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St. Andrews, Scotland

Peninsula Golf Journal              May 2011 - Vol 1, Issue 2 

IN THIS ISSUE
A UNIQUE GOLF STORY
GOLF NEW LISKEARD STYLE
THE ONE PIECE TAKEAWAY
THE SHORT GAME
2011 PGA MAJORS
GOLF BALL TREASURES
LESSON INFORMATION

EQUIPMENT NOTE 

Make certain the grooves on your irons are always clean.  The grooves create spin on the ball and will deliver you a truer ball flight, and more spin on those approach shots.   The game is tough enough!  Clean those grooves!


BE SMART IN THE RAIN

If you get caught out playing in the rain, keep your towel and glove(s) up inside the spokes of the umbrella.  It's the driest place possible!  Golf and rain are a tough mix!  Stay dry and you will always have the edge.


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THE EDITOR'S TEE-TIME 

Tiger Woods

This past month we all had the pleasure of witnessing a first class Masters Golf Tournament.  Could the final round be any more exciting?  How about the quality of golf shots hit?  Can it get any better?  It goes without saying; having Tiger in the hunt on Sunday certainly helped build the drama and set the stage for a great finish.  Speaking of Tiger, I personally didn't think he would do much at the Masters; in fact I was thinking he might even miss the cut.  Was I wrong or what?  I find it simply unbelievable how Tiger can still perform at such a high level with all the troubles in his world.  I based my opinion primarily on how little and how poorly he has played this year.  Nevertheless, lesson learned, don't count him out!

We have not heard as of yet, but I wonder whether Tiger will play at Shaughnessy this year in the Canadian Open.  If you recall Tiger won the Canadian Open in Year 2000, setting a blistering tournament record of 22 under over 4 rounds......Is that kicking butt or what!  If you would like to revisit that moment, hop onto YouTube and key in Memorable Moments, RBC Canadian Open.  Check out Tiger's 6 iron , from the trap, from 213 yards, over water to the 18th green.  Having said that, if I were Tiger's manager, I would get Tiger to play in a lot of the smaller PGA venues he has not participated in the past.   His persona has taken some mighty big hits this past year; in my opinion he would be well served to get out and press the flesh with regular golf fans and rebuild his brand.  With 3 more majors still to happen in 2011 maybe Tiger can show us his magic again.....I hope so! 

 

Scott

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

 

The golf swing is like a suitcase into which we are trying to pack one too many things.

~John Updike

A UNIQUE GOLF STORY 

UNIVERSITY GOLF CLUB

 

 

 

My father told me the story of a man in the vaudeville days (30's) at University Golf Club (in Vancouver) who shot a 39 on the front nine with no arms, that's correct, no arms. He held the club between his shoulder and his chin. What made the feat even more spectacular was the game was played at night by car light.

 

I told this story at a CPGA event once to a group of young professionals. They thought the story seemed totally ridiculous.

My friend, the late Ernie Brown, Head Professional at the Old Quilchena Golf Club and the Jericho Club (in Vancouver) stepped into the conversation and told us he had first hand knowledge of the game, he had in fact caddied for the gentleman.

GOLF NEW LISKEARD STYLE...NEW YEAR'S 1932
 

Golf New Liskeard



















 

New Liskeard is a town located in northeast Ontario, near the town of Cobalt.  The postcard below is dated 1932.  What is particularly interesting about the photo card is:

a.       Every man is wearing a hat, a tie and a suit.  

b.       Check out those stove pipe golf bags.  Pull carts?

c.        Northern Ontario and no snow on New Year's Day? 

d.       The hitter is left handed...very much a right handed game in those days.

e.       The Professional must be wearing the plus 4's.


THE ONE PIECE TAKEAWAY

1st Greg Norman

 

 

 

 

When teaching a new student I always watch to see the initial takeaway of the club.  I interpret the one piece takeaway as being initiated with the arms and not the hands.   Meaning the club is drawn away from the ball with the forearms and the hands more as a single unit.  My experience suggests those that dominate with the hands tend to pick the club up; thereby creating a flat side to what should be a circular swing pattern on the backswing.  Those that pick the club up can suffer from skying the ball, reverse pivoting, topping the shot and a whole lot of other errant shots. 

 

 

I am sure all o2nd Greg Normanf you have heard the expression, keep the club low and slow on the backswing; this is good stuff because if you keep it (low and slow) you will create an excellent, good width, symmetrical arc  to your swing and thereby create more energy in your swing.  As an experiment,  set up to an imaginary ball, take the club away with your forearms dominating......you should be able to feel greater width in your swing, plus a very strong sense you are loading your back foot/leg/side with power.  The picture of Greg Norman below I believe clearly illustrates the one piece takeaway.    

 

  

THE SHORT GAME...GET A PLAN 

Every lesson I give on the short game starts with me saying, how would I best get this ball close to the hole? Another way of approaching the shot is to think, if I were to throw the ball underhand from ground level, how would I best shape the shot? Would I throw it high, low, or maybe something in the middle?

 

What kind of terrain do I have to go over?

Am I going uphill, downhill or am I on a flat spot?

 

Does the ground in which I have to cover have some slope in it, meaning will the ball break one way or another or both?

 

Do I want the ball to run a lot, or not?

 

What will the lie of the ball permit me to do? 

 

A lot of questions! "Hey", you have to be clever! Certainly, I want to hit a shot which hopefully has the best odds of success. I don't like hitting low percentage shots. By this I mean I try to hit the simplest shot I can, and certainly the one I have the most confidence in. As they say there are no pictures on the scorecard, just numbers.

 

So, to conclude, I look at the shot, I determine the shape of the shot, then I pick the club to fit the shape. Combine this with some sharp technique and your scores will plummet.

 

2011 PGA MAJORS 

 

uspga

 

U.S. Open..... June 16-19 @ Congressional Country Club  ( def. Graeme McDowell )

British Open..... July 14-17 @ Royal St. Georges Golf Club  ( def. Louis Oosthuizen )

PGA Championship..... Aug. 11-14 @ Atlanta Athletic Club  ( def. Martin Kaymer )  


GOLF BALL TREASURES...   

colwood

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I had an opportunity to speak to a golf ball collector/expert/dealer in Pennsylvania a few years ago.  I asked him, where do all of these newly discovered ancient golf balls materialize from?  He said lots of balls are being uncovered from excavations on historic golf courses in Great Britain; much like antique bottles from old dump sites.  As he explained, original designs and drawings of holes are being scrutinized, revealing hazards (such as lakes, swamps, bogs etc.) which are no longer in play or have been changed, altered or eliminated.  An excellent local example is the 4th hole at Royal Colwood; this postcard from the 30's clearly illustrates the water hazard running from tee to green.  Today, most of the pictured lake is fairway!

LESSON INFORMATION

pamphlet

 

 

 

For more information on lessons
with Scott Keenlyside
please click here

Wishing good golf to all!