Greetings Golfers,

Golf is not all about the PGA TOUR. Most professional sports are about viewing – not playing. I watch the NFL, but I don’t play football. I have some crazy friends who still play hockey … but most of us are satisfied with playing golf.

So, the Tour is not vital to golf. Golf is more about playing the game than following the Tour. However, last week was not good for the PGA TOUR and golf.

The PGA TOUR was originally a winter tour of warm weather states for Northern PGA club pros to make some extra money. These were not rich guys. Television and Arnold Palmer changed everything. It became a tour of professional golfers – not golf professionals.

All professional sports have changed. I remember when MN Twins and Vikings used to have off season jobs such as selling cars or insurance.

Professional athletes were local heroes, but they were seldom rich.

Well, that’s all changed. Professional athletes are rich. The money is unbelievable. And, as we know, with money comes problems. Sure, money solves problems … but it creates other problems. Mainly in terms of perception and responsibility for those who have it.

Just ask Matt Kuchar. Last week, it became public that Kuchar only paid a caddie $5,000 after he won a tournament last fall in Mexico. He won $1,296,000. Normally, a caddie receives 10%. Well, this was a fill-in caddie and they had a last minute agreement.

This blew-up on social media … Kuchar at first defended his action by saying that $5,000 was a lot of money to this Mexican caddie. That did not help. After getting booed while playing in the Tour event at Riviera … Kuchar and his PR team came up with an apology and paid the caddie $50,000.

Perception. Ouch. Golf struggles with a perception as a rich guy game. This did not help.

Then, on Sunday, JB Holmes wins the tournament at Riviera playing a 5 1/2 hour round … 2 holes behind the rest of the field.

Slow play and entitled rich guys. If I’m the PGA TOUR Commissioner … I’ve got work to do.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM/Head PGA Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Deer Run Golf Club
8661 Deer Run Drive
Victoria, MN 55386
(952) 443-2351
www.deerrungolf.com
www.facebook.com/DeerRunGolf
www.twitter.com/DeerRunGolfClub

Greetings Golfers,

My wife and I have been watching one of those shows about lawyers. What makes it work (for me) are their conversations. They always make their point in a clear, simple way. And, back and forth. I don’t mean in the court room … I mean in their daily dealings with each other. I know, I know … it’s television … no one can really do that, at least not consistently … but it’s fun to watch.

Simplify, simplify. It’s a good motto. But, I need time to simplify and clarify. How often have you walked away from an argument … and then had your rebuttal? Me too. That’s why those actors have scripts … they’re not winging it.

However, it pertains to everything. How about your golf swing? We all want a nice, simple swing that we clearly understand.

And, as a golf course manager, we all want a nice, simple operation that we clearly understand. It’s funny, I’d been thinking about this concept over the weekend for my next blog. Then yesterday, I stopped over and talked to Mike Harmon at Secession GC. I respect Mike as much as I respect anyone in the golf industry. He’s built Secession from the ground floor into one of the best golf clubs in the country. I love talking to Mike.

So yesterday, what does he want to talk about? Simplifying. About how necessary it is to constantly try to simplify your golf operation. We talked about it for over an hour. It’s easy to make things complicated. Actually, it’s not smart … it’s lazy. Life is complicated. It’s our job to prioritize and organize. Otherwise it’s a mess. A complicated mess.

Here’s the difference between reality and tv: Mike and I had to talk for an hour to make our points. But it was worth it. Real life is still better than tv – even if we’re slower to make our points.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM/Head PGA Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Deer Run Golf Club
8661 Deer Run Drive
Victoria, MN 55386
(952) 443-2351
www.deerrungolf.com
www.facebook.com/DeerRunGolf
www.twitter.com/DeerRunGolfClub

Greetings Golfers,

On Monday I played my usual 1pm game with those characters I’ve mentioned in past blogs. Well, I finally had a putt for birdie. About 8 feet, but downhill/sidehill and it had me a little spooked. My stroke was pathetic … and the ball wobbled weakly and stopped a foot short of the hole. One of the guys said that it was bad contact … yeah … thanks for telling me.

Later that night, I was reading a post that Brad Faxon made on a golf website about his putting. He was mad that he’d been referred to as a “natural putter”. He even posted copies of his hand-written notes about his practice sessions. But, what really hit me was when he talked about learning from Ben Crenshaw. Crenshaw told Faxon that he let himself move right on his backswing (remember this is putting!) to make sure that his backswing was twice as long as his follow through. Woah. What was that? Conventional wisdom was that they should match … or even the follow through should be LONGER. But, Crenshaw wanted to give the ball a HIT.

Think about it … if you want to punch someone … do you make a little backswing and emphasize the follow through? Of course not. You wind-up and make sure that when you hit … you hit HARD … at impact.

Crenshaw was known for a long, fluid putting stroke with a definite hit at the ball. This is what Faxon worked on as made his way to number one in putting.

Now, I’m pretty good at chipping. And I definitely give it a hit. Not a scoop … not a flip … a hit. I try to make fluid stroke … but I hit it.

Let’s take this further. Your golf swing should hit the ball. I know some people just lift up the club and crash down on the ball. That’s not what I want. I want you to have soft, relaxed hands and make a full rhythmical swing … and give the ball a hit!

All golf swings should be a swinging HIT. Well, not all. Not bunker shots or flop shots … because on those shots you don’t want solid contact. But, on most shots you want solid contact. That means a “swinging hit”.

Even on slippery downhill putts.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM/Head PGA Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Deer Run Golf Club
8661 Deer Run Drive
Victoria, MN 55386
(952) 443-2351
www.deerrungolf.com
www.facebook.com/DeerRunGolf
www.twitter.com/DeerRunGolfClub

Greetings Golfers,

While at the PGA Show last week, I could feel something was going on … but I couldn’t put my finger on it.  But then, while walking around the equipment showrooms, it hit me. There are two main golf worlds – Sport or Game.  Can golf be both? Sure. But for most people, it leans heavily one way or another.

A lot of the new golf clothing seems to be more game oriented. It’s good looking stuff that you could wear anywhere.  Back when metal woods took over about the same time Tiger came on the scene … golf went more “sport” than “game”. Nike jumped in with its mock-turtleneck shirt and “athletic” clothes … and the other companies followed suit.  The golf swing became more about the body than the hands … and the emphasis was on hitting it far. Golf courses got longer … and you were supposed to be lifting weights in the off season.

Let’s be honest … are you lifting weights so you can hit it farther?  I’d love to hit it farther … but I keep hoping the golf gods are going to sprinkle some magic on me … I’m not lifting weights.

I guess I lean toward the game side. Maybe even a lot. I love to play golf. Play. Maybe that’s the key word. Golf for me is play … fun … recreation.

A sport sounds serious. If you’re a Tour player … it probably has to be a sport. Same with a college golf team … or even a high school golf team.

However, if you’re playing for fun … you’re probably a game person. And if you are, the golf clothing this year is better than ever. You can wear it out to dinner – not to the gym.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM/Head PGA Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com

Deer Run Golf Club
8661 Deer Run Drive
Victoria, MN 55386
(952) 443-2351
www.deerrungolf.com
www.facebook.com/DeerRunGolf
www.twitter.com/DeerRunGolfClub