BOAR...there..” hoping the boar warning would get him to look up in time to see the new, well packed featherie, heading right for his gorse apple. It worked! The lad was able to dodge the errant missle, saving him for more golf. As we merry lads arrived to make sure he was alright, I overheard him telling another player that he thought I had said FORE. It was decided right then and there that this would be the way to warn other golfers of impending danger from the next fairway. A FORE and a BOAR posed similar levels of danger.There was only one problem. The problem was pride, a man thing. Pride was never an issue when warning others of an impending boar attack. It was a real problem however, when it was up to a golfer to holler FORE , after hitting a dangerous golf shot. Yelling FORE was admitting that you had just made a horrible swing. Often pride would get in the way of safety. This was not acceptable. Many golfers new to the game, were unwilling to let everybody within earshot, know they had just curled off a right gnarly "nanner". Since it was already acceptable to roust anyone not warning of boars, anyone not warning of FOREs was also clubbed by the pack. Later that day, after the group witnessed a horrible “gutta” incident; the offending hacker admitted he finally realized a bad swing was less embarrassing than a dead playing partner.
But seriously, not screaming FORE! loud enough for the potential target to hear you, could end up being very embarrassing for you. If you ask me it ought to be very EXPENSIVE for you. Not hollering FORE is a sure sign of your membership in golf putzdom.(no pun intended) I have included small sadnesses concerning the decline of golf in almost everything I have ever written. The word “decline” was never meant to refer to a number, as in the number of golfers hit by a deadly golf projectile, having never been warned by the hack that hit it. If you had to pay money to the “greenfee” fund every time you were observed not giving the missile warning, you might start concerning yourself with the necessary safety issues. This would be one way to instill golf manners in the mannerless. Remember, golf is about integrity, dignity. intelligence, stuff like that. It might also inspire you to attempt golf shots you have some outside chance of executing correctly. You know where I’m going with this don’t you? Leave the low percentage clubs in the car. Correctly execute more shots--have more success--yield yourself more fun-- shoot lower scores--play better golf--look like a better golfer--and LIVE! And whenever you do hear the word BOAR!, or FORE!, don’t look up!DUCK AND COVER!
and then thank the golfer that was behaving like a golfer
because he may have saved your life.
ALL TEN CUPS ARTICLES PRINTED ON “SEPTIC SAFE” PAPER
Maximize Your Enjoyment and Ability To Improve.
(June 09)
GOLF’S 3 NOBLE TRUTHS
CONCEPTS REQUIRED TO MAXIMIZE YOUR
POTENTIAL FOR IMPROVEMENT AND ENJOYMENT
Golf is an interesting game. It parallels life. It can tune you up, or tear you down. Golf is easy. It gives you exactly what you ask for, every time, without any argument. Did you want anger or joy? Pleasure or pain? High blood pressure or heart health? No problem. You got it. Golf is the hardest sport on the planet to play at the highest level. It is the easiest sport to play at the enjoyment level. You must make every effort to have some fun. When you are having fun, you are getting better. As you get better, you have more fun. Over the years I have been able to compile the information I think it takes to maximize your potential for enjoyment. I would never presume to be able to help you with your swing. What I know is how to help you have more fun.
THE THREE NOBLE TRUTHS
TRUTH#1
You need a repeatable procedure for locating a reliable swing. I once heard Jack Nicholas say that one of the primary reasons he went out to the practice area before a round, was so he could see what kind of a swing he was going to have that day. You need to be able to locate YOUR SWING every time you go out to practice or play! There is a way to do that. The basis for this is eliminating all the variables in your warm-up routine.
1. Always start the warmup with a seven iron. It’s length is right in the middle of the set. Start with your hands chocked all the way down the club. The less club in your hand, the more control you have over the club.
2. Start your warm-up by trying to find the power of pure impact with the smallest, slowest, softest swing you can make. Try to see how small of a swing you can make, try to see how slowly you can make that swing, try to see how softly you can hit the ball. This will help your mind to focus on the impact zone in the swing. By the way, when I am talking about slow swings, I am not talking about tempo, I am talking about club head speed. Try not to make any club head speed. DO NOT look at the ball flight of any of the first ten to twenty swings (if you can) Concentrate on the swing itself, and not bother with the result of the swing.
