Slow Play vs. Fast Play

There has been a lot of talk recently about slow play and slow players.  Arnold Palmer commented on it by saying that he has been dealing with it for 50 years and that it is something that is very hard to regulate.  I am sure most of you out there have played a round of golf with that one guy who takes ten practice swings and steps away from the ball two or three times.  It is infuriating, especially if the course is crowded and play is slow to begin with.  Chances are that is the guy who shanks, duff or mis-hits the ball the most in your group.  I can’t stand it, but I would never say anything to a playing partner.  It is their game and they can play it the way the want to.  With that being said, I think it is a huge distraction to have a slow player in your group because no matter how hard you try to tune it out they become the focal point of the round.  “Oh man, how long is Johnny going to take to hit this one?” starts becoming the conversation of the round instead of catching up with friends and focusing on your own game.  Maybe I just need to tune it out better, but it is distracting and tough to deal with.  Ever seen Ben Crane’s pre-shot routine?  Holy cow the guy is slow.

Similarly, I find it just as distracting playing with someone who is super fast and blows through their round.  I’m talking about guys who play like Angel Cabrera and Steve Marino.  They look like they have to use the restroom or left the kitchen sink running.  I don’t care if they play fast, but I always feel like those fast players are annoyed and waiting on me during my round.  I am not a slow player, but when you get a super fast player in your group it is not fun to have then tapping their foot as you line up your putt or approach shot.  In the video below the people are still clapping Cabrera when he hits his tee shot.  What’s the rush Angel?

My question is which is worse?  A super slow player or a super fast player?

If you need help deciding, check out an example of each here.

Let’s Talk Golf!

Hello all.  Welcome to the Birdie Hunt where I will be talking about Golf the way I see it.  If you are a true golf fan you realize that there is a lot more going on in the game than just Tiger Woods.  Along with discussing the state of the game, trends, gear and more I will be chronicling my quest to break 80 this summer.  Here is to hoping.  Swing away!

Q School Leaving Good or Bad?

So the talk of most golf sites and writers the past few days has been about the potential change to the format of Q-School.  The proposed change would make Q-school a qualifying school to join the Nationwide Tour instead of the PGA Tour.  At the end of the season the top players of the Nationwide Tour would square off against the lower end of the PGA tour to see who gets a PGA Tour card for the next season.

Right now the PGA Tour hosts a handful of events at the end of the season that they call the Fall Series.  Guess what?  Not many people care to watch these tournaments because the top players rarely play in them.  This is when they all head home for the off season because they have already secured their spot on the tour for the next season.  Guys who normally don’t even sniff the top of the leaderboard all of a sudden have a chance to win a PGA tour event with a seriously depleted field of competition.  Why not give the top guns of the Nationwide tour a chance to play?  They are hungry, eager to make the tour and would give the tournaments and interesting angle.  I would watch.

The Nationwide tour has proven itself time and time again as a beneficial proving ground for young players to adjust to life on tour and a heightened level of competion.  I won’t bore you with the list of Nationwide tour graduates who have gone on to have very successful careers on the PGA tour, but just know the list is long and impressive.

Q-school is a great tradition in golf and it gives young players an amazing opportunity to make it on the tour.  That chance isn’t going to disapear.  It is just going to be hidden behind a year on the Nationwide tour.  Yes, that is an extra year of playing and proving yourself, but I don’t consider that a bad thing necessarily.  I would rather make the Nationwide Tour, validte myself out there then go on the the PGA Tour and stay a while rather than qualify through Q-school, play a season the PGA Tour with limited status and find myself right back at Q-school the next season.  I say let them play on the Nationwide Tour for validation.  It will boost ratings for the Nationwide Tour and the Fall Series if it is a match up of players from both tours for PGA Tour cards.

I’m for it.

Who Wears Puma?

