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.

Golf books make the perfect last minute Christmas gifts

In case you haven’t looked at the calendar, there are but four shopping days left until Christmas. And in case you have yet to select a gift for the golfer in your life, permit us to provide a few literary suggestions for your last minute shopping. We’ve placed these into categories if it happens that your golfer is selective in his or her golf reading.

HISTORY: The top selection in this category and for the season is easy - Sports Illustrated’s The Golf Book. You can read our review here, but suffice it to say that this book will please any golfer. It’s a perfect blend of everything golf – completely and totally loaded with stunning pictures and informative text by many of SI’s writers.

INSTRUCTION: The best is still Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book. Penick was a lifetime teacher of the game and his wisdom is priceless. If you want a glimpse of what he taught Crenshaw and Kite, get the Little Red Book. Teach Yourself Visually Golf is an excellent volume for learning the game. It was published in 2007 by Wiley Press. It is straightforward presentation on the game. It’s colorful with lots of how-to pictures. For a more in depth examination of the mental side go for Tom Dorsel’s Golf: The Mental Game. Dr. Dorsel presents a practical, yet non-clinical approach to our mental game on the course. His approach is heavily tilted to the practical side with barely a hint of psychobabble.

RULES: My favorite books dealing with the Rules of Golf are not volumes that attempt to explain the rules but rather present intriguing theory and/or history on the rules. The Principles Behind the Rules of Golf by Richard S. Tufts presents the two guiding principles of the rules and demonstrates how all other rules emanate from them. This one may be a little hard to find, but it will satisfy the golfer’s curiosity about the rules. The Rules of the Green by Kenneth G. Chapman is a scholarly work on the history of the rules that will not induce the slightest bit of insomnia. Chapman takes us on a historical journey from a time before the first written code in 1744 up to the present day carefully providing the logic behind the evolution of the rules. Can I Get a Ruling? by Dave Marrandette – Although this is self-serving, I would be remiss if I did not recommend by own volume on the rules. This book is historical in the sense that it presents a time capsule of actual rule incidents presented in categorical fashion.

GOLF COURSES: For a whimsical journey to fantasy courses we suggest David Barrett’s new volume Golf’s Dream 18s. Golf's Dream 18s is a collection of fantasy courses, 18 to be exact, that teases the golfer's mind and pleases his visual senses. You might also try Secrets of the Great Golf Course Architects. This compilation was put together by radio host and author Michael Patrick Shiels. The “Secrets” are short, pithy tales from the lives of 118 golf course architects.

ANTHOLOGY: Every sports fan has heard of Dan Jenkins. This year Jenkins published a fun volume appropriately titled Jenkins at the Majors: Sixty years of the World's best golf writing, from Hogan to Tiger. It is collection and re-editing of his essays and press room work from 1951 to 2008. The bottom line on this book is quite simple: If you are a golf fan and have even the slightest interest in the history of the game, you need to read Jenkins at the Majors. It is a massive history lesson presented with the Jenkins' flavor.

HUMOR: While literary humor in the world of golf is in short supply former radio golf talk show host Bob Cayne published a work this year entitled Nothing Major. It’s a collection of amusing golf stories and essays that will have you laughing out loud. We have not review this yet (it’s coming soon), but trust us on this one. You can get it at http://www.nothingmajor.net/.

Happy last minute golf shopping.

Book Review: Golf's Dream 18s

All of us who love to play the game of golf have a number of favorite holes that we have played. Our fantasy is to transplant those holes to a mythical course that we could play forever. It would be a place where we could visit to get a small taste of golf utopia. Alas, these courses that we build in our hearts and minds are a daydream, a mental image that we conjure up as we envision a life with nothing but the greatest game of all to occupy our time.

Fortunately, we now have been provided some visual and written assistance to serve as guidance along the paths of our fantasies. David Barrett's newest volume, Golf's Dream 18s, has taken the daydreaming to a new level. Recently published by Abrams Press, the leader in dynamic, visually appealing golf volumes, Barrett takes the fantasy course scenario to the ultimate extreme. Golf's Dream 18s is a collection of fantasy courses, 18 to be exact, that teases the golfer's mind and pleases his visual senses.

