Before You Start Playing………..

Well, here we are in the middle of winter and where I live there is no golf being played today. Snow covers most of the ground with a high of 38 degrees. But I’m dreaming of green fairways and slick greens with the sun beating down. The golf channel is beaming scenes from a satellite from the Hawaiian Islands of the fortunate few who play professionally. Boy, I miss the summertime. I try to keep in shape over the winter and do a lot of stretching. I spend the first 20 minutes of each day on the floor stretching my back and hips. I also catch a yoga class from time to time. About three days a week I incorporate walking on a treadmill and light upper body weight lifting as part of the program as well. I’m not a slave to a regiment schedule but I enjoy the feeling a good workout brings.

            I feel preparation is one of the keys to playing and enjoying good golf. I can always simply go out and play a quick 9 holes without any preparation and enjoy it. However, for me to feel like I have an opportunity to play well, I need to adhere to the principles and fundamentals critical to playing golf well. Too many times I go out to play with false expectations that I will do well when I know that I haven’t done enough preparation for that to happen.  Johnny Miller said you can’t expect to shoot 90 until you are shooting 95 regularly and you can’t expect to shoot 80 until you are shooting 85 regularly and you can’t shoot 70 until you are shooting 75 regularly. It only makes sense that skills are slowly developed. I find my senses are increased when I feel prepared to play and I concentrate better.  My dad was fairly fanatic about preparation.  On a day when we played together he would have cleaned his clubs and shoes the night before.  We would go to the course about 1 ½ hours before the round.  We would eat  breakfast or lunch first.  It was followed by putting for 15 minutes and then off to the driving range. He believed in a nice slow warmup session. The last few swings were always with the driver getting set for the first shot of the day. Then, another 10 minutes on the putting green and we were ready. Of course, then there was the 2 or 3 practice sessions during the week at the driving range. When he retired he played about 200 rounds a year. I remember talking to one of  his friends after a round who was genuinely saddened that he could only play golf six days a week. As a working guy I have never approached that level of, how should I say, commitment. John Wooden, the famous UCLA basketball coach,  always spoke about the game being won or lost before the actual game was played. He also never talked about winning or losing, he just taught his players the importance of following the process. I think it’s true in golf as well. The outcome of a shot is not what to worry about but rather how to execute it. Like juggling, the secret is not in the catch but rather in the throw. If you throw the balls correctly catching them is a natural outcome.

            Of course, in golf finding which techniques are effective for you is difficult. Everyone needs the fundamentals for the grip, stance, posture, etc. that are generally required to hit consistent good golf shots. There are always a few who manage without them, but they are rare.  I remember Art Wall and his famous baseball grip and now we have Jim Furyk and his upright loopy swing. I think understanding how the fundamentals effect your ball flight is what is important to grasp. I recommend whatever it takes for you to do that is what you should do.  For some it is golf lessons from an instructor, others if may be golf books or videos on instruction, and still others who just dig it out of the ground. Lee Trevino and Ben Hogan did that. Trevino said, “I come from a long line of range balls”. I was at a champion’s event a number of years ago and a large crowd came to watch him on the driving range. He turned to the crowd and said, “Why are you watching me swing, you should go and watch Bruce Crampton hit balls if you want to learn how to hit a golf ball. I’m making pretzils over here with my swing”.

I always recommend that you practice earlly in the year before you play. For me, it builds confidence and makes the first few rounds more enjoyable. Jack Nicklaus in the 1960’s said he would start the year by taking a lesson from his golf coach and the only thing they would work on were the basics: grip, stance, and ball position. Not a bad example to follow.