McDowell’s focus
26 Apr 2013

McDowell’s focus

By: Gregg Steinberg, WGCA contributing writer Inspiration flows from many places. Graeme McDowell, the RBC Heritage champion, was inspired from his failure. According to McDowell, missing the cut at this year’s Masters got him extremely motivated to excel on the Harbor Town Golf Links. Good came from the bad. Inspiration can greatly influence our play on the course. To the field of sports psychology, inspiration impacts our intensity level. When you are inspired, your intensity level is high. You are motivated and extremely focused on the task. Whereas, being uninspired will cause low intensity levels. Or in other words, being uninspired feels as if the “fire in the belly” has burnt out. Given, we are all unique, and we are all inspired by different motives. I am inspired when I play a new and difficult course. However, when I play my usual golf course that I have played 1,000 times, my play can fall flat. When I feel flat, my golf suffers. As G-Mac proved this week, your best golf will be played when you are inspired. However, if you are having difficulties getting inspired for every shot, here are a few recommendations to boost your inspiration: 1. Pump up your intensity with a gentle hit to your thigh. At the start of your routine, hit your thigh — not hard enough so that it hurts, but just hard enough so that you feel like you are pumping up your intensity level prior to your shot. 2. Get a catchphrase. Many of the players that I work with have a catchphrase like “find the fire”. They say this catchphrase at the start of the routine to feel that pump in emotion. Get a word or sentence that will give you a needed pump in desire prior to your shot. Finding that fire in your in belly for every shot does not have to come from failure. The right words and actions can kindle the fire inside so that you can play your best golf every day. Dr. Gregg Steinberg is the author of the best selling golf psychology book, MentalRules for Golf. He is a regular guest every Tuesday on “Talk of the Tour” heard on the Sirius/XM PGA TOUR radio. Dr. Gregg is a tenured professor of sports psychology and has worked with many PGA tour players.  You can see more about him at www.drgreggsteinberg.com, and you can e-mail him at mentalrules24@msn.com.
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19 Apr 2013

PERFORMANCE REVIEWS

Marc Gelbke, Contributing Writer, US Golf Managers Association Conducting performance reviews with your employees is an important part of a manager’s responsibilities. It is a great tool to see where you are in terms of productivity, knowledge, and performance. Additionally, you get the opportunity to see how each of your employees thinks they are doing during their self-evaluation, which usually leads to an “in-the-middle” balance of where they actually are, and you the manager can now prepare a plan for improvements. Employees often see performance reviews as a session of criticism, but in actuality, it is used to discover ways in which an employee’s skills can be better utilized to fulfill your facility’s goals and objectives. When administering performance reviews, plan in advance and schedule specific appointment dates with your staff. I would recommend beginning preparations at least 2-3 weeks in advance. Allow at least one hour per review, and provide your staff a blank copy of your review form, instructing them to use it for a self-evaluation form to be completed by the employee and returned by the appointment date session for your review. Your performance review should into account your specific subject areas of review, such as quality of work, punctuality, attention to detail, job knowledge, judgment, decision-making skills, reliability, attitude, and any other aspect that you feel is relevant to your operation. Your review should also include short definitions next to each subject area to avoid any kind of misunderstandings as to what specifically you are looking for as a response. For example, “Punctuality = meeting deadlines and completing assignments on schedule.” Understand that your performance reviews are an important part of each of your employee’s personnel file, and can be used to determine promotions, pay increases, and even disciplinary actions, if needed. Reviews should be conducted at least annually for each employee, but it is a good idea to do them more often, such as every six months, to be able to follow progress guidelines and improvements. Remember, performance reviews are not to criticize employees but to improve your staff, your facility, and your overall operation.
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SLOW PLAY: ARE WE RESPONSIBLE?
12 Apr 2013

SLOW PLAY: ARE WE RESPONSIBLE?

