SchneeWRX- A Tradition Unlike Any Other

[Schnee]

Day 3

 

On Wednesday, I had a playing lesson at Houston Oaks. It was an absolutely beautiful course, and not a blade of grass was out of place. The greens were lightning fast. Chase, myself, and two other students played (both good dudes and great swings)

 

 

 

 

 

It was pretty cool, Tom Watson was there with a group of guys and we saw him a couple times over the course of our round. 

 

I hit the ball alright, but struggled to implement some of the changes on the course. I had some really good shots though when Chase simplified things for me. We had a great time with 80* weather and plentiful sunshine. 

 

On the drive back to the Academy, Chase dropped some serious knowledge on me. He said “You need to learn when a bad shot is because of a bad swing, and when a bad shot is from a lack of commitment to the shot” I estimated that 90% of my bad shots were lack of commitment. That’s pretty indicative of my game as a whole. I start to doubt myself, I don’t trust my swing or what I’m trying to do, and then hit a bigger miss than if I had just made a bad swing. I get too deliberate, too robotic, and have both of my hands glued to the steering wheel. I’ve gotta free wheel it on the course. 

 

Day 4

 

That ties in nicely with my last day in Texas. Day 4 focused a lot on trust. I had a two hour lesson starting at 9 am before flying home. Chase and I tried to boil things down to the root of my issues. I need to hone in my low point control. That’s issue #1. Everything else takes a back seat. Chase hid all the parameters on Trackman except for low point. He put a towel an inch behind the ball and had me hit shots getting steeper, focusing on missing the towel and getting low point in front of the ball. 

 

Hal sat in on my lesson and we had some fantastic discussions on ballstriking, commitment to shots, and what it takes to play golf at an elite level. He said that he never came across a great golfer on tour that didn’t have command of the bottom of their swing. It may draw some days, fade some days, but they always controlled their low point. We talked about how you can improve your swing and improve your game, but the greatest growth will come from learning to manage my strengths and weaknesses, and learning to trust my ability. 

 

I need to do all my thinking behind the ball. Once I’ve assessed all the variables, I have to step in and pull the trigger. I can de-commit and back off, but I need make succinct, confident choices, and learn to ignore the fear of outcome. 

 

I’m hitting the ball great with a little cut throughout the bag. I have a game plan for the winter and for next season. I have an understanding of my swing that I’ve never had before. That’s all thanks to Chase, Hal, and Will at the Academy. 

 

They have a world class setup with all the launch monitors and tech you could ever want. They are the perfect marriage of old school and new school. Add in Will with his club fitting and equipment expertise, and you have a real one stop shop. You’ve got an expert on biomechanics in Chase, a 14 time tour winner in Hal, and an expert club guru and terrific player in his own right in Will. 

 

Make the trip to the new Academy. I’m glad I did, and you will be too. 
 

Edited November 23, 2020 by Schnee

[Schnee]

I should note that goal #1 was accomplished on this trip. I easily hit 1000 balls over 4 days and have no back pain to speak of. 

[ALIF]

Nice work! You’re getting better every year consistently!  Awesome trip!

[ebrasmus21]

Sounds like one hell of a trip.  Great write up as usual.  

[MackDaddy480]

1 hour ago, Schnee said:

I should note that goal #1 was accomplished on this trip. I easily hit 1000 balls over 4 days and have no back pain to speak of. 

Schnee - what was done to eliminate the back pain? Was it the left shoulder movement?

[games]

@Schnee Would it be accurate to say you are going to spend more time on pre-shot routine and less time over the ball?  This is a change I'd like to make.

[Schnee]

7 hours ago, MackDaddy480 said:

Schnee - what was done to eliminate the back pain? Was it the left shoulder movement?

Yes. Staying in left tilt longer/eliminating excess right tilt is what did it for me. 

[Schnee]

2 hours ago, games said:

@Schnee Would it be accurate to say you are going to spend more time on pre-shot routine and less time over the ball?  This is a change I'd like to make.

