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28 Oct 2015 Corina Pelloni

VISUALIZATION–PART OF YOUR PRE-SHOT ROUTINE

Pre-shot routine is generally seen as the series of events leading up to the playing of a golf shot. These repetitive movements. as the term “routine” implies, are a great benefit to consistent shotmaking. If you know what you did before you swung the club (grip, stance, ball position), then all you are trying to retrieve is what the swing felt like. You must re-trace your steps to build the ability to set up to the ball with a high level of consistency. Also, this routine builds a safe haven that keeps pressure away from us. We end up creating a “window of opportunity” that allows us to feel the optimum time for us to swing the club. I teach my students that visualization, seeing the successful result, is as important as anything else in our pre-shot routine. I ask them to look at the target while aiming. Then, once they are satisfied that they are set up properly, they must have one last look that involves picturing the ball flying toward the target the way they had hoped. When they look down at the ball to swing, they must be within seconds of a very pleasant, successful picture in their mind. In the sales world, it is called the “suggestive sell.” During that sales call, you must ask questions that only get a “yes” answer. People don’t just call me and ask for a lesson. They say, “What time today can I have a lesson?” We ask our students to be optimistic. I ask them to try to think of only what they want. If they find themselves worrying about potential doom, quickly jump on that thought with a “not today, not this time” rebound thought. It takes real practice, and we do not have the same emotions on a daily basis. An affirmative series of actions greatly improves your chances of a good result. Before you play the pitch shot, you walk half way beside the shot and judge the depth. From that, you decide on a landing spot, which is based upon the lie and the club best suited for that lie. Then, you make practice swings thinking about and looking at the landing spot. All of this is a visualization exercise based upon having played this shot successfully before. This is called “playing golf,” rather than just chasing your ball around the course. Before you roll the putt, roll it with your eyes and see it going in, at exactly the right speed and the perfect part of the hole. Give your mind something it can work with. Your nerves will appreciate the mental support, as well. Much has been made lately of Jason Day closing his eyes to see his shot before he approaches the ball. He has been doing this for awhile, but his spectacular success this year has brought it to the forefront. This type of advice, when given to younger people, many times is discounted, so I never miss an opportunity to build vision while practicing and when analyzing a round. Any time a player tells me they are having trouble taking their range game to the course, they get the speech about practicing like they play, simulating playing conditions and visualizing. At the level of professional golf, where everyone hits the ball at a high level, mental skills are a separating point. Optimism, composure, and a mind that paints a vivid picture of success are the intangibles that save strokes and win tournaments. You must VISUALIZE TO REALIZE!  

28 Oct 2015 Corina Pelloni

GOLF ON YOU TUBE: THE GOOD AND THE EVIL

For those of us over 40, YouTube means funny cat videos and crazy athletic stunts. For some instructors, You Tube is a way to market your business and reach out to students you never thought you would have the chance to help. Just as it pertains to other aspects of life, the Internet is a double-edged sword. For the well-connected instructor, YouTube can be a great learning tool, especially when it comes to technical subjects like ball flight, launch monitors, or how to use a training aid. If you have clients under 30, chances are they watch YouTube for help with their golf game. This begs the question: Is this media avenue helping or hurting the golf teaching professional? Most of the millennial generation grew up connecting with technology. Smartphones, the Golf Channel and interactive video platforms substituted for human interaction. For them, reaching out to the Internet for help with their slice is completely natural. Personally, if I don’t know how to fix something, I search for help on our YouTube friend. As we that teach the game know, feel is difficult to teach. Any sports coach or instructor will agree. This is even truer in golf. The key to learning a good swing or changing a swing is to feel what you are trying to do. For the best instructors, that means being interactive with your student, teaching the feel of the swing through engaging them physically. That could also mean devising a drill or exercise that teaches the feel you are trying to create for that particular individual, understanding that every golf swing is different and unique therefore the feel will be different for each and every golfer. So, how can they learn from their computer screen? There are definitely aspects of the game one can learn from watching demonstrations or listening to a well-informed instructor. Unfortunately, I see too many younger players trying to learn technique, or fix technique from YouTube videos. Learning the feel of a correct grip, understanding that the correct grip for each golfer could vary, is a great example of there not being a replacement for a an actual instructor placing the club in the hand. Working with the golfer to teach the feel of takeaway or transition is another example. We could think of hundreds of different reasons why replacing a person with a video is not a good way to learn the game. Of course, anything that brings attention or players to the game is good for golf. The Internet is a great platform to promote the game and for instructors to showcase their talent. The danger comes when the instructor promotes the Internet as a way to learn the game. When using the Internet, I would caution instructors to be careful not to promote their videos as the answer to the golfer’s problems. Use it in well-thought-out ways, but don’t promote it as the replacement for the one-on-one interaction that golfers need.

6 Oct 2015 Corina Pelloni

DO WE REALLY NEED A PRESIDENTS CUP?

I love the Ryder Cup. Lots of tradition dating all the way back to 1927 at Worcester Country Club. Unfortunately, it’s a course that would never be considered for any event in the modern era. But that’s another discussion. I always look forward to the Ryder Cup matches. The Presidents Cup, not so much. Not that there aren’t good players involved; it just seems to be a contrived event to me. I believe it was started out of envy. The PGA Tour, not involved in the Ryder Cup, decided to create an event to call its own. It does get plenty of attention, so in that aspect I guess most of the golf world is happy. I just don’t find it that interesting. But hey, that is just me. Something I think would be really exciting would be a way to incorporate another team into the Ryder Cup. A triangular match between the USA, Europe, and the rest of the world. That would be cool. Impossible you say. What about all that tradition I mentioned? Well, there is precedent. Remember, the Ryder Cup was originally contested by the U.S. and Great Britain. It got so one-sided that Jack Nicklaus suggested that players from Europe be added to even the score. Maybe it is time to consider a new wrinkle. Golf is an international game more so now than ever before. A worldwide Ryder Cup competition would really be electric. Could it happen? Maybe. Will it happen? Unlikely. Too many cooks to spoil the broth.

