Greetings Golfers,

Every year I plan on practicing and playing more golf – unfortunately, every year I practice and play less golf.

So, this winter, I’m going to do something about it. If I start now, I’ll probably carry it into the golf season.

My plan is pretty simple … if it’s too complicated or difficult, I know it won’t happen.

Step one: Swing a weighted club. Nothing tricky – just swing a weighted club back and forth for about 5 minutes. If I can do that almost every day, it will drastically improve my rhythm, flexibility, and golf strength.

Step two: Chip with my sand wedge. This I can do in my office and at home. Again, all I need to do is 5 minutes a day. Chipping will greatly improve my feel of the clubface and improve solid contact with the ball. Not only will it improve my chipping, but it will improve my full shots with all of my clubs.

That’s it. Obviously, if I stretched, lifted weights, rode a stationary bike, swam, etc … I would improve my strength and flexibility. But, I need to take realistic, baby steps. My two step routine would only take 10 minutes a day and probably not put me in the hospital.

For those of you who want to improve your golf game this year, I recommend my two step program. For those of you who really exercise and work out … my hat is off to you … but I still recommend my two step program.

You won’t see me in a swimming suit at the beach next summer, but my two step program will have me playing better golf.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

One of my all time favorite books is “That Which Is Seen, and That Which Is Not Seen” by Frederic Bastiat. Though Bastiat wrote his treatise on economics, the premise applies to understanding anything.

As we grow up, hopefully, we learn from experience. But, too often, we only learn the immediate result – we don’t see the other results of our actions. Usually, our actions have unintended consequences. Thus, we need to develop foresight to become aware of the consequences of our actions.

Usually, the quick fix doesn’t solve the problem because it doesn’t get to the root of the problem. Obviously if you’re bleeding, you need a band-aid – but, band-aids are usually only temporary fixes.

You get the point … you don’t need me to belabor how short-sightedness hurts our health, our relationships, our businesses, our economy, etc.

What blows my mind is that Bastiat wrote this book in 1840, and it seems that we still haven’t learned this basic lesson. Maybe it’s because our lives are so short that society doesn’t learn mature lessons.

Ironically, as we become more modern and “advanced”, we want immediate gratification. A fast-paced consumer society can easily become shallow and short-sighted. But a communistic society is based on “materialism” – I mean the Marxist definition of materialism – that life is only what you see (matter) and not spiritual.

I believe that the lack of spirituality is at the root of the problem. If humans do not believe that life is more than it seems … their view of life has to be pretty superficial. The depths of life is what gives it meaning, what makes it make sense – it is “that which is unseen”.

The beauty of the Christmas season is wonderful – enjoy it. But, especially treasure the beauty that underlies the visible world … that’s what this Holiday Season is really about.

Merry Christmas.

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

Time is running out!

Give the Gift of Play this Holiday Season:

Rare and Exclusive

Deer Run Golf Club Holiday Golf Specials – Available online only until December 20th (click here).
~  Dynamic Duo – 2 rounds of golf plus cart, no restrictions: $120 (save 15%)

~  Festive Foursome – 4 rounds of golf plus carts, no restrictions: $200 (save 28%)

~  Get your Group On – 8 rounds of golf plus carts, no restrictions: $360 (save 35%)

Gift cards and envelopes are ready for you to personalize and sign and we will mail them to your home!

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

Golf – the game of Scottish shepherds. Whisky – the drink of Scottish shepherds. Whiskey – the drink of Irish shepherds. Did you see the difference in the spelling?

Whisky/ey is a Gaelic word – original to both the Scots and the Irish. To differentiate from Scottish whisky, the Irish added an e. And the Americans also added the e to their bourbon whiskey – except for Makers Mark bourbon, which refers to itself as whisky because of its Scottish heritage.

I’ll admit that I’m partial to all three forms of whiskey. And I’m pleased and surprised that whiskey has become so popular – especially bourbon. About seven years ago I went on a boys golf trip to Palm Springs. Our hotel had a pretty big bar – but had only one bottle of bourbon (Jim Beam) … I’m not kidding. And had only two bottles of Irish whiskey – Jameson (Catholic) and Bushmills (Protestant). The Scotch whisky selection was decent, but mostly blends like Dewars and Johnny Walker.

That’s all changed. The local town of Hopkins has a new liquor store that’s basically whiskeys and beers. They only have a smattering of wine and white booze (gin and vodka). The place is great – it has a tasting area and plays Irish music.

