Joey's Golf Bag

This morning, I practiced at the Golden Bear Golf Center. The weather, like yesterday, was spectacular, sunny and warm, with a one club breeze blowing from the southeast. I started out on the putting green, trying, but not succeeding, to hit 10 four foot putts in a row. I got to 9 but never got to 10. I then ran the speed drill out to 27 feet, re-doing the drill if I left a putt short. I was pretty pleased with that drill. Next, I practice lag putting from 30 and 45 feet, and was really happy with my lag putting from 45 feet.

Instead of going to the short game area, today I went to the fairway bunker on the far end of the range. There, I practiced my sand drill using a 7-iron, and then hit a few balls out of the sand toward the blue-flagged green. I was pretty happy with the shots, though I tended to hit them just a bit thin. I raked the bunker and went back to the range.

I had three goals for today. First, get some lag back in my swing. Second, to get the driver going more or less straight, and three, to practice wedges and long clubs. I succeeded on all counts, though I didn’t get a lot of time in with the long clubs except for the driver.

I warmed up with the approach wedge, then worked my way down through the bag until I reached the driver. Instead of fat shots, my primary miss today was thin shots. I was hitting the middle irons well, but the short irons and wedges I tended to hit a little thin, and the longer fairway woods a little fat. In general, though, I was hitting the ball better than yesterday, getting a good late release on a couple of mid-irons, but strangely, not really getting much on the shorter ones.

I spent a lot of shots alternating between the 6-iron and the driver. The first couple of drives were big slices, but I soon straightened them out and got a little draw going. I was pretty erratic, but with pretty good distance. My 6-iron started out rough, hitting fat, but I got that club going pretty well also. After that drill, I went through the irons, alternating the 9-, 7- and 5-irons, with a couple of 4-hybrids. I hit some good shots, and a couple of stinkers with all the clubs, but the 7- and 5-irons are looking pretty good. Though I started out pushing shots right, I ended up pulling shots at the end.

With the remaining balls, I hit a few wedges, and again, the dominate fault was hitting them thin. Although I hit a few good ones, hitting them thin was the main issue.

I had a pretty good practice today, though I didn’t spend much time on the short game, instead, practicing fairway bunker shots. After I got home, I watched the Pebble Beach Pro-Am on the TIVO and saw Vijay skull one out of the fairway bunker to lose the playoff hole.

This afternoon, on a warm, fabulously beautiful day, I practiced at the Golden Bear Golf Center. I started off with my new Tom Wishon CLF-1 putter on the putting green. I started off hitting 4 foot putts, trying to make 10 in a row, but gave it up after about 20 tries to get more than 4 to roll in. The greens are still dormant, and I picked a hole that was pretty difficult to roll the ball consistently. I finally gave that up and ran speed drills. My speed was pretty good today, though I didn’t roll in a lot of putts, due to the inconsistent putting surface. Next, I lag putted from 30 ft, inconsistent at first, then nailing the last putt in the center of the hole.

After putting, I went to the short game area and ran the sand drill, first with the approach wedge using a chipping stroke, followed by half swings with the lob wedge. I then lined up a bunch of balls and practiced hitting them out. I was pretty good at first, then went through a stretch were I barely got them out, and then hit one or two close to the target hole. Not my best, but it’s been a week since I was last able to practice, due to very long hours at work.

Next, I went to the range to hit some balls. I got a medium bucket and ran through my usual warmup drill. I wasn’t striking the ball particularly well today, so I got out the iPod, turned on Tour Tempo at 27/9 and hit a bunch of balls. That helped, but I was pulling a lot of balls well left of my target. I was never really happy with my ball-striking today.

Not my best practice, but it was good to have excellent weather and time to practice. Tomorrow, I plan to play nine at North Texas Golf and see how my short irons are working.

This afternoon, I practiced on a warm, sunny, winter day at the Golden Bear Golf Center. The weather was perfect, should have worn shorts…

As usual, I started off in the short game area, running the sand drill, first hitting short chips with the AW and then hitting longer pitches with the sand wedge. I hit a few balls out of the bunker, but my distance control wasn’t good, except for the last shot, where I opened the clubface and hit a nearly perfect shot just past my target hole.

