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Taking hints on and off the range Posted: Monday June 17, 2002 11:56 AM
Sports Illustrated senior writer John Garrity was a 42-year-old 8-handicapper when he suddenly lost his swing. Since December 1989 he has been looking for it -- a modern-day Odysseus adrift on the troubled waters of swing theory. As Garrity travels the world reporting on golf, he visits as many driving ranges as he can, avoiding the dreaded "mats only" ranges that prevent him from teeing it up. Tuesday, June 11 HAUPPAUGE, N.Y. -- "You must be slipping," colleague Gary Van Sickle told me over lunch in the U.S. Open media dining room. "You'd better see a doctor." "I didn't see the sign," I protested. "And it was dark." He shook his head. "You're Mr. Mats Only. You should have smelled it when you went by." So I drove over to the Wyndham Wind Watch hotel this afternoon. There was the sign: GOLF DRIVING RANGE -- PUBLIC WELCOME. But it was a small sign, and it was probably not illuminated at night. I could be forgiven for missing it. It was past midnight when I had first driven past the Wyndham, looking for the Islandia Marriott, the other media hotel. But Gary was right. My head usually swivels if only a fragment of sign is visible from the car; -ANGE, for example, or ----ING RA---. I'm the same way about barbecue; I brake for any sign with the letters BAR or CUE or -B-Q or just Q. That's why you'll occasionally see me, frowning, in the parking lot of a pool hall or antique store. I had no reason to frown this afternoon. The Hamlet Wind Watch Golf Club has a serviceable driving range and a terrific short-game complex. A large bucket of balls cost me $10, but that included the use of an electric cart and unlimited access to the short-game area. I hit half my balls off nice tight lies on the range and then drove up the hill and around the trees to work on my chipping and pitching. A huge crescent bunker surrounded a kidney-shaped green dotted with little flagsticks. I hit short pitches down to the green from fairway lies. I hit soft flop shots up to the green from grassy hillside lies. I hit from the fringe, from the sand, from the collar. And then I turned around and hit balls to a target green 75 yards away. Forty minutes later, I drove back to the main tee with my plastic bucket and about 20 balls. It being a small world, I found Van Sickle there. He was swinging an oversized driver with a black head that looked as if it was made of some Star Wars material. (He's always testing new equipment. I think this club was made by Universal Studios.) "Have you tried the short-game area?" He looked around. "There's a short-game area?" I wound up leading Gary up the hill and around the trees. We then engaged in a series of cutthroat chipping and pitching duels, which he ultimately won by the narrow margin of about 100 points to 12. He was particularly effective hitting the explosion lob from deep greenside rough, landing the ball about three feet onto the putting surface and letting the ball trickle down to the hole. I was almost as proficient. The sole defect of my shots was their tendency to roll past the hole, off the green and down the hill into the bunker. As is our custom, we played for $1,000 a point. Gary lost track of the score, fortunately, and came to the erroneous conclusion that I only owed him dinner. I chose the restaurant, a local diner. Gary then forgot the deal and picked up his half of the check. He must be slipping. Thursday, June 13 HAUPPAUGE, N.Y. -- "John, you are hopeless! You get to take lessons from great teaching pros, and then some clown at a driving range tells you to take the club back a little differently. And you fall for it, just because it worked for a couple of shots. Do you really think one little change to your takeaway will revolutionize your golf game?" I'm quoting an e-mail from Bob Jewett of Springfield, Va., who refers to an incident some weeks back at the Cimarron Golf Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif. If I remember right, I was having minor difficulty hitting my 4-iron on the range -- the ball was flying with the trajectory of a wedge -- when a complete stranger (not a clown! I have never taken advice from anyone wearing size-32 shoes and a red rubber nose) came up behind me and said, "You're taking the club back a little outside." Using this information, I immediately began striping my 4-irons to a distant flag. I said, "Thank you, masked man." In answer to Bob's critique: No, I don't think one little change to my takeaway will revolutionize my golf game. And, no, I don't customarily accept swing tips from strangers. Stock tips, yes, but not swing tips. On the other hand, I have no problem using another person's eyes. I sometimes get misaligned and think I am aiming down the fairway when, in fact, I am aiming for the right rough. Anyone standing behind me can see where I am actually aiming. I have no trouble accepting this information and using it. I used to perform this service for my father, who wanted to know if he was taking the club back on the inside. (He always was.) I have done it for Hall of Fame placekicker Jan Stenerud, who believes he has a big loop at the top of his swing. (He doesn't.) I'll gladly stand behind Bob Jewett, if we meet someday, and tell him if he's laid off at the top or bobbing his head. That's what extra eyes are for. Bob goes on: "I started playing golf when I was 13, and now I am 56 with a 5 handicap. The older I get, the more I realize how little I know. My approach to golf is based on Zorba the Greek. When Zorba was asked, 'What work do you do?' he replied, 'My hands and feet, they do the work. Who the hell am I to choose?' My hands and feet hit the golf ball. I just decide what I want the clubhead to do when it hits the ball, and then I let my body do it. When my swing feels bad, I practice short, simple shots (like 80-yard 7-irons) until the feel starts to come back. Believe me, I hit a lot of simple shots when I practice." This advice strikes me as sound -- so sound that I think maybe Bob deserves an office in the Mats Only building, next to Rob Stanger's. More Bob: " Ronald Reagan said, 'Show me an overworked executive, and I will show you a poor executive.' I say, 'Show me a golfer who thinks too much, and I will show you someone who is asking for trouble.' "When you hit difficult shots, your poor body gets all tense and has a hard time learning. Trust your body and give it a chance to learn how to hit a golf ball by practicing simple shots." Bob's advice is good, and I am taking it. I just hope he wasn't wearing white silk bloomers and a purple wig when he wrote me. Watch this space for another installment of Mats Only. To send John Garrity advice, share your experiences, or suggest a driving range, click here.
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