ddryan

Very nice indeed- lots of good CA courses there!!!

Rick, you remember my brother - he hooked you up on that trip to New Jersey- well a few years ago he played in some "Iron Men of Golf" tournament - a 100 hole challenge where you needed to finish 100 holes in a day (yea, one day) and the lowest scores were presented awards- I think he even won a trip to Ireland or something- of course it was all sort of a fundraiser - so it was for a good cause- that must have been some speed golf to get 100 holes in in one day!

After 20+ years in uniform where a clean shave was required, I began playing with a goatee - Wife did not like it at first, and it gave me a somewhat edgy look (after that long without) but still needed to shave for monthly drill. Since fully retiring from the military I have kept it on, but of course, that 'edgy' look is pretty much passé, as everyone has a goatee- almost a requirement these days. I cant grow a full beard- just doesn't happen- however I know quite a few folks who have the "Homer Simpson" 5 o'clock shadow at 9 in the morning! A non golfing friend of mine can actually grow a beard (think Duck Dynasty type) in about 3 days- heck, it grows faster than the hair on the top of my head (which, albeit grey, is still all there!)... BTW, thanks Tommc23, for what you do as a first responder- it is appreciated! Not many run into a burning building... most are going the opposite direction!

"... I was playing last week and the wind was howling 25-30mph and for some reason the groundskeeper thought putting the pins on slopes was a good idea. I rarely 3 putt but did so 3 times on the front 9 with that wind and tough pin cmbo. On #9 that was dead downwind, I just killed my driver and actually hit it too far going into the water that juts out, normally well out of my range but caught it perfectly and had that 30mph wind at my back. I had been playing a TM TPx and when I pulled out a ball to drop, it was a Kirkland. Got up and down from 72 yds and then started the back 9 with 2 pars into the wind before turning side and down won and birdied 3 holes in a row and parred out. So was it the K-Sigs for me too? I was certainly aware that I was using it and it dawned on me that when I shot 68 earlier in the week at the same course I was using the K-Sig and when I shot 73 the next day I was using the TPx. Hmmmmmmm.... :wacko:" The ball just seemed to go where I intended more often than not. Around the green I was able to stop the ball closer to the hole, and I did drain half a dozen 1-putts- just felt as though the ball went (and stayed) on the line I intended- So the question is- was it the ball or me- or me trusting the ball and my swing- probably more likely, but I do like the outcome! In discussing the round with my wife afterwards, she asked "so if the balls make such a difference, why don't you pay the higher price for the Titlest or TM or other premium balls? That is your goal, is it not?" OK, she is right, but at a fundamental level, I just cant get used to paying $50 / dozen when the same quality can be had for half the price- Who wouldn't take a Lamborghini if it was only $50K new... She does pose an interesting question, though... should I reconsider.. well, at least not for a while, as the 4 dozen K-Sigs should last a good while.....

I posted this on how'd you play, but thought it good enough to post here, as well... Received my shipment of K-Sigs on Friday, and was looking forward to trying them out- Sunday morning was a bit on the cool side, called for a vest and long pants, but the sun warmed us up as the day went along. Started out Bogey, par, birdie, birdie, par, par, pushed my drive on 7, punched out and chipped to 3 feet, but missed the par putt, so I am now even going into 8. Made a slippery downhill left to right breaking 10 footer for par on 8, and am thinking "Par on 9 and I make the turn even!!!" I then proceed to push my drive into the next fairway right of ours, but have an opening if I make a strong draw @ 170 yards out. End up in a greenside bunker, well below the elevated green- I make a good pass at the ball and it pops out, lands about a yard short of the pin and releases -yes- into the cup for a birdie!- I make the turn at -1 (35) - a personal best for me. Came back to earth on the back 9, shooting a 41, including a birdie and a triple! - Post a record round of 76- and chuckle when the computer asks "This score is outside the players' normal range (no kidding) is this correct?" YES, it was correct. So, was it the K-Sigs? Was it that I trusted the ball? Was it that I trusted my swing? I did putt well, with about a half dozen 1-putts, and some rather accurate chipping to boot- but, all that said, when I got home I immediately went online to COSTCO, to order another 4 dozen K-Sigs, but alas, they are sold out again... I do like them!

