Tuesday, May 31, 2011

5 Reasons Why Golfers Hate Florida Scrambles

1.)  Don't get to play out my own ball
2.)  Watching four people miss the same putt
3.)  Takes 5 hours to finish with lots of waiting
4.)  We use the ’A’ player's ball 90% of the time
5.)  The winning team is always stacked

Monday, May 23, 2011

The Seven Stages of Golf Grief

The Seven Stages of Grief has helped people all over the world deal with grief, loss and change.

    1.    Shock
    2.    Denial
    3.    Bargaining
    4.    Fear
    5.    Anger
    6.    Despair
    7.    and finally, Acceptance

Whether it’s the death of a loved one, the death of a marriage, or other life-changing event, 
these seven steps identify the choices we make that allow us to move 
forward, making the changes that result in our integrating the loss 
rather than being stuck in it forever.

My research has confirmed that the same process applies to golf.  Coming to terms with the inadequacy and injustice of one’s golf game is acheived through the Seven Stages of Golf Grief:

Shock“I can't believe I'm still not getting any better at this game.  My dream is to play better, consistent golf.”

Denial: “Another crappy round. This isn't happening to me, I'll play better next round.  My golf dreams will come true.”

Bargaining:  “Ok, if I buy this new set of clubs and take a lot of expensive lessons then I'll get better, right?”

Fear“Oh no. what if I never get good at this game.  What will my friends and family think?”

Anger:  “I hate this game.  With all the time and money I spend on golf I deserve to play better.”

Despair: “I'm never going to be able to enjoy this game.”

Acceptance:  “This is as good as Iím ever gonna get.  My golf dream is dead.”

Grieve not golfers.  There is another group of seven that offers golfing fulfillment and satisfaction.  It’s the 7 Amendments to the USGA Rules of Golf.  It’s the way golf was originally meant to be played and enjoyed.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Where Did The Term Mulligan Come From?

But where did the term Mulligan come from?  After much search, here's the best summary I could find:

“The term Mulligan is an unusual one. Like many golf terms it is steeped in controversy. Just where exactly did this term originate? Is it a reference to a person, a combination of words, or is it derivative of another language.

One proposed explanation is that in the late 1920s, a Canadian Golfer, David Mulligan, played golf with a group of friends at the St. Lambert Country Club, outside Montreal. David being the only golfer with a car, ended up driving everyone to the course. The drive took him over many rough roads and a really bumpy bridge found at the entrance to the course. Due the rough driving conditions, Mulligan's hands were in pretty bad shape by the time the trip was over. His “buddies” were nice enough to give him and extra drive off the first tee.


Many other clubs have claimed to also have a golfer that the term is based on, either mulligan or Mel Egan, etc. who would hit another shot whenever he could think of a good excuse to justify it. Another theory is that a group of golfers all hit bad tee shots and declared that they would “hit 'em all again”.”

We at the SGA salute you David Mulligan for your pioneering efforts on behalf of recreational golfers.  You are truly the original SortaGolfer.



And to all you unsatisfied recreational golfers, remember to abide by SortaGolf Rules Amendment # 7, "A Mulligan Per Round".

Friday, May 20, 2011

The Golf Swing Is Impossibly Hard

It’s not your fault that your golf game is so frustrating.  The deck is stacked against you, starting with the golf swing.

According to a study conducted by the USGA only one tenth of one percent of male
 golfers shoot par golf consistently.  Only two-and-one-half percent are below a five handicap.  Why is that?…Because the Golf Swing is Impossibly Hard!

We’ve all suspected that was the case but it took the scientific mind of Jack Kuykendal of Kuykendall Golf to discover the cold, undeniable science behind the tyranny of the traditional golf swing.

“These golfers, in great and ever increasing numbers, have gone off to some
 golf course in hopes, really in belief, of improving their golf
game.  They usually fail because they begin with a seriously
 flawed concept: The Traditional Finger-Grip Golf Swing. 

This is 
why the average handicap has remained static for years, even though
 there has been an overabundance of claimed improvements both instruction and club design.



The 
traditional finger grip demands an extremely complex, unnatural swing 
action that masters you, the average player and even 
better-than-average.  You can never master it.



The 
body, arms, hands club head and club face must be rotated on multiple
planes in both the back swing and the downswing.  These completely
 unnatural complex rotary movements make it extremely difficult to
 square the club face consistently at impact.

It
 is especially difficult even for a golfer of the highest proficiency to 
perform this action and square the club face consistently. 

Except
 for this very narrow, exceptionally gifted segment of the world’s 
golfing population and some relatively few others, all of whom have
 worked considerable long and hard at perfecting the impossible to
 perfect, it is extremely difficult to perform this complex motion and
square the club face consistently while it is moving at close to 100 
miles an hour.



Any
golfer is allowed about two degrees of club face error when hitting a
golf ball and trying to keep it in the fairway.  Not to hit it
 where it is exactly intended to go, but just to keep the ball somewhere
in the fairway.

 

Statistics
 show only 1% of golfers blessed with world class tempo and timing,
 and have at least 5 hours a day to practice, can regularly play at par 
or better.”



No wonder we’re all frustrated.  Thanks Prof. Jack.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Hot Balls: Why The Double Standard

It takes a pretty secure SortaGolfer to openly pull out a sleeve of ‘hot balls’ on the 1st tee.  Even though Rules Amendment #6 clearly states, “All Equipment Is Conforming”.

For some reason, using a ‘hot ball’ to get an extra 20 yards from the tee box is seen as the moral equivalent of taking steroids or using a corked bat.

Ironically, the same standard doesn’t apply to the other equipment we use, our clubs.  We don’t give a second thought to using a custom-fitted driver made with space age metals, graphite shafts, over-sized club heads (and spending $400 or more) in the hopes of gaining that same 20 yards.

A new TaylorMade  driver or a sleeve of “Hot Balls”, aren’t they just different paths to the same destination?

Will hot balls ever be widely accepted?  Not if the USGA has its way and that’s good news for pricey club manufacturers.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Your Golf Swing Has A Genetic Barrier

Everyone has a timing barrier, a level that each specific person cannot surpass.

This applies to the traditional golf swing by pre-determining how well, in terms of tempo and timing, each specific person can perform the five complex rotary motions that this extremely difficult swing requires.

Your uniquely personal genetic timing barrier affects your every attempt to keep club face error at impact to two degrees or less. Each person's range of club face error is pre-determined by that person's cerebellum and other brain circuits that govern coordination of body parts.

Your tempo and timing can never get better than the timing capacity of your brain circuits.

Your genetic timing can only be developed, not improved, because your tempo and timing potential was established before you ever picked up a club. You were born with it.

Said another way, you’re parents are as much responsible for your crappy golf game as you are.  Something to remember this Father’s Day.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Yes I Would Larry.

The Desert Sun sports writer Larry Bohannan article asks the question:
"So, would you use equipment that was non-conforming to USGA rules if you thought it would help you play better golf and make you a happier, more well-rounded and cheerful human being?"'  more
He correctly identifies that historically when an equipment manufacture dares to exceed the arbitrary equipment mandates "the USGA tends to win these kinds of stare-downs".

At the SortaGolf Association, we believe that ALL equipment should be conforming....along with six other common sense rules amendments that will dramatically increase your enjoyment of the game we love.  Learn more about the SortaGolf rules here.