Ballybunion at Its Finest
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Here is a photoblog from my recent visit to Old Course at Ballybunion GC - one of my top 5 courses of all time!
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News and Notes
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- Could there be many things better in life than getting up early on a beautiful day to play 18 or 36 holes with close friends on a really fun golf course?
- The weather is getting better here in South Carolina and we are catching glimpses of Spring being just around the corner. I get the sense that most golfers have a case of "cabin fever" due to the taxing winter we have all experienced and are desperate to get out and play a little golf. Nothing turns my mind more to golf than warmth and sunshine after a long, cold winter.
- Jim Furyk and Ernie Els have won on the PGA Tour the last two weeks - is it really 2010? Its starting to feel a bit like old times. Even Vijay and KJ Choi have been playing better lately!
- As I'm sure you all know Tiger Woods is playing at Augusta. Tiger has surprised us all in many ways throughout his career, but this move truly puzzles me. I had always been under the impression that the man in the red shirt was about winning major championships, yet coming back at the Masters, instead of getting an additional prior event under his belt, tells me this is more about image and self preservation than major championship victories. What chance does he have of winning - really? By not playing at Bay Hill and starting at Augusta National he has said to me that he would rather preserve what is left of his "aura" (with substantial help from the good people in the green jackets!) than give himself another opportunity to get one notch closer to Jack.
- An interesting note from the Tavistock Cup - Elin was present without Tiger at the lavish party thrown for participants and sponsors at Isleworth last night. Tiger was practicing at Augusta yesterday so read whatever you want into that.
- My picks for Augusta currently are Phil and the Goose. Lefty has been very quiet lately but that frequently has no bearing on his play in the majors and the Goose has been resurgent with his new belly putter. The course suits his big power game and I really think he might do something there this year.
- If anybody out there would like a golf lesson to "dust the rust" from their frigid golf games please give me a call at (843)247-4688 if you are within reach of South Carolina or if not, shoot me a video via www.v1golfacademy.com where I am listed as a V1 instructor. The cost for video lessons via V1 is $40 and turnaround time is 48 hours. I would appreciate the opportunity to help make 2010 a great year for golf.
- A recent quote from a golfer who purchased "It's All About Impact"
"I have now read through your book, It's All About Impact, twice. It is very well-done with good, understandable explanations, and the photos illustrate well and definitely define "a picture is worth a thousand words"! I had actually played Monday and just focusing on the 84 degrees and impact made a noticeable difference with balance and actual ball contact. I still have a way to go to get the correct divot but it sure seemed to simplify thoughts. I actually started hitting with more distance without trying due to the more solid contact. Every day is a different day but this sure helps consistency. Thanks!!" DB
I hope "It's All About Impact" can do the same for you and your golf this year!
Please feel free to contact me with any golf queries, questions or ideas you may have. And thanks very much for reading!
Hip Slide: Good or Bad?
/The hip slide, weight shift, hip drive or whatever you want to call it is one of the most important, yet overlooked elements in the golf swing. Golfers have become so brainwashed against any form of lateral movement that I believe the vast majority of us are trying to stay as quiet and centered as we possibly can. Here are a few interesting points about hip action:
The downswing does not mirror the backswing. There should be no lateral hip motion in the back swing, while the downswing must have a good measure of shift towards the target. The weight shift to the front foot is entirely attributable to the hips gliding towards the target in the downswing. The head and upper body must remain over or slightly behind the ball as the hips shift, thus creating body curve. Hip slide creates the room necessary in the downswing for the arms and club to drop to the inside. Too much spin or rotation from the top and you can only come over the top. Not only does the hip slide create room for the arms to get to the inside, but it also positions the weight so that the ball can be struck with a descending blow. The weight must be on the front foot for any golfer to consistently hit down on the ball. This video from my
Read MoreGolf Instruction News
/The Berkeley Hall Learning Center has just been completely upgraded! We have just had all our computers upgraded with the latest software from V1 Golf. Students will now be able to view a summary from their golf lesson online in their own V1 locker or on their smartphone. Students will even have the ability to upload their lessons onto Facebook for all their friends and family to see. The changes at the Learning Center include an expansion of our indoor putting capabilities, two Casio EX-F1 Exlim 300 frame per second cameras (for amazing high speed footage of a golf swing!) and the ability to view your golf swing on a 50" HD screen. Casio EX-F1 Exlim Camera
Read MoreIs Rod Stewart related to Ian Poulter?
