- Nancy Lopez won the Uniden LPGA Invitational four months after giving birth

- When putting, the ball actually skids about 20% of the distance before it starts rolling

- Bobby Jones, a legendary golfer, is the only individual ever to receive two New York City ticker tape parades

- The oldest player ever to shoot or match his age was 102 yr old Arthur Thompson of Victoria, BC. He carded 102 on Uplands Golf Course in 1973.

- Water proof golf clothing was first introduced in 1925

Perhaps I might suggest some possible answers. On the range there is no question we are less discriminating, meaning we can hit a lot of balls and be quite happy if we hit more better than worse shots. Range shots are hard to remember, and have little applied meaning without scoring. On the course too, targets are much better defined and errant shots are penalized, not so on the range. In addition, the application of scoring puts added pressure on our performance, as do weather conditions.

To conclude, for recreational golfers my old expression “fragile fundamentals” might be a good fit.

So how do we beat it? My suggestion is to continue to practice, persist on developing stronger fundamentals, stay focused and be more targets oriented on the course. 

Besides that, live with it! This wonderful game remains the same, tough as hell!

So what the hay! Go with what you have got, have fun, and try to trust it!

HANDICAP SYSTEM NOW AVAILABLE!

Here are my thoughts on the issue: Regardless of how good someone’s golf technology is or isn’t, his or her golf SWING will be the primary factor in determining how good they will be. In the end, the club head has to start from a square position, and return to that square position in order to hit the ball straight, and play good golf. Granted, once they have a fundamentally sound swing, properly fit clubs, and golf club technology, their shots will undoubtedly be much more consistent then clubs which have older technology and are ill-fitted. 

As golf instructors, our knowledge of the swing and how to teach it to different people with different learning styles is as good as ever. Golfers on the PGA Tour are as good as ever, and junior golf in both the U.S. and Canada is developing at a rapid pace. The average/novice golfer has to understand that to become proficient at this game, a combination of working on the swing’s fundamentals in conjunction with properly fitted equipment will be a major factor in their improvement. 

So while technology does make a difference in people’s overall enjoyment of the game, it’s my contention that a person will not improve unless they improve their swing and hit lots of golf balls!

-To move the world, we must first move ourselves. 

Socrates

-It is a man who has done nothing that says nothing can be done. 

Unknown

-Every strike brings me closer to the next home run. 

Babe Ruth

-The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor. 

Vince Lombardi

-Don’t limit your challenges; challenge your limits. 

Unknown

-Upper classes are a nation's past; the middle class is its future. 

Ayn Rand

The highlight of all those events was the School Skills Competition. 26 of the finest young golfers in Victoria came out to compete, with Cameron Chorney of Spectrum School taking home the title. Thanks to CH and Times Colonist for sponsoring the spectacular event and giving it great press coverage. 

In our pursuit of perfection here at Island View, our focus in May will be getting the grass in top notch condition. This will compose of fertilizing, aerating, and seeding damaged areas both out in the range and on the greens to give our valuable customers the best visual and conditions for practice. 

This issue features our first guest writer, Shawn Steele of the beautiful Prospect Lake Golf Course. Prospect Lake boasts the busiest men’s night on the Island (every Tuesday). If you haven’t made it to one, check it out!

CONGRATULATIONS 

CAMERON CHORNEY OF SPECTRUM SCHOOL

2007 SCHOOLS SKILLS CHAMPION

If you did, which one was your favorite? 

Taylormade Super Quad driver seemed to be the popular one between golfers. I checked out some drivers and the Nike Sasquach Sumo square driver was my favorite. It came with a yellow colored Mitsubishi Rayon stock shaft, which was pretty cool! I tried hitting a few balls and it was going straight and went about 5 to 10yards further than my other driver. Even on a miss hit, it was very forgiving. Only thing I did not like about that driver was that I found hard time working the ball. It would just keep going straight. 

However, it wasn’t that popular a driver to golfers because of the design and the ear-ringing sounds on impact. Even well known PGA tour player Ernie Els said to K.J Choi that the driver looks like a “Tuna can”. 

Regardless, K.J Choi ended up winning the tournament!

Over the last five years, many public golf courses provided few incentives to avid golfers because of the exploding popularity of newer golfers. Mike Weir led the charge in 2003 with his Masters win, Stephen Ames followed in 2004 with his win at the Cialis Western Open and with an impressive performance in 2005, and there’s that Tiger Woods professional who continues to help grow the game.

The newer golfer popularity trend slowed down in 2005 and considerably more in 2006, enthusiasm declining due to lackluster performances of Canadian golf stars and due to changing socio-economic trends. The number of rounds played at golf courses remained stagnant or declined because the number of newer golfers equated to a similar number of avid golfers quitting for various reasons. Younger avid golfers quit mainly because they were starting new families, changes at work, competing for limited disposable income with other activities, and no longer seeing the same value of their dollar at a golf course. Older avid golfers quit mainly due to age and medical restrictions, injuries, and frustration over catering to younger newer golfers that slowed the pace of play with some not acting appropriately while on the links.

What does this all mean? This season take advantage of unprecedented offers and incentives to play more regularly at a preferred golf course. Look for value through new specialized “learn to golf” packages and incentives to golf during off-peak times. Enjoy faster rounds with more time intervals allotted between tee-times. 

It’s a great time to be a golfer so don’t wait any longer – go out swinging this season!

ARBUTUS RIDGE OPEN - APRIL 21st + 22nd

Andrew Wintraub - Team Captain (andrew@islandviewgolf.com )

Sean McNulty - (seanmc@islandviewgolf.com )

Chris Kyla

Mike Jones