Your Golf History.

I have a little idea. As we all know it can be pretty easy to lose focus after a bad game. Pretty easy to get demoralized, especially when you are starting off so my idea is a one off post in this thread for each member. A brief history of your golf story.

When did you start? How have you progressed over the years? Whats your end game?

Hopefully when we come back from having that inevitable rubbish round it will be easy to have a look on this and see that progression takes time and it will give that little spark of hope we often feel like we need... or just dangle the proverbial carrot..

I'll kick us off.

As a kid in the 90's I inherited my dad's old wooden wood and got the clubs cut down to size. Always enjoyed playing with my dad and friends on the local links but never ever was into the competitive scene. A few decent shots in a round and I would go home happy. between the ages of 13-20 I was much more interested in the easier things in life.... Cars and Girls. During this period I was lucky to play 2 rounds a year in summer with friends but would hit the driving range at lunch time with work mates with a set of knock off Chinese replica clubs I bought from a friend for £50

2009 - When I was 21 I moved out to work in the city for an oil company and was invited to the company golf outing and thoroughly enjoyed it.. it sparked something.

2010 - started playing a local 9 hole course about once a week with friends and decided that it was time to move on from the cheap, heavy and in retrospect awful clubs. I bought myself a set of Taylormade R7 irons and thats when it really clicked. compared to the rubbish I was using they felt amazing. I was out a couple of times a week and was improving. My folks moved to the suburbs of the same city this year too so once again my ol' golfing buddy was back.

2011 - Still playing more than often enough to justify spending a few quid on new gear. New 10.5° Benross driver replaces the 3 wood I had been using as a driver and a new Loft wedge bought which was a revelation. Love how it just stops on the green. End the year playing between 25 and 30 over par, depending on the day.

2012 - 2014 - Real life happens. Get engaged, get married, buy a new house, get a dog, roadsters go and a sensible sports saloon replaces them.

2015 - Holiday in Spain and while the girls go shopping the guys decide to take in a game of golf. Marbellla Golf and Country club. Compared to the links courses I am used to its very different, exciting and the first 9 is so brutal it took the guys I was with (11 hcp) by surprise. A few really nice shots - especially on the 17th / 18th - stokes a long dormant fire... I'm hooked again.

Future: Im not at the level I was back in 2011 yet. Hopefully by summer 2016 I will be breaking into double digits again. We have a few amazing courses near my new home so im never that far away from a game. I am enjoying it even more that I was a few years back too which is good. Ideally the goal will be to get an official handicap rating something I have never had.

I started in 1973 at age 12 with my first lesson. Both of my parents played and my brother, three years older was already playing. On the course in those days we were only allowed two over par and then we picked the ball up and moved on.

My brother was much better and was scratch by the time he was 18. The best I ever got was I think down to a 4 or 5 handicap in 1980's thru the 1990's. Since then I've been up and down handicap wise from between 7 or 8 to my current 12. I no longer practice or play more than one to three times a week.

All of my closest friends have been made at the golf course. My wife and her brothers also came from a golfing family, so we play together a lot these days.

Late 80's - probably 88 or 89. I was 10 or 11 and would go to the driving range with my Dad but i was left handed and he was right handed. Regardless I still hit the ball with a right handed club. I did this for about a year and actually got pretty good right handed.

1991 - I got my first junior set - Driver, 3W, 3i, 5i, 7i, 9i and putter and just figured it out. I played with this set until I was 18. I was a total hacker.

1996 - I got fitted for my first real set of clubs at the driving range - a Callaway Big Bertha Knock-off set. These were a significant improvement and I probably shot around 100 - 105 consistently.

2002 - My clubs were stolen and I got fitted for Callaway X-14s and a set of Steelhead 3 woods. I was living in Los Angeles at the time and started playing more. I then moved back to Kansas City and finally started taking lessons for the first time after playing for 14 years. I took them at Shoal Creek from head pro Brett Moomey - This is in fact the Sunday course we played at after the THP KC event a few weeks ago. My game really improved and i was consistently shooting in the low 90's and upper 80's.

