phillyk

LIV Golf finally (!) has a TV deal LIV Golf is finalizing a multi-year media rights deal with the CW, an agreement that will bring the... LIV is paying CW for the coverage. They needed this step, for sure. We’ll see how their ratings do.

Well, after about 6 rounds and halfway through January, I only need to birdie 4 holes. I wish a monthly birdie challenge were something I could do but my playing opportunities go way down during summer.

Ouch! Good question. Problem…. It brings 59 into play but also 159. Im not sure I could live with myself if I shoot over 100 again, no matter if one of the rounds was 59. So I’ll have to take shooting about my average.

The trailer didn’t do anything for me. I still plan to watch. I expect drama to an extent, but I guess I’m more interested in how personal it gets into their routines outside of actual tournaments.

Got my right hand to 133lbs today. Didn’t test the left. Was messing with employees at my course to see what they were at, and I was surprised. Didn’t think I would be the highest.

This was posted to facebook, recently. The question is when does the weight shift start to occur? Some golfers move to their trail side from A1 to A2, and some don’t really move laterally much at all during that period. From that point on, we move towards our lead side. To understand this shift, I like to think more in terms of pressure (and eventually GRF) than weight, because it moves around more, is a bit easier to see (with force plates) and sometimes feel. EPR - End of Pelvis Rotation; TB - Top of Backswing This image is from Dr Kwon. Pay attention to the 3 arrows pointing upwards. There is one arrow for each foot and the third is taken from the center of pressure for the system. Each arrow is a vector, so it shows how much and in what direction. In the beginning, the center of pressure is sometimes more on the lead side as we push into the trail leg. Usually by A2, we stop moving into trail side. We stall, laterally, as we push hard through the trail foot to bring club upwards and around. At this point the COP is really close to the trail foot. Then around A3.5, you can see the COP move, more visibly, towards the lead side. Things certainly change fast in the transitionary phase. Between A4 and A4.5, the COP has already moved into and past the center of our stance. Now look at the direction of the arrow on the right foot and how it changes. There really isn’t a ton of change in horizontal force during the move from A2 to A3.5 (where the pressure in the trail foot is greatest and where the direction of weight shift occurs). In the transitionary phase (A3.5 to A4.5), is when the arrow really changes direction, but the amount is severely lessened. Hence, why we call it more of a fall, then an actual pushing effect. The push happens A2-A3.5, but in more of a vertical fashion than a horizontal one. So the question is, do lateral balance boards help with this? I personally prefer stepping drills, but I also haven’t used a balance board before. On the facebook post, many people agreed and some said it depends on when the shift occurs. Have any of you tried a balance board and did it help with the weight shift?

@ChetlovesMer nailed it. It looks like it’s a standard stiff 55g mid spin flight shaft. There’s tons of options on https://www.truetempersports.com/en-us/ Or go to https://www.golfworks.com/golf-club-shafts/c/2/ And compare pricing.

Granted I’m different because I do it for a living, but once I leave the house for the day, I’m wearing my spikeless and I have them on until I’m back. I think they are as comfortable as my normal shoes.

Haha, well I was pretty sure my grip strength was not good and I was right. Got my gripx today and I was 116lbs right hand and 103lbs left hand. I’ve always figured I get good speed despite my poor strength. I get 175-180 ball speed normally.

I need to definitely work out more and recently I’ve been given a good reason to do so. I need to set up more dates for my wife and I. We are done having kids now, so we need some activities for ourselves.

I’ve had a good start to the year. 3 rounds under par and an eagle in less than a week. I really hope this sticks around.

