i-Guy

First of all "Good Luck" and making the commitment to really improve is a first step. Secondly do not worry about your handicap...true it is a way to measure your improvement but be focused on improving and the handicap will drop quickly. About a year and a half ago I was a 12 (had been for two years)...so like you decided to get serious about improving and I wanted to be a single digit handicap...well I did it mainly by focusing on my short game...I made a commitment for 6 months that every time I went to the practice range that I would chip and putt for an hour and a half before hitting balls...my handicap dropped to an 8 handicap within those 6 months...short game is where you can lower your scores the quickest so I am not surprised that he gave you a putting lesson first. And believe me my ball striking is still a weakness in my game...if my ball striking is even half way decent during a round I will break 80...but I only broke 80 five times in 2009 (I had shoulder surgery in January 2010 so have not played much golf this year) and I continue to work on my full swing. My suggestion to you is to continue to work on your full swing and with a coach but if you want to be a 10 handicap… WORK ON YOUR SHORT GAME!!!

No...I mean like I am swaying onto my right foot...that is probably why I am seeing decent results with a more traditional swing. Oh so in essence what you are saying is that I am not staying stacked in my backswing and therefore doing more of a tilt (by my left shoulder going down and forward) versus a good shoulder turn by my left shoulder going down and more toward the ball??? Yes???

Interesting variation...I will have to give this a try...this is what these kind of threads are for to get different perspectives on ways to improve your game! My pre-round rountine (with two balls) is as follows: 1) Hit multiple putts from various lenghts even up to 30-40 feet to engrain into my touch and feel the speed of the greens (good for lag putting later) 2) Set up from 3 feet and do the "Tiger" tee drill - find a straight 3 footer and set my putter down square to the hole and put a tee on each end of my putter with a little wiggle room...then just hit 10-20 putts by putting the ball in the middle of the tees and making a stroke thorugh the tees and into the hole...this does two things: 1) Keeps my putter sqaure to the target and 2) gives me a lot of confidence seeing and hearing putts fall into the hole.

Yes that is a good drill also and I do that sometimes just to not get bored with the drill I explained.

HELP!!! I will try to post a video in the near future but the following is a little history on me and where I am currently: Late last year after a year and a half of countless lessons on the traditional swing and seeing enough video of myself “not” doing a good job of getting off my left side during the golf swing I decided to try the S&T; and BOOM! It worked fantastic (I have posted somewhere on this thread with remarks to this affect)…anyway I only got to play 5-6 rounds (which my ball striking during those rounds was the best it’s ever been) because in January I had shoulder surgery (rotator and labrum tears repaired in my left shoulder). About six weeks ago, I was released by my doctor to start swinging irons only and have tried to go back to the S&T; but I am really struggling to find the form I had with the S&T; last fall...for whatever reasons when I try to work on the S&T; at the range I tend to do more tilting then turning and therefore end up in a reverse pivot (maybe it has something to do with my surgery as I am still having bouts with some pain while rehabbing per my doctors orders)...Anyway I own the video series and have been trying to watch the video and apply the basic positions and moves of the S&T; to no avail…every once in a while I hit one like last fall but most of the time I feel like I am doing a small weight shift and therefore putting myself in position for a reverse pivot and I cannot stop…so in attempt to have some pleasure swinging the club I have tried the traditional swing and have had decent results…well until I start leaving my weight on my left side again???

iacas I appreciate your reply on the "pivot pro"... In reference to your comments about the S&T;, I will post something in the S&T; thread and see if you guys can help...thanks.

Has anyone checked out the " Pivot Pro " http://www.pivotpro.net/ In attempting to go back to a more traditional swing (was using the S&T;) I find that I am inconsistent mainly because I tend to sway in the backswing...in trying to teach myself to be more consistent and not sway I saw this devise and was wondering is anyone has tried it and what they thought? Thanks.

