I have decided the biggest problem for my golf score is the wrong game around the green. For some reason I don have putting yips I have short pitching and chipping yips. I literally am at times playing ping pong from one side of the green to the other.

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That's frustrating, mike.

I like the Wedge Guy on GolfWRX: http://www.golfwrx.com/557462/the-wedge ... uld-carry/

One lesson should be able to get you on the right track. Are your hands ahead of the ball at impact? Are you accelerating through the shot? Are you relying too much on your arms and not turning your hips?

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Sex isn't dirty, sex isn't a crime. It's a loving act between two or more consenting adults.

-Hank Kingsley

I will watch that this morning. Yes on the hands but I have seen other videos say don't do it.

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Elections have consequences.

the easiest advice is that you should use your putter around the green as much as you can.


As for chipping around the green advice (the one area I've always been solid at), it's all about striking the ball in the right spot. Swing speed should be very slow compared to other shots, no need to ever swing fast around the green on short chips. Basically, take your time and focus on striking the back of the ball on the down swing. Distance will be adjusted based on the size of your backswing and never based on speeding up your swing. Much harder to strike the ball correct if you are swinging fast.

Also, learn a bump and run shot with your 8 iron. Much less margin of error since its more of a sweeping swing as opposed to a steeper chip/pitch shot swing.


In general you should be going with a putter when you can followed by a bump and run shot and then as a last resort a pitch/chip shot in terms of order of preference based on degree of difficulty.

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Context is everything, mike. The ping-pong thing with the wedges around the green should be a pretty quick fix. Watch Seve or Olazabal and the way they shift their weight forward and get the right hip through the shot.

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Sex isn't dirty, sex isn't a crime. It's a loving act between two or more consenting adults.

-Hank Kingsley

A couple seasons ago, I had the same problem, Mike. Furious watched me for about 40 seconds, and immediately saw that I was all arms and wasn't using my lower body at all on chips. Obviously you don't need a giant hip turn like when you use a driver, but there should be a little bit of leg and lower body turn with the chips. He basically fixed me right away. It might be something as simple as that. If you are friendly with a much better player, have them watch you for a couple minutes and they may be able to spot something right off.




Two Thursdays ago, I played the front 9 at Coyote Run before storms cut my round short. Shot a 41, with a 7 on the 9th hole. It was my best 'nine' start to finish in over two years. Birdied the 1st and the 8th, while hitting the absolute hell out of my driver.

Friday I shot 42-45 at Inwood in Joliet. It was the first time ever that I went an 18 hole round without a three putt. I hit 8 GIR and my proximity was probably the best its ever been. A wasted shot into a tree, a lost ball on a par 5 (two terrible mental mistakes), and a flubbed chip is what kept me from low 80s, or possibly even a 79 as I was playing that well. My best round start to finish in over three years. The driver continued to be one of the best clubs in my bag. On the 13/14th hole, a par 5 along a road at the back of the course, there was a fairway bunker that was 284 yards out from the tee box (according to the scorecard). I carried it by a pretty good margin. (proceeded to duff my next shot into a creek rather than just hit 7 iron, wedge into the green. Oh well). Really pleased with the way my game has come around over the last 2-3 weeks.

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Yeah Frank I can see the turn thing. Last week I watched a video with a pro that actually turned his feet left after addressing the ball to force follow through. can't find it now.

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A handful of guys at my club have gone with the Square Strike around the greens. They all seem to like it.

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Isn’t is essentially like a 9 iron or is there more to it than that?

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Looks to be a bit of a hybrid of that and a putter.

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I looked at their site and a review. The shape angle is more upright like a putter or chipper but with a 45 degree angle?

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Elections have consequences.

Probably close to that. I haven't asked to "swing" it to look at it up close. Next time I play with one of those guys I will and report back.

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maybe I shouldn't be giving chipping advice. I missed the ball completely on a short chip tonight in golf league. Been trying a new short game swing (less steep) since late last year. Tonight, hit the ground about 8 inches behind the ball and my club bounced right over the ball. Impressive.



On the plus side tonight was my first shank free 9 hole round all season. Also this year I'm hitting the driver better than I ever have. Tonight might've been my best yet....hit every fairway except one and mostly with nice draws. Only fairway I missed was draw that leaked off the fairway which is a miss I never complain about. Anything left I never get mad about no matter where it ends up.

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I should have also reported that I had another round Sunday without losing a ball. I have found the basic Vice balls have met my needs and then some.

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Elections have consequences.

Day 1 of a tournament today. Good news is I played well and shot a 78. Bad news is that got me in the A Flight...last place. I'm a B Flight player, dammit!

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Golf lesson tomorrow with Todd Sones. Playing my first 18 hole round of the year Saturday at Shepherd's Crook.

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Tell Todd that you have a friend that was Tim Jankowski's neighbor at the Townhouse. Tim was trained under Todd.

First round of the year on Friday at Steeple Chase. Hoping to be below 110.

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@audioidkid

You ever hear anything? I think $90 bucks is too much but it looks useful.

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Elections have consequences.

My mom is in town and we are playing tomorrow. Looking forward to a low pressure round and trying to figure out what I’ve been doing wrong the past few weeks.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Moms fix everything.

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Sex isn't dirty, sex isn't a crime. It's a loving act between two or more consenting adults.

-Hank Kingsley

Had a great lesson with Todd Sones yesterday. Took him one swing to figure out what I was doing wrong. I was bent over the ball way too much and I can't stop opening the club face on takeaway. So he now basically has me trying to swing like Jim Furyk. He has me with much better posture and spine angle. And he has me trying to actively close the face of the club on takeaway while bringing the club up away from my body....then he has me trying to turn and drop the club and bring it through the ball inside to out. Pretty much the same outside in loop that Furyk does.


That's how desperate things are....he has me trying to imitate the guy with one of the oddest swings on tour.


Went out and played the front 9 at White Deer Run after the lesson and started out slow with a quad and some other crap, but overall had 5 pars and went 1 over the final 4 holes with the only bogey being from a 40 foot 3 putt. Finished with a 46/no shanks. My lowest score in over a month.

Golf league tonight and it's play your own ball, both scores count