Once you are hitting them purely with a three “S” swing, then start growing out the swing slowly, until you reach a point in the size of the swing where you can no longer rely on the outcome. That is the size of your swing for that day. If you endeavor to maintain that swing you will maximize your potential to have fun.
TRUTH #2
YOU MUST BE DEVOTED TO THE CONCEPT OF MAXIMIZING YOUR POTENTIAL FOR SUCCESS, AND MINIMIZING YOUR PROBABILITY OF FAILURE! The basis of this truth is knowing what you can do and what you can’t do. You can maximize your potential for success by attempting only those shots you are confident you can make. Take this concept to the extreme..... minimize your opinion of your ability, and play the game from that vantage point. That way you will be satisfied with your performance more often. Here are some more ideas you can use to increase your enjoyment level...
1. Keep score on only every fifth round. Play the other 4 rounds with the goal being to make as many good swings in a row as you can make. During those 4 rounds, do not look for any shots hit out into the O’BYSS. Drop the ball in the middle of the fairway, on a perfect lie, where you figure it would have landed, had it been hit well.
2. Add a stroke to the par of every hole in order to lessen the pressure associated with having to hit any one shot great. Did you know 1 stroke added to every hole is shooting a 90? This idea will allow you to.....
3. Forget about greens in regulation.
4. Take to the course, only those clubs that you can hit with extreme confidence.
5. Try to shoot “bogey” golf from the forward tees, before moving back to the next set of tees. Endeavor to increase the difficulty levels slowly.
6. On all approach shots, take the club that is TWO clubs longer than you think you need so your mind can let you take a swing you can control.
7. Always take your medicine! Forget about the hero shots. Always, strategy with an emphasis on conservatism.
Remember, a 600 yard par five is a hole you have to be within putting distance in 4 strokes. You have a 150 yard shot in your bag don’t you? Approaching the golf from this angle will allow you to increase your potential for success.
TRUTH#3
THE ASPECT OF RESPECT
1. GAME
2. GOLFER
3. GOLF COURSE
Truth #3 involves knowing a little about the majesty of golf. Golf is the last game elevated above the “moronic nonsense”. It is a game of quiet jubilation. A game of tactics, skill, integrity, and GOOD behavior. Let’s address the aspect(s) of respect in reverse.
RESPECT FOR THE GOLF COURSE
Damage caused by the golfer. You are going to do some damage to the golf course. REPAIR YOUR DAMAGE! Consider repairing some other damage as well. When you take a divot out of the fairway, replace it. Most divots come out in one piece and only fly a few yards away at the most. How hard is it to walk over to the divot, pick it up, and return it to the excavation site? Are you really trying to avoid some exercise that much? Did you know that a divot left like an open wound will take something like one to three months to partially repair itself. A divot filled with sand will take a month to get down the road to repair. A divot with the grass returned to the gouge and tamped down begins it repair process within a week. If you find yourself actually hitting the green with your approach shots, (yeah, right) you will notice dents created by the impact of the golf ball. You seen these--haven't you---some golfers call them ball marks---good golfers call them infuriating. Have you ever putted over or through one? Putting greens are meant to be smooth--you know---so you can putt on them. Learn how to properly repair these dents, repair them, and repair any others you may find while waiting to putt out. Damage caused by golf carts. Be aware of where you are driving. Scatter carts in different access points. Don’t drive up the middle. Don’t park on the putting green or the tee box. Carts do more damage than anything else. Except maybe the beginning “excavator”. Or the golfer that doesn’t care about anything other than himself. Although I have only played golf with a very few women, I have never seen one that didn’t repair her damage. Not one. NEXT...........
