Rancho Sierra Golf Course

• Shirley's Corner - News from the Clubhouse
• Men's Club News
• Tips from the Pro
• Rules Corner
• Superintendent's Corner

Shirley's Corner - News From the Clubhouse

Hi Everyone,

  Well here we are two months into 2009 already! Rain, Rain, and more rain - this has been the wettest month that I can remember in a long time. It is great for our greens but not so great for our players. Hang in there the weather should start getting nice and warm and not so much rain.

The mornings are very cold and we have been having a bit of frost, but if you wait until after 10:30 the weather is great and no WIND! What's up with that? Around here that word is considerd a bad four letter word!

We're thinking of hosting a crazy, wacky and goofy tournament mid spring. I sure could use some great fun ideas! For instant, hitting the golf ball off a baseball tee you know the kind little kids use for tee ball, sitting on a chair and hitting, maybe hitting into buckets. I know there are a lot of golfers out there with weird imaginations, who could come up with funny ways to hit a golf ball.

Don't forget when you come to play golf out here ask the starters if anything new has arrived sometimes we get so involved sending you out to golf that we forget to inform you of our recent items. If there is any one item you would like to see us carry please don't be afraid to mention it and we will see if we can carry it in our pro shop.

Try out some of our Cleveland clubs we have some for demo's especially the Cleveland Launcher. "Try it you might like it"

We will be getting in new Cleveland towels, hats, and shirts real soon sp please keep your eyes open for our new items.

Have a great day and don't forget to repair all ball marks and divots.

Shirley

Men's Club News

Happy New Year! If you haven't joined or renewed your Men's Club membership, now is the time to do so. Joining the Men's club allows to participate in our weekly tournaments every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.

"But Mr. Men's Club Official, I work during the week and have family commitments on Sunday.  What benefit do I get out of joining the Ranchos Sierra Mens Club?"

That's a good question.  Hopefully I have a good answer.  By joining the Men's Club, you also become a member of the Southern California Golf Association (SCGA).  SCGA does not have direct membership - you have to join one of their associations such as the Rancho Sierra Mens Club.  SCGA membership entitles you to an official handicap, subscription to FORE magazine, and discounts to courses throughout Southern California and Nevada.  For more information on the SCGA, visit their website www.scga.org. 

Membership fee is $45.  (Multi-club members are $30).  See the Rancho Sierra starter for a membership application or email us at RSMensGolf@aol.com. 

Golfer of the Year Tournament! 

2009 Officers

If you have any questions, you can email us at RSMensgolf@aol.com.

And always remember:

Have fun, enjoy yourself, respect the course, your fellow players, and the game of golf.

Tips from The Pro - Using your Wedges 

One of the most difficult type of shot in golf is the short short from a few inches off the green to over 100 yards away.  For the low-mid handicap golfer, this almost always involves the use of a wedge.  Here is a great article from Jack Moorehouse, everyman golfer and author of the best-selling book "How to Break 80 and Shoot Like The Pros".

Players with low golf handicaps feature common swing elements when hitting full swing wedge shots.  Below are six keys.

1. Open Up

Watch a good wedge player and you'll see him/her keep the lower body quiet.  Since you don't need a lot of power to hit a wedge, you don't need a lot of lower body action.  But you can't hit a sound wedge shot without opening your hips.  The best place to do it is at address.  Opening up your stance allows you to use your arms and shoulders to hit the shot without using your lower body. 

2. Hinge the Wrists

Poor players try sweeping, scooping, or lifting the ball in the air when hitting a wedge shot.  Good players hit down and through, creating a nice big divot.  One of the secrets to hitting down is wrist hinge.  If you don't hinge your wrists, you'll sweep the ball off the floor.  Most pros advocate an early hinge.  In fact, start your wrist bend at take away.  If you wait until the midpoint of your backswing, you may never hinge. 

