Confessions 12 --- Exploding Heads

[BIG STU]

Sixty, if you're out there lurking my friend, this one's for you.

 

 

Stu, you may know this song too.

Never have heard it before but awesome!!! Congrats Rad it will make the morning sound check run up this AM

[BIG STU]

Weather was miserable in my local area so I headed indoors for two 18 hole rounds.

 

Anyone else notice that the hit the ball further and straighter with a shortened back-swing and abbreviated follow through?

 

Yes, it's matter of having the arms synched up with the core. A longer

swing is actually wasted movement if the arms disconnect from the core.

 

When I first did the slicefixer 9-3 drills I was surprised how far I hit the

ball with a 9-3 swing. It was probably 90% of a full swing, distance wise.

 

A "connected" swing is simply more powerful and more accurate.

My Dear old Dad (Lord rest his soul) was a big proponent of that. He correctly predicted 6 months before he died that when I got to my 50s that my body would not be able to keep up with my fast hands and there would be trouble. It really became a lot of trouble when I picked up a lot of weight. Now that I have dropped in excess of 20 Lbs lately I can "turn the mass" again. I have shortened up my swing some and in old age have finally gotten what he told me years ago about turning those shoulders and less hands. Actually age has slowed my tempo which is good for me. Lately I have actually picked up on average through the bag on average 10 to 12 yards. The driver more than that with changing driver itself and shaft change from x stiff to regular. In truthfulness now I am a better ball striker than I have ever been. Played yesterday with some of the "Miura Mafia" guys really hit the ball solid. Putting was weird rolled it good but could not get anything to drop. Hit all but 2 FIRs in regulation with the driver but had 15 GIRs on a tough course. That 15 GIRs is a record for me. Actually my main problem was distance control especially with the wedges hit a lot of shots over the top of the stick but too far. This course can be treacherous because it has big greens with a lot of undelation and you can get into trouble with the ball in the wrong place on them. I had also put my old 588s back in the bag that the Miura dealer had set up for me a couple of years ago with the soft tipped Sensicore shafts. He actually commented that he saw I had came to my senses and had put the wedges he set up for me back in the bag. I did manage to make 2 birdies through all of that. Did something I have not done in a long time 4 putted a green. It was the last hole and it was trecherous. The approach was over water and the pin was tough. One of the guys in my group had already backed one off the green into the water. I actually could have hit my 60* distance wise but knew at that distance (90 yards) but knew I would spin the crap out of it and do the same thing so I took a little off the 56* and ended up on the extreme upper tier. Actually one of the other guys was up there with me and putted one into the water so that scared me. And this group has some good players. Ended up shooting a 76 all things considered. It could have really been a great day if I could have gotten some putts to drop with my ball striking and FIRs and GIRs but it is what it is

[BIG STU]

Lurked on Gigagolf.com and found this:

 

 

Made of 1035c carbon steel.

Forged

If I ordered now, 3-PW, shipped, it would be ±$500 CAD, unless Customs castrates me.

Shipped by Fedex

 

Are you serious mdg? I'll trade you my Macs for your S58s. I could use a back

up set. :D

 

Haha!

 

What took you so long?

I was expecting you (this) BEFORE you got the Macs! LMAO

 

Thing is, if I get the itch to upgrade my i20s, they'll be the ones leaving. I learned from Ping that, even though he was a Ping authorized dealer, the owner of my local Nevada Bob's Golf, (closed since) was not legally authorized to tweak my lofts on the S58s. It seems that I would have had to send them to Ping instead.

 

Bottom line is: I'll hang on to them......

 

NOTE: Should there be any change whatsoever, you'll be the first to hear about it....How's that Broseph?

LOL so Nevada Bob's was not legally allowed to tweak lofts on your S-58s huuh? OMG I guess I am a law breaker then. I guess they can send the Ping Police after me. LOL again if they come they will get beat over the head with a genuine antique Forged in the USA Macgregor butter knife! How is that? Seriously I remember when Ping tried to make us a dealer when we had the golf shop with the same crap. We would have had to bought a digital machine and went to their bending course. We told Ping where to stick it

[BIG STU]

Weather was miserable in my local area so I headed indoors for two 18 hole rounds.

 

Anyone else notice that the hit the ball further and straighter with a shortened back-swing and abbreviated follow through?

 

Yes, it's matter of having the arms synched up with the core. A longer

swing is actually wasted movement if the arms disconnect from the core.

 

When I first did the slicefixer 9-3 drills I was surprised how far I hit the

ball with a 9-3 swing. It was probably 90% of a full swing, distance wise.

 

A "connected" swing is simply more powerful and more accurate.

 

One part of the physics of the ideal swing is when the clubhead accelerates as fast as possible and at a constant rate. And since the hips, shoulders, and arms are the power source of that acceleration, their individual accelerations are optimized when they are occurring in synchronicity. If one of them gets behind, in this case the arms, then the total clubhead acceleration is no longer maximized (i.e. wasted movement). The acceleration from the arms is essentially happening too late and by the time impact occurs, they have not contributed to the final clubhead velocity as much as they could have.

 

The other problem with getting your arms out of sync is that it changes your swing plane a little and screws with impact in that way too. They put the clubhead in a slightly different spot than normal. This adds variability to what you are used to.

That last paragraph is the dead nuts truth for someone like me that plays on strictly feel and auto corrects. It can really screw with me on timing. I actually had 2 bad holes yesterday because of that very same thing and now it really throws me off because I try to make a better shoulder turn with less hands and with age my hands do not react like they used to even though my brain still functions fine. A 20 year old brain and 59 year old body do not synch up well sometimes

[Michael C.]

I'm sure some of get sick of me blogging every time I tee it up, so I'll try and keep this one brief....

