Well, Rory McIlroy looked quite good today in the final round of the Valero Texas Open. He shot 66 to finish 2nd behind the winner Martin Laird, who eclipsed the field with a stunning 63.
It’s finally warming up here in the Northeast and the practice ranges are quite busy. Yesterday I was hitting balls and working through the bag from the wedges up to the driver.
At about the 6 iron I started hitting the ball too high and the shots were bleeding right (over fading). I did a check of my balance and things seemed fine there, in fact the swings felt solid.
It occurred to me though that I was getting a bit quick from the top and my initial move down was slightly off line; slightly over the top and “outside to in” through impact.
The golf swing is cause and effect. I stepped away, took a walk to where I could see my shadow, and made some small motions looking at the transition from the top to the start of the down swing.
It occurred to me that I wasn’t syncing my start down move too well. And in particular, I wasn’t precisely pointing the butt of the club at the ball target line as I started down.
My grip was also a bit tight which tenses the arms, etc… In all, I wasn’t following my own advice from within “The Key To A Repeating Golf Swing”!! That’s why I wrote this note today.
If you are just getting out this season, or have been getting a little stuck with your swing, please re-read this section in your book. In both the hardcopy and digital versions it starts around page 44.
At the start of the down swing, have the butt end of the club trace that ball target line. In the book, I refer more precisely to the
inner edge of that train track rail (the ball sits on the middle of the rail).
If you keep the transition soft and allow the butt end of the club to trace that rail as the lower body re-centers the weight on the
forward foot, the club head will fall right through the back of the ball, almost effortlessly.
Keep the grip pressure relaxed and constant too, a 3 out of 10. Envisioning Steve Stricker in your mind doesn’t hurt either. His
compact swing with “dead hands” really puts the hurt on the ball.
When I went back to hitting balls, all was good, my high draw. I even got another bucket to burn it in. In all, a productive session.
I hope that recap helps. The swing can come and go. Rory lost it for a few months, and then he hung a 66 on the rest of the field and darn near won an event that wasn’t even on his schedule!
We’ll see if he can keep the momentum heading to The Masters this week, and retake his #1 spot from Tiger.
Kind Regards,
Robert Cotter
Instant Golf(R)