Tom Watson: Lessons of a Lifetime

There seems no better occasion than this period between the U.S. Open (Father's Day) and the British Open to discuss Tom Watson: Lessons of a Lifetime. There is nostalgia at both ends. Watson just completed what may be his final appearance in the U.S. Open appropriately at Pebble Beach, site of his momentous 1982 U.S. Open victory. He also just happened to have his son “on the bag” during the tournament. Now he is about to return to the British Open, this year being played at St. Andrews. You will, of course, remember the heart break from last year, losing in a playoff last year at age 59.

In between all of this Watson has produced Lessons of a Lifetime. There are few who have learned how to play the game like Watson. He always seemed to have just the right shot at the right time. Exhibit A, of course, is the chip-in on the 17th at Pebble Beach in the last round of the 1982 U.S. Open. There is no better player to listen to and learn from concerning how to play the game.

Make no mistake. This is an instructional two-disc set. It runs almost three hours and is neatly divided into two distinct parts. In Disc One Watson focuses on the fundamentals of the game (grip, setup, aim, etc.) and then gets into the golf swing. Disc Two holds the Watson specialty – the short game. In his prime there was no one better. Watson gives us the basics of the short game and also some of the intricacies around the green. This instruction is worth the price.
Fittingly, Watson ends Disc Two with a tribute to his longtime friend and caddie Bruce Edwards. Anyone with a sense of history for the game is aware of the story. Have a hankie ready for this part.

For any golfer, regardless of skill or involvement in the game, Lessons of a Lifetime is a must have. How could anyone pass up a learning experience from one of the greats of the game.

This DVD set is available at http://www.tomwatson.com/, Watson's new website. This is a place you will also want to linger for a while.

Straight Down the Middle

Ever since Chevy Chase exhorted us to “be the ball,” golfers have been seeking the elusive “zone,” a place in the time-space continuum where physical ability has been layed aside and the mind conquers. Or perhaps the quest began when a shepherd first struck a rock with a crooked stick. Or perhaps this does not matter.

What does matter is that someone has actually documented that chase, lived (in a keep-your-sanity sort of way) to tell about it, and actually come out on the other side as a golfer more focused on the spirit of the game. Josh Karp's most recent volume Straight Down the Middle: Shivas Irons, Bagger Vance, and How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love My Golf Swing takes us on that journey.

Let’s face it, every golfer is trying in some way, shape or form to lower his or her score. Golfers will try just about anything. They’ll listen to any piece of swing advice from virtually anyone, always searching for the magic that will drop the score even one or two strokes per round. But very seldom do they pay attention to the mental game.

So, is it possible to transform one’s game and lower one’s handicap from the inside-out – increased attention to the mental game – as opposed to the outside-in – give a try to the latest and greatest swing tip?

Karp sums up the thesis of his quest in Chapter 2 when he states, “…that the actual ‘playing’ of a round of golf occurs in roughly 180 seconds… What’s happening the rest of the time, where our mind resides during that time, is something we pay almost no attention to, yet which profoundly impacts our performance.” From this realization the pursuit is on.

He goes from guru, to sensei, to golfing Buddha in an endeavor to find peace of mind in the mind boggling game of golf. As we travel with Karp we discover what seems like an endless number of golf instructors totally focused on the playing the game with just the mind and damn the swing.
Not only does Karp tell us his story – the toils and the triumphs – but he also passes along some useful (at least to him) instruction and drills such as the Jug McSpaden drill (pgs. 61-62). He also presents us with an apt description of the relationship between golf and spirituality, the struggle to make the ball do what you want it to do through only the force of our will.

How did all the senseis, gurus, Zen masters and whatevers help? Well, for one brief two month period beginning on August 8, 2008, Karp found himself in the zone … or whatever Zen golfers choose to call it. Golfing nirvana set in. But just as quickly and suddenly as it arrived, it was taken away by the ever vengeful golf gods.

And how does it all end for Karp? Let’s just say he is at peace with his golf game.

To Win and Die in Dixie

One of the marvelous aspects of golf is the rich history that it contains. And the most fascinating element of that history is the characters that the game has embraced. Tournaments come and go year by year, but it is the great characters that make the game come alive.

It is easy to recognize the more famous characters – Vardon, Jones, Hogan, Palmer, Nicklaus and a host of others. But is it a real discovery when a virtually unknown personality from the past is spiritually resurrected and brought to our attention. Such is the accomplishment of Steve Eubanks in bringing to us the story of J. Douglas Edgar in his latest book To Win and Die in Dixie: The Birth of the Modern Golf Swing the the Mysterious Death of Its Creator.