Received my shipment of K-Sigs on Friday, and was looking forward to trying them out- Sunday morning was a bit on the cool side, called for a vest and long pants, but the sun warmed us up as the day went along. Started out Bogey, par, birdie, birdie, par, par, pushed my drive on 7, punched out and chipped to 3 feet, but missed the par putt, so I am now even going into 8. Made a slippery downhill left to right breaking 10 footer for par on 8, and am thinking "Par on 9 and I make the turn even!!!" I then proceed to push my drive into the next fairway right of ours, but have an opening if I make a strong draw @ 170 yards out. End up in a greenside bunker, well below the elevated green- I make a good pass at the ball and it pops out, lands about a yard short of the pin and releases -yes- into the cup for a birdie!- I make the turn at -1 (35) - a personal best for me. Came back to earth on the back 9, shooting a 41, including a birdie and a triple! - Post a record round of 76- and chuckle when the computer asks "This score is outside the players' normal range (no kidding) is this correct?" YES, it was correct. So, was it the K-Sigs? Was it that I trusted the ball? Was it that I trusted my swing? I did putt well, with about a half dozen 1-putts, and some rather accurate chipping to boot- but, all that said, when I got home I immediately went online to COSTCO, to order another 4 dozen K-Sigs, but alas, they are sold out again... I do like them!

Heard this one at the course today- a few of us almost fell out of our chairs - Wife, fed up by being left alone virtually every weekend to her husband's golf outings decides to take up the game. after secretly practicing for several months, she says one saturday morning, "Gee hon, do you think I could play with you this morning? " after some discussion, he decides sure, why not. The get to the course, and head to the first tee. He tees up his ball, takes a mighty swing, shanks the ball, and it hits his wife in the temple, killing her instantly- Oh my God, he exclaims, and calls 911... The paramedics arrive and look the woman over, and return to the man to ask what happened. He explains that he shanked the tee shot, and it struck her in the temple, and she fell over. The paramedic says "but sir, that does not describe the scene fully- you see we found a golf ball wedged deeply in between the cheeks of her behind - Can you explain that?" He calmly replies "Oh, that was my mulligan..."

... You must get some good deals on ProV1 logo over runs. $29.99 is the best I have found in the Chicago area. Kirkland Signatures are $18.50 a dozen with Illinois tax and shipping. So I just double checked the invoice- it was $30 for two dozen (I thought it was for a single dozen, hence my comment) then an additional $10 for shipping, $4 for uncle sam, so, yes, I guess the deal is better than the overruns- I suppose I should read the invoice a bit closer, but knee jerk purchase and the resultant price surprised me. Now I can get rid of some of the scuffed pro v's in my bag! Just in time for the fall and losing balls under leaves!

Just ordered mine. Although, with tax and delivery price is not that much different from Pro V 1 logo overruns - We shall see how they play

Welcome to the Forum!

