Phil Mickelson won for the second time this year, but was far more impressive this week, as he showed much more consistency and some grit in holding off Nick Watney to win the CA Championship. With just three weeks until The Masters, Mickelson has to be viewed as one of the big favorites. I still think he needs to drive the ball straighter, to give himself the right approaches into the greens at Augusta. Remember, he chipped in four times this week, and won by just one shot.
Tiger Woods appears to be rounding into form quite nicely. He finished the week 12th in greens in regulation, but clearly was frustrated with his putting. Last year, it was the putter that cost him at Augusta, where he finished second. If he starts holing 20 footers with any regularity, watch out.
Scott Cole
www.powergolftraining.net
Monday, March 16, 2009
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Teaching Golf - Keep it Simple!
As I continue down the path of developing my golf teaching business, I continue to research many of the golf swing ideas and philosophies out there. Do a little research and you may find Jim Hardy's "Plane Truth" concept, the Stack & Tilt method, Moe Norman's Natural Golf, and the list goes on! Unfortunately, some of these ideas can become quite complicated and difficult to learn.
As I mentioned previously, last month I traveled to Dallas to attend Hank Haney's "Teaching the Teacher" seminar. In his younger days, Hank worked with John Jacobs and Jim Hardy. Jacobs is described by Hank as the master of the quick fix, while Hardy was probably the hardest working and most passionate teacher he had met.
What I learned from my participation at the seminar was that Hank has an ideal type of swing in mind, and each golfer can attain their own version of that ideal swing. That ideal revolves around the one characteristic of keeping the golf club on the same plane angle throughout the swing. But first, he wants to correct the major error in the student's swing, then move on to build a better swing. His approach is quite simple, and there are no complex descriptions of how each part of the swing should be constructed. He simply tells you where you should be in the swing, then puts you there! His book "The Only Golf Lesson You'll Ever Need" is written simply and concisely, and is a good read for teachers and students alike.
I also had the opportunity this past week to observe the best teacher in Pennsylvania, Ted Sheftic, give a lesson. Ted is probably ten years older than Hank and thus his sole influence is Ben Hogan, but I could see that his approach is similar to Hank's, except from the standpoint of personality. In other words, Ted and Hank seemed to be on the same page, and I could see that reflected in the swings of students that Ted has taught. In fact, one of Ted's students is currently attending the Haney Junior Golf Academy in Hilton Head. She was actually invited there and received a scholarship.
With all this in mind, it is clear to me what approach to take in teaching my students, and I have all the confidence in the world that I can get the job done with anyone.
Scott Cole
Professional Golf Instructor, USGTF Associate Member
www.powergolftraining.net
As I mentioned previously, last month I traveled to Dallas to attend Hank Haney's "Teaching the Teacher" seminar. In his younger days, Hank worked with John Jacobs and Jim Hardy. Jacobs is described by Hank as the master of the quick fix, while Hardy was probably the hardest working and most passionate teacher he had met.
What I learned from my participation at the seminar was that Hank has an ideal type of swing in mind, and each golfer can attain their own version of that ideal swing. That ideal revolves around the one characteristic of keeping the golf club on the same plane angle throughout the swing. But first, he wants to correct the major error in the student's swing, then move on to build a better swing. His approach is quite simple, and there are no complex descriptions of how each part of the swing should be constructed. He simply tells you where you should be in the swing, then puts you there! His book "The Only Golf Lesson You'll Ever Need" is written simply and concisely, and is a good read for teachers and students alike.
I also had the opportunity this past week to observe the best teacher in Pennsylvania, Ted Sheftic, give a lesson. Ted is probably ten years older than Hank and thus his sole influence is Ben Hogan, but I could see that his approach is similar to Hank's, except from the standpoint of personality. In other words, Ted and Hank seemed to be on the same page, and I could see that reflected in the swings of students that Ted has taught. In fact, one of Ted's students is currently attending the Haney Junior Golf Academy in Hilton Head. She was actually invited there and received a scholarship.
With all this in mind, it is clear to me what approach to take in teaching my students, and I have all the confidence in the world that I can get the job done with anyone.
Scott Cole
Professional Golf Instructor, USGTF Associate Member
www.powergolftraining.net
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Ogilvy Wins Accenture Match Play Golf Tournament
Australia's Geoff Ogilvy proved to be the most solid player at the Accenture Match Play golf tournament in Arizona this week, as he finished the tournament with a solid 4&3 win over Paul Casey in the 36 hold final. In his 33 holes today, Ogilvy finished with 10 birdies and an eagle, while defeating Casey, who also played well in today's match. The difference was the short game, as both players were solid from tee to green.
