Starting Wed., 11/18 - Get To Know John Moore

[John Moore II]

OK, the bio that I said I would post about myself:

Age:27
Married, no kids yet.
Graduate of North Carolina State University. No I did not play golf on the university team, while I am a fairly good golfer, I'm not as good as those guys, not by a long shot.
Born in Eastern North Carolina. I learned to play the game on several less than stellar golf courses. The first time I played a really 'great' golf course was when I played Eagle Point in Wilmington in an attempt to qualify for the 2007 US Am. I have worked at 4 different golf courses, 2 on the cart staff and 2 on the professional staff. I was in the golf business for about a year and a half but left recently to join the Coast Guard. I still intend to teach some on the side. To date I've played golf with 4 people off the site and met 2 or 3 others. I am hoping to be able to greatly expand the geographical reach of the courses I have played over the next few years with all my travels in the Coast Guard. I have played roughly 100 golf courses, with probably 90 of those being in North Carolina.

Lowest 18 hole score: 67
Most birdies in a round: 6
I've made 2 eagles in a round twice
One hole-in-one
Once hit all 18 greens in regulation, but putted horribly and shot 70 (38 putts, hit all par 5's in 2)

Interests outside of golf: Wood working, long distance running (I've run 2 half-marathons), reading books on American Military History, and other stuff, just ask.

Want to know anything else, just ask.

[George Pazin]

Thanks for the links, don't know how I missed 'em the first time.

[Will MacEwen]

John - did you take clubmaking classes or did you just pick it up on your own?

Has the increse in custom options from OEMs hurt the component/custom market?

[John Moore II]

John - did you take clubmaking classes or did you just pick it up on your own?

Both. I just picked it up on my own at first, but I have since taken more advanced classes on club work

Has the increse in custom options from OEMs hurt the component/custom market?

Yes. Especially now that OEM's are offering custom fitting for no more cost than the rack clubs. But people still come to outside fitters to be re-fit for clubs, or new shafts, etc.

[George Pazin]

John, since you're a runner, I'd recommend reading Born To Run if you get a chance, it's a fun read.

I also forgot to ask you one of the standard questions: How did you find this site?

And:

Did your first experience on a "great" course result in your interest in architecture, or was it something else?

[John Moore II]

John, since you're a runner, I'd recommend reading Born To Run if you get a chance, it's a fun read.

I also forgot to ask you one of the standard questions: How did you find this site?

I had read some of the profiles of courses from time to time. And had wandered around the DG a time or two. I saw a topic on Southern Pines GC one day, and it gave some information that wasn't quite correct, so I asked if I could join the group to post about SPGC. And I just stayed around.

And:

Did your first experience on a "great" course result in your interest in architecture, or was it something else?
No, my first experience on a 'great' course didn't really create my interest in architecture. I would say that in general I had a small interest from the start and that only grew with the more and more courses I played.

[Kenny Baer]

My brother is an apprentice right now for the Hank Haney School of golf outside of Dallas; he is in the process of trying to pass the PAT.  

Why did you decide to get out of the golf business?

What do you think about my theory that all good players (Say 3.0) or lower indexes have a flat left wrist at impact, which is the one of the main differences in the full swing between them and higher handicap players?  

I used to think that all good players came from the "inside" instead of "over the top" like most golfers.  After watching some really good players, one of them being a former club champion at Pine Valley in the World Club Championship tournament in China, that (coming from the inside) is not necessarily a necessity.  Can you comment on that?

What would you recommend to develop a more flat left wrist, hands leading the club head through impact?  The main thing I have heard is to hit 1/2 shots.

Have you always been interested Golf Course Arch?

What is your club head speed with a driver?

How do you teach better players to get even better?  From my very limited experience with lessons I have had a hard time with pros being able to give me things to practice that will make me better.  Over the years I have learned quite a bit about the swing so often I know what it is I am doing wrong, the golf ball never lies, but want to know what to do to make it better.  

