OT: Nats, Wiz, O's, Ravens, Terps, Navy, Gtown, Mystics, Golf, Summer 2024 (Paris Olympics 2024 as well)

[CapitalsCupReality]

The running out of beer on Saturday was bush league BS. And they would have run out way sooner if they had properly staffed their concession areas. It was still pro golf in the DC area and I had a good time but the organization was pretty darn poor.

Yup, totally underprepared. Not enough concession options or staff…

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Golfers are 'terrible' at it. A tour player explains how to avoid the mistake — Golf Digest

PGA Tour player Michael S. Kim is quickly rising the ranks as one of the best pro golfer follows on Twitter. He's not just funny and opinionated, but he also sprinkles in some really useful stuff for the rest of us. When the rest of us think about tour players and their beautiful golf swings...

apple.news

So this is interesting…..the topic of “swing thoughts”……and I must say….I have NEVER utilized a swing thought with any consistency, and certainly not like I’m reading PGA Tour player Michael Kim says he (and other Pros) do even on the course. In the Tweet and subsequent replies, he gives up some interesting things…..like….


someone finally asked him his most common one…



I may need to tinker with one swing thought myself now….

 

[kicksavedave]

The only swing thought I use is: "Be the ball Danny"

 

[Ajax1995]

 

[g00n]

Golfers are 'terrible' at it. A tour player explains how to avoid the mistake — Golf Digest

PGA Tour player Michael S. Kim is quickly rising the ranks as one of the best pro golfer follows on Twitter. He's not just funny and opinionated, but he also sprinkles in some really useful stuff for the rest of us. When the rest of us think about tour players and their beautiful golf swings...

apple.news

So this is interesting…..the topic of “swing thoughts”……and I must say….I have NEVER utilized a swing thought with any consistency, and certainly not like I’m reading PGA Tour player Michael Kim says he (and other Pros) do even on the course. In the Tweet and subsequent replies, he gives up some interesting things…..like….


someone finally asked him his most common one…



I may need to tinker with one swing thought myself now….

Kim's advice is pretty standard: "have one simple swing thought". Some guys really can hold several at a time. Nicklaus claimed he could have 5-6 at once. But most people aren't Jack Nicklaus.

Maybe the best argument for concentrating on the shot as opposed to just wandering around the course in a daze and hoping things will work out is Bobby Jones' warning against "mental daisy picking".

My tinkering with the swing and flitting from one swing thought or multiple thoughts to another is the shit of legends. I've tried it all. The temptation to experiment is strong and I'll often change during a round to see what works vs what doesn't. This isn't great for scoring but it seems useful, up to a point. Never grooving the same things day to day leads to a vicious cycle of trial and error.

But overall I believe swing thoughts are useful for a few reasons we've probably discussed.

One is just distraction from things that can harm your swing. If you're focusing on one thing you're not focusing on the million other things that can f*** you up. Bad thinking produces bad shots more often than not.

Another reason for having a swing thought is obviously focusing on something you DO need to control, or that makes your swing more effective. But this tends to wear off with time and it's probably related to both novelty (including the distraction/focus factor) but also the tendency of bad habits to creep in while you're over-relying on one specific thing and no longer paying attention to something else.

For example if you use "weight transfer" like Kim does at times then maybe you end up lunging, and maybe your neural pathways that were controlling your release start losing their automation. Maybe you have to start paying more attention the clubface than before. But then you have issues with path or something else.

And so on to infinity.

This is why Snead played with whatever thought he found on the range before the round and Miller said they expire after about 3 weeks. But Byron Nelson went through his win streak just thinking about pointing the back of his left hand at the target at impact. So who the hell knows.

Personally I believe swing thoughts that are not only simple but tuned to your particular learning or performance style are best (auditory, visual, or kinesthetic). I would say actually hearing the words in your mind counts as auditory even if it's describing a kinesthetic action unless you really feel that action beforehand. Truly kinesthetic swing thoughts are remembered or rehearsed feelings. Visual should be obvious.

And I would say the long-term or general effectiveness of any swing thought is related to how close it is to a fundamental movement, how much it frees your mind to perform everything else on autopilot, and how sound it is with regard to the actual physics of the golf swing and ballflight laws.

What I mean by this is if you think "Full shoulder turn" for some reason then that's probably going to work for a little while depending on how key that move is to your own swing, because it's not really likely to improve your accuracy on its own other than freeing your mind and maybe getting you to turn.

