I wouldn’t want to make an exhaustive list of my favorite golf courses lest I offend someone whose course I frequent often. It would be most prudent to say that I love them all! There are many such in my area of Ontario, Canada. You would have to list courses outside of Canada which would include the incomparable St. Andrews Scotland, one of the rarest gems on earth. Of course it stands out. Now there are courses I like simply because of the people I played with there. In Beverly Hills, California, there is a mundane public course on which I played with Matt Damon one day, a course regular. I never forgot the experience hence it is has special place in my heart. Then Central Oregon has a nice course like Brasada Canyons, and Black Butte Ranch. No list would be complete without the incomparable one-of-a-kind award-winning Pebble Beach, on the spectacular location of the 17-mile coast line, like none other on earth, near the picturesque vistas of Spanish Bay. Just being near the crashing waves against the jagged rocks makes you play golf better they say. There is no place like Pebble Beach in north America and a golfer must visit it at least once..  If you find yourself on the east coast, by contrast, you can go to Tranquilo Golf Club at the Four Seasons Resort in Orlando, Florida. It is often a matter where you choose to go on vacation or if you want a change of scene such as Hawaii, North Carolina, or Arizona. Good golf is not hard to find in almost every state of the union even Alaska. Do yourself a favor and try a few new ones once in a while before you wander off internationally in exploration of new-found courses.

To learn to play against the pros, you become a student all over again starting from scratch. You find out fast that one swing does not fit all students and won’t guarantee you will prevail against the pros. It is not easy to beat the pros. There are no hard and fast rules in spite of what some say. What works for one player can hinder another.  To get ahead with your game you must use your natural ability as a baseline for your swing. It takes years of honing your skills. Don’t think there are easy short cuts unless you are a born natural.  It is all about feel. Technology and experience not only help to discover the most efficient route to improvement, but it also creates repeatability. There is something to be said for consistency. When students can consistently repeat the correct fundamentals, with positive, real-time feedback rapid improvement is obtainable.

Feel is real as a precept in learning golf.  Implementing a strong foundation and repeatable swing techniques created from by mentors and pros for students creates greater consistency and more control over the golf shot. Using TrackMan as a guide, for example, you can have reliable swing and ball flight data essential to improving your game.  Instructors can compare swing data from lesson to lesson, ingraining the correct swing, to ball flight and impact, adding confidence to your golf game.

Above all it one who takes it seriously is going to prevail. You can’t make wild assumptions about beating the pros without putting it your dues and having some basic skills. On the other hand, don’t assume you won’t improve enough to get into a good game. It is the challenge of golf to get a good, fair competitor. You want someone who will give you a run for your money. It is important to be matched well if you can. Even novices have their counterparts.