Dear Blog,

        Oh my goodness!  It has been a struggle to work on this project. I have been so busy with other stuff; it makes me sad that this project has to come pretty much dead last on my priority list. Because of school work, I had to tell my second mentor that I would not be able to take him up on his offer, which is giving me a lesson, for a long time. My life is cluttered with so much to do! I want to play golf so badly, but it seems like there is no time to learn. Also, golf is such a difficult sport! There are too many technicalities that could go wrong. Last week I researched how to hold a golf club, and I found six links. I found six links on just one website, and there are hundreds more that I could of looked at from Google. Because there is so much I sift through to decide what articles are the most important, I have slowed down. After just starting this 20% time project I was so eager to get it done, but now it just seems like there is way too much to get done. One 52 minute class period is not enough time to get everything done.
         Furthermore, after researching how to hold a golf club, I researched how to set up. I found three websites on the about.com section for golf. Next week I will be reading up on the golf swing- the moment where you get to see all the set-up time pay off. This hole-in-one is coming- just very slowly.

Visit these links about the set up:
http://video.about.com/golf/Correct-Golf-Posture.htm
http://golf.about.com/od/golftips/ss/golf_setup_2.htm
http://golf.about.com/od/faqs/f/bfaq_teeheight.htm
http://video.about.com/golf/Correct-Golf-Ball-Position.htm

Dear Blog,

        More exciting news! I contacted my second mentor, and he is awesome! He seems very nice and can actually go to the course with me (for a price...). Also, as I keep researching, I have found so much information on this one website, golf.about.com. It is actually kind of overwhelming; I cannot believe how much technique is needed to be a golfer. I probably have watched at least three videos so far just about how to grip a golf club. I even found an article about whether a player should own a glove or not. This article gave examples of professional golfers who used two gloves,Tommy "Two Gloves" Gainey, and of professional golfers who did not use gloves, Fred Couples. From this article, I learned that most golfers do not use a glove when they put. It is a simple observation that I would never have noticed when I watch golf tournaments. This website is so detailed that it is crazy! As of this week, I have read articles about the golf grip, and seen links about the swing. It may not seem like a lot of work, but I have read a good many articles. I think after realizing the abundance of information about each topic I will have to take it one topic at a time. Instead of researching swing and grip in one week, I would research just grip and then swing next week. I am thinking my goal might have to change. Instead of being able to play a full round of golf, I might just have the goal of consistently hitting each type of club on a driving range. Golf seems like such a difficult sport. Eventually, my hole-in-one will come. Sadly, it just might not be by the end of this semester.  

Visit these links!
 http://video.about.com/golf/Grip-a-Golf-Club-Correctly.htm
http://video.about.com/golf/5-Common-Problems-Golfers-Have-with-the-Grip.htm
http://golf.about.com/od/golftips/ss/griptypes.htm
http://golf.about.com/od/golftips/ss/correct-grip-pressure.htm
http://golf.about.com/od/golftips/ss/golfgrip_lead.htm
http://golf.about.com/od/golftips/ss/golfgrip_trail.htm

http://video.about.com/golf/?zIvb=8

Dear Blog,

        I am pretty excited because I found a mentor. I was told she was a fantastic golfer, so I know she will give great advice. Also, eventually in this upcoming week, I hope to gain another mentor. I have his contact information; I just need to find the time and motivation to speak with him. Furthermore, I finished researching the basics* about each club. There are the woods, irons, wedges, putters, and hybrids, and their characteristics include their medium, loft, and length. I think the most challenging thing will be gauging how far I would need the ball to go. For example, an wood usually goes 200 to 350 yards, but I have no idea what 200 yards looks like. Also, I have to think about how far I actually could hit a golf ball! I am 99% sure I would be able to hit a ball maybe 150 yards when using a wood. Hopefully I will have some beginner's luck. Anyways, the next step is to research the golf stance, grip, and swing. Lastly, the most exciting news is that a family friend is getting a whole new set of clubs and will give me her old set free of charge. WOW! The Golf gods are looking over me. Hole-in-one! Hole-in-one!

*Basics:
shorter club = more control
more loft = less distance
Fairway woods are easier to use than long irons.
Woods hit the farthest distance.
Higher numbered irons hit less distance because they have a higher loft.
Wedges fly high into the air which is good for putting the ball on the green.
Putters are the most used club.
Hybrid= wood + iron (small club head + small shaft)

Dear Blog,

        I have started my 20% time project, and I am still working out some details. I have all the online resources I need to learn golf, and so far, the most helpful website is golf.about.com because it has a whole page for beginners. However, I have no idea where I am going to practice my swing. It costs money to go to a driving range and to play a round of golf. I'm not made of money. Money does not grow on trees, so I don't know how much practice I am actually going to get. Maybe I will just have all this knowledge about golf and start slowly using the information after this semester is over. Soon, I hope to have a mentor- someone who can help me if I have questions, but until then TTYL.