Golfstruck

17 Jun 2012

The USGA’s Mike Davis, the grounds crew and the Olympic Club teamed up as winners, staging a great event where once again the lady (the golf course) beat the men (the players). All week long the key word from the players was “patience.” Bogeys were inevitable – particularly on the brutal first 6 holes. Few made it through that gauntlet unscathed. Those who kept their nerve and their focus came out of that shoot with a switched focus – from grinding it out to let’s make some birdies!

On Sunday, winner Webb Simpson never stopped.  He birdied 6, 7, 8, and 10. And the rest of the way in, he gave himself a good chance on nearly every hole, just grazing the cup several more times.  As the only player in the last nine groups to break par, Webb Simpson WON this tournament! And that chip on 18 from a tough lie just left of the green to save par was no easy shot. A BIG CONGRATS to ’surprise’ winner Webb Simpson, who came from well back to continue Olympic’s tradition of knocking off the big boys!.

The set-up of this course did indeed identify the best players in the field – those who knew their game, who consistently were able to produce intended ball flights and could convert their opportunities on the greens.  It is no fluke that we saw so many former Major winners come to the fore during the week.  It was good to see Jim Furyk, Reteif Goosen, Ernie Els and Padrig Harrington back in the hunt. And Major hopefuls Matt Kuchar, Justin Rose, Jason Dufner, John Senden, Lee Westwood, K.J. Choi, Steve Stricker, Nick Watney and Adam Scott all with a chance on Sunday. Yet it was equally tough to see Mickelson and Woods self destruct.

Mickelson didn’t, for what ever reason, get his game ready to play this course. I believe his schedule is currently too busy and his family life is too important to him to currently be able to focus sufficiently on the Majors.

Tiger prepared, the best way he knows how. The problem, I believe, is still that “swing immediately left after impact unnatural release” that for Tiger, just doesn’t hold up in the heat of battle.  Oh sure, if he works with it long enough he will find a away to make it work.  But it’s just a shame to take a player as naturally talented as Tiger and put him through that totally unnecessary and extended learning process.

Jim Furyk played patient, consistent and defensive golf all day – until he lost focus and got out of his routine for just one shot.  And it cost him the championship. Furyk apparently had trouble switching his focus from patience to let’s make birdies.   On the 16th tee, with the hole playing 101 yards shorter than it had all week, the players were tempted – with their tee shot – to try to get home in two. A hard dogleg left, the tee shot called for a draw – a ball flight that Furyk plays regularly. But something happened here, between his ears, that lead to his one bad swing of the championship.

In hindsight, Jim probably should have stepped away. Re-visualized and re-rehearsed his swing and then proceeded with his meticulous routine. One shot does not a tournament make, but one shot played that poorly (a duck hook into the trees), can have a significant impact on one’s psyche! Jim could have recovered. He pulled a good lie.  And though he couldn’t reach the par five on his third shot, an up and down from wedge distance would still have saved par.  He missed the green from wedge distance! Following his bogie 6, he failed to birdie the par five 17th – playing as the easiest hole all week. And then he missed again with a wedge on 18 from a great lie.

Never have Walter Hagen’s words rung more true, “It takes two bad shots to make a bogey!” So what can we all learn from Furyk’s collapse down the stretch? Gather yourself, trust your routines to carry you through.  That is the only way to stay focused! And step away when you’re not ready!  And one more thing – one bad shot is not enough to lose a tournament!

Graeme McDowell came close. He competed right up to that last putt on 18. But Graeme hit a few too many loose shots, was off balance in way too many finishes and failed to use the line on his ball too many times with makeable putts. As a competitor he is fun to watch, because there just isn’t any “quit” in him. His showing here this week, with just a few corrections, could be the confidence boost he’s needed to prepare to win The Open in July!

Our CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR AWARD this week goes to Jason Dufner.  Like Ernie Els at Pebble Beach two years ago, if Duff had putted even reasonably well from inside 6 feet, he would have run away with this event. He finished only two shots back and must have missed at least 10 times from inside FOUR feet! Jason, by a wide margin, lead the field in GIR and proximity to the hole. I’d love to work with Duff on his putting stroke and his routine.  When he learns a good combination of the two, he can finally play with that relaxed focus that makes for great champions. Go Tigers!