2002 - 2003 - My job moved me to Lincoln, NE and I worked from 2 PM to Midnight and knew no one in NE, so played a lot of golf since I had my mornings free. It was either lifting weights or playing golf. I ended up getting pretty good and while I didn't keep a handicap, I was probably high single digits.

2004 - 2008 - I moved back to St. Louis and while I still played golf it was on average about 6 to 8 rounds per year - life and work just got busy.

2009 - 2014 - I bet the number of rounds I played during this period could be counted on 2 hands. I was just too busy and started having kids.

Spring 2014 - I played a round and decided that it was a great stress reliever and I committed to playing at least once per week.

Summer 2014 - I upgraded my clubs to Apex Irons and V-Series woods and played consistently once per week. I then got a Season Pass at Gateway National for the remainder of 2014 and 2015 and started keeping a handicap. I was a 15. Then I tore my intercostal muscle, so I had to lay off for about 8 weeks. My handicap went up to 17, but I was playing 2-3 times per week.

Fall 2014 to present - I started taking lessons at GolfTec in November 2014 and was consistently going about 2-3 times per month until April. My handicap dropped to 9.1 and I was hitting it really well. Then I got busy again in April and had to cut back on the lessons. My handicap creeped up to 11.7. I am now going to lessons again and it's dropping again.

Started in oct 96 when a navy buddy of in convinced me to play on a night golf 9 hole tourney. I got the bug after hitting balls on the range.

played regularly for fun with the guys from work and didn't take the game serious enough to practice due to my involvement in several other sports competitively. I was shooting in the low-mid 90s when I stopped playing.

stopped playing for a bit after 9/11/01 due to work schedule and some outside activities. Missed the game and started playing again in the summer of 2003 a few times.

took the game a little more serious 2004 and played for a couple years until I met the woman who would become my wife. I played sporadically from 2006 until 2011. I probably played 5-6 times a year and hit balls at the range about the same numbers.

Picked the game up seriously again in late summer 2011 and really started to focus on my game in 2012 and was taking a handful of lessons each year. I have been playing regularly since and my hdcp has dropped from a 25 to a 12 in that timeframe, with the most strokes coming off in the last two years.

found THP in 2014 and my golf life hasn't been the same since.

Ive got a very varied history in the game. I'll leave it alone for years at a time, then come back again. So here goes:
Started playing in the late 80s as a young child with a couple of cut downs. I didn't have any idea what was going on, but I knew my dad played so I wanted to play, too. My father was a very good player in his early days, before I was born, having Monday qualified for the Greater Greensboro Open in the early 80s. He taught me how to hold the club and swing a little. Fast forward to baseball and basketball and I forgot about golf for a little while. In the summer of 1993, my parents were having a yard sale and dad had put his clubs out for sale. He hadn't played in several years and didn't think he needed them. I picked one up and started goofing around and he decided to not sell them after all. The clubs were a set of 1981 Maxfli Australian blades that I would learn to play with over the next 2-3 years. I learned how to hit a draw and fade with those, how to pitch and chip, and how to strike the ball solidly. Santa brought me a set of Ping Eye 2 + red dots in 1994, with which I started high school.
1994-1998: the high school years. I was a decent enough high school golfer, winning a tournament or two and making all conference/region a few times. Our little rural school had some good golfers, but no direction. Our coach was a driver. No mind, we all helped each other and the local pro was always there for us. I played everyday during the spring/summer, but never really practiced the right way. I didn't know how and didn't really care to learn. I just beat balls on the range and thought about girls when I was on the course-typical teenager. I had offers to play in college but I was burned out and pretty much quit after graduating.
1998-2002 - the college years: sold any club that was worth anything for drinkin money and played maybe 30 times in 4 years. Had a set of King Cobra Norman Grind irons, a King Cobra Deep Face bore thru driver and a Warbird 3 wood. Still had game to break 80 on occasion but I didn't play enough to be really good.
2002-2004: graduated college and got a job. I had some money, so I could buy the clubs that I wanted and play a bit. Went back to my roots with another set of Eye 2+ red dots that I still game today. Bought a couple different drivers and such, and played at least once a week. Got back to near scratch and played near par every round.
2004-2005: as is want to happen, life got in the way a bit. A new job moved me and kept me off the course. I didn't play much and lost touch with the game for a while. Mainly played at bachelor parties and things like that.
2005: played a bunch after settling down a bit and getting married. Life was good.
2006-2015: for whatever reason, I didn't play much at all. My wife and I had a kid, work got busy, money got tight...they all played a part. I still followed the game some on TV, and went to a few tournaments, but probably played 20-30 rounds in that time, including 2 52 week layoffs in 2013-2015 in between fraternity golf tournament/reunion.
Current: I have played 5 rounds this year and am practicing more. I'm also teaching my daughter about the game. She seem interested for a 2.5 year old, so I'm taking advantage. My wife and I are discussing joining one of a few local clubs, which would get me on the course a couple times a week, which I'm really looking forward to. I hate playing when I play bad, which is probably why I have such long layoffs. When I don't play, I don't look forward to playing, but when I do play some, I get the bug bad.

