Golf

1/15/99

Instead of buying a whole new set of golf clubs, I figure that the problem with my golf is with me and not with the clubs. So I went to Strokes in Fremont Hub to get my old irons re-gripped. I've decided with the over-sized grip. I may be able to reduce my grip tension, thus lessening the chance with slice. Afterwards I went to the driving range with my putter and 3 and 5 woods. Not very impressive as I was contacting the ball a little funny.

1/16/99

Saw a good hint on TGC (The Golf Channel). I'm dying to try this to avoid my slice. Stay tuned.

Practice the swing on the plane by taking a few short, practice swings with the right feed behind my left left. This will prevent my swing from outside to in.

1/17/99

Practiced putting on the carpet using Theresa's automatic ball-return gadget. Swing thoughts: slow, 70% weight on left, stand close, eyes right on top of the ball, follow-thru.

1/18/99

Saw Annika Sorenstam, my favorite LPGA player because I'm a fair weather fan, on TGC Golf Talk Live. Very nice couple. Liked about she saying that "golf is no longer the most important thing in her life--her husband is"

1/19/99

TGC's Golf Academy has an excellent instructor pointing out everything that I have been doing wrong. The three keys are

	shorten the backswing; don't break the left arm
	put a tee in the left hand, grip the club so it will not fall out on the backswing,
	do the back-swing practice. Too difficult to describe here. It involves lift the club and put it on the shoulder, stretch out the arm, and then swing. It's a way to feel a comfortable backswing position.

1/20/99

I get to watch the first 45 minutes of the Golf Talk Live with Annika that I missed a few days ago. Found out that she has a stamp in Sweden and an autobiography. Really enjoyed the show. Also picked up my golf clubs with new over-sized grip. Cannot wait to try it out on the range.

1/21/99

TGC showed Naples LPGA tournament. Karrie Webb shot a course record: 9 par and 9 birdies. Amazing. Practiced on the range with my irons with the new grip. Today's swing thoughts.

	shorten the backswing
	relax the body and especially the forearm by breathing out
	controlled swing and follow-thru--my 5-iron was very nice--very few slices; my 3/5 woods are atrocious
	putting: gauge distance by having the practice swing the same distance back
	putting: practice follow-thru by putting with left-arm only; leading the putter straight to the hole; had a very nice putting practice today
	putting: stand closer to the ball with eyes right on top; swing close to the body

1/22/99

Yahoo's Yellowpages provided the following list of golf courses nearby--with so much rain I doubt that I'll get to play on most of these courses: *** = played before. I've also removed all the country clubs.

Sunol Valley Golf Club 6900 Mission Rd Sunol, CA (925) 862-2408 5.8

*** Palm Course: 1/27/99 (back 9 is long and challenging; watch out the water hazard at the 4th hole)
Cypress Course: (shorter and easier than Palm)

