If you are taking golf lessons or trying to learn the game, it is very important that you have the opportunity to see yourself on video. This is the only way of you seeing what you are doing as opposed to what you think you are doing. It is so important to be aware of how you swing the club.

Everyone has an idea of what a good golf swing looks like and feels like they are imitating that. The video shows you what you are doing, how far back the club goes, how fast you are swinging and what your body is doing.

Using just video will help but what is even better is video with the help of a computer program that can slow you swing down, draw lines or circle as a reference and show you what you are doing at impact of the ball. Golf is a very precise game and the more precise you can make it the better golfer you are going to be. The computer program can bring up the likes of Tiger Woods beside your swing to compare the different positions that the two swings are in.

In my opinion, video is the single most important tool in learning golf. If anyone tells you they can teach you golf with out the help of video, I would find someone else to teach you.

Tags: General, Golf General, Lessons in Golf by John White
1 Comment »

It is strange how this world works. The almighty dollar rules the world basically. I was reading the other day about how mass collaboration is a great thing and a great way to solve many problems. Using people from all over the world to contribute to a project is much better than a few people in a research and development department. Wikpedia is a great example of that, probably the biggest on line encyclopaedia where people from all over submit knowledge to an ever growing source.

One department that is also using this open source concept is the pharmaceutical business and the research of new drugs to combat the many illnesses that we face. One thing that stuck out in my mind was a statement that made reference to companies not interested in drugs that might cure say, malaria, which affects many people in Africa but these people are mostly poor and can’t afford to buy the drugs. Wow!

We do not do things that will help millions of people because it is not economically sound. Is that what we are here on this planet to do? Are we put here to have a great business plan or to start wars. Some where I think we have lost the goal. We are suppose to have higher intelligence meanwhile we are no different than all the animals. I guess it is the survival of the fittest. I wonder at the end when we are facing the final music if it matters how much money we have made or if we have invented a drug to fix a minor skin blemish. Not all of this is bad as it puts many people to work but at the end of the day make sure we can reflect on how many people we have help as opposed to how much money we have made.

Tags: General by John White
No Comments »

This game of golf is something else. It is such a skill game and a social game played on beautiful pieces of nature. A lot of it is in the mind as well.

However once we start to compete, it can be very humbling and painful. I run a junior girls league and my three daughters are in it. I suggested to my oldest daughter that she might compete in our club championship as there are no other girl members. She seemed to like that idea and was doing quite well on the range. However, when we went out to play, her first shot was not that good and I could see her shoulder slump and she was upset. Later on she hit a short shot and although it got up in the air the direction wasn’t that good. A couple of weeks ago she would have thought it was a good shot but this time she turned to me and said that it was an awful shot and started to cry. Immediately I thought, why am I teaching my kids this game? It is such a wonderful game but it can be very difficult to handle. It reminds me so much of life but when you see someone you care about going through something like that it hurts.

I was at the Ontario Junior Championships where some of my students are competing and I picked up one of the juniors I think has a great chance of winning. He made a birdie on hole # 16 and as it turned out was playing quite well. I was walking with his father and he hit a good drive on #17 and it was a par 5. He attempted to go for the green in two shots and hit it a little poorly and it ended up in the water short of the green. He was visibly upset and after a penalty of one shot he dropped his ball and proceeded to hit the next one in the water. He dropped again and hit it clear across the green and the ball was lost. He hit another just over the green, chipped on and two putted. 11!. Watching that was so painful, as I know what he was going through. He is out there alone dealing with that. I talked to him afterwards and he seemed to handle it quite well and ended up shooting 80 and with a couple of good rounds he can get back into contention.

It can be a cruel game but if we get back in there and fight we are better off.

Tags: General, Golf General by John White
No Comments »