Notes from the Golfing Newbie
Still laughing and wincing over the freezing Friday that marked my not-so-impressive first try at golf, the memorable outing will stay with me for a long time to come. Despite my pre-game dream that I would have a record game that launched my pro career, the only record that I set was how wet and muddy I got in a single afternoon. I feel like it has taken until now to dry out. While I am not going to discount the idea of winter golf, I have a new appreciation for proper winter golf wear and the benefit of kind-hearted golfing partner. Sipping cocoa and cursing the cold, Cameron and I joked that it would have been “enlightening” to have my instructor Brett from GolfTEC along on our adventure to coach us through the rain-soaked course.
Though my score was politely ignored by the only other soul on the course that day, I left the clubhouse knowing two things: I am totally hooked and I need more practice. So I headed back to GolfTEC for another lesson. As I pulled my clubs from the trunk, I spotted some souvenir mud, now dry. I resisted the urge to dust it away. Proof that these clubs saw more than the driving range, I was not about to obliterate this trophy. Like a kid on show-and-tell day, I gave Brett the short 7-hole story. While we shared a few laughs about my first game of golf, I told Brett that we missed him out there. Brett then laughed and told me that neither Cameron nor I could convince him to play in a downpour.
On to the lesson…My warm-up felt great. I was making good contact with the ball without my typical total ball misses. I was anxious to show Brett that I had been practicing to bring my swing path forward a bit and to keep my head from lifting. Still, I knew Brett would find some areas of improvement for me. I was pleasantly surprised when he pointed out only a few things that were just a tiny bit off in my setup. My head wasn’t entirely behind the ball, my shoulders were not square and my hands were a little too far forward. Luckily, these issues were minor enough that I conquered them in the next few shots.
Working our way through the rest of the swing videos, I was surprised to see that my club head was still not far enough in front of my body. Brett had me focus on keeping my right arm long and after another set of balls my swing path had crept back into the zone (just barely).
Up at the top of my swing I still had my persistent problem of lifting my body out of the swing. My swing was also a bit on the long side, resulting in a little loss of control at the top of the swing. During the next part of my lesson Brett had me work on keeping my head still, maintaining my spine angle, keeping my body down in the shot and shortening up my swing a touch. My shots were feeling better and better. Previously, I had never really had a feeling that I was muscling the swing but by the end of a lesson or a range session my body would feel pretty worn down. Brett explained that the changes in my swing were increasing the lag of my club head leading to greater swing efficiency.
During the next set of balls Brett went relatively silent. Afterwards as we gathered up the balls (”Rocks” in Brett parlance), Brett told me that he does not like to disturb folks when they are in the middle of a really good thing. He also commented about how few miss-hits I was having in this lesson.
Back to the sensors, I was floored when a saw the numbers. I was hitting the ball farther than I have hit it for months. All the while I was hitting it considerably more consistently. The really important part was that I was doing so with less effort than ever before.
Brett, seeing that I am making progress, had me try out my driver near the end of the lesson. The driver (”The Big Stick”, as Brett calls it) has always made me a little nervous and rightfully so. Add the length of the driver to my monkey long arms and no one and nothing is safe around me.
After surveying my surroundings, verifying that I wouldn’t destroy something in the training bay, I let it rip. Despite my lack of practice, my driver was my most reliable club when I played Cedarcrest in Marysville. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case this time. My first few hits felt and sounded bad. Brett had me make a few minor setup adjustments and sent me swinging again.
The next few shots were much better. I was making good contact with the ball and the shots continued to feel smooth. By channeling the earlier parts of the lesson I kept hitting satisfying shots until we were out of time. Brett and I were both really pleased with the lesson, probably my best lesson to date. Now I’ve got to hit the range to lock in my new efficiency.
Thanks to GolfTEC’s amazing coaching and technology, I’ve been thinking about that magical moment when as an athlete you make the shift from hand-holding student to proficient and independent player.
On my bike I have a power meter that continually monitors my training effort. While heart rate monitors were the standard years ago, power meters have taken over as they measure your actual effort rather you’re your reaction to the effort. All you need to do is take a look down at your handlebars and immediately you get a sense of how the workout is going. The power meter records a sample of data every second so that you can analyze your workout on the computer later.
At GolfTEC there is a wealth of information to teach us about our swing: high-speed cameras, velocity sensors and tilt meters and instructors. But, it would be impossible to pack these things up and take them with you to the course. Out on the golf course you are all alone to make your own adjustments.
Of course, as I progress in cycling, I am more in-tune and now look down at the meter less. I still use the power meter, but depend on it less. I suppose the same could be said for golf. I’ve gotten better at applying self-corrections yet I still feel like that hand-holder. Certainly, there will be a day when my efforts will be rewarded with a swing that is effective and second-nature just as I have experienced in cycling. For more information about GolfTEC, please look for their ad in March’s issue of GolfTodayNW!
