My official hobby of choice: Golf

Currently playing: Madden 12 (ps3)

So for most of my life i’ve never been exceptional at anything mostly because I have never put my all into just one thing.  I’ve tried numerous hobbies like drumming, bowling, poker, golf, and video games and I’ve managed to be average to below average at all of them.  This summer, after years of struggling at golf, I decided to take it seriously and really try to get good.  i picked golf because its something I can enjoy the rest of my life and its also something I can play with other people I enjoy being around.  Its also quite rewarding when you do do well, moreso than anything else i’ve tried.  I’m not going to completely give up the other hobbies, but I won’t take them that seriously, they will just more be for fun.  Golf I’m trying to take seriously.

A little background–I took up golf when I was in Jr High after quitting baseball one summer.  Several of my uncles and my grandpa played golf and I often tagged along when they played.  I took some lessons and played a fair amount and eventually when I was in highschool I was able to shoot in the 90s somewhat consistently.  But when I left for K-State I stopped playing and I hadn’t been able to get my game back. I had been shooting in the 110+ range for the better part of 5 years. It caused me to not really want to play much, usually like 4-5 rounds at the most in a year.

So now that I decided to start over, here’s what I did.  I decided my clubs don’t fit me, a 5’6″ guy.  Most clubs for men are made for at least a 5’10″ (if not taller) person.  This always bothered me mentally and gave me an excuse for sucking.  So I found out how long my clubs should be using some information online and I cut all my clubs and regripped them myself.  The clubs I have I actually bought when I was starting highschool, an old set of Dunlops.  I didn’t really see a reason to get new clubs nor did I want to pay for new ones.  not without trying to cut them to my length first. 

The next step was to read some books because I needed a complete tear down of my game.  I looked into private lessons and I might still do that in the near future, but I wanted to try some things myself first.  I checked out Ben Hogan’s 5 lessons book and also the Little Red Book by Harvey Penick.  These books helped me rebuild my grip and swing from scratch.  From there it was off to the driving range.

initially, all of these helped me greatly.  I was hitting the ball more consistently without having to resort to gimmicks in my stance, swing, grip, or aim.  I was at least able to stop just dribbling the ball in front of me as often as I did.  So now armed with better equipment and a better setup and swing as well as some mental confidence, I hit the course and started playing.  this was in early June.

My first round was quite encouraging, I shot a 103 on a fairly short and easier course, but still a full course.  After that I had some up and down rounds but wasn’t really getting the breakthrough scoring wise.  I wasn’t having the big blow up holes like I used to, but more of just general inconsistency.  Like i might be driving the ball well but unable to putt.  or I might be hitting putts but unable to chip.  and with whatever part went bad I went and practiced that then some other part would let me down.  Still though I felt like at least I was enjoying playing more and my game was heading in a positive direction.

After a few months I felt kinda stagnant so I asked a guy at work who i knew to be a good golfer and he gave me some tips which I immediately went out and practiced and my game took another step.  I was able to hit my long irons better and even my fairway wood which I hadn’t touched in forever.  I am not a long hitter, I usually tee off with a 3 wood or 5 wood and use a 6 iron in the fairways cause those are the clubs I feel confident with.  my short game is where I feel I have some advantage, I do pretty well there.  so i make up for my lack of distance with that.  Still, I wanted to try and get a little better in the fairways because courses are so long these days. 

Finally a few weeks ago I put it all together and shot a 43 on the front 9 of a full length course.  It was all going great, I believe it to be my best 9 hole score ever.  Unfortunately I lost concentration on the back 9 and finished with a 96 overall but still a score in the 90s!  This really brought back my love for the sport, one that I’ve always wanted to be good at and play a lot.  I hope to take it to another level next spring and shoot consistently in the 90s.  My goal is to be a bogey golfer, someone who can shoot upper 80s low 90s every time.  From there any other improvement would be gravy.

I really want this to be my one big time hobby.  I enjoy bowling and have worked at it a lot including this past winter but its not the same as golf.  I feel like i hit a ceiling in bowling that could probably only be broken with a big time commitment that I don’t have the desire to make (like joining competitive leagues).  I got tired of playing by myself a lot.  At least with golf I enjoy playing by myself and usually I find others to play with me anyway.   I like being outside, i like the variety of golf and the different courses, I like all the different challenges. 

Here’s to me finally getting good at something!

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