I must admit, even though I consider myself an enthusiastic student of golf history, I had never heard of J. Douglas Edgar. Yet when I had completed the book, I wondered how I had ever overlooked him. It is perhaps that his life was tragically cut short and that he never reached his full playing and teaching potential.

It is this story that Eubanks has uncovered for us. It is a biography of Edgar revealed through the investigation of his death by a determined Atlanta Constitution reporter Comer Howell. It is a story that contains all the elements of a great fictional murder mystery with one exception – it is not fiction; it is real life.

Eubanks has certainly done his research on the charismatic life and mysterious death of Edgar. The book is filled with detailed narrative. He has seemingly omitted no detail. But this great detail leads us to some fascinating stories. We learn a bit about Margaret Mitchell and how she drew her fiction from real life stories. We are also treated to a fun story concerning Alexa Sterling (pg. 98) revealing how greatly the times have changed in just over 100 years.

But as involved as we might get in the life and death of J. Douglas Edgar, we cannot forget his contribution to golf – the fundamentals of the modern golf swing. Chapter 7 gives us a good description of what is known as the Edgar Movement.

For students of the golf swing and golf history To Win and Die in Dixie is a must read; to those who enjoy a real life, enticing murder-mystery, it is a must read; and to those who would like to pick up some historical trivia, it is a must read.

Dream On

One of the most difficult goals in golf is to set a challenging target score and then shoot that number or lower. Do you think you could do it? Each year hundreds of aspiring PGA professionals attempt that same task, play 36 holes and try to match or beat a certain number. Most fail. It's not so much the physical strain but more the mental discipline that must be maintained.

But what if you were a self-proclaimed duffer or say no better than a bogey golfer who took on the challenge to equal or better par within a year? Is it possible to get down to scratch – for at least one round – in just one year? Consider what the Las Vegas odds would be. To get a sense of the Herculean task at hand consider the case of Charles Barkley. Even Tiger's current man could not help and he is considered one of the top teachers in the world.

Nevertheless less, undaunted, that’s exactly the quest and burden that John Richardson took on.

Dream On reveals Richardson’s trials and tribulations as he goes through a full year of practice and preparation to reach the goal of matching par. Throughout his year long journey we become a confidant to his physical and mental conquests and setbacks as he desperately attempts to deal with his golf game. Yet it is not just his golf game for which Richardson must adjust his daily routine. Fortunately he realizes from the start that achieving this goal will involve commitment from not only himself but also from his family and business. As he journey down the road toward par, we are privy to the obstacles within these relationships as well.

Richardson tells his story well. Dream On is lighthearted and enjoyable read. He allows us to observe his emotions as well as the physical challenges as he tackles a nearly impossible task. You will particularly enjoy his encounter with a young Rory McIlroy. Be sure to read this carefully.

About midway through the book he evaluates the condition of his game and realized the weakest part is course management, an aspect of the game every player neglects. His reflections here are valuable to all who struggles with the mental challenge of the game. And in his chapter on The 'Harrington' Moment, he provides an informative discussion about the importance of a viable pre-shot routine.

Yet this is more than just a golf story about one man's personal pilgrimage to conquer a game, it is a simple lesson for life- as most of golf is. Set your goal high and stop at nothing to achieve them.

Oh, and if you think we will reveal the conclusion, Dream On.

PGA Tour commish surely has his head up...

By now you have surely heard that on Friday at 11AM EST Tiger Woods will be making his first public statement since he drove his SUV (not a Toyota) into a tree and then his wife discovered he was having a good time on the side.
And if you didn't expect this to be a totally controlled environment, you might also have your head ... well, never mind.

Tiger will make a statement from, of all places, the clubhouse at the TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, home of the PGA Tour. This is an invitation-only event which includes reporters from three media services and a small pool of reporters representative of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA).

Now there are a couple of facts here that you might find curious. First, why conduct this spin session on Friday right in the middle of the Accenture World Match Play Championship? Is he taking a little jab at the sponsor Accenture who dumped his butt following the sex scandal?

At this point you might ask yourself what the hell has Tiger been thinking through all of this or perhaps what was he thinking even before his antics came to light? But the answer to those questions is for another discussion. The real question that needs an answer is what the hell is PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem thinking? Finchem stated that the fact that Tiger will be speaking from Florida on Friday was not going to undermine the World Golf Championship event.

Really!? What planet is he from? Perhaps we should Finchem on the final space shuttle shot and leave him on the space station.