I think the cure to confidence on making short putts is PRACTICE …last year I dedicated myself to practicing short putts and dropped my putting average to 30 putts per round…it got to the point that when I got inside 6 feet my playing buddies would say “you got that”…not that I made them all but I made a lot of putts to save par. What I did to improve is what I call the ladder drill as follows and all you need is two balls, 5 tees, your putter and dedication to improving: 1) Put a tee in the ground at 3ft, 5ft, 7ft, 9ft and 11ft. 2) Next (using 2 balls) start at 3ft and make both putts in a row… 3) Once you have made it at 3ft go to 5ft and try to make both balls 4) Now if you only make one at 5 feet then go back to 3 feet and start over “NO MATTER WHAT” I cannot tell you how many times I got to the last ball at 11ft (made both balls at each tee) and missed... Two things this drill does without having to think about it… 1) You practice "A LOT" from 3ft and 5ft…making you a good short putter 2) It teaches you to putt under pressure because every putt counts if you want to finish the drill. Another thing is each time you go out to do this drill use different breaks, left to right, right to left, down hill, uphill etc… Lastly do not get frustrated if you are not able to finish this drill (making both balls at each tee all the way to 11ft) but I guarantee it will make you a better putter…try it!

OH you are so correct on that point! I am sure many of us have experienced playing with someone who tells you they usually shoot in the 80's and then they don't count if they whiff or they don't take proper penalty strokes and I even have buddies who struggle with the math...LMAO! They will get done with the hole and start counting and I already know their score (I am an accountant so it just comes natural) and they will routinely miss count...and funny they always come up with less strokes...Ha! Ha! Once in awhile (because it really doesn't matter to me as I only care that I count my score correctly...unless we are playing for money) I will correct them and point out each shot to get them to their true triple bogey...and usually they just go “Oh yeah I forgot about that one stroke”...and then two holes later they do it again...LOL Don't get me wrong in that I am a strict rule follower (oh yeah I did tell you I am an accountant already...dang ) but really I just think that a set of rules (USGA) gives you the opportunity to measure yourself consistently and gives you the ability to compare for purposes of improving…anyone can sandbag but then again I have seen scratch golfers shoot 85…that is why they call it GOLF!!!

It is cheating if you post that round for handicap purposes per the USGA. This is not "i-Guy's" rule...if I play a casual round or a practice round I sometimes play mulitple balls trying differnt shots but I do not post that round for handicap purposes. I will tell you that if you play tournament golf they will make you go back to the tee...I had that happen to me in a FSGA quailifer tournament once as we were teeing off into the rising sun and I hit my ball in the rough and we searched for 5 minutes and could not find it...back to the tee I went...embarrassing to say the least

I would have to say that is not a bad scale to try and differentiate between levels of golfers. However, let me say that I read a few posts where people talked about keeping proper score etc…and that is a key to knowing where you really stand in the game. Your handicap is related to your abilities which include knowing the rules of the game. Have you ever taken the rules quiz on the USGA website…man it can be a real eye opener and I thought I knew the rules. Anyway back on topic…I would have to say that I think a “good handicap” is relative to each person and what they want to achieve…I know the average handicap is around 15-16 so it would be easy to say anything below that is better then average thereby making them good and then (per the scale above) better at different points along the way all the way to scratch??? But from a relative standpoint an example is that my goal is to play competitive amateur golf. I carry and 8.1 handicap index and last year my average score (considering course slope and rating) was 84. I played one tournament (two day tournament) and shot 84 / 81. After the first day the tournament was flighted by handicap and I placed 5th in my flight. That might sound good to some but I was not pleased to say the least.

Ditto...could not have said it better iacas ! However, I would like to add that this saying “Shooting at the middle of the green” is easier said then done. I suppose from a cognitive approach this makes sense and is easy to comprehend…but in reality it is not very easy to hit your irons to the middle of the green on every approach shot or the average handicap would be a lot less. Try it and prove me wrong …if you keep your stats then you know on the avg how many GIR you have per round…now for the next 5 rounds go play your favorite course…on every hole with your approach shot forget about the pin and just shoot for the middle of the green…keep track of you avg GIR during those five rounds and unless you have reached a new level “all of sudden” with your iron game there will not be much of a change. Heck let me blow your minds with this concept… your avg GIR’s will increase when your short game gets better? WHAT? Has “i-Guy” lost his mind? I don’t think so…think about it like this. You are in the middle of the fairway with a 9 iron in your hand and you are staring at the middle of the green (following the advice above) but as you go to start your backswing a thought goes through your mind that “My short game sucks and if I don’t hit the green I will at best make a bogey”. What happens next is that you get tense…you grip the club a little tighter because of your fear and you make a bad swing and miss the green. It happens probably more then you realize. Have you ever heard of the concept of playing the game backwards (from green to tee)…that is how you should develop and practice your game as follows: 1) As your short game (chipping and putting) get better your short to mid iron game improves (see explanation above) 2) As you short to mid irons improve so will your tee game (driver) as you will put less pressure on this part of your game for results Make sense? Well it does to me and since changing to this philosophy I have dipped into the single handicap range…I still see way to many Amateurs at the driving range pounding buckets of balls while the chipping and putting areas are empty…and if these Amateurs do make their way over to the chipping and putting area it is not for very long...just my 2 cents!!!

