My Swing (phillyk)

[phillyk]

Started our chapter match play bracket today. Played at Everett G&CC and shot (-1) 71 to win 5-4.

Hit the ball off the tee very well. I had a few early bad wedge shots to get 3 bogies. But then I turned it around on the 9th hole, got a birdie. I did reasonably well from bunkers. I had a few missed birdie putts and a few that dropped. On 17, hole is 324yds, flat with a bunker guarding right side of green. I pured my drive and it went just left of bunker and rolled to 15ft and pin high. Got my birdie. But finished w a bogey.

Good round! Just need to stay a bit more focused when I play, and keep the brain farts to a minimum. 

[phillyk]

Man, it's been a rough couple weeks.  Besides that match play round, I haven't had a round where I feel good about how I did.  Putting had been a problem for a long time, but I think I fixed it.  Long game is unfocused (best word I can think of).  Short game also had been rough, but I realized my mistake recently and it was a kind of moment.

Putting.  My goal in putting, distance-wise, is to put enough speed on the ball to go 1-2ft past the hole if it misses.  This way, it's not falling off quickly at the end and it can still catch a lip and drop in.  Unfortunately, I have not been doing this.  When I'm judging distance, I was looking at the hole and then putting for the hole.  The putt was dying off every time, right at the hole. Super, super annoying.  But when I started judging speed by looking a foot or so past the hole, I start making more putts, because the ball was holding it's line.  I definitely have the read down and can hit my lines, it's just all speed.  What is and has been bad is lag putting.  If I'm 40+ft, I simply can't get the ball close.  My judgement for speed is usually short, but sometimes I'll blast one by.  I don't expect to make those putts, I just want to give myself more 5fters instead of 15fters for my 2nd putt.  Putting is turning around though, so I'm not terribly worried.

Long game.  The last few weeks, my long game had been decent and putting was bad.  But now that putting is coming around, long game has been faltering, mostly off the tee but also on my wedge shots which are usually my go at the pin clubs.  With wedges, I think it's me trying to get too cute with it. When I just play the slight cut ball flight, I do just fine, I just don't like playing cuts.  I need to get over it and play what I got, day to day.  Off the tee, I can hit my stinger 3iron great! So, it's a good back up plan, but I hate using it every hole.  3W is OK, just not super confident with it yet.  Driver is inconsistent.  Hooking is my main problem, as off the last few rounds.  Although, when I remember to swing towards my target more and slow down, I hit it good.  My tendency is to swing left of target.  What I really need is a good long range session, but when it's back in the 70's (temperature) instead of this mid to upper 80s crap.  I hate sweating bullets on the range, can't stay focused.  I have my list of things to check for regarding full swing.  So I'll go through it next time.

Short game. I can't do it enough.  What's worse is that I'm doing the opposite of what I teach, I just hadn't realized I was doing it.  Weight forward... I had been sitting back on my right side and couldn't understand why I would chunk or skull a lot of pitch shots.  Weight over left side and it just comes back.  I'm definitely not perfect with it yet.  I definitely need to practice it more, but I'm headed in a much better direction.

My next match is in a week and at a course I typically play well.

[phillyk]

Played in my next match of our Chapter Match Play bracket.  Lost 2 & 1.

Both of us had our own issues.  I struggled heavily at 10-75yds off the green, and he couldn't make his 5 footers.  He could make the 15ft for birdie, but a short one for par, nope.  I ended up shooting a 73, so despite some awful short game shots, I scored reasonably.  I can recount at least 5 or 6 shots, in that distance, that were left way short.  They weren't necessarily chunky, more of just not having confidence in distance control.  Some of these shots were greenside, so definitely lost strokes there.

All other parts of the game were good.  Driver was the most shaky but the bad hits were still in play and in reasonable shape.  Irons across the board were good.  Wedges were good enough. Tbh, I didn't want to hit within 75yds on several holes, but the tee shots were running out a lot more than I thought.  Heck, I had a 3iron go 275yds on a 350yd hole.  I mean, I crushed it, but I wanted to leave myself a full wedge, not my iffy-who-knows-whats-going-to-happen zone. 

At the same time, now it's obvious what I need to work on.  Just looking back at the way I approach those shots, I feel like I'm trying to pick the ball off the turf instead of hitting down, so I'll mess around a bit this afternoon and see what I can come up with.

My next big event is the NW Open in a couple weeks.

[phillyk]

I'm about to head out to the Northwest Open.  It's played at Wine Valley, which is where I played my US Open qualifier at.

I've been hitting the ball much better recently, so I feel prepared enough.  I found that my grip had gone too strong and thus, I was closing the face too fast around impact.  I weakened it a bit and I straightened everything out.  Short game is continuing to improve; just need to make sure I take slower swings, as I tend to get very quick.  Putting should be good, I like their greens.  Driver will be interesting.  My own driver had the weight insert break off a week ago, so I sent it back to Ping to get a new weight installed.  My back up is the Srixon 765, but I just don't hit it as well as I'd like to.  So, I took the demo G400 Max head and put a Hazardous X Flex on.  I've hit it well so far, so I'm hoping that continues. I'm bringing my Srixon just in case.