A big part of the story of this year’s open was 17 year old high schooler and Amateur Beau Hossler. With a chance to win this tournament on Sunday, and a goal of being low Amateur, Beau showed us some kind of poise and recoveries for such a young player.  In the end, he just ran out of adrenaline! His final collapse on the 72nd hole lost him his low amateur goal, which was won by Jordan Speith, a freshman at the University of Texas, where “Hoss” will matriculate.

It was Peter Jacobsen, in his commentary about Hossler’s round on Saturday who coined a new golf term for us to all carry forward from this event. Remarkably, following each of his four bogies on Saturday, Hossler responded with an immediate birdie. No small feat under normal circumstances, but in a U.S. Open, as a 17 year old, on Saturday, to stay in contention – now THAT’S AN ACHIEVEMENT, Jake noted, worthy of naming, once and for all, any bogey followed by a birdie, from this day forth “a Hossler.!”

And finally, in this Open we were treated once again to the story and courageous struggle of Casey Martin, who on a golf cart and one good leg, qualified for this U.S. Open.  Casey missed the cut by just one shot when he bogied his final hole on Friday, the scenically beautiful par three 8th, by failing to get up and down from greenside. But in Casey’s typical “the glass is half full” style, he found only positives coming from the glow of basking in the warm waves for applause he received from the huge hometown crowds that followed him.

Golfstruck – Better Golf – Right Now!

11 June 2012

Dustin Johnson, away from the tour for 2+ months with an injury, came back fully rested and well focused. Once again showing us the promise of talent that he possesses. Hitting it long and straight and holing just enough putts, a BIG CONGRATS TO JUSTIN JOHNSON on his trip to the winners circle.

Dustin, never short on talent, has that supinated left wrist position at the top of his backswing. While strange to see it at the top, it is the left wrist position that Ben Hogan taught us to hold through the region of impact. The problem with putting the left wrist in that position at the top of the backswing is that the club gets out of balance. So Dustin is sacrificing swing feel for a mechanically sound position at impact.  The result to date is that Dustin does not have a good touch or feel for precise distances with his wedge game.

The question is: should Justin try to make the changes to a flat left wrist, square-face, balanced club position at the top – in order to improve his short game feel, or stick with what he knows and play the best he can with that lack of feel he is sacrificing.  Were these alternatives properly presented to Justin, what choice do you think he should make?

I look forward to responses. Leave a comment!

Our CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR AWARD this week goes to Rory McIlroy. Rory apparently found a swing key of feel that has been missing these past weeks when he failed to make the cut three weeks running. He played well, and lead the tournament most of the way. He’ll need to be a little sharper all around next week to defend as U.S. Open Champion.

Rory altered his schedule to play the St Jude, so that he could get in some competitive rounds going into the US Open next week at the Olympic Club in San Francisco. Rory is a big supporter of St. Jude’s Childrens’ Hospital, so the sponsor was more than happy to have Rory turn out.

Rory tends to break down his left wrist too soon after impact, causing him to turn the ball left on occasion. If he would keep it supinated  well into his delivery from ball to target, he could play his go to shot – a baby draw coming down the stretch instead of having to go to the controlled fade, which is not a natural shot for Rory.  This little change, I think, is the final adjustment Rory needs in his swing to command the # 1 ranking!  Emotional self-control is the self management he yet needs to consistently take full advantage of the level of his talent.

Golfstruck – Better Golf – Right Now!

4 June 2012

It was at Jack’s tournament this week that Tiger made his comeback official.  Chalking up his 73rd PGA victory this week at the Memorial, Tiger tied tournament host, Jack Nicklaus for the 2nd most victories in PGA Tour history.  Only the remarkable Sam Snead has more (82).

On the 16th hole with Jack watching from the broadcast tower, Tiger pulled off the shot of the year!  Nicklaus was effusive in his praise of the shot, saying is was the best he’s ever seen to win a tournament. Let’s relive it.

Tiger’s 8 iron to the 16th green had unbelievably carried long, coming to rest on a downhill lie, nestled in the deep rough. His shot was to a downhill green that ran away from him, and down a short slope to the water lurking beyond. Quite enough to make any player gulp – at least once!

In complete Tiger-esque fashion, Tiger assessed the shot, finding the only landing spot that would keep his ball on the green, thus giving himself a putt to save par. Then he visualized the trajectory  required to get the ball high enough to stop it from rolling into the water. Then he took practice swings with sufficient swing speed to cut through the deep rough and get his ball that high. Once he had the feel and vision of the shot, he stepped up with that Tiger Focus that we have seen all too little of these past couples of years and pulled off not only a great shot – but HE HOLED IT!

