2019 June

I found this article with a startling heading: Mickelson Won’t Win US Open, and here’s why. It was a Morning News blog by JIM NELFORD (AS TOLD TO GARY VAN SICKLE) | June 6, 2019. This was a very convincing heading and I had to figure out why. As it turn out it was about Draggers and Throwers. What’s that?

Pebble Beach is a ball-striker’s paradise. It has the smallest greens on the PGA Tour and it is usually windy from its perch overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Those two things mandate precise ball-striking. As it turn out the US Open was played under very calm and saggy conditions and of course we know that Phil did not win but why was Nelford’s prediction so adamant?

Precise Ball-Striking is exactly what we all want. So if there is a way to improve our swing for a consistent way to play golf, we better get to the bottom of this. The Article States: There are two categories of players on the PGA Tour:
Draggers: Those who drag a square clubface through impact using their lower bodies. Draggers are better, more consistent ball-strikers. “A dragger is like a baseball hitter. The batter drags the bat through the impact area while the lower body rotates. Like DRAGGER golfers, batters don’t roll their forearms or wrists until after they hit the ball.”
Throwers: Those who throw the clubface in an effort to get it square at impact, using their hands, arms and shoulders. Nelford/ Gary Van Sickle estimate that throwers make up 90 percent of Tour players because that’s the only method being taught. “A thrower rotates his forearm hard through impact. It’s a flashing move that makes the clubface turn quickly in order to reach the square position at impact. This move is an effort to compensate for flaring the clubface open during the backswing and getting it out of position. Throwing the clubface back to square before impact requires meticulous timing. The throwers include the late Arnold Palmer, Phil Mickelson and most other players.”

Throwers are taught to stop the lower-body rotation during the forward swing – it’s called hitting up against the left side – so the centrifugal force of the body’s rotation helps throw the clubface back into position before impact. It’s a difficult thing to get right every time.

Jack’s hip are not open at impact and it also looks like Hogan, Faldo and Woods have the same move. They are all Draggers!

Jack Nicklaus dragged his club through impact. So did Lee Trevino, Johnny Miller and Paul Azinger among the previous generation. Among today’s stars, Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Jim Furyk and Zach Johnson are draggers. Brooks Koepka and Tiger Woods, the men who won the first two major championships this year, mix the two styles. And as it turned out Gary Woodland must be a dragger too.

In summary Throwers are upper-body players where the upper body catches up to the early hip rotation and Draggers are lower-body players where they rotate the hip and arms together through impact. Whether you are a Dragger (for more consistent ball striking) or Thrower, you need to practice with your GOLFSTR+ for a straight leading arm swing. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com

Let’s face it, golf is a game of control. It’s a head game. Being in the right frame of mind with calm and relaxed emotions is everything. Watching the US Open reminds us that you need a positive mental attitude to start with but on the course like Pebble Beach anything can go wrong at any time. Mental recovery after every mishit with a solid swing plan is exactly what we all need.

The pros know that a CONSISTENT SWING SPEED for every club in their bag will allow them to produce the same swing results. Their POWER SWING is consistently swung at 80% of their swing speed. In order to maintain the same POWER swing speed they make slight adjustments to compensate for distance with every club in their bag:

Gary Woodland used a tight grip and brute strength to get through the rough at the US Open.

1/ Grip Pressure: If they are in deep rough, they have no choice but to increase their grip pressure to prevent club head rotation. They know that a tight grip will steal distance out of their hit but direction of the ball is the critical concern for a safe hit.
2/ Grip Down: There is about a 10 to 20 yard distance change between each club so the pros know that they can’t get more distance out of a club without risking disaster. They always choose the club that they know can reach their target and then grip down slightly to reduce the distance that they want to hit WITHOUT changing THEIR SWING SPEED.

A Slower Swing Demands a Change in your SETUP:
In the sand, on a side slope, in the rough and especially within 50 yards of the green, you have no choice but to reduce your backswing and your swing speed. To maintain the direction of your hit you should compensate with your ball position and body positions to ensure that your release at the point of impact is straight up your target line.

Slowing down your swing changes everything. The timing for your arms, your body rotation and especially your wrist lag. Without making setup changes for a slower swing you will end up spraying your shot away from your body as you leave your club face open or hit off the toe of your club.

Gary Woodland had it all figured out to win the US Open with 4 superb rounds of golf. Brooks Koepka could not catch up.

Adjust for a Slower Swing (It’s a lot different than your 80% POWER Swing)
1/ EXPECT that your slower swing will be LAZY: That’s right, without a crisp swing through the ball, you will tend to leave your club-face open as your body rotation will be out of sync with the speed of your hip, shoulder and arm rotation.
2/ Put More pressure on your Leading Foot: A slower swing will mess up your weight transfer from your back foot to your leading foot. You can’t afford to “drift” back in your backswing so start with 60% of your weight on your leading foot.
3/ Adjust Your Footing for your Slower Swing: You need to adjust for a swing below your normal 80% Power Swing. Don’t flare your trailing foot and consider opening up your stance to ensure that you will impact squarely on the ball and to help your complete your follow-through.
4/ Make Sure to Impact your Ball First: [A GREAT PRACTICE TIP] laying a tee on the ground about 3 or 4 inches before your ball. Allow your hips to move forward OR use more pressure on your leading foot during your setup so that you swing to miss the tee and hit your ball before you skim the turf.

