My Club Championship

Today I finished our annual three day Mens Club Championship. I went in with high confiidence after fine tuning my swing on the range and checking everything out on video. I had a choice of playing gross or net and chose gross because I wanted a true test. I've beaten the guys that won first/second/third today on informal Friday Skins matches, but this was a different ballgame. Unfortunately I can't post this in the Hole-ies/Pole-ies section because I didn't place. I PM'd the following to Yoda and he encouraged me to post it. Its not easy to post about personal disappointments. I really wanted that parking spot!

Yoda,

I didn't place. Our course was in excellent shape and the rough off the fairways was a three-club-rough on every hole due to the heavy rains we've had for the last two months. Had to be right on top of the ball to see it.

Learned a ton. Even though I was disappointed in my performance, I wouldn't trade the experience.

For example, the first day I was grouped with our club champ and a former mini-tour player. While the former champ was throwing his club on double bogies, I was congratulating everyone else while carding a triple. Very hard to have high expectations for yourself, play poorly and still honestly congratulate your fellow competitors on each hole. That chin gets very heavy and its hard to hold up sometimes.

A real character builder.

The things I've been working on at the range did not hold up to competitive pressure. Hence they are wrong. The menace of overacceleration stalked me for a day and a half until I settled my backstroke into an acquired motion pattern with a full finish. Not true acquired motion because of the extra pivot action, but keeping the feel of the right forearm level at the end of the stroke really helped. Only then did I experience good compression and a straight ball without losing any distance on all clubs.

My short game held up very well. Just a simple right forearm wedge putting stroke with a right shoulder rock down plane. I made good money on skins on birdie putts and chip-ins that didn't get covered.

I took notes each day after the round on what worked and what didn't.

I love competitive golf. What a great test. Next year I'll be ready.

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."

-- Theodore Roosevelt
26th President of the United States
April 23, 1910

http://www.theodore-roosevelt.com/trsorbonnespeech.html

Originally Posted by Bagger Lance

Today I finished our annual three day Mens Club Championship. I went in with high confiidence after fine tuning my swing on the range and checking everything out on video. I had a choice of playing gross or net and chose gross because I wanted a true test. I've beaten the guys that won first/second/third today on informal Friday Skins matches, but this was a different ballgame. Unfortunately I can't post this in the Hole-ies/Pole-ies section because I didn't place. I PM'd the following to Yoda and he encouraged me to post it. Its not easy to post about personal disappointments. I really wanted that parking spot! Yoda, I didn't place. Our course was in excellent shape and the rough off the fairways was a three-club-rough on every hole due to the heavy rains we've had for the last two months. Had to be right on top of the ball to see it. Learned a ton. Even though I was disappointed in my performance, I wouldn't trade the experience. For example, the first day I was grouped with our club champ and a former mini-tour player. While the former champ was throwing his club on double bogies, I was congratulating everyone else while carding a triple. Very hard to have high expectations for yourself, play poorly and still honestly congratulate your fellow competitors on each hole. That chin gets very heavy and its hard to hold up sometimes. A real character builder. The things I've been working on at the range did not hold up to competitive pressure. Hence they are wrong. The menace of overacceleration stalked me for a day and a half until I settled my backstroke into an acquired motion pattern with a full finish. Not true acquired motion because of the extra pivot action, but keeping the feel of the right forearm level at the end of the stroke really helped. Only then did I experience good compression and a straight ball without losing any distance on all clubs. My short game held up very well. Just a simple right forearm wedge putting stroke with a right shoulder rock down plane. I made good money on skins on birdie putts and chip-ins that didn't get covered. I took notes each day after the round on what worked and what didn't. I love competitive golf. What a great test. Next year I'll be ready.

Whatever you do . . . don't beat yourself up man . . . you don't do it for a living and nobody died. What you were working on at range may not be wrong. Just like having a kid. They don't come with no instructions. People can tell you all about 'em. But until you got one . . . you don't know squat. That's what a dude told me . . . "If you want to get better, you have to play in tournaments period." Don't wait until next year. Go play in another one ASAP.

Great post Bagger,
I bet the guys you played with don't know the work you do on this site......we do.
You put yourself to the test and learned that you need a bit more work-that's just being honest with yourself
and you should be proud

Success in life is the result of Good Judgement.

Good Judgement is often the result of Experience.

Experience is the result of Bad Judgement.


