Inspired? Intimidated?

Today it was mostly inspiration, but with a hint of intimidation.

I went down to Miami to visit one of my former University professors yesterday.  Here is the view from the complex he lives in:

not bad

After spending a day with him in Miami, I headed back towards St. Petersburg early in the morning and on the way stopped by Bradenton, Florida to visit the IMG campus.  IMG is an athletics facility that covers a number of sports and has a great facility for golfers.  Check out their website here:  http://www.imgacademies.com

A buddy of mine, PSU tennis coach Jay Sterling, told me I should see it while I was in town and I’m glad I did.  Although I won’t be able to afford a place like this in my current lifetime, it was important for me to see the similarities and differences of my training compared to what unlimited amount of funds can purchase.  It’s primarily a place that prepares kids for college and a life of professional athletics, but there were also a number of post-bac people practicing as well as some LPGA women.

First off, I want to thank Matt Schneider for taking time out of his day to show me around.  I appreciate it.

A breakdown of my observations:

Their training includes aspects of golf, physical fitness, nutrition, cognitive exercises and general golf knowledge.  The biggest advantage here is that it is all in one place.  I cover all of the same aspects in my training routine, but am spending a lot of time commuting around town to get from one to the other.  For example, it’s a 35 minute drive each way for me to see my coach, a 25 minute drive to visit the physical therapist.

They train along side 100 other people striving for the common goal of perfecting their golf game.  In this case, they have me beat hands down.  There are a couple people that I see on a regular basis who come out to really improve their game, but for the most part, the people who are “practicing” next to me on any given day are out there to have fun.  I think that not only is it inspiring to play with people who are better than you, but it also forces you to step up your game and play at a different level.

The facilities are amazing.  Not only did they have a high quality par-72 course, there were two driving ranges, beautiful putting greens, large pitching and chipping areas and a top notch gym.  It was a golfers dream, really.

Play among some pros.  While I was visiting, there were a couple LPGA players practicing, as well as some of the best teenagers in the country.  Just seeing how they practice is inspiration to me.

So, it was a good and inspiring trip.  The intimidation came from seeing how good some of these 15-16 year olds are!  I don’t feel daunted knowing that there is so many people giving their all towards the same final goal as me, but there was a tinge of intimidation.  I’m going to use it as inspiration, though, because I know that I can both get to and pass the level of where they are.  I don’t mean this as a slight at all, but if a 16-year-old can hit a ball that well, than I know I can too.

There are countless ways of training and I’m not one to say which is better than the others.  I personally know what it’s like to do it on your own at municipal courses and now I know what facilities are available for the privileged (and those who can obtain a scholarship).  Not sure if there is a huge advantage either way, but I am certain that there are a number of hungry young golfers in the world that will fill an extremely small number of slots, so to get to where I want to go I cannot lose my path, determination or faith.

Practice starts back up tomorrow, 8 AM sharp.