So I took a lesson today from my local PGA professional, and boy was it worth it...
I have been pushing slicing or fading most of my shots recently and I really wanted more accuracy with my irons...
He watched me hit three balls, and knew exactly what would help me right of the bat... after some practice with it I can honestly say I am hitting it straighter just after a few buckets of focusing on the idea... I can't wait to see what the future will hold with this simple idea.
Ok so basically he was saying I was leaving my club face open too long, which I knew, but he made me focus on the contact of the ball making sure I was rotating and using my hands properly. Making it possible for someone standing in front of me to see the back of my left hand then straight on and then the back of my right hand. Now it was tremendously uncomfortable at first, and timing it with my arm speed was even more hectic. If my arms were fast and my hands couldn't catch up I would fade a bit, and if my rotation too fast for my arms I would pull or draw, it was amazing. Basically he said that the three things that control distance and control, are your hands, arms and legs. Hands.. the rotation we talked about, the arms which he only briefly mentioned because he said I seemed ok with that, and the legs being the shift of weight from back to front.
We also went over some chipping and bunkers but they were pretty simple things like for chipping less hands and more arms, and the bunkers were to follow through more hitting behind the ball. All really exciting and fun things to think about and work on.
I'm excited to see how the next week or so of practicing this muscle memory will play out for the rounds I intend to play in August.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Sunday, July 12, 2009
How my short game became my long game...
Ok so today I shot a 101... that hurt... after playing so well for a few weeks, I managed to have the best driving game I've ever played with the worst short game I've played since early june... 11 extra chips and putts from yesterday with 6 three-putts, ouch...
I hit 6 fairways, and I felt like I was truly improving my drive swing from my last posts remarks. It was an easy and comfortable fix that has added yards (hit several 300 yard balls) and consistent accuracy (obviously not perfect but that would inevitably have to do with my lack of consistency in other minor details). I didn't practice my short game as well as I would have liked today, but I was banking on repeating how well I played yesterday on my short game. I did get pretty shaken up after playing poorly and had trouble rebounding mentally which will be important to overcome in the future for long term success. I think the most important thing I got out of today however, was the acquaintances made with Kip Hunter his Father (a District Attorney of Boulder for 28 years) and their friend Phil. Kip and I seemed to hit it off as he went to school at UVA and I happened to be wearing my UVA hockey shirt. I am really looking forward to playing golf with him again in the future.
Two major things that were brought up in our 19th hole discussion that I have considered in the past but never pursued, were firstly, the importance of fitting my clubs (and potentially getting a nicer set), and secondly the value of proper training via lessons from a PGA Professional Teacher. Kip's father Alex could not say enough good things about what our local pro, Dan. I think the lessons cost about $40 and I'm looking forward to possibly investigating this idea further.
The outdoor movie last night didn't pan out due to weather, but tomorrow Alexa's sister comes into town so I better go clean/watch Law & Order and fall asleep.
I hit 6 fairways, and I felt like I was truly improving my drive swing from my last posts remarks. It was an easy and comfortable fix that has added yards (hit several 300 yard balls) and consistent accuracy (obviously not perfect but that would inevitably have to do with my lack of consistency in other minor details). I didn't practice my short game as well as I would have liked today, but I was banking on repeating how well I played yesterday on my short game. I did get pretty shaken up after playing poorly and had trouble rebounding mentally which will be important to overcome in the future for long term success. I think the most important thing I got out of today however, was the acquaintances made with Kip Hunter his Father (a District Attorney of Boulder for 28 years) and their friend Phil. Kip and I seemed to hit it off as he went to school at UVA and I happened to be wearing my UVA hockey shirt. I am really looking forward to playing golf with him again in the future.
Two major things that were brought up in our 19th hole discussion that I have considered in the past but never pursued, were firstly, the importance of fitting my clubs (and potentially getting a nicer set), and secondly the value of proper training via lessons from a PGA Professional Teacher. Kip's father Alex could not say enough good things about what our local pro, Dan. I think the lessons cost about $40 and I'm looking forward to possibly investigating this idea further.
