Golf Tips & Quips

I have a problem with too many swing thoughts in my head when I am practicing. The thoughts multiply when I am hitting the ball poorly. Once I get to this point, it is hard for me to calm down and get back into the groove.

Today I went into my practice session with only three thoughts.

1. Make a good full shoulder turn.
2. Swing through the ball.
3. Have fun.

I realized earlier this week that making a full shoulder turn adds distance to my shot. I had heard this before and I thought I had been making a good turn, but discovered that I was making more of a turn with my arms rather than with my shoulders.

The basketball drill helped me keep my hands away from my body as I made my my takeaway which gets my back facing the target at the top of my swing. It felt a little awkward at first but the results are great. I can feel that I have more power in my swing as I get to impact.

When I had my loop, I had to have perfect timing in order to get to the right position at impact to hit the ball straight. I actually got pretty good with the timing but I was losing out on distance, thus the need for the swing change. Now that I am making a better takeaway and shoulder turn, I am in the a good position at the top to let gravity do its job and simply swing through the ball.

I still have a lot of work to do. I have some pretty bad misses, but they are coming less frequently now. My main mishit is a hook to the left. I think it has to do with my address. I have to become better at making sure I have the proper alignment before hitting the shot.

It was fun out there today which is the last thing I wanted to focus on(this should be the first thing actually). Ever since I set my goals for 2010, I think I may have been putting too much pressure on myself. I want to break 80 so bad that it has almost become a job. 80 will come. I know it will. And when it does, it will be a celebration. Until then I have to remember to have fun along the way.

One of the analyst from NBC(I can't remember which one right now. Maybe Paul Azinger) made a comment that Colin Montgomerie and the European team were putting too much pressure on themselves during the opening stages of the Ryder Cup because they were so focused on the result. On winning. Corey Pavin and the American side had jumped out to an early lead after the lengthy rain delay leaving Monty a little bewildered.

The analyst said that in golf, you have to remember the steps it takes to win a team event of this magnitude. Looking past these steps makes you lose focus on the task at hand. Maybe Monty heard a replay of this statement and changed his game plan for the third stage as the host team held the lead in all six matches that were out on the course before play was called because of darkness.

I think I will heed the lesson as well. The results will come. The fun is in journey. Have a great round and always hit your target.

Image courtesy of Trading Phrases.



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Dustin Johnson is back in the winners circle. After a whirlwind of a season, Johnson kept his composure down the stretch at the BMW Championship to take home his second win of the year. Johnson finished with a birdie and a par on the final two holes, fending off a hard charging Paul Casey.

I'm a big fan of Johnson. I like his style of play. He is a big hitter and he has great touch around the greens. He has putted well this season and it seemed as though his name was always in the mix at the end of a tournament.

Johnson has experienced a lifetime of lessons in just this one year alone. He had the collapse at the U.S. Open in which he was within a few shot of winning his first major. There was the incident at Whistling Straits that cost him a chance at capturing the PGA Championship.

A lot of other golfers would have faded into the obscurity after going through what Johnson has. Not Dustin. It looks like he is going to be a contender for years to come. He has made his first Ryder Cup team. He has four wins already on the PGA tour, and he came very close to winning two majors in 2010. This guy is the real deal.

With Tiger failing to make it to the final stage of the FED-EX Cup Championship, and Phil seemingly not wanting to take over the number one spot in golf, Johnson may sneak his way to the top of the ladder. But there is nothing sneaky about Johnson. Everyone stops to look when he has a driver in his hand. With his continued good play, all eyes will be on Dustin Johnson for some time to come.

Have a great round and always hit your target.





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I was watching the final round of the Deutsche Bank Championship with my buddy Jay and he remarked, "that dude looks like Mr. Perfect Curt Henning." He was talking about Charley Hoffman. From the back he really did, and he did play a perfect final round. Even the PGA Tour website had their title story as Playoff Perfection.

