Golf is known as a “gentleman’s game” (ladies too, of course). That doesn’t mean that competition can’t get a little heated at times. I believe in sportsmanship and try my best to be a good, fair competitor. I’ve never cheated and never will. But my highly competitive nature forces me to employ a little gamesmanship at times. This is one of the great aspects of match play. I try to keep it subtle if [...]
posted in Golf Philosophy, Mental Game • 0 Comments
A common bit of golf knowledge is that high handicappers tend to under-club too often. All things being equal, this is a fix that can be made that will result in instant improvement. Many times, ego gets in the way. But in reality, most of the time it comes down to playing statistical probabilities.
Think of it like this: every golf shot we make that employs a full swing will either be perfect or will contain some [...]
posted in Course Management • 0 Comments
It seems like at times I get so mentally sloppy that I can’t be trusted to make course management decisions on my own.
Case in point: yesterday, I played at my new club for the first time since I joined (and for the first time there in a year or two). I wasn’t playing great, but the conditions were pretty rough. The course was saturated, there was a ton of wind, and the greens had recently been de-thatched [...]
posted in Course Management • 0 Comments
I’m a huge fan of using video feedback to analyze my golf swing, both during lessons and during my practice sessions. Recently, I’ve discussed video feedback in a couple of posts. But there’s one problem: when I go out to the range and find a spot at the far end and set up my camera, I feel like such a dork. Why? No good reason. But I can just feel people looking at me, [...]
posted in Mental Game, My Progress • 2 Comments
In the words of Roberto DeVicenzo, “What a stupid I am.”
When I started this journey, one of my goals was to resume golf lessons. I had taken many in the past, prior to my back trouble a few years ago.
When I made the decision to try and become a pro, I had been reading, learning, and studying everything about how to play better golf. To me, it was a given that I’d engage in this continual learning and [...]
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My name is Mike Gray and I'm a software engineer pursuing my dream to become a golf pro.
Life in the Rough is a chronicle of my journey. It covers my progress, my successes, my setbacks. I'll share everything I learn and do along the way, including reviews and tips. Maybe what I learn can help you too.
