To play your best golf, try having a PRE-GAME ROUTINE. We all hear about a pre-shot routine but did you know that there are actually 5 routines that good players have in their game:
1. Pre-game
2. Pre-shot
3. Shot
4. Post shot
5. Post Game

Let’s talk about playing your best golf by developing a PRE-GAME ROUTINE: This is the preparation one has before their round. It starts the night before the game. What are you going to wear? Are your clubs clean, enough balls in your bag, towel, shoes cleaned, enough tees, etc? Get a good nights’ rest. Eat a good breakfast. Drive to the course at a relaxed pace. Know the directions to the course if you’ve never been there before and leave time to get lost. Listen to relaxing music. Arrive in plenty of time to warm up and stretch those muscles that are needed in the swing. Play the first 3 holes on the driving range and in your mind before you get to the first tee. Spend a little alone time to quiet the mind and visualize your game plan for the round. Get excited, however, to play and enjoy your round.

A pre-game routine helps the player prepare for a good round of golf by helping to create the right emotional state that is needed. Routines help a golfer relax, focus, concentrate and perform at their best. A golfer needs something they can rely on for relaxation, grounding and focus for the task at hand. Golfers need to learn about their own best routines and it starts with a pre-game routine. Inconsistency comes from having inconsistent routines. Most golfers “sort of” have a routine but usually their thinking and is all over the place when it comes time to prepare for a round of golf.

What is YOUR pre-game routine? The next time you play golf, pay attention to what you do prior to the round. Are you rushed, not organized, or upset in any way? Did you sleep well the night before the round? Take a look at your state of anxiety before a round. What is it? Can it be better, calmer? Make a pre-game routine for yourself that will take you to the next level of your golf game and see how your game can improve.

Confusion is the quickest route to misery on the golf course. If you are confused about what shot you need, try categorizing your swings into a simple decision-making routine. Ask yourself, “is this a small, medium, large, or supersized shot?” Make that decision and then setup accordingly. Commit to the choice and commit to the swing for that setup!

In your practice, (OK…this means you should be practicing as well as playing!) do “decision-making” shots. For example, you have a 60-yard approach shot to a green where the pin is in the middle of the green. “Is this a small, medium, large or supersized shot??” “Do I want the ball to fly high and stop quickly, or do I want it to run most of the way?” “Which club shall I use to make the shot?” Once you’ve committed to a decision, go ahead and setup accordingly and make the shot.

The width of your stance determines what your upper body is about to do…small rotation, medium rotation, large…? The first decision is “seeing” the shot that you want to produce in your mind’s eye. Now make your “bottom” (width of stance) match the “top” (amount of rotation). Now your confusion is gone and what you’re doing is matching your image! Commit to it….let it happen before you change your mind!!! Too much time after the decision is made will leave too much room for doubt. And guess what…the “misery” is back! Be thoughtful, committed and rehearsed.

Try practicing your decision making process and you will be a much better golfer. Oh, and if you’re confused about all this….go to your LPGA or PGA instructor for help in your decision-making process!

What I saw watching the show was how the condition of the course was inferior compared to today’s standards. I also noticed that the distance of the course was shorter and I noticed that they had fewer selections of wedges. Sand wedge or pitching wedge…that’s it. They learned how to “work” those clubs. They were very skilled at adapting to the situation.

For you amateurs who are confused about your wedges….here is some help to understand how and why we have several more options today. Let’s look at a few “Wedge Words":

1. BOUNCE ANGLE - bounce reduces friction or digging of the clubhead. This angle is formed by the leading edge of the clubhead and the ground. The more bounce you have, the less the club will “dig” in the ground. I am a “digger” so I ordered extra bounce (14 degrees) on my sand wedge, instead of 12 degrees.

2. DIG - the leading edge of the clubhead will tend to dig into the turf and will create friction in the rough or sand, rather than pass smoothly through or under the ball.

3. GAP wedge - this wedge is one that is in between the sand wedge (56 degrees of loft) and the pitching wedge (48 degrees of loft). Most gap wedges have 52 degrees of loft.

4. CAMBER - this refers to the sole of the club, This feature reduces “dig” of the club.

5. LOB wedge - The shortest-hitting wedge with the most loft (usually 60 degrees of loft).

6. FINISHES - wedges are finished differently- Chrome, Black Pearl, Satin, Raw, or oil. Black Pearl can reduce sun glare; Chrome is used for easy care; raw or oil finish is for better feel and hardness.

