Monday, May 18, 2009
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Golf's Secret Society
Is there some sort of secret society in golf? Do golf instructors know something that the rest of the golf world does not know? And if they do how is the decision made with whom to share these secrets?
These are all questions that should, and need to be addressed.
First of all put 100 golf instructors in a room and ask them what are some of the fundamentals of golf. You will get answers like grip, stance, posture, aim, and alignment.
Let's define fundamental - one of the minimum constituents without which a thing or a system would not be what it is.
Let's go through each of these and see if we can come up with a logical answer.
1. Grip - instruction tells us that this is one of the keys to playing good golf but yet great players have used a number of different grips. Harry Vardon used an overlapping grip, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods use an interlocking grip, and Moe Norman used a ten finger grip.
So as you can see there is no commonality in the grip type.
How about whether a grip is strong, weak, or neutral? Ben Hogan used a weak grip as does Jose Maria Olazabal. David Duval, Paul Azinger, and Gene Sarazen use a strong grip and others use a neutral grip.
So grip would NOT be a fundamental since you can use just about type or style and still play great golf.
2. Stance - Sam Snead used a closed stance and Jack Nicklaus an open one. Fred Couples and Lee Trevino also use an open stance while Lee Janzen and Tom Lehman use closed ones.
Again, there is not ONE stance that is used by every player so that cannot be a fundamental.
3. Posture - Ben Hogan stood almost straight up while Hubert Green is bent over. Dan Forsman also is more bent over then is commonly recommended and lots of players are somewhere between these two extremes. So posture cannot be a fundamental.
4. Aim - On a shot that is 200 yards of length a study on the PGA Tour concluded that ZERO players aimed at the flag! They aimed in the DIRECTION of the flag! Again, this cannot be a fundamental.
5. Alignment - Sam Snead set up right of target and Jack Nicklaus sets up left of target. There are numerous players that set up closed and open.
A few years ago another study was conducted of amateur golfers and Touring Professionals for similarities. 76% of ALL right- handed golfers aimed and set up to the right of target! Another fundamental down the drain!
So if all of the above are NOT fundamentals then what are? What do great players all have in common?
1. The ability to strike the ground, in front of the ball, in the same spot every time. Great players don't top the ball down the fairway or generally hit fat shots!
2. The players hit the ball a manageable distance to play the holes or the golf course.
3. All these great players took all the things mentioned such as grip, stance, posture, etc. and adapted all these variations so they could have a predictable flight of ball curvature that they could manage.
So the end result is, if you can hit the ball the proper distance for the shot at hand, control the curvature of the golf ball, and strike the ground in front of the ball in the same spot every time your handicap will go down.
Chuck Evans
Executive Director of Instruction
The Medicus Golf Institute
These are all questions that should, and need to be addressed.
First of all put 100 golf instructors in a room and ask them what are some of the fundamentals of golf. You will get answers like grip, stance, posture, aim, and alignment.
Let's define fundamental - one of the minimum constituents without which a thing or a system would not be what it is.
Let's go through each of these and see if we can come up with a logical answer.
1. Grip - instruction tells us that this is one of the keys to playing good golf but yet great players have used a number of different grips. Harry Vardon used an overlapping grip, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods use an interlocking grip, and Moe Norman used a ten finger grip.
So as you can see there is no commonality in the grip type.
How about whether a grip is strong, weak, or neutral? Ben Hogan used a weak grip as does Jose Maria Olazabal. David Duval, Paul Azinger, and Gene Sarazen use a strong grip and others use a neutral grip.
So grip would NOT be a fundamental since you can use just about type or style and still play great golf.
2. Stance - Sam Snead used a closed stance and Jack Nicklaus an open one. Fred Couples and Lee Trevino also use an open stance while Lee Janzen and Tom Lehman use closed ones.
Again, there is not ONE stance that is used by every player so that cannot be a fundamental.
3. Posture - Ben Hogan stood almost straight up while Hubert Green is bent over. Dan Forsman also is more bent over then is commonly recommended and lots of players are somewhere between these two extremes. So posture cannot be a fundamental.
4. Aim - On a shot that is 200 yards of length a study on the PGA Tour concluded that ZERO players aimed at the flag! They aimed in the DIRECTION of the flag! Again, this cannot be a fundamental.
5. Alignment - Sam Snead set up right of target and Jack Nicklaus sets up left of target. There are numerous players that set up closed and open.
A few years ago another study was conducted of amateur golfers and Touring Professionals for similarities. 76% of ALL right- handed golfers aimed and set up to the right of target! Another fundamental down the drain!
So if all of the above are NOT fundamentals then what are? What do great players all have in common?
1. The ability to strike the ground, in front of the ball, in the same spot every time. Great players don't top the ball down the fairway or generally hit fat shots!
2. The players hit the ball a manageable distance to play the holes or the golf course.
3. All these great players took all the things mentioned such as grip, stance, posture, etc. and adapted all these variations so they could have a predictable flight of ball curvature that they could manage.
So the end result is, if you can hit the ball the proper distance for the shot at hand, control the curvature of the golf ball, and strike the ground in front of the ball in the same spot every time your handicap will go down.
Chuck Evans
Executive Director of Instruction
The Medicus Golf Institute
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Working On The Impact Zone
Note the Flat Left Wrist at impact, clubhead lagging the hands and the straight plane line.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
The Real Secret of Golf - An Excerpt from The Disciplined Golfer
The Real Secret of Golf
Most golfers eschew good, hard and correct practice and instead indulge themselves in the age old quest for the Holy Grail – the secret of golf.
People thought that Ben Hogan – revered as the greatest ball striker of all time – had a secret that explained his phenomenal striking ability. Much has been debated about this. Some claim that it was his cupped left wrist at the top that allowed Mr. Hogan to “release” his hands as hard as he wanted without hooking the ball.
Still others claim that it was his unusual hip action on his backswing that resembled a reverse pivot that allowed him to make a strong move into the ball on his downswing.
Mr. Hogan was not the only one whom the masses thought were hiding a secret. Scores have also been written about Tiger Woods’ whiplash hip action as the key to smashing 300 yard drives. Sergio Garcia’s “buggy whip” swing action was the key to increasing distance. Homer Kelley said the secret was “clubhead lag”. They may all be true.
If you are the prototypical average golfer who watches The Golf Channel and reads Golf Digest occasionally, then you can testify to seeing at least one article which claims to have finally unlocked the secret code to better golf.
“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” – Alvin Toffler, Futurist
The real secret to golf in my opinion is the ability to learn, unlearn and relearn.
There can be no progress in one’s golf swing without the ability to do these three things.
These three things are truly the key to learning the secrets of golf, now that’s some food for thought.
Most golfers eschew good, hard and correct practice and instead indulge themselves in the age old quest for the Holy Grail – the secret of golf.
People thought that Ben Hogan – revered as the greatest ball striker of all time – had a secret that explained his phenomenal striking ability. Much has been debated about this. Some claim that it was his cupped left wrist at the top that allowed Mr. Hogan to “release” his hands as hard as he wanted without hooking the ball.