 

Going to a "stock shot" this week has been the best thing I've ever done for my game. My misses have been a ton more playable and I've learned quite a few thing about my swing. For one, when the goal of each shot is so similar I'm much more conscious of my misses. Also, not focusing on fading and drawing the ball has allowed me to more properly flight the ball and manage exertion on each swing. The results with the longer clubs has been much better and I'm dialed in my distance control even enjoying some added distance due to playing a slight draw on every shot.

 

For some reason, I've yet to figure out exactly, I've been less reliable with driver since the change. That had been the easiest and most consistent part of my game and although I've still been hitting around 10 fairways a round that's actually dropped some. Today was no different finding myself in the rough a few times and hitting two tee balls into hazards. The first was the biggest anomaly I've ever personally experienced on a golf course. I hit a high fade on a reachable par 5 center cut. The ball must have hit something hard in the fairway, looked to be a part of the irrigation system, and bounced about 25 yards left into a hazard. I was flabbergasted on the tee box, but settled down some on the walk up to the hazard. Ended up deciding to lay-up and stuffed the approach to save par which really boosted my confidence in my course management solidifying the round.

 

All together I put 3 or 4 moves on the ball I wasn't proud of, but managed to come in 6 over. Started the round with 3 missed greens early all resulting in at least bogey. Underplayed the break on a 4 footer for par on the ninth for the only 3-putt or putt missed inside 8 feet. Stuck two big par saving putts from around 10 to 12 feet. Had one kick-in for birdie, but missed the only other great birdie opportunity with a little 9 footer left-to-right up a slope. Weather was marginal with rain and wind coming and going all day, so I wasn't displeased with the effort. I'm settling into the reality that I won't be playing as much golf going forward with a new job starting, so I'm glad that the practice I've put in this year has begun to show some results. Tomorrow's revision will show my lowest index since I registered for a handicap and the first time this season that I dropped below last year's low. I'm officially under 10 as of tomorrow with an index of 8.5.

 

A big thank-you to all of the Confessions crew for supporting me in the last year on my golf journey. You guys have given me a ton of great things to think about and have been an awesome sounding board while trying to figure a way to improve at this goofy game. Now if we can only solve this whole notion of bounce :)

 

Congrats on getting down into solid single digits, Matt. I like the idea of going with a stock shot. Everyone is a little different but, for me, it helps me staying consistent with my set up and I can visualize the shot better instead of going through the swing thoughts for a fade or draw every shot.

 

It stinks hitting good drives and getting bad bounces. Of course, we get the occasional good bounce too. All you can do is find it and do your best on the next shot. Sounds like that's what you did. You know you hit it well and moved on. That's how you can go low.

 

...and nice pick up on the M1. Your game is to the point now where you can find a way to hit any kind of club you want. My advice, play what you like. Your intuition will tell you which clubs you hit the best. Once you get to single digits, it's more between the ears. There can be some consistency issues or swing issues still but, they will most likely be minor.

 

Happy to read about your rounds and hear about your journey. I may not always respond but I've been following along. Nice....and good luck with your new job, bruh!!

[Matt J]

Thanks Ninja and MC!

 

One thing with setup MC, is the temptation is very different depending on shot shape. Low trajectory, back, draw, back, high traj, up, fade, up. So, what I was screwing up was fudging it too far and encouraging the push or pull. One of the worst shots I hit yesterday I straight blocked / pushed a 24 degree hybrid due to ball position. But, I consciously had thought, play it back a little, so I knew I over did it.

 

The biggest thing is exertion. I could not standardize how hard I was swinging at the ball because I had no idea when I need to change it. I was never between clubs because I would just cut it more or if it was barely long try and hit a draw. Ironically I never felt I hit the draw as well as a fade, but it's a ton straighter shot for me.

 

The main thing with the M1 is trying out this new shaft. And I have hit a demo quite a bit, because my teaching pro buddy is a TMag guy. So, I've played two or three rounds with one and hit a couple hundred balls with it probably. It's longer than my driver. The issue is really that I screwed up with this shaft. I did all this research and then accidentally screwed up the weights and bought a shaft that is probably too heavy. I'm going to give it a solid try-out and flip it or trade it if necessary. I can always put my KK TiNi shaft into it. I've played that combination and it's long for me. I'd rather not, so I have my Nike as a backup driver. This is the situation where you wish they would just use one tip adapter.

[Matt J]

BTW, Ninja your bounce theories are already effecting my game.

 

I've been practicing with the low bounce 60 out of the sand more. It wasn't in the bag for a long time, but that's been another change. I'm leaving the bag the same every day for now. No 4 or 5 iron, both hybrids in the bag and the 60 in the bag. You know this course I play and it requires a 60 due to the steep collars.

 

Also, if any of you haven't seen that video with Tiger trying out those drivers I would check it out. If you're interested let me know and I'll dig the link up.

 

Basically he and Phil have said the same thing at times. You can only make one swing with a club and then you'll change your swing to make it work. I went through the process setting up the adjustable hosels in my hybrids and 5 wood and think they're correct. You just make the swing you think should work and if it doesn't you switch clubs for a few swings and change the settings and hit it again. Doing that has improved my shots with the 5 wood and hybrids a ton. They ended up set up with the same settings too. I think they're a bit lofted and closed according to the Surefit system with the Titleist clubs.

 

Now that I write this I think I need to do it with the 3 wood too. It's been a little too fade biased.

[Matt J]

I played a round with one of the best amateurs in our region a couple of weeks back. I'd say he's a solid plus 4. I had a fluffy greenside lie and pulled my 56. Accidentally got a little deep and lofted it up well short of the hole. We started talking about it and he recommended to hood the face slightly to deloft. I've been doing that with my 60 rather than just grabbing my 56 and it works great. Almost holed two pitches out yesterday using that method and it doesn't require any bounce. :)

[Matt J]

Weather was miserable in my local area so I headed indoors for two 18 hole rounds.