RESPECT FOR THE GOLFER
Golf is a game of Quiet Jubilation(and silent despair)BE QUIET! Its not that a golfer couldn’t hit a golf ball while people were screaming, it’s that golf is a dignified game where everybody simply SHUTS UP! Once you come to realize how much this game can help you learn to focus, you will appreciate the solitude supplied by your golfing buddies SHUTTING UP! Maintenance of the solitude allows for introspection, and harmony. Sun Tsu "To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders" But this is just the second most important part of this portion of respect. The MOST IMPORTANT aspect of respect in this category is PACE OF PLAY. Nobody really has 6 hours to commit to a pursuit they are not even enjoying. That is the one thing about golf: a round takes a fairly long time to play. And that is if your playing at a brisk pace! If the whole course is jammed up by a couple of foursomes of bumbling, self indulgent morons, it could take the whole day to finish. And you won't be happy or calm at the end of the round. In other words, you have defeated the whole reason for coming out to play golf. In addition to being quiet during the game, you need to be aware of the other golfers play in order to play safe “ready” golf, and to allow for the best potential of each player. Following are more things you can do to show your respect for the other golfers.(But by no means are these all of the things you can do) !.Stay out of the line of all putts of any player. 2. Stay out of the line of view of all players during any stroke. 3. If you are a beginner, pick up after double bogey on the hole, regardless of where that occurs on the hole. Be extremely conscious of pace of play. You can get in plenty of shots without holding anyone up. General awareness of good behavior is important. This is just a start. It is up to you to pick up the rest. LASTLY.............
RESPECT FOR THE GAME
I know your tired so I will be brief. I’ve talked about it all during this article. Golf is a game of dignity, respect, and quiet jubilation. Appreciate the opportunity you have to commune with your buddies or spouse. Enjoy the majesty of nature for a few hours. Let it take the stress out of you. See how many good swings in a row you can make. Try to let yourself enjoy the moment.Forget about the last one, and think about the next one. Encourage yourself and others. Look for the pleasure in golf. Make it easier to find.
Good luck and have some fun already........
ALL TEN CUPS ARTICLES PRINTED ON ‘SEPTIC SAFE’ PAPER
By David Fineg
an opinionated, intolerant insider
I do not know who coined the phrase “The Tiger Woods effect”. I believe this person intended that the phrase be used to describe the immense increase in the number of people coming to the game of golf. Tiger is so phenomenally talented that many people have decided to take up the sport. This fact should be something to rejoice. It will prove to be a mixed blessing, at best. There will be profound effects on the game, as well as the business, of golf.
I do not know Tiger Woods and will probably never meet him, though I am sure he is a good and decent person. It is not his fault that his awesome ability has attracted a new species of would be golfer. I have named this new species the “ North American Couch Lounging Golf Moron”. I would like to apologize right now, to all the actual morons, as to lump these golfers in with morons is to do a disservice to the good name of morons everywhere. But, the name works for me, so…..
Golf is a game of dignity, respect, integrity, and QUIET JUBILATION. Tiger appears to have been raised to have an appreciation for this fact. He knows how to behave on the golf course. Many of the new arrivals to golf bring none of these attributes with them. Golf is the last sport left, where the glorification of violence and disrespect is not an integral part of the game. Golf is a sport elevated above the moronic nonsense. The morons think violence and disrespect are cool. They even hurl their money at those that are good at behaving badly.
SPOTTING THEM ON THE COURSE
1.Nothing to mark their ball, or repair their ball mark.
2.No attempt made to locate their ball mark, much less repair it when they find it. Forget about repairing any others.
3.Walking right past the “beaver pelt” chunk they just carved out of the fairway, on the way back to the cart. Some morons will tamp down the excavation like that will do something.
4.When the rule is cart path only, they can be seen walking out to their shot with only one club in their hand.
5.When the rule is 90 deg., they drive right up the middle of the fairway to their next shot.
6.Underestimating the number of shots it took for more than one hole in a row.
7.Spotted heading out into the “OBYSS” after hitting that towering banana slice on a busy Saturday afternoon. “Hey, did anyone see where that one went out?”
8.HEARD BLURTING OUT “GO IN DA HOLE” OR “YOU DA MAN” AT ANY GOLFING EVENT, PUBLIC OR PRIVATE.
9.Anything remotely resembling a “hey batta batta” during someone’s tee shot, approach, chip, or putt.
10.Tossing out that empty brewski or potato chip bag. “What?, it’s near the cart path, I didn’t throw it in the fairway.”
11.Getting the golf bag on their back, caught in the doorway, on the way into the pro shop.
12.Cowboy boots, dress shoes, or waffle stompers.
13.Club damage, not the result of that stone in the fairway, but of that tree trunk they wrapped the club around after the ganked shot.