7. LEADING EDGE - the edge of the clubhead that leads into the ball. The trailing edge is the back edge of the clubhead.

I could go on with more words but I think this is where I’ll stop so you can digest what you just read. I don’t think Mr. Nelson and Mr. Littler had to learn these words. In fact, the wedges can be so confusing that we need a professional club fitter and an instructor to help us decide which wedges are best for our game. When you have the right wedge in your hands, your wedge play will improve. The right fit and knowledge of our equipment WILL help our ball flight and give us more forgiveness in our missed shots. And that’s what this game is about…controlling our misses!

Advice: go have your wedges checked!

Think about it….on the range, if you hit a bad shot, you can rake over another ball and make it better…so you leave the range thinking you hit it great! But in reality, you hit some pretty lousy shots in your practice session! When you go to the course, you leave thinking you are terrible because you don’t hit every shot well….why don’t you think you are terrible on the range when you don’t hit every ball well? Think about it! You don’t remember the bad shots on the range, but you think about the bad shots on the course. Think about it! So…you’re not as good as you think on the range, and not as bad as you think on the course.

My advice is to try thinking about your GOOD shots in both places…on the range and on the course. The best players in the world have bad shots in both places. How do you take your range play to the golf course? You already ARE! Just look at it differently and your game will improve. How you view your game, how you view your performance, and how you view yourself can turn your golf game around…either positively or negatively….it’s your choice!

Next time you go to the range, make a game out of your practice. Start with your driver…one ball…then your fairway club selection…one ball….then your chip shot or whatever shot you choose…one ball. Pretend you are playing a hole and be sure of your intention for the shot. Learning to take it to the course from the range is a simple thing if you change your mind and view it differently.

Experienced and knowledgeable instructors want to help students “walk around the block before they run a marathon!” I personally want to help a student with a game improvement plan and not give them a band-aid to keep their tee shots in bounds! Band-aids fall off.

Until a golfer learns to hit a ball in the center of the clubface, the driver will be the hardest club to keep in the fairway. But thanks for stirring it up, Chris. “Hacks” continue to be “hacks” until they learn how to contact the ball in the center of the clubface … be it a putter or a driver.

So let’s move on to my personal favorite lesson … The Driver. The driver is probably the easiest lesson that I give. The most important things you have to do is to have the CORRECT SETUP for the shot. So here it is … if you follow the following instructions precisely, checking yourself in a mirror, not fudging because you don’t like the feel of it, you’ll improve your Driver tee shots!

SET-UP:

1. WIDTH OF STANCE – the inside of HEELS as wide as the OUTSIDE of your shoulders. Most golfers stand with too narrow of a stance. Measure your shoulders and match to the inside of your heels.

2. BALL POSITION- back of ball in line with heel of front foot and in line with forward shoulder (left shoulder if you are a right handed player). Check ball position using a grout line on your kitchen floor…get used to seeing the correct ball position!

3. Bow over at the hip joint.

4. Tilt your spine so that your head is behind the ball and back shoulder is lower than front shoulder.

5. Forward hip “feels” as though it is higher (left hip for right-handed players).

6. Hands (handle of club) will be positioned over the inside of your forward leg. This will make it appear that your hands are a little behind the ball.

With this correct setup, your swing will have a better chance of pivoting behind the ball. Without writing a book on the sequence of motion, just remember to “load” up behind the ball and on the downswing, stay behind the ball. Any time your upper body gets in front of the ball, your shots will spray everywhere on the golf course, losing lots of distance.

So Chris, check your setup and take Dave’s advice and go see him for a great lesson using the driver. Or if you are ever in the San Diego area, come see me for a driver lesson….just know that I’m all out of Band-aids!

This lesson is to help you adjust to the different length shots you will face from the bunkers. You need creativity and touch. We can all get better touch through practice and experience. Please use this lesson to help you develop your ‘touch’ so that you can hit
shots of varying lengths. Getting the ball close to the hole so that you only have a short putt is the key to making your ’sandy’ and saving a shot on your scorecard.

Step One – Address

A couple of keys:
Open stance.
Open club face.
Ball position in line with your left instep (right handed players)
Weight leaning onto left foot.

Step Two – The Backswing

For the most part your backswing for all your golf bunker shots does not change. You always want to take your club back to the set swing position.
Your left arm should be parallel to the ground.
Your club should be pointing to the sky. Your arm and club should form an ‘L’.
It may seem strange that your backswing does not change. All the other short game shots you play, the distance you hit your shots is dictated by the length of your backswing.
Now the distance you hit your sand shot is going to be dictated by the length of your follow through.

