Central Coast Golf Instruction Blog

Tour Lock Pro Weights Story: "5 Birdie Round"

2010-12-09T18:56:00.000-08:00

Jun, a 14 Handicapper, reports after getting several of his clubs Tour Locked Balanced that he has 5 birdies and breaks 80 for the first time. Avid golfer, for many years, he has never had more than 2 birdies in any round.

Grip Print Story: "Golfing in the Fog"

2010-12-09T18:53:00.001-08:00

Today, Miss W. reports playing in thick fog the last hour of her round. For that hour plays 5 holes and hits 10 full swing shots. 100% of her shots were hit right where she aimed AND she found every ball.

Grip Print Story: "The Fuel Containers"

2010-12-09T18:42:00.000-08:00

Another cool Grip Print Story: Mr. O. is carrying a bunch of barbecue gas containers to move them to another location on his property, this weekend, when he noticed that he was struggling to carry and move them around efficiently.

So he decided to start Grip Printing the rest of the containers and to his amazement instantly relieved the struggle, the tension, and the pain while carrying them the rest to the end of the day!

Play Zone, Golf CARE Oncourse Weekly Instruction

2010-11-17T21:28:00.001-08:00

Today we discussed helpful tips on Driving (see recap below). As always the clinic was on course. This is an ongoing weekly clinic in which, each week, a different shot is focused on, on the course. This is an 9 week course that starts with driving tips then moves the next week to fairway shots, then the next week on to lob shot tips, to bunker, then shorter pitches, then to chips, then to the texas wedge formula, then to long putts, and finally to short putting tips. We rotate thru these 9 weeks about four times a year. For more info. go to www.blacklake.com, under instruction look for Golf CARE and then find our weekly schedule.

Here is today's Driving Tips recap:
1. UNIQUE TRAINING: I have designed a unique way for a group of students/learners to get both group and custom fit tips. We start with short distance drives exercises and progress to hitting longer and longer drives until the students learn how long they can swing and hit it in the fairway. Most come to realize that to hit their drivers consistently straight they have to reduce the length of their backswings.

2. Railroad Track Alignment: I focused on every shot that they hit on their correct alignment (some due to binocular vision trouble align to the left and some to the right naturally so they both have to be corrected on the spot!) "If you don't aim the gun you can't hit the bulls eye" as one of my mentors likes to say.

3. Ball Position: The driver is designed to be placed more forward in the stance thus you will see the back of the balls equator when making contact.

4. Calif. Fway: Due to our liberal state we have liberal fairways, so the playable rough is part of the fairway.

5. Define the boundaries of the Calif. Fairway not the center point. So your hitting to an area not a spot.

6. Get your mind on something other than the golf swing. For example those who are kinesthetic concentrate on balance, and those visual learners imagine the target, and those who are audio dominant learners can hum or whistle a song while swinging.

OUT of 9 Student/Learners all drives today were hit in the Calif. Fway the entire hour!!!

Tiger Woods and "The Mirror"

2010-11-16T18:45:00.000-08:00

Tired of the quick fix? Check out what Tiger said today in this AP article, specifically what he said about mirror training...

http://www.charter.net/news/read.php?rip_id=%3CD9JHCAKG1%40news.ap.org%3E&ps=1013

I have been training with mirrors for all of my 25 year teaching career, not only for my game but for those who are tired of the QUICK FIX! I have two unique mirror studios: One at Monarch Dunes and one at Black Lake. So here on the Central Coast of Calif. you can learn to train in "The Mirror".

Play with the Pro Day 11-12-10

2010-11-12T21:38:00.000-08:00

Who: Each Friday Golf Care Members are treated to playing with me on the Golf Course

Where: Black Lake Golf Course in Nipomo Mesa, Calif.

When: 2pm to 2:45pm

How: With the avg. number of students being anywhere from 2 to 15 I have designed a way to watch and play with them under pressure. We usually get in 1 to 3 holes.

Format: Scramble

2:00 Load the Carts and travel out to one of the 3 Nine Hole Courses

2:05 Introductions and organizing the groups... You use my balls and your clubs and your tees for speed of play...