14.Picking up that lost golf ball, while it is still rolling. (Apologies to M. Twain)
15.Walking across, or putting out while standing directly on your line.
16.“Here it is!” As the ball slides out of their pants leg.
17.Driving up to the green, or parking on the teebox.
TELLS AT THE RANGE
1.Arriving with a six-pack and a couple of drivers.
2.Blasting shot after shot over the “slice fence” and never attempting an alignment change.
3.Destroying a 50 sq. ft. hitting station with only 45 golf balls. No clue how to crate a divot pattern, yet somehow learning something about their shots by looking at the craters.
4.Making fun of others (especially women) struggling to find their swing.
5.Offering up swing advice after curling off 5 consecutive worm-burners.
6.Chipping golf balls OFF the practice green.
In most of the European countries and many of the Asian nations, you are required to show proof of your attendance at golf etiquette class, before you are ever allowed to set foot on a golf course. It should be this way in the United States as well. As to the loud and bad behavior problems, one of the tour professionals could take care of that. By simply turning around after one of the golf morons blurts out “go in the hole” or “you da man”, and saying to the moron, “Sir, golf is a game of dignity and QUIET JUBILATION, and I and every other real golfer would appreciate it if you would just SHUT UP! If you want to holler’, go back to the wrestling arena and holler.”
“This is golf—SHUT UP!” But we all know that is not going to happen. If you spot a golf moron, and you are in a mood to help them, PLEASE DO SO. It is important that we get rid of these individuals before they ruin the last great refuge from the “noise” that we have left.
ALL TEN CUPS ARTICLES PRINTED ON "SEPTIC SAFE" PAPER
MORE GREAT RANTS FROM DAVID FINEG COMING SOON!
PAST QUESTIONS TO DAVID:
Can your teachings help women?
(Jan 09)
Hey David
I enjoyed your article, but I am a woman. Do you think that your ideas can help out us women golfers also?
Thanks for your response
Dorothy in San Antonio
Hi Dorothy,
First of all--good for you(playing golf) don't quit! This game is actually well suited to women. It is possible you get more out of it than men do. Satisfaction, insight, pleasure, confidence .....Anyway, may I assume you are talking about the Containment Theory article, since in it I say some things to the men specifically? If so, let me assure you I know you can get the same benefits I envision for men from this theory. Maybe more, as women will be perhaps more accepting of some of the concepts, and take them to heart.
Good Luck and remember to enjoy yourself!
David
Hitting irons slightly off center
(April 09)
David,
Only with my irons, 75% of the time I hit the ball 1/8 to 1/4 inches off center toward the toe yet horizontally center hit. What can i do to correct this?
George Lopez
Hey George,
If you are only missing by 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch and you are doing that only 25% of the time---you are pretty damn good. I would recommend that you shrink your swing down by just a little bit until you are hitting them as you would like all the time, and then grow your swing back out at that time.
Hope this helps.although I really don't think you need that much help! A swing that good should be yielding you up pretty good scores.
Don't Quit.
David "flag" Fineg
CAN'T MAKE RANGE SWING ON THE COURSE
(May 09)
Good afternoon David.
I hate to bother you but I am so frustrated with my swing I needed to ask for some advice. I have shortened by swing the last year or so and when I keep it that way, I can play at about a 7 handicap level. When my swing gets long, I'm in the teens. (My handicap is about a 10.)
I can go to the range and hit a million balls with the short swing. And all of my practice swings are nice and short. But the second I get over the ball on the course to swing, there is a mental block that keeps me from keeping my swing short. Especially on my driver. My irons I can usually keep the short swing for the most part now. It's basically my driver and fairway woods. It's obviously mental. And it's not like I'm thinking I want to hit it further because my short swing hits the ball longer. And a lot more accurately.
Is there anything I can do to get over the mental hurdle? Any help is really appreciated!!!