Ogilvy is one of those players that is probably entering his prime, and has the ability to push Tiger Woods this year. He has a strong overall game, and a calm demeanor. It will be interesting to see if he can provide a strong challenge in the majors this year.
Heading into Augusta, watch how Tiger plays at Bay Hill in a couple weeks. That is one of his favorite venues and should be a good gauge for where his game is while preparing for Augusta. Last year, he won in dramatic fashion on the 72nd hole. He contended at Augusta, but made few puts while finishing second to Trevor Immelman. Watching him play this week indicated he has quite a bit of rust. It looked like he had trouble controlling his ball flight trajectory, as he got a number of irons up into the wind. His teacher, Hank Haney, however, would be more concerned if he had trouble getting the ball up in the air. Watch for Tiger to have more control of his iron shots at Bay Hill.
Scott Cole
Ogilvy is one of those players that is probably entering his prime, and has the ability to push Tiger Woods this year. He has a strong overall game, and a calm demeanor. It will be interesting to see if he can provide a strong challenge in the majors this year.
Heading into Augusta, watch how Tiger plays at Bay Hill in a couple weeks. That is one of his favorite venues and should be a good gauge for where his game is while preparing for Augusta. Last year, he won in dramatic fashion on the 72nd hole. He contended at Augusta, but made few puts while finishing second to Trevor Immelman. Watching him play this week indicated he has quite a bit of rust. It looked like he had trouble controlling his ball flight trajectory, as he got a number of irons up into the wind. His teacher, Hank Haney, however, would be more concerned if he had trouble getting the ball up in the air. Watch for Tiger to have more control of his iron shots at Bay Hill.
Scott Cole
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Upper Body Stretches to Improve Your Golf Swing
Recently, I had the opportunity to receive hands-on instruction from golf teaching guru, Hank Haney. Now, this was obviously a special opportunity since Hank basically only teaches Tiger Woods, and the junior players at his academy in Hilton Head, South Carolina.
Hank has a specific golf swing theory that he is confident will allow the golfer to hit the nine main golf shots with consistency, at will. This includes the straight shot, with low, medium or high trajectory, a draw with these three trajectories, and a fade with these three trajectories. If a golfer can swing the golf club efficiently, he or she should feel comfortable hitting any one of these shots when the situation calls for it.
Hank’s theory is that the club shaft should maintain the same angle throughout the golf swing as its starting position at address. This is not the so-called one-plane golf swing. Hank dismisses that idea. However, he does suggest that there is one plane “angle” that the shaft should maintain, on different planes, throughout the golf swing.
Now, although I always felt I had a pretty good shoulder turn, my lesson with Hank indicated that I was not getting the full shoulder turn I need to maintain this one plane angle with a full golf swing. Instead, my left shoulder would drop slightly, and my head would also drop, during the back swing. As a result, I was not making the full shoulder turn that would allow me to swing the club on the consistent shaft angle that Hank indicates will lead to more consistent ball striking. Instead, the angle of my club shaft would at times be too flat or too steep, and ultimately I would need to have exceptional timing to hit the ball straighter.
I’ve stated in a previous article that flexibility is more important than strength for initially trying to add distance to your golf game. In trying to make the fuller shoulder turn that Hank was making me do during my lesson, I realized that I probably need to work on stretching my upper body some more. I will note that I also have a bit of a neck issue related to a skiing wreck when I was a teenager. As such, this may limit how much of a turn I can ultimately make. The swing can still be effective if I must make only a three-quarter swing, and I can still generate power in other ways, but I will make a go out of trying to generate a full swing by increasing my flexibility.
Increased flexibility is so important to improving the golf swing, that even Charles Barkley is working on this as he works with Hank Haney in trying to solve his full swing yip problem. At the same time, he has lost 30 pounds as well. It is no secret now that fitness is one of the big keys to improving your golf game!
With that in mind, in the coming weeks, I will continue to focus my attention on stretching the upper body. Below are descriptions of the primary stretching exercises I will utilize in improving my flexibility. If you want to improve your golf game, I suggest you work on these simple exercises as well!
Back Stretch – Twist
Lay flat on your back, arms out to sides and palms down, with your knees bent and feet flat to the floor. Shift onto your left hip, keeping your back flat to the floor. Lower your knees to the left side, so that the left knee and thigh lay on the floor. Place your left hand on your right knee, and pull the right knee down to floor…at the same time your head should be turned to the right, facing your right hand. Hold for 30 seconds, then slowly switch positions to the other side.
