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Tom watson - lessons of a lifetime' instructional two-dvd set

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This is a press release
*JB is on the phone with Tom Watson right now!

TOM WATSON - LESSONS OF A LIFETIME' INSTRUCTIONAL TWO-DVD SET HITS MARKET APRIL 26th

Westwood, Kansas -World Golf Hall of Famer and 8 time major championship winner, Tom Watson, and Tom Watson Productions announced today the release of a 2010 comprehensive golf instructional two-DVD set titled 'Tom Watson - Lessons of a Lifetime'.

The two-DVD set containing close to three hours of golf instruction and an accompanying booklet of 44 lessons was filmed at The Greenbrier Resort, where Watson is Golf Professional Emeritus. This instructional program is the ultimate learning experience, covering all facets of the game-from the grip to full shots, to chipping, putting and the secret of his timeless swing, plus specialty shots including those required in strong wind conditions.

Directed by award-winning Terry Jastrow, 'Lessons of a Lifetime' embodies the practical experiences and competitive winning strategies that have earned Watson professional recognition as one of the greatest players of all time. "Tom Watson applies the same sense of determination and purpose in his new DVD instructional set," says Jastrow, "as he has to his competitive golf game. It's fifty years of experience from one of the game's masters."

Watson ranks 6th on the list of total major championship victories with more wins than Bobby Jones, Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer and Phil Mickelson. Watson is one of only fourteen players to have won at least three of the four golfing major titles.

Encyclopedic in its skill and strategy coverage, 'Lessons of a Lifetime' is a defining instructional medium and will be a must for beginning golfers and weekend warriors as well as experienced golfers wanting to step up their game. Watson says, "It's very important that golfers-whether they are beginners or have played for 50 years-learn and understand the fundamentals. These are the building blocks every golfer needs to have in order to play up to their potential but, more importantly, to have fun."

From playing in the wind, to hooking and slicing, to fearless putting, Watson breaks them down in an easy-to-understand manner. Golfers can begin applying these lessons of a lifetime the next time they stand on the first tee with their friends. Watson teaches his lessons of his lifetime as if golfers are there with him.

"I was fortunate to have received excellent instruction early in my life," says Watson, a Kansas City, Missouri native who shows no signs of slowing down. "When I was 6 years old, my father, Ray Watson, cut down a hickory-shafted 5-iron, then proceeded to teach me the grip, and how to hook and slice the ball-all the basic fundamentals of the game. It's all this knowledge I've accumulated that I'd like to share with golfers in 'Lessons of a Lifetime.' "

Consistency, contact, alignment, firmness of grip, pivot points, release, rhythm and legendary coach, Harvey Penick's "dead-aim" philosophy are all covered in the two comprehensive DVDs. Watson's instruction comes across in an easy-to-understand manner making it seem your standing right beside him on the tee or green.

Watson, a graduate of Stanford University, was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1988 and owns 39 PGA TOUR victories, including five British Opens, two Masters and one U.S. Open. The latter victory was keyed by Watson's 71st-hole birdie chip-in at Pebble Beach, a shot many historians consider to be the shot of the 20th century.

Last year Watson pulled off one of sports history’s most-memorable moments when he made an incredible bid for his sixth Open Championship title, taking Stewart Cink to a four-hole playoff at Turnberry. Four of Watson’s seven top-10 finishes on the 2009 Champions Tour came in major championships.

This year Watson opened his season by teaming with Jack Nicklaus to win the Wendy's Champions Skins Game. The following week, Watson birdied the final two holes for a 7-under 65 and a one-stroke victory over Champions Tour rookie sensation Fred Couples in the season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship.

Watson has long-standing professional relationships with Adams Golf, Golf Digest, The Greenbrier Resort, MasterCard and Polo Ralph Lauren.

The two-DVD set finishes with a moving tribute to Watson's 'caddie for life', Bruce Edwards, who passed away in April 2004 from ALS, or Lou Gehrig's Disease. The tribute concludes with a song written and composed by Watson's stepdaughter, Kelly Paige. A portion of the sales of 'Lessons of a Lifetime' will go to help find a cure for this dreaded, life-ending disease.

