Donald Off To Red-Hot Start

Luke Donald set a tournament record by taking only 20 putts en route to an eight-under 64. > Tiger Woods hardly missed a fairway, a big improvement. Luke Donald hardly missed a putt, and that was far more rewarding on Thursday at the Memorial. Donald set a tournament record by taking only 20 putts, which allowed him to tie a tournament record by opening with an 8-under 64 and a three-shot lead over a group that included Jim Furyk and Jason Day, who bogeyed his last two holes. What seemed like a normal round at Muirfield Village turned extraordinary for Donald when he rapped in a 12-foot birdie putt from the fringe on the par-3 eighth hole, starting a streak of six consecutive birdies. He one-putted nine straight holes until a routine par on the 18th hole to match the lowest opening round at the Memorial. "That doesn't happen very often," Donald said. Even rarer is the sight of Woods spending so much time in the middle of the fairway. Woods went with a slightly higher loft in his driver (10 degrees) and continued to make strides with his swing. He didn't miss a fairway until his 3-wood on the 18th hole deflected off a tree and landed in a bunker. Scoring starts with the putter, however. Woods missed an 8-foot par putt on the final hole, and his other bogey came on a three-putt at the 13th. He had to settle for a 69, and few complaints. "Everything felt pretty good to some degree," Woods said. "My swing felt good. Even my putting stroke felt good. A couple of bad pitches here and there, but overall, I felt like I controlled the ball well all day. With the wind blowing like this, you have to hit it flush. I did that all day. I didn't miss any shots." Furyk, who won the Memorial seven years ago, birdied three of his final four holes for a 67. He was joined by Ted Purdy, Thomas Aiken and Day, the 21-year-old Australian who missed a playoff by one shot last week at Colonial. Day was at 7 under with three holes to play, but made bogey from the bunkers on his final two holes. All of them were chasing Donald throughout a day that began cool and breezy and became warm and blustery. Donald, who had only two sub-70 rounds at Muirfield Village, hit the opening tee shot and made bogey. He was headed for another bogey on the second hole until he chipped in from 80 feet short of the green. "I guess all good rounds start with a bogey," he said. "It was just kind of a normal, everyday round until I got to the eighth and made a nice putt from the fringe. That kind of sparked off a run of six birdies. Just really got on a hot streak." He made eight birdies over the last 11 holes. And his score was an eyesore for those teeing off in the afternoon. "That's rough when you walk to the first tee and you're already eight behind," defending champion Kenny Perry. He finished the day eight shots behind after two late bogeys have him a 72. Stewart Cink was among those at 68, while those at 69 with Woods included Mike Weir and British Amateur champion Reinier Saxton. Donald felt putting was his weakness when he joined the PGA Tour. He has been working on fundamentals, and even switched to a mallet putter. He now is No. 1 in putting on the PGA Tour, and his success is no secret. "You start putting well, and you start believing in yourself a little bit," Donald said. "Confidence on the greens breeds confidence. You keep making more putts. I think putting is very mental. Once you feel like you're a good putter, then it becomes easier." Woods has a streak of 16 consecutive top 10s in stroke play, but scrutiny followed him home from The Players Championship last week because he played in the final group and couldn't break par. He has said he is still making adjustments because of surgery last year on his left knee, and has said for the last month that he is still missing his power. But he is back to hitting balls on the range, which is where he could be found late Thursday afternoon. And he painted an optimistic view of his immediate future. "The swing is starting to come around," he said. "I'm starting to feel good now. It's been a long time. I'm starting to get my power back. Everything is starting to come around now." Even so, hitting 13 fairways can be misleading because Muirfield Village is known for its generous fairways. The key is putting on some of the purest greens on tour, and Donald had that part figured out just fine. Story courtesy of Golf World

The Mini-Round

This is one of the most relished secrets of folks that make their living playing golf.

Basically you want to play 6 "mini-rounds" of 3 holes each within your 18 hole round.

The key is to set a scoring goal (for each mini-round) that is obtainable based on your average golf score. Here is a table that will help you figure out what that goal should be:

your current average score	scoring goal for each mini-round
110 or greater	6 over par
105	5 over par
100	4 over par
95	3 over par
90	2 over par
85	2 over par
80	1 over par
75	par
70 or less	1 under par

The mini-round concept eases the frustration a string of poor shots can produce.

After each mini-round is over, no matter how well or how poorly you did, you forget about your previous scores and start fresh on the next 3 holes.

And obviously as your game improves you should take a stroke away from your scoring goal for each mini-round. I would re-examine your scoring goal every 3-5 rounds.

Have a Great Day and Hit 'em Straight!
JJ

Getting off to a good start: Give yourself time!

If you want to start your game well then you need to be

relaxed when you get to the first tee.

You need to get to the course early. Rushing from the

car to first tee will do nothing for your game.

Ideally, get to the course early enough to hit some balls

on the practice range (or warm up net) and got to the

practice green.

Here is a warm up routine for you that will get you in the

right frame of mind to start well.

Go to the range, or warm up net, and hit about 30 balls

with a range of the clubs in your bag. The objective is to

warm up and get the gremlins out.

Start with an easy club such as your 8 iron.

Then work down the set to the driver. For example:

8 Iron - 5 iron - 3 iron - 3 wood - Driver

Then go back to a mid iron (e.g. 6 iron) then go to a

pitching wedge and play shots to different distances.

