No, they don't do it every time, but they do more often than most realize. And this is the reason why. Just because it's not shown on TV doesn't mean it's not happening. The concept still applies. And quite frankly, golfers of all levels could get some good out of spending some time on the practice green going through the entire routine on 1-foot putts. This promotes repetition and confidence in making putts.

But remember, this is my well.

thanks for this. that's exactly it. we play nine most evenings and just fly through. i've never considered creating a pre-shot routine for putting. most of my green-play goes lag, then one-handed pass at a shorty. next hole.

tonight i slowed it down and made an effort to approach each putt the same. focusing on; find the line, find the speed, set, hit.

spent a half hour after the round doing the same on the practice green.

i've gotten very serious about improving my short game. three solid weeks of 2 hrs/day putting, chipping, and pitching. about 100 putts/day and most of those putts have been made without considering a pre-shot routine. when i got on the course this weekend, i felt confident i could make the putt, but was battling myself over timing.

i think practicing putting with the pre-shot routine will help me play quite a bit more quickly. all the players in the group behind me thank you.

NTN, great stuff..

i agree on 50/50 not being "random".......... no idea why their own lawyers didn't freak out at that

did you feel like i do/did that "ask the audience" is only worth anything early in a category you don't know at all - "nursery rhymes" was a common one for me.

are you watching that new ABC trivia show? was on for 2 hours last night i think... i like that it's fast-paced (Millionaire and 6th grader had way too much faux-drama) and i like that showdown where you list things.

not sure if you saw "final jeopardy" but is tasmania a pacific island? or did i misread the question?

Ask the audience was only going to be used on a pop culture question or something more common knowledge instead of trivia. Only other question in my stack I would have listened to the audience on was a movie question for $8k that I just happened to know cold.

Not that thrilled with 500 Q's, watched most of last year's and just seems there's too much randomness to it. I'd do 5th grader in a heartbeat, easy 500k in my opinion.

I haven't touched this thread for a while but that doesn't mean there hasn't been golf being played. Bear with me as this will take multiple posts and lots of words.

From 2009:
I turn 50 next month, so when this calendar year began I started formulating a plan of sorts which included a bit more competitive golf. Have been teaching golf and working in a fitting studio for the last year while still playing a couple of rounds of casual golf per week. Of course working in the fitting studio I have access to whatever equipment I want, which is nice. Can still get the ball in the hole, have shot a 62 and multiple 63's within the last year with a minimum of practice. Which isn't all bad, many times the more I practice the more I expect, therefore the worse I play. Pro tip, expectations are bad on the golf course.

In February played in a two day players tour event put on by our PGA section. They host 5-6 of these in February each year to give the mini-tour guys something to play in before the season starts. Am probably the oldest guy in the field by far, and chances are the shortest hitter as well. I don't hit it short but guys half my age just hit it stupid far these days.

The first round of the tournament comes and there is a frost delay. It's flat out ****ing cold, forecast high of 42. Fun times on a 7100 yard golf course. But I do OK both physically and mentally, hold it together and shoot a 2-under par 70 with 4 birdies and 2 bogeys. 3-under on the back nine. The next day the weather is exactly the same but I don't hit it quite as well. Finish with a 73, 3 birdies and 4 bogeys. 1-under for 36 holes under frigid conditions. Not great but not bad. And for the first time in many many years I make a check playing against the flatbellies. Not much, but it wasn't really about the money. It was about proving I can still play tournament golf.

Next up was U.S. Open local qualifying in May. At my site it was 132 players for 8 spots, typical ratio, go play good and you're in. At sectionals you have to go play great. I draw a late tee time, 220pm.

Naturally when I get to the first tee the wind is absolutely howling after not having blown very much in the morning. Uneventful first three holes, number 4 is a par 3 with a peninsula type green straight downwind. I drop a sky high 7-iron within a foot of the hole where it bounces and rolls until it falls off the green and into the water. ****. Make double.

