I've talked about bifocals and golf before, especially how I don't like to see anyone wearing them when playing. But, I understand that a lot of you may need to wear them in order to see your scorecard. If you have to absolutely wear bifocals and glasses when you play golf, I'm going to provide you with a few tips on how you can avoid letting your frames hurt your game.
I had a comment come in that offered some really good options for Surgites who wear glasses, so I'm going to share that as well.
Glasses and golf don`t mix very well and I am sure various types of eye surgery in many cases is preferable. I have worn bifocals for many years and found the normal type difficult because the join between distance and close up part of the lens was right on the ball and gave a blurry image. Thankfully my optician listened to my tale of woe and lowered the join considerably so that I viewed the ball with the top [distance] section of the lens with perfect clarity. The lower, much smaller close up section is fine to record scores with a slight upwards tilt of the head. It is also helpful to select frames that sit fairly close to the face. This means I have a special pair reserved for golf. This may give hope to other glasses wearing golfers. I appreciate very much your email lessons.
GB
I really like the comment above about getting a pair of big glasses just for golf. Today, many people who wear glasses choose frames that are very small and stylish. They may look good on your face, but they don't translate well to seeing the ball. If your frames are too small, they're most likely going to get in the way. Get some big glasses like Tom Kite used to wear back in the 1990s. Remember these?
I'll share some other stories from golfers I've taught over the years that have implemented their own ideas with bifocals. One student flipped his bifocals so that his long distance vision was on the bottom. That way, he didn't have to move his head during his setup just to see the ball.
I'm also going to read some passages from Dr. Lampert's book on vision, The Pro's Edge. He's got some really good advice on this topic as well.
Get a special pair of glasses that you specifically wear for golf and you'll see some major improvement!
Keep it vertical!
The Surge
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Comments
bifocals
My optometrist made me a special pair of bifocals for golf. They are full distance except for a small circle in the lower right of the right lens. That part is a mini-bifocal that allows me to read with the score card. It works great after one gets used to tilting their head to the side to read.
bifocals
Hey wright1 (fellow Hoosier) -- first, money advocated for club fitting and now more money recommended, this time for non-bifocals. Yikes!! This is becoming a very expensive game, even before I hit the first tee!! LOL
I am extremely near-sighted so I can not wear non-bifocal eyeglasses. I was the kid they mocked in school for having "Coke bottle bottoms" for glasses. While I have no problem seeing the ball at address, where I have a major problem is seeing the ball in flight. Playing alone, I lose a lot of golf balls.
Distance
If I understood Surge correctly his special for golf only glasses are for distance.
So if you are extremely near sighted you may not not the reading 'focal' and a distance pair is okay. (BTW if it is one set of glasses why is it called a pair?) I joke that I can't see close and I can't see far but at least my hearing is failing and my hair is falling. Thank God the ground stops it.
Seriously I can not wear distance glasses while playing either. Guess I can still see sufficiently. Being in the sunny western USA I do need and wear sun glasses most of the time accept when putting. Then it's better no glasses of any kind.
Bombardment
Looks like Surge has opened up a hornets nest downunder as the venues he has organised for his clinics are getting bombarded with enquireys from heaps of aussies, that'll teach him for delaying his trip for so long, LOL.
Good problem
I bet they are thrilled by the inquiries and interest being shown. It should be an awesome event. Lucky those that can be there. I've attended two and they are special.
Near Sighted
I've been slightly nearsighted my whole life. Always absolutely hated to wear glasses and usually didn't. Tried contacts one time and loved them except that it was virtually impossible to wear them on the job.
(WAY too much dust).
About the only time I wear glasses is when I'm driving (because it's required on my license) and when I'm playing golf. On sunny days I could see plenty good enough to play without them but when it's a little darker I lose the ball too many times after about 200 yards.
I didn't even wear glasses when I played college baseball (although I might have been a better player if I did).
There is one (and only one) good thing about being near sighted though. I'll be 58 years old next month and I can still see as well close up as I ever could.
Glasses & Golf
Finally last year at the age of 53 years, I had to take the plunge into full time eye wear. Being in a construction trade, I was quite accustomed to wearing safety glasses all day( night,actually) while on the job. For the last few years, I had been switching out of my safety glasses and into your basic drugstore readers (began with 1.25 and finished with 2.0 power) to enable me to see my tungsten in the tight bevels of the boiler tubes we were welding.