 

Anyone else notice that the hit the ball further and straighter with a shortened back-swing and abbreviated follow through?

 

Yes, it's matter of having the arms synched up with the core. A longer

swing is actually wasted movement if the arms disconnect from the core.

 

When I first did the slicefixer 9-3 drills I was surprised how far I hit the

ball with a 9-3 swing. It was probably 90% of a full swing, distance wise.

 

A "connected" swing is simply more powerful and more accurate.

My Dear old Dad (Lord rest his soul) was a big proponent of that. He correctly predicted 6 months before he died that when I got to my 50s that my body would not be able to keep up with my fast hands and there would be trouble. It really became a lot of trouble when I picked up a lot of weight. Now that I have dropped in excess of 20 Lbs lately I can "turn the mass" again. I have shortened up my swing some and in old age have finally gotten what he told me years ago about turning those shoulders and less hands. Actually age has slowed my tempo which is good for me. Lately I have actually picked up on average through the bag on average 10 to 12 yards. The driver more than that with changing driver itself and shaft change from x stiff to regular. In truthfulness now I am a better ball striker than I have ever been. Played yesterday with some of the "Miura Mafia" guys really hit the ball solid. Putting was weird rolled it good but could not get anything to drop. Hit all but 2 FIRs in regulation with the driver but had 15 GIRs on a tough course. That 15 GIRs is a record for me. Actually my main problem was distance control especially with the wedges hit a lot of shots over the top of the stick but too far. This course can be treacherous because it has big greens with a lot of undelation and you can get into trouble with the ball in the wrong place on them. I had also put my old 588s back in the bag that the Miura dealer had set up for me a couple of years ago with the soft tipped Sensicore shafts. He actually commented that he saw I had came to my senses and had put the wedges he set up for me back in the bag. I did manage to make 2 birdies through all of that. Did something I have not done in a long time 4 putted a green. It was the last hole and it was trecherous. The approach was over water and the pin was tough. One of the guys in my group had already backed one off the green into the water. I actually could have hit my 60* distance wise but knew at that distance (90 yards) but knew I would spin the crap out of it and do the same thing so I took a little off the 56* and ended up on the extreme upper tier. Actually one of the other guys was up there with me and putted one into the water so that scared me. And this group has some good players. Ended up shooting a 76 all things considered. It could have really been a great day if I could have gotten some putts to drop with my ball striking and FIRs and GIRs but it is what it is

 

Good to see you're getting into summer form BIG STU. Those numbers are nothing to frown at. Good playing all around.

 

I stole your three M's tagline for my signature. I own a set of Mizzy's and Miuras, but instead of Macs I have those TM blades. You know one thing I was noticing about those things yesterday.... the sole design is different than any modern clubs I see. The short irons are sure enough butter knives, but as you go down the bag the heads on the long irons are tiny, but the soles are progressively bigger. I hit those long irons better than my Miuras.

 

The faces on the long irons are so small, one of my buddies who is into golf, but is a hack, pulled one out of my bag last week. He was just standing there chuckling. His comment, "you're crazy." He was convinced he would whiff with a club that small. Personally, I believe in DeNinny's logic that the smaller head actually deflects less at impact and is more aerodynamic coming into the ball. Honestly, if you miss the sweet spot by more than a half inch or so, you're screwed anyways.

[Michael C.]

You guys have me thinking. UHOH. ...LMAO!

 

Maybe I should pay more attention to the details. I have 3 swings. A normal swing that takes off pretty straight with my irons and moves very little, usually right if at all. Then, I have a "don't go left" and "don't go right" swing ....that's it. I'm kind of a hit and go get it person. If I want to hit it lower, I'll take up to 2 or 3 more clubs and swing easier or, for higher, I'll take less and put both cheeks into it. ;)

 

I will change ball position too, on occasion, but most of the time I just get comfortable in my set up and....this may sound weird....but ball position is what it is. Hmmm....I could subconsciously set up for the shot...I really don't know.

 

Both of my wedges are Cleveland two dots. I think that's medium bounce. Why? NO, not here we go, guys...LMAO. Low bounce and high bounce are the extremes. Ive got medium bounce because it's middle of the road. I try to avoid extremes. That's it.

 

My irons are often dirty and the Prov1x s I play can look pretty beat up. I play Parkland style courses and don't often lose balls.

 

Maybe, I should pay more attention.

 

I do have a question on connection of the swing. I've always been a body motivated guy. Because of my narrow and longish swing I disconnect at the top. I feel like all I do is turn back through. I must be a bit of a handle puller to hit the ball from this position. Here's the question: Do you guys feel like your swinging the club with your arms and the body follows or....OR, do you feel like you turn the body and the arms react to the body?

 

I believe a shorter arm swing and full body turn is the way to go. I'm still flexible enough to make a good turn...despite my middle age spread..lol. But, I haven't mastered this move. I don't get a lot of shaft lean with my swing but when I shorten it, I flip. I think for me, it's going to be about keeping my lead arm straight. I'm not unhappy with my swing in general. My set up and body do all the right things. Just Not crazy about the way my arms look in the backswing and I'm looking for feels.

[Matt J]

Good post, MC.

 

One thing your post brings to my mind, is something I'm working on, which is varying the swing with little nuances throughout the bag. I am typically a very "flat" around the body swinger. Traditionally I think that has hurt me on the short irons. So, I make a conscious effort to start the club back more DTL and outside with anything less than a 7 iron. The flatter swing works with the longer clubs, especially hitting a draw, so I don't think about my takeaway on those and simply get the transition correct.

