By Jim Nettleton
Bermuda has been my favorite vacation retreat for decades. Its friendly people, clean environment and wonderful weather are always a joy.
Being an avid golfer, experiencing the game and the courses on that beautiful island is also a never-ending joy. Bermuda has more golf courses per square mile than any place in the world. There are 8 courses there and each offers a splendid test.
The Belmont Hills Golf Club is a short but challenging layout that measures a little over 6,000 yards from the tips. It was rebuilt not long ago to USGA standards.
If you’re looking to spruce up your short game, try the Fairmont Southampton executive par three course, located near the southwestern tip of the island. It’s a fine array of 3 pars that will test every aspect of your iron play.
Farther along the southwestern tip you’ll find the spectacular Robert Trent Jones, Jr. designed Port Royal Golf Course. Several of its holes hug the cliffs overlooking the ocean. My personal favorite is the par three 16th, which plays 176 yards over a chasm to a green perched on a cliff. At 6,561 yards, Port Royal is Bermuda’s longest course. Don’t miss it.
Heading back northeast, you’ll come upon Riddell’s Bay Golf & Country Club, a short but testing course along the water, measuring 5,800 yards.
Not far from Hamilton, the Ocean View Golf Course affords lovely views of the ocean. It’s only a 9 hole course measuring a little over 2,900 yards, but the scenery is worth a play.
Traveling farther north, Tucker’s Point Golf Club, the former Castle Harbour, presents itself. It was recently redesigned a while back, but maintains the elevation changes that made the old course so challenging.
Farther along the north route in the lovely town of St. George is the 18 hole executive course, St. George’s Golf Club. It consists of 8 par fours and 10 par threes. Designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr., this stunning layout wraps around historic Fort St. Catherine and offers challenging play and terrific views. Sadly, this course is closing soon, so enjoy it while you can.
I’ve saved the best for last. Heading back toward Tucker’s Point you’ll find the marvelous Mid Ocean Golf Club, ranked for years among the top 50 courses in the world. Play it and you’ll see why. Although it measures just under Port Royal in length, play it from the tips and you’ll think you’ve just come up against a 7,300 yarder. Spectacular holes along the ocean are to be savored. Be sure to bring plenty of memory cards for you cameras.
Some of these courses are private – but arrangements can be made through your hotel.
I can’t wait to get back there and enjoy those lovely links again.
Copyright 2008 Jim Nettleton
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Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Bring The Real Game Of Golf Back
By Jim Nettleton
I freely admit to being a fanatic about playing the great game of golf as well as being a lifelong fan of the professional game. I first started following the pro circuit when Arnold Palmer broke on the scene like a swashbuckling D’Artagnan. I quickly fell in love with the nearly poetic beauty of the game and became fascinated by Palmer’s bold adventures.
From today’s perspective, we look back on those days, the days of television’s early feeble attempts at covering a game played over many acres, and realize that what were then called ‘fast’ greens were, in reality, excruciatingly slow and bumpy. And that course conditions were, for the most part, ragged. Observe some of the replays of All Star Golf and the early Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf on the Golf Channel and you’ll see what I mean.
It only makes all the more remarkable the achievements of the greats of those days and the days long before them. How, for example, under those conditions, was Byron Nelson able to set an incredible scoring average that stood for decades until Tiger Woods (who else) broke it in 2000. But the record was broken on courses manicured to a degree that Nelson could only have dreamed of during his prime.
All of which brings us to the current day and what is happening to this great game. True, today’s players are bigger, stronger and better conditioned than any who have gone before. And true, their talent level as a whole is greater – after all, they’ve had amazing role models from whom to learn. They’ve also had the benefit of an unprecedented amount of research and electronic analysis that didn’t exist in their predecessor’s time.
It is normal and even beneficial that the overall talent level and general proficiency improves and that cherished records fall on a fairly regular basis as Father Time marches on. But what we’ve seen over the past ten to twenty years is too much.
