OMG!!!

Hehe..in fact if I lost the crowd of my blog readers, there is no surprise. Seriously, I nearly forget about this blog of mine. So sorry guys. And today I kinda think of it and in fact yes, there is the reader who post up to me saying..please update.

Hmm..I don't know how long will I take before I update my this blog again, because I'm now in my most hectic week ever. But I'll get back to you all ASAP. sigh..really sorry guys..

in fact I didn't update since Garcia lost his bout up until Tiger have won the PGA Championship. Congrats, Tiger. Anyway let me post up today entry with something about mental golf again.

And this is seriously very applicable to me right now because it's been like 2 months since I last went to the driving range as there is no range of golf courses around Cyberjaya. Even if there is any, I don't have any car to drive around to have a couple swing. That ain't important..today's entry will be all about players who still play golf, but really rare probably due to studies, laziness or whatsoever. And how mental affect the game.

Okay..Many of us sure have a period or time when you feel like just give up the game of golf and pursue on other sports or just sick of playing badly. If you ever think about it, all I can say is you are not a good golfer enough. And seriously, you are not a GREAT SPORTSMAN as well. I, however, hmmm..can't be consider as someone who give up golf. I still have the passion in golf, the enjoyment of playing and winning if possible and of course the challenges in golf that taught me so much things. I still enjoy reflecting on how last time I used to play golf. I'm still keen on playing golf but then when go back to my hometown, I rather stay at home and relax. Not a good sign but definitely, I'll touch back all my stuff when I'm working next time. Study in University now, hmmm..really don't give those ample time to think about golf. hihi..

Alright, let's put it this way. You have been absent in golf for months and feeling wanto get back to the game. You feel like brushing up your game by going to driving range first. You think overnight to plan how you want to be a golf enthusiast again. But when it comes to the time like 4pm for you to go to the range, you are too tired to do it. What I can say is, flap your butt, get your set and HALLELUJAH..driving range, here we go. The first step of trying to go to the range is important, as it builds something in your brain that I want to pursue something. And in range, don't force yourself. Try to get back our swing and swing comfortably. A lot of players who return to the game will find it even more discouraging are mostly because of their high-expectation to play well. That shouldn't be the case, as we should know that humans ain't perfect and definitely, we have very very rough edges around here and there. So just be patience and you don't have to whack 200 balls just because you think it can helps you get back to your performance..NO!!! Hit sufficient balls like 100 probably, just to get your routine started. If you feel like you want to achieve more, then go ahead with 50 balls stacking up. Don't just go there and hit a ball blindly. I once read from Tiger's book of How I Play Golf..that Tiger mentioned that 'one of his most effective training may only require him to hit 20 golf balls'. What he is stressing on is about the QUALITY..not the quantity. So for people like me who nearly lost touch in golf, we should learn to train more quality short than hitting so much that turns out no results. Be patience in golf, and let the time do the job..

Back to Work..

For the last whole week, I was truly busy with examinations and assignment. Finally I get to sit down on my chair, facing the computer to continue my golf blog. So the same word over and over again, my more sincere apologies to all.

So, today my topic will be more about mental golf again. Today's mental golf will be about being able to bounce back. Probably relating to Garcia's British Open serious loss, but truly applicable to all whenever you all play golf.

Bouncing back is the ability to recover, to come back, to save or secure shots to reduce the stroke after you probably make a mistake blowing a hole or two. In PGA Tour, it is quite obvious that Tiger Woods truly have the best bouncing back status among all. Bouncing back can be the status on a particular day or even more specific one will be particular holes. Sometimes, have you met with some players, that didn't really play well at the front, but suddenly keep recovering and bouncing back as he/she gets along. If any of you who is reading this also can do those stuff, I can just salute you all and say that you all have a very cool and systematic pace in your mental game. This is purely because usually, after some blunder in a hole, players tend to get panic and instead, making more and more mistakes. But sometimes, we should learn to overcome this prob slowly. Though it is not really easy, but this ability can help you in your game. In what WAY?? What I think that it helps the most, is when you are playing with somebody you think is much better player with you. But with a cool, slow and steady mental, you can settle your mind neutrally and just wait for the other player to make mistake.

Therefore, try to learn to bounce back instead of thinking what is going to happen in the coming few holes. Don't think about any mistakes and stuff that you make in your swing when mistakes happen, just go for it. Each and every shot, just go for it. Probably the best advise is, don't over anticipate your problems. Just remain cool and try to recover it back.

OH MY GOD!!!

I guess you all know what my entry today will be about already. Seriously and totally, about Garcia lost in British Open. How can that be HAPPENING???

Seriously, I felt sad for him. There are so many factors that cause his game to falter even at the beginning of it. I don't think Garcia can get over this trauma that soon. Even the world's best player probably need a day or two to get over such sad ending. Anyway, just let me brief for some who don't know about his game on Sunday. But before that, we have to CONGRATULATE mr. PADRAIG HARRINGTON for the win. In fact, last Sunday, my mum was complaining that she seldom see Paddy won't this few times. Probably he just wanted a major for this year. Great Job, Padraig!!!

So all about Garcia now. Probably my comments ain't that professional enough. But in my third person view, I'll just comment it. I think Garcia, as a touring pro definitely know it best. In my opinion, Garcia maybe felt the pressure of being one of the youngest major winner and having to win the FIRST MAJOR under his belt. We can never know, because in the game of golf, even great professional like Garcia probably face it on the last day of the Game. Besides, probably a lot of the other guys, who is supporting him gave him too many word of advise. This seriously in someway somehow can give more pressure to a player. During his game, probably something don't 'click' as how he wanted it to be. And Garcia's bouncing back status which I think is quite high, couldn't go up to expectation. This triggers his mental and emotion into a critical period as like an egg at the tip of a horn. That's the problem and there are many more factors too.

