The Day I Forgot How to Drive

It's February and this weekend was almost in the 70s. Of course we had to play golf. The local courses were booked solid from 8am to 2pm so we tried a course farther afield. We'd played there before many times, but not in the past year or so. It was slow, and the warm weather made me feel sleepy. I felt out of sorts from the first tee. My drive at Hole 1 was okay, but after that I seemed to forget how to swing any of my woods. Add to that the topsy-turvy strangeness of playing an unfamiliar course, and it was a recipe for a frustrating round of dead-left hooks and worm-burners.

Whenever that happens, I focus on other things, like working on my art photography for that coffee-table book I dream of publishing. This photo is called, "Long Shadow Girl with Putter."

At least my irons were working, and I made some pretty decent approach shots.

This one was a shot for birdie... but I missed.

This was a shot for double-bogey... and I made it.

On the 18th hole, my driver started swinging straight again. But I had already stopped keeping score. Thank goodness we're still in the off-season for handicaps. And I can just enjoy chipping it close like this, without it having to mean anything:

How did I fix my driver swing? Well, hubby gently reminded me to take the club back on a straight path, not swing back around my body like a tether ball. It's something I should have remembered from my "list," which I carry around in my purse and refer to whenever I temporarily lose my swing.

My list changes from time to time, but currently, it is comprised of just 6 things:

1) straight back, straight through

2) lead swing with left hip

3) keep eye on ball

4) right hand active

5) use obliques

6) for driver, tilt up head, with slightly open club face 

My list also has 3 additional reminders to do the wrist-hinge exercise before a round (where I take my stance, grip the club and just hing my wrists without taking my arms back), use a little forward press of the grip when hitting irons, and put my weight on the front foot when I am hitting wedges.

So that's my current list. Now all I need to do is remember to look at it.