Not to you specifically, but TPI said in the beginning of the training that they are not meant to be a swing method or anything. They simply state certain physical restrictions may have certain outcomes when they swing a club. The TPI 12 swing characteristics are: sway, slide, hanging back, reverse spine angle, casting, chicken wing, over the top, early extension, S posture, C posture, loss of posture, and flat shoulder plane. We know that we want to do a couple of these things. The center of pelvis is moving around (sway and slide), the trail leg loses flex (to TPI, that’s a loss of posture), over the top a small amount is not a bad thing, some EE isn’t bad, and these days we promote an almost hanging back effect, with driver only, to hit up with power. TPI is about efficiency. To get that, they want a good range of motion and follow the kinematic sequence. That’s about it. TPI’s standard is based on PGA Tour players ranges of motion. On the screen sheet, it says this is what a PGA Tour player would be expected to do and what the different ranges under neath are. It’s not just about measuring range of motion, it’s also how well they get to it. If people have range but are shaking to get there, then there still could be an issue. For example, let’s say your shoulders are tight. You may have a limited LAT test, 90/90 test, and overhead deep squat test. TPI would predict some combination of over the top, chicken wing, and loss of posture. They don’t say these things will happen, it just could. They also don’t say working solely on shoulder mobility will fix these issues. For every screen item, it says that a possible cause of a failed test is poor coordination or simply not knowing how to do something. That brings us back to this: Most of my students are seniors. More physical restrictions exist there, so knowing at the beginning what could be a hinderance would be nice. I could screen to see if something is a restriction or they just don’t know how to do a movement pattern. More so, for me, these screens and connected workouts provide good stretches and warmups. Pelvic tilt, pelvic rotation, torso rotation, and seated trunk rotation are all items that I want to do not just for a physical screen, but for a good stretch and demonstration of proper movement pattern and posture. The main screens I want to do are: Overhead deep squat, 90/90, LAT, lower quarter rotation, wrist flexion/extension, seated trunk rotation, and pelvic rotation. Pelvic tilt will be used, more so, to help find neutral for their posture. Not necessarily a screen, but to help them understand where neutral is for their body. Torso rotation is good to help people understand the separation of lower and upper body, along with pelvic rotation. But pelvic rotation is important to see the range of rotation. TPI suggests doing all 16 screens, and they say it takes only 7min to do that. I’ll likely do a max of 10 of those, so 5min or less. We do want to screen somewhat regularly to see how things change. Is it day to day, based on workouts/stretches, based on learning proper swing mechanics, etc. I don’t plan to do the full screen for everyone. I do have specific classes planned that are TPI focused, so those will have screens. Senior golfers I’ll probably screen, but everyone else will be more as needed. I feel I’m going to use TPI more for the workouts and stretches, than for the actual screen itself. Each workout/stretch I can connect to specific patterns in the swing.

The course I worked at previously had zero reception. So all the geofencing was wonky. Couldn’t effectively enforce cart path only or cart rules in general. But yes, free marshals are usually nice.

I am going to do a screen of sorts. Some of the screens have a learning curve, I think. Like pelvic tilt, pelvic rotation, and torso rotation would require some practice with people. They can physically make the movement but don’t quite understand the separation. Once they get it, they get it. The range of motion may be important to see but I think most people have enough range to make a good swing. Overhead deep squat, 90/90, lat length, lower quarter rotation, and seated trunk rotation would be good to see. The wrist stuff will be very quick and once again, most people, I assume have good enough range in their wrists to do “proper” movements, so those I may not do. Not going to do anything with toe touch, cervical rotation and bridge with leg extension I think. I do want to do pelvic tilt with everyone but from the standpoint of finding neutral for their setup. So, basically I want to see range of motion. I’ll shorten the screen to see what I think are important. That could easily change with time. I’m still in a brainstorming period. The people I have tested, so far, were specific tests in which I expected a specific result. But, in my mind, I want to know certain results before we get started.

For me, it’s nice to know whether someone is incapable physically of doing something or they just don’t know they are supposed to do it. Now I have some tools to help distinguish that, and some solutions for both directions. I have been able to guess well before, but didn’t have solutions. Most of my customers are seniors so physical limitations go up a bit. Wasn’t meant to be a bible, just help a bit.

Everyone plays by feel. The transfer of information to movement is based on feels. So, absolutely, feel is completely individual. The question is what information and how is it presented? No need to apologize, we are all here because of the game. It’s a passion for many of us. It’s ok to say you think something or play a certain way. Have at it. We want to make sure the right information is there though. We don’t aim at anyone, just the ideas. The key is in the wrists and forearms because they should be somewhat “free.” We don’t want people to grip so hard that they are tense all the way to the shoulder. But imagine doing a punching jab. Make a fist but try to go fast. Grip hard in the fist but go fast. More and more, information is coming out to say faster swing means/needs a firmer grip. Tech is trying to improve efficiency of movements. If we increase effort, is the payoff worth it OR simply using same or less effort for better results. Distance, control, and consistency can all come with certain movements.

