ayysolapsu09

So I do apologize if this has been brought up in the pages before, but here it goes anyway. For the sake of argument, let's assume two basic groups for the game; that is a mid-to high-handicapper's mental game vs a low-to-scratch handicapper's mentality. They are pretty diverse groups, with a large span in between each group (20 HC and 10 HC are both considered mid to high, and 5 and scratch are both low and scratch), so it's intentionally broad in scope. The key to understanding the balance between the short and long game is to summarize the goal of good golf; creating opportunity. I've read on this website somewhere that the difference between a 20 HC and a 10 HC is closer than the difference between the 5 HC and the scratch. This is probably because as a 10 HC player, you make generally fewer mistakes than the 20 HC player, but they are similar in nature (mental errors are fewer but not extinct; basic form issues are minimized (OTT-like issues); and our misses on the green are similar (putts are generally a similar distance away, with a larger percentage of the 10 HC player's wedge shots getting closer than the 20 HC player)). 10 HC players also have a larger arsenal of recovery shots in their toolbox; I know it took me forever to pull off a good punch shot from under the trees, and now it's a good go-to shot based on the conditions. But IN GENERAL , there are more similarities than differences between the 10 and 20 HC player. A similarity is that the long game is generally not as consistent (not good or bad, but consistent) with the mid to high HC players. Drives are not always in the fairway; hybrid and FW shots are not always laid up well; sometimes you're playing from the rough more often than not; etc. These are generally lost shots; it's difficult to consistently make par from these areas. You don't create opportunity when you slice every other hole, you are fighting the course. The Best way, not the easiest, or the fastest, but the best way, is to get the ball on the fairway. The only way you're keeping the ball on the fairway is by keeping it in play off the tee. So generally, the best way to create opportunities to score well for the high handicapper is to keep the ball in play off the tee, or the long game. Low to scratch players, on the other hand, are worlds apart in how consistently they score, and this is because of their short game. They need to hone their short game because the more precise they are, the better they score. They have fundamentals ingrained deeply to the point where it is reactive in nature; they (unlike mid-to high HC players) don't think about everything during a swing, only what is necessary to place the idea of a good swing in their head. I swing my best when I minimize the junk in my head to a simple idea (Ex. Hit the green, strike the tangent of the ball, short follow-through, etc), and just execute that simple idea. In other words, the facets of the game are generally covered well with low to scratch players. In this case, consistent accuracy, not just consistency, is a premium. They are already creating opportunity with their long games more consistently than the high handicapper. A scratch player can get it on the green with eyes closed; how close they need to get it, controlling the spin, understanding the grain of the grass; these are all factors that come when you know you're getting on the green. You know you're getting on the green, as a scratch player, when you are at 130 yards in the fairway with a wedge in hand. The question becomes how to do it on this particular hole; hop and stop, bump and run, or spin it back? These questions are set up by your long game, which is already solid. It's your short game that matters more at this point. And amac is right; none of it matters if you get so angry after every miss that you break your clubs in half. Mental discipline was one of the hardest but most valuable lessons I have taught myself. It is vital to keep mental mistakes at bay, to accept your mistakes, and to be able to move on. Those that say the long game is best but don't produce when it comes time to put the ball close need to work on their short games. Those that say "Drive for show, putt for dough"; a one-put for a bogie is worse than a two-putt for par. You should've probably driven the ball better to set you up for that one-putt birdie. It goes hand in hand; they are always dependent on each other. Many of you guys have said this in one form or another. The scratch player doesn't neglect his or her long game after they get to scratch, and the high handicapper doesn't forgo the short game because they are a 20 handicapper. It's a continuum, which is probably always changing and moving throughout a golfing career. But in general, it is probably better to work on getting consistency in the long game so that opportunities are created for the short game.

