Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 435 i Today's Golfer

Jon Rahm is unusual among tour pros. Not because he's a Major champion, or a former world No.1. He's slightly strange because of the unique way Callaway make his clubs. Rahm plays with a lot of spin and a lot of loft (he delofts the club at impact with a bowed left wrist), so requires his set to have lofts that would be considered weak by modern standards, and stock maybe 20 years ago. It starkly illustrates why fitting is so important these days. Getting the right clubs to suit your game has never been easier. Fitting tools such as launch monitors and adjustable heads have never been better, or more widely accessible. Today's pros are well versed in what average golfers need. And there's never been more choice (clubs,…

“We are thrilled to announce that we will be welcoming a new member of our family. Thank you all for so much support and love.” Seven-time Major winner and the 2016 Olympic gold medallist Inbee Park announcing she is pregnant with her first child. She hasn't played an LPGA event since the AIG Women's Open at Muirfield last August. “Stand on that bridge, start waving, and everyone goes, ‘So, is that it?’ Yeah, it is. It would have been a glorious way to go. That was the time for Tiger to say, ‘Okay, I bow out’.” Should Tiger Woods have said goodbye to the game at the Home of Golf last summer? Colin Montgomerie certainly thinks so… “This is just a little bit of pain and it's game time. We go out…

GET IN TOUCH As well as email (editorial@todays-golfer.com) and post (Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough, PE2 6EA), you can contact us using any of these social platforms… @Thetodaysgolfer @TodaysGolferBauer @Todaysgolfer @Todaysgolfer PING® LETTER OF THE MONTH WINS… A BRAND-NEW PING PUTTER RRP £250 MARVELLING AT THE MATCH What a fantastic program last month's The Match was, in which Tiger and Rory took on Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth. It showed four world-class golfers having a great game of golf and a great time. The commentary and banter added to the game and it was nice to see the relaxed, human side of the four players involved, rather than the serious side we usually see. If golf could be more like that, instead of always so deadly serious, I do feel…

YOU WANT MORE DISTANCE Forward-weighted drivers have been a thing since TaylorMade introduced the SLDR in 2013. The SLDR introduced golfers to the extra ball speed and lower spin (which at above average swing speeds lead to more distance) on offer when weight is positioned closer to the driver's face. Today's forward-weighted drivers are predominantly called low-spin drivers; they tend to best fit higher speed/spin players. With more weight stacked behind the face, expect a little less forgiveness (Ping say their more forgiving G430 Max offers nearly 11% more MOI than the lower spinning G430 LST), which means players choosing low-spin models shouldn't spray shots around the face too much. Beware of unscrupulous fitters who guide golfers towards low-spin heads as they do add ball speed and distance on a…

YOU WANT PLAYERS’ IRONS This year, brands have started referring to players’ irons as ‘Muscle Cavity’ and ‘Tour Cavity’ models, and club engineers have no-one other than low single-figure handicappers in mind when designing this category. Better player irons have smaller heads, less offset, narrower soles and thinned down top lines. Any cavity back will be small, and thanks to the reduced size, weight positioned around the head perimeter is closer to the centre of gravity, which makes it easier to shape shots (remember, bad shots go further offline, too), while being naturally less forgiving. Less offset moves the centre of gravity forwards, which produces a lower ball flight, and expect the weakest lofts -so if distance is a priority, you really are looking in the wrong category. YOU WANT…

A former tour champion, Pete Cowen reinvented himself as one of the most in-demand teaching professionals in the game. His work with Rory, Henrik Stenson and Brooks Koepka has seen him amass well over 250 PGA Tour victories and multiple Majors. Here he presents his 10 short game commandments… 1 Don't swing to stay in balance, swing in balance. If you watch someone who hits it down the middle all the time, they swing within themselves, finish perfectly in balance, and can hold that position for 20 seconds. Most golfers can't do that because their mechanics aren't good enough. 2 The swing is like a spiral movement. If you want to create a little torque in the body, which is where the power comes from, you need to do more…