Yes, but more so that I’m not going to steer the ball so much and make my swing so deliberate. There needs to be more flow to it. 

[Krt22]

On 11/23/2020 at 4:56 AM, Schnee said:

Yes. Staying in left tilt longer/eliminating excess right tilt is what did it for me. 

Mind expanding on the subtle light bulb moment you had on the subject and what you are thinking/feeling to keep left shoulder down? I have been battling the same issue for years, much was from my back swing. BS is getting better and better, but Im still struggling with the transition since I imagine my subconscious "thinks" its such a steep position that I almost immediately tilt away. I can hit little cuts when I am practicing, but once I am on the course I am much more prone to default to the old move and then miss left

[Schnee]

1 hour ago, Krt22 said:

Mind expanding on the subtle light bulb moment you had on the subject and what you are thinking/feeling to keep left shoulder down? I have been battling the same issue for years, much was from my back swing. BS is getting better and better, but Im still struggling with the transition since I imagine my subconscious "thinks" its such a steep position that I almost immediately tilt away. I can hit little cuts when I am practicing, but once I am on the course I am much more prone to default to the old move and then miss left

I’m still adjusting to the move myself, but the way Chase explained it to me made sense. It’s not that the left shoulder just goes down. It’s that the left shoulder moves down and around, continuing to open through impact. 
 

In the past, I tried to get my left shoulder down by moving my whole upper body down, but cut off rotation in the process and then had to back out of it. 
 

I feel like my head stays centered, and the left shoulder comes down, around, and then behind me. For instance, the drill where you cross your arms across your chest and turn back then through replicates it. From a DTL view, the left shoulder moves continuously. It goes down, then around, to the left, and gets covered up by your torso. Your left shoulder has to separate from your chin/head in order to do it. 

[Krt22]

31 minutes ago, Schnee said:

I’m still adjusting to the move myself, but the way Chase explained it to me made sense. It’s not that the left shoulder just goes down. It’s that the left shoulder moves down and around, continuing to open through impact. 
 

In the past, I tried to get my left shoulder down by moving my whole upper body down, but cut off rotation in the process and then had to back out of it. 
 

I feel like my head stays centered, and the left shoulder comes down, around, and then behind me. For instance, the drill where you cross your arms across your chest and turn back then through replicates it. From a DTL view, the left shoulder moves continuously. It goes down, then around, to the left, and gets covered up by your torso. Your left shoulder has to separate from your chin/head in order to do it. 

Gotcha, I think I might be having a similar problem, but I think I need to clean up my hip action as well. Sort of chicken and egg, if hips dont regain flex there isn't room for the arms to come down and allow for the rotation, conversely if you tilt right away, hips need to trust and rotation stalls. It's driving me mad lol

[copperjeff]

Great work Chris!

 

My back hurts just looking at the before swing you posted. 

 

After swing is looking solid! For sure the least "manufactured" swing ive ever seen from you.

 

Having what feels like a steep shoulder turn in the downswing is such a hard concept to reconcile with also getting a shallow shaft.

 

Nice job making it look easy!

[Hawkeye77]

I've been following your journey since you first visited Monte and the progression, overcoming some of the bumps in the road physically, and the constant positive approach have been truly inspiring young man!

[Hstead]

Nice write up.  I was the same, didn't understand how to get the left shoulder down, or not right tilt too early.  It is subtle, and is quick.  I couldn't have done it on my own.  I had video lessons, but couldn't do it until Chase held my shoulder in place and showed me exactly what it did and what it felt like.

 

He dispelled so many myths for me.  My main issue wasn't as much of a swing flaw as it was a mental flaw.  I believed this BS that you needed to "shallow" the shaft and lay it down as far as you could get it.  That stupid crap made me drop my right shoulder trying to lay the shaft down.

 

I now understand that you do not need to lay it down so flat.  The Athletic Motion guys have discussed it at length and after Chase explained it now I get it.  Dan tried to tell me in his way but it never sunk in past the idiotic thought that I had about laying the shaft down.  

