I’m trying a different format to see if anyone out there will respond to my blog. I notice that as I roll through the blogs on blogspot.com that there are very few responses. Nothing about golf today. I’m just enjoying a blissful day off from work. Work for me involves operating a gas station (yes, I pump gas all day, every day). It’s funny how many different things we all do in our lifetime to pass the days. I know many people who work more than one job and many who work nights and weekends…and never complain! Do any of you out ...

Barry G. Solomon’s Golf Talk - The Importance of the PreShot Routine The preshot routine is used by every  good golfer on the planet. There are as many different routines as there are golfers.  Once you develop yours, you should use it every time you swing your club.  Pre-shot routines are needed to help produce the same swing every time.  Consistency is the name of the game. So how do you develop yours?  Here are some helpful tips. 1- Stand behind your ball and picture the shot you want to hit.  (Where you want your ball to land and where you want your ball to end up). 2- Check ...

Golf for beginners 12-18-05 episode eight we talk about how the older set of golfers still get out and play, chat a bit about our game, give a few tips and mention what’s new in the latest Golf for Women magazine. We also help another golfer with a dilemma in our weekly golf mailbag. It’s our longest and funniest GFB ever! Contact us at golfforbeginners@aol.com Have a safe and happy holiday season!

In my last blog I really thought that Tiger Woods could take the trophy at the Target World Challenge. First off it’s his tournament and second he’s won it six times. You would think this tournament would be just another walk along the fairway. But as I’ve stated on many occasions, the best golfers have the hottest putters. Tiger’s putter went cold on him and, in spite of his tremendous drives, he went without a victory. European tour players took his place at the top of the leaderboard. I’m still busy watching so your guess is as good as mine ...

Tiger Woods and Annika Sorenstam are separated by continents this week but will probably wind up the winners in their respective tournaments. I get to stay home and watch only one of the two greatest golfers in the world on television. While my sister and her husband enjoy a week’s vacation in the Bahamas I sit here in the icy cold weather wondering when the snow will thaw. You see Barry and I have never played golf in the snow. It is much too difficult to try and find the golf ball (even if it IS my favorite color of yellow!) So ...

Do so many more men than women watch golf on television that PGA Q-School is televised whereas the LPGA gets silence? I was so excited to finally get to see LPGA Q-School finals that I looked everywhere, both on the internet and in my local T.V. listings. Guess what? Even ESPN2 didn’t show it! Don’t women represent half of the population? Aren’t more women today joining the golfing ranks than ever before? Why isn’t anyone catering to them…I mean to US! For any women who care out there, I think it’s important to stand together and make our voices heard! I can’t believe ...

Golf for beginners 12-04-05 episode seven discusses how Ai Miyazato is a shoo-in as champion of LPGA Q-School, Jim Furyk wins Nedbank Challenge in second playoff hole against Retief Goosen, Adam Scott and Darren Clark. Ernie Els is playing golf again. Colin Montgomerie wins Hong Kong Open by one stroke. We also give a great golf tip and help another golfer with a dilemma in our weekly golf mailbag. Contact us at golfforbeginners@aol.com with your comments and questions.

Oh no! Could it be that Danielle Amiee, winner of Big Break III and most notably known for abusing Pam Crikelair on that show, is golfing buddies with Natalie Gulbis? C’mon, give me a break! On this Tuesday’s episode it sure looked as if Gulbis was being pal-sy with the bleached-blonde. Could this have just a marketing ploy to pair the two for advertising dollars and increased ratings? Gulbis is increasing in popularity with her new 2006 calendar while Amiee’s popularity has been slipping since her m/c at Kingsmill in the Michelob Ultra Open. I wonder if that eye roll was real ...

