Category: Social Media

2014 Masters Pin Flag Giveaway

Who wants a 2014 Masters Embroidered Golf Pin Flag from Augusta National? I know I do! And here’s your chance to win one!

As you may have noticed, this blog has not exactly been active lately. I’ve been planning to get back to it but sadly it’s taken a back seat to some other endeavors lately. With my excitement over The Masters, I figured I’d take this opportunity to jumpstart those plans. Giveaways seem like a lame ploy for traffic and comments, but it’s a Masters flag!

The good people at MMOGolf.com are providing the flag to a lucky winner (and one to me – yay!) in exchange for this blog post, some social media promotion and this link to their site: MMOGolf.com

If you like Masters memorabilia, definitely check them out. They have all kinds of great swag from Augusta!
You can also find them on Facebook and Twitter.

How to enter

All you need to do to enter is comment on this blog post with your thoughts about The Masters. It can be anything – why it’s the best major (or not – WHAT?), what The Masters means to you, a story about your trip there, what you’d give to go watch the tournament or play the course, your prediction of who will win – you get the idea. The comment can be as short or long as you want. Entries must include your email (so I can contact you if you win) and must be received before the last putt sinks at Augusta at the end of Masters Sunday (April 13, 2014). Feel free to leave your twitter handle in the comment, too. You’ll get a shoutout if you win, and maybe even if you don’t.

How to win

Well, it’s pretty subjective. You just have to write the post that I and my staff (ahem) like the best. My friends may weigh in as well. If you’ve been reading this blog or following me on social media for any length of time, you have an advantage because you probably understand what I like and my sense of humor better than someone who doesn’t. I could choose anything from something poignant and lengthy to something quick and dirty that makes me laugh or anywhere in between.

That’s it. We’ll go over the entries and choose a winner after The Masters hangover wears off. I’ll announce the winner here and across my social media accounts, and email the winner directly for shipping information. Good luck, and HAPPY MASTERS WEEK!

When Will The Golf Chick Break 80? Pool Announcement and Progress Report

July 21, 2011 / golfchick / 8 Comments

As my golf swing continues to progress, I started the pool about when I will break 80 over on my Golf Chick Facebook page last week and people are getting their votes in. There is an over/under for the less adventuresome but some people are also naming specific dates. I’ll tell you something – there will likely be a prize or two and it will be a lot harder to choose a winner from people who only picked over or under. Just saying. Wagering amongst one another is up to you and the laws that govern you (does that cover my ass?).

People who read this blog regularly will have an advantage because you’ll know the progress I’m making. Scores I’m shooting, how practice is going, how dedicated I am (or not) day to day, week to week, how I’m feeling about it all, etc. Some people are choosing the “over” in the pool, which I perceive as an underestimation of me – one I look forward to proving wrong. Perhaps they’re doing it on purpose to motivate me, but if you haven’t voted and are considering the same – here’s another clue: I’m plenty motivated now. That grenade has been jumped on. Pick a more winning date.

A couple people have chosen their own birthdays as my break 80 date, which I think is fantastic. I wish I could give that birthday gift – the first one is next week though! Zoinks! Plus, I should tell you potential pool participants that while I do manage to play during the week at times, I’m much more likely to play on weekends. By the way, if you don’t use Facebook, feel free to make your pick here in the comments of this post. If you are dropping by my FB page to make your pick, I’d love it if you would click its “like” button if you haven’t yet!

Quick answers and summary of progress: People have asked me on Facebook and Twitter about my progress. All my golf and swing progress is documented here on my blog. Quick review to date – best score before swing change: 82. Best score since swing change: 86, however that was too soon and I don’t feel it was my authentic new swing. I played 5 rounds with a flawed new swing and am now back to only practicing to get it more ingrained and it’s feeling better already (details below). I’m playing a scramble charity event this Friday (July 22) and plan to continue to grind away at the range after that. I will throw in a round from time to time to keep practice interesting. As I mentioned earlier, weekends are far more likely for such rounds to occur but some weekdays are possible.

Golf Swing Progress Update:

I had three amazing practice sessions the last three nights. I focused only on my irons and really had them working well. Getting back to the fundamentals after so many days on the course really made a difference and I was able to focus on how what I should be doing and feeling rather than the outcome of each shot on a course. I was striking the ball very well and more consistently than ever. Not just since I got my new swing but EVER. Which, according to Jay Lim, my swing coach, (and perhaps every other instructor) is precisely the objective. ConsistentÂ repeat-ability. I’m getting there and it feels amazing.

Golf Tip – From the Horse’s Mouth – Am to Am Translation

I’m sure it has been spoken and written countless times but something occurred to me on the range the past couple days that really made a difference for me and felt like a breakthrough. One of my weaknesses Jay has been coaching me on is how I lead with the hands or arms instead of the shoulders on the backswing. He keeps telling me the shoulders need to start the swing. If he explained why I don’t recall but the reason I just figured out on my own is that it makes it 10 times easier to keep my left arm straight(er) and control the steepness of my swing plane. Jay usually speaks my language very well, which is important in a student/swing coach relationship, but whatever he said or I read about consistency and leading with the shoulders did not really click for me until I came to this revelation two days ago and reinforced last night and tonight. I share it with you now in the hopes it might do the same for someone else. To put it the way it made sense in MY head: lead, almost push back, with the front shoulder to keep the arm “connected” in the swing. If I lead with my hands or club, the shoulders have a hard time keeping up and it’s almost impossible not to bend my left elbow. If I turn my shoulders first, it practically keeps itself straight! Then if I keep my plane (which I’m doing better by keeping my right knee bent), it’s much easier to contact the ball consistently because my arm doesn’t have to “figure out” where to go. It has already been there.