The world of golf is having a bad 90 days

I thought I would write this short entry in a hurry. After all, really, if we're going to comment on the last 90 days in golf, why would we want to think out what we're going to say (or do). Obviously Tiger didn't. Obviously Phil didn't. Obviously the USGA and the PGA Tour didn't.
So why should we not just put out a few words with little or no thought behind them?

Take the Tiger state of affairs. Well, never mind, everyone else has spewed forth opinion. Let's just say that if you Google “tiger,” the first result will not be a picture of a fuzzy little cat with stripes. In fact we just did that and here is number one.

Enough said.

And then poor Phil. With Tiger not anywhere near the teeing ground, Phil's at the top of the leader board – well, perhaps not score wise. At least he's trying to get to the top - by using Ping wedges that are 20+ years old. (Bear in mind he's not the only one using them.) It's really okay though despite the fact that the grooves no longer meet specifications, but actually they do because of a court ruling that happened 20+ years ago. Got it?

Then the soap opera continued. Scott McCarron accused Phil of cheating or at least not playing within the spirit of the rules. Phil took offense and Scott backed down and apologized. Tim Finchem, the ivory tower honcho of the PGA Tour, has no clue what to do. Well, he did say, in a masterful political sidestep, “We have options.”

So, with all this going on in the world of golf, can you answer this question without having to “Google” the answer: The PGA Tour has played four events so far this year. Can you name two of the four winners? Or, question number two: Can you provide the names of two of Tiger's female liaisons?

Do you understand why the world of golf is having a bad 90 days?

Leftist golf media taking their shots

The times they have changed. (My apologies to Bob Dylan) We have entered an electronic age in which experts on virtually every subject known to mankind are making their sentiments publicly known. Some are kind and gentle and some appear to be kind and gentle but have in reality escaped from the bowels of literary hell.

The world of golf is no exception. The blogosphere is filled with “golf experts” who are unafraid to present their opinions on a particular point of minutia. Golf is a multifaceted game. There are more story lines than stars in the sky. And the most dominate story line in the golf world, especially in the absence of tournaments, has been the Tiger Woods saga. Every writer has weighed in on Tiger’s situation.

Perhaps the most weight has been thrown around by author and golf blogger Geoff Shackelford on his website geoffshackelford.com. In general Shackelford’s website tracks the world of golf and directs patrons to articles of interest usually with a short, snarky comment of his own. In fairness, his website is one of the most popular in the world of golf. He is a pied piper of sorts.

Naturally he has been tracking the saga of Tiger since the day it began – almost all Tiger, almost all the time. Until three or four days ago he has been doing his usual thing. But on January 3 Shackelford decided to open a political can of worms on his blog when he stated, “… in yet another sign this story has hit rock bottom, windbag extraordinaire Brit Hume weighs in on how Tiger can rehab his life and image.” His commentary is emphatically political. Using descriptions “rock bottom” and “windbag extraordinaire” is a dead give away to his political leaning – left.
Talk about hitting rock bottom and being a windbag extraordinaire! Shackelford has duplicated the very faculty he is objecting to. But why should he care. His loyal following is heavily slanted to his opinion. You can check it our for yourself on his website which is living off of the Tiger mess and now the Hume slamming.

And, of course, there had to be more. Windbag extraordinaire Tom Shales, style columnist for the Washington Post, decided to take on Mr. Hume’s comments. The observations of Mr. Shales are, as you might expect, hardly fair and balanced. Of course, Shackelford references the comments of Shales on his website – birds of a feather, if you will.

We can only conclude that the new rock bottom has been hit by Shackelford and Shales.

New Year's resolutions for every golfer

Do you make New Year's resolutions like this fellow on the right? If you do it's okay. Almost everyone does. Problem is everybody makes them and then forty-eight hours later those good intentions are shanked somewhere off into the deep woods on the right. Then it’s “wait ‘til next year” and we’ve got 363 days of freedom. So why bother?

However, making those New Year commitments should be different for golf. I think it’s important that each of us makes one, or perhaps more, golf-related New Year’s resolution. We should determine that we will maintain our golf sanity. So, with the commitment to make a commitment in place, the Eye On Golf staff has diligently compiled a short list to get you started. This list, as they say, is not all inclusive. It is provided for your motivation and guidance.

Now, repeat after me, “I resolve to...”

DO SOMETHING EVERYDAY TO IMPROVE MY GOLF GAME.
Yes, it’s a very broad resolution but very purposeful. Not everyone can get to the golf course or a practice facility every day, but that doesn’t mean you cannot do something everyday to improve. Even if the weather is frightful or your time is limited, you can stretch the muscles and then swing a weighted golf club for 15-20 swings. You’ll be amazed with the results.

