Why People Play Golf

As a keen golfer I thought I'd share some of the reasons I like to play on the Michael Tiplady blog. 

Social

Golf can give you the chance to bond with current friends and gain new ones. On average you can spend 2-4 hours on 18 holes giving you guaranteed bonding time. If you decide to play alone you have the option to join other golfers, giving you time to get to know each other. Golf can also be of benefit to your career as informal business meetings can often be held on the course.

Manage your emotions

Golf closely parallels real life as one experiences the highs and lows of the game. This range of experience from birdies to triple bogeys rewards helps to keep each shot in perspective, manage one’s emotions, maintain a positive outlook and focus on the shot at hand.

Fresh air 

Most golf courses are particularly picturesque, with well-pruned bushes and trees, flawless fairways, white sandy bunkers and surrounded by lakes, rivers and streams. If you couple the environment with bright shining sun and a cool breeze you have a great way to spend your time outdoors. 

Challenge

People can spend a long time trying to ace their swing, which is a great challenge for golfers of all skill levels. It's very rare for one to achieve perfection. There is great satisfaction when you hit an excellent shot, even if you're playing on the same course. An awkward bounce or incorrect swing can impact the whole game, so it's always a different experience. 

Exercise and Health

You probably wouldn’t think it, but a game of golf constitutes a large amount of exercise. With an 18 hole course you can walk between 4 and 7 miles on average over all sorts of different terrain and usually the courses are hilly. From an emotional point of view golf is also largely a stress relieving sport…until you hit a terrible shot! 

For more of my blogs, feel free to follow me on Twitter, where regular updates are posted. And have a great Christmas folks!

Michael Tiplady asks: Can England still win the Ashes?

I’ve been keeping a close eye on the Ashes this year, though saying that I keep a close eye on the Ashes every year! I have to say, I’ve been quite disappointed with England’s performance so far. But is it all down to poor play? Or is it just Australia’s secret weapon, Mitchell Johnson, giving us a good run for our money?

After the first two tests he has 17 wickets under his belt, so the question on everybody’s lips seems to be: can he build on this run of success in the third test on Friday? It’s likely Australia will be going for the kill in the third, so Johnson is likely to be putting everything he’s got into his overs.

Apparently he’s been taking advice from fast-bowling expert Dennis Lilee, who advocates “TUFF”, which stands for “Target, stand Up, Front arm and Follow through”. With this technique everything else seems to fall into place, so that Johnson can concentrate on his speed, something that he certainly seems to relish. He’s been quoted as saying, “I like the idea that being a fast bowler you can be aggressive and intimidate.” Perhaps something that England ought to bear in mind and steel against I reckon.

Obviously it’s not just Johnson we have to worry about though; Ryan Harris is a superb bowler and Paul Siddle can’t be ignored. Andy Flowers has said that the side will change up, after laying the blame for their first two losses at the feet of the batsmen. IT’s inevitable that they won’t be taking two spin bowlers in at Perth, but the question remains of whether they will have Monty Panesar or Graeme Swann as their specialist spinner. Or maybe they won’t take a spin bowler at all; I suppose we’ll just have to wait and see!

Either way I’ll be crossing my fingers for a win! Anyone that’s interested can follow me on Twitter for regular updates. 

Hello World…

…Michael Tiplady here. I’ve started this blog as a means of sharing my interests with the world and waxing lyrical for a while about them. I’m the head of the legal team at Wellesley, a construction and property consultancy firm where we aim to provide specially tailored, effective solutions for all individual client needs.

Outside of work I’m a big fan of cricket; currently hanging my head at England’s performance in the Ashes so far – hopefully we’ll pick it up a bit for the win though! I was recently appointed Chair of Woking and Horsell Cricket Club Colts Section. WHCC boasts one of the best wickets in the region and is also where Eric Bedser and his twin brother Sir Alec Bedser started their amazing careers. If you’re interested in the club, you can check out our website here.

I’m also very interested in golf, both playing and watching, and I love skiing and sailing when I get the chance. Spending time with my family and friends is very important to me so I try to do that as often as possible.

I’ll be posting updates on a weekly basis and would love to hear any feedback – as you may have guessed, I’m new to the blogging world so will aim to keep it ticking over as best I can!