U.S. Open Picks

The 2014 U.S. Open is setting up to play out as one of the most intriguing majors in recent memory.  Will the back-to-back line up with the Women’s Open have an impact?  You bet it will, as will the course redesign by Coors and Crenshaw in 2010.  Picking a winner this early requires some deep analysis.  Let’s go out on a limb and make a prognostication without seeing results from The Memorial, because I’m gearing up for my own U.S. Open (Myrtle Beach trip) and can’t take the time next weekend.  So here’s your early winning pick – call your bookie now to get the best odds 🙂

The look from the par-3 #17th tee when we played it in 2011

When I traveled in 2011 and played Pinehurst #2, along with gathering data for the course review, I was trying to evaluate how this storied venue would stack up for the Open after the redesign.  What immediately struck me was how wide open it was off the tee.  I had mentally prepared to be hitting a lot of 3WDs but ended up with driver on every par 4 and 5.  We were playing if from the same yardage as the women will play the following week, but noticed that our tee shots were landing with ample room in the fairways and there was literally no rough.   The natural waste areas were mostly sand but were not played as a hazard (unless you were in a bunker within the waste areas).  I thought the way they had these laid out was awkward and it would be difficult to determine how to play if your ball was on the edge of a bunker.  Expect an abundance of USGA officials traveling with each group to speed along ruling inquiries, but the main takeaway is that unlike most U.S. Open venues, the rough will not be the penal impediment it usually is.

Pinehurst’s crowned greens will be the course’s main defense, BUT they won’t be able to shave them down and dry them out almost to the point of burning them because of the Women’s Open immediately following.  So with small reasonably well watered greens, expect some diabolical pin placements and a premium on chipping, missing the greens on the correct side, and solid bunker play; but not a fairways and greens affair.

This sets up perfectly for Matt Kuchar who will win the tournament.

From golfweek.com

Kuchar is not the greatest driver of the ball but has a wonderful short game, is getting in contention with every major, is from the southeast, and just feels like the right pick.  I’m giving him a pass on the missed cut at Colonial.

Justin Rose is the defending champion and his golf swing looks great.  He’s over his shoulder injury and actually seems rather bulked up (have you noticed too?) and I’m wondering if he’s been collaborating with Tiger The Gym Rat Woods, considering they both work with Sean Foley.  Normally, I’d take Rose to repeat in a ball striking competition, but his short game is not strong enough.  His form is good for a top 10, though.

From dailystar.uk.com

Jordan Spieth
From bostonherald.com

Coming in a close second again is the hottest golf property on the planet, Jordan Spieth.  He is getting so close, is so mentally mature and tough, that it’s just a matter of time; just not this time.

So that brings us to Phil Mickelson, who would be the perfect pick for the way this course sets up.  Phil is without a top 10 this year and despite finishing second at Pinehurst to Payne Stewart back in 1999, Lefty will remain a sentimental pick.

So what about Rory McIlroy and Woz-gate?  Good timing or bad?  I say bad and a missed cut.

Rory and Woz during better days. From businessinsider.com

So there you have it with Koooch finally getting his first major.  You like this pick or someone else?

Golf – Part Time, Full Time, or Bus Driver’s Holiday?

I think I am safe in saying that as serious players most of us think we don’t play as well as we should.  When I’ve played rounds with friends who aren’t as serious, they often ask how to get better and I’ll offer the usual comments about taking lessons, getting fitted, working short game, but the conversation usually concludes with, “you get out of this game what you put into it.”  Tonight I was reminded about the advice I usually dispense.

On occasion if I don’t have enough time to engage in a normal practice session, I’ll grab a wedge and my bag shag and head out to the adjacent school field for a few swings.  This evening was one of those times and after hitting a couple dozen flip wedges (the first four flew straight right), I left frustrated and mad at myself for the lack of commitment on my part to enough play and practice to remain effective.

I have played this game seriously for nearly 40 years and am still searching for the right golf-life balance.  Back in my 20s, I worked a couple of years as an assistant club professional and along with the 6-day 60-hour work weeks came an inordinate amount of play and practice.  You worked your 10-hour day and then played or practiced after work until dark – I was totally hooked.  On your one day off, you played golf.  We were open every day of the year except for Christmas and New Years, and my unhealthy addiction was constantly fed.  The sport was a true bus driver’s holiday and was well in excess of what a normal human could enjoy from a game, and was the only time in my life that I was burned out on golf.