 

So, getting back to your question... I want to make a bigger turn, a lot more lower body, with the longer clubs. If I get too arms oriented then my miss is usually with path, getting too far OTT and never shallowing enough not to pull the ball. I focus more on my hips and a shorter turn with my arms with the "body" swing. With the short irons, I want to really bottom the club at the same place, so I don't turn my hips a ton consciously and definitely don't bend and straighten my knees or hips losing spine angle. Instead I try and keep my tempo slow enough to drop my hands in the transition.

 

Your post also makes me think a lot about this cool book I've been reading called "Extraordinary Golf." The author, Fred Shoemaker, believes we should just clear our mind and "feel" our swings trying to notice when we "lose" our understanding of how we're moving our bodies. He believes most people are disconnected from parts of their move due to the conscious focus on other parts. So, he encourages you to figure out where you're less conscious of your swing, like in transition for you and then really shift your focus to what's happening up there. Not really trying to change the outcome, but simply feel if there is variation in what's happening. Perhaps you pull the handle too early and spin out sometimes. Or maybe you get a little lazy and come in steep hitting the ball fat. The longer I've looked at my swing the more I realize that timing is the least reliable part of the golf swing when you're under pressure. Guys with big releases that don't manipulate that part of their swing seem to be the most inconsistent players I know. One of our assistants is that way.

 

So, just as one example, this guy is a big dude, young, just came back from teaching pro school working on his game. His swing in my mind is a lot like the other older more mature player I was referencing in the earlier post that's a plus 6. So, I played two back to back rounds with them and noticed that the young buck just wants to hammer the ball down the course all the time, more to impress his partners than score. The more mature, better stick, he is always changing how much wrist c0ck and release he uses depending on how big of a miss he can afford. He knows it's dependent on finite timing. So, he probably takes a full wrist set and release on his 8 iron all the time, but with driver only if he has a huge landing area which is often the case when you hit the ball 320 yards. But, I only saw that action once or twice off the tee because he uses the Stricker no wrist release on a lot of drives because he can eliminate half the golf course and knows his distances. Lots of bunts from 6200 yards when you hit it that well. That's how you put a 66 up when the young buck shot 73 or 74 and that's about average for him.

[DeNinny]

BTW, Ninja your bounce theories are already effecting my game.

 

I've been practicing with the low bounce 60 out of the sand more. It wasn't in the bag for a long time, but that's been another change. I'm leaving the bag the same every day for now. No 4 or 5 iron, both hybrids in the bag and the 60 in the bag. You know this course I play and it requires a 60 due to the steep collars.

...

 

Matt J, that low bounce 60 is a WEAPON out of the sand. There really isn't a need to open the face with it and you still can get the ball up and over those high collars (and yes I know Eagle Point's bunkers). It glides through the sand so easily and that is ADVANTAGE.

 

As mentioned, I am here to help you with the physics of golf. I learned it on my journey and so I share it just like everyone else. But the only way to take advantage of it is to have an OPEN MIND like you have. There is a lot of upside down "conventional golf wisdom" out there that is just flat out back Word not allowedwards. The theory that high bounce has any benefit is one of them.

 

I played a round with one of the best amateurs in our region a couple of weeks back. I'd say he's a solid plus 4. I had a fluffy greenside lie and pulled my 56. Accidentally got a little deep and lofted it up well short of the hole. We started talking about it and he recommended to hood the face slightly to deloft. I've been doing that with my 60 rather than just grabbing my 56 and it works great. Almost holed two pitches out yesterday using that method and it doesn't require any bounce. :)

 

Yes! That is taking advantage of the science! When the lie is fluffy, the ball is propped up well above any solid ground that will interfere with the bottom of the clubhead, regardless of the bounce. So now, what is best to cut through the fluffy grass? A club that will have the LEAST amount of drag whilst travelling through it. And a low bounce club has the lesser drag (ALL OTHER THINGS EQUAL)

 

...

 

The faces on the long irons are so small, one of my buddies who is into golf, but is a hack, pulled one out of my bag last week. He was just standing there chuckling. His comment, "you're crazy." He was convinced he would whiff with a club that small. Personally, I believe in DeNinny's logic that the smaller head actually deflects less at impact and is more aerodynamic coming into the ball. Honestly, if you miss the sweet spot by more than a half inch or so, you're screwed anyways.

 

Technically you only need as much face surface area that will cover "most" misses as they are dispersed around the sweetspot. Any more surface area than this is redundant.

 

To be clear about what you said about it deflecting less at impact, what I am saying is that it is easier to hold square at impact. This is a subtle difference from "deflecting less". A nitpicker arguing with me would ask how does something with a lower MOI "deflect less"? My answer to that is that during impact, the hands have to hold the face square against the countering force from impacting the ball, and so when the clubhead MOI is higher, this requires MORE WORK by the hands to hold the face square. The lower MOI clubhead requires LESS WORK to hold the clubface square given the same counter force from impacting the ball. This counter force can't put as much torque on the hands. Sorry to belabor this point on you, but I want to be clear on what "deflects less" really means (lest a nitpicker come along to try to refute me...)

[Michael C.]

Thanks for thoughts, MJ.

 

I've always been someone who sets wrists late. When that happens my elbows bend. Also, I've always let my arms drag the shoulders around. Maybe, my focus should be different. Let the shoulders push the arms back and an earlier wrist set. I've tried just keeping my right arm straight but the focus is still on the arms. I, also, keep my arms soft in the back swing. When I try to hold them straight it creates tension.

 

It's actually better than it was. Lol. I just struggle getting width. I'll get there. The biggest issue for me is ego. I can make a "good" backswing but the ball goes nowhere. Instead of taking the time to let the speed come as the move becomes subconscious, I'll just abandon it. It may never creep into my driver.lol. it's just turn and go...or GO!!! ;)

[Matt J]

Some interesting thoughts there ^^^^ MC.

