Evaluating Your Game

In one of my earlier posts I spoke about effective practice and how you should go about getting the most out of your practice time. This is great, but what parts of your game should you spend your time practicing? One obvious answer is to practice the parts of your game that you are struggling with. But how do you know what parts of your game are the weakest? Another problem you may have is how do you know if your practice is actually improving your skills in the areas you are practicing?

The first part of any training program should be evaluating where you are at the moment. The easiest way is to use skill tests that test your ability in all of the different golfing skills. I have used, or am using, the AIS long game test, Dave Pelz putting test and Dave Pelz short game test. these tests test all of the golfing skills and are a great way to see what parts of your games need the most work. These skill tests should be done at regular intervals throughout the year so you can measure your improvement.

You don't need to use these particular skill tests, you can make up your own. As long as you complete the same tests each time you can measure your improvement. If you decide to make up your own tests, make sure you cover all the skills that you use on the golf course in competitions. Design different tests to test your skills in driving, irons, wedges, pitching, chipping, bunkers, trouble shots, long putts, medium putts, short putts and breaking putts and any other skill you want to evaluate. You can make up your own scoring system and check your improvement over the next six months.

Another way you can analyse your game is to keep statistics on the rounds that you play. This is a great way to see what parts of your game need work as well as analysing the parts of your game that let you down for that particular round. You can keep very basic statistics such as fairways hit, greens hit, number of putts and number of up and downs or you can get into more detail by recording where you miss your shots (left, right, short or long), the distance of each shot and what club you used. Keeping statistics is a great way to show any patterns you may have in your golf game and it makes it easy to target your practice in the appropriate, weaker, areas.

The picture on the right of this post is a picture of the report that the golf statistics software program that I use generates. It gives a great deal of information and you can go into a lot of detail when analysing your rounds. This is a great program for keeping statistics but I have also used a simple Excel spreadsheet in the past for keeping the statistics of my students. Feel free to contact me at any time should you need any more information on statistics and how you should keep them.

Until next time,

Brent

Tour Standard Fitness

This week was the monthly fitness training session for my elite students held with Scott Williams at the home of the PGA at Sandhurst Golf Club. This session is great for my students as there is usually a mixture of tour players, Golf Australia squad members and regular golfers looking to improve their fitness levels. Scott has developed a series of exercises that the golfers complete that measures their golf specific fitness levels. Scott has particular levels that he believes players need to be achieve to be golf strong and the golfers compete against these scores as well as their previous monthly results.

There are fifteen tests that are used during the session and they measure things such as endurance, strength, core strength, rotational speed and rotational strength. Some of the exercises are shown in the pictures in this post and they are a really good indicator of a golfer's golf specific strength and endurance.

After each of these training sessions, each participant gets a written report which includes their scores in each of the exercises completed during the session. As well as these basic scores each golfer also gets a plus (improvement) or minus (decline) percentage score against their previous score, their evaluation test score and the tour standard score.

It is a great session and well worth the time for anyone looking to see how they measure up, fitness wise, with the best players in Australia. Contact me via my blog or website if you want any more information or you can email Scott Williams by clicking on his link here.

Until next time,

Brent

The Importance of Lie Angle

When I am club fitting, the first thing that I check is what lie angle my student should be using in their clubs. As you can see in the picture to the left, if the lie angle of the club is not correct, the ball will be influenced off line. Basically, if the club is too flat (the toe is hitting the ground) the ball will be influenced to the right of the target and if the club is too upright (the heel is hitting the ground) the ball will be influenced to the left of the target. As you can also see in the picture, the ball is influenced more offline in the higher lofted clubs. The distances in the picture are assuming the club face is square when you hit the ball so you can see that even with a perfect swing, and a square club face, the ball will still go offline if your lie angle is not correct.