Barrett is well equipped for the job. He has served as a senior editor at Golf Magazine and he also produced a similar volume from Abrams Golf Courses of the U.S. Open.

Barrett's organizational structure of this volume provides us with a fun look at over 300 holes from around the world. He starts us off with a short introduction and then guides us through 18 holes on 18 individual fantasy courses with each “course” having a specific theme. We get to tour courses with Scenic Holes, Historic Holes, Exclusive Holes (ed. op., holes virtually no one can play), Holes Anyone Can Play (ed. op., which is more like it), Modern Holes, Classic Holes, and twelve other themed, fantasy courses culminating in The Ultimate Dream 18, an all-star team of the holes in the book.

What really makes Golf's Dream 18s really enjoyable is that each hole is accompanied by a first-class picture (This is what Abrams does quite well.) and informative text. We learn a little about each and every hole. Unfortunately, there are no diagrams of each hole which at times left us wondering how the entire hole looks.

This book is a heavyweight, literally and figuratively. It comprises 324 full-color photographs and 304 pages. Together with the hardcover and the eye-catching jacket, it tips the scales at approximately four pounds. But its content is also fascinating.

To date this is our second favorite book of the season, ranking right behind SI's The Golf Book. (But that may be because we are slightly more interested in golf history than course architecture.) You can't go wrong with this volume for your favorite golfer who loves golf courses (and a little bit of fantasy).

Golf instruction books pave the way off the cart path to the fairway

If your favorite golfer is still looking forward to a golf-related gift under the tree, you should still be considering a book as the ideal selection. Last week we looked at some choices focusing on the rules of golf. Now let’s inspect the possibilities in the world of instruction. And while it was a relatively painless task to scrutinize a small quantity of books on the rules, the area of instruction is a minefield of the good, the bad and the ugly.

Instruction in the world of golf is separated into two areas: the physical and the mental. As the timeworn golf adage goes, “Golf is 50% physical and 90% mental.” Those who play the game know this is a valid axiom. Unfortunately, the production of instruction books is about 90% physical and 10% mental.

So, if we could find one volume that combines the physical and mental, the selection process would be simplified. No problem. The absolute best is Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book. This book is exactly what the subtitle states: Lesson and Teachings from a Lifetime in Golf. Penick was a lifetime teacher of the game and his wisdom is priceless. He also produced a couple more volumes with similar themes – And If you Play Golf, You’re My Friend and For All Who Love the Game. These are excellent choices to go along with the Little Red Book.

While the Little Red Book is light on technical instruction, fear not for there are truly hundreds of volumes that focus directly on how to swing the golf club. It seems that virtually every golf instructor that ever charged for a lesson has written a book on the subject. I will give one recommendation that is appropriate for almost all golfers. I believe that Teach Yourself Visually Golf is an excellent volume for learning the game at almost every level. It was published in 2007 by Wiley Press as part of its Teach Yourself Visually series. It is straightforward presentation on the game. It’s colorful with lots of how-to pictures.

Finally, let me give you two suggestions for the mental aspect of the game. First is The Seven Personalities of Golf by Darrin Gee. Check out a recent review of this book here.

Second, for a more in depth examination of the mental side go for Tom Dorsel’s Golf: The Mental Game. Dr. Dorsel presents a practical, yet non-clinical approach to our mental game on the course. His approach is heavily tilted to the practical side with barely a hint of psychobabble.

Book Review: Pete Dye Golf Courses: Fifty Years of Visionary Design

It truly is the the Christmas season. There are always a few clues to give us a hint. Whether or not we look at the calendar, there are always a few certain indicators: Walmart changes its home & garden section into a Christmas Wonderland the day after Halloween; green fees quadruple in the Valley of the Sun; and “coffee table” books pop up quicker than a case of the shanks. So, in the spirit of Christmas, here’s another coffee table offering – Pete Dye Golf Courses: Fifty Years of Visionary Design by Joel Zuckerman.

Nearly three weeks ago I reviewed Secrets of the Great Golf Course Architects, a book with similar subject matter and volume and weight. The difference, however, is that Zuckerman’s offering is a tribute to the architectural work of one man – Pete Dye. In a massive volume of three hundred plus pages Zuckerman and photographer Ken May present us with 75 of Dye’s gems. Zuckerman does the text in his unique style and May lays out before us a visual feast of golf photography.