That was the ending for a great player who fought hard but did not get it. But then, of course he will get one major in his career. So, let's just wish him all the very best in his upcoming few more tournaments.

British Open at Carnoustie..

Oh..I'm truly sorry for not updating this blog. Not that I don't want, but due to the problems that you all know already. Anyway..let's not talk about that stupid services topic and move on to the latest stories. the Headlines for today..

Garcia is on his form with yellow-clad sweater with a turtleneck red shirt, matching his cap and his golf club's grip. In fact, the truly model for TaylorMade..was in his very fine and cool form. His game was so far in A- category, but that is good enough for him and if he still maintain that A- game, tomorrow we'll see a Spaniard in the footstep Seve Ballestros to win his first ever major. Let's wish Garcia all the best for his game tomorrow. Though I can't watch it live as I will be back to my campus, but I'll keep myself updated through the Internet.

But that's not all about this post. I actually wanted to comment about Sunday's Final Round for British Open. Let tomorrow be a sunny day in Carnoustie, and let's there be no delay. And I truly hope that we can see the best battle. In fact, I was discussing with my dad that who we actually wish to be the British Open champion. No heartfeelings, we want either Garcia and surprisingly, KJ Choi to win. There can only be one winner, and our percentages goes to KJ, though after the third round he faltered terribly. The reason is, if KJ was to be the British Open Champion, he will be the FIRST ASIAN TO WIN A MAJOR IN THE GAME OF GOLF..that actually will boost other Asian PGA Tour golf player to play even better. But he is 6 strokes back, and everything will be down to Stricker and Garcia battle. And of course, Garcia is one of my idol, so let's hope the latest British Open Champion be Garcia..hehe..will keep you all updated..

Apology

Hey guys, I'm terribly sorry for not informing earlier about my truly late post. And definitely I got a reason. The reason is I just moved to Cyberjaya to study for my major in my U, so at my new place there, for the time being there is no access to Internet. And my Streamyx or broadband application is still in the process, so sorry for not being able to update the latest info and everything to you guys. Please do still support me and I'll sure to blog ASAP. Sorry once again..

Mental Golf

Hey guys, sorry for these very late entry. I was very busy for the past few days, fixing myself in my new campus and still wasn't really make myself adapt to here yet. But I can't lag you all too long, therefore I decided to spare some time to blog something for you all.

As I promise earlier, I'll touch everything like introduction and sort before going to the more detail part. Therefore, as for today's entry will be about MENTAL GOLF. As you all know, golf ain't just about swinging the golf club and whacking that golf ball. It involves body coordination to hit a shot, and definitely mental to articulate your game ; explicitly, implicitly or tacitly. But how does mental golf influence our game and what's the percentage of it towards a game??

What I can say is, the Game of Golf won't be that interesting if our mental is not part of the game. Because if it is just about hitting the golf ball into the hole, then it is truly a lame idiotic game. Our mental is one of the major factor that might cause a player, not performing well or up to their expectations. And as you play more, you will know how important it is. In fact, Mental Golf is part of a growing process in your brain for golf. You experienced and learn more through practise, involving yourself in tournaments and any exposures that involves not just one party. As for me, I had been through quite a lot of experience regarding mental golf especially in the part of improving myself.

An easy way to enlighten you all about mental golf is probably, is your handicap. As you all know, handicap 24 are classified as beginner, 18-24 are novice,12-18 are intermediate, 0-12 advance and etc. And during this part of evolving yourself in either of the category means different understanding in your mentality towards golf. This is simply undeniable. You all probably will understand why because you all will know that people who handicap are lesser will definitely have better advantage in golf. This may not be the fact but it has positive percentage that the thoughts are true.

As for me, I started my handicap of 24, jumping to 21 and then to 19. During this part, I summarize in a shorter form that my game were very blunt. And probably you will blow your hole randomly at any hole or holes in 18 holes. If the blunder starts early, sometimes there are still room of improving your game. But if you blunder were in the middle, then you will definitely struggle with your head running around here and there. Picking up pieces and can't regain your contention back. As for my advise for novice players, stay calm in your game. You will definitely make mistakes, and pretty a lot of them, just slow down your pace when this things happen. And if you are playing in your homeground, don't take bad memories as a phobia thing for you. Keep in mind that everytime you play a game, everything is different than the others and don't bring back bad memories.

My handicap then decrease from 19 to 14 and I was then a intermediate player. This category might be the most major part of your game. You learn and understand a lot more in this process. Probably during novice period, you are still new to the game. But this category is the part where you learn the most and even more than when you are an advance player. Why is it so? Simply, you know much detail of the game and definitely you know what you are doing in the golf course than beginners. But what is the common mistake in Mental Golf in this category?? In my opinion, players between handicap of 12-18 will face big problem in the last three holes. Last three holes in their mental are the most critical one. WHY?? Intermediate players are able to cover early and middle mistakes easily. BUT during the back part of the game, they are relatively unstable (whether they are playing well or not at the front part of the game). This is because usually intermediate players will usually reflect how well they play throughout in the course earlier on. Or how bad they play. And with that mentality, (if they are playing good) they will try to maintain their forms and that's when trouble come. If they aren't playing well, they will be thinking why they play so bad, and instead this influence them to be afraid of making those mistakes. Last three holes are critical in the sense of playing a good game or covering a bad game. That's the reason I can think of. And to cope with this matter, I simply recommend to intermediate players, not to think about any part of your game and just play the whole game. Even you are playing badly or vice versa, you shouldn't even spare time for thinking those stuff. Though you have plenty of time to think for a shot in golf, but sometimes is better not to do too much critical thinking and focus on automatic response in your game.