Forget that Tiger lead the field in fairways hit this week! (when was the last time he did that?) Or that he hit more greens in regulation that he has in a decade. It was that shot from the downslope behind the 16th green toward the water that told us Tiger is back!

I still don’t like the manufactured release that Sean Foley has him using.  And he still can’t hit a controlled draw with that swing.  So, though Tiger appears, once again, to be comfortable enough in his own skin to compete, there is way too much talent on tour these days for Tiger to be dominant again – with that swing!

Golfstruck – Better Golf – Right Now!

28 May 2012

Only Ben Hogan has accomplished the feat of winning both the Byron Nelson and the Colonial, Texas’ two top events, in the same year.  Jason Dufner, who idolized Hogan and patterned his swing after Hogan’s, nearly became the 2nd.  Going head to head with Zach Johnson throughout the weekend, in what turned out to be a two man battle to the wire, perhaps it was only the fatigue of a straight month at the top that kept Jason out of the winners circle.

A BIG CONGRATS TO ZACH JOHNSON on his first victory following a long dry spell. It was really good to see this great guy and dad, back on top of his game. On the 14th hole on Sunday, Zach pulled off a fairway bunker shot to a water guarded green while Jason, from a far better lie on the same hole, came up just short and wet! And that was the defining difference in this head-to-head duel.

This battle was great theater.  We wondered who would flinch first. And even after Jason dunked that shot on 14, he battled back to within just a short putt from a tie, when Zach, in the excitement of the moment forgot to remark his ball on the 18th green, thus incurring a two stroke penalty.

Normally, it is proper etiquette when a player asks you to move your ball mark for that same player to remind you to move it back.  Gentleman that he is, I’m sure Jason, disappointed in coming up short on just a couple of shots, felt badly about not reminding Zach!  And I’m sure Zach’s caddie, caught up in the moment of a victory dedicated to his father who had just passed, felt bad as well.  And I’m sure that Zach, caught up in the moment of his first victory in 2 years, felt negligent, if not stupid, for not remembering to remark his ball.

But all is well that end’s well.  No harm – no foul!  Thank goodness the 2 stroke penalty Zach incurred, still left him with a one shot margin of victory.  I don’t know how either player would have collected himself if they’d had to go into a playoff.

Our CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR AWARD this week goes to Jason Dufner who very nearly had his name placed in the history books next to that of his idol – Ben Hogan! Had he pulled off the feat of winning the Byron Nelson and the Colonial back-to-back, Feinstein would be writing a book about the similarities of their struggles to get to the top!

Golfstruck – Better Golf – Right Now!

21 May 2012

Jason Dufner is currently the most consistent and hottest player on tour.  He gets the award for determination and self belief. At 35 years of age, it took an awfully lot of conquering self doubt to finally begin reaping the rewards for hard work and perseverance. Sandwiching a marriage ceremony and honeymoon in between his first two tour victories is quite the achievement.  A BIG CONGRATS to Jason Dufner on his 2nd trip to the winners circle.

What I like so much about Jason’s approach to the game is the consistency of his routines. He figures out what shot is the best for HIM to play in each circumstance, and methodically (though not belabored) goes about preparing himself to play THAT SHOT!  He has learned the discipline of not pulling the trigger until he is ready.  And yet, he’s been able to reduce his # of waggles by approximately 1/2 of where he was last fall when he lost a playoff to Keegan Bradley in the PGA Championship.

Well done Duff!  You are an excellent model for the young players coming up.  Here’s to keeping it up!

Journeyman Dickie Pride and Tommy “two gloves” Gainey have travelled a similar road to that of Jason. They came close in this one. They share our CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR AWARD this week. Both, like Jason could do with a putting routine that flows better from start to finish. The rhythm of the putting routine is the key to keeping one’s mind quiet while putting, which keeps us from steering or guiding our putts.

Golfstruck – Better Golf – Right Now!

14 May 2012

Pete Dye’s gem, the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass once again separated the men from the boys by identifying that player who, this week, had the most shots in his bag.  A BIG CONGRATS to Matt Kuchar on his trip to the winners circle.

Kuchar played with a little more mental toughness than the rest of the field. Holing that 15 foot birdie on 16 right after watching a hard charging Rickie Fowler hole a commanding birdie on the treacherous 17th provided the margin he needed to still be breathing as he faced that knee buckling tee shot on 17.

Kuch came through! Not often a winner, but ever a top ten finisher, this was a defining moment in building confidence for Matt that HE CAN WIN THE BIG ONE’S. US OPEN, HERE COMES KUCH!