The rest of the day is similar although I certainly didn't play well or deserve to qualify regardless of my tee time. To put into perspective how hard the wind was blowing I offer this. Three par 5's on the back nine, the first two into the wind playing 504 and 496 yards respectively. I couldn't reach either of them. The last was 532 yards playing downwind which I reached in two with a 9-iron.

Lastly, all 8 guys who qualified teed off in the morning. Nobody broke par in the afternoon. But that's just tee way it is sometimes, I've seen both sides of that situation. And next year I'll probably skip U.S. Open qualifying and do the U.S. Senior Open qualifying instead. But depending on where things stand I could always do both.

In July I decide to try to qualify for the Texas State Open. 20 years ago this used to be easy, go shoot 75 or under in a qualifier and you're in. Now you must shoot under par, it just varies how far under you've got to take it. The site I choose ends up with 28 players competing for 4 spots.

Go out and shoot 2-under on the front with 3 birdies and a bogey and missed several putts inside 10 feet. Could have easily been 5-under. Didn't play as well on the back, bogeyed 13 after a bad shot coupled with a bad break but got it back with a clutch putt on 16 for birdie. Had a pretty simple putt for birdie on 18 but was a bit weak with it. Finish with a 2-under 70.

As I'm dead in the middle of the wave I've probably got a not so fun wait in store. There's already a 69 and a 70 in the house so I'm thinking I'll probably be in a playoff. But group after group comes in with nobody shooting 70 or below until the last group where a guy shoots 67. But that's fine, my 70 is good enough to qualify without a playoff. LOL at all the kids half my age that didn't make it! On to the Texas State Open, a 72 hole event with a 36 hole cut and a purse of $205k with $42.5k to the winner.

Tis the perfect time to ask this. Your opinion on SST Pure?

Great read both on your golf experiences and WWTBAM. I got to the callback stage once but choked that.

It's a must if you have access. The feeling and stability an SST Pure shaft provides is amazing. You will probably gain a small bit of distance because of this but dispersion will definitely shrink. There's a reason why every guy on tour has it done. I've actually been on the tour van where it's all done out there.

Moar posts, BO.

At first glance the course for the state open is right up my alley. Par 70, only 3 par 5's, course just under 7000 yards. But it turned out weird, for whatever reason, the course played infinitely long. Rumor was the fairways were mowed green back to tee to kill most of the roll. There was a converted par 5 into a 4 that played 492 yards into the wind. There was another par 4 516 yards although it was downhill. I did a study on clubs I hit into the green during the qualifier compared to clubs I hit into greens in the tournament. Was hitting on average 2.5 more clubs in the tournament. Ouch.

Start on #1 in the first round and unfortunately was +2 through 6 holes, nothing good at all. Hit hybrid into one par 4, 5-iron into another. Then comes the 516 yard 7th hole, a dogleg right with a tree in the dead middle of the fairway 220 from the green which has a lake to the left. Bomb a driver over the corner and find it right behind the ****ing tree. I have a swing but a really difficult shot if I'm going to try to reach the green. After a lot of thought and practice swings I decide to cut the ball around the tree. This means starting it at the lake. Sadly, it did not cut near enough and found a watery grave. Had to drop about 100 yards out in deep, deep rough. Wedged it about 30 feet past the hole where I promptly 3-putted for a 7. +5 through 7 is not good in case you were wondering. Got it back together a bit and played the remaining holes in even with a birdie and a bogey. Looks like the cut will be even so I've got to take it deep tomorrow.

Start on #10 for round 2, a 492 yard converted par 5 into a par 4. Into the wind. With a lake on the right of the landing area. Fun. I smash driver into the middle of the fairway. Have 220 something to the pin into the wind. Sigh. Slop a 5-wood just off the green and get up and down for par. On #12, a long par 4 up a hill I stripe a driver and have exactly 200. Slop a 4-hybrid on the green and make par. It's just tough to make birdies when you're hitting headcovers into par 4's.

