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Struggling with direction and consistency? This one’s for you!

Wednesday, 12 September 2018

May the magic of this Eid bring lots of happiness in your life and may you celebrate it with all your close friends & family.
Eid Mubarak.

Spring has sprung!

The weather has definitely changed and spring is approaching quickly, which is an exciting time of the year. It also means spring treatment of most of the courses is just around the corner, so I would suggest you get as much golf in as you can over the next few weeks.

Brandt Snedeker became the 9th player to shoot 59 on the PGA Tour in last week’s Wyndham Championship! It seems that this is becoming more and more of a possibility each season which I feel shows how much better the players are getting, and the depth of possible winners is increasing.

This is one of the reasons I think that add to the debate of Tiger winning another major. Almost the entire world press think that golf is now sexy again and that surely Tiger will now start winning majors again. What interests me is that his 64 in the last round of the PGA Championship was his lowest ever final round in a major and yet he didn’t win. The younger players he is now competing against have not experienced the Tiger effect of the early 2000’s which puts him at a disadvantage, however you simply can’t underestimate him and the US Masters this year will be in his sights.

The most exciting event on the horizon is the Ryder cup and we should have the news on the final teams in the next few weeks. On the US side, they simply have to pick Tiger, and his form over the past few months will give them real momentum. That said, his record at the Ryder Cup is less than impressive, however I wouldn’t be surprised if he blows his opponents away. The Europeans of course have the option to set the course up to suit them. Will this mean tight fairways and penalising rough to nullify the US big hitters? It will be interesting to see.

I am sure most of you saw the destruction done to the Wild Coast Sun this week, which was so disappointing. What was uplifting was the response from all the neighbouring courses. Everyone sent staff and equipment to help make the repairs!

This past week I have had several students struggling with direction and consistency on their full swings and the common misunderstanding was the concept of the path the club travels after impact. This video may help…

If a fitted iron increased the number of solid, accurate approach shots you, would you want a fitted iron set?

Now please note that, very skillful golfers were more able to accommodate fitting errors than anyone else;
and that less capable golfers were much less able to make the necessary adjustments in their s
wing for an iron that was poorly fitted.

There’s a partnership between shaft length, lie angle and shaft flex that will help us
help you make the game easier. Length, angle and flex all impact accuracy.
They all impact consistency. Let’s get yours right.

This is a ‘no-brainer’. Every golfer should play with golf equipment that makes it easy to repeat a golf swing;
that brings the club face back to the ball; square to the target line. Inexperienced and learning? Make it easier.
Improving and aspiring? Make it easier. Good and competitive? Make it easier.

This is a fun advert but, again, it’s full
of social commentary.What is most important to the identified
generational group is the empowerment of
their children.

What this generation knows is that nothing is more important
than doing things with their children.

Make golf with your family a special time together.

The world has evolved. Golf needs to be a game for everyone. Starting with partners, mothers, daughters, sisters,
we want to get more women into golf. How can you help?

Happy golfing!
Steve

Our website had a makeover…go check it out!

Words fail me when trying to describe the last day of the PGA Championship last week, and I am eating my words about Tiger. He is definitely back and looking like he can win again! To quote David Feherty, “The only mistake I make with Tiger is to under estimate him.”

Our new Bunnies Programme has kicked off

The new bunnies started this week with 17 ladies all keen and eager!

Invest some time in improving your golf!

If you are looking to invest some time into improving your golf, then please make use of the free assessment lessons that Martin Smit and I offer at the Mount Edgecombe Golf Academy. No obligation, we just want to make sure that you have a clear understanding of the steps needed to get lasting success. Get in touch if we can help.

Our website has a new look and feel!

Friday night under the lights!

After last month’s event was such a success, make sure you diarise for the 7th September.

Stand a chance to win a trip for 4 to the 2019 PGA Championship!

Did you enjoy watching Tiger in the hunt on Sunday? Koepka bombing drives down the middle of the fairway? Next year you could be there to witness the action at Beth Page Black in Farmingdale New York!

All you have to do is buy a raffle ticket and stand a chance to win a trip for four golfers to the 2019 PGA Championship in the USA. It includes return flights on Delta Airlines and 7 nights’ accommodation. On top of that you get to play 2 rounds of golf in the area, and it includes access to the PGA Championship Wannamaker Hospitality Center and tickets to all 4 days. Even better, you will also get the opportunity to play the Black course on the Monday after the Championship round.

The tickets are R1000 each and all money raised will be donated to the South African Golf Development Board. Click here to buy your tickets. T&Cs apply.

You could drive a car with the seat in the incorrect position. But you wouldn’t. You adjust the seat to fit your specification. Even an inexperienced driver makes this change. Driving is easier.

