2011 Top Ten Videos - #9

Long greenside bunker shots are difficult.  I like to take a less lofted club, a gap wedge or pitching wedge, to play this shot.  Anytime you can stretch the distance to explode the shot vs. making contact with the ball you have a higher percentage to succeed.  Below is a video clip I filmed for my www.youtube.com/timcusickgolf channel that described how to play the shot.  Enjoy!

Long Greenside Bunker Shot

2011 Top Ten Videos - #10

Over the next ten nights I'm going to post my Top 10 videos off my www.youtube.com/timcusickgolf channel.
Number 10 is a video on pitching the golf ball.  This shot is necessary when you're faced with a tight pin, an elevated green or have to go up over an obstacle.  Using the bounce of the club properly is critical in the success of this shot.   Enjoy!

Pitching Video

The Correct Way to Practice

Practice is not just about the time you put in.  It's about the quality of practice you produce.  It's also about repetition and practicing with purpose.
An example that coincides with another sport is Football.  Every summer the NFL starts their training camps.  The players at these camps have played football for 15-30 years.  They're some of the best athletes in the world.  As the teams introduce the playbook, each team conducts walk throughs to start ingraining the movements that each player is responsible for.  As the players become more familiar they start running the plays at regular speed.
This process is no different than working on the golf swing.  You must first know what you're working on, then you must practice it over and over to get the feel.  Going slowly in your practice swings is a good idea.  This allows you to get a feeling of whether you've done it correctly.
Repetition is crucial in implementing improvements in your game.  They can be done with a club or without.  As well, the can be done mentally.  This helps you improve the picture in your mind.   There's no substitute for practice. Practicing correctly gives you an even higher percentage of opportunity to improve.

December Avid Golfer Article - The Belly Putter

The belly putter stole the show in 2011 on the PGA TOUR.  Lots of wins, with the biggest being a PGA Championship by Keegan Bradley.  In past years the belly putter was reserved for the older guys that had the yips.  It was a last ditch effort to salvage some type of game on the greens.  Not so much anymore.  Guys like Bill Haas, Webb Simpson, Matt Kuchar and of course Keegan Bradley made tons of money and collected lots of victories using it. 
I've been experimenting with the belly putter the past month to get a feel for what it's like.  Below is a link to my December article in Avid Golfer Magaizine.  Read my account of testing the belly putter. 

Avid Golfer Magazine, December Issue - The Belly Putter

November Issue - Avid Golfer Magazine

When playing golf you have to have some sort of style or philosophy.  I look at it as a three tiered approach.  You must plan your shot through cafeful analysis of yardage, wind, terrain, pin position, etc...Then you must pick the shot based on your skill level for the given situation and last you must execute with total committment.  Below is a link to my article in the November issue of Avid Golfer. 

November Issue - AG Magazine - Philsophy of Playing Golf

Good Play Continues

 Junior Matt Gilchrest, from Southlake Carroll HS, won a very significant school event at Lakewood CC yesterday.  He shot 69-73 in high winds on a difficult golf course.  The field consisted of two other Top 50 players in the country.
Lakewood CC is a course where Matt has been challenged in the past.  It's a very tight layout with lots of OB and very quick undulating greens.  For Matt to be successful on a course like this requires him to change his normal game plan.  The driver, which is the best club in the bag, is virtually taken out of his hands.  From a coaching standpoint it's very nice to see a player adapt to different conditions and be successful.  This was a good breakthrough for Matt.
And speaking of breakthroughs Matt's younger sister, Christina, placed 4th in a HS tournament yesterday as well.  She's newer to the game but the round was hilighted with two birdies in the first six holes.  A very good day for the Gilchrest family.

New Website - Added Feature

I recently had my website, www.timcusickgolf.com, redone.  It was completely overhauled and turned out fantastic!  Many thanks to Deb Mielke on the work she did for me.  One new feature that was added is the ability of my students to post pictures to the site, via the 4image gallery.  In the media section under photos you can go in, register, and then add photos.  I would welcome my students to post pictures from tournaments, golf vacations, swings or any memories on the golf course you feel compelled to share.  I will be checking the section of the website frequently and look forward to seeing your memories.