We are all human. As long as you learned something, you haven't failed. Most people never learn from their experiences and are doomed to repeat them.

Say focused on where you want to go and Keep learning along the way! The LBG community is behind you. Just watch out for Mike O if he is behind you .

Don't get me wrong, I hit many great shots. The kind that burn into your visual and sensory memory. The kind that are talked about after the round. The kind that absolutely confirm the ball was struck perfectly. Many more good than bad. Just not enough of them.

A three day tournament tests every element of your game including your character. You put everything into the fire to see what burns and what comes out pure. You won't find a hot fire on the range.

Thanks guys. I'm motivated baby!

Bagger....thanks for that. And know this...you and others on this forum have helped me gain a much more clear insight to propelling the pill. Thanks man.

If I may, can I ask what the percentage was between playing golf and playing golf swing? I don't mean to open a can of worms here but I've had experiences where I've done both with great success. I've also had experiences where playing golf swing did not. Hope ya don't mind.

spike

Originally Posted by spike

If I may, can I ask what the percentage was between playing golf and playing golf swing? I don't mean to open a can of worms here but I've had experiences where I've done both with great success. I've also had experiences where playing golf swing did not. Hope ya don't mind. spike

Spike - Great Question. I moved this thread into a forum where it makes sense to discuss this.

I'm a certified range rat. Probably spend over 90% of my time on the range and 10% on the course. It may be a higher ratio because I live two blocks from the clubhouse range. Its easier to peel off an hour a day for practice time, or maybe shoot a swing video than carve off 4 for a round.

I'm a single digit HC but lately its rising. In my opinion, the challenge with a lot of TGM knowledge is that its tempting to tinker.

A few months ago I commited myself to reversing the ratio and spending more practice time around the greens.

Originally Posted by Bagger Lance

Today I finished our annual three day Mens Club Championship. I went in with high confiidence after fine tuning my swing on the range and checking everything out on video. I had a choice of playing gross or net and chose gross because I wanted a true test. I've beaten the guys that won first/second/third today on informal Friday Skins matches, but this was a different ballgame. Unfortunately I can't post this in the Hole-ies/Pole-ies section because I didn't place. I PM'd the following to Yoda and he encouraged me to post it. Its not easy to post about personal disappointments. I really wanted that parking spot! Yoda, I didn't place. Our course was in excellent shape and the rough off the fairways was a three-club-rough on every hole due to the heavy rains we've had for the last two months. Had to be right on top of the ball to see it. Learned a ton. Even though I was disappointed in my performance, I wouldn't trade the experience. For example, the first day I was grouped with our club champ and a former mini-tour player. While the former champ was throwing his club on double bogies, I was congratulating everyone else while carding a triple. Very hard to have high expectations for yourself, play poorly and still honestly congratulate your fellow competitors on each hole. That chin gets very heavy and its hard to hold up sometimes. A real character builder. The things I've been working on at the range did not hold up to competitive pressure. Hence they are wrong. The menace of overacceleration stalked me for a day and a half until I settled my backstroke into an acquired motion pattern with a full finish. Not true acquired motion because of the extra pivot action, but keeping the feel of the right forearm level at the end of the stroke really helped. Only then did I experience good compression and a straight ball without losing any distance on all clubs. My short game held up very well. Just a simple right forearm wedge putting stroke with a right shoulder rock down plane. I made good money on skins on birdie putts and chip-ins that didn't get covered. I took notes each day after the round on what worked and what didn't. I love competitive golf. What a great test. Next year I'll be ready.

Bagger,

As Yoda's post highlights..... congratulations for "putting yourself our there!" You'll come to really start looking forward to tournament golf and the unique challenges it presents. You'll also find yourself being much more "comfortable" in your club events the more you play them. Then it's on to "city" events, and then "state" events. (You should join the TGA at some point - the Texas Golf Association.... if you aren't already a member. They run most of the big state-wide events). Progressively your comfort-zone will "broaden" but the ONLY way it expands is by continuing to "put yourself out there in the arena!"

It is obvious that you have the PERFECT ATTITUDE for tournament golf and are the kind of player that I (and most other serious players I know) enjoy being paired with. You were patient, even-tempered, complimentary, gracious, etc. I assure you that your playing partners probably won't remember how you played or what you shot, but they WILL remember your attitude. That is the other benefit of playing tournament golf.... you meet lots of great indivuduals who share the same love of the game.

Congrats on the effort. Stay with it!

CG