So what is the optimal amount of play and practice you need to get to the point of satisfaction?  Can you ever get comfortable or are we like nomads constantly wondering in the desert?  I’ve long since given up getting to scratch from a 5-handicap, as the workload would be enormous for a desk jockey with a day job.  Right now I’d be happy to maintain the 5, but feel it starting to slip.  In essence, I’m still searching for my optimal amount of play and practice but I know 30-40 rounds per year and one day of practice per week is not cutting it.  Golf has always been a game of adjustments, and the key is to get enough frequency to mitigate the big momentum swings.  Lately every time out I’m fighting a new fundamental fire with the problem being exacerbated when I take additional time off.

Anyone out there have any suggestions for a balanced approach?

Golden Nuggets from THE PLAYERS

Got some gems to share from this year’s coverage of THE PLAYERS Championship.  Normally during the majors and big tournaments, I try to avoid over-saturating my brain with the available round the clock coverage but for some reason I’ve been compelled this week, and am picking up some great stuff.

Nugget One:  If you watched “Live from THE PLAYERS” on Golf Channel early Saturday, you watched Zach Johnson warming up on the putting green using an alignment stick to ensure his upper body and hands were working together.  You need a putter that you can hook the stick on top of the club and anchor the other end to your sternum.  My Ping Answer worked perfectly (see photos).  As you rock your shoulders, make sure the stick stays anchored and the putter shaft does not cross under the stick.  This ensures you’ve maintained a solid lead wrist and have not broken down with a handsy stroke.  It’s easy to do and is an awesome simple concept.  Has anyone tried this?

Good Stroke

Bad Stroke

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nugget Two:  Same episode of “Live. . .” Kelly Tilghman was discussing an interview she did with Jordan Spieth during a segment when the preeminent talking heads were trying to figure out Spieth’s secret sauce of success.

Jordan Spieth
From bostonherald.com

Supposedly when Tilghman asked Spieth  if he would take millions of dollars to make an equipment change and risk introducing a distraction to what had made him successful to date (ala Rory McIlroy), he  emphatically said, “No.”

Spieth’s sensibilities and game management are spot on and is why fans are being drawn to him.  Listen during Sunday’s coverage and you’ll hear the cheers of “Spieeeeeeeth,” reverberating through the TPC.  This guy has guts, an awesome short game, commits to his game plan, and shows some personality.  Sure he gets hot after a bad shot, but he gets it out and doesn’t let it burn for more than 30 seconds.  It’s refreshing to see him fist bumping the fans and showing some up and down emotion.  Too often our coverage is punctuated with the totally stoic faces of the grinders, like Jason Dufner, or the sunken-eyed look of a Tiger Woods, who can’t seem to enjoy golf even when he’s winning.  Count me as a big Spieth fan.

Nugget Three:  There is a changing dichotomy in professional golf as we settle into a period of non-domination.  There are so many good players who excel in short bursts but can’t seem to sustain long term.  Since the end of the Tiger Major Era, which I’ll identify as the post-2008 U.S. Open period, there have been 23 majors contested and only Rory McIlroy and Bubba Watson have demonstrated the ability to win multiple times (two each).  While domination by a single player is better for television ratings and growing the game globally, those days are over.  Many pundits think we are entering a popping of the golf bubble that was inflated by the influx of Tiger Woods’ supporters.   Do you think that’s the case?  What’s that wooshing sound I hear?

 

Countdown To GolfaPalooza!

I absolutely love this time of year.  Today is G-minus 30 days from the annual pilgrimage to Myrtle Beach and it’s time to start counting.  Maybe it’s the aha moment I discovered today with my golf swing, or maybe it’s the five sustained days of 80 degree temperatures we’ve got lined up, or maybe it’s the prospects of total immersion in the game I love (playing 216 holes the same week as the U.S. Open is contested at Pinehurst.)  Either way, the anticipation and lead-up to this trip is almost as good as the real thing.

Leopard’s Chase

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 2014 MB lineup (36/day weather permitting).

June 9: Lion’ Paw

June 10: Panther’s Run

June 11: Tiger’s Eye

June 12:  Leopard’s Chase

June 13: True Blue

June 14: Surf Club

The best thing about playing Ocean Ridge Plantation (Four Big Cats) is an abundance of replay targets.  Often, you have the opportunity to play a different course in the morning and afternoon, and I’ll bet we come home with at least three rounds on Tiger’s Eye, which is one of my top five plays on the Grand Strand.

The best thing about playing True Blue is that it’s one of the finest public golf courses in the United States.  Everything about this Mike Strantz design is great.  We added it to the line-up and removed Tidewater after learning that the latter had lost their greens due to a fertilizing double bogey by the greenskeeper.  I’ll have three new course reviews coming for Lion’s Paw, Panther’s Run, and Surf Club.  Anyone with an early season report on course conditions for these six, please pass them along.