WALK NINE HOLES AT LEAST TWICE PER MONTH.
Yes, you read that correctly. The game still can be played on foot. If your favorite golf course does not allow you to walk, go somewhere else. Not only is it great exercise to walk around the course, it will assuredly improve your game. And you can start getting in shape for that now!

READ ONE GOLF-RELATED BOOK PER MONTH.
No other sport lends itself to the production of literature like golf. A multitude of “golf” books are published every year, so you’ll be a long time catching up on your reading. Every category imaginable is available: instruction, biography, course architecture, reference, anthology, etc. You name it, it’s within your reach. If you're not sure where to get started go to Golf Book Review for some ideas. Get away from the magazines and a little into books. You'll be a better golfer and a better person for it.

TAKE A TUNE-UP LESSON BEFORE THE SEASON BEGINS.
If you’re in a location where you have forced hibernation and no golf for a few months, it’s a good idea to get a quick half-hour checkup before you head to the first tee for the first time in the new season. Having a qualified professional check your fundamentals, will bring you a lot more happiness and joy in the New Year and save a lot of aspirin. Shoot, the money you save on pain relievers, will probably pay for the lesson.

There’s just four suggestions to get your golf imagination in gear. And there’s many more. Go for it.

Nothing Major - the book

Golf is fun - or at least it should be. You hear it all the time, especially from those professionals who attempt to make their living playing the game. “I was just trying to have fun out there,” is the common cliché in an interview. So, if we're all “trying to have fun out there,” the logical progression should be that golf is funny. Well, we certainly know that's the case. Funny stuff happens consistently on a golf course. We might not view it as amusing at the time, but later, upon serious reflection or a visit to the 19th hole, it certainly produces a smile.

But with all these shenanigans happening on the course, very seldom does some golf scribe take time to catalog these amusing incidents. They are too busy analyzing the game attempting to elucidate on the perceived thinking of the great players. The lot of golf books written from the humorous angle is quite slim. Fortunately, we now have a new volume that will surely put a smile on your face and often get you to laugh out loud.

The culprit is Bob Cayne and his monumental work on humor in golf is entitled “...Nothing Major.” Cayne is the former co-host of “Talking Golf,” a weekly radio which he shared with Cleveland Plain Dealer golf writer George Sweda. Cayne has compiled 219 pages of quips and clips from the radio show and his years in golf. The result is an anecdotal walk down the fairways of golf. Virtually every page will have you cracking a smile.

Cayne displays a waggish sense of humor and his writing style is what definitely adds to the fun of the book. His clever use of metaphors and similes adds greatly to the humor of the book.
You'll want to read (and perhaps re-read) the complete volume, but here's an appetizer of what's in store. Be sure to read the chapter entitle “I'm 74 Years Old, or Two Over Par.” It'll give you a finer appreciation for senior golfers.

I also found this book to be “educational.” In the chapter “The Laughs Are On Me” you'll discover why golf should be taught from the green backwards. And finally, as part of the educational process, you'll discover why golf equipment and personal grooming products are marketed the same way.

If you love golf and like to laugh a little bit at the game and the antics that go on around the game, “...Nothing Major.” is a must for your library.

Why we love golf

The reasons that all of us golfers love the game of golf are multitude. If we took a poll of one hundred golfers, we would easily have one hundred reasons. Reasons are one thing, but examples are another.

This short exchange provided by LPGA professional Morgan Pressel via Twitter is priceless. It took place during last week's LPGA event in Alabama. Pressel is a big fan of Twitter and her thoughts are readily available on Twitter.

morganpressel Guy in the elevator "oh you play golf? What's your handicap?" Me "I don't keep a handicap" guy" yeah neither do I, so I know what you mean."

Freddie and Me perfect for life's lessons

Occasionally a golf book comes along that has golf at its nerve center, but is not totally about golf. Such is Freddie & Me: Life Lessons from Freddie Bennett, Augusta National's Legendary Caddy Master. Freddie and Me is the tale of one man whose life was directly influenced by Freddie Bennett, long time caddie master at the famed Augusta National Golf Club, home of the Masters. The story spans approximately thirty years of Tripp Bowden's life from a young boy of about ten to a grown man with a career and family. It is an entertaining and at times an educational journey that we take with Bowden.

Freddie... is Tripp Bowden's first book. Bowden was the first full-time white caddy at Augusta National Golf Club formerly a bastion for white golfers and black caddies. Today, as a direct result of Bennett's mentoring, Bowden is a stable family man and owns an advertising company.