The next obvious question is how do you know if your club's lie angles are correct? The best way is to have your clubs evaluated by a PGA Professional. They will tape the bottom of your clubs and have you hit balls from a lie board. This board will leave marks on the tape where the club is hitting the ground at impact which will tell the professional if the clubs are correct, too upright or too flat. The mark will also tell the professional how much the lie angle needs to be adjusted. The lie angles need to be checked this way as the lie angle needs to be correct at impact and not at address.

The second picture in this post shows why you should use a PGA Professional to check your lie angles. This picture shows all the different marks you can get from a lie board depending on club path, club face angle and if the lie angle is correct or not. It is important that the professional takes into consideration all the things you do in your swing so the correct assessment of your lie angle can be made.

If you want any more information on lie angles, or you would like me to check your lie angles, drop me an email via the links on the blog or give me a call on 0402 77 55 46 any time.

Until Next Time,

Brent

Want More Driver Distance?

Since I have been back in Australia I have been doing most of my coaching at the Golf Science Centre in Cheltenham. This facility is great and it has some really cool tools and teaching aids that I can use in my coaching session. As we are an indoor facility, the most important piece of equipment we use is a simulator. Our simulator is a state of the art set up which comes from a company called AboutGolf. It is very accurate and basically gives you ball flight indoors. This a great advantage as I don't have to worry about weather when I am coaching. I was always a sceptic when it came to indoor teaching but this simulator has converted me.

Another benefit of using the indoor simulator is it provides me with information that I would not normally get during a lesson. After each shot a screen is shown which shows me and my student their carry distance, total distance, club head speed, ball speed, launch angle, spin rate and club head path. These figures can be used to help coach the student and can also be used when club fitting.

This brings me to the title of this post, want more driver distance? Since being back in Australia I am club fitting again and I am seeing some interesting results during some of my fitting sessions. I have always believed that higher lofted drivers will help a slower swing speed golfer gain more distance as they will launch it higher with a more effective spin rate. What I am seeing now is more loft tends to help most players launch it better and gain more distance. When I am club fitting I am looking for the optimum launch conditions for each individual player to maximise their distance. The advantage in using the AboutGolf simulator is that the facts and figures are right there in front of the student and we can work together by coaching and club fitting to find the most amount of distance for them.

We have a lot of different club head, loft and shaft combinations you can try, I can help you decide between two drivers you already have or I can evaluate your current driver. All of this is a lot of fun and you can see the facts and figures for yourself. The driver fitting matrix in the picture will give you an idea of what specifications might suit you and there is also a great article on my website on the newsletter archive page. You can check out my website here. If you would like a more personal and detailed analysis just send me an email via the link on my blog profile or call me on 0402775546.

Until next time,

Brent

Fitness Training

I have been helping a trainee professional, Kristian Tribuiani, with his game since I have been back in Australia. I coached Kristian when he was a junior at Rossdale Golf Club and I was the teaching professional there. It is nice to see how much he has developed since I last saw him and how much dedication he shows towards improving his golf game. Kristian understands that there are many parts that need to be addressed to play successful golf. He realises that he needs to have a golf strong body, a flexible body, a strong mind, correctly fitting clubs, a structured training schedule as well as a good quality swing to give him the best possible chance to play good golf.

Before he visited me for a swing evaluation he had already spent some time with Ramsay McMaster and his team at the Melbourne Golf Injury Clinic. During his sessions at the clinic his body was assessed for postural issues, range of motion problems and muscle imbalances relative to golf. Corrective exercises are then prescribed to get his body ready to make effective golf swings. He also spent time with Jamie Glazier who is a mental conditioning coach. These sessions have helped him with the mental side of his golf game.

When he visited me for a swing evaluation I noticed that his body could be stronger in certain body parts which would allow him to swing the club more efficiently. I suggested he take the time to have an evaluation with Scott Williams (pictured above) from Ocean Fitness in Sorrento. Scott is great at what he does and the session was very valuable for Kristian's training.

