Jim's Golf Blog

Seve Ballesteros targets return to golf in 2010

2009-07-21T10:32:00.000-07:00

Seve Ballesteros plans to return to major championship golf in a year's time by competing in The Open at St Andrews. Ballesteros, 52, who is recuperating in his native Spain having undergone surgery four times on a brain tumour, announced his retirement from competitive golf immediately before The Open at Carnoustie in 2007 after constant back troubles.

Yet it has emerged that, as part of his recovery, he has targeted a return at St Andrews. "I would love to play there again next year for the British public," Ballesteros said in Spain yesterday. "It's an objective I would like to turn into reality."

If Ballesteros does play, the 2010 Open could feature some of the most emotional crowd scenes ever witnessed in golf, with Tom Watson, another great, set to say his farewells, too. Watson, 59, who was one shot clear at the end of the third round, has said he will not be back again after next July, due to a rule change meaning that former winners over 60 now have to qualify.

The prospect of Ballesteros returning was welcomed by officials. While attendance figures at Turnberry, any appearance by Ballesteros would boost crowds and revenue at St Andrews. "It would be absolutely fantastic if Seve could make it," said David Hill, the Royal and Ancient's director of championships. "He would be made very welcome by everyone at St Andrews and, of course, by the R&A."

Ballesteros was diagnosed as having a brain tumour last October. He has subsequently admitted that "my life was hanging by a thread" and underwent chemotherapy as part of his treatment.

"When the doctors explained to me what they had done in my brain, it was like a miracle," he said.

Joke Time..

2009-06-10T04:18:00.001-07:00

A woman was out golfing one day when she hit her ball into the woods.

She

went into the woods to look for it and found a frog in a trap. The frog

said

to her, "If you release me from this trap, I will grant you 3 wishes."

The

woman freed the frog. The frog said, "Thank you, but I failed to mention

that there was a condition to your wishes - that whatever you wish for,

your

husband will get 10 times more or better!" The woman said, "That would

okay." For her first wish, she wanted to be the most beautiful woman in

the

world. The frog warned her, "You do realize that this wish will also

make

your husband the most handsome man in the world, an Adonis,that women

will

flock to." The woman replied, "That will be okay because I will be the

most

beautiful woman and he will only have eyes for me." So, KAZAM - she's

the

most beautiful woman in the world!

For her second wish, she wanted to be the richest woman in the world.

The

frog said, "That will make your husband the richest man in the world and

will be ten times richer than you." The woman said, "That will be okay

because what's mine is his and what's his is mine." So, KAZAM she's the

richest woman in the world! The frog then enquired about her third wish,

and

she answered, "I'd like a mild heart attack." Moral of the story: Women

are

too clever for men. Don't mess with them.

Murphy's Law: Tour behind Phil and Amy (an Excellent article)

2009-05-27T05:07:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! Sports' Brian Murphy believes the US PGA Tour's reaction to Amy Mickelson's cancer diagnosis proves it can be a great support system.

Phil Mickelson takes break for wife's cancer treatment

2009-05-22T02:15:00.000-07:00

Phil Mickelson announced yesterday he is to stop playing tournamentgolf indefinitely while his wife, Amy, receives treatment for breast cancer. In a statement released by his agency, the American said his 37-year-old wife had been diagnosed with the disease after extensive tests. She is expected to undergo surgery within the next two weeks.

Mickelson was due to play in this week's PGA Tour event in Texas, the Byron Nelson Championship, and next week's Crowne Plaza Invitational in Fort Worth, a tournament he won last year. The left-hander, currently ranked No2 in the world, was among the favourites for next month's US Open at Bethpage, New York, where he came second to Tiger Woods in 2002.

Clearly his return there must now be in some doubt, as will his entry forthe Open Championship at Turnberry. The Mickelsons met in 1992, when the golfer was a student at Arizona State University and she was a cheerleader with the Phoenix Suns basketball team. They married four years later and have three children, Amanda, aged nine, Sophie, aged seven, and Evan, who is six.