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They both love fashion, big hair and are world renowned over-achievers. Doesn't one remind you of the other?
The Golf Swing
/As a golf community we get so caught up in the "correct way" to swing that we lose sight of what is the correct way to hit. All that seems to matter to us is the look of the swing and golf's greatest champions are proof that looks have nothing to do with results. (Just like in life actually!) Function will always trump form and substance always wins out over style! Let's start to focus on what makes the golf ball go and get to work on that. There are many elements in the golf swing that are negotiable, like straightening the back leg, or lifting the left heel - just look at Sam Snead above. The key is being able to know which elements are non-negotiable, which are the key parts to the swing where the laws of physics must be obeyed. They all happen to occur in and around impact. Here are the most important ones: Get the weight onto the front foot (80+%) at impact. Keep the head over or just behind the ball at impact. This means that the weight shift onto the front foot must occur by driving/shifting the hips and mid-section towards the target. This move leads to what I call body curve. If the body is positioned correctly,
Read MoreThe Facts About Putters
/60% of all the grass on putting greens today did not exist 30 years ago and as a result the mow height on greens is 50% lower than it was 20 years ago. Greens are much faster than they used to be.Faster green means shorter grass and shorter grass means there is no longer the need for 4 degrees of loft (the traditional loft) on putters. Most PGA Tour golfers have an effective loft of somewhere between 1 and 3 degrees. This means that when they add the loft on the putter face to the amount of loft they add during the stroke it comes out to somewhere between 1 and 3 degrees. Consequently very little flight time and early roll mean less bounce and skid - a good thing! Zach Johnson actually has -1 degree of loft on his putter face. Speaking of early roll - grooved face putters get the ball rolling 18-24% sooner than smooth faced putters. Not only that, they deter the ball from sliding up or across the face on poorly struck putts too. Sign me up for some of that help.
Read MoreThe New Driver Terminology...MoI, CoR and CoG
/As players on the PGA Tour started using 20 year old Ping Eye2 Wedges I started thinking about how much (or little) technology has effected equipment in the last two decades. The facts are: Other than changes in the golfball, driver and the invention of hybrids very, very little has changed. Excluding the advent of perimeter weighting (which is very similar to toe/heel weighting) when it comes to irons there have been no groundbreaking upgrades. Wedges are the same and fairway woods are just like they used to be - in fact, the better ones look just like the really old ones. The driver has been the primary club in the bag for technological advancement. And with this progress has come an entirely new language. What does MoI mean? What is Cor? Whaaat....? Here is a brief primer, compliments of my friend Ian Hayes, on some new driver terminology:
Read MoreA Note to Tim Finchem and the PGA Tour....