Side note: the Maxflis I learned on were stolen in 1998 and never recovered. I spent 2 years scouring the Internet to find a set again and finally did over the winter. I plan to have them completely rebuilt and hold onto them forever.


Give 'em hell!

Picked up golf 2012 to take it seriously after I had to give up college baseball. Started off around a 9 handicap and didn't know much of anything other than just trying to put the ball in the hole somehow or someway. Next year started studying things and trying to improve on my own and got down to a 7. Took lessons from one instructor that was good, but not what I was looking for and he got me to a 5. Last November found an instructor I've been looking for and this year I'm down to a 2.8 currently. If someone wants to really improve at this game I think it's all about finding the right instructor for your game and committing to him.

I was raised by my grandparents. Grandfather was a veterinarian and had his own veterinary clinic. He was also the vet at the local dog track. Monday - Saturday he would work from 8am - 11pm (raising 7 kids total is expensive - plus my grandmother liked to spend money). Sunday was his only day off. He either fished or he played golf. So that was a way to spend time with him.

1991 - 2001 - Started going out with my grandfather when I was 8. I'd play a few holes. Had a lesson when I was maybe 10. Had knockoff clubs the entire time. Started playing the full 18 at age 10-11. Broke 100 for the first time when I was 13. Broke 90 for the first time when I was 16.
2001 - 2003 - In college - really only played when I came home during breaks.
2004 - 2006 - Started playing again with some college friends. Played a lot during my final year in school... My last semester only had classes Mon, Wed, Fri, so I played a lot on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Got a set of Callaway X-14 Pro Series irons for a graduation gift. Played even more, game was down to low-mid 80's consistently. Graduated in May.. stayed in Auburn for a couple months after that, played a few times per week.
2007 - mid 2009 - Maybe played 5 times.
Mid - 2009 - 2011 - Moved to PA. Played a decent amount with my uncle. He joined a country club, played that a few times with him.
2012 - 2013 - Played 8 - 10 rounds/year.
2014 - Didn't play at all
2015 - I have played 13 times so far this year. I got to the range 3-4x per week. Wanting to play a lot more. Still have those Callaway's purchased (used) in 2006. Thinking next year I'll get fitted for irons if I'm playing enough to justify it.

1977 - Purchased a set of clubs at a garage sale for $5, decided I would practice over the Summer and try to play on my Jr. High team. I could break 50 on 9 holes from the moment I started because chipping and putting were very natural to me. Every shot I hit was a big fade/slice, but I did it very consistently.

Summer of 1979 - Played in OLJGA (Orlando Land Junior Golf Association) tournaments, and the competition allowed me to hone my game and become a single digit handicapper

1979-1982 - Played High School golf and developed a draw full time

1982 - 2000 - Played golf about once per week, handicap averaged between 5 and 9, was very erratic and streaky

2001 - 2004 - Dark Ages for me. The draw was a snap-hook or block right on most tee shots. I didn't break 80 the entire time and averaged 5 balls OB. Handicap went up to 13, mainly because I had a great short game (The 1st time I broke 80 in 2004, I snap-hooked 10 drives that all hit trees or walls to stay in bounds, and I shot a 75).

2005 - Switched to a full time fade and instantly started shooting back in the 70's

2005 - 2010 - Got my handicap to a 5 or so during this entire period. Shot my PB of 68 5 times.