2:10 I model the warm-up procedure and first tee shot of day keying in on the where I want to hit the ball (this area I call the DART BOARD), correct club, slope of the hill, 10 baseball warmup swings, a flush grass or tee clip before hitting, and then I do some thing to distract myself from thinking about the large crowd (While hitting shot, for audio learners I will whistle, for visual I will keep the target area in my imagination, and for kinesthetic learners I will focus on balance with the hill slope) Today I chose whistling.

2:15 Their turn. I will now pay attention to their alignment of both clubface and feet. Some will line-up accurately, and some will line up to the right naturally (I call righties), and some line up naturally to the left (I call lefties)...

2:25 In the fairway after taking the best drive of the group, I let them hit away with no instruction, but paid attention to their aim. Some neglected the odd slope of the hill and thus fell off balance, which I then proceeded to model the "Hilly Lie Formula". After that how to strategize in finding the approach shot bailout locations around the green vs. becoming short-sided to the pin.

2:30 On the green we started the unique CARE League which is a chance for them to make putts in front of the crowd under pressure... Had them start with a one foot putt and had them be aware of perfect speed for the one footer = swish without hitting the cup liner.

2:35 Went to Hole 2 fairway and layed golf balls down for all of them, on a very sloped hill, about 170 yards away from the green... made sure they were aware of the hill and where the bailout was near the green, at any cost... Paid attention to alignment this time as well as noticed several were freezing up, taking too much time to hit the ball after looking at the target. So I modeled how to make a seemless transition after settling down in the set up and taking one last look at the target, and seemlessly starting the backswing. One commented that I "Connected the dots" seemlessly.

2:40 Took them to a pitching shot over a bunker, on hole 3, to let them experience a seemless takeaway.

What did they learn today: "Make the swing seemless", "Connect the dots", "Keep your mind distracted with humming or the like", "Find the Dart Board for each shot"

Target Bound vs.Ball Bound

2010-03-07T00:45:00.000-08:00

Are you Target Bound when you play or Ball Bound when you play?

Think of it this way: your behind a bunker hitting a pitch shot over the bunker to a pin that is about 20 feet away from the bunker. Concentrate on imagining the target while you swing (letting your God Created Goal Seeking Computer Brain take over the shot)... Or if you are a Ball Bounder you will think about the following tips while swinging: 1. hit the ball over the bunker and or 2. take it back a certain distance and or 3. don't hit it into that bunker and or 4. forcing the swing and a host of other ball bound thoughts/tips.

This is just a brief of many articles to come on the power of being Target Bound vs. Ball Bound (oh by the way Ball Bounders think they can lose the swing forever and you can tell by how angry and or depressed they are after hitting a bad shot,that includes the best players in the world / to the contrary a Target Bound player doesn't care if he or she hits a bad shot because they know they CANNOT lose a skill!!!)
If you are interested in becoming a Target Bound Golfer call or email Jim DeLaby for a lesson. (805 478 5723, jamesdelaby@charter.net
J33:3

Your Finger Print for your golf swing

2010-03-05T23:45:00.000-08:00

Q & A with Dr. Anthony Kell and Jim DeLaby, PGA...

AK: Jim, You know, some golfers are being taught to just grip the club and rip it. Not to even worry about the grip. Now what is your input on this?

JD: Well, I like that concept. However, very few golfers can actually grip the club naturally and rip it. Some, very few, can naturally find their finger print for what their golf swing is (or what I have coined "Grip Print"). So most are grabbing incorrectly and unnaturally. That is why each person has to find out to make sure what their grip print is so they can just grip it and rip it, as the saying goes.

AK: What about those molded grips, do you think they help? I mean are those good training aids?

JD: Well, you know, yeah. There's different training amongst teachers and myself. I really like the idea of the molded grip. The problem and as you are now fully aware of, Anthony, is that the molded grip is someones grip print... so I hear it all the time = "Well at least its a good starting point" Well, its going to ingrain that designers grip print for the rest of your career. It's going to be very tough (although for me personally now it only takes a few hours to grip print and make it hold)tough to get out of it. I actually can now make a custom fit mold of each of my clients for them to take home. And every mold is unique!

lots more info coming in future blogs on The Grip Print

If you are interested in getting your grip print call Jim DeLaby Award Winning PGA Golf Instructor at 805 478 5723 or email him at jamesdelaby@charter.net

Remember everyone has a unique finger print for your golf swing
J33:3

Reading Greens

2010-02-07T22:20:00.001-08:00

Baffled by the way the putt breaks and the amount of break?
Master and memorize the following, and your confidence will rise: (So use this acronym to memorize the tips that are below = "Don't let Breaks BaFFLe you, instead read them FaBuLOuSly")...