/The PGA Tour has problems. And while I am no Albert Einstein I do have opinions. Here is a brief run down on what I believe the problems to be: What were the folks at the Northern Trust Open thinking? They went from $30 per ticket to get on the grounds during the event in 2009 to $50 in 2010! That might have something to do with the sparse crowds around the 18th green on Sunday. (Okay, it was Superbowl Sunday, but the gate for the whole week was significantly down.) Would you rather have two people paying $25 or one paying $50? The answer is clearly two, as they would have far greater spending power when it came to concessions and souvenirs. Not to mention that the event is now 'touching' twice the number of people and the buzz for the event is dramtaically increased. I thought golf needed to grow... There are certain long standing events on the PGA Tour that have not seen more than a mere smattering of top 50 golfers for over 10 years. Hagen, Nelson, Snead, Hogan, Palmer and Trevino all won the Texas Open at some point in their illustrious careers. During the last decade the event has seen winners like, Bart Bryant, Robert Gamez, Eric Axley and Tommy Armour III alongside the big names of Justin Leonard and Zach Johnson. I take nothing away from these golfers, but they would not be mentioned in the top 100 golfers of all time. Jack Nicklaus actually won the Disney event three years running! Can you imagine the greatest golfer in the world playing in Milwaukee three years in a row? The PGA Tour has created a major problem for events like the Texas Open (GMO, GHO, Heritage, Hope, Pebble etc.) by inflating the purses, points and value (in sponsors eyes) of the WGC events, the crock FedEx Cup and it's very own darling little event The (non-major)Players. These events have detracted so greatly from the 'regular' events that players, fans and sponsors now, unfortunately, regard them as (dare I say it) second class citizens.
Tiger Woods won more money in the few events he played in 2008 (prior to taking more than half the year off with a broken leg) than Jack Nicklaus won in his entire career! That's not to mention endorsement money. The purses have increased so dramatically that they are a major reason for the loss of sponsors for tour events around the country. It was only 21 years ago when Curtis Strange defeated Tom Kite in the Tour Championship to be the first player to earn over $1 million in a season. It only took 18 more years for a player to get to somewhere around the $10 milion mark! I have attended many PGA events and it does not take long to realize that the tour has more than their fair share of whiny, spoilt millionaire brats. Now appearing at a tour event near you: Mark Calcavecchia; Tommy Armour III; Steve Lowery; Scott McCarron; Billy Andrade; Jeff Maggert and Harrison Frazar! Wow! The advent of "fourth" tier tour events has allowed names like this to remain on tour for years and pick off just enough prize money to sustain a very pleasant existence. There is currently a huge crop of excellent young talent waiting for a chance to tee it up against the big boys, and unless they Monday qualify or get an invite from a sponsor they have one chance a year to get to the dance. There are currently too many "fat cats" hanging around the fringes of the tour for my liking. Here are my solutions:
Okay, so we've got the majors, the (non-major) Players and the Tour Championship, which should be a limited field, final event of the year affair in the upper echelon of events. I say get rid of all the other high-brow WGC and FedEx events, make the purses the same at every event ($750k to the winner) and let sponsors sign on for a three year term. The gate fee at every event is $25 (kids under 14 are free) - every day, every event other than the upper tier tourneys. Get people excited to watch the greats! Now, you make a rule whereby every player who has been on the tour for 3 consecutive years must play every regular event at least once. That way every sponsor gets a shot at hosting TW or Phil at least once. There is obviously an injury loop-hole clause along with this rule. If you finish in the top 90 money winners you get to keep your card! 30 from the Nationwide and 30 from the Q-School also get in. Monday qualifiers are increased to 8 spots, sponsors get 4 spots and any golfer who finishes in the top 20 from the previous regular event gets in too. The best will always get in no matter how the system is set up, but this gives the young set a glimmer of hope and keeps the golden oldies on their toes. The PGA Tour needs to stop trying to be something it is not - they simply cannot compete with Nascar or the NFL. Start treating all your events and sponsors fairly, open the doors so that as many people as possible can come out to see the best players in the world and stop babying millionaire golfers. Make them play for what they get - they'll be fine!
Read MorePlaying Golf in the Wind
/One of the biggest mistakes golfers make when playing in the wind is to make full swings. It almost seems as if they try to overpower the wind - that cannot happen! This is a perfect example: A golfer faces a 120 yard shot that is into the wind; they calculate the shot to be playing approximately 130 yards; they pull their 130 yard club and make a full swing; the ball comes down 25 yards short of the pin. The reason this happens is that the harder you strike the ball the more it spins and spin creates turbulence, which leads to lift, which leads to height, which leads to soemthing far less than the expected distance.