2011 - Moved to Humble, TX and joined Walden. Learned to play that course by hitting less than driver on most tee shots. It's a hard course, but I got my handicap to its lowest ever, a 1.3

2012 - Started hitting driver off the deck on most tee balls to greatly improve accuracy

2014 - Made the best decision ever: cut my driver to 43-1/2". Also joined Atascocita which demanded several right-to-left tee shots, so I developed the ability to work the ball in both directions, but still played the fade on most shots. This is the year I joined THP also!!!

2015 - Recently, I've developed a swing that eases the pain in my back. As it turns out, I've been able to play better this way. My short game has regressed since moving to TX, partly because of the Bermuda rough, and partly because I'm struggling with putting for the first time ever (turned 50-years old on 11/30/2014). I did shoot 70 on Walden a few weeks ago, which is the first time I've broken par since I moved back to TX.

Future - I'd like to develop a better wedge game and try to play in some amateur events.

Loving theses histories.

Your Golf History.

I started at 8 years old back in 1983. My folks never played and still never play golf to this day. Buddies dad was a die hard golfer so he took us in his cart one day and brought some extra clubs for us to hit around with. I've been hooked ever since, and still remember my first ball I got in the air that day. Was my very first swing actually , and that kept me coming back

1988 to 1990 I played varsity golf and many junior tournaments and leagues during the summer months. Broke 80 my first time in summer of 1988 with a 75 in a junior tournament and captured a 2nd place finish. Was playing 36 plus holes a day during the season and occasionally 50 wasn't unheard of. Met some great great friends and really learned how to just play the game during these years. Also played varsity baseball in the spring and early summer so I loved to just hit the ball no matter what sport

1990 to 1995 I attended Ferris State University and specialized in business but also pursued a career in the golf industry. I took some school internship opportunities and worked at golf courses all over the United States to get to know the industry better. I will averaged 36 holes plus during my tenure if possible. Really started playing good golf and broke 70 for the first time in a campus wide golf tourney. Almost qualified for the golf team in a grueling 6 round qualifier. Each day they would eliminate half the field and start a new the next round. Made it to the last round but failed to make the 2 open spots for the team . Still was hitting it a mile back than and could hit the ball with a draw or fade on command. Some of my best golfing rounds were during this year.

1995 to 1997 . Tried my hand as an assistant golf pro at a local club and the business just drained me. Never played golf and never saw any of my friends or family. Working at the course 12 plus hours a day making nothing in pay wore me out. Made some great contacts at the club and received an interview to work at one of our local steel mills. Got the job and stared off making 4 x's as much as I did in the business my first day working. Full benefits and an actual career job really made life better

1998 to 2006 played really heavy golf .. Real heavy 18 plus sometimes 6 days or 7 a week. Worked midnights so was a perfect golf schedule for me. Played in many many many tourneys. Started keeping a handicap and my highest year was a 5 so I played great golf. Almost won our city tourney twice and was a runner up. Played some big national events in the GCSAA and the Arkansas State open. Really learned a lot about just playing golf and the importance of patience and course strategy.

2006 to present : got married early 2006 and have a beautiful young son. Life really changed with a family. I've become more of a casual golfer and more involved in the golf swing look to occupy my time. Saw my swing for the first time in 2010 on video and really want to change it to look like Ben Hogan type of motion. Still play a good round here or there but mostly enjoy the game for relaxation. Worked hard last year on just playing golf and shot a 73 in a local event netting me a 4 th place finish and a .1 handicap. Now I'm looking towards senior/retirement golf and developing a swing-game where I can play until I can't do it anymore. I enjoy this online golf stuff now,makes me feel I'm right along playing with you guys. But if i was playing golf avid again I wouldn't be an online golfer. Glad to be here though and a nice thread. If I never meet you guys this stuff like this makes it feel like I already did ( first golf trophy..-and first time I broke 80)

I have been "golfing" since I was probably about 12 years old, but that consisted of going out with my grandparents once maybe twice a year. I had a natural swing, or so I was told, but no idea how to use it correctly so I was terrible. But I was 12...so I'm not sure how good I was supposed to be haha. Played maybe once or twice a year or so from then until I was about a Senior in college and decided to try to play more and improve. Bought my first set of irons and set out with the goal to break 100. Took about a month probably, but finally got it with a 97 one day and never really looked back. I had a couple friends that were around the same level as me and we worked to try to keep beating each other and ended up starting to shoot in the high 80's by the end of that summer.

