Let the Season Begin! Almost.

For me, I have been able to enjoy some time off to spend with the family the past couple months. March 1st indicated my first day back to work. I am excited to be getting back to work, but at the same time we still have almost a foot of snow on the ground. I have not seen the grass in my back yard in 2014. This puts a hamper on practicing my short game! I am hopeful with all the snow we have seen that just never wants to melt, that it will lead to a bigger surge of cabin fever when it does go away. If so, this could bode well for golf courses in our area as I am sure many guys are ready to get out and play. My Masters countdown is at 39 days and after watching a Rory meltdown and drama filled finish at the Honda Classic today, it has me itching even more to get my sticks out and use them. However, when I get to work and look out the pro shop windows to see the course submerged in a white glistening powder, my heart sinks. I know that I still have a while until the course will be ready for me to get my sticks out. For the time being, beating balls into a net will suffice.

To continue on the topic of hitting balls into a net. What do you do during the off season to keep your game and swing fresh? If you do nothing, you can expect quite a few rounds to get the rust out of your swing. I mentioned in an earlier post about hitting into simulators and practicing when their is snow on the ground. Have you thought about getting lessons? Many professionals offer some type of indoor lessons during the off season even if you don't think there is a place for it.

What do we do? We convert a corner of our pro shop into an indoor hitting station. We have a mat and net set up and video equipment set up to record everything we need.Our facility has done this for a number of years, but it still surprises some members. We had a member in on our first day open Saturday and he asked about the net. We mentioned we use it for off season lessons using video equipment and even though it was in multiple e-mails, he had no idea we offered lessons during the winter months.

Just because you can't watch the ball fly doesn't mean that a Pro can't give a lesson. Thanks to video equipment and apps for your tablet and smartphone, it is very easy and very informative to get a video lesson. We are able to put your swing, side-by-side with a number of tour professionals to compare or even of an older swing of yourself to see how you have improved. We are also able to put the video in slow motion to point something out or draw on the video to help show a point we are trying to make. It really is amazing how much technology has expanded the horizons of golf instruction.

Call your local Pro, just because their is snow on the ground doesn't have to mean the clubs need to be in storage. Take some lessons in the off season to keep your swing fresh or to improve it!

Club Fitting 101: Flat Lie vs Upright Lie

If you are a weekend warrior golfer, then I am sure you had these thoughts: "I don't play enough golf to get fitted." "At my skill level, fitting isn't going to fix anything." "It is too expensive to get fit and order custom clubs." While these thoughts have crossed the minds of many, they are untrue. Every golfer ranging from the person who plays a handful of times per yer to the person who plays three times per week can benefit from properly fitted equipment. There are many misconceptions about club fitting and I want to help justify its importance. Today I am going to focus on just one aspect of the club fitting process and that is the lie angle. 20 years ago, if you wanted to buy a set of irons, you would go to the store and pick a set off the shelf and head to the links. This is not the case anymore.

One of the biggest factors in getting fit, is to have a proper lie angle fitted to you. Do you find that almost every time you feel like you hit a shot solid, it seems to hook more than you would like? If so, you could very well need irons that have a flat lie angle. If you find yourself noticing that when you make good contact, the ball drifts into a slice then you may very well need some irons with an upright lie angle. From the above image you are able to see the differences if your lie angle is off. You may buy a set with a standard lie angle, but based n how you swing yo may have the heel of the club impacting the ground the most or the toe of the club. If this is the case, you need to get properly fit so that you can start seeing the ball taking a straight flight!

There are varying degrees of how flat or upright you need to produce a straight shot and figuring this out during a fitting session is not that hard. I recommend going through a fitting session with your local PGA Professional even if you do not need new equipment. A fitting session is not that long, generally about 30 minutes for your irons and it is possible that if your clubs are not properly fitted, they can be adjusted to the proper specifications without investing in a new set.

The image above shows the most common way that PGA Professionals fit for lie angle. Most companies provide fitting tape that is similar to the Callaway ones shown above. One sticker goes on the face to show where contact on the club face is taking place. The second sticker goes on the sole of the club and shows where the sole of the club is making contact with the ground. A plastic board about the size of a clipboard and called a lie board is used to hit golf balls off of. This helps show the impact of the sole with the ground. Normally, a handful of shots are requested, so that the Professional is able to take an average and get a good sense of where the swings that made good contact were contacting the tape. Based on these variables, the Professional is able to recommend what specifications will work best for you to achieve the straightest ball flight.

Fitting can easily help your game. Please take the time to contact your local PGA Professional and get fitted!

The Masters; Does Any Other Major Compare?

We are less than 90 days away from the first major of the year, the Masters. The Masters is steeped in tradition and always full of excitement. The Tour has four majors each year, but come on, do any of them really match the Masters. Just the aura Augusta National creates is enough to give any golf enthusiast goose bumps. One thing that makes the Masters is great is that it is played on the same course each year, so the memories can pile up. Fond memories such as Jack's 1986 win to Tiger's "shot" that paved the way to win in 2005 along with the memories that show the average golfer can relate to the best as in the back nine collapse of Greg Norman in 1996. The Masters is the only major that routinely has the tournament won or lost on Sunday on the back nine; what is more exciting than that?

My bucket list has a trip to the Masters towards the top of it and yours should too. Thanks to this event, the average man can be applauded because they know of at least one type of plant and will be the first to take note of how beautiful the azaleas at Augusta National are. It also provides the foundation for those Christian men as we are always praying for our guy to make it through Amen Corner unscathed. Speaking of Amen Corner, I think you would be hard pressed to find three consecutive holes that have had as much of an impact on who wins a tournament on Sunday as these three holes.

What else makes the Masters better than any other major? How about the limited commercials during the event? It would be great if that was normal for all events. I am very grateful to Augusta National for allowing only limited commercials and those being to a couple of the major sponsors. If on site, it also great to pay the cheap prices at the concessions (be sure to get the traditional cheese sandwich) and you will notice all apparel only has the Masters logo on it. This event is the only one that goes through great lengths to preserve its traditions as a club and tournament. You also can't forget about the theme music used for the Masters. You know, the little tune that when it comes on and you are in the kitchen, you have to pause and peek in at the television, even if it is only a commercial advertising the event. This being the same jingle that when you hear it in January, you get chills going down your spine and excitement abounds at the thought of the Masters approaching.

As children feel a bit of a let down after Christmas Day ends and all presents from Santa have been opened, this same feeling happens to me the Monday after the Masters. I hate the thought that I have to wait a year until the azaleas are blooming and an event that is sure to be filled with excitement happens. I think one reason that the Masters holds a special spot with me is because it is early in the year. Living in the northern half of the U.S., many times the Masters coincides with the course opening. This adds extra excitement in that once March hits, so does the cabin fever. I am itching to get out and practice/play and the Masters helps to fill this void.

Do you have a favorite Masters moment? Or something about the event that brings out emotion in you? Please share. If I had to pick one, it would be when Fred Couples' shot stayed on the mowed bank of Rae's Creek and he went on to win in 1992. Isn't it amazing, how he still seems to be at the top of the leader board throughout the week year in and year out?

Are we less than 80 days yet?