Why Snelly is good at golf...?

Tiger

Tiger

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Been reading a few threads recently and Snelly has popped up on more than one occassion with a comment or two. Since I've been on here his posts have been pretty consistent and this morning it got me thinking (Snelly apologies in advance if any of the following is wholly inaccurate)...

Snelly plays off 1 or 2 and I have the following observations:

- he isn't bothered about handicap, an approximation will do so no number obsessing
- he doesn't change his clubs nor get excited by new gear. What he has works fine so why change
- he plays a LOT of squash so that tells me he is fit, probably has a strong core and phenomenal hand eye co-ordination
- he plays lots of high quality golf courses with people he likes - golf is fun in Snelly's world rather than a frustrating pastime
- he thinks the best practice possible is to play lots and LOTS of rounds of golf
- he gives the impression that when he plays it's a case of hit it, find it, hit it again
- he's not overly fussed about technical discussion

Now there are other low handicappers on here that are the antithesis of Snelly, and I appreciate that there is more than one way to skin a cat, but this year I'm going to try the Snelly approach (bar the squash ;) ) and see where it takes me. So I will
- not worry about my handicap
- not buy any new clubs
- play rather than practice when I can
- hit it, find it (hopefully), hit it again
- only have playing lessons
- if finances allow play at least a couple of top courses

Fiver says I have my most enjoyable golf season ever ;)

PS Tenner says that soon after posting this the GM team announce details for PYB 2013. (NB if that's the case I can be incredibly contrite when required ;) )
 
I'm firmly in the snelly camp, it's only when I joined here I got more understanding of the really detailed stuff (which I do find interesting) especially about kit, which made me buy more kit when I hadn't changed clubs for 14 years and loved my mizzie forged cavity blades.

My game didnt improve much, but with more games and practice it will.....as long as we practice the right thing, which brings us back to needing more understanding and kit :rofl:
 
My understanding, and I could be wrong, is that he had some lessons when he was younger (perfect time to have them, not wait til 46) to establish good basics, and then played a lot to groove a very sound swing.

Playing to 2 would be impossible if he had my swing.

The question is, would he be a better golfer if he put more into it? Is he sand bagging a 2 handicap when he could be plus 2?
 
murphthemog said:
My understanding, and I could be wrong, is that he had some lessons when he was younger (perfect time to have them, not wait til 46) to establish good basics, and then played a lot to groove a very sound swing.

Playing to 2 would be impossible if he had my swing.

The question is, would he be a better golfer if he put more into it? Is he sand bagging a 2 handicap when he could be plus 2?
Click to expand...

forgive my stupidity here but I thought snelly wasnt in a club and didnt have a h/cap or is it a society one? snelly?
 
Hi,

First things first - good luck Tiger and I hope you have a good year. And flattered that you think this approach will have a positive effect. I would think it would too. And yes, generally, Tiger's post reflects my views. Seems a little odd to read and contribute to this but here's my twopenneth for what it is worth.

Handicap - I do not have an official one nor have I had for the past ten years. My last active handicap hovered between 2 and 3. I play my golf in two societies, one big, one small. My society handicaps are 2 in the big one and 3 in the small one. Off this handicap, I won twice in the big society last year at Hankley Common and St Georges Hill so they are pretty accurate. Won in the small one too at Christmas with a very good round at Devils Dyke.

I would like a handicap and may join a club this year, probably West Sussex. I don't really think about handicap though, just try and play the course.

No, I am not bothered about new equipment. Good players broke par for a hundred years without all the gear that is deemed essential today. That said, as a young kid, I was obsessed by new kit but am 41 now and aged about 23, I realised that the clubs were just tools and had no huge effect on score.

I do play a lot of squash yes and am quite fit. But I don't think you need to be that fit to play good golf. You do for squash BTW!

I tend to play with good players in bounce games so yes, it is fun (and fast!). On the nice courses I play with business colleagues usually so yes, enjoyable in the most part. Not sure this affects my game really. Slow play does though. If it is really slow, I am generally poor.

Definitely think that practice is overrated, especially at a driving range. It is fun, but not conducive to improvement as it is too easy to get aligned properly on a perfect square mat. Best practice is on the course, with a purpose. I think I became good between the ages of 11 and 16, playing 36 holes a day against other keen as mustard juniors, for most of the summer holidays. Note though that short game practice is not underrated. It is absolutely essential.

Technical side of things? At one level I think it is crucial. Fundamentals have to be good; grip, stance, alignment and tempo. After that, technical stuff is a waste of time in my view. I have no idea what the new or old ball flight laws are and this proves they are no barrier to success. I am not alone in this view. My mate is off plus 3 and when I asked him about BFL, he hadn't the faintest clue what I meant.

I also think that lessons on anything other than the fundamentals are a bit of a waste of time and money. I have had about 5 lessons in my life since I started playing aged 7. 3 of them were utter tripe too. That said, my grandpa played golf for Yorkshire so I probably learned by osmosis. Certainly copied the way he swung the club. He was a superb player, much, much better than me. I watched him shoot par at Muirfield when he was in his 60's in a strong wind! He never had lessons or knew anything remotely technical either. He also used to tell me off for slow play all the time and ground in to me what a waste of time practice swings were!

