[The Good Morning Thread]

Late to the party today!  Hope your Monday is progressing better than Mondays usually do.  I had a busy weekend with golf a big part of it.  Saturday, I tweaked my already sore right knee and barely made it through the round.  Shot 83 with 3 doubles, but did have 2 birdies.  Here’s the first one on the par 3 4th hole (my ball is the closest one; the other was a playing partner’s chip shot)...

The other birdie was on the par 3 #15 and it was about a foot away.  Unfortunately, those were my typical putts made; pretty sure I only had 20 feet of putts made for 18 holes.    But I could hardly walk after the round.

I wouldn’t have played yesterday if it wasn’t our anniversary; we always play on our anniversary and birthdays.  I taped my knee and wore a knee brace, and it wasn’t too bad.  Planning to schedule knee replacement in the fall.  I shot 80; still had 3 doubles, but only one birdie... a 20-foot putt on the par 4 #14.  At the clubhouse waiting to tee off, two groups of new visitors...

Today was my cardiac rehab day, then mowed the lawn.  My BIL came over from Seattle for another visit so we will be playing golf again tomorrow… another knee tape-job!!  

[The Good Morning Thread]

3 hours ago, Dpalos said:

Good morning from Rustic Canyon Golf Course in Moorpark, CA!  I turn 37 today and celebrating with a round at this beautiful California links-style course.  Have a great week!

Happy Birthday!!  Way to celebrate!!!

[The Good Morning Thread]

7 hours ago, Josh Parker said:

Thanks everyone for the well wishes. Have some little head cold and cough and hoping that's all it is. 

Hope it’s nothing serious… get well soon!

[The Good Morning Thread]

On 4/21/2024 at 12:43 PM, Rob Person said:

Thanks.  Strand bulb led lights are next, and a solar fan to hang from the roof will be installed too.

You mean like this one… mine came with the house when I bought it 4 years ago!

Looking really good!  Tell your wife… Nice job!  You can have an attaboy for all the screwing.  

[Testers Announced! AutoFlex Dream7 Driver Shafts]

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[The Good Morning Thread]

Good Morning everyone!!  I haven’t been online for several days and I sure missed out on a lot of happenings!!  It’s amazing what happens here in just a day or two… still trying to catch up!

Today is our anniversary!!  17 years!  Seems like a lifetime, but not the first marriage for either of us.  3 weeks ago I mentioned that I had proposed on April 1st… a day I could remember; that’s important guys!  I proposed on the 1st tee of our golf course.  Of course, the next day she asked if I meant it!  I said: “Meant what?”   But we still got married a year and 3 weeks later.  We were going to get married on April 1st, but I had work friends that were going to be in town so we waited the 3 weeks.  Here’s... the rest of the story (short version)!

We rented the golf course (a 9-hole exec course where we met) for the day and had the wedding ceremony on the 1st tee.  The ceremony was performed by a jazz pianist from Seattle (check out deemsmusic.com) who got his minister’s license as a tax dodge.  We met him at a golf course in Spokane and had been playing golf with him for several years (he sadly passed away from cancer a few years ago).  Anyway, the ceremony took all of 3 minutes; we said our vows, turned around and teed off and everyone was invited to play.  We had cupcakes for our wedding “cake”, food and an open bar in the clubhouse with a licensed bartender.  

So here we are 17 years later and still enjoying each other and playing golf as much as we can.  Today we have a 10am tee time and warmer weather than we did back then, and we have dinner reservations at  a nice Italian dinner this evening.  

Wishing y’all a wonderful Sunday April 21st… a day I will always remember!

[Why is it so freaking hard to just "swing easy?!?!?!?!?!"]

10 hours ago, cksurfdude said:

A variation on that is hit all of your irons full swing .. working on maintaining an even, relaxed tempo .. to the same target, say at 100 yds. 

…at 100 yds.  

Good practice though.

