Note: this contest is now closed. A winner will be selected and notified via e-mail, and an announcement will be made on or before May 31, 2010.  Thanks for all the great entries!

Here we are at Day 2 of the Life in the Rough Big May Golf Book Giveaway.  Are we having fun yet?

Today’s book is GOLF Magazine Private Lessons, by Dave Dusek with illustrations by Barry Ross.  Regular GOLF Magazine readers will be instantly familiar with the material in this book, mostly because of the unique, helpful illustrations that we have come to enjoy each month in the back of GOLF Magazine in the Private Lessons section.

This book is a huge collection of helpful tips and information that have appeared in the magazine over the years.  Here is some information about the book from the publisher, Abrams Books:

Private Lessons is the most popular feature in GOLF Magazine—the place to go for tips, tricks, and instructions that will get the lowliest duffer swinging like a pro. This second edition of Abrams’ best-selling golf instruction book offers the best of the lessons that have appeared since the book was first published. More than 60 pages have been replaced with fresh, up-to-date material illuminating every aspect of the game. Its easy-to-follow instructions, combined with the wonderfully accurate full-color illustrations, illuminate every aspect of the game—from approaching the tee to hitting out of trouble to improving the short game. Best of all, this is a book any golfer can use to advantage—low and high handicappers, men, women, juniors and seniors alike will benefit from the book’s unique ability to break the most complex instruction into easy-to-understand and easy-to-follow steps. Golf Magazine’s Private Lessons is an indispensable tool in any golfer’s kit. The new volume is 20 percent revised and updated.

My detailed review will be published in the coming weeks but I can tell you from leafing through this book that it is packed with useful tips that I have come to enjoy in GOLF Magazine each month.  Amazingly, I’ve been a subscriber for many years but I don’t even recall seeing much of what I looked at as I browsed through the book.  That probably says more about my memory than anything, but having a lot of that information in one big volume is a good thing.

The Contest

Please note that the contest is only open to residents of the United States and Canada. However, I encourage everyone to feel free to participate in the conversation.  Just let me know if you’re not from the United States or Canada so your entry will not be included in the drawing.

To enter for a chance to win this book, I want to know about your golf swing.  Specifically, tell me what your swing keys (or, swing thoughts, if you prefer) are.  In other words, what are some of the things that you continually have to focus on to produce your best golf shots.

For example, my two swing keys are “full shoulder turn” and “smooth tempo”.  When I lose focus and fail to do those two things, I have little chance of making a good shot.

If you don’t really have any specific swing keys, then tell me one or more specific things that you struggle with in golf that you would like to improve.

If you’re not much of a golfer and are trying to win the book to give to someone else or are trying to win the book just because you like to win stuff, then tell me why you want to win the book.

The contest will remain open for one week.  The winner will be chosen by random drawing. Be sure to tune in for the rest of the contests this week.  Winners will not be disqualified from winning the other contests so be sure to get your entries in for all of them.

Please review the comment policy before entering.  Any entries that violate the comment policy will be discarded.

Winners will be notified via e-mail, so please be sure to leave a valid e-mail address with your entries.  I will also publish a summary post at the conclusion of all four contests. The book will be shipped to the winner directly from Abrams Books. No P.O. boxes, please.

Good luck!  I’m looking forward to reading all your entries.

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Be sure to enter the other contests this week:

Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 1 – Golf Courses of the World: 365 Days
Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 3 – Bad Lies
Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 4 – Moment of Glory

Note: this contest is now closed. A winner will be selected and notified via e-mail, and an announcement will be made on or before May 31, 2010.  Thanks for all the great entries!

This is it!  The day has finally arrived.  Well, I suppose the day has only been hotly anticipated since I announced the contest yesterday, but whatever.  I have to generate hype somehow.

Anyway, this is day one of the Big May Golf Book Giveaway.  Today’s book is Golf Courses of the World: 365 Days by Robert Sidorsky.

