Just turned 77 started right after graduating high school. Certified golf junky. Played to a 2 handicap in my prime, still playing, been very blessed health wise, had both knees replaced and that's about it. Still able to shoot my age on occasion. Sorry, to hear about your back, I honestly don't know what I would do if I couldn't play. Work part time in the pro shop of a Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail course here. Get to play a great golf course anytime for free and all the range balls I can hit which is good 'cause I am also a certified range rat.
Wow man, I'm jealous. I really can't complain. I had a good run. When I was playing my best I got down to a 4 on a pretty good course at the Air Force Academy. I was fortunate in being able work golf tournaments for the three major networks as a spotter/scorer. I worked mostly for CBS at The International at Castle Pines. Worked the Women's Open at the Broadmoor for NBC. Was fortunate in that I was able to follow Annika for the final two rounds. Worked a Senior's Open for ABC at Cherry Hills. I saw Tiger as a kid when he played a junior tournament sponsored by Canon. It was played at the Academy. And he had a foul mouth back then. And Earl was still alive and a certifiable ass hole. And through some connections I was able to play the courses mentioned and many others at no cost. Now that I'm retired I am able to follow golf a lot more closely. The kids today are unreal. I attribute a lot of it to the equipment and balls they are using. I would like to see them play with persimmon woods and irons and balls from the '70s.
I agree, in fact I've had people ask me to help them get rid of their slice, but in both cases their slices were very consistent pretty much through the bag. Like you said, it would be a lot easier to improve their short game than trying to do a complete overhaul of their golf swings when the name of the game in golf is consistency.
Now I'm a little jealous. Worked a couple of Nike/Web.com and LPGA tour events in Montgomery as a walking scorer. First pro tournament I ever saw was an LPGA tour event in Baton Rouge won be Mickey Wright. Have to agree with Ben Hogan, she probably had the best golf swing I've ever seen! I never met the man, but I could tell from some of his TV interviews that Earl was a a total asshole.
It's funny how I got the job with CBS. I was at Castle Pines on a Tuesday. Rather late in the day I went up to the driving range. I watched some pro's hit balls and was about to leave. I noticed someone at the end of the range hitting balls by himself. It was on the way out and as I got closer I could see that it was Ken Venturi. I watched him hit balls for a minute or two and as he was changing clubs I mentioned to him that I had read an article in a golf magazine that gave insight into how they get the broadcast on the air. It mentioned that they relied on some local people to help out. I asked him if that would be the case that week. He said probably and if you can stick around for a few minutes I'll give you a ride down to the compound and introduce you to Chuck Will our Associate Producer who does the hiring. He did and I probably spent 15 minutes with Chuck. Chuck was born & raised in Philadelphia and had that special personality unique to someone from Philly. I got hired and worked The International from 1997 until it was discontinued in 2006. Lots of great and funny memories from those years. The shit you heard in the headset when they cut to a commercial was beyond funny.
I got to see Nancy Lopez play in a junior tournament at The Broadmoor. Damn, she had game. I never got to see Hogan play as he retired in 1971. I did buy his book Five Lessons, probably the best instructional book ever written. I also bought a set of his irons which I could never hit. During one of the years I worked the Colonial I was able to go inside the clubhouse and see all of the Hogan memorbilia. It was a shrine.
Just a caveat about the golf swing and changes to it. Anything in the golf swing can be over done especially when you are trying something new. As Harvey Penick said "if you're told to take an aspirin, don't take the whole bottle." So, when making your weight shift remember this is a pretty small move, more like a "bump," it is NOT a turn. Do not turn your hips to start the down swing, think of the down swing as a bump then a turn. Again, good luck!