Adjust for your swing speed by practicing with GOLFSTR+  with every club in your bag.  Buy one today www.golfstr.com

I was surprised to hear that our brain and visual focus have a lot to do with the success of our golf shots.  Jason Day and Jack Nicklaus visualize their shot but even more important they pick a target point to allow their brain to zero in on that point to make their planned shot. I was also surprised to see a video by Tom Stickney, a PGA Instructor on GOLF-INFO-GUIDE which highlighted the fact that your visual focus will actually allow your brain to unconsciously control the direction of your shot.

Jim McLean is shown here with a burning image around his target point and you should too.

Tom referred to a tip that he learned from one of his golf coaches.   He recommended that you follow your normal setup routine and end your pre-shot routine with a last look at your target.  The smaller the target is defined, the better your success will be in hitting that target.

I am only bring this tip to your attention as it’s exactly the same process that I have been using for my putting.  If I choose the correct target point with my rehearsed swing speed for the right break, I sink my putt.

• If I pick a target point and focus on that point for at least 2 seconds before I return my head to focus on my ball, the target and distance are burned into my brain.
• It’s as if I have this laser image for the line that I need to hit for my putt.
• I feel the image in my brain even though I have moved my visual focus back to the ball.
• Hitting my ball on that “laser target line” is the only thing that my brain can visualize and “feel”. Swinging my putter directly up that line is all that my brain will allow me to do.

Hitting a drive or a fairway shot is easier than putting on a sloped green so the direction of my shot is all that counts.  Start by planning for a draw or a fade (or a straight shot if you can count on it).

Spend your “FINAL FOCUS” when you prepare for each shot by choosing a specific target.

DO NOT LOOK at the hazard on the left or the trees on the right but focus your eyes on your chosen target.  [If your last look is at the pond, that’s where your ball will end up.]

Your final focus will lock your brain into the shot that will drive your ball directly up your target line.  Practice with GOLFSTR+  for your powerful straight arm shots on your target line.  Buy one today at www.golfstr.com  

PS.  I look for these tips to help my game as much as I want to help yours.   In my last round of golf, the rough was about 6 to 8 inches deep, so I really wanted to hit fairways and greens.  I worked on my FINAL FOCUS and hit 16 out of 18.  My playing partners kept taking free lifts out of the rough to survive the round.

Is it reasonable to think that you can just let go and make the shot?   Many articles say that you can but if you don’t have the mental fortitude and proven skill-set, you really need to put a lot more effort into making every shot than “just letting it go”.   I just watched a wonderful video:  PGA Tour 2019 The Nicklaus Method presented by Nationwide. It presented the brilliance of Jack Nicklaus’ game and gave us the clues for success in our golf.

Before I saw this video, I was preparing a blog on how the brain affects our game. The left side of our brain is the analytical side where we may over analyze and mess up our shots. The right side controls our spatial thinking where we visualize our swing shape and direction to hit our target.  So how are we supposed to control our brains to control our bodies to execute the perfect swing for every drive, fairway shot and putt?  During Jack’s Memorial Tournament I was hoping to find the answers from  Jack Nicklaus.

Jack’s straight arm down stroke is dropped to the inside (denoted by the RED lines). You can see his advanced hip turn, lagged wrists with a looped downswing.

Jack developed his golf skills and then developed a mental focus to create his success. During the 1970’s he won 38 of the 171 events that he entered. He won 20% of the time and he was in the top 10 for 65% of those tournaments.  His record proves that his ideas are golden.   Here are some of the key comments which were made by Jack and others on the video:

-Mindfulness: He did not consider the end point. He did not let his success or failure of his last shot district his thoughts on his next shot. His focus was shot to shot.
-Attitude: Be smart about what you do. Take the shot that will generate the best result for you.
-Emotional Control: Refocus on the shot. Be calm and focused with no emotion. Block out problems and decide to just make the shot.
-Posture: You can see his confidence in the way he walked and “the way he carried his shoulders”.

Know your Game: Learn from your mistakes and from your successes. Know what distance you hit with each club and then adjust for the wind, altitude, humidity and ground moisture.

Smart Solid Golf: The pros can take more chances as they have better control of each shot. Mid-range handicap players should accept their weaknesses and make the safe shot with confidence that they can make it. If you hit in a poor location (in the rough or behind trees) take your “penalty” and hit for the perfect position for your next approach shot. Just be happy to find your ball and prepare for your next great shot.

Mental Focus: He knew what he could do with each of his clubs (including his 1 iron) so all he had to focus on was a perfect swing. He blocked everything out of his mind and backed off any hit when he did not have a 100% commitment to his shot or his putt.

You can’t expect to “let go and make the shot”. Even the great Jack Nicklaus used his extreme focus on every shot to block out any mental interference.  Know your ability and focus on the shots that you know you can make. Practice with GOLFSTR+ and put all of your focus on the shot that you remember making before. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com