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22 Dec 2013 Gregg Steinberg, USGTF Level IV Member

Practice your strengths

By: Gregg Steinberg, WGCA contributing writer The duel at Sherwood Country Club was reminiscent of the tale of David and Goliath. Compared to the monumental Tiger Woods, the stature and resume of Zach Johnson was quite diminutive. But that had no bearing on the end result. After an amazing hole-out from the drop area to tie Tiger in regulation play, Johnson went on to win the playoff and the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge. Like David and his mighty foe, Johnson could never keep up with Tiger’s power game. In 2013, Johnson ranked 153rd on the PGA TOUR in driving distance at 278.8 yards per drive. However, Johnson ranked 19th in scoring average (70.10). The secret to Johnson’s success in golf is not the power game. Rather Johnson focuses on his strengths. His golfing power comes from his wedge game and putting prowess. Psychologists now propose that we should focus on our strengths, and decrease our motivation toward the improvement of our weaknesses. When you work on your strengths, you are energized and happy. Practicing your weakness can drain you, and in most cases, be joyless. If Johnson focused on getting longer off the tee, he may have ruined his unique swing. Instead, he focuses on what got him to the PGA TOUR and then made it sing loudly! Do you worry about your weaknesses in golf? Are you always looking for that extra 10 yards off the tee? Is the long bomb your entire focus when you practice? Instead of working on the 300-yard drive, keep on practicing your strengths. Get great at certain key elements in your golf game, like Johnson has, and you too will begin to see the long term benefits to your scores.

IS IT TIME TO ALLOW YARDAGE MEASURING DEVICES ON THE PGA TOUR?

They are everywhere these days and they come in all kinds of shapes and sizes. GPS yardage devices are common among the crowd I play with, and it has helped speed up the overall time of our weekly round. No more hunting for the nearest sprinkler head or pacing off from the 150 post; just push a button or read a meter, then select a club. Our high school golf association allows devices in matches and tournaments as long at they give distance only. It has definitely sped up play, in my opinion. In a time when just about everyone in the golf industry is lamenting slow play, maybe it is time to relax the rules against such devices. The USGA and PGA Tour do not allow yardage devices in any of their championships. On contemplation, I fail to understand their reasoning. After all, players can use yardage books that give every detail of a hole with distance to hazards, bunkers, greens, or pins. How many times have we seen golfer and caddie behind the ball going over their notes incessantly before their 10 to 15 practice swings? The rule makers have allowed innovation in equipment and balls throughout history to make the game easier. Why not just go another step and allow caddies to carry GPS devices? It would eliminate the need for pencils and paper and save a few trees in the process. They might play faster, too!

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS

This time of year, many of us will reflect back over the past 12 months, thinking about the good things that happened, as well as what we would like to change for the upcoming year. Hopefully, our students are doing the same thing for their golf game: Analyzing their rounds, possibly worrying about things that could go wrong, and wanting to do better in 2014. As golf teaching professionals, we should encourage our students to focus on the positives for the upcoming year and provide them with a plan to make their resolutions become reality. The most important thing to do is make them aware of your presence, even if you’re not physically there working with them on the course. As their instructor, it is our duty to provide encouragement every step of the way. During the month of December, I send an e-mail to each student from the previous year. The content of the message is to express the enjoyment I have had at being their golf teaching professional, discuss the improvements they made, and recommend a few things I think they should focus on at the beginning of the new year. Typically, I will select three or three things for them during the winter months. Suggested areas could be fitness, mental game, short game, scoring, or swing fundamentals. For most people, being inside during the cold winter months gives them a great opportunity to focus on an area which doesn’t require observation of a ball flying into the air at the driving range. Some things might be as simple as swinging a club 50 times a day in their garage or enrolling in a yoga class to increase flexibility, which in turn increases distance. Depending on the student, you could prescribe something more complex, like buying a small putting mat and working on three- to six-foot putts. Whatever drill or exercise you choose will keep your student in the routine of doing something to improve their game. Keeping in contact over the winter months when they may not take regular lessons lets a student know you care about them and their game. Plus, you’re on their mind and will be the first person they want to call when spring comes.

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