May
21
2010
Budget, Gear By Golfernewb | No comments yet

DEALS of the Day

Any of you ever heard of GROUPon.com? It’s a site that is pretty cool for some great deals. It works by setting a activation number of people, and offering a substantial deal IF the activation number is hit. So for example lets say that the activation number is 20 people for a deal. You sign up for it and IF 20 people sign up as well the deal is activated. Point? I got word that today there is a groupon going on for GolfTEC that is pretty good. It’s a half hour swing analysis that is normally $85 but IF the groupon is activated can be yours for just $35. 2 days left to participate and 11 have already signed up for it. The activation number is 20 so it is likely they will hit the activation and the deal can be yours. Offer good at the locations listed. You can check out all the details here if you wish.

If you are in the West L.A. area Roger Dunn is having a tent sale at that location. Standard deals, $2 off balls and gloves, etc.. I would advise that if you go to these tent sales, if you do happen to find something you like that is not on sale just ask an associate if it is included in the sale. If you get denied, ask if it could be with a big ‘ol smile on your face. Hehe, it does work people. I have honestly pulled deals from RD without any sales being on at all, just know your limits and the boundary between begging and curiosity. Take it from the business associate’s perspective, is this an opportunity to heighten customer satisfaction or abuse?

Somewhat funny story…  The other day I was selling my old golf bag, when I went to open my trunk to get the bag he saw my golf cart in the trunk. He asked about it rather excitedly about it since he was going to go get one right away. Well, knowing that the Clicgear 3.0 is out there just SCREAMING at me and literally haunting me I had to make a quick decision and sell my cart. It was okay, but it lacked some major features that I like and had a bit of a problem fitting the stand pivot points on the “cradle” at the top (btw, the clicgear cart actually has indentations to compensate for them). So now I am cart-less. Guess I am on my way to West L.A.!!!

UPDATE: The cart is on sale in West LA for 10% off. I just made a call and pulled the same deal at my local RD. No driving in LA for me, woohooo! Oh and just to keep my lover-ly readers “in-the-know”, Santa Ana RD just told me that they are having another sale on Memorial day AND on Father’s day.

And just for those interested in great food, the Kogi truck shows up in the parking lot at the Santa Ana RD every Wed. Do you realize the deal you are getting by being a faithful reader?! All this knowledge for such a bargain price.

May
19
2010
General Rant, The Enemies By Golfernewb | 1 comment

The Basic Speed Law

C’MON!! What is going on up there??! MOVE IT!!!!!

It was not long ago that I was playing at a local course. Everything started out normal, a nice breezy day with the sun coming through just enough to know we are in So Cal, golfers gathered at the putting practice area, hanging out at the lounge, just a standard day. I was eager and ready to relax and play some golf. By the end of this day, I was the most frustrated I had ever been. Disgusted and scarred not wanting to return in the foreseeable future I was truly upset. Whilst my anger is normally directed at myself for not doing as well as I should, this day I was livid at my fellow man. You see, this turned out to be a day of anguish with 20 -30 minute wait times PER hole and took more than 6.5 hours to complete the 18 holes. By the time I got home, the golf outing was nearly 7.5 hours altogether. This would not be an issue if the course was incredibly difficult or a known long course to play. It was not, it was actually supposed to be like any other local course, about four hours with maybe a little back up on each three par. You see the issue on this course were the people in front of us. Two groups, one of four and the other five just jabbering along and taking their time. The Basic Speed Law was being violated and there was no marshall to rectify!

To me golf is about fun, it is a sport that I struggle with, but it is an internal struggle. This fun can always be shared amongst friends but there is and should always be a caveat. The Basic Speed Law as applied to golf. Similar to the actual legal law that reads:

Basic Speed Law

22350.  No person shall drive a vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having due regard for weather, visibility, the traffic on, and the surface and width of, the highway, and in no event at a speed which endangers the safety of persons or property.

Amended Ch. 252, Stats. 1963. Effective September 20, 1963.

In the most simplest of golf terms this law is shortened to: Keep up with the group in front of you! (obviously golf is easier than driving). This law is good for the course as it keeps players moving, it is good for the players since nobody needs to spend nearly twice as long playing, but most of all it is about courtesy. You see, it is not only about your group and that little delay you may be causing, this delay perpetuates and grows and grows like a ripple effect all throughout the course behind you.

I think that a simple test is this, as close as the group is behind you you should be at least that close to the one in front of you. It is well understood that player count in a group makes a large difference but if you are playing with a four or five, it really is all that much more important to be cognizant of your surroundings.

Golf karma can be a killer just remember that the longer you take and simply don’t care it will happen much worse to you one day. wait a second…

May
17
2010
Personal, Reference By Golfernewb | 2 comments

Get Your Golf-ercise!

I have to admit that when I first began to play golf, my main interest in the game was in the exercise. I

Feeling the Burn

thought that walking while carrying all your clubs would introduce a fun way to walk a long distance but not really notice it. Add in the weight of all those metal clubs, balls and stuff on my back and I would have a great exercise opportunity.

Well, it did not take long as I began to play that I thought to myself that getting a cart would introduce all kinds of convenient access to water, cell phone and most importantly, snacks. Don’t get me wrong, I rarely ever rent a cart for my golfing so I have not totally strayed from my path but I have “invested” in a 3 wheel push cart and have been quite happy for some time. A couple of weeks ago I was playing at Los Verdes in Palos Verdes and had an interesting statement made to me about the amount of exercise someone gets during a golf outing. This guy quoted from a magazine and I went off to source it since he was not quite sure about the figures. I found it in the May 2010, GOLF magazine on page 111. Turns out that the following was discovered:

On a standard 7,000 yard course a tester logged in about 16,000 steps or a whopping EIGHT miles from walking the course.

In a cart, there was 13,000 steps logged, or 6.5 miles.

Honestly, I question the cart value of 6.5 miles. I don’t know all of the parameters of the testing but I do know that it was performed with a pedometer. I am admittedly ignorant to the vast majority of the courses in the world but I just can’t logically see a decrease of only 19% by renting a cart. Is it possible that the pedometer was logging “steps” while the cart was bumping from the natural terrain, ejecting golf partners, rolling over other people’s balls or likewise? Unsure, but data is data and for now that since I am not doing it myself, will cede to the reported figures.

Another consideration in the amount of exercise that we are getting is obviously the terrain of the course. Of the places I have played I can say that although comparable in difficulty, there is a vast difference in how tired I am after playing Lakewood Country Course vs Los Verdes. While Lakewood is pretty flat for the most part, Los Verdes has got some major hills to get over. Needless to say, walking those hills put a different strain on your body altogether. No pedometer is measuring inclines and difficulty rating that I know of. Point is, I think we can all agree that golfing is a great form of exercise. How great? Well, it is heavily dependent on many other factors and ultimately is what you make of it.

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