And restaurants and bars are finally getting it. In downtown Minneapolis, “The Butcher & The Boar” has an amazing selection of whiskeys – especially bourbons. And they make great “Old Fashioneds” and “Manhattans” – the two definitive bourbon cocktails.

But some bars have taken the craze to a bad place. A couple of years ago over the Holidays, our family stopped at new “hip” bar. I ordered an “Old Fashioned” and the bartender gave me a condescending lecture about what bourbon to order because they didn’t have Makers Mark. I’ve been drinking “Old Fashioneds” for longer than she’s been alive … pretentiousness is never cool or attractive.

But I love asking bartenders how they make drinks. In fact the best “Old Fashioned” I’ve ever had was made by a women bartender in Charleston (see – I’m not sexist). For her it was a work of art and she knew the intricate history of the drink.

But mostly, I just like to drink whiskey neat – no ice or mix … maybe a drop or two of water.

Remember that old Frank Sinatra song “Love and Marriage” … “go together like a horse and carriage”?

Well, golf and whisky/ey also go together like a horse and carriage. It might not rhyme, but its true.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

I got quite a few responses to my email about letting the left arm bend – thanks, I always (usually) enjoy your responses.

One of the respondents said that next year is his year to break 80… I responded with “Work on your chipping”. That’s really the secret to scoring. I’ll take the good chipper over the long driver any day.

About 15 years ago, one of our Mens League members was really down on his luck. His wife had left him and he’d just been fired. He came to me and said that all he had left was golf and that he wanted to shoot in the 70s – he was a mid-80s player. He was about 50 and had gotten a pretty good severance package – so he said he’d take as many golf lessons as he needed.

Well, that first lesson was tough. He’d played a lot of golf for 35 years and had refined an exceptionally messed-up technique for a hitting a golf ball. So I told him that he could spend a lot of money on golf lessons … and that I couldn’t promise he’d break 80. But, if we were to focus on chipping, he would break 80 by Labor Day (this was in May).

The plan was that he would chip on the practice green behind our clubhouse for 1/2 an hour three nights a week. Well, he went crazy and practiced for 1 1/2 hours at a time at least five nights a week. You can’t believe how good he got at chipping.

Did it help his score? That same Summer – in a serious Mens League event – he shot a 1 under par 70. He hit zero greens in regulation. He got it up and down every hole except for the hole he chipped-in on.

The chipping also improved his ball striking – he had more feel and control of the golf club. Did his golf swing improve? No – it was still brutal.

We all want a good golf swing. I’m all for working on and improving your golf swing. But, if you really want to shoot lower scores … work on your chipping!
Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Greetings Golfers,

I didn’t send my usual Friday email last week because of the Holiday Weekend. So here it is on Tuesday:

Did you see Jordan Spieth shoot 63 in the last round to win the Australian Open? Rory McIlroy said that he couldn’t shoot 63 on that golf course.

I really like some of these young players. They’ve got great attitudes and old-school golf swings.

What’s old-school about Jordan Spieth’s golf swing? Well, he has a relaxed left arm. Or in other words – he lets his left arm bend on the backswing. Most of you have probably heard all of your golf life that a straight left arm is vital to a proper backswing. It’s not. A bent left arm is trouble at IMPACT … and that’s where the misunderstanding began.

People don’t always understand cause and effect – even golf instructors. Most golfers’ left arms break down at impact (known as a chicken-wing). So, to remedy the problem, emphasis was put on keeping the left arm straight during the backswing. But, a bent left arm will naturally straighten into the proper position on the downswing … if the golfer swings the arm properly on the downswing.

The problem is not the backswing – the problem is not understanding how to swing the club into the ball. Most golfers try to scoop the ball at impact. That scooping move breaks down the left wrist, and then the left elbow breaks down into the chicken-wing position.

Try it and see. Without a club, just swing back your left arm and let the elbow bend … then just let it swing down and feel the arm naturally straighten out.

By far the biggest flaw people have in their golf swing is trying to scoop the ball. That flipping of the wrists to get the club under the ball stops the swinging of the club and opens up the face of the golf club. That’s why most people slice their golf shots.

Practice rotating the wrists rather than flipping (scooping) the wrists. If you swing the club waist high like a baseball bat, you will naturally rotate your wrists. Use that same wrist action in your golf swing. The loft on the club will get the ball up into the air – don’t try to help it with faulty wrist action.

Also, our annual Christmas Sale is this Saturday, Dec. 6 from 9am-3pm. Everything is 50% off. The Holiday Golf Passes will also be on sale.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com