"...the biggest issue here is running red lights, I'm not talking about getting caught in rorange color zone, I'm talking about the light is red and has been red for a good second or 2 and you still run the light. I have taught her to hesitate when the light goes to green to make sure that the other is actually stopping." This is how I almost ended up, well, not being here. Back in College, in the state of Delaware, I was riding my motorcycle (Honda 750 at the time) and although the state did not require a helmet, I was wearing one. Came to a traffic light and there were two lanes to turn left. I was in the second (the right of the two left hand turn lanes) and parallel with the car to my left. It was about 8:30 or so in the evening, and I was headed to pick up tickets for a concert the next week. As our light turned Green Arrow to make the left, I began to accelerate along with the car to my left. Suddenly he stopped, mid turn, I looked to the left and all I saw was headlights- a woman ran the red light and hit me broadside at about 30 MPH- not sure how, (I am sure God had a big hand in this, but) I jumped off the pegs of the bike, bounced a$$ over tincups over top of her car, and ended up landing on my head and back in the middle of the intersection as my bike was smashed and scattered across the intersection and into the sidewalk. As I lay there, I reached down and made sure all my appendages were still attached (they were, thank the good Lord), got up, and went over to the car to see if she was OK. People who witnessed the accident came running over to make sure I was OK- (shaken, sure, but uninjured) - police arrived, put me in the back of the patrol car (motorcycle must equal criminal) and did his investigation. Eventually he cited the woman for running the red light, and drove me back to my apartment. Always a good idea to look before heading into an intersection, especially if the light has just changed, or is changing. Teaching good situational awareness (know what is going on in front, to both sides, and to the rear of you, keep your eyes scanning front, sides and rear all the time, etc. )is the best thing you can do- and remind your daughter to look extra closely for motorcycles- the biggest cause of accidents is often the driver "not seeing" the motorcycle -

I do a bit of driving around the notorious "Beltway" around Washington, DC- and use turn signals and also look (twice) before I change lanes- however I do notice that when you use signals to pass, often the car you are passing will speed up to close the gap and prevent you from coming in- it is crazy. And, since this is the rant threat- the other thing that I don't understand is why everyone wants to drive the left lane- it should only be used for passing - but here everyone wants to drive the speed limit in the left lane, virtually closing off the ability to accelerate and pass slower traffic. While in Germany a few years ago (and having been stationed there long ago) I remember driving and being very VERY comfortable with the speed because individuals obeyed the traffic laws- staying the right except to pass, then moving back to the right, so that the Porsche or Jag or Lamborgini or whatever flying by does not have to brake... they just zoom by! At most, they flash their high beams and that gets everyone to move over. Here around DC, you flash your high beams and they slow down even more!!!

I'm afraid we may have let ddryan down in that regard. He was nice enough to offer us some of his private swing oil, mid round. But I was in uniform (meaning a polo with our course name) and it was still technically work hours. And Wahoo was afraid if he took the bottle, ddryan might not get it back We didn't have much time for a full fledged 19th hole, but most certainly will the next time. Not at all- I offered because it is the right thing to do- I make no judgment on whether individuals partake or not- and I would never push something on anyone- I have great respect and a deep understanding of the issues which surround abuse and addiction. I had a long drive after, and was playing hockey that night, so a beer did not seem like the right thing to do, but as you say, there will be other times when we can toss one back! Again, thanks for the great time!

A bit of commentary on those great images- not the subjects, but rather the photos themselves! 1. First, that selfie is scary close- a result of being vertically challenged with accompanying short arms!.. There should probably be some sort of warning before that photo opens up on your computer!!! 2. This photo could have been on any of the fairways- Wahoo is ALWAYS right down the center of the fairway. 3. A great image of a beautiful golf hole at a particularly nice time of the evening- it is corollary for the entire round - great course, great spies, and great fun! 4. First, the elbows are supposed to be straight -oops. Second, yes, I left the birdie putt short (probably the 4th or 5th putt I left short- not all birdies, BTW).