Course will play shorter than it did in the qualifier both in total yardage and firmness of the fairways.  I'm hoping to get in a few holes tonight to see how well the greens are holding, but I'm not too concerned there.  I don't have to walk in the 90+ heat this time, so I shouldn't get too tired.

Main goal is to play whatever game I bring and have fun.

[phillyk]

Well, 2/3 rounds in. I’m +3 overall. Im in the middle of the pack-ish, 2nd round afternoon players are not in yet. 2nd day has been playing tougher for a lot of people so far. 

Both rounds, I hit ball reasonably well. I managed to sink birdie putts in the 2nd round but i got tired towards the end (33/39 nines). The first round, my misses were slightly better but i wasnt making putts (38/37). 

The course is one where the fairways roll and are wide while the greens are rather large with some sloping. But, if you miss the green, you are usually screwed. Ive had several of those. Greens are rolling FAST! I love it, but down hill putts are stupid, just breath on it and it goes past. 

Strength has been off the tee. I’ve had two drives go 385yds-ish (by scorecard but on straight holes so would be around there).  Average has to be around 320-330. I had 13 gir round 2 and 15 in round 1. Round 1 putting was really bad and had a couple 3 putt bogies. No 3 putts in round 2, found that i was stabbing on long putts. 

Looking forward to tomorrow. Hope I can keep getting birdies and reduce the misses. 

[phillyk]

Next step I thought about for my swing is straightening the path.  For a while now, my divots are all severely in to out and it's just something to cause inconsistencies and big misses.  It was also because I'm tired of how much draw I'm actually getting with my clubs.  I want a straighter ball flight. 

I've kept with the more upright takeaway. Not sure why, but I felt like the in to out stemmed from how I set the club from A3 to A4, that before my club wasn't pointing at the target, and I would drop too much too find the line.  In any case, I'm feeling like the club is pointing more down the line and on the downswing to just attempt to watch the clubhead travel on a straighter line through the ball.  It's been about a week, and my divots, with irons, have definitely straightened out.  I am also feeling like I can get more weight transferred left at impact without the ball hooking hard.

Today I played at Nicklaus North in Whistler, BC, Canada.  Haven't played golf up there before.  Played the tips at 6900yds and shot even par (71), with two bogies to finish the round.  I think I got too aggressive with my approach shots on the last two holes, and they were both enough off to cause problems.  Other than those holes, I played really solid golf.  Tee shots were good enough; reason is because I wasn't 100% confident with how my "straighter" path would play out with my driver.  But flight with driver was generally good; a few misses left.  Irons were great! Accurate and consistent.  Less than full wedge shots were a bit off.  I had 14GIR and 32 putts.  The greens were slow.  I missed several putts that were dead center of the hole but from a couple feet to inches short.  I didn't ever adjust to the speeds.

I'll get a video up of my thoughts and swing when I can.  I like the way this is feeling so far, and the ball flight is certainly straighter than before. I still have a tiny draw, if anything which is perfect.  Hopefully it'll look as good as it feels.

[phillyk]

End of the season is here for me, unfortunately.  Regarding my last post about trying to straighten my path, it has made a big difference.  I have gained much more accuracy and consistency with my irons. Not having to rely on some big draw is nice. I honestly, don't remember what I was doing before to cause the in to out path, but my current swing thoughts are: slightly open stance (what feels open to me is straight on or slightly left), lean right at set up and imagine swinging the low point past the left side of the ball, straight back take away and "high," and then "stay back" to allow my hips to turn and get through the ball.  I added one tiny grip adjustment today, but I'll get to that in a moment.

I played in my fall fling last week.  3 pro ams in a row.  I went +2 and even the first two days.  Both those days, the greens were bumpy and tee to green was getting better over the couple rounds.  The 3rd day, the greens were faster and smoother, and my tee to green has been getting good.  I decided to walk, because my dad was with me.  (I usually ride because at the course I work at, it is cart mandatory).  I was -5 through 12 holes on a shotgun start and on the turn, I started thinking.  Ugh, why do I have to starting thinking.  Didn't feel right on the 10th tee and hooked one hard into a bunker and ended hole with a double.  After that, I also got tired from the walk I think, because my pre shot routine felt not sloppy, but not all there.  I could manage my pars but it wasn't the same as in the beginning of the round.  Finished that 3rd day a -2.  Disappointing, but overall, a decent round.

This morning, I was thinking about my grip.  I want to keep my right palm parallel with the club face.  I feel like I can control the face more when it is like that.  During that 3rd round, I had moments where I couldn't get it to feel right.  Today I messed a bit with it and felt like my fingers on the right hand were going underneath the shaft a bit more and then allowing my palm to wrap around.  It made me feel like the right hand wasn't gripping the club as hard.  I played 18 holes today from the white tees at my course. It's quite short, but with all the trouble we have surrounding the course, the yardage doesn't do it justice.  Right away, I knew I was carrying the ball 5yds further.  Slightly off shots on the first few holes were still traveling the overall yardage I wanted. As I started hitting better, I adjusted my strategy with distance.  I only missed 2 greens today. I had 1 eagle, 1 bogey, and 8 birdies.  My first two holes both had reasonable birdie putts that I missed, but then I started draining them.  I had 3 other missed eagle putts, one of which I 3 putted for par.  So yeah, a 63!! My lowest round EVER! No witnesses, but I don't care.  It felt great to just have everything hit my mark and shoot a low score!  Good end to the season!