[Pacific Northwest: AK, WA, ID, MT, OR, WY]

On 4/17/2024 at 12:59 PM, mattmeiske12 said:

Hey everyone! Nice to see some other Portlander's here, I moved here last year and I am part of the Heron Lake's Men's Club. Excited to get to meet some of you.

How long have you been playing golf? What’s your handicap or normal score? 

I've been golfing regularly for about 10 years. My handicap is floating around 11/12 currently, but trying to lower it. Eliminating the blow-up holes is my downfall usually... typically shoot in the 83-87 range.

What do you love about golf? 

The challenge, being outdoors, constantly looking for a hole-in-one, social aspect with people I enjoy spending time with.

What brings you to MyGolfSpy? Do you already know any other Spies? 

I do not know of any spies. Been following on IG for a while and thought I would get a little more active in the community.

Where are you from? What is your home course? 

I am originally from Pennsylvania, the Lehigh Valley area. Spent a lot of years in Philly as well during college.

Prior home course: Allentown Muni (Allentown, PA)

Current home course: Heron Lakes

What are the best and worst things about golf in your region? 

In love with the ability to golf all year round (mostly). The rain and mud are probably my least favorite, but I am adapting 

What do you do for a living?  

Studio Manager for an Architecture Firm. We do high rise, mixed use residential towers. I've been involved throughout the whole process, but mainly produce construction drawings and perform contract administration

How’d you pick your user name?

This is my typical go-to

Welcome to the forums!!  Glad you joined us.  Yes, there are quite a few Portland MGS members.  I live near the Columbia River, but 220 miles upstream.  I don’t make it down that way as often as I used to since my parents passed away, but if y’all have a golf outing this year, I’m willing to attend.

[Clubs to recover from a 'bad shot']

Hitting shots low is a technique that takes practice.  By low, I mean lower than normal than a full swing.  I can hit most any club from driver to lob wedge low, depending on the lie and how far I want to hit the ball. At the old course I used to play, I needed to play a low punch driver because a normal drive would slice too much and the low shot with rollout gave me better control and the distance I needed off the tee.  On my current course from the fairway on the par 5 #18, I need to get the ball around a tree at the dogleg without going too high and catching that #&@* limb.  My club of choice is my Callaway Heavenwood, but normal trajectory catches that limb every time.  I can get good yardage with it by keeping the ball low and have a wedge to the green.

As stated by @RickyBobby_PR and @cnosil, analyze the situations you are in, choose the club that you can consistently hit the required shot, and spend time learning how to flight the ball.

[The Good Morning Thread]

Good Morning everyone!  Hope your Wednesday is off to a wonderful start.  Not much going on here; have a massage, then off to shop for an anniversary gift and make plans for our anniversary dinner (after our round of golf on Sunday, of course!!).  Details of our wedding later this week… don’t miss it!!!

[What/How Did You Practice Today?]

9 minutes ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

Geez that looks like an awfully narrow driving range. But at least it’s good practice for the course.

@cksurfdude Chuck is just showing off before Kingsmill.  

[Pacific Northwest: AK, WA, ID, MT, OR, WY]

49 minutes ago, Jdemarco28 said:

You guys know of a good practice area on the west side where I can hit off grass? I know the reserve has a nice practice area but I think it’s over $20 to use for non members and is a little far away

Not really west side, but Stone Creek near Lake Oswego had a grass range, but it’s been a long time since I played it and I have no idea what the cost is.

[The Good Morning Thread]

Good Morning everyone!!  Hope y'all are off to a terrific Tuesday!  I can’t seem to get caught up reading the new posts in this thread; I read a few and more get posted… I need to read faster I guess.

Got a few chores around the house after my morning exercises; two sprinkler valves need work, one is leaking and one has a bad solenoid.  Then I’m headed to the course for some Release 2 short game work. Wife is playing this morning with some of her lady friends.