And for advanced players, mental golf are more polish at this stage. But they will still face problems but are lesser. And for advance players, blunders only happen when you put your expectation over your head. That's the only prob. You can't always think of the expectation you want to achieve but instead you must think of the other factors. Golf ain't perfect just like life, we just try to compensate and try to make it better than pushing ourself to the limit that we know sometimes is hard to achieve. Golfers at this stage should learn more about calming your brain time to time, and enjoy the game more than keeping the score low. Because players at this stage won't have much problems keeping the score low, but it is just mental that pulls them down. So relax and enjoy are the advise for advance players. Other factors will be discuss in detail in later post for mental golf. Sorry for the late post again..sorry.

My in-Favs Golf Courses..

As I mentioned in my previous post, I have played quite a number of golf courses and there are some that I truly felt miserable entering it. Not to say miserable, a better word is it didn't attract me to play in that course again. For some of them, I still enjoyed playing there but with the hope that they might improve in some way.

One of the golf courses that I probably are afraid of playing there will be Jasin Golf Club in Jasin, Melaka. This golf course ain't that bad in terms of the turf, which is cow-grass. But..BUT..that golf course is way too dangerous. Dangerous for golfers and PUBLIC! You all might wonder why PUBLIC are involved? My introduction will be, this is the FIRST golf course, where I tee off in front of a primary school. Come on, a primary school behind a golf course. It is so near, that whenever you tee off, there is young children shouting here and there. The worse part is, below the tee box, is a road. And it is the only road where you can access to the school. So you will have plenty of cars parking in front of the first tee box. Isn't that dangerous? What if you topped your ball? The distance between your ball (the place where you tee) and the car is the distance that a golf ball can KILL somebody. I played there once and have this so-called bad experience there. This is just danger to the public. As for golfers, I really can't imagine when it is at its peak time. You know WHY? I'll give you a scenario. Imagine yourself, playing in a golf course which have a shape of a circle. Where each circumference of the circle, is the place you tee-off. And the fairway is in the middle of the circle. Understand? You are like in NO-MANS LAND when you are in the centre. When people shout 'FORE', you don't even know from where the golf ball fly from. Probably I'm exaggerating a little bit, but due to safety, exaggerating may seem important. The golf course, if I'm not mistaken was closed already. Because of what reason, I don't know. But there is one thing for sure, the maintanence of the golf course, is much better than other public golf courses so far as I see (of course not better than Royal Johor but it is better than average golf club).

what i think about Jasin golf club..is something like this..

The other golf course which I played several time before it was close down will be Golden Valley GCC in Melaka too (nearby Jasin). The golf course was once known as the Malaysia's Best golf course. But due to poor maintanence, I mean truly poor maintanence, it is shut down, but NOT FOR GOOD. The golf course was designed by Japanese and it has a lot of Japanese elements in the architecture of the ClubHouse itself. This very golf course are long and even long hitters may consider it long. It has really challenging and interesting holes which you really need to use quite a lot of your brain instead of just brawl, to hit long and strategic shot. G. Valley, was a really great course. Unfortunately, due to poor maintanence by the Management and Golf Maintanence personel, the golf course degraded in a fast motion. The turf which is origally bermuda grass was slowly turn into half-bermuda half-cow grass and slowly turn to SWARM grass. It is really sad to see that whenver you play there. But what they do was just putting sand on top of the grass only. And when you play there, you can't play well because you were even afraid to hit down the grass. WHY?? Because it is so full of sand causing handpain when you play and damaging your golf club. The green's grass itself was uneven, which seems like there were herds cows went there and eat the grass DAILY. I truly like the golf course very much but what to do, sometimes people just do not know how to cherish golf course.

I think that's about it about the golf course which saddened me in my past experience. In terms of golf courses, you can consider myself as quite friendly where I'm not picky about golf courses. But sometimes, people didn't work as much as they should in order to make their golf course ' One-in-a-Million'. It's easy for me to say, and I know its hard to maintain the golf course. BUT I truly believe, if one are loyal to your members, your members won't run away just like that. Golfers are supportive when they come to improving their home-club. It's just the reality.


p/s : if anyone want me to review some of the golf courses, I may do so- of course subject I played there before. Just name it probably I can share a little. Thanks for the comment.

My Favs Golf Courses...

Alright! Really thanks a lot to one of the commenter in my CBox.. because it is really hard to get certain target audience who can cooperate with bloggers. I hope I can consider myself lucky and I certainly know the commenter is someone in my hometown.

My post today is about my favourite Golf Course that I prefer to play golf and the one that I dislike. I really like this question a lot and I'll give my reasons according to my experiences. But to choose only one probably is kinda hard for me, so I'll say a few of the golf courses that I like. The golf course that I probably prefer the most will be The Legends Golf & Country Club at Kebun Sedenak in Kulai, Johor. The reason may seem irrelevant for you all but as I say, it is based on my past experiences.
REASONS :

1. This is the first golf course, that make me play my score record of 74 for the first time. I won my second consecutive U-15 State Level Champions safely after winning the tournment held at The Legends GCC.
2. The golf course there is really nice, designed by 'The Legend' Jack Niklaus and what I can say is, the distances there are quite short and it is really easy for me to conquer the whole course with my above average distance.
3. They use bermuda grass for fairways, very well maintain ground with picturesque scenery.
4. Alright, let's talk the professional golf course analytic way. This course is really interesting because the contour of the golf course are laid mostly just like you are in hilltop. Where you have to tee off in a higher area for some holes. And whenever you step on the tee box, you got a very clear overview picture of how a hole is to be played. The golf course may seem quite easy for some players but from what I analyse with only a few encounter at that course is that, the traps that they set are very strategic. The bunkers, water, rough and green are precisely and strategically place where average players really need to find ways to escape them. What do I mean by average players are players who play on the right tee box according to their handicap. Example White Tees for people of handicap 18-24 and Blue Tees from people below handicap 18.

