On Par - All about golf in Australia » The golf game

Matchplay win

Doogs — Sun, 09 May 2010 22:15:33 +0000

Kangaroo gallery at the 15th hole
Nige and I ventured out to the Growling Frog Golf Course recently to partner up in the first round of the Sunday Herald Sun Golf Challenge. Ive played for the last few years in the Singles competition, but this year we are playing in the Pair’s competition. We were matched with Rob and Mick also regulars at the Frog. Pairs matchplay adds another dimension to the intricacies of Matchplay golf, with a decent score needed to halve a hole let alone win. Nige was also playing the Frog for the first time, so needed to help him with the layout.

The day was cool and windy, and after hitting a bucket of golf balls before the round (a rarity!), we started well. I parred 1,2,3,5,7 and with support from Nige, was even putting with confidence on the recently cored/sanded greens. Lipped out on the 8th and then Nige just missed on the 9th but went to the backnine +2.

The defining moment came on the Par 5 11th, Nige and I were well placed on the fairway, Rob had lost a ball and was out. Mick hit into a fairway bunker and we looked good for a win, but then Mick played a great recovery shot close to the pin. We sprayed our approaches and the game shifted again. I stood over a long putt from off the green and knocked it in! Mick then needed a birdie to halve, missed and we went +3. Nige turned on the A game from there and three holes later we had won, 6 & 4.

Bring on the next round…..

Twitter Golf – Ian Poulter style

Doogs — Wed, 05 May 2010 22:10:23 +0000

Ian Poulter is one of the better professional sports twitterers out there. He keeps his followers updated with tweets on where/when he is playing “Teeing off Thursday 1.28 with Tiger Woods & Hunter Mahan should be great fun & great atmosphere“,
how he is feeling “Morning had some rehab this morning on the knee, some swimming pool walking this afternoon, start hitting some balls monday i think. : )“,
interacts in the conversation with his followers “My friends at @cobragolf would like to know what you think of my new TV spot. Give us your feedback on FB http://tinyurl.com/36re32p”
and shares some light hearted moments, such as this video of caddys teeing off on the notorious 17th at Sawgrass during a practice round for this years Players Championship:

Following Ian Poulter provides an additional insight into the life of a professional golfer, its personal, interesting and not produced content by a manager or PR agency, hence its real, authentic and a great way to build a loyal following. Good luck in the Players Championship Ian, may your putts be as good as your tweets.

Mornington Peninsula 54 Hole Amateur Tournament

Doogs — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 03:09:45 +0000

Moonah Links Legends Course – 5th Hole

Mornington Peninsula is a golfing mecca with ten of Australia’s top 50 courses (Australian Golf Digest 2010). The local golf tourism association is running a new event playing host to the inaugural Mornington Peninsula 54 hole amateur tournament in May. The tournament is open to all golfers with an AGU handicap and will be played on three courses, Moonah Links, Flinders Golf Club and Mornington Golf Club over three days from May 4th to May 6th.

The graded tournament features daily stableford competitions for both men and women, as well as overall winner and runner-up. Entry fee is $225 for the tournament which includes a welcome party, green fees for the three days, two lunches, a competitor showbag and use of a motorised cart for the first round.

Enter here, (entries close 23 April 2010)

Drive for show, putt for dough (or at least a good score)

Doogs — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 07:18:26 +0000

“Drive for show, putt for dough” – One of the most common sayings in golf, and also one of the most important. Today I got the driver working beautifully on the tee, and the irons were also pretty good. Managed to play to handicap (15) but felt the score could have been a lot better. Probably because of the 34 putts, including numerous 3 putts.

The greens at the Growling Frog are firm and reasonably fast at the moment, and they are true, so there are no excuses for putting poorly apart from the person behind the putter, and the grey matter behind their ears! Putting is such a mental game, requiring confidence once you’ve lined up the putt and stood over the ball. There are just as many tips to keep the brain quiet and focussed for putting as there are for technique. One of my favourite books on the mental game of golf is Timothy Gallways’ “The Inner Game of Golf“, its probably about time I gave it another read!

