Wildlife? Africa here I come...

Sunol Valley Golf Course :: Cypress hole #7 is a great par 4 that offers a challenge: need a good tee shot, a rolling hill for the landing (left to right); nice bunker protecting the green from the right; two-tier sloping green.

I have always wondered what it would be like to play in the Africa Savanna or in rattlesnake abundant New Mexico and Arizona courses. What happens to those aah.. errant shots that do not exactly land in the middle of the fairway...

Anyways here is a shot of a (harmless I think) snake on the green, fore!

A Round of Golf at Tunnel 9, Banff Springs Golf Course, Canada

I visited Banff, Canada for the WWW2007 conference. The hotel room where I stayed (Fairmont Banff Springs) had a picture on the wall that claimed that King Edward VIII played Golf there ... so I couldn't pass up the opportunity to tee up at this wonderful course.


The course itself is not that challenging, but the panoramic view is breathtaking ... more info on the course can be found here -> http://www.fairmont.com/banffsprings/Recreation/Golf/. ( I scored a 46 on the Tunnel 9 - with the rental TaylorMade set :-) )

Is it fair to play with range balls?

When I first started playing golf and I started losing balls in the course because of my bad golfing I used to save those one or two balls after putting as I was lazy to go back and hit them. But then it suddenly struck me that I am actually stealing these balls and I only pay to hit them and not take them home. I also felt embarrassed when I was on the golf course playing with some strangers and I was the only person on the green with a range ball . It kind of felt cheap . When you can get a ball for 50 cents or less why play range balls ?

I also noticed that when you have range balls you feel like trying more than one shot and a practise shot and what not which completely take away the fun that day . This is one of the reasons I think we play better with strangers than our buddies cause we are not playing seriously and golf being such a sensitive game mentally it can screw up that whole round of golf for yourself and your buddies .

Comments ?Backlash ?Kathleen you B@#@#$@ write something stimulating !

Testing Drivers: TaylorMade R7 460

TayloreMade R7 460cc 10.5 degree, Stiff Fujikura RE*AX shaft

Aah... finally a driver that feels good in my hands.

Initial swings gave me fades/push trajectories (the face angle is closed, unlike the Callaway FT3 tour I tried earlier). But after fixing my stance to accomodate the large head (I kept it further away from me), I was able to get it working for me. One thing I observed is that I did not have wicked slices with this driver.

My latest swing speed on InPractis system (http://www.inpractis.com/) was 109mph with this driver and speed ratio of 1.3 (effective ball speed of 142 mph). Hopefully one day I can swing at 120mph and get 160mph ball speed.






As I liked almost everything, here is what I did not like: SPIN. The driver gave mid-high spin on the ball, so there is hardly any roll. I wonder if I can fix this with the weight configurations (now do I need a quad for that?).

After trying a lot of drivers, I think this one is a keeper.

SwingPractis

The modern day technology is a boon to golfers in more ways than one (what with super engineered precision powered drivers and balls etc.).

The one that I am enthralled with is the concept of self analyzing your swing and consequentially your game. Of course, I wont go into the debate of taking a lesson from a Pro v/s learnign by yourself here. Having a technology to analyze your swing is helpful regardless or not of taking a lesson. (this is my flame bait for a torrent of comments). You can ask a pro to identify your weak points and help correct it. This tool provides further assistance - for self analysis or if you want to ask your teacher. (Sometimes friends playing alongside you can tell you whats going wrong - but most people dont take too well to this approach - or dont have enough patience/confidence in this approach)

SwingPractis (http://www.inpractis.com/) is a fantastic tool in this regard. Hopeless Golfer, my brother and myself went to the Fremont Golf Course last weekend to analyze our swings.
Based on my analyses, here is what I think I need to improve on.

• My torque - my Club Speed to Ball speed ratio is low - around 1.1 - a good ratio is 1.4. I have to change my swing such that I get a better torque - basically, I have to ensure that my tummy can be seen by the person standing directly behind me.
• Grip: I picked up two points (from a tutorial also on the same site). One, that at the position of address, we need to make sure that the right hand (using gravity) should be at the right hand grip position. Two, that my left hand grip should be properly adjusted (mine is too strong and twisted towards the right - thus reducing my wrist cock power - explains my bad ratio a bit)

There were plenty of other points I picked - but hey, lets fix the major ones first huh?

Also, thought I will pass along this tip. The site http://www.inpractis.com/tech-tips.php , has a wonderful array of videos with good instructions. Register at the site (free) and check the following ->

• Grip Basics
  
• The Legs During The Swing

Enjoy!!

Testing Drivers: Callaway FT-3 & Cobra X/Speed

460cc King Cobra X/Speed 9.5 degrees with Aldila NV-X stiff flex/high kick/ 60g shaft. The X/Speed is for experienced golfers who have a high swing speed with good control.


460cc Callaway FT-3 Tour Big Bertha Fusion 9.5 degrees (Neutral) with Aldila NVS 65-S 350 shaft. The FT-3 has a titanium cup face and a carbon composite body. Tour drivers have high CG (center of gravity) and a slightly open face that may cause fades or slices for inexperienced players. The carbon composite is used for its light weight.



Well now that I said all that, I checked my swing speed at GolfMart in San Diego. My all-out swing speed was 120-125mph. I would really like to hit at 105-110mph consistently. The classic problem for amateurs like me using professional equipment is that they get trajectories that look like fades and slices.

Last weekend I went to Golfsmith and my driver swing speed by the computer was 105mph. I was confused.

Comparisons:

The face of FT-3 is smaller compared to the X/Speed. The idea with a large face is to provide a bigger sweet spot.



The X/Speed is much more like the new Cleveland HiBore shape. The FT-3 is pretty thick at the back. The idea with the X/Speed shape (and Cleveland HiBORE) is to move the weight lower and way far back for more distance. Pulling the weight of a club back also provides much less dispersion (left or right from the center of the desired ball flight).





At the end of the day, I could work the FT3 better than the X/Speed. The X/Speed did give more distance and control when I slowed my swing down (amateurs...). I remembered late in the round that the FT3 tour edition had an open face. Once I fixed my grip to accomodate the open face of the driver, the ball trajectories became straighter (compared to earlier fades). All in all, I recommend the FT3 (normal not tour edition) over the X/Speed for better control and good distance.

Encinitas Ranch, San Diego

Encinitas Ranch (San Diego)
1275 Quail Gardens Dr
Encinitas, CA 92024

Green tees:
6220 Yards
124 Slope
69.8 Course Rating

Public golf course.

I played green tees (HCP 10-18). The back nine is tougher than the front nine. The front nine has a lot of width to hit your driver. I remember that I ended up atleast thrice in the bunker (there are lots of strategically placed bunkers to avoid).

Hole 16 starts with a blind shot - very exciting, I made it to the green in 3.
Hole 17 was the toughest for me.

There are atleast 3 bridges over 50feet deep roads/valleys - exciting.
The back nine has glorious ocean views; we played during the evening and viewed the sinking sun. The course is probably on the highest elevation in Encinitas so one can play late until past sunset.

Houses surround most holes, I envied dozens of homes that must have a great view.

Main homepage:
http://www.jcgolf.com/encinitas_course.htm

Virtual tour:
http://www.jcgolf.com/vr/encinitas/1037409t.htm

The course reminded me of Callippe in Pleasanton - there are lots of wavy fairways - creating a challenge with tough lies.

Sorry, no photos - I forgot my phone in the car.