Next, I hit high pitches and long chips. My touch wasn’t good; I kept having issues hitting fat pitches. I mostly got it straightened out, but never was particularly satisfied with the results.

I got a large bucket of balls and went to the range. Because of the gorgeous weather, it was nearly full from end to end. I warmed up with the sand wedge, and had problems hitting fat shots. I then got out the 8-iron and really went after the ball. That pretty much cured the fat shots. I ran through warmup hitting every other club until I got to the 4-hybrid, and then got out the iPod and hit some balls with Tour Tempo set on 27/9. I felt like that tempo was a little slow, so I put on 24/8, but that was definitely too fast. My ball-striking was pretty good at times, and pretty poor at other times. I didn’t really have a dominate fault today, as I hit a few hooks, pushes, pulls, slices, etc.

I didn’t really get a late lag until near the end of practice, when I managed to achieve some good late releases with the lob and sand wedge, hitting very high shot farther than I usually hit the clubs. I then went up through the bag, trying to keep that late release, but wasn’t successful past the pitching wedge. I also tried to hit some drivers today, but that club was so bad I put it back after only two swings.

I went to the putting green to finish up practice, and spent nearly an hour practicing. I first hit 4-foot putts until I holed 10 in a row, then started on the speed drill. My first four speed drill putts were all holed (from 6, 9, 12 feet, and then again from 9 feet). If I left one short of the hole, I ran the drill from the same point again. I kept up the speed drill until about 27 feet from the hole, then practiced lag putting from 30 and 45 feet. I really needed some serious putting practice after my pathetic performance last Sunday, and I was pretty pleased with the practice.

I had a good practice today, but it is clear that I will have to practice more than once a week if I’m going to continue to improve my game. Fortunately, January is gone, so I’m looking forward to better weather leading up to springtime.

I’ve been unable to practice since Jan. 13 due to a week of travel and a week of bad January weather. Finally, today, the cold, cloudy weather cleared out of here and I was able to go to Golden Bear Golf Center to practice. Though the temperature was in the mid-40’s, it was quite comfortable since there was virtually no wind.

I started out in the bunker, running the sand drill, then hitting a dozen balls out of the sand, getting every one of them out, but without good distance control. I then hit a variety of pitches and chips. My touch was pretty poor today, that’s what goes first when I can’t practice. My main issue was hitting fat. I wasn’t pleased.

Next, I went to hit some balls. On mats. I hate mats. I hit poorly off mats and they tend to cause me to sweep the ball instead of taking a divot. Even so, I hit the short irons and wedges pretty solidly, but my long irons were pretty shaky, and the driver, well, just bad.

Did I mention that I hate mats? Well, I hate that rubber tee even worse.

I finished off my practice with a good speed drill followed by some lag putting. Surprisingly, my putting had barely suffered at all from my two week layoff.

OK, my game is pretty shaky after two weeks off. We’ll see what happens on the course tomorrow.

I’ve been working hard on my game during the holidays. I’ve practiced every day that the weather is good, so I’ve only missed two days since I started on vacation. I’ve spent all of my practice time working on three primary elements: dynamic impact (lag), tempo and making sure my swing is not over the top. I’ve gradually gotten better over the last couple of days. Today was one of my better ball striking days, though only with the irons. I haven’t been working much on the woods.

Today, I managed to get some lag in my swing again, though only on the short irons. I started out in the bunker at Golden Bear, running the Bobby Clampett sand drill. This drill has been effective in improving my impact on the ball and also occasionally producing lag. It has also dramatically improved my sand game. Using Tour Tempo on the iPod has helped as well.

I’ve also worked hard on my putting as well, and I’m seeing improvement in speed, though I still need work reading the greens. The practice green at the Hank Haney Golf Ranch in Lewisville has some really tricky humps and bumps, and I like practicing reading greens there, as that green is much more severe than any of the courses I’ve played locally.

