Joe,
The rules are intended to make sure nobody gets an unfair advantage. Since you seem to have a problem with some of the rules, can you give an example where the rules did not promote fairness?
Stickler
Hi Stickler,
Most people have heard the story where Tiger’s gallery removed a large boulder from his line of play. Is that fair to golfers who do not have a gallery large enough to move the boulder? No, of course not. That means that the rules allow an unfair advantage to those who have a gallery. One would think a gallery is an “outside agency” that was going to affect the next shot. That would suggest that your gallery can break a tree branch for you as long as you don’t do it yourself, but no. On the other hand, a player who was leading the tournament was disqualified for having a second caddie just because his young son carried his putter to him. Do you really think there was any unfair advantage gained by this action? No, of course not, that idea is outrageously stupid. Such rules violate the spirit of fair play and therefore should be modified or abolished. At the very least there should be a process to allow local officials to overrule instances where accidental infractions had nothing to do with a shot or otherwise gaining unfair advantages. Scores should be based on shotmaking skills, not technicalities that have nothing to do with trying to cheat. For those who want to preserve the ancient tradition of the game, go back to playing wooden shafts and gutta percha balls or else you might be a hypocrite. If you can live with violation of ancient tradition by using high tech equipment then you can also live with improving rules to assure fair play and common sense rather than perpetuating stupid concepts just because they are traditional concepts. Tradition says golf clubs must have a “normal form”, yet look at some of the weird putter designs that are allowed. Once upon a time the (unchangeable?) rules said you had to play your balls from plugged lies, even on the greens, so you had to hack the ball out with an iron. Imagine trying to putt on such hacked up greens after wet weather. If you want to stick blindly to tradition, then don’t complain about the condition of the greens. Ball marks are nowhere near as bad as wedge divots. How come they violated tradition by changing that rule? Because once in a great while, the rulemakers do have a logical thought, that’s why, but that unfortunately does not happen often enough. Maybe someone should wake them up and inform them of the “continuous improvement” concept used in all other sports rules and business processes. Don’t get me started on this, I could go on all day. Grrrrr.
Joe
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Joe,
When the ball lies against a collar of thick grass at the edge of a green, my club usually gets stuck when I try to chip it. I have even tried the “bellied wedge” where you hit the ball at the middle and that sometimes works, but not when the grass is really thick. Is there any other way to handle this?
Barnie
Hi Barnie,
This may sound somewhat unconventional, but if the bellied wedge does not work for you, position the ball way back in your stance, and try using the putter with a very steep downswing, banging the ball down into the ground. The ball should pop up and roll forward with overspin. With a little practice you can get a feel for distance control with this shot.
Joe
When the ball lies against a collar of thick grass at the edge of a green, my club usually gets stuck when I try to chip it. I have even tried the “bellied wedge” where you hit the ball at the middle and that sometimes works, but not when the grass is really thick. Is there any other way to handle this?
Barnie
Hi Barnie,
This may sound somewhat unconventional, but if the bellied wedge does not work for you, position the ball way back in your stance, and try using the putter with a very steep downswing, banging the ball down into the ground. The ball should pop up and roll forward with overspin. With a little practice you can get a feel for distance control with this shot.
Joe
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
Joe,
I have read in several books and magazines that you should make a full shoulder turn, but I get better results with less turn. Any comments on this?
Tom
Hello Tom,
This is another concept that causes debate. In my opinion a full turn is recommended only for those who are blessed with a lot of athleticism and good hand-eye coordination. There certainly is nothing wrong with trying this on the practice range, but for many people this does not work because their ball striking suffers. In order to improve ball striking, start with a shorter turn until you can strike the ball on the sweet spot every time, and only then should you increase your turn a little at a time until your ball striking begins to suffer. Then you will have a better idea of the optimum amount of turn that is right for you. This is not always due to your type of body build. John Daly does not look like he is in the best of shape but he has such good athleticism and hand-eye coordination, that he has the biggest turn you will ever see. Other guys with an average build like Dana Quigley have a very short turn but he is very successful because he is so consistent. The more you turn, the more you risk trouble, so if you want more consistent ball striking, do the experiment mentioned above and find the right amount of turn for you.
Joe
I have read in several books and magazines that you should make a full shoulder turn, but I get better results with less turn. Any comments on this?
Tom
Hello Tom,
This is another concept that causes debate. In my opinion a full turn is recommended only for those who are blessed with a lot of athleticism and good hand-eye coordination. There certainly is nothing wrong with trying this on the practice range, but for many people this does not work because their ball striking suffers. In order to improve ball striking, start with a shorter turn until you can strike the ball on the sweet spot every time, and only then should you increase your turn a little at a time until your ball striking begins to suffer. Then you will have a better idea of the optimum amount of turn that is right for you. This is not always due to your type of body build. John Daly does not look like he is in the best of shape but he has such good athleticism and hand-eye coordination, that he has the biggest turn you will ever see. Other guys with an average build like Dana Quigley have a very short turn but he is very successful because he is so consistent. The more you turn, the more you risk trouble, so if you want more consistent ball striking, do the experiment mentioned above and find the right amount of turn for you.
Joe
Monday, July 18, 2005
Sunday, July 17, 2005
Joe,
Every time I shoot a good round and share the joy with my friends, I cannot seem to do it again the next time. Is there a reason for this?
Esther
Hello Esther,
Someone once hypothesized that the likelihood of repeating a good performance is inversely proportional to the number of people you tell about it. Does that mean you can’t ever tell anyone about a good round? Not really, that would be no fun. But you do have to be realistic when you go out the next time and remember how you achieved the good score, you cannot just assume it will happen again without good concentration. You can only do it again when good practice sessions allow you to have a certain amount of confidence in every part of your game. The part of your game that you neglect to practice is most likely the part that will cause problems in your next round.
Joe
Every time I shoot a good round and share the joy with my friends, I cannot seem to do it again the next time. Is there a reason for this?
Esther
Hello Esther,
Someone once hypothesized that the likelihood of repeating a good performance is inversely proportional to the number of people you tell about it. Does that mean you can’t ever tell anyone about a good round? Not really, that would be no fun. But you do have to be realistic when you go out the next time and remember how you achieved the good score, you cannot just assume it will happen again without good concentration. You can only do it again when good practice sessions allow you to have a certain amount of confidence in every part of your game. The part of your game that you neglect to practice is most likely the part that will cause problems in your next round.
Joe