This is how the hole should look when the mental short game is well trained

New Australian Golf Handicap System from 9 April

Doogs — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 08:08:06 +0000

The Australian golf handicapping system is being completely redeveloped this month. The current (pdf) handicapping system uses a complex amended differential score calculation requiring a mathematician to calculate the final outcome. From 9 April 2010, all official Australian handicaps managed via the national Golflink handicap network will be revised according to a new calculation method which is similar to the USGA handicap system.

Golflink explains that the Australian golf handicaps will be calculated as follows:

“The exact handicap will be the average of the best 10 differentials (differential = gross score – AMCR/AWCR) of your 20 most recent valid scores, the result of which is multiplied by 0.96″

As at 9 April, all handicaps will automatically be adjusted to the new system.

I currently play off 15.4 and have had a go at calculating my handicap based on the new system, the rough calculation puts me on 16.6 so I have more work to do to bring down my handicap!

More Information Be sure to check out Aussie Golfers Blog for a couple of great articles on the handicap changes - New handicapping Q&As
10 things to know about the new golf handicapping system

Playing the worlds Top 100 Golf Courses

Doogs — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 11:13:06 +0000

John Sabino loves his golf, a director at Morgan Stanley in New York who decided a few years ago that golf on his local course wasnt enough of a challenge and planned to play the Top 100 golf courses in the world. John won’t be the first to complete this epic challenge, however more people have walked on the moon! John started his adventure in 2006 selecting the Golf Digest 2003 Top 100 list as his target.

John has a very sound philosophy on golf, he prefers to walk rather than drive a cart and carry his bag, he dislikes courses built for property over design, believes golf should be played in all conditions and that length doesnt make a golf course and shirts should be tucked in! Here, here John, I couldnt agree more.

Chris, John and Tom – 15th tee at Kingston Heath

John and his mates Chris from New York and Tom from Florida are playing the Australian courses in the Top 100, NSW, Kingston Heath, Royal Melbourne (East/West) and Royal Adelaide. They also ducked over Bass Strait to play Barnbougle and get a sneak peak at the new Lost Farm layout. I joined the gents at Kingston Heath with John playing his 90th course of the top 100, Chris and Tom have played around 50 or so!

Kingston Heath is in superb condition, the fairways are immaculate carpets of green turf, the greens firm and fast. We had fantastic weather and the US lads were full of praise for the course rated the best in Australia. They couldnt get over the amount of bunkers spread over the course, and we all visited them! We all struggled with the pace of the greens early, the deceptive breaks and subtle undulations. A post game discussion over a couple of beers rated the course very highly, high praise indeed for someone who has played 90 of the best in the world.

I asked John what the likelihood of being stuck on 99 for a while, which he said would be a good possibility. The illusive one of course being Augusta. They had all been to Augusta as spectators at the Masters which sounds like an awesome experience in itself, however getting onto Augusta is about as easy as playing golf on the moon!

We also caught up with Jamie and Mike, the Puregolf lads from New Zealand playing a round of golf every day for the year, certainly proof that golfers are a rare breed and many are passionate, obsessive and just that little bit crazy!

Keep up to date with John’s Top 100 quest on his blog: http://top100golf.blogspot.com/

One year, 365 rounds, 365 courses

Doogs — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 07:57:25 +0000

Played yesterday with Jamie and Michael, two Kiwi golfers who are playing a round of golf every day for 2010. They are travelling the world playing some of the worlds best courses and raising money for a NZ based junior golf program – First tee of New Zealand. Had an enjoyable round playing Moonah Links Legends course and finding out more about their awesome golfing adventure. This was their 67th consecutive round of golf and they are holding up remarkably well so far, and playing some good golf! The previous two days had included massive storms so we were very lucky with the weather, though Jamie and Michael probably have a closer connection to the golfing gods than many of us!