The next golf course that I like is Royal Johor Golf & Country Club at Johor Bahru. This golf course is one of the oldest in Johor and trust me, they really have the aroma of truly old golf course. I have spend most of my time (2001-2004) down there due to training and tournaments, and I never get bored of it. Though is a public golf course, I can say is it is really different from other public golf courses (public golf courses in Malaysia are usually lack of maintanence).
REASONs:

1. This is one of the toughest golf course that I played in my golfing time. In terms of the design and contour, this golf course is very very hilly and have lots of variation in the design of the landscape. Furtheremore, the grass type are cow-grass where hitting a solid accurate shot is very important. Because in cow-grass, if you hit on the back, it means you hit on the back..there is no way the grass can help you to bump the ball a few metres in front.
2. The green are relatively fast and consistent in every hole. But the best part is each and every hole has their own charateristics. Though I'm quite familiar with the golf course, it seems unavoidable for me to continuously making mistake just on the green. The green's contour are mostly influenced by the surroundings. I know you all might not understand what I'm trying to say. The meaning influenced by the surroundings is that, the green are so mature that, the contour are following the factor of growth of the green instead of just the soil. Still Blur!! This is the simpler form for you all to understand. Some of the greens in Royal Johor are influenced by the location of water (one of the major factor of growth). There are greens in there which when you see are uphill, but when you tap the ball, it roll so fast like downhill. The reason, there is a pond behind the green, though is uphill, the roots and grass are facing to the water and therefore cause the green to act DIRECT OPPOSITE OF WHAT WE SEE! Believe me, only experienced player know how to play this course.
3. The environment of the golf course I can say is pretty nice as it is in the middle of the jungle (last time it was a jungle). And you can definitely see really old mature trees that grow more than a century there.
4. The rules and regulations there are tight, but it is a good way to preserve what ancient golf truly is about. And of course, the Sultan of Johore's family always play there, so it is truly a ROYAL Johor.

I played in many courses, these are the two that I think are the favourite. I played in Thailand, Singapore and locally, and I still think that Malaysia's courses are nicer. I've never played Saujana and I really hope I can get to there one day. BUT..

Last but not least, the other golf course that I, not to say like the most, but give me the best experience is probably The Mines Golf & Country Club. For Malaysian golfers, and in fact golfers around the world might know that The Mines are the host for 1999 World Cup Golf Championship, where Tiger Woods and his partner, Mark O'Meara help USA secure the World Cup Champion. I was there to witness the game 3rd round game with my Dad before I myself went up to Kota Permai GCC (one of M'sia best golf course) to play golf. The question is DID I PLAYED THERE BEFORE???

THE ANSWER IS YES.. I can really consider myself lucky as my Dad's last time Boss treat us to a game there. Well truly very LUCKY I can say. Even the locker room was so COOL, BIG SPACIOUS LOCKER ROOM with Tiger's picture hanging all around the place. There is jacuzzi and spa at there somemore. Alright! Back to the topic.

The Mines GCC may not be the most challenging or toughest golf course to play, but it is one of the MOST WELL-MAINTAINed golf course in Malaysia. The grass are truly evergreen, and the surroundings are very picturesque. The best part is, the GREEN are very soft. So soft just like you are walking on SPONGE. The green are very mature where spinning my ball for me (during that time I still can really spin my ball well) may seem likely. And when you play there, even you know KL City is so damn hot, at there, it is always cooling. Really a MAGNIFICENT experience there. And to boast a little, the place are only for DATO's or DATUKs. The entrance fee..don't ask (RM 600++ in 1999, now I'm not sure).

These are the golf courses that I probably enjoyed the most, so far. In Malaysia, I really hope I can play in more championship course like Saujana. But so far in my so-call career, I played a lot of Championship Course in Malaysia, example my homeclub Orna GCC, Kota Permai GCC, Tanjung Puteri GCC and Royal Johor GCC. Hopefully can add more of the names in my golfing list.

I'll probably share more about golf courses in later post, but these are my favs I can say. And in the next post, I'll talk about the course that, not certainly I dislike, but their weaknesses.

107th US Open Golf Championship

This week, in PGA Tour hottest event, news and live coverage will be all about the inaugural 107th US Open Golf Championship held in Oakmont Country Club, Oakmant,PA. I watched the second round just few minutes ago. And it seems like, Oakmont have something in common with 2004 US Open at Shinnecock- 3G = Glass Ground Green...

As usual, US Open are one of the toughest Major tournament to be put in PGA Tour players' title winnings. With Oakmont's green and rough. It seems like this four days are really tough for all the players out there. So far as I see, the rough there is really thick. Even their second layer are so thick (5 inches or more) that when you place your clubs on it, the rough can reach up to your shaft (which mean your club are totally covered). I came to this conclusion about the rough when I saw Phil Mickelson hitting it when his ball landed in one of the second layer rough, and with his wrist injury, I don't think the rough favor Phil that much.

Let's talk about the green now. It seems like, the green really are like Shinnecock in 2004. Where your balls really need GOOD TRACTION CONTROL OR ABS BRAKE SYSTEM. Professional players especially in PGA Tour are mostly perfectionist in spinning the golf ball, but so far, none that I see spin it well enough. Maybe a couple of 'check', but the ball just keep rolling and rolling. From the fringe rolling up to the back of the green. From landing on the centre of the green, rolling back until 30-40 yards from the hole. OMG! This ain't that easy. And definitely the winner of US Open should be really proud of himself.

The green I mention earlier, I call them 3G= Glass Ground Green. Where it truly seem like a piece of thick hard tempered glass that seems un-CRACKABLE beneath the Poa Annua grass (green measurement speed index for Oakmont = 13!! CRAZY!). So as I was looking at how players anticipate and trying to compensate their games in any way possible, I figured out one thing to blog and one picture to be posted : probably to cheer viewers and players up that Oakmont truly ain't that easy. Back in my mind there is only one solution..that is --

i define the layer as Poa Annua -> Soil -> Glass..

to analyse and check it, we knock it and if it responded with glass sound..

we think of a solution...

