Hole In One Number 17: Witnessed By Marita and Ken Wittman

Well the Coach did it again.  When most golfers including pros struggle to get one hole in one in their lifetime, Coach drains number 17 with Marita and Ken Wittman looking on.  Pictured below is Coach holding that little golf ball that made it's way into the hole, struck by Lloyd's famous 3 wood, on the 165 yard par three at the Classic Golf Club.

However there is a lot more to this story and I will let Marita tell it in here own words. 

My husband Ken and I met Coach while on vacation at Bear Mountain Resort on Vancouver Island last August 2013.  We met by accident on the course on Saturday, which had been a somewhat frustrating round hampered by inconsistency.  While chatting after the round, we discovered Lloyd was available to give some on-the-course tips to improve our enjoyment of the game and so we immediately engaged him to go out with us the next day. 

 

 

That Sunday we learned some important course management skills, but also learned all about Lloyd’s unique perspective and style.  It was a very enlightening round of golf, which we all enjoyed.  Lloyd presented Ken with his signature red hat that he claimed would take 5 strokes off Ken’s handicap and we agreed to keep in touch after we returned to our home in southern California.

In October 2013, Ken competed for and won our golf club’s annual net championship title.  He then represented our club in the Southern California Golf Association Net Champions Tournament in Palm Springs.   Ken attributes his success to the lessons he learned from Coach (and his hat, of course).  But that’s not the end of the story .  . .

 

 

In January 2014 we received a call from Coach that he would be in the Palm Springs area in February.  We set a date to play a round at the Classic Club for February 16^th. 

We drove from Orange County that morning and met Lloyd at the course.  After a leisurely breakfast snack, we commenced our round.  The first hole was a par 4, which Lloyd easily pared and we both boogied. 

 

The second hole was a par 3 measuring 165 yards to the pin.  Lloyd used his 3 wood for a cut shot that curved beautifully from left to right and dropped gently onto the green and began to roll toward the hole.  My husband Ken said, “That looks good, it’s going in” and we all watched as surely enough it did!  Lloyd had achieved his 17^th hole-in-one! Ken and I feel privileged that we were there to see it.  Congratulations Lloyd! 

Thanks,

Marita Wittman

Newport Beach, CA

“A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all other virtues”.

 

I would like to thank Marita and Ken for the post information. If any of you out there have a golf story or want to post something to Llody's blog you can send me the information at weshadikin@shaw.ca or you can be an author and post stuff yourself, just let me know.

 

Great day golfing to Coach and Friends...remember "Think Birdie". 

The Coach In Indian Wells California

While the snow, cold and rain is gracing the fairways of most Canadian golf courses, guess where the Coach is at?  Yupp, the Coach is having the time of his life in Indian Wells just outside of Palm Springs.

After a wonderful round of Golf on one of the best courses in Arizona it is time to celebrate and the smile on Lloyd's face tells it all.  Below is Francis Wong and his wife Mary -Ann (blond lady) and Lloyd and his date for the evening.  It was Valentine's Day and Lloyd and his new friends want to wish the rest of us Coach and Friends group a happy day.

 

Hopefully the rest of us can get an invite next year to Indian Wells in February...sounds like a plan.  I also heard a rumour that Lloyd may have sunk another hole in one making it his 17, I will wait for official notification before posting the details.

Keep well and Think Birdie

 

 

 

 

A Close Qualifying Miss For Mark

We'll the first stage is over and unfortunately I missed the cut. I had a decent round 1 scoring 73 in very windy conditions which left me tied for ninth. The second round was A very poor performance on the greens and after many three putts I finished with an 81 and missed the cut by four shots.

I am very disappointed at my finish here, my ball striking was exceptional but the putter let me down.  So while I am disappointed with the result I will take the positives (my ball striking) and review my short game for needed areas of improvement.

Failure lies on the road to success and I will look at this as another learning experience.
I am grateful that I have the talent , ambition, and opportunity to pursue this goal.  I will continue to work hard every time I tee it up, I will seize the opportunity to improve each day.
Professional golf is a journey , and as long as I can accept the fact that there are many twists and turns in this journey, it will turn out fine.

I really appreciate the support of my friends at Think Birdie and will post some
Pictures of these outstanding golf courses in Portugal when I get back to Canada.

Talk  to you soon

Mark Forrest

Mark Forrest: Senior Tour Qualifying Day 1

The big day has arrived and I can hardly believe it.  Thanks to all of you who have made this day possible.

It is the  morning of the first round, I think I have made excellent preparation for this event. My game is good and my putting was outstanding yesterday. I have been playing every other day and practicing on the other days.  The key here is to learn and understand the breaks and speeds of these greens they are in fantastic condition but require a sharp set of skills to make good putts.

I have played some practice round with people from around the world; Sweden , Germany, Scotland just to name a few and now it is go time.

