New Waves of Golf Participants

 

What drives golf participation in the masses?  The last explosion was led by Tiger Woods.  People thought Tiger was cool and it was awesome to dress like him, play his equipment, hit it far like him, and kick ass.   But that group receded as Tiger faded from his previous level of prominence.  As demand dropped, the accompanying high greens fees at upscale public courses went down, and the problem of unavailable tee times subsided.

A new wave is forming led by folks who have discovered golf as a safe socially distanced game you can play outside.  It satisfies the need to meet face to face brought on by COVID-19 restrictions.  I’ve played with several of these newbies and understood their rational for starting.  I’ve also overheard many conversations of players at my practice facilities to confirm the trend.  Once COVID recedes, will these players abandon the game?  They might when confronted with the high cost, time commitment, and long attention span that is required for success.

There’s another wave that’s already formed and is characterized by the player who patronizes Top Golf.  Calloway just purchased Top Golf and the club maker went all in because the latter is an entry point to new customers.  Here’s a fascinating article on the merger as described by the two CEOs of TopGolf and Calloway.  Their target customers are people who enjoy eating, drinking, congregating, playing video games, and love music – in no particular order.  50% of Top Golf customers are new to the game (haven’t played one round in the last year.)  Forgive me for profiling, but these are your young foursomes with a 12-pack of beer and a blue tooth speaker blaring loud music that have already invaded many golf courses.  In addition, Calloway already owns the TopTracer range technology which is about tracking every shot struck at every facility where it’s installed and networking the data world-wide.  This is a godsend to customers that love video-gaming with people anonymously over the internet.  They just staged a 7,000-participant virtual tournament.  This is the kind of customer Calloway wants to pull into the game and onto our courses.  Is this wise?  What will it do to the game?

Thomas Jefferson once said, “In matters of style, go with the flow.  In matters of principle, stand like a rock.”  I am a golf traditionalist and believe we should welcome the first wave of COVID refugees to the golf courses.  Not sure about the second group.  Of course, I want to grow the game but still love that the golf course is a place to go unplug for a while.  What do you think?

Play well!

An Etiquette guide

Yesterday I missed a great pay it forward opportunity.  I went to play nine holes at 3:30 p.m. and got paired with three singles.  One fellow announced that he was, “attempting to fix a slice and that all unsolicited words of advice would be welcome.”  Normally, I don’t give unsolicited advice to anyone, much less a stranger.  As we moved through the round, I learned that he had been playing for 18 months and it became apparent that he needed assistance with golf etiquette more than his swing, and after I got home, I was recounting all the breeches to my wife and she asked if I had helped him in this learning opportunity.  Well, I had not and am regretting it.  I was in my own world compiling a Do’s and Don’ts list for my Monday charity scramble and only saw the etiquette breaches as irritants rather than learning opportunities.  So, making up for that now.  Here’s a list of etiquette points to make golf more enjoyable for novices and their playing partners.

KEEP YOUR CONVERSATION DOWN ON THE DRIVING RANGE.  Players are getting loose and working on their games and need to concentrate.  If you have to converse with a friend, keep it low enough so others can’t hear.

BE READY TO PLAY WHEN IT’S YOUR TURN.  On the first tee, ask your playing partners if you can play “ready golf”.  That means whoever is prepared to tee off can, without maintaining the honor (low score goes first.)  Most players are fine with this but ask.  One caveat; it’s bad form to step in front of someone who just made a birdie even when playing “ready golf”.  Get to your ball quickly and think about your club selection on the way.  This saves time and keeps play moving.  If you think your ball may be lost, put a spare in your pocket before beginning your search.  Also saves time in the event you need to drop one.  Limit your search to three minutes.

BE STILL WHEN OTHERS ARE PLAYING.  Holds true for full swings and on the putting green.  Ensure that you are not in the direct or peripheral vision of a playing partner.  Above all, do not stand directly on the extended line of someone preparing to putt.  If I can see you out of the corner of my eye, it’s a distraction.  In late day rounds, be cognizant of where your shadow falls.  Do not leave it in someone’s view.

POSTION YOUR BAG CORRECTLY BY THE GREEN.  When walking, place your bag to the side of the putting green nearest the next tee.  When riding, park your cart by the green and bring any clubs you may need to finish the hole with you to eliminate the need to go back and forth to the cart.

LEARN TO MARK YOUR BALL ON THE GREEN.  Use a coin or ball mark (not a tee) to mark your ball.  It should sit flat to the surface and be barely visible to other players.  If your mark is in the putting line of another player, ask if they need you to move it to one side and by how much.  Use your putter head to measure how far to move your mark. 

CLEAN UP YOUR LAG PUTTS.  When you putt a ball that does not go in, either finish the next putt or mark the ball.  Do not leave it sitting on the green near the hole where others can see it during their turn.

There are many other pointers to learn, especially when playing out of carts.  The COVID pandemic has brought out a lot of new players to the game and exacerbated the need to convey the knowledge, courtesy and norms that make the game enjoyable to all.  If you work with this list, you’ll be off to a great start.

Play well!   

Your Best Friend

You are on the golf course hitting great shots and scoring poorly.  How frustrating.  Has this ever happened to you?  How you handle depends on your abilities to observe, adjust, and most importantly, how you treat yourself. 

Last weekend I was playing an afternoon round at my club, Blue Mash, where I have an expectation for a score between a 73 and 78, on a normal day.  I noticed something was off from the first tee box where the markers were pushed back, and the hole was playing into the wind.  My tee shot was well struck and barely cleared a fairway bunker which is normally an easy carry.  I had 5-iron in where I usually take 8 or 9 and made bogey.  It became clear from the setup and conditions that the course would play long and difficult.  I bogeyed the first five holes and could safely say that I hit a great shot on each of those holes.  At this point, I had a decision regarding how I would approach the remainder of the round.

When you are not rewarded for good effort, you get upset.  Dr. Bob Rotella says that when distracted by bad play or bad scores, you need to be your best friend out on the course because nobody else is there to help you.  I agree and have learned that positive self-talk is key and to not get down on myself.  I also understand that you can’t confuse effort with results.  Imagine how the tour pros felt on the final day of the 2020 US Open.  Only one (Bryson DeChambeau) managed to break 70 in the final round.  These guys were clearly scoring 5-10 strokes worse than a normal day and were grinding terribly.  They were frustrated and you could see how their scoring affected their game.  De Chambeau didn’t let it alter his attitude and approach and was victorious.  The guy is comfortable in his own skin and despite being a bit of an odd duck, is clearly his own best friend.

The temptation after a bad start is to press and try to save the round.  Last weekend, I had to resist by using positive self-talk and to try and focus on the next shot.  I was partially successful and finished with an 11-over 82.  Normally, after shooting a poor score, I’ll stew about it for a day or two, but I honestly felt that was the worst I could have scored for the way I played and the conditions that presented themselves.  The previous week, I hit the ball horrendously and carded an 8-over 79 on a different track, which was the absolute best I could have shot considering my ball striking.  Still, I took some positives away from that round and felt that my short game saved me from carding a round in the mid 80s.  The key in both situations is to understand and adjust to the current conditions and not get down on yourself.  Be your own best friend!  If you can do this, you will be mentally tough to beat.

Obviously, I have some areas of my game that need work.  I’ve got a tournament coming up a week from Monday, and a trip to the eastern shore to play on some tough venues.  I’m off to the course to practice. 

Do you confuse effort with results?

Are you your own best friend?

Play well!