QUICK TIP CUSHION THE BLOW With your club's greens unlikely to be in the best condition at this time of year, it makes sense to bring your putting practice indoors. Remove your shoes, throw two cushions onto a carpeted floor and take your putting stance on them, as shown. Hit 10 putts while standing on the cushions. This spongy stance makes it harder than usual for you to establish a stable address and a solid strike. With your balance challenged, you must work harder than usual to build that all-important stable base for the stroke. Now step off on to the floor and hit another five putts. Once back on solid ground, you'll be amazed how stable you feel over the putt… and how consistent your striking becomes. YOUR COACH…

1 Set-up: Match the slope Whatever your stance, set your spine at right angles to the slope to help find the right attack angle. Balance on your lead foot and play the ball just inside the lead instep. Hold the club at the base of the grip to promote wrist cock and avoid hitting the back lip. 2 Backswing: Pick it up That back lip will dictate what is possible here, but chances are you'll need a quick and early wrist cock to avoid it. Leaning with the slope and gripping down the handle will help you, but make plenty of backswings to find a path that leaves plenty of margin for error. 3 Strike: Downward blow, stay low We need a steep attack to miss the back lip, so…

One of the most common - and damaging - swing traits we see is golfers coming out of posture during the swing. Of course we create a spine angle at address, and the most efficient swingers rotate around it. But tightness through the shoulders, chest and spine can restrict the mobility we need to do this, causing us to lift up out of posture to get the club back to the top. Let me demonstrate an easy way to stretch out these tight areas. Ideally you will use a resistance band as I am here… but if you just repeat the moves with arms stretched out, you will notice a change for the better. Always consult your GP before adopting any new fitness regimen. YOUR COACH NATALIE LOWE TPI Level…

GOLF WORLD TOP 100 My first memory of the game may have been watching the Masters, around 1978 I imagine. But it is very hazy! I do think watching the Masters at Augusta made quite an impression on me, whether it was my first memory or not. The Masters gets a bad press for giving golfers false expectations of how perfect their own courses should be, but I believe the tournament and course have inspired a lot of people to start playing the game. I started playing by going to Colnbrook driving range near Heathrow. My mum worked at the airport, so I would be dropped off there and hit balls. That led to playing the par 3 course in the middle of Sandown Park racecourse, and at nearby Moore…

BARE MY SOUL THOMAS BJORN What has been your closest brush with death? I fell out of a tree when I was about six years old. I didn't quite make it to the ground, though. The collar of my jumper got caught on a branch as I fell and was actually strangling me. If my brother hadn't been there to help me, I'm not sure what would have happened. I'm glad I never got to find out, though. For a few seconds I could hardly breathe. That was a very scary moment. What is your earliest memory? I can vaguely remember things about the first house I lived in with my family. I can definitely remember my bedroom. I would have been about three or four at that time. What is…

YOU WANT LESS SPIN Low-spin fairways have weight located low behind the face which, when hit on a launch monitor, will give faster ball speeds. Low-spin fairways should find their way into the hands of higher swing speed players and those who have no issues flighting and peaking out fairway wood shots to a decent height from the turf. FORGIVENESS Because modern golf balls spin less, fairway woods are the most difficult clubs in the bag to hit. The vast majority of club golfers should look at wider body, more forgiving models and consider slightly higher loft high-launch heads, too. Both will help maximise carry distance at reasonable speeds. EXTRA LAUNCH/DRAW BIAS Golfers with swing speeds below or approaching average (92mph with a driver) are likely to benefit from lighter,…

If you're looking for more distance off the tee, look no further than to the man who has fine-tuned the swings of Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka, grandson of Claude, son of Butch. And though you may laugh, take heed when he says you have more in common with DJ and Brooks than you may realise. There are parallels between what I might coach a tour pro and a mid-to-high handicapper. There have been times with Brooks where he's been happy with how he's hitting the ball and he's said, “I don't need a lot this week. I'm swinging really good. Just make sure my lines are good.” By his lines he means his basics, making sure his grip, stance, posture, and alignment are all good. And what applies to…

An apprentice to the great ‘Putting Doctor’ Harold Swash, Phil Kenyon doesn't get the plaudits his CV warrants. Though he keeps a relatively low-profile, since taking on his first client in 2008 - one Henrik Stenson - Kenyon has forged a reputation as the go-to guy putting coach among the world's best players. Rory McIlroy Francesco Molinari, Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood have all enlisted his expertise and the softly spoken Lancastrian has to limit who he works with. Despite the demand, he was happy to give TG an insight into his teaching methods and share his expertise. Better still, as he explains here, any player of any standard can reap instant rewards by following his advice. “Putting is one area of the game where you can make a big…