Golf for beginners 11-27-05 episode six relates how Tiger Woods easily won at the sports spectacular Grand Slam of Golf against the grand talents of number-two rated Vijay Singh, the third best on the PGA tour Phil Mickelson and Michael Campbell who won the US Open. Michelle Wie missed the cut (again) at the Casio World Open in Japan (at least she’s improving her Japanese!) and we discuss driving range tips for the off-season as well as mental game strategies. Contact us at golfforbeginners@aol.com

She’s only sixteen! Being a relatively new golfer I can identify with Michelle Wie’s recent bid to try and make the cut at the Casio Open in Japan this weekend. You’ve got to give her credit…she keeps on trying. After six attempts in men’s events Wie still hasn’t come up with one Sunday finish. Chalk it all up to nerves. Nerves can play havoc with a golfer right from the first tee straight through a round of golf. I don’t care whether you’re Tiger Woods, Michelle Wie or a beginner just trying to make your first drive of the day. If there are ...

Folks, this is the one podcast of ours which you need to download! First of all, it’s our longest (not that a longer podcast is a sign of a great one). However golf for beginners 11-20-05 episode five is jam-packed with information from the latest victories of Annika Sorenstam and Tiger Woods to the latest putting techniques we found in Golf Magazine. We also discuss our own Odyssey Two-Ball Putters and take another letter out of the golf-for-beginners mailbag. If you haven’t already subscribed to our audio casts, now is a great time to start! As winter sets in and there is less golf ...

So, what else is new? The two super-golfers are tops again! It doesn’t really surprise me that either of the two money-list headliners took accolades at their respective tournaments. Tiger Woods rallied against Japanese sensation Kaname Yokoo in a playoff to finally birdie the fourth playoff hole at that tournament. Annika Sorenstam led heading into the final round and finished two strokes ahead of Liselotte Neumann and Michele Redman. I wonder if the ladies of the LPGA will ever be able to overtake Sorenstam or will she go down in the annals of history as the one player never to drop below ...

Whether you’re a golf beginner or just a fanatic (I am both) you will appreciate both the amount and type of golf that is being played this weekend. In LPGA news, Annika Sorenstam will be defending her trophy at the ADT Championship being played at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach. This is the season-ender for the LPGA tour and it is usually an exciting competition. Last year Annika needed a playoff hole to crown her the champion (her third win at this event). Only the top-thirty golfers on the official money list will be on hand ...

We are really happy with our latest Golf for Beginners Audio Show, Episode 4, 11-13-05. You can also subscribe to our podcast if you are an iTunes user. Just click on Podcasts, then Sports, and you’ll find us near the top of the list. This week’s commentary is about how Tiger Woods was soundly defeated by European Tour player David Howell at the HSBC Tournament. Christina Kim, winner of the this week’s LPGA Mitchell Tournament of Champions, is congratulated and we help solve a problem for one of our listeners in our email section. He questions whether it is better to learn ...

The opening of the 2006 European Tour season wasn’t the kind of beginning that Tiger Woods expected. Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai was supposed to be Tiger Woods’ first win in China. Instead the number-one golfer on the PGA Tour suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of relative unknown David Howell. Although during the HSBC Champions Tournament Tiger Woods remained in contention he could not polish off Howell nor intimidate him. Of a very large total purse of $5 million dollars, Howell received in excess of $800,000 while Tiger took a second place check of around $550,000…still not bad for ...

What kind of ball marker do you use? I personally like my gold Sackegeweya dollar but I will also use one of those new, shiny quarters floating around. There are so many people who swear by a coin which they found on the floor that eventually won them a tournament or an heirloom which was special to someone they once knew. Some people don’t even know what markers they use to hold the spot for their golf ball. They take whatever they find out of their golf bag, right down to the tee they used at address. While watching the HSBC Championship ...

Check out golfforbeginners11-06-05-1 rel="enclosure">our latest Golf for Beginners podcast from November 6th. We talk about the terrific Annika Sorenstam and give some great golf tips! Email us with your questions and comments at golfforbeginners@aol.com.

Check out our second golf for beginners podcast from October 30th. Our audio syndication this week talks about consistency and staying even-tempered.

Venturing into the unknown both Barry and I hope to deliver a podcast with a punch. Although podcasting isn’t as difficult as I thought there are still alot of small pieces that fit into the puzzle. I have become not only a writer but also a producer. Even though my creative juices are flowing I also have to write certain codes that make the program run. But I’m on the right track. We just published our first podcast in iTunes. That means that not only did the html and xml validate but I figured out how to use Garageband! Here’s a direct link ...

