Training Aids – The do it yourself improvment

fix your swing plane with the Chicken Wing Strap

Fixing your golf swing is difficult, especially on your own. Even with a credible instructor and hours of practice it can take time to implement new mechanics. The recipe for better golf is the combination of properly fit golf equipment, good golf instruction, and frequent play and practice. 

Truth is, most of us golfers need to get out 2-3 times a week to continually make an improvement with or without lessons. For most of us that is a problem and playing more than twice a week is unrealistic. There is a solution for your pesimistic outlook on golf. For those taking lessons, my remedy will create better than expected results for any golfer. My remedy requires you play once a week. Easy enough, right?  However it does require a modest 10-15 minutes a day in the comfort of your own home or backyard. This minimal practice time should be used to reinforce those mechanics learned in a golf lesson, instructional book or DVD. Most instructors will give a few drills. These drills will eliminate the negative and create positive muscle memory. Look up some quick tips on youtube.com for drills and exercises. This creates a less mechanical, more automatic golf swing. What the average golfer doesn’t know is that this off-course practice time is just as good as beating a bucket of balls on the driving range or playing a round. Because we are not focused on direction or distance, mechanics become the primary focus while doing so.

The next element in the receipe to better golf is training Aids. Training aids are responsible for helping thousands of golfers. No matter what the swing fault, there is a training aid to help. Most act as a restictor and the more restiction, the more you know the product is working. If you need help finding one, most intructors and avid golfers will have a one or two they recommend. Ask your golf pro or take a look into my top 10 favorite trainig aids and strongly consider purchasing one.

Top 10 Training Aids & Books

- Bob Burns Chicken Wing Arm Band or Torso Strap

- The Inside Approach (great for swing path and slicing) 

- Momentus Power Hitter Driver

- The Putting Arc

- Matzie Assist ( a great item for the release)

- Almost Golf – (foam practice golf balls)

- Power Coil

- The Stretching Stick

BOOKS -

- Ben Hogans 5 Lessons

- Harvey Penicks Little Red book

New or inexperienced golfers might want to try having a club re-gripped with a practice grip. This is a quick and useful reminder for golfers of any level.

Clubfitting Advice

As a consumer it can be a bit overwhelming at times to see and understand the wide variety of equipment and technology options available to you. Just look at how the driver has evolved. There are a variety of sizes, shapes, lofts, materials. All these these options are designed for different golfers and equally different golf swings. Golf equipment doesnt stop here. Today, shafts not heads are considered the engine of the golf club.  Fitting options today include more that just flex (stiffness). Fitting specifications include: flex, kick point, tip stiffnes, gram weight, radial torque and frequency. If the shaft is tuned or fit to the golfers swing, the end result is more distace and accuracy. In many instances, 10-15 yards is a realistic distance gain for the average golfer. So as a golfer, how do you know what to purchase. Well, we know that in todays economy a $300.00 for a driver off the rack is a big investment. However, if that driver is fine tuned to you and your golf swing, great results can be achieved.

As a professional the best advice I can give my student, customers or potential customer is to do some research, primarily some field testing.  Before or after, take some time to talk to a professional. Not just any joe clubmaker, a trusted professional who understands the golf swing and the science of golf club design. Explain your swing tendencies, frequency of play, experience, score and more. This should give you some direction and help you narrow your options.

My next recommendation is launch monitor analysis. Before or after the field testing, lauch monitor analysis is helpful in selecting the best performing product. This provides a visual to the technical jargon and becomes more easy to understand. The information which is most critical to the fitter is launch angle, spin rate, path deviation, ball speed.  

Weather your searching for a new driver, fairway metal, hybrid, irons, wedge, putter or anything in between make sure you take the extra time to get fit. In addition to the above mentioned specifications, the proper length, loft and lie angle can be detrimental to your end results. It may be confusting at first. However the golf pro or fitting expert if crediable will give you the guidance and take all the gues work out. In the end, it will make the game more enjoyabe which will likely result in you playing more frequently.  

Would you like to know what type of clubs to buy, confused by all the options, are you interested in learning about what might be the best fit you and your swing. Click the Build a Set link to complete a questionare about your game and a fitting expert will contact you with a FREE phone consultation.

2008 Ryder Cup in Review

 

 

Wow, would you have imagined if I told you last week that the American Ryder Cup team would win by 5 points. Apparently the national media didn’t think so. In fact, it looked as though most media had tagged the U.S. and their 6 rookies as an underdog. Well, that added fuel to the fire of the energetic young team with something to prove. The controversial captains’ picks turned out to be what I considered to be the dark horse players and what many are now calling the MVP’s of the team. 

A Brief History of the Ryder Cup –

 

The U.S. Team –

1. Phil Mickelson
2. Stewart Cink
3. Kenny Perry
4. Jim Furyk
5. Anthony Kim
6. Justin Leonard
7. Ben Curtis
8. Boo Weekley
9. Chad Campbell (captains pick)
10. J.B. Holmes (captains pick)
11. Hunter Mahan (captains pick)
12. Steve Stricker (captain’s pick)

CAPTAIN – Paul Azinger

 

The European Team –

1. Paul Casey
2. Sergio Garcia
3. Soren Hansen
4. Padraig Harrington
5. Miguel Angel Jimenez
6. Robert Karlsson
7. Graeme McDowell
8. Ian Poulter
9. Justin Rose
10. Henrick Stetson
11. Lee Westwood
12. Oliver Wilson

CAPTAIN – Nick Faldo

 

How the Match Shaked Out –

The final tally read: U.S. 16 ½, Europe 11 ½. This was the largest margin of victory for the U.S. since an 18 ½ – 9 ½ thumping of the European team at Walton Heath Golf Club in 1981.

