At one point in my life I was 14 handicap and competing in local events and trying for the long drive tour as well. In 2007 I had a disc replacement surgery that left me wondering if I would ever play again, the surgery corrected my spine but the pain only got worse. I started trying again, and I could, I have been a 21-24 handicap since. I love the game and have only been playing for about 8 years, more of a weekend warrior. My short game has always been good and my putting excellent, I putt Side-Saddle and manufacture putters as well. Since January of this year I have made a goal of becoming a single digit handicap and maybe even qualifying for a meaningful tournament next year some time. After ordering tons of training aids and videos I was fighting one big issue,RELEASE. So I heard a tip at the range one day and ran with. Take pitching wedge, play the ball off of my back foot and try to hook it, this is what releasing feels like. Low and behold after a few balls I got the hang of it. After that I had to learn to get the proper shaft angle, while always trying to swing from the inside and holding my els. To me it feels like I am hitting a punch that draws(I always hit the ball high before), and now I an finding my distance has increased on average of 25-30 yards a club. Another thing that I did was fit a ball to my shot style, I use a lower spin ball that still has good green control-Bridgestone E6. First time out I shot 82, and back that up with 3 more rounds in the low 80's, next goal is breaking 80. I do need to post these as well. On the 17th I am playing our mens club net-am qualifier. And I am chomping at the bit to play. I also mentioned that I side saddle putt, I took a prototype out and played with it about a 2 months ago and played 18 with 22 putts, I just wish that my A game was there that day. One thing that I must add is that I am hitting 200-400 balls a day in my net and using a video camera as well. It will take about 15 rounds to get this handicap down but I know that I can do it, I will update you after the qualifier.

Status update: From Third Flight to Championship Flight