 

Not trying to lay the shaft down helped fix my left shoulder.  The shaft shallows all it needs to on its own now without forcing it to "lay down".  The shaft bisecting the bicep is all I need to hit good shots.

 

I have never played better since my lesson with Chase.  I shot 67 two days ago and 73 today without making a single putt.  Never had better command of my swing or ball after Chase fixed my head and swing.

[dcl5dcl5]

11 hours ago, Schnee said:

I’m still adjusting to the move myself, but the way Chase explained it to me made sense. It’s not that the left shoulder just goes down. It’s that the left shoulder moves down and around, continuing to open through impact. 
 

In the past, I tried to get my left shoulder down by moving my whole upper body down, but cut off rotation in the process and then had to back out of it. 
 

I feel like my head stays centered, and the left shoulder comes down, around, and then behind me. For instance, the drill where you cross your arms across your chest and turn back then through replicates it. From a DTL view, the left shoulder moves continuously. It goes down, then around, to the left, and gets covered up by your torso. Your left shoulder has to separate from your chin/head in order to do it. 

 

I've been struggling with this move and this description is brilliant. Thanks Chris! Best description I've ever heard for this problem. Appreciate you continuing to share your journey with us.

[Golfbeat]

8 hours ago, Hstead said:

Nice write up.  I was the same, didn't understand how to get the left shoulder down, or not right tilt too early.  It is subtle, and is quick.  I couldn't have done it on my own.  I had video lessons, but couldn't do it until Chase held my shoulder in place and showed me exactly what it did and what it felt like.

 

He dispelled so many myths for me.  My main issue wasn't as much of a swing flaw as it was a mental flaw.  I believed this BS that you needed to "shallow" the shaft and lay it down as far as you could get it.  That stupid crap made me drop my right shoulder trying to lay the shaft down.

 

I now understand that you do not need to lay it down so flat.  The Athletic Motion guys have discussed it at length and after Chase explained it now I get it.  Dan tried to tell me in his way but it never sunk in past the idiotic thought that I had about laying the shaft down.  

 

Not trying to lay the shaft down helped fix my left shoulder.  The shaft shallows all it needs to on its own now without forcing it to "lay down".  The shaft bisecting the bicep is all I need to hit good shots.

 

I have never played better since my lesson with Chase.  I shot 67 two days ago and 73 today without making a single putt.  Never had better command of my swing or ball after Chase fixed my head and swing.

 

Great addition to this thread. Chris mentioned that his stock shot is a fade. Is this your stock shot as well?  Do you think that the left shoulder down and less right tilt is easier to implement when hitting fades? Personally, I think that I often right tilt too much because of the desire to hit a draw. Can the feeling of left shoulder down also be described as a feeling of a slight over the top with the shoulders?

[Schnee]

2 hours ago, Golfbeat said:

 

Great addition to this thread. Chris mentioned that his stock shot is a fade. Is this your stock shot as well?  Do you think that the left shoulder down and less right tilt is easier to implement when hitting fades? Personally, I think that I often right tilt too much because of the desire to hit a draw. Can the feeling of left shoulder down also be described as a feeling of a slight over the top with the shoulders?

I’ll let Heath give his thoughts too, but for guys built like us, it’s easier to hit fades and keep our hands out in front and not overtilt to try and shift the path right to hit a draw. 
 

As far as the over the top feeling with the shoulders, both Dan Carraher and Chase had good descriptions for me:

 

Dan: the pivot is the boat and the arms are the waterskiier. The pivot turns the corner and the arms are flung out to the ball. 
 

Chase: the pivot and shoulders make a slicing motion and the arms and hands make a hooking motion. 
 

long story short, the two moves balance each other out. I just have too many shallowing components in my swing currently. 

[Krt22]

28 minutes ago, Schnee said:

I’ll let Heath give his thoughts too, but for guys built like us, it’s easier to hit fades and keep our hands out in front and not overtilt to try and shift the path right to hit a draw. 
 

