Tuesday, October 23, 2007
New Jack Swing – The Mental

I travelled up to Derby to meet with Mark Shervill, top Zenjin PGA professional, to get the coaching cracking.  I’d been waiting for this moment for the past four months, and I have to admit I was struggling to contain my beaming smile.


So what better way to wipe the smug look from my face than discover that I’m short of a car for the week and forced to hit the London underground with a large carry case and 30,000 screw-faced commuters, surprisingly not too appreciative of a fresh faced lad ready for a relaxing round of golf.

For anyone who finds themselves in this unfortunate situation, I will be posting a secret sign that engages fellow golf punks in the near vicinity to spring into action and help negotiate the uncompromising London crowds…. It could work!

Luckily when I got there Mark managed to calm my underground anger with a cuppa and a chat about Spurs leaky defence, before zipping us off to Worksop Golf Club. Let the games begin.

Teacher
Mark Shervill

What does he know?
P.G.A Professional, a master practitioner of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) and a Zen Master

What’s his angle?
Communication is key. Mark actively works to ensure his message is not misinterpreted by his students. He’s also a strong believer in utilising the body’s natural energy and explains how our actions can channel this energy.

What’s he saying?
“Blending the Mind and Body to produce a unique learning experience enables us to unlock your hidden potential and release the positive golfer within.”


What are we working on?
How to tap into that ‘ ready to perform state’.

Equipment used
Golf balls
A leader board (a training aid)
A football
Drill
Set up with 8 golf balls and a football 20 yards in front on me.
Pretend that each shot was the final shot in to the British Open and go through pre-shot routine.  Before I hit each one he would tell me what type of shot he wanted me to play (cut/draw, high/low and with what club), after each shot I walked out to the football and on the way back I rated out of 10 how committed I was to the shot.
Result
I rated my commitment to the shot - including my pre shot routine, my visualisation of the shot, the accuracy of my target, my concentration level and how ready I was to play the shot- the amazing thing was that the highest score I could give myself was a 7, meaning I was only 70% ready to play the shot.  This really put things in to perspective.


What are we working on?
Cut down on wasted shots.
Drill
Count how many ‘anyway’ shots I hit in the round.  By this I mean how many shots I hit when I’m not 100% sure of what I was doing, or didn’t feel comfortable over the shot, but hit it anyway.
The Theory
This equates to how many shots I am potentially throwing away each round. As how can I be angry about a shot that I wasn’t prepared for?


2 ½ hours went by in a flash in what was a captivating and productive session.  At the end of the lesson we then met up with two other members of Zenjins elite squad, Jonathan Smart, who is the youngest player on the Europro tour and Sam Robinson a Rookie on the Alps tour.

We headed out on to the course for seven holes before the day came to an end. In spite of it being a friendly relaxed game I was keen not to look foolish in front of these extremely talented golfers and focused on the task in hand.  

And although they joked that it is all I would write about, I have to mention that I did smash my opening drive a good 20 yards past theirs (get in there my son!) on the 1st and managed to beat them both in the few holes we squeezed in, though mark drained a good putt on the last to pip me by one (revenge will be sweet Mark!)

To keep up with Jack’s progress click here and press subscribe.

Alternatively keep an eye on the GP Blog at www.golfpunkonline.com

To check out the first stage of Jack’s golfing odyssey click here...





10/23/2007 4:00:03 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [0] 

  Monday, October 22, 2007
Webster Wins

What a week for British sport. First the chances of seeing one of the home nations in the 2008 European Championship have all but evaporated. England were turned over by the Springboks in the Rugby World Cup. Then Lewis Hamilton lost out on the Formula One World Championship. Despite all the disappointments there was a British victory, Steve Webster’s triumph in the Portugal Masters.

Steve posted 25 under par over four rounds, a season low on the European Tour, to take the title at the Oceanico Victoria Clube de Golfe yesterday pocketing £ 350,000 for his efforts.

This was Webster’s first win since the Italian Open in 2005 just five months after his mother passed away. It was clearly an emotional affair with Steve dedicating his victory to his mum saying, "I was thinking about her all the way round." As he fought back the tears he added, "It was so hard to keep my mind on my golf. I knew she was watching out for me and it's an amazing feeling to play that well down the stretch."

You can’t argue with that sort of fortitude.

Looking at some of the rounds posted in Vilamoura this weekend a few players had a hot streak, and not in the ‘you really should see a doctor about that’ way. If you took a round a day from Martin Kaymer, Ross Fisher, Robert Karlsson and Steve Webster you’d have a combined score of 34 under par. Short of a major advance in medical science this will never happen, but food for thought all he same.