Besides Rickie Fowler do any other tour pros wear Puma gear? To take the question further do a lot of weekend warriors wear Puma gear when they go out and play with their friends? Puma strikes me as a very “youthful” brand and I can’t imagine a lot of 40 to 50 year olds are out there rocking flat brimmed hats and pink shirts. Don’t get me wrong I’m all about it. I grew up in San Diego and totally get the style. I am a fan, but who else is wearing this stuff? I see it on the racks at Golfsmith, but unless you have some serious game don’t you think you risk looking a bit like an a hole wearing an absurd outfit if your game doesn’t back it up? I know I would. Fowler pulls it off because he has game for weeks, but most of us don’t have that kind of swagger. If any of my buddies showed up to the course in full Puma gear and didn’t shoot in the low 80’s or 70’s I would think they overshot their talent with their wardrobe. This might be a good opportunity to do a little on course experiment with apparel. Stay tuned.

Tiger’s New Bird

Is it really news that Tiger was spotted with a new chick? I don’t think so. They guy has been through the ringer, lost a ton of his money, his wife and his golf game. I’m not saying what he did was right, but the reality is that he isn’t married anymore so he can date who he wants. Plus it’s not like he is pulling a Charlie Sheen and dating more porn stars. I don’t care who he dates or what her back story is. I want to see him competing in golf tournaments and getting closer to Jack’s record. Like him or not he is fun to watch. If it takes a new squeeze on the scene to speed that along then bring her on and let’s make it happen.

Winter Practice

It is raining in Chicago today to go along with a temperature of 41 degrees.  Needless to say I won’t be making out on the course today, but that doesn’t mean I am not going to try and get better.

Days like this are perfect for going to the covered range and working on the shots that are hurting my scores so far this season.  That would be hitting solid tee shots and eliminating one side of the course.  For me, that is elminating the right side.  I naturally hit a draw and am comfortable missing all of my tee shots to the left.  I get in trouble when I get quick and push shots out to the right.  So that will be a big fix I can knock out this afternoon with a few buckets.

Secondly, I need to knock the winter rust off of my irons and make sure I am striking the ball instead of trying to guide it.  This will fix itself after a few buckets as well.

The biggest thing I can work on, and did work on throughout winter was putting.  I will hit 50 putts tonight from 10 feet and in just to get comfortable with hitting the sweet spot of the putter, working on my routine and gaining confidence that those putts are a gimmie for me.  Putting can get tedious, but if you put in the time and hit 50+ balls a night you will see massive improvement in your putting stats.  Also, nothing is more gratifying than sinking a 10 to 15 foot putt during a round.  Trust me it feels good and will make you want to go hit 100 balls a night just to do it again.

Golf Apps Anyone?

When I go out and golf the last thing I want is to have my phone out the entire time hearing it buzz with texts and emails I don’t want to read or respond to.  With that being said, I am totally addicted to GolfShot and GolfPlan (by shotzoom).  These two apps are worth checking out.  At first I thought it was annoying having to pull my iPhone out to put in my score, but after using it I started to track my stats and I am hooked.  If you are serious about getting better at golf you must identify your weaknesses and make a concentrated effort ot fix them.

You might be aware that you aren’t great at getting off the tee, or getting out of the sand or even putting, but do you know how much those weaknesses are hurting your score?  Do you know how many strokes it is actually costing you every round?  If you use any of the golf apps that let you track your scores and shots you will.  For example, I started tracking my stats and found out that I NEVER get up and down out of the sand and was averaging over 2 putts per hole regardless if I hit the green in regulation or not.  Right there I knew I had to get better at putting and sand shots.  This led me to download GolfPlan and it automatically synced with my GolfShot stats to set up my plan.  Guess what they told me to work on?  Yep, putting and sand shots.  Since it is still winter out in Chicago I haven’t been able to do any of the sand drills, but I have completed almost all of the putting drills for my first go at GolfPlan and I am already seeing massive improvements in my game.  That and a new putter, but still the combination of the stats and the drills to fit my stats is insight I have never had before into my golf game.

