Chuck (55 years old - 22 handicap)

"I've noticed that I'm now drawing my lower irons (PW-6). I'm having to adjust for that, but it always makes me smile to see that ball go left. I never thought that would happen. I've been hitting the range the last two weeks to try to figure out my driver and its starting to come around. I'm focusing on not reaching back so far and trying not to push that club head out when I start my back swing. I played last Saturday at Westpark and actually managed to keep it in the fairway for eight holes. There were 5 par 3's, so being off on only 5 holes is great for me. And two of those were draws to the left, so I think the driver is starting to come around.

I trust that you have found a new course where you can continue to teach. You definitely have a talent for instruction. I wish you all the best in Nashville."

Chris (72 years old - 2 handicap)

As I got older, and the subject of shooting one’s age came up, I always said, that for me to do so, I would have to get older, because I couldn’t get better!

At age 72, I have found that, in fact, I can get better, as I began to work with our Director of Instruction, Mike Aldrich, thru his Custom Learning Program prior to the end of the year. Mike’s approach is more “coaching” than “teaching”. It originated with the Brit Ernest Jones, followed by the Spaniard Manuel de la Torre, and on to Mike. I think Mike’s coaching can be summed up by saying you must better understand and improve the mental side of the golf swing before you can improve the physical side. To date, my work with Mike has involved only two range sessions, but has included a long conversation and the reading of five books. You may wonder how a conversation can improve your play, but one of the things I defined for myself from that talk(again coaching) was, that if I do not have a confidence level of at least 6 out of 10 of being able to execute a particular shot, I am about to play the wrong shot.

So how has what will be an ongoing journey in golf worked out for me? After shooting three 73s over two courses since February 4, I finally shot the 72 on Tuesday, February 26 in a game with the “Everyday Boys”. Between that day, and a round the previous day, I hit 31 of 36 greens. I did not have a 6 on the card between those two days. I hit it within 4 feet five times(but I only made two of them!).

I have always believed that the “wave theory” applies to golf at all levels, including the professionals. We are up, then we are down, and we continue to repeat this process. While I am currently “up”, I am sure I will be “down” soon enough. However, I expect my ups and downs will be higher.

Everyone likes new clubs. But with new clubs you still have the same swing. You cannot buy a fundamentally better game thru technology (sorry pro shop). You can “buy” a better game thru working with someone who knows more about the swing than you do, if you ae willing to put in the work and keep the faith thru the awkwardness that comes with a new approach. This, the pro shop and Mike can help you with. If you are reading this, I assume you still enjoy the game. Let me be an example that you can get better at any age, and enjoy it even more.