As readers of this space know, I’ve been in an early season ball striking slump.  It’s hard for the serious player not to let a slump affect the rest of his life, but we try (and usually fail), you know what I mean.  So today was huge.  I recalled Vet4golfing51‘s advice to review the fundamentals during my ball striking slump last year.  Darned if it wasn’t my grip again, and I validated with some swings on my patio driving range mat and then again with some PW shots off turf.  The fix feels great and it’s funny how the rest of your mood improves when you have better prospects with your golf game 🙂

I hope your season is off to a great start.  Mine is certainly looking up!

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What Is Your Opinion About Indoor Golf Facilities?

I was at the driving range a few weeks ago during Taylor Made demo day trying to work the kinks out of my golf swing and the local pro sauntered up and asked me if I’d like to try the new SLDR ($399) and JetSpeed ($299) drivers.  I politely declined, as I was working on my swing, but he had set up shop in the stall next to mine and after about 20 minutes interrupted again to tell me how I could get 20-25 more yards of distance with the latest instruments.  Not wanting to be rude, I hit a half dozen with each new offering and then returned to my Big Bertha FT3, for comparison sake, and promptly cranked it past the newer models, somewhat humbling my demo pro.

With the advent of more indoor facilities and fancy launch monitor technology,  would you buy a new $400 driver without seeing actual ball flight?

I’ve never been drawn to indoor facilities, at least since I bought a Taylor Made R7 driver several years ago, after hitting it on a launch monitor at the local Golf Galaxy, and then finding out I was totally dissatisfied once I got to the range and observed real ball flight.  As a traditionalist, and previous club builder, I’m in the camp that golf needs to be played outdoors, on real grass (or at least on driving range mats), and that there’s no substitute for seeing the ball fly.

Admittedly, back in November of 2012, I saw master club builder Wade Heintzelman at the Golf Care Center in Bethesda, MD, and he fit me for my new Mizuno JPX irons and did it exclusively with indoor technology.  Now Wade has worked with PGA Tour professionals and is not some assistant pro du jour that was pulling sticks from a rack of R7 drivers in a retail store.  I rightly put my complete faith in his abilities and am a very satisfied customer, despite not seeing any actual ball flight during my two-hour fitting.  My only twinge of concern was when he said I had hit a 3-iron H4 217 yards on the monitor and I know I can’t hit a 3-iron that far, but chalked it up to the field goal kicker in a dome syndrome.

So my view on indoor facilities is mixed.  I understand that folks in colder climates, or in areas where it’s just too expensive to enjoy golf on a course (Japan comes to mind) might be more suitable for indoor facilities.  But to answer the question, no I would not buy a $400 driver without seeing actual ball flight, unless someone of Wade Heintzelman’s reputation were doing the fitting.

What is your opinion about indoor golf facilities?

Trying To Golf Like a Professional Stock Picker

Ever wonder why your golf scores look like the monthly trend charts for the Dow Jones Industrial?  Why can’t you build any consistency into your game?

Admittedly, it’s early in the 2014 season and my scores to date (92, 77, 78, 83) are a small sample size, but the inconsistency has me concerned.  I thought to stabilize and hopefully see steady improvement from week-to-week, I’d rethink my approach to work more like a professional trader on Wall Street.  In an attempt to remove the impact of market fluctuations on my portfolio, I will employ some technical analysis, which simply defined is using the examination of critical pieces of past performance data in an attempt to predict future behavior.  In my case, I’m going to attempt to drive performance instead of predict it.  Good luck to me.

Tomorrow, I play at Poolesville, the site of the ugly opening day debacle.  I reviewed performance notes I’ve kept on all the rounds played at Poolesville since 2010 and picked up three trends.

1. Ball striking was inconsistent especially off the tee which repeatedly had me playing out of trouble, and didn’t improve until mid to late round when I benched my driver.  Last week I wrote about the great experiment I was considering with driver benching on par-5 holes, and it starts tomorrow.  Driver is out of the bag and replaced with a 5WD.
2. On good ball striking days, I noticed a tight connection between arms and torso and my pre-round full swing practice usually included focus on making a shorter back swing.  When I try to make too full of a turn, my arms continue back after my shoulder turn is complete causing me to come up and out of my spine angle and hit loose shots.  Today’s practice will be a bucket full of 3/4 pitching wedges to get the feel of a tight connection.
3. Poolesville’s greens are undulating and fast.  When I opened my stance with the putter somehow my feel for distance greatly improved and I putted well.  Not sure why this was the case but an open stance is in the game plan.

After reviewing data from Poolesville, what irks me is that I usually found solutions (adjustments) late in my rounds after my mistakes had impacted my score.  Hopefully by adding in what’s worked during past practice and play, before I start, I’ll have a more enjoyable experience.  Maybe tomorrow is the start of a long bull run and a look at more opportunities from the fairway!  Anyone ever tried this approach out there?