There is a weekly money game at one of the local country clubs in Kansas near my home.  There are a lot of great players in the game, including mini-tour players.  A few months back I was paired with two mini-tour players, along with a top local college player.  We were the fourth out of six groups to tee off in the money game.  Five hours later we finished, at least two holes, if not three, behind the group in front of us. During the round, I mentioned that we were falling behind the group in front of us, and we needed to pick up our pace.  I guess my opinions went on deaf ears because we never sped up at all.  After our round, I wasn’t very happy with our pace; I felt like I worried about it the entire round, and therefore, had a negative outlook on the game.  I paid my debts, and went my merry way home. The next day I couldn’t quit thinking about how slow these good players were.  I started to think about why we were so slow and it came down to two major areas.  The first area was routine or process, while the other area was the timing of starting the process.  These ideas turned into many thoughts about teaching professionals and how we teach pre-shot routines. For the most part, I think we all teach that you should have a routine for all shots.  The point of a routine is to keep you calm when you are nervous, help get you back on track when things are bad, and help you go lower when things are going really good.  But, do we teach the players to become so engaged to their routine that they forget about common sense pace of play? All three players had full-shot routines that took about two minutes.  It seemed the more time one player took, the next player would take more.  It was amazing to me to see someone back off a shot more than four or five times.  It showed me that they were forcing their routine because of the self-doubt in their decisions.  I would like to see players be more confident in their decisions and play the shot. The other thing that amazed me was none of the players started their routine, including pre-reads, until the other player was finished.  This is something that makes me feel that their coach has failed them.  Students should be taught to do their pre-reads all the time, whether they are walking up to their ball or walking from the cart to the green.  This helps them continually assess what they want to do and to be more decisive. It is our responsibility to grow the game and help players get more enjoyment.  One way we can help this is to instruct players to move along at a good pace.  Not only does it benefit them, but it benefits everyone in the group and on the course.  If we teach “common sense” pace of play skills to our students, then they will help better the game.
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FUNDAMENTALS ALWAYS WORK!
12 Apr 2013

FUNDAMENTALS ALWAYS WORK!

As the spring season makes its way into many parts of the northern US and Canada, players that have been dreaming of playing golf on their favorite courses are now getting really excited about the 2013 golf season.,,   For those of us that live in the Sun Belt, we have been in full golf season for almost six months and are starting to see our winter friends leave for their homes in the north. A few weeks ago, I started my middle-school golf program and was thrilled to have almost 30 young players show up for golf from grades 3 to 8. As we started out training programs, we were spending a lot of time on the chipping and putting greens working on our short games. On one afternoon, as we made our way to the chipping green at our local public course, I noticed an older woman on the chipping green working on her short game. Now, what caught my attention is what she was doing. She had 10 balls and a 9-iron, and she was working her way around the chipping green hitting basically the same 25-foot chip from many different angles. She was terrific, chipping almost all of her shots to within a few feet of each hole. I watched her for about 5 to 10 minutes with the kids. I told all of them to watch what she was doing, and her fundamentals were outstanding. She had a simple setup, narrow stance, weight forward, and open feet with an open hip. Her hands held the club softly but firmly, and each shot had that perfect little “click” as she hit each short firmly with a descending blow. The result: A little loft, hop and roll right next to the hole. My lesson to the kids as we were watching this exhibition was that her fundamentals were outstanding and that her practice was simple and productive. I had to finally ask her about her game, and she was so gracious, said she had been a good player for a long time, over 60 years, and she has always practiced her short game with her 9-iron. She felt that the shot she was practicing was the shot that she faced the most when she played. You could tell she was very good at the shot – fundamentals always work!
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LOFT IS YOUR FRIEND
12 Apr 2013

LOFT IS YOUR FRIEND

As the spring season makes its way into many parts of the northern US and the Masters starts to loom on everyone’s must-watch golf radar, I wanted to write about the new technology that has come out in the driver market for 2013. There are some really great new products from all the major manufacturers this spring, many with new technology that allows players to adjust their clubs to fit their games with changeable hosel and new weight systems. For many low-handicap players, the ability to adjust the clubhead just slightly can make a big difference in the shot patterns and launch angles of any new driver. As many of you know, I make a living selling golf equipment, so I wanted to share with you some information that I have been finding though our demo days in South Florida. Watch your loft! We have been finding that, with many of the new adjustable drivers, the goal has been to lower spin rates to get maximum roll on all drives. Lowering spin rates are great – if you get the ball in the air on the right launch angle. Many players have tried to lower their spin by using lower-lofted drivers. For many, lowering the launch angle too much can actually be detrimental. My suggestion is that if you are thinking about getting a new adjustable driver this spring, find the one that works best for you on a launch monitor. Then, try to add at least 1.5 degrees of loft to the driver with the adjustable settings to see how it changes the characteristics of the ball flight. Once you get your new driver, take it out to play nine holes on a course that you know pretty well with the club set on the standard position, and then on the back nine adjust the driver to have a higher loft. Pay close attention to the distance, launch of the ball, the ball, and the curvature of the shot. You may be surprised to see that the higher-lofted setting may help you game.
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SELLING YOUR TALENT!
12 Apr 2013

SELLING YOUR TALENT!

