The Dan Plan - 10,000 Hours to Become a Pro Golfer (Dan McLaughlin)

[tdiii]

The latest news from the Dan Plan!

http://thedanplan.com/pacific-northwest-us-open-and-the-first-round-back/

17 days old.

[Lihu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lihu

The latest news from the Dan Plan!

http://thedanplan.com/pacific-northwest-us-open-and-the-first-round-back/

17 days old.

Well, I thought it was time Dan got more air time here again. . .

[Unkynd]

Was a good read. Would suck to miss almost an entire season of golf to an injury.

[bkuehn1952]

One has to wonder if this is how it ends.  Begin with the realization that one's finances are insufficient to really do everything necessary to succeed.  Then add in a degree of depression after the discovery that one's swing is nowhere near good enough to think about professional golf.  Finally, add a back injury that seems to defy any cure (massage therapy, chiropractic adjustment, rest).

At this point the blog has been virtually unused with just three (3) entries since May 4.  The number of comments has fallen off; perhaps a signal that everyone is losing interest?  Twitter has been silent (probably a good idea).  I half expect to find that the site has been taken down when I occasionally check.

[Nosevi]

One has to wonder if this is how it ends.  Begin with the realization that one's finances are insufficient to really do everything necessary to succeed.  Then add in a degree of depression after the discovery that one's swing is nowhere near good enough to think about professional golf.  Finally, add a back injury that seems to defy any cure (massage therapy, chiropractic adjustment, rest).

It could certainly be used as what we would refer to over here as a 'get out clause' - the injury was the reason it all came to an end, not the money or lack of talent (something I still believe to be a prerequisite for 'success' as defined by Dan's goal) etc. Whether it is a 'get out clause' or not I don't know and perhaps it's harsh to say it could be, but I was frankly shocked when Dan blatantly 'misled' about what his current handicap was in an attempt to cover up how his progress was going. Only UK national TV so maybe not important as pretty much no one over here has ever heard of the guy, but still a line I didn't think he would cross.

[Lihu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bkuehn1952

One has to wonder if this is how it ends.  Begin with the realization that one's finances are insufficient to really do everything necessary to succeed.  Then add in a degree of depression after the discovery that one's swing is nowhere near good enough to think about professional golf.  Finally, add a back injury that seems to defy any cure (massage therapy, chiropractic adjustment, rest).

It could certainly be used as what we would refer to over here as a 'get out clause' - the injury was the reason it all came to an end, not the money or lack of talent (something I still believe to be a prerequisite for 'success' as defined by Dan's goal) etc. Whether it is a 'get out clause' or not I don't know and perhaps it's harsh to say it could be, but I was frankly shocked when Dan blatantly 'misled' about what his current handicap was in an attempt to cover up how his progress was going. Only UK national TV so maybe not important as pretty much no one over here has ever heard of the guy, but still a line I didn't think he would cross.

Where would you estimate his true handicap?

[Nosevi]

I wouldn't estimate it, I'd go to the online GHIN handicap lookup, enter His state and name and see precisely what his handicap is and was at the time of the interview. It wasn't what he said it was and hasn't been for quite some time.

[Lihu]

I wouldn't estimate it, I'd go to the online GHIN handicsp lookup, entre His state and name and see previsely what his handicap is and was at the time of the interview. It wasn't what he said it was and hasn't been for quite some time.

Current is 5.4 and 3.1 was the lowest. I'm always surprised when during an interview they say he's scratch.

[Pretzel]

Current is 5.4 and 3.1 was the lowest. I'm always surprised when during an interview they say he's scratch.

"3.1" was the lowest. Somehow I doubt he ever actually played to that level.

[Lihu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lihu

Current is 5.4 and 3.1 was the lowest. I'm always surprised when during an interview they say he's scratch.

"3.1" was the lowest. Somehow I doubt he ever actually played to that level.

He must have a really killer short game, and he got his handicap playing a single course. Might be possible?

[Nosevi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pretzel

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lihu

Current is 5.4 and 3.1 was the lowest. I'm always surprised when during an interview they say he's scratch.

"3.1" was the lowest. Somehow I doubt he ever actually played to that level.

He must have a really killer short game, and he got his handicap playing a single course. Might be possible?

Define "really killer short game".

His scrambling percentage over his last 5 rounds on golfshots is 23%. Over the last 20 it's 30%. Hitting green in reg on less than 50% of occasions and getting up and down, on average, somewhere between 1/4 and 1/3 of the time isn't going to equate to a 3 handicapper.