	Summitpointe-Royal Tee Club 1500 Country Club Dr Milpitas, CA (408) 262-2500 8.7
	Shoreline Golf Course 2600 N Shoreline Blvd Mountain View, CA (650) 969-2041 9.5
	Palo Alto Golf Course 1875 Embarcadero Rd Palo Alto, CA (650) 856-0881 9.6
	*** Santa Clara Golf & Tennis Club 5151 Stars And Stripes Dr Santa Clara, CA (408) 980-9515 9.9
	Pleasanton Fairways Golf Alameda County Fairgrnds Pleasanton, CA (925) 462-4653 10.1
	Spring Valley Golf Course 3441 Calaveras Rd Milpitas, CA (408) 262-1722 10.7 Recommended
	Sunnyvale Municipal Golf 605 Macara Ave Sunnyvale, CA (408) 738-3666 11.0
	Skywest Public Golf Course 1401 Golf Course Rd Hayward, CA (510) 278-6188 11.2
	San Jose Municipal Golf Course 1560 Oakland Rd San Jose, CA (408) 441-4653 12.9
	San Ramon Royal Vista Golf 9430 Fircrest Ln San Ramon, CA (925) 828-6258 13.2
	*** Willow Park Public Golf Course 17007 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA (510) 537-8989 13.3
	Sunken Gardens Golf Course 1010 S Wolfe Rd Sunnyvale, CA (408) 739-6588 13.4
	Las Positas Golf Course 917 Club House Dr Livermore, CA (925) 443-3122 13.8 Recommended (also has an executive 9 hole)
	Los Altos Golf & Country Club 1560 Country Club Dr Los Altos, CA (650) 948-1024 14.7
	*** Marina Golf Course 13800 Neptune Dr San Leandro, CA (510) 895-2164 14.9 has an executive 9 hole
	San Leandro Golf Complex 13800 Neptune Dr San Leandro, CA (510) 895-2162 14.9
	*** Lake Chabot Municipal Golf 11450 Golf Links Rd Oakland, CA (510) 351-5812 15.3 has an executive 9 hole
	Sharon Heights Golf Inc 2900 Sand Hill Rd Menlo Park, CA (650) 854-6422 15.4
	Canyon Lakes Golf Course 640 Bollinger Canyon Way San Ramon, CA (925) 735-6511 15.6
	Pruneridge Golf Club 400 Saratoga Ave San Jose, CA (408) 248-4424 15.8
	Mariner's Point Golf Links 2401 E 3rd Ave Foster City, CA (650) 573-7888 16.0
	Blackberry Farm Golf Course 22100 Stevens Creek Blvd Cupertino, CA (408) 253-9200 16.1
	Emerald Hills Golf Course 938 Wilmington Way Redwood City, CA (650) 368-7820 16.4
	Springtown Golf Course 939 Larkspur Dr Livermore, CA (925) 455-5695 17.4
	Cypress Greens Golf Course 2050 S White Rd San Jose, CA (408) 238-3485 17.4
	Pleasant Hills Golf Club 2050 S White Rd San Jose, CA (408) 238-3485 17.4
	Poppy Ridge Golf Course 4280 Greenville Rd Livermore, CA (925) 447-6779 18.0
	*** Alameda Golf Complex 1 Clubhouse Memorial Rd Alameda, CA (510) 522-4321 18.9 has an executive 9 hole
	Santa Teresa Golf Club 260 Bernal Rd San Jose, CA (408) 226-3170 25.2

Today's swing thoughts:

	don't overcock the hand so I will lose control of the club. Putting the tee is a good practice.
	putting: follow through with the putter heading toward the cup

1/23/99

I watched the third round action of the LPGA Naples tournament. Karrie and Julie are tied at -12, and a whole bunch of people are just one stroke back. Karrie was leading by two until she got a triple bogey because her drive on the 14th tee went out of bound. Ouch. That's kind of the score that I get! It will be an interesting Sunday. Annika is way back at -7.

1/24/99

I had the pleasure of watching the final round of the LPGA Naples Memorial. What a finish. Too bad Karrie and Julie faded today. It was a great finish with Meg Mallon winning by one shot. I was especially impressed by how Annika came back on Sunday. It's too bad that she could not convert just a few more birdies in the last few holes. Nice tournament.

1/25/99

	keep left feet on the ground; to make good contact the club has to come back to its original position; don't change the spine and body position and angle
	don't overcock the wrist; good control of the club at the top of the swing
	grip down for better control; sacraficing some distance is okay as long as I get ride of my slice
	putting: square the putter face; make sure the alignment marks are really facing the hold
	putting: stand close

1/26/99

I had a complete disaster at the driving range. I suddenly forgot how to play :-( However, I did see a nice 1/2 hour show on course strategy on TGC: don't take uncessary risk, don't play beyond your ability, aim away from hazard, and other good hints.

1/27/99

I had a great time playing on the Palm Course at Sunvol Valley golf.

1/28/99

	Swing: keep the right feet slightly behind the left in order not to collapse my left knee; seems to be able to contact the ball more consistently
	Putt: Tick-Tock. Slowly move the putter back, let the height determine the distance, and let gravity bring the putter down and forward.

1/29/99

After the practice swing and before the real swing don't regrip the club.

Read a few good articles in the Golf magazine.

1/30/99

I enjoyed watching the Office Depot LPGA tournament. Julie faded away. Dottie faded away. Kelly faded away. Karrie Webb hang in there and won by one stroke.

1/31/99

Tiger came in third place at the Phoenix open. It's nice to see that he is close to the top. I'm looking forward to see him play at the AT&T pro-am tournament in Monterey in just a few days.

2/1/99

Played with RK at Santa Teresa. Click here for the full story.

2/2/99

Played a nice 9-hole execute course at Lake Chabot. Click here for the full story and a great panoramic shot.