Is it possible for a 55 year old man to go from the low 100's to the high 80's in one summer? And to make it more challenging, without taking any lessons?

At the beginning of February as I started down this path in earnest I started a diary to record my progress, thoughts, feelings and discoveries. Feeling there must be thousands of golfers trying to improve, I decided to make my efforts public in this blog with the hope of receiving advice, sympathy and criticism from anyone who cares to comment.


There are several reasons why 2009 seems like a good year to undertake this experiment, some of which I will get into at a later date. But for now let's just say it seems like it would be something interesting to try.



While researching information on the mental/psychological aspect of tennis I came across an incredible amount of information written about golf. Much of it was interesting, some of it was downright inspiring. The thought occurred to me that some of this stuff might actually work. "Sidesaddle putting" and "No Backswing golf swing" were two ideas that, for whatever reason, struck a chord. The idea of an experiment in golf also fit in well with some other ideas I become interested in over the last several years.



As far as my background goes, I'm a bad golfer.

I've played off and on for the last 40 years, but never with much regularity, and certainly without much "success". My youngest son videotaped me hitting golf balls into a net about seven years ago, and seeing my swing for the first time was so appalling that I gave up the game completely for the next couple of years. But, for various reasons, chief of which was the desire to spend some quality time with my boys, I came back into the fold - albeit reluctantly. My feelings toward golf can be summarized nicely by Mark Twain's quote:


"Golf is a good walk spoiled".

Also,


"Golf is a game that pits your skill and determination against the other guy's luck"
I think I read that in Reader's Digest.



And if I was to distill the one sure truth I've learned about golf over the last 40 years into a quote of my own it would be:


"No matter how well you're playing things can go to hell in an instant, and no matter how bad you're playing things can get worse"



Now if that hasn't scared off any golf purist who might have stumbled onto this blog, let me add the following.

I use the term "golf" loosely. Since I've gotten back into the game my play has been governed by a modified set of rules and regulations.

I make liberal and frequent use of my foot wedge. I refuse to let a good shot off the tee be ruined just because it lands in a fairway divot or behind some little piss ant tree.

If a ball flies so far off course so that it's out of bounds, lost in the woods, or lands in the water I usually walk where I estimate the ball left the fairway and play a new ball from there (in the fairway of course) without any penalty.

Balls landing in sand traps can be raked back onto the fairway.

I've probably made some other modifications that I can't think of right now, but you get the idea.