6 Oct 2015 Corina Pelloni

BAD COURSE CONDITIONS

If you watch golf on TV every weekend, you will see beautiful golf courses in perfect condition.  The players rave about how good the greens are and how nice the course is.  For most of us, this might not be the case.  Many people may not even be aware that the “tour” courses are closed down for weeks, if not a month, prior to the event.  And most “tour” events are held in locations where monthly dues are extremely high. I recently met with a student who played a tournament on a course that was not in very good condition.  He complained that the greens were bumpy and the fairways were too thin.  If you have played golf at any level, you have experienced this.  I heard a story about the great Gary Player saying that he loved fast greens when he was playing on them; then he said he loved slow greens a few weeks later playing a tournament on slow greens.  When asked which greens he liked, fast or slow, he responded he loved any greens he played on. I told my student this story.  Of course, I also had to add in a few other comments about not complaining and understanding that sometimes golf is not fair.  At the very least, he needed to work on becoming mentally tough, allowing his competition to be the one to complain.  We are all going to show up to an event, either a fun round with friends or a national tournament, and there is a chance the course will not be in the greatest condition.  We have a choice.  We can complain and let it affect our play in a negative way, or we can get excited, knowing a lot of the players won’t be in contention because they can’t mentally handle playing poor conditions.

6 Oct 2015 Corina Pelloni

PLAYING LIKE A PRO/GOING OLD SCHOOL

The average golfer may not have the physical skills of a pro, but they sure could use the tools of a pro, and I’m not talking the latest and greatest golf clubs. It’s called “six inches”…the gray matter between our ears. True story as recited by a kid I coach while playing a tournament:  He’s standing on a tee box of a par-3, looking at his pin sheet (where exactly the hole is situated on the green…how far on and how far to the right or left). In this case, it was in the middle of the green and 1 yard short of center. The tee blocks are adjacent to the plaque indicating the yardage to the center of the green, and in this case it was 174 yards. One yard short of center, as indicated by the pin sheet, makes the overall distance 173. He slyly asks his playing partner (who is now checking the distance to the hole with his electronic range finder), “What do you have, 173?” After tagging it at 173, he looks at my player and says, “Yeah, how’d you know?”  He just started to laugh, as he has never used a range finder because I never let him. He has learned old school. Walk the course, see the course, feel the course, analyze the course, and you’ll play your best. Let’s face it. Humans tend to take the path of least resistance. GPS for going from point A to Point B and range finders for playing golf. When the electronics fail them, they feel lost. One has to learn to navigate to play their best. Range finders are simply one dimensional – they provide a distance from point A to point B (with the exception of some, which offer elevation options). They do not assist in putting one’s mind at ease in order to have a chance at hitting their best shots, or at least shooting better scores. Let me explain. One’s mind cannot be cluttered with thoughts (be it swing thoughts or “what if?” type thoughts) in order to perform at golf. A range finder offers a distance to an object, hence that object is “Plan A.”  What about “Plan B” and “Plan C”? What are those? Plan B is the contingency plan in case Plan A doesn’t work out. Plan C is simple…it is where you don’t want to go, or in other words…CRAP! Consider this:  “Alright, I have my yardage to the left-center-side-of-the-green pin based on my trusty range finder…148…perfect, a stock 8-iron. Geez, my lie is not the best, but I can still get it there, just hit it a little harder. Oh, pulled it a little, but it should be good. Damn, caught the bunker!! I was sure I had enough club, I can’t believe it, I hit it well too. Geez, maybe there’s something wrong with my ball or maybe I’m losing distance. Maybe I’ll get a lesson or check my numbers on a launch monitor. Might have to get lighter shafts to get my clubhead speed back up.” There you go, so how’s that fancy range finder working out for you? How about a real yardage book so you know the carry distance over that bunker in case you do pull the ball, which is often the case when one tries to hit the ball harder? Then, you’d know the 8-iron is not the club, but the 7-iron was. But wait! If you hit the 7-iron left and it clears the bunker, there is very little green to work with and the greens are firm. The ball may bounce over, down the hill and into the hazard behind the green (uh oh…Plan C). Knowledge is key! Ignorance on the golf course is anything but bliss. Plan A is center right of the green and plan B is short or short right of the green. The 8-iron is the club; don’t try to hit it harder because you may pull it in the bunker or worse. Now the golfer can hit the shot with an ease of mind, resulting in a clear thought process and relaxed body. Why? Because they’ve taken the “what if?” out of the equation. What if they don’t execute perfectly? It doesn’t matter, because the ball won’t end up where the sun never shines. Plan B is available and now part of the commitment to the shot. We all know we’d like to hit it to Plan A, but sometimes even that is not possible because that would be considered plan A+. Plan A must be modified, because the goal in golf is to not put pressure on oneself to hit the perfect shot. Plan A means good execution to a well thought out risk/reward scenario. Plan B is where the ball could end up in case one does not hit the shot as well as planned. Plan C is about ALWAYS assessing one’s options and committing to a decision that never places one’s ball in a position from where it is impossible to recover or a penalty stroke will occur. We can choose to navigate toward our beacon of light (the flagstick) with a compass (a rangefinder), or use a map (a yardage book and our brains). I’ll take the latter every time. Why not the an electronic yardage book? It doesn’t offer all the variables golf presents in its ever-changing environment day to day. These variables can be written down in a yardage book. A yardage book gets us out of our lazy ways. I’ve never met a lazy golfer who is a consistently good golfer in my 40+ years of playing the game. Ever!