Scott took Kristian through a number of evaluations to determine areas that needed improvement and showed him a variety of exercises that he could use to strengthen his "golf muscles". The photos show how some of the exercises replicate the golf swing movement while some are used as general strengthening exercises. You can also have a look at a video on my facebook page.

The session was very thorough and beneficial for both Kristian and myself and I am already seeing the changes to Kristian's body being reflected in his golf swing. I will keep you posted with Kristian's scores as we continue to work on his game.

Until next time,

Brent

Effective Range Practice

Driving to work this morning I was thinking about my students in Taiwan and China. I enjoyed my time over there and the kids I coached were all nice kids and generally worked hard on their games. This got me thinking about practice and practice routines. What is the best way to practice? Do we need to hit thousands of balls to improve our swings and our games? What is effective practice?

One student I had in China (pictured above) was notorious for not practicing effectively. He would hit balls on the range without choosing a target, using his pre-shot routine or even taking enough time to set up to the ball correctly. Sometimes he would hit balls without even looking down the practice fairway! I think his record for consecutive shots without looking at a target was five! Now this student was an extreme example but I think all golfers can benefit from an understanding of different types of practice and when to use the different types of practice.

Most golfers I know tend to go to the range and just hit ball after ball after ball with little thought. This can be called "rake and hit" practice and it not very helpful for improving your golf. I tend to call this exercise rather then practice. I would suggest there are three main types of practice and they should be used at different times to ensure you get the most out of your practice and make the most improvement.

The first type of practice could be called block practice and technical practice. This type of practice involves hitting a number of shots with a club only working on the technical aspects of your swing you are working on with your coach. There is no need to worry about where the ball is going during these types of sessions as the emphasis is on making the swing changes you are trying to make with your coach. This type of practice should be used during time when there are not many important competitions for you to play in and you are working on correcting your swing faults.

The second type of practice could be called random practice or transfer practice. This type of practice is designed to more closely simulate on course play and make it more difficult to get in the "groove" of hitting 20 shots with the same club. Basically, you would change clubs often and change targets more often. An easy formula may be to change targets every two shots and change clubs every six shots. You should also use your pre-shot routine before every second shot. This type of practice should be used to help you take your swing changes onto the course with you.

The third type of practice is called competitive practice and this type of practice needs to be used in the weeks leading up to an important competition. As the name suggests, this kind of practice involves competitions with yourself or a training partner. Closest to the pin competitions and Aussie rules goal type challenges are only a couple of the games you could use during these sessions. You are only limited by your imagination when it comes to inventing competitive practice sessions. Send me an email if you need some ideas. When using this type of practice you should use your full pre-shot routine and make every shot as close to an on course shot as possible. Obviously, doing these practice sessions you won't hit as many balls but the intensity levels will be closer to what they would be during a competition. This will help you take your new and improved swing into a competition with confidence.

Until next time,

Brent

My New Website

Well I have finally joined the 21st century and have my own website. I have just finished putting the final touches on my site and it is now up and running and ready to view. You will find the site here and there is also a link to the site on the right hand side of this blog. On the site you will find information about the coaching services I offer, information about my new coaching venue, Golf Science Centre, in Melbourne as well as links to websites explaining the coaching tools we utilise at the Golf Science Centre. You will also find an easy to use Contact Us page and a link to subscribe to my new e-newsletter that will be published shortly. There are links to my facebook page and also links back to this blog. Keep your eye on the site as it will continue to grow.

I will be posting some coaching advice and tips on my blog soon so please come back soon and check out my coaching advice. Also, please feel free to come down to the Golf Science Centre anytime and say hello. I also want to hear from you so don't be afraid to drop me an email, post a comment here or contact me through my new website.