The Tom Watson 'Lessons of a Lifetime' DVD set is now available for $49.95 at select golf and sporting goods retailers, pro shops and on-line at www.tomwatsondvd.com. The set is also available to purchase by telephone at 1-800-993-5589.
 
That's so cool!

I have Watson's Getting Up and Down book, and love it. I will definetly take a look at this.
 
GolferGal said:
JB is on the phone with Tom Watson right now!!
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What are they talking about? Common GG, transcript the converstation, type fast!
 
GolferGal said:
haha I can't hear what they are saying. He is in his office with the door shut so I can't hear anything.
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Hmm, sounds suspicious. Are you sure it's Tom Watson? Maybe it's the President! :bulgy-eyes:

I kid, I kid!
 
Is this the same thing that's on The Golf Channel on Tuesday night? It's the same title.
 
Sort of. That is a preview of the dvd.
 
Re: Tom watson - lessons of a lifetime' instructional two-dvd set

before they began shooting the video, espn and TW came scouting at our course. they had considered it for the backdrop. that's actually the day I got to play a few holes with him.

our course is actually designed by him. on that day I proceeded to tell him exactly what I thought about number three. he was amused.
 
Probably explains the Wall Strett Journal's profile of him on Saturday:

The Wisdom of Tom Watson

The legendary iron player, now 60, gives a lesson on hitting low and into the wind, talks about who influenced him and describes his struggles with the game

  • By JOHN PAUL NEWPORT
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  • Savannah, Ga.
One would think that Tom Watson, winner of five British Opens on windy links courses between 1975 and 1983, would be a master at hitting the golf ball low. And he is—now. But he wasn't then. "Honestly, I could not hit the ball low during the meat of my career. I hit it high. I couldn't run the ball along the ground the way Lee Trevino and others could," he said this week.
So how did he win so many Opens? "I hit the ball solidly. I was good at judging how far the ball would go in the air, even in the wind. And I was good at getting the ball up and down, because in hard conditions people miss a lot of greens," he said.
It wasn't until 1994 that he properly learned to hit low shots, he said, and that's because it wasn't until 1994, in his mid-40s, that he finally discovered the swing he had been looking for his entire life. On Wednesday, preparing to compete in the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf Champions Tour event here, Mr. Watson graciously spent 90 minutes on the practice range teaching me some of the things he has learned over the years, especially hitting low long irons.
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Preston Mack for The Wall Street Journal Tom Watson

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That expertise has come in handy recently, as Mr. Watson, at 60, continues his improbable challenge to pro golf's long-driving young bucks, who routinely leave themselves mere wedges into greens. Last summer, he nearly won a record-tying sixth British Open (he lost in a playoff to Stewart Cink) and two weeks ago shot an opening round 67 to contend at the Masters, before fading to an 18th place finish
Despite his early career success (36 of his 39 PGA Tour wins and all eight majors came before he turned 35), Mr. Watson never felt he owned his swing. "When the swing was off, I didn't have anything to revert to. I was one of those golfers who was always searching, willing to try anything," he said.
For some reason, in 1994, seven years removed from his last win, he flashed on an image of how Corey Pavin made his practice swings, with an exaggerated, over-the-top, outside-in move. When he tried it, he recognized a different feel to his finish, and adopted that feeling into a new swing that kept his shoulders more level at impact. Instead of making impact with his back arched in the so-called reverse "C," which he had modeled as a boy after Jack Nicklaus's swing, he did so with his head down and his spine straight.
"That was the secret to my swing. That was what I was looking for. And since finding it, I've played better golf than I ever have from tee to green—ever," he said. The game almost overnight became more satisfying, and that's a big reason why, at 60, he's still so juiced up about competing.
"When I look back, I realize I'm just a golfer. That's all I am. That's my career. And why would I want to do anything else? I could see doing something else when it stops working, but it still works pretty well."
That, and the fact that he hasn't had to deal with any major injuries. He had his hip replaced in 2008, but the hip problem never affected his golf game. "It was a lifestyle decision. The discomfort kept me from getting a good night's sleep," he said.
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Preston Mack for The Wall Street Journal Tom Watson demonstrates a long iron shot Wednesday before the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf Champions Tour event at the Club at Savannah Harbor.

