[ForkaB]

Jack Nicklaus said many years ago that it had been many years since he had been able to follow his drives to their ultimate resting place.  He was then (I think) talking about his (lack of)  long vision, but I wonder......

I find these days that even though I continue to age, and am blessed with the best corrective lenses for myopia that the wonderful world of optometry can offer me, I increasingly cannot see whree my drives land nor how they get to where they eventually settle.  There have even been a few cases in the past 2 years where I have driven the ball into a feature which I never knew existed (at least off the tee).

In a certain way this is cool, but in another much more fundamental way it is not.  I enjoy seeing my ball fly through the air when I hit it properly.  I love seeing it land and bounce and roll along the ground.  I lose these pleasures when the ball is 240 or so, still in the air, and about to land in some humps and hollows that I cannot distinguish from the tee.

Shouldn't architects allow for this loss of connection between the golfer, his acts and the characterisitcs of the terrain?

[Jim_Kennedy]

Rich,
Isn't that more your responsibility? You could hit less club, move up a tee or two, or you could familarize yourself with a course before playing it.

One older friend of mine, w/macular degeneration, won't play a new course alone.  

[ForkaB]

Jim

I'm talking mostly about courses I have played many times over many years and think (or thought) know (knew) all too well.

Rich

[Jim_Kennedy]

Rich,
Well, enjoy the surprises that come from diminishing faculties.

[Jim_Kennedy]

.....I just want to add, I'm not being flippant. I've never worn the glasses I need for distance vision while playing, couldn't get used to swinging a club with them on my face. I could never play with sunglasses either. It's only in the last few weeks that I've been forcing myself to use them, mainly because it has become harder to see the ball in the low sun and I can't see a ball landing on a green over 150 yds away, unless the contrast is high.

[ForkaB]

Jim

I'll deal with that diminished cfaculties thing when it happens.  How has it been for you?

My vision is (corrected) as good as any person I play with, young or old.  The point is that technology is allowing even geezers like me to hit the ball beyond our ability to see it land and ultimately settle.  Takes away a bit of the fun of the game, thinketh thee not?

Rich

[Bob_Huntley]

Rich,

If it is still airborne at 240 yards I have no idea why you are complaining. At my age I can see the ball at 300 yards and more without optometric help but would gladly wear glasses if I could bomb it like you.

Bob

[Tony_Muldoon]

Rich I'm with you on this.  I finally got my eyes tested when I started to hit the ball a bit further and couldn't see where it fininished up. The opticians confirm it's not the eyes.  


My Father (who was a very good golfer) developed the opposite problem.  After a couple of minor dings in the car he resisted all my mothers attempts to have his prescription tested.  However as more and more putts failed to fall he decided to have them tested and yes, Mother knew best.

I do think some of the fundamental fun has gone from the game when it's not easy to track a ball travelling more than 230 yards.

[ForkaB]

Bob

The real problem is when you hit it 320 and then half-way down the fairway you forget where you hit it!

Rich

[Dan Kelly]

If it is still airborne at 240 yards I have no idea why you are complaining. At my age I can see the ball at 300 yards and more without optometric help but would gladly wear glasses if I could bomb it like you.

Rich --

I'm afraid Mr. Huntley just nailed one right over your head!

Dan

[ForkaB]

He might have, Dan, but I couldn't see it!

[Jim_Kennedy]

Rich,
Paraphrasing Sartre(I think) on diminishing faculties: "Thank God, now I can get on to important work"

Bob,
If you could bomb it 300 you wouldn't need to see it, the gallery will point it out for you.

[Dan Kelly]

Bob

The real problem is when you hit it 320 and then half-way down the fairway you forget where you hit it!

Rich

So long as you remember THAT you hit it ...

[Mike Benham]

Rich -

Are you suggesting, perhaps subliminally, bigger balls?

And with those bigger balls, there should be signs on the course  that state "Objects are closer than they appear ... "

[Bob_Huntley]

Bob

The real problem is when you hit it 320 and then half-way down the fairway you forget where you hit it!

Rich

So long as you remember THAT you hit it ...

Dan,

How true. Played with one of our older members a while ago and having finished the hole, I looked back and saw his putter in the hole and the flagstick in his golf bag..... and this wasn't the first time.

Bob

[ForkaB]

Tooshay, Bob

Bring on those stories.  There must be a lot of them from your experiences at MPCC and the R&A, not to mention the Carmel Valley Safeway

Mike

When you get the over 40's disease and need bifocals, your balls look larger, fuzzier and hairier.  It is a good time in one's life........

[Dan Kelly]

When you get the over 40's disease and need bifocals, your balls look larger, fuzzier and hairier.

That's why they call them *progressive* lenses.

[Doug Siebert]

There are a lot of different types of vision issues, it isn't just down to what can be corrected via glasses.  Some of it is (mis)wired into your brain and there isn't much you can do about it.

I have good enough vision (with my contacts) that from the tee I can see players hit approaches on a long par 4 and tell where they end up on the green, and even see whether they make their putts or not if I've got a good angle (i.e., up on a hill)

But I have always had a problem tracking objects moving quickly up and down.  I can see side to side fine, but I lose track of falling objects quickly.  So even when I hit a full SW I can watch it to its peak, but quickly lose it as starts to descend.  So I always watch my shots to their apex and then look to where I expect them to land (and if I'm wrong, like a drive on an unfamilar par 4 where there is no candy striped 150 marker to give me some point of reference, I may be in trouble!)

I used to kick ass in baseball, I could hit great.  Until people figured out that pitching me a softball style pitch was harder for me to hit than a fastball

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