Would you say a square club face at the top of the swing is that the club face is at the same angle as your left wrist/hand; or would you say a square face that the top of the swing is pointed directly at the ground regardless of the position of your left wrist?

Who is the best teacher you have ever seen teach and why was he/she the best?

Have you ever played "The Challenge at Hideaway Farms"?  If yes what do you think?  I worked at the Challenge throughout college; I went to Elon and really enjoyed it.  A great family owned it and took tremendous care of it, I know that since I left Elon, in 02, it has been sold and I often wonder what has become of it.

[Bill_McBride]

My brother is an apprentice right now for the Hank Haney School of golf outside of Dallas; he is in the process of trying to pass the PAT.  

Why did you decide to get out of the golf business?

What do you think about my theory that all good players (Say 3.0) or lower indexes have a flat left wrist at impact, which is the one of the main differences in the full swing between them and higher handicap players?  I used to think that all good players came from the "inside" instead of "over the top" like most golfers.  After watching some really good players, one of them being a former club champion at Pine Valley in the World Club Championship tournament in China, that (coming from the inside) is not necessarily a necessity.

What would you recommend to develop a more flat left wrist, hands leading the club head through impact?  The main thing I have heard is to hit 1/2 shots.

Have you always been interested Golf Course Arch?

What is your club head speed with a driver?

How do you teach better players to get even better?  From my very limited experience with lessons I have had a hard time with pros being able to give me things to practice that will make me better.  Over the years I have learned quite a bit about the swing so often I know what it is I am doing wrong, the golf ball never lies, but want to know what to do to make it better.  Sometimes the pro has known very little, for example a couple I have dealt with did not know what an open or closed club face looks like at the top of the swing.

I have come the conclusion that a square club face at the top is at the same angle as your left wrist/hand; do you agree with that or would you say a square face that the top of the swing is pointed directly at the ground regardless of the position of your left wrist?

Who is the best teacher you have ever seen teach and why was he/she the best?

Kenny, let me jump in here and say that (1) yes, flat left wrist into and through impact is very important and (2) knock down shots are good practice for that.  However, in my case I did that for a couple of years and seem to have forgotten how to release the clubhead on iron shots!  As a result I've lost lots of distance and elevation with the irons and that has caused my game to suffer.

[John Moore II]

My brother is an apprentice right now for the Hank Haney School of golf outside of Dallas; he is in the process of trying to pass the PAT. 

Why did you decide to get out of the golf business?

I always liked working at courses and with people. I also liked teaching. So I made the decision to be a pro. And I enjoyed it greatly.

What do you think about my theory that all good players (Say 3.0) or lower indexes have a flat left wrist at impact, which is the one of the main differences in the full swing between them and higher handicap players? 

I think just about anyone with a 10-12 handicap and below have a reasonably flat left wrist. And yes, thats a big difference. You can't hit good shots with either a bowed or cupped left wrist, though its easier with a bowed wrist.

I used to think that all good players came from the "inside" instead of "over the top" like most golfers.  After watching some really good players, one of them being a former club champion at Pine Valley in the World Club Championship tournament in China, that (coming from the inside) is not necessarily a necessity.  Can you comment on that?

A good player might come either from the inside or outside (over the top) and be just as good; they key is they don't come from too far in either direction. Obvious exceptions like Furyk and Sergio aside, most of the guys you see on the tours or good players at clubs are pretty close to 'on plane.' Its just as difficult to hit good shots from coming far from the inside as it is coming way over the top. When I'm playing good, I come slightly over the top and fade the ball back to the target. Good players are good because they do the same thing over and over again, be that coming from the inside or over the top.

What would you recommend to develop a more flat left wrist, hands leading the club head through impact?  The main thing I have heard is to hit 1/2 shots.

Yeah, hitting partial shots is probably the best drill that you can do. And try hitting those partial shots with a heavier club as well. Those heavy Momentus Power Hitter clubs are very good tools to practice with. And I mean the ones you can actually hit golf balls with, not the ones you just swing around.

Have you always been interested Golf Course Arch?