Read MoreRiviera: Design As it Should Be
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Having had the opportunity to watch the majority of the NBC broadcast over the weekend I was very impressed with the diversity and interest that Riviera seemed to possess in just about each of her holes. I have never had the good fortune to play or visit Riviera Country Club, but the images of the course on television forced me to make a mental note to get there at my first opportunity. And I certainly don't need Jack or Sly or Arnold to complete my experience - the course itself appears to be more than enough thank you!
Of the holes that caught my eye none was more exciting or interesting than the 315 yard 10th. Designed in 1926 by George Thomas Jr. this could be my new favorite hole in golf. A well thought out hole that rewards just the right amount of bravery one day and just the right amount of caution the next - just be sure to get your days matched up.
From therivieracountryclub.com:
Arguably Riviera’s finest hole, the 10th ranks among the world’s great short par fours, its timeless strategic challenge having perplexed golfers for more than eight decades. The key is the putting surface, an angled, extremely narrow target with a dangerous right-to-left slope. Though reachable from the tee, only a perfect drive will hold this green – and a tee ball missed even slightly right will generally result in a bogey, or worse. The smart play is a fairway metal down the left side, but the temptation to go for the green remains eternally tantalizing…
As you study the picture above taken by Geoff Shackelford (who did a fantastic job covering the event in person) on Saturday you'll notice many of the subtle design features. As Steve Stricker plays this approach into the green (which is the perfect position to play from!) keep in mind that the green slopes quite aggressively from right to left. This means that if you have a go and happen to miss right, you now have a shortish pitch from the rough to an extremely narrow green that runs away from you. No bargain even from close range.
Should you have a go and happen to hit the low, left quacker (we all know it!) then you're only faced with a 50-60 yard sand shot. No bargain either.
Jack Nicklaus on the 10th at Riviera:
I love option holes and this one has more than any short Par 4 I know.
My question is this: Where have all the golf courses like Riviera and holes like the 10th gone? Can it possibly be that difficult to build a golf course that incorporated a little thought and planning? Golfers are pleading for interest over torture.
Give me a golf course filled with interest and I'll play it over a long, torturous monster anyday. I'll start with the 10th at Riviera, then play the 9th at Harbourtown, then the 4th at Spyglass and follow that with the 6th at Ballybunion......
Golf should be fun and Riviera looked exactly that!
Prediction Alert
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This man has a very impressive swing and demeanour. I predict he will win at least twice on the PGA Tour this year! His swing is a picture of balance and simplicity and is rapidly becoming my favorite swing on the PGA Tour.
News and Notes from the PGA Show
/Here are a few interesting tidbits from the recent PGA Golf Trade Show: Loudmouth Golf has definitely gone way too far! Their line is turning into a veritable assault on anybody's unfortunate retinas. Blatantly obnoxious!
Would you be seen dead in these?Just in case you were wondering they even have a handy dandy matching jacket that goes with these.
As much as I don't like Hank Haney (oh come on, if I taught Tiger I'd be a 'legend' too!) I do like the latest putting aid he has been paid to paste his name onto (I even like the name they chose!):
The Putting Impact SystemThis system is available from Eyeline Golf (enter IMPACTBOOK for a discount). If you want your game to get better only go for the putting aid and not the autographed HH instructional book that the sell alongside it. To putt better the putter face must be square at impact - very true! TrackMan experts have found that the clubface plays a much bigger role in where the ball goes than the path and this becomes even more of a factor at lower clubhead velocity like in putting. This teaching aid works and I like the ball liner that is included in the package.
V1 Golf remains cutting edge as they continue to pull tricks out their technology laden sleeves. This year students will be able to not only view their lessons online (this is not new) but they will be able to upload those lessons to Facebook to share with their friends and even download the all new iPhone V1 Golf application at iTunes.
Another excellent putting aid from Eyeline Golf is the Putting Laser+. Use this training aid indoors to get a sense for how the face opens and closes in the stroke while the path should remain on a straight back and through.
