Swine flu...Golf...Etc....

Thought I'd take this chance to write on a dismal drizzly Thursday morning.

Have had a good week, I passed my probationary hearing at work which was a huge relief. Having been dealt redundancy not long ago, it definitely feels good to have a secure job again. I need more hours however, as life is proving difficult financially at the moment. However, I know I am not alone in this predicament. But enough about that....

Big news at the moment is this 'Swine Flu' that seems to have launched the world into a chaotic state of panic. I am wondering, particularly as I work in a doctors surgery, whether I should be more concerned about this. I figure it is a waste of energy to be concerned about things I have no control of. Also, how many times recently have we been faced with these threats?? Mad Cow Disease, Bird Flu etc. And in response to that, how many times has this become as catastrophic as they predicted. Not very many!! So, I think everyone needs to chill a bit and let the authorities deal with it as they have promised they will do.

Played 36 holes at Hollingbury yesterday. It wasn't the inspired golf I was hoping for. Rounds of 77 and 78 (+11 total) were not good considering conditions were good. I'm just still not comfortable with my swing yet. My driving particularly at the moment is so sketchy! I lost 2 balls in the morning round with shots that were just so far off line it was embarrassing.
That being said, I did hit 23 out of 36 greens in regulation and that is a good number. When I execute the swing properly, happy days but the consistency is lacking and worryingly I seem to be missing shots left and right at the moment too so I have very little control over my game.

I just need the time and a place to work on these things. A club not too far from me refused my emails asking if I could pay to use their facilities. This was really disappointing as it would have been a great place to work on my golf. The scary thing is, I have a tournament next week and realistically I may not get the opportunity to play between now and then. I'm sick to death of it. Oh great, a tournament next week on a course I've never seen and I'm gonna be rusty too. This makes me wonder if it's worth spending the money on the petrol to get there. Very frustrating!! Maybe all these negatives will culminate in a good round. Golf can be that unpredictable sometimes.
It's a Powerade Qualifier at Royal Ascot Golf Club and I need to finish somewhere around the top 15 to get through to the finals at the London Club. Had it not been a shank - ergo - triple bogey last year I would have qualified so hopefully something will happen for me. As usual it will come down to how nervous I am and how well I can handle playing competitively. I know for certain that I am capable of producing the golf I need to produce in order to qualify so we'll just have to see what happens.

Anyways I'll leave it there for now....

New year and a new blog!!

Hello again folks!! Yes it's me and yes it's a new blog!!

I took a well earned break from blogging in 2008. Why?? Well to be honest it was a pretty rubbish year that creeped over into the beginning of this year too. Those reasons are mainly personal and therefore not for broadcast over t'internet.

So, what's been happening and where am I now??

Well, lets see, I ended 2007 in employment at Kent National Golf Club and in October 2008 after a turbulent year I was made redundant. I wish I had enough media power to respond to that in the way I wanted to, but suffice to say I will never ever allow myself to get involved with this company again.
My golfing performances in 2008 were terrible. It started in May with a fantastic round of 87 at Farnham in a Titleist Assistants tournament (11 dropped shots in my last 7 holes) which literally crippled my confidence for the rest of the year. Sadly my lowest tournament round was a dismal 79. However, this is in the past now! I've been working hard and am optimistic about what hopefully lies ahead.
I have transformed my method too which is showing improvements gradually. I still think i'm probably a good year or so from fully learning to control my new swing. I'm essentially working on developing a one plane swing (and have been scrutinised by a lot of people for doing this), the reason being that this is a method that allows the body to dominate the swing. I have always been an 'armsy swinger' and this is very difficult to maintain under pressure. Therefore ultimately hopefully I am developing a swing that will hold up in pressure situations (should I ever be fortunate enough to get in to any) and more importantly allow to play when I'm nervous. Nerves became a huge factor for me in '08 to the point where I was afraid to play golf in front of anyone. I have realised this is not a good thing so have been working on it.

Anyways, back to the job front. As I said I was made redundant in October. From there I spent 2 months essentially unemployed. This was scary and most certainly not enjoyable. Thankfully, out of the blue from a completely speculative application, I landed a job in a doctors surgery dispensing prescription. I am still there now and absolutely loving it. Not only does it pay well, I thoroughly enjoy it and the people I work with are cracking people. Also I have a lot of respect for my boss who is a great bloke.
I can say, with complete sincerity and conviction, I will NOT be returning to work in a Pro-Shop. I never really enjoyed it and in golfing terms I am keen to focus on myself as a player, not as a coach or sales rep etc, especially for now! I can't predict whether I'll feel differently down the line.

With regard to my PGA, I am on the cusp (well a couple of months to go) of becoming fully qualified. The important thing is that I passed my practical coaching exams recently, which I was terrified about and it was a significant internal triumph for me! Now there are a few bits to tie up with it but I feel confident. Do not underestimate when I say that the day I recognise this qualification will be the proudest day of my life (as well as the day I finally passed my PAT!).

Anyways I'll leave it there for now. Keep tuned as I will update regularly.

All the best to everyone too. Hope everyone is happy and healthy x