Being Fitted for Golf Clubs

March 12, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 10 Comments

Golf Season is Almost Here!

Thank you to everyone who commented on my last post about buying new golf clubs. The advice and recommendations were fantastic. The one take away that has stuck with me: it is time to invest in being properly fitted for a golf club. Thanks everyone for setting me straight!

So, being my normal self, I started researching how to be fitted for a golf club. After a fair bit time, this is what I came up with: the only consistent aspect about club fitting is that it is inconsistent! Depending on who you ask, which video you watch or which company’s website you visit, there are many aspects of club fitting that amateurs should focus upon….or should they?

Not to be deterred, here is what I think I should focus on when I go for my club fitting:

Length of the club. I am about 5′ 11″ (182 cm) with golf shoes on. Depending on how low my arms hang will help find my club length.
Next is where my arms drop during my swing. This will help find my lie of my golf club. This is the angle of the shaft into the head of a golf club.
Launch angle. Given my swing speed (around 95 mph) my optimum launch angle is 11 degrees. This angle will provide the best carry and roll of the ball during my swing.
Ball speed. Apparently swing speed is not really that important, but ball speed is; I guess this makes sense considering the other factors of a golf swing that could cut your ball speed such as poor contact, swing plane and swing angle.
Spin rate. I actually have never considered spin rate, but given my current numbers, a spin rate between 2-3 thousand rpm is ideal.

As I sift through the mountain of data, I will not be deterred. I will continue doing research in the hopes that my understanding about being custom fitted will grow and fog will clear.

However, I am not fully comfortable about the entire process. If anyone can recommend a good website or video the will help explain golf club fitting, I would be very grateful!

The only thing I am confident about is that it is time to be custom fitted for a driver. This should happen in the near future.

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

Hole-In-One! Golf’s Biggest Prize

March 8, 2015March 8, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 7 Comments

The biggest prize for any amateur is a hole-in-one! It is that one perfect swing where all your thoughts, actions, and intentions converge to produce something great. Every golfer dreams of hitting an hole-in-one; for some it is a matter of time; for others a stroke of genius!

Over the years, the PGA has produced a rash of these super strokes and I thought I would share them on this wonderful day! So hang and enjoy the action!

Dustin Johnson at the World Golf Championships – Cadillac Championship

J.B. Holmes matching Johnson’s amazing shot!

Francesco Molinari’s hole-in-one on No. 16 at Waste Management

Rory McIlroy’s hole-in-one in Abu Dhabi.

Richard Green Hole in One Albatross at Oates Vic Open Pro-Am

The top 10 aces on the PGA Tour up to 2011

These were all amazing shots. They are elusive and would be considered the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. I have had 3 perfect swings over the years and try to hit number 4 every time I loop the course! The article by Golfsmith on the chances of a hole-in-one is quite interesting. They state: “Golf Digest and the National Hole In One Association estimate that a tee shot hit by an amateur golfer on a par-3 goes into the hole one out of every 12,750 times.” Although the changes of making that perfect stroke appears high, it can happen to anyone and anytime!

The exciting aspect of any hole-in-one is that no matter who makes it, everyone is excited! Are you still chasing your first hole-in-one?

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

Mental Toughness and Golf

March 3, 2015March 3, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 7 Comments

Strength of mind propelled Tiger Woods to dominate the golfing world!

Mental toughness is the cornerstone of golf. Arnold Palmer thinks so and I am sure if you ask any golfer they would agree! The picture above reminds me of Tiger Woods in his prime! In his early years, Tiger was almost unstoppable. Yes he had a great swing, soft touch and a deadly putting stroke, but mostly he was mentally superior to all players.

Every time he hit the links, the knew he was going to win. Obviously Tiger did not win every tournament he entered, but his record speaks for itself:

Woods has won 79 official PGA Tour events, second only to Sam Snead, and six ahead of Jack Nicklaus with 73 wins.
Woods has won 14 majors, second all time, behind Jack Nicklaus.
Woods is 14–1 when going into the final round of a major with at least a share of the lead.
Woods scoring average in 2000 is the lowest in PGA Tour history, both adjusted, 67.79, and unadjusted, 68.17.
Woods has the lowest career scoring average in PGA Tour history.
Woods has amassed the most career earnings of any player in PGA Tour history (even after inflation is considered).
Woods is one of five players (along with Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, and Gary Player) to have won all four professional major championships in his career, known as the Career Grand Slam, and was the youngest to do so.
Woods is the only player to have won all four professional major championships in a row, accomplishing the feat in the 2000–2001 seasons. This feat became known as the “Tiger Slam”.
Woods set the all-time record for most consecutive cuts made, with 142. The streak started in 1998, he set the record at the 2003 Tour Championship with 114 (passing Byron Nelson’s previous record of 113 and Jack Nicklaus at 105) and extended this mark to 142 before it ended on May 13, 2005 at the EDS Byron Nelson Championship. Many consider this to be one of the most remarkable golf accomplishments of all time, given the margin by which he broke the old record and given that during the streak, the next longest streak by any other player was usually only in the 10s or 20s. It should be noted that when Byron Nelson played far fewer players made the cut in a given event.
Woods has won a record 26.2% (79 out of 301) of his professional starts on the PGA Tour.
Woods is the only golfer to have won the U.S. Amateur three consecutive times (1994–96). (Source Wikipedia)

