Right now sitting on my lunch break so I thought I should take the time to go over my Morgan Cup Prep and where I'm more or less starting from (it's a ramble).
Stats:
Age: 26 (27 on Thursday). Youth is still on my side, but I now have a 7 month old who is a bit more fun to hang out with and dedicate many sleepless nights.
Ht: 5'7" (standing real tall), hoping to get that next half inch to make ht/wt easier.
Wt: 175 lbs, goal is to get down to 165 lbs by the time of the Morgan Cup. I fluctuate weight a lot. In 2017 I lost 30 lbs in under 3 months and then slowly gained about 20ish of it back as I slowed down the amount that I worked out and
how much I cared about what I was eating. I also had a kid in the mean time. So far I have been averaging about 1.25 lbs a week since starting my diet after the new year so I'm on track weight wise. I still need to get myself out running more and lifting weights. I rely on my natural athleticism a bit too much.
Handicap: 11. I usually bounce between Par and Double Bogey (OB/LH or duffed chip) with usually 1 Birdie a round. My strength is usually length off the tee. I play on a course that is not overly difficult, but is usually playing between 6400-6700 yards. If my driving is on for the day, I usually will have a wedge or short iron in hand on each par 4 and a long iron in hand on par 5s. On longer par 5s I usually have the length to go for it in 2 with a fairway, but it often is not the best call for course managment. My weakness is proximity to the hole. I miss far too many greens and my short game cannot always bail me out. In 2017 I came back to golf after a 10 year layoff. I got myself down to about 7 handicap but then had to slow down the amount I played and ticked myself back up to around an 11 that I'm holding at now.
Swing: I'm definitely more of a hitter than a swinger. I am steep into the ball. I have a fairly negative AoA with Irons, and am about -1 to -2 degrees down with my Driver. Until my fitting at Club Champion, I have usually been handed a heavy xstiff iron shaft to try and smooth out my tempo. Speaking of which, I have none. My playing parters have derided me with my violent swing (I blame lacrosse). Swing Speed wise, I'm not currently lacking. During my CC fitting I was averaging around 97-99 mph with a 6 Iron and 116-118 with driver. Since I'm fairly steep into the ball I often battle spin, especially when added to my heel side, open face miss (not closing the face through impact). I have been working on reducing my forward slide (again, I blame lacrosse). When on with driver the stock shot is a small fade with the ability to turn over into a draw, when off it is blocks and slices.
Game Plan:
Fitting: I already went to Club Champion for a fitting. While I enjoyed the irons, and it made me rethink some of my assumptions, I still have to work on the Driver and FWs. The big take away that I took from CC is that I shouldn't manhandle my clubs and instead should swing my swing. With that, I'm going softer than what I've used in the past (and goes back to how I originally played as a teenager). My Irons are set, my wedges are pending some info between 2 of the grinds, but the Fairways and Driver is still a little up in the air. Once the new clubs come in, I'll be sure to do a gap test to get things bent appropiately (I have a gc2 for this).
Range Time: I usually get about one range session in a week right now. Main thing I'm working on is iron play and wedges. If I can increase my greens in regulation, I don't have to rely so much on my at times sketchy short game. The biggest thing I want to work on, and what helped me move towards the F9's is working on straight stock shots. I've been playing heavy players irons which didn't really help me play the style of golf I was actually playing (besides hitting some cuts and draws when in trouble 90% of my iron shots are just straight shots). I also have been taking some lessons. The 2 main faults in my swing were listed above, but they are tempo and hip slide. Both affect consistency which is ultimately what I'm seeking. For tempo, I need to drill into my head what a 3:1 tempo and letting the club set feels like and then my hip slide comes more into control.
Fitness: I already got on the walking bandwagon a year ago due to not wanting to pay for a cart, but it's kinda hard not to ride during the Georgia Summer heat. Most of my rounds I walk and often times only get out for 9 holes making walking more beneficial. However, for the buildup for the Morgan Cup I'm working on improving my golf fitness by playing 18 holes. While I'm not neccessarily tired, I do notice mental fatigue in later holes. In addition to playing 18 holes at time (unless its just not practicable), I am getting back into my running program and adding for the first time in years a day or two at the gym a week. This will help with the weight loss, but more importantly it will help with the mental fatigue I have experienced. I also have super speed golf; however, besides getting in some weighted swings to help loosen up and keep loose I am not planning on going through the program in the lead up to the Morgan Cup.
Course Managment: Probably the biggest change I had from when I first started playing was the idea of course management. Even though I won my junior club championship twice, the idea of course managment (or even a green in regulation) entered into the convesation with the golf pros teaching me when growing up. While I can't say it wasn't talked about, I honestly do not recall. That said, the biggest thing I know I need to work on is course management. Often times I find myself grabbing driver just to try and smash it without really thinking about if that is the best play or not. For a period of time I started trying to either hit 3 wood or 2 iron off the tee just to see what the difference would be. While it often times took some trouble away from off the tee, it still wasn't necessarily the right play. Learning about where to miss on the fairway to set up different approaches is what I'm currently working through. Since my course management skills are a little lacking, my plan is to play on different course leading up to the Morgan Cup. Just taking the time to look at an overview of the hole would do wonders for me on improving my game. Arrcos will definitely be a help with this with Arccos caddie, but i'll take an overview of a hole.
Lastly, the thing I definitely need to work on is how upload pictures to this forum. Practicing how to involve forum into my round is something I need to work on and half the reason it took me about an hour to announce I received the Golden Ticket. So expect to see a round or two from me before the Morgan Cup and a WITB before and after the equipment comes in.