For a review of the last day of the Portugal Masters click here...

 For information on all things Portugal Masters click here...



Golf News
10/22/2007 11:23:11 AM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [0] 

  Friday, October 19, 2007
Martin Kaymer Blazing A Trail At The Portugal Masters

Martin Kaymer has got off to a cracker at the Portugal Masters. Showing the form that saw him post a frankly absurd 59 last June the 22 year old German rookie carded a 61 leaving many of his illustrious colleagues trailing in his wake. We’ve got everything crossed that the Kid Kaymer can keep it up over the weekend.

Children are the future eh? If that’s the case the future is now. The rest of the field must quaking in their soft spikes.

“MARTIN KAYMER, one of the few golfers in the world who knows what it is like to score 59, sparkled again yesterday when he began the £2m Portugal Masters in Vilamoura with an 11-under-par 61.

The 22-year-old German rookie left the rest of the star-studded field trailing in his wake by equalling the lowest round of the European Tour season and clipping two strokes off the Oceanico Victoria Club’s course record.


Martin Kaymer, very good at golf.

Kaymer leads by three from Argentina’s Daniel Vancsik and Swede Martin Erlandsson, with Lee Westwood and Retief Goosen in the group four back, Order of Merit title hopeful Justin Rose eight behind and 18-year-old rising star Rory McIlroy 10 adrift.

It was in a mini-tour event in his home country in June last year that Kaymer fired his 59, holing an 18-foot putt on the final green to add to 11 other birdies, an eagle and even a bogey in that round.

There was still one more round to play in the tournament, but he closed with a 10-under 62 and won by 10.

The Dusseldorf golfer missed six of his first seven halfway cuts on entering the main circuit this season, but since then has posted second and third-place finishes and stands 54th on the money list with more than £375,000….”

For more on this story click here...

For latest from the Portugal Masters click here...

You can vote for Martin Kaymer and whole host of other things in the 2007 GOLFPUNK Awards at www.golfpunkonline.com/readers-survey or click here...




Golf News
10/19/2007 2:42:49 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [0] 

  Thursday, October 18, 2007
Storm In A Ballot Box

Evening all. An email has made into the inboxes at GP Towers showing remarkable initiative. Greame Storm’s pals at Champions PR have embraced political campaigning and are looking to make their man number one. No, not in the upcoming Pakistani elections but in the altogether more important 2007 GOLFPUNK Awards.

You’ve got admire their gusto.


Future Lord Staunch? You decide.

To view the partly political broadcast click here...


Make Graeme’s dream come true or try and stitch him up at www.golfpunkonline.com/staunch-awards. It’s your choice.

Click here for details...





Golf Punks
10/18/2007 5:16:29 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [0] 

  Wednesday, October 17, 2007
A Winners Tale

Yesterday we brought you an article about Michelle Wie and her troubles at the Samsung Open at the weekend. Looking back it’s a bit out of order going on about who came last without giving the winner some love, so here it is.

Congratulations Lorena.

“PALM DESERT, Calif. – Lorena Ochoa enjoys life at the top, and she intends to stay there for a while.

Ochoa clinched her second consecutive LPGA player of the year award with a runaway victory Sunday in the Samsung World Championship.

Successfully defending her title in the elite event, Ochoa crafted a closing 6-under 66 in what began as a pressure-packed final round. The title was her seventh of the year and 16th overall.


Lorena just drop it!

She finished at 18-under 270 – four shots ahead of Mi Hyun Kim – and earned $250,000 to push her record total to $3,318,421.

“After what happened in 2006, I thought it would be hard to improve, but here I am,” said the smiling Ochoa, who won six times last year.

Asked how she plans to remain No. 1, she said, “I always try to be one step ahead; not let any distractions get in the way, get in my practice and my rest.

“And there are a lot of things to improve. I’m going to work hard.”

Kim closed with a 69. Angela Park, this year’s rookie of the year, and Jeong Jang shot 70s to tie for third at 13 under.
Kim said that Ochoa, unlike many other players who hit the ball long, also has a fine short game.

“She is still young, but mentally good, and if she hits long, she hits a good putt. She has a lot of good things. I’m jealous,” Kim said, grinning.

She added that, because Ochoa is so long off the tee, “I want to ask her, I want to get 10 yards distance from her.”
Asked later if she were willing to give Kim a 10-yard advantage, Ochoa laughed and said, “No.”…

To read the rest of this article click here...


To find out more about Lorena Ochoa click here...


You can make Loerna’s year by voting for her in the GOLFPUNK Awards 2007. Click here for details...