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The swing change also made it possible for Mr. Watson to follow the advice Mr. Trevino had given him years earlier on hitting low shots, essentially to move the ball back in his stance and strike down on it more sharply.
"Ball position and body position are what make this shot work," he told me on the range. "You have to lower the left shoulder compared to your normal set-up position, and raise the right shoulder. It feels awful at first, but when the ball is back to the right center of your stance [for right-handed players], you can extend the arms again and it feels better."
Effectively, with the ball back, the first few inches of the takeaway are eliminated. That promotes picking the club up sooner than on normal shots, and dropping it back down onto the ball at a steeper angle.
Naturally, when Mr. Watson hit a few sample shots with a four iron, he made it look easy. For 10 minutes or so, as we talked, he played at hitting the skinny 100-yard pole on the fly—and after many close misses he succeeded. "How about that!" he cried, as happy as any gap-toothed kid in America. These shots never climbed more than 20 feet in the air. Under normal conditions, he said, they carry 10 to 15 yards shorter than his regular, 195-yard four-iron shot but roll out net longer.
Swinging easy is key. "The first mistake people make on low shots is not taking enough club. You may need one, two, three or even four extra clubs, depending on the wind. The second mistake is swinging too hard. People think, 'It's into the wind, I've got to swing hard,' but they shouldn't," he said. The harder the swing, the more the ball spins, and spin causes balls to climb. The steeper angle of clubhead descent also adds a bit of spin.
When it comes to easy, Mr. Watson's other big hobbyhorse is the grip. "You don't need a lot of pressure to maintain control of the club if you have a sound grip. And light grip pressure lets you release the hands really fast through impact. That, along with relaxed arm speed, is where you get power," he said. To demonstrate proper grip pressure, he gave me a surprisingly limp handshake with his right hand and an only slightly firmer shake with the left.
A little later, when I asked Ben Crenshaw down the range to comment on Mr. Watson's longevity, he said that long, easy, fluid swings like Mr. Watson's tend to hold up better over time. Short, quick swings, he said, require more muscle power and tend to lose distance with age.
Mr. Watson also does a lot of flexibility and strength training, of course, including a minimum 25-minute stretch-out and warm-up before playing and more intense, two-hour routines at home.
In a new, two-disc instructional DVD called "Lessons of a Lifetime," on sale next week, Mr. Watson goes into more detail about his midlife swing change, and much else. But the DVD is most remarkable for how Mr. Watson credits most of the tips, techniques and wisdom he imparts to his sources: Byron Nelson, Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, his father and others. "There's nothing new in it, really. I'm just passing along the things I've been fortunate enough to learn over the years," he said.
My session with Mr. Watson was like that, too. In his direct, precise, simple manner, he was eager to teach, eager to share not just his golf knowledge but golf lore. Seldom did more than a few sentences go by without reference to some golf immortal or another. He did a loving imitation of the preshot routine of "old Sam" Snead. He told the story of how, after blowing a chance to win the 1994 British Open at Turnberry—he called it the most disappointing loss of his career, because with his new swing he was hitting the ball beautifully—he and Mr. Nicklaus played a midnight par-three round together. "That got me off my pity pot," Mr. Watson said.
At another point he described meeting Bobby Locke, the great South African champion, at Mr. Watson's second British Open in 1976. "There he was, wearing plus-twos and a tie and tweeds and a cap they called a bonnet in those days. It was very special," he said.
Mr. Locke at the time would have been 58, about the same age Mr. Watson was at last year's Open when he played the first two rounds with Matteo Manassero, the promising teenager from Italy, then 16 years old, who also made the cut as an amateur at this year's Masters. If Mr. Manassero, when he is 59, passes along what he learned from Mr. Watson, that takes us to 2052. And so golf moves on.
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They actually spoke about that piece on teh conference call this today before the question and answer period.
 
wow thats pretty impressive you talked to TW on the phone! im kinda new here so im trying to figure out.... JB are you a pro? Do you play on the tour? Is golfer Gal ya wife? so confused.
 
computergeek13 said:
wow thats pretty impressive you talked to TW on the phone! im kinda new here so im trying to figure out.... JB are you a pro? Do you play on the tour? Is golfer Gal ya wife? so confused.
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No, not anywhere near a pro. We have amollerud for that. Golfer Gal is my wife and thank the world for that, without her, THP would not be here. She set up the interview, not me. She will have a transcript of our conversation today at some point.
 
