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01_768715 ffirs.qxp 12/17/05 12:34 AM Page i Golf FOR DUMmIES ‰ 3 RD EDITION by Gary McCord Foreword by David Feherty 01_768715 ffirs.qxp 12/17/05 12:34 AM Page i Golf FOR DUMmIES ‰ 3 RD EDITION by Gary McCord Foreword by David Feherty 01_768715 ffirs.qxp 12/17/05 12:34 AM Page ii GolfFor Dummies®, 3rd Edition Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River St. Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com Copyright ©2006 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permit- ted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax 978-646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Legal Department, Wiley Publishing, Inc., 10475 Crosspoint Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46256, 317-572-3447, fax 317-572-4355, or online at http:// www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. 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Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: 2005936643 ISBN-13: 978-0-471-76871-5 ISBN-10: 0-471-76871-5 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 3B/QZ/QR/QW/IN 01_768715 ffirs.qxp 12/17/05 12:34 AM Page iii About the Author “Life is full of ups and downs, good and bad, but it wouldn’t be fun any other way.” Living by this optimistic philosophy, Gary McCord persisted through years of mediocrity before finding success. An outstanding player, television announcer, instructor, author, speaker, and even movie actor, he has become a golf celebrity. McCord is well known for enduring 23 years and 422 tournaments on the PGA Tour without nabbing a single victory. A man of good humor, he sported a “NOWINS” license plate for years to poke fun at his less-than-glamorous work as a professional golfer. “Trapped in the headlights of bankruptcy,” as he liked to put it, McCord pur- sued other avenues in golf, and found himself launching a broadcasting career. He scored big when a CBS Sports executive tossed him a headset and asked him to do golf commentary — giving him only 15 minutes to prepare. A friend of failure, McCord jumped in with no fear and impressed CBS with his perfor- mance. Twenty years later, he is still providing color commentary for CBS golf events. Fans and critics alike praise him for his knowledgeable perspective, refreshing humor, and sometimes irreverent wit toward a game known for taking itself too seriously. Broadcasting changed his perspective on golf. Realizing that a better understanding of the golf swing would help his TV work, McCord studied under Mac O’Grady, a legendary guru of the game. After two years of study he emerged with knowledge, confidence, and an improved golf game. Gary’s own golf really came together just as he began his career on the Champions Tour after his 50th birthday. In 1999, his first full season on that tour, he won two events — the Toshiba Senior Classic and the Ingersoll-Rand Senior Tour Championship — to finish 17th on the official money list with nearly $1,000,000 in prize money. Since then, he has continued to play well, usually finishing in the top 30 on the money list while playing a limited schedule of 10 to15 events per year. When he isn’t broadcasting or playing golf, McCord keeps busy with myriad other projects. He portrayed himself in and served as technical director for the golf movie Tin Cup,starring Kevin Costner, Rene Russo, and Don Johnson. He is also a writer. In addition to writing Golf For Dummies,he is the author of a collection of essays about his life on tour, Just a Range Ball in a Box of Titleists. His bestselling Golf For Dummieswas released in DVD form in 2004. 01_768715 ffirs.qxp 12/17/05 12:34 AM Page iv McCord and his friend and CBS Sports colleague David Feherty are known tomillions of golf fans and gamers as the voices of EA Sports’ Tiger Woods PGA Tour video games. McCord also instructs and consults with more than 20 PGA Tour players. Along with another friend and fellow CBS commentator, Peter Kostis, he co-founded the Kostis/McCord Learning Center at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. Gary brings a sense of fun to everything he does and never takes himself too seriously. He and his wife, Diane, share the “ups and downs” of a busy life together at their homes in Scottsdale and Denver. 01_768715 ffirs.qxp 12/17/05 12:34 AM Page v Dedication I dedicate this book to my mom, Ruth, and to David Feherty’s make-believe best friend, Flossy — his pet goat. They light up our lives. Author’s Acknowledgments It is a smart dummy who surrounds himself with good people. This book was taken to the next level by Kevin Cook. Very good people. Here’s hoping we’ll keep up with our readers’ ascent to the top of golf’s food chain. Grip it and read it! My wife, Diane, is simply the best. Her patience with my work and understanding with my schedule I am unable to comprehend. She is my life’s caddie, and a better one I could not have. To my mom, Ruth, my daughter, Krista, and myfour granddaughters, Breanne, Kayla, Jenae, and Terra: You will all get still more free books. Thanks for thinking about me when I’ve been away mywhole life. Many thanks to the Wiley team: Acquisitions Editor Stacy Kennedy, Project Editor Elizabeth Kuball, Technical Editor John Brott, Photographer Daniel Mainzer, Project Coordinator Kathryn Shanks, Editorial/Acquisitions Intern Jenny Baylor, Associate Graphics Processor Lauren Goddard, and Supervisor of Graphics Shelley Lea. They worked hard to get this book just right! 