Not sure why but we didn't end up playing much the following summer, maybe only a couple times, and after that I moved away for a job. When I moved to Cleveland I didn't know anyone who golfed and didn't want to golf alone, so I basically didn't golf at all for 2 years until one night last summer I decided to golf alone after work just to do it and realized it was still fun haha. Now I can't stop, and have been taking the game seriously again, so I have about a total of 2 1/2 seasons of seriously trying to improve and I'm currently sitting around a 12/13 HC. I now semi-consistently shoot low 80's, but my goal is to be a consistent 70's player and a single digit HC. I know I have the skill set to get there, I just need to clean up the trouble spots and I should be fine. I've never had a professional lesson, so I was thinking of doing golf-tec sometime over the winter since I've heard of some people having good success with that.

Summer 2000: got burned out on baseball, so I took up golf. My first set was an Arnold Palmer junior set (my first official set was a RH set of Wilsons... go figure)

Jan 3, 2001: first hole-in-one (6-iron from 105). This game's easy, right?

2001-2003: played in junior golf tournament during the Summers for the Houston Golf Association. Shot 129 in my first "official tournament".

2004-2007 (high school): played high school golf and was a letterman all 4 years. Made especially large jumps in scoring average during my junior and senior years. Probably my best HS tournament moment was finishing 8th in my district tournament (3rd largest district in Texas, 25th largest in the US) and birdieing my last hole in a HS tournament.

Summer 2007: shot par for the first time (71), still my personal best.

2007-2011 (college): began college, so my golf went from playing 5 times a week to twice a month, if I was lucky. Bright spot during this time was winning the IM scramble in Fall 2010 and the individual IM tournament in Spring 2011

2011-current (the THP years)
November 8, 2011: Joined THP!

March 16, 2013: Attended my first THP event

March 29, 2014: joined the THP Hall of Fame with my partner Capt Dru

Over time, I wish I would have remembered more milestones (personal best, first eagle, first birdie, first time breaking 100, 90, 80, etc.), but there will be plenty of time for more milestones!

Been playing 40+ years. Have pictures of me swinging a cut down driver at age 4. Taught the game by my dad who was a 3-6 index most of his life.

Played on my high school team but we were not very good, and I was almost always 5th or 6th man. Scores were in the 48-58 range for nine.

Got somewhat serious about golf in college and went one stretch were I played or practiced at least once a day for 3 months. Had a low of 38 for nine during that stretch but most rounds were in the 42-48 range. Met a girl and stopped playing for about a 5 year stretch.

Married early (different girl than one above), and found a job where some guys played golf and got back into it. Played maybe twice a month. Had kids and really had a passion for the game by then but had little time between work and kids. Played at least once a month though.

By 2000, kids were a little older and we bought a new house in a golf community. Work was a bit easier by now so played about once a week. Index was in the 13-16 range during this period.

Late 2000's, kids are in high school by now and despite my earlier efforts of trying to get them into golf they had always stayed away until now. They both decided they wanted to play on their teams, so I spent a lot of time on the course with them. We talked a lot about fundamentals and it really helped me improve my game too. Was able to start playing several times a week and this helped me get to single digits for the first time.

Now - kids are in college. Play at least twice a week when the weather allows.

Started playing golf in 2006 after years of baseball and softball. It started out with playing for work because our clients lenjoyed at the game. At conferences or visiting them, we were always playing. In ways it was a perfect storm as I couldn't throw anymore without pain and was looking for a new challenge. I laugh now thinking about how my boss told me that I needed to learn how to play the game - if only he knew the monster he had created.

It was ugly in the beginning and after I moved back to Rochester in 2007, I found an instructor to work with by the name of Bill Walsh. He got me going on the basics and to a point where I could consistently score in the 90s.

