majorchamp

Had 2 stories that stand out. 1. Back in the 1998 state championship, I started on the back nine and went double, birdie, double, and came to the 13th hole and hooked my drive. I was trapped. Imagine if you have a clock, the actual green is at 10 oclock, and the only shot is simply to go right of the huge line of trees around 2-3 oclock. I considered my options like punching out into the fairway...and I decided to hit the biggest sweeping hook of my entire life. (serious, I have never hit a hook shot like this ever again). I was 200 yards out, aimed the clubface at the green, aimed by body, arm, legs, club) at 3 oclock and just tried to hook the living shit out of it. My father was on the other side of the fairway and thought I blocked the hell out of it..and said from his angle, it appeared to take a 90 degree turn. Landed about 50 yards short of the green and rolled up to 15 feet. It was the type of shot that turned my round, around..and I went on to play the remainder of the back nine at 1 over for a 40, and played the front nine at 3 under 33. that year I got runner up medalist. Just one of those shots I will always remember. 2. In a college tournament, I proceeded to chip in for par on this one hole..got to the next hole a par 5...pulled my drive in a bunker, laid out...tried to hit the green from 240...water, took my drop..and holed my 5th shot :) Was kind of cool to have 0 putts for 2 holes in a row.

thats awesome man. Yea definitely a keeper :) back in 1991 was the PGA Championship here in Indiana, I was 10 years old and got 69 autographs in a single day..from Fred Couples, Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, Ballesteros, etc... its all in a little notebook I have stashed somewhere.

Yea, I think some people take for granted the quality of courses the pros play, and how it affects their game/score. You hear Tiger and such complain about "bumpy" greens at a Major Championship..but I am sure bumpy to them is pristine to the average person or our local golf course. The fairway quality isn't fluffy, so they get consistent lies (for the most part) which aids in them making consistent contact more often, because the greens are often high quality, they can control their spin better on them. I am not taking anything away from their quality..they are DAMN GOOD at what they do, but a high quality golf course which perfectly mowed fairways and greens helps a player score a bit better :)

there is a local course in Zionsville called Wolf Run that is ridiculously private. I think its one of those courses where you have a $50k initiation fee, and like $500/month in membership fees (though given this economy, it might be much lower..this was back in like 2000 when I remember hearing this). Anyways, very tough golf course too...one of their Par 3's is 260 yards, all carry from the tips. Back when the PGA Championship was held at nearby Crooked Stick (the one John Daly won), several of the players like Nick Faldo, etc.. got a chance to play at Wolf Run. Nick was quoted as saying holes 12-15 I believe are 4 of the hardest consecutive holes he has ever played. anywho...found out last night I know someone who is a member there and he wants to take me out to play. SAWEET! :) I played there 2 times in the early 2000's, so looking forward to going back.

just like certain events get you exemptions into The Masters, U.S. Open, etc... I think if you happen to win one of the 4 prestigious Major Championships (which is the PGA Tours cream of the crop tournaments), you should be given an exemption into the Fed Ex Cup 1st event. It's up to the players at that point to try and advance, but I think its fair request they amend the rules for 2011 to allow for this.

on a different note, I find it completely ridiculous 3 major champions in 2010 did not play in the Fed Ex Cup. That is pathetic the way the Fed Ex Cup is setup in that regard.

can you post a video of your swing? Nobody will be able to correctly answer your swing issues with a short description like you wrote, just isn't really possible. If we see your swing, there are many knowledgable members of this forum who can definitely help.

if you have an over the top swing hitting pulls..and you try to start coming from the inside its only natural in the beginning you will be hitting blocks. Just need to work on your timing and making sure your upper body isnt getting ahead of the ball.

I have given up on trying to get too strong of a grip. If anything, I might have a slightly weaker grip..usually I look down and see 1 knuckle, maybe 1 1/2. I don't lay the grip in my palm..but I utilize 4 of my left hand fingers then the conventional "3". If fact, if I try to do the whole 3 finger grip in order to have a strong left hand...it seems no matter what I do I feel closed at address. I have to pop my left shoulder up and rotate my left arm inward in order to feel square, and it feels SO unnatural. So I stick with what feels best.

