My Swing (Lihu)

[Abu3baid]

I am hoping to get more "bulletproof" in my short game and especially putting. I still have a lot of 3 putt situations when I don't have enough time to do Aimpoint.

I haven't seen your pre-putt routine so I can't comment on how fast or slow it is, but picking the aimpoint takes less than 10 seconds imo.. how long does it take you? To pick the aimpoint that is?

[Lihu]

I haven't seen your pre-putt routine so I can't comment on how fast or slow it is, but picking the aimpoint takes less than 10 seconds imo.. how long does it take you? To pick the aimpoint that is?

My pre shot routine is to line up halfway to the hole get a reading. Then I line up the putter from behind. Next, I setup aligning my body to the line of putt. Feet, then hips, shoulders. I take three practice swings to get the distance feel, move up then take one more swing back. Then putt. I do this every putt. The issue is that I still 3 putt. After watching me do this two times my partners get kind of antsy. :-D One person said I actually take less time getting to the green in less strokes. :-P Putting. . .

[Abu3baid]

It does sound like you take a long time, but it has nothing to do with getting your aimpoint.. I think you should try just getting your aimpoint, then setting up to the ball quickly and only doing one practice swing then get behind the ball,take one look and putt! This might actually help you sink more putts too.. hey at least you won't lose anything if it doesn't work right? You can go back to your old routine.

[Lihu]

It does sound like you take a long time, but it has nothing to do with getting your aimpoint.. I think you should try just getting your aimpoint, then setting up to the ball quickly and only doing one practice swing then get behind the ball,take one look and putt!

This might actually help you sink more putts too.. hey at least you won't lose anything if it doesn't work right? You can go back to your old routine.

True. I need to practice putting. Something I just haven't spent a lot of time doing.

I practiced quite a bit in Erie, so after the trip my putting was pretty good. Now, it's just gone back to bad again.

Just need to do 65/25/ 10 .

[iacas]

Just need to do 65/25/10.

65/20/15 :)

[Lihu]

65/20/15 :)

Oh, right. That might help my putting even more. . .

[Ernest Jones]

Oh, right. That might help my putting even more. . .:beer:

Is it primarily your line or speed that is an issue?

[Lihu]

Is it primarily your line or speed that is an issue?

Kind of both.

The greens are all different speeds right now. Some days I putt pretty well, others I end up 3-putting with a tap in. Usually, I end up going too far and would probably go in if it was just a little slower. I rarely hit too soft, and when I do it's usually less than a foot.

[Ernest Jones]

Kind of both.

The greens are all different speeds right now. Some days I putt pretty well, others I end up 3-putting with a tap in. Usually, I end up going too far and would probably go in if it was just a little slower. I rarely hit too soft, and when I do it's usually less than a foot.

The other thing is speed can really affect line insofar as what looks like a great line just too fast/slow may not have been such a great line at the proper speed. Sounds like you need to really get that distance control tightened up.

[Lihu]

The other thing is speed can really affect line insofar as what looks like a great line just too fast/slow may not have been such a great line at the proper speed. Sounds like you need to really get that distance control tightened up.

Yeah, practice never ends.

[Ernest Jones]

Yeah, practice never ends.

So jealous of your 365 day season. Bastard!

[Lihu]

So jealous of your 365 day season. Bastard!

I'm kind of jealous of your ski season. . .

Well, I definitely need the practice, plus you have the dome which looks really cool.

[Lihu]

Just did an "all iron hole" round to check my distances. I played one iron 3 balls per hole on the iron holes no woods or putter. Alternatively, I played 3 balls with driver off the tee, then 3H then my 2 utility iron, and one ball on the approach. I used the laser and GPS to confirm the average of the drives, 3H and 2i. I used 3 balls and a laser to measure the 5i, 4i and 3i off the tee box without a tee (off the deck).

For 6i, 7i I used 3 balls on the par 5 and played the entire hole using the one club. Then I took the entire hole distance and divided by the number of strokes it took times 3. Interesting enough, my irons distances were very consistent on decent strokes. Typical variation was 5 yards from longest ball to the shortest ball. My side to side on one shot was a disappointing 18 yards on one volley of 3 balls with my 7i, but everything else was pretty nicely packed within 20 yards or so.

Played only 16 holes (skipped 2 today):

Note that my clubs are MP-32 V-cut blades and the lofts start at 49 degrees for my PW and go up 4 degrees per club to the 3i. The 2 iron is 21 degrees with a modern large head and face.

