I have been so busy speaking with interesting folks and writing about a wide range of topics for this column since it launched earlier this year that I have honestly not had much of a chance to learn the game myself. One of my original intentions for launching the weekly series was to chronicle my efforts to pick up the game, so I hope you’ll enjoy as I recount my latest lesson with another good friend of mine, Corbin’s own Brad Harris.
For those of you who don’t know Brad, he served as a golf coach at Corbin High School between 1999-2014. After his coaching days were over he obtained several certifications and has been offering private lessons for golfers of all ages and ability levels. I met up with him recently at Riverdale Golf Suites in downtown Corbin, where he has been making use of the two state-of-the-art golf simulators to give lessons.
A while back, current CHS golf coach Joe Roberts showed me how to properly grip a club, gave me some tips on proper posture, and showed me how to take a swing. In this latest session, Brad took things quite a bit farther by evaluating me as I took several swings with a variety of different clubs. I whiffed a few times, and I hit several less-than-stellar shots, but those handful of shots that I did manage to hit hard and true… they felt good. Really good.
I can see how players get “addicted” to chasing the feeling of a really well-hit ball. It is pretty spectacular, but it is also much easier said than done.
One thing that became abundantly clear to me during my time with Brad is that, as the title of this column suggests, golf truly is a game of millimeters. It amazed me how the tiniest little adjustments in my foot placement or the angle at which the club face made contact with the ball could drastically alter my shot’s distance and trajectory. This was probably most evident when I was taking my first (ever) swings with a driver. I actually couldn’t believe how different driving is from every other type of shot that I have attempted up to this point. It looks so easy when watching the pros do it on television, but there is a lot more to it than just teeing the ball up and taking a giant swing.
At the end of our practice session, Brad and I actually played through a couple of holes at Keene Trace Golf Club in Lexington. The simulators at Riverdale were loaded with courses from all over the planet, and while I have never played at the actual Keene Trace (or anywhere else for that matter), Brad seemed very impressed with the overall realism compared to the real thing.
I will pat myself on the back for making a couple of pretty decent putts, as putting is the aspect of the game that I have managed to practice the most courtesy of a putting mat that I received for Christmas. I practice on it out in my garage, and I’m actually getting to be quite good, I think.
Once Brad and I were finished, I chose to hang around for just a little bit longer to play another hole or two with my son, Connor, who had accompanied me to the simulator. He is a student at Corbin Middle School, and like me, is a total novice when it comes to playing golf. He looked like a natural to me, though, and was able to hit a couple of pretty good shots despite his never having tried it before. I think he could be quite good if he chooses to pursue playing.
Now that spring is upon us, my hope is that I will have some opportunities to take a few swings outdoors in the near future. If I do, I’ll be sure to relay the experience here.
Thanks again to Brad for helping me to take the next steps in my golfing journey. If you would like to learn more about what he has going on, look him up on Facebook and Instagram by searching for “Brad Harris Golf.”
Thanks as well to Riverdale Golf Suites for allowing us the use of the simulator. I noticed this past weekend that the suites are closing for an undetermined amount of time as they undergo some maintenance and upgrades, but if you would be interested in learning about how to go about signing up for a membership once they are back up and going, you should visit them online at www.riverdalegolfsuites.com or look them up on Facebook.
