The golf analogy

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Dryfly

That pretty much nails it, see my signature. At least if I can't fish these days I can play. How's this. To me fingerpicking is like dry fly fishing, strumming more like nymphing.

I don't play golf or finger pick guitar. So guess I can't accurately comment.

But I have fly fished in several locations around the world for numerous different species . So all I can says is, I am guessing the analogy might depend more on the species being fished for, than dry or wet .

For example, this guy was caught on a 6" long "dry fly " which I would not call "finger picking" but more like possible finger missing




My favorite analogy is while trout fly fishing a small freestone is often a delicate ballet.
Bone fishing the flats is slam dancing in the mosh pit

[Tomb0]

Well, I've been fortunate to play golf with a number of musicians - members of Widespread Panic, Dead and Company, Phil Lesh and Friends, String Cheese Incident and Counting Crows as well as Robby Kreiger, Branford Marsalis and many others. I only name them to point out that they are top-level musicians. I've spoken on this topic with all of them, and *they* certainly see the parallels!

Myself, I've been a tournament golfer (not professional, although I work in the industry) since I was 10. Don't compete much anymore, but I love the game.

Took up guitar at 30, so I did not have that gift of youthful learning. But both activities are true rabbit holes. I'm a 1.8-handicap golfer and I consider myself about the same at guitar. Golf has so many nuances - manipulating the clubface, angle approach and path to produce specific shot characteristics. Same for guitar - I can strum a song, I can play melodic runs, I can create a million different sounds by altering my attack, or fingerpicking or using the long side of a pick or whatever. I can vary the rhythm to produce another mood or setting.

Physically, the challenge of both is get the most effect from the least movement - economy of motion. I think of guitar when working on golf shots and I think of golf shots when working on guitar.

I don't think relationship is unique to golf and guitar, of course. This is the entire concept of analogous learning (I highly recommend reading Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World, by David Epstein). The study of trained classical musicians learning to improvise vs. jazz improvisationalists learning classical is worth the price of admission (hint: it's fairly easy in one direction and very difficult in the other).

Great discussion - thanks everyone.