Cold hands, deep pockets

Today I needed all of Jonty’s cold weather tips and then some. The weather was irresistible – blue skies and firm (look no mud!) ground, but the wind had the edge of a knife. Trust me I was wearing every thermal layer you could imagine, topped off by a full set of water/windproofs.

But I know from past experience that the biggest problem is keeping my hands warm. Those conventional ‘windstopper’ gloves are no use for me. They seem to restrict the circulation and make my hands even colder. I prefer mitts, which as Jonty says can be easily whipped off and on. But I carry only a single-pocket practice bag in winter and don’t want the faff of holding onto two big mitts in between times. Since I find the one I wear over the golf glove (left hand) less effective, I stick to one for my right hand (which dangles over my bag) hoping my left hand will be snug in my pocket between shots. But today, with the mercury hovering on zero and That Wind, I needed help, and with Husband-of–the-Goddess (or HoG as I think of him) laid up with a Lemsip, I decided to try out his new HotRox handwarmer.

This is a pebble-shaped gadget which is charged up in advance and simply switched on at the start of the round. I used my trusty mitt on my right hand and kept the Hotrox in my left pocket, and I have to say that even wearing a driving glove and with the warmer in its cover (as recommended) it provided a good level of heat and a lot of psychological comfort. Previously HoG used a warmer that relied on lighter fuel, but that would be too fiddly (or scary?) scary for me, and if Hotrox is on the pricey side (£25 upwards) it is reusable, fuss free and doesn’t ‘go off’ by mistake as some of those chemical packets do.

Sadly the heated pocket didn’t seem to help my golf and I failed to follow up my rather pleasing 38 points on Saturday with anything worth talking about, but I would say the Hotrox was a success, and next time it’s blowing in from Siberia, I could well be raiding a certain person’s golf bag.



Weather too cool for cats

On the other hand, on a day when the highlight of the round was breaking the ice in a bunker, some might say I would have done better to stay at home.

Winter golf: the range

January – don’t you just love it? Last year it was snow, this year torrential rain and gale force winds. Even before Christmas our course was totally sodden so today there was nothing for it but to head to the localrange especially as it’s Tuesday when for a mere fiver you can hit as many balls as you like and get some decent swing advice from the friendly pro. What's more, I have a shiny new hybrid to try out, (thank you, Santa!) so there was no stopping me.

Until I found the entrance road to the golf range under several feet of water. I might be keen, but I have my ailing suspension to consider!

Still, I’ve been going on and off to this roll-up class for the last year and my swing really has improved so that while I may still be playing off a ladylike 23, I’m out-hitting the 16-20  handicappers I go out with on a regular basis.

But am I taking the money? Well I have had my moments, but truth to tell, I’ve never looked like getting below my current handicap, because as Jonty says, at the end of the day it’s the short game that counts. Getting close to the green in two is no good if it takes another three (at least!) to get the wee white ball in the cup.

The range is fine for sorting out the swing but the temptation is to keep on wellying it as far as the eye can see, ignoring the bit that will really lower your score. There are things you can do, like playing consecutive shots with different clubs (there wood, six-iron, pitching wedge) to replicate the experience of being on a course, but  chips and pitches don’t feel the same off the manicured mats of the range. The club’s practice area is much better for getting the feel of the shorter shots, except that practising outside in winter leaves me cold in more ways than one!

So it looks like it’s back to putting on the carpet for me, and maybe some of these drills will stand me in good stead for when I next brave the elements.  

The Green Goddess in warmer weather! 

Meanwhile I might do some virtual golfing, so if you have a golf blog and interesting things to say, leave a comment so that we can check you out. 

Happy practising!

Winter golf - the reality

Had a disappointment this week at St. Pierre Chepstow where we arrived to find one hole closed and several others shortened while a load of reconstruction is being done - all of which is great for the club members but a bit of a downer for visitors like us. I though they might have offered a discount on green fees, but I suppose winter rates are already cheaper than summer, on the basis that at any time in the off season (is there an off season in golf?) you 'takes your chance'. As it was they did throw in a course guide (which they will no doubt be throwing out come the summer when the changes come into effect!)

For me the biggest irritation was the reek of burned stubble on the front nine, not helped by my completely flunking the second despite an almost perfect drive - the smell if not the taste of defeat! After that things did get better for me and there was a certain interest in watching the new turf being rolled over remodelled bunkers. I particularly enjoyed the half-forgotten experience of teeing off on grass instead of the dreaded mats, not to mention parring the eighteenth - nothing like a good finish to round off the day.

All in all a pleasant day despite the disruption. It would be good to see how the course looks in sixth months time. A discount off our next visit would definitely have kept me sweet!

