Drewtaylor21's Golf Journey (Swing Changes, WITB, Results)

[drewtaylor21]

Update time!

 

My last post was back on December 8th, and I should note that I took some time away from most of my practice/play from just before Thanksgiving through New Year's. I played a couple of rounds in the Ryder Cup series that we had in early December, but other than that I shut it down for some rest and much-needed time to enjoy family and the holidays. Living here in Vegas it's easy to treat golf as a year-round sport, but I'm finding that I really miss the variety of fall/winter/spring sports that I used to enjoy living in WA and UT. Mostly basketball and skiing, but as with most things in life, I think having a well-rounded approach is valuable, and as my body ages a bit, I am starting to notice how much better I feel when I don't just play golf and lift, but move in various other ways as well. Thus, I tried to do some other activities and found it very refreshing, both mentally and physically. It took me a couple of weeks to get back into a place where my swing was feeling good again, but I'm very excited for the year ahead, both on and off the course.

 

Swing: I'm continuing to work on the same swing fundamentals from Dana/George (mostly Dana). My primary faults are to get too much of an upper body shift away from the target in the backswing and to get the hands moving out too much in transition. Both tend to result in me hanging back on the right foot a bit and swinging left, but as long as I keep those in check, things having been working really well. Swing keys that continue to help me are to make sure I am going back one-piece to the right thigh, then getting the hands as deep as I can by P4 and feeling like I leave them there in transition. I'll admit I'm very interested in some of the recent AMG videos about getting COP moving left a little earlier. I tinker here and there with some of that and some of the ways to increase ground reaction forces, but for the most part I'm very pleased with my ballstriking and haven't really changed anything significantly in a long time now. I haven't done much filming of anything lately, but was messing around a couple weeks ago at lunch with wedges and took this one just to get an idea of where things were (sorry for the portrait mode rookie mistake):

 

Results: I always hesitate to say much here about results from Simulator golf, as there is a certain video game aspect to it that makes it feel less important than real-life results, but at the same time, I'm still the one hitting the shots and scoring under some pressure. It feels much more realistic than I thought it would, with the exception of how many putts I make lol (much better in SIM). For now, it's the best I've got though, and I'm having a blast! We just had our last major of the winter season wrap up yesterday, and I'm actually very proud to say that I pulled off the season-long Grand Slam! We played them as follows: The Masters (Augusta), PGA Championship (Bellerive CC), The Open (St. Andrews), and The US Open (Shinnecock). Here are my results:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I played really well all around at St. Andrews - just about everything was clicking, and I felt like there was no way anyone was going to beat me. However, I was struggling with ballstriking, gauging the gusty wind settings, and reading the pretty severe greens at Shinnecock going into the week for the US Open. To make matters worse, one of my FC's, Jim Colton (who is a 1 cap competitive am IRL, IIRC) put up a very solid score of -9 that had me sweating. I was the last of the guys in contention to play the 3rd and final round last night, and I knew I needed -5 or better to win the Slam. Without having my best stuff tee to green, I was pumped to put together a score and win. I'm not going to lie, I had some nerves going, and when I took the lead on 16 for good, I couldn't have been happier. My last 3 full swings were absolutely flushed and it still has me excited! Shinnecock is a scary place. The greens were set at 13 stimp in the final round, and there are a lot of crazy slopes on and around them, so I had to be careful on 17 and 18. I put both approaches exactly where I wanted, about 20 feet away, and 2-putted my way home for the win. The competition aspect is just so much fun, and as I've mentioned, I really think it's going to be very applicable to performing under the gun when I get back into some events this summer.

 

Speaking of, I've got 7 local events that I've identified as targets on the schedule from July through October this year. I'm hoping I can play at least 4-5 of them and put up some more good results and maybe get some momentum going, as its been a few years since I've really been able to play a regular, competitive schedule. I miss being able to play events frequently, but at the same time, life has changed dramatically in the last few years and priorities are different, and that's ok. My son is growing quickly and already loves going out to the garage to hit golf balls with his little clubs (and mine lol). My wife and I also just bought a house that we'll be moving into in June, so there's a lot going on! We'll be a little closer to my favorite course on this side of town (Paiute), and I'll have some more space in the garage, so I'm very happy :)

 

Thanks for reading!