[phillyk]

Well, finally got a video of my latest swing.  This was with a 3-iron that went around 240yds.  Hole is labeled at 270yds, but I cut across the corner a bit and ended up a couple yards shy of the green.  This was a push draw. My long irons, I believe, have a more in to out swing than my lower irons but I still like where I am at the moment.

After yesterday's 63, I played with a co-worker today from one tee further back, and wanted to see if I can keep things going.  Well, I think I did. Shot a -4, 68.  This was with another eagle and 4 (yeah 4) bogies.  Ugh! A couple bad holes and a 3 putt.  Could've been another incredible round.  I like the slight grip change, it's keeping me loose.

[boogielicious]

8 hours ago, phillyk said:

Well, finally got a video of my latest swing.  This was with a 3-iron that went around 240yds.  Hole is labeled at 270yds, but I cut across the corner a bit and ended up a couple yards shy of the green.  This was a push draw. My long irons, I believe, have a more in to out swing than my lower irons but I still like where I am at the moment.

After yesterday's 63, I played with a co-worker today from one tee further back, and wanted to see if I can keep things going.  Well, I think I did. Shot a -4, 68.  This was with another eagle and 4 (yeah 4) bogies.  Ugh! A couple bad holes and a 3 putt.  Could've been another incredible round.  I like the slight grip change, it's keeping me loose.

No comments about the swing except the lighting is spectacular! It should be used in an ad about the beauty of Golf!

[Phil McGleno]

Alignment is better-But it still looks about the same.

[phillyk]

After that 68, I shot a -2, 70 from our tips. Today, I decided to try a change of scenery by playing a course I haven’t played in a long time. Slightly annoying part that I found out on #1 is they aerated 2 weeks ago, and the greens were still bumpy and slow. I had put my 2nd shot to 10ft for eagle and missed because it bumped dead left just before the hole. It was one of those putts you are walking in because you knew it was dead center after hitting it. 

Overall, I hit my driver, irons, and wedges just about spot on. A couple mistakes, but nothing that hurt too much. Putting, I thought I hit my lines well, but speed was slightly off. But, I still ended up at a -5, 67. 

I had 3 tap in birdies from near to full wedge shots. Everything really felt good today. 

[Double Mocha Man]

On 10/24/2018 at 3:32 PM, phillyk said:

After that 68, I shot a -2, 70 from our tips. Today, I decided to try a change of scenery by playing a course I haven’t played in a long time. Slightly annoying part that I found out on #1 is they aerated 2 weeks ago, and the greens were still bumpy and slow. I had put my 2nd shot to 10ft for eagle and missed because it bumped dead left just before the hole. It was one of those putts you are walking in because you knew it was dead center after hitting it. 

Overall, I hit my driver, irons, and wedges just about spot on. A couple mistakes, but nothing that hurt too much. Putting, I thought I hit my lines well, but speed was slightly off. But, I still ended up at a -5, 67. 

I had 3 tap in birdies from near to full wedge shots. Everything really felt good today. 

You made me think about which courses around here open with a par 5.  Semiahmoo, Sudden Valley, Bellingham Country Club.  Can't think of any others.

[phillyk]

Posting a life update. Golf game may start to suffer a bit and I don’t have plans to do many more bigger tournaments for a while. But, I’ll try to keep it up at work.

My future pga tour star was born last night 😉 he’ll get a club in his hands quick! Already has a good grip.

I don’t know, maybe me just playing instead of tinkering so much will be good for me. A good force. 

[billchao]

8 minutes ago, phillyk said:

Posting a life update. Golf game may start to suffer a bit and I don’t have plans to do many more bigger tournaments for a while. But, I’ll try to keep it up at work.

My future pga tour star was born last night 😉 he’ll get a club in his hands quick! Already has a good grip.

I don’t know, maybe me just playing instead of tinkering so much will be good for me. A good force. 

Congrats @phillyk!

[Double Mocha Man]

7 minutes ago, phillyk said:

Posting a life update. Golf game may start to suffer a bit and I don’t have plans to do many more bigger tournaments for a while. But, I’ll try to keep it up at work.

My future pga tour star was born last night 😉 he’ll get a club in his hands quick! Already has a good grip.

I don’t know, maybe me just playing instead of tinkering so much will be good for me. A good force. 

Congrats Phil.  Let me know if you need a baby sitter.  Remember, I'm just up the road.  (JK... I don't babysit... did that with my 20 year old son too many years.  He played on the Sehome golf team.)

[iacas]

Congratulations!!!

[DeadMan]

Congrats!

[coachjimsc]

Congrats @phillyk!