TomTuckerGolf.com
 
Golf Tips Newsletter - Issue 359 - Wed. July 22nd, 2015
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Prepare to play your best golf
by doing something now!

To comment or respond to this newsletter, please click here ttucker@rochester.rr.com


In This Issue  


- Tom's Featured Tip: More on Mantras
- Tour Greens: - Tour Quality Synthetic Greens
- Tom's Bonus Tip: Your Toolbox
- Lesson Comments: What Students Have To Say
- Sponsors: Plum Creek Driving Range 
Batavia Country Club
Tour Greens Western New York 
Genesee Community College Golf Management Program 



Click here:  INDOOR GOLF LESSONS  for details on how to improve your game over the winter.

PLUM CREEK DRIVING RANGE IN BATAVIA, NY, IS OPEN ALL YEAR
Check out the Equipment & Apparel and Simulator Course Play Specials:
http://www.plumcreekdrivingrange.com Call 585-993-0930 or email Mark at plumcreek4@rochester.rr.com to reserve your simulator time!

Buy Gift Certificates for Lessons   Sample Gift Certificate

Golf lessons - Outdoor and Indoor - are available at Plum Creek, please call me at 716 474 3005, email me at ttucker@rochester.rr.com, or visit my website at   http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/lessonrates.html   for details.

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Tom's Featured Tip: More on Mantras

For simplicity, all advice on actual swings or drills is provided from a right handed perspective.

First of all, how great was the Open Championship this year? Glad Zach Johnson won it, but I was rooting for Speith to have a shot at history, that doesn't happen often. That's the coolest tournament to watch bar none - maybe because Scottish summers remind us of Western New York summers? :-)

I love teaching golf for many reasons, and a side benefit is that my lessons provide me with ideas for this newsletter.

Last week I did lessons for three different types of players with different swing problems, and they all benefited from different types of swing mantras.

A swing mantra is a phrase you recite to yourself (or out loud at a lesson), synchronized with your swing motion, in order to develop tempo, reinforce a swing key, or synchronize your downswing sequence.

Student "A" was a senior player who's swing tempo gets very choppy every now and then. I had him hit about 12 balls then explained that I wanted him to recite the following mantra, "SWING BACK - SWING THROUGH" as he hit balls. After hitting about 6 balls, he got into a groove and started swinging with beautiful tempo, allowing his downswing sequence to unfold in proper sequence (the correct kinematic sequence to be precise), rather than snatching the club from the top.

Student "B" was a middle age female with pretty good athleticism, who is an aggressive swinger but had little rhythm in her swing, and had a very vertical swing plane. She had the habit of lifting the club with her arms only in her backswing rather than turning it back with the help of her shoulders. For her the best mantra was "TURN BACK - TURN THROUGH". She started to develop some rhythm as well as more power in her subsequent swings.

Student "C" was a middle age male, very strong. with a very aggressive swing. Although he had the same common denominator of no tempo as the other two students, his personality was much different. A four word mantra would not have been appropriate because it would have been too slow for his personality, so what worked for him was "BACK AND THROUGH". He started striking the ball squarely with a consistent tempo when we incorporated this mantra into his swing process.

I told these students to use the mantra for all swings, although for putting we would use the same number of words and tempo, but adjust the words to "STRAIGHT BACK - STRAIGHT THROUGH" or "STRAIGHT TO STRAIGHT".

There is also one more critical element to these mantras. It's this - that when they finish the first part of the mantra, that they either bump or slide their weight laterally forward before they recite the second part of the mantra. "Bumping" vs. "sliding" depends on each particular student's swing method.

I don't include the word "BUMP" or "SLIDE" in the mantra, because it would disrupt the tempo, but here's how the student is taught to think and practice this:
  • SWING BACK bump SWING THROUGH
  • TURN BACK bump TURN THROUGH
  • BACK bump THROUGH
If you have tempo issues, or if you (like me) forget to finish your backswing every now and then, a swing mantra will be the cure.

Try it, you'll like it.

Comments: ttucker@rochester.rr.com

Love your practice, own your swing, own your health,

Tom






Tour Greens: Tour Quality Synthetic Greens For Superb Short Game Practice



Would you like to be able to practice with purpose in your own back yard?

Would you like your short game to progress from bad to good, or from good to great?

Would you like to get the ball up & down with more frequency?

Would you like to have a short game practice area in the privacy of your yard for practice and for friendly competition with your kids, your wife, and your friends?

Click here TourGreensWNY.com  for photo galleries and more information.

If the thought of having a beautiful tour quality practice green in your yard appeals to you, you're in luck.