By around 2010 I was not really satisfied with where my game. I felt like the work I was doing was just quick patches to my game, I began working with another instructor, Jim Muszak. He really analyzed my swing and working with him at his backyard range. I think that is where I started to make major strides and started to see my scores go down. I would say it was during this time that I became infatuated with golf. During this time my handicap dropped from the mid-teens to a single digit.

In 2014 after moving to Indianapolis, I began working with my current instructor, Erika Wicoff. This is where I have made my biggest strides and continue to make strides.

Started playing golf in 1972, my freshmen year in high school. We were living on a British RAF base in Germany and there was nothing there but a golf course and I was drawn to it.
Played high school golf, worked in a pro shop my senior year and received an Evans Scholarship at the University of Colorado. I tried out for the college team but was out of my depth there. I continued to work at golf courses during my college years and got a taste of course maintenance along with working in pro shops.

I have played golf my entire adult life and always strived to get better at some part of the game. Have had my ups & downs in the game and life but golf is a constant for me - it's part of me.
I have always wanted to play scratch golf. About 12 years ago I was down to a 3 handicap but was miserable. I had no fun playing because it was all about scoring and trying to play "perfect" golf (which we all know is impossible). I got fed up a few years later and took a year off during a rough patch (divorce) to reassess myself and what I wanted out of the game. When I came back it was like starting over and I pretty much sucked for a couple years but I was still having fun, which NEVER happened before. I don't live and die on every shot like I used to and try to remember to PLAY like I did when I was a kid, cause it's a game after all.

My goal now is to still work toward being a scratch golfer but I'm having fun and take the good with the bad. My mantra is Progress NOT Perfection. Long term - I want to be one of those 80 year old guys at the club who plays every day with a regular group of "old timers", knows everyone and loves every minute of it.

Mid 1980s - a baseball scholarship fell through and I found myself working construction in the morning and going to college at a CC at night. I took up golf as a way to fill the afternoons (when not studying) and my sports void.

A decade later and I've met my future wife. We took lessons and played together. I worked really hard to turn the slice into a draw and had a handicap of @17.

A decade or so later and we bought a house and started a family. Golf took a definite back seat to real life stuff and I started playing less and less (eventually like 1x per year) and getting worse and worse.

About 5 years later my best friend took me to Bandon Dunes. My game was PUTRID - I maybe shot 130..with a favorable pencil. My equipment was at least 15 years old. I actually swung and missed a few times. It was humiliating. But playing at Bandon was like a religious experience, golf unlike anything I'd ever experienced before. I fell in love with the game again and decided to take lessons and buy equipment. I was curious about Ping G20 woods so I did a Google search. The first search result was for something called TheHackersParadise. It had a formal review and a bunch of info from real people about the clubs. I read it all, bought the clubs and called the local club to start a lesson series blind (just told them to assign me to anyone). The rest is history...

The joke is I started playing golf when I was a little over a year old in 1985. My parents were awaken one night by the ssound of glass ornaments shattering. I had received my first golf club and had figured out how to hit the ornaments off the tree.

My real golf story began at the age of 6 when my neighbor who was a scratch golfer wanted to borrow our front yard to practice wedge shots. He took me under his wing and taught me the basics of the game. By the age of 8 I had started to play golf full time to get away from baseball. I wanted to pursue golf as it was the only sport my dad knew nothing about.

From the age of 8 to 18 I played numerous junior golf tournaments around the country and was ranked as one of the top juniors in the state of Georgia. My biggest win came in a tournament down in south Georgia where I beat the likes of Chris Kirk, Brian Harman, Russell Henley, Lucas Glover and a few others. My putter always kept me from greatness and being a truly elite player.

My junior and senior year of high school I did get numerous college offers including the chance to walk on at some big schools (UGA and Alabama), however; I wanted to play from day 1 and chose a smaller school in North Georgia (Reinhardt College). College Golf was a blast. Getting to travel everywhere, play almost every day and meet life long friends was everything I could ask for. I shot my lowest score of my life during this time (65) and (29 on 9).