There is no specific range in which you should use each technique. It will take practice and experience to determine what distance you hit shots for each follow through position. It is up to you to figure which length follow through works best for you.

Use the following simple guidelines to help you determine your own distances:
Short bunker shot: small follow-through, turning chest into shot
Medium length shot: medium follow-through, more chest turn into shot
Long bunker shot: full finish with hands over left shoulder and full chest turn into shot

Experiment and find YOUR swing that gets it close. Pay attention to your follow-through and see how far the ball carries and rolls. Learning this technique will improve your bunker play and those dreaded shots will become fun shots! Once you learn to get it close…now experiment with getting it IN!

For the last year, it’s been “what do you think about the ONE PLANE vs. TWO PLANE swing?” Now, after the last two issues of a well-known golf magazine, I’m being asked, “should I STACK AND TILT” in my golf swing? GOOD GRIEF! Now what?!

Several months back, my students were asking, “what do you think about the hand rotation at impact” because a known instructor was advocating wrist and hand action as you’re striking the ball. What all this means is…the more my students read those magazines, the more confused they become, and the worse their games become. Job security will be OK for me!

I have doctors, physical therapists, accountants, and even horse trainers wanting to research the golf swing, research body mechanics, research brain function, research cultural differences, and research motor skill development, and on and on. True…there is so much we DON’T know about human performance in the golf swing. But with all the knowledge we DO have, it seems all we come up with are ways of “labeling” a golf swing. Do we need to label them? People have been playing good golf since the first game of golf for which records survive was played at Bruntsfield Links, in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1456. Bet there was no “One Plane /Two Plane” labels and no one was “Stacking and Tilting.” Or at least they didn’t call it that…and I’m sure they didn’t care.

I think I’ll come up with a new swing that combines and incorporates the “One plane vs. Two plane ” swing and the “Stack & Tilt” swing. I’ll call it the “MULTI-PLANULAR GOLF SWING!” Here’s how it will go… BACKSWING: I can be on a “one plane” path going back, while I “Stack” onto my left side….THEN on the DOWNSWING: I can back up to the “Tilt” and come into the shot on the “two plane swing” path!” Oh…and THEN I can pronate my hands and wrists through impact! There! Picture that….if you can! MULTI-PLANULAR! What do you think? Will I get credit for the “label?” Now, I need to go practice this new swing and make sure I don’t injure myself - then my physical therapist can do more research using ME!

All fun aside…bravo on new thoughts, experimentation, and new theories. But for those who are trying to “Stack & Tilt” or decide to use a “One plane vs. Two plane” swing….find out what you physically can and cannot do!! Range of motion (limited or not) is the utmost of importance in performing a motor skill. Playing golf, injury free, is a goal, particularly as we age. My advice to most of you…who cares what we call it or how we label the golf swing …. just hit the ball in the center of the clubface, have it facing your target every time and you will enjoy a lifetime of good golf!

I hope all of you are watching the Open this weekend. These women (and girls) are good!! Just to show you what girls can do…the yardage is set up to 6664 yards. OK guys, how many of you can play from that yardage? There is even a 12 year old girl playing who is unbelievably good. Alexis Thompson is the youngest participant ever to qualify for a US Women’s Open. There are actually 25 players under the age of 20 in this years’ field. This is what girls can do! Pay attention, parents of young girls!

I’m originally from North Carolina and I played some junior golf in the Pinehurst area. Back then, I just thought that all golf courses had greens like Donald Ross’ greens. I didn’t know to appreciate the character of his golf courses as a junior. I was always chipping onto those greens…because my approaches rolled off!! Maybe that’s why my teacher said I needed to learn to chip better!

Annika Sorenstam loves Donald Ross designed courses. Each of her three Open titles have come on Ross-designed layouts, including one at Pine Needles in 1996. When you win on a Ross-designed golf course, you know how to play the game.

Donald Ross was born in Scotland in 1872 and died in 1948. As a young man he became “a keeper of the green” at Royal Dornach, a course most experts consider the world’s purest links course. He also spent a year as an apprentice at St. Andrews working for Old Tom Morris. Not a bad start!

In 1899 he came to America to build a course outside of Boston. He stayed and “America became his canvas.” He designed and built Pine Needles and it opened in 1928. Pinehurst #2 is probably his ultimate achievement. His architecture trademark is in his domed greens that fell away quickly on all sides. His greens would allow run-up shots, but big trouble waited if a player missed long. Cross bunkers were another Ross trademark. He built short par-4s but only on uphill ground.