REMEMBER: The objective is to get warmed up, not worn out!

Next, go to the chipping /putting green and spend 5 minutes

chipping balls to different distances

Next, get the putter out, take 3 balls and start putting.

Practice knocking them in from 3 feet. Then go to the

important 10ft distance. If you can knock them in from

here in your round you will save shots. Practice your

distance drills. Get a feel for the green speed.

Then go off to the first tee 10 minutes before your tee time.

If you do arrive too late at the course, and if you can

do nothing else, have a quick putt. You are going to shoot

almost half your score on the green. You will use your

putter more than any other club in your bag. Make sure

you have a feel for green speed.

This warm up routine should take you no more than 30 minutes,

and you will arrive at the first tee relaxed and warmed up.

This will give you much more confidence with your first shot.

Confidence breeds success!

I hope you have found this tip useful.

Keep a lookout tomorrow for your next Course Management Key Tip

Play Well!

Jay

Hey, Golfers!
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The Proper Take Away Will Make Or BREAK Your Swing

The Proper Take Away Will Make Or BREAK Your Swing

Standing to the Handle

As you address the golf ball there are some critical parts of the setup that must be in place before you start the backswing.

1. If you look down and see the grip-end of the golf club across from your belt buckle there is a good chance you have MOST of the critical parts in place.

1. Across from Belt Buckle

Having the grip-end of the golf club across from your belt buckle assures you of having your head in the correct position, not tilted too far to the left side or the right side of the golf ball. The second part is your spine is probably in the correct position, if the grip end is pointing towards you chin, your spine is too long. If the grip end is pointing lower than your belt buckle, your spine is bent over too much. Lastly, the most crucial part is the golf club is soled on the ground with the correct amount of loft.

The golf club being soled correctly on the ground is the sure guarantee that you are in the correct set-up, after you confirm all the positions that we discussed above.

The Key to Starting the Golf Club Back

One of the top five most asked questions in the past 25 years has been, “What starts the backswing?” The answer is a bit complex, so grab your Hi-Liter and let’s get started.

2. When you are ready to start the backswing, the clubhead, shaft, your hands, arms and right shoulder move in ONE PIECE at the exact same time.
   
3. The clubhead starts back on an arc (we will get to that in the next section). The right shoulder starts turning backwards.

2. One Piece Take-away

3. Right Shoulder Turns as Arm Swings Club

The take-away is one piece all the way until it arrives at the 9:00 o’clock position (we will get to that in two sections).

As you start back, both knees are flexed and during the backswing- the right knee NEVER changes positions. It does not flex more, nor does it straighten out and it does not slide back away from the target.

The left knee also plays a major role in the backswing. It does not move towards the line of flight and it does not straighten out. As the golf club starts back, the left knee moves towards the right knee as a RESULT of the upper body turning and the lower body resisting this turn. The left knee never passes the golf ball in the backswing.

The Correct Path in the Backswing

4. As the golf club starts back away from the golf ball the club head must swing back on an arc which is inside the straight line to the target.

4a. Correct Arc

4b. Correct Arc

If the golf club travels outside in the backswing the right shoulder will tilt up in the backswing and the golf club will swing vertical to the ground in the downswing. If the golf club travels too much to the inside of the arc in the backswing, the golf club will travel too level to the golf ball in the downswing. If the golf club swings too straight back you will have a tendency to hit the ball in the heel of the club at impact.

Too Much Outside

Too Much Inside

Too Straight Back

When the golf club travels back on the correct path the combination of the arms and hands will be able to swing the golf club back to the correct position at the top of the backswing as long as the right shoulder turns out of the way.

From Address to the 9:00 Position

When the shaft of the golf club is level to the ground and parallel to your intended target line- we refer to that position as 9 o’clock.

5. The first check-point in the backswing is the 9:00 o’clock position.

5. First Check-Point is the 9 O'Clock Position

When you reach 9 o’clock, you are half-way back and this is a great time to stop and take a look around, as long as you know what you are looking for. The first thing you want to take a look at- is the golf club in the exact correct position? The club should be parallel to your target line and level to the ground. The second part to take a look at- is the right shoulder turning and not tilting? It is very difficult to get to 9 o’clock with a tilted right shoulder.

Right Shoulder Tilted Too Much

Right Shoulder Turned Too Level

If the right shoulder is tilting up the golf club will most likely be outside the path and pointed up. If the right shoulder turns too much in the backswing the golf club will swing around you too much. If you are in the correct position, it is time to head back to the top of the backswing.

From 9:00 to the Top

6. From the 9 o’clock position the golf club must continue up on an arc.

6a. From 9 to the Top

6b. From 9 to the Top

This can only happen if you continue to turn the right shoulder out of the way. As the right shoulder turns out of the way, the arms, hands and golf club will continue to swing inside, however, after the golf club passes the 9 o’clock position, it will have to swing up. This combination is what I believe is the most difficult part of the backswing.

You can not stop turning the shoulder. If you do stop turning the golf club will start to swing up to much. If you continue to swing the golf club around with the shoulders the golf club will swing too much around.

7. The proper combination is when the shoulders turn and the golf club swings up. When you reach the top of the backswing with this combination you will be in position to swing the golf club down on the correct path and with clubhead speed.

Shoulders Stop Turning, Club Swings Up

7. Shoulders Turning Correctly

JJ

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