This is an updated edition of the original edition of Golf Courses of the World: 365 days, which was originally published in 2005.  Here’s a blurb from the publisher Abrams Books about the original 2005 edition:

An invitation to the ultimate golfing journey, this new addition to Abrams’ highly successful 365 Days series takes the reader around the globe to visit 365 of the most sensational courses ever created. Stunning photographs by the world’s leading golf photographers capture the spectacular scenery and signature views of each course, while informative texts discuss their history, natural setting, design, notable holes, and native vegetation. The vast array of distinctive layouts shows golf’s enduring ability to adapt to every type of terrain or ecosystem, and Golf Courses of the World: 365 Days covers them all. The book includes renowned courses in golf strongholds such as Pebble Beach in the U.S., Royal Melbourne in Australia, and St. Andrews in Scotland, as well as hidden gems in exotic locales like Indonesia, Nepal, Dubai, Kenya, and Brazil. For everyone from armchair golfers to serious players who want to add a little variety to their game, this sumptuous volume is the ultimate golfing companion and dreambook.

The new updated 2010 edition includes 200 new courses from around the world.  I will be publishing a detailed review at a later date, but I can tell you that this book is filled to the brim with beautiful photographs of some great golf courses. It makes a great coffee table book and would be a wonderful gift for Father’s Day and a great addition to any golf library.

The Contest

Please note that the contest is only open to residents of the United States and Canada. However, I encourage everyone to feel free to participate in the conversation.  Just let me know if you’re not from the United States or Canada so your entry will not be included in the drawing.

To enter for a chance to win this book, simply leave a comment telling me what your favorite golf course in the world is, and why it’s your favorite. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a course you’ve ever played.

For a second chance to win, tell me in your comment what your favorite golf hole in the world is and why.  It doesn’t necessarily need to be from your favorite course, but it certainly can be.

The contest will remain open for one week.  The winner will be chosen by random drawing. Be sure to tune in for the rest of the contests this week.  Winners will not be disqualified from winning the other contests so be sure to get your entries in for all of them.

Please review the comment policy before entering.  Any entries that violate the comment policy will be discarded.

Winners will be notified via e-mail, so please be sure to leave a valid e-mail address with your entries.  I will also publish a summary post at the conclusion of all four contests. The book will be shipped to the winner directly from Abrams Books. No P.O. boxes, please.

Good luck!  I’m looking forward to reading all your entries.

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Be sure to enter the other contests this week:

Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 2 – GOLF Magazine Private Lessons
Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 3 – Bad lies
Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 4 – Moment of Glory

A few weeks ago, I recall thinking that it had been a while since any publishers asked me to review any books. Unfortunately, I jinxed myself because since then, I got inundated.

Two good things have come out of this, though.  First, I have some cool books on my night stand which I will be reviewing in coming weeks. Second, the publishers have provided some copies to use in giveaways. That means I get to give the gift of golf books to four lucky readers. With fathers day coming up next month, any of these titles would make a great gift.

Here’s how this will work:

For the next four days, there will be a contest for each book.  Each day, I’ll tell you a little about the book and then what you have to do to have a chance to win.

The books will ship directly from the publishers, so I have to limit the contest to those from the United States and Canada.  However, everyone who is eligible can enter and possibly win all four contests.  I’m hoping these contests will generate some conversation and I encourage anyone from around the world to participate, just let me know if you’re outside the U.S. and Canada before I select winners.

That’s all for now.  Tune in each day to participate in each contest.  There’s no rush, though, because each contest will run for a full week before a winner is selected.

Click the links below for each daily contest:

Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 1 – Golf Courses of the World: 365 Days
Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 2 – GOLF Magazine Private Lessons
Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 3 – Bad Lies
Big May Golf Book Giveaway, Day 4 – Moment of Glory

Recently, the fine folks at DivotMat sent me one of their products for review.  I have to say that I found it to be pretty interesting.

Let’s step back for a second and I’ll tell you what DivotMat is.  According to their About Us page:

DivotMat is the result of over 7 years of testing and refinement. Working with industry professionals we have developed an easy to use intuitive, patented system to show you exactly how you hit the golf ball with every swing.

By working closely with paper manufactures, printing specialists and PGA Tour Professionals such as Fred Couples and PGA Instructors such as Laird Small with Pebble Beach Golf Academy, we have created a revolutionary product that works for beginners through advanced golfers.

Well, that sounds interesting, but how does it work?  Fortunately, they go on to add:

Simply swing your club, as you do the club leaves a market at the point of contact. This mark shows you exactly what your club face was doing at the point of impact. You see:

• Where the club made impact
• The swing path
• The club face position

These elements define where your shot will go. By seeing exactly what’s happening at impact, you can make corrections and immediately see results.