Lowry makes golf history by winning on Tour debut

2009-05-18T03:46:00.000-07:00

Even for the Irish these were wild celebrations. The gallery swarmed on to the 18th green like a boxing crowd invading the ring and lifted aloft their national hero while spraying him in bubbly. The scenes at Co Louth Golf Club last night suggested this was no ordinary European victory and indeed it wasn't. Shane Lowry had become the first amateur to win on his very first Tour outing. And that is as incredible an achievement as it sounds.

Perhaps the scale of his feat in taking the 3 Irish Open was best summed up by the identity of one of the open-mouthed who sprinted across the putting surface to engulf the new champion. For the last year or so, Rory McIlroy has been dropping jaws everywhere with his ripping up of all that had previously been deemed possible for a young Irishman. Yet here he was hailing the miracle of a friend and former rival.

As Sybase Classic arrives, golf world still waiting for Michelle Wie to make impact

2009-05-14T02:03:00.000-07:00

He had just played 36 holes with the best female golfer he had ever seen. This is what Rick Hartmann remembers thinking as he left Canoe Brook Country Club three years ago.

Thousands had come to Summit for a U.S. Open qualifier unlike any in history, trampling across fairways and climbing trees for a better view. Hartmann watched how his playing partner handled the pressure, how she powered her drives past his on the fairway and shaped her shots beautifully to the green, and figured it was only a matter of time.

Michelle Wie would own her sport.

He is still waiting. So is the LPGA. Wie returns to New Jersey this week for the Sybase Classic not as the superstar everyone expected, but just another struggling rookie searching for a breakthrough.

She still talks boldly about beating the men someday on the PGA Tour, but for now -- and likely for a while -- she is trying to gain a foothold as a full-time player on the women's tour.

Henrik Stenson claims Players Championship

2009-05-12T01:44:00.000-07:00

Alex Cejka choked. Most at Sawgrass expected that.

Nobody, however, believed the great Tiger Woods would do something similar.

Yet that is exactly what happened as Henrik Stenson made himself the Players champion to record the biggest victory of his career with a sensational final-round 66.

Tiger Woods 'plodding along' in Florida while Ian Poulter eyes victory

2009-05-10T03:18:00.000-07:00

Tiger Woods triumphed in last year's US Open on one leg and last night he was threatening to win the Players Championship left-handed. There is seemingly no hazard, no obstruction, no setback that Woods cannot find some way to surmount and the sheer bloody-mindedness of his third round yesterday left the Sawgrass galleries gasping.

Man rescued from golf course bog

2009-05-10T03:13:00.000-07:00

Firefighters have rescued a man stuck up to his knees in boggy ground on a West Lothian golf course.

Rescuers wearing full waterproof gear were called to Bathgate Golf Course about 0210 BST.

They had to ask the man, who was afraid to move in case he fell into deeper water and mud, to shout and flash lights from his mobile phone.

The man who police said was local and in his mid-20s was finally located, uninjured, just before 0300 BST.

He had got trapped in the deep mud after taking a short-cut through the golf course on his way home from a night out and was scared to move in case he got into deep water.

Tiger Woods left frustrated as he falls off the pace at Sawgrass

2009-05-08T10:27:00.000-07:00

THE suffering just goes on for Tiger Woods - and life isn't getting any better for Sergio Garcia either.

Woods, his standing as world No.1 under serious threat, putted like a pussycat yesterday.

While plenty of his rivals at the Players Championship were enjoying a birdiefest at Sawgrass - David Toms, for example, had eight of them -Woods looked like he couldn't hole out into a bucket.

Ballesteros makes '90% recovery'

2009-05-06T05:27:00.000-07:00

Golf legend Seve Ballesteros says he is "recovered 90%" and is hitting golf balls again after undergoing extensive treatment for a brain tumour.

The 52-year-old five-time major winner has had four operations and recently made his first public appearance since the start of his treatment.

"Now I am perfect, I can do any kind of sport, running, swimming, rowing and I am also hitting golf shots," he said.

"The fact that I was a sportsman and used to competing and fighting helped."

Fantasy Golf: Play up Players

2009-05-06T05:23:00.000-07:00

The US Tour tees it up at TPC Sawgrass in Florida this week for the prestigious Players Championship.