I have had one so far in the 8 years I've been playing. It happened on November 17th, 2012, and there were several awesome things about that hole in one besides the actual hole in one. I was playing Heritage Hills Golf Course in York, PA with my dad. It was the first time I have ever played that course (awesome thing #1), and I actually had a witness (#2) since I play alone more often than not. It was on the 5th hole, which was severely downhill par 3 playing around 155. The hole before that, I shot a 10. 10 on a 4. I had my 6 iron in my had for my approach (terrible idea, since it is by far the worst club in my bag), duck hooked it into fescue, and it went completely downhill from there. We waited for the guys on the next hole to clear out, and I pulled my 9 iron out since it was a steeply downhill shot. I set up, did my thing, and took a swing. As soon as I hit it, I knew that I couldn't have hit that ball any better if I had been given a million other shots in a million other lives (Tuning fork in the loins). The pin was in between the two tiers, and the ball landed on the upslope of the green and spun back right into the hole. All of which I saw perfectly, since we were uphill. It was probably the most surreal moment in golf I've experienced to this point.

I'd have to agree that stationary is difficult to do. But this month's golf digest has hank haney telling us that the right foot should stay on the ground as long as possible. So I doub he's advocating a stationary right foot (something that I doubt you can do and get good power), but there has to be something to the idea of delaying the right foot coming up. Maybe it's not so much as a forced, contrived thing as it is something that is a byproduct of a solid swing?

I normally don't really ask questions like this, but I wanted to get some thoughts on this subject. 1) Does anyone really actively think about the right heel/foot and if it comes up or not? I certainly don't right now, but I don't know if that's an active part of the swing thought for you guys. 2) If you guys do think about the right foot, do you think about keeping it on the ground or do you think about driving it in a certain direction? I've read that a good indication of a solid foundation is how long you can keep the right heel connected to the ground. 3) if you guys do try to keep the right heel on the ground, how do you guys go about doing it? Any drills, thoughts that you incorporate in your practice sessions? Thanks for your help guys!

I guess that I'm one of those "chops" who shouldn't be playing with blades, but I still want to. At the end of last year, I got a hole in one with my old set (9 iron, perfect shot, should've been there). Not even two weeks later, I put $150 down on a used set of Mizuno MP-33's that I found on Craigslist. Why, you ask? Because I've been thinking about doing this forever, and I decided to pull the trigger, sell my old irons, and make the switch permanent. What happened? Long story short, there was a considerable time when I hit the ball horribly (surprise, I still have those days). And, every single bad shot that I hit, I felt it in my bones. It definitely sucked for a good while, and even my best friend (a PGA pro in the Phoenixville area), said that those irons aren't right for my game. I have to agree with him, but I also hit a pretty decent 85 last week with a couple of iron shots that simply cracked off the face (if you know the sound, you know what I'm talking about, it just oozes compression). I'm not saying that just because I hit an 85 one week I'm going to stick with irons that aren't necessarily the best for me. But I agree with most of the people on this thread, in that GI irons aren't necessarily game improvement, but rather game masking. I know that if I hit a bad shot, I will be penalized for it. Also, it's humbling to hit to the true loft of an iron, rather than the strengthened lofts of cavity backs sold today. My old set, my 150 club was my 8 iron. That has effectively dropped to my 7 iron, and sometimes I'm hitting a 6 based on pin placement, wind, conditions, etc. In the end, I really love my irons. I love the way they look (clean lines, but a weathered look to them, like they've been through battle). I love that I will get the feedback that I need to improve. And, I'm not a pro, I don't do this with the intent of making money. I can afford to put in some time to get better with these irons.