I’ll let you know if I agree with that assessment, but first, a little more about it.  The basic set (which I reviewed) includes the following:

• 1 DivotMat
• 1 DivotPad
• 37 DivotSheets – Enough for over 1000 swings
• 2 Instructional DVDs by Laird Small
• 1 Handy Carrying Case
• Instruction Sheet

My Impressions

When the DivotMat arrived, the first thing I did was watch both of the instructional DVDs featuring Laird Small.  Both were relatively short but included useful information about how to use the DivotMat, but also how to properly set up and hit different types of shots. I also read the included instruction sheet which includes some basic information about how to read and correct certain swing problems.

After that, I took the DivotMat out in the yard to give it a try.  Technically, I did this experiment in my parent’s yard because I live in an apartment.  But, it can definitely be used at the driving range where it would be useful to practice with the DivotMat and then hit some real shots.

In some ways, you might find the DivotMat to be similar to the lie boards that club fitters use to see how clubs of certain lie and length are suited for your swing.

Setting up the DivotMat was very quick.  I simply had to affix a couple of Velcro patches to the DivotMat and to the DivotPad so that the DivotPad will remain in place while swinging.  Then, I affixed the DivotPad to the DivotMat. Finally, I affixed a DivotSheet to the DivotPad.  It took maybe 60 seconds and I was ready to go.

Each divot sheet has 9 golf balls printed on it.  I just had to set up to each one and make a normal golf swing.  I found that each sheet can be used for more than 9 swings because subsequent marks on the same ball spot can usually be distinguished from previous marks.  In my case, I was comfortable making about three swings at each ball.

I went through three DivotSheets during my testing which you can see to the right.  It was quite easy to change sheets, and the set comes with a spare adhesive strip to use when the original one loses its stickiness.

I noticed some very interesting things from my results.  I’m probably going to talk about it more in a subsequent post, but I can tell you that my divot marks don’t match the ones that can be seen on the DivotMat web site or on the Laird Small DVDs.

Overall, I think this is a good product. Most of us have probably heard before that reading divots (or divot marks) is a useful tool to help discover what we’re doing with our golf swings.  The feedback that is provided is useful to sort out where the low point of the swing arc is, what the swing path is, and whether both are optimal for ball striking.

I found the divot mat to be well-made of quality materials.  I only used it for maybe 50 -75 swings, but I don’t believe there will be any issue with it lasting for a long time.

DivotMat sells replacement sheet packs, but it’s hard to tell how long a 36-sheet pack will last.  If you make the most of each sheet, I could easily see 3 swings per ball, meaning 27 per sheet for a total of 972 for a pack of DivotSheets.  That’s a lot of practice.

The DivotMat set itself is a little pricey at $99.95, but after giving it a try, I think it’s worth it. The instructional DVDs aren’t impressive, but they give a nice overview of the DivotMat and of the basics of the golf swing.  The DivotMat is pretty well made and the carry bag is a nice touch to help tote the thing to the driving range.

Most importantly, it works as advertised.  The only down side is that after using the DivotMat and creating some divot marks, depending on your level of understanding of the golf swing, it might not be readily apparent what you should change in your swing to help you make good divot marks.

However, I can definitely see where the DivotMat would be useful when working with a pro.  It would definitely help in between lessons as a check point to see that you’re making prescribed changes and sharing your used divot sheets with your pro might be useful to help get your swing on the right track.

Even if you don’t take lessons, the DivotMat can still be useful.  Just be prepared to have to deal with figuring out what’s going wrong with your swing by yourself with only the aid of a couple of brief DVDs and an instruction sheet with fairly rudimentary information.  On the other hand, if you’re already well versed in reading divots, I think you’ll find that this product is highly useful for analyzing your swing in the back yard.

Overall, I think this is a good product and it works as advertised.  The price is a little high, but I think the quality and utility make it a solid buy.  If you think you might be interested in a product like this, I can recommend DivotMat to you.

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The Fine Print

Disclosure: I received no compensation for this review other than a sample which I used for the review.  I’m also not currently involved in any affiliate marketing relationships with DivotMat.

I can’t decide which it is.

