Options for Greenside Bunker Shots

Bunkers shots are difficult for most golfers. When the distance for a greenside bunker shot is stretched to 25-30 yards the shot becomes even more difficult. If the lie and the lip of the bunker are favorable I like to use a less lofted club.
I've attached an instructional video from my YouTube channel, timcusickgolf, to illustrate the execution of a long greenside Bunker shot.

Long Greenside Bunker Shots

These Kids are Good!!

Lots of good playing this week from a number of my competitive Junior Golfer's this week. Kelly Grassel from Chesterton, Indiana won the AJGA Midwest Jr Players Championship shooting 74-75-74 for a 223 total.
Dallas, Texas native Luke Kwon tied for 1st in the Bob Estes Abilene Jr Championship shooting 67-67-66 for a 200 total. Unfortunately he lost in the playoff.
Southlake, Texas resident Matt Gilchrest made it to the match play portion of the USGA Jr Championships and lost lost in the round of 32.
All three of these players have been very successful with their games this summer. Congratulations to all.

Judging Distance Wedges

One of the most difficult shots in golf for most people is the distance wedge.  It's difficult because you're making swings that aren't the same length.  One way to learn to judge your distance wedges better is to practice specific length swings.  For example, shoulder high to shoulder high.  When you consistently make this swing you're going to replicate a certain yardage.  You can repeat this process with all your wedges.
Below is a detailed description of how to go about this process from my youtube channel, timcusickgolf.

Judging Distance Wedges

Over the Top

One of the most common mistakes in the golf swing is when golfers swing 'over the top' in their downswing.  What this means is whatever path the backswing took the downswing is out and over the top of it.  This motion leads to shots off the toe, deeper divots, pulled short irons and longer clubs that slice.
I've attached an instructional video from my youtube channel, timcusickgolf that oulines correcting the 'over the top' motion.

Over the Top Video

Good Week for my Jr Golfers

Three of my Jr. Golfer students played very well in competition this week.  This past Monday and Tuesday at the Cowboys Golf Club in Dallas hosted the TJGT Allen Samuels Jr Championship.  In the boy's division Four Seasons Resort and Club/Dallas member Ben Baxter finished in 3rd place shooting 76-76 for a 152 total.
In the Girls division, another Four Seasons member Elisabeth Rau shot 72-76 for a 148 total and then survived a two hole playoff to capture 1st place in the same event.
Today in Abilene, Texas Matt Gilchrest won his first AJGA event at the Genesis Shoot-out presented by the Valero Texas Open.  Matt shot 73-72 and came from 4 shots back in the final round to shoot 67 and win by 3 shots!  Not much rest for Matt as he boarded a plane back to Dallas and then was on his way to Seattle, Washington for the USGA Jr Boy's Championships.  Congratulations to all.  Well played!!

Avid Golfer Article - Reading Greens

Very little is ever spoken about the ability to read greens.  There's not just one way to read greens rather a variety of things to put into an equation.  Below is my July instructional article for Dallas based Avid Golfer Magazine.  It outlines four ways to improve your green reading skills.

Avid Golfer Magazine - Reading Greens

Congratulations to student Kyle Grassel, from Chesterton, Indiana, on winning the 107th Chicago City Amateur today. Kyle shot scores of 69, 64 and 67 for a 10 under total and a two shot victory. A Sophomore on the Men's Golf Team at Colorado School of Mines Kyle also recently won The Northwest Indiana Amateur.
Next up for him is the Indiana Open which starts tomorrow.

A Budding Track Star

This blog is usually reserved for my golf knowledge and experiences.  Today I'm going to post from a different perspective, a father.
Vicki, my wife, and Carson, our 9 year old son are in Northern Indiana visiting her father and step mother for the month of July.  The weather is much cooler and it's a chance to see old friends and spend time with family.
Vicki's stepmother, Polly is an avid and competitive runner.  Carson and Polly went to Michigan City early this morning to run a 5K race.  Polly trains regularly and is no stranger to a race competing in the 60-64 year old age bracket.  Carson is an active 9 year old who plays Lacrosse, Hockey and Baseball.  He has no experience running competitive races.  His reason for going was to hang out with Grandma Polly.
Well, 32 minutes later Carson won the 9-10 year old boys age bracket AND beat his Grandma.  To say he was 'fired up' is an understatement.  Outside of winning, he was excited that a good portion of the race was on the beach of Lake Michigan where he could run in the sand and water.  Carson picked up a very cool trophy and a story to tell al his buddies when he returns to Dallas.
To me, it is a great accomplishment and memory for him as well as gaining some tremendous confidence for being successful.  As a father I'm very proud of him and can't wait to see the trophy and hear the recap again in person.

Shank

Shanking the ball gives many golfers the cold sweats just thinking about the miserable shot.  I have heard more corrections for fixing a case of the shanks than I care to repeat.  Most of them have nothing to do with the mistake.
The first thing that golfers must realize is when you shank you're not hitting on the clubface.  You're hitting off the hosel.  So you can eliminate the correction that the clubface must be too open.  That one doesn't make sense as you're not hitting on the clubface, you're hitting off the hosel.
Three mistakes cause a shank.  Below is a video, from my youtube channel, timcusickgolf, that covers the reasons for a shank.

Shank mistakes

Levels of development

People learn at different levels. Some take a while to digest information, put into their own words or feelings before applying the information. Others adjust 'on the fly' and often times overdue their corrections.
As an instructor, it's important that I pay close attention to the individual learning needs of each student. When students learn at a slower pace I'm careful to encourage and re-confirm that they are on the correct path. I can be very patient when students learn at a slower rate. But the student must also be patient as well.
When a student moves quickly with their improvement I must be careful to not give too much I formation too fast. Otherwise they might be on information overload.
Some golfers need to exaggerate more, some have to be careful that they don't over exaggerate too much.
Understanding how you learn is important. Which way it is doesn't matter. Just be patient and stay the course.