Players now on the Champion’s Tour are hitting the ball farther than they ever did while in their prime on the regular tour. The average driving distance on the regular tour is increasing geometrically. Architects are being forced to stretch classic courses to inconceivable lengths: courses routinely now measure an incredible 7,500 yards – and, I believe, the overall health of the game is suffering.
It is in some ways similar to what’s happened to basketball over the years. Once an intriguing game of finesse, it has become nothing more than a group of extremely tall people dashing madly up and down the court and stuffing the ball ferociously into the basket. What were once fouls are ignored – traveling and palming the ball are now routine. Just about anything goes in today’s world of Full Contact Basketball. Gone is the intricate teamwork that once made the game a joy.
Golf is in danger of undergoing the same type of deterioration. With the incredible advances in club and ball technology that have largely gone unchecked by the USGA and R&A, great courses are becoming obsolete, records are becoming fodder for the shredder and the game’s finesse, except in the case of a few modern players such as Woods and Michelson, is disappearing at an alarming rate. It is becoming a ‘slam it hard and find it’ game.
When was the last time you saw a pro gently cut a long iron – and I’m talking a 1 or 2 iron – into the target? Today’s ball is harder to curve and fewer and fewer pros master the art of working the ball.
I liked Jack Nicklaus’ idea of some years ago – his suggestion of a ‘standard ball’, if you will. Strictly regulate the distance the ball can go under normal circumstances to retain the integrity of our great courses. Let’s make talent the determining factor, not who happens to grab the latest hot technology.
A great story is told of Sam Snead playing Pinehurst #2. When he was in his prime, he used a 1 iron on one of the longer par 3s on the course. Many years later, playing on the Senior Tour, he used a 3 iron. He was well into his 50s at the time.
That classic picture of Ben Hogan at Merion in 1950 hitting a 1 iron into the 18th green is another example. Years later, I attended the Open there and stood at exactly the same spot watching Jack Nicklaus use a 5 iron.
We need to bring the game under control. The great players will still be the great players – Tiger Woods would have been a force of nature in days past, just as he is today – but the big winners would be the classic courses like Merion, which has no more room to expand to accommodate today’s super boomers; the environment, since less area would be needed and less maintenance required; and the history and integrity of the game.
Copyright 2008 Jim Nettleton
**Get a money-making mall FREE! Click here:
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I freely admit to being a fanatic about playing the great game of golf as well as being a lifelong fan of the professional game. I first started following the pro circuit when Arnold Palmer broke on the scene like a swashbuckling D’Artagnan. I quickly fell in love with the nearly poetic beauty of the game and became fascinated by Palmer’s bold adventures.
From today’s perspective, we look back on those days, the days of television’s early feeble attempts at covering a game played over many acres, and realize that what were then called ‘fast’ greens were, in reality, excruciatingly slow and bumpy. And that course conditions were, for the most part, ragged. Observe some of the replays of All Star Golf and the early Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf on the Golf Channel and you’ll see what I mean.
It only makes all the more remarkable the achievements of the greats of those days and the days long before them. How, for example, under those conditions, was Byron Nelson able to set an incredible scoring average that stood for decades until Tiger Woods (who else) broke it in 2000. But the record was broken on courses manicured to a degree that Nelson could only have dreamed of during his prime.
All of which brings us to the current day and what is happening to this great game. True, today’s players are bigger, stronger and better conditioned than any who have gone before. And true, their talent level as a whole is greater – after all, they’ve had amazing role models from whom to learn. They’ve also had the benefit of an unprecedented amount of research and electronic analysis that didn’t exist in their predecessor’s time.
It is normal and even beneficial that the overall talent level and general proficiency improves and that cherished records fall on a fairly regular basis as Father Time marches on. But what we’ve seen over the past ten to twenty years is too much.