The outdoor movie last night didn't pan out due to weather, but tomorrow Alexa's sister comes into town so I better go clean/watch Law & Order and fall asleep.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
90 the hard way...
Wow, I played REALLY poorly from outside 100 yards today... I made sure I was striking down on the ball to make those divots and get that smash factor everyone is raving about. However, it's not easy to see results when I hit 5 or 6 trees lose 5 balls, and barely got 1 fairway. It didn't help that I had 3 three-putts, because the only thing that was working for me was my chips and putts. I made some really great par putts, but they were lost on a lot of safety shots to get out from the trees. I still shot a 90 though for 18, which I can barely believe. It makes me wonder if it's my short game saving face of poor accuracy on drives, or if I am getting more accurate with my irons to help put me in position for easy chips and pitch. I can't tell yet, but hopefully I'll start seeing results from better ball striking in the next few rounds I play.
I did notice that I was not focusing on making proper wrist-cock on the back swing, so I'm surely losing power but I'm hoping I can slowly introduce that into the swing. The key however to a lot of saved shots has been the lift, clean, align and place routine for my putts. I've been getting a lot closer to the pin on each attempt. That coupled with my peripheral vision and overall feel of "on-lineness" has really helped me feel comfortable on putts. My hybrid punch shots have really been great for getting me out from the trees, and I'm starting to get the feel for how far it goes on easier swings. I've also gotten a lot more comfortable with my 60 degree wedge, and it has helped eliminate a lot of roll on the green if I can now just hone in on the flag with better accuracy it will be a great tool from 60 yards or so out. I did notice that keeping the ball a little further back in my stance and utilizing the wrist-cock somewhat on chips and close pitch shots was really beneficial. I do however need to work on watching my ball and where it lands. I am so sick of losing balls and more importantly strokes due to penalties from not being able to find my ball in the rough. I'm fine (for the most part) with a lost stroke to a hazard, but come on, watching the ball land and then not finding it is silly.
I was really struggling with the last two rounds of 9 being 55 and 56, I had gained ten strokes on 9-holes just from trying to introduce better swing components but it was making me super frustrated. I'm glad it has started to get me back down to where I want to be. Even though (again) it may have just been my short game compensating for lack of solid iron play.
At any rate my goal next round is to play safe and smart onto the fairways so I can set up some solid iron attempts at least. We'll see how that goes. I'm off to see Pineapple Express at an outdoor cinema with some friends from work... I wonder if I'll try and play tomorrow even though I shouldn't for money reasons.
I did notice that I was not focusing on making proper wrist-cock on the back swing, so I'm surely losing power but I'm hoping I can slowly introduce that into the swing. The key however to a lot of saved shots has been the lift, clean, align and place routine for my putts. I've been getting a lot closer to the pin on each attempt. That coupled with my peripheral vision and overall feel of "on-lineness" has really helped me feel comfortable on putts. My hybrid punch shots have really been great for getting me out from the trees, and I'm starting to get the feel for how far it goes on easier swings. I've also gotten a lot more comfortable with my 60 degree wedge, and it has helped eliminate a lot of roll on the green if I can now just hone in on the flag with better accuracy it will be a great tool from 60 yards or so out. I did notice that keeping the ball a little further back in my stance and utilizing the wrist-cock somewhat on chips and close pitch shots was really beneficial. I do however need to work on watching my ball and where it lands. I am so sick of losing balls and more importantly strokes due to penalties from not being able to find my ball in the rough. I'm fine (for the most part) with a lost stroke to a hazard, but come on, watching the ball land and then not finding it is silly.
I was really struggling with the last two rounds of 9 being 55 and 56, I had gained ten strokes on 9-holes just from trying to introduce better swing components but it was making me super frustrated. I'm glad it has started to get me back down to where I want to be. Even though (again) it may have just been my short game compensating for lack of solid iron play.
At any rate my goal next round is to play safe and smart onto the fairways so I can set up some solid iron attempts at least. We'll see how that goes. I'm off to see Pineapple Express at an outdoor cinema with some friends from work... I wonder if I'll try and play tomorrow even though I shouldn't for money reasons.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
55 for 9 or Beginning the era of the downswing...
