the First Tee Is Not Enemy

You strike it beautifully on the range on Wednesday. On Saturday morning you can't find the first fairway. This book is about that gap - and how to close it.Every golf club has a player who is far better than their competition scores suggest. If that's you, you already know the feeling: the walk to the first tee, the terrace behind you, the card in your back pocket, and a swing that has quietly gone somewhere else.The First Tee Is Not the Enemy is written for the adult amateur club golfer - the eight-to-twenty handicap who plays for the monthly medal, the fourball, the club championship and a couple of quid a hole. Not for tour professionals. Not for juniors. For the golfer with a job, a family, a dodgy shoulder and a genuine desire to score what they're actually capable of.The message is simple and freeing: nothing is wrong with you. Competitive golf is a different task from practice golf, and you've never been trained for the difference. Difference can be trained. Lacking cannot.WHAT'S INSIDE- Why the first tee feels different - and the eleven minutes before it that do most of the damage- The five ways the driving range lies to you, and eight practice drills that actually transfer- Playing in front of people who know your handicap, your history and your last three medals- The monthly medal: score protection, blow-up holes, and the "ceiling rule" that saves cards- The social machinery of a Saturday fourball, and what to do in the four-minute gaps- Match play, money games and the arithmetic of coming back from two down- Club championship, member-guest, away days - and how to handle being in contention- The handicap trap: playing to a number instead of playing golf- The mid-life comparison problem, lost distance, and the strokes still available to you- Coming back after a layoff, and a six-week plan that works- The nerves that arrive when you finally start getting better- A twenty-second pre-shot routine that survives an audience, plus a full season planPERFECT FOR club golfers, society players, weekend competitors and anyone who has ever stood on a first tee wishing the terrace were empty. It makes an excellent gift for a golfing partner, a club member, or the friend who has bought three drivers this year and still shoots 92.Wry, humane and written from inside the clubhouse rather than from a lectern - this is a good playing partner in book form.