Camilla Villegas hands the Fedex Cup to Vijay

Slightly late with this post! Or to be fair very late.
I was really pleased that Camilla has finally broken through. Here is a guy who works very hard at his game and his image and this first win was a long time coming. Let's hope it is the first of many.
I thought he showed remarkable composure throughout those last nine holes. It couldn't have been easy and with Vijay and Anthony Kim breathing down his throat - he was quite simply superb.
It was also good to see him and Kim striding down the fairway together, sharing a laugh and generally chatting away. I suppose we would all be rather jovial if we were making the money these guys do.
Winning the event as he did means that Camilla has ruled out any possibly of anyone catching Vijay for the Fedex cup and the $10,000,000.00 first prize. The rest of the field though still have a big interest in this event as the prize money for all qualifiers in the last 30 is huge. So there is still lots to play for as well as the prize money and title on the day.
Watching Camilla play I could not help wonder at his mental strength. I know how I feel when I am playing with my mates. Standing over a putt that could win or lose our little $10.00 haggle or to avoid getting the dreaded "three putt" snake, is usually more than I can stomach. One can only imagine what these guys go through. Staying focused on the job at hand and not getting ahead of yourself is so important and so difficult. It requires an immense amount of concentration and self discipline. I would imagine this is particularly difficult with the first win.
I do know that it takes a bit of practice to get into a routine of concentrating on the here and now. As Michael Anthony says in his book Mental Keys there is nothing you can do about the past and worrying about the future (something that hasn't happened yet and may not happen at all!) is pointless. Not only is it pointless but worrying about the outcome causes negative chemicals to be released into your brain. This results in the outcome (you fear) materializing.
You can and should only concentrate on each individual shot and that is what these top players do. They concentrate on the process in hand. As Michael says in his book if you keep the mental process in check and on line the mechanical process that is ingrained in your swing will automatically follow. The brain is a powerful weapon indeed.
That said and done I still think it is a phenomenal effort from Camilla to get his first break through and an astounding year for Vijay to have won the Fedex cup. The latter particularly so because of his age. The youngsters will get their day in the sun!

No Takers On My "My Match Tiger's Feat" Idea.

Last week I tried to get people interested in matching Tiger's unbelievable string of tournaments - 9 wins and a second in 10 starts - on a local 4 ball basis.
The idea was to try and match Tiger's achievements by winning within your own fourball for 9 out of your next 10 games.
I sent an e-mail to one of my smaller lists of subscribers to see if any one was interested but alas it seems to have been a "not such a hot idea".
However the good news for me is that I am in the running. Not only did I win within my 4 ball on Wednesday but I also won our monthly competition. In fact I won it by a Tiger length with 45 individual stableford points!! I have never achieved that before.
What went right? Well for a start my putting was very hot. I had 9 putts on the back nine (which we played as our front nine). This is by far a more difficult nine and I found myself at level par after 7 holes. I dropped two on the next hole because I was suddenly aware of how well I was doing. But then I managed to par the 18th (our 9th) which I have only ever done 3 times before. First nine was in the bag with 24 points.
The second nine started off a bit shaky because once again I was thinking about where I was instead of playing the game. So I switched my mind to the present as Michael Anthony suggests in his "The Mental Keys To Improve Your Golf". That really helped me as I then simply concentrated on each shot as it came along. With two holes to go I had 39 points and as the remaining holes were both par 5s and I stroked on both I figured a bogey bogey finish for a total of 43 points would be more than acceptable. Again this helped me to relax and I finished with two pars for 45 points and a major celebration.
Sorry to use this blog to brag but hey it just felt so good and so easy!
I am not sure whether it was my state of mind from polishing the wheel with The Mental Keys To Improve Your Golf or whether it was my awesome putting (remember I got a new putter in January from Exotic Golf Putters. It is beautiful and I love it) or just luck and my day.
Somehow I think it was a combination of all three.
Talking of putters I must tell you that I have had a bit of a struggle with this new putter as it is quite a bit heavier than my old Scotty Cameron Nappa. But I am getting used to the weight and now really like the feel of it. And it really is a lovely looking putter that everyone comments on.
Of course with 11 putts in the first 9 holes I was over the moon with it.
Well till next time.
I am playing Easter Monday and hope to get to stage two of my Match Tiger Feat.