Until Next Time,

Brent

Australian Amateur 2010

In March this year, four players in the Taiwan National Squad (two boys, two girls) that I used to coach travelled to Perth for the Australian Amateur Championship. This event is held over four rounds of stroke play on Cottesloe Golf Club for the girls and Lake Karrinyup and Mount Lawley Golf Club for the boys. The top 32 players from the stroke play championship qualify to play knockout matchplay to determine the Australian Amateur Champion. Last year, Tsai Pei Ying was runner up in this event so I was hoping that one of these four could go one better this year.

Let me talk about the girls championship first. The two players playing were Yi Chen Liu and Hsuan Yu Yao and both of these girls worked very hard when I was in Taiwan and improved a lot so I was hopeful that they would play well. They both played solidly in the stroke play section with Yi Chen Liu shooting rounds of 71, 72, 72 and 73 to finish equal second and Hsuan Yu Yao scoring 74, 73, 73 and 74 to finish in equal sixth place. I was proud of their good scores as they both qualified easily but was also disappointed to realise that they were both in the same quarter of the match play draw. This meant that they would play each other in the quarter final if they both won their early matches.

As I feared would happen, both of the girls won their first two matches and faced each other in the quarter final. This was good, in a way, for Taiwan golf as at least one player would be in the semi-final but it would have been nicer to see them playing off against each other in the final. In a close fought match Hsuan Yu Yao prevailed in the match 2 up and progressed to the semi final. In this match she met the eventual champion, Stacey Keating, and was unfortunately beaten. I am extremely proud of both girls and I know they will use the experience to further improve and progress their golf.

In the boys championship the two boys from Taiwan competing were Chien Yao Hung and Chi Hsien Hsieh. Unfortunately, with stroke play scores of 69, 78, 71 and 80 Chi Hsien Hsieh missed out on qualifying for the matchplay by two strokes. With a disapointing last round of 80 I hope he will learn from the experience and be a better player. Chien Yao Hung played solidly during the strokeplay and qualified in 20th place for the matchplay by shooting scores of 71, 71, 77 and 72.

After a tight first round where he won on the 21st hole he won his next two matches by the comfortable margins of 5 & 4 and 5 & 3. These results placed him in the semi-final against Matt Jager. After a tough and tight match Chien Yao Hung was beaten on the last hole. It was close all day and I was proud that Chien Yao Hung played so well and was only just beaten by the eventual champion.

Overall, the trip to Perth was beneficial to all players and I am sure they learnt a lot during the tournament.

Until next time,

Brent

Riverside Oaks

The company I work for in China, Nanshan, has just purchased the Riverside Oaks golf course in western Sydney. It was privately owned prior to Nanshan's purchase and Nanshsan have some big plans for the development of the golf course and surrounding area.

Since Christmas some of my students from the golf school in China have been staying at Riverside Oaks with me and we have been training and seeing the sights of Sydney. It has been great to get out of the cold and snow of China and do some training in the sun and warmth of January in Australia. We have been covering all areas of golf with training involving long game practice, short game practice, putting, on course, fitness training and I have also introduced some eye/vision exercises and training for the students. We have had a lot of fun and the kids have worked hard as well.

As well as the golf training the students have had an opportunity to explore some of the sights of Sydney and I have attempted to introduce them to Australian culture, customs and food. They seem to like BBQ and they think the koalas and kangaroos are cute but they are a little scared of the spiders and they are disgusted with the taste of Vegemite! Tomato sauce gets mixed reviews but overall they are enjoying their time in Australia.

The students had a chance to touch and pet a kangaroo and koala and we took a speed boat ride on Sydney Harbour which they all loved and returned from in a very wet state! We visited the Sydney Aquarium and went sight seeing around Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House. We are heading to the beach this weekend to give them a taste of an Aussie beach before they head home to China. They are a little scared of sharks but I am sure they will enjoy the sun, sand and surf.

We are here until the 5th of February when the students will head back to China for Chinese New Year and I will head to Melbourne for a month of leave. I am looking forward to the break, catching up with friends and clients and heading back to China in March ready to work hard with my students.

Until next time,

Brent