B. Back of the green: From the back of the green, look at the entire green in your periphial and the last 6" to 2 feet of break. You get a different perspective.
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B. Back off of your read and reassess only if others like your partner, coach, or caddie are in disagreement, then use the read of Last defense tip below
a
F. First instinct: Trust your first read and instinct. Think about when taking tests in school and the rule of them is the first answer is usually the right answer... so in this same theme apply it to your first read is probably correct most of the time.
F. Feet as plumb bob: Instead of using your putter as a plumb bob try using your feet and feel the break. I have discovered due to my Hilly Lie Formula that your feet can tell your brain alot. Also the Hilly Lie Formula has taught me over the years that my eyes lie to me regarding which way the hills are actually sloping about 50% of the time. So I have learned to plumb bob with my feet EVERYWHERE especially on the green.
L. Last defense read: when in doubt or others are confusing you get behind the putt and imagine how much the putt would break if you hit the putt straight at the hole with the right speed.
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F. Firm: When your putting is in the SUPERZONE hit your short putts firmer and straighter. When I am putting in this state, I like to think about the way Tom Watson hit his short putts when he was in his prime on the PGA Tour. Firm into the back of the cup!!!
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B. Bermuda or plugged greens: Tom Watson firm putting picture again = Hit it firm and straighter, less room for error on these slower grainy greens.
u
L. Local breaks: Ask the local pros, advanced players, and the best putters for that golf course where the putts tend to break to.
O. Other putts and chips: Pay attention to how others putts and chips are breaking to aid you in making a decision on your putt
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S. Spike marks: Sometimes you may not want to hit the ball with speed to go 19" past (optimal Robot speed to make most putts, according to Pelz) because there are spike marks or other issues that may make that putt tough.
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I would love to hear your comments about what works for you. Sources that have helped me write this include: over the years different short game books, magazine articles, mentors, peers, competitors, students, tv commentators, and research & discovery J33:3 I look forward to continuing this journey with you!

Jim's Golf Warm-up Video

2010-01-04T11:16:00.000-08:00

Q & A about your golf game for the Shag Bag Membership

2009-12-29T20:29:00.000-08:00

For those of you that have become Shag Bag Members (go to http://www.golftalkradio.com/partners/membership.php to sign up for unlimited online questions and answers about the issues in your game) the following are examples of a few of the many questions we have answered over the years:

1.EQUIPMNET Golfer: Jon S.
> Asked:
>
> Which is better in your mind. Hitting the ball higher or lower. I have a
> Steelhead III with a vista pro 70 shaft, hit higher. As well as an
> "x"-tour with a F-1 Motore shaft, hit lower, about the same distance,
> both are stiff. My handicap index is 6.3. Seems the lower trajectory
> keeps me out of trouble. Thoughts?

2. EQUIPMENT Golfer: Beth-Ann C.
Asked:

This is for my son's 7th grade science project: Do expensive golf balls
travel farther? We found out that the more dimples they have the farther
they might go. But is it worth buying more expensive balls?

3. MENTAL SIDE Golfer: TOM B.
Asked:

I"VE BEEN PLAYING 9 YEARS AND THE LAST FEW YEARS HAVE BEEN IMPROVING BUT
ON THE RANGE WHILE PRACTING, THE FIRST 45 TO 50 BALLS ARE NICE SHOTS
THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN I AM LEAVING THE CLUB FACE WIDE OPEN AND SQUIRTING
BALLS OFF THE THE RIGHT. I TRY TO CORRECT IT BUT ONCE IT STARTS GOING
BAD I AM DONE FOR THE DAY. ANY IDEAS AS TO WHAT CAUSES THIS AND WHAT TO
DO TO CORRECT OR PREVENT I STUDY THE SWING ALOT AND WORK HARD ON
IMPROVING

4. NUTRITION Golfer:
Joyce H.

Asked:

Physical - Nutrition: What is better for a
50+female golfer - yoga or

cardio and nautilus or both? How often?
What is the best nutritious meal

to eat prior to a tournament? Carb
loaded or protein also. Gatorade?