Players now on the Champion’s Tour are hitting the ball farther than they ever did while in their prime on the regular tour. The average driving distance on the regular tour is increasing geometrically. Architects are being forced to stretch classic courses to inconceivable lengths: courses routinely now measure an incredible 7,500 yards – and, I believe, the overall health of the game is suffering.
It is in some ways similar to what’s happened to basketball over the years. Once an intriguing game of finesse, it has become nothing more than a group of extremely tall people dashing madly up and down the court and stuffing the ball ferociously into the basket. What were once fouls are ignored – traveling and palming the ball are now routine. Just about anything goes in today’s world of Full Contact Basketball. Gone is the intricate teamwork that once made the game a joy.
Golf is in danger of undergoing the same type of deterioration. With the incredible advances in club and ball technology that have largely gone unchecked by the USGA and R&A, great courses are becoming obsolete, records are becoming fodder for the shredder and the game’s finesse, except in the case of a few modern players such as Woods and Michelson, is disappearing at an alarming rate. It is becoming a ‘slam it hard and find it’ game.
When was the last time you saw a pro gently cut a long iron – and I’m talking a 1 or 2 iron – into the target? Today’s ball is harder to curve and fewer and fewer pros master the art of working the ball.
I liked Jack Nicklaus’ idea of some years ago – his suggestion of a ‘standard ball’, if you will. Strictly regulate the distance the ball can go under normal circumstances to retain the integrity of our great courses. Let’s make talent the determining factor, not who happens to grab the latest hot technology.
A great story is told of Sam Snead playing Pinehurst #2. When he was in his prime, he used a 1 iron on one of the longer par 3s on the course. Many years later, playing on the Senior Tour, he used a 3 iron. He was well into his 50s at the time.
That classic picture of Ben Hogan at Merion in 1950 hitting a 1 iron into the 18th green is another example. Years later, I attended the Open there and stood at exactly the same spot watching Jack Nicklaus use a 5 iron.
We need to bring the game under control. The great players will still be the great players – Tiger Woods would have been a force of nature in days past, just as he is today – but the big winners would be the classic courses like Merion, which has no more room to expand to accommodate today’s super boomers; the environment, since less area would be needed and less maintenance required; and the history and integrity of the game.
Copyright 2008 Jim Nettleton
**Get a money-making mall FREE! Click here:
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Sunday, July 20, 2008
Lower Your Score By Playing Position Golf
by: George Gabriel
Golfers have been trying hard to lower their scores by taking lessons, reading books and watching golf video lessons. This is definitely good and helps your game. What about playing position golf?
Golfing for position has been a serious method of golf for a lot of professional golfers. Every amateur should really consider playing position golf as one of the most important strategies for a good round of golf. You should consider rethinking your strategy before you take out your driver on every hole, and any other golf club.
Taking out your driver just because it is a natural thing to do on the longer holes can put you in a not so good position on your next shot. Playing position golf requires a series of questions to be answered, before you elect to choose a golf club on the tee box or fairway.
If you’re a right hand golfer who fades the driver all the time, and your teeing off on a dogleg to the right, you may want to rethink your choice of clubs, especially if it may put you in a blind position for your next golf shot into the green. When you’re playing those longer golf holes and you hit a straighter golf ball off the tee with a 3 wood, would it not be a better choice of clubs if you’re consistently fading or slicing your driver off the tee box? Of course it may be a little more golf club into the green on the next shot, by at least its not as hard as trying to control another faded golf shot into the green that you cannot see when your positioned alongside a pile of trees.
Another key factor on playing position golf would be the length of the golf hole. Let’s assume you’re going to play a par four and it’s 425 yards and your driver goes 240 yards on average. Taking everything into consideration, including wind and position on the tee box to the center of the green, and you’re left with 185 yards to the green. Now 185 yards into the green may be your favorite 4 iron, or it could also be the club you’re having trouble with the most. Dropping down to a 2 wood or a 3 wood off the tee box, may put you in a more favorable club selection position out on the fairway.