[RandallT]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bkuehn1952

One has to wonder if this is how it ends.  Begin with the realization that one's finances are insufficient to really do everything necessary to succeed.  Then add in a degree of depression after the discovery that one's swing is nowhere near good enough to think about professional golf.  Finally, add a back injury that seems to defy any cure (massage therapy, chiropractic adjustment, rest).

It could certainly be used as what we would refer to over here as a 'get out clause' - the injury was the reason it all came to an end, not the money or lack of talent (something I still believe to be a prerequisite for 'success' as defined by Dan's goal) etc. Whether it is a 'get out clause' or not I don't know and perhaps it's harsh to say it could be, but I was frankly shocked when Dan blatantly 'misled' about what his current handicap was in an attempt to cover up how his progress was going. Only UK national TV so maybe not important as pretty much no one over here has ever heard of the guy, but still a line I didn't think he would cross.

I thought this might be the end too, but guess what?! He's just posted something-->http://thedanplan.com/the-mend-is-steady-yet-slow/

Unless I missed something, it was mainly about how he has been out to play a couple times, but that the pain is still there. He's excited to be back and showing optimism.

Re: the misleading, Dan said his current handicap was high 3's at Chambers Bay during the US Open (June 2015). His GHIN reflects it was 5.4 for over a month before that. He should've been aware it jumped from high 3's to mid-5's by April 2015.  There's certainly no proof he was deliberately lying, but his answer was most definitely not the truth at that moment.

I did think this was an interesting snippet from his most recent blog post:

Would a draw swing be significantly different from a fade swing such that it would impact your lower back differently? I don't work on this much since I'm nowhere near good enough to go beyond the keys identified for me, but my understanding is that you simply adjust your aim and your club face- but the swing is mostly the same. Dan makes it seem like "dropping the club in the slot" creates a draw.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nosevi

I wouldn't estimate it, I'd go to the online GHIN handicsp lookup, entre His state and name and see previsely what his handicap is and was at the time of the interview. It wasn't what he said it was and hasn't been for quite some time.

Current is 5.4 and 3.1 was the lowest. I'm always surprised when during an interview they say he's scratch.

In that interview, Dan said his lowest HI was 2.7. He was wrong again- it is actually 2.6 back in summer of 2014.

[bkuehn1952]

Timely check on his blog, RT.  He never really says he knows what is wrong.  He can't be blamed for not revealing medical info.  At the same time, placing the blame on his "draw swing" is a bit like blaming the pain in one's ankle on how one walks rather than the fractured bone.

[Lihu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lihu

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pretzel

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lihu

Current is 5.4 and 3.1 was the lowest. I'm always surprised when during an interview they say he's scratch.

"3.1" was the lowest. Somehow I doubt he ever actually played to that level.

He must have a really killer short game, and he got his handicap playing a single course. Might be possible?

Define "really killer short game".

His scrambling percentage over his last 5 rounds on golfshots is 23%. Over the last 20 it's 30%. Hitting green in reg on less than 50% of occasions and getting up and down, on average, somewhere between 1/4 and 1/3 of the time isn't going to equate to a 3 handicapper.

I didn't even notice that.

[nevets88]

[QUOTE name="RandallT" url="/t/45853/the-dan-plan-10-000-hours-to-become-a-pro-golfer-dan-mclaughlin/3270_10#post_1166314"] [CONTENTEMBED=/t/45853/the-dan-plan-10-000-hours-to-become-a-pro-golfer-dan-mclaughlin/3240_30#post_1166051 layout=inline] [/CONTENTEMBED] [CONTENTEMBED=/t/45853/the-dan-plan-10-000-hours-to-become-a-pro-golfer-dan-mclaughlin/3240_30#post_1166051 layout=inline]...[/CONTENTEMBED] [CONTENTEMBED=/t/45853/the-dan-plan-10-000-hours-to-become-a-pro-golfer-dan-mclaughlin/3240_30#post_1166051 layout=inline] [/CONTENTEMBED] I did think this was an interesting snippet from his most recent blog post: [QUOTE] [COLOR=333333]In fact most of the round was played hitting a fade as I was afraid[/COLOR] [COLOR=FF0000] to try and drop the club in the slot [/COLOR] [COLOR=333333]and create a draw. The draw swing tends to really aggravate this injury. The good news is that even with a long time of not playing I shot a 1-over 37 with a birdie on the last hole.  Very pleased that after the long hiatus the game seemed to still be there.  As long as I focussed on a slow even tempo I could execute my shots.[/COLOR] [/QUOTE] Would a draw swing be significantly different from a fade swing such that it would impact your lower back differently? I don't work on this much since I'm nowhere near good enough to go beyond the keys identified for me, but my understanding is that you simply adjust your aim and your club face- but the swing is mostly the same. Dan makes it seem like "dropping the club in the slot" creates a draw. ... [/QUOTE] Dropping into slot - that's shallowing the shaft from the end of the backswing, yes? Please correct me if I'm wrong. And he's steepening on the downswing, no? Again, please correct me if I'm wrong. Yellow is backswing, red is downswing. I'm not fond of that term, dropping into the slot - can't it be interpreted multiple ways? Also the word drop. Taken literally, dropping the hands too much will steepen the shaft I think. Like hit down people take the down too literally. [URL=http://thesandtrap.com/content/type/61/id/127265/] [/URL] [URL=http://thesandtrap.com/content/type/61/id/127266/] [/URL]