In my short time on the Forum, I really REALLY appreciate the respect and camaraderie shown among the members. In this thread I have just read about how a +1 handicap was excited to shoot a near perfect round, hitting all fairways and 17 of 18 GIR, (which is awesome in itself, and I enjoy it vicariously- hoping beyond hope to someday have a round like that) and then, a few posts later, read about a member who has been playing less than 5 years shooting in the 90's- also awesome in and of itself. The thing I love about this game - the thing that my father taught my brother and I about golf- is that at the end of the day, it is you against the course- sure, you may have playing partners or opponents, you may be in a league or on a group golf holiday with all sorts of games and all sorts of money exchanging hands- but at its core, golf is about how you (and you alone) can handle the course. Sure, there are some things that help- home course knowledge, watching others putt along a similar line, but unlike any other sport, there are no "subs on the bench" no "Pinch hitters" and nobody telling you what to do- you may have a plan, how you are going to approach each hole, where to bail when needed, and when to be aggressive, but it is you stepping up, addressing the ball and executing the swing (and dealing with the results). Truly an amazing game- and clearly this forum accepts all who pick up a club, propel and pursue a golf ball around a course and attempt to bury it 18 times. What a game! What a forum, and what a great group of individuals who share their trials and tribulations amongst the rest of the group. Thanks, all!

If you are following the VAMDPA meetup link, you know that Carolina Golfer had Wahoo and me out to his facility "Compass Pointe" an outstanding 36 hole track near Pasadena, MD, yesterday afternoon. The skies opened up just prior to my arrival, and I think scared off a few who thought it might last- But never fear- the skies cleared and we had a great round. The course was in great shape, fairways lush and greens receptive- my initial observations are that the greens are relatively small, and have subtle (and some not so subtle) contours that make for a very good test. I was striking the ball relatively well, but could not buy a putt. probably 3-jacked 3 of the first 7 holes. Number 8 is an unforgiving, long par 5 with a sweeping dogleg to the left. The visual on this hole is intimidating- it does not appear there is anywhere to drive. Hesitatingly I blocked a driver right, hit the only tree across the entire fairway, and kicked into the waist deep gorse, and re-tee-ed hitting 3 and my first double of the day. 44 going out... Settled down a bit on the back 9, pared a couple then came to 12, a short par 3 with water right and traps and woods left. Blocked an 8 iron through some shrubs lining the pond, but did not go in the water- played a provisional to the center of the green then looked (unsuccessfully) for the first shot. Now putting for bogie, left it a foot short. second double of the day. Arrived at 14 ( a beautiful long par 5), and end up about 6 feet out for birdie.... left it short (violation!!!) settled for par. Next hole is a tight par 4 with water right and woods encroaching on the left- very tough visually, but played for center and actually hit where I aimed and now about 140 out to a two tiered green. Good approach and made the putt- ok, things are settling down. Throughout the next several holes, the course fit my eye- I liked the visuals and the understood where to land the ball (even if I didn't pull off the shot I could see what I needed to do. Few more pars and I am looking at a possible 39, all I have to do is make some putts- But alas, that was not to be. Even on two separate 18, 20 foot away birdie putts I had - left them both short.....story of my game - 41 coming back in. Thanks Wahoo and Carolina Golfer- was a GREAT time!!! we absolutely need to do it again!

After reading this thread you should mention the club, so that nobody else will have to suffer the same embarrassment that you experienced. Key to both success and failure in this is service orientation- If you work in the service industry (food service, hospitality, golf courses included in that) you need to understand what service means, and if you are in management, then you need to teach what that means, and explain that you are in a competitive industry and what differentiates you from the rest is.... This market differentiation is key in the service industry. Nothing against Marriott- I am a big fan and frequently stay at the Marriott hotel chains - I like their brand and the service that they routinely bring to the market for the cost point. That said, The Ritz Carlton was far and away the best in hospitality in the US for a larger hotel chain, then they were purchased by Marriott- It raised Marriott's level, but (IMHO) diluted the Ritz Carlton brand. It is little things that make the difference and when that many big things go poorly, there is much more going on than a discussion with the manager will fix. This organization may be really well off, the members don't want other functions in their little slice of heaven, and so be it. Sounds like that is the way they are going (for better or worse, because I am sure you are not the first to have this type of problem), and they will either exist on the merits of their membership alone or change (i.e. close or be sold)... In any event, sorry to hear about your event. Hope it doesn't have an effect on your business.

