Joey's Golf Bag

This morning I went to hit some balls at the Golden Bear Golf Center, determined to work on my longer clubs. The wind was howling in from the south, directly into my position. And the wind was really howling; at times, I had to reset my stance after being blown out of it. At times, the wind may have hit 35 mph.

I warmed up with 7-iron half-swings, aimed at the white flag about 125 yds in front of me. I was coming up well short of that distance due to the howling wind. After warm-up, I got out the 4- and 6-irons and hit many balls, concentrating on getting the ball flying straight. For the most part, I succeeded, striking the ball pretty well today. Of course, distances were much shorter than normal; I could just reach the white flag with a 6-iron, hitting my normal high shot. I could get another 10 yds by concentrating on hitting the ball lower.

I then got out the 3-iron and the hybrid. I hit the 3-iron pretty well, but the ball ballooned up into the wind and made the distance no better than with the 4-iron. The hybrid was just impossible to hit straight today; the best I could manage was a low fade.

Next up was the 3-metal. I concentrated on the three things Alan had me work on yesterday, namely: full backswing with a slight pause at the top, full transfer of weight from left to right on the downswing, and making a complete follow-through. Things finally began to click and I started to strike the ball pretty well, tending to hit fades. I then switched to the SasQuatch driver and, for the first time ever, I finally hit drives I can be proud of. With the exception of one ball (hook), every one of 10 shots would have been in the fairway, with good or excellent distance for me. Even though I was hitting into a 35 mph wind, I still managed to carry the ball about 180 yds. I think when the wind dies down I may be close to my goal of hitting drives 225 yds.

Alan stopped by for a minute just as I started working on hitting low punch shots with the 5-iron. I’ve been needing a low punch shot, given that the wind is frequently strong in Texas, and my dominate shot is very high in the air. He had me put the ball well back of where I had been attempting the shot, nearly back to my right foot. I had some difficulty hitting the ball cleanly, but I did manage a good low shot or two, but most were pushed. I had much better success hitting the punch shot with the 8-iron.

I finished up practice hitting short sand wedge shots into the wind. I hit the ball cleanly for the most part, but tended to pull the ball. After I ran out of balls, I decided to forego putting practice, as the wind was just too strong to make practice useful.

Yesterday, I went to the Full Swing Clinic at the Golden Bear Golf Center. As usual, Alan was the instructor. There were only two students today, so I had a full hour of work.

The day was warm, not much breeze. I started out hitting 7-iron shots to warm up and was striking the ball reasonably well, so not much time was spent on irons. Next, I hit a bunch of 3-metal shots, but just could not get the swing to work at all. Alan had me concentrate on three things: full backswing with a slight pause at the top, full transfer of weight from left to right on the downswing, and making a complete follow-through. I had much difficulty getting in sync, my tempo was just a mess. Most of my shots were low hooks.

Next, we moved on to the SasQuatch driver. This was the first time out of the bag for this club (just got it last weekend). Again, I had the same difficulties with this club as I did with the 3-metal, hit low hooks. Tempo would just not work for me on this day. He also had me swing as hard as I could with this club.

We finished up with short wedge shots using my sand wedge, and I finally started to hit the ball really well. With the exception of one shot that I hit fat and went under the ball, I hit the sand wedge very nicely. He didn’t find anything to work on with my wedges and thought my swing looked good with this club.

After the class ended, I hit a few more balls and then headed home.

Yesterday, after work, I went to hit balls at the Hank Haney Golf Ranch in Lewisville. The weather was cool but sunny, with a soft breeze from the east.

I started off hitting half 7-irons to warm up. After that, I switched to hitting alternating 8-, 6- and 4-irons, and was hitting the ball well, with some draws and some fades, some straight. I then added the hybrid, which I hit only fades or slices.

Then things got ugly.

Hook, hook, hook! Nothing but hooks, other than pulls on short irons. I tried everything to get back to straight or even fades, but nothing seemed to work. I hooked everything, driver, 3-metal, long irons. Yeech!

Finally, I went back to the pitching wedge and hit a perfect, straight full pitching wedge. Alas, I was out of balls.

Mission: Swing clinic at Golden Bear today; private lesson with Alan next week.

I went to the Golden Bear Golf Center to hit some balls this morning and work on my improving full swing. The weather was partly cloudy with a breeze from the east.