Sort of, but different parts. At first I paid more attention to the greens in general and conditioning, now I look at how the course lays on the land and how strategic the hazards are. So, yes, I have been interested in the architecture, just not always the same parts.

What is your club head speed with a driver?

About 125mph

How do you teach better players to get even better?  From my very limited experience with lessons I have had a hard time with pros being able to give me things to practice that will make me better.  Over the years I have learned quite a bit about the swing so often I know what it is I am doing wrong, the golf ball never lies, but want to know what to do to make it better. 

Its difficult to teach a really good player to get better, I can't lie. Because very rarely does someone who is all ready a 5 handicap of lower have something major wrong with their mechanics. The key to getting better from that point is a bigger variety of shots from PW distance and in (I don't give a specific distance there because you just need to know how to hit partial wedges and such and everyone hits wedges different distances; I would very rarely try to teach someone to hit 1/2 and 3/4 9 irons with regularity). Thats most likely the key for a low handicap player to get better. More greenside shots, more shots that can be played from Wedge distance, and possibly even 'set optimization.' Set Optimization being getting the right clubs in the bag for how you play the game. You won't see a great number of guys on the tour who play something straight through like D-3w, 2i-PW, GW, SW, Putter. Don't be afraid to go with a weird set configuration if it gives you the best weapons for your game.

Would you say a square club face at the top of the swing is that the club face is at the same angle as your left wrist/hand; or would you say a square face that the top of the swing is pointed directly at the ground regardless of the position of your left wrist?

I would say a square face is roughly the same angle as the wrist. If someone has the club pointed either perpendicular to or parallel with the ground, something is bad wrong. That being said, I think if you have a good grip and the face is square to your target/stance, the clubface will be square to the wrist at the top.

Who is the best teacher you have ever seen teach and why was he/she the best?

Hard to say because I've seen a lot of very good instructors. I've also seen some not so good instructors. Very few teachers actually have something 'revolutionary' to say. Jim Hardy being the closest that I can think of, though all he did was really detail the positional differences between an 'upright' and a 'flat' swing (he says one-plane and two-plane, I don't agree with those designators, but I agree with his work otherwise). But I've never seen an instructor that I thought was worlds better than another, and I've been around a few top 100 instructors. The key with any good instructor is that they can modify their message, they way the give the message, to fit the student. Again, I've seen and worked with some very, very good instructors, and while styles differ, I wouldn't say any of them were exceptionally better than the others.

Have you ever played "The Challenge at Hideaway Farms"?  If yes what do you think?  I worked at the Challenge throughout college; I went to Elon and really enjoyed it.  A great family owned it and took tremendous care of it, I know that since I left Elon, in 02, it has been sold and I often wonder what has become of it.

No, I have never played The Challenge. However, I believe Ryan Simper from the site here is a member there, perhaps you could send him a message.

[Ben Sims]

John,

First and foremost, thanks for what you do. 

1) Why the USCG?  A fellow GCA'er in the USAF would have been a much better arrangement.  More travel options too!!

2) Tell me about the best green complex you've ever seen.

3) Tell me about your best Port of Call.

4) What is a boatswain?

5) How can I create space on the backswing?  I'm going to far inside and getting trapped and coming over the top, hence the dreaded pull hook.  I need a drill!!

best,
Ben

[John Moore II]

John,

First and foremost, thanks for what you do. 

1) Why the USCG?  A fellow GCA'er in the USAF would have been a much better arrangement.  More travel options too!!

Well, the Coast Guard has plenty of travel options. We have detachments in Japan, Europe, all over the Pacific and anywhere you can think of stateside. We even have people in the Persian Gulf. However, those Gulf billets are volunteer only; you aren't 'told' to go there. That was the main key to picking the Coast Guard. I have nothing against moving around to duty assignments; however I wasn't much interested in those more exotic duty locales, like you know Fallujah or Kabul.

2) Tell me about the best green complex you've ever seen.

Have to let me think about that one, I'll get back to you

3) Tell me about your best Port of Call.