Still others claim that it was his unusual hip action on his backswing that resembled a reverse pivot that allowed him to make a strong move into the ball on his downswing.
Mr. Hogan was not the only one whom the masses thought were hiding a secret. Scores have also been written about Tiger Woods’ whiplash hip action as the key to smashing 300 yard drives. Sergio Garcia’s “buggy whip” swing action was the key to increasing distance. Homer Kelley said the secret was “clubhead lag”. They may all be true.
If you are the prototypical average golfer who watches The Golf Channel and reads Golf Digest occasionally, then you can testify to seeing at least one article which claims to have finally unlocked the secret code to better golf.
“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” – Alvin Toffler, Futurist
The real secret to golf in my opinion is the ability to learn, unlearn and relearn.
There can be no progress in one’s golf swing without the ability to do these three things.
These three things are truly the key to learning the secrets of golf, now that’s some food for thought.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
The Madness In The Method
The Madness in the Method
Faddish Instruction Styles Come and Go, but the Best Golf Teachers Take a Different Tack
By John Paul Newport
Perhaps you've read in the golf magazines about One Plane, Two Plane, an instructional philosophy now in vogue. Some of us swing back and down on one plane, some of us swing on two planes; either is OK, but there are different fundamentals for both approaches. One Plane, Two Plane is not to be confused with Stack and Tilt, an even newer approach that makes it feel as if the spine is tilting toward the target at the top of the backswing. This position used to be called "reverse pivot," and still is by traditionalists who contend it's harmful, but last year it helped pros Mike Weir and Aaron Baddeley earn $4.7 million on the PGA Tour.
The Stack and Tilt swing may remind some of the Natural Golf swing popularized by Canadian Moe Norman, but nobody would confuse Stack and Tilt with the swing detailed in "The Golfing Machine," a thick 1969 instruction manual by Homer Kelley which also has many devotees on the PGA Tour, including most avidly Steve Elkington.
One thing all these swing styles have in common is that they are marketed -- by some, at least -- as the one true way. In this respect, swing styles (or methods) have a lot in common with political ideologies. They attract fervent believers and detractors, but none can ever be proven definitively wrong for the simple reason that each has demonstrably helped many golfers get better.
Unfortunately, each has also led many golfers astray. That's because not every style works for every player, despite the marketing claims of their proponents.
"Most teachers are method teachers, and by most I mean way most -- like 90%," said Jim McLean, a Top 50 instructor who oversees the Jim McLean Golf Schools in Miami and elsewhere. Mr. McLean defines a method teacher as someone who gives essentially the same lesson to every student, whether those lessons revolve around a formal swing style with a name, like Stack and Tilt, or a less defined curriculum of the teacher's own devising.
"A lot of the time it works out well, because some methods are very good. And methods are appealing because they promise a simple answer. Do A, B, C and D and you'll have it. But the danger is that if a student isn't the right fit for a particular method and the teacher doesn't make adjustments, the student can get worse -- in some cases, a lot worse."
Discuss
Teachers stick to one method in some cases because they are financially or ideologically bound to it. But more often, Mr. McLean said, it's simply because they lack the knowledge or experience to teach any other way. It's the old "If all you have is a hammer, every problem is a nail" syndrome.
Golfers don't mesh with certain methods for any number of reasons. Sometimes a player's body can't easily make the movements required, but often the mismatch is inexplicable. Golfers talk about having an "eye" for certain types of shots and not for others. The same goes for swing styles. Whatever the cause, the results can be maddening. I have two friends who have fallen victim to method teaching. One, a longtime five handicapper, watched his index soar to the low teens after an intense week at a golf school and wasn't able to wrestle it back into single-digit territory for many angry years.
Luckily, golf instruction is an open market and it's easy, if occasionally awkward, to shop around. The next method or instructor you try may suit you to a T. The ideal scenario, however, is to find an experienced, deeply knowledgeable teacher who isn't devoted to one way of doing things. Such teachers are rare, but they're out there, and the best way to find them is same way you find the right psychologist or other medical specialist: by asking around locally.
Look for someone who has taught for many years, who makes teaching his or her highest priority and has a roster of satisfied, successful students. Avoid the guy who only sometimes gives a few lessons when he can get out from behind the pro-shop counter. He might be fine for a quick fix here and there, but if you're serious about getting better over the long-term, you're far better off with a master.
The person you want is someone like Harvey Penick, the legendary author of "The Little Red Book," who taught Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite in Austin, Texas, when they were boys. He wasn't flashy, he didn't trumpet any kind of "system." He just knew golf, and people, and had learned over the years to boil down his advice to the simplest possible terms.
Or Butch Harmon, who grew up in a golf family and not only knows the swing inside and out, but also the intangible qualities it takes to excel. Years ago I had the pleasure of attending a three-day school with Mr. Harmon, at Sea Island, Ga., and I was most impressed with how little he told me. He quickly discerned the two or three things I needed to work on next and had the confidence to leave it at that, knowing that to tell me more (as most teachers do) would only leave my head spinning.
In recent years, there seems to be increasing emphasis in the teaching ranks on the value of less rigid instruction. Charlie King, the director of instruction at Reynolds Plantation in Georgia, has just come out with a free download called "The New Rules of Golf Instruction." In it he specifically takes old-style method instructors to task, based on his own frustrations as a student and teacher. "The old rules preached that golfers were supposed to look a certain way when they swing, without the information they need to understand why the golf ball behaves the way it does," he said. His "new rules" describe seven essential skills in a good swing but place just as much emphasis on the short game, mental toughness, fitness and smart practice.
Another experienced Top 100 golf instructor who has thoroughly revamped his approach is Michael Hebron of Smithtown Landing, N.Y., on Long Island. He has written and lectured extensively in the last few years that the goal of a good instructor should not be to teach the student, but rather to facilitate the student learning for himself through directed play and experimentation. His ideas make use of recent research into how the brain absorbs knowledge and the body masters new skills.
Even so, good teaching has always been more art than science. Instructional books that have stood the test of time, like Percy Boomer's "On Learning Golf" from 1946 and John Jacobs's "Practical Golf" from 1972, are notable primarily because their authors do not attempt to describe exact swing models, but rather reduce instruction to key concepts that define ranges of acceptable swing positions, and encourage students to feel their own way to success within those ranges. Even method teachers, if they are experienced and confident, will sign on to that approach.
Faddish Instruction Styles Come and Go, but the Best Golf Teachers Take a Different Tack
By John Paul Newport
Perhaps you've read in the golf magazines about One Plane, Two Plane, an instructional philosophy now in vogue. Some of us swing back and down on one plane, some of us swing on two planes; either is OK, but there are different fundamentals for both approaches. One Plane, Two Plane is not to be confused with Stack and Tilt, an even newer approach that makes it feel as if the spine is tilting toward the target at the top of the backswing. This position used to be called "reverse pivot," and still is by traditionalists who contend it's harmful, but last year it helped pros Mike Weir and Aaron Baddeley earn $4.7 million on the PGA Tour.