Arnold Palmer Invitation

I've just watched the end of Tiger's last (sorry I mean latest - it wont be the last) victory.
What can anyone say about this guy? He was 7 shots off the pace at the half-way stage and goes on to win with closing rounds of 66 and 66. He makes up and overtakes 7 shots from some of the leading players in the world!
Tiger now has 64 PGA wins and is tied 3rd for the all time number of wins. It's no longer if, but when he will become the all time greatest. Only an injury or some catastrophe can stop him.
He has now won 9 of his last 10 tournaments and came tied 2nd in the other one. I have no idea what he might have earned in this latest streak. I'm sure right behind him on the money list for this streak would be his caddie and a fellow Kiwi Steve Williams.
So here's a challenge to my readers: For 10 consecutive rounds of golf you play try to equal or better Tiger's record on a Four Ball basis.
What do I mean by that? For 10 consecutive rounds of golf try and win at least 9 times and come second (to equal Tiger's record) within the four ball that you are playing.
Strictly speaking it should be on a stroke play basis but that would be both unfair and too easy for some. It would be unfair on the average golfer (who's handicap is greater than 16) and too easy for the single figure golfer (who could simply choose a whole lot of high handicappers to play against for 10 rounds).
So let's do it on a Stableford basis.
I am prepared to put up a prize for the first one who can complete this achievement. I have yet to come up with what the prize will be but I will make it something worthwhile that will benefit the golfer who wins.
I will need proof that the feat has been achieved. And the best form of proof will be something official. Keep your score cards and have them signed by both your opponents and a club official.
Once you have achieved the goal you can e-mail me and we'll take it from there. I think I have a lot of time to work out what I will be giving as a prize. It will be worthwhile.
So that's the deal.
Starting from today, Monday the 17th March 2008, until the end of the year any golfer out there who equals or betters Tiger's winning results on a 4 ball basis will win a substantial prize from Better Golfing.
If we do not have a winner then keep your best results for 10 consecutive rounds and I will be prepared to give a prize to the person who does the best - provided the results are half decent.
So without further ado go get 'em boys and girls.
And keep watching this post for results.
Hopefully this will give us some indication of just how phenomenal Tiger Woods is.

New Website

It has been a long time since I put up any posts on this site. My apologies to anyone actually reading it.
I have been busy, no excuse but true.
Through Wealthy Affiliate University I have been learning all about Internet Marketing. I can make money doing what I love- helping people to improve their golf.
I have also been learning how to build websites and this is totally uncharted territory for me. Man what a learning curve it has been. I think golf is easier!
There is so much to learn that by the end of the week I have sometimes forgotten what I learned at the beginning of the week
Anyway I have a website which is work in progress called Play The Lie.
Check it out and tell me what you think. Please bear in mind that it is work in progress and I go back to it regularly to update it. I have been meaning to get back and do the short game pages but something keeps cropping up and I haven't been able to get around to it just yet. For example this weekend is my son's 21st and that has taken a bit of time to organize.
I have also recently had the good fortune to come across Teddy Webber, an old friend of mine. Teddy is a former European Tour Pro who grew up and played with the Zimbabwean golfers Nick Price, Tony Johnstone, Dennis Watson and Mark McNulty.
Teddy's playing career was curtailed by what was diagnosed as the "Chipping Yips" which he attributes to a bad grip. Yes even successful pros have such ingrained faults that they seemingly cannot be cured.
Teddy left the circuit and went on to become one of South Africa's leading coaching pros. He has a coaching tutorial out at the moment which you can view here. The book sells for $21.95 and at that ridiculous price is excellent value for money
Now the name of the tutorial is horrible and he puts far too much info into it for the paltry price he is asking.
On my recommendation he will be changing all that. The new name will be "Simple Swing Lesson" and the book will be split into six different books. Simple Swing Lesson, Simple Chipping Lesson, Simple Putting Lesson, Simple Bunker Lesson, Conquer the chipping "YIPS"--I DID. and Practise -Tournament Routines/Drills.
Each of these sections will then sell for just under $20.00. Still a great price to sort out a particular problem. But you can still get the current tutorial which contains all of the above here. But you will need to act fast as the price should already have been altered.
I have tried the Basic swing module and the chipping module and have nothing but praise for both. His instructions are easy to follow and accompanied by photos that compliment the text. I found the chipping tutorial particularly useful and now I actually look forward to missing greens - just to try out what he says.
I truly can't wait for the updated versions because I think they will be big sellers.
Anyway that's all for the moment. Be sure to check out Play The Lie and let me know what you think.
Oh and I promise to keep this blog updated from now on.

A Session At The Range

Following on my trip to Taupo and my rounds of golf at Wairake and Tokoroa I've been giving my golf a bit of thought.
Using The Mental Keys to Improve Your Golf whilst playing is one thing but what you learn on the golf course should then be applied in practice.
My rounds had their fair share of good and bad shots and each was analyzed. Whilst the process mentioned in Michael Anthony's book kept me from getting angry with myself and not enjoying my game it also showed me that some of the bad shots were from a basic mechanical problem. A problem which I couldn't fix whilst playing so had to adjust and accept it on the day.
However now that I am home I do have the opportunity to do something about it and this morning I went up to the club to hit a bucket of balls. Now practicing is totally different to playing and you are allowed to think and try and remember where your left elbow, or weight, or right knee, or wrist cock, or angel of club face is. All I had to work on was one thing, based on my analysis of the past two games and within minutes I had the ball going exactly where I wanted it to. It went so well I even put my name down for a game on Saturday!
I know I have been plugging "The Mental Keys to Improve Your Golf Game" but I really do believe in it and would be very comfortable if all my golfing friends bought it. It works if you just apply it.

