woody_k

And the second time in about 3 years I got teamed up with a pro.

I took some vacation time from work and just decided to go for a round. Little did I know that the PGA of So Cal is having a tournament starting Tuesday. So of course all the pros not in the PGA but who are tyring to get to Q school are out playing.

The first time this happened I was paired with a guy on the European circuit. Today was a guy on the Nationwide Circuit.

It's very disconcerting to be on the tee box with these guys watching you. These guys have the sweetest swing ever!!

Now knowing they were pro I would usually keep the chatting way down not to want to bother them. Afterall this is there livelihood. But just the opposite happened. Both times these guys just started chit chatting about everything. Nothing like you see on TV when they ticked off if someone happens to cough, sneeze or click a camera. This guy today asked me about what I do for a living and after I answered he walked to the T-box and just took his shot. Long hitter too...several over 300 yards.

I make sure and follow couse protocol unless asked to change the protocol. The only time either of these 2 pros offered help (and I would never ask) was in my chipping. The European pro told me to close my stance slightly. After the round he gave me his card and phone number. Told me to call him when I make it to Great Britian and we will do a round. Of Course I haven't made it there yet nor would I call him.

My Son in Law told me He would die to play a round with a pro. Yet I've had the pleasure to have done it twice and I don't know why I get so intimidated on the first few tees but it wears off after that when you see they love playing the game too.

He told me that they like to hook up on the course with a local guy anyway. I guess they feel they can get some local knowledge of the course. I told him he may want to find another as I play the WHOLE course..seldom out of bounds, seldom par, I have personal knowledge of the rough and traps and if I ever 2 putted I think I would have a heart attack. LOL!! Today was a mixture...I drove well and putted well and only found 3 traps. Everything in between was good and bad. Sometime I wonder what they are thinking when you shank a shot, hit a tree and end up further from the hole than you were. Yes it happened today.

Anyway that's my story and I'm sticking to it. thaks for letting me tell it.

fish

Thats awesome i never golfed with a pro but i have golfed with some 2 and 3 indexes before. i enjoy it also,i always learn something when i play with those good guys. like you say they never really critique my game either . i'm sure they would not know where to start with menever had lessons ,just an old baseball player with a self taught golf swing
i'm a 16.7 handicap with a trend index of 15.3 right now. i have never been below 15 so i am excited

rangleme

Great story! I get intimidated golfing with pretty much anyone. My short game is really bad! Very cool you got to play a little with some pros!

fish

practice,practice,practice rangleme
your short game and putting is where all the scoring takes place.
drive for show putt for dough

woody_k

I'll do my best to describe my chipping stance then and now.

I use to be square with the ball on short chips and by short chips I mean in the rough 15 to 20 feet from the green side. Then all I did was shorten my back swing. I wasn't that consistant nor accurate.

Now my feet are less than 6 inches apart and I open my body....meaning I no longer square but angled toward the pin I'd say less than 30 degrees. It's all shoulder now so my club is sort of a pendulum.

How I control the ball is how I strike the ball...and of course the lie. I don't like to run the ball too much so I come down on the ball more by moving back in my stance slightly. Creats back spin. If I need loft I move it forward and use the degree of the blade. If I need run such as the pin is on the other side of the green and I am just on the fringe of the rough I'll chip with my 5 or 7 iron. I ain't a Tiger so I aint never chipped with my driver...still can't figure out why he used that club. I undersand lowest loft but he's so good he could have used a broom stick and beat everyone.

How did all that help....I can control it better but in no way perfect but mainly it's more consistant. And for me I need consistancy.

woody_k

I wanted to take a vacation in Scotland and play some of the well known course. But you need a verified handicap of 24 or less. Mine is about a 28 and I fear always will be. It's not that I am bad but I will hit it out of bounds 3 or 4 times a round. Here is what happens on averge for me.

Par 4's around the green usually in 3 chip up for 4 and 2 or 3 putt. Same on par 5's but add a stroke.

It's not that I am all over a course..in fact I am 90% of the time in the fairway or just off it. I no longer have a slice or hook in fact I have a slight draw but my aim isn't that good or lets say I'll push or pull it off where I was aiming.

I told this pro that I wanted to play St Andrews etc but my handicap wouldn't qualify...he told me to lie when I post my score cuz i wasn't that far off anyway. He isn't the only one who told me that either.

mcds99

That sounds GREAT!

I tried to get good enough to get to Q for 3 years, I was swinging under 80 all three years but that just is not good enough. I still love to play but I don't get under 80 now unless it's on a par 3 ;-)

What I learned in that 3 years.

Stop swinging hard until you can hit the ball straight. Then build the club speed keeping the ball on the fairway.

Learn to draw the ball, this was easy for me but can be tough.

Getting the ball to go left or right is tough it takes instruction to do it right.

Routine, Routine, Routine.

The bigest lesson is to play when you can play slow, being rushed is not how you learn to play right. All this play fast it so the courses can get as many people out as they can.

BJeepJK

I shoot in the mid 80's, which is good for the golf league at work but not good enough to beat my brother-in-law on the weekend. I was telling a guy that my if my brother-in-law shoots a 74 he gets mad at himself.
Here's the part I'll never forget ... The guy told me "I hope I never get that good". After he saw the - WTF are you talking about look on my face he said "When your that good you only remember the bad shots".
How true is that, right. Luckily I still remember the good shots, but I'm still trying to get better.