The Stack and Tilt swing may remind some of the Natural Golf swing popularized by Canadian Moe Norman, but nobody would confuse Stack and Tilt with the swing detailed in "The Golfing Machine," a thick 1969 instruction manual by Homer Kelley which also has many devotees on the PGA Tour, including most avidly Steve Elkington.
One thing all these swing styles have in common is that they are marketed -- by some, at least -- as the one true way. In this respect, swing styles (or methods) have a lot in common with political ideologies. They attract fervent believers and detractors, but none can ever be proven definitively wrong for the simple reason that each has demonstrably helped many golfers get better.
Unfortunately, each has also led many golfers astray. That's because not every style works for every player, despite the marketing claims of their proponents.
"Most teachers are method teachers, and by most I mean way most -- like 90%," said Jim McLean, a Top 50 instructor who oversees the Jim McLean Golf Schools in Miami and elsewhere. Mr. McLean defines a method teacher as someone who gives essentially the same lesson to every student, whether those lessons revolve around a formal swing style with a name, like Stack and Tilt, or a less defined curriculum of the teacher's own devising.
"A lot of the time it works out well, because some methods are very good. And methods are appealing because they promise a simple answer. Do A, B, C and D and you'll have it. But the danger is that if a student isn't the right fit for a particular method and the teacher doesn't make adjustments, the student can get worse -- in some cases, a lot worse."
Discuss
Teachers stick to one method in some cases because they are financially or ideologically bound to it. But more often, Mr. McLean said, it's simply because they lack the knowledge or experience to teach any other way. It's the old "If all you have is a hammer, every problem is a nail" syndrome.
Golfers don't mesh with certain methods for any number of reasons. Sometimes a player's body can't easily make the movements required, but often the mismatch is inexplicable. Golfers talk about having an "eye" for certain types of shots and not for others. The same goes for swing styles. Whatever the cause, the results can be maddening. I have two friends who have fallen victim to method teaching. One, a longtime five handicapper, watched his index soar to the low teens after an intense week at a golf school and wasn't able to wrestle it back into single-digit territory for many angry years.
Luckily, golf instruction is an open market and it's easy, if occasionally awkward, to shop around. The next method or instructor you try may suit you to a T. The ideal scenario, however, is to find an experienced, deeply knowledgeable teacher who isn't devoted to one way of doing things. Such teachers are rare, but they're out there, and the best way to find them is same way you find the right psychologist or other medical specialist: by asking around locally.
Look for someone who has taught for many years, who makes teaching his or her highest priority and has a roster of satisfied, successful students. Avoid the guy who only sometimes gives a few lessons when he can get out from behind the pro-shop counter. He might be fine for a quick fix here and there, but if you're serious about getting better over the long-term, you're far better off with a master.
The person you want is someone like Harvey Penick, the legendary author of "The Little Red Book," who taught Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite in Austin, Texas, when they were boys. He wasn't flashy, he didn't trumpet any kind of "system." He just knew golf, and people, and had learned over the years to boil down his advice to the simplest possible terms.
Or Butch Harmon, who grew up in a golf family and not only knows the swing inside and out, but also the intangible qualities it takes to excel. Years ago I had the pleasure of attending a three-day school with Mr. Harmon, at Sea Island, Ga., and I was most impressed with how little he told me. He quickly discerned the two or three things I needed to work on next and had the confidence to leave it at that, knowing that to tell me more (as most teachers do) would only leave my head spinning.
In recent years, there seems to be increasing emphasis in the teaching ranks on the value of less rigid instruction. Charlie King, the director of instruction at Reynolds Plantation in Georgia, has just come out with a free download called "The New Rules of Golf Instruction." In it he specifically takes old-style method instructors to task, based on his own frustrations as a student and teacher. "The old rules preached that golfers were supposed to look a certain way when they swing, without the information they need to understand why the golf ball behaves the way it does," he said. His "new rules" describe seven essential skills in a good swing but place just as much emphasis on the short game, mental toughness, fitness and smart practice.
Another experienced Top 100 golf instructor who has thoroughly revamped his approach is Michael Hebron of Smithtown Landing, N.Y., on Long Island. He has written and lectured extensively in the last few years that the goal of a good instructor should not be to teach the student, but rather to facilitate the student learning for himself through directed play and experimentation. His ideas make use of recent research into how the brain absorbs knowledge and the body masters new skills.
Even so, good teaching has always been more art than science. Instructional books that have stood the test of time, like Percy Boomer's "On Learning Golf" from 1946 and John Jacobs's "Practical Golf" from 1972, are notable primarily because their authors do not attempt to describe exact swing models, but rather reduce instruction to key concepts that define ranges of acceptable swing positions, and encourage students to feel their own way to success within those ranges. Even method teachers, if they are experienced and confident, will sign on to that approach.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
The Practice Swing vs the Real Swing - An Excerpt
One of the most frustrating things a golfer can be told is that he has a great practice swing but his score sucks. If you have been in this game long enough, you would surely have heard something along those lines.
Intuitively most golfers assume that their practice swing equals their actual swing; after all they sure feel the same. Well not really. You see quite a few variables change when you actually want to hit the ball for real.
Ball Bound
You become ball bound and want to get into positions rather than go through positions
What you feel is not what you are doing
Force of habit comes into play when you exceed your threshold speed.
The golf swing is a series of positions that can be broken down by relating the golf shaft and the left arm in relation to the base of the plane or what some people most commonly refer to as the target line.
These positions are not meant to be arrived at but rather to be passed through. What this means is that you do not consciously try to reach and stop at those positions. It means that
in your practice sessions, you have already identified these positions as well as the transitory moves from position to position. It also means that you have “blended” all these feels into one fluid motion. Then the only thing left to do is to start and finish the swing with the ball merely getting in the way.
Feeling Vs Reality
At the risk of kicking a dead horse, I reiterate again one of the most important concepts in learning golf: make sure you are doing what you feel / think you are doing. Simplistically, make sure you are eating what you think you are eating. Beef and lamb may look the same but they sure taste very different!
Threshold Speed
Threshold speed is the speed where a motion becomes dictated by habit. Remember the flight or fight syndrome where in an emergency, your instincts take over? Well, in the same way, when you subject your golf swing past a certain speed, changes become all but impossible to make. Ever had a lesson where no matter how hard you tried to follow your pro’s instruction, it couldn’t be done? That’s a violation of the threshold speed concept there.
When you started learning how to write, did you do it at full speed?
When you started learning how to cycle, did you do a Lance Armstrong?
Below are three drills that address the three hurdles outlined above:
Hold and Feel Drill
Go to the correct positions in the swing in front of the mirror and allow your brain to associate what it sees with what your body feels. Work your way up from the impact then 1st to the 9th position. When you are sure what you see is what you feel, test yourself!
Move and Feel Drill
This drill is designed to be worked with 2 positions. If you are working with say, position 1 and 2, you want to start with startup and then move to 1 and then 2. Again this drill is to be done in front of a mirror for the purpose of association. Instead of identifying the feels of the different positions, this time identify the feels of the transitions from position to position.