Every time I make a birdie I seem to make a bogey, just can't get any momentum going. Through 15 holes I'm 1-under, not going to make the cut but am trying to make a halfway decent showing. On #7, the monster par 4 with a ****ing tree in the middle of the fairway I destroy a driver on a perfect line over a tree at the corner of the dogleg. Well, I thought it was over the tree. We find it at the base of the tree, a tree that I thought was not in play. Only have 301 to the flag. ****ing hole. And for the second straight day I slop a wedge onto the green and 3-putt, this time for double. **** this hole, **** golf, **** me.

Bogey the last hole to shoot 72, 7 shots off the cut line. Frustrating. Didn't lose any sleep over this, I just didn't have it. Ben Kern wins with a 14-under total, the first club pro to ever win. The next week he was one of 20 club pros to play in the PGA. And was the only one of those to make the cut. For those two weeks he won close to $70k, not bad for a club pro.

From 2014:

I had a small list of things I needed to figure out a little bit, and took care of pretty much all of them. Iron play a bit more consistent, much better on flop shots around the green, and found a way to shore up my putting most of the time. Plus I've had some decent success in competitive rounds this year.

So let's do it, bring on Champions Tour Q School!

Great updates and round recaps. Thanks Bo and glgl preparing for qualifying school

How did it go?

Hey, thanks for the reminder. I need to write this up. Will get on it.


This statement will be of major importance....

Regional stage of PGA Tour Champions qualifying school in Primm Nevada, a tiny casino town on the California border. 3 casinos straddling I-15 and a couple of gas stations and fast food joints, that's about it. Best restaurant by far turns out to be the IHOP.

Course (Primm Valley Lakes Course) is 5 miles down the road next to one of the largest solar farms in the world at 2600 feet elevation. 4 round event held Tuesday through Friday, November 13-16. Fly into Vegas Saturday afternoon, pick up rental car, and drive 45 minutes to Whiskey Pete's in Primm, my home for the next week.

Practice rounds start at noon Sunday, play with a longtime friend who played several events on the 2018 schedule and had played here last year, plus a couple of others guys that I know. Typical desert course playing 6900 yards, a little less due to elevation, par 71 with 3 par 5's. Only two real difficult holes and quite a few relatively easy holes. No real worries during this round, just hit a bunch of shots learning the course. Had a friendly skins game that I came out on the positive end of.

Plan for the next day was to get to the course at sunrise, get in a solo practice round to work on whatever I wanted, then head back for a nap. When I left the hotel the car shows 37 degrees, at the course it reads 28 degrees! Crazy. Naturally that means a frost delay, didn't get out until 10 which a couple of guys I didn't know. High temp might have been 50 that day.

Field is 74 players, low 26 advance to finals with 2 alternates. In years past alternates have a good chance of getting in.

Round 1, 8:50 tee time of #10 paired with two players who were here last year and didn't come close. Before leaving for the course receive a text informing there is a 30 minutes frost delay, no real surprise. Not only is it cold today, it is also quite windy. Will be a tough day for sure.

Start off with basic 2-putt pars on the first 3 holes, #12 was 241 to the hole downwind, hit 5-wood. Drove in a fairway bunker on 13 that you just can't be in and made bogey. Had a little over 100 to a back pin on 14 into the wind, flushed it through the wind and over the green for another bogey. 15 is a tough hole, with a brutally undulating green where I missed a 5-foot par putt for my third bogey in a row. ****.

Basic pars on 16-18 and #1 before making a 10 footer for birdie on the par 5 second. Yay me! Misjudge a lag putt on #5 and make bogey, birdie the par 5 7th, and then miss a 4 footer for par on 9. Shoot +3 74 in a ton of wind.

I am not very happy at all with my performance, just not comfortable all day. But when all the scores are in I find myself T26, right on the line come Friday. So I take some solace in the fact I played crappy and am still inside the number.

One of the cool things about PGA Tour events is that you get tee time texts from the PGA Tour account. I get my round 2 tee time and pairing that afternoon, will be playing with some guy named Bob May.....

Nice. I know we had the finals here in Tampa. That course is par 71 and not terribly long either. That's my state am qualifying site every year. Interested to hear the rest....