After watching so much World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)..I know what is hardcore..

YEAP!! A SLEDGE-HAMMER IS ALL WE NEED...

RIP IT!! THE GLASS BREAK..and help the PLAYERs

P/s: I know a lot of PGA Tour players will thank me for this..and might offer gifts and sort to me..but I only need one thing that i want them to do for me..that is to pay off all my summons for destroying private property...

ENJOY THE 107TH US OPEN AT OAKMONT GUYS..

Hole by Hole

So, my entry today will be the one probably some are waiting for. The way to bet in golf. Of course, talking about betting, majority may seem interested and as I have mentioned in my previous post about betting, it seems that betting, ain't a bad thing in golf.

As for today, I'll be talking about golf's easiest betting method, that is Hole by Hole. Probably the name tells it all already. But I'll just brief you all for this method.

Alright, Hole by Hole betting way goes like this. Each and every hole are taken into considerations for winning. It's simple, whoever who play better wins the hole. And each and every hole, we'll see who got the advantage and who don't. It's something like match play and the bet continues until these two situations occur

1. Till the end - Which the situation seems very competitive and both side are probably playing very well to keep up the pace, or both are blunt but hanging well enough on the cliff. In this situation, the most, one player can get advantage of his opponent will be just by one which in matchplay we call, 1up 1 to go. Or both are square until the last hole.
2. Early Ending - In this situation, just like in matchplay, sometimes one might play too well and the other lost his/her contention and end up losing the whole streak. And the bet, ends early. This is because there is no chance of beating your opponent, with 3 up 2 to go, or 5 up 4 to go. So the game ends early just like that.

But probably this is not the most interesting part, cause if we were to play just like how I say above, the bet will be (in fact yes) damn boring. So to light up the game, and probably to improve Hole by Hole betting method. As I learn all my betting methods, from my BIC (betting intelligence consultant), that is my DAD. There are a few ways that we can do to make the game heat up and tense.

1. Give Strokes - This is probably the most important part, where you can see people bargaining for strokes just like they are bidding an AUCTION. Some have even made AGREEMENTS for the strokes, where for the period of 3-12 months, I will be giving you bla bla strokes. And they can alter the strokes, after the period. Interesting right! Giving strokes depends on handicap (if players are truthful) and depends on how well you know your opponent (for players who probably play much better than their handicap say a.k.a. Crocodile or 'Buaya'). Giving strokes, depend on big GAP your handicap is to your opponent, and the GAP will show how many strokes you need to give. Example, I'm a 6-handicapper, and my challenger is 12-handicapper, so I'll have to give him 6 strokes for 18 hole. *SEE CAREFULLY*IT IS FOR 18HOLE. If nine hole game, I'll just have to give him 3 strokes. Strokes given are to be put according to the hole's index. Indexex are difficulty measured by the which ever authorities. The lower the index, the tougher the hole, and strokes are given to the lowest up to the highest index.
2. Stacking Up the Bet(holes) - Probably for some of who end the game earlier, might give his opponent another chance. By giving them chance to beat him back, so in the extra hole, they'll stack up the bet. But remember, if the loser keep losing, you pay double the money.
3. Opening Up New Game - Especially for people who lead and end the game early (5 up 4 to go). Golfers may choose to bet all over again at the last few holes just like opening up a few window in a interface of a computer. AT least there are still chances of counter-winning the bet.
4. Stacking Up the Bet(nines) - This stacking up method is alter after nine hole. Probably the loser thinks that he still got a chance to beat his opponent and Stack Up the bet with his opponent. However, this option can only be decided by loser, that's what we call LOSER's OPTION.

Probably there are some things that I didn't mention, but for any question bout this you can mail me or even put some comments and I'll answer you all ASAP.

How to Transfer Our Weight?

In my previous post, I touch about Weight Transfer but I didn't talk about HOW to transfer it. For some, weight transferring may have been attach in their swing already. So just carry on and improve your swing by practising more.

But for some, they are having problems to transfer and are also afraid of swaying their swing instead of transferring. These are probably some tips that may help you all.

1. Standing on a equally balanced bended knee (in Chinese, is 'MA PU' or horse-stand). Close your eyes and put both your palms together in your front of your chest (not holding a club). Close your eyes and try moving and moving your body to the left and to the right, to and fro. Just keep on feel that. *IMPORTANT NOTICE*-both your feet should stay flat to the ground while moving, and LET just your knee and body work things out.
2. For people who don't even know what weight transfer is, I recommend this tips but..BUT this is a very risky way of practising weight transfer. But it is a drill, that I once practise and created for myself. I called it, 'Sway Your Swing'. In this drill, your hand should not be at work at picking up the golf club or whatsoever. What your hand do is only to move the club only. So when you are practising this drill, remember it is just a drill and should not be implemented in your golf swing. It is just a feeling for you all to know what weight transfer is about. So the procedures goes like this, move your body to the right (as right as possible). With all your body weight going towards your right side(which will be 85% of your weight will go to the right leg), using the body power and weight to pull your hand up with the body. Your hand swing will be very flat and low unlike your usual swing which will be relatively higher. And immediately, move back all the weight from right to left ASAP, to let your body go faster than your hand. Your hand MUST be brought down by your body swing and not your hand swing.

Give it a try if you doubt your swing. An ideal weight transfer, can probably gives you extra 20-70 metre depending on how you coordinate your swing. Best of Luck!

Weight Transfer

Sorry for the late post again. There are some reasons why I didn't post and I did share it in ~my life~ blog. Alright, today I'm going to talk about Weight Transfer. Probably, many of you all might know what is WEIGHT TRANSFER. But do you swing apply the weight transfer mechanism? Some may answer YES, some UNSURE and some, NO.

Let's put it this way. Just like any other sports, weight transfer is seemingly just as important not just in golf. I'll show you some of the pictures that represent body weight transfer before relate it to golf.