Summer Weather, Winter Tees

On the other side of the world (climatically speaking) there's a new Star of India but here in the South West we are basking under the same sunny skies we enjoyed last month in Cornwall. On Saturday it was warm enough for shirt sleeves (pity I was wearing two sweaters!) and Sunday much the same. Sadly the summer weather doesn't seem to be helping my stubbornly winter style of golf (uninspired) and I'm feeling as cross as ever about the winter golfer's bugbear, the dreaded mats. If I'm off form (yes, you guessed) it really doesn't help to have to step up on a niggardly square of green astro-turf flung down at random on a strip of muddy and uneven grass. These particular mats have a 'choice' (LOL) of two tee-pegs (neither of them the height I'd like) and precious little room to take a practice swing or adjust my stance. They're also positioned in a completely haphazard direction which may or may not line you up with the fairway, the pin, or the nearest water hazard.
Recent visits to local courses show that around here mats are inevitable in the winter months, but that it's possible to provide a much better teeing surface than what we're having to put up with. Saltford Golf Club, for instance, has good size mats with slots for 'real' tee-pegs. The mats are set on larger bases of an open design that lets air travel between the two surfaces, a solution that should please the green-keepers as well as the winter golfer. Our club is mainly 'pay and play' and has little or no regard for the interests of the membership, but surely investing in some decent winter tees would be a good business decision. The course stays open in pretty much any weather and could attract players from a number of the local clubs that reguarly close after heavy rain, but if any self-respecting golfer turned up at the moment, they would take a look at our winter tees and probably run a mile.

Give me sunshine

This prayer was answered last weekend when we decided at the last minute to join friends who had booked in at the gorgeous Carlyon Bay Hotel near St. Austell. The course (and a fine birdie!) is commemorated on my old golf blog but this year the weather proved, by comparison, blissfully fair and the course in excellent condition. At this time of year the joy of springy turf underfoot is hard to beat and I did play rather better golf than a year ago, twice managing a 6 on that evil uphill 13th - good enough for me.
One small complaint on Sunday when we were on winter greens for three or four holes. Obviously this can't be avoided from time to time, but on this occasion there was no warning and the so-called temporaries were completely undistinguishable from fairway. In fact we failed to even find the seventeenth green and were forced to abandon the hole! Still, I don't think that will be our abiding memory of such a lovely weekend.

A dark and stormy day

It's not easy being a golf blogger right now; the skies are grey and the courses are boggy or closed, and try as I might I can't get excited by who said what in the Monty/Nick saga. There may be events taking place in glorious sun on the other side of the world, but frankly, am I bovvered?

But here's a story to gladden any winter golfer's heart.

Last week , four doughty Golf Monthly Forum members took on four GM staff in what turned out to be an epic encounter on a windswept (and apparently deserted) Jubilee Course at St. Andrews. Now that's what I call golf!

Reports suggest it was a great match generously sprinkled with birdies, and the result was a fair but memorable draw. Since the staff team had some inmpressively low handicaps, I think that's a moral victory to the forum lads, who may have been a bit more acclimatised to East Coast conditions, but could you play like this in front of an official photographer?

Please note these pictures belong to Golf Monthly and should not be reproduced, transmitted etc etc ... you know the score (i.e. hands off, you blagging bloggers!)

The full match report will be in April's Golf Monthly (next but one issue, which just happens to be the one where a certain blogger is also appearing in print!) and I'm ordering my copy now, but meanwhile a big thank you to Mike Harris the editor for letting me give you a sneak preview here.

Well done, boys, and roll on the next event on the GM challenge tour!

Dress code for winter

Twice this week I've forgotten to take my camera out on the course to record the frosty weather, including a disconcerted duck standing on a frozen lake, and other scenes that would grace any Christmas card.

Don't fancy sub-zero golf? As someone said recently on Golf Monthly Forum, there's no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing, so girls, here is my recipe for winter golf (without going out and spending a fortune).

• Long vest - silk - from Patra (longer than is strictly necessary but perfect for bridging that sneaky gap between jumper and trousers!)

• Roll neck sweater - wool & cashmere - from Next (bought many moons ago as a fashion item, now put to much better use).

• V-neck sweater - Shetland wool, by Cross Creek - extravagant? From a Pro-shop discount rail - good buy!

• Goose down duvet - oops - gilet - from Landsend, as shown above but in dangerously lurid pink. Might not pass muster with the Solheim Cup ladies, but perfectly adequate, with good deep pockets for balls, tees, and for the other occupational hazard, tissues for a runny nose

• Woolly hat - from Pringle (Xmas gift from way back, still warmest)

• Winter golf mitts - Masters - pop them on between shots and never have cold hands again - well worth the hassle.

Thus attired, I have learned to putt positively on frosty greens and shot two very respectable rounds (so far). What's your excuse?

The serious nature of golf

Following on from the addiction problem, there’s a discussion this week on the Golf Monthly forum on taking golf too seriously. I argue that golf just is serious, more so than other sports. I'm not sure why this is, except that it’s such a self-absorbed activity to hit a ball from a standing start and then have to hit it again from wherever it lands (which is quite probably the place you least wanted it to be!) No matter how laid back we try to be, a bad shot gets us down. It’s hard to get over it, even more so a bad hole, and as for a bad round … need I go on? We have only ourselves to 'blame' (however much we try to think of someone or something else!) and we need a lot of mental resilience to cope with the pressure.
But all is not lost. Hitting the ball takes up only a fraction of the time we’re out there; we are not alone, there’s someone to talk to, and plenty to see in terms of wildlife and scenery. The secret is to look up between shots, take notice and enjoy, especially this month with winter golf approaching. This photo was taken last February, but I can report that this morning the mist was beginning to fall …