Australia's Scott Strange wins Volvo China Open

2009-04-19T03:46:00.000-07:00

BEIJING : Australia's Scott Strange hit three birdies in four holes on the back nine to win the Volvo China Open on Sunday by a stroke from Spain's Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano.

Another Australian, Ashley Hall, and New Zealander Mark Brown, who both broke the course record on Saturday, carded 71 and 69 respectively to tie for third alongside England's Richard Finch, two strokes adrift.

Welshman Stephen Dodd and England's David Dixon ended a shot further behind at the European Tour and OneAsia Tour co-sanctioned tournament.

Strange began the final round four off the pace but birdies at the fifth and eighth saw him move into contention on a congested leaderboard.

A par putt at the 12th slid by the hole but it proved a temporary setback as birdies at the 14th and 15th were followed by another at the 17th for a round of 68.

Fernandez-Castano signed for a 72 after a birdie at the last saw him finish level for the day, enough to claim second place.

The victory earned Strange a place in the elite 16-man field for the Volvo World Matchplay Championship this year in Spain. - AFP/ms

Why cant I Drive the Ball like Tiger Woods?

2009-04-17T08:01:00.000-07:00

That's the question, why cant I driver the ball like Tiger Woods?. It could have something to do with the fact that I am 6'tall, in my mid 40's and weighing in a little over my ideal weight. But that said, even in my 20's when I was a single figure handicap player I could never maintain that consistency. The one thing that I am convinced of is that he will be around for a good few more years and I, like millions of others, will continue to enjoy watching him play.

2009-04-16T06:51:00.000-07:00

Golf - At the Range

2009-04-16T06:03:00.000-07:00

Most casual golfers keep their
Golf bag in the garage until they get the call from a friend to go play a round. Their expectations on how well they will play or normally pretty low and they have decided that they are just going out to swing the sticks and enjoy the day. Then when the round is over and their score is even worse than they had anticipated, they wonder why they didn’t perform better. The answer is usually pretty simple – because they didn’t practice.

The best way to improve one’s golf game is to spend some time at golf driving ranges. It doesn’t even have to be frequent visits or long practice sessions. Just going out to the range and working on basic swing techniques should allow the golfer to get a feel for what works and what doesn’t. Also, golfers should go to the driving range with the mindset that they are going there to practice and should take the session seriously.

There are so many golf driving ranges that have sprung up all over that it is hard not to find one in America within ten miles of your home. Many are owned and operated by golf professionals and have instructors available on-site for private lessons. It is also relatively inexpensive to go practice at the range, where a bucket of practice balls normally range in price between $2.00 and $5.00. Most golf courses have golf driving ranges on site to allow a golfer to warm up and practice before playing a round on the course.

When you go to the range, it is recommended that you limber up with some exercises before swinging at balls. Once you are loose, you should start by hitting some pitch shots and work your way up to the longer clubs. Usually about ten shots per club will give an adequate amount of practice while accounting for the number of balls in the bucket. Most golf driving ranges have yardage markers and flags scattered throughout the landing area, so it is a good idea to try to use them as targets when aligning your body and making your swing.

Many golf driving ranges also have a snack bar to grabs some food or a cool beverage. Some ranges even have a pro shop where you can purchase golf equipment and accessories. A good range will also have practice bunkers for sand shots and a pitch and putting green to work on those aspects of the game.

Golf -Bunker Shots

2009-04-16T05:56:00.000-07:00

One of the most difficult shots in all of golf is a shot from a sand bunker just off the green. These greenside bunker shots cause the golfer to ask him a lot of questions, and more often than not, the answers are usually wrong. We all seem to know that we need to hit slightly behind the ball and take some sand; but that is only a fraction of the complexity that goes into making a successful sand save. Follow these golf tips and you should find yourself getting out in one shot, and placing the ball where you want, every time.

First, open your stance and dig your feet into the sand a little. The ball should also be placed forward in your golf stance to cause a higher trajectory once the ball is struck. Ensuring that your setup is correct in the sand is critical.

Next, open the clubface to flatten it out a little – this will make sure the clubface slices through the sand. At this point, you should focus on your hands. The grip should be a little looser than the normal golf swing, but still firm enough that the club does not turn upon impact with the sand. A weaker grip should ensure that you do not turn the clubface inward on your swing and close it when you make contact.

