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-