 

I've never thought of the implications much, but I tend to be a bit robotic and stiff during the backswing. I think the tension helps slow me down and put me in position and then I'm very "soft" coming through the ball. If I don't start the downswing with soft muscles coming out of the transition then I won't shallow the club.

 

Wrist set is a little more problematic for me. I find that if I focus on it very much then I tend to bow my wrist and that changes my angle of attack. The harder I release the club the steeper I get. I can take the wrists out of it, but I lose a lot of club head speed. That can work for a low runner, but it's not a shot I use very much. So, I just try and make a very consistent set and release and feel that the rest of my swing is built around that, so unless I do anything weird it should go fine with the "natural" release.

 

Probably the loss of distance with the "good" move has more to do with the quality of the ball strike. That will improve with practice. But, I can understand why you would ditch it. As I've worked on my swing I find distance to be a litmus test because I feel it reflects the quality of the strike. If I'm hitting a pitching wedge at a 110 yard pin, I'm trying new stuff and all of a sudden I'm flying it 10 yards deep repeatedly with better dispersion, then that swing thought is sticking around.

 

Lately, that has been by changing my "stock shot" to a lower trajectory. By keeping my weight further forward I'm holding the ball down and it's travelling further out and less up. I still feel like I'm under clubbing myself, but it has been warm and dry around here, so it's working. Although I left a shot about a foot short yesterday and it bounced into the bunker instead of being exactly where it would trickle back to the hole. Growing pains! I kept thinking I should have taken more club, but truthfully I tugged it a bit and was playing too risky of a shot anyways. I've really got to focus on the landings with my irons more. If I could remember to envision the putting surface before I pick a club and target I would probably drop 3 strokes.

[DeNinny]

I've always been someone who sets wrists late. When that happens my elbows bend. Also, I've always let my arms drag the shoulders around. Maybe, my focus should be different. Let the shoulders push the arms back and an earlier wrist set. I've tried just keeping my right arm straight but the focus is still on the arms. I, also, keep my arms soft in the back swing. When I try to hold them straight it creates tension.

 

...

One thing about setting the wrist late is that you are putting more work on yourself to turn the backswing. When the wrists set, the clubhead is physically closer to the center of the swing (the point between your shoulder sockets) which gives it a lower MOI.

 

And soft arms are fine as long as they extend into impact when they need to. But...bending and then straightening the lead arm is adding just a little variability compared to just keeping it straight. But...a guy like Calvin Peete fared quite well by having his arms bent in his swing.

 

On the downswing, the wrist set is a way of keeping the swing MOI low. Combined with the bent trail arm, the entire club weight is set as close to the body as possible so that the upper body can turn with as much acceleration as possible. As this happens, the arms are actually dropping so that the (still bent) trail elbow can align with the trail hip. During all this time in the first half of the downswing, you want the swing to have as low of an MOI as possible to maximize acceleration of the clubhead.

 

In the bottom half of the downswing you want to extend the swing radius by SIMULTANEOUSLY straightening the trail arm and unhinging the wrists back to address position. As this happens, the MOI of the swing is INSTANTANEOUSLY increasing, thus instantaneously slowing the rotation of the swing down, so the idea is to maximize the swing rotational velocity with a low MOI swing rotation up until this point.

 

So because of all this, I like a synchronized wrist set that occurs in conjunction with my trail arm bending. I set it on the way up the same way I want to feel it all straighten on the way down: simultaneously.

[Matt J]

Ninja, when you going to come down south and play a round with me. We have better golf weather down here. You should come before the middle of June or after September 1st.

 

Why not sign-up for the Southern Oregon? You and you're wife can sleep in the guest bedroom and we'll party down for a week. I guarantee it will be the one of the best golfing weeks of your life!

 

Offer extended to all of the Confessioners... come to the nations best amateur flighted golf tournament. Been going on for longer than the Masters. Hell, this thing is the Masters if you're not a pro. :)

 

http://rvcc.com/southern-oregon-golf-championship/

[Michael C.]

Thanks you guys. This all makes sense.

 

The MOI thing, hmmm. This must be why in good players it seems like the club almost hangs...low MOI. I just finished a bucket with what felt like a 9 to 10 backswing. All I concentrated on was to keep turning. It felt like the club just hung in the air and then BANG I was at impact. Trajectory is lower but these 68s spin more so no worries there. I think that may be part of the adjustment between clubs. I'm getting more and predictable spin and it was killing some distance with the higher trajectory my long swing produces. It's fun hitting the GIS long but distance control was unpredictable. From 125 in I want things to be more 'spot on'.

 

Next time I play, I'm going to club up and play a shorter backswing with acceleration and see what happens. Just with irons though. Driver is a whole other mess. I'm hitting it okay so....ain't fixing it. Lmao.....YET.

 

Thanks, bruhs!

[DeNinny]

Ninja, when you going to come down south and play a round with me. We have better golf weather down here. You should come before the middle of June or after September 1st.

 

Why not sign-up for the Southern Oregon? You and you're wife can sleep in the guest bedroom and we'll party down for a week. I guarantee it will be the one of the best golfing weeks of your life!

 

Offer extended to all of the Confessioners... come to the nations best amateur flighted golf tournament. Been going on for longer than the Masters. Hell, this thing is the Masters if you're not a pro. :)

 

http://rvcc.com/sout...f-championship/

 

Master Matt J, eventually I will be down there sometime to play a round with you, but I still say Bandon is the ultimate location for a Confessions outing. I also want to play Centennial still and could easily play Eagle Point and Running Y again. That tourney is something else to think about for sure, but when I am with my wife it is all about the vacation golf.