In addition to my golf instruction business, I am also the exclusive Western New York sales associate for Tour Greens Western New York.

With Tour Greens you can experience the ultimate home short game practice solution.

Click here to read what Tour Pro's Fred Couples, Rich Beem, Boo Weekly, Blake Adams, and Chris DiMarco  have to say about their Tour Greens.

You all know me well enough to know that I don't affiliate with any product that I don't have a passionate belief in. These greens are the real deal. They are extremely durable - and they LOVE Western New York weather!

For more information please click here: TourGreensWNY.com, or feel free to call, text, or email me to discuss your needs.

Comments: ttucker@rochester.rr.com

Love your practice, own your swing, own your health,

Tom






Tom's Bonus Tip: Your Toolbox

For simplicity, all advice on actual swings or drills is provided from a right handed perspective.

In an interview before the Open Championship, Tom Watson gave a very emotional speech that really hit home with me because I'm a few years older than Tom.

He announced that this was his last year of competition at the Open, because he didn't have enough tools left in his toolbox. Then he explained that the main tool lost that affected his decision was distance.

There's a lesson to be learned there for each of us, and it's this: evaluate your toolbox often, and make adjustments as necessary.

And make sure your toolbox is sturdy enough to hold your tools. A toolbox made of paper wouldn't work too well. Your golf toolbox material should be constructed of education, whether that be books, DVD's, or instruction from a qualified teacher.

Education is necessary to get the most out of your more tangible tools, and maybe the intangibles as well.

Some self taught players get quite far with their swing, but for most players this bible verse applies: "A fool is right in his own eyes while a wise man seeks advice".

Here are a few more thoughts on your toolbox.
  • If you are young and good at the game, maybe more wedges should be in your bag.

  • Maybe some more education on the mental aspect of the game is be in order.
As we age, we need to re-evaluate our toolbox and perhaps get new tools to keep us as competitive as we want to be.
  • We may need to discard our 3, 4, and maybe even our 5 irons and put some hybrids in our bag.

  • We may need to swallow our pride and switch out some of our shafts from Stiff to Regular, or even Senior flex. Perhaps change from steel to graphite for our irons.

  • We may need to start hitting a hybrid from 180 yards instead of trying to overswing a five iron.

  • Maybe we need to stop overswinging everything and take enough club for the distance.

  • We may need to start playing a little bump and run instead of trying to carry everything to the hole.

  • We absolutely need to develop skillful shots from around the green and we need to constantly work on our short game and putting. Those areas can keep you competitive for quite awhile.

  • We may need to be wise with our practice regimen to avoid overuse injury.

  • And there may come a time when we simply need to enjoy and appreciate the process and dignity of the game more, regardless of how we are playing.
Evaluate your toolbox and see if it needs some adjustment. You'll like the game more if you do.

Comments: ttucker@rochester.rr.com

Love your practice, own your swing, own your health,

Tom







Golf Lessons

I conduct lessons at The Plum Creek Driving Range & Practice Facility
there's a link for Plum Creek info here: http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/

Lessons are available for all ages and skill levels, please contact
me - Tom Tucker - at (716) 474 3005 or email me at ttucker@rochester.rr.com
for more information.

Outdoor Lessons Details and Rates:
http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/lessonrates.html

Indoor Lessons Details and Rates:
http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/indoor.html

Driver Fitting Rates:
http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/indoor.html

Testimonials:
http://www.tomtuckergolf.com/testimonials.html


Sponsors

Plum Creek Driving Range and Simulator  Outdoor range and play indoor golf on any of our 40 Simulator Courses. Call 585-993-0930 or email Mark at plumcreek4@rochester.rr.com to reserve time for simulator play or practice!

Batavia Country Club   Great rates, the best greens in WNY, Golf Digest Four Star rating for public courses to play in New York State. Tee times online or by phone in season. www.bataviacc.com  (585) 343-7600

Tour Greens Western New York  Practice with purpose in your own back yard on your own synthetic practice green. Our greens LOVE Western New York weather!

Genesee Community College Golf Management Program   Click on link for more information if you or anyone you know is interested in a dynamic career in the golf industry, or in teaching golf.

All the best,

Tom Tucker
Teaching Pro, Plum Creek Driving Range & Practice Facility
WGTF ' "Top 100 Golf Teacher"
USGTF Class "A" Teaching Professional
Cell: (716) 474-3005
Email: ttucker@rochester.rr.com
http://www.TomTuckerGolf.com
http://www.usgtf.com/top_100_wgtf.html

"There are no substitutes in the quest for perfection!"
~ Ben Hogan