Since I’m on vacation, I’ve practiced every day, mostly at Golden Bear, but also at Hank Haney Golf Ranch, for a little variety. Last Tuesday, I finally was able to get some good lag in my swing, but aside from one or two swings, I haven’t had any lag since. Woe is me. 🙁

Desperate to get my lag back, on Thursday, I got out my iPod, put on Tour Tempo at 27/9 and my swing improved, but no lag. Where did my lag go? Heck if I know.

On the other hand, Bobby Clampett’s sand drill has made my bunker play immensely improve to where I now get 90% of the balls out of the bunker and about 50% close to the pin. I’m guessing that my lag will eventually return as I continue to do the sand drill. I’m working hard on it.

In other news, over the last couple of weeks, my setup point for my clubs had to move out to the toe of the clubs. I’d been hitting a lot of hosel rockets, so I had to move my setup. Gradually, my swing has improved such that I’m now mostly hitting the center of the clubface, so I’ve moved my setup back to centering the clubface on the ball. I guess that means my swing is improving.

I hope.

My short game continues to improve. I’ve already discussed how my bunker work is much better. My short and medium pitches are going well, as is my chipping. My longer pitches are still inconsistent, but I continue to work hard on it. I’ve not been putting as much time into putting, but putting remains the best part of my game, ever since I had that putting lesson with the “Yes” man. I need to thank him next time he shows up at Golden Bear.

I’ve been remiss in not updating my blog lately, as I’ve been extremely busy at work.

I started taking golf lessons with Alan Niederlitz at Golden Bear Golf Center about two months ago and just finished up this week. Along the way, we did some video analysis and it showed that my main fault was a backswing that is a bit too flat, and a downswing that is a bit over the top. So, those two things are what I’ve been working on. I also bought a book by Bobby Clampett called The Impact Zone that has been extremely helpful with my understanding of the golf swing. I’ve been doing the sand drill for a few weeks along with some of the other drills he describes in the book.

Finally, this afternoon, things came together. I’d been in the bunker running the sand drill and also practicing sand shots. I then went to the range, warmed up in my usual manner, and again was disappointed with my inconsistency. I’d hit some balls beautifully, and other balls like I’d never seen a golf club before. It was very frustrating. I decided to work on impact, so I pulled out the pitching wedge, set up for chipping and concentrated on getting my hands in front of the ball before impact. I started striking the ball well, so I continued the drill with longer clubs until I got down to the 6-iron. I then decided to hit some longer swings, but the results weren’t good — my hands weren’t leading the clubhead at the ball. I went back to the pitching wedge and concentrated on getting my hands in front of the ball at impact. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I started feeling lag in my swing and a nice, crisp strike on the ball with a divot that points directly at the target. I hit a few more with the pitching wedge, and then went down through the clubs to the 6-iron, and found I could keep the lag as long as I made a nice, smooth swing. I then ran out of balls…

This isn’t the first time I’ve felt lag, but the last time I didn’t realize what I had and I wasn’t able to reproduce that feeling until today.

It’ll be interesting to see if I can feel the lag again tomorrow…

This morning, I practiced at the Hank Haney Golf Ranch in Lewisville. The day was sunny and warm, but the wind was howling at about 20-30 mph from the west. I started out with my usual warmup: 5 sand wedge shots to warm up, followed by 3 balls each (with full routine) of the pitching wedge, 8-iron, 6-iron, 4-iron (yes, had one today), 3-wood and 5 drives. My ball-striking was a bit suspect early, though finally got some good swings on the ball once I got out the driver.

After the warm-up, I did a number of drills, trying to strike down more on the ball and get the ball flight down a little. It took a while to get used to the new irons; I found that I had to address the new irons (and all the other clubs as well) off the toe. I wasn’t particularly happy with my ball-striking today, but I was pleased that if I put a good swing on the ball, the new 550c irons felt as good as any I’ve ever hit. Even though I’m using a stiffer shaft than I’ve been using, the shaft felt perfect, no boardy feeling at all. The new irons do reduce my tendency to get quick on the downswing, but I’m still hitting the ball too high. I believe I’ll be happy with the new irons once I get my swing better. I’ve been very busy at work and have been unable to practice as much as I want to.

Next, I went to the putting green and ran speed drills. Again, lack of practice has hindered my progress here, but my putting is still better than the rest of my game.