I haven't been assigned to a cutter for very long, only one patrol. On that patrol we only stopped in Miami and Mayport, FL, both places I have been before. We might go to Bermuda on the next patrol.

4) What is a boatswain?

Boatswains just sit around and fiddle with string all day long.    No, really, they do a wide variety of jobs. The function as navigators on the large ships (well, on CG ships, on Navy ships navigation is done by Quartermasters), they are the boat drivers on your small boats, command certain areas of the ship when you are pulling into port and a good bit of other stuff. Boatswains get a lot of crap from guys in my engineering section, but they do a lot of different stuff.

5) How can I create space on the backswing?  I'm going to far inside and getting trapped and coming over the top, hence the dreaded pull hook.  I need a drill!!

You can do a few things. Get a really heavy club and hit some balls with that. Those heavy clubs tend to fix some problems because they are so heavy they don't really allow you to get too far out of position. You can also put up a stick that prevents the club from going too far inside on the back swing. And you can take a piece of lumber maybe 4 feet long and put it 3 or 4 inches away from your golf ball away from your body. Contact me off the board, I have a few other things for you, but I need a little more information.

best,
Ben

[Anthony Gray]

  John,

  How old were you when you first broke par?

  Favorite Bond Girl?

  Better place to be stationed, Alaska or Southern California?

  Par 5's you've played that you can't reach in two?

  Thanks....Anthony

[John Moore II]

  John,

  How old were you when you first broke par?

17

  Favorite Bond Girl?

Tiffany Case-Diamonds are Forever, though Domino from Never Say Never Again was mighty nice. I didn't really care much for the girls in the Pierce Brosnan films and I've honestly not seen either of the new Daniel Craig films.

  Better place to be stationed, Alaska or Southern California?

Depends. Alaska ships typically patrol to SoCal and Hawaii. SoCal ships typically patrol to Alaska and Hawaii. So you decide...
Now if you are lucky enough to get a small boat station, then certainly SoCal is the much better choice. But Alaska is a beautiful place, so long as you can stand the cold.

  Par 5's you've played that you can't reach in two?

#11 at both Thanksgiving Point and NCSU come to mind. They are both like 675 yards long. Even at elevation, I can't reach holes that long. There are other holes that I "can't" reach, but by choice. Like #9 at Mid South. From the back tees its maybe 550, but it is a weird dogleg that doesn't fit my shot shape and has a fronting creek. Umm...the 4th at Eagle Point was like 605 and had an odd opening to the green with some madly deep bunkers that made it foolish to attempt to go for it, though I could have gotten it down there fairly close if it would have been of any advantage. I mean, I can hit the ball a good long ways, so there aren't many par 5's that I simply CAN'T reach, more like ones that have good design and such to make it such that I WON'T try to reach.

  Thanks....Anthony

[Bill_McBride]

Hey John, on Navy ships the navigator (the XO on a destroyer) navigates, the quartermaster steers!

[John Moore II]

Hey John, on Navy ships the navigator (the XO on a destroyer) navigates, the quartermaster steers!

But QM's do the charting and such no? For us, the OOD does the formal navigation, but one of our BM's does the charting and a non-rate works the helm.

(sorry for you non-sailors, as these previous two sentences might as well be written in Japanese)

[Bill_McBride]

Hey John, on Navy ships the navigator (the XO on a destroyer) navigates, the quartermaster steers!

But QM's do the charting and such no? For us, the OOD does the formal navigation, but one of our BM's does the charting and a non-rate works the helm.

(sorry for you non-sailors, as these previous two sentences might as well be written in Japanese)

We need to discuss this over a few brews!     Here's to smooth seas and favorable winds.

[Mark Pritchett]

John,

Have you played New Bern CC?  Curious of your thoughts on it if you have.

Mark

[John Moore II]

John,

Have you played New Bern CC?  Curious of your thoughts on it if you have.

Mark

Yes, I have played New Bern CC, when I was 15. So I don't remember anything about it.