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A Day at the Colonial Invitational

May 24, 2008 By 3 Comments
Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial

Yesterday, by wonderful coincidence, I was in Fort Worth, TX, which just happens to be hosting the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial Country Club. I got to stand on the grounds of Hogans Alley! Walking in the gates, I felt like a child. I was filled with wonder and enjoyment. It seems like I never get used to standing near the players that I see on television week in and week out for years and years. Watching them hit shots on television doesn’t do them justice. Standing close by gives a better picture of the situation: the wind, hazards, trees, the contours on the green, the proximity of the crowd. I got there before 9am and it was already very warm and really muggy. By the time I left at 1pm, it was quite hot. It was also very windy all day. I had several things I wanted to accomplish today. I wanted to take some time to really observe the Tour pros to get a first hand glimpse at the way they operate, in

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Double Eagle Hits the Road

May 19, 2008 By 6 Comments

It’s time for a vacation! I’m doing something I’ve always wanted to do: taking a road trip west, to the Lone Star state. I’m off for two weeks of sightseeing, enjoying the scenery and the wonder of the open road (anyone who has been to New Jersey will appreciate why the open road is so appealing). It’s not a golf vacation, but I intend to play at least twice while I’m gone and maybe track down a driving range or two so I can stay sharp. Bogey McDuff from over at Texas Golf was kind enough to make a few great recommendations for courses to play around Fort Worth and San Antonio. Oh, and by awesome coincidence, I’ll be in Fort Worth later this week and will try to spend half a day or so at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. That should be a lot of fun, since I haven’t been to a Tour event in 5 or 6 years. I hope to spend a little time observing the driving range and practice

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All About Handicaps

April 25, 2008 By 3 Comments
card

One of the great things about golf is that it allows skilled players to compete with not-so-skilled players on a level playing field, all through the wonderful handicap system. Through the miracle of mathematics, players enter scores into a computer and presto, they get a handicap index. Then, they turn that into strokes on the score card and everyone is happy. Sounds simple, right? Not exactly. The USGA handicap system is extremely sophisticated and complex. If you’ve ever wondered what it all means – well, I can’t tell you what all of it means, but let’s cover some of the basics and get your understanding of handicaps up to scratch (sorry for the handicap pun). Before we get into it, I want to mention that golf handicaps are serious business. The USGA handicap manual is the final word on the subject, and it should be consulted for the latest official rules and regulations. Click here to access it online. Handicap Index Let’s start with the most basic concept: the Handicap Index. According to the USGA:

Filed Under: Glossary, Miscellaneous
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Birthday Giveaway Winner

April 13, 2008 By 2 Comments

It’s over! The Masters has concluded and Trevor Immelman has been awarded the green jacket as 2008 champion.  Congratulations to Trevor for a great victory. That also means that the Life in the Rough birthday giveaway has concluded and a winner chosen at random from the comments.  The winner will recieve a dozen Callaway Tour ix golf balls. Without further ado, the winner is…. …A.J. for his comment about Larry Mize’s win in 1987 over Greg Norman in a playoff. Congratulations, A.J.  Hit ‘em long and straight.  I will be contacting you via e-mail shortly.  It was a fun contest and there were some great moments shared.  To those that didn’t win, I thank you for your participation and appreciate the great moments that were shared.  I wish you better luck next time.

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One Year Down

April 11, 2008 By 7 Comments
birthday

Wow! I can’t believe it. Life in the Rough is one year old today. When I started out a year ago, I had no idea how long it would live. How long would I enjoy doing it? Would I be able to keep my stamina? Would it be of value to me and to others? It turns out that I enjoy doing it as much now as I did in the beginning. Probably even more, because I lowered my posting frequency to find a balance between work, blog, and developing my golf game. Keeping my stamina has been tough. Not so much the stamina involved in finding the time to write, or getting enjoyment out of it, but more in the search for new and interesting things to write about in the world of golf. I do enjoy the challenge and look forward to tackling it. Is it of value to me? You bet! Writing about golf and interacting with readers helps me stay focused on my goal of becoming a golf pro. I learn

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