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+

Recent Stuff

New Purchases:
Adams A12 Pro Hybrid - 18 Degree with Aldila RIP shaft in regular flex - $140 (had $65 gift card)
Back 9 White Hat ($30)

Recent Rounds:
Glen Mills - 81 on 3/15/12
   - Mediocre driving (46%, but only few were solid drives)
   - Very solid iron play leading to 11 GIRs
   - Average putting (37 with two 3 putts)

Glen Mills - 90 on 3/8/12
  - Driving average, iron play above average; putting above average (33)
  - Last four holes in steady 15-20mph led to collapse
        - +8 through 14, then +11 on 15-18

Glen Mills - 92 on 3/4/12

Recent Range Time:
3/14/12 - Jumbo and a Small
3/11/12 - Jumbo

Dynda Lesson Notes

Issues:
- Still shaft behind ball at impact
- Even at setup, no forward lean
- Letting right hand get over top of club
- Opening face ad having to swing it shut through sheer timing
- 4 to 1 - back-swing to forward-swing timing

Drills:
- Felling closed face
- Felling on right index when impacting against tire, along with lower core needed to help 
- Follow through like a punch, hands extended and club face on angle of spin not completely over
- On full swing if done right then should be able to wrap around nicer
- Butt in belly to see little and closed motion of face on way back

Driver:
- Drill of tees in armpits

Range Session - 3/1/12

Tees in Conshohocken - Jumbo Bucket

Driver thoughts:
- felling grip in fingers properly. Holding with middle two fingers of each hand
- not letting weight go to heels
- Hitting down and with square shoulders
- need to resolve hooking issue (time for videotape)

Iron thoughts:
- still a push right, sometimes a draw.
- still wondering if leaving face open, then sometimes in to out
- need to work on Dynda drills especially feeling hands ahead (followed by straight thru, full follow through)
- when hands/wrists not ahead or in a good position - then flipping or leaving open
- square shoulders. Go slower on whole entire motion!
- wrist seems to roll which causes open face at top. Need work on the hinge!!!

Issues to work on:
- getting frustrated, then hitting ball after ball, getting tired, ultimately frustrated!
- need to ROTATE clubs. No more three shots then move on - PERIOD!!
- Stepping on the bug (inside foot) on all shots
- stop hitting the f###ing heel on chip shots - all bad posture, too quick and NOT focusing

Overall grade: B-

New Driver - Ping i20

Ping i20 Driver - TFC shaft in regular flex - $349.99
- 215 with 15 yards of carry to 230

Custom fitting at Golf by Design, KOP. Tried Razr fit, R11s and RBZ

Also had 5i to PW bent 1.5 degrees upright - $24

Driving Range - Feb 4 2012

Tees in Conshohocken - Jumbo Bucket

Irons:
  - Working on takeaways from Mike Dynda lesson
      - Better grip and try to find comfort with it.
      - Idea of hitting similar to a punch shot with hands in front of ball at impact
      - Takeaway face matching spine angle when shaft is parallel to target
  - Connected motion through ball
  - Continue to work on comfort and better contact on short irons for better accuracy/confidence

Driver:
  - Staying centered, delivering clubface straight through the ball
  - Keeping left arm strong and straight. Feel power all the way back and all the way through
  - Tended to have a straight draw flight path sometimes a more severe pull
  - At end focused on keeping left sholder as the pivot point and staying connected and down all the way through
  - Same takeaway thoughts as irons - stay centered and clubface more closed
  - Moderate success - some great shot and others worse due to non-ideal ball contact on toe

4 Hybrid:
  - Much better contact went felt liek shoulders were firm together and connected on a similar plans with hands
  - Not leeting things become undone; one strong motion through the ball

Overall, much better contact with new swing thoughts. Still some more confidence needed in my grip and getting hands ahead of ball at impact. Some very good shots that had straight, more towering flight paths. Will need to tone in distances when weather warms up.

Winter distances estimate (carry, rollout) for weather 45 - 50 degrees:
  Driver: 195 + 20
  3W: 180 + 15
  4H: 170 + 10
  5i: 165 + 10
  6i: 155 + 10
  7i: 145 + 10
  8i: 135 + 10
  9i: 125 + 10
  PW: 105 + 7
  52 degree: 85 +7
  56 degree: 70 + 5

Other keys to remember:
 - Good setup is key - loose, but good strong form
 - Tempo and the right speed in individuals parts moving as on part in motion
 - Connected takeaway
 - Keep left arm straight and full of power
 - Finish strong

Dynda lesson - Feb 1 2012

My short term plan is to work over the next week or so at the range and at home on what we talked about in the lesson. 

Things to takeaway from yesterday:
1 - Work on getting hands ahead of club at impact - a more efficient swing that should generate better contact
2 - Clubhead should relatively match spine tilt when shaft is parallel to target line (more closed)
3 - Developing more strength in lower core so core lead hands through impact. Hands ahead of clubhead, don't let them race ahead
4 - Grip: Left hand in my more natural hanging position (stronger grip). Right hand more underneath (less on the finger tips)
5 - Listen for and work towards the sound of a better ball impact; Divot not starting behind the ball

Drills:
1 - 9 to 3 drill to focus on getting club/clubhead back to proper place on back swing (looking closed). Hands ahead of clubhead. Practice feeling of a punch shot on the finish (drill of being under the tree).

2. A tee 6" in front of a ball on a tee - practice being able to fell hitting the second tee