I play a Big Bertha 2 Pro Series driver, 9.5 degree with a Raport shaft, stiff (from like 5 years ago). I always had a problem with blocking it and hitting it low. I recently tested a new Titleist D2 (the 460cc version) driver...9.5 and stock shaft (Titleist Diamana Blue 65) stiff...and wow, I hit it probably 15 yards higher then my big bertha. Maybe a bit to high, but I loved it, and I rarely blocked it. Had a buddy of mine hit my big bertha, and he plays an extra stiff shaft in his driver...said mine felt like swinging a tree trunk. So my raport "stiff" felt to him like X2 stiff, so all these years I have been playing a shaft way too stiff...hence why its uber important to get fitted.

FWIW, Came across this video of Jamie Sadlowski at the Titleist Performance Institute discussing fitness and exercises fast forward to 2:10 if you want his wrist exercise. edit - I really like what they say around 3:45...that you want to build up strength in your weakest side (normally left side for a golfer) because it IS your dominant side. I am living proof that my left arm/wrist strength is MUCH weaker then my right.

I still like my "drive the butt of the club at the ball" idea :) though the right palm definitely gives the same idea. haha....come join me on my journey to the worlds most perfect lag :) At this point..I don't think my hip movement is really an issue. I watch video after video..and regarding my lag, I think its more to do with "when" I begin my downswing and simply 10 years of bad form with my downswing and weak wrists/forearms then anything. The more I work on re-creating lag..even if its short 1/4 swings from the top of my swing to my hip, the more I realize I need to work very very hard on it sick lag dude...I love it.

I don't know...seems like every article I read about Tiger has a mention buried in the middle of "Since that November car crash and Tiger's admission of infidelities leading to his divorce" then tying that to his poor showings in tournaments. I realize that isn't the Tour themselves saying that, sorry if that is specifically what you meant.

I will crawl into my hole now...you have won sir.

Thanks RC, yea its one of those "easier said then done" type of things...though if you check out my swing thread..you will see my drill of trying to bring the butt of the club toward the golf ball at least "helping" with my lag..but your right, I tend to start releasing the club a bit too early. http://thesandtrap.com/forum/threads...l=1#post528365 I have been working on reallly just trying to swing to the top, and bring the butt of the club down across my body and hinging my wrists even more, then back up...bring it down, etc... really works the wrists and forearms. I have also begun some forearm/wrists exercises to strengthen. really? ok swing as slow as you want and get to this position on the downswing unless your wrists are rubber, that won't happen. If lag was that easy...amateurs all over would have downswings like Tiger and Hogan.

Deron showed this to me about a week ago...definitely good video. I need to re-watch. the whole quote about pressures driving the club...beautiful.

my father attended Sat and Sun rounds..followed Phil and Tiger yesterday and basically told me "Tiger is back, other then his putting woes, he is hitting the ball great". He said it was sad that only a few hundred people followed the leaders, and it was thousands following Tiger/Phil. he also said the "love" for Tiger is back. he said you could feel it in the crowd..everyone wanting to see him to really good, to be the Tiger of old.

ok, that is all I wanted to know. If I was P&B;, I would be pissed if Foley was eating up that much time of my day while I am working with "my" students. Well, I don't think this topic is really worth discussing anymore...where is it going to get anyone? Foley will keep teaching Tiger, P&B; will keep teaching S&T;, Foley will probably pick of more students now, so will P&B.; Just some peoples feelings got hurt in the process. Oh well.

what sucks with this whole debacle is much of it is inside knowledge. Sure there are quotes in articles, but they are what they are and all the smack or bashing comes because there are certain people who are "in the know" and that is a very tiny fraction of people. For example..the whole Foley showing footage of O'Hair's swings to P&B...is; that public knowledge or something only a small group of people are aware of or were aware of that it was happening? Was it done so in a secretive type fashion? And since I have not stood on the range at PGA Tour event, is Foley respected by his peers or looked at as a liar/cheat? I brought up the infomercials because those would have needed P&B; approval, meaning they were fine with their system being packaged and sold that way.

I have asked this before but I think it got overlooked, so here it is again. How "long" has Foley been associated with P&B;? Couple years? 5-10? Just curious how long and deep the relationship exists. I don't like this notion, though, that P&B; never have anything to discuss with Foley...that its always one sided, at least that is how its been portrayed on here and via articles. Is it "really" that black and white, or is there a bit of drama being added to prove a point..that Foley does all the questions.