We tee off in one wave, top half of the field goes off #1, bottom half goes off #10. So I'll be off fairly early off #1 on day 2. No frost delay but still quite chilly and not as much wind. Meet Bob May and Todd Gleaton, both former tour players, on the first tee. Both good guys. As a matter of fact, almost everybody I dealt with this week was very nice. Much more so than out on the minis with younger guys. Interestingly enough, our local Ping rep played with May at OSU and they roomed together. So I was able to pick up some good dirt on him for when I got back.

Miss the green on #1 but converted a fairly basic up and down. After that it was a stripe show, the only question was would I make the birdie putt. Couldn't get anything to drop until #7 where I made an 8-footer on the par 5. Then made a mid length putt on the next long par 4. Stuffed it tight with a wedge on #11 for another. Missed #13 green after a tugged drive but chipped tight for a tap in par. 3-putted #15 from a long way, frustrating, wanted to have a clean card. But it pissed me off enough to make birdie on #16 and then made a 12-foot downhill tickler on #18 for a 4-under 67. Beat the guy who took Tiger to a playoff in 2000 by 4. Routine.

Moved up the leaderboard nicely to T10, 4 clear of the cut line. Sad thing is it could have been much better, but I'll take it. Only missed two fairways and two greens. Shooting 67 at Q-school with little practice feels pretty damn good. And it gives me a much later tee time the next morning.

After round 2 I wanted real food, and real good cannot be found in Primm, Nevada. So I headed into Vegas for a real meal, the 45 minute trip each way was well worth it. Was tempted to head down to the Bellagio for some limit hold 'em but was focused enough on golf to avoid temptation. As a matter of fact, I spent a week in Nevada and did not gamble one cent, except on the golf course. A few years ago I couldn't have spent 7 minutes in Nevada without gambling.

Round 3, another 30 minute frost delay. But weather not too bad by the time I went off. Converted a short birdie on the par 5 2nd, bogeyed #3 after half shanking an 8-iron into the desert, parred #4 and then the fun began. 3-putted #5 from 6 feet, Had less than 3 feet for par on #6 and missed it. Fun. But then made birdie putts on #7 and #8 to scratch back to even for the day. Then for good measure missed another putt from less than 3 feet for par on #9. Then made bogey from 100 yards on #10. I have next to zero control over my putter at this point.

Have good looks at birdie on the next 4 holes and convert none. Then 3-putt #15, and 3-putt #17. On #18 I stuff a wedge to exactly 2 feet and figured by chances were right at 50/50 on making it. I was actually talking to myself over the putt so loudly one of the other guys could hear. Found a way to make it, then the guy wanted to know what I was saying. Told him he didn't want to know.

I miss 2 fairways and 3 greens, never out of position except for #3 on any hole and shoot 74. It was brutal. 36 putts, 4 3-putts, 7 bogeys. Ugh. Estimate my strokes gained putting was between -6 and -7. Drop back to T26, the cut line which has now moved to 2-over. The nice cushion I had given myself after round 2 is now completely gone. Dinner in Vegas did not taste near as good after round 3.

This is fantastic, thanks.

good luck!

I can't remember the last time I played golf 6 days in a row. Normally if I play 3 days in a row I can't focus well on the third round. And it's not just playing. Warmup for at least an hour before every round, after the round have lunch and then usually another 90 minutes on the range and putting green. Minimum 8 hour days at the course under intense pressure. Definitely not used to all this, although since we are riding it's not taking a toll on my legs. However by the final round my hands had turned into a bucked of crap. Splits all over the place from all the ball striking in the cold desert air. Blood is getting on some of my grips. When I start to hit balls I have to hit enough for the cracks to re-open before I can go at it 100%. Certainly nothing I can't handle, as Dalton said "pain don't hurt". But just another interesting (to me) facet of what I'm trying to accomplish here.

Final round, another 30 minute frost delay. But the temperature is supposed to approach 70 by afternoon with lots of sun. For the first time during the tournament rounds I will actually be playing in short sleeves. But not until the back nine.

I figure 1-under today will get me a playoff at worst, 2-under will get me in for sure. Even par will get me a playoff at best. I just have to go out and play the best I can.

