{"id":394887,"date":"2026-01-08T09:35:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T09:35:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/394887\/"},"modified":"2026-01-08T09:35:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T09:35:16","slug":"getting-better-at-golf-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/394887\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting Better at Golf in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chapter 10 of Michael Bamberger\u2019s \u201cTo the Linksland\u201d is titled Stark, a nod to legendary Scottish golf professional John Stark, a man who had a lifelong impact on the author. The chapter is 10 pages long and takes just a few minutes to read, but as I traversed its pages on New Year’s Eve, those few minutes fundamentally recentered the way I thought about golf heading into 2026.<\/p>\n

I know I\u2019m not the first person impacted by \u201cTo The Linksland.\u201d Bamberger\u2019s experiences and stories have entertained and informed many a golfer for more than 30 years. But as someone who was very late to the party and finally sat down to read it last week, I don\u2019t think I could have chosen a better time. A new year always brings with it a series of resolutions and goals, things we want to accomplish both as golfers and humans. As a golfer, that sentiment almost always boils down to \u201cI want to get better,\u201d the exact sentence Bamberger relayed to Stark when they met for the first time. It\u2019s something we all feel this time of year, when most of our clubs are collecting dust in the corner and we\u2019re waiting for warmer weather. But as we prepare for another season of the sport we all love, it\u2019s worth thinking about what \u201cbetter\u201d really means. As Stark puts it, \u201cTell me precisely what it is you seek to accomplish.\u201d Maybe that is lower scores and a more aesthetically pleasing golf swing. But maybe it\u2019s simpler than that. <\/p>\n

Towards the end of Chapter 10, Stark tells his would-be pupil, \u201cYou come to me and say you want to get better, that you want to take lessons from me, but I wonder if you really need them.\u201d By no means was he saying that you shouldn\u2019t seek guidance from your local professional; just about all of us can benefit from that in one form or another. But there are many ways to improve as a golfer, be it through enjoyment, new experiences, or learning from those around us and being more observant. Whatever that may be, let\u2019s hope we all find it in the new year. I hope we all get better.<\/p>\n

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