In my opinion, Tiger Woods current woes are mental. I am confident that if he was a mentally strong as he was in 2000, he would continue with his winning ways. Mentally, he is one of the strongest players to ever play professional golf. I am not sure how he regains his mental toughness, but if he does, he will be a force to contend with!

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

Davis Love III – 2016 US Ryder Cup Captain

February 17, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 4 Comments

Davis Love III will be the 2016 US Ryder Cup Captain. This is his second try at the helm; is first being a loss at Medinah in 2012. As a reminder, the 39th Ryder Cup was held at the Medinah Country Club in Medinah, Illinois, U.S. The team captains were Davis Love III and José María Olazábal for Europe. As defending champions, the European team was down 10-6 going into the last day! Depending on which side of the fence you sit, the results were either a miracle or a meltdown! The Europeans rallied and won the match 14 1/2 to 13 1/2. It was the greatest comeback in Ryder Cup history!

There is little question that “how” Love failed to keep his team together on the last day will be a focal point of future conversations. There will be plenty of second guessing and armchair quarterbacks who think they have the answer. But, the decision is made and now is the time for the potential US players to start thinking as a team.

Names like Fred Couples (who I actually would prefer) and Paul Azinger (2008 winner at the Ryder Cup as US Captain) were bantered about. In the big scheme of things…..it does not matter.

Adam Sarson makes a great point:

The role of the captain at the Ryder Cup is to put your team in the best possible place for success. Love did that at Medinah and it didn’t work out, while Watson very clearly didn’t do that and unsurprisingly, it didn’t work either. The PGA of America tried to hit the home run with Watson and it didn’t work, so they went with the safe, reliable play in Love but all of it will mean nothing if the players don’t perform better at Hazeltine and get a little bit of luck along the way as well.

The players have to take ownership for how they play at the Ryder Cup. Past records are fine, finger-pointing is not helpful, and hoping for a magic solution just does not cut it. If the US Ryder Cup Team plans to beat the Europeans in 2016, the players are the ones who have to step up.

The ifs, ands, and buts will change 50 times before they players tee it up at Hazeltine National Golf Club from 30 September to 2 October, 2016. The only thing I am confident about is that it will be interesting to watch Davis Love III navigate his way through all the minutia in attempts to bring the Ryder Cup back to the US.

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

Golf’s Missing Piece

February 14, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / 4 Comments

Golf is a complex game. Many experts elude to the idea that golf is broken down into manageable segments to which the answer is simple. In some cases, this is true. However, my experience suggests that to become a better golfer, a whole approach to golf is required.

The Whole Approach to Golf! Do you see the missing piece?

I really enjoy making puzzles. For some reason, I find it relaxing and stimulating to patiently find all the pieces and place them in their proper spot. I especially like putting in the last piece. The sense of accomplishment after hours of sorting and placing is quite rewarding. Unfortunately, I did not have that sense of accomplishment on my last puzzle because I lost one of the pieces. So, even though the puzzle still looks nice, it is incomplete.

A puzzle is a bit like golf. All the pieces represent the different aspects of our game. Slowly and patiently, we work at different areas until one day it all comes together and we shoot our best score ever. Then, we examine our game and think of where to improve next and start the process all over again. This is ‘whole’ approach to golf that many novice players tend to overlook.

Think of the best golfer you know; now imagine their entire routine. From the moment they step onto the golf course, it is all about golf. They usually have a very set routine which prepares them for the upcoming round. This player practices the same way, chips and putts with intent, and arranges their equipment in a very specific way. When they finally step up to the first tee, they are ready to play.

When on the course, this same player becomes a creature of habit which reinforces the positive aspects of their game. If something is off, the may adjust slightly, but make sure no major changes occur during their round. They accept what the course and their swing gives them that day, but are cognizant of areas that will need improvement. (For a novel approach to “the answer” check out Vet at The Goofy Game of Golf Searching for the Answer) These players rarely focus on a segment of their game, they focus on the entire aspect of playing well.

Golf is very much like a puzzle. Building a complete picture of our game takes time and patience. We could spend hours improving a selected skill only to realize, when putting all the pieces together, that it was not the area that needed the most attention. As the 2015 golfing season approaches, focus on the big picture first. Look at your whole game before deciding which individual skills you want to improve. You may be surprised at what you find.

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