Hoffman started the day four shots back but took over the tournament with a string of birdies early in his round. He continued his birdie barrage with six on the back nine, one of which was a hole out from the bunker on the 13th, making that the shot of the day. Hoffman was truly firing on all cylinders.

The man with the golden locks played the course aggressively. On the par 3 16th, Hoffman was comfortably ahead and the announce team said that Charley should play it safe and aim at the right side of the green where there was more room to work with. Hoffman took dead aim at the pin which was on the left side of the green. A miss left would leave him short-sided and staring at a bogey. Hoffman stuck it left of the pin and made the putt for birdie. Nail in the coffin.

United States Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin will make his captain's picks tomorrow morning and some are saying that he has to give Charley Hoffman serious consideration. Hoffman style of play would be a great fit for the American team. He has a great demeanor about him, and he never seemed to get up or down, handling the pressure of his competitor nipping at his heels.

Hoffman did all the things he needed to do to win down the stretch. He hit his fairways and greens, and made all the important putts. No one is perfect at the game of golf, but Charley came really close today.

Maybe he has peaked at the right time and has caught the eyes of the right people. Some think so and some are saying "Sorry Charley". We will find out tomorrow. I would give him the nod. When it is time to go into competition, who better than Mr. Perfect Charley Hoffman to have in my corner to tag in and finish out the match. Have a great round and always hit your target.



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The 2010 Ryder Cup will be hosted on European soil this year at Celtic Manor, Newport Wales. Captains Corey Pavin, and Colin Montgomerie have the daunting task of leading their respective teams into one of the most hotly contested tournaments in sports. Equally a daunting tasks for both leaders is making their three captains picks.

Montgomerie was scheduled to make his selections today and the players just outside the top 9 in Ryder Cup points made it very interesting for Monty. There were five players that everyone agreed were fighting for three spots. The five in contention were Justin Rose, Paul Casey, Padraig Harrington, Luke Donald, and Edoardo Molinari.

I wouldn't want to have to make this decision but Monty does, and he did. He picked Padraig Harrington, Luke Donald, and Edoardo Molinari. These are great picks despite the fact that this means that half of the team will be making their rookie appearances.

Earlier in the season I would have picked Justin Rose as a lock to make the team. At one point I started to wonder if he was the best player in golf. He won twice, but started to fade as the season progressed. Paul Casey is great in match play, but he has been fighting injury for much of the past two years.

Padraig Harrington is a three time major winner and he deserves to be on the team. He is a player that can catch fire and keep it going for a long time. He is an exciting player to watch and he will certainly fire up his teammates.

Luke Donald played great in the Ryder Cup two years ago. He is a streaky player who when he is dialed in, is as good as any from tee to green. This was made evident when he rattled off six birdies in a row to start the final round of The Barclays. He finished with a twenty eight on the front side, adding two more birdies at eight and nine. Great timing to start playing well, and Monty took notice.

Montgomrie also took notice of Edoardo Molinari who birdied the last three holes of the Johnnie Walker Championship to win it by a stroke over Brett Rumford and three over his brother Francesco, who had already made the team. Molinari showed poise as he finished down the stretch, hitting the clutch shots when he needed them. This is something that is needed to be successful in Ryder Cup competition.

Montgomerie gave a surprise pick in Sergio Garcia as the fourth assistant captain. Garcia, who qualified for the Fed-Ex Tournament, but opted to sit it out, will be there as a spark for the team. I am not sure how that is going to work out. Garcia has not had the fire in his game for some time now. Maybe being around the team will renew the passion that he once had for the game of golf.

Pavin still has his picks to be made, and the players on the outside will be stating their case for a selection to the American side. Most think that Tiger Woods is a lock for a pick despite his sub-standard play. Interestingly enough, it seems that Tiger has found something this weekend. He is driving the ball better and today he is putting like the Tiger of old.

The Ryder Cup is always a great competition to watch. All the players talk about making the team at least once in their career. There is a lot of history in this event and it looks like there will be many more stories and tales written again this year. There always is. Have a great round and always hit your target.

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