Another important part on playing for position on the golf course is choosing the club at hand for your landing area. Do I want an uphill lie on the next shot, or downhill lie? If I miss the green do I want to play my next shot from the back of this green or the front of the green? When I hit this green, do I want a downhill putt or an uphill putt? Of course being positive on hitting your attended landing area is the way to think, but leaving room for human error and an escape route can save you strokes.
By playing position golf, you get to utilize most of the golf clubs in the golf bag, and also help in getting familiar with each and every club. It only requires a little more thought before choosing a golf club that will help you knock strokes off of your scorecard. We always like to out drive our competitor, but out smarting our competitor is what counts in the end when you’re tallying up the strokes after eighteen.
About The Author
George Gabriel learned to golf as a caddy in the mid sixties and continue to enjoy the game today. Now running a discount tee time site at http://www.golfanchor.net and a sister site at http://www.golfanchor.com.
**Get a money-making mall FREE! Click here:
http://www.mypowermall.com/Biz/Home/30831
Golfers have been trying hard to lower their scores by taking lessons, reading books and watching golf video lessons. This is definitely good and helps your game. What about playing position golf?
Golfing for position has been a serious method of golf for a lot of professional golfers. Every amateur should really consider playing position golf as one of the most important strategies for a good round of golf. You should consider rethinking your strategy before you take out your driver on every hole, and any other golf club.
Taking out your driver just because it is a natural thing to do on the longer holes can put you in a not so good position on your next shot. Playing position golf requires a series of questions to be answered, before you elect to choose a golf club on the tee box or fairway.
If you’re a right hand golfer who fades the driver all the time, and your teeing off on a dogleg to the right, you may want to rethink your choice of clubs, especially if it may put you in a blind position for your next golf shot into the green. When you’re playing those longer golf holes and you hit a straighter golf ball off the tee with a 3 wood, would it not be a better choice of clubs if you’re consistently fading or slicing your driver off the tee box? Of course it may be a little more golf club into the green on the next shot, by at least its not as hard as trying to control another faded golf shot into the green that you cannot see when your positioned alongside a pile of trees.
Another key factor on playing position golf would be the length of the golf hole. Let’s assume you’re going to play a par four and it’s 425 yards and your driver goes 240 yards on average. Taking everything into consideration, including wind and position on the tee box to the center of the green, and you’re left with 185 yards to the green. Now 185 yards into the green may be your favorite 4 iron, or it could also be the club you’re having trouble with the most. Dropping down to a 2 wood or a 3 wood off the tee box, may put you in a more favorable club selection position out on the fairway.
Another important part on playing for position on the golf course is choosing the club at hand for your landing area. Do I want an uphill lie on the next shot, or downhill lie? If I miss the green do I want to play my next shot from the back of this green or the front of the green? When I hit this green, do I want a downhill putt or an uphill putt? Of course being positive on hitting your attended landing area is the way to think, but leaving room for human error and an escape route can save you strokes.
By playing position golf, you get to utilize most of the golf clubs in the golf bag, and also help in getting familiar with each and every club. It only requires a little more thought before choosing a golf club that will help you knock strokes off of your scorecard. We always like to out drive our competitor, but out smarting our competitor is what counts in the end when you’re tallying up the strokes after eighteen.
About The Author
George Gabriel learned to golf as a caddy in the mid sixties and continue to enjoy the game today. Now running a discount tee time site at http://www.golfanchor.net and a sister site at http://www.golfanchor.com.
**Get a money-making mall FREE! Click here:
http://www.mypowermall.com/Biz/Home/30831
Some Tips To Improve Your Golf Swing
by: Edwin Shackleford
So, your golf swing needs improvement and you know it? Here are some tips in making better golf swings.
Tip no. 1. A great golf swing does not mean you have to swing with arms.