[lhahn]

Congrats on the Drew-Slam buddy!

 

How are the wedges playing out?

[drewtaylor21]

Congrats on the Drew-Slam buddy!

 

How are the wedges playing out?

 

Haha thanks Lawrence! Don't know if you saw this earlier on Discord, but Stinger suggested I need to win all 4 in the summer tour for it to really count :rofl: Back to work I suppose!

 

The wedges are great! Honestly i don't think I'm super picky with wedges, but I do really like the Mizzys. They look great, feel good (slightly clicky), and are performing as well as anything I've ever played. The biggest thing for me is the addition of the 46* wedge. I will never go back to playing a set-PW, honestly. I really love having that extra control there in that part of the bag. Overall I'm very happy with them!

[QMany]

Your swing/results are great and all, but can we take a second to appreciate the screen name GingaNinga :cheesy:

[Dave D]

Swing is looking very pure Drew, loving the depth at the top. What shafts are in the wedges? did you match them to irons or are they wedge shafts?

 

edit: realise I should've just read your sig, how come you didn't match to your irons?

[MK7Golf21]

I think I mentioned this awhile back, has any instructor ever mentioned your shaft plane at the top of swing? This is even a wedge, If I had a problem with swinging too left this is one of the things I would fix but I'm a big backswing/top of swing guy. I'd get it atleast inside ball at the top if I was swinging too left.

 

 

 

 

[stingreye]

Congratulations Drew! Looking forward to hearing how your game translates outside.

 

Oh and ginganinja can play! He’s a stick!

[airjammer]

I think I mentioned this awhile back, has any instructor ever mentioned your shaft plane at the top of swing? This is even a wedge, If I had a problem with swinging too left this is one of the things I would fix but I'm a big backswing/top of swing guy. I'd get it atleast inside ball at the top if I was swinging too left.

 

 

 

 

 

From Instagram, it looks like most of Dana’s students are in this position.

[drewtaylor21]

Your swing/results are great and all, but can we take a second to appreciate the screen name GingaNinga :cheesy:

Congratulations Drew! Looking forward to hearing how your game translates outside.

 

Oh and ginganinja can play! He's a stick!

 

Haha thanks for pointing that out Q, it's a strong screen name for sure! lol

 

And Stinger is right, he can play! Apparently he's got a brother joining us who's even better, so I'm looking forward to seeing if both the game and screen name skills are family traits!

[drewtaylor21]

Swing is looking very pure Drew, loving the depth at the top. What shafts are in the wedges? did you match them to irons or are they wedge shafts?

 

edit: realise I should've just read your sig, how come you didn't match to your irons?

 

Thanks Dave! I like S300 in my wedges and I've played them that way for the last 5 years or so. They seem to keep the flight down a bit better for me, which I like with wedge play. I played S300 throughout the irons for a long time and just happened to buy my current set (used) with KBS Tour S. They felt right to me and performed great, so I kept em! Haven't had any issues with a transition between shafts at all.

 

*EDIT* one of the big reasons I've liked the switch from set-PW to a 46* wedge is that I did have trouble with my set-PW ballooning a bit. I try to avoid really going after any wedges with full swings, but occasionally the situation demands it and it just never worked well with the RSi TP/KBS combo. Much better results with the Mizzy/S300!

[drewtaylor21]

I think I mentioned this awhile back, has any instructor ever mentioned your shaft plane at the top of swing? This is even a wedge, If I had a problem with swinging too left this is one of the things I would fix but I'm a big backswing/top of swing guy. I'd get it atleast inside ball at the top if I was swinging too left.

 

 

 

 

 

From Instagram, it looks like most of Dana's students are in this position.

 

Yes, it is a preferred Dana position. If you watch most of his players, they do a great job of getting the hands to work down and out from there, while the clubhead lays down behind the handpath. That's the move that I'm going for.

 

Red, I've messed with shaft position at P4 and have been across the line at times, but for me I can never shallow enough from there at full speed. Where you see it in the video is exactly where I want it based on my other pieces. Appreciate the input though!