Tug my approach to #1 but get it up and down. Knock it close on #4 and make a birdie putt. Then make a tough putt for birdie on #8. Turn at 2-under having not missed a green since #1 and no par putt outside 18 inches. Solid. Just going about business, nothing fancy.

Basic 2-putt pars on 10-12, then hit it over #13 green with a back pin leaving zero chance at an up and down. Not really sure how it happened, might have landed really firm on the right fringe. It was a good shot. But now everything changed for some reason internally. Now I was nervous. Really nervous. Feeling what was at stake.

Tugged a 3-wood off #14 almost into a hazard, but blocked out for a normal shot. Hit a really good rope hook around some trouble just off the right edge of the green. But I've got a really goofy lie and a strange perhaps 75-foot shot over a ridge. I probably study it for 3 minutes. And then find a way to get it to 3 feet and make it for par. Exhale.

Stripe a drive #15 before laying the sod over a 7-iron leaving it 30 yards short of the green. Hit a good pitch shot but miss a slippery 9 footer for par. Now there is absolutely no margin for error. Great.

Hit an absolutely great shot into an impossible pin on #16 leaving 15 feet for birdie. Just miss it, but a good solid stroke. Stuff a 7-iron into a tucked pin on #17 leaving only 6 feet for birdie, but downhill. I trickle it down there but it's weak, falling off at the last moment. I needed that one.

#18 is a 450 yard par 4, desert left, bunker and water right. Zero margin for error. Good news is I've birdied it twice already this week. But now I can't breathe, can't spit, tough to think. The entire week comes down to the 72nd hole. Don't catch all the driver but dead straight only leaving 8-iron to a back hole location. Don't catch the 8-iron that great either but find a way to slop it to about 17 feet downhill, with a little turn from the right. So what to do? Be aggressive and risk a 4-footer coming back? Not the way I'm feeling. Hit the putt with die speed and it dies a foot short, wouldn't have gone had it gotten there anyway. Just a weak effort. Shoot even par 71, 2-over 286 for the tournament.

Sign my card and then wait. Scoring is available online so I don't have to hover at the scoreboard. I don't want to talk to anybody right now anyway. Get a hot dog and chips and sit in my cart staring at my phone to keep updating. Currently T27 with the group behind me that started at the same score I did. Then I go to T26, one of the guy tied with me at the start of the day shot over par. Less than a minute later I go back to T27 as another guy I was tied with shoots under par. But now all the guys I was tied with are in, so my standing can't get any worse, only better as everybody still on the course started ahead of me to begin with.

Robin Byrd, former PGA Tour player, who I was paired with in the final round sits with me for a few minutes and offers advice even though he was sitting one shot worse than me with zero chance. He simply mentioned some things out on the Champions Tour that were important, how to go about some stuff. Thinking about it, it was almost like he expected me to be out there in the mix one day. Regardless, it was appreciated, even in that stressful moment.

A couple of groups come in with no movement. And then it happens. I go to T26! Somebody shot 2-over today playing ahead of me to drop into the tie where I am. Wow. Time to go warm up for the playoff. Of course this means re-opening the cracks on my hands as I had been sitting for close to an hour.

Nobody else falls back, there will be a 7 for 1 playoff for the last spot to advance to finals. I text my parents and my girlfriend the situation. Fun stuff. I think.

Once all the field is in, 7 of us congregate on #1 tee for the playoff in addition to PGA Tour officials and a photographer. Nothing like a 7-some to decide who goes to finals. We draw for tee position, I draw last and get #1. Hilarious. PGA Tour official says good luck and we were clear to proceed.

#1 is an pretty simple par 4 with a big fairway that all of us hit. Back left hole location, one guy blows it over the green while the rest of us find the surface. One guy about 30 feet away, the rest of us between 10 and 20 feet. I've got about a 16 footer, a little downhill, slightly right to left. A makeable putt. The guy over the green has no chance, chips it to 30 feet and makes bogey. The guy with the long birdie putt misses as well. Another guy has a putt on my line but just a little longer, he misses and I get a good read.