3. Adjust Your Backswing

Tempo is a constant in golf.  Backswing length isn't.  Never add speed or apply the brakes to control the distance of a shot.  The length of the backswing, not the speed of the swing, dictates shot distances with your wedges - actually with any club.  Learn how far you hit each wedge with 25, 50, 75, and 100 percent backswing lengths.  Since the full-swing wedge shot we're talking about could be 36, 42, or 53 yards away, you'll now have options with which to hit the shot.  Remember, adjust your backswing, not your tempo.

4. Maintain the Position of Your Front Shoulder

Poor wedge players often lift their heads when approaching the ball.  While that in itself isn't a major crime, it forces you to bring your front shoulder up and out.  Work on allowing your head to rotate along with  your back shoulder as it swings underneath your chin.  Rotating facilitates the shifting of weight to the front side, keeps the spine angle intact, and allows the back shoulder to move toward the target. 

 5. Keep It Low

There's a saying in golf that you don't high five other players, you shake hands like gentlemen.  In other words, keep your hand low after impact on a full-swing wedge shot, almost as if you were about to shake hands with someone to the side of you.  Why?  One sign of a solid wedge shot is low hands after impact, which indicates hitting down and through.  Finishing high tends to negate weight shift and hinders your ability to hit down and through the ball.  So keep it low after impact and you'll improve the result. 

6. Pose for the Camera

A good swing and a good finish usually go hand in hand.  Take a few practice swings, not with the focus on mechanics, but on making a nice comfortable finish.  So take some practice swings and finish by posing for the camera before hitting a wedge shot.  Think finish first in this situation.  It can help generate a smooth swing and a better result. 

There you have it - six elements common to all sound wedge shots.  There are more that we could discuss, but if you follow these when hitting a wedge shot, you'll eventually master wedge play from 75, 50, 25, or any short distance.  Do that and you'll put yourself in an exclusive club - players with low golf handicaps. 

Go out there and play great golf!

Rules Corner - Can You Place a Club on the Ground to Help you Align Your Shot? 

Have you ever seen someone practicing golf on the driving range lay down a club to help them with the line of their shot?  It really helps position your feet and get you pointed in the right direction.  However, is it legal to do the same thing in a golf course tournament?

Well, the answer is yes and no.  Decision 8-2a/1 of the rule book says that the golfer can lay the club on the ground to help with his alignment as long as he picks it up before playing his stroke.  Otherwise it is a violation of Rule 8-2a. Now it doesn't explain exactly why it is a violation, but it clearly states what you cannot do. 

Now if you look specifically at Rule 8-2a, here is what it says: Except on the putting green, a player may have the line of play indicated to him by anyone, but no one may be positioned by the player on or close to the line or an extension of the line beyond the hole while the stroke is being made.  Any mark placed by the player or with his knowledge to indicate the line must be removed before the stroke is made. 

So there you have it. 

Superintendent's Corner 

Rick, Pedro, and the rest of the grounds crew are very busy this winter. Since we don't need to mow or irrigate quite as much in the winter, we can catch up on other tasks. We service and repair if neccessary all the mowers and the golf carts. We also fix fencing, trim trees, work on the cart paths and other miscellaneous tasks. Sprinklers are always in need of adjustment or repair, so that takes up time as well.

Coming into the spring, one goal sits above all others. And that is to get the greens into shape. In March or early April, that will involve punching, sanding, and seeding the greens. We want to catch the greens at a time when they just start their spring growing season, since that is when the punching process will do the most good. In addition, we'll start an effort to eradicate the broad leaf that is growing in some of the greens.

Other tasks include cleaning out the lakes and canals, planting trees and reseeding the tee boxes and the grass hitting area of the driving range. If, during your visit to Rancho Sierra, you have a suggestion, please feel free to let the starter know, or again, send me email at taiken@ranchosierragolf.com.

Thanks for Your Business

Thanks to everyone who came out and played golf at Rancho Sierra in the past month or two. We really appreciate your business and support.  If you haven't been out in awhile, I personally invite you to try Rancho Sierra. We pride ourselves at being the funnest golf course around.

If there is anything we can do to make your golf experience better, please don't hesitate to email me at taiken@ranchosierragolf.com.

Here's wishing you a hole-in-one on your next golf outing.