This year started out somewhat similar for me. I shot an 88 in one of my rounds, and not even a week later I shot a 102. I've been lingering in the 90's for a little while until I shot an 87 and 85 back to back on the same course last week (definitely didn't make all of the same mistakes, but def. made some of the same ones and some different ones as well). For me, I feel like I have a solid mental game in that I know when to take my medicine and play the safe shot. My mistakes on the 85 round was that I got too confident and started to pin-seek when I didn't need to (a miss on the left side of the green would short side me, and I'd have difficult chip shots. That happened more than once, and I take that as a mental error). But even during the 102 round, I found little things throughout the round that I was doing alright. That would keep me from feeling completely irked, and I would remain positive about my round even though my scores didn't reflect any progress. Personally, making on-course adjustments don't work as well as shortening my backswing does. If I start hitting poorly with my driver, I switch to my 3 wood or hybrid, and just start focusing on hitting fairways with what I have going on (baby fade or banana ball, I don't like seeing draws). I also just focus on hitting the shot that's in front of me (Drinkwater, I read Zen Golf and Rotella and came to a similar conclusion, I have a feeling that most golf psychologists use very similar methods in their books, all of which work pretty well), and just try to keep my ego in check (I rarely use a 3 wood or even a hybrid off the fairway, mainly only long irons. I don't hit the woods consistently enough for me to try that unless I'm feeling particularly spry :) ). In bad stretches, I try to come back to my fundamentals and try to jumpstart my imagination for my ball striking. I focus on the smallest point on the back of the ball, and just try to deliver the clubhead to that point, however it takes and however ugly it looks or feels. On the range, I just hit punch shots and keep my swing at 9-3. I also try to keep a mind on my tempo. I know that if I get too fast, that i don't gather myself as well as I do when my ballstriking is on point. And if all else fails, crack open a 6-pack and rip at it :)

I like fading the ball as well, and I can't really seem to get myself to draw the ball consistently off the tee (nor do I like the shot shape as much). I align my feet and body lines left, and align my club face in between where I am aiming and where I want the ball to end up (not quite at the target, just a little to the left of the target). I then unwind from the top and try to aggressively hit left as hard as I can while trying to hit it from the inside. One thing that I think about it t to have the heel staying ahead of the toe at impact. This will keep the club face opened up and closing at impact when you're pulling the club to the left. Best case scenario, I hit it super solid on the club face, and it travels just parallel to a straight shot, ends up landing around the same spot, and running like hell out to the right center of the fairway. Worst case scenario, I can get over the top and I pull it straight to the left. On rare occasions, my wrists decide to take on a life of their own and flip on impact, and duck hooks ensue. But it's a sweet feeling to see a shot shoot out to the left towards potential trouble, and knowing for a fact that it's going to stay in the fairway, because it's fading right back in.

Yes, but only with long irons so that I can get a feel for hitting the center of the club face with the long irons. On the course, I just hit one more club and put the ball back in my stance with an abbreviated follow-through, regardless of the club in hand. It usually works out just fine, except when it doesn't :)

I think one question you want to ask yourself is why you want to fix it. I have a fade myself, but I want to fix it not because I think a draw is better (I don't, I think a fade can be a better ball and more reliable than a draw), but because the way I'm hitting the ball I am not coming from the inside enough, and I'm coming over the top on my downswing. I have too many compensations that worked for a while, that aren't working now, and that need to be addressed, and I'm trying to address them as well as I can. Falling back may contribute to an improper impact position (weight isn't forward enough), but it may not the real reason you're slicing. I imagine that thinking you have an object under your foot (ball, sponge, etc), helps to brace your right leg in your back swing so you don't sway (re: steady head). I've been personally playing with that idea by pushing my right knee in about an inch before I took my club head back. I then felt as if I was stacked with all of my weight being centered over my instep , rather than my weight falling to the outside of my foot (still a work in progress). It may or may not work for you, talk to your pro about it. It may be a permanent solution if your swing path/club head position at impact/alignment are all promoting a draw, and falling back was the only reason that your club head would have been diverted of it's original track (I would think that a slightly open face at impact, but the club head diverting at impact to the left instead of keeping it's course. If someone better at biomechanics could contemplate this, maybe I'm dead wrong :) ). I think my point is that even though your swing thought has given you better results, it may not be the primary culprits of your fade/slice. It's something that an instructor/Trackman/video analysis can really pinpoint better than most (get it, GET IT???? I know, I'm an idiot). Hope this helps, and have fun. p.s. I hope the "guy" who told you this isn't some "guy", but rather a PGA Professional whom you trust. Be careful of unsolicited advice, it could potentially hurt more than help (speaking from experience, I blew up a potential round in the low 80's at a legit course by listening to some dude I got paired with, and subsequently shooting 10 over what I would've if I hadn't paid him any notice).

