Big Break IW: "Just In" ...Time to go home

There have been many Big Breaks with players that just don't connect with the viewing audience.  We had Brian at BB PEI and DR; and David Mobley got the drama working at BB Michigan and DR, but both of those players were somewhat caricatures.  They were showmen playing to the cameras.  And I got to know them and really enjoyed chatting with them after the show regardless of what they said on screen.

But tonight, Justin's comments and attitude were so driven to win regardless of what he thought, said or did that I began to wonder....what's going on there?  Why is he so negative to everyone and everything?   We know he didn't really connect with Kent, but still...was something going on we didn't know about?  Will was supportive to him on the show tonight so there must be a side we haven't seen yet.

So...I went back and read his bio on the Golf Channel and Justin's journey to his BB hasn't been easy.  After reading it, I thought, okay, Golfgal, be easy on Justin.  There's more to this than 3 episodes.  Justin, I wish you well.  You have game - please take it as far as it can take you and try and smile along the way.  Life is too short to be so angry.

Tonight I had the pleasure to chat with David Byrne about this week's episode.  As usual, he was full of vip, vim and vigor about the whole show and it was a joy just listening to him talk.  I am soooo happy he's still with us!



My mother always had a saying about people as nice as David, "He wouldn't say $#&* if his mouth was full of it." LOL!   Gotta love my mom and gotta love David.  Maybe Mr. Byrne should be giving Mr. Payne  lessons in positive thinking and speaking.

I had the pleasure again early this AM to chat with Robbie "Shank" Biershenk about this eventful episode.  As always, he was charming and funny.  And what's even better is that he laughs at himself.  Truly a gem of a man and not a bad putter either (even with rentals :))....



Well, this was a wonderful surprise.  Carl Whyte has joined the group thanks to an introduction from Robbie.  I was really curious about his definition of GOLF and his little red book.  What a delight it was talking to him...enjoy!



I don't know about you, but I think this is one of my favorite Big Break's of all time.  I love the format, the challenges, the money angle and expecially the people.  I wish I could interview them all, but then I'd have to quit my day job and then I'd need a Big Break :)

Until next week...
Golfgal

BB Indian Wells 2: Floyd Fumbles

It's never easy watching someone go home on the Big Break, but this week was particularly tough, witnessing a mini-meltdown of a very experienced and talented player, who I believe deserved to stick around a lot longer.

Robert Floyd is no slouch when it comes to golf. After a very successful amateur career and achieving All-American status at the University of Florida, Robert competed on the Nationwide and PGA Tour for 15 years, racking up 30 professional tournaments under his belt.

Sadly, we really didn't get to know Robert very well; I know many of us where hoping to see him show his World Golf Hall of Famer dad that he has what it takes to win.  But after reading his exit blog post on the Golf Channel, I have to say that Robert is already a winner in my books.  It was pretty cool of him to give some of his clothes to Will to wear during the show.  Class act all the way!

I've got a great lineup of interviews this week.  David is joining me again from Las Vegas where he's playing in a pro-am this week. 

I asked David if he had to pick one other contestant who would make a great interviewee, who would he pick.  And without hesitation said, "Everyone will love Shank!"  So I'm very pleased to say that Robbie (Shank) Biershenk is joining in on this week's fun.

And to wrap up the week I am very pleased to be able to chat with one of David's golf coaches from the University of Detroit-Mercy, Mark Engel.
But first...let's hear from David...


Next up, Robbie...

And to last but not least, David's university coach, Mark Engel...

Thanks to everyone for some great interviews this week.  I love it when I learn stuff from the show I didn't know before and insights into players we can't get from their bio - all priceless! 

Next week we're going to see the classic Big Break Glass Breaking competition.  Can't wait to see how they all do with that. 

Something tells me if they get to pick the glass they break, Justin is aiming straight for Kent's pane. :)

Golfgal

If the Majority Ruled in Golf...

...there'd be no rules.

Okay, maybe that's a bit extreme....but not that far off the mark either. Most people I golf with don't follow the rules. Like STOP signs in Montreal, golf rules are often considered "just a suggestion". Pardonnez-moi mes amis au Québec. :)

Why is that? Why do golfers "cheat"? Is it because they consider themselves just weekend hackers and so rules don't apply to them? Or are they just ignorant of the rules? Or is cheating at golf like telling white lies - everybody does it.

I'm no different than all the rest. I do try and follow the rules so my score card accurately reflects my play, but I also believe some rules are made to be broken on public courses (or at least modified to keep the game fun). Because, for me, the most important rule on the golf course is "pace of play".

I hate slow play. I hate it so much that I won't play with people who can't keep up with the group in front of them - even good friends. I would rather they cheat on their score cards than doddle.

They aren't bad people off the course, but on, they are completely blind to the fact that they are ruining the game for everyone behind them. For them ignorance is bliss; for me it's a nightmare!

So to stop those of us who like to keep moving from hitting balls into slow groups to speed them up (Oh yes, I've seen that happen more than once ;)), I think these 3 exceptions to the rules should apply to non-competitive golf:

1. Gimmes inside the leather are a good thing. But if a golfer putts after they are given a gimme and miss, the gimme is revoked and they have to count the extra strokes incurred.
2. When taking a drop, a best guess estimate is fine. No need to mark the nearest point of relief with your tee, take out your longest club, measure the distance to a tee, drop the ball, put the club and tees away... Most players know how long two club lengths are. Just drop the ball within ~6 feet and hit it!
3. For lost balls, drop the ball where you last saw it enter the trouble or OB area and take a two stroke penalty (to try and stay close the "stroke + distance" rule). You should not have to go back to where you originally hit the ball and start over. 