When making the golf swing, you should primarily try to keep the body still, and focus on just using your arms, and especially your wrists. A powerful shot is not needed to get the ball out of the sand, but a full wrist cock at the top of the back swing should be employed to make sure you bring the club fully through on the downswing.

For the right-handed golfer, your left hand should just be used to steady the club in your hand and the right hand is really going to be the hand used to apply force to the swing. This should naturally occur by using the full wrist cock discussed earlier. After making contact with the sand, the right hand should continue to push through, and a nice, high follow-through should be focused upon.

At this point, the ball should be coming out with a fair amount of sand. One of the mistakes the average golfer makes on the sand shot is chopping down on the ball. When you chop onto the ball, the angle of the club strikes the sand as such to where enough sand is not lifted from the bunker to help propel the ball forward.

The Golf Grip

2009-04-16T05:49:00.001-07:00

Golf - The Grip

2009-04-16T05:39:00.000-07:00

Although it seems that gripping a golf club may be the most elemental part of the golf swing, and maybe it is, it could also be the most important part of the swing. Gripping the club too tight or too loose, gripping it the wrong way or in the wrong place, could throw off your entire swing. Having an improper grip can greatly detract from the power and accuracy of the swing, and for the advanced golfer, it can hamper the way they try to shape a shot.

There are primarily two types of grips that a golfer should use, and neither of them is a hand-over-hand baseball, or axe handle, grip. The interlocking is where the golfer slides his left index finger between the ring and pinkie fingers of the right hand. The overlapping grip occurs when the golfer lays his left index finger on top of his right pinkie or on top of the notch between his pinkie and ring fingers. These grips allow the hands to hold the club steady while cocking and rolling the wrists throughout the swing.

The grip should begin about one finger width from the end of the club, or more, for shorter controlled shots. When the hands are together, the club should lie along the callous pad line of the hands and not in the palms. When the hands are closed around the club, the thumbs should be aligned straight down the club grip. Your forearms should form a “V” down toward the club.

Although there is no hard fast rule as to how firmly the golfer should grip the club, the prevailing belief is that it should be loose, yet firm enough to keep it from moving in your hands. The swing will naturally cause the hands to strengthen the grip, so try to keep “loose grip” in your mind throughout the swing. Because there is no rulebook on the grip, it is just one of those aspects of the game that the golfer will have to experiment with, and adjust, through repetitive practice and play.
Through practice, the grip is something that should become second nature to the golfer. It is not something that should require as much thought as other aspects of the golf swing, but its importance should never be forgotten. It is recommended that a golfer always keep a club nearby, and just practice applying and reapplying the grip over and over.

The Golf Swing

2009-04-16T05:30:00.000-07:00

There are some basic elements of the golf swing that the golfer should use as a mental checklist when taking a shot. The first element is the body’s alignment toward the target. Stand five to ten feet behind the ball, with the ball directly between your body and the desired target. Locate guidance targets on the ground (leaves, blades of grass, dirt, etc.) inches in front and behind the golf ball that should be on a direct line with where you are standing and the target. Keep your eyes on those ground targets as you approach the ball.

Align the clubface behind the ball, with the center of the clubface on a direct line between the two ground targets you have selected. Grip the club with just enough tension to keep it from slipping in your hands throughout the course of the golf swing. Align your feet on a parallel plain with your ground targets, shoulder width apart, and the knees slightly bent. The front foot should be pointed slightly outward, toward the target, to allow your hips to flow freely through the swing.

Tilt your torso slightly towards the ball while keeping your back straight. The arms should now hang freely in front of the body to grip the club. The shoulders should be parallel with the ground targets and the toes, and your head should be tilted downward with your eyes on the ball. These motions described are known as the set-up, or addressing the ball.

You are ready to begin the golf swing. Keeping your back elbow tucked as closely to your ribs as possible, slowly take the club back on a straight line along the plain of the ground targets. Keep your front elbow locked throughout the back swing and never take your eyes off the ball. This motion should naturally tuck your chin into your front shoulder. Hips should remain still and slightly tilted, while the front knee will turn inward. At the apex of the back swing, allow your wrists to break slightly.

