In the middle of June I had an operation that put me out of commission until just recently. It is nothing serious, but something that needed to be taken care of sooner than later. Yesterday, I went and played 12 holes and felt very good after finishing. I purposely have been taking my time getting back into a full round in order not to reinjure myself and delay my full return. As I was swinging away, right from the first tee, I noticed that my ball direction was not as consistent as normal. Sometimes I would tug the ball left or slice the ball right. Overall, the first few holes was definitely not as smooth as normal. That is okay, because I realized what I was doing and was able to straighten out my swing errors by the end of the 12 holes.

My first step towards regaining my normal swing was to ‘swing easy’. I found that this approach was a great way of controlling most aspects of my overall swing mechanics. As I continued to work on my body positions and movements, I found that my swing path was all over the place. I was swinging left to right, right to left and a few were straight. This is one thing I definitely needed to correct in order to hit the ball straighter or at least at my intended target. As a refresher, I have a video explaining how a slice is created that you may find interesting:

As the holes unfolded, I found that I was able to control the swing path of my club face much better than when I started. By relaxing my whole body and letting the club do most of the work, I was able to regain much of my lost hitting ability. At the end, I was driving the ball about 230 yards off the tee, which is almost the same distance as before I had my operation. The important part is that it was fairly straight and heading in the direction of my intended line.

I also found that by relaxing and not overswinging, my approach shots were more effective. I hit 50% of the greens in regulation, which I am extremely happy about, from distances of 120 to 140 yards. I know that somedays my GIR percentage is higher because I am having a great day and I hope I am able to improve or sustain this stat as we enter into Men’s night tonight and a few upcoming tournaments. GIR percentage is always the most important stat for me and any improvement is welcomed.

Lastly, my short game was a bit rusty. Nothing a bit of practice will not fix as I continue to regain my midseason form. I was hitting the ball short most of the time and this tentative nature around the green will disappear very quickly as I become more aggressive getting the ball into the hole. Fixing my short game is all about practice and I am ready to put in the time.

Overall, I was satisfied at the end of the 12 holes yesterday. I found that many aspects of my game were returning and most importantly, my swing path improved. Knowing that my swing mechanics improves as I play more, I found the solution that works the best: play more golf!

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!