[Happy Birthday thread]

Happy Birthday @FightingScot82, @cthoma11, and @Invader Zim 315!!  Have a great day… play well!!

[The Good Morning Thread]

40 minutes ago, cnosil said:

If we get there before you, we’ll try to save y’all a seat.

If y’all is plural, that's gonna be one crowded seat.  

[Swing Weights]

5 minutes ago, IndyBonzo said:

OK @Shrek74, I went for it.

My best club in my bag is my Gap wedge, which plays at a swingweight of D2-ish.

So, I needed to regrip anyway, and I counterweighted my irons (which are 1/2" long) down from swingweights of D6-8 to D2 territory.  I did not use the plugs b/c I have the ShotScope tags in my grip ends.  So, in a move sure to appall the purists among us, I made candy canes with lead tape, hung them on the butt end (sticky-side on the shafts), and put grips over the top of them.  Some of the butts are not so pretty now with the lumps under the grips, but in my first round yesterday I really loved the feel, had some extra distance, and my buddy said he saw me hit a few of the best iron shots he has seen me hit.  The do feel lighter, smoother, and I don't notice the added gross weight at all.

Based on early returns it seems your suggestion about counterweights was spot on.  Thank you!
 

How much weight did you add?  Could you achieve the same with a heavier grip?

[The Mental Snowball]

Welcome to the forums Max!  Great points above by Sam and Chris.  It’s hard to not focus on score in the game, but not doing so helps you improve.  My best rounds are when I don’t record my score; my wife does that for me!!  Chris mentioned expectation management; it is not expected that a 28 hcp would make a bunch of pars.  We tend to focus on par because that is what’s listed on the scorecard; and when we make a bad shot, we naturally want to “get that stroke back”.  Sometimes pros pull it off, but we don’t have their skills to improve our chances.  

Rather than focusing on par on the scorecard, focus on what your NET par is on each hole.  As a 28 you get a stroke on every hole + another stroke on the 10 hardest holes listed on the scorecard.  So, par for you is Bogey on 8 easiest holes and Double Bogey on 10 hardest holes.  Before you begin a round, change the “Par” for each hole on the scorecard to your NET par.  Now when you make a bad shot, get the ball back into a good position where you have a chance at Bogey or Double.  Your focus should be on a quality shot and let the score just happen; don’t force it.  Do this and your scores will come down; don’t forget to adjust your NET pars when they do!!  Good luck!

[The Good Morning Thread]

3 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

Kenny, I tend to suffer from white coat syndrome whenever I get my pressure taken, I was sitting in the waiting room at the clinic for at least 20 minutes and I'm the room for another 10 and it still came back as high. It's currently sitting at 131/85 as I'm sitting here with the dogs on my lap. 

I'm glad to hear it doesn't go up much for you when you're exercising, I was told it would raise it quite a bit and I'm really wanting to get out and start walking or something to get some exercise. I mean, we have a pretty big golf trip coming up and it's bad enough y'all are going to see my limping around after getting off my feet for a while. I want to be in decent enough shape to not be breathing to heavily walking up hills. 

I think that white coat syndrome is what I have.  I’ve never really had much of a problem before my heart attack; my primary care visits were always around 130/80.  It was high while I was in the hospital, and it never really came down to pre-hospital levels.  My heart doc is still trying to find a suitable cocktail.  My BP is 120/75 in the morning when I get up and when I go to bed.  Mid-morning it goes up to a high of 140/90.  

Getting out and walking after meals is the best time for BP and blood sugar.  I hear you about getting in shape; well, better shape… round is a shape, but not the one I prefer.  Lost a bunch of weight a couple of years ago, but I have plateaued and can’t seem to get the rest off me!  Don’t wait!!  It gets harder the longer you put it off and older you get.  I need to change up a few things before our trip to Kingsmill.  Not sure if I’ll survive hot and humid; I like hot and dry!!