(A) take a look at how Zidane kick a penalty shot

(B) look at the sequence of one basketball player throwing a free throw...

(C) how a badminton player, sequence to SMASH a shuttlecock...

The reason why I show this three pictures is to prove that, not just golf, other sports also in need much of weight/body transfer to deliver a more powerful shot. At (A), when a footballer is kicking a ball. You don't expect them to kick a ball just by standing in front of the ball, and kick it just with their legs. That will definitely kick a ball, but it won't give a powerful blow at the ball to make the ball travel faster and fly further. Therefore, players will run a certain distance, and when they get near the ball, they will rotate their hips and turn their body to slightly inside and rotate back- to kick a powerful ball. Let's see (B), when a basketball player, is having a free throw in a location. In order to deliver the power, they couldn't just use their hand, yes and unless their hand are very powerful. But even NBA players who are strong, they still bend down knee and upon throwing the ball, pushing their knee straight - just like delivering their body weight to the ball and with their hand power to throw the ball. In (C), a badminton player who wanted to make a SMASH, a power SMASH I mean, they will rotate their shoulder and body, and rotating back with the power of the hand, and WHOOOOOOSH!

The reason why I ask you all to identify the weight transfer in your swing is because

1. To have a more powerful shot


2. More energy saving shot (where you don't have to use all your hand power in order to get one distance, you can use ur body weight to give you more power boost)


3. To have a more fully-fundamental right swing in golf

Let's take a look at Sergio Garcia swing sequence that I took from Golf Digest. Garcia weight transfer is pretty obvious that's why I take his swing, as an example.

At the beginning, as usual, a player will have a balance weight distributed at both our feet. During the take-away of Garcia swing(pic3), you can see that Garcia have transfer the weight from his left leg to his right a little even at the beginning when he stretches his arms.

In this pictures, we can see that Garcia have move probably 60% of his body weight to his right leg. Keep your eyes on Garcia's knee, our knees in golf are the weight-controller. Garcia have shifted his body weight using his left knee( that see that the left knee tend to bend more than the right), with his right knee still remain a little bend( right knee shouldn't be straight as the purpose of right knee, is to hold the body weight temporary - if you straighten your right knee, it is problematic for you to hold your weight and to deliver a powerful shot)

Look at Garcia's footwork. FANTASTIC!!! Though his knee is seem relatively too flexible, but that's where Garcia got his power. When you reaches the top, just like Garcia at pic 2, 71.5% of your weight should be at your right leg and the left over in your left leg. At picture 3, when Garcia is coming down, look how stable his knee and hit footwok are. This is the IDEAL foot and knee work for golfers. HE is able to move back all his weight back from right to left with a very powerful stable stance.

During this time, his knees were back to 50-50 %. Perfect work! Look at his downswing at pic 2, see how he transfer his power, from right transfering the weight probably 7.5-15% per SECOND to his left foot. Tiger did the same way! At picture 3, look at how Garcia transfer all his shoulder, hand, foot and most importantly, body weight at the shot. This is POWER DELIVERY.

So guys, probably some of you might think that moving your body is SWAYING YOUR GOLF SWING. It is true IF you over-move your body and purely used your body weight just to hit a shot. I once face the problem of swaying. To overcome it, I end up staignanting my whole swing, and was having a roller coaster ride until I got back my weight transfer mechanism correctly. But if you able to coordinate your HAND, SHOULDER, WAIST, FOOTWORK, AND WEIGHT TRANSFER correctly, you can definitely play a much stressful(because you don't have to focus all your power just on your hand) game and gain further distance for your golf balls.

Why NIKE have TIGER?

What I can say from this video is that, Nike doesn't give Tiger so much endoresements a year for NOTHING..this is how Nike Advertise..(notice carefully,before the ball roll in, the Nike Sign stay at the lip of the hole for awhile)..anyway, he IS THE WOLRD NUMBER ONE GOLFER..

Idol? (continued)

Analyse your idol's swing, whether is swing sequence or video, will definitely improve your game..

Idol?

For this entry, I'll probably focus mainly on juniors, and maybe applicable for seniors. What I realised, back in my hometown here, that juniors nowadays were lack of knowing or at least, getting to know their idol. As in my opinion, knowing your idol is one of the most important part in playing a better game especially for juniors. Back in '99, when I just started playing golf, I already knew who Tiger is and his father, Earl. hmmm..more than that. I know he won the Masters of '97, that's before I even touches the golf club. Of course, juniors nowadays, probably learn golf due to parents influence, I am too. But what I can say is - DARE TO BE DIFFERENT! You definitely will take your parents as your idol - at first and now, I DO! There are the idols that bring you to the game and inspire you about the game of golf. But in order to improve ourselves, we need to take our game into another level.


Juniors around me that I have known, do not know the history of golf. I'm not talking about those history about when and how the first golf club or golf balls were made, or how golfers wear back in the 1500's. NO! It's not about that. What I meant is somebody who create a legend on their own. Examples, Gene Sarazen's "SHOT HEARD AROUND THE WOLRD" (about Sarazen winning 1935 Masters, after he made a DOUBLE-EAGLE 2 on Augusta's Par 5 15th). Or who created the overlapping grip that you all are using now-> Harry Vardon. Maybe this is still too history, but how bout how many majors Jack Niklaus won? Jack Niklaus is a true legend that even legends salute him. Golf is something we enjoy to fill our time, but if you know a little bit more in golf, you make golf more enjoyable.


Back in my peak time of golf, me and my gang, we shared about nearly everything(technology of golf, history, latest events, analysing swing, and legends). Each and every one of us, have our own idol. Whether is Tiger Woods, Sergio Garcia, Ernie Els, David Duval, Annika Sorenstam, you name it. We know it all, even, they are not our idols. why? Why? WHY? Why do we need to know this people.