My tee time is at 10:10...wish me luck...and Think Birdie.

Mark Forrest

Mark Forest-Senior Tour Qualifying: Article 1

Hello Coach And Friends;

After close to a year of hard work I am now in Portugal to go thru final preparations for
The European Senior Tour Qualifying School.  The last few months have been extremely busy with work and practice for this event

The fall we had in Vancouver was actually quite nice for golf so I got a lot of playing time in.  As the day lite hours got shorter and the weather got colder and wetter I spent most of my evenings at one of the local driving ranges. A couple of months ago "Coach" spotted something in my swing that I needed to fix and after many weeks of practice I have it corrected.  My game feels solid and I must say that with "Coach's" help I am ready for the challenge.  I had the pleasure of playing a round of golf with Hal a few days before I left.

My preparation plan now that I am in Portugal is to play some practice rounds at the course and then work 90% on short game. The course that I will be playing is  Gramacho In Carvoeiro. I played this course last year and I like the Layout  It is in fantastic shape as all the golf courses are in Portugal. (You really have to consider Portugal as a golf destination).

I played 18 holes on it yesterday and was even par in windy conditions, so I am optimistic
That my preparations are so far ,so good. The next couple of days will be spent at the short game area and will play again on Friday or Saturday  . I plan to repeat this rotation for the next week to ensure that I have both a feel for the course and a great short game.

The first official round of the qualifier is Jan 30 2014. After the second round they will cut the field to the approximately top 22 players. These players will join the other qualifiers from the other two courses at the Finals. The Final are 4 rounds at Val De Pinta golf course.  The top 14 players from the finals will gain status on the European Senior Tour.

Scoring can be followed on the European senior tour website. If you Google European senior tour you will see the link to the website. Once you are there you will see a button at the top that says Q-School. This will get you to the scoring.

I will keep you updated as the event approaches and see if I can get some pictures to share from theses fantastic golf courses.

Until then, Think Birdie

Mark Forrest.

Boxing Day Special Golf

Boxing day December 26/13 for most people means shopping and special deals but for us golf fanatics it means Play Golf.  It's funny how things work; looking out my front window I see the makings of a fine day and just then the phone rings.  As if an answer to prayer it's the Coach, who has just come in from Victoria, on the other end of the line asking me if a round of golf is in the forecast.

He did not have to twist any arms, I told him that I would pick him up in 20 minutes.  My only regret was that my buddy Hal could not join us because he fractured a few ribs and could not even get out of a car let alone swing a club.  Lloyd was staying at Hal's place and as I swung around to pick up Lloyd there was Hal with his set of clubs.  It just shows you that if a man is motivated nothing can stop him and a few cracked ribs was not going to keep Hal from the course.

We made our way to Musqueam Golf Club and had one of those perfect moments that lasted a few hours.  The weather was great, the course was very playable and the golf was surprisingly good.  We had a great time as we celebrated a Boxing Day Special doing what we love, playing golf in the Spirit of great Friendship.

Hope the rest of you Coach and Friends golf fanatics had some special moments over the holidays.

The best in the new year and many more birdies...Wes

Mark Forrest: About Coach

I have known Lloyd (Coach)  for many, many years. I have played a lot of golf with him over the years and I must say that  Coach has helped me in many ways. I have learned a lot about the game, life, and myself.

 As a Golf Professional I have given thousands of lessons over the years but I must say that I truly admire Lloyds holistic approach to the game of golf. He does not dwell on the mechanics of the swing, but rather, focuses on the experience of playing the game of golf.

Coach is very knowledgeable of the golf swing and has a keen eye for recognizing problems, but it is the way he conveys this message that has gained my trust with my own game. He finds a way to appreciate and celebrate every swing of the club. We improve our game by focusing on the positive things rather than worrying about the negative..

On more than one occasion after I have hit a particularly poor shot, Coach would walk over to me and look up at the sky and say “We are blessed to have the opportunity to be playing golf today”. It is this kind of positive energy that has brought my game to a new level.

 A couple of key ideas that Coach has shared with me is the idea of having 4 one putts per nine. No matter what these one putts are for (eagle, birdie, par) if you accomplish this you will have a decent game. For me this has removed some of the pressure of being perfect on the golf course. It allows me to focus on the opportunity to make a one putt rather than dwell on what it is for.

The second thing he has shared with me is being “In the office”. This is an area within 40 or so yards from the green. Whenever you are in this area you are in “the Office”. This is where we get to work. Any pitch, chip or putt is your opportunity to score. Again this has helped me mentally as it takes the pressure off hitting perfect shots.

I find I always play better in the days and weeks after I have played with Coach, his enthusiasm and positive energy has a lasting effect. It is a privilege to call him a friend.

Mark Forrest...Head Professional

Belmont Golf Course