Week 17

Goldilocks and the 'Over the Top' Golfer

A Quick Thank You!

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Big Question?

How do you deal with tough practice and rounds?

Feels 

My feeling this week is one of encouragement.

The best thing about more regular contact with a coach has been checking in. The best example I can give is sending two short videos of me executing the latest drill to see if I am doing it correctly. In the first video I sent, my feedback suggested I wasn’t and I needed to make it more ‘real’ when there is no ball. This has encouraged me to increase my focus on the drill work. Once I knew I was doing it correctly, it also encouraged me to put the reps in, knowing it is the best thing for my current swing.

Lesson 1 and Progress

You may recall that last week, I had my initial meeting with Ryan and discussed the direction we would be taking. This week we have worked on 1 part; Hand plane and in my case, higher hands. Here is the lesson video!

I will post a video of the drills I got from Ryan on the YouTube channel (link below).

I have been practising the wall drill for 3 days, at the time of writing this. Ryan identified that my swing was too flat. To improve it, I have been using the wall/fence as a barrier in my takeaway to provide feedback on my plane. My first few attempts were laughable! I hit the fence so early, the feedback was immediate. After 3 days, it feels a little better than those first few attempts. All the work so far has been done without a ball, making it easier to get the feeling and focus solely on the outcome I am training; higher hands.

An interesting concept that came out of Ryan’s coaching was the Golidlock’s principle. Ryan suggested I spend some time learning the feeling of being too flat and too high. The idea is, I find it easier to identify how ‘just right’ feels. I have played with the principle when planning my variable practices; hit a hook, hit a slice then find a ‘middle’ ground. Set up very closed, set up very open set up ‘just right’ I haven’t however, used it to embed any technical changes. The concept appeals to me and my existing knowledge and understanding. Ryan explained it with such clarity, I am in a position to work smart at it and get the reps in!

Have you played around with extremes during your practice?

Playing

My first-ever round with all 4 parts of the strokes gained statistics being in a positive versus a 5hc. Conditions suited, I’m not getting carried away. Bunkers were off, preferred lies everywhere and the course was set up short. However, the ball flight changes from the wrist work have transformed my approach play. I also noticed for the first time a few extra yards to the Performance Average and Average Driving distance too.

• P.Avergae Last 15 - 263y

• Average Last 15 - 230y

• P.Average 26.11.22 - 276y

• Average 26.11.22 - 243y

A number of things can explain this. Firstly, the majority of those 15 rounds come while I have been in the middle of the Winter Strength program. During this period I have trained at least twice a week, often three times, and going into the weekend rounds somewhat fatigued. Last week I hadn’t trained, deciding to take a week off and get some walks in. I went into the weekend well-rested with no soreness.

Secondly, this flatter wrist work has resulted in a lower overall ball flight and more of a draw shape. This has encouraged me to set up and aim at the right edge of the fairway and swing hard. The feeling is one of knowing that it is ‘rarely’ going to fly right of my target. It still did twice but I hit a few bombs 301y on the 4th and 291y on the 6th, gaining 0.43 strokes on a 5hc overall.

Training

I planned a complete week off resistance training. Decided to go for a walk with a podcast each day around lunchtime. A chance to rest and recover. After 8 weeks of training, I have missed one Wednesday session and two Friday night sessions. I have 4 weeks to go then I'll be starting a Power plan and maybe dropping one gym session. I'll consult with Mike (@fit_for_golf) to discuss this further but I'm hoping to add a sprinting session or an extra practice session. Four weeks of hard training left. I will post some % improvement on my strength lifts (deadlift, squat, press etc) as I have been tracking them in the Fit for Golf app.

Reflective questions

How do you balance your ego with improving?

Does your effort match your expectations?

What shape shot do you play?