Now, that being said, I am not in favor of what the Alternative Golf Association is doing with Flogton. 6" holes and non-conforming equipment don't interest me any more than mini-putt interests me.

But pace of play is what can make or break a golf game.  If everyone kept up with the group in front, we’d have more golfers on the course, lower scores because our rhythm would be maintained, more money being made by struggling golf courses, and a lot more fun.


Golfgal

Article first published as If the Majority Ruled in Golf... on Technorati.

Big Break Indian Wells: For the love of money

Well, we've been waiting a long time for another Big Break to hit the Golf Channel (almost as long as we've been waiting for spring to arrive in Vancouver).

Luckily GC is a little more reliable than Mother Nature who has decided that Spring is not for those north of the 49th parallel.  For some reason this year, she's decided that a longer, more miserable winter is perfect punishment for Canadian golfers like me who want to play hooky and play the game they love. Grrr...

But I digress...

It was great to sit back and PVR my way through tonight's premier. I really love the new format where each competitor begins with $5,000, and they must win all the other player's earnings during competition to be the last man standing. That last man will have over $50,000 in his pocket. Sweet!

Of course there is always an exemption to a PGA Tour event in the prize package. This time around it's the 2012 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, where Bubba Watson just landed his 2nd victory of the 2011 season.

So I guess it's really not all about the money, but the show certainly makes it out to be the driving force on every competition.  I am very curious what it does to the men.  Will they do stupid things for the cash; will they fall prey to the "Drive for show; Putt for dough" cliche?  Who knows...but it sure will be fun to watch.

I don't know any of the contestants personally, but for some reason, I was very sad to see Piri (Petey) leave tonight - it seemed much too soon for someone with his scrambling talent to leave the show.  But that's how the Big Break breaks I guess.

When I first heard about this BB, I knew I wanted to talk to a few of the players, but the one who was top on my list was David Byrne from Essex, Ontario Canada.

David is probably the only BB competitor I've ever watched compete who is looking for a Big Break more for someone else, rather than himself. In this "me me me" world, it's rare to find someone so young with such a giving attitude.

When I read about David, I wanted to know more about the man who said, "Everything I do here in golf is for my mom and because of my mom." 

Looks good in print doesn't it? But watch his video bio on the Golf Channel and tell me if he isn't the real deal.

Here's this week's kick-start interview with the youngest competitor on Big Break Indian Wells, David Byrne.

Is it just me or does David seem too nice to be on Big Break Indian Wells?  Perhaps I am jaded by past BB dramas, but it's so refreshing to meet someone who has his head and heart in the right place.

I am looking forward to watching David every week and hearing about his adventures on the BB.  I'll add a few more contestants to these interviews as time goes on, but for me, this interview was a great way to kick off the series.

If you have a favorite contestant you'd like to see on this blog, please let me know and I'll see if I can connect with him.

Meanwhile, check out David's Facebook page and some great pictures of him with some seriously famous golf celebs.

Until next week...

Golfgal

Golf - a metaphor for life and business

Recently I was asked by a president of a company doing business in the golf industry how I would go about writing a marketing plan that would ensure his success. I said I would start by reading his business plan.

"Oh, I don’t have a business plan actually written down,” he said “I know where I want the company to go, but it’s all in my head.”

Imagine if professional golfers treated their businesses like that!

Fifty years ago, 99% of pro golfers eyeballed their distances from shot to shot during practice rounds. But in 1961, while preparing to play Oakmont, Jack Nicklaus knew that wasn’t enough and paced off every hole, creating one of the first “yardage books” in professional golf.

Today, annotated with meticulous notes, yardage books have become coveted course bibles for tour players and caddies. They are so well guarded that it was pretty big news in 2007 when Tiger Wood lent Annika the yardage book he used to win the 2005 British Open.

A pro golfer’s game plan is worth millions and is their business plan for success. I recently read that Arnold Palmer prepared for The Masters by playing the course backwards. Simple idea and yet brilliant.

High handicappers stand on the tee box and hope to hit a fairway; whereas pros start at the pin and figure out what shot they need to get as close as possible to their target. Starting at the pin, they know from which location they want to putt.
Once they know which shot will maximize their chance success on the green, they walk to that location, document their plan and look back down the fairway to ask themselves, “Now, how do I want to get to this spot?” This continues from target to target until they end up at the tee box.

Throughout this planning process, champions are keenly aware of everything that could affect their club selection and target – wind direction and speed, hazards, slope, grain, trees, rough, etc.

How many executives plan their businesses this way? Sure, it’s easy to hope forward, but what you really need to do is plan backwards.

Start where you want to end up in 3 years (i.e. identify your business goal) and work your way backwards, always asking the question, “What had to happen for me to end up at my target?”

There is more than one way to get from A to B, but one must be keenly aware of everything that could impact that next shot at success – market conditions, the economy, the competition, partners, world affairs, technology advancements, timing…there are so many issues that need to be considered – conditions that are as volatile as the winds at Amen Corner.

Golf – it’s a metaphor for life and business. Plan it backwards and play it forwards, one step at a time.

It's a success plan for golf, life and business success that won’t be just a shot in the dark.

Golfgal

Article first published as Golf is a Metaphor for Life and Business on Technorati.