[GC70]

Tiger who!

[MK7Golf21]

I think I mentioned this awhile back, has any instructor ever mentioned your shaft plane at the top of swing? This is even a wedge, If I had a problem with swinging too left this is one of the things I would fix but I'm a big backswing/top of swing guy. I'd get it atleast inside ball at the top if I was swinging too left.

 

 

 

 

 

From Instagram, it looks like most of Dana's students are in this position.

 

Yes, it is a preferred Dana position. If you watch most of his players, they do a great job of getting the hands to work down and out from there, while the clubhead lays down behind the handpath. That's the move that I'm going for.

 

Red, I've messed with shaft position at P4 and have been across the line at times, but for me I can never shallow enough from there at full speed. Where you see it in the video is exactly where I want it based on my other pieces. Appreciate the input though!

 

Cool, yea Dana has helped me a bit in the past and I know he’s big on getting the clubshaft inside the ball on backswing and then shallowing on downswing to outside the ball by p5, has to do with the como forces video and the torques created to help close the face and stay in posture. Yours is just done a little different, almost like freezes it outside the ball at top, if it’s good with Dana then all good.

[MK7Golf21]

She does it the way Dana taught me, p4 to p5 it shallows to outside. I would think from a p4 pos pointing outside it helps swing left too much if you have hands go out too much problem and not enough down.

 

[airjammer]

She does it the way Dana taught me, p4 to p5 it shallows to outside. I would think from a p4 pos pointing outside it helps swing left too much if you have hands go out too much problem and not enough down.

 

 

Maybe I’m missing something, but I don’t see any problem what so ever. The flatter the arm angle gets his hand deeper at the top. As much flexion he is regaining in transition, he is steepening his arm angle but also causing his hands to get too far in front of him.

 

Gg has been using this drill to get hands deep and preventing them from getting to far in front.

 

 

[MK7Golf21]

She does it the way Dana taught me, p4 to p5 it shallows to outside. I would think from a p4 pos pointing outside it helps swing left too much if you have hands go out too much problem and not enough down.

 

https://www.instagra...1xrgBC7q/?hl=en

 

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see any problem what so ever. The flatter the arm angle gets his hand deeper at the top. As much flexion he is regaining in transition, he is steepening his arm angle but also causing his hands to get too far in front of him.

 

Gg has been using this drill to get hands deep and preventing them from getting to far in front.

 

https://instagram.com/p/BeokyZYFmvU/

 

it's not a problem if you don't struggle with swinging too left...There are other things you can do like what Drew mentioned, just pointing out an easy option that I would personally try, sounds like he has already and isn't able to get that shallowing component in transition but I bet he was swinging right easier, lol

[lhahn]

Congrats on the Drew-Slam buddy!

 

How are the wedges playing out?

 

Haha thanks Lawrence! Don't know if you saw this earlier on Discord, but Stinger suggested I need to win all 4 in the summer tour for it to really count :rofl: Back to work I suppose!

 

The wedges are great! Honestly i don't think I'm super picky with wedges, but I do really like the Mizzys. They look great, feel good (slightly clicky), and are performing as well as anything I've ever played. The biggest thing for me is the addition of the 46* wedge. I will never go back to playing a set-PW, honestly. I really love having that extra control there in that part of the bag. Overall I'm very happy with them!

 

WHAT? Now's its gotta be 8 majors for a slam? He's just jealous!

[drewtaylor21]

She does it the way Dana taught me, p4 to p5 it shallows to outside. I would think from a p4 pos pointing outside it helps swing left too much if you have hands go out too much problem and not enough down.

 

https://www.instagra...1xrgBC7q/?hl=en

 

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see any problem what so ever. The flatter the arm angle gets his hand deeper at the top. As much flexion he is regaining in transition, he is steepening his arm angle but also causing his hands to get too far in front of him.

 

Gg has been using this drill to get hands deep and preventing them from getting to far in front.