If you are truly trying to get better this season and have goals you want to hit I can’t suggest both of these apps more.  They will give you an added edge to know where you stand and what parts of your game are holding you back.  If you think they are just a gimmick you are wrong.  They have actual value that everyday golfers can take away.  Not everyone has the luxury of working with a personal coach or taking lessons on a regular basis.  These two apps are like having your own personal coach at your fingertips.  I get instant feedback about how I played in my round and where I left strokes out on the course.  This lets me make a strategic plan for my next practice sesssion so that I am not just pounding balls at the range just to hit balls.  If I know my driver lost me 5 strokes in my last round guess which club I am going to practice at the range?  Driver baby!

Can you do this without these apps?  Of course you can, but it takes a much more concentrated effort to realize where you lost strokes on your own.  Why not let the app keep track of it for you?  It stores all of your rounds and stats so you can see if you are trending up or down in certain areas of your game.  Plus, it is really fun to see your driving accuracy and GIR percentage go up and your putting average go down.  It really is addicting, believe me.

Check both of them out here, http://shotzoom.com/

Let’s Pick a Bay Hill Winner

It is impossible to overlook the fact that Tiger has absolutely dominated when he has played at Bay Hill in the past.  The guy has won 6 times there.  6 times!  That is absurd.  Do I think he will win this week?  No, he has made great progress with his swing and he is talking about his swing as a process and finding solice in small victories around his game.  Even when he hits a bad shot he is happy that he knows why he hit that shot and can fix it.  That is great and when I hear that I truly believe he is getting comfortable and will find his way back to the winners circle soon, but not this week.

There are a few guys to keep an eye out this week.  First and foremost is Graeme McDowell.  He had a runner up at Bay Hill in 2005 and can flat out putt.  Even though he is only ranked 62nd this year in total putting I can’t think of a guy who has holed out more clutch putts in the past year than this guy.  My money is on Graeme to make it back into the winner’s circle this week.

Stuart Appleby holds two runner up finishes at Bay Hill and although he had a terrible finish (77, 70) to his weekend this week I expect him to hit the range, figure it out and come out firing.  He is one of those guys that has such a simple game and swing that it is surprising he hasn’t won more on tour.  Edoardo Molinari also owns a runner up at Bay Hill and will be in the field this week.  There are a lot of past winners in the field this week and with the Master’s looming so close by I think we are going to see a past winner come into form instead of a first timer like this past week.  Only time will tell, but I expect a great tourney this weekend.

Is Johnny Miller the Worst Monday Morning Quarterback Ever?

I watched the entire final round of the Transitions Championship yesterday and enjoyed every minute of it. Except when Johnny Miller started talking. I might be in the minority saying this, but I enjoyed watching two young guys who have never won on tour battle it out down t he last few holes. You could see it in both Webb Simpson and Gary Woodland that they were nervous and could almost taste their first win. I can’t imagine how it must feel standing on the 16th, 17th or even 18th tee knowing you are tied for the lead and could win your first tourney. The commentators kept saying that it could be a life changing weekend for one of these guys and they are 100% right. Winning a PGA tour even, no matter who is in the field, is a big deal. Congratulations Gary Woodland! That was fun to watch.

What wasn’t fun was listening to Johnny Miller. Is this the best NBC can do for a lead commentator? They guy is negative beyond belief. Nothing is every good enough unless the ball is a few inches from the hole or dead in the center of the fairway. Guess what Johnny? This is golf. It is a game of who can miss the shot the best so ease up on the negativity and start rooting for some of these young guys out on tour. I know Tiger and Phil bring in more ratings, but when they aren’t in the field how about embracing the fact that the game is changing and young unconventional players are starting to come into their own? Yes, Johnny Miller won two major championships and 32 career wins. Awesome career, but is it one of the best ever? No. Would I rather hear what Jack or Arnie has to say about these young guys? Any day. No one will dispute that Johnny was a good player, but his condescending commentary is obnoxious and makes watching golf on NBC miserable.

I don’t think I am alone in this either. Simply go to twitter to see that Ian Poulter, Paul Azinger and others have all taken shots at Miller’s broadcast comments about them. Miller commented that Poulter wasn’t the best ball striker on a day that he hit something like 16 greens in regulation. I’m not expert, but that is pretty darn good. I just wish NBC would wise up and tell the guy to tone it down or get someone else in there. Brandon Chamblee anyone?