I think it is his backswing motion that to me seems the most like S&T...in; that his backswing is inside more then most...his right leg virtually straigthens...and he tilts towatd the ball. I am no expert on the S&T; and even though I use the method since I have had no instruction maybe my visuals are not the same as someone who has taken lessons on the S&T; but when I watch Lee's backswing in slow motion (DVR) it sure resembles the things I think about in my version of the S&T; backswing...

Dang I forgot that part on my earlier post...yes you can encounter some difficulties getting a FOUR 5 to work on certain carts but it will work...sometimes you will have to set it sideways or sometimes just tightening the strap a little bit works (holds it in place) but I have tested many carry bags and even though some of them work on a cart pretty good they SUCKED as a carry bag (not good harness, not 14 dividers or heavy)...so believe me it is worth the little bit of hassle that you may have to go through once in awhile getting your FOUR 5 on a cart versus all the pleasure it will bring you if you walk the course, practicing at the range or just simply going back and forth to your car each time you play or practice…good luck with what ever you decide.

His swing definitely has some S&T; characteristics to it as his weight seems to stay on his left for the most part and his backswing is short and over his bicep (especially with his irons)...however, it is not totally S&T; as he has some extra moves and the S&T; promotes straight arms at impact (not bent like his left arm). Very interesting swing and just goes to show that you have to find a swing that works for you as the following applies: 1) There are no pictures on the scorecard 2) Tournament golf is not a contest of who has the most beautiful "classic" swing or Adam Scott would have won a lot more 3) Tournament golf is not a contest of who hits it the most accurately or Heath Slocum (FIR leader on Tour) or Anthony Kim (GIR leader on Tour) would have won a lot more then they have. 4) Proves that if you can find a reliable way to swing the club that works for you and have a solid short game you can score well Believe me...you can pick on Lee's short game all you want but if you ever got to play with him you would be blown away by how good his short game is... and can he friggin putt or WHAT?

**Vote for the SunMountain Four 5** I have a Four 5 and have not found a better carry bag anywhere. It has the 10.5 opening at the top with 14 dividers that keeps your clubs organized very nicely…the legs work as designed…it has plenty of pockets for your needs and the carrying harness works perfectly. I have compared it to the Nike bag and even owned a Nike SQ Tour for a short period in which I went right back to the Four 5…the main differences to me are as follows: 1) Harness – the one on the Four 5 is easier to manage and is more comfortable in my opinion 2) Top Collar handle – The Nike bag does not have one at all and this is an excellent feature on the Four 5 as it makes taking the bag off your shoulder and setting it down simpler and it is great (as bong_crosby said) for moving the bag around short distances. 3) Weight – the Four 5 is definitely lighter and though it may not seems that big a deal when you are comparing them at the store…when you load them up with clubs and carry them around there is a difference. Now you may play Nike clubs and want a bag that goes with your clubs and that is understandable but like some else said making bags is what SunMountain is all about and they do a great job and no matter what clubs you carry you will be happy with the Four 5…just my 2 cents.

I feel like your Pre-Round Routine should be just to get the feel and blood flowing in your golf muscles...as I have heard many Pros' say that they stripped it on the range this morning but played like crap or I have heard them say I hit it terrible on the range and played great...so to my point I think your Pre-Round Routine is not the time to evaulate your swing...that is what practice, practice and practice is for...so with all that said my Pre-Round Routine is as follows: Try to arrrive an hour before hand to make sure I get checked in, get shoes on, get bag on cart etc...so I have 40-45 minuntes to perfom the following: 1) Putting (15 min) - Start off with two balls and just hit longer putts to get the feel of the green...I do this long enough to feel like I have the speed...then I find a hole and hit a bunch of four footers doing the between the tees drill...this gets my putter tracking correctly on short putts and builds confidence as I consistently hear the ball going in the hole 2) Chipping (15 min) - I start off with three balls and hit shorter chips and work on finding my feel for the shot and also seeing how the ball will roll out on the greens that day...then I will hit various chips and pitches to start to warm up the golf muscles 3) Range (15 min before round starts) - I always start with a 6 or 7 iron because all I am trying to do here is find my tempo and sequence to my swing...I find mid-irons work best for this when staring out hitting balls at the range (I even do this when practicing)...I could hit 10-30 balls working again on tempo. Then I will hit the next 5-10 balls with the club I am going to hit on the first tee...I will go through my Pre-Shot Routnine with each shot so to get myself comfortable with my rountine in anticpation of the first shot of the day that counts. I just find this Pre-Round Routine works best for me and usually puts me in a good mind set going to the course that I am warmed up regardless of how I performed at each station...but to each his own as you have to find what works for you...