Slo-Mo Drill
This drill is to be done once you are confident that the feels for the positions and transitions have been identified and that you are ready to incorporate it into the full swing.
Again, assuming an integration of positions 1 and 2; start directly from startup to 1 and then 2 and then to impact with a ball. Disregard the quality of the strike at the start. When your body learns the correct motion, impact quality will come.
The principle here is Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demand or SAID. Its useless trying to groove your practice swing as you are not going to practice swing your way around the golf course!
What we are doing here is imposing on your body a specific demand to build neuromuscular pathways for a certain move – slowly but surely.
Intuitively most golfers assume that their practice swing equals their actual swing; after all they sure feel the same. Well not really. You see quite a few variables change when you actually want to hit the ball for real.
Ball Bound
You become ball bound and want to get into positions rather than go through positions
What you feel is not what you are doing
Force of habit comes into play when you exceed your threshold speed.
The golf swing is a series of positions that can be broken down by relating the golf shaft and the left arm in relation to the base of the plane or what some people most commonly refer to as the target line.
These positions are not meant to be arrived at but rather to be passed through. What this means is that you do not consciously try to reach and stop at those positions. It means that
in your practice sessions, you have already identified these positions as well as the transitory moves from position to position. It also means that you have “blended” all these feels into one fluid motion. Then the only thing left to do is to start and finish the swing with the ball merely getting in the way.
Feeling Vs Reality
At the risk of kicking a dead horse, I reiterate again one of the most important concepts in learning golf: make sure you are doing what you feel / think you are doing. Simplistically, make sure you are eating what you think you are eating. Beef and lamb may look the same but they sure taste very different!
Threshold Speed
Threshold speed is the speed where a motion becomes dictated by habit. Remember the flight or fight syndrome where in an emergency, your instincts take over? Well, in the same way, when you subject your golf swing past a certain speed, changes become all but impossible to make. Ever had a lesson where no matter how hard you tried to follow your pro’s instruction, it couldn’t be done? That’s a violation of the threshold speed concept there.
When you started learning how to write, did you do it at full speed?
When you started learning how to cycle, did you do a Lance Armstrong?
Below are three drills that address the three hurdles outlined above:
Hold and Feel Drill
Go to the correct positions in the swing in front of the mirror and allow your brain to associate what it sees with what your body feels. Work your way up from the impact then 1st to the 9th position. When you are sure what you see is what you feel, test yourself!
Move and Feel Drill
This drill is designed to be worked with 2 positions. If you are working with say, position 1 and 2, you want to start with startup and then move to 1 and then 2. Again this drill is to be done in front of a mirror for the purpose of association. Instead of identifying the feels of the different positions, this time identify the feels of the transitions from position to position.
Slo-Mo Drill
This drill is to be done once you are confident that the feels for the positions and transitions have been identified and that you are ready to incorporate it into the full swing.
Again, assuming an integration of positions 1 and 2; start directly from startup to 1 and then 2 and then to impact with a ball. Disregard the quality of the strike at the start. When your body learns the correct motion, impact quality will come.
The principle here is Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demand or SAID. Its useless trying to groove your practice swing as you are not going to practice swing your way around the golf course!
What we are doing here is imposing on your body a specific demand to build neuromuscular pathways for a certain move – slowly but surely.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Match Play Magic - An Excerpt
Match Play Magic
The key to winning golf especially match play is to have zero expectations.
By zero expectations, I don’t mean to say that one should have a careless attitude about everything.
You ought to have expectations about what you are personal capability, your composure, shot selection – things you are able to control.
What you ought to have zero expectations about are things without your control. Some examples of these things are wind strength, direction, the distance your opponent smashes his drives, whether or not he is able to make his putt; and if you play in tournaments – whether the referee rules to or away from your favor.
If one gets excited (happy or angry) with things outside of one’s control, it can only lead to one’s emotions to the subject to the whims of others (human or otherwise). Sure, you may be able to catch lightning in a bottle twice, but sooner or later the law of probabilities will catch up with you.
After you have assimilated the sections teaching you how to learn, improve as much as you desire; and having a game plan, the next step would be to master yourself, specifically your emotions.
Emotion is defined as a feeling; of anger, peace, courage or fear.
Having a zero expectation about things outside your control is very beneficial. When you have the mindset that anything can happen on the golf course, you cease to have any unrealistic or imagined expectations.
An example of these are, your opponent fluffing a tap in putt and your opponent double bogeying the entire back nine.
If you do not have any expectations, you then cease to have any emotions when things go for or against you. When your opponent does miss a short putt, you do not get excited. When you opponent makes a 60 footer, you do not get excited. When you are able to keep your emotions on an even keel, then you retain control over yourself. Positive or negative excitement causes your adrenal glands to pump adrenaline into your system. An “adrenalized” state can be recognized by a state of short shallow breaths, shaking hands and feet among others.
Instead of the usual antidote of taking deep breaths and focusing on something else other than the match at hand, wouldn’t it be easier on the golfer had the adrenaline not been pumped in the first place? We all know how effective deep breathing is on the course.
The number one killer of match play games is fear. Fear stems from a situation of not knowing what might happen in the future. If you know what will happen in the next minute, then how can you fear? On the other hand, if you know that what will happen next is out of your control and you expect anything to happen, then what is there to fear or defend against? Why fear or worry about what you cannot do anything about?
What should you do then in a match play?
Be evenly matched up – which means either squaring off with a person of the same playing ability or taking strokes off a better opponent. Pride leads to a man’s fall.
Be clear about your own golfing abilities; of the distance you are able to achieve, the shots you are able to hit etc. Once you have taken stock of these, you are then able to calculate percentages into the shots at hand. Again this is described in preceding sections about your personal game plan.
You should only hit high percentage shots even though this may be nothing more than a 10 meter punch from under the trees to set up a bogey play. In the long run, if you have a solid game plan that requires you to hit your high percentage shots, you will save more shots in the long run and hopefully win more matches.
Be non-expectant about the things outside of your control. Some of the worse students I have had used to admit to playing “Hail Mary” golf; that is keep doing what he wants to do instead of what he needs to do and hope and pray things go their way.
Such an attitude reflects cessation of control and without control; you will not be in control emotionally to stick to your game plan and let your percentages work in your favor.
Instead of allowing the situation to cause you to react, read the situation for what it is, adjust your game plan accordingly, all the while making sure the percentages still remain in your favor.
The key to winning golf especially match play is to have zero expectations.
By zero expectations, I don’t mean to say that one should have a careless attitude about everything.
You ought to have expectations about what you are personal capability, your composure, shot selection – things you are able to control.
What you ought to have zero expectations about are things without your control. Some examples of these things are wind strength, direction, the distance your opponent smashes his drives, whether or not he is able to make his putt; and if you play in tournaments – whether the referee rules to or away from your favor.
If one gets excited (happy or angry) with things outside of one’s control, it can only lead to one’s emotions to the subject to the whims of others (human or otherwise). Sure, you may be able to catch lightning in a bottle twice, but sooner or later the law of probabilities will catch up with you.
