"Hello Friends" the Masters is starting!

[Toto'sDad]

Talk about emotion. He has this huge lead and I almost expected him to hole his first putt. Then he runs it four feet past, then he runs the next one three feet past. I was begging him to make that last one as it was painful to watch but all so relatable.

I thought he'd cap it off by holing the putt too. Scottie had enough of a lead to waste some putts, but it was painful to watch. I've watched the masters for years, and lots of other tournaments, I've NEVER seen anyone do that. I remember the Hale Irwin whiff that lost him the open, I'll bet he wishes he'd have had some of Scottie's shots to spend!

 

[Toto'sDad]

One of my best golfing buddies who no longer plays just couldn't cap off a win with a putt. He always played in our Saturday morning rabbit, but he was strictly a donor, he never won. One day no one had the rabbit, it had carried over on ties all the way around the front nine. The front nine at that course finishes on a par 3 of about a hundred and ninety yards, my buddy hit it in there about two feet for a birdie to win! We all stood around him as he putted, one guy even chanted wooooogie. Old Rog, reached down deep, and knocked it in the hole, and won his first rabbit in two years! After that he could finish the deal off if he had the chance! Great memory!

 

[Preacher]

@Toto'sDad golf is such a mental game. It is amazing to see these guys work themselves around a golf course.

I have for years been a 20+ handicap usually shooting between 90-100. I decided I wanted to get better so I started looking at lessons. I went to a few and found that my swing actually was not my issue. Disclaimer, I did have some set up issues that caused some problems but all in all the pro did not really change my swing, told me to stand taller (my weight was too far forward), told me to concentrate on an in to out swing path, and to make sure I rotated by body correctly as I seem to not want to turn my hips in the backswing or the follow through.
I hit balls for him in two lessons and then he said you are good, go play. I thought I was good too as I was hitting a seven iron around 147 yards with a 3 yard draw and could even fade it a little if needed on the range.

I then went to the course. First hole - 410 yard par four - Decent drive (shot 1), left myself about 160 out. Hit a decent six iron (shot 2) but did not account for the wind which was blowing against my draw and I ended up left of the green with about a 10 yard's to the green. I pitched up (shot 3) onto the green and ran it by the hole 30 feet (hit it thin). Then I hit a bad putt which I misread the slope of the green (shot 4) and then had a 12 feet side hiller for bogey. I hit a decent putt (shot 5) which just burned the edge of the hole (the grain of the grass was with the slope which caused the ball to curve more )and then I tapped in (shot 6) for a double bogey.

Second hole - 530 yard par five - I hit an OK drive (shot 1) but found myself on the edge of the fairway with a major tree in the way. I was about 240 yards from the front of the green and instead of taking my medicine and hitting a wedge back into the fairway I tried to hit a big cut (shot 2) to avoid the tree (miracle shot). I did barely avoid the tree but the cut part of the shot did not work and I ended up in the trees along the other side of the fairway about 140 yards from my previous spot. So I am lying two with about 160 yards to the green but I do have a window to shoot through (albeit small and lots of overhanging branches). I decide to hit a knock down 5 iron through the alley way of trees to the front of the green. I line up and hit (shot 3) and it was heading for the green until it hit one of the branches of the trees which knocked the ball down and I am back in the trees again. I am now only about a hundred yards out but I have one really large tree in my way so I decide I can hit it over the tree with a wedge. I hit it (shot 4) and the ball clips the top of the tree knocking it thankfully back onto the fairway but off the green by twenty yards. I pitched up onto the green (shot 5) but overestimated the slope and came up woefully short. So now I am lying 5 on the green with about a 60 foot putt for bogey. I did hit the putt pretty well (shot 6) but ended up not accounting for the speed once the putt got over a ridge and I ran it past the hole by 12 feet. The ball stopped at the first cut of grass on the edge of the green. The ball was against the collar of grass, I decided that the putter was not going to get through the tall grass so I picked a wedge and tried to blade it like I had seen the pros do. I topped the ball (shot 7) and it bounced just enough to get onto the green leaving me short about 10 feet. I hit another good putt (shot 8) that just came up a tad short and I tapped in (shot 9) for a quadruple bogey.

The holes after that I tried to play catch up and played the rest of the round risky as I was 6 over through the first two.

This was just last week!

I ended up shooting +15 for nine holes which is above my handicap. After I got home I replayed those first two holes in my head where everything went wrong and discovered it wasn't my swing that was hurting my game, it was the grey matter between my ears.

I watched the Masters as much as I could over the weekend and I was amazed that I saw the world's best do the same things that I do on my local course.

I saw Cam Smith try to fly a five iron onto the green at 13 from 250 yards out because he had just made a triple at 12. Luckily he did not get all of it and came just a few feet from hitting into the water and taking another penalty.

I saw Cam also miss hit a 9 iron onto 12 coming up well short into the water causing him to take triple.

Cam is a great player, but I saw him make the same mistakes that I make as well.

I have another chance to play smart today, lets hope my brain decides to cooperate and I commit to the shot and hit is square.

 

[Toto'sDad]

@Toto'sDad golf is such a mental game. It is amazing to see these guys work themselves around a golf course.

