WATCH ABOVE: More than a month ago, Global’s Lisa MacGregor and Olympian Jesse Lumsden started taking golf lessons at the Golf Canada Centre. In part 2 of Shaw Classic 101, the two prepare to play champions legend Fred Funk.
CALGARY – It happens when you least expect it. After a lot of bad luck, highs and lows, terrible finishes – you get a good shot. Suddenly, you’re head over heels in love with the game of golf and you wonder what you ever did with your spare time.
It’s a game that when you have a bad round, one good shot can bring you back for another hundred.
“The most important shot in golf, is the next one,” said Ben Hogan, hailed as one of the greatest players in the history of the game.
Golf has opened me up to a new, challenging sport that I had to practice hard at to get better. It’s a life-long commitment, and is probably one of the few scenarios that when the bad out rules the good, you stick with it. It’s not just a game, it’s a lifestyle and a culture–one of the greatest ways to spend time. It can also be a social outing or a way to meet new people. You can even go by yourself, since it’s one of the few sports you can play alone. No matter how intimidating it can be, you can play at any age, any calibre and the handicap system levels the playing field.
Olympian Jesse Lumsden and myself, Global Calgary sports reporter Lisa MacGregor, have been taking golf lessons for more than a month as part of “Shaw Classic 101.” We’ve been preparing to play a round with Champions Tour Pro and legend Fred Funk next week. After several sessions with instructors Bill Murchison at the Golf Canada Centre, he said things are moving forward in a short period of time.
“Everyone knows it’s not an easy game to pick up. It takes some time and there’s ups and downs along the way. In terms of things we’ve been trying to do, we’re making good progress. We’re better with the pre-swing fundamentals than we were. It’s always tougher on the golf course than it is on the driving range,” Murchison said.
“Jesse’s posture has changed a little bit. We’ve made good headway with the grip. We’re still not quite there yet from a consistency standpoint. Those two things alone…we were putting him at such a disadvantage when we were starting. It’s a game of compensating errors; it was really tough to build around. But now he’s setting up better and the pre-swing fundamentals are there. He’s such a good athlete that you’re seeing good shots,” Murchison said.
The instructor said I was completely different today than when I first started.
“Lisa was basically very raw; a new player with some pre-swing things and she didn’t have a weight transfer or any release with her hands–the finish wasn’t there. So all of those things, we’re making progress with,” Murchison said.
But it isn’t just about your swing or showing up to your tee time extra early.
There are rules–and lots of them.
Etiquette on the course:
- Proper attire is key. That can include a collared shirt or an appropriate-length skort, as maintaining the prestige is a must.
- Toss the first tee to see who goes first
- Keep quiet when someone is teeing off
- Know where to drive the power carts around the course
- Make sure to keep the pace of play on the course, always keeping up to the group ahead
- As much as you dislike him, the marshall is only doing his job
- When on the green, you don’t want to walk in front of anyone’s line
- Mark your ball when it’s someone else’s turn to putt
- Take proper penalty strokes and proper drops when going into hazards or out of bounds
- When you get into the clubhouse, you take off your hat and the winner ALWAYS buys the drinks
- Don’t throw your clubs
- After the first hole, the person that has the lowest score tees off first, then it rotates throughout the round
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Remember the three Rs:
-Rake your sandtraps
-Replace your divots
-Repair your ball marks
The grip:
The grip is the brain of the golf swing; everything works off the grip.
Posture:
- Your posture should be the straightest spine angle possible, which is developed through golf fitness.
- Keep your head still and down, which helps keep you in the shot.
- Become more athletic. The bio-mechanics of a golf swing is really affected by athletic abilities.
Murchison also said that alignment can be tough for a golfer on the course compared to the range, where there’s helpful lines to set up properly.
Mental game:
Golfing with a group can create a sense of really getting to know others; you truly find out who someone is on the “links.” There’s so many highs and lows with golf, how you handle them shows your true character.
Jo-Ann Pawliw sat down with Lumsden and MacGregor to discuss techniques to help with the mental aspect of the game, a.k.a. finding your “happy place.”
“Once you have checked in with the environment (such as wind, pin placement speed of green, lie of the ball, distance to your target) and have chosen your club, it’s time to step behind the ball and complete your pre-shot routine,” Pawliw said.
“See It. Feel It. Believe It.”
Pawliw says keep it simple and short, see where you want to hit the ball and the path your ball will take.
“Feel the swing in your body as you visualize your best swing in your mind’s eye. Believe it,” she said. “If you walk up to the ball with anything less than ‘cocky confidence” (as one of my junior golfers uses for his swing attitude) you might as well not bother.
“You need to maintain a positive emotional attitude to keep your body loose and your mind free to access what you have worked on and already know and do well. Frustration, impatience, and negative self-talk does not motivate and make you do better. It can destroy your mood and your game.”
Pawliw said when you’re over the ball, your mind should be empty and your body focused on the target.
“To help you access a positive state while golfing, use the time while you are walking between holes to look up and notice the beautiful setting you are in, hear the birds, feel the sun on your face, sing your favourite song in your head, or remind yourself of a great joke,” she said. “Know that most people in the world and on the golf course in that very moment, don’t really care how you do. Let go of judgment and the last shot – move on! Treat every shot like it’s a new game.”
Pawliw also raised the obvious point that in any other sport, you don’t have time to think before you act.
“Have you ever thrown a football or a Frisbee? Do you check where your arm is? Where your knees, hips and shoulders are, or do you focus on the target and just throw it? Why do golfers then, step up to the ball and go through a whole checklist before they swing the club? Obviously new golfers need a few things to check in with when they are learning, but once you have put in the practice on the range and are ready to play, it’s time to focus on the target and swing the club with a quiet mind.”
When it comes to golf, no one else can decide your fate or scorecard. It’s all up to you. But the most important part that usually leads to a great game, is to have fun!
“Golf is the closest game, to the game we call life. You get bad breaks from good shots. You get good breaks from bad shots – but you have to play the ball where it lies.” – Bobby Jones, founder of Augusta National golf Club, co-founder of the Masters Tournament
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