I was happy to get out and practice. I hope I’ll be able to get in some more practice in the coming weeks, if the weather holds up.

OK, not really, it was a YouTube video.

Over the last two weeks, I’ve practice several times. Though my short game continues to improve, my ball-striking has not. I ran into Alan Niederlitz at the Golden Bear Golf Center and he diagnosed my swing: casting. That dreaded casting move had gotten back into my swing. That afternoon, I came home and read some articles I’d bookmarked, and found again the Hogan video. Finally, I understood how I’m supposed to swing. I went back to the range that night and tried to incorporate Ben’s downswing into mine. It’ll be a long grind to get it imbedded in my swing, but now, for the first time, I can feel what the swing is supposed to be.

Yesterday, I practiced at the Golden Bear Golf Center on a hot, muggy morning. I started off, as usual, in the short game area, working on chipping, especially long chips, using the pitching wedge. My chipping was pretty respectable, so I moved on to short and medium pitches using the lob wedge. My pitching was quite good, although not my best effort. I then spent some time in the bunker working on sand shots, both with the sand and lob wedges. I never really got it going, taking an inconsistent amount of sand.

I got a large bucket of balls and went to the range. I warmed up as usual, and it was clear from the start that my ball-striking on this day was not going to be good. I ran through the bag and maybe hit one or two good shots out of 20 or so balls. I then got out the iPod, put on Tour Tempo, but that seemed to make things worse. This was probably my worst practice in months, so I’ll spare you the details.

This morning, I practiced and played nine at North Texas Golf. The day was warm, humid and heavily overcast. There was a breeze from the east. I warmed up by hitting medium and long pitches with the lob wedge at the target rings, even nailing one on the third pitch. My distance control was a little spotty, though my direction control was pretty good. I then went to the range, where I ran through the bag hitting every other club (I’d left the driver in the club). I hit a least one good shot with every club, so I was quite happy with my ball-striking. I finished up the small bucket by hitting a couple of shots with the sand wedge through 8-iron off a tee, simulating the holes I’d be playing. I then went to the putting green, where I found the greens very slow and bumpy. That would be the same on the course.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

My round:

• First hole. Hit a 9-iron from 113 yds pin-high left of the green into some heavy rough. Chipped poorly to about 10 ft and missed the putt for par and tapped in for bogey.
• Second hole. Pulled a 7-iron left into the hazard, took a drop in the rough, chipped poorly again to about 15 ft, and three-putted for triple, lipping out a 2 foot putt.
• Third hole. Hit a pitching wedge from 108 yards high and short, hit a perfect chip to a foot and tapped in for par.
• Fourth hole. Hit a gap wedge from 94 yards left of the green into a grass bunker. Hit a chip thin and over the green, putted from the fringe to a foot and tapped in for bogey.
• Fifth hole. Hit a gap wedge from 84 yards very high and short into a bowl around a drain. Hit a poor chip to 12 ft and two-putted for bogey.
• Sixth hole. Hit a pitching wedge from 101 yards 6 feet above the hole. Missed a tricky birdie putt and tapped in for par.
• Seventh hole. Hit a gap wedge from 94 yards to 21 feet. Blew the birdie putt 6 feet past the hole, but drained the par putt.
• Eighth hole. Hit a pitching wedge from 105 yards left of the green, where it hit a down-slope and bounced 2″ over the green. Putted from the fringe 8 feet past the hole, but nailed the par putt.
• Ninth hole. Hit a 9-iron very high and 36 feet below the hole, leaving a nasty double-breaking putt up hill. Missed the putt 2 ft wide, and missed the 2 footer again, tapping in for bogey. Yeech!!!!!!!

I was pretty disappointed with my game today, as the two of the three things I’ve been working hardest at (putting, chipping, pitching) were done poorly today. Aside from a near perfect chip on the third hole, my chipping was pathetic, and I also three-putted twice, missing from 2 feet. How the heck can I miss from two feet when I usually start my putting practice by hitting 10 in a row from 4 feet? WTF??? To top that off, I was hitting the ball short all day, de-lofting the clubs and hitting the ball very high. None of that was evident during warmup.

Sometimes, this game drives me crazy.