 

https://instagram.com/p/BeokyZYFmvU/

 

it's not a problem if you don't struggle with swinging too left...There are other things you can do like what Drew mentioned, just pointing out an easy option that I would personally try, sounds like he has already and isn't able to get that shallowing component in transition but I bet he was swinging right easier, lol

 

Actually no. For me it's just the opposite. The more vertical I get the shaft at p3, the more out my hands travel by p5 and the more I swing left. Now, overdoing it and getting the shaft above the ball by p3 is also no good, but at ball or just a touch inside at p3 is ideal for me, as it allows me to get enough depth at p4, which then allows my normal transition to take place without the left arm shooting out over stance line. That's when I get in trouble with the left swing direction. Keeping the left arm in through p5 is something I've been working on with the Dana moves and it has helped quite a bit (provided the shaft pitch doesn't steepen). McIlroy's left arm p5 is closer to what I'm looking at.

[MK7Golf21]

She does it the way Dana taught me, p4 to p5 it shallows to outside. I would think from a p4 pos pointing outside it helps swing left too much if you have hands go out too much problem and not enough down.

 

https://www.instagra...1xrgBC7q/?hl=en

 

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see any problem what so ever. The flatter the arm angle gets his hand deeper at the top. As much flexion he is regaining in transition, he is steepening his arm angle but also causing his hands to get too far in front of him.

 

Gg has been using this drill to get hands deep and preventing them from getting to far in front.

 

https://instagram.com/p/BeokyZYFmvU/

 

it's not a problem if you don't struggle with swinging too left...There are other things you can do like what Drew mentioned, just pointing out an easy option that I would personally try, sounds like he has already and isn't able to get that shallowing component in transition but I bet he was swinging right easier, lol

 

Actually no. For me it's just the opposite. The more vertical I get the shaft at p3, the more out my hands travel by p5 and the more I swing left. Now, overdoing it and getting the shaft above the ball by p3 is also no good, but at ball or just a touch inside at p3 is ideal for me, as it allows me to get enough depth at p4, which then allows my normal transition to take place without the left arm shooting out over stance line. That's when I get in trouble with the left swing direction. Keeping the left arm in through p5 is something I've been working on with the Dana moves and it has helped quite a bit (provided the shaft pitch doesn't steepen). McIlroy's left arm p5 is closer to what I'm looking at.

 

your p3 was plenty vertical and deep in that video posted imo, I'm talking about p4 you start adjusting your wrists to really lay it off and are layed off at the top

[drewtaylor21]

She does it the way Dana taught me, p4 to p5 it shallows to outside. I would think from a p4 pos pointing outside it helps swing left too much if you have hands go out too much problem and not enough down.

 

https://www.instagra...1xrgBC7q/?hl=en

 

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see any problem what so ever. The flatter the arm angle gets his hand deeper at the top. As much flexion he is regaining in transition, he is steepening his arm angle but also causing his hands to get too far in front of him.

 

Gg has been using this drill to get hands deep and preventing them from getting to far in front.

 

https://instagram.com/p/BeokyZYFmvU/

 

it's not a problem if you don't struggle with swinging too left...There are other things you can do like what Drew mentioned, just pointing out an easy option that I would personally try, sounds like he has already and isn't able to get that shallowing component in transition but I bet he was swinging right easier, lol

 

Actually no. For me it's just the opposite. The more vertical I get the shaft at p3, the more out my hands travel by p5 and the more I swing left. Now, overdoing it and getting the shaft above the ball by p3 is also no good, but at ball or just a touch inside at p3 is ideal for me, as it allows me to get enough depth at p4, which then allows my normal transition to take place without the left arm shooting out over stance line. That's when I get in trouble with the left swing direction. Keeping the left arm in through p5 is something I've been working on with the Dana moves and it has helped quite a bit (provided the shaft pitch doesn't steepen). McIlroy's left arm p5 is closer to what I'm looking at.

 

your p3 was plenty vertical and deep in that video posted imo, I'm talking about p4 you start adjusting your wrists to really lay it off and are layed off at the top

 

That only really happens for me on slower swings or if I'm really trying to leave the hands up a long time. FWIW, Dana teaches that move too though lol

[drewtaylor21]

Hey all! It's been a long while since my last update, so I wanted to explain the absence and give a little update on things.