Golfstruck – Better Golf – Right Now!

7 May 2012

Rickie Fowler, the beacon for and hero of the young players everywhere, broke through with his first PGA Tour win by conquering The Green Mile – a collection of three holes- the toughest finish on tour; and then taking on world #1 Rory MacIlroy and a hot Robert Garrigus in a playoff.

Fearless Fowler hit a pin seeking wedge right under the hole when a slightly pulled shot would have put him in the drink. Following three great tee shots each player had his chance to put the tournament away on the first playoff hole. Wearing his Sunday OSU orange, Rickie made Puma, Cobra and a whole lot of young fans jump for joy.

During the back nine of his final round you could see a burning intensity in Fowler’s eyes that had him “in the zone.” It’s a hard place to get to, but every great athlete has been there at one time or another. Let’s see how soon Fowler can get there again!

What I like about Rickie is his self reliance. He has a self-made confidence that serves him well when the chips are down.  What he needs, if he is to become a more consistent contender, is a better process of shotmaking.  By that I mean a more precise rehearsal of the exact feel of motion required to produce the ball flight he has just visualized. Why? Quickness is Rickie’s achilles heel. He tends to rush his process of shotmaking.  And when he does, he compounds the error by rushing his rhythm. The result – way too many errant shots from scoring positions.

A precise rehearsal would get Rickie into the rhythm of his motion far more consistently.  He would FEEL his shots BEFORE he steps up to play them them.  We could all use this same approach to improve the consistency and predictability of our shotmaking.

Rory McIlroy nearly defended his title at Quail Hollow, where last year he lapped the field.  It was THE win that launched Rory’s confident march to his US OPEN win where he again lapped the field. And his 2011 challenge to Luke Donald’s #1 ranking.

Rory is an emotional young player.  As he conquers himself down the stretch, we will find him more often in the winners circle.  But that bale out wedge he hit well right of target on the playoff hole may well be a sign of things to come. Expectations from every corner of the globe may be a little too high for this young man’s liking.  Dealing with the pressure of “are you the best player in the world” may just be a little more than Rory is yet ready to handle.

Our CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR AWARD this week goes to Robert Garrigus.  Just one short putt away from victory in regulation, Robert played well all week. Having switched from the shortest putter on tour last year (23″) to a belly putter this year, Garrigus is benefitting from the fixed fulcrum stroke that comes from anchoring the putter handle. What I’d like to see, now that he has taught his body the feel of a fixed fulcrum stroke, is for him to learn to swing a 33″ putter from the ideal fixed fulcrum for putting, which is the left side of his neck. He is a talented putter and one who could roll in more putts, I believe, by making this final switch.

Golfstruck – Better Golf – Right Now!

30 April 2012

April 29th will here-to-fore be known as Jason Dufner Day on the PGA Tour. On that date, 35 year old Jason finally caught lightning in a bottle.  This well experienced journeyman at long last, via tremendous personal fortitude and self belief, captured his first tour title.  A BIG CONGRATS to the very likable Jason Dufner on his first trip to THE WINNERS CIRCLE.

Dufner’s “waggle until it feels right” trademark sets his swing apart on tour. Yes, most all the other players use a waggle to: a) relax the tension that tends to creep into their hands and forearms; b) feel the motion they intend to deliver (path and face in rhythm); and c) feel the footwork that will deliver that swing motion. But Dufner’s waggle is different. I’d love to have the conversation with Jason regarding the feels his particular waggle produces that provide his confidence to simply GO THERE!

It has been fun to watch Jason grow as a player these past two years. Three runner up finishes in 2011. Two of them by play-off losses. Contending in the Majors, where he lost a heartbreaker to Keegan Bradley in the 2011 PGA Championship. Leading the Masters this year going into the weekend. Two more recent weekend leads only to stumble down the stretch.  And finally bringing home the bacon in a playoff victory over the winner of 62 titles worldwide, the Big Easy, none other than the highly popular Ernie Els – the guy who is bringing Autism awareness to us all.

Our CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR AWARD this week goes to Hall of Famer Ernie Els. Its been heartbreaking these past three years to watch Ernie struggle on the greens only to lose opportunity after opportunity to jump back into the Winners Circle.  Winless for way too long, Ernie is still one of the best ball strikers on tour. His timeless swing is sound.  His rhythm is seldom rushed; though he is now missing more greens from scoring position than in his heydays.