Lying Down Shoulder Stretch
While sitting on the floor, legs stretched out front, and back straight, interlock your hands on the floor behind your back. Slide your feet forward as far as they will go, feeling the stretch in the front of the shoulders. Hold that position for 30 seconds.
Trunk Rotations
Hold a staff or a broomstick behind your neck, with your arms outstretched along the staff. At the golf course, you can do a version of this with your driver, with on hand on the grip, and the other down near the clubhead.
Standing with your feet shoulder width apart, slowly turn your body as far to the left as possible, hold for a second, then slowly twist to the right, as far as possible. Repeat 10 times to each side, and each time try to turn a little further.
Elbow Pull Shoulder Stretch
Standing with your feet shoulder width apart, or sitting in an upright position with your back straight, extend your left arm forward, reach under and slightly behind your left elbow with your right hand, then draw the left arm in toward your body and across to the right. You should feel this stretch in the back and side of your left deltoid muscle of the shoulder. Hold this stretch for 30 seconds, then perform this same stretch with the right shoulder.
Scott Cole
Hank has a specific golf swing theory that he is confident will allow the golfer to hit the nine main golf shots with consistency, at will. This includes the straight shot, with low, medium or high trajectory, a draw with these three trajectories, and a fade with these three trajectories. If a golfer can swing the golf club efficiently, he or she should feel comfortable hitting any one of these shots when the situation calls for it.
Hank’s theory is that the club shaft should maintain the same angle throughout the golf swing as its starting position at address. This is not the so-called one-plane golf swing. Hank dismisses that idea. However, he does suggest that there is one plane “angle” that the shaft should maintain, on different planes, throughout the golf swing.
Now, although I always felt I had a pretty good shoulder turn, my lesson with Hank indicated that I was not getting the full shoulder turn I need to maintain this one plane angle with a full golf swing. Instead, my left shoulder would drop slightly, and my head would also drop, during the back swing. As a result, I was not making the full shoulder turn that would allow me to swing the club on the consistent shaft angle that Hank indicates will lead to more consistent ball striking. Instead, the angle of my club shaft would at times be too flat or too steep, and ultimately I would need to have exceptional timing to hit the ball straighter.
I’ve stated in a previous article that flexibility is more important than strength for initially trying to add distance to your golf game. In trying to make the fuller shoulder turn that Hank was making me do during my lesson, I realized that I probably need to work on stretching my upper body some more. I will note that I also have a bit of a neck issue related to a skiing wreck when I was a teenager. As such, this may limit how much of a turn I can ultimately make. The swing can still be effective if I must make only a three-quarter swing, and I can still generate power in other ways, but I will make a go out of trying to generate a full swing by increasing my flexibility.
Increased flexibility is so important to improving the golf swing, that even Charles Barkley is working on this as he works with Hank Haney in trying to solve his full swing yip problem. At the same time, he has lost 30 pounds as well. It is no secret now that fitness is one of the big keys to improving your golf game!
With that in mind, in the coming weeks, I will continue to focus my attention on stretching the upper body. Below are descriptions of the primary stretching exercises I will utilize in improving my flexibility. If you want to improve your golf game, I suggest you work on these simple exercises as well!
Back Stretch – Twist
Lay flat on your back, arms out to sides and palms down, with your knees bent and feet flat to the floor. Shift onto your left hip, keeping your back flat to the floor. Lower your knees to the left side, so that the left knee and thigh lay on the floor. Place your left hand on your right knee, and pull the right knee down to floor…at the same time your head should be turned to the right, facing your right hand. Hold for 30 seconds, then slowly switch positions to the other side.
Lying Down Shoulder Stretch
While sitting on the floor, legs stretched out front, and back straight, interlock your hands on the floor behind your back. Slide your feet forward as far as they will go, feeling the stretch in the front of the shoulders. Hold that position for 30 seconds.
Trunk Rotations
Hold a staff or a broomstick behind your neck, with your arms outstretched along the staff. At the golf course, you can do a version of this with your driver, with on hand on the grip, and the other down near the clubhead.
Standing with your feet shoulder width apart, slowly turn your body as far to the left as possible, hold for a second, then slowly twist to the right, as far as possible. Repeat 10 times to each side, and each time try to turn a little further.
Elbow Pull Shoulder Stretch
Standing with your feet shoulder width apart, or sitting in an upright position with your back straight, extend your left arm forward, reach under and slightly behind your left elbow with your right hand, then draw the left arm in toward your body and across to the right. You should feel this stretch in the back and side of your left deltoid muscle of the shoulder. Hold this stretch for 30 seconds, then perform this same stretch with the right shoulder.