After you have assimilated the sections teaching you how to learn, improve as much as you desire; and having a game plan, the next step would be to master yourself, specifically your emotions.
Emotion is defined as a feeling; of anger, peace, courage or fear.
Having a zero expectation about things outside your control is very beneficial. When you have the mindset that anything can happen on the golf course, you cease to have any unrealistic or imagined expectations.
An example of these are, your opponent fluffing a tap in putt and your opponent double bogeying the entire back nine.
If you do not have any expectations, you then cease to have any emotions when things go for or against you. When your opponent does miss a short putt, you do not get excited. When you opponent makes a 60 footer, you do not get excited. When you are able to keep your emotions on an even keel, then you retain control over yourself. Positive or negative excitement causes your adrenal glands to pump adrenaline into your system. An “adrenalized” state can be recognized by a state of short shallow breaths, shaking hands and feet among others.
Instead of the usual antidote of taking deep breaths and focusing on something else other than the match at hand, wouldn’t it be easier on the golfer had the adrenaline not been pumped in the first place? We all know how effective deep breathing is on the course.
The number one killer of match play games is fear. Fear stems from a situation of not knowing what might happen in the future. If you know what will happen in the next minute, then how can you fear? On the other hand, if you know that what will happen next is out of your control and you expect anything to happen, then what is there to fear or defend against? Why fear or worry about what you cannot do anything about?
What should you do then in a match play?
Be evenly matched up – which means either squaring off with a person of the same playing ability or taking strokes off a better opponent. Pride leads to a man’s fall.
Be clear about your own golfing abilities; of the distance you are able to achieve, the shots you are able to hit etc. Once you have taken stock of these, you are then able to calculate percentages into the shots at hand. Again this is described in preceding sections about your personal game plan.
You should only hit high percentage shots even though this may be nothing more than a 10 meter punch from under the trees to set up a bogey play. In the long run, if you have a solid game plan that requires you to hit your high percentage shots, you will save more shots in the long run and hopefully win more matches.
Be non-expectant about the things outside of your control. Some of the worse students I have had used to admit to playing “Hail Mary” golf; that is keep doing what he wants to do instead of what he needs to do and hope and pray things go their way.
Such an attitude reflects cessation of control and without control; you will not be in control emotionally to stick to your game plan and let your percentages work in your favor.
Instead of allowing the situation to cause you to react, read the situation for what it is, adjust your game plan accordingly, all the while making sure the percentages still remain in your favor.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Preface to The Disciplined Golfer
Preface
Golf is deceptively simple, or so it seems. The ball is not in motion like a football. You neither have to worry about someone wrestling you to the ground nor does the equipment require Herculean strength to manipulate. Why then do we have so many problems with the golf ball?
This manual was written to address the disparity between the perceived ease and actual difficulty of golf. The truth of the matter is that golf is both easy and difficult.
Today, we have more knowledge of the golf swing today than centuries past, yet a visit to the range will show that the problems that plagued our golfing brothers of yesteryear still infect the enthusiasts that take up the game each year. If knowledge equals power, we should be better. Yet, that isn’t the case. The key is being objective with information and judge it against a quantifiable benchmark.
Each new comer to the sport will be infected with well meaning advice from friends who can barely hit the ball efficiently. Old saws like “keep your left arm straight” and “keep your head down” are the usual suspects.
Should such simplistic advice were to be the “be all and end all” of a golfer’s problems, then golfers should have no problems playing to a decent level (below 80s).
Take another golfer and prescribe scientifically correct information as part of an improvement program, and his fate won’t be very much different from the new comer described above. Why?
The two golfers above though they differed in knowledge, they were united in a lack of understanding of themselves. Proper information plus a proper understanding of self is like sodium and chloride together – they produce something beneficial. Apart from each other, they are deadly.
Most of us cede control and ascribe our golfing weakness to elements outside of ourselves and control. The magic bullet is not some secret technique, being stronger or even practicing more. The barrier that prevents us from becoming as good as we are capable of lies within.
I am not referring to golf psychology where one pictures the shot before pulling the trigger or deep breathing techniques to conquer stress etc.
You can visualize all you care for, but if you have faulty mechanics, the shots are just not going to happen. If you are 70 yrs old, visualize all you want, you won’t be airmailing your tee shots 300 yards. Visualization must be tempered with a realistic assessment of one’s capability.
What I am referring to is an understanding of how you work. I will be outlining:
1) Beliefs and their impact on perception
2) The role of information and knowledge
3) The relationship between mental know how and physical execution.
4) A process to bridge the gap.
Once you accept responsibility for your improvement and not ascribe it to external forces, understand and apply these 4 principles, then the game that you once thought easy will become easy and you can improve as much as you want to.
Golf is deceptively simple, or so it seems. The ball is not in motion like a football. You neither have to worry about someone wrestling you to the ground nor does the equipment require Herculean strength to manipulate. Why then do we have so many problems with the golf ball?
This manual was written to address the disparity between the perceived ease and actual difficulty of golf. The truth of the matter is that golf is both easy and difficult.
Today, we have more knowledge of the golf swing today than centuries past, yet a visit to the range will show that the problems that plagued our golfing brothers of yesteryear still infect the enthusiasts that take up the game each year. If knowledge equals power, we should be better. Yet, that isn’t the case. The key is being objective with information and judge it against a quantifiable benchmark.
Each new comer to the sport will be infected with well meaning advice from friends who can barely hit the ball efficiently. Old saws like “keep your left arm straight” and “keep your head down” are the usual suspects.
Should such simplistic advice were to be the “be all and end all” of a golfer’s problems, then golfers should have no problems playing to a decent level (below 80s).
Take another golfer and prescribe scientifically correct information as part of an improvement program, and his fate won’t be very much different from the new comer described above. Why?
The two golfers above though they differed in knowledge, they were united in a lack of understanding of themselves. Proper information plus a proper understanding of self is like sodium and chloride together – they produce something beneficial. Apart from each other, they are deadly.
Most of us cede control and ascribe our golfing weakness to elements outside of ourselves and control. The magic bullet is not some secret technique, being stronger or even practicing more. The barrier that prevents us from becoming as good as we are capable of lies within.
I am not referring to golf psychology where one pictures the shot before pulling the trigger or deep breathing techniques to conquer stress etc.
You can visualize all you care for, but if you have faulty mechanics, the shots are just not going to happen. If you are 70 yrs old, visualize all you want, you won’t be airmailing your tee shots 300 yards. Visualization must be tempered with a realistic assessment of one’s capability.
What I am referring to is an understanding of how you work. I will be outlining:
1) Beliefs and their impact on perception
2) The role of information and knowledge
3) The relationship between mental know how and physical execution.
4) A process to bridge the gap.
Once you accept responsibility for your improvement and not ascribe it to external forces, understand and apply these 4 principles, then the game that you once thought easy will become easy and you can improve as much as you want to.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
The Disciplined Golfer - Developing a Winning Game
Golf is actually an easy game...