Watch for these course characteristics during the Women’s Open this weekend and you’ll really appreciate how good these women golfers truly are!

Listen to this! One of the women from the other group of players said “the tee markers are not in the correct position so we need to play from the yardage that the score card says.” The woman proceeds to tee from where she thinks the tees SHOULD be “according to the yardage on the card.” My student questioned her and said she believed she was wrong in doing this…and she proceeded to play from where the markers are. The visiting woman argued with her and said. “you can’t post your scores unless you play from the yardage that the score card reads!” She was insistent that she was right! My student calmly said, “I’m playing from the tee markers.” (THIS IS THE CORRECT THING TO DO.)

When she ended the round, my student found out that the SAME THING happened in other groups also. WHAT kind of rules are these?? Do they make this stuff up, or what!? IT CLEARLY SAYS IN THE RULES OF GOLF THAT YOU PLAY THE COURSE AS YOU FIND IT! Somewhere, these poor women were terribly misled and they now believe they are right!

Do they think the PGA or LPGA Tour events are played from the yardage on the score card…not hardly!! Reminds me of a card game I played one evening with friends when my friend was called on his “creative rules” for the card game we were playing. He responded when questioned about his rules, “this is my house. and we will play by my rules!” Glad it wasn’t a golf game or he’d have been disqualified!

Golf is meant to be played by the rules. If you don’t know them, LEARN. And for “pete’s sake” don’t make them up as you go. If you are ever in doubt of what to do during a round, play two balls in and get a ruling from the pro. Word of advice…carry a rules book and SEE IT IN WRITING before you take the word of anyone…and that includes the pro!

Hope you all are having a fun season of golf!

If you can’t hit the center of the clubface with your wedge, just think where the marks are on the face of your driver! Have you ever said, “I hit every club the same distance!” Try making smaller swings with each club and work on contacting the center of the clubface…you’ll discover that those long, out of balance, out of control, golf swings are “distance robbers!” Try to increase your distance by swinging LESS and contacting the center of the clubface…you’ll be surprised.

First of all, let’s clear up some confusion about the definition of a pitch. It is a high, lofted shot, played near and around the green. It is used within 70-30 yds. from the green. The ball spends more time in the air than it does on the ground.

If you are having trouble with this shot, get your technique and the way you think about the shot correct :

The SET UP is most important in executing a pitch shot:

-Your setup should have on “open” stance, weight is 60% left (and stays there as you turn your torso back). With the weight forward, your shaft leans forward with hands slightly ahead of the ball.
-Ball position is under your left ear and the left ear is in line with your zipper. With an open stance, the ball appears to be inside the left heel. Your eyes will appear as though they are slightly to the right of the ball. If you play the ball too far back, it will be hard to turn your body into the shot, thus causing a direction problem (push to the right).
- Make sure your posture is bowed over and your arms hang and are close to you. Watch the tour players when they pitch. Their hands look very close to their body.

Now, THE MOTION of the pitch:
- The torso turns back as the clubhead rises above the waist, thus creating an “L” shape to your left arm and shaft (right handed players). There is a tendency to use only the arms to take the club back and this leads to a less than desirable shot.
- Keep the right arm close to your side and elbows close as you turn the chest back
- On the downswing, the key move is to pull the handle down first as you turn the chest into the shot.
- Keep the chest turning as you move into the shot. When the chest stops turning, the contact is very unpredictable. FAT shots are caused from leaving the weight on the back foot and slowing down the chest turn. Remember, the weight stays left as you turn in the backswing, thereby helping you move into the shot with your legs on the forward swing.

Correct THOUGHTS about the pitch:
- “Squash” the top of the ball on the downswing so that you take a divot in front of the ball. (too many players try to “lift” the ball into the air causing a thin shot.)
- Turn the chest, back and forward
- SOFT HANDS and arms!
- LOOK UP HIGH when you want the ball to fly high!

Sam Snead said that if he had to do it all over again, he would work more with his wedges and his driver. Make this shot your favorite shot and you will see a dramatic improvement in your scores!

Now, what are they going to do with the knowledge they came away with when they get home? Is the excitement still there? Are they going to apply what they learned? I think this group WILL! I don’t think I have ever experienced a group that was as positive about learning as this group of students. The instructional staff was outstanding as well. So with that combination, the experience was a winner!