Scott Cole
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Johnson wins Pebble Peach
Dustin Johnson picked up his second win on the PGA Tour this week without having to play another round after Saturday's 67. Although he did not have to finish it off after sitting on the lead overnight, he still proved he will be a force to reckon with, as this is his second win in under a year.
I happened to catch a few swings by Phil Mickelson on Saturday, and he looks like he is still struggling. I caught him on a par 3 where he was hitting about a 5-iron. He pull hooked his first shot, which hit a cart path and bounced out of bounds. Bad luck, but the shot was way off line. He nearly did the same with his second swing off that tee.
Phil appears to be struggling mightily with the swing changes he is making under Butch Harmon. A recap of the first swing on Golf Channel showed that he was very steep in the downswing. He may have been trying to hit a fade into the hole, and released his hands too quickly, causing the pull. Nevertheless, he was still way too steep on the downswing, and I don't see how he will strike the ball consistently with that swing. As a result, for the third consecutive week, he was nowhere near being competitive.
I'm off to Florida this weekend to work on my game!
Scott Cole
www.powergolftraining.net
I happened to catch a few swings by Phil Mickelson on Saturday, and he looks like he is still struggling. I caught him on a par 3 where he was hitting about a 5-iron. He pull hooked his first shot, which hit a cart path and bounced out of bounds. Bad luck, but the shot was way off line. He nearly did the same with his second swing off that tee.
Phil appears to be struggling mightily with the swing changes he is making under Butch Harmon. A recap of the first swing on Golf Channel showed that he was very steep in the downswing. He may have been trying to hit a fade into the hole, and released his hands too quickly, causing the pull. Nevertheless, he was still way too steep on the downswing, and I don't see how he will strike the ball consistently with that swing. As a result, for the third consecutive week, he was nowhere near being competitive.
I'm off to Florida this weekend to work on my game!
Scott Cole
www.powergolftraining.net
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Want more distance? Improve Your Golf Swing!
There are plenty of golf fitness gurus out there who insist that you can gain greater distance by doing a few exercises and stretches. This will be true if you already have a good golf swing. But, the bottom line is, if you have a faulty swing, you can exercise until you are blue in the face, and it won't matter.
A week ago I was in Dallas attending the Hank Haney "Teaching the Teacher" seminar that he holds annually. We all had the opportunity to work with Hank's staff on our swings. Fortunately, I also had the opportunity to get a full swing lesson from Hank in front of the rest of the pros. He analyzed video of my swing, showed me my faults, then showed me how to improve my swing. He essentially gave me the same lesson that one of his instructors, Doug Alexander, had given me a couple days earlier. However, it did reinforce what I needed to work on.
A couple hours later, I took these ideas to the driving range. I struggled for a while, mainly because I was not getting the release at impact correct, and my follow through was off. After a while though, it finally clicked. I ripped four straight 5-irons with a slight draw, and decided to pull out the driver. I made perfect contact with the driver, and the ball flew dead straight. I have no idea how far it went, but the ball flight was beautiful, and the ball shot off the clubface like a bullet. The beauty of all this was that the physical effort required to hit these shots was far less than with my old swing.
So, first thing is first. If you want more distance, improve your swing. Then, when you want to take it to the next level, work on your fitness.
Scott Cole
www.powergolftraining.net
A week ago I was in Dallas attending the Hank Haney "Teaching the Teacher" seminar that he holds annually. We all had the opportunity to work with Hank's staff on our swings. Fortunately, I also had the opportunity to get a full swing lesson from Hank in front of the rest of the pros. He analyzed video of my swing, showed me my faults, then showed me how to improve my swing. He essentially gave me the same lesson that one of his instructors, Doug Alexander, had given me a couple days earlier. However, it did reinforce what I needed to work on.
A couple hours later, I took these ideas to the driving range. I struggled for a while, mainly because I was not getting the release at impact correct, and my follow through was off. After a while though, it finally clicked. I ripped four straight 5-irons with a slight draw, and decided to pull out the driver. I made perfect contact with the driver, and the ball flew dead straight. I have no idea how far it went, but the ball flight was beautiful, and the ball shot off the clubface like a bullet. The beauty of all this was that the physical effort required to hit these shots was far less than with my old swing.
So, first thing is first. If you want more distance, improve your swing. Then, when you want to take it to the next level, work on your fitness.