Contrast that with something that allows the clubhead to release from a position inside the swing plane to square, for example, as that's more likely to result in consistent contact than a general feeling of the torso. But if you start overthinking everything else you're doing you'll still hit the ball sideways.

It all depends on how much you've practiced certain moves and shots, and what's more grooved vs what still needs to be consciously managed to some extent.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Interesting response…still digesting.

I’ve always felt like swing thoughts were for the range I guess….on course I’m trying to golf my ball and use good course management.

Ive been doing 2-3 Trackman session a week, tried a swing thought consistently tonight and results were good…will keep on experimenting.

 

[g00n]

Interesting response…still digesting.

I’ve always felt like swing thoughts were for the range I guess….on course I’m trying to golf my ball and use good course management.

Ive been doing 2-3 Trackman session a week, tried a swing thought consistently tonight and results were good…will keep on experimenting.

Zero swing thoughts is ideal but it's hard to sustain in my experience. These were Moe Norman's thoughts, supposedly. He had various feels he would anchor but he rehearsed the same things millions of times, too. He believed the clubhead stayed square and down the line 22 inches past the ball but video shows it didn't really do that, but that's how he felt, for example.

One thing you notice if you watch a video of Moe is he takes one SUPER FAST look at the target and just swings. He used to say he "programmed the computer" meaning he saw the target and imagined either the shot or what he was going to do and just did it. That quick look seemed like kind of a trigger. It's amazing when you watch it and then go try it on the range. How can anyone sight the target and program the swing that f***ing fast??

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Zero swing thoughts is ideal but it's hard to sustain in my experience. These were Moe Norman's thoughts, supposedly. He had various feels he would anchor but he rehearsed the same things millions of times, too. He believed the clubhead stayed square and down the line 22 inches past the ball but video shows it didn't really do that, but that's how he felt, for example.

View attachment 714392

One thing you notice if you watch a video of Moe is he takes one SUPER FAST look at the target and just swings. He used to say he "programmed the computer" meaning he saw the target and imagined either the shot or what he was going to do and just did it. That quick look seemed like kind of a trigger. It's amazing when you watch it and then go try it on the range. How can anyone sight the target and program the swing that f***ing fast??

Thanks for these.

So similar to Bob Rotella’s book….look at the target once and swing….I’ve tried that with decent success. Keeps you from hovering over the ball too long/fidgeting with grip/re-grip.

 

[g00n]

Thanks for these.

So similar to Bob Rotella’s book….look at the target once and swing….I’ve tried that with decent success. Keeps you from hovering over the ball too long/fidgeting with grip/re-grip.

I think there's a range of acceptable self-prep over the ball. Moe is on one endpoint. Guys like Sergio in his prime are on the other (omg hit the ball already).

It really depends on the individual's ability (and personality) with regard to getting everything where it needs to be physically and mentally. Too little time and you can hit some careless shots. Too much time and you run the risk of getting stale or becoming overly mechanical due to excess checklisting.


I'm probably somewhat on the fast side but just stepping up and having a look and swinging is usually not enough time for me to really get set up and make sure I have the exact type of shot dialed in, the feel needed for that shot, a stance that takes the lie and slope of the ground into consideration, and the best level of proprioception and aim/face angle awareness required to hit the ball. I'm also over 6ft tall with an extremely long swing and IMO guys with longer limbs kind of need a bit more of a pause to make sure everything is coordinated properly.

But I will say one thing...I do believe it's better to learn to hit the ball far first then dial in the accuracy. Starting out trying to hit it dead straight on every shot is likely to inhibit the swing and make things overly mechanical. Once you're making good contact you can always learn to adjust your path and face angle, though it's not easy.

Per my own calcs there's only about the width of 1/4 of a dimple available across the diameter of a golf ball for your face angle to deviate from your swing path before you start to get a little bit of curve (about 1 degree delta on path vs FA). Stand over a ball and try to see a line that thin from the FA through the ball for an idea of why golf is so f***ing hard. LOL It's about 1/2 the width of a typical sharpie line. That's your margin of error. Good luck!!

 

[Cappy76]

I bit the bullet this year and have been forking over money biweekly for lessons. Last year was in the low to mid 90s to finish. This year staying at 110 lol. Lady has completely ruined anything I had going for me last year by correcting things.