Stats:
Age: 26 (27 on Thursday). Youth is still on my side, but I now have a 7 month old who is a bit more fun to hang out with and dedicate many sleepless nights.
Ht: 5'7" (standing real tall), hoping to get that next half inch to make ht/wt easier.
Wt: 175 lbs, goal is to get down to 165 lbs by the time of the Morgan Cup. I fluctuate weight a lot. In 2017 I lost 30 lbs in under 3 months and then slowly gained about 20ish of it back as I slowed down the amount that I worked out and
how much I cared about what I was eating. I also had a kid in the mean time. So far I have been averaging about 1.25 lbs a week since starting my diet after the new year so I'm on track weight wise. I still need to get myself out running more and lifting weights. I rely on my natural athleticism a bit too much.
Handicap: 11. I usually bounce between Par and Double Bogey (OB/LH or duffed chip) with usually 1 Birdie a round. My strength is usually length off the tee. I play on a course that is not overly difficult, but is usually playing between 6400-6700 yards. If my driving is on for the day, I usually will have a wedge or short iron in hand on each par 4 and a long iron in hand on par 5s. On longer par 5s I usually have the length to go for it in 2 with a fairway, but it often is not the best call for course managment. My weakness is proximity to the hole. I miss far too many greens and my short game cannot always bail me out. In 2017 I came back to golf after a 10 year layoff. I got myself down to about 7 handicap but then had to slow down the amount I played and ticked myself back up to around an 11 that I'm holding at now.
Swing: I'm definitely more of a hitter than a swinger. I am steep into the ball. I have a fairly negative AoA with Irons, and am about -1 to -2 degrees down with my Driver. Until my fitting at Club Champion, I have usually been handed a heavy xstiff iron shaft to try and smooth out my tempo. Speaking of which, I have none. My playing parters have derided me with my violent swing (I blame lacrosse). Swing Speed wise, I'm not currently lacking. During my CC fitting I was averaging around 97-99 mph with a 6 Iron and 116-118 with driver. Since I'm fairly steep into the ball I often battle spin, especially when added to my heel side, open face miss (not closing the face through impact). I have been working on reducing my forward slide (again, I blame lacrosse). When on with driver the stock shot is a small fade with the ability to turn over into a draw, when off it is blocks and slices.
Game Plan:
Fitting: I already went to Club Champion for a fitting. While I enjoyed the irons, and it made me rethink some of my assumptions, I still have to work on the Driver and FWs. The big take away that I took from CC is that I shouldn't manhandle my clubs and instead should swing my swing. With that, I'm going softer than what I've used in the past (and goes back to how I originally played as a teenager). My Irons are set, my wedges are pending some info between 2 of the grinds, but the Fairways and Driver is still a little up in the air. Once the new clubs come in, I'll be sure to do a gap test to get things bent appropiately (I have a gc2 for this).
Range Time: I usually get about one range session in a week right now. Main thing I'm working on is iron play and wedges. If I can increase my greens in regulation, I don't have to rely so much on my at times sketchy short game. The biggest thing I want to work on, and what helped me move towards the F9's is working on straight stock shots. I've been playing heavy players irons which didn't really help me play the style of golf I was actually playing (besides hitting some cuts and draws when in trouble 90% of my iron shots are just straight shots). I also have been taking some lessons. The 2 main faults in my swing were listed above, but they are tempo and hip slide. Both affect consistency which is ultimately what I'm seeking. For tempo, I need to drill into my head what a 3:1 tempo and letting the club set feels like and then my hip slide comes more into control.
Fitness: I already got on the walking bandwagon a year ago due to not wanting to pay for a cart, but it's kinda hard not to ride during the Georgia Summer heat. Most of my rounds I walk and often times only get out for 9 holes making walking more beneficial. However, for the buildup for the Morgan Cup I'm working on improving my golf fitness by playing 18 holes. While I'm not neccessarily tired, I do notice mental fatigue in later holes. In addition to playing 18 holes at time (unless its just not practicable), I am getting back into my running program and adding for the first time in years a day or two at the gym a week. This will help with the weight loss, but more importantly it will help with the mental fatigue I have experienced. I also have super speed golf; however, besides getting in some weighted swings to help loosen up and keep loose I am not planning on going through the program in the lead up to the Morgan Cup.
Course Managment: Probably the biggest change I had from when I first started playing was the idea of course management. Even though I won my junior club championship twice, the idea of course managment (or even a green in regulation) entered into the convesation with the golf pros teaching me when growing up. While I can't say it wasn't talked about, I honestly do not recall. That said, the biggest thing I know I need to work on is course management. Often times I find myself grabbing driver just to try and smash it without really thinking about if that is the best play or not. For a period of time I started trying to either hit 3 wood or 2 iron off the tee just to see what the difference would be. While it often times took some trouble away from off the tee, it still wasn't necessarily the right play. Learning about where to miss on the fairway to set up different approaches is what I'm currently working through. Since my course management skills are a little lacking, my plan is to play on different course leading up to the Morgan Cup. Just taking the time to look at an overview of the hole would do wonders for me on improving my game. Arrcos will definitely be a help with this with Arccos caddie, but i'll take an overview of a hole.
Lastly, the thing I definitely need to work on is how upload pictures to this forum. Practicing how to involve forum into my round is something I need to work on and half the reason it took me about an hour to announce I received the Golden Ticket. So expect to see a round or two from me before the Morgan Cup and a WITB before and after the equipment comes in.