Not every individual who has a dynamic influence on the game of golf is a high profile person securely lodged in the upper echelons of the game. Not every specific agent who has a motivating influence on an individual life is a long on education. Such is the case of Freddie Bennett. In bite-size chapters Bowden gives us snapshots of thirty years of his life and how it was gently guided by Bennett.

There are fun and fascinating stories along the way. Throughout this literary journey we learn how PGA Tour player Charles Howell III got his first set of clubs. We are also let in on the secrets of playing AGNC as part of a chapter in which Freddie takes Bowden through the nuances of each hole as part of his caddie education. But the most fascinating instruction we receive are the Freddie-isms, Bennett's bits of wisdom for life.

Get ready at the end for a few tears or at least a little lump in the throat. Even though you know the inevitable is coming, you still can't control that emotion. Why is that? It's because Bowden has drawn us into his life and thus Freddie's life. He has made us care about the characters. We rejoice in their successes and mourn at their demise.

The question Bowden wants each of us to answer is this: Who is the Freddie in your life?

Make sure you answer and thank him immediately after you finish this book.

Ancestral Links

Each man’s journey in life - and golf - is special and unique. Each step we take or each swing we make is different from the last and peculiar to each one of us. It is only when we pause during the journey and take time to look into the past that we get a true meaning as to who we really are. Each one of us should be required to take time for such reflection somewhere along the passage.

John Garrity has done this and then put it on paper for us to read in his latest volume ANCESTRAL LINKS: A Golf Obsession Spanning Generations. Garrity is a senior writer at Sports Illustrated (still active) and contributor to Golf Magazine. His other books include such titles as Tour Tempo and Tiger 2.0.
With ANCESTRAL LINKS Garrity takes us on a two-part adventure. On a somewhat self-imposed writing sabbatical in Ireland Garrity’s mission is to explore and discover his ancestry, obviously Irish and heavily steeped in golf while simultaneously attempting to conquer the devilish par-4 seventeenth at the Carne Golf Links. It is these two quests that constitute the essence of the book. He skillfully weaves these concurrent pursuits throughout the book by alternating chapters that focus on the goal.

The story of Garrity's search for his paternal ancestral links is skillfully done so as not to bore us with a scavenger hunt for relatives. We can feel his anticipation and his joy as he looks under the leaves of the family tree. Yet at the same time these chapters did not hold my attention as well as those which chronicle his determination to conquer Carne.

So, for the golf fanatic, the real story is the details of his mission to conquer the seventeenth hole at the Carne Golf Links. Carne is located in the town of Belmullet on the northwest coast of Ireland and it is a true links course artfully carved along the coast and through the dunes. Garrity holds the belief that he can play the seventeenth, a long difficult par-4 in 90 strokes. That's playing three balls at a time on six different occasions. He brings us on this odyssey sharing the physical and the emotional. To get a better feel of what he is up against, I recommend that you explore the Carne Golf Links website. http://www.carnegolflinks.com/index.html

I also advocate that you delve into this volume to discover how one golf fanatic satisfies his golf fantasies.

Golf is life

If you have any doubt that golf emulates life, consider these thoughts about the recently maligned Michael Phelps. Phelps, at the ripe old age of 23, is considered one of the greatest Olympians ever. But the sanitary swim-boy has now run afoul of the ethics and demeanor court of public opinion. Unless you have been trying to extricate yourself from the same pot (pardon the pun) bunker for the past week or so, surely you know of Michael’s experience with a peace pipe. Coupled with a DWI a couple of years back, his “smoking” experience has ruined his relationship with Tony the Tiger and caused a three-month suspension from the U.S. Olympic team. Not only has this cost him a serious amount of cash in a depressed economy, but it has also embarrassed him beyond red in the face and robbed him of his role model image.

Phelps was heading down “Squeaky-Clean Lane,” but somehow took a wrong turn. He is now at a crossroads and can follow the trail of one of two golfers both who have experienced fame and fortune at a young age. Down one path is John Daly. Daly came from last alternate to PGA Champion in the space of four days. His history since that fateful Sunday in August of 1991 is well documented. Obsessive-compulsive comes to mind but it might fall short of being totally descriptive. Michael does not want this lane of the yellow brick trail. It leads to tabloid headlines.

Heading down the other road is Tiger Woods. By the time Tiger was 23 he was already a multiple major championship winner. Granted Tiger had already experienced a lion’s share of fame and fortune, yet he did not permit himself a career-ending episode. Tiger took the high road and has gone on to greater heights. Michael must employ a good scout to assist him in the tracking of the Tiger.