I hope the participants will now practice their new skills and follow up with a local instructor who will help make sure the improvements “stick.” It will be important that the students discuss with their local pro what they learned at the school and to ask for assistance in continuing along the same lines of thought. If the instructor has them “start all over,” it will be detrimental to the student.

I say this because instructors have different styles, different approaches to learning a skill, and varying thoughts about technique. I just read where Phil Michelson has now employed Butch Harmon as his swing coach … leaving long time coach, Rick Smith. Both instructors are tops in their field. Leaving Rick Smith does NOT mean that Phil thinks Rick has “messed him up.” Sometimes, as human beings, we need a change in our brain, a “different look at the same picture.” Once you hear the same voice over and over, we sometimes seem to tune out what is being said … you know, like listening to our parents for many years! You can relate to that, right?

Golf instruction is complex and but doesn’t need to be feared. It can be fun, challenging, and easy at the same time. If you’re struggling with your game, seek a golf school, workshop, private lessons, or put together your own group … and create your own positive experience!

Wouldn’t it be a wonderful thing if there was some follow-up instruction after you got home from an intensive 3 days of learning to improve your golf game? But what if the local pro doesn’t know what you learned in the school and he/she goes off in a different direction … making you feel like you have to start all over again? (By the way, make sure you tell your pro what you learned at the school so he/she can help you continue improving.)

I am often asked, “Beverly, if I wanted to go to a golf school, which one should I go to?” My reply is always the same, “It depends on what your motivation is for going to a golf school.” Most people want to go to a golf school because they want to immerse themselves in the learning and improving process in a short amount of time. “Maybe if I receive instruction, cram a million thoughts into my head, and hit balls until my hands are numb, it will stick and I’ll find my magic swing and I’ll be a better golfer!” Hummmm ….

What is your motivation for wanting to attend a golf school? Let’s take a look at how to approach attending a golf school and “stretching your money’s worth!” First of all, ask yourself this question: do you REALLY … no, I mean REALLY want to lower your scores? If you do, take that $1500 -$5000 per school and spend it on private lessons with an experienced instructor. Work on small improvements at a time and stay on a regularly scheduled routine of lessons with the same instructor. THAT is how you will improve your scores.

NOW, what about golf schools? I think they have a wonderful purpose and a student can get a lot out of them IF the motivation is correct in choosing to go. If your motivation is to travel to a beautiful location, meet new people, eat great food and get away from all thoughts of work/home, and learn some new thoughts or tips to help your game, then your motivation is “spot on!” Go do it! Realize however, that there may be all levels of players in your class. Instructors try to group you into levels but sometimes, it’s not possible to even out the levels. You may be the only 12 handicap out of 10 others who have 20 handicaps +. Just be prepared.

If you choose to go to a school and want to know which one to attend, ask around to find out about ones your friends may have been to. Make it an adventure. Go to a place where the golf courses are different, the culture is interesting, and the scenery is inspiring. Why would you want to spend that kind of money and stay at home!? I personally do a Traveling Golf School so my students and their friends can go on a beautiful trip, take their teacher with them, AND have follow-up when they return. Now it’s gotten to a point where we have so much fun that others want to go and they want to know where we are going next! (Shhhh…..I’m working them up to taking a golf trip to Portugal!)

Know your motivation and what you want for your game, know where you’d like to visit, and check out golf schools in that area. There are many you can find online. Most golf resorts have a school. Take friends with you … you’ll need their memory for what to work on when you go home!

To score your best, you must respect the wind and understand what the wind does to a golf shot. Here are some basics to remember: Headwinds: toughest winds to deal with. Are you the golfer who says. “it’s windy, I’ll just swing harder!!” Let’s change that thinking and get your balance, swing easier, and swing smoother with extra club. A rule of thumb is to add a club for every 10 mph of wind. For a 30 mph wind, add 3 clubs and concentrate on connecting the clubface to the ball! Imagine that! Solid contact equals a good shot!

If you are a slicer of the ball, you may want to consider playing on another day…you’ll be too busy contolling your misery. But if you do play, just know that a headwind magnifies the curve of a slice or fade, so be sure to allow for it. A slice goes higher and curves backwards, towards you! The stronger the wind, the greater effect on your shot. A right-to-left hook or draw travels on a lower trajectory, so its flight is less affected by headwind.

Tailwinds require a different choice of shot. Teeing off with a wind behind you is a great confidence builder! 200 yard tee shots are now going 280!! You could also over shoot the green, adding more chip shots to your round. The ball will stay in the air longer for more distance. A following wind will bring the ball down on a shallower angle than normal, so it will come in “hot” and roll more than usual. Club selection to the green will be LESS club. This is where the saying “tee it high and let it fly” came from.