I have for years been a 20+ handicap usually shooting between 90-100. I decided I wanted to get better so I started looking at lessons. I went to a few and found that my swing actually was not my issue. Disclaimer, I did have some set up issues that caused some problems but all in all the pro did not really change my swing, told me to stand taller (my weight was too far forward), told me to concentrate on an in to out swing path, and to make sure I rotated by body correctly as I seem to not want to turn my hips in the backswing or the follow through.
I hit balls for him in two lessons and then he said you are good, go play. I thought I was good too as I was hitting a seven iron around 147 yards with a 3 yard draw and could even fade it a little if needed on the range.

I then went to the course. First hole - 410 yard par four - Decent drive (shot 1), left myself about 160 out. Hit a decent six iron (shot 2) but did not account for the wind which was blowing against my draw and I ended up left of the green with about a 10 yard's to the green. I pitched up (shot 3) onto the green and ran it by the hole 30 feet (hit it thin). Then I hit a bad putt which I misread the slope of the green (shot 4) and then had a 12 feet side hiller for bogey. I hit a decent putt (shot 5) which just burned the edge of the hole (the grain of the grass was with the slope which caused the ball to curve more )and then I tapped in (shot 6) for a double bogey.

Second hole - 530 yard par five - I hit an OK drive (shot 1) but found myself on the edge of the fairway with a major tree in the way. I was about 240 yards from the front of the green and instead of taking my medicine and hitting a wedge back into the fairway I tried to hit a big cut (shot 2) to avoid the tree (miracle shot). I did barely avoid the tree but the cut part of the shot did not work and I ended up in the trees along the other side of the fairway about 140 yards from my previous spot. So I am lying two with about 160 yards to the green but I do have a window to shoot through (albeit small and lots of overhanging branches). I decide to hit a knock down 5 iron through the alley way of trees to the front of the green. I line up and hit (shot 3) and it was heading for the green until it hit one of the branches of the trees which knocked the ball down and I am back in the trees again. I am now only about a hundred yards out but I have one really large tree in my way so I decide I can hit it over the tree with a wedge. I hit it (shot 4) and the ball clips the top of the tree knocking it thankfully back onto the fairway but off the green by twenty yards. I pitched up onto the green (shot 5) but overestimated the slope and came up woefully short. So now I am lying 5 on the green with about a 60 foot putt for bogey. I did hit the putt pretty well (shot 6) but ended up not accounting for the speed once the putt got over a ridge and I ran it past the hole by 12 feet. The ball stopped at the first cut of grass on the edge of the green. The ball was against the collar of grass, I decided that the putter was not going to get through the tall grass so I picked a wedge and tried to blade it like I had seen the pros do. I topped the ball (shot 7) and it bounced just enough to get onto the green leaving me short about 10 feet. I hit another good putt (shot 8) that just came up a tad short and I tapped in (shot 9) for a quadruple bogey.

The holes after that I tried to play catch up and played the rest of the round risky as I was 6 over through the first two.

This was just last week!

I ended up shooting +15 for nine holes which is above my handicap. After I got home I replayed those first two holes in my head where everything went wrong and discovered it wasn't my swing that was hurting my game, it was the grey matter between my ears.

I watched the Masters as much as I could over the weekend and I was amazed that I saw the world's best do the same things that I do on my local course.

I saw Cam Smith try to fly a five iron onto the green at 13 from 250 yards out because he had just made a triple at 12. Luckily he did not get all of it and came just a few feet from hitting into the water and taking another penalty.

I saw Cam also miss hit a 9 iron onto 12 coming up well short into the water causing him to take triple.

Cam is a great player, but I saw him make the same mistakes that I make as well.

I have another chance to play smart today, lets hope my brain decides to cooperate and I commit to the shot and hit is square.

My son has the same problem, he has absorbed my inadequate to the process lessons well, but on the course, he can't quit trying to hit it under one limb of a tree while going over the limb of the next tree in front of him after that. He is finally learning what I told him at the start, always take your medicine, unless not doing so will not hurt you any worse than chipping back out.

Here's a good tip, quit looking at the pin, my wife does this all the time, and consequently hits into trouble. If you're shooting in the high nineties, birdies are an accident, not a plan. Look at the green as having a goal post on either side of it, and try and hit between the goal post. ALWAYS take one more club than you think you need from a hundred yards out, and PLAY for BOGIE not par. Do this, and you will occasionally make a par, which is a birdie for you! Remember hitting past the hole ten feet is the exact same distance as being ten feet short! Ninety nine percent of golfers are short on EVERY hole.

I told my wife (who watched a lot of the tournament) when Cameron got to 12, this is make or break time. She asked why? I told her many would be champions dreams lie at the bottom Rae's creek, (ask Tiger). Sure enough, he duffed it into the creek with the worst swing he made all week. THEN you could see the same expression on his face you can see on your golfing buddies faces when they chunk it in the drink. It's like bees are buzzing around inside their head, their mouths are dry, and I'll bet they could drink a gallon of water and not be able to pee! He would have went into a catatonic state if fate had not stopped his five iron from going in the drink! He did pull himself together enough to at least make a finish to get some money.

When his countrymen Greg Norman folded up, and had to be comforted by Nick Faldo, as if Faldo were holding a baby in his arms when Greg LOST the Master, even Irwin's whiff at the ball cannot compare with the picture of that tragedy. At least Cameron lived to fight another day!