5. RULES Golfer: colin j.
Asked:

who is responsible for working out a players points score in stableford
competitions. Is it the player, the marker or the committee ?

6.SWING FUNDAMENTALS Golfer: Jake P.
Asked:

I am having serious issues with my iron shots, as every shot is being
pushed left... far left. It is not that I hit a bad hook, rather, the
ball is flying left directly from the hit. One issue may be that my
irons are too short for my height (6'3"), but I haven't always had this
problem with my shots. Any thoughts? Thanks.

7. BIO-MECHANICAL Golfer: Shena M.
Asked:

I'M DOING A SENIOR PROJECT ON GOLF AND I HAVE TWO QUESTION THAT I HAVE
ANALZYE BUT I CAN'T SEEM TO FIND THEM NOWHERE ON THE INTERNET,SO I TURN
TO ASK YOU GUYS... MY QUESTION ARE: HOW DOES ELBOW EXTENSION AFFECT THE
PUTT AND MY SECOND ON IS HOW DOES METACARPALS CONTRACTION AFFECT THE
PUTT.

8. Golfer Marcus T. Asked:

I played golf with a buddy of mine and noticed while he was chipping he was
holding his club near the end of his club. (holding the shaft). I wanted to know
if you are supposed to choke up beyond the grip of the club? I thought your hand
should always be on the grip.

And many more of your issues we have answered online. We call this Shag Bagging (not sand bagging): Your provide the Issue and we collect the data from all of our Golf Specialists and give you a custom fit answer!

Unlimited Online Golf Instruction

2009-12-15T21:08:00.000-08:00

Looking for unlimited advice for your golf game, any question, and year round, let our team of Golf Professionals serve you. Go to http://www.golftalkradio.com/partners/membership.php and sign up now for the Golf Talk Radio "Shag Bag Membership". Check out all the other benefits!

How can I gain more Distance in my Driver?

2009-12-05T19:16:00.000-08:00

One great way to get both distance and more control in your driver is to spend time with me on the range and let me fit you with the lastest technological advancement = Tour Lock Opti-Vibe Internal Weights.

(FACT #1: a year old technology, with over one hundred Tour Players from around the world including: PGA, LPGA, Champion's Tour, Nationwide Tour, European, Australlian, Canadian, Asian/Japanese Tour Players are currently using it. And- FACT #2 it is USGA and R& A Approved!) Note: that the picture to the left is at the 2009 Chevron Shootout of a Tour Player giving a feel test with the Tour Lock Opti-Vibe weighting system.

How does it do it? Raising the static weight and balance point of the golf club increases controllability. Resulting in more on center hits, as well as helping the club stay on a better swing plane. Tour Lock counter weights & internal shaft weights allow me as both as a teacher and a fitter to optimize the static weight and balance point on any club to best suit you. Four months in the field with fitting my customers and the results range from more distance to more control and to both simultaneously. Sometimes they only want their driver optimized with the weights, or just their putter, or their putter and driver, or their whole set. If you want to get fitted with this technological breakthru call me to set up an appointment at (805)478-5723 or email me at jamesdelaby@charter.net

Why Do I hit the ball great on the range, then fall apart on the course?

2009-12-03T21:54:00.000-08:00

Hitting the ball great on the range, before the round, and then falling apart on the golf course is definitely a mental issue. The Range is a no pressure environment. Although there are a variety of reasons why, the #1 reason usually is that we want to score low and this adds much pressure. (Note that on the driving range you didn't care about score)...

Here is how you can overcome this barrier to being successful on the golf course: Take the pressure off score by applying the "Personal Par" Formula (a BRILLIANT First Tee Life Skill)

1. The scorecard PAR is the Pro's or an elite player's PAR.

2. It is actually quite simple = change the scorecard PAR to your PAR

3. Your PAR or Personal PAR is your avg. score you make on each hole.

4. So if you make 6's on normal Par 4's, then your Personal par for Par 4's is now 6

I love and use the Personal PAR Formula in my own-golf rounds. Try it the next time you play...

Play Lessons with Jim Christmas Specials: go to home page of www.jimdelaby.com