Now, you’re going to rotate a golf club with a very small head around your body,
and try and deliver it back to make contact with an even smaller golf ball,
so that it travels down a target line. Surely that challenge needs you to
“adjust your seat” with a golf club that fits.

This is a ‘no-brainer’. Every golfer should play with golf equipment that makes it easy to repeat a golf swing;
that brings the club face back to the ball; square to the target line. Inexperienced and learning? Make it easier. Improving and aspiring? Make it easier. Good and competitive? Make it easier.

For anyone taking up golf, it can seem intimidating.
Stand on any tee, next time you’re going round, and imagine you’re thirty something
and you’ve had your first 3 lessons. Yes, after just three lessons you’re facing 400 metres,
bunkers, trees and water. We want to change that.

We want to introduce more people to the game. We want them to gain enjoyment from the game immediately.
One way to do that, is to get out on the golf course and play 9 (or even just 6) holes from 50 metres in.
It’s the equivalent of the ‘bunny slopes’ in Switzerland.

For anyone who’s learning, or is less-skilled / experienced, playing golf from the tees can limit the enjoyment.
If you’re playing with family or friends for enjoyment, then setup the game so that they can tackle challenges
they can accomplish, at least some of the time.

This week is all about our juniors

Who’s your pick for the 2018 PGA Championship?

This weekend will bring the 2018 Major Championships for the men to an end, with the PGA Championship taking place at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis, Missouri. The past two times this club has hosted a major, the winners were Gary Player and Nick Price, so hopefully we will see another Southern African winner.

Who to put your money on? Here are my top 5 picks…

Justin Thomas
Ricky Fowler
Dustin Johnson
Tommy Fleetwood
Rory McIlroy

The best South African bet is still Louis Oosthuizen and hopefully we see a great tournament from Brandon Stone.

See you on the range

The Friday Night Under Lights Event was a real success this past week, the highlight being Nick Phipps winning the cash prize in the Pitch for Cash Competition sponsored by Harbour Wealth.

There were lots of families who came and had a go and as you can see the kids then had a ball picking up all the range balls (nice, honest fun away from their cell phones and iPads).

The kids had a lot of fun picking up the balls

Put the next event in your diary – The first Friday of every month (The next one is on 7 September).

Our Junior Program is producing some great results!

Last week Akil Maduray won the C Division Matchplay beating Chris Lonsdale in the final. Akil is only 11 years old! Another super performance came from 13-year old Amy Fletcher who lost in the final of the ladies B Division Matchplay on the 21st hole to Carol Hubert.

Akil, Amy and Nick Phipps are all students at the Mt Edgecombe Junior Academy and are coached by Martin Smit.

Akil Maduray C Division Matchplay Champ with his coach
Amy Fletcher, losing finalist in the ladies B Division matchplay

Ladies bring your friends and lets play some golf!

The final Bunnies Programme this year will be starting next Thursday and there are still a few spaces available if you know of anyone who is keen. Contact me if you’re interested.

Email: nix@petertaylor.co.za or steve@greatgolf.co.za

What can you learn from Ernie Els?

This video was taken a few years ago here at the Mount Edgecombe Driving Range, I hope it helps you.

What’s happening at Monica’s?

We had our new consulting chef work with our chefs over the weekend. Thanks to Chef Danielle for all your input and putting a happy spirit back in to our kitchen.

We had an extremely busy weekend but thumbs up to the staff, Sunday they were still full of smiles. Thanks to all our loyal customers for your support and inspiration.

Chefs in training
Monica's Happy Helpers

We want to help more of our golfers experience more often the joy of a sweetly struck, accurate, iron shot.
That means increasing consistency, and how square to the target line the club face is at impact.
To achieve that, whatever your skill level, you need an iron that fits you.
The chances of that off the shelf: 1 in 15 or even worse odds.

The wrong shaft length makes getting into the right address position more difficult.
The wrong lie angle makes square contact very difficult.
The wrong shaft flex means you’re not translating the power of your swing into ball flight and speed.
Each of these affects consistency, accuracy, and distance.

This is a ‘no-brainer’. Every golfer should play with golf equipment that makes it easy to repeat a golf swing;
that brings the club face back to the ball; square to the target line. Inexperienced and learning? Make it easier.
Improving and aspiring? Make it easier. Good and competitive? Make it easier.

Do you know that in most of the traditional golfing countries, only about 8% of golfers are female.
Too many women feel less than welcome when they step onto a golf property.
That’s not the impression we want to create.

Come on in. We want to get more women playing golf. We want to create an experience where
you get out on the golf course, making and enjoying friendships.

Actually, it doesn’t matter what your skill level is, one of the best way to learn or improve the game is
out on the course in a small group, being coached together as you play.

If you have a partner, sister, mother, daughter, friend, who has any interest in taking up the most social,
the most healthy, outdoor activity, then please introduce them to us.