 

[g00n]

I bit the bullet this year and have been forking over money biweekly for lessons. Last year was in the low to mid 90s to finish. This year staying at 110 lol. Lady has completely ruined anything I had going for me last year by correcting things.

That can happen. If you have a lot of bad habits it can take a while for that shit to clear out.

Improvement is generally marked by long plateaus and then sudden breakthroughs.

OTOH if the instructor only has a bunch of students who have never improved even after a few years, maybe look elsewhere.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I bit the bullet this year and have been forking over money biweekly for lessons. Last year was in the low to mid 90s to finish. This year staying at 110 lol. Lady has completely ruined anything I had going for me last year by correcting things.

Yeah don’t get disheartened….often it has to get worse before it gets better with a golf swing.

You trust her as a coach? If not, shop around.

In my limited experience with PGA teaching pros, most will not try to change your swing a ton, but tweak a few things to make what you have better. Now if you went to her and said I want my swing to look like Adam Scott, then a total reconstruction would also cause that type of regression before you get better again. Only time I’ve experienced a big regression to eventually get better was when changing my grip to interlocking.

I would loooove a regular swing coach, but boy do you need the right personality mix that’s kinda hard to find.

 

[Cappy76]

That can happen. If you have a lot of bad habits it can take a while for that shit to clear out.

Improvement is generally marked by long plateaus and then sudden breakthroughs.

OTOH if the instructor only has a bunch of students who have never improved even after a few years, maybe look elsewhere.

Na it’s not her it’s 100% me her credentials were pretty legit and she also works with the University of Kentucky team so she knows what she’s doing. She’s been all over the place it seems. Just has completely broken down my swing and rebuilding has been a pain. Add to it lots of rain out here keeping me off the course, work, and kids after school extracurriculars and ive not been able to really spend as much time on it as I should.

 

[g00n]

Na it’s not her it’s 100% me her credentials were pretty legit and she also works with the University of Kentucky team so she knows what she’s doing. She’s been all over the place it seems. Just has completely broken down my swing and rebuilding has been a pain. Add to it lots of rain out here keeping me off the course, work, and kids after school extracurriculars and ive not been able to really spend as much time on it as I should.

Ah, right. I would say if you can't put in at least 5-10hrs a week when working on a swing change it's going to be difficult to get anything to really click.

If you can manage to find that much time through the rest of the summer to work on a set program you might see some significant improvement by Fall.

 

[Cappy76]

Ah, right. I would say if you can't put in at least 5-10hrs a week when working on a swing change it's going to be difficult to get anything to really click.

If you can manage to find that much time through the rest of the summer to work on a set program you might see some significant improvement by Fall.

Yea that’s the plan schools out and the weather has been looking good. Last year I was getting out 3-5 times a week and playing 18. Got to get back into playing as much as I was while also going to the lessons with her.

 

[TRASHCAT]

miami looks like midgets next to the nuggets

 

[g00n]

PGA Tour winner kicked out of $30K Calcutta after he signed up under abbreviated name

Holmes was recognized by the club's owner.

sports.yahoo.com

LOL JB wtf r u doin

 

[g00n]

Do Tour Players Use The Same Clubs As Recreational Golfers?

Are the clubs we buy the same as those in the bags of Tiger, Rory, Rahm & co? We spoke to a club fitter who works with DP World Tour players to find out

www.yahoo.com

This is interesting because there used to be a much larger gap in pro gear vs amateur gear, at least 10-20 years ago.

Modularity advancements that evolved due to the constant raiding of tour vans made it to retail and now there are very few "tour only" components because they're no longer needed.

Scotty Cameron Circle Ts will likely keep up their usual pace because of the prestige and exclusivity involved, but "tour only" driver heads and shafts seem to be all but gone.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Report: Nats' Strasburg has severe nerve damage

Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg has "severe nerve damage," according to a report by The Washington Post on Saturday.

www.espn.com

you don’t say….


pretty brutal that his contract wasn’t insured because it would haven been too expensive IF they could have found a company willing….

 

[usiel]

Report: Nats' Strasburg has severe nerve damage

Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg has "severe nerve damage," according to a report by The Washington Post on Saturday.

www.espn.com

you don’t say….


pretty brutal that his contract wasn’t insured because it would haven been too expensive IF they could have found a company willing….