YOUR COACH GARETH JOHNSTON PGA Head Professional at Bishopswood GC, Hants www.garethjohnstongolt.com Consistency is a quality every golfer covets. Yet even as we pursue it, it's important to be realistic. From Rory down, no golfer is immune from hitting a destructive golf shot. As far as golf goes, genuine consistency remains a myth… and chasing it a fool's errand. There is, though, a far healthier spin we can put on consistency; we can set out to hit fewer bad shots. While that may sound like semantics, an acceptance that bad shots will happen is what keeps a golfer sane. It's also what will allow you to hold true to the four technical elements we cover here when things aren't quite going to plan. Make a commitment to stick with them…

Arguably golf's most common and most damaging swing pattern, the over-thetop downswing move is responsible for the slice that afflicts 90 percent of club golfers. If you want to stop this pattern ruining your game, you'll need a fuller understanding of what causes it… and a squeaky dog toy! Here's how they fit into your four-stage plan for banishing this harmful motion. 1. Understand the shot When coaches talk about over-thetop, we are referring mostly to the trail shoulder. Ideally its movement will be delayed before it rotates downward during the downswing; in the OTT pattern it moves early and remains high, moving more outward than down. This sends the club outside its ideal, neutral swing path, promoting a slicing swipe across the ball. 2. Start from the ground Over-the-top…

14.1 DEGREES On the PGA Tour, the best golfers in the world are striking their 6-irons an average of 183 yards with a 92mph clubhead speed. Impressive for sure, but of more relevance to us is their typical 14.1° launch angle. Launch angle - the angle the ball rises off the face relative to the horizontal - is closely related to the clubface's dynamic or impact loft. The typical 6-iron is designed with 28-30° of loft, but according to TrackMan the average PGA Tour pro is delivering around 10° less than this - 20.2° - at impact. This is what allows such a strong launch angle. The average club golfer, in contrast, delivers a launch angle much closer to the designed loft of the club. Delofting the face on iron…

PLAY BETTER BREAK 100/90/80 BREAK 100 Improve aim, improve accuracy. If you want to understand the difference in approach between woods and irons, consider the target. With approach shots, our target shrinks from an expansive fairway to an elusive green; consequently, our focus shifts from power to accuracy. Yes, that offers the potential for a more compact and controlled action: but for the golfer looking to break too, the initial mission is to make sure you have your basics under control… and that means aim. THE TRUE SOURCE OF ACCURACY There are two parts of your swing that are fundamental to hitting a straight golf sho: the path of the swing at impact, and the aim of the clubface at the point of strike. Finding the target is all about creating…

ALEC ROBERTS The 12-year-old from Mendip Golf Club in Somerset defied odds of 67-million-to-one by notching not one. but two holes-in-one in the same round. It's probably a good job he's not old enough to get the drinks in yet. NICK MARSH The Fixby pro joined the 59 Club on the Laranjal course at Quinta do Lago in Portugal, coming home in 28 after reeling off eight threes, including an eagle on the last. That's some way to finish! SCOTT VINCENT After topping the International Series Order of Merit, the Zimbabwean has booked his place in LIV Golf for 2023. He's also guaranteed he'll triple his earnings from the Asian Tour in 2022. even if he finishes last in every event. LIV GOLF LOSSES The breakaway Saudi-funded circuit could lose…

World No.5 Jon Rahm is no gear junkie. He knows what he wants. He knows what he likes. And when he finds something that fits his game, he'll stick with it. “I'm the last person to talk about lofts and shaft specs, because I never ask for details on the club,” he explains. “I just hit the ball, give feedback and feel what's best for me. I just want a long driver that's very forgiving.” He first saw Callaway's Paradym driver in November, and a full fitting took place just before Christmas. In between, we spoke to Johnny Wunder, Callaway's Tour Content Manager, who frequently sits down with the company's staff players to talk gear and who spoke to Rahm about his 2023 options. As Wunder explains… lives in 2,100-2,900rpm…

