How many times have you shot your age?
I haven’t kept track but I’ve been doing it routinely since I was in my 70’s and I play about 200 games a year so it must be over 3,000 times. These days I shoot in the 80′s mostly. Guess I’m pretty fortunate.
How have you been able to maintain such a high level of performance in advancing years??
By understanding the basics. I was in the clubhouse the other day watching a friend of mine – a good senior player – through the window practice his chipping. On my way out I stopped by and said, “I’ve been watching you for half an hour and you’re breaking your wrists.” He said, “Yeah, I have been haven’t I?” One of the funda-mentals of chip-ping is that the club head should never pass the hands. He corrected himself and nearly holed the next two shots. Higher handicaps don’t have sound basics so as they get older it’s hard to maintain their skills.
Do you think golfers can still learn basics in later years??
Yes, but they have to keep their bodies in shape. As we get older the tendency
is not to use our legs as much. They get weaker. I walk more now to keep my legs strong. Nicklaus said the game is played form the feet up. You can always tell if a person isn’t using his legs because he’ll move his head toward the target. When you use your legs properly your head will stay in place or even move back a bit.
Did you experiment a lot with different shots when you were young??
I’m still experimenting now! If you don’t hit cuts and draws and different types of chips you won’t be able to hit them when you need to. You have to keep practicing different shots.
What do you say to golfers who complain that when they hit the ball well their putter goes cold or vice versa? That’s golf even for the pros. It’s very rare to have all parts of your game working perfectly at the same time so when part of your game isn’t working as well as another you just have to endure it.
Psychologists say that the best golfers tend to be self-centered. Do you agree?
A lot of good golfers are conceited or cocky. Being like that helps a person avoid being distracted by things around them and stay confident.
What do you think it takes to play your best??
Temperament but that varies with every person-ality. You need to be calm I suppose. You also have to play the golf course instead of the other guy or you’ll be doing things you shouldn’t.
Why do you play golf these days? ?
For the exercise. Even when I was younger I’d go out after work and hit a bucket or two and chip and putt to keep active. It keeps me in shape.
How do you keep your enthusiasm for the game? ?
Golf is a new game every day – a new challenge. There are so many things that can happen in a round that you never know how it’s going to turn out.
About Bob Skura
Author of How Great Golfers Think- Perfecting Your Mental Game. Have found very interesting research lately that points to how we can recapture our ability to learn like kids do. Currently working on a Mental Game Instruction Workbook
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