I started out hitting sand wedge shots to the purple flag about 50 yds away. Not surprisingly, I’m still having a problem hitting fat with the wedges. I worked at it and finally figured out that I’m raising up a little on my backswing, which means I have to reset going back down. That I’m not doing well, so I’m hitting it fat. Once I figured that out, I started to hit some good shots, although pulled left of the flag.

Next up, I got out the 4-, 6-, and 8-irons and started hitting punch shots toward the white flagged green. At first, I hit the ball pretty well, but still had some difficulty hitting the ball fat or behind the ball. That’s always due to rushing the downswing. I worked on that extensively and also making sure to follow an inside path. I think I overdid the inside path, as I started to hook the longer clubs, although the shorter clubs were mostly on line.

After having more difficulty with hitting the ball fat, I started with the 10-iron and worked my way down through the clubs, hitting each one until I hit the club well. When I ended up with the SasQuatch 3-metal. I had good success on all the clubs except the 3-iron; I had a problem hooking the club badly or hitting it thin. I’m pleased to say that not only am I hitting the ball farther, but my distance keeps progressing even down to the 3-iron (if I could just get it straightened out instead of hooking).

My last drill was pin-hunting. Although I’d done that well the previous two days, I stunk today, not hitting any clubs very well during the drill, except the 10-iron.

Next up, I went to the short game area and began chipping. My feel wasn’t very good today, and that followed during short wedge practice. I never really got grooved in at all. I think I’m overdoing practicing since I’m on vacation this week; so I may give it a rest this weekend. The tendonitis in my right elbow is acting up.

In other news, my SasQuatch driver arrived (Lucky 13, regular flex, 44.5″ length). Review to follow next week.

I went to practice at Golden Bear Golf Center this morning. When I arrived, a light wind was from the north and the skies were cloudy. While I practiced, the winds shifted gradually to the west or southwest and the skies cleared.

I started off warming up with 7-iron shots off the turf. I then moved to hitting alternating 3-, 6-, and 9-irons, with mixed results, having some issues with hitting the ball fat. As usual, when I hit it fat, the main reason is rushing the downswing; once I got the tempo back, I started hitting some very good shots with the 9-iron, and some good shots with the 6-iron. Unusually, I could not seem to get the 3-iron in the air. After that, I switched to hitting alternating 4-, 6- and 8-irons, and later threw the hybrid into the mix. Again, mixed results, but when I did everything right, I was hitting slight draws with good distance.

I then got the 3-metal out of the bag. I started off hitting shots off the turf and had some difficulty getting the ball airborne. I soon adjusted my stance to be a little closer to the ball, and that did the trick. I hit some good shots after that.

I next hit some full pitching wedges. I initially had trouble hitting the ball fat; again, not rushing my downswing seemed to fix it, although most of the shots were pulled a little left.

My last drill was pin-hunting. Unlike yesterday, I didn’t do very well, but again, I hit a very nice couple of 3-metal shots off tees to the green with the blue flag, about 180 yds away today. The first shot was a draw that ended left of the green, but the second hit the green pin-high slightly to the right of the flag and continued well past. I also hit a pretty good hybrid shot just short of the green and right of the flag, probably a 165 yd carry. I also hit a 9-iron toward the white flag at 115 yds and hit pin-high. That’s an improvement over the yardage I usually expect with the 9-iron.

I had a bit of golf elbow today in my right arm, so I skipped chipping and short wedge shots and went to the putting green to work on speed. After some initial frustration with my speed, I got my touch back and was able to get the speed right.

Today, I visited the Golden Bear Golf Center to work on my full swing and get in some putting and chipping. When I arrived, the wind was howling in from the south at about 2 clubs. The weather was cool and cloudy.

I warmed up with some half swings with the 7-iron, concentrating on what I worked on yesterday with Alan. My biggest problem continues to be tension, and when I’m able to release that tension, I am able to hit the ball pretty well. Unfortunately, for most of the day, I didn’t hit the ball well, mostly, but not exclusively, due to tension. My biggest problem today, besides tension, was a smooth downswing. When I rush my downswing, I tend to hit the ball fat, and the club doesn’t fully release, so misses tend to the right. The only good thing to happen is that most of my misses were to the left, and not to the right.