Romance in the Air

I am falling in love with my new golf swing so I need to name it now more than ever. You know, before I start calling it some cutesy name like “Cupcake” instead of a fierce name like a honey badger deserves. I’m considering Chuck, or Norris (not both – I can’t see myself loving Chuck Norris but he could be my swing’s namesake). I am so excited. I seriously cannot stop thinking about my swing and when I’ll be able to spend more time with it. It feels like new love. For a golf nerd. If you read this far, I bet you know just how I feel. Admit it.

UPDATE: I DID IT! July 11, 2015.

Took me long enough, but I finally broke 80! I shot 78 at Falcon Ridge golf course from the maroon tees (4440 yards). I normally play the gold tees there but we played with another couple and I decided to step up and play the forward tees since the woman was playing there and the guys were split, so rather than stop at four sets of tees… you know how that goes. Anyway, even though it’s exceptionally short, it’s still a challenging course and you have to make the shots. So it counts! 😛

Then, less than a week later we went back and I played the gold tees (5279 – still short, but with a 124 slope that’s my spot). After breaking 80 from the forward tees, breaking 80 from here was my next goal. Guess what? NAILED IT! Shot a smooth 77 for a new personal best!

Haven’t seen the 70’s again since, but my new goal is to break 80 at any other golf course. Then just try to keep it in the 70’s.

I’ve always been pretty chill on the golf course because, well, I’m “not good enough to get mad.” But now that I’ve seen and felt the 70’s, I find myself feeling more frustrated out there when I don’t play well. Maybe I need to look into meditation.

~May they all roll true.

Is Time Running Out For The Golf Chick’s Golf?

July 11, 2011 / golfchick / 1 Comment

I had a meeting yesterday (which started on a golf course but ended in a living room) during which I basically committed to yet another 20 hours a week on a project. With pesky sleep, household & single (with shared custody) dog mom duties, I’m running out of hours in the day. I’m afraid that my current bill paying projects may take away from my golf practice & progress toward breaking 80, not to mention my blogging, tweeting and facebooking about it all. However, I will do all I can to do all the above and continue to pretend to be remain sane. If I tweet, FB or blog less, feel free to smack me around a bit. Beware, I may smack back – heehee. This mad pace should be temporary, but may fluctuate up until November 2012.

My personal golf improvement goal remains as well as my desire to bring you tons of TGC material in text, merchandise, events and fun over the coming seasons. This is kind of starting to sound like a non-announcement announcement or just a vague Tiger presser. I’m just trying to keep you all informed on my situation! If you’ve been here long, you know I’m painfully honest and probably overshare at times, but hey, at least you know what you’re getting! Best of golf to you all, may they all roll true, and I hope to “see” you back here a couple times a week!

Next post.

Swing Juice, Aiming Fluid, Driver Lube?

June 29, 2011 / golfchick / 1 Comment

Some people only play golf while consuming adult beverages. Others never “drink and drive” on the golf course for various reasons. Personally, I go both ways. It kind of depends on howÂ competitiveÂ I want to be – and whether or not I need some ‘lube” for my nerves. If I’m just playing a casual round with friends or family, there are usually plenty of libations to keep us all good and loose.

There are plenty of cute nicknames for what to call an on-course adult beverage , (I’ve heard a bunch but a popular one in my circle is “aiming fluid”), but by far the one I hear most is “swing juice.” Well it turns out there is actually an officially named GOLF DRINK by that name. Swing Juice is an energy drink that was developed by a passionate golfer like us! It contains lots of vitamins and supplements that help boost energy & focus for better performance on the course. Here is the list of ingredients and their benefits.

I actually tried the stuff years ago when the creator sent me a sample. I may or may not have blogged about it them but I sure am now. I am connected with Swing Juice on Twitter and saw a recent tweet from them that included cocktail recipe concoctions and – naturally – wanted to get my hands on those recipes. They sent me some more Swing Juice, but despite several requests have neglected to send the list of recipes. That’s okay, though, I’ve some experience and even though my recipes aren’t as fancy as theirs looked (mine generally lack creativity and are rushed together with two ingredients – booze and Swing Juice), they do the trick and are quite delish. The pic above is from a hot day of practice on the range when all I wanted and needed was straight up Swing Juice. And I LOVE the lemonade flavor.

Later that day on the golf course, I added a little tequila to another bottle of lemonade Swing Juice.

Tonight, I’m enjoying some vodka with the yummy Pomegranate Berry Swing Juice.

You really can’t go wrong, straight or spiked. I highly recommend the stuff. As you may know, I’ve been practicing a lot lately (daily) and it may or may not be a coincidence but I can actually say I’ve had better success on the range – and more fun – when I have hydrated with Swing Juice, and I plan to continue. Cheers!

What do you call YOUR on-course beverage?

Next post.

The Golfchick

That chick blabbing about anything golf related.