 

Against the predictions of most, the rookies stepped up for the U.S. team combining for a record of  4-1-1 of the final round Sunday. On Sunday Paul Azinger made a bold statement by placing the 23 year old Anthony Kim in the number 1 spot against the traditionally Ryder Cup strong Sergio Garcia. Kim started a two point lead after three holes and gave Garcia a 5 and 4 defeat. Kim was so fired up that after he sunk his big putt on hole 14 he began walking to the 15^th thinking there was more work to be done until he was stopped and notified that he had won the match. Kim called 2008 Ryder Cup “An experience of a lifetime”.

 

Kenny Perry has said all year that he was playing for a spot on the Ryder Cup team. On Sunday he performed like a man on a mission. Perry played on fire from the third through the seventh hole scoring 5 under par. For Perry, who has played in nearly 2000 rounds on the PGA Tour, in only one other round in his career has he played a five-hole stretch this well. The hometown Kentuckian played better than expected and was a Sunday savior for the U.S. team.

 

Perhaps the biggest surprise on the negative side was the play of Phil Mickelson. His Friday and Saturday was above average and his final round Sunday play was below average, losing to a red hot, youthful Justin Rose. The match ended in the favor of Rose at 3 & 2. The other loss which appeared to be a mismatch was the competition of Ian Poulter v.s Steve Stricker. Poulter who was right on with his flatstick all weekend gave little opportunity for Sticker to make a comeback and ended up winning the Sunday match 3 & 2.

 

Azinger said early in the week that Ryder Cup experience was overrated. The tournament split equally among rookies and veterans. The U.S. team rookies clearly played better than expected and added a boost to the talent pool. The new blood posted a slightly better record, going 9-12-8 and scoring 13 points. They went 4-1-1 in singles on Sunday, a record for singles wins by Ryder Cup rookies. The U.S. veterans ended at 10-8-5 to contribute to 12½ points and 3-3 in singles.

 

In Their Words –

 

PAUL AZINGER –

“Today was an incredible day,” U.S. Captain Paul Azinger said. “The crowds were beautiful and they were well-behaved, and the European team and players, I’m proud of them. They really showed a lot of class in defeat. I’m just so honored that I was able to be here and do this.”

 

BOO WEEKLEY –

“No, not right now. It ain’t nothing like shooting a deer.” – After he had been asked if hunting and fishing was better than the Ryder Cup

 

ANTHONY KIM –

“I got chills up my spine the whole day today, and I’m loving every minute of it.”

 

KENNY PERRY –

“I figured this was going to define my career, but you know what? It made my career.”

 

PAUL AZINGER –

“We just went out there with a one-shot-at-a-time mission, and we did it.”

 

The Final Word –

On paper, I believe the American possessed more talent with less experience. However, It is possible to posses momentum with less Ryder Cup experience. Before the 2008 Ryder Cup, 9 of the top 20 players were members of the U.S. team where as only 1 of the top 20 players as ranked in the Fed Ex Cup were members of the European team. In many skilled sports, success generally comes and goes in streaks. This time, the U.S. was a riding a monuments wave with several players on hot streaks. All considering, much of the success should be attributed to the captain Paul Azinger for his four fantastic captain’s picks which are responsible for much of the teams success.

Walking away from the Ryder Cup most who watched would agree that another rising star has solidified himself as a proven winner is Anthony Kim who showed a high level of energy and no fear. He started his Sunday with a two-stroke lead and never looked back. Kim closed the door and won the match by the teams largest margin of victory. Another less recognizable young player is Hunter Mahan who tied a record for most points by a U.S. captains pick when he finished 2-0-3 who is also the only player at Valhalla to play all five matches without losing. J.B Holmes made the cliché “Drive for show, putt for dough” a reality when bombing the ball well over 300 yards of the 16^th and 17^th hole on the final round setting up easy birdies that helped close the door on his opponent. Golf fans may also take notice to the always entertaining, careless, tobacco juice spitting, clutch player who was seen half way through the final round, riding his driver down the fairway like a toy-horse. Can anyone say Happy Gilmore. Yeah, he is that entertaining and that good. Walking away from the Ryder Cup this year will prove there is no lack of talent among the American players on the PGA Tour and overall, was a feast of entertainment for the viewer ship. In the words of Phil Mickelson, “Paul Azinger for 2010 Ryder Cup captain”. I second that motion.

 

The Cup Without Tiger - 

Many agreed before that the team might be handicapped without Tiger. However, after the victory, there was a feeling the Americans were more of a team with the Tiger. Looking back at the work Azinger did building the team over the last two years, there is no question that Tiger was part of that equation. However, we all know Tiger is more of an individual than a team player. On one hand, you could look back and say that the addition of Mr. Woods to the team would have compromised the team chemistry and may have potentially lead to their demise. On the other, think of what a healthy Tiger could bring to a young U.S. team. That margin of victory could very easily be 2-3 points greater in favor of the U.S. Either way, I would accept Tiger to my team with open arms and we certainly look forward to seeing him back on the golf course in 2009 and what is guaranteed to be an even stronger 2010 U.S. Ryder Cup team.