Els resisted going to the belly putter for a long time. As a traditionalist, he, like Tiger, would like to see “anchoring a club” outlawed.  But for the time being Ernie is taking advantage of the “fixed fulcrum connection” he is now feeling in his putting stroke.

The interesting thing about belly putting is that the belly is the wrong the FIXED FULCRUM for the best of consistency in putting. Anchoring the putter to the belly requires the player to use an “arc” rather than an on-line stroke.  Learning to swing from a fixed fulcrum with an on-line stroke is the true art of putting, and what I have as yet, found, no other putting coach teaches.

Golfstruck – Better Golf – Right Now!

23 April 2012

This admittedly tough Greg Norman designed course in San Antonio won again.  In “normal Texas winds” the players had difficulty shaping their shots.  The average score this week was 74+.

While there is always a tendency to compare generations of players, which is tough because of the advancement in the technology of both equipment and the golf ball, I truly believe the art of “Shot Shaping” is nowhere as good as it was 25 years ago when virtually all of our great players hailed from the windswept plains of Texas. Virginia born, hillbilly, Sam Snead was the exception!

One of the reasons is today’s technology goal to produce ever straighter ball flights.  So there is far less need for players to learn the art of shot shaping, particularly in windy conditions.

The other major reason players are weak in this category is a tendency to ignore, in the development of their respective swing mechanics, the importance of left side control of: path, face and angle of attack.  Sam Snead, while teaching me, always stressed the importance of footwork and left side control.

As we look at the swings of the old timers, they all worked far more on left side shaping of their shots than the current generation. For the most part, they learned to hit against a braced left side and kept their left hand in front of their right hand through impact and all the way to the delivered position – to waist high through the ball. Today’s players would do well to emulate these tried and true fundamentals that lead to the predictability and consistency of producing intended ball flights.

Having said all that, hats off to Ben Curtis on his 4th PGA tour victory to go with his One Major – the 2003 British Open. Ben, stayed well within his detailed routine all week, patiently getting into his proper set-up to FEEL the motion he WOULD deliver, predictably every time.  Ben, while he did nothing spectacular, produced fewer errant shots than anyone else this week.  It is great to see this nice guy and good family man with the homemade swing in THE WINNERS CIRCLE once again.

The two-year exemption and Masters invite he earned from this victory are perhaps more important than the 1+ million smackaroos he pocketed for the victory. Why?  Because Ben had drifted so far down the eligibility list that this is only the 4th event he has been able to enter all season.  Now that’s pressure!

Matt Every played a good, not great tournament.  His opening course record 63 put him in good position to take this event, but sorry, his swing just isn’t good enough right now. While I applaud his efforts to simplify what he is doing on the course, i.e. ditching his instructor who was giving him too many swing thoughts, he is making one very critical error in his swing motion.

If you watch his footwork, he is getting up onto his right toe way too early in his downswing, thus causing a spin out with his right side firing in a circular motion to well left of his target.  This is a dangerous move and one ill advised to try to time. Matt needs to work on the feel of firing his right side from in behind his left side – directly and linearly toward his target so that he finishes balanced on the inside of his left foot and the inside of his right big toe.

For those of you having the same problem – i.e. missing left, which Matt did on the critical 72nd hole, the easiest way to achieve this feel is to roll across the right ankle to drive the right thigh toward the target from well inside the left post axis, thereby being able to “push off” from well behind the ball of the right foot –  rather than allowing the right heel to rise and spin away from the target – which causes a hugh power leak as well as the fear of going left.

When Matt and Jonny Vegas get this better directional weight transfer, they will be able to consistently attack from the inside corner of the golf ball, thus taking the left side of the course out of play.  When we only miss one-way, the course gets wider and the game far easier to play.

Our CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR AWARD this week goes to the young, 22 year old John Huh who came all the way back from an opening round of 77 (that’s 14 strokes behind Matt Every’s 63) and the pressure of not making the cut, to tie Matt for 2nd place at 7 under.

I really like John HUh’s swing, his poise, demeanor, focus, short game and putting. If you have a youngster working his way up through the junior ranks, this is a player for him to emulate. Sang Moon Bae is the other best PGA Tour rookie to copy. Though this is his first year on the PGA Tour, Sang Moon has won all over the world already.  He is a polished player with a great swing and plenty of distance. Jason Day better sharpen his connections through the “region of impact” or these two may well surpass him as the next players to watch.

Golfstruck – Better Golf Right Now!