Lucky Charms

At the PGA Merchandise Show I visited several companies that manufacture jewelry items that are supposedly beneficial to our golf games. All of them advertise the fact that numerous Tour players wear them and they help their games immensely. But I have never worn these, nor do I really understand what they may do for our games. And that is why I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU if any of you have had success with these and know about them.

The three companies in particular are "Q-Link" (www.q-linkproducts.com), "Q-Ray" (www.qray.com), and "Sabona" (www.sabona.com). Q-LINK is a pendant that is supposed to enhance our energy and absorb the harmful effects of ElectroMagnetic Fields (EMFs) that are generated by cell phones, computers, and other electrical devices. The SABONA bracelet is made with copper which is absorbed into our bloodstream enhancing our blood-flow. The Q-RAY bracelet is made with two ionized poles that work with your bloodstream to remove harmful ions and balance your body's energy. I do know have a friend who swears by the Q-Ray in that it helps him with arthritis pain as well as other ailments. Other than him, however, no one I know wears any of these so I don't know how well they work.

So, again, I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. Have you tried any of these? Do they work? What benefit do you find from them? I don't doubt at all that they can work, but I would like to know more about them from someone OTHER THAN the companies themselves. If you have had any experiences with them, good, bad, or indifferent, please comment on the site or send me an email! We all realize that feeling well when playing golf, feeling balanced and energized, should be a good thing. If there is something that helps us attain this then why not give it a try. I hope to be able to report more on this in the future.

Interesting Idea

I read today in the February 12th issue of GOLFWEEK magazine Bradley Klein's article entitled "Eyeballing It." Bradley is the architecture editor for the magazine and writes frequently about course reviews and architecture. His article in this issue posed the question as to what if we removed all yardage indicators on golf courses and forced players to rely on feel and experience when playing a course.

Now, at first, especially in light of the USGA's recent recent rule change allowing the use of distance measuring devices, one would wonder why we should jump back years in time. But think about it. As he described in the article, wouldn't it be something to hear the discussion between Phil Mickelson and Bones (his caddie) on the 15th fairway of Augusta contemplating what club to pull NOT KNOWING FOR SURE the distance to the pin? I for one would love to see how the best in the world deal with a little uncertainty.

In fact, unless the wind is absolutely still, there is always a degree of uncertainty in every shot. Wind effect, softness of the greens, not to mention our own ability to strike the ball consistently. One more factor would NOT overly change the world of competative (or even recreational) golf, it would only encourage us to continue to rely on our feel and perception as we play this game. While I am not suggesting we roll all the way back to the feathery ball and wooden shafts, I think the skill any player posesses to be able to judge his or her shot and rely more on feel is a good thing. Do you know EXACTLY your yardage to the pin everytime you play? Or how about the distance to a bunker you think you can carry. I know I don't, but I still enjoy playing. Before we know it we will be reading the greens with some sort of device, too. Although we ultimately STILL NEED TO EXECUTE THE SHOT, I for one like the idea of relying on feel and trusting our own abilities to direct our courses of action.

Now with all of this said, do I expect this to happen? Hardly. I can't see any chance that courses will remove all yardage markers, yardage books, or anything else helping us. I love using the Laser Link system at our course, and I want to know when a bunker is such-and-such a distance to carry instead of guessing. HOWEVER, I know one thing I will try is playing the course WITHOUT these aides and see just how good my feel and perception really is. When I get into a situation in a tournament when both my judgement AND the yardage guide tell me the same thing, I will be that much more confident hitting the shot. And, when I get into situations where I cannot know exactly what my distance is, I will be better prepared to make my guess and see a better result.

One thing I feel is consistent about my view on the game is that we should only play for OUR OWN ENJOYMENT AND PURPOSE. And when we really play this way, we are not afraid to try new things, including trying to rely on our eyesight and see just how good or bad it may be. Again, what matters is NOT the results, but the reasons and the efforts we put into it. Try playing this way sometime. Heck, just do it once to see how you do. Ultimately golf is still a game, and we should always enjoy playing and experimenting with this game. Let me know if you do, and what the results were. I can't wait to "eyeball it" myself.

Snakebit !

File another one under the "show's you what I know" category. Two weeks ago, after watching Tiger win thanks to some missed putts by his competitors, I predicted that each of the next several weeks I would be able to report on how big putts were either missed or made in determining the outcome of the Tour events. WRONG! For two weeks in a row guys have won by seven and five strokes respectively. So much for proving my point about the importance of putting.

Except for one VERY IMPORTANT thing: Both JB Holmes and Aaron Oberholser were 1st statistically in putting during the week they won. So while it did not come down to making or missing the final putt, there was a direct correlation to the players putting statistics and the outcome of the event.

And speaking of Oberholser - I would have to say that it appears to be tougher for a guy to hold a large lead going to the final nine than it is to be tied or just slightly ahead. The poor guy was really "fighting the demons" as he struggled to bring it in. They key shot was, after missing his tee shot way right on 15, hitting a short iron from a good lie in the rough to about 8-feet and then MAKING THE PUTT for birdie. In the end, however, it must have been great walking up 18th at Pebble Beach with your ball on the green, a 5-stroke lead, and the Pacific Ocean off to your left. No doubt he will remember that for a long time.

Without looking back at all the Tour statistics, I would venture to say that the guy who finishes first in putting each week probably finished pretty well in the tournament, too. Hopefully Riviera will provide us a little more drama, and maybe, just maybe, I'll get to say "I told you so!"

Changes in Progress

Just like we all do with our golf swings, I am in the process of tweaking this website to make it more friendly and easier to use. As you can see on the right of the page I have organized past posts by topic and have created links to the posts related to those topics.

I feel that in order to really accomplish what I want with this website, I need to make it so you can easily choose the topic you want and then navigate to the various subjects within those topics. If you are struggling with your putting, search the PUTTING posts and see if something helps. If you just like general golf talk, click on the GENERAL GOLF TOPICS link and see what is in there. As I continue to add to the site I will place the new posts in the appropriate category (they will, of course, show up in the "Recent Posts" line-up).

The goal of this site is to make it beneficial to all of us. Please take a look into the site and see if anything works for you. As always, I encourage your comments and thoughts on these subjects, and especially like to hear what things work for you.

Thank you again for visiting the site and, as always, ENJOY THE GAME!