Hardspoon

I’m in for both days.

I use GolfPride CP2’s on my irons, and there is no way those tags are coming out. You almost need a tool to even thread them in all the way. @billchao- I have a full set of extra tags I’m never gonna use. PM me and I’ll send you whichever ones you want.

Birdies on 3 and 8 yesterday...two in a round is unusual for me. Both “new”.

More of the same, in terms of golf game, over the last couple weeks. Driver has been really good. Other areas, not so much. This graphic pretty much says it all: Performance with driver before my May visit to Erie...222 yard typical drive, 35% right (my "bad" miss). Since that visit...241-yard typical drive, with 47% missing left (not nearly as bad a miss, for me). Pretty neat to see the swing change make that significant a difference. The fairway % is a little misleading, because the range of misses themselves have not been nearly as bad since I have much less curve on the ball. As far as the swing itself, the backswing piece is getting more and more ingrained, so I'm working more and more on the "swing out, miss the noodle" part. I haven't been to the practice range at all, but I've been playing twice a week recently.

Surprised he had time to write this AND run the Gates Foundation. (I'm going to try to check it out on my Kindle when available).

2nd shot on #7: a perfect 4-wood out of light rough, with a slight draw to it...setting up a relatively easy par. I've been struggling lately with my fairway wood and hybrid, so it felt especially good.

Not really swing-related, but I just booked a trip to Pebble Beach. We'll be playing Spanish Bay, Spyglass Hill, and Pebble. Can't f'ing wait.

View this round on GAME GOLF Nice round today with @iacas at Cranberry Highlands. Score isn't really accurate* - played a couple lost balls in the fescue as "hazards" - but I still played pretty well. Only 5-over* on the back 9. I'm enjoying my newfound distance with the driver. No more weak fade/slices. Putting continues to be a problem...mostly due to mental lapses where I simply don't make a good stroke at the ball.

Only played once this week...my best shot was this drive on #16: I aimed right over the bunkers...and hit it perfectly, with a little draw (!)...261 slightly uphill, and it had to carry at least 230 to get there clean. I've been working on shallowing my swing lately so when I hit a shot like that with the driver it gives me some good vibes.

Per the chart, I should play courses about 6,275. I voted “I play shorter tees”, because I usually try to play courses right around 6,000 yards. Some of that is because of the folks I play with. I guessed 50% for the number who play tees too long...based on my “wild ass guess” observing people I’m paired up with when I play alone.

Pete Dye Golf Course in WV was built on the site of old coal mines. At one point, between holes, you take a ride through an old mine tunnel. That course...is probably one of the worst golf courses I’ve ever played. FWIW, here is how I played #9: 🙂 Just blow it by the tree in that 10-yard window...easy breezy. Fun fact: the only time I’ve ever been stung by a bee on a golf course was at Flying B. In the parking lot, of all places.

This was a good one from Sunday's round. The course had a windstorm during the week that broke off hundreds (!) of trees. You can see the flag left-center of the photo. I went for it...why the heck not. Tried to punch a 5-iron through the "window"...ended up catching one of the overhanging limbs and dropping down about 10' later. Fortunately clear of the trouble, so I was able to hit onto the green with my next shot.

I still haven't been able to practice much, but I've been playing more. I've been practicing the grip and backswing piece at home, so I think those have "stuck" pretty well...but I'm not doing as well at the "swing outward" part on the course. At the same time, the changes have led to promising results. I now miss the driver both directions, but I've eliminated my worst miss (weak push slice). My "big miss" now is actually the over-the-top pull...but it isn't any more offline than the old miss, and it goes about 40 yards further. Today's round with driver: Most solid drives are creeping up into the 240 range. Similar story with irons. No more weak slices...my miss is a pull when I swing over the top. Basically, I'm getting the clubface to square or closed because of the grip change...and just need to keep working on pairing that with an outward swing path. I've actually seen the biggest gains in my short wedges (100-50 yards). The new takeaway and focus on "swinging out" has vastly improved my contact. I've significantly reduced the chunked or thinned wedges.

View this round on GAME GOLF This round was quite the rollercoaster. Was fun though, and I actually didn't play as badly as it seemed overall. My bad shots just REALLY cost me.