Now I've got to tell you, I feel totally different in the playoff than I did coming down the stretch. I'm not really stressed, almost like I'm just happy to have the chance. Weird. I hit the putt the way I wanted but it just doesn't break for some reason, tap in par with three guy left for birdie inside me. I watch these putts with a strange detachment, not really feeling anything positive or negative.

The next guy doesn't come close, now there's two guys left for birdie but they have putts of 9 and 10 feet, definitely makeable. The first guy hit a flat out horrible putt, knew it had no chance instantly. Got to avoid one more bullet. He hit a good putt, should have broken a shade to the right. But it did not and hung on the edge. Nobody makes birdie. 6 of us onto #2.

Par 5, 532 on the card, 90 degree dogleg left around a lake. And yes, I get to hit first again. Have laid up here all four days (because you can lay up almost green high to the right leaving a 30-40 yard pitch) making two birdies and missing a third from 5 feet. All 6 of us find the fairway. The furthest out lays up to 100 yards, then it's my turn. I have 254 to the flag, water just off the left side of the green, water in front as well although it's not in play as I've only got 199 to cover. Green is very narrow with a bunker tucked in the middle right edge. The pin is all the way back of the nearly 50 yard deep green, on a ledge, 4 paces from the right edge which it bowled in severely.

The reason I go into this description in detail is because all this means a player has zero chance of getting it close if he lays up. I laid up in regulation and hit a great shot that went 20 feet past the hole. Just cannot be done unless you can hit about a 1 square foot patch of grass with a **** ton of spin.

I go over all this and eventually come to the conclusion that the only way to make birdie is to go for it. I decide to aim at the middle of the green and put my holder swing on it. It's going to start straight and if it moves at all, it's moving right. I figure if I cut it a little bit it's in the bunker where I can get it up and down although it's not the easiest shot. If I cut it a lot I'm still dry and then will re-evaluate.

I get over the shot, it's a clean lie, but not much grass under it. But I'm not nervous for some odd reason. Flush it dead straight, lands in the middle of the green and stops a little short of the ridge leaving around 40 feet for eagle. The rest of the guys look a little stunned, offer a quiet "good shot" and then start thinking. I have forced their hand. One guy tried to go for it but bails out to the right, leaving zero chance of getting it close. The next guy does the opposite yanking it into the water. The next two guys also fan theirs into the bail out area. I am the only player putting for eagle.

The guy who laid up to 100 yards hits a good shot but is still over 20 feet away. I am now studying my putt while the other three are looking at their impossible pitch shots. My putt is going to be very slow up the ridge, breaking about 3 feet to the right. The first guy hits his pitch 25 feet past the hole. The second guy tries the impossible and leaves hit pitch short in the rough. The third guy hit his pitch 20 feet past. All totally expected. I have a putt to advance.

Feel pretty good over it, hit my line, just don't give it quite enough pace leaving it a little outside 4 feet but dead straight up the hill. I mark and wait. The guy who left his pitch short slops it on to about 15 feet for par. Three birdie putts now. First attempt is good but doesn't come all that close. Second attempt looks really good but just slides by. Third attempt never really scares the hole. I have a 4 footer for all the marbles. But first I have to wait as the guy makes his 15-footer for par. Clutch putt. The others have tapped in for their pars. The stage is mine.

It's uphill. It's dead straight. It's 4 feet. I feel none of the stress of earlier putts I've missed from this distance the last few days. I wish I knew why I felt no stress because I knew exactly what was at stake. I waste no time, get over the putt, and stroke that ****er dead in the center of the hole. Ball game. I'm going to final stage. Hell yeah!

The others were gracious, they all shook my hand and offered congratulations. The rules official did the same and stated he had already radioed in my name to the scorers so they could update everything. Then they all went on their way as they still had to determine the two alternates leaving me alone on the green. Honestly, I stared across the lake for a full 60 seconds taking it all in. It felt really ****ing good.

So 8 days after this I was flying off to Tampa to compete in the final stage of PGA Tour Champions Qualifying School. Fun stuff. Really fun stuff.

The final scoreboard for this stage. https://www.pgatour.com/champions/to...aderboard.html