Winter 45F wet ground conditions:
D 235
3H 210
2U 200
3 182
4 175
5 164
6 157
7 143
8 135
9 126
P 115
52 100
60 80

This is compared to my previous post reporting these distances to the nearest 2 yards.

Summer temperatures from 75F to 95F

(From What'd you shoot today). Another practice round today. First hole was a 7, I hit my tee shot into a tree. My 3i approach also hit the same tree, and left a deep dent in it. I hit the 3i again to punch out between the tree and a generator/light fixture right into a bunker. Hit 8i from the bunker into the green side bunker after bouncing off the green. Bladed my bunker shot twice, then pitched on for a putt 7 finish. This was probably more memorable than my subsequent nGIR bogeys and pars.

I felt pretty good about my 7 on that hole.

My irons are more solid, if only I wasn't pulling them right.

My steel shafted G15 driver was performing really well, the first day back out on the course. Swing weight feels a little "laggy and heavy", but better than "flippy and light". Got about 240 yards with it. I compared my two steel drivers. The TM steel shafted driver I was getting 220 with a much lower flight with the "same swing".

3i distance is grooving into a nice 190-200 yards (carry/roll). My 6i carries about 160, but pretty much has no roll. In fact, everything from P to 6i/5i has no roll. Only my 4i and 3i have roll.

My average iron carry distances are pretty much (range is dependent upon where in my stance I put the ball, low flight for the longer distances)

P: 105-115

9i: 115-125

8i: 125-135

7i: 135-150

6i: 160

5i: 170 (almost no roll with this and shorter clubs)

4i: 180-190 (with roll)

3i: 190-200 (with roll)

Woods/hybrids

3H: 200 (carry), off the tee (215) (only 4 shots to evaluate)

3W: 220 (carry), off the tee (230) (only 6 shots to evaluate)

Cobra PX6.0- 250 yards (if it does not slice, average is around 220)

G15:10.5-X100- 240 yards (average)

TM: 9.5-X100- 220 yards (average)  (this is only my backup club)

Keys evaluation videos to come when I have some alone time on the course.

[dylan006]

From one lefty to another. I do enjoy your swing. And it seems as though you have a great work ethic towards the game. You also seem to have a structured plan about getting better. Good luck.

[Lihu]

First scoring round in nearly 2 months, but I'm going to take a rest after this for 3 weeks or so.

Brookside Course 1 Gold tees, 86 (44/42) (7100 yards). Drives were really long today, about 235-255 yards, maybe closer to 245-250. Couple shorter 235 ones, though.

79 yesterday on a 6000 yard course and 86 on the super long course today. I didn't think I could make that carry on the 6th hole, but it just barely passed the water line and ended up in the rough which kept it from rolling back into the water.

First scoring round in 2 months. Let's see how it affects my handicap!

My swings are athletic, but not stressful on any part of my body. Especially important as I am still nursing my shoulder.

I topped my hybrid 3 times today, and was just about to take it out of my bag, when on the last hole I hit 220 yards. Need to figure out where is the bottom of my path.

Looking forward to my next lesson with Mike after my son is done with his finals. Planning to post some videos as I am taking some time off from playing the course for three weeks or so.

My shoulder is getting a lot better, and I'm finally giving it a chance to really heal. After this rest phase, I am hoping to do some strength training for the muscles that were injured.

[Lihu]

Couple weight shift feel attempts. 6i in my hitting cage.

Plenty of other issues, but the focus is on the feeling with and without shift. 2 swings without, last swing with a little bit.

[Lihu]

Gaining weight again. Probably going to start my daily playing regimen again this Monday. My shoulder is finally healing.

Here is my recap for this year.

January 2014

Dropped down to a 20-ish handicap after having a couple lessons with Mike and Dana. Could hit my drives okay, and used my Ping I20 clubs with pretty good success. Was able actually drop to something in the 17.6 range. Someone gave me this handicap, not sure who, but it was reasonably accurate.

17.3-17.6 handicap range, I was driving my balls a lot better with my steel shafted driver. 210 yard drives were pretty decent, and my Pings got me to the green nicely. Shot in the low 90s. Got my first 88. Felt pretty good.

15.3-15.8 handicap range, I was shooting a lot more rounds in the upper 80s. Finally was able to play any course with some confidence, and I played in Erie, Billerica, Tampa. Played okay, and was really enjoying myself. Still had problems with irons more than 150 yards, but using MP-32 and the MP-52. These clubs really did hold my handicap higher up. However, since I was working with Mike to hit the ball better, it seemed okay to continue using them.