I everyone, my name is Bryan and I am an alcoholic :) just kidding. I actually don't drink alcohol, don't smoke, and never done drugs. I am about as square as they make em. I am 29, married, 2 kids. Played golf since I was 7. I am very critical of myself, especially when it comes to golf. I like to consider myself a perfectionist. I like to analyze things, and will often go the extra mile simply to try and understand the origins of a problem. I am not a band-aid type of solution person. I am a full time web developer (I focus mostly on front end code, so xhtml, css, javascript) but have a clear understanding of various programming languages. I can be a graphics designer or developer...so a hybrid. I am a very positive and social person. In the IT world, this is a rarity IMO, or at least in the 3 full time jobs I have had since 2003. I am very open in conversation and like having honest conversations with people. I talk over email/text, etc.. the same way I talk in person. I try to convey the emotion I feel with the appropriate use of words/phrases over email. My personality and how I perceive others over text/email has given me grief (or caused it), because when I read a conversation from someone..I am reading it as if I hear the person talking...the highs, the lows, etc... Actually, to Eriks post above..he mentions facial expressions...I am actually the opposite and my facial expressions tied with my in person conversations are often like white on rice :). Jim Carey comes to mind. I'd say I am a fairly boring person (according to my wife at times). I do my full time job (which I like), come home to see the family, get some golf in, work till 2-3am on freelance web development, get 5-6 hours of sleep (maybe), and repeat. I am huge into movies and my biggest pet peeve is people talking during a good movie (even if its at home with a group of people). I am a fairly calm person...even during periods of crisis I keep it cool, calm, and collected. I have found, though, as I have gotten older my patience is getting shorter and tested. I have started getting more and more frustrated at peoples crap the more I interact with them in life and online. Though I am a very positive person, I actually look at the world worse now then I did when I was younger (ah...innocence). regarding fitness, I need to get back into it. I did 45 days of P90x this past spring, but fell off the wagon because life got in the way. So this fall I am looking to start building my strength and flexibility back up. Regarding my golf history. I was part of back to back IHSAA (Indiana High School Athletic Association) Golf State Championships in 1998 and 1999. I got runner up medalist with a pair of 73's in 1998. I got a scholarship to the University of Evansville where I held a 4 year scoring average of 77.5. My tournament low is a 5 under 67. My lowest score ever was an 8 under 64 (with 2 bogeys) at Pebble Brook South Course, and a 6 under 65 (with 3 bogeys) at Harbour Trees. Those were at my peak years which have long passed me by. For whatever reason, I have a renewed passion for my game as it went south since 2004 (blame life, full time job, kids, etc..., really lack of practice) and my personal goal for 2011 is to try and qualify for the U.S. Open as well as play in a few local amateur tournaments like the State Am or Open. I am like BWDIAL above, I open doors for people, say please, thank you, treat my elders with respect. I am somewhat old fashioned in that sense. Inconsiderate people don't sit well with me either. I don't confront people in person though, I don't stand up for myself as often as I should. I do this more online then I do in person. Bad weakness.

yea, he would hit hockey pucks left handed. Well I say genetics meaning individual makeup, not where he is from :) Some people simply are built different then the rest of us. There is a show called Superhumans with Stan Lee on the history channel shows this exact thing. Yea..its crazy you would think hitting enough golf balls would be enough..but if you are hitting them using bad form, you never know what your missing out on. I actually plan on putting my wrists in that downswing hinged position often (in my house, etc..) just to start getting a more natural feel for it. Hope to see good results by this winter. Yea, I saw Retief Goosen on television the other day...he has some huge forearms.

and also, correct me if I am wrong...but Tiger has enjoyed playing practice rounds (pre Foley) with Mahan and Ohair, right? So I am sure Foley was talked "up" by those two guys, putting him in a good light. So it might be his approach, and it might be that those associated with him have spoken highly of him. Before this latest debacle, what were peoples (fellow instructors, pga players, etc...) opinion of Foley?

I was going to 100% agree...I checked out her website and definitely see golf not being #1 to her...then again its her personal website, not annarawsongolf.com but then it occured to me that LPGA players due struggle a bit more when it comes to tournament purses, publicity, sponsorships, etc.. when compared to their PGA player counterparts. So from a financial standpoint, I can understand why someone on the LPGA would look for other avenues for self promotion and financial gain, versus relying soley on tournament winnings. But since I don't know her whatsoever, I cannot make a judgment of how serious or not serious she takes the game of golf. I can only comment that unless you are a star player on any Tour, money doesn't rain from the heavens and you have to do what you have to do to make a name for yourself.

I think some people also possess just extraordinary genetics in the strength/flexibility in their hands/wrists...Jamie Sadlowski being an example of that. But a great first step of course is to strengthen them. It's sad to say, but Michelle Wie I am sure has stronger wrists and forearms then me :)