Crosswinds will drive you crazy. For higher handicap players, my advice under these conditions is to just contact the ball and move it forward!! For the skilled player, here are some mathmatical, puzzle-building, and highly unpredictable things to think about. This is way too much confusion for most golfers to think about. There are two methods for handling a crosswind: Either work the ball into the wind, e.g. hit a left-to-right shot into a right-to-left breeze, or let the wind do the work. I like the latter method…it’s easier! Plan on the ball shifting approximately five yards for every 10 miles per hour of wind speed. For example, aim about 10 yards left of your target when hitting through a 20 mph, left-to-right crosswind. Now isn’t that helpful?

Remember that a crosswind will effect the shape of the shot, which should have some bearing on your aim. Depending on the direction of the wind, it will either increase or decrease the amount of bend on a fade or draw. Now if you can control all that AND hope the wind doesn’t change it’s mind while your ball is in flight, you’ll be a genius!

As for putting, the greens are usually dryer and faster in the wind. Adjust for that also.

As I said…JUST SWING SMOOTH AND HIT IT…and then hit it again!! Or just come back tomorrow after the wind has calmed and so have you!

To give you a little background, Bobby Jones was one of the greatest golfers who ever competed on a national and international level. He began playing golf at age six. He won the East Lake Golf Club championship in Atlanta at age 13…beating his father for the title. He only played as an amateur during his illustrious golf career. He retired from competition by personal choice at the age of 28. Arnold Palmer was so inspired by Bobby Jones, that he wanted to only play as an amateur early in his golf life as well. To see Arnold play this week was inspirational to me!

Jones was not only a highly skilled golfer, but he also exemplified the principles of sportsmanship and fair play. Just to give you an idea of what kind of gentleman and honorable person Bobby Jones was, in the beginning of his amateur career while playing in the finals of the US Open, his ball ended up in the rough just off the fairway, and as he was setting up to play his shot his ball slightly moved. He immediately turned to the marshals and called a penalty on himself. The marshals discussed among themselves and asked if anyone had seen Jones’ ball move. No one witnessed the ball moving so the decision was left to Jones. Bobby Jones called the two-stroke penalty on himself, not knowing that he would lose the tournament by one stroke. The United States Golf Association’s sportsmanship award is named the Bob Jones Award in his honor.

His most enduring legacy was the building of Augusta National Golf Course, where the Masters Golf Tournament is played every spring. It was built because Bobby Jones could not play a round of golf without hundreds of people coming out to watch. A private course would enable him to invite his closest friends to come and enjoy a round of golf in peace. The search was on to find the ultimate spot for his dream.

Jones found a piece of land in 1931 outside his home in Atlanta that beckoned a golf course. It actually was a former plant nursery called The Fruitlands Nursery. No wonder the golf course is a display of boundless beauty! (There still stands today, some exotic bamboo trees that were a part of the original nursery.) Jones wanted to build a golf course for people to play, no matter the skill level. His intent in the design would challenge the highly skilled player and would also allow a new golfer to enjoy the game. For this expertise, he contacted golf course architect, Dr. Alistair Mackenzie, a former Scottish doctor, to design such a course. Both Jones and Mackenzie loved the Old Course at St. Andrews and wanted to create a very similar experience.

Jones would experiment with shots and collaborate with Mackenzie on the design. He wanted the second shot and the shots played around the greens to be the greatest tests for the golfer. Originally, as on The Old Course at St. Andrews, the tee shot was the most forgiving.

In 1934, a year after the course was opened, Bobby Jones and his good friend Clifford Roberts held the first Augusta National Invitational. Although Jones never wanted to compete again, he played in the tournament out of necessity…to attract people to the event. People came from 38 states to watch him play once again. The name, The Masters, was officially adopted in 1938. Jones thought the name to be too presumptuous, but it stuck.

I wonder what Bobby Jones and Alistair Mackenzie would think of all the changes to their course over the years?? I think they would be disappointed. It’s become more difficult even for the highly skilled professionals of today. How many pictures did I see on television yesterday with great players hitting from the woods on their second shot? Is this the test for their second shot? I wonder if all skill levels can still play the course and enjoy their round as Bobby Jones intended?

I know one thing for sure; it is still the most reverent, most beautiful golf course in the world. The test of the game is the finest test of skill and the color of the drink napkins for patrons perfectly matches the grass - so if you drop your napkin it will not show on TV! I love this tournament!