Thoughts about what I'm working on

[bunkerputt]

Summer in Texas is brutal. It's the off-season here. That's tough since nearly everyone else in the country is out playing. We get roughly two times a year when the weather is nice, California-style: early October before the fall rains set in, and the end of winter in between the late cold-snaps and early heat-waves. This week is just such a season. So it's time to get back out and dust off the old game. My first few rounds out showed that mine has plenty of rust. I've always had a tendency to rush my downswing from the top and let my butt sneak in towards the ball. This is a fatal combination, the one likely an attempt to avert the disaster created by the other. This fault is always the first to rear (pun intended) it's ugly head after an offseason primarily because of lower back mobility issues created by too much sitting and not enough walking around. I've found it's incredibly helpful to take it easy the first few weeks out. So I adjust my yardages, take an extra club, swing a little easier, and focus more on range of motion and good tempo until the body comes around again.

It's also a great time to refresh my key fundamental reminders:

1. Step into the shot by squaring the blade to the target line with the right hand touching the right hip. This encourages a better look at the target and allows the shoulders to be naturally slightly open at address. It gets the mind thinking about getting them to open up at impact so that the right arm can chase down the target line freely.

2. Tuck the tailbone in at address and retract the abs slightly. This flattens the swing plane and gets the hips moving freely.

3. Hit through the ball, not down on the ball. People always talk about hitting down, but Trackman data shows tour average impact angle for irons at -4 degrees and driver at -1 degree. The longest hitters swing up more significantly with driver, but the difference in attack angle is much less than one would think. It's also not the exaggerated downward motion your mind thinks of when someone tells you to hit down.

4. In the short game, right elbow folds, slight float-loady pause, right elbow extends down the target line.