The other day I attended a LPGA event south of Portland and I paused to watch one of the participants warming up at the range. Actually I was about to leave when her swing and its results caught my eye and my ear. The solid sound her irons made was captivating. I stopped and watched […]
The drive
What we can learn from Patrick Cantley
Patrick “Iceman” Cantley may well be our modern Ben Hogan, who was also known as the “Iceman.” In the last two tournaments of 2021, Cantley took down two of the best in today’s game, Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm. Like David defeating Goliath, like the tortoise besting the hare, like the Trojan Horse deceiving and […]
Pace: Find your Model
When I was a kid, one of the pros I admired was Gene Littler who won the U.S. Amateur, scored 29 victories on the PGA Tour, including the U.S. Open in 1961. Gene the Machine, they used to call him, for his smooth, easy, repeating swing. For a time, he was my model for how […]
The Lesson
Well, I finally did it, thanks to a gift from my golf bud, Steve P. I took the plunge and saw the very able pro at Tri Mountain in Ridgefield WA, Michael Parker. Essentially, he diagnosed this old fart with a kind of old-fart kind of a swing. This was a bit of a rude […]
Go, Jordan, Go!
A hole in one for Jordan at the Arnold Palmer! And last I looked he was tied for first. His driving still needs some sharpening, but his putting is starting to look like the Jordan we all remembered him by. He’s coming out of his slump, for sure, as the last three events and this […]
Possibly the Best Swing Aid Ever; and a Memory of Arnie
The Acu-Strike Golf Impact Training Mat, one for indoor and one for outdoor use, is, by far, the best training and learning tool I’ve ever come across. It shows you, quite graphically, the path your clubface takes into and through the impact area. In other words, you can see, first hand, after each shot, why […]
Further Thoughts on the Full Swing
So what is the one element of the swing that separates amateurs from pros? Actually it’s a series of elements, which adds to its complication…and mystique. I do not have it all figured out–far from it–but I have observed that recreational golfers know little about getting the sequence of movements right. Pros often learn this […]
Completing the Backswing: An Essential to Solid Contact
As I continue to experiment with the mechanics of the golf swing, I begin to realize more and more the importance of completing the backswing. There’s no cookie cutter formula for this, but there are some general guidelines. In addition to a one piece takeaway, which I’ve written about before, the hands and the club […]
And Yet More Player Assessments, Pre-Masters
This may be the deepest PGA tour field I’ve seen in years. There’s a lot of talent out there, with just a putt or two separating those who win from the others. Patrick Cantley. Great college player. Has been solid on pro tour. I’ve seen better putters, but otherwise, I can find no flaws in […]