Checking in with Team Canada

I just touched down in Orlando to spend some time with Aimpoint Golf founder Mark Sweeney. I am super excited about learning more on Aimpoint since Robert Ratcliffe (my assistant coach for Team Canada) and I were introduced to the company by certified instructor Scott Chisholm in January.

Scott and a colleague conducted a seminar for our Team Canada Women’s and Development Teams, which touched on the topic of green reading. The seminar was both informative and exciting. Green reading in the past was always viewed as a bit of a mystery – it seemed. To be successful, you had to have years of experience, you had to be a natural, and you had to have a keen eye. In conclusion, you either have it or you don’t – kind of a defeatist attitude.

Well it turns out green reading is science (physics) and you do not need loads of experience if you understand the fundamentals. Fundamental number one – the ball obeys the law of gravity. It will always break downhill.

Once you know the speed of the green, the slope of the green, the location of the ball and the hole – it does become science. The ball will break a certain amount (at the correct speed) and we know that number. It is not an educated guess or magic.

Many of the girls on our teams are already using some of these basics as well as many of our men’s Team Canada players. I cannot wait to learn more and share my knowledge with the team, of course with assistance from our provincial coaches. To me, this is big – and I mean really big for Canada. And the entire golf world.

To be a great putter, you need to:

1. Start the ball on line
2. Hit it with the correct speed
3. Know where to aim

We can practice all of the above items efficiently and continue to improve.

The reality is that putting is over 40% of the game of golf and we have applied science effectively in every other area of the game. In Canada, we want to be the best putters in the world. If we are, then there is a good chance we would have the strongest golf team in the world participating in the Olympics. Sshhhh¿ don’t tell anyone!

On another note, several of our players are gearing up for the NCAA Regional Tournaments this week. Nicole Vandermade, Rebecca Lee-Bentham, Christine Wong, Jessica Wallace and Anne Catherine Tanguay are ready for a great week. We also have several past team members playing as well – like Sara Maude Juneau, Jennifer Kirby and Maude Aimme Leblanc. We wish the best of luck to the players mentioned above, and any other Canadians who are participating in the events.

Cheers,
Derek