narrominded
Hello
again
my
fellow golf
nuts,
and
welcome to
our new digital version
of Backspin.
Amber and
I were extremely proud of the printed version, but we both feel this new
approach is the best way for us to
continue promoting the great game
of golf. We hope you enjoy what is
a challenging but satisfying project as
any and all feedback will be greatly
appreciated.
I’m very excited about playing
golf this year, especially in tournaments. I feel like my game is really
coming around which makes me extremely optimistic about playing well.
I’d like to share with you why I’m
feeling this way about my golf game.
I’ve learned a lot from my team
over the past few months, which may
sound like a role reversal from the
coach and player relationship. However, I must admit that’s the case.
Below are some “secrets” to success
for you to follow if you’re truly committed to playing better golf going
forward.
First is to get your body in golf
shape. Now those of you who know
me realize this will be my biggest
challenge. However, even a little bit
of golf specific exercise will make a
difference over time.
The guys on my team are fit,
strong and extremely flexible ... and
can really kill the ball. This also allows them to do another one of the
secrets to getting better which is practice.
Now I completely get we’re not
18-21 years old anymore, but that
makes it even more important to be
conscious (or in my case self-conscious) about our bodies. It’s extremely hard to gain speed through
your swing mechanics. In most cases,
trying to find more distance ends up
with losing distance. However, more
core strength will certainly provide
you with a more stable, powerful
swing. Getting more fit will also help
you with those aches and pains that
we tend to have as we get a little “wiser.” Bottom line for secret #1 is eat
less and move more.
Second is to practice. I’m sure
you’re saying to yourself this isn’t a
secret, but how many of you actually
practice? (That was in my best Allen
Iverson voice) Get yourself a practice schedule and stick to it, even if it
doesn’t give immediate results.
At the end of our fall season, I
had a one on one meeting with every team member, and we mapped
out a schedule of what and how to
practice. For some, it was more short
game. Others needed to make some
swing improvements. From there,
the guys really got into their practice and embraced the process. Like
I mentioned above, it could be tough
to practice with a bad back or other
aches and pains. That’s why getting
more golf fit is first on the list. Like
I tell Amber all the time with my fitness, Rome wasn’t built in a day.
Here’s a suggestion to get started
with your practice. From what I’ve
seen in the past 23 years of teaching is our short games are not that
good. Get yourself a short game lesson from your local PGA professional
and dedicate 30-45 minutes twice a
week to your chipping and putting for
the next two months. I’d be willing to
bet you’ll be shooting better scores by
Masters weekend.
Finally, and perhaps most important, is attitude. This secret is
perhaps the most important factor
of all. Having fun and being positive
playing golf tends to lead to better
golf. I see too many people who only
see the bad breaks golf gives them.
Please understand that good and bad
breaks are part of golf, and they do
eventually balance out. We hear and
see all the time the person described
who has the “perfect demeanor” for
golf. Well, that person isn’t the one
who gets upset, throws clubs and
thinks everything is against them. He
or she is the one who is cool, calm
and takes things in stride. This is
where as a coach I am most important as my team tends to try too hard
to play well. When we put too much
pressure on one shot or one round, it
leads to tension which leads to poor
performance.
There’s nothing wrong with hitting a bad shot, especially for those
of us who have real jobs!! How about
trying this approach the next time
you face a tough or what feels like a
pressure filled shot. Try to look forward to the challenge and be aggressive. Swing full and go for it because
being scared of a bad outcome certainly doesn’t work. After all, it’s only
a game.
These three secrets, as we all
know by now, are certainly not secrets.
However, H