13.7-14.6 handicap range. Started to be able to hit my irons longer than 150 yards. The breakthrough was getting key one as far as the spine is concerned, and starting to learn to put some weight shift into it. Was finally able to hit my 3i about 180-195 yards. Experimented playing only irons on all the par 4 holes. I even did it on some par 5 holes. Started using the graphite shaft driver. Lots of slices, but my irons game was good enough to bring me back.

12.8-13.6 handicap range. Gained a lot more confidence off the tee and got rid of my slice with the Cobra graphite shaft club. Weaned myself off of steel shafted X100 drivers (lost 70 grams of shaft weight and 30 grams of head weight in the form of lead tape), and gained an instant 30-50 yards. Now, I just need to be able to hit my irons longer and higher. Injured myself and was not able to really put weight shift and bend at the hips enough. My head tilts back a little, but it seems like I can get it back just before impact. The improvement from 13.6 to 12.8 came the last 4 rounds, where my putting was a tiny bit better, and my confidence with my approach shots improved. Despite the fact that I am using KBS Tour Xstiff MP-32 and trying to use a driving iron Apex UT 21 degree with a KBS C-Taper X irons, I am shooting lower. I parred my first 9 hole round with a 35 (bogey offset a birdie). Not an ace, but it sure felt good after doing it.

Next stage is to do Key 1 properly again. Went to the driving range last night after doing a lot of mirror work these last two weeks to bend more at the hips and still get some weight shift back. The drills I am doing are to keep my centered pivot while bending more at the hips and putting weight on the back foot at the top of my swing. When I get this more established, I will start working on a lot more weight shift. I anticipate another couple more months of work with the drill Mike gave me for Key 2. I am hoping by the end of the winter to have at least some of the weight shift concept incorporated into my swing.

So, I experimented with my Cleveland CG Tour R300 shafts, and they do give me more distance than my xstiff shafts as expected. Even though the Cleveland blades are really hard to hit in the sweet spot, they went further than my equivalent MP-32 (KBS Tour X) or MP-52 (S300) irons. I tested 6i with all my clubs at the driving range last night. MP-32 (150 yards), MP-52 (~153 yards), CG Tour (~160 yards), Ping I20 (>165 yards), Burner (hooked and rolled to 175 yards). I was just watching where they landed with an approximate average of 5 shots. The point is that the lighter shafts give me a lot more distance. Almost 2.5 clubs difference. I will do more testing as my swing improves. As a result of the testing above, club fitting might be in the picture by mid year when I hope to get Keys 1 and 2 to an acceptable level.

So far, 4.8 strokes in about one year is pretty nice, and hoping for more strokes this upcoming year. I think I have the potential for an average drive of 240 and 3i of 200 with a lot more mechanics work. 2015 is the year I am hoping to start working on ball striking.

[Lihu]

First full practice round in about a month, and it was really bad.

Brookside Course 1 Blues (Par 72: 6700 yards): 95:49/46 (PRACTICE)

3 triples, 2 doubles, 10 bogeys, 3 pars. Played like crap. My timing is way off on my approach shots, I hit fat, thin and everything in between. I couldn't keep my tee shots out of the trees. To top it off, my short game didn't really come back until the 14th hole. The 15th hole I kept hooking my 3i back into the trees, after my "perfect" tee shot went straight and long into them. Took 3 shots to get on the green. All but 3 holes were near green experiences (10 yards) with only one GIR the entire round (missed 3 by a yard). The other two misses were because my tee shots hit trees or something. Putts were a horrific at 41.

Considering this is the course I played a month ago from 400 yards longer and shot 9 strokes better, this was pretty horrific. It was so bad that it doesn't even affect my good scores, but if I could up my handicap by 2 strokes I would before joining the club this January.

I'll need to play 9/18 every morning for the rest of the week. I was getting little snippets of decent shots, but enough of them in a row, plus my short game was really crappy today. Many near green situations ended with bogey to triple.

First I need to get rid of my hooks with my irons. Stop topping my hybrid, and stop hitting so low on the face of my driver. The good shots went about 240-260 yards today, but the bad ones went high and hit low on the face (1/2" from the bottom) barely 200-220 yards. No slices, but my timing and setup are probably totally off. I'm also playing with the loft. I tried values from 9 degrees to 11.5 degrees. The best drives today were using 9 degree loft.