YOU WANT THE HEAD SHAPE THAT BEST SUITS YOUR GAME Compact Compact models are designed for golfers who hit down on hybrids like an iron and engage the turf. Often, better players suit narrow body, compact hybrids, as they're the players who have the extra club speed needed to square the less offset heads at impact. Expect a slightly narrower head shape, a more neutral shot bias, and a slightly lower, less spinny ball flight. Wide body The whole idea of hybrids is replacing difficult-to-hit long irons, so it's imperative you launch hybrids higher and more consistently than you would a typical 3, 4 and 5-iron. With slightly wider soles and rounder heads, wide body hybrids best suit golfers who hit hybrids like fairway woods, where shots are swept off…

YOU WANT ADDED STABILITY Stability has been talked about for years with driver and iron shafts, but focus has now switched to putters. Odyssey's Stroke Lab steel and graphite shaft has been around since 2019, and research shows it improves the consistency of many stroke metrics. With 22 steel wires inside their M16 graphite/steel putter shaft, PXG say it's 26% stiffer (in the butt section) than a regular steel putter shaft, which gives more ball speed consistency and reduced side spin, no matter where putts hit the face. If you're thinking about buying your ultimate flatstick in 2023, don't neglect to factor in stability shafts. YOU WANT FORGIVENESS AND ALIGNMENT HELP With putting making up 40% of the game, getting a head that suits your stroke and an alignment aid…

His coaching resume includes world No.1s Tiger Woods and Justin Rose, his reputation for approaching the game from a slightly different angle precedes him. Here, the Canadian zeroes in on improving your iron play. A lot of my coaching focuses on alignment and ball position. That stuff is vital because the ball is just sitting still. You can stand to it in a way that gives you a mechanical advantage to leverage power and accuracy. In golf, so many people aim right, get the ball position too far forward and then try to get the ball back to the target. One thing we are always focused on is making sure everything is neutral. It's not very sexy, but it helps with consistency and competency. With any iron, the ball position…

Bob Rotella is the world's foremost sports psychologist and author of the best-selling sports psychology book of all time; Golf Is Not A Game Of Perfect. He has worked with the likes of Darren Clarke, Padraig Harrington, and Rory McIlroy to deliver more than 300 PGA Tour titles and more than 70 Majors. The key to better performances, he says, is to control your fears and doubts and quieten the mind. “I believe that it's impossible to overestimate the importance of the mind in golf,” he explains. “Despite what you will have heard, there is no such thing as ‘muscle memory’, because your muscles have no capacity to remember anything. Memory resides in your head, so no matter how long you practise and no matter how skilled you become, your…

YOUR COACH 1 The aim of your feet, knees, hips and shoulders has a direct influence on the path of your swing… and, as a consequence, the success of your shot. But while crucial, alignment is also famously hard to selfpolice, which is why tour pros are constantly asking coaches to check theirs. But here is a foolproof way you can get a grip on at least part of the story. 2 Find a fairway bunker around 100 yards from the green. Set up to the ball, and take what you feel is dead aim at the pin. Now step out of the bunker and use your footprints to check the aim of your feet, relative to the target line. Use clubshafts or alignment sticks to help. Remember, your feet, hips and…

Your approach shot has found the sand… but only just. The ball has barely trickled into the bunker, leaving you with an awkward stance and the prospect of not one but two bunker lips to deal with. While you'd be unlucky to wind up in this situation, it can and does happen; and unless you have a sound strategy in place to deal with it, it has the capacity to derail your entire round. Let's take a look at the key changes you need to make to your set-up and swing. HIT DOWN… WITH HAND ACTION With the back lip ruling out any backswing width, you have no option but to employ a steep and narrow swing arc… but the need for quick height also mandates plenty of hand action…

I hate to break this to you, but you will never be in total control of the golf ball. I'm sorry, but there it is. The only good news here is that you're in some very good company - Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus, to name but two. But there is one part of the game where you can have complete control. It is what I call the ‘Post-shot phase’ of golf - what happens after the ball is struck - and it is the part that may well have the biggest effect on your game. Consider this. If you could play your golf in a state of equanimity - whereby you accepted whatever the ball did and went ahead and executed a perfect routine on the next shot -…