Ok, so I couldn't wait until the weekend to try out this new concept... Swinging down on the ball or hitting the ball first. The idea of hitting a divot has changed a number of things with my swing... attempting the wrist-cock, weight shift, and shaft position in relation to my wrist and the ball. It feels weird, but I think Im getting the hang of it. I didn't get a warm-up as I hustled out on the course attempting to play as many holes as I could on twilight however I managed to catch the tail of league play meaning I would barely get through 9 holes. I went 3 for 7 on fairways which felt great (and I attribute to keeping my hands closer to my waist than before, thanks to my swing video), I was having trouble gauging my distances for my clubs as they appear to be hitting it further with the new swing. This didn't help as I ended up having to pitch or chip a LOT more than usual and without a warm-up this did not help my score. I also need to remember that my chips shouldn't change their swing pattern (not the way my iron swings have). Well I have a good feeling about the new found accuracy with this new swing, I tend to hit it within 15 yards of my target line, and that is 100x better than before. I'm going to play a few more times this weekend I think, so we'll see how quickly I get the hang of it, but I have a feeling it might take a while.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
On the downswing...
Ok, so I focused a little bit on making divots today on the range... I started developing a blister on my right thumb so I took it easy and I have a feeling I might have to rethink my grip for this new line of attack on the ball. I discovered on a good solid hit (utilizing the downswing) I hit my 7-iron a good 30-40 yards further than before... Not to mention the ball was much more predictable to my target line, MUCH MORE!!!
It was incredible... and now I can't wait to try it out this weekend, I have a feeling I will be redefining each club's average distance, but I'm hoping I will be hitting more greens in regulation.
I took these videos while I was there after a wild hair, and a few minutes cleaning the dust out of my old miniDV camera to get it to work. I was looking into golfTec and the likes, which gave me the idea to explore what my swing looks like from a third person, or at least a camera so I can see myself as a third person. I'm already noticing little things I can work on, the gap between my waist and the club handle on my driver, my finish needs to hold longer, and my swing plane may be slightly off.
Well I also found with the video that unfortunately the range only fires from the grass on Thursdays-Sundays (weather permitting) as the guy yelled at me not two swings into filming my side views. I had to get on the grass because of the green barriers between tee pads blocking the view of the camera which you can see on the driver video. Anyways, I'll be looking forward to filming again once I work on some of the things I see so far, and hopefully after a game this weekend that might put me into the lower 80's?
It was incredible... and now I can't wait to try it out this weekend, I have a feeling I will be redefining each club's average distance, but I'm hoping I will be hitting more greens in regulation.
I took these videos while I was there after a wild hair, and a few minutes cleaning the dust out of my old miniDV camera to get it to work. I was looking into golfTec and the likes, which gave me the idea to explore what my swing looks like from a third person, or at least a camera so I can see myself as a third person. I'm already noticing little things I can work on, the gap between my waist and the club handle on my driver, my finish needs to hold longer, and my swing plane may be slightly off.
Well I also found with the video that unfortunately the range only fires from the grass on Thursdays-Sundays (weather permitting) as the guy yelled at me not two swings into filming my side views. I had to get on the grass because of the green barriers between tee pads blocking the view of the camera which you can see on the driver video. Anyways, I'll be looking forward to filming again once I work on some of the things I see so far, and hopefully after a game this weekend that might put me into the lower 80's?
Sunday, July 5, 2009
89
I'm telling you the video below helped me again twice today... so easy and surprisingly effective...
ok anyway, I shot 89, but I felt like I missed a lot of easy putts, and again I really want to work on my iron play. I don't make divots and I don't want that to set me back later on... I found a video last night that I'm excited about trying out...
Now I'm shooting for 80...
ok anyway, I shot 89, but I felt like I missed a lot of easy putts, and again I really want to work on my iron play. I don't make divots and I don't want that to set me back later on... I found a video last night that I'm excited about trying out...
Now I'm shooting for 80...
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Oh, another video that helped me today for one shot in particular...
http://www.truveo.com/A-Game-Golf-Instruction-Easy-Howto-Hit-the-Draw/id/242183612
Helped me get on the green (would have been green in regulation had I not hit a water hazard just before it) from around a tree about 30 yards ahead with 140 to the green. I somehow got the ball to gently curve around (not a hook but whatever the more slight version of that is...) the tree and onto the green curving from right to left.