 

And you and all confessors know that I have the same standing offer for playing golf around P-town.

[DeNinny]

Thanks you guys. This all makes sense.

 

The MOI thing, hmmm. This must be why in good players it seems like the club almost hangs...low MOI. I just finished a bucket with what felt like a 9 to 10 backswing. All I concentrated on was to keep turning. It felt like the club just hung in the air and then BANG I was at impact. Trajectory is lower but these 68s spin more so no worries there. I think that may be part of the adjustment between clubs. I'm getting more and predictable spin and it was killing some distance with the higher trajectory my long swing produces. It's fun hitting the GIS long but distance control was unpredictable. From 125 in I want things to be more 'spot on'.

 

Next time I play, I'm going to club up and play a shorter backswing with acceleration and see what happens. Just with irons though. Driver is a whole other mess. I'm hitting it okay so....ain't fixing it. Lmao.....YET.

 

Thanks, bruhs!

 

The wrist hinge is MORE about low MOI than it is about leverage. And that "hang" you mention, that is even more lag being added through gravity. When the club is horizontal to the ground at the top, it puts the greatest amount of torque on the wrists. You are almost forced to hinge them, so why fight it? Then as the downswing starts, instead of having your wrists maintain a fixed hinge angle, you can just use that torque force to effortlessly, through RELAXED wrists, to hinge even more on their own. Let gravity and momentum HELP your wrist hinge. This is why guys like JB Holmes can still create lag with a very limited wrist hinge at the top. He just allows gravity and the momentum change at the top of his swing to create it all for him. And yes, all those pros are swinging with as low of an MOI that they can create in the downswing. This is universal to ALL their swings. This is one of the biggest keys to generating clubhead velocity: turn with the MOI as low as possible for as long as possible.

 

And yes there is that feel of the clubhead literally "hanging" at the very start of the downswing. You are letting it sit there for a split second because you can let gravity pull it closer to the body on the way down as long as you have relaxed arms and wrists.

 

And then at the bottom half of the swing, all you do is start straightening your trail arm and at the same time you return your wrists back to address position. When timed right, the clubhead will pass through the ball just before your trail arm fully straightens with as high of acceleration as possible. All of this was set up by having a low MOI to start the downswing. LOL and all this is theoretically speaking only of course.

[Matt J]

Ninja, when you going to come down south and play a round with me. We have better golf weather down here. You should come before the middle of June or after September 1st.

 

Why not sign-up for the Southern Oregon? You and you're wife can sleep in the guest bedroom and we'll party down for a week. I guarantee it will be the one of the best golfing weeks of your life!

 

Offer extended to all of the Confessioners... come to the nations best amateur flighted golf tournament. Been going on for longer than the Masters. Hell, this thing is the Masters if you're not a pro. :)

 

http://rvcc.com/sout...f-championship/

 

Master Matt J, eventually I will be down there sometime to play a round with you, but I still say Bandon is the ultimate location for a Confessions outing. I also want to play Centennial still and could easily play Eagle Point and Running Y again. That tourney is something else to think about for sure, but when I am with my wife it is all about the vacation golf.

 

And you and all confessors know that I have the same standing offer for playing golf around P-town.

 

You're welcome anytime!

 

You should get your wife to play the tourney too. You guys could caddie for each other. I'm telling you it's a blast and an incredible value. There's a cocktail party every night with a power hour of free cocktails and a band. It's a long tournament, but for an out of towner, you can come in on Wednesday morning and probably leave by Sunday afternoon unless you make the finals. It's over Labor Day weekend so most folks have Monday off.

 

You'd have one an off day or two during the tournament week, but we could go play Centennial, Running Y, or Eagle Point. As long as we had the same off days. You get my point anyways. Incredible week of golf in one of the least expensive destinations you could find. They open the country club to guests so you can even eat there and there's a putting contest for 1,000 dollars one night. Honestly, I've had a lot of fun in my life and that week last year was up there!

[BIG STU]

Weather was miserable in my local area so I headed indoors for two 18 hole rounds.

 

Anyone else notice that the hit the ball further and straighter with a shortened back-swing and abbreviated follow through?

 

Yes, it's matter of having the arms synched up with the core. A longer

swing is actually wasted movement if the arms disconnect from the core.

 

When I first did the slicefixer 9-3 drills I was surprised how far I hit the

ball with a 9-3 swing. It was probably 90% of a full swing, distance wise.

 

A "connected" swing is simply more powerful and more accurate.

My Dear old Dad (Lord rest his soul) was a big proponent of that. He correctly predicted 6 months before he died that when I got to my 50s that my body would not be able to keep up with my fast hands and there would be trouble. It really became a lot of trouble when I picked up a lot of weight. Now that I have dropped in excess of 20 Lbs lately I can "turn the mass" again. I have shortened up my swing some and in old age have finally gotten what he told me years ago about turning those shoulders and less hands. Actually age has slowed my tempo which is good for me. Lately I have actually picked up on average through the bag on average 10 to 12 yards. The driver more than that with changing driver itself and shaft change from x stiff to regular. In truthfulness now I am a better ball striker than I have ever been. Played yesterday with some of the "Miura Mafia" guys really hit the ball solid. Putting was weird rolled it good but could not get anything to drop. Hit all but 2 FIRs in regulation with the driver but had 15 GIRs on a tough course. That 15 GIRs is a record for me. Actually my main problem was distance control especially with the wedges hit a lot of shots over the top of the stick but too far. This course can be treacherous because it has big greens with a lot of undelation and you can get into trouble with the ball in the wrong place on them. I had also put my old 588s back in the bag that the Miura dealer had set up for me a couple of years ago with the soft tipped Sensicore shafts. He actually commented that he saw I had came to my senses and had put the wedges he set up for me back in the bag. I did manage to make 2 birdies through all of that. Did something I have not done in a long time 4 putted a green. It was the last hole and it was trecherous. The approach was over water and the pin was tough. One of the guys in my group had already backed one off the green into the water. I actually could have hit my 60* distance wise but knew at that distance (90 yards) but knew I would spin the crap out of it and do the same thing so I took a little off the 56* and ended up on the extreme upper tier. Actually one of the other guys was up there with me and putted one into the water so that scared me. And this group has some good players. Ended up shooting a 76 all things considered. It could have really been a great day if I could have gotten some putts to drop with my ball striking and FIRs and GIRs but it is what it is

 

Good to see you're getting into summer form BIG STU. Those numbers are nothing to frown at. Good playing all around.

