A Good Walk Spoiled?
So apparently I have a pretty good-looking golf swing (pictures below). Unfortunately, it doesn't result in that many good-looking golf shots. Form over function. Sad.
I've always been good at mimicking the form of professional athletes. I've never received formal lessons in any sport. I just copy what I see on television, and usually the results are decent. But golf...golf is a different beast all together.
This Friday, my housemates and I hit the Shoreline Links for a twilight tee time. Ten bucks, 6pm, enough time to get through the front nine before sundown. We were joined by Lisa, who took the photos throughout the round, and Drew, who is in town for the weekend. The two of them didn't play, but they may have enjoyed the beautiful Shoreline setting more than the players, because as the saying goes, golf is a good walk spoiled. But we were naive. Look how happy we look on the first tee:
Other than after a few intermittent moments of brilliance (most by Hubert), the smiling stopped there. Countless lost balls, shanked drives, fat wedges, thin pitches, yipped putts. And only one of us (again, Hubert) managed a score through 9 that matched the PGA record for 18 (59 strokes).
Yet through it all, I actually had a blast! The funny thing about golf, at least for me, is that I can play like crap for most of the day, but if I manage just one big highlight moment, it's more than enough to carry me through the crap and leave me happy.
That moment last night came on the fourth hole, a 135-yard par-3 over water. This should be a 6- or 7-iron off the tee, but my malfunctioning swing barely manages that with a driver, so that's what I pulled from my bag. Now, if you don't know much about golf, it's really sad that I'd be pulling out driver on a par-3, but whatever it takes, right? At least it was into the wind. We were staring into the sun, and the glare off the water was harsh, so when I took my swing, I knew I hit a solid shot, but I couldn't follow it! It looked like it landed in the front trap (the only shot in our group to clear the water), but when we got there, it was actually sitting on the green about 15 feet from the hole! A legitimate chance at my first regulation birdie ever, but I ended up lagging it close for an easy par, the first of two on the day for our foursome (the other by, you guessed it, Hpan).
I managed a few other highlights on the day, including some solid drives splitting the fairway (one for 180 yards with a tailwind), and on the final hole (a par-5) I got on in four, leaving me with my second putt for par (I missed). Looking at the pictures of my swing, I wonder where all those errant shots came from, but that's the mystery of golf. Something that lessons will help fix, hopefully. Thanks for taking some great pics, Lis!
And the finish...
Golf obviously can be a frustrating game, but the highs are addictive, and I'm hooked. I look forward to taking lessons, gaining some consistency, and taking down Hubert for the number one seed. Did I mention he had some awesome shots? Check out his blog for the recap of the round and some photos of the other guys' swings. When's the next round?
I've always been good at mimicking the form of professional athletes. I've never received formal lessons in any sport. I just copy what I see on television, and usually the results are decent. But golf...golf is a different beast all together.
This Friday, my housemates and I hit the Shoreline Links for a twilight tee time. Ten bucks, 6pm, enough time to get through the front nine before sundown. We were joined by Lisa, who took the photos throughout the round, and Drew, who is in town for the weekend. The two of them didn't play, but they may have enjoyed the beautiful Shoreline setting more than the players, because as the saying goes, golf is a good walk spoiled. But we were naive. Look how happy we look on the first tee:
Other than after a few intermittent moments of brilliance (most by Hubert), the smiling stopped there. Countless lost balls, shanked drives, fat wedges, thin pitches, yipped putts. And only one of us (again, Hubert) managed a score through 9 that matched the PGA record for 18 (59 strokes).
Yet through it all, I actually had a blast! The funny thing about golf, at least for me, is that I can play like crap for most of the day, but if I manage just one big highlight moment, it's more than enough to carry me through the crap and leave me happy.
That moment last night came on the fourth hole, a 135-yard par-3 over water. This should be a 6- or 7-iron off the tee, but my malfunctioning swing barely manages that with a driver, so that's what I pulled from my bag. Now, if you don't know much about golf, it's really sad that I'd be pulling out driver on a par-3, but whatever it takes, right? At least it was into the wind. We were staring into the sun, and the glare off the water was harsh, so when I took my swing, I knew I hit a solid shot, but I couldn't follow it! It looked like it landed in the front trap (the only shot in our group to clear the water), but when we got there, it was actually sitting on the green about 15 feet from the hole! A legitimate chance at my first regulation birdie ever, but I ended up lagging it close for an easy par, the first of two on the day for our foursome (the other by, you guessed it, Hpan).
I managed a few other highlights on the day, including some solid drives splitting the fairway (one for 180 yards with a tailwind), and on the final hole (a par-5) I got on in four, leaving me with my second putt for par (I missed). Looking at the pictures of my swing, I wonder where all those errant shots came from, but that's the mystery of golf. Something that lessons will help fix, hopefully. Thanks for taking some great pics, Lis!
Golf obviously can be a frustrating game, but the highs are addictive, and I'm hooked. I look forward to taking lessons, gaining some consistency, and taking down Hubert for the number one seed. Did I mention he had some awesome shots? Check out his blog for the recap of the round and some photos of the other guys' swings. When's the next round?
posted by Chang Kim at Saturday, August 13, 2005
8 Comments:
hey, on a very unrelated topic, how much is gas over there now? here in dallas, i saw $2.49/gallon for regular, which is absolutely unheard of
for my 2 cents, it looks like you are leaning back a lot on that swing =)
Gas here is about $2.77 a gallon. I saw one place in Burlingmae yesterday that was selling gas for $3.15 a gallon - crazy!
Thanks, I'll work on that, coach. :)
i think i need to hit the range and work on my short game some more before the next round. perhaps lessons even! :)
hehe, of course my only expertise on the golf swing is what i see on tv
Same here. That's why I need lessons to teach me the finer points of the swing. I get the general look from television, but when you point out something like, "it looks like you are leaning back a lot," I look again, and it does look like I'm leaning back a lot. :)
nice horse racing pictures :) hubert and i went to bay meadows a few years ago and lost all our money :( i guess it's still fun to see them race.
also i'd just like to say that even sam's club (kind of like costco) gas in dallas is $2.56 right now :(
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