GOLF

Florence inspired this week’s article and I want to tee off (pun intended) with a few facts:

The greatest players of the day constantly reference indoor training for golf improvement in a multitude of forms. There are indoor simulators, indoor training by formats, and indoor golf specific training that every world-class player engages in daily.

Most of the golf fans and aficionados have no idea to what extent the indoor influences golf skill competence at the highest level.

Before getting too detailed on what is occurring today, Bobby Jones practiced indoors in the 1920s & 30s in the attic of East Lake Country Club. He worked on his full swing hitting into a net that was in the men’s locker room.

I saw the remnants of the actual netting hanging from the rafters in 1987.

In the fall of 1990, I stayed in a hotel room next to Mike Bender and his family. It sounded like he had a drum set in his room and it turned out he was hitting balls into his mattress.

At the time, I thought he was completely crazy. I knew that most professional players practiced their putting and hotel indoor putting practice was common. But, I had never seen or heard anything like this.

Hold this thought and let’s consider another sports reference. Former University of South Carolina center Ryan Stack was a student of Chase Butler’s 5-6 years ago.

“Stack” played professional basketball and attributed much of his success to a coach that told him this simple lesson, “summer for winter”, ”winter for summer”. The basketball translation for this is in the summer, you invested effort in the weight room and developing skills. In the winter, the fruit was displayed during the in-season performance.

In golf, our winter is mild, but days are short and there is much we can do indoors. Indoor or home training could include: garage, back porch, patio, den, dining room, playroom, closets or even bathrooms.

Bathrooms and back porches usually offer mirrors and/or reflections, which are valuable for feedback. Much more later for an entire series will be dedicated to indoor golf training.

A facility that I know offers some indoor hitting options is Koosa Golf. Both locations, Lexington and Two Notch offer instruction, fitting and possibly more, so ring them for details.

I do know that Cobblestone Park has indoor training, but I’m not sure to what extent the general public has access. Since the USC golf teams have moved to a downtown training center, there may be public access now. So, if interested, I suggest calling their pro shop.

Riverside Golf Center, which is at the intersection of I-20 and the Broad River, has covered hitting areas which shield not just rain, but wind. This coverage can provide amazing comfort while practicing!

Next week, in addition to a Ryder Cup Preview and results of this week Fedex Tour Championship, we will continue the series on Indoor Golf Training along with some local golf club champions.

FYI, registration for the Irmo-Chapin Recreation Commission’s Winter Youth Golf tour starts next month.