Let me see you asked for an idea that "does not distract the eye" ...I play the Srixon Z Star and I simply color in the letter "O" in the word Srixon...On your ball (per your signature) it says Callaway Golf...maybe just try coloring in the letter "O" in the word Golf???

You would play your ball as it lies and your playing partner would replace their ball back to where it was originally (best they could)...there is no penalty...I think this is Rule 18-5 and 19-5a...(I am not a rule offcial but I just recently read about this ruling)...

First of all I am glad your are making better contact...I know how horrible it feels when you cannot figure something out, however, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but by moving closer to the ball you may have just applied a bandaid and your real issue is what I wrote in an earlier post in that The most common cause of hitting off the toe is releasing the club early , the wrist unhinging and the right arm straightening too soon on the downswing. Players who do that tend to hit fat shots, so they learn to yank the club upward either by standing up or bending their left elbow. The problem is, both moves pull the club toward the body, closer then it was at address, which causes contact off the toe… as you did say in an earlier post that you have been hitting some fat shots (early release)...so I would continue to look at your swing and maybe figure out why you have started to release the club too early and then hopefully you can go back to your normal address and hit the ball solidly....usually people release the club early because of their wrist hinge breaking down because at the top of their backswing they lift their arms thereby, separating their elbows in which case you cannot hold your wrist hinge...take a look at what I suggested and hit some punch shots from your normal address (not addressing the ball on the heel) and see if you make good contact...because when you make shorter swings (punch shots) you will tend to not lift your arms and keep your wrist hinge and then be able to be in a better impact position versus releasing the club early...just my 2 cents...Good Luck!

Is there a simple way to calculate "carry distance" with a driver if your average "Total" drives are 265-275? I know that wind, roll, draw, fade, and many other things can dictate different total distances for each drive but I was just wondering if there is some simple way so that I can assume my carry distance (on the average) when playing the course. Now that we all have GPS devices I get all this carry information when standing on the tee over hazards but without sitting there hitting 10 drives in a row (which you cannot do at most courses) to see what my average is to carry the hazard…I have no idea really what my true avg carry distance is...I find myself getting in trouble when I did not think I should and then vice versa...clear as mud?

I staretd doing some version of this last year (useing a 7 iron) as my coach and I discussed how swinging a short iron to start forces your lower muscles to get invovled while being bent over etc...a long or mid iron to warm up just makes a lot of sense and in my humble opinion should only be used to warm up your muscles and to think about sequence...forget about results...after 10-15 balls like this then maybe go to a PW or 9 iron and start making full swigns with a purpose of finding your tempo for the day...just my 2 cents...

Okay but you just asked why are you hitting it off the toe...but now that you ask...ha! ha! I also read this somehwere... Practice hitting punch shots…the shorter backswing and firmer wrist will promote a hands-leading impact position with a straight left arm. This helps maintain the radius of the swing so you bring the club to a fully extended impact position for center-face contact…hope this works...

I read this somehwere... The most common cause of hitting off the toe is releasing the club early, the wrist unhinging and the right arm straightening too soon on the downswing. Players who do that tend to hit fat shots, so they learn to yank the club upward either by standing up or bending their left elbow. The problem is, both moves pull the club toward the body, closer then it was at address, which causes contact off the toe…

I understand that...maybe I did not express myself correctly...what I am saying is that not only am I staying on my left side (like you should in the short game) I am actually finding myself straightening my right leg, taking the club more inside and tilting my left shoulder...kind of like a mini verison of my S&T; full swing...again I am chipping pretty good so I can only imagine I may have been doing this before I switched to the S&T; for my full swing but did not think about these moves before...I was just wondering if anyone else had experienced this when switching to the S&T;, in that a mini version of their full swing crept into their short game??? Clear as mud?