Hey Brian;
First off, none of us here at ISAG consider it a bother to try to help you improve your game. If you get better you might keep at it longer. You have obviously been at it a while so I guess there is no danger in your leaving the game.....Now on to your problem, and it is a toss up as to whether or not it really is a problem. It has been said that the longest distance on the golf course is the distance between your ears. Your mind can and does hold you back, but in your case I thiink you have proven to yourself that the shorter swing yields the superior result. TESTOSTERONE however might be the problem. Here is what I suggest. Without holding up pace of play, try to hit two balls at a time for a while. the first swing is the short swing and the second swing is the longer swing, and let your mind see the result of swing shorter. Just as on the range, on the course--seeing is believing. You might also tell yourself that you are just going to lengthen your swing A TINY BIT and let your mind think about a swing that is only slightly longer than your usual swing. This might help you to keep from using the much larger swing. You will also be quietly growing your swing for the future. GOOD LUCK, and please let me know how it goes, or even if you had any success with these thoughts.
Sincerely
David-Flag-Fineg
"STUCK" (can't turn wrists over)
(June 09)
My release is BIG TIME "stuck." I play to about an 8 but am having my worst season ever. For some out of the blue reason I can't seem to turn my wrists over. Everything is hard, hooking, and very right (I'm a righty). I can feel the club face wide open but can't get through it. Any drills or swing thoughts I could use to get me back on track? I've started using an end weighted 3-iron and a 5-iron Medicus at night for some practice swings. They don't seem to help. The game is almost becoming "unfun." Any insight would be great.
Thanks,
Bill
HEY BILL,
Thanks for writing. I have always been very wary of the "turning the hands over" swing thought. Remember, mechanical swing thoughts are the enemy of the golf swing. That "turning the hands over" thought is what's getting you stuck. Now your timing your swing. Try taking the club back without turning the club face open for as long as you can in the backswing, and take a look at your club when you reach the top of your backswing. I bet it is correctly lined up, isn't it? It will also be correct at the other end. Once again, mechanical swing thoughts are the ENEMY of the golf swing. I hope this helps. Please let me know.
David
P.S. If it's wrong-it's too big. Shrink it down. (Containment Theory)
Shanks and Slices at range only...
(June 09)
Dave,
I'm 17 handicap but not happy golfer. OK. there I go.
One minuter I'm hitting the ball perfectly, good direction at the range or at the course and BANG,
a chain of shanks or weak slices puts my game out with the obvious frustration because everything was perfect a few minutes ago!
I know all the drills to cure shanks and slices. I take care of my set up, posture,etc. but it keeps coming back, killing me time and time again. I even went to different PGA pro and he said everything looks OK on video and doesn't have any suggestions on how to fix.
I have decided not to play golf until resolve this problem.
Could you help me?
Thank so much.
Jesus
Hello Jesus,
Here are my thoughts. The reason the pro's could not find a flaw when they looked, and why it shows up at odd times is because (I believe) it is happening when you are hitting them well and want to get a bit more out of your swing. When the pro's are watching, you are making "your" swing, a swing that looks good and performs well. It is when you are trying to get more than "your" swing that the trouble starts. Your mission is to stay contained enough to make your swing continuously and see if a conscious effort to stay contained turns out to be of some help. I relate almost all swing problems with making a swing outside your ability to control that swing. Forget about the mechanics and feel your way through to a good swing consistently. Good luck!
ISAG BONUS ANSWER! : See also Barry Goldstein's answer to another shank-ridden reader here...SHANKS
(JULY 09)
Hi Golfguru.
I went to the driving range today. It has been raining on and off every day
for several days here in New Hampshire. The tees and the greens are wet.
Every ball I hit was dropping about 20 yards short. I asked the guy next to me if he was having the same experience. He said yes. We concluded it was the high humidity. I looked up golf on humid days on google. The results indicate that golf balls should actually travel farther on humid days because the humid air is lighter.
Is there an explanation why every shot was falling short?