 

I stole your three M's tagline for my signature. I own a set of Mizzy's and Miuras, but instead of Macs I have those TM blades. You know one thing I was noticing about those things yesterday.... the sole design is different than any modern clubs I see. The short irons are sure enough butter knives, but as you go down the bag the heads on the long irons are tiny, but the soles are progressively bigger. I hit those long irons better than my Miuras.

 

The faces on the long irons are so small, one of my buddies who is into golf, but is a hack, pulled one out of my bag last week. He was just standing there chuckling. His comment, "you're crazy." He was convinced he would whiff with a club that small. Personally, I believe in DeNinny's logic that the smaller head actually deflects less at impact and is more aerodynamic coming into the ball. Honestly, if you miss the sweet spot by more than a half inch or so, you're screwed anyways.

Ninja's logic on that is not really logic it is common sense but he can use science to prove it as he always does. I love it when solid science backs up common sense

[BIG STU]

You guys have me thinking. UHOH. ...LMAO!

 

Maybe I should pay more attention to the details. I have 3 swings. A normal swing that takes off pretty straight with my irons and moves very little, usually right if at all. Then, I have a "don't go left" and "don't go right" swing ....that's it. I'm kind of a hit and go get it person. If I want to hit it lower, I'll take up to 2 or 3 more clubs and swing easier or, for higher, I'll take less and put both cheeks into it. ;)

 

I will change ball position too, on occasion, but most of the time I just get comfortable in my set up and....this may sound weird....but ball position is what it is. Hmmm....I could subconsciously set up for the shot...I really don't know.

 

Both of my wedges are Cleveland two dots. I think that's medium bounce. Why? NO, not here we go, guys...LMAO. Low bounce and high bounce are the extremes. Ive got medium bounce because it's middle of the road. I try to avoid extremes. That's it.

 

My irons are often dirty and the Prov1x s I play can look pretty beat up. I play Parkland style courses and don't often lose balls.

 

Maybe, I should pay more attention.

 

I do have a question on connection of the swing. I've always been a body motivated guy. Because of my narrow and longish swing I disconnect at the top. I feel like all I do is turn back through. I must be a bit of a handle puller to hit the ball from this position. Here's the question: Do you guys feel like your swinging the club with your arms and the body follows or....OR, do you feel like you turn the body and the arms react to the body?

 

I believe a shorter arm swing and full body turn is the way to go. I'm still flexible enough to make a good turn...despite my middle age spread..lol. But, I haven't mastered this move. I don't get a lot of shaft lean with my swing but when I shorten it, I flip. I think for me, it's going to be about keeping my lead arm straight. I'm not unhappy with my swing in general. My set up and body do all the right things. Just Not crazy about the way my arms look in the backswing and I'm looking for feels.

IMHO you are thinking too much over the ball my line of thinking is to swing with what feels good and natural to you and not to worry too much about mechanics or techniques

[DeNinny]

Weather was miserable in my local area so I headed indoors for two 18 hole rounds.

 

Anyone else notice that the hit the ball further and straighter with a shortened back-swing and abbreviated follow through?

 

Yes, it's matter of having the arms synched up with the core. A longer

swing is actually wasted movement if the arms disconnect from the core.

 

When I first did the slicefixer 9-3 drills I was surprised how far I hit the

ball with a 9-3 swing. It was probably 90% of a full swing, distance wise.

 

A "connected" swing is simply more powerful and more accurate.

My Dear old Dad (Lord rest his soul) was a big proponent of that. He correctly predicted 6 months before he died that when I got to my 50s that my body would not be able to keep up with my fast hands and there would be trouble. It really became a lot of trouble when I picked up a lot of weight. Now that I have dropped in excess of 20 Lbs lately I can "turn the mass" again. I have shortened up my swing some and in old age have finally gotten what he told me years ago about turning those shoulders and less hands. Actually age has slowed my tempo which is good for me. Lately I have actually picked up on average through the bag on average 10 to 12 yards. The driver more than that with changing driver itself and shaft change from x stiff to regular. In truthfulness now I am a better ball striker than I have ever been. Played yesterday with some of the "Miura Mafia" guys really hit the ball solid. Putting was weird rolled it good but could not get anything to drop. Hit all but 2 FIRs in regulation with the driver but had 15 GIRs on a tough course. That 15 GIRs is a record for me. Actually my main problem was distance control especially with the wedges hit a lot of shots over the top of the stick but too far. This course can be treacherous because it has big greens with a lot of undelation and you can get into trouble with the ball in the wrong place on them. I had also put my old 588s back in the bag that the Miura dealer had set up for me a couple of years ago with the soft tipped Sensicore shafts. He actually commented that he saw I had came to my senses and had put the wedges he set up for me back in the bag. I did manage to make 2 birdies through all of that. Did something I have not done in a long time 4 putted a green. It was the last hole and it was trecherous. The approach was over water and the pin was tough. One of the guys in my group had already backed one off the green into the water. I actually could have hit my 60* distance wise but knew at that distance (90 yards) but knew I would spin the crap out of it and do the same thing so I took a little off the 56* and ended up on the extreme upper tier. Actually one of the other guys was up there with me and putted one into the water so that scared me. And this group has some good players. Ended up shooting a 76 all things considered. It could have really been a great day if I could have gotten some putts to drop with my ball striking and FIRs and GIRs but it is what it is

 

Good to see you're getting into summer form BIG STU. Those numbers are nothing to frown at. Good playing all around.