Trip To Taupo

At the end of last week I was unexpectedly offered a trip to Taupo where the main attraction was a round of golf at Wairake International. Having never played there before and as it is rated in the top 3 (I think) in New Zealand I had no hesitation is accepting.
I also have some very good friends living down in Taupo and this would be an opportunity to catch up with them. Roy and Debbie Menton have been in New Zealand just over a year and settled in Taupo. I think they settled there as Roy is keeping his lovely thin wife all to himself. Can't say I blame him. It was great to see them again and they look very settled and happy. Unfortunately Roy was not able to phone in sick and join us for a game on Monday.
Wairake truly is a lovely golf course and no expense has been spared in making it a truly memorable occasion. From the minute you arrive the pro shop staff, Dax and Steve are helpful and cannot do enough. The practice range facilities are superb and on the day we were there the course was relatively quiet.
We had a beautiful day and as it was just a "hit out" I decided to use the round to test Michael Anthony's 4 step process. I was very impressed.

The 4 steps are:
1. Feedback Response. Once played analyze the reason the shot has gone where it has. If it was a good shot pat yourself on the back. If it wasn't quite what you intended then determine if it was a mechanical fault or was it something mental? Adjust accordingly and move on.
2. Relax. Accept and acknowledge your feelings and emotions. And relax. History is history and you do not know what the future holds so don't fear it.
3.Preparation. Analyze the next shot, the obstacles, distance, wind, terrain etc., your chances of execution with the selected club. Prepare for the shot and accept that you can only control the present. Have confidence in your ability.
4.Instinctive execution. Get up and trust your swing. Play the shot and go back to feedback response.

I want to tell you I had some pretty bad shots which would normally make me irate, especially on such a lovely golf course, but with this approach I never once got upset for longer than 10 seconds.
All in all the process outline in The Mental Keys To Improve Your Golf worked for me on the day and I shot a very good round (35 Stableford points - which was the format we played on the day) on a strange and tough course.
The next day we headed back home and on the way stopped off at Tokoroa for another game. This is another top course and is rated in the top 25 in New Zealand. If you can draw the ball you will be off to a flying start on this course as the first 5 holes all favour a draw.
The greens weren't as slick as Wairake and they took some getting used to. All in all a great little track that requires a lot of shot making to some blind pin positions on elevated greens. A real challenge that my golf didn't stand up to but once again The Mental Keys helped me to stay focused and calm, accepting that it just wasn't my day.
All in all a great trip with some good laughs with two good mates and a catch up with some old friends. Thanks to all concerned.

Getting Rid Of That Goddam Slice!!!!!!!!!!

I remember when I started golf some years ago how a slice invaded my game from the first day. It was such a bad slice I couldn't even allow for it and the harder I tried to get rid of it the more pronounced it got. I absolutely hated that slice.
My local pro sorted it out for me at the time but it did take a few lessons and games. And of course that all cost a bit of money - but at the time I would have done anything to get rid of it
I distinctly recall that I had two basic problems. The first was in the grip where I was holding the club in such a manner that my hands were not working enough through impact. By that I mean I addressed the ball with an open club face and my grip did not allow my hands any room to roll in order to get the club face square at impact.
The second and bigger fault was that I was casting and therefore coming across the ball through impact. This caused even more side spin on the ball.
You see there are only two things that can cause a slice and that is the angle of the club face through impact and also the swing path through impact. I had both wrong. I had to sort one out first and then work on the other.
David Nevogt, author of "The Simple Golf Swing" realizes that the majority of golfers are high handicappers and most of them suffer with a slice. Something like 71% of golfers fall into this category. It's kinda reassuring to know that I wasn't alone with my problem.
Anyway David has analyzed the golf swing over a number of years and, like me, he believes that we complicate things for ourselves by getting too technical. In his "The Simple Golf Swing" instruction e-book David gives easy-to-follow tips on the entire golf swing and does not complicate issues. He could have called his book "A Duffer's Guide To Playing Good Golf".
His stated aim is to get golfers to shoot under 80 and he guarantees that you will cut between 7 and 12 shots off your game within two weeks!
The instructions include everything from grip to follow through and includes drills on all aspects of the game. For a short time he is including "The Simple Chip" as a bonus when you purchase "The Simple Golf Swing".
For the price of one golf lesson you can have all the lessons you want in a simple, easy to follow instruction manual which you can refer to time and time again.
Oh and as well as guaranteeing you will drop between 7 and 12 strokes off your handicap within two weeks David also offers a 60 day money back guarantee.
I don't know of any other offer that is as simple and as good - I sure wish we had this when I started out. It would have saved me a lot of golf balls and a heap of frustration (not to mention all the money I lost in bets!!)
Click here for more information on "The Simple Golf Swing".