The edit here was not good. It kept zooming in for some reason. The iron swing was better anyway. Woah, it’s been a while since I last posted an update. That last post was about an awesome day. First off I completed TPI (Titleist Performance Institute) and SAM Putt Lab certifications. Both were needed to fill in gaps in my coaching, but TPI has definitely been helpful. What’s been a process, is applying the information to my own game. TPI allows you to go through physical tests to determine stability and mobility of your body in current form. The tests are based on the kinematic sequence and TPI’s 12 swing characteristics. Even PGA Tour pros fail some/several of these tests. I remember they said Adam Scott was one of five people who’ve gotten a perfect score. There were a few tests I did not do well on and it explained some tendencies in my game. In my posture, my thoracic spine was more curved than it was supposed to be. This meant it could be difficult to properly deepen my hands and some EE throughout. I also was unable to get my trail forearm in a vertical position when in golf posture. Instead it was parallel with my upper body which is evident in the video above. At a4, my right forearm stays parallel with my spine. If I tried to lower my hands in a way that would get my right forearm more vertical, I would lose posture in the swing (like keeping a towel in the right armpit on the backswing has always been really hard for me, not that I felt I needed to do that). There are some workouts and stretches I am doing to improve these areas. I definitely feel more sequenced in my swing now, because I am using my chest to turn better. Another thought for full swing I had, was to reduce hinge at a4 and intentionally increase it to a5, then “release.” The iron swing above did this well. The driver still wasn’t quite there, as usual. But I like how it fits with the TPI stuff. Short game has gotten much better with better posture from the thoracic spine work. Once again, from using my chest better, my low point and balance is much more consistent. SAM Putt lab helped me understand how people may need to find odd ways to align themselves to see “straight.” I typically never use the line on a ball. I could line it up really well from behind. But, over the ball, it never looked like it was lined up where I wanted it. This means my perception of straight is not correct, and that I need to change my position over the ball in a way that allows me to see that line pointing where I want it to. I noticed when I closed my left eye to line up the club and ball, it worked. So yeah, I’m closing my left eye now in my routine to get straightened out. My stroke is still somewhat inconsistent but I now can recognize it more clearly. My miss is a very slight pull which aligns with my old aiming method. So, a lot of positive vibes right now. I’m looking forward to next year.

Around A2 is when pressure starts to really increase in the trail foot. Should that sort of coincide with moving arms faster? I guess I ask, would it be most efficient to have those two things happen at similar times? Let the slight extension of the trail side and pressure “fling” the arms upwards? Certainly the core is involved too.

My dad and I are going to Pebble and Spyglass in March. We are required a 2 night stay to get those. So the trip is around $3000 I think. That’s about the limit for sure.

They’ll at least be pretty close. But yeah I’d look at the spec charts.

Good topic! I also don’t see LIV going away next year. I hope they don’t secure a major tv network deal, though. Without it, LIV viewership will continue to go down and thus it will fail, no matter the billions that can be dumped into it. What I want to see most of all, is for the tour players to stop bickering at each other or at all. I hate reading about friends turning on one another because of money. So stupid. Outside of LIV, I want to continue to see new talent rising. So many good players out there.

I’d say commissioner. He knows his limits. With TGR already going, I’d say he could a lot of good as commissioner. I’m sure he wants to play, but it’s showing all the time how little mobility he really has.

I understand that. But it’s a recommendation based on an expectation of reasonable pace of play, like @ChetlovesMersaid. In the same way that pins on the sides of slopes that run the ball far away, are technically legal just not recommended.

I disagree here. What’s proper tees? If the course has a forward tee box, I am still able to play those tees and record a score, properly. Same thing if I played the back tees. It shouldn’t matter at all what tee box it came from. The one exception I’d have are the family tee boxes, if a course has them, as they typically are not rated.

These sorts of topics bring this into mind. The arms really shouldn’t do much in backswing and assuming the lower body starts the downswing, there shouldn’t be much thought in needing to shallow. This also assumes good physical stability and mobility. Many people have poor posture and have trouble maintaining posture (most common of which are back issues). The outliers are just that. What is easiest and most efficient?