Other than that, the only golf tip I think works is - try and see the club hit the ball. That is the only thing I ever think of.

Sincerely hope finding it and hitting it works for you Tiger. It has for me.
 
Snelly said:
Hi,

First things first - good luck Tiger and I hope you have a good year. And flattered that you think this approach will have a positive effect. I would think it would too. And yes, generally, Tiger's post reflects my views. Seems a little odd to read and contribute to this but here's my twopenneth for what it is worth.

<snip>

Sincerely hope finding it and hitting it works for you Tiger. It has for me.
Click to expand...

Very interesting post. :thup:
 
This is a very interesting outlook. I have watched my golf get worse with my forum contributions and readings, I think personally I get hung up on distance. This then leads to a full swing break down because I am trying to rip the cover off it! I had played nomadic golf for 10 years and every year in march I would start my season of wandering and it would be a round of 13-15 over and by the time I was 3-5 rounds in I was back at 3-4 over and then looking at shooting level par. I would occasionally go down to the driving range and hit a bucket but only if there was no playing opportunity, I would go to the local football pitch and hit sand wedges as well.
Since joining a club and attaining a handicap in double figures I have generally been nowhere, my lowest this season has been 5 but there was no card in the hand or pressure etc...
I think I need to get back to just thinking about my game and enjoying myself being aware from the work environment and just relaxing, like I did before ! Which is basically what is being suggested here.
 
Dave, I would be interested to know how long you have been playing 'regularly'? Did you take a huge time away from the game at all.... and if so, how long have you 'been back'?
 
Very interesting post. There are quite a few obviously relevant points to which I am sure contribute to you being a good golfer

With your use of the english language I am sure you could make it into a book.
 
I have to say I agree with a lot of what has been said.
This season I decided to go out and enjoy playing rather than trying to get my handicap down which has paid off already as I've been cut from 21 to 18 and I've won 2 monthly stablefords with placings in almost every comp so far.
I've also gone into the hit it, find it, hit it again camp which again has helped me enjoy the game more than I did last year.
I had a lesson last year where the pro said make sure you see the club hit the ball. When I do it's normally fairly straight, when I don't it's a lottery where it'll end up.
Good luck Tiger with your new mental approach to the game I'm sure it will pay off by the end of the year.
 
I'm mostly in the Snelly Camp and edging even closer now.
The only "vice" I have is the "shiny, shiny" one - most of us love new kit and although I do too, I am trying to calm it down.
I'm reasonably happy with the bag as it is, maybe the odd tweak here and there but not a lot - I hope,
The rest of Snelly's Law works for me.
I am a Member of a Club but only really to maintain a handicap - I'd love to play lots of better courses but time and money dictate otherwise.
I've never been a Range Monkey - did go yesterday but it's definitely not a regular thing - andalthough I know the BFL I don't get too wrapped up in the Technical side. I like to have to think as little as possible on the course.

Snelly for PM!!
You know it makes sense:thup:
 
JustOne said:
Dave, I would be interested to know how long you have been playing 'regularly'? Did you take a huge time away from the game at all.... and if so, how long have you 'been back'?
Click to expand...

I have played regular-ish golf for 30 years plus. I didn't play hardly at all between the ages of 21 and 23. From then until 32 years of age, I was a club member at several different clubs. When our first child was born, I resigned my membership and since then, I reckon I have played on average, once every 5-6 weeks. Perhaps with the odd 6-8 month gap in between. Since last August, I have played 7 rounds and played well each time with one exception. So I never really go away from golf but it isn't a passion of mine either is probably the answer to your question.

I like playing golf, love it sometimes in fact, but where I differ from quite of few of you guys I think, is that I am not immersed in it. It certainly isn't my main sport and I have lots of other interests that I treat as a priority. I think this puts me in a minority on this forum where many people live and breath the game. Not sure what point I am trying to make apart from that my quite casual approach to all things golf probably makes for a more unpressurised game when I get on the course. If golf did have a higher priority for me and I played much more often then maybe I would be more interested in the latest kit and new swing theories. I doubt it though...
 
Last edited:
Snelly said:
I like playing golf, love it sometimes in fact, but where I differ from quite of few of you guys I think, is that I am not immersed in it. It certainly isn't my main sport and I have lots of other interests that I treat as a priority. I think this puts me in a minority on this forum where many people live and breath the game.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't say I'm immersed in golf, but I certainly AM immersed in the forum. I don't really worry about my own swing nor hardly care when I play (generally to justify my membership fees!). I use second hand clubs that don't even have the right grip size for me, probably the wrong shafts, use any ball I happen to find on the course and (of course) have never had a lesson.

Since joining the forum I've found it almost as rewarding talking about it as actually playing... I think to some regard that's on the basis of physically not being able play and finding some solace sharing thoughts about the game in general (like this post). If I was fit I'd probably just be out playing instead of listening to everyone talking about how well/bad they played with their new shineys ;)
 
JustOne said:
I wouldn't say I'm immersed in golf, but I certainly AM immersed in the forum. I don't really worry about my own swing nor hardly care when I play (generally to justify my membership fees!). I use second hand clubs that don't even have the right grip size for me, probably the wrong shafts, use any ball I happen to find on the course and (of course) have never had a lesson.
;)
Click to expand...

Brothers in arms then! ;)
 
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