After that article late last year was pretty clear he was done. Stras just focus on your physical health post MLB career.

 

[Ridley Simon]

Strass did his job. He brought DC a baseball championship, which was a looooong time coming

 

[marcel snapshot]

Thanks for these.

So similar to Bob Rotella’s book….look at the target once and swing….I’ve tried that with decent success. Keeps you from hovering over the ball too long/fidgeting with grip/re-grip.

I’m finding this useful when chipping. The more time spent over a chip, the less the shot is executed fluidly.

<<For example if you use "weight transfer" like Kim does at times then maybe you end up lunging, and maybe your neural pathways that were controlling your release start losing their automation>>

This is me - weight transfer swing thoughts inhibit transfer of my weight. That has to happen naturally for me as a by-product of something else (pause, so tore and release or left shoulder to the sky)

 

[g00n]

I’m finding this useful when chipping. The more time spent over a chip, the less the shot is executed fluidly.

<<For example if you use "weight transfer" like Kim does at times then maybe you end up lunging, and maybe your neural pathways that were controlling your release start losing their automation>>

This is me - weight transfer swing thoughts inhibit transfer of my weight. That has to happen naturally for me as a by-product of something else (pause, so tore and release or left shoulder to the sky)

Here's a brutal example on the Sergio side, this time notorious slow play lightning rod Patrick Cantlay from a few years ago.




Wrt swing thoughts I tend to go back and forth between face angle and clubhead path thoughts more than any others, with a few other body or misc thoughts making appearances from time to time. The focus can be as precise as a spot on the ball or as distant as something beyond the target itself. I don't like the fleeting nature of these things so I'm always looking for something to hang my hat on, which may ultimately be a fruitless and all too common pursuit.

Right now I'm trying to consciously get to a good position right before release and then allow the release to happen on its own, including squaring the face. There's a feeling associated with this that's elusive and difficult to bottle, like finding the zone. The more you try to grab it the more it disappears. So the "secret" seems to be in dialing it up and letting it happen with some kind of guiding gestalt in the subconscious.

This is what Tiger and others seem to mean when they talk about "trust your swing". Micromanagement never works for very long and on average it's better to automate as much as possible. But being on autopilot doesn't mean you'll stay on course. A little change to stance or lie or the effort to add or subtract power can disrupt timing and other mechanics. So an anchor is needed.

I've found you can get away with micromanaging all this sometimes but day to day it won't hold up. There are just too many muscles and variables involved that can disrupt each other. For example trying to control the face angle consciously may call up slight finger or wrist muscle actions that cause you change the path at the last instant. Not to mention the effect of the arms and body on both.

Having an active mind is a curse in golf but playing totally blank isn't great if you don't have something in the background guiding what you're doing.

The trick seems to be programming and then trusting that background ability. A lot of golf psyche gurus say routine is the solution to this problem but IMO that's another band-aid. It's very possible to have a flawless routine and still get weird with your swing. That's just the nature of the human body and mind.

The Rotella example of shooting free throws probably remains the best analogy. You have a sense of the goal and target by seeing the basket but also a routine and hours of muscle memory to guide you. You're directing the action but at the same time not micromanaging it because the latter always inhibits smooth execution of learned movements.

Every person who's golfed for a little while has had the experience of "how did I do that?" either on the range or on the course. Not knowing might actually be the way. The act of trying to think through it might uncover a few things to work on but is deadly if it becomes a habit on every swing.

Even Ben Hogan said he never tried to square the face or think about the release. I think he called it folly because it happens so fast. Nobody had the granular control of every part of their swing like Hogan did. And you can see from this video of him executing his swing in excruciating slow motion taken late in his life that once he got to the release, it was its own thing:



Anyway f*** this analysis paralysis. I have thousands of pages on this shit. Time to rack up and hit the range...

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

Nats have been playing decent. I had to stop betting against them every day lol

 

[marcel snapshot]

I played ultimate frisbee for several decades, a few years of which were played at a pretty, high competitive level. And, like most good ulti players, I had a good forehand wrist flick and overhead hammer to complement the conventional backhand throw. People would ask how much of a good full-field forehand huck is in the wrist and how much is in the forearm - and the answer from me would be I have no real idea. But I know how to doubt from having honed it for a long, long time. Haven't really go there with certain parts of the golf game, but still striving