On numerous occasions I have hit fades that have gone as far if not farther than my buddy's draws. As long as you are striking the ball in the middle of the clubface, your angle of attack is good, and your alignments are what they should be, then you can get a lot if useable distance out of a fade, meaning that it still stays in the fairway (look up knucklefade from the encyclopedia Texarkana online and you'll see that it's the new ball flight's version of how to hit a draw). But there have been as many more times that my fade attempts usually result in sliders, so my impact conditions weren't as good as they could've been. Happens to all of us, I suppose.

I say this a lot to myself -"its alright.". And the phrase that turned my game around was "Take your medicine." I say "it's alright" because that keeps me creative about my next shot. If I short-side an approach shot into a bunch of weeds and I find it, I then say its alright, at which point I think of my best escape. Or if I'm in the woods, I use that phrase to start thinking of openings in the trees. Point is, it may not always be alright, but as long as I stay creative and visualize my shots, I stay sharp and I don't make stupid mistakes. "Take your medicine" refers to the moment when I realized that the hero shot was almost always going to make a loser out of me, and that a possible bogey save I'd better than a definite triple bogey. Definitely a mind game.

Age: 26 Height: 5'10" Where are your from: Harrisburg, PA How long have you been playing: 8 years Best score: 81 Favorite club in the bag: 8 iron, 3 Wood, and the trusty rusty foot wedge :-) Golf books/DVDs that have helped you: Zen Golf, Golf isn't a Game of Perfect, Encyclopedia Texarkana (online PDF) Where do you play: Carlisle, PA area, Harrisburg, some Reading courses, and wherever else I can. Best courses you've played so far: Ledgerock GC (Mohton, PA), Aronomink GC (Newtown Square, PA), The Wanderers Club (Wellington, FL), Iron Valley GC (Lebanon, PA) Things you enjoy most about golf: the chase towards a form of perfection; the sight, sound, and feeling of a perfectly struck ball, the challenge of escaping a horrible shot; knowing that I could be in a much worse spot in the world than on the teebox of a golf course. Goals for 2013: Consistently shoot in the low 80's; shoot at least one round in the 70's (18 holes); shoot at least 9 holes (at once) under 40; hopefully gain a greater understanding of the game

I've been playing around with something that I heard Nick Price does (confirm or deny if you people could, I'd appreciate knowing the source). I noticed that whenever I take the club on it's backswing, before I get to the top I can feel the pressure on my right foot roll to my outer right foot. I know that it's supposed to stay in between both insteps, and I notice that I am much more stable when that happens. To temper that, I kick my right knee in a little bit, so that when I look down my right kneecap is inside of my right instep. I then slowly go to 3/4 backswing, and try to get the feeling as if my left shoulder, right knee, and right foot/toes are all in a diagonal line with one another. I do that a few times slowly, and then I speed it up to about 80%. What it feels like during the swing is that I push a portion of my pressure towards the left side with the forward press, and while this is happening my head is much more stable (since I'm not swaying). I have only tried it out at the range once so far (too damn cold to do any more at this time of year), but even then my swing feels both more powerful and more consistent. Again, if there is a real source to this idea, let me know, I don't want to take credit for something that already exists.

Totally agree with this one. I routinely use my 3 wood off the tee because it is much more consistent than my driver. I can normally hit a fairly high, long pull fade with the 3 wood, where I sometimes struggle with a slice with my driver (technique errors that I have to work on, I think). Also, my go-to 2nd shot on most par 5's is my 5 or 4 iron, rather than my 3 wood, and it's only when I'm feeling particularly indestructible that I even touch my 3 wood off the deck. That leaves me with a comfortable 120-130 9i/pw into the green (I think. I just changed my irons from Taylormades to Mizuno MP-33 blades. It's an interesting adjustment). It's those shots that mess with my head :) As Denzel said, "This s*&^'s Chess, not Checkers!!" (Training Day).