 

First off, I have to say up front that there's been a fairly dramatic shift of priorities for me over the course of 2018. I was thinking about this last night as I was drifting off to sleep and realized that 2014 was the last year I can honestly say I played a competitive schedule. I've kind of tried to fight reality a bit and keep the competitive golf spirit alive the last few years, but unfortunately I've only been able to play four or five legit tournaments (total) since moving to Vegas in 2015. Each of the past few years I've outlined a schedule of events I wanted to play, but between work, fatherhood/marriage/family, change in financial goals, travel, etc., 95% of those events have had to take a back seat.

 

Reading through QMany's thread a while back and seeing some of the goals he outlined, it struck me that I hadn't made any golf goals of my own for the first time this year....and that I didn't mind! That realization struck me at the time, as golf has been such a major part of what I wanted to pursue with my time since I regained the competitive itch in 2011. Goal-setting and realization was always a big part of each year, and I greatly enjoyed seeing the steady progress I was able to make as a result. However, this year in particular has come with additional Dad duties, promotion to a leadership position at work, the purchase of a new home, and a few other items that have rightly taken up my primary focus. All of these things are very positive and life is good! The downside is that I've only played a handful of times this year and I know there won't be any competitive events in the near future. Honestly though, I'm good with it for now. I am hopeful that once my son is a few years older he'll want to come to the course regularly and I can get back into the competitive scene a bit then. I certainly still have the desire, and I feel like I've gained a lot of knowledge about my own game that will serve me well when the time comes, but this phase of life is just focused in a different direction.

 

With all of that said, golf still remains my favorite hobby and I continue to work on my swing and ball-striking whenever I have time at home in the garage setup (usually ~9-10pm a few nights a week). The "lab" has still been one of the best purchases I've ever made and it's been a lifesaver as far as keeping my game in shape. Additionally, playing on the JNPG online golf tour over the winter last year was a BLAST and absolutely gave me a viable competitive outlet. I'm not sure if I'll have time to play the tour regularly this next winter, but I am certainly going to try! Got that grand slam to defend after all :rofl: In the same vein, as a result of our move I got some extra garage space (not accidentally). I decided to make a few updates to my sim setup, and over the past couple of months I've refined my mat setup, changed my frame/cage, and added blackout curtains and turf for the floors. I'll throw some more details up in my official indoor setup thread (http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/1339122-flightscope-indoor-range-gc2jnpg-update-p4/page__st__120#entry17823222), but below are some pics of the finished product, including the tee shot from #1 at Bellerive CC. The functionality is very similar, but the aesthetics and overall experience is certainly a step up and I love being able to get out to the man cave and relax!

 

Anyway, thanks to those who've followed the journey to this point. This isn't the end, but there's been a distinct pause to my primary goal with this thread, which related to swing fundamentals and tourney results. I think that pause will likely continue for a bit, so that's where I'm at. I will continue to update this thread whenever appropriate in the future! I plan to do some testing in the next couple of months to see if I can find a driving iron or 3i to replace the 5w currently in my bag (eyeing the p790), so I hope to be able to add some interesting content there.

 

 

 

 

[drewtaylor21]

As mentioned in my last post, I've been wanting to tinker with the 5w spot in my bag and the rumors about the p790 long irons were just too tempting to pass up. I recently ordered a p790 3 Iron (19*) and the p790 UDI 2 iron bent one degree weak (18*), both with my standard iron shaft, KBS Tour (stiff). The UDI is backordered until early October, but I got the 3i this last week. Long story short.....it's in the bag!

 

I'm still curious about the UDI and it's possible it could supplant the 3i, but as of right now I couldn't be happier with the 3i. Feels great, dispersion is very tight, and it exactly fits the carry gap I was looking to fill! I took about 5 swings with it on day 1 and knew it was what I was looking for (cool)

My old M2 5w had been frankenstein'd a bit with the shaft shortened to 3i length and some lead tape added to the head to get it to carry 250-255 ish, but I had a bit of a two way miss with it ever since I cut the shaft down in length, and just wanted to find something that I could control a bit better. My two primary concerns with adding a long iron or driving iron were the carry gap and what kind of launch and height I would get with it. I'd like to be able to bring it in to a par 5 green if needed (and hold), so I didn't want strictly low bullets. I can easily take height off if needed, but I tend to lose accuracy when I try to elevate a ball significantly, so those were the criteria.

