GOLF

A common denominator that exists among all golfers.

From brand new to the world’s greatest, that common denominator is the interest or attraction of contact impact.

This is the amazing mystical point where the club meets the ball. This week starts a series on impact and it’s so simple that I will tee off with the lesson then transition into recognizing some juniors in the community on their performance on the “Winter Tour”.

Contact impact could be explained this way.

There are 2 basic strikes with a golf club. The 1st is where the club face makes direct contact with the back of the ball only. It involves using a flat, almost horizontal motion, as with a putter or a driver, or fairway metal.

The 2nd strike is where the club head contacts the back of ball on a descending or more vertical angle. It then momentarily squishes or traps an edge or piece of the ball between the face of the club and the ground.

This squishing or pinching creates a rebound effect with backspin to propel the ball, then the club continues into the ground.

There could be 3 parts to this type of strike - contact with the ball, squeeze and compress against the ground and the face of the ball impacting the ground.

Both strikes with the putter or fairway metal and the iron require precision.

More facts that could complicate contact impact are different club links and ball flight and club head with face characteristics. So technically, there are different swings for the different clubs.

By the rules of golf, a player is allowed 14 clubs during a round of golf. There are many different shots that could be hit with each club, so the possibilities are endless. To those who enjoy engaging the creative and imaginative mind and problem-solving, this game can be extremely attractive. There’s so much to explore as golf can be an endless life study.

It’s time to recognize some youth golfers in our community that are beginning a journey of golf discovery - Liam Carwford, Porter Draper, Reagan Draper, Sully Draper, Vera Draper, Samuel Ford, Bernice Reed, Caleb Reed, Jaxon Stewart, Austin Weems, Daniel Davis, Kevin Doby, Harper Hoge, Tessa Kalish, Elijah Kunstman, Henry McNeice, Rip Odom, Sloan Odom, Brody Price, Brett Riddle, Delaney Wilson, Jax Valek, Elaina Brock, Faith Brock, Grace Brock, Charles Denny, Wade Duncan, Jacob Gibson, Hut-son Hinrichs, Riley Hunt, John Jackson, Adysen Lang-dale, Bennett Luthren, Marleigh Mayer, John Paolucci, Ruhao Shen, Ethan Budden, Nina Collins, Ali Dorrington, Cass Dorrington, Alexander Ervin, Noah Henson, Colin Johnson, Adam Knight, Arya Korrapati, Dharya Korrapati, Ratish Korrapati, Ritvik Korrapati, Yashwant Korrapati, Jamal Riley and Evan Smith.