Think about it:
1) The ball is not moving
2) You get to play in a very pleasant environment
3) You do not have to worry about anyone tackling or trying to break your legs
4) The equipment that you use to play the game is quite light as compared to weightlifting
5) You do not really need to be very fit to enjoy the game
So why do so many of us have problems with the white ball?
1) We are impatient - we want instant results. Hey, did you learn to drive your car in 5 minutes?
2) We think we know better than the pro - granted some pros can't tell the difference between the back of a donkey and a dog, most pros actually know what they are talking about. I once had a lady take a lesson from me. Throughout the lesson, she kept saying: "I think I know already." The result was the same...fat and topped shots. The ball never lies.
3) We are not really doing what they pro is telling us and what we think we are doing - this is what we call a faulty feedback loop. I believe that if you picked up any golf magazine and followed any of the tips to the letter inside, it would work to a certain extent. Are you really doing what you should be doing?
I have spent many years researching on data collected from teaching and observing students. The problem it seems that prevents us from playing good golf is not so much more information as pertaining to technique, rather it is lack of good information on learning psychology.
Most of the information on golf techniques are no more than the same information packaged in a different way. I challenge anyone to provide me with some new "tip" that has not been published or taught by an eminent teacher in the past.
This post is certainly not meant to foment any unrest among golf pros etc...As I have iterated before, my passion is to help people get better at this game, I am not worried at all if people are upset over my comments, I still sleep soundly at night.
I am currently writing a book entitled "The Disciplined Golfer - Developing a Winning Game". I truly believe that this will change the way you look at learning golf whether you are a beginner or an experienced golfer trying to improve.
Think about it:
1) The ball is not moving
2) You get to play in a very pleasant environment
3) You do not have to worry about anyone tackling or trying to break your legs
4) The equipment that you use to play the game is quite light as compared to weightlifting
5) You do not really need to be very fit to enjoy the game
So why do so many of us have problems with the white ball?
1) We are impatient - we want instant results. Hey, did you learn to drive your car in 5 minutes?
2) We think we know better than the pro - granted some pros can't tell the difference between the back of a donkey and a dog, most pros actually know what they are talking about. I once had a lady take a lesson from me. Throughout the lesson, she kept saying: "I think I know already." The result was the same...fat and topped shots. The ball never lies.
3) We are not really doing what they pro is telling us and what we think we are doing - this is what we call a faulty feedback loop. I believe that if you picked up any golf magazine and followed any of the tips to the letter inside, it would work to a certain extent. Are you really doing what you should be doing?
I have spent many years researching on data collected from teaching and observing students. The problem it seems that prevents us from playing good golf is not so much more information as pertaining to technique, rather it is lack of good information on learning psychology.
Most of the information on golf techniques are no more than the same information packaged in a different way. I challenge anyone to provide me with some new "tip" that has not been published or taught by an eminent teacher in the past.
This post is certainly not meant to foment any unrest among golf pros etc...As I have iterated before, my passion is to help people get better at this game, I am not worried at all if people are upset over my comments, I still sleep soundly at night.
I am currently writing a book entitled "The Disciplined Golfer - Developing a Winning Game". I truly believe that this will change the way you look at learning golf whether you are a beginner or an experienced golfer trying to improve.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Impact - 1/4 of the JTG Swing Model
Students exhibiting commendable impact alignments during their 2nd lesson.
Impact is 1/4 of the JTG Swing Model...
Sunday, September 7, 2008
The Inside Men
Its been said that the Over-The-Top move is the most prevalent error amongst amateur golfers. For both Garrett and Rohit (8 and 6 months playing experience), that doesn't seem to be the case.
What's the secret here you may ask...
The secret is that there are no secrets, only dedication to improvement, hard work and the correct application of drills.
What's the secret here you may ask...
The secret is that there are no secrets, only dedication to improvement, hard work and the correct application of drills.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Stack and Tilt from the Horse's Mouth
As told by Lynn Blake:
I think the greatest benefit of Stack and Tilt (Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett) is its emphasis on the centered and stationary head. When you keep your head steady -- no Swaying (Fourth Snare / 3-F-7-D) -- good things happen.
As Andy explained to me on the practice tee of last year's AT&T Classic, the much misunderstood 'tilt' portion of S&T is necessary to restore the centered head of the player who has swayed to the right (and 'tilted' his spine away from the target). In other words, after the Sway, you must 'tilt back' (toward the target) to re-center the head that never should have moved in the first place! This is the demon they fight in so many of the players who come to them.
"But Andy," said I, "What if the player keeps his head centered and stationary . . . like this . . ." (and I demonstrated my backstroke).
"That's perfect," said he. "You don't need to tilt."
So . . . if you sway to the right, S&T dictates that you 'tilt back' to the left to restore the centered head (and the 'stack' of the lower and upper body). But, if you correctly 'stack', i.e., never 'unstack', then you don't need to 'tilt'.
Guess the editors at Golf Digest didn't think we needed a system just called 'Stack'.
I think the greatest benefit of Stack and Tilt (Andy Plummer and Mike Bennett) is its emphasis on the centered and stationary head. When you keep your head steady -- no Swaying (Fourth Snare / 3-F-7-D) -- good things happen.
As Andy explained to me on the practice tee of last year's AT&T Classic, the much misunderstood 'tilt' portion of S&T is necessary to restore the centered head of the player who has swayed to the right (and 'tilted' his spine away from the target). In other words, after the Sway, you must 'tilt back' (toward the target) to re-center the head that never should have moved in the first place! This is the demon they fight in so many of the players who come to them.
"But Andy," said I, "What if the player keeps his head centered and stationary . . . like this . . ." (and I demonstrated my backstroke).
"That's perfect," said he. "You don't need to tilt."
So . . . if you sway to the right, S&T dictates that you 'tilt back' to the left to restore the centered head (and the 'stack' of the lower and upper body). But, if you correctly 'stack', i.e., never 'unstack', then you don't need to 'tilt'.
Guess the editors at Golf Digest didn't think we needed a system just called 'Stack'.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Stack and Tilt Revisited
(L-Before R-After)
After having problems hitting the ball fat, Kevin was taught how to tilt his shoulders on the takeaway to produce a "stacked" backswing.
Notice in the picture on the left, the head is almost over the right foot. As mentioned earlier in another post, if the head doesn't shift back to where it was at address, the club will bottom out too early.
In the picture on the right, the head is in a much better position. From there, all Kevin needs to do is to bring the club down on the ball without shifting anything.
The result? Purely struck shots that resembled F-14s taking off an aircraft carrier.
Monday, July 7, 2008
The Most Important Club(s) In Your Bag
Much has been made of the saying "Drive for show, Putt for dough."
Either, that saying needs to carry a caveat - ceteris paribus - or else its just a thoughtless quote.
If you can't drive the ball far and straight enough, then however many putts you make on the green will be meaningless. Who wants to be 6 on and then 1 putt on a par 4 / 5? Not me for sure.
The most important clubs in any golfers' bag are the driver (or equivalent), wedge and putter - in that order.
Here is why...