 

I stole your three M's tagline for my signature. I own a set of Mizzy's and Miuras, but instead of Macs I have those TM blades. You know one thing I was noticing about those things yesterday.... the sole design is different than any modern clubs I see. The short irons are sure enough butter knives, but as you go down the bag the heads on the long irons are tiny, but the soles are progressively bigger. I hit those long irons better than my Miuras.

 

The faces on the long irons are so small, one of my buddies who is into golf, but is a hack, pulled one out of my bag last week. He was just standing there chuckling. His comment, "you're crazy." He was convinced he would whiff with a club that small. Personally, I believe in DeNinny's logic that the smaller head actually deflects less at impact and is more aerodynamic coming into the ball. Honestly, if you miss the sweet spot by more than a half inch or so, you're screwed anyways.

Ninja's logic on that is not really logic it is common sense but he can use science to prove it as he always does. I love it when solid science backs up common sense

 

LOL BIG STU you are giving away my secret. I don't really have any theories! I'm just explaining the proper way to apply all the theories that the really smart scientists like Sir Isaac Newton developed years before there was golf. Solid science = common sense.

[Matt J]

solid science = common sense

 

other than when it doesn't

 

i.e. the world is flat, bleeding the bad blood out of a person will cure illness, the planet Vulcan

 

okay I admit I stole that last one from this website... funny read

 

http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-most-famous-scientific-theories-that-turned-out-to-be-wrong.php

[Michael C.]

You guys have me thinking. UHOH. ...LMAO!

 

Maybe I should pay more attention to the details. I have 3 swings. A normal swing that takes off pretty straight with my irons and moves very little, usually right if at all. Then, I have a "don't go left" and "don't go right" swing ....that's it. I'm kind of a hit and go get it person. If I want to hit it lower, I'll take up to 2 or 3 more clubs and swing easier or, for higher, I'll take less and put both cheeks into it. ;)

 

I will change ball position too, on occasion, but most of the time I just get comfortable in my set up and....this may sound weird....but ball position is what it is. Hmmm....I could subconsciously set up for the shot...I really don't know.

 

Both of my wedges are Cleveland two dots. I think that's medium bounce. Why? NO, not here we go, guys...LMAO. Low bounce and high bounce are the extremes. Ive got medium bounce because it's middle of the road. I try to avoid extremes. That's it.

 

My irons are often dirty and the Prov1x s I play can look pretty beat up. I play Parkland style courses and don't often lose balls.

 

Maybe, I should pay more attention.

 

I do have a question on connection of the swing. I've always been a body motivated guy. Because of my narrow and longish swing I disconnect at the top. I feel like all I do is turn back through. I must be a bit of a handle puller to hit the ball from this position. Here's the question: Do you guys feel like your swinging the club with your arms and the body follows or....OR, do you feel like you turn the body and the arms react to the body?

 

I believe a shorter arm swing and full body turn is the way to go. I'm still flexible enough to make a good turn...despite my middle age spread..lol. But, I haven't mastered this move. I don't get a lot of shaft lean with my swing but when I shorten it, I flip. I think for me, it's going to be about keeping my lead arm straight. I'm not unhappy with my swing in general. My set up and body do all the right things. Just Not crazy about the way my arms look in the backswing and I'm looking for feels.

IMHO you are thinking too much over the ball my line of thinking is to swing with what feels good and natural to you and not to worry too much about mechanics or techniques

 

Most of my thinking is done on the couch and I'm about feels on the range. When I get a club in my hand it's usually "see ball...hit ball". LMAO. This back swing thing is something I need to fix. I've hit a plateau and after 15 or 20 + years, it's time. At least with the irons for now.

[Matt J]

What does Monte say about it?

[DeNinny]

solid science = common sense

 

other than when it doesn't

 

i.e. the world is flat, bleeding the bad blood out of a person will cure illness, the planet Vulcan

 

okay I admit I stole that last one from this website... funny read

 

http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-most-famous-scientific-theories-that-turned-out-to-be-wrong.php

 

Those are examples of science that is NOT solid.

[Matt J]

But, everybody thought it was great science at the time.

 

I'm just yanking your chain.

 

Players isn't turning into much entertainment today.

 

BTW, Bandon would be awesome for a Confessions meet up, but it's getting awfully expensive.

 

Maybe I'll win the lottery and fly us all to Vegas for a long weekend :)

[Michael C.]

What does Monte say about it?

 

He seen the videos I shot recently. I prefaced it with my assessment of - I thought everything looked pretty good as far as setup and how my knees seperated in transition, no EE, etc.. Simply, that I felt good about everything but my arms. He agreed. I was just too long and everything collapses at the top to accommodate it.

 

I didn't take a video lesson or he may have gone into more detail but I thought it was nice for him to take a quick look and respond. Good guy.

 

Of course, it's been a year since I seen him in person and I'm still having the same issue. Lol. I guess if my work to fix it hadn't been abandoned and picked up again several times I'd be in a better spot. But, I like to play and I go with what I know on the course.

[Matt J]

ToOLe'D

 

It's tough to keep playing during a swing change. That's why most people suck at golf.

 

Last year when I really started working on some things I range ratted for a couple of weeks, no rounds. Then I went out and played and didn't keep score simply having a goal not to revert back to my old swing.