Simply, by knowing this people, makes you a better player. Makes you want to strive to be as good as them. Or probably getting near to what they achieved. Though they are PROs, but we can try achieving like them before they turn pro which is, in their AMATEUR years. Tiger, have three-year consecutive US Amateur Champion in his amateur belt. I know, he is real good. But can you be another prodigy just like him? That's the question you need to answer yourself.

Tiger Woods

Arnold Palmer

Jack Niklaus

They are all legend, legend of their own. I tried to be, though it's hard, as least to console myself I edit this picture, to show that I'm still trying to be a legend (probably a legendary golf blogger, WHY NOT?)

Grip for Golf...

In golf, gripping a golf club is very important. I mean "very very important". Of course, one might think that we grip the golf club, the main idea is not to let the golf club slip. That is partially wrong, cause with that intention, you might tend to grip it tighter or harder than you should. With that, some might even think that, with loosen grip I can flick the ball even further. Also partially wrong because you can't get in control of your golf club (besides you might slip the golf club). {As for your info, the topic I'm discussing is different from the concept of power and light grip}

Therefore, it is best and recommended that a golfer should use the ideal grip. You should be comfortable with A (just one and only) grip that you think is most comfortable and flexible for you. There is Interlocking grip, Baseball grip and Overlapping/Vardon Grip. Each and every grip are meant for power boosting, ability to get in control of your club head and ideal for a good swing. As I say, choosing a comfortable grip is very important because you don't want to get yourself in trouble just for GRIPPING. You haven't even start swinging there is a problem buggering you. That's one thing that golfers should always get rid of.

The ideal grip should be;

1. Comfortable - where you don't feel staignant, or pain (physically) or doubt (mentally) that this grip is right or wrong
2. Flexibility - where you can move the club as how you want it to be (get in control of the club)

After choosing your IDEAL grip, we should take the golfing grip into another level. The right strength to use the grip. Through my experiences, which include of loose to very tight grip to the ideal one, WE must analyse thoroughly the right power to hold the golf club (*A MUST*). The IDEAL grip for you should be just FIRM enough to have you get in control of the club and comfortable of holding the club.

One should not overpower the golf club because this will cause you TOPPING a golf shot, or slicing or even hooking it (truly overpower). This is because when you grip it too tightly(which also cause one to lose your power, where some of your power are used just by GRIPPING), you make it hard for your hand to roll through the sequence of your contact. Overpowering a golf club causes inability for a golf club to square upon contact consistently. Overpowering are usually faced by beginners because they do not know how to grip it right and consistent, so instead they just grip it tight.

On the other hand, loose grip will cause golf club to overpower your hand. This consequently will cause your ball tend to DOUGH or hitting it at the back of your golf balls. Light grip can sometimes help you hit a further shot as they are more flexible (ability to flick) and hit a golf shots more powerfully. This is because we can transfer more power to a golf ball as there is no loss of power in our grip. But this is seriously inconsistent(where you don't know how light is light) and when problem occurs, you wouldn't know whether is light grip a factor of the problem.

So why not, while fixing your other mechanism problem in your swing, let grip NOT BE ONE OF THE FACTOR. You don't grip it lightly or too hard..you grip it FIRMLY. Though some do not know how to find your FIRM grip, you need to get yourself to the range and try it out. Try hitting a couple of shots with the grip so hard you want to squeeze each and every of your vain out. And later try with the lightest grip, so light like a feather. And only grip normally and hit a couple of shots to determine the right grip for yourself. You have to answer yourself the question in gripping. I only can help by letting you know how do strength of a grip affect your game.

ROLL THROUGH means on the upper swing, left hand shut and right hand have the palm open facing front. On the downswing upon contacting the golf balls, right hand is shut while the left hand has the palm facing front.

Betting...

Dear readers, sorry for the late updates. Wasn't that free last few days, was blogging my other blog for something important so lag my work to be done in this blog. Anyway, as for an apology, this blog is dedicated to all golfers, and a new CATEGORY in my links will be added call - golf motivator -. This post is all about BETTING..

I'll start with a brief introduction that there are so many players in the game of golf, regardless of amateurs or professionals, we BET. Obviously some non-golfers, might be thinking, AM I OFFENDING the blog RULES as if I'm not mistaken, bloggers are not allowed to do online gambling or sort. Whatever it is, I'm not someone who create those casino online..if I'm that good in creating those stuff, this blog won't be created eventually. Anyway, drop it. What's betting to golf and How?

In the game of golf, there are so many ways that we can help ourselves in order to play a better game. Getting a GOOD PRO, being like Vijay Singh (golf most hardworking player), having yoga or meditation and so many. But this will only help you physically and mentally (in some way). You will probably be more physically prepare with toughen stamina or more prepared in the sense of your mental, where you are calm enough to handle more pressure. But will that be ENOUGH is that question? Probably a better question is WILL YOU BE HARDWORKING ENOUGH to do that? I'm a golfer myself, I know how hard to train 24/7.

So there is an althernative way, to prepare yourself physically and mentally in another way - BETTING? How does it affect you? Very easy, betting (besides golf) are mental stressor. You mentally being challenge because you are betting something on it which usually is monetary type. Money are hard-earned(for adults) and hard-begged(for non-worker) from you yourself or your parents. Money is very important to buy stuff, eat and all and survive in this world. Therefore, putting MONEY AT STAKE, is like putting an EGG AT THE TIP OF AN HORNBILL. It is stressful, definitely.

But the positive side of BETTING will be = IT MOTIVATES YOU TO BE A BETTER PLAYER. Why not? Of course there are alot of betting technique in golf which I will put in my entry too, don't worry.

1. you will face pressure when you know you are losing to someone in a golf especially betting
2. you know you have to be better in order to beat one or at least you know how to compensate with them (asking for strokes)

But, are you going to just sit down there quietly, and ask for more strokes each and everyday? or Will that player give you that stroke which seems to be a liability to them? DEFINITELY NOT, even a 5 year-old child can answer this. It is just not relevant. So you, as a GOLFER( if you still consider yourself as a true golfer) must work hard for yourself, which why BETTING MOTIVATES YOUR GAME --> to be a better player physically (where you train harder) and mentally (where you can handle stress better).