The Driver
One needs to put the drive reasonably far off the tee to have a chance to reach the green in regulation or be near it. It pays to ensure that your driver's loft and shaft flex and weight are suited to your swing speed. Most amateurs use too little loft and too stiff a shaft.
The Wedge
If you miss the drive and send it careening into the woods, after a little punch-out (hopefully no heroics here), you will most likely be left with a 50-60m shot to set up a par putt. Here is where the wedges will come in handy.
If you did put your drive in the fairway, but missed your approach to the green, you would still likely need to use your wedge for a pitch shot or some kind of chip to the green to again set up your par putt.
Here, most amateurs are unsure of how far and how fast they need to swing their wedges to achieve the required distances. The wedge game is unlike the normal iron shots where they are typically swung with full swing. The wedge game is an intricate web of different swing lengths, swing speed, ball positions etc to achieve a plethora of high, low, running, spinning shots for different distances to put the ball close to the hole.
I have shots for 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 110 programmed into my arsenal of wedge shots. Using a combination of 4 wedges, 3 different swing lengths, 3 finish positions, I have a wide range of shots at my disposal for the situation at hand.
Once you put the ball on the dance floor, its time to think about sinking that sucker for birdie, par or bogey.
The Putter
For a scratch golfer, 36 or half of his shots are made on the putting green. If a 24 handicapper quits 3 putting just 9 greens, he would have become a 15 handicapper overnight. What better way to stop 3 putting than by FIRST putting those wedge shots within 8-10 feet where your percentage of sinking them is 50%?
The next steps to becoming a wizard on the greens are:
1) Read the line of the putt. Most people take too little break. Take more break, gravity can at times help pull the ball into the hole.
2) Feel the distance of the putt. Walk from where your ball is to your target (break or hole). This will allow your brain to register the distance required to stroke the ball.
3) Make a putting stroke that is arcing, not a straight back and straight through type.
4) Make imaginary putts. If your putt needs to travel 40 feet, look at the halfway mark of that, which is 20 feet. Make an imaginary stroke and try to "feel" how much force is needed to stroke the ball there.
If you know what gets the ball to 20 feet, just a little bit more will send the ball 30 feet (which happens to be the next halfway point between 20 feet and the final target) right? Again make an imaginary stroke.
Finally now that you have a reference for 30 feet, you now need to have a stroke reference for 40 feet. Go ahead and make that imaginary stroke again.
Now look at your final target and make that reference stroke. Think only in terms of making a beautiful and unhurried stroke. Hopefully the ball went in!
If you follow these keys, its unthinkable not to have your handicap drop.
Either, that saying needs to carry a caveat - ceteris paribus - or else its just a thoughtless quote.
If you can't drive the ball far and straight enough, then however many putts you make on the green will be meaningless. Who wants to be 6 on and then 1 putt on a par 4 / 5? Not me for sure.
The most important clubs in any golfers' bag are the driver (or equivalent), wedge and putter - in that order.
Here is why...
The Driver
One needs to put the drive reasonably far off the tee to have a chance to reach the green in regulation or be near it. It pays to ensure that your driver's loft and shaft flex and weight are suited to your swing speed. Most amateurs use too little loft and too stiff a shaft.
The Wedge
If you miss the drive and send it careening into the woods, after a little punch-out (hopefully no heroics here), you will most likely be left with a 50-60m shot to set up a par putt. Here is where the wedges will come in handy.
If you did put your drive in the fairway, but missed your approach to the green, you would still likely need to use your wedge for a pitch shot or some kind of chip to the green to again set up your par putt.
Here, most amateurs are unsure of how far and how fast they need to swing their wedges to achieve the required distances. The wedge game is unlike the normal iron shots where they are typically swung with full swing. The wedge game is an intricate web of different swing lengths, swing speed, ball positions etc to achieve a plethora of high, low, running, spinning shots for different distances to put the ball close to the hole.
I have shots for 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 110 programmed into my arsenal of wedge shots. Using a combination of 4 wedges, 3 different swing lengths, 3 finish positions, I have a wide range of shots at my disposal for the situation at hand.
Once you put the ball on the dance floor, its time to think about sinking that sucker for birdie, par or bogey.
The Putter
For a scratch golfer, 36 or half of his shots are made on the putting green. If a 24 handicapper quits 3 putting just 9 greens, he would have become a 15 handicapper overnight. What better way to stop 3 putting than by FIRST putting those wedge shots within 8-10 feet where your percentage of sinking them is 50%?
The next steps to becoming a wizard on the greens are:
1) Read the line of the putt. Most people take too little break. Take more break, gravity can at times help pull the ball into the hole.
2) Feel the distance of the putt. Walk from where your ball is to your target (break or hole). This will allow your brain to register the distance required to stroke the ball.
3) Make a putting stroke that is arcing, not a straight back and straight through type.
4) Make imaginary putts. If your putt needs to travel 40 feet, look at the halfway mark of that, which is 20 feet. Make an imaginary stroke and try to "feel" how much force is needed to stroke the ball there.
If you know what gets the ball to 20 feet, just a little bit more will send the ball 30 feet (which happens to be the next halfway point between 20 feet and the final target) right? Again make an imaginary stroke.
Finally now that you have a reference for 30 feet, you now need to have a stroke reference for 40 feet. Go ahead and make that imaginary stroke again.
Now look at your final target and make that reference stroke. Think only in terms of making a beautiful and unhurried stroke. Hopefully the ball went in!
If you follow these keys, its unthinkable not to have your handicap drop.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
The Importance of A Centered Head
Traditional golf instruction has a golfer move his head to the right in an attempt to "coil", get a bigger "X Factor" or "Y Factor" or "O". On the surface, while it seems that this is reasonable, it actually creates more faults than it cures.
At address, before the golfer does anything, he has actually matched his head position and more specifically his left shoulder with the ball position. To move the head and as corollary, the left shoulder - which is the low point of the swing, where the club bottoms out - one would then have to move the ball to maintain this synchronicity, or risk hitting it thin or fat.
What typically happens then is that the golfer will either have to sway his head and left shoulder back to the left on the downstroke or "get stuck" if he doesn't have the adequate physical capability to sway back on time.
The first option has its own pitfalls, instead of a "pure" sway that is the mirror opposite of how he moved his head to the right, Joe Hacker will utilize the right shoulder in a roundhouse fashion and cut across the correct swing plane.
Another thing that can happen is that he overcooks the sway and moves his low point way ahead of the ball and hit half tops. This of course is a better option than hitting it fat as the ball should run out to almost where it would be had it been struck properly.
The most egregious of effects produced by a moving head would be its companion, the dip as the golfer initiates the downswing. The end result of which is a fat shot, or if the golfer bends the left wrist or left elbow to prevent bottoming out before impact, weak, high powerless shots.
The next time you get to the range, watch to see if your head is moving out of position. The head should be centered between your feet, the way it would be when you are brushing your teeth.
On your backswing, the head should feel centered while your back should feel like its turning to face the target. From there, the downswing should be reflexive with plenty of lag. Hold your finish as your shot takes off with a crack like an F14 taking off into the distance.