After warmup, I alternated 3-, 6- and 9-iron shots. I had pretty good success with the 9-iron, but more limited success with the 6- and 3-irons. I also got out the 21-degree hybrid and the 3-metal for a few shots. Surprisingly, with the exception of one shot, the hybrid yielded either straight shots or draws. I had trouble getting the tempo down on the 3-metal, but did hit one or two good ones.

When I got down to a dozen balls, I went pin-hunting, and finally, my practice started to come together. I hit excellent shots right at the pin with a couple of clubs, but strangely, hit the 8-iron poorly. The shot of the day was with the SasQuatch 3-metal, hit directly at the blue flag, 175 yds straight into the 2-club wind. I teed up a ball, aimed at the middle of the green just to the right of the flag, and let go a nice smooth swing. The ball tracked directly where I aimed, drew toward the flag and landed softly just left of the pin. The ball rolled around the flag and ended up about 4 ft below the hole.

I practiced poorly all day, but that last shot cheered me right up. Next up, I spent a few minutes hitting some balls out of the sand. I got them all out, but two were hit thin and over the green. Next, I chipped a bunch of balls using the pitching wedge from lots of different distances. My touch was not great today, but it is improving.

Finally, I spent a few minutes on the putting green. I had pretty good speed control today, but reading the breaks was off.

A mixed practice today, but I can see the path to improvement on my full swing.

I attended the full swing clinic at the Golden Bear Golf Center today. I again got lucky and was the only student at the clinic. Normally, if only a single student shows up, the clinic is limited to 1/2 hour, but Alan had me work hard for nearly an hour with both the 6-iron and 3-metal. Basically, I have two issues: a bit of a reverse pivot and not swinging hard enough with a complete turn from back swing to follow-through.

I warmed up with the 7-iron and Alan then had me switch to a 6-iron while he watched me swing. I was not hitting the ball very well during warm up. He had me focus on making complete turns and also swinging harder, while keeping out tension (tension has always been a problem for me). He had me start out with short swings with the 6-iron, sort of a punch shot. After I started to make clean contact, he had me make some longer swings, working on proper inside path and full turn from backswing to follow-through. I wasn’t making good contact on every swing, but when I did, the ball was going lower and longer than before. He also moved the ball forward in my stance.

Next up, he had me hit off the grass with the 3-metal. Again, same focus on making a full turn from backswing to follow-through, no reverse pivot, and keeping my downswing from starting too quickly. He made sure that I finished off each follow-through properly. I only made good contact with about half the shots, but the ones that were hit well were longer than usual for me, and I even hit a draw or two with good distance.

Afterward, I talked briefly with Mark Maness, who is checking out some new video software for capturing and analyzing golf swings. He says that the video will be available outside more often so that time can be saved by not having to go inside for video analysis. The new video equipment also has a higher frame and resolution to make video analysis easier.

I was very happy with my swing clinic today, and look forward to hitting some balls on the range to see if I can get all this programmed into me.

This afternoon, I ventured out into the cool, sunny weather to practice and play nine at Hank Haney Golf Ranch in Lewisville. The temperature was in the mid-60’s, and a one or two club breeze was blowing in from the north.

Since I have been practicing well the last few days, I decided I would try, once again, to conquer this challenging nine-hole course. Alas! I should know better…

I bought a small bucket of balls and hit the range. I started right back where I was yesterday, hitting the ball well. I hit most of the clubs well during practice, even my SasQuatch 3-metal and the 21-degree hybrid. My only real issue was pulling the short irons and wedges. Pulling the short irons didn’t really bother me, since on this course, all the trouble is on the right.

After hitting all the balls, I putted for a few minutes and then played.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

Themes:

• Tee shots. Only hit one green in regulation and only one fairway. My best tee shots were on the first, where I was just right of the green, and on the ninth, where I hit a perfect 7-iron fade to the center of the green 25 ft from the hole. Utterly unbelievable was the tee shot with a 4-iron on the eighth, where I hit a seemingly perfect shot only to hit the only branch that hangs over the fairway. I hit terrible shots on the rest of the holes, including a fat pitching wedge into the hazard on the third hole.
• Approach shots. Terrible, as well. Even my layups out of the rough sucked, hitting them from one side rough to the other side rough. On another layup out of the rough, I had a clear path to the fairway except for a single, skinny branch: I hit it.
• Wedges. Indescribably bad today, didn’t have even one worth discussing, except that I managed to get out of the sand nicely on the fifth (only to 3-putt) despite being in a deep hole left behind by another golfer who did not rake.
• Chipping. I did hit some very nice chips today, but also managed to hit one over a green as well.
• Putting. Good today. I had only one 3-putt today, on the fifth hole, where I lipped out a 4 footer to save bogey. I had single putts on 2, 4 and 6, which shows how poorly the rest of my game was today.