Both guys have ditched their day jobs, left their girlfriends at home (the hardest part of the trip) and embarked on the ultimate blokes golf trip. Most of the golf has been sponsored by the courses, and the rest of the trip is on a shoestring making the most of contacts, networks and human spirit. For Jamie and Mike, its all about the experience, the people they meet along the way, the stories, and of course the golf, which by the way is 6,570 holes of golf and if they play to handicap, an astonishing 525,600 shots, give or take a few!!!! The guys plan to write a book when they return, will be worth the read.

Check out their site – http://www.puregolf2010.com/. Our round is summarised in their blog.

Jamie and Mike – Moonah Links

Driving on the 14th hole at Moonah Links Legends

Video review compiled by Jamie and Mike of their Moonah Links rounds

Puregolf2010 – 365 rounds of golf in a year

Doogs — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 11:54:43 +0000

Is this the ultimate golfing challenge? Two kiwi golfers are on their way around the world aiming to play a round of golf every day for the entire year. Now thats a seriously impressive challenge. Jamie and Michael started their trek on January 1st playing Kauri Cliffs and if all goes well, they will play their final round on 31 December at Cape Kidnappers. In between they will travel and play golf through Australia, USA, UK, Europe, UAE and Asia. All that golf must be starting to pay off, they played Cape Schank on the Mornington Peninsula today, Michael carded back to back eagles on the 9th and 10th holes!

The guys are also raising money during their adventure for The First Tee of New Zealand. The First tee is a New Zealand based junior golf program.

Check out their progress on their website, http://puregolf2010.com and you can follow them on twitter and Facebook

Golf game went spikey at Leongatha Golf Club

Doogs — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 06:54:47 +0000

This echidna wasnt happy with golfers intruding on its space on the 10th fairway

Stayed at Inverloch in South Gippsland (2 hours from Melbourne) over the Australia Day Long Weekend. Packed the clubs (of course) and played nearby Leongatha Golf Club with Jack and Kim, and the two boys. Leongatha is an excellent country course, heavily treed, undulating and great condition. The course winds over a large hill, with many dogleg holes, blind tee shots and changes of direction, The two boys played nine holes, we continued on for the full 18. The game itself fell away from the career best form at Moonah Links, and much like the Echidna above, turned spikey. So got frustrated early, then combined with poor shot selection on a course that needs thought and local knowledge, the score ballooned. Nonetheless, and enjoyable morning of golf.

Leongatha can be added to the official “Hidden Gems” list, definitely recommend if in the area

Golf without fear – Playing golf with an 8 year old

Doogs — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 23:34:15 +0000

Mr 8 and I headed up to Yarrambat Park Golf Course last Sunday afternoon for a leisurely 9 holes. We teed off at about 5pm, brilliant weather and not too busy on the course. Mr 8 has played most of his golf to date on the driving range, backyard, hallway and minigolf. We played a family ambrose last year at the Growling Frog which was the first ‘real’ golf he had played.

Putting on the 7th Green at Yarrambat

Golf in the eyes of an 8 year old is golf without fear. There are no mental demons, no pressure from the leaderboard, no memories of past failures and no incessant swing thoughts and tips. Its simply address the ball and give it your best shot. It was great to watch Mr 8s swing improve over 9 holes, by the 8th hole, a par 3, he carried a water hazard and then a bunker on successive shots. Again no fear, just hit it. He secretly wanted to go into the bunker, as he loves trying to hit out of the sand!

The short game is tougher on the 8 year old, as the grip it and rip it approach doesnt work, and touch is a difficult thing to get right (And I should know, I still havent got a short game!). By the end of the round, I was also worrying less about my shots and enjoying the game more. Yes, its only a game after all!
So if the game of golf is getting you down, if you have lost your mojo, or just arent enjoying hitting that little white ball anymore, play 9 holes of golf with an 8 year old, and learn about golf without fear.