I know it has been quite some time since I have written a golf blog at this site. Somehow I thought that I could accomplish more if I had my own web address. I have owned the name Golf for Beginners with the hopes of somehow turning it into some magnificent website complete with all of the bells and whistles. Little did I realize that there are so many other great bloggers out there in blog heaven that I would be terribly overshadowed by them. Still I continue my quest to blog. And I will also continue to write about my ...

I never thought that Barry and I would have so much fun producing podcasts. Not only do I get to spend more time with my husband but we get to talk about one of our common favorite subjects! We also decided that it was easier for our readers to contact us at our new email address. Email us at: golfforbeginners@aol.com I guess that address is just easier for folks to remember. And we intend to feature letters on air (of course we would like these letters to talk about golf…) so please feel free to write to us and ask questions. No ...

I visited a golf course that I haven’t played in some time although it’s my home course. Maple Moor has been undergoing a renovation since Billy Casper Golf took it over last year. It really hasn’t improved at all. In spite of the soggy fairways (this was one of their biggest problems…drainage!) and very weedy grounds I did really well today. You see I haven’t played golf in two weeks nor did I visit a driving range in over a week. I was a bit tight and didn’t expect much of myself. That could be why I scored so well! I noticed ...

Annika Sorenstam shows her finesse at Bighorn Golf Club after defeating 19 top golfers on the LPGA tour. At the Samsung World Championship Annika Sorenstam quietly climbed the leaderboard while all eyes were fixed upon young phenom Michelle Wie. Sunday confirmed Annika’s right to sit atop the LPGA throne while the remainder of the pack stood eight strokes behind. A final round 69 gave the Swede her third victory this year and ninth overall in which she has clobbered the competition with an eight-stroke or better advantage. As Sorenstam strode confidently along the fairways and greens of the Canyons Course others like Michelle ...

Annika Sorenstam, Paula Creamer and Natalie Gulbis sure have their work cut out for them today. Michelle Wie is hot on the trail of the top female golfers in the world and she’s only sixteen! Annika doesn’t really do her best on Sundays. That’s why, during the past few days, Annika has built a solid lead. When she slips up a bit today, those extra points will come in handy. Okay so Annika may NOT slip up today…it’s just a prediction. As I’m watching the Samsung right now I notice that Michelle Wie has turned up the pressure and is now in double digits ...

I was fortunate to get out of work early with my husband on Friday. We headed over to Saxon Woods Golf Course for a quick nine. Even though the forecast said rain I figured that it’s just as important to hone my skills in bad weather as in good so we decided to see how the elements affect the score, swing, mood and all other factors. Barry was on his best behavior (c’mon women, you know what I mean). It wasn’t raining yet but there was a steady fog creeping in and we could just feel the dampness in the air but ...

As most of you know I comment weekly on the LPGA Tour. Early in the season I blasted the LPGA because I felt that the action on that tour was stilted. I have to retract my earlier statements and add that the LPGA Tour is both alive and well! With the addition of a new “crew” of young talent and a new slogan “These Girls Rock” the LPGA is being watched by more viewers than ever before! The PGA Tour was never in danger of losing viewership. The guys have the wherewithall to hit the ball a great distance longer than ...

It was a day just like any other. I insisted Barry and I leave the business early as it was the start of the Labor Day weekend and I really felt we needed a break. We got to Saxon Woods early. We had a 4:00pm tee-off but I really needed to putt and chip a little before going out since I don’t get the opportunity to play or practice much anymore. I spent about 15 minutes taking long, lazy swings with my sand wedge first, then taking out my 7-iron. I wanted to make sure that I was also mentally prepared. Sometimes ...

But what about golf beginner Pam Crikelair? For all of the people who watched the Big Break III on Tuesday nights, most were disappointed when Danielle Amiee won last night. Personally, I think the best person at the time won, and although I didn’t like her attitude and how she tried to psyche out 2nd placer Pam Crikelair, she did finally win. But what about Pam, the Westchester County native who is also a golf beginner? According to Pam, she never even OWNED a set of golf clubs as recently as three years ago! AND, she made it into the finals ...