The Putting Laser +During my time spent walking the floor I saw quite a few golf celebrities including David Leadbetter, the aforementioned Hank Haney, Gary Gilchrist, Dottie Pepper, Duffy Waldorf, Anna Nordquist, Paula Creamer, Nancy Lopez, Mike Shannon, Rick Smith, Mitchell Spearman and Jim McLean. It was almost like being at the Grammy's.... And lastly, if you are travelling to Orlando and plan on staying in the International Drive/Lake Buena Vista area I would highly recommend the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress. Beautifully refurbished and a steal at the Priceline price of $85 a night! And if you love sushi don't miss Tiger's favorite sushi stopover in Amura.
Read MoreA Highlight from the 2010 PGA Show in Orlando
/I have just returned from the PGA Golf Show and came back with a very positive vibe. While it is always good to catch up with friends, old and new I feel that the game of golf is doing just fine even without Tiger. Here are a few notes on what I found to be the highlight of my trip:
Even though this is their second year at the show I found Swing Catalyst Studio to be the most exciting and positive piece of technology involving golf instruction. Last year I reported on the Swingia Balance Plate, but the Swing Catalyst takes the same idea to a new level.
The Swing Catalyst Force Plate seamlessly integrates with video analysis software and an optional launch monitor (TrackMan). The force plate is housed in a tee unit covered with artificial turf.
The Swing Catalyst Force Plate enables the teacher to view a student’s centre of gravity, stance and pressure distribution both live and recorded, in real time and in slow motion. Additional data on rotational force, tempo and rhythm are also available once the swing has been captured.
The best feature shows what percentage of a golfers' weight is on each foot. Many systems have this option, but none go so far as to indicate what part of the foot the weight is located on.
When integrated with a TrackMan system and 300 fps cameras, Swing Catalyst provides the optimal in instructional tools - an upper level viewing experience, all the numbers pertaining to the club and ball flight and now all the numbers pertaining to the body, force and weight positioning.
With integration this really is the Rolls Royce system available on the market today.
Read MoreScotland's Links Sleepers
/It's not hard to find the best things in life - with a bag of money and a few of the right connections you can have it all. For me, the joy lies in finding hidden gems; things that are every bit as enjoyable as the best might be, but for one reason or another are not as mainstream or popular as the main attraction. A little secret or discovery that is all your own. These experiences very often are more memorable than experiencing, and paying handsomely for, the finest in life. Golf in Scotland can be the same way. We all know the Open rota courses of St. Andrews, Muirfield, Carnoustie, Troon and Turnberry; they are like Pebble Beach, Pine Valley and Winged Foot in the US; they are like Ruth's Chris, Del Frisco's or Shula's in steakhouse terms; or in wine terms like Caymus, Silver Oak or Far Niente. You don't need to be a golf, food or wine geek to know or experience these instituions, just connected or rich, or preferably both. The art is in being able to duplicate or upgrade the experience for way less money and with way more satisfaction.
Read MoreIt's All About Impact eBook on Sale....25% Off!
/The eBook version of "It's All About Impact" is on sale through the end of February when you subscribe to www.andrewricegolf.com and then go to www.itsallaboutimpact.com and enter the coupon code "IMPACT" at checkout.
The eBook will be on sale for $11.95 - a savings of over 25%!
Here's how to get the sale price:
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Subscribe (for FREE!) at andrewricegolf.com (That's easy you're already there)
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Go to www.itsallaboutimpact.com and start the purchase process
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When you see the word COUPON on the checkout page, enter the word IMPACT in the space provided.
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And Voila! You're done.
You will receive the link to your eBook within 12 hours. (90% of the time waaay sooner!)
Thanks and I hope you are all enjoying your books. I know many of you who peruse this site have purchased a book or eBook - please let me know your thoughts and comments. (Whatever they might be....!) I value your input.
