Too Much Snow to Think Golf? Think Again.

Much of the northern half of the U.S. has already seen some good measurable snowfall amounts, while some areas are getting snowed into their homes. All to often when this time of year hits, golfers have their clubs in hiding and the game becomes an after thought until the thaws of Spring and the smell of Augusta's azaleas. However, this does not have to be the case. Put in a little work and practice through the snow season and you will notice you will have an advantage on your buddies when the golf season starts.

Now, you could be a die-hard to work on your game through the snow, but I doubt many of you fall into that category.

In this day and age, there are plenty of opportunities to practice your game. Many driving ranges have heated stalls that can make it bearable to just wear a light jacket when practicing. Many golf facilities that offer academies or schools may have a teaching building that can be used for practice or lessons during the off season and many times these hitting areas are also heated. Another option would be an establishment that has simulators set up. Some golf courses have these to use during the off season along with driving range facilities and there are also stand alone businesses that may also have this as an option. Today's simulators are much more realistic and provide a lot more swing feedback then some of the older simulators from 10 years ago. All of these options can be narrowed down and found in your area by doing a simple Google search.

If you really want to take your game to the next level by Spring, you should also search and contact PGA professionals in your area. PGA.com offers an area on their website where you can search for PGA instructors, it is simple and easy to find one in your area. The facility I work for in northern Indiana turns our Pro Shop into a teaching studio through the winter months. We offer swing instruction using video analysis to work on your swing. We will soon be offering the technology provided by Flightscope to be able to get even more detailed information about your swing. Along with that, I will be offering introductory golf classes at our local YMCA through the winter. There are many opportunities that allow you to work on your game during the off season and taking a little time to do a couple quick searches, can make it easy to win over some of your buddies' money those first few weeks in the spring.

Equipment Buzz: Callaway Big Bertha is Back

Besides Jason Dufner petitioning Tiger Woods to make his event 36 holes this week, all the buzz has been about the new Callaway driver, the Big Bertha. The name may not be new, but just as the original, Callaway is hoping this club will be a game-changer within the industry and they may very well be right. They are putting out two models, the Big Bertha and the Big Bertha Alpha.

The Big Bertha will be in competition with TaylorMade's SLDR driver and works in very much the same fashion. It has a sliding weight that can be slid around the bottom of the crown to help increase/decrease right and left shot shape. It also has hosel adjustments that can set the face up square or to favor a draw along with loft adjustments to increase loft by 2 degrees or decrease it by 1 degree from the standard setting. It is a very lightweight driver that helps increase swing speed and create more distance. It is also a visually appealing club with a pear-shape 460cc head.

The game changer for Callaway is the Big Bertha Alpha. This club features a new technology that has not been seen before and could have as much of an effect on the game as the first TaylorMade adjustable driver has. This 460cc head has the same hosel features as the regular Big Bertha in that you can adjust the face setting along with the loft by adding up to 2 degrees or decreasing 1 degree from the standard setting. It also has adjustable weighting on the heel and tow to help increase/decrease left or right shot shape. A third and new adjustable factor is the gravity core stick. This goes into the middle of the club from the bottom. Depending on which end you put in first, you are able to adjust the center of gravity of the club. With it inserted one way, the center of gravity is on the top half of the club face. If you adjust it and flip the stick, the center of gravity will be on the lower half of the club face. If you are looking to increase the trajectory of your shot, you will want the center of gravity on the lower part of the club face and vice-versa; if you are looking to bring your shot trajectory down some, then you would want the center of gravity on the upper half of the club face. This new adjustment allows to the golfer to be even more accurately fit for a driver and increases the chances of having a club that maximizes the strengths and minimizes the flaws of a swing. Be sure to at least test drive one of these clubs next season to see if it can help you.

So, You Wanna Be A PGA Pro?

All too often I am asked questions pertaining to my career. "If you are a pro, are you able to play golf on t.v. like Tiger Woods?" "What does it take to be a golf pro?" "How good of a golfer do you have to be to be a golf pro?"

There are two ways to take the road in becoming a PGA Professional. If you have been interested in golf for most of your life and find yourself enjoying the integrity and competition of playing at the high school level, I would encourage you to at least learn about what it takes to make golf a possible career choice.

The newest form of gaining your PGA membership is to attend an accredited university that offers the PGM program. This program takes approximately five years to complete, but when you are finished you will have a bachelor's degree along with your PGA membership. Internships and playing tests are required before you can graduate and gain PGA membership.

The second way of gaining membership is to take self-study courses through the PGA of America. You must employed at a golf facility with a recognized PGA professional for six months before you can sign up. Once you sign up, you must pass a pre-entry test that covers the basics of playing along with the business of golf. After this test is passed, you will then begin your journey toward PGA membership. There are three levels that you must pass. Each level has book work that must be completed, submitted and approved. Once this bookwork is completed and approved, you travel to the PGA National Education headquarters in Florida for a week worth of seminars. After attending the seminars, you are able to take an online test that must be passed before continuing to the next level. These steps are repeated until all three levels are passed. Outside of these three levels, you must also pass a playability test (same one required for those who attend a PGM program at a university). To pass this playability test, you play 36 holes in one day and have a target score you must shoot based on the slope and rating of the course you are playing. It is typically around 15 over for the 36 holes. This score may sound easy enough, but less than 20% pass on any given attempt. It took myself two attempts (thanks to scoring a 10 on one hole my first try) and even then, I passed right on the number.

The second way of pursuing membership is the route I took. I also have a college degree in Education that I pursued before signing up to work my way towards a PGA membership. I must say that the day I received my PGA membership, has been my most rewarding day of my career life (marriage and children have been more rewarding in my personal life). It felt more special and rewarding than receiving my college degree as it has always been a dream of mine to have a career in the golf industry. Receiving membership within the PGA helped to push me in that direction. It was by no means easy and it was difficult to do with balancing work, family and doing the self-study lessons, but it has also been worth it. Speaking of worth it, the cost is something else to consider when thinking of attempting to become a PGA member. If you go through a university, it is no different than paying for school with any other degree. If you choose to take the path of doing it on your own, you can expect to spend close to $7,000 with no financial assistance programs. Much of this cost comes from traveling to Florida three separate times for seminars (if you live in Florida, this can be a much cheaper expense).

Next time, I will address the myths that golf pros get to play golf all the time and have an easy job if you live in the northern half of the country because of mother nature and the winter months.  Let me know if you have any questions in what it takes to become a PGA member, I would be more than happy to assist in exploration in any way that I can.