Today was one of those days that tests your desire to ever play the game again. I had practiced and played well the since Friday, and was gaining confidence. After the round, I hit another small bucket of balls just to see if I could get back into form, and not surprising to me, I hit the ball pretty well again.

Golf is testing my persistence.

This morning, I ventured into the blustery Texas sunshine to hit some balls at Golden Bear Golf Center. The wind was very strong from the south, blowing in at 2 or 3 clubs.

I warmed up with some 7-iron shots, striking the ball pretty well. I then moved on to my now usual 3-, 6- and 9-iron drill, hitting balls with alternating clubs. Today, since I was hitting the ball into the wind, any spin at all was exaggerated. Most of my shots today were drawing, probably more due to the strong wind, as any side spin at all keeps the ball from going straight. About 2/3 of my non-straight shots were drawing, the rest fades. After that drill, I added in the 3-metal and 21-degree hybrid clubs. I’ve not hit either club much in the past few weeks, but started to hit them pretty good today. My predominate shot with the hybrid is still a fade, but I was also able to draw a shot or two with the club. I also hit the 3-metal a lot better than I have in the last few weeks. I’m thinking it is time to go back to Hank Haney and play that tough nine-hole course again.

After those drills, I went pin-hunting, using a variety of clubs. This drill didn’t go as well as yesterday, as I caught a case of the hooks with the longer clubs, and also tending to pull the shorter ones.

Next up, with about 8 balls left in the bucket, I decided to see if I could develop a low shot to use into the wind. I tried it first with the 8-iron, using a 3/4 swing and reduced follow-through, ball back in my stance. The first few shots were hit fat, but I hit one or two nice ones with the 8-iron and also one with the 6-iron. I will see if I can add this shot to my repertoire.

I spent a few minutes chipping, but didn’t get my touch to work today, and, as time ran short, I headed home.

Today I went to North Texas Golf to practice and play nine. The day was very warm, partly cloudy, with a one-club breeze from the south.

I started off hitting 7-irons, working, as usual, on inside-to-square path and keeping my downswing smooth. I had trouble all day with keeping the path inside-to-square on any club longer than a 7-iron, but had pretty good success with keeping my downswing smooth. Practice started well, got crappy in the middle, and went well again at the end. I spent the first part of practice alternating 3-, 6- and 9-irons, but didn’t hit the longer clubs well today. After I went pin hunting, I started striking the ball well, hitting as many as 80% of the shots well during that drill. Next up, I went and hit about 40 shots with my wedges, starting out hitting long chips with the PW, moved on to hitting 20-50 yd shots with the sand wedge, and a few with the lob wedge. It’s been a few weeks since my touch was good, but it was very good today.

Next up was chipping practice. I had a middlin’ practice chipping, never really got grooved in. Finally, spent some time putting, but had trouble keeping the speed up, leaving most putts longer than 12 ft short. That would be the theme for long putts today as well.

My score:

* Hit green in regulation.

Themes:

• Tee shots. Today, I hit 5 greens in regulation, the best I’ve done in quite a while. Even with the one club wind, I was striking the ball pretty well today. I really had only one bad tee shot today, on the second hole, where I pushed the ball well right. At least I didn’t hook it in the hazard, like I did last week… The tee shot on the first hole was only off the green 3 inches, and most of the other holes I was able to putt from the fringe.
• Wedges. I hit only two wedge shots today, one of which I hit a bit fat and left a rather lengthy par putt on the 2nd hole, which I missed. The other was on the third hole, where I hit the SW long, actually hitting the flag (not the pole) and leaving a 15 ft putt for par, which I missed.
• Chipping. I hit only one chip today, putting from the fringe on the other holes where I missed the green. The chip on the seventh was perfect, leaving me a two foot par putt.
• Putting. Putting wasn’t very impressive today; I left nearly every long putt short by 4 or 5 ft. My short putting was good, though, having but a single three putt, on the 6th hole, where I lipped out a 6 ft putt for par.

I was very happy with my game today, as a 31 ties my best score on this course.