After college, I became the typical Weekend Warrior. I would get to play on weekends but struggled as I wasnt able to score the way I used to. I remember getting so frustrated which wasnt the type of person I was. I finally had to come to grips with the fact that I couldnt play the way I could anymore and needed to change my approach to the game.

My history in golf changed forever on June 28th, 2012. I had a rock climbing incident where I fractured my wrist, pelvis, broken ribs, collapsed lung and a few other things. The Doctors didnt know if I would be able to walk normal again, much less play golf. Golf became a motivator and what kept me going. I lost about 20% of my distance on all clubs and didnt have the ability to draw the ball anymore becaue of my wrist and not being able to fully release the club. I had to re learn the game again and change my style of play but I took it with a grain of salt and found a new appreciation for the game. This appreciation peaked when I got selected to Team Paradise in the 2014 Morgan Cup. It was the final stair needed to get myself back to where I was in love with this game before and during college.

Golf has meant different things to me throughout my life. Now it is simply just a pleasure to play and I am grateful for every swing I get to take. It has given me new friends and a joy that few things give me

Started way back in 90-ish when my neighbor in the dorms at Luke AFB played and got me into the game. Picked up a set of crap KMart clubs and a cheapo bag at a pawn shop and off I went.
Was always horrible, never cared to be that good, as it was just something to do and a reason to drink beer.

Got married in 93 and started getting a bit more serious because I now had a friend working at a country club with reciprocal privileges across the Phoenix valley. Then, as I got more interested in getting better, we had a kid and what little leftover cash I had to play was gone.

Fast forward ten years. We moved here to Georgia in 2005. I'd played probably 3 times in those ten years, just for the heck of it, and was still using that same bag of clubs. My new coworkers both played on occasion, and then our boss decided that it would be good "team building" for us all go out once or twice a week an hour or two before we got off duty. Who was I to say no to that proposal?!

So, I basically picked it back up from scratch again, bought a set of Wilson Staff Ci7s, and started the journey. THP didn't happen until May of 2011 and since then I've been through countless woods (seriously, there's way too many to remember), and probably 2 dozen putters, too. I've gone through the Ci7, A4r, Burner 2.0, R11, Apex, and z545 in irons. Also, I've probably said "I'll never play another ball but this one!" a dozen times, or so, too.

I started playing in 2006 right out of high school. I enjoyed it so a buddy of mine let me borrow his back up set of clubs while I learned the game. I think I broke 100 maybe once that year, but it was fun. I was still racing motocross at the time, so I didn't golf much and most of my golfing partners were much better than me which was also a reason I didn't golf much lol.

During the next two years I started college and motocross came to an end. I started playing more golf and eventually ended up getting my own set of clubs. I was working 2 jobs so I usually played 9 holes but this was also around the time I started playing up to the level of my playing partners. This is when the mechanics of the swing started making sense to me and I could notice why I hit the ball the way I did.

2008 I moved to VA for school and continued playing golf, but started to really play by myself. I eventually met a new group of guys to play with but suddenly I was the better golfer of the bunch. My friends were super competitive and we pushed each other. This was when I started to really play bogey golf and I was actively trying to break the 90 barrier.

2011 I graduated college, started my job I have now, and then I went on to marry my wife. Golf slowed down some, but moving back home I continued playing when I could.

Fast forward to this year and I've played the most rounds I've ever played and finally I'm making headway and breaking 90 on the regular (sort of). I learned to really embrace my driver, and I feel like my swing is relatively sound. I don't play 18 regularly, but I feel if I can string together some solid golf I can easily be in the low 80's. I've yet to do it (86 is my PB), but 40 through 43 scores are becoming my norm every time I play 9 holes.

So looking ahead to the future I plan to one day get some lessons. Everything about my game is self taught and imitation. A buddy of mine just about wins everything around my area, has played in the Senior US Open, and holds all the club championships. I learned a ton from just watching how he plays and manages his game. I don't ever see myself becoming a scratch player, but I do hope to one day play to a 5-10 handicap. I'm right about a 16 now and can see myself at a 14 at the end of the year if I keep up my good play.

First round was in 2004. Had some cheap Wal-Mart brand set of clubs. My putter choice was because I wanted something cool looking. I had a driving iron which I thought was exclusively for par three holes, until I launched one over a green and on to a busy street. I was mad at my 60* wedge because I thought it could go over 100 yards. Shaft wound up getting bent because a tree hit it:angel:.

