Swing Thoughts - July 10 2012

Balance - Not losing weight on front, but getting it on front at end

Proper grip so club face oriented correctly

Reset body alignment so perpendicular to target line and weight centered, more on balls of feet

Swing so arms can get through and follow through with good complete hip rotation

Don't forget to swing down by picking up

      - Kind of glove feeling of logo pointing or moving down

Swing out to target and let body complete turn for good finish

Range Session - 5/23/12 - Swing thoughts

Pre-shot Routine: G.A.S.S.S.
      1. Grip

          - set right hand - two knuckles, split the V

          - set Left hand - feel on edge and not on top + "the pinch";

          - shaft forward

      2. set Angle at target

      3. take Stance

          - step in

          - square

      4. relieve Stress

          - waggle and feel easing of grip pressure

      5. SWING

          - proper cadence/tempo

- Swing down and attack ball

- Be okay with only 3/4 back feeling and not a full through
          - punch shot feel
          - avoiding the jerk move

- Take away being great 1/4 back position with more than slightly closed face

Dynda Lesson #3 - Notes

Self analysis going into:

- High ball flight

- Distances are down

- Ball contact is not crisp at all. Hybrids/Fairways club tend to be hitting back edge of club (not hitting down)

Issues noticed:

- Hands at right leg, behind ball at impact. Club is parallel with right forearm, not left 

- Releasing right hand hinge very early (leading to above)

- Letting right hand cheat over in grip
- Still fanning face open on takeaway
- Shoulder plane is flat

Issues to concentrate on:
- Right hand needs to hold the hinge through impact (shoulder/core have to support on forward swing). Will help club be more parallel with left forearm
- Feeling of left shoulder moving towards left foot (even ball)

- Lose thought of just club face moving back - Get Body/shoulders/core in sync
- Use the half back swing waggle to feel motion and connect back swing (will keep club closed)
- Ball in middle of stance (not cheated forward), handle near inside left thigh

- No thoughts of a weight shift; just turn body with a good temp'd swing

Drills:
- 1/4 swing to set hinge. Feel what it takes body to get club through. Treat punch shot
- Warm up by working on 1/4 swing to half to full with holding the hinge.

- Warm up by feeling a good steeper shoulder turn toward left inside foot

Range Session - March 27, 2012

Tees - Jumbo Bucket - 100 Minutes

Thoughts:

- Feeling of not letting right shoulder release early
- Weight really not getting off inside of right foot - then pushing through
- Still driving straight through
- Feel of a good post impact action - so not allowing the whip

Online tips:
- Golf channel drill - would hit the bag because late hinging?
- Think of hank Haney showing good motion of the swing

- Takeaway and cane drill - 1' back and 2" right - at 45 degree angle to belly button
- Cane in the ground at ball - should line up with left ear

Practice Routine V1.0 - Quality v. Quantity

Adapted from Andrew Rice Golf Blog: 70 Minutes of Quality Practice
   Blog link

First 30 Minutes: Technique and Driving
- First 10 Min - middle to short wedge to get feel, loose and thoughts down

      - Use an alignment aid and work towards targets

- Middle 10 Min - long irons and hybrid work

- Final 10 Min - Driver to marked imaginary boundaries

      - Drill: 10 drives and note how many were successful (eventual goal #)

- Bonus: game of playing necessary shots on Glen Mills: #2, #4, #7, #8, #11, #15, #16 and #18

Next 20 Minutes: Wedges and Short Irons 

- First 10 minutes - Work on 30-90 yard shots with all three wedges + shorter irons

     - Avoid hitting same shot more than twice

     - Use multiple wedges and irons to work on ball flight and shot shaping of each

     - Pick balls in range to aim at as well as permanent targets

- Next 5 minutes - Green area to practice chips and bump and runs (using 7i to 52 degree)

- Last 5 minutes - Bunker Play practice

Last 20 Minutes: Putting

- Mix of short putt drills (3' to 6')

     - Circle of 8 balls - do not move one until complete all

     - Jack Bauer Drill - place tees each 3' from hole - make 24 in a row until move on.

- Lag putting

      - String Drill - attempt to string together as many two putts as possible in a row from 40'+

      - Mix lengths of over 20' and various lies/breaks to work on lagging the ball

- Thoughts: Visualize the line, square club-face to target, comfortable grip, and feel right pace. Good even tempo and proper follow-thru.

Range Sessions - March 17, 2012

Tees and Westover GC - Two Jumbo Buckets - 185 Minutes

Thoughts:
- New idea: feeling the COIL in back / left side. Think this was the feeling I was describing of shoulder hesitation in a prior post.

     - http://youtu.be/7-0W_qc8gHg

- Essential followup to coil is to feel trigger finger driving club-face squarely through at target

- Good grip, good posture and bring club back with good pace and on a more inside path

     - Do not let club go wide so end of having to lay it off

- When done right and with good timing, almost no side spin on balls. Too quick caused pushes when hands could not come all the way around.

Issues to work on:
- Feeling the coil and then starting downswing with all parts timing correctly
- Shaping the ball by using trigger finger to feel in to out and out to in

    - Tended to be too aggressive so should trying similar but swinging to right or left field.
- On short irons and chips, picking a spot 18" in front of ball to focus on swinging through to that point.

Worked on:
- 2 Jumbo buckets for 120 minutes: 40% Driver; 20% Long Irons; 20% Short Irons; 20% Wedges
- Putting for 40 minutes: 20'+ lag putting; circle at 36"
- Wedge for 25 minutes: mix of bunker play and 5-15 yard chips

- Westover range in sub-par condition with mostly sand and crabgrass. Very frustrating

Overall grade: A- at Tees; C at Westover range; B+ at Westover green

Range Session - March 16, 2012

Tees in Conshohocken - Jumbo Bucket - 90 Minutes

Driver thoughts:
- Grip is essential - set it properly and feel the face is facing target
- Good balance and use a little waggle to remove some tension
- Feeling of left shoulder staying back and hesitating its turn for better connection to hands/hips
- Drives were very inconsistent tonight until started thinking about left shoulder and balance
     - nothing straight but some blocks and hooks.
- Sometimes feeling of not letting weight shift back too much so get stuck
- Ball flight with new driver is certainly much lower, sometimes tending to hit it thin off the sole

Iron thoughts:
- GRIP...GRIP...GRIP
- Set it properly
     - Shaft forward and face towards target then set left hand
     - Ball center of stance
     - Set right hand without shifting left hand. Right hand not over top.
     - Feel right index finger like a trigger. Right thumb connecting with club on right inside edge.
- Shaft lean forward (punch shot) and feeling of right hand (trigger) delivering club forward straight to target
- Do not loose focus on target

Issues to work on:
- Getting frustrated
- Losing focus then concentration
- Trying to hard and being too tense
- Continue to work in game style (different targets with different clubs)
- More confidence in bunker play

Worked on:
- Jumbo bucket for 55 minutes: 25% Driver; 20% Long Irons; 40% Short Irons; 15 % Wedges
- Putting for 20 minutes: 5-10 feet; circle at 18"
- Wedge for 15 minutes: mix of bunker play and 10-15 yard chips

Overall grade: B+