01_768715 ffirs.qxp 12/17/05 12:34 AM Page vi Publisher’s Acknowledgments We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register/. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Acquisitions, Editorial, and Composition Services Media Development Project Coordinator:Kathryn Shanks Project Editor:Elizabeth Kuball Layout and Graphics:Andrea Dahl, (Previous Editions: Pamela Mourouzis and Denny Hager, Stephanie D. Jumper, Colleen Totz) ClintLahnen, Barbara Moore, LynseyOsborn, Heather Ryan Acquisitions Editor:Stacy Kennedy Special Art:Pam Tanzey Consultant:Kevin Cook Photography:Paul Lester, Scott Baxter Technical Editor:John Brott Photography, Daniel Mainzer Photography Editorial Manager:Michelle Hacker Proofreaders:Laura Albert, Leeann Harney, Editorial Supervisor and Reprint Editor: Joe Niesen, TECHBOOKS Production Carmen Krikorian Services Editorial Assistants: Hanna Scott, Nadine Bell, Indexer:TECHBOOKS Production Services David Lutton Special Help Cover Photos:© Steve Belkowitz/Taxi/Getty Jenny Baylor, Lauren Goddard, Shelley Lea Cartoons: Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com) Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director, Consumer Dummies Kristin A. Cocks, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies Michael Spring, Vice President and Publisher, Travel Kelly Regan,Editorial Director, Travel Publishing for Technology Dummies Andy Cummings,Vice President and Publisher, Dummies Technology/General User Composition Services Gerry Fahey,Vice President of Production Services Debbie Stailey,Director of Composition Services 02_768715 ftoc.qxp 12/17/05 12:36 AM Page vii Contents at a Glance Foreword....................................................................xix Introduction.................................................................1 Part I: Getting Started: No, You Can’t Hit the Ball Yet....7 Chapter 1: What Is This Thing Called Golf?....................................................................9 Chapter 2: Gearing Up......................................................................................................17 Chapter 3: Do I Need Lessons?.......................................................................................33 Chapter 4: Getting Fit for Golf.........................................................................................47 Chapter 5: Where to Play and Who to Play With..........................................................71 Part II: You Ain’t Got a Thing If You Ain’t Got That Swing.........................................81 Chapter 6: Getting into the Swing of Things.................................................................83 Chapter 7: Refining Your Swing....................................................................................115 Chapter 8: Putting: The Art of Rolling the Rock.........................................................123 Chapter 9: Chipping and Pitching................................................................................153 Chapter 10: It’s Your Sandbox: Bunker Play................................................................165 Part III: Common Faults and Easy Fixes......................175 Chapter 11: Typical Problems and Simple Solutions.................................................177 Chapter 12: How to Beat Bad Luck and Bad Weather................................................197 Part IV: Taking Your Game Public..............................215 Chapter 13: Ready, Set, Play!.........................................................................................217 Chapter 14: Rules, Etiquette, and Scoring...................................................................235 Chapter 15: Gamesmanship and Sportsmanship.......................................................255 Part V: Golf: It’s Electric!..........................................267 Chapter 16: Golf on TV...................................................................................................269 Chapter 17: Golf on the Web.........................................................................................285 Chapter 18: Tiger versus Golden Tee: The Best of Virtual Golf................................301 02_768715 ftoc.qxp 12/17/05 12:36 AM Page viii Part VI: The Part of Tens...........................................305 Chapter 19: Golf’s Ten Commandments......................................................................307 Chapter 20: Gary’s Ten Favorite Courses....................................................................311 Chapter 21: Gary’s Ten Favorite Public Courses........................................................317 Chapter 22: Gary’s Ten All-Time Favorite Male Players............................................323 Chapter 23: Gary’s Ten All-Time Favorite Female Players........................................327 Chapter 24: The (More Than) Ten Worst Golf Disasters...........................................331 Part VII: Appendixes.................................................341 Appendix A: Golf Speak.................................................................................................343 Appendix B: Golf Organizations....................................................................................361 Index.......................................................................365