Cut to 2013 when someone was hired at my day job and he was a golfer. I still had those old clubs and we played a round. Afterwards I asked him if we should make this a weekly thing and I wound up getting a complete overhaul of stuff. Thanks in part to THP I bought a Nike Str8 VRs driver, Nike VRs hybrid, TM Rescure hybrid, TM Burner Plus irons, Cleveland CG14 wedges, and a Nike Method Drone putter (because I wanted a cool looking putter).
Well, turns out my friends stopped playing golf and I lost contact with him, but I kept going. Found out about a par 3 course that I began to visit and worked up the courage to head to Bethpage.

2014 was the year when I started getting serious. Lessons lessons lessons. I still suck, but now I know why I suck and how to work with what I have. Bag changed a few times over.

2015 debut a new bag, no longer have "cool looking" putters, although the Happy Putter has peak my interest and that may find it's way into my bag before the summer ends. Attended my first official THP event and have now played in four different stated with a 5th coming up this weekend.

I wish my golf history went back as far as everyone else's but alas, soccer was my life all through my childhood. Fall was the school team, winter was indoor/dome travel league, spring was outdoor travel, and summer was pickup games and goalie camps (I was a keeper). After high school I only played casually along with other random stuff up until two years ago at age 26. My dad is retired, brother graduated college but hadn't found a job, and my job is only 80% with a flexible schedule. So that fall the three of us played a dozen different local courses and I was hooked. Up until that point I had golfed maybe 10 times in my life. After that fall I started piecing together a real set of clubs from various places online and waited desperately for the snow to melt.

Spring of 2014 I bought a two year membership to the closest course to my house. Since then I've played there maybe 150 days along with 25 or so rounds at other courses or while on vacation or whatever. My home course is an easy par 70, and in the last year and a half my average score has dropped from ~100 to like 78. I'd love to shoot a round of even par before this season ends; I've had scores of -1 and even for 9 holes but never kept it going for an entire round. Being single and healthy and having a relaxed work schedule has resulted in plenty of time for golf and I'm trying to make the most of it before something changes. I'd like to start shooting in the low 70s consistently next year if I can renew my membership and continue playing so frequently.

Really good

School and marriage

Marginal at best.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My history is pretty short:

2014: Was asked to join a golfing holiday to Marbella (Spain) by some friends. Every year they choose a European golfing destination and organize their own little tournament over there. I've always liked watching golf, but had never actually played myself, but they still wanted me tag along just for fun outside of the course. I agreed to join them to Spain, but I really didn't like the thought of sitting in a buggy for 6 days. I thought it would actually be nice to hit some balls over there as well, so I bought the first (and only) left handed starter set (Wilson) I could get my hands on, went to the range, et voila: I was hooked. You have to pass a rules and etiquette exam over here, and have to shoot a round under a certain score in order to get your golf license, so I did so on my first try: I was now officially a golfer!

One, maybe two months later we traveled to Spain, and I won the tournament. Seeing the beauty of foreign courses got me addicted even more, and motivated me to get better, update my equipment when possible, and spend as much time as possible on the course. You start at hcp. 54 over here, and I gradually worked that down to about 21.5 at the end of the year.

2015: Due to some injuries, personal and work related issues I wasn't able to spend as much time playing golf as I wanted at the beginning of the year. The fact I didn't play that much affected my handicap as well, as it shot up a couple of points. Everything has settled down now, and a couple of months and a lot of rounds later I'm playing from hcp. 18. I've had a great golfing holiday/tournament with my friends again this year at the PGA Catalunya Resort, which I won for the second time. I've now updated my equipment to a standard I think should help me improve my game. My goal is to reach 14.5 by the end of the year. However, I've never taken any lessons, so that might become a bit of a challenge...

flog2424 said:

The joke is I started playing golf when I was a little over a year old in 1985. My parents were awaken one night by the ssound of glass ornaments shattering. I had received my first golf club and had figured out how to hit the ornaments off the tree.

Click to expand...

That is so funny.