As golf teaching professionals, it is important to have highly developed technical knowledge and teaching skills.  However, we must be able to sell that skill (lessons) to be financially successful.  Therefore, it is important to market yourself as a golf teaching professional.  The USGTF provides numerous resources that are available from the National Office.  Here are some often-overlooked points that will help you become a better and more successful instructor:
  • Your professional experience and talent are valuable assets.  Therefore, do not be afraid to sell your talents.  Often, golf instructors charge too little for their time, talent, and experience.
 
  • Try to sell a percentage of your lessons as a program such as group lessons.  If you charge $75 per hour for an individual lesson but charge $30 per group lesson with 5 people per hour, you have now effectively doubled your income.  The added benefit is group lessons often have more energy and dynamics.  Be creative!
 
  • NGF statistics show that 87% of golfers would play more golf and spend more money if they could play better.  Yet, only 13% of golfers are taking regular lessons!
 
  • Invest in your business and education.  It is important to keep up to date with technology, training aids, and equipment.  Equally as important is to continue your education by utilizing the vast resources that the USGTF and WGTF have to offer.
 
  • As an instructor, you should adapt and constantly evolve to the changing world.  Use new and innovative marketing ideas in your kids’ programs, ladies’ golf clinics, and social events that combine golf and business.  Try to keep up with effective forms of communications.  Opportunities exist when you make an effort.  Simple cost-effective ideas such as online social media, involvement in group activities, community clubs, parks and recreation, and volunteering for local schools can provide a great boost to your client base.
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SLOWING DOWN THE GOLF BALL
10 Apr 2013

SLOWING DOWN THE GOLF BALL

Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and even Tiger Woods have all advocated creating a golf ball that flies shorter instead of making courses longer or completely redesigning classic layouts to keep them from becoming obsolete. Balls today go crazy distances. Pros oftentimes are hitting drives 350 yards or more. Manufacturers are putting out balls all the time that go farther and farther. Yet, ask them to create a ball that goes shorter and they act like putting a man on the moon is easier. Check out this quote from a USGA official: “Developing a new ball to substantially different specifications like that is almost like starting over for the ball manufacturers,” said Dick Rugge of the USGA. All the major companies have multiple ball lines, each with different characteristics intended for different players. “They honed those balls over decades of trial and error, a little of this, a little of that. There’s no pixie dust,” Rugge said. “Despite advances in fields like computerized fluid dynamics, which analyzes airflow, it’s not a fully sorted-out science. There is still art involved.” Anyone want to buy a used car from this guy? Does that even make sense? Let’s see…they can make a ball to go farther, but they can’t make a ball to go shorter? Bull!! What about restricted-flight balls for driving ranges, floaters, or the Cayman ball? How about just making balls like they used to, like the wound balata? I suspect that the real issue is money. Look how many types of balls there are, and all are being advertised as longer than the next. How much demand would there be for a ball that goes shorter than the other guy’s? Let’s just be honest with the folks. Yes, a ball can be slowed down, but for economic reasons we’re just not going to do it.
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Get into the ‘feel zone’
9 Apr 2013

Get into the ‘feel zone’

By: Gregg Steinberg, WGCA contributing writer Martin Laird won the Valero Texas Open with his putter. He needed only 22 putts in the final round to tie the course record with a blistering 63 at the TPC San Antonio. If you watched Laird during this week, you would notice a key component in his pre-putting routine. As he looked at the hole, he would simulate the movement of his stroke with his right hand. He is getting into what I call “the feel zone.” You need to accomplish only two factors to make a putt-hit the correct line coupled with the correct speed. Of course, those two factors are very difficult to get matched up, but when you do, you will see yourself sinking one putt after another. The problem with most amateurs is that they focus primarily on line. They first figure how the ball will break. Next, amateurs will take a couple of practice strokes with the desired technique. Then make their stroke so that the ball roles on the chosen line. Does this sound like your pre-putting routine? The problem with your putting could be that you get stuck in the analytical mode. To putt your best, you will need to let go of being “too line oriented” and get into the feel zone like Martin Laird did this past week. Here are 3 steps in your pre-putting routine to help you get into the feel zone: Step 1. Pick up the ball and pretend to roll it. Although Martin Laird simulated the roll with his right hand, even better is to place the golf ball in your right hand and pretend to roll it toward the target. The weight of the ball helps you to gain better feel. Step 2. Visualize the break. Visualize how the ball will break from the start position to when it enters the hole.  But don’t just visualize the arc of the line, also imagine the actual speed of the putt. The greater your visualization process, the better feel you will have. Step 3. Take practice strokes for feel only. Your only goal of the practice stroke is to feel the speed so it can take the intended line. Make a few practice strokes until you gain that desired feel.   Let’s be honest, getting your ball close to the hole is not that difficult, however, sinking putts is one of the toughest parts of the game. It gets a little easier when you get into the feel zone.  
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