Golf Fore the Good

It is often the little things that make a difference.

I took a golf lesson on approach shots yesterday, as I’ve been having some accuracy issues with my wedge. My PGA professional made a few changes: my feet, my arms, the length of my swing, my wrists, my shoulders, my spine angle and my weight transfer - I think that was about it. Just a few little things.

My pro took a video of my swing before, during and after my lesson. I was shocked to look into the monitor at my “before” shot and see something that resembled not a golfer, but rather some sort of a turtle in seizure. There was kind of a hump-like body and appendages sticking out at odd angles. Then there was the head. Awkwardly distended out behind the ball at a distance I would not have known my neck to allow, the head of the creature on that computer screen was certainly not mine. It was back and tilted in such an odd position the figure before me appeared to be next of kin to ET. Balance issues? Oh, yes. To return to square from the distorted posture, my arms thrashed about and hoped to find their target. There is no wonder I had felt uneasy standing over a wedge shot.

We all suffer suggestions and tips from the well intended golfing buddy. Unfortunately, without the benefit of guidance from a qualified golf professional, we often take what we think we know or have learned to the extreme which, in turn, leads to all kinds of unpleasantries. In my case, “stay behind the ball” had created a severe case of torticollis, among other afflictions.

At times, one’s golf malady is not always readily apparent. Symptoms may come and go. A mild case of the what-evers may linger for a few rounds and mysteriously clear up on its own. Swing fever comes in many forms and can strike at any time. It is nearly always tremendously painful but rarely fatal. It has been known, of course, to make a golfer throw down his/her clubs and quit the game, but that is the exception to the rule. Treatment by a PGA professional is most often effective but, at times, one course of therapy is not enough for a complete and lasting cure.

When a golfer is not feeling up to par - sorry, pun most definitely intended - it could prove to be just a hiccup in one’s round, or a season of constant pain and discomfort. You just can’t give in, or give up, or the disease will overtake you and mire you and your game in an unplayable position.

A golfer who’s game may be under the weather can also experience a most amazing phenomenon: the one shot cure. That’s right, one shot is sometimes all it takes; one simple tweak, one good swing, one tiny fix. In a singular moment a golf game can go from bad to good, from absolutely painful to astonishingly satisfying.

One little thing keeps us coming back to play another round.

Now, about that video. I was looking a little more pulled together by the end of my lesson, but I can promise you won’t be seeing it on YouTube anytime soon.