Thanks,
Bill
Hi William;
I believe temp. has a much greater effect on ball flight. Could it have been early evening when the temp was in the low 70's or high 60's? That would have had the effect you observed. Otherwise, I would suspect it would be the wetness of the turf you were hitting off of, coupled with the fact you got no roll. No matter what, your not talking more than maybe a club difference, which you could adjust for. It is a good thing to be able to hit different clubs the same distance. (club control)
Hope this helps,
Flag
ISAG FACT: The general rule is that the higher the humidity is the farther the ball will go and the lower the humidity is the shorter the ball will travel. We are naturally inclined to think that humid air feels heavier than dry air and so the ball should travel farther in dry air. But in reality humid air is actually lighter than dry air and so the ball travels farther in humid air. more from "The Science of golf balls"
(July 09)
David,
Back about 2000-2001 I purchased my first set of clubs (and still use them). I went to a small local shop that made "custom" clubs based on my height and swing analysis. The shop owner made my clubs using head made by Tsunami. The Woods are the Eagle Series. They have Fila graphite shafts. I am wondering if you can tell me were to find more info on this club maker and my clubs. I have liked them ok but never feel like I get a lot of speed out of the club. That could easily just be my swing as well. The store I purchased them from is no longer around. Any help would be great. Thanks. Basically, was I swindled?
Aaron
Aaron:
I don't know how much you paid, but I would say clubfitting was pretty far along by then, so you probably got a better deal than
not. As to the clubs you speak of, I have actually heard of them, but no idea where to find them except perhaps Jon's Golf in San Antonio. But I'm not so sure you should go looking for them anyway. The state of the art has changed much in the intervening years, and many clubs will be less expensive, and have more science in them. They will be a better deal all the way round. Go to the trouble to be fitted again, It is still the way to go.
Flag
(Sept 09)
Dear David,
This problem has been ongoing for a long time. (I regularly shoot around upper 80's to low 90's btw). I tend to get over the top mainly on my tee shots. I don't know if its because of my set up or my grip are what. I love golf but I'm going to give up playing if I can stop coming over the top! My game would Improve 10 strokes a round!
Virgil
Hey Virgil,
Well maybe not 10 strokes--but maybe. Once again, I must remind you that whenever something about your swing starts going badly, it is because you are trying to make a swing that is bigger than your ability to control it.(*) It doesn't matter what aspect of your swing is not functioning. So don't try to figure out what you are doing wrong. Simply shrink the swing down to a point where you regain control of the result, stay there for awhile, and then start growing your swing back out a little bit at a time. Sure hope this helps!!
David "Flag Zenswing" Fineg
(*)See David's article on "The Containment Theory"
Lost My Game (can't go low anymore)
(April 2010)
David,
I've tried everything to get my old game back. I used to shoot in the 70's, now I'm lucky to break 85! I don't think it's my swing as much as I've psyched myself out. Any idea how I can get back into the mode of attacking the course and shooting low rather than worrying about and waiting for the wheels to come off.
Awaiting your response o'wise one!
Robert;
So sorry for the delay in getting back to you, but I think I have a great answer for you. The difference between the 70's and the mid 80's is definitely NOT your swing. If you were good enough to shoot in the 70's, your swing could not have deteriorated that much. It has got to be about your mindset. The word "attack"--to much aggression in that word. This is surgery, not war.
I must refer you to my article CONTAINMENT THEORY, wherein you will find a few of the mantra's applicable to your situation. Here are a few:
Number 6: The more you want, the less you'll get.
Number 7: Straight is ALWAYS great, and long will OFTEN be wrong.
Number 8: Purity almost ALWAYS makes power, and power almost NEVER does.
Try to take refuge under the canopy of containment as much as you can. "When you stay contained, purity graces you with it's presence."
One more thing. You ever heard the saying "I moaned that I didn't have any shoes, until I saw the man that didn't have any feet? Many of the guys and gals reading your email are probably wishing they had your problem--having never even gotten close to the 70's themselves. You are blessed to have been there.
Hope this helps!
David (flag) Fineg
(June 2010)
David,
Do you have any tips/advice on what to think about when over the ball? I always seem to be thinking about a "swing thought", or believe it or not have a song stuck in my head! What would you suggest?
Dennis.
Hi Dennis,
I like the song in your head idea, as long as it is a song that will help you with the tempo of the swing. Grunge or heavy metal probably won't work in this situation. Another thought would be the thought you would have if you took a 5 iron to a shot you figure you could hit with a 7 iron. Your thoughts then would be something like "well I better not swing to hard, cause I got way more club than I need...." STAY CONTAINED. Thing about how softly, purely, slowly, you can make that swing.
Remember: mechanical swing thoughts are the enemy of the swing!
Hope this helps! Good luck and good golf!
David (flag) Fineg
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