My eye doctor told me last year on my visit, I was actually to blind to drive legally (oops) and fixed me up with a progressive prescription to see afar & then to a 2.25 reader at the bottom. I chose a rimless version of glasses,nice brand too though I forget the name, and had transitions lenses installed,as well.
I've never actually had any difficulty while on the course with them,except they sometimes get moisture on them from sweat during the heat of our summers.The last few weeks in my mini-range sessions using the "horizon"
drill that Dave gave us,that he got from Derek, I've actually started looking at the ball from more over my cheeks and hardly notice the rimless lower edge of my glasses.
Glasses and Golf
Boog, I've worn glasses since about the age of seven. I'm farsighted and played basketball in high school without them, but like most our eyes get weaker with age. About 10 years ago I was fitted for progressives ( expensive German lenses ) and had no problems playing golf once I was used to progressives. I made the mistake of getting cheaper lenses a couple of years later after a periodic exam and they drove me nuts. So, when I played I wore my old ones and it made a big difference. The ones I have now are back to expensive lenses and I told the Dr at the time if I can't play golf with these I'm coming back til you get them right...lol.
I also play with a pair of aviator style shades that I have from an old prescription that are progressives with no problem. Once again they are expensive lenses. For me at least it's like being fit for the right set of tools.
On another subject, I just rewatched 5 video clips of my swing taken by a guy I play with from my last outing 2 days ago. All I can say is YUCK!! What I thought was vertical was more like 10 o'clock than 12. He also noted I was getting very little weight shift. I made 2 adjustments on successive par 4s and nailed the best drives on each I've hit all year. Thse are holes I do not reach in 2 and I was easily in reach of both. First, I forced myself to stand a little more upright and second, preset my back foot with weight firmly on the inside almost as though I had a wedge on the outside of my foot. Those two things resulted in about 20 more yards off the tee. Weight shift seemed automatic and allowed me to get to a T finish without thinking about it. All that from a guy who fights a hit at rather than through through the ball forever.
Taking it back to the course tomorrow and we shall see. Hang in there, Boog and keep us posted on your progress.
Just a quick update on today's round. I noticed from yesterday's video of my round that my head was indeed tilting forward, no doubt due to my progresive lenses. So today I concentrated on keeping my chin up, preloading heavy right on the inside of my back foot and and weight shift was 100 % better. I hit Doc's driver the best I've hit it all year.
Bottom line, I shot 67 (par 58 course). This included birdies on 2 par 4s that I never reach in 2, but did today, and a birdie on the last hole, par 3 rated the toughest hole on the course. One blowup hole when I took a triple on a par 4 going bunker to bunker and a double hit coming out of a tough uphill lie in the second bunker. I think Surge is dead on with his assessment of wearing bifocals or progressive lenses being a no-no playing golf. I may be wrong, but I think the only reason I can get away with it is top quality lenses that are not small. My personal best round all year.
Also Near Sighted
I am nearsighted as well, in my left eye. I am a right handed golfer (and everything else as well), right eye dominant. I have Progressive eyeglasses.
I think it is time to get a check up, as this year my game has gotten worse. I tend to pull up in the backswing and sometimes, it seems my swing is going around instead of back and up. Left eye distance, is not as good as it should be, hence the idea to get a new check up (probably in next month or so) And once I get the distance fixed, then I will get one set of distance lenses with a good Polarized Sun Filter in them, just for golf.
Senior power
Two "senior" players came down from Tennessee today to play in our Saturday game. One said he was 69 years old and I assume the other one was about the same age.
They didn't play from the senior tees (although they could have in our game). The one that said he was 69 was a few (and only a few) yards longer than the other one but both were impressively long.
The 69 year old could drive the 290 yard par four and was very consistent with that distance. As I've said before we get almost no rollout on our course and lucky to get a bounce or two, so his drives were almost all carry. The weather today wasn't good for distance either with temps in the 50s.
VERY, VERY impressive. Felt a little weird to play with a 69 year old that was as long as I was and a little more consistent.
Of course everything has a down side and theirs was the short game. Not very impressive at all.
Senior power
Steve, so they drove for show but couldn't putt/chip/pitch for dough? Ouch! Nonetheless, being to carry a drive 290 is awesome, regardless of age.
Short game
That was it JK. Of course in fairness to them the rest of us aren't chipping very well right now either. The grass is too course and anything against the grain is simply a guessing game on less than full shots.
I can make up for it with the putter but anyone that's a poor putter isn't going to score well...And those guys were fairly poor putters.