- Jul 30, 2014
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Hey doosh, some of us struggle with the game. If you've never played professionally, I'm happy to report you're commoner, just like the rest of us.How do you shoot 90 at Ironwood.
Chatter Golf Sub-Forum
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- Aug 18, 2018
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- Oct 5, 2014
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I'm 71 years old and just took up golf a month ago. I have a set of clubs and right now I'm just going to the driving range three times a week. I want to get out on the course and try playing a round of 9 holes to start out. I know I won't be any good but I also know you can learn a lot more quicker by going out on the course and keeping score than just by endless practicing on the range. I know a lot of people start out with golf but become frustrated and quit, but I'm pretty sure I'll stick with it. I just really like this game.
I'm getting pretty good with the 6,7, 8 and 9 irons. I know the importance of the short game so I practice some pitching and chipping even on the driving range. I can hit the irons pretty far and straight a lot of times but need to get more consistent. Who doesn't? As is the case with a lot of beginners I have trouble with the longer clubs i.e. the fairway woods and driver. I am watching a lot of golf lessons on YouTube. One thing I've learned is that the perfect swing for a golf pro is not going to be the swing that will work best for a particular individual. Your body habitus and mechanics will necessitate that you deviate a little here and a little there from the standard teaching. You've got to own your own swing.
What do I hope to gain from golf? I want to stay active. I have this idea that I want to walk the course for exercise but I know I will probably end up using the cart to speed play along. I like being outdoors in what I hope will be somewhat peaceful and beautiful surroundings. I am also drawn to the mental aspects of the game. I've always wanted to play golf but never got around to it for some reason. My excuse was I was too busy with work and the cost of playing a lot had to be also factored in. I know that golf is not a sport like football, baseball, basketball, boxing etc, but I also know that not everyone has the strength, agility, and eye to hand coordination to be any good at it.
I'm getting pretty good with the 6,7, 8 and 9 irons. I know the importance of the short game so I practice some pitching and chipping even on the driving range. I can hit the irons pretty far and straight a lot of times but need to get more consistent. Who doesn't? As is the case with a lot of beginners I have trouble with the longer clubs i.e. the fairway woods and driver. I am watching a lot of golf lessons on YouTube. One thing I've learned is that the perfect swing for a golf pro is not going to be the swing that will work best for a particular individual. Your body habitus and mechanics will necessitate that you deviate a little here and a little there from the standard teaching. You've got to own your own swing.
What do I hope to gain from golf? I want to stay active. I have this idea that I want to walk the course for exercise but I know I will probably end up using the cart to speed play along. I like being outdoors in what I hope will be somewhat peaceful and beautiful surroundings. I am also drawn to the mental aspects of the game. I've always wanted to play golf but never got around to it for some reason. My excuse was I was too busy with work and the cost of playing a lot had to be also factored in. I know that golf is not a sport like football, baseball, basketball, boxing etc, but I also know that not everyone has the strength, agility, and eye to hand coordination to be any good at it.
- Aug 18, 2018
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Great post--glad you're taking it up at this stage. What you posted above is so very true. Those who don't play can't appreciate how difficult a game it is, especially to be really good at it. And those who do play come to realize very early on just how incredibly talented the tour players are. What these guys do on the PGA tour is nothing short of amazing. You just watch in awe at their abilities, because it is so rare and difficult to master it the way they have.
- Jun 11, 2014
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- Jun 10, 2014
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Hey man that was meant as a joke, But not a very good one. I've had days when I've hit so many out of bounds and in the parking lot people have scrambled to move their cars.
- Jun 10, 2014
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You will have to admit that a James Taylor song applies to good ol' Ironwood (with modification)
When you're down and troubled
And you need a decent round
And nothin', nothin' is goin' right
Play a round at Ironwood
To brighten up even your darkest night
Most of the time but not always.
When you're down and troubled
And you need a decent round
And nothin', nothin' is goin' right
Play a round at Ironwood
To brighten up even your darkest night
Most of the time but not always.
- Oct 15, 2018
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I started playing golf at 6 years old. I quit playing when I was 48 (another story). I was a single digit handicap for about 30 of those years. I was a sub 2 handicap (and even got to a negative handicap for about 3 weeks) the last 20 years. Here is my advice.
Don't be a driving range warrior. Get out on the course and have fun. Go to courses and play at times when you know there won't be a crowd. Take mulligans and do overs. Don't get caught up in the score yet. Right now its all about just building the experience in your subconscious about what you think the golf ball is going to do after deciding to hit it a certain way. Golf is nothing but a series of decisions that are really just best guesses based purely on your experiences in the current situation of each shot. It is picking the right club and swing along with actually executing the shot correctly. From every single shot you are building experience on how to decide on future shots, so you need to understand whether you guessed right or wrong and if you executed the shot right or wrong. You can guess right then hit a bad shot or you can guess wrong and hit a good shot. Both of those are very frustrating but whats important is understanding what went wrong. But when you guess right and execute the shot right it feels really good. Just understand you should be learning from all of it instead of that rare moment you do it all right.
Also, you are 71...just go play.
- Oct 15, 2018
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I played at ironwood in the mid 70s when I was a kid. I havent thought about that place in years. Do they still have lights on the course so you can play at night? I remember loving going there at night as a kid. I cant remember much that far back but I think I learned to cuss there.
- Aug 18, 2018
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Nothing unique to Ironwood I would imagine. You learn to cuss at ANY golf course.;)
- Oct 15, 2018
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No...you learn to cuss at the first golf courses you start playing at not ANY golf course. ;)
And there was something unique about ironwood...it had lights. I haven't seen that anywhere else other than vegas.
- Aug 18, 2018
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You know what I meant---you learn to cuss at....golf. The game alone is enough to challenge your sanity wherever you play it.
- Oct 15, 2018
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But does ironwood still have lights?
- Aug 18, 2018
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- Jul 20, 2014
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That was West End on the other side of Gville. And now its closed and becoming more fckking town houses. Ironwood in the 70s was known as Ironweed. It has been improved and the city has it (i think)
- Oct 15, 2018
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That was my memory of it...mowed weeds with saucer greens. Guess I played west end too though I dont remember it.
- Jul 30, 2014
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I can laugh at my own game, but the post was a bit snooty. You deserved a smack across the skull, but I'm not losing any sleep over it.
- Jun 10, 2014
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No when I re-read it, it was a lot snooty. I was laughing at the fact that golf can be a maddening game. Sometimes you're on and you can plan your strategy. Sometimes you're leaking oil so badly you're busy looking for a solution, longing for a driving range, and not having fun.
- Jun 12, 2014
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Believe it or not, Phil Mickelson has some pretty good instructional videos on YouTube, especially for chipping and pitching. And unlike a lot of these dudes with youtube channels, he doesn’t prattle on and on, begging you to hit the subscribe button, etc. Just quick, easy to understand basics so you at least know the correct technique before you head to the range to practice.
Practice without some direction is a good time waster but not necessarily the path to better golf. Taking lessons from a pro that speaks your language sure beats just beating ball after ball downrange when all you’re doing is permanently ingraining all your natural flaws into your swing. That, and playing golf with decent players so you can watch how they do things out on the course.
- Jul 30, 2014
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I tend to be the guy leaking oil... although I also don't get to play very often, like 1-2 times per month, not per week. So, any day I score below 90 is a great day. It can be frustrating, but there are always those few shots or holes that fool me into thinking I almost have it figured out and should come back again... and again... I'm just a glutton for punishment, I guess.