Bring the club downward toward the ball, uncoiling the wrists, and shifting your weight onto your front foot. You should attempt to generate force and speed on your down swing, while never take the clubface off of the target line. Upon making contact with the ball, the clubface should strike the ground as it moves through, taking a divot from the ground in the area past where the ball was lying, and through your second ground target.

Finish the golf swing with a nice, high follow through of the club. Your hips should be turned toward the target. Your weight should have shifted, and should now be firmly on your front foot. Smile and watch the ball fly toward the target.

Golf Courses

2009-04-16T05:25:00.000-07:00

Many factors go into choosing a regular golf course, or the “home course”, for a golfer. Among the most important things to consider for most are cost, location, the normal condition of the course, facilities, amenities and service. Most golfers are not only looking for a course that they can enjoy time after time, but also a place that they can be proud to invite guests.

The most overriding factors in course selection are normally location and cost. Considering that a trip to even the closest the golf courses will be at least a five hour excursion, a player may want to limit his drive time so as not to take up a larger portion of his day. The cost of a round is also a major consideration, but costs can be reduced at some courses by applying for a club membership, or by purchasing multi-round packages.

As cost is such a consideration, the issue of value comes enters into the equation. That is to say, is the golfer getting out of his round of golf the money that he has applied toward it?

Most golfers want to play at a course that is well kept. The fairways should be neatly mowed several times a week, greens should be manicured daily, trees should be trimmed, repairs should be ongoing and facilities should be clean and accommodating.

Putting in a fair amount of practice before a round is vital to shooting a low score, so players should also consider the practice facilities provided by the course. One would hope that a good course would have a driving range to allow the golfer to warm up his golf swing before the round. A manicured practice putting green is also a plus, to work on some putting and chipping.

Facilities are also important to a lot of golfers, and they may be looking for a pro shop, a snack bar and/ or a locker room. Most golf courses do have a fully operational pro shop that sell a wide variety of golf equipment and accessories. There is usually a large price mark-up on many items in a pro shop, and this is a good source of revenue for the golf course. Although they are not standard, many courses include some sort of restaurant or bar for the golfers to relax in after a long round of golf.

Finally, as a consumer, golfers like to be treated to a high quality of customer service at the golf course. Most of the staff at courses are trained to deliver friendly and efficient customer service to its guests.

Review of Jack Barker's Golf Complex, Northampton, UK

Golf Lessons

2009-04-16T05:04:00.001-07:00

Every person who plays golf wants to shoot a low score, but they often find themselves with a handicap that hovers in a certain range for a long period of time. It is rare that someone drastically improves his or her game just by playing more often. Practicing at a driving range may help, but you are caught in the quandary of having to self-asses what you are doing right and wrong. When many golfers decide to take the game seriously, they should seek out professional instructors for private golf lessons.

The Professional Golfers Association (PGA) is comprised of members that are the instructors of the game of golf. These instructors gained their certification to teach the game through years of studying various aspects of the game and golf course management, work programs including pro shop management, and they had to pass an aptitude test. Additionally, these golf professionals must also keep up their credentials through ongoing continuing education programs.

Most golf lessons with a Pro take place, in hour-long sessions, at a golf course or driving range, or they could take place at a golf shop that houses a computer swing analyzer. In addition to one-on-one lessons, many PGA professionals have begun to use video and computer technology to analyze the golfer’s swing. Many of the professionals have taken advanced training classes to learn the biomechanics of the golf swing. Additionally, the pros can help you with the mental aspects of the game, and give practical advice.

You may find golf professionals in your local Yellow Pages phone book, or by going online to www.pga.com. There you can find listings of local professionals that can schedule appointments to help you improve your game. Private golf lessons from a PGA Professional can range in price between $50 and $100 per hour. However, these costs are generally reduced if the golfer chooses to purchase a package of multiple one-hour lessons over a period of time.

Many people have also started planning vacations around golf academies run by PGA professionals. These academies are often geared toward a full day of instruction, and often include several rounds of golf with the instructor. It is prudent to shop carefully and ask questions when looking at golf academies because some are geared toward one-on-one instruction, and some are set up to instruct large groups of golfers at once, and may not come with the personal attention that one may desire.