Introduction (Part 1)

This blog is where I'm going to be documenting my personal quest to become a half-decent golfer. My golfing history is conveniently split into two parts, spread over two countries, so this post will detail the first part.

The scene: Sheffield, UK.

I started playing golf when my then-housemate lent me his brother's half set (odd-numbered irons only) and took me to the local par 3 course (Rother Valley). I learned the basics at the driving range and got a taste for the game on the course. I vividly remember having to use a 5-iron on the first hole (I ended up using a 9 if I remember correctly).

Having decided to take the game up, I bought my first set of clubs: a Donnay set with 3-SW, 1, 3, 5 irons for £70. They were oversize, steel shaft. I bought a Donnay putter, Donnay bag and come Donnay balls and I was ready to go for less than $120.

You don't seem to be able to buy Donnay clubs any more, which is a shame. For the price they were pretty good. I never mastered the woods (apart from one par-4 where I inexplicably nearly drove the green) but the irons were pretty decent. I used to do my drives with the 3-iron, which I could hit pretty consistently.

Anyway, back then I used a baseball bat grip, never had any lessons, scored a number of pars and less than a handful of birdies (including that one where I nealy drove the green) and achieved a best-ever score of 100.

The next installment sees my game (along with myself) moving across the atlantic...