There are differences between you asking yourself to train harder with BETTING MOTIVATES YOU TO TRAIN HARDER. Have a group of golfer (friends), have a small bet and see how's the results of your game. Next -golf motivator- entry will be about golf BETTING types..

the Swing..

All golfers or non-golfers, will definitely know what is a SWING in golf. A player will know that a golf swing is very important to play a good game, while non-golfer will know the swing in golf, is all about swinging a golf club. This is just the definition. But what can I talk about in a swing??

Each and everyone of us (golfer) owns a special, unique and AUTHENTIC swing. Every golfer has their own type of swing whether they blend it with mixture of Tiger's backswing, or Ernie Els's wide follow through or Nick O'Hern ever precise solid contact point. It is still one swing and is ours. In Accounts, it will be classify as our precious assets (long-term). So, to all folks who are trying to imitate your swing to be like any of the PROs, what I can say is and is seriously demanding it --> DON'T..

One can try to alter their swing with some elements of the PROs, that's good..but never imitate a golf swing because you wouldn't know whether your body can take it, your height, your weight, and so many factors that defer you from being like somebody. Let's think about it, how about being THAT somebody? A good example, even weird swinger like Jim Furyk makes a difference, but don't you all know that he got the best fundamentals in his pack. And there are questions might pop-up saying, why Adam Scott's swing is so much similar to Tiger's? But have you all consider how Adam really hits his shot compare to Tiger - they have find their own swing that truly belong to them. There's no doubt about it.

So, as for us, we also must stick to our own swing instead of trying to imitate others. Besides, swinging your own swing is much more comfortable than swinging other's. As long as the fundamentals are right, you should definitely go for it.

my swing - still got the fundamentals right though so long din play..is abit over swing at the top..

Get the right swing for yourself is important-create your own one, feel comfortable with it and WORK ON IT.. you can make a difference to yourself.. swing right NOT swing like

Who Am I??

Probably in this golf blog of mine, I will be talking more about golf. But in my introduction, I probably didn't talk about who i am in the golf world. Not the golf world actually, who am i and my golf!! So i'll probably have a little more detail introduction about myself. I'm Eric Seah, a Johore (the state I'm living in M'sia) representives in National Level Competition (MSSM) for 5 consecutive years. I (self-proclaimed) have a record streak of 3 consecutive years of Under-15 State-Level Golf champion. Anyway, my life starting at the age of 11, is all just about golfing until I drastically practise lesser when I enter my University life, which is currently now. I LOVE GOLF and the PEOPLE. It teaches me a lot, a lot more than I should know at my young tender age last time. But I have no regrets, as it really helps me to become a more motivated and discipline(i guess) person. Therefore in this golf blog, I would like to share my experiences and ways to help players to play better in any way that I can. Of course, I can't guarantee how much I can help or will my advise definitely turns right, as this is only type-to-type communication. Unless you send me your golf swing pictures or videos, for me to analyse and I can guarantee to you what's really wrong in your game.

I really hope to be an author in any golf magazine who would hire me, but so far it doesn't turn right and probably I wasn't daring enough to really try it. Therefore, I rather spend my time blogging about the topics I like and it is definitely more convenient for people to communicate with me. Okay, next topic will be my handicap. I'm a 6 handicapper, though it is not that good, but I will try to reduce in years to come (let me study finish first ya). I like to talk about golf technologies, analyse one's authentic swing, realising how power mental is to golf, finding ways on my own to play a better game and work hard in winning money through golf bettings (hihihi..). I'll discuss more about myself in other entry, as I think what I share right now is relevant enough. Before I end this entry, in my blog i will have posts about

1. Technology of Golf
2. Mental Golf
3. Weekly Golf Tips
4. Golf Jokes and Funny Side of Golf
5. Moral to be Learnt in Golf
6. and the best of all, WAYS TO BETTING..

Hope you all readers will be looking forward to my blog and suscribe FOR FREE(site feed where any updates will be notifies) to my blog. Play a better Game, hopefully with my help..ciaoz

Tiger's Baby

Have you all heard the news that Tiger Woods and his wife, Elin will be expecting their first child somewhere around July 5-10. OMG!! That's so great..let it be on 8th of July..cause 8th of July is a very special date..in golf, 8th of July, for Johoreans golfer they know that date is very special. There is a great golfer born on that date..and if Tiger's baby boy also come out on that date..then that boy must be name..hmmm..Tiger's name is Eldrick..so i think the best name will be ERIC la..since quite close to my name ar. and ANOTHER THING.. my birthday is on 8th of July..hihi..







Alright, I'll stop my lame jokes. But in this very blog..probably the first entry after my introduction..we shall guess how Tiger's baby should look like? more to like Tiger or Elin..i guess everybody who is the fans of Tiger will be very excited about it..so do i..so let's think about it..how does the baby look?

I really think that my paint shop skill should be re-polish already..whatever it is..Children are the joy-giver in life..so I'll definitely hope that baby tiger will also brings joy to their parents..

Let's Tee Off..

WELCOME GUYS!!!!! to my golf blog..this blog will specify more of the game of golf..apart to be fair for my readers of my other blog who might not be interested in the topic of golf..SO GOLFERS..this pages are for you..specially made for you all to share and know more about golf..you all can ask me any questions..and in my blog I will touch a lot about the technology of golf..reviewing golf stuff..tips..handicaps wise..mental golf and of course..GOLF JOKES..so guys..anything that pop-up in your mind ..any enquiries..just mail me..or put in my comment box..or chatter box..anywhere that you can locate me..just ask me yeah..no problemo..

Regards,
Eric