As far as the over the top feeling with the shoulders, both Dan Carraher and Chase had good descriptions for me:

 

Dan: the pivot is the boat and the arms are the waterskiier. The pivot turns the corner and the arms are flung out to the ball. 
 

Chase: the pivot and shoulders make a slicing motion and the arms and hands make a hooking motion. 
 

long story short, the two moves balance each other out. I just have too many shallowing components in my swing currently. 

Good explanation! Tyler Ferrell explains the blending of the steeps/shallows, as does Monte in his efficient swing series, but yes, it is very very very hard to implement for a long time tilter. Even when I do a freezer, Ill get into a good position at the top, nice centered pivot, and then when the "hit" comes tilt immediately. I think I need to commit to the fade feeling on the course. I can do it in practice and hit dead straight lasers or tiny fades, but mentally its tough to feel like I'm going to hit a wicked slice when I am actually on the course

[Hstead]

11 hours ago, Golfbeat said:

 

Great addition to this thread. Chris mentioned that his stock shot is a fade. Is this your stock shot as well?  Do you think that the left shoulder down and less right tilt is easier to implement when hitting fades? Personally, I think that I often right tilt too much because of the desire to hit a draw. Can the feeling of left shoulder down also be described as a feeling of a slight over the top with the shoulders?

I am hitting mostly fades, especially driver.  Everything you said I would agree with.  Definitely easier to get left shoulder down and around with a feeling of coming over the top and hitting a fade.  The drill Chase had me do, and I still do, is to hit a mid iron, like 7 iron, about 120 yards coming over the top and hitting a little pull cut.  Adding speed can be a killer in the beginning.  So slow is your friend.

 

I also tilt too much when trying to hit a draw.  I can draw it, but it is with wrist adjustments.  I only try to draw it now if I need to, which is only once or twice per round it seems.  To draw it I still feel like I am coming over it, but I bow the left wrist a little more and swing out a little more without feeling like I am laying the club down. 

 

The biggest culprit for me was this thought that I needed to get so shallow.  The swing is so much easier now that I am not forcing the club down.  The other move I think that helps a lot is the "surfer" or "re-centering" move the AMG guys talk about all of the time.  If you do the counter-fall toward the target by flexing your left knee more, it tilts your hips, left hip down right hip high, and that also keeps the left shoulder down.  Monte loves this move and shows Rory doing it all the time.

[Schnee]

I took the changes to the course for the first time today. We had some 45° temps so I got out for 9 holes. I’ve been grinding on the changes in my garage lab since I got back from Texas. It’s nice having a blueprint of my swing to work off of. 
 

My work on lowpoint control is starting to pay off. Some of the most crisp contact I’ve had in forever. Being adequately steep on the ball has me taking a nice divot and the ballflight is insanely straight. Just a touch of fade, which is awesome. 
 

It’s going to take some time to trust the new move and not right tilt to try and save it. I’ve got to convince myself that all of my misses are from being too shallow. Staying very centered with my pivot has made all of that easier. Path is getting more left and things are straightening out. My iron game is going to be a weapon next year instead of a liability (according to Arccos and my own experience) 
 

I’m glad I went to see Chase and Hal in the fall, as these changes are pretty significant. I can work over the winter to groove them and be ready to go come springtime. If I had done this in the spring, I think it would’ve been harder to commit to. Sometimes it’s hard to play and work on changes at the same time. 
 

Back pain is nonexistent now. Truly amazing feeling to know that golf isn’t causing pain any more. 
 

I’ll update you guys when I’ve got some new video of the move. 

[ALIF]

Nice work Chris. Before each iron shot you should say “Prepare to fire the laser”. 😂

[Schnee]

29 minutes ago, ALIF said:

Nice work Chris. Before each iron shot you should say “Prepare to fire the laser”. 😂

That would definitely improve my commitment to the shot 😂

[ddetts]

I am back on the site for the first time in quite awhile - sort of disengaged and never really came back during the multiple site migrations. Wanted to just say congrats and that's awesome that you hit an all-time low. I too have been on this site for quite some time now (since 2008 my profile tells me, that seems forever ago) and have followed a lot of this path you've been on. It's pretty cool to see someone progress so far! Cheers 🍻!