[The Good Morning Thread]

6 hours ago, sirchunksalot said:

I just went to the doctor now I'm in medical trying to get my return to work settled. My BP was still elevated at the doctor and my wife had to advocate for some meds to help with it. It's crazy they don't seem to take this seriously. I realize every time I've been to the doctor it's been good, but c'mon. 

Hopefully it'll all get settled before to long. 

Hope you get it worked out Jason.

My BP is high every time I go to Cadiac Rehab therapy.  They don’t let anyone participate if BP is 170 or higher.  I take my BP at home before I go to therapy… normal-ish.  Get there, sit waiting for 20 minutes and it’s 170+.  So I have to sit for 10 minutes; they retake my BP and it’s 151.  During the cardio exercise, it goes up to 162; after the cardio and cool-down stretching, it’s 120.  Funny… it never gets above 145 until my next Rehab visit, and we go through the same routine all over again.  Doc put me on another heart med… amlodipine.  I’m already on COREG.

[Happy Birthday thread]

Happy Birthday @Henri-Martin HORN and @aerospace_ray!!  Make your day special!

[The Good Morning Thread]

Good after Masters Monday Morning everyone!!  Hope you day is off to a nice start.  Great golf this weekend; The Masters and mine!  Temps are dropping back into the more normal range of 60-70º and the wind is picking up again.  Dang!  Irrigation water was turned on this weekend, so today will be spent fixing and adjusting sprinklers; always seems to be a few that don’t work quite right.  No coffee until after cardiac rehab at 0800, so I’m a little grumpy.

[The Good Morning Thread]

7 hours ago, cksurfdude said:

Happy day people!!

Very nice!! Next time go out with a clear, focused, "present" mind and look out course record!!

 

Thanks, but I guess I wasn’t focused enough.  You need to give me lessons on that.  I did birdie the first two holes and quoted Bishop Pickering… “I could break the course record… theoretically.”   Wiped out the birdies on the third hole with a double!!   Had two more birdies in a row on 14 and 15, but wiped them out with a double on the 16th.  Shot 76.  Can’t complain though; first time I've had 4 birdies in one round!!

Two days with temps around 80º; loving warmer weather...  and I shoot 74-76 on the weekend

[How'd you play?]

18 hours ago, Rob Person said:

Love reading about everyone's low rounds!  Feels.good when it happens!!!

OK, I want you to feel good… I feel pretty good too!

My wife and I played with a guy playing from the tips; first time I’ve ever played with someone playing from there.  Good player, but didn’t have any luck all day.  Fun to watch him hit the ball though.

Today was a special day.  Shot 76, but a worse score than yesterday's 74.  I birdied the first two holes and jokingly quoted Bishop Pickering: “I could break the course record… theoretically.”  Big mistake!!    Got a double on #3.   Finished the front nine at +2 for a 39.  Not the first time I’ve had back 2 back birdies, but really hated to follow them up with a double.

The back nine was going along pretty well… played 10-13 in one over par.  Then I had back 2 back birdies again on 14 and 15.  Followed those up with… you guessed it… another double!!   My back nine score was 37… another nine holes at +2

Today was the first time I’ve had 4 birdies in a round.  Dang!  It could have been a really great round!!  The holes that I doubled today were pars yesterday.  Feeling good because I still Shot My Age and I know that I didn’t hit the ball as well as I can; need more practice this week!

[Happy Birthday thread]

Happy Birthday @Golfdots, @patrickosullivan88, and @Brutus14!!  Enjoy your day!!!!

[The Good Morning Thread]

Good Morning everyone!!  Haven’t been on the past few days; watching The Masters and playing golf.  I managed the best round of the year for me yesterday… 74 with a couple of birdies on par 3’s.  I had a couple of brain f@rts on two par 5’s that cost me a chance and at an even par round.  Beautiful day today with temps in the low 80’s, but only in the 50’s when we tee off.. layers will be peeling off fast!!

Have a great Masters Sunday, and hope your picks are doing better than mine!!