Not even Mike Weir could stop the charge that came from Phil Mickelson at the 2005 Pebble Beach Pro Am this past weekend. Canadian Weir came close with the best round of the day, a 5-under 67. Even when Phil dropped his lead down to 4 strokes after bogeying on the ninth and tenth holes, he rebounded with a birdie on the 11th. This was the shot he needed to regain confidence in his game and finally win for the second time this year. Mickelson is no stranger to dramatic finishes. He rarely plays it safe, although ...

Yesterday I went out with a friend of mine, a senior men’s player, who originally insisted (last season) that I should play from the white tees. I took his advice and haven’t looked back since. However good his intentions were, and however well they worked for me, I cannot say that you should do the same. I find that playing with friends (including my golf buddy) although they may have good intentions, always try to give you advice during a round of golf. During one hole, he stood behind me, waiting for me to hit my shot (driver off the tee) ...

Editorial by Stacy Solomon First of all, CONGRATULATIONS to Phil Mickelson on his win at the 2005 FBR Open! Next, the question arises, “Just how did Phil do it?” He is usually an aggressive player, “going for the green” whenever he thinks he can make it, regardless of the consequences. This makes him an exciting player to watch, but also makes him prone to failure and losses, with large leads slipping away by the end of the tournament. Hitting the fairway was essential at the Phoenix CC, and proved to be an easy task for Mickelson early on in the tournament. But, ...

As per my March 3rd Weekly Golf Blog, I chose to watch the final round of golf at Doral. I usually root for the underdog as so many of us golfers do, and was surprised that Mickelson didn’t win! His mental game must be alot stronger, because he won the last two PGA Tour events. But, when it comes to Tiger lurking in the shadows, I guess Phil needs to push his mental game even further. Don’t worry Phil, the majors haven’t even begun and you really are ready for them! I suspect that you’ll ...

With 11 of the top twelve players headlining at Doral, it seems more like a parade than an actual event! Only Ernie El’s is missing in the lineup as he will be at the Dubai Desert Classic this week. And that’s too bad, because I think Els is a joy to watch. His swing is so slow and has such good tempo that I really miss watching him! So, I will make sure that I catch the Dubai Classic this week at well. This is going to be a big week in golf. The LPGA is going ...

I had a feeling that Felicia would be the next golfer off the show. She talked a good talk, but that’s not all there is. She couldn’t come through under pressure. Hey, Felicia, I’ll golf with you anytime! And, cheers to Westchester Pam! Nice EAGLE! The first in your career? C’mon… What about Cindy? She doesn’t seem as confident as I thought she’d be, especially since she was on the LPGA Tour in the 70’s. Okay, 30 years have passed, but I guarantee that Cindy (as well as the rest of the ladies) practice ALOT! Danielle did reasonably well this week, of ...

DSCN0472.JPG Originally uploaded by golf-for-beginners. You know, I write for many sites that I don’t know which one to finally choose to download this pic that I found on my computer! It works out the same because your thoughts get out there, into the world. Here’s my golf pic…a reminder of what it was like to play golf in Myrtle Beach. Usually, my husband and I play golf on the publinks, so this is truly a rarity! Okay, I just realized that when you post a blog on Flickr, it automatically sends the blog to blogspot…hmmm…quite interesting! I’m going to have to ...

By Stacy@golf-for-beginners.com - my first posting, hope you like it! Golf beginners who are truly interested in the sport eat, drink and sleep golf. I must be a golf beginner because I can’t wait until Thursday. What’s so important about Thursday, you ask? Well, Thursday is the start of another golf weekend for the PGA Tour (okay, I must admit I watch whatever tour is on TV at the time…it doesn’t matter if it’s the Champions Tour or the European Tour…JUST GIVE ME MORE GOLF!) And, I notice that most golfers have a favorite on the PGA Tour. I personally ...