[Schnee]

Figured I'd pop in for a quick update on my golf game. It's been a snowy and cold winter here in NY, but I've managed to get a decent amount of work in on my game. I've made tons of progress on the backswing, avoiding over-rotating and getting too deep. On the downswing front, I'm working on staying in left tilt without my left arm coming out too much from a DTL view. 

 

I've also been grinding really hard on steepening my AoA through all this using the towel drill. That's been paying huge dividends. 

 

Finally, I've been doing tons of putting work, specifically on my alignment and the rhythm/flow of my stroke/routine. I've taken the information from my Edel fitting and worked hard on not aiming so far left. 

 

I'll get some video of my swing the next time at the dome, my garage lab isn't too conducive to swing videos in the winter (fluorescent lighting is just too dim). 

 

 

On another note, if you guys want a good listen/watch, Hal and Chase have a new podcast that they've been working really hard on. Here's the link to the audio version, and it's also on YouTube if you're a visual person like me. 

 

https://anchor.fm/halsuttongolf

 

[Hstead]

 

The latest episode, #5, is absolutely awesome.  Hal talks about all of this Ryder Cup experiences and when he was Captain etc.  There have only been 24 Captains, so it is pretty cool to get the inside story of what happens behind the scenes.  Love the podcast.

[bilbry57]

On 2/12/2021 at 5:28 PM, Hstead said:

Like 

The latest episode, #5, is absolutely awesome.  Hal talks about all of this Ryder Cup experiences and when he was Captain etc.  There have only been 24 Captains, so it is pretty cool to get the inside story of what happens behind the scenes.  Love the podcast.

 I was on the road and listened to 5 of the 6 Podcasts and they were all very informative.  Hal is a great story teller and comes across as a straight shooter.  I loved hearing how about the pairing of Phil and Tiger IMO Hal took a ton of heat when  Phil was being selfish.  The best line was Hal telling Phil you can’t find the golf course so I made it easy your paired with best player in the world.

 

Chase seems like a great guy and very knowledgeable about how to use technology to confirm what he sees.  The best advice he gave was to film  swings when your hitting it well something very few amateurs actually do.

 

[Schnee]

 

 

Overall, I'm hitting it really solid right now. Working on a more centered pivot in the backswing, which I feel I've done a good job at by extending more, downswing, I'm trying to stay in left tilt as long as possible while also not letting my left arm shift out too early (from a DTL view). Im hitting little cuts that are flighted nice and low (compared to my normal ballflight). Almost feels like my arms and hands are moving right while my pivot is turning left. Or as Chase says, a hooking motion with arms and hands, a slicing motion with the pivot. Dan explained it to me similarly, pivot steepens and offsets the shallowing of the arms. 

[Hawkeye77]

Like a bullet!

[Divot License]

Looking really good @Schnee

[Schnee]

A lot has changed since my last post in here. If you’ve followed any of my social media, you’ll see that I road tripped it down to Texas. I’ll expound upon the details at some point, but I made stops in the Pinehurst area to play Tobacco Road, and I played TPC Sawgrass. After staying with some friends on the Gulf Coast in Alabama, I made my way west to Houston, Texas.

 

There’s an important reason that I’m here in Houston. I’m pleased to say that I’ve joined the team at Hal Sutton Golf Academy!

 

I’m thrilled to be working with Hal Sutton, Chase Cooper, and Will Paulsell, and excited to see what comes from this crazy adventure. I’ve begun the PGA program, and have already passed the requirements to officially become a PGA associate. I’m working to become a Class A professional in the Southern Texas PGA Section.

 

I’m sure I’ll continue this thread in some way, but wanted to share with you guys the great news. This wonderful game has taken me places I’ve never imagined, and I can’t wait to see what else golf has in store for me. Thank you to everyone that has read this thread since the beginning. If anyone wants to tee it up in the greater Houston area, drop me a PM.

 

-Chris