Golf News | Women's Golf news
10/17/2007 5:12:10 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [0] 

  Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Wie Wonders

We came across this cheeky little article. James Achenbach has penned an ode to the occasional golfing phenom Michelle Wie that is certainly worth a read.

After the weekend she’s just had we’re sure Miss Wie could do with out it.

I’ve heard of better present for your 18th.

Happy birthday ‘Chelle.

“Today’s lesson is pretty simple: How to drive it right.

That’s right as in wide right, not right as in correct, although you would be correct in assuming that Wie is an expert in wide right.

Here in the opening round of the Samsung World Championship, played Thursday at Bighorn Golf Club, most of the Big Wiesy’s drives were right of Dick Cheney.

On one hole, the 4th, she hit a drive so far right that her Nike ball cleared a fence and left the property. See ya.


There's still plenty of time girl.

Keep in the mind that the fairways at Bighorn are about as wide as the Mississippi River. Courtesy of architect Tom Fazio, they are gigantic. Regardless, Wie couldn’t find most of them if she had a fairway-sniffing dog.

It was that kind of day. She shot 79, 7-over-par, for a 100 percent share of last place.
To top it off, she was playing on her 18th birthday. “I just feel like this year is going to be extra special because I will actually be a legal adult,” she said earlier in the week. “I’m very excited for that. I think that it’s time for a new beginning.”…

To read the article in full click here...





Golf News | Women's Golf news
10/16/2007 5:09:18 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [0] 

  Monday, October 15, 2007
Sporting Highlight Of The Weekend?

What a weekend of sport. England turning over the international powerhouse that is Estonia in the footy. Then 14 grumpy old men and a chap with a wand for a left foot dump France out of their own tournament. Then South Africa did the double over Argentina; the Big Easy defeating Angel Cabrera to claim the World Match Play title in his back garden – picking up a million pounds to boot – and the Springboks trouncing the Pumas to book their place in the Rugby World Cup final.

So what would be the sporting highlight of the last four days?

None of the above, actually. Because, as far as we’re concerned, James Grant’s hole in one/albatross on a par four at Sunbury Golf Course yesterday afternoon takes the biscuit. “Who?” I may hear you ask? And the answer is we’re not entirely sure. Jim sent us an email this morning, particularly chuffed with his achievement, and we’ve decided this feat deserved a wider audience.

According to Google Answers, there’s a 30,000-1 chance of someone notching an ace and even more acute chance on a par 4. For this alone James deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as the rest of the sporting excellence of the weekend.

Take it away James.

“Hi
 
Not sure it’s that newsworthy, but apparently the odds are astronomical...
 
I hit an albatross yesterday at Sunbury Golf Course. 3rd hole, par 4, 293 to the front edge, about 310 yards to the pin, I took a driver to cut the corner of a mini dog-leg. I said to my playing partners before I hit it that I was going for the green to a chorus of disapproval (we were playing matchplay, so we were supposed to be playing sensibly.) Anyway, the ball pitched just on the front edge of the green and rolled in for an ace! Needless to say - we won that hole!
 
The rest of the round was terrible, we were really hungover from watching England win the rugby the night before!”



So there you have it.

If you have any tales of golfing excellence or sporting ineptitude email us at website@jf-media.co.uk and if we like it we’ll make you famous.



Golf News | Golf Punks
10/15/2007 12:35:14 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [1] 

  Thursday, October 11, 2007
Do Us A Favour

“Wedding favours eh? What the bleeding hell are those?” I hear the unmarried ask. We at GOLFPUNK thought wedding favours were what you hoped the best man wouldn’t be caught giving the bride. But we’re serious journo types at GP Towers so we gave the subject in depth research, looked on Wikipedia, and discovered they’re, “small gifts given as a gesture of appreciation or gratitude to guests from the bride and groom during a wedding ceremony or a wedding reception.”

If you're looking to get married but haven’t decided on what you’re going to give your esteemed guests look no further. Beaucoup have produced the ultimate Wedding Favour, personalised golf balls. Now we know this is not ground breaking but this is the first time this Webitor has seen personalised golf tat used in a marital setting.



You can instantly see the benefits. Which self respecting golf punk wants to be rewarded for an afternoon of missing the links, sitting in a stuffy church/hall/registry office and listening to not so funny speeches with a candle in a silk pouch or a heart shaped mirror?

At least with the golf balls you'll have a gift that reminds you of the happiest day of someone elses life that you can keep forever. Well, the first three holes of your next round anyway.

To get your hands on personalised golf ball wedding favour click here...


For when golf isn't enough
10/11/2007 1:58:03 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [1] 


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