vol. 4, number 10

In This Issue

Game Improvement Golf Newsletter

Information to Improve YOUR Golf Game (November 2014)

Your Free "Thank You!" eBook

Tom Wishon has published a booklet titled "The New 12 Myths That Could Wreck Your Golf Game." He also has published an electronic version of this booklet. For golfers who sign up to read my newsletter, I now provide them with a free copy of this eBook. Well - you are here already! - so thanks, and click below to download your copy of the 12 Myths eBook:

Tom Wishon 12 Myths eBook

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Tom Wishon also recently published a short video on The Importance of Set Makeup - in particular, what you should think of in terms of playing Hybrid Clubs. I use the process he describes, and it works well. Here is the link:

Tom Wishon Video - The Importance of Set Makeup

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Mark Broadie, author of "Every Shot Counts," writes a one page article in Golf Magazine every month. The most recent article is about what great putters do. He notes that the mindset of the best putters is that holing a putt is much more important than avoiding a three-putt. This is consistent with what my friend Glen Coombe - "The Putting Doctor" - always says - Never Leave A Putt Short! Here is the link to the article:

Mark Broadie Article - Secrets of the World's Greatest Putters

Dear Yips - Thank You!

Yes - of course Tony - no way any golfer would say Thank You about having the Yips. But read on - sometimes the consequences of looking into something can yield unexpected beneficial results.

I am working to learn about what the Yips actually are, what can cause them, and finally (maybe most importantly) what strategies can be used to help golfers eliminate them. In my search, I found a recent article that provides a summary of these topics - published in the New Yorker Magazine:

David Owen New Yorker Article - The Yips

Interesting takeaways for golfers from this article are:

Most investigators of the Yips do not believe that they are the results of choking;
The technical term for the Yips is Focal Distonia - involuntary movements that affect different actions performed by the body;
The Yips can occur for other types of activities - musicians and writers for example;
The Yips are task specific - a golfer can have the Yips with his driver, but continue to be great putter;
Studies done by Christian Marquardt (more on him later) have shown that non-golfers can have the Yips when they perform putting tests;
While there are no known bullet-proof ways to eliminate the Yips, most approaches that work seem to be the result of using some sort of sensory trick, or "changing the context," of the action.

In reading the David Owen article, I found out that Christian Marquardt (a neuroscientist) actually developed the Science and Motion Sports (SAM) PuttLab to help him perform scientific studies on the Yips. In a recent correspondence with Christian, he provide me with a link to a Podcast Interview that was recently published on the Birdie Bank web site (a wonderful Podcast based site with many interviews worth listening to).

Dr. Christian Marquardt "Birdie Bank" Podcast Interview

This interview includes a discussion on how the SAM PuttLab was developed. But more importantly for you - it includes a great discussion of what it takes to become a great putter, the importance of failure in learning, how to practice effectively, and more. If you can take the time, you will get a lot out of this podcast.

So - THIS is why I titled this article "Dear Yips - Thank You!"

Hitting The Golf Ball
Long - Revisited

The 20th ReMax Long Drive Championships is now history. The winning drive was hit 365 yards (SHORT in this event, because there was a headwind) - and the winner won by 13 inches!

There are Fundamentals that all of the successful Long Drive contestants do that is relevant to us mortals who want to hit the golf ball further. All of the Long Drive competitors optimize their launch conditions (ball speed, launch angle, and spin) to get maximum carry and maximum roll out of their drives. Those of us with swing speeds of about 85 mph and above can apply some of these techniques to also increase our driving distance.

Joe Miller was the Long Drive competitor who most expected would win the ReMax event. Here is a short video that illustrates some of the important concepts he works on to optimize his driving distance:

     Long Drive Competitor Joe Miller Using The Flightscope

You can see from the video that Joe tees the golf ball very high, plays it well forward in his stance, has a large positive Angle of Attack, and creates a low Spin Rate for his drives.

About 2 years ago in my newsletter, I published two articles on the topic of Optimizing Driving Performance - these articles are as relevant today as they were 2 years ago:

     Optimizing Driver Performance - Part 1

     Optimizing Driver Performance - Part 2

The technique for being able to optimize your driving distance is described in Part 2 (thanks again Dana Upshaw!). You may not be able to tee the golf ball as high as some of the Long Drive guys do, or get upward angles of attack near 10 degrees, or get spin rates well below 2,000 rpm. BUT if you can create a positive angle of attack, and also get spin rates in the range of 2,500 to 3,000 rpm or less, you can create increased distance for your drives.

My New Web Site!

My new web site is live, and if you have not visited it I hope you will take the time to do so:

The New Game Improvement Golf Web Site

If you have any feedback on the new site, please let me know. Before Thanksgiving, I will also put in a link so that golfers can schedule Custom Fittings and Putting Improvement Sessions on line.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Taking YOUR Game To New Heights!

Tony Wright

GAME IMPROVEMENT GOLF

Oak Ridge, TN

The PREMIER Short Game Fitting Center in East Tennessee!

tony@gameimprovementgolf.com