Below is the transcript from the call JB had yesterday with Tom Watson. This was a conference call with a select group of media and we were very grateful for the invitation. Along with the select media people this call also consisted of the person who coordinated everything, the producer of the DVD and of course the star Tom Watson. Tom explains why he did this DVD and his views on the fundamentals of Golf. Tom was a great host and has so much wisdom about the game. This is the last DVD he is going to do so if you are interested you can get more details on the website http://www.tomwatson.com/pro-shop/tom-watson-lessons-lifetime?gclid=COrvkZKVp6ECFUda2godpFjqEQ.

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Coordinator - How did this whole thing get started?

Terry (producer) - Along the way I had the joy and honor to produce and direct golf instructional programs with Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, Curtis Strange, and Tom Kite mostly in the 80s and early 90s. And last year we released “Secrets of the Short Game” with Phil Mickelson. It was actually the first time in almost 20 years that a great player had done an instructional program. Most great teachers have done them but there was a batch of great players in the 80s that released instructional programs but no great player had done it in approximately 20 years. So it was sort of historic that Phil would do his and about that time Tom [Watson] called and said he was interested to do his final definitive golf instruction program and there were two things that struck me about it.

Apart from the fact that I have a huge fondness and respect for Tom like I know we all do. We are about the same age and as a producer and director at ABC Sports I was involved, happily, in all of his major championship wins, except of course the Masters which has always been on CBS. But apart from my personal respect from him there were two things that I thought were really interesting to me. One is that he wanted to talk about the fundamentals of the game as he understood them, the classic fundamentals of the game. And from my own perspective I have loved and played the game for 50 years or so and for 40 of those years I have been a single digit handicapper and some new things came along, and no disrespect intended but just from my own personal point of view, things like Stack and Tilt and Square to Square, I actually couldn't make those work and I found that a lot of players who did it ultimately their games deteriorated instead of getting better. I sort of felt like we were playing fast and loose with the fundamentals and I loved Toms views on the fundamentals as he understood it and even more interesting to me is he said ,“Everything I know about the game I have learned from others.”

Tom Watson – Thanks Terry, I have one question for you before we begin. Are you a better golfer now or a worse golfer now?

Terry – Tom, I have had the best rounds of golf I have played in recent memory.

Tom – Do you give credit to Mickelson, me or both?

Terry – Well, my short game still isn't all that great by default. But I would say I have whacked off a shot to a shot and a half off my handicap.
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Tom – Well good, I hope it's helped you. That's the whole point of this thing. As Terry said I went to him with a great team and wanted to know how to build this DVD and instructional program from scratch. We started just the process of thinking about it in June of last year and things happened pretty fast after that. After Turnberry, September came along and we were in the process of shooting it and using Winnercomm in Tulsa to do the production of it and then through the rough cuts, the final cuts, and here we are today.

Terry, I want to answer the question I asked, “Did doing this make me a better golfer?” And the answer is absolutely. I started thinking about the golf swing and trying to put it down in words I liken it to the telecasters that I have talked to who have left the tour and gone to telecasting and then came back on the tour. Every one of them said when they came back on the tour they were a better golfer because of what they learned in the tower by watching the players make the same mistakes over and over again. My friend Bob Murphy did the same thing.

The same thing happened doing this instructional program. What things were important? One of the things I learned very quickly was that my set up was a little bit crooked at times. I still go back to the secret when I change the set up so my right shoulder was a little bit higher than it was originally. And I find myself with the ball position sometimes being a little too far forward rather than in the middle of my stance. Going through this program and discussing it and trying to make it so that people can understand where I think the bottom of the arch should be for instance. Because of that I got to be a better golfer and more consistent in that respect. I didn't suffer the down time as much as even in years past. I learned my secret as you will see in this instructional program.