The arrangement of the book is not unique or original. From golf course to golf course the format is identical. You receive the name of the course, 600 to 800 words by Zuckerman and elegant photography by May. Zuckerman does a workman-like job in maintaining the text from page to page providing entertaining and insightful historical information on each course. If you are familiar with any of Dye’s work, it is fascinating to be privy to some inside understanding on the development of the course.

This prose and photographic splendor present us with an easy choice for the proper Christmas present for the golfer in our lives. Anyone’s favorite golfer will be well-pleased to receive this volume under the tree.

Golf Rules do provide some interesting reading

Short of getting your favorite golfer a brand new set of clubs from a local sporting goods store (highly discouraged) or perhaps stuffing his or her stocking full of tees, let me suggest a book. “Why, Dave, what a novel idea,” you say. (Please pardon the pun.)

Yes, the perfect Christmas gift solution for the golfer in your life is good, old-fashioned book, as in something to read. There is good news and bad news here. Golf has produced a seemingly endless supply of literature; however, this makes the task of selection somewhat daunting. Fortunately, Eye On Golf is here to help. We have separated some recommendations into categories to aid in your selection process. So, in the next couple of weeks we’ll make a few suggestions. The first area is a topic that is near and dear to the hearts of all golfers.

RULES

My favorite books dealing with the Rules of Golf are not volumes that attempt to explain the rules but rather present intriguing theory and/or history on the rules:

The Principles Behind the Rules of Golf by Richard S. Tufts – Tufts, a former Executive Director of the USGA present the two guiding principles of the rules and demonstrates how all other rules emanate from them. This one may be a little hard to find or expensive, but it will satisfy the golfer’s curiosity about the rules.

The Rules of the Green by Kenneth G. Chapman – Published in 1997 this scholarly work is a history of the rules of golf that will not induce the slightest bit of insomnia. Chapman takes us on a historical journey from a time before the first written code in 1744 up to the present day carefully providing the logic behind the evolution of the rules.

Can I Get a Ruling? by Dave Marrandette – Although this is self-serving, I would be remiss if I did not recommend by own volume on the rules. This book is historical in the sense that it presents a time capsule of actual rule incidents presented in categorical fashion.

Golf Gifts in a struggling economy

If the economy has given you the equivalent of the shanks, here's a few great gift ideas for every golfer in a struggling economy.

A Book
There are several ways you can go with this idea which means you’ll probably have to do a little research before making the final selection. Coyly discovering where your favorite golfer’s interests lie and reading a few book reviews (hopefully on Examiner.com) should provide adequate information. We’ll do a piece with a few noteworthy suggestions in the very near future.

New Grips
Golf is totally a game of feel and there is nothing like the exotic sensation of new grips on the club. Even if we continually struggle with our game, there are few aspects of the game that make us golfers feel better and give us more confidence. Many golf courses and most large golf department-type stores provide this service. A gift certificate might be a good choice here so that your golfer can select the grips that have just the right feel.

A Lesson
Every golfer needs a little help regardless of how good he/she is or how good he/she thinks he is. And from years of teaching experience, I can verify that every golfer has bit more potential stored inside. There is always a bit more talent yet to be discovered. A lesson from a qualified teacher may just bring out that dormant potential. The best way to find that qualified professional is to do a little research and then purchase a gift certificate from the pro you have selected.

A round of golf
Every golfer has a favorite golf course. Perhaps it’s one course that he/she gets to play just once a year because it is economically prohibitive. Or perhaps it’s his favorite course where he plays with his buddies every weekend. Any certificate for a round of golf will be greatly appreciated.

A shirt or a hat – but no glove
Every golfer loves to have a new shirt or a new hat especially from his/her favorite course. If you’re thinking of this as the perfect gift, look for a special holiday sale at that particular club. You might be able to final a bargain. The word of caution here is “No glove.” This item needs to be fitted precisely and is a little too risky.

A wedge
While individual golf clubs, especially in the wedge and putter category, are a “personal” matter to virtually every golfer, I don’t think you can go wrong with a wedge. Every golfer likes to experiment with different clubs and wedges are no different. Find out what wedge your golfer does not have and get him/her an inexpensive version with which to experiment.