6 March 2023|Golfing with gratitude by Gary Nicol and Karl Morris
Not much golf this week while feeling a little under the weather, so it was great when this little book popped through my letter box. I've listened to a couple of podcasts where Gary has been interviewed about this and his other "Lost Art" books. The comments really struck a chord and harked back to a simpler time when I first took up golf and wasn't inundated with instruction from multiple "experts". As kids back in the late 70's and early 80's we had to learn by playing and just figure out what worked (or didn't). Club and putter design was generally simpler back then too and we had to make do with the kit we had. There was no chopping and changing to the next great thing.
There are loads of books out there about putting, so what's so special about this one? Well, it doesn't get bogged down in technical stuff for a start. It reminds me a bit of "The Inner Game of Golf" by Tim Gallwey where he talks about the body knowing what to do if you can remove the internal obstacles presented by your mind. The big thing in this book is about changing your internal narrative regarding putting. It ties in with the things I'm trying to work on elsewhere with my game. Better breathing, mindful walking, how I talk to myself when I'm playing etc. all of which are as applicable to life as they are to golf. There are useful exercises in here to help you get in a more relaxed state while playing and putting, how to be more aware of your surroundings as you walk to the green and how that can help you read the putt. This is presented in the context of putting but goes to the heart of the whole game.
The book is interlaced with sections of expert insights on things like Trackman and putter design which help bring another perspective. There's quite a lot of information about putting statistics that should help you be less harsh on yourself and your own putting performance. That similar to some of the information in "The Four Foundations" by Jon Sherman. There are also a couple of sections that some might find controversial. The first is about the use of lines, both on the ball and on the putter and the other is about pace vs line. They are both really interesting but you need to make up your own mind about them. I've had a love, hate relationship with lines so found this bit particularly interesting. I wish it had mentioned the influence of eye dominance though. The section on pace has some interesting takeaway exercises too and I know I could see some real benefits from this.
Overall, I really enjoyed this short book and I'd love to go across to Archerfield for a personal lesson at some point (need to save up for that!). I'll definitely check out the other books in the "Lost Art of.." series too. I've gone through the exercise it recommends regarding perception and narrative and I will take away the practice tasks and work on them. What the thinker thinks, the prover proves. Here's to better, less complicated putting in 2023.
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