I am very grateful to the people before me. I have said that hundreds of times, my dad is who started me with the grip, you know see two knuckles on the left hand and the 'V' is pointed to the right shoulder. He said “That's how you hold the club, son.” And then he said that this is how you stand up to it and he put me in the proper position and then he held my head and said, “Alright, now swing. Here's your balance.” That's all he needed to do and that's how I started. The lessons that I have learned started from my father and then they went on to Stan Thirst who still is my mentor and great friend who I have brought to the Masters many many times with me and is on the kindest human beings I have ever been around like Byron Nelson. Jack Nicklaus I have learned from, I have learned a lot from Sam Snead, from Lee Trevino a whole bunch I have learned. Butch Harmon, David Leadbetter as teachers I have worked with both and gleaned certain things that have helped my golf swing. But it wasn't really until 1994 when I was on the practice tee at Harbour Town, The Heritage Golf Classic, and I mentioned this a bunch of times that I really learned how my golf swing works for me. That's what I call the secret, actually it's just my secret. I am sure everybody would like to get a secret but up until that time I essentially was looking for a key that would work for me that day and would continue to work for me. We all look for that, I remember talking to Snead about the keys to his swing, the keys of the left tricep keeping close to his chest as he swung it back and also back at the impact position. That was a key that he used until it didn't work anymore and then he looked for another key. But it was 1994 when I made the swing change and thought of Corey Pavin's practice swing and making my swing change that I finally understand what worked for my golf swing. At that particular time my inability to hit the ball low and straight evaporated. I learned how to hit the ball low and straight right at the time and man did that help me deal with the conditions even better then I could deal with them before.

This is what is in this instructional program, in Lessons of a Lifetime. These things that I have gleaned from these wonderful people throughout my life and that one particular day in 1994 at Harbour Town. I believe, just like I know many of you are old enough to know the great book by Ben Hogan, the Five Fundamentals. But why would he make such a small book if he didn't think that was the only important thing in the golf swing? He basically said, alright here is how you do it, and he started with the grip and then how do you set up to it, and what you do before you swing the golf club. Essentially this is how I started with my program.

I have been with my friend Jack on many occasions when we do clinics, 6 times here in Kansas City when we do our Children's of Mercy Hospital Golf Classic golf benefit together and I will never forget one thing that was really important about what he said. After he goes through his shtick about how how to set up and swing the golf club he goes back and he said, “You know, I tell this to everybody in my clinic. If you don't have the proper grip and the proper set up, I can't teach you.”

You are going to have to learn an unusual swing yourself and learn how to swing it your way. But if you have the proper grip and the proper set up that allows the club head to come back square into the impact area and also the bottom of your arch is going to be consistent and so if you do this right I can teach you all day long and you can be the best golfer you can be. That's why we all start with the fundamentals.

There isn't a whole heck of a lot new here. Terry mentioned a few things but I have learned all these things years of observing and also pounding a million balls on the practice tee. What works for me watching other people and what works for them. This is workable for all golfers, these instructions, and as I have said to all my clients, if 20% of you are a better golfer after coming away after watching this DVD then my job has been a success. Golf is a tough game and I hope it's more than 20% but I would be satisfied with 20% [laughs]. That is essentially it. Now I think having this in hand makes it easy to go back and refer to it and you can go back and refer to certain chapters. There are 44 chapters in this instructional video and this is all I got.

When I talked to Terry I said to him financially I hope that this breaks even and that's kind of the goal from the financial standpoint. Most importantly I want to put down, for posterity, what I think is important about the golf swing. I told Terry there is not a whole heck of a lot new but if you put it down in a chronological order which you can look through and think about how you start from here and evolve to there, to the waggle, to the start of the backswing, to the top of the swing, to the transition, to the downswing, and impact, and to the follow through, you can learn a heck of a lot about your golf swing that will help you out. I sure hope we hit a common thread with people who watch this and that it will help them and that is the ultimate goal.
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Question from reporter: The very best people, whether a team or individual sport, have a very specific way they do things. Can you talk about this from your standpoint? It's obvious you have a very specific way that you go about hitting the golf ball.