Behind your back, put your golf club while you turn your back to your target. It is like taking your club back as you hinge your arm at your shoulder.
You could also practice the drill known as no arms.
Tip no. 2. You should not forget cocking wrists.
Do not forget cocking your wrists. This might be difficult at first, but it will be natural to you with enough practice.
Tip no. 3. You should let the left arm clockwise slightly when you start the back swing.
It is not really something that you actually should remember. It naturally happens if you would just allow it. This just means that you should not resist this movement that is just natural. You might not notice it, but you might have been resisting this movement because this causes the head of your golf club to go open slightly when you swing it. Just allow it to happen.
Tip no. 4. Plant your feet firmly on the ground.
You might have copied this from baseball. That is, letting your foot heel in front to come above the ground when you swing your golf club back. Some people think that by doing this so, their back swing feels more huge.
It is something that seems lifting the front heel can easily make the body coil and for the tension to build that much harder. Letting the foot roll freely to the inside is fine. However, one should keep that foot on the ground to make golf back swing well-anchored.
Tip no. 5. From the bottom golf down swing.
Assuming that you accomplish all the drills correctly – from the golf stance, the golf grip you have, and your golf back swing. But you can still ruin everything if you begin the golf swing that you have with the shoulders. You might want to use a swing trigger to begin the golf down swing that you have with the lower part of your body.
Tip no. 6. And again, on your golf down swing. You should turn the belt buckle to your target.
Try turning your hips as powerful and fast as possible when you do your golf down swing, it works.
| About The Author Edwin Shackleford has been helping individuals improve thier golf game for years. Try his Free Online Training Today! http://www.improve-your-golf-game.com. |
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7 Tips For Better Bunker Play
*7 Tips For Improving Your Bunker Play*
by Jim Nettleton
We all know that the bunker shot is
one of the most difficult to master
in golf and it puts fear into both
novice and seasoned golfers alike.
I bought a new McGregor sand
wedge in July last year and that’s certainly
helped; my previous one was very bulky
and I found it extremely difficult to
get underneath the ball especially when
the sand was wet.
After talking to my club pro last week I’ve come up with
a list of seven tips that should hopefully
help you out.
Here they are:
1. Choose the right club.
As I mentioned a moment ago, one of
the keys to improving your bunker play
is ensuring you use a good sand-wedge. Ideally, the club’s underside
should be well-sloped and smooth, which
will allow the head of the club to
effortlessly slide under the golf ball
and hit it out of the trap.
2. Give yourself the time you need to
get good footing.
Always allow yourself the time to
establish good footing in the sand.
Make an effort to sink your feet in until you
have solid stance.
3. Relax.
It’s essential that you relax by having
the right mindset. Just because you’re
in a sand trap doesn’t mean you’re going
to have trouble getting out. Relaxing
starts with your stance. Make sure your
feet are approximately shoulder-width
apart and are pointing slightly left of
your target as this will allow you to
swing through the ball more effectively.
4. Take several practice swings.
Before you take your shot, take several
practice swings. Practice your swing in exactly the same way as
if you were going to hit the ball.
Obviously don’t touch the sand though!
5. Know where to hit the ball.
Once you’ve relaxed and taken your
practice swings, survey the green ahead
of you so you know where you want your ball to
land. Keep that marker in your
head and visualize yourself hitting
the ball to that precise point.
6. Imagine the shot before you take it.
Carrying on from the last point, as
you’re preparing to hit the ball, imagine
the shot before you actually take it.
Remember, thinking positively is critical
to overcoming the tension that’s often
a result of being in the bunker in the
first place.
7. Take the shot.
Take a deep breath, and take the shot,
taking care to ensure that your club
hits the sand at least two inches before
it hits the ball. Always take a full
swing - follow through completely - but adjust the speed depending on
how long the shot is. This will help
you to avoid quitting on the ball which
is why many people fail to get out of the
bunker the first time round.
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