[Nosevi]

Re: the misleading, Dan said his current handicap was high 3's at Chambers Bay during the US Open (June 2015). His GHIN reflects it was 5.4 for over a month before that. He should've been aware it jumped from high 3's to mid-5's by April 2015.  There's certainly no proof he was deliberately lying, but his answer was most definitely not the truth at that moment

Randy, you're right I'm being a tad harsh. It's possibly he just had a mental block which is why he didn't answer the first time he was asked and rather than saying "I don't remember." simply made it up. His handicap went to 5.5 six weeks before that interview and didn't drop below 5.4 until it. The stats page on his site had already been updated to reflect a 5.5 handicap by the time of the interview and he had played for a full month since his handicap had gone up including at least one tournament at another club. My call is there's zero chance he didn't know about his handicap going up but there is a chance he simply went blank during the interview. I'll go back to giving him the benefit of the doubt

[RandallT]

Randy, you're right I'm being a tad harsh. It's possibly he just had a mental block which is why he didn't answer the first time he was asked and rather than saying "I don't remember." simply made it up. His handicap went to 5.5 six weeks before that interview and didn't drop below 5.4 until it. The stats page on his site had already been updated to reflect a 5.5 handicap by the time of the interview and he had played for a full month since his handicap had gone up including at least one tournament at another club. My call is there's zero chance he didn't know about his handicap going up but there is a chance he simply went blank during the interview. I'll go back to giving him the benefit of the doubt

Well, as we discussed via email, I'm actually closer to where you are than I am thinking it was an innocent mistake. I had written a little thing on his body language in the interview when asked about his handicap, but then deleted it cuz I realized it was all me making stuff up.

[Nosevi]

[QUOTE name="Nosevi" url="/t/45853/the-dan-plan-10-000-hours-to-become-a-pro-golfer-dan-mclaughlin/3270_30#post_1166353"]   [CONTENTEMBED=/t/45853/the-dan-plan-10-000-hours-to-become-a-pro-golfer-dan-mclaughlin/3258#post_1166314 layout=inline]Randy, you're right I'm being a tad harsh. It's possibly he just had a mental block which is why he didn't answer the first time he was asked and rather than saying "I don't remember." simply made it up. His handicap went to 5.5 six weeks before that interview and didn't drop below 5.4 until it. The stats page on his site had already been updated to reflect a 5.5 handicap by the time of the interview and he had played for a full month since his handicap had gone up including at least one tournament at another club. My call is there's zero chance he didn't know about his handicap going up but there is a chance he simply went blank during the interview. I'll go back to giving him the benefit of the doubt :-) [/CONTENTEMBED] [/QUOTE] Well, as we discussed via email, I'm actually closer to where you are than I am thinking it was an innocent mistake. I had written a little thing on his body language in the interview when asked about his handicap, but then deleted it cuz I realized it was all me making stuff up.

Yep, but I guess there's a chance he simply went blank with the mic in front of him (although the counter to that is he's had a fair bit of practice...). I think my point to Lihu is valid though - he doesn't appear to have a killer short game looking at his stats and looking at that backswing vs downswing you'll struggle all day if you're steeper on the downswing yet below the backswing plane. In fact I have no idea how you can effetively hit the ball like that. Shallower and below the backswing on the downswing is likely to encourage a draw, steeper and above is likely to encourage a fade. All steeper and below is likely to encourage is a lost ball.