Tom: Well the specific way starts with common fundamentals. If you don't have a good grip, if you have a weak left hand where your left thumb is pointing straight down at the shaft what are you going to do with the ball?

Reporter Answer: You are going to slice it.

Tom: Exactly. If you see three knuckles on your left hand, most likely what are you going to do with the ball?

Reporter Answer: You might hook it with three but with two you might hit is straight. Is that right?

Tom: Yes, exactly! So I firmly believe that the grip is a common thread to a successful golfer. So it's not my own personal grip, it's the grip that you see Arnold Palmer teaching, you see Jack Nicklaus teaching about it, you see Tiger Woods teaching about it. It's not rocket science, but if all these great players say this is the way you should grip the club, then who am I to question that? So it's not individual for me, it's really a general rule, do it this way. I think one of the problems that our Ryder Cup team faced for many years is that our fundamentals of our team players, of the 12 guys on the team as a whole, were not as good as the fundamentals of the European team. In grips, setup, and golf swings. But it's basically the fundamentals of the game from their grips. I think if you look at the grips of the Europeans, they all pretty much look like Harry Varden would appreciate that grip, or Jack Nicklaus would have appreciated that grip.

THP: What feelings are you going to have as you tee it up at the U.S. Open?

Tom: There will be plenty of nostalgia I can tell you that. I remember the first time I teed it up there was in the spring of 1967 and I went out to play during spring break. It was a special, special time. That is what started my love affair with Pebble Beach.

THP: Will you have another DVD coming out about the fountain of youth?

Tom: [Laughs] No, I don't think so.

Tom was truly a pleasure to speak with and we wish him a lot of success with this DVD. Sometimes all it takes is going back to the basics to really fine tune the golf swing.
 
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I would love to just sit down with this man and talk. Even if its not about golf.
 
How cool it must have been to talk with Tom Watson!!!

Tom is one of the greatest guys on tour IMO! Some of the greatest golf moments in the past year have had Tom in them battling to win majors at the age of 60! His attitude is about as great as they come too, all professionalism and poise on the course. A golf game that is so efficient, which has helped him play so well for so long.
 
Very cool that JB got to speak with Tom!

So now that it's out, how is the DVD? I would love to watch it but $50 is a pretty big gamble for 2 hrs 45 minutes of instruction.
 
Joshzilla said:
Very cool that JB got to speak with Tom!

So now that it's out, how is the DVD? I would love to watch it but $50 is a pretty big gamble for 2 hrs 45 minutes of instruction.
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Josh I won this contest back in July and it is an awesome instructional video. 40 years worth of PGA tour knowledge on 2 discs. Here is a review I put up on the first disc. You just remindede me that I need to do the second disc and I will try and get that done sometime this week or next. Here is the link to my thread:

http://www.thehackersparadise.com/f...ck-thread&highlight=watson's+lessons+lifetime
 
solidkjames said:
Josh I won this contest back in July and it is an awesome instructional video. 40 years worth of PGA tour knowledge on 2 discs. Here is a review I put up on the first disc. You just remindede me that I need to do the second disc and I will try and get that done sometime this week or next. Here is the link to my thread:

http://www.thehackersparadise.com/f...ck-thread&highlight=watson's+lessons+lifetime
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Awesome! Congrats on the win. I'm definately going to have to track down a copy.
 
Love the transcript and I really love the DVDs.

I am really trying to use the information on these DVDs to straighten out my swing and get rid of too much information from elsewhere. Take Hogan's 5 Fundamentals and match it with this DVD set and get those fundamental things down. For me, I cannot match the physical characteristics of Watson or Hogan so I have to adjust certain things but the fundamentals are there to tweak, to find your "secret" of the day/month/year/etc. With the DVDs, Watson is very easy to follow and the short game stuff is what any golfer should practice/know.
 
Seems like the he would be the perfect grandpa you could ask anything and he would know a answer. And not just about golf.
 
Tom Watson LESSONS of LIFETIME

Tom Watson LESSONS of LIFETIME

I just got this in today and will share my thoughts on this once I study the lessons.
 
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