Scott Cole
www.powergolftraining.net
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Hank Haney Teaching Seminar
As I wrote last week, I attended the annual Hank Haney teaching seminar this past weekend. This was an incredible experience to say the least. In my view, Hank Haney is the best teacher on the planet, and it is no wonder that Tiger Woods has such faith in his abilities as a teacher. Unfortunately, very other people have access to Haney himself due to his demanding schedule. However, there are a number of Haney facilities in Texas, not to mention those of us that will be listed on the website who attended the workshop this weekend.
For me, the weekend began Saturday shortly after I landed in Dallas. After checking into my hotel, I rushed out to the Hank Haney Golf Ranch in Lewisville for a lesson with instructor Doug Alexander. Doug has been a Haney instructor for ten years, and his passion for teaching was evident from the start. I spent over an hour with Doug, and he didn't charge me a dime.
On Sunday, we began with Hank discussing his ball flight philosophy and how to diagnose swing issues. Later in the morning, he gave 5, 20 minute lessons to students who were picked from a group of 200 that auditioned two weeks prior. This was to demonstrate how he diagnoses a problem and corrects the problem in the golfers swing. We broke for lunch, and then returned in the afternoon to watch Hank work with five more of these students. We then had a question and answer period before breaking for the day. Most of us went out to the range to hit some balls, and Doug Alexander worked with me some more. The owner of the JC Video golf swing software was out filming our swings as well.
On Monday, Hank spent a couple more hours answering questions, and of course talking about his work with Tiger Woods, as well as Charles Barkley. And then, the big moment for me arrived. Of the 50 or so teachers in attendance at the seminar, Hank chose me, Scott Cole, to give a swing lesson to. Basically, he was looking for a swing that was a bit different than the rest, and I guess mine fit that definition. So, for about 30 minutes, Hank worked on my swing using his typical hands on approach and video analysis. This was the thrill of a lifetime. One of my colleagues in attendance took some photos, which may be seen below. We then broke for lunch, and I had a chance to have lunch with Hank and a few of the other senior instructors, including Doug Alexander, Steve Johnson and Brian Mahon. While at lunch, Hank received a text message from Tiger Woods announcing the birth of his son, Charlie Axel! Very cool stuff indeed!
After lunch, we had another question and answer session with Hank, and then we worked on our own games for the day. I had the chance to work with Brian Mahon who kept me focused on what I had worked on with Hank and Doug previously.
Overall, it was an excellent trip, and I will be attending this event annually. I should also mention that I thought it was incredible that Martin Hall, 2008 PGA Teacher of the Year was also in attendance. He has been teaching for 31 years. It just goes to show that you can never stop learning!
Scott Cole
For me, the weekend began Saturday shortly after I landed in Dallas. After checking into my hotel, I rushed out to the Hank Haney Golf Ranch in Lewisville for a lesson with instructor Doug Alexander. Doug has been a Haney instructor for ten years, and his passion for teaching was evident from the start. I spent over an hour with Doug, and he didn't charge me a dime.
On Sunday, we began with Hank discussing his ball flight philosophy and how to diagnose swing issues. Later in the morning, he gave 5, 20 minute lessons to students who were picked from a group of 200 that auditioned two weeks prior. This was to demonstrate how he diagnoses a problem and corrects the problem in the golfers swing. We broke for lunch, and then returned in the afternoon to watch Hank work with five more of these students. We then had a question and answer period before breaking for the day. Most of us went out to the range to hit some balls, and Doug Alexander worked with me some more. The owner of the JC Video golf swing software was out filming our swings as well.
On Monday, Hank spent a couple more hours answering questions, and of course talking about his work with Tiger Woods, as well as Charles Barkley. And then, the big moment for me arrived. Of the 50 or so teachers in attendance at the seminar, Hank chose me, Scott Cole, to give a swing lesson to. Basically, he was looking for a swing that was a bit different than the rest, and I guess mine fit that definition. So, for about 30 minutes, Hank worked on my swing using his typical hands on approach and video analysis. This was the thrill of a lifetime. One of my colleagues in attendance took some photos, which may be seen below. We then broke for lunch, and I had a chance to have lunch with Hank and a few of the other senior instructors, including Doug Alexander, Steve Johnson and Brian Mahon. While at lunch, Hank received a text message from Tiger Woods announcing the birth of his son, Charlie Axel! Very cool stuff indeed!
After lunch, we had another question and answer session with Hank, and then we worked on our own games for the day. I had the chance to work with Brian Mahon who kept me focused on what I had worked on with Hank and Doug previously.
Overall, it was an excellent trip, and I will be attending this event annually. I should also mention that I thought it was incredible that Martin Hall, 2008 PGA Teacher of the Year was also in attendance. He has been teaching for 31 years. It just goes to show that you can never stop learning!
Scott Cole
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