Staying Centered over the Ball
/This is one of the most integral elements of the golf swing - the upper body must stay centered over the ball. By doing so, you will increase your ability to get that weight on the front foot at impact and deliver a downward, compressing blow to the back of the ball.
Read MoreSouth Carolina Gator Attacks Man
/This is an event that actually occured in September of 2007 in Berkeley County near Myrtle Beach South Carolina, but has garnered increased attention recently due to the release of some fairly gruesome photographs taken at the scene.
Bill Hedden, 59 was snorkeling in a lake retrieving golf balls when he was attacked by the 12 foot 600 pound alligator. He survived primarily due to the assistance of five nurses who were picnicking nearby. I will let the photographs speak for themselves:
There is no golf ball or mountain of golf balls that can possibly be worth this experience. Once a ball gets wet leave it there.
This will help you keep your ball out of the water.
An African Gem - Durban Country Club
/I have recently returned from a visit to South Africa where I had the opportunity to play the only course on the African continent rated in the Top 100 - Durban Country Club. And what a pleasure the old course is!
The course was constructed in 1922 and has hosted 16 South African Opens, with all of South Africa's greatest, from Locke to Player to Els, winning on her hallowed ground. The club will host the 100th South African Open, the second oldest championship in golf behind the British Open, in December this year.
During the round I came to learn that the course had not ever had it's greens replaced. In the courses almost 90 year history, the greens had never been redone! The greens, while being adequate, showed signs of being tired and the word is they will be resurfaced with a light redesign being done David McLay Kidd (An excellent choice I might add!) after the Centennial SA Open.
The 2nd at Durban Country ClubThis is an old school golf course that has everything I love. It places a premium on accuracy and ball striking - someting similar to Harbourtown Golf Links in the US. It is not long; there are birdies to be made; just don't make a mistake. All the holes are good here with my favorites being Nos. 1-5, 8, 12 and 17 & 18. Even the halfway house is exceptional, with some of the finest meat pies and curry gravy on the continent.
The 12th is a short par 3 that is called the Prince of Wales. It is so named because when the prince played the course he could not find the green and kept hitting from one side to the other eventually finishing with a 12! Looking at the picture, I think you can tell he was not the first or the last golfer to score in the double digits on the hole.
The Prince of Wales at Durban Country ClubThe 18th hole is unusual in that is an easily driveable par four of only 285 yards, but it had better be a straight 285 yards! Tony Johnstone came to this final tee box in the 1993 SA Open leading by 3 over Ernie Els. He convinced himself that he needed to hit driver and found the back of the green while Els hit two balls out of bounds and Johnstone won by seven! The type of finishing hole I would like to see more of.
The Final Swing....? Do all you can to play this African gem - a truly classic golf course that can easily be enjoyed by golfers of every caliber
Read MoreDistance: How to get more of it!
/There are three factors that go into making a quality golf shot; the distance the ball travels, the accuracy of the ball flight and the quality of the strike on the ball. Very often golfers are striking the ball well enough and hitting it straight enough, yet there is a definite lack of distance. In this case there is a need for speed. Jamie Sadlowski is the current World Long Drive Champion. He weighs in at 165 pounds and his longest drive in competition is 419 yards. He generates 140 mph of clubhead speed which equates to almost 200 mph of ball speed! I believe that hitting the golf ball further has very little to do with strength and everything to do with speed - and Jamie is certainly testament to that.
When running backs in the NFL train, they are often hooked up to wind resistance chutes behind them. They then run as hard as they can in an effort to overcome the wind resistance. This exercise gets them to run "stronger" but not necessarily faster. Sprinters on the other hand are hooked up to a device on the track that actually tows them down the track at a faster rate than they are accustomed to, thus getting their limbs to move faster than they are used to. This is the formula we need to apply to golfers who are in search of a few extra yards - and we all could do with that!
Try this drill consistently over the course of a month:
During each practice session count out 12 balls (and only 12
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