Started at Djahubes suggestion, liked the potential opportunity to test / evaluate new stuff, and learn about how other "regular golfers" felt about products- cut the hype, get to the real skinny. Stayed because I have met (many virtually, some in the flesh) and played the game I love with other spies (CG2 and Wahoo today, STUDque a few weeks ago). Gotten good gouge on courses, shared what info I have on places, courses, other interests such as adult beverages and burning leaves... all this without any attitude or egos - just my kind of place!!

Or, as we like to say SBMF... We even had a hat made and presented it to a buddy of ours who notoriously shoots significantly under his index during tournaments (all friendly, mind you), so he took it with a good chuckle! non of us are making a living off this- rather spending our retirement!

Managed to sneak in 9 this afternoon- weather perfect- my game, well not so much. This is looking at my second shot on a good par 5 across Daniel's Run. About 210 out, My first swing I pulled a 4 Iron left, but since nobody else was out there, dropped a second, executed the swing properly and ended up on the green with a reasonable putt. Just goes to show you, Bubba the "second golfer" is pretty darn good Sorry dont know why this is turning sideways, but there you

Yeah, great story, John! And a big CONGRATS!!! to Paul! But that's really one of the things that makes golf different .. when you get paired up with someone and are spending a few hours with them outdoors, you never know what sort of interesting and unique person you have just run into. Interesting thought- and reminds me of a time in my younger, more "emotional" days, I was playing at Ft Campbell, KY on a particular Saturday, and I was paired with an older gentleman and we headed directly to the first tee. The first three or four holes were an absolute disaster for me- perhaps three lost balls, no control (granted I was recently getting back in the game after having spent 3 years in Germany and no golf). My language was quite colorful- I probably ran through every word that I knew, a few foreign words, and was on the verge of inventing a few more... We arrived at the first par 3 (4th hole, I think, a significantly uphill par 3), the group ahead of us was still on the green. As we waited for the green to clear, the older gentleman with whom I had been partnered formally introduced himself. He said - "My name is Bob, I take it you are stationed here at Ft Campbell?" I said, "yes, my name is Drew, and I am in First Brigade... (one of three Infantry Brigades within the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) stationed at Ft Campbell.) He nodded with understanding- and a pause, which prompted me to ask "And how about you, Bob? Are you from around here, and what do you do?" To which he replied, with a deadpan straight face (but smiling eyes) - "Yes, I grew up in Clarksville (the town just outside the base) - I'm a Southern Baptist Minister in town!!!" I was very quiet for the next few holes!!!!!

# 5 - I HATE Slow play, and waiting on every shot can get in my head- although I am getting better at controlling that part of my emotions # 29 - YEP!

About the only thing I am consistent at is inconsistency... Saturday shot smooth 90 during the downpours which were the remnants of Harvey- no roll and not striking the ball well. Did win my friendly matchplay with a buddy 1 up on 18- he bought the beer. Sunday, trying to keep up with STUDque tearing the cover off his ball on his drives... we both shot 39's on the front, lets just say the course got us both on the back 9. Although I finished with a 41, could have been better if a few putts dropped. All in all a decent enough round. Monday, thanks to the Boss for sending me out of the house so she could finish a work related report in quiet- I shot another mediocre 86 (42-44) - missed quite a few short putts (within 5 feet) and actually 3 putted two greens- just don't have the putting touch right now, and that is creating a lack of confidence which is carrying over to the next hole- Need to focus on putting, putting and putting (and get my hands on the Queen B-- I think I am really jonesing it !!!!)

Could not putt to save my life today- probably missed 5 short (within 5 feet) for birdie or par- Guess I know what I will be practicing next week!

Good afternoon all- does anyone have a few drills to help me stop swaying forward (lateral shift toward the left - I play right handed) on the downswing? I often end up forward of the where the golf ball was, with a block or push fade. When I concentrate and think "Stay behind the ball" I can catch it from the inside, get my little draw and a resultant good swing, but my frequent miss is that hip slide instead of a good turn... Thanks