This article gets to the heart of the issue with me and my quest. Few things are impossible and most things are within the realm of possibility if an individual makes a commitment, devises a plan and executes the plan through exercise, practice and education.

I may not have the windmill in sight at the moment but I am on the quest and I will get there.

Thank you Jack O”Leary.

I played at Eagle Landing in Orange Park, Florida today. I was playing with Ernie “I haven’t made a long putt all day” Velazquez and Darrell Jerome “J.D.” Jackson, a master of the long irons from the fairway.

Eagle Landing is one of my favorite courses in Jacksonville area. With six sets of tees there is a place for everyone and everyone has a place. The course is wide open with increasing difficulty as you start on the back nine.

My round started slow with a 50 on the front side. This was a direct result of not hitting balls before I played. I re-learned a major lesson today that if I cannot make an effort to get to the course early to hit balls then I should not be undertaking this quest.

During the last 9 I hit my stride. I shot 42 on the backside. My drives were 200 plus yards. I was able to go for the par 4′s  in two and the Par 5′s in three. If I could have made a few more putts I would have been 2-3 strokes lower.

Things are definitely looking up today. I will continue to practice work on  my swing and hopefully continue to improve. Four months and two days till final deadline for the submission of application for the USGA Senior Amateur Qualifying.

Workign on redoing the sequence of my swing is causing initial problems with direction since the face of my club is open at impact. The distance has increased but the accuracy is off for now. However, I believe with persistence I can get a 10% increase in total driving distance. Once the sequence is ingrained, I am goingt to get a professional fitting for a driver to maximime distance from equipment.

My goal is to increase my driving distance to 225 yards. This additional distance will allow me to reach 400 yeard Par 4′s in regulation. Currently I must rely on my wedges to get me close on the third shot in order to have a chance at par.

As the weather is warmer and my practice sessions increase, my posts will become more frequent detailing my progress. The deadline for submitting my application for the USGA Senor Amateur Qualifying is August 15, 2012.  Four months will go by quickly so stay tuned for updates.

Professional Golf received a great gift Sunday. Not since the rise of Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus has the golfing community been energized by an enigma known as Bubba Golf. Bubba Watson, a young man from the Panhandle of Florida, who never had a formal golf lesson in his life energized the golfing world by winning the Masters Tournament yesterday in Augusta, GA. Without pretenses, he openly wept with his family and friends after sinking the winning putt. The World of Golf has a new hero who is family oriented, not ashamed of his religious beliefs, and brings joy back to a suffering industry. Those of us who watched were truly blessed with great drama, suspense and a Real Hero.

On my last visit, I decided to look for a traditional driving range. I must say there were a number of ranges but none really close to me. However, in reviewing the names, one stood above the rest, Bad Dog Driving Range which is located at 6933 Curry Ford Road in Orlando.

About 10 miles and 15 minutes later, I came upon an Oasis in the City of Orlando. Golf practice purists enjoy being able to drive into the parking lot, take their clubs out of the car, put them on the range and buy a bucket of balls. Within 25 feet or so of parking, I was setting my clubs on the range. Entering the new club house, the most difficult decision I faced was whether to purchase a runt, lap dog, pick of the litter, or big dog size bucket of balls. The staff was very friendly and very helpful on my first visit.

Returning back to the range, I noticed that I would be hitting off real and lush grass. As a resident of Florida, I am familiar with hitting off mats and ranges made of sand but this was real dirt and equally real grass. Obviously, I knew I had found a home away from home.

In addition, the range was well marked with targets from 100 yards to 285 yards at 25 yard intervals. This is makes practice and club selection more precise and allows golfers to further define refine their games.

Golfers of Orlando and fellow golfers, who travel here, take note of Bad Dog Driving Range. It is truly an Oasis for golfers in the city of Orlando, FL.

I am gradually working my way back in tees to come more in line with the 6400-6800 yards that the USGA Senior Amateur Qualifying will be played upon.

As most of my readers are aware as you change tees either forward or backward the game you play changes. Moving forward, reducing the yardage, bring your shorter driving clubs into play, allows you to go for the green with shorter irons and helps with your short game.

Moving back, adding more yardage, puts a premium on your driving accuracy and approach shot. In addition, since I am less likely to hit the green because of my shorter driving distance, approach shots that fall short or are offline place a heavy burden on my short game.

Yesterday, I play golf with Andy “Dancing Bear” Gardella, Joey Salvino, the new assistant pro at the Champions Club in Julington Creek and myself, Florida Senior Golfer.

Joey, played the tips, I play the white’s at 6003 yards and “Dancing Bear” Gardella reluctantly stretched himself and his game by playing the golds. The day was beautiful, the sun was out and the wind was probably a factor on more than a few holes.

My short game continues to be the strongest part of my game. From 100 years in with one of my four wedges, I am on the green 90 plus % of the time.

Putting was only average as I am a two putter most of the time which will definitely have to be improved to convert more up and downs if I am not going to be able to reach the green on the longer Par 4′s and Par 5′s.

The major weakness of my game currently is my driving accuracy and lack of any significant distance over 200 yards. In addition, my approach shots average 170 yards but are improving in accuracy. However, I will not be able to reach the 400 Par 4′s without some increase in driving distance.

Joey shot a 75 from the tips and had 9 missed birdie putts. He easily could have been in the 60′s. I came in a 101 with a penalties due to the above mentioned lack of accuracy on my drives. “Dancing Bear” Gardella shot 110′s on a harder course with lots of water. Overall “Dancing Bear”  is definitely improving as he has only been playing for a year.

Next updates from the practice range as I work on my game.

5 months and one day until the application if due for the qualifying round. I am at about 55% of the way there.

Stay tuned for the journey.

Golfers will enjoy this book. Philosophers will analyze the book for its enduring truths and people who need and desire a spiritual message will greatly benefit from its reading.

I am truly thankful and feel blessed that my golfing friend, Roy Tipton, gave me this book as a gift. Since learning of it from a golfing friend, he has given it as a gift to a number of golfers. I can assure him and you that the link will not be broken with me as I will pas this gift on to as many golfers as I possible can.

Roy Tipton Ocean Course

higher than that. Not only was it cold but it was difficult to judge distance.

We had a great time despite weather and I look forward to playing additional rounds of golf with Roy, my first-cousin-in-law over the next four days. He is down with Cheryl, my cousin, for a few days of rest and relaxation.

I shot a 99 in the wind which I think was remarkable.

Florida Golfer James Phillips sets lofty goal

It is a good article about what I am trying to accomplish this year.

Florida Senior Golfer

I joined Amateur Golf  as I mentioned in my link section to locate tournaments for senior golfers so I could begin to play in a competitive environment while continuing to work on my game.

I was pleased to be interviewed and it is my understanding that at some point a featured article/profile will be placed on their website. Good things continue to happen to floridaseniorgolfer. I will let my readers know when this happens.