At address, before the golfer does anything, he has actually matched his head position and more specifically his left shoulder with the ball position. To move the head and as corollary, the left shoulder - which is the low point of the swing, where the club bottoms out - one would then have to move the ball to maintain this synchronicity, or risk hitting it thin or fat.
What typically happens then is that the golfer will either have to sway his head and left shoulder back to the left on the downstroke or "get stuck" if he doesn't have the adequate physical capability to sway back on time.
The first option has its own pitfalls, instead of a "pure" sway that is the mirror opposite of how he moved his head to the right, Joe Hacker will utilize the right shoulder in a roundhouse fashion and cut across the correct swing plane.
Another thing that can happen is that he overcooks the sway and moves his low point way ahead of the ball and hit half tops. This of course is a better option than hitting it fat as the ball should run out to almost where it would be had it been struck properly.
The most egregious of effects produced by a moving head would be its companion, the dip as the golfer initiates the downswing. The end result of which is a fat shot, or if the golfer bends the left wrist or left elbow to prevent bottoming out before impact, weak, high powerless shots.
The next time you get to the range, watch to see if your head is moving out of position. The head should be centered between your feet, the way it would be when you are brushing your teeth.
On your backswing, the head should feel centered while your back should feel like its turning to face the target. From there, the downswing should be reflexive with plenty of lag. Hold your finish as your shot takes off with a crack like an F14 taking off into the distance.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Plus 4 Impact
JT is a plus-4 handicapper from the southern hemisphere over in Singapore to practice during the winter season. Check out his impact and what makes it different from the typical social players'.
Note the centered head position or Tripod; the left arm and club shaft forming an almost straight line at impact and the slightly bowed left wrist ala Tiger Woods. All these add up to 300 plus yard carries with the driver.
For all skeptics, kindly call me - I will arrange for a match...;)
Note the centered head position or Tripod; the left arm and club shaft forming an almost straight line at impact and the slightly bowed left wrist ala Tiger Woods. All these add up to 300 plus yard carries with the driver.
For all skeptics, kindly call me - I will arrange for a match...;)
Monday, May 26, 2008
Stack and Tilt - Coming Soon...
The blueprint of the Stack and Tilt Swing is finally available to Medicus Golf Instructors! For those seeking to learn the hottest swing on tour can either call for private lessons or wait for a Summer School in Singapore...Meanwhile, enjoy the sheer poetry of Mike Bennett's swing.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Pretty Polly
Polly - who is one of the most talented students I have met - is able to take information, assimilate it and then make almost instantaneous changes.
Here, at Line 1, where the shaft is parallel to the ground and target line, she changes her takeaway from outside the target line to one that is on line. Note the position of the clubhead as a result.
As a result of the change in Line 1 above, she is able to make a flatter backswing. Though her arms and shaft at not at the optimal plane angle, it is a huge change from her old backswing where her left arm covers (almost) her entire face!
Also notice the position of her right elbow. While we don't want it tucked to closely to the body, we certainly don't want it flying like a 747 either. Ideally, it should point to the ground with the upper arm and lower arm forming a 90 degree angle.
With a flatter backswing, she is able to turn more and then match the rpms of the swing of her body and hands. I have no doubts this girl will improve her game very quickly at her rate of improvement.
At Justin Tang Golf, we help you define the ROOT CAUSE of your problems, not the SYMPTOMS and solve your problems quick without unnecessary waste of time.
Cindy's Impact Fix
Cindy is a very consistent 12 handicapper who manages to beat her male counterparts on a more than regular basis. Despite this, she thought she thought she would be able to play better had she more distance.
Our video analysis revealed a breakdown in the impact zone. Once Cindy is able to internalise the feel of proper impact, she will no doubt be able to add distance to her already pinpoint iron game. Watch out!
Monday, April 14, 2008
Monday, April 7, 2008
Driver Swing
Turn up the volume. The driver used is the Callaway FT 3 Fusion with a Grafalloy Blue shaft.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
BROWN NAMED EUROPEAN TOUR GOLFER OF THE MONTH
I met Mark Brown at last year's rendition of the Barclay's Singapore Open together with his coach Mal Tongue (whom I had the pleasure of training with for 2 weeks) as well as his buddies, Brad Iles and Richard Lee.
Brownie as he is known is as unpretentious and humble as professional tournament golfers. We wish him all the best and look to him to achieving even greater success.
This is an excerpt from the European PGA Tour's webpage in which it is announced that Mark is named the European PGA Tour's golfer of the month for February.
An outstanding two week spell in India which saw him win for the first time on both The European Tour and the Asian Tour has resulted in New Zealander Mark Brown being named as The European Tour Golfer of the Month for February.
The 33 year old, who considered quitting professional golf in 2003, proved he had made the right decision to rededicate himself to the game with a sensational end to the month which caught the eye of the judging panel which comprised members of the Association of Golf Writers, as well as journalists from radio and television.
Brown’s first victory came in the Sail Open Golf Championship at Jaypee Greens on the Asian Tour where he held off the strong challenge of local favourite Jyoti Randhawa before he outlasted a world class field the following week to win the Johnnie Walker Classic at the DLF Golf and Country Club in New Delhi.
The dual successes helped Brown undertake a meteoric rise up the Official World Golf Ranking to a career high of 64th from 322nd at the start of 2008 and he now occupies the proud position of the highest placed New Zealand golfer on the list.
“I joined The European Tour last year as an Affiliate Member and hoped if I could play half decently I could possibly get into the top 115 on the Order of Merit,” he said. “But now to be in the winners’ category, I am still pinching myself. This is a fantastic award and I am very proud of that.
“The first win was special as it was my first on Tour but the second, against a field as strong as The European Tour in the Johnnie Walker Classic, was incredible. It has opened a few doors to me so I am looking forward to some new opportunities in the future.”
Brown emerged as the panel’s selection from a strong list of contenders, headed by World Number Three Ernie Els, who followed up his tie for sixth place in the EMAAR-MGF Indian Masters – his third top ten of The 2008 European Tour season – with his first victory on the US PGA Tour in nearly four years when he came from behind to pip fellow European Tour Member Luke Donald in the Honda Classic.
Other winners from the month considered were; India’s SSP Chowrasia, who thrilled the home spectators with his maiden European Tour triumph in the EMAAR-MGF Indian Masters; Felipe Aguilar, who became the first Chilean golfer to win on The European Tour when he triumphed in the Enjoy Jakarta Astro Indonesia Open; and South Africa’s James Kingston who won the Vodacom Championship on his home Sunshine Tour.
Brown is the second monthly winner of the 2008 season, the accolade for January having gone to Germany’s Martin Kaymer following his success in the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship. At the end of the season, all the monthly winners will be considered for the award of European Tour Golfer of the Year.
Friday, March 7, 2008
Speed Limit Exceeded...
You don't need to be a big guy to generate high clubhead speed.
All you need are strong forearms, flexible wrists and a working knowledge of how to lag the clubhead.
All you need are strong forearms, flexible wrists and a working knowledge of how to lag the clubhead.