Helped me get on the green (would have been green in regulation had I not hit a water hazard just before it) from around a tree about 30 yards ahead with 140 to the green. I somehow got the ball to gently curve around (not a hook but whatever the more slight version of that is...) the tree and onto the green curving from right to left.
90
OK, so I hit a 90 today... and it felt really good... No huge mistakes, nothing over double bogey, only a couple 3 putts... and I'm convinced I would have broke 90 had it not started pouring down raining on the 18th. I thought I could beat the rain and finish out when it started drizzling on the 17th, and I didn't want to leave without finishing if it didn't stop raining... needless to say the rain made a huge difference as I was only able to hit my drive 150 or so yards, and each iron about 20-30 yards shorter than I expected. I was looking to par or at worst bogey, but nothing I can do now.
I've been looking at my stats and the one thing I think I really need to work on can't be seen statistically but I know after thinking about my play today that I need to work on my irons. Anything between 7i-Pw I can usually get within 100 ft. of where I want it, but anything from 6i-woods I don't always know what's going to happen. I don't know how far I can hit them, and I don't know if I'm going to slice or not. I'd like to really hone in on hitting my irons straight maybe sacrifice distance for awhile until I can piece it together. but right now I'm turning my club face considerably to the left each shot to counteract a push/slice, and it still doesn't seem to consistently cover the problem. I've been feeling much more comfortable only swinging at 75% on drives, I didn't hit as many fairways today as I would have liked to but there was at least 4 or 5 holes where I was within a yard or so of the fairway so I wasn't too far off. My pitching was perfect today, and my putts were getting me close, so I couldn't complain. However, what good is a long drive to the fairway if my next show is going to put me 30 yards from the green.
I'll be studying up on Irons tonight to possibly play tomorrow (pending on the weather) but I have a good feeling it will take me a week or so of hitting the range (and not just reading something or watching an on-line video).
Another thing I'm nervous about in my swing is that I don't divot... like at all. I watch the pros and while they may be trying to get backspin on the ball, they leave a divot pretty much every time they're not on the green or teeing off. I just try to barely scrape the ground each time. I have a feeling that has to do with a lot of my mishits and potentially my inconsistencies with my irons. I'll have to continue researching the topic.
I guess my next goal is to break 80... I'm starting to wonder if I could hit par by the end of the summer?
I'd have to change the web address for this blog...
I've been looking at my stats and the one thing I think I really need to work on can't be seen statistically but I know after thinking about my play today that I need to work on my irons. Anything between 7i-Pw I can usually get within 100 ft. of where I want it, but anything from 6i-woods I don't always know what's going to happen. I don't know how far I can hit them, and I don't know if I'm going to slice or not. I'd like to really hone in on hitting my irons straight maybe sacrifice distance for awhile until I can piece it together. but right now I'm turning my club face considerably to the left each shot to counteract a push/slice, and it still doesn't seem to consistently cover the problem. I've been feeling much more comfortable only swinging at 75% on drives, I didn't hit as many fairways today as I would have liked to but there was at least 4 or 5 holes where I was within a yard or so of the fairway so I wasn't too far off. My pitching was perfect today, and my putts were getting me close, so I couldn't complain. However, what good is a long drive to the fairway if my next show is going to put me 30 yards from the green.
I'll be studying up on Irons tonight to possibly play tomorrow (pending on the weather) but I have a good feeling it will take me a week or so of hitting the range (and not just reading something or watching an on-line video).
Another thing I'm nervous about in my swing is that I don't divot... like at all. I watch the pros and while they may be trying to get backspin on the ball, they leave a divot pretty much every time they're not on the green or teeing off. I just try to barely scrape the ground each time. I have a feeling that has to do with a lot of my mishits and potentially my inconsistencies with my irons. I'll have to continue researching the topic.
I guess my next goal is to break 80... I'm starting to wonder if I could hit par by the end of the summer?
I'd have to change the web address for this blog...
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