Over the years, I’ve read a lot of books on the mental game of golf.  Dr. Bob Rotella has written a few books that I have thoroughly enjoyed.  Not only that, but I feel like they’ve given me great insight into something which I believe is important to play great golf.

This year, aside from playing my normal casual rounds, I decided to join a league.  I’ve played a few times this season so far, and I must say, I’ve really been stinking up the joint.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s been great and the guys I’ve met are a lot of fun.

But when it comes to playing my best, I’m just not doing it.  I’m getting killed out there.  My typical 9-hole score for casual rounds since the beginning of the season has been in the 40-42 range, which isn’t great, but represents a huge early-season improvement over previous years.

When I get out there in league matches, though, I’m lucky to break 50.  I had a similar experience in the club championship last year, shooting probably 5 or 6 strokes over where I was at during casual rounds at that time.

Now, I know, the first thing that comes to mind is that I’m wilting under the pressure.  Believe me, the thought has been swirling around my mind for a while now.  And, in fairness, I’ve been suffering from intermittent back spasms for several weeks.  It’s caused me some trouble, especially being able to practice as much as I want, but I just don’t think that’s the explanation for my problems in competition.

In fact, it occurred to me today that maybe my mental game is right where it needs to be.

Let’s roll back for a minute and think about some of the common aspects of the mental game teachings of those like Dr. Bob Rotella and others.

First and foremost, there is a component of trust.  It’s trust in the swing that you have worked hard to build.  As you stand there, ready to hit a particular shot, you need to have trust in your preparation and trust in the shot you have chosen to hit in that moment, and trust that your body will execute that shot at that moment.  There’s no room for consciously thinking about mechanics.

Beyond that, there is the ability to accept the result of each shot.  When it’s time to hit a shot, we need to be able to put the previous shot out of mind, no matter how bad it was.  We need to be able to live in that moment and to plan and visualize that shot, and to have the proper trust in place without being fixated on the ball that was just jacked into the woods.

On the swing mechanics, I’ve been working on a few items.  First, I’ve been working on making a fuller shoulder turn.  I’ve been kind of letting my core quit on the back swing and trying to get all the way back with more of my arms, which causes me to get in bad position at the top.  That keeps my weight a little to centered and on the down swing, trying to then shift onto my left side causes all sorts of problems.  Aside from these things, my pro has me playing the ball just a little further forward because my ball position had sort of crept back in my stance a little.  And, of course, I’m always fighting to keep my tempo even because I tend to get a little quick, especially with longer clubs.

Why do I bring that up?  Well, for one, these changes are relatively new, and not ingrained yet.  I can stand on the range and find each of these things (and a few others) and start to reliably hit shots.

What I can’t do, though is stand over a shot on the course and revert to trusting that my swing will perform.  It’s not so much that I don’t believe it will perform, it’s that it can’t.  I haven’t made these various changes permanent.  When I stop consciously thinking about what I want to do with my swing, it reverts to old habits all by itself.

It’s not a conscious lack of trust, so much.  I will admit that at the beginning of a match or a competitive round, I’m a little nervous, but after a few holes I settle in and mentally, I don’t feel much anxiety or any other negative feelings that might make me think I’m just wilting under pressure.

I’ve noticed lately that during casual rounds, I’m still sort of playing in driving range mode.  I’m thinking about swing thoughts.  I’m reminding myself to do a full shoulder turn and to not break down at the top and to get my weight left on the down swing and to keep my tempo in check.

When it comes to competitive rounds though, I find myself playing a lot more on auto pilot, just visualizing the shots and letting my body try to perform the correct swing, and above all, not dwelling on previous shots.  Those are some of the hallmarks of a strong mental game.  I just haven’t developed the swing to back it up yet.

It kind of leaves me with the dilemma of not knowing which player I am.  Am I the guy that can go out and shoot a 40 in a casual round and hit a lot of nice shots on the range, or am I the guy that gets in the competitive situation and struggles?

I tend to think it’s the latter.  I think the driving range and casual rounds show my current potential, but the league rounds show where I’m at as a competitor.

But the real question was: what’s the state of my mental game? I honestly think I’m on the right track and my results are showing that I’m not physically prepared yet to be a solid competitor.

What do you think?  Am I on to something or am I just wilting under pressure?  Or are they really different faces of the same beast?