 

I haven't had a chance to take it outdoors yet, but my numbers, dispersion, and ball flight are spot on with the SIM. Thanks TaylorMade and Jory!

 

 

 

 

 

 

(comparison pics show my RSi TP 4i for scale)

[stingreye]

Very cool! The lab is looking awesome! Definitely interested to see how the 2 UDi compares

[Dave D]

As mentioned in my last post, I've been wanting to tinker with the 5w spot in my bag and the rumors about the p790 long irons were just too tempting to pass up. I recently ordered a p790 3 Iron (19*) and the p790 UDI 2 iron bent one degree weak (18*), both with my standard iron shaft, KBS Tour (stiff). The UDI is backordered until early October, but I got the 3i this last week. Long story short.....it's in the bag!

 

I'm still curious about the UDI and it's possible it could supplant the 3i, but as of right now I couldn't be happier with the 3i. Feels great, dispersion is very tight, and it exactly fits the carry gap I was looking to fill! I took about 5 swings with it on day 1 and knew it was what I was looking for (cool)

My old M2 5w had been frankenstein'd a bit with the shaft shortened to 3i length and some lead tape added to the head to get it to carry 250-255 ish, but I had a bit of a two way miss with it ever since I cut the shaft down in length, and just wanted to find something that I could control a bit better. My two primary concerns with adding a long iron or driving iron were the carry gap and what kind of launch and height I would get with it. I'd like to be able to bring it in to a par 5 green if needed (and hold), so I didn't want strictly low bullets. I can easily take height off if needed, but I tend to lose accuracy when I try to elevate a ball significantly, so those were the criteria.

 

I haven't had a chance to take it outdoors yet, but my numbers, dispersion, and ball flight are spot on with the SIM. Thanks TaylorMade and Jory!

 

 

 

 

 

 

(comparison pics show my RSi TP 4i for scale)

 

Love my 2 iron UDI and am going to order a P790 4 iron too as soon as I've sold my Callaway irons. Brilliant long irons, seem very forgiving but still look like irons.

[GC70]

:golfer:

[drewtaylor21]

 

Love my 2 iron UDI and am going to order a P790 4 iron too as soon as I've sold my Callaway irons. Brilliant long irons, seem very forgiving but still look like irons.

 

Yeah, TM got it right with the 790 long irons, no question! How's the trajectory on your 2 UDI?

[Dave D]

Love my 2 iron UDI and am going to order a P790 4 iron too as soon as I've sold my Callaway irons. Brilliant long irons, seem very forgiving but still look like irons.

 

Yeah, TM got it right with the 790 long irons, no question! How's the trajectory on your 2 UDI?

 

Trajectory for me is perfect, mid height and just flies, can also hit it a bit lower or a bit higher fairly easily

 

Does feel a bit light being the 85g shaft but can't fault the performance so no reason to change currently.

[AndersUK]

One of the many great progress threads.

 

Golfwrx needs a drewtaylor21, Dave D, QMany & Schnee 4-ball match!

[Dave D]

One of the many great progress threads.

 

Golfwrx needs a drewtaylor21, Dave D, QMany & Schnee 4-ball match!

 

haha, its an honour to even be mentioned in such high esteem!

 

I was hoping to get together with Schnee when he was over here for his trip but sadly for me he had a 4ball organised all the places he played.

 

I've always wanted to visit New York and reckon the mrs would be up for it too, Bethpage isn't too far from there is it?

[Schnee]

One of the many great progress threads.

 

Golfwrx needs a drewtaylor21, Dave D, QMany & Schnee 4-ball match!

 

haha, its an honour to even be mentioned in such high esteem!

 

I was hoping to get together with Schnee when he was over here for his trip but sadly for me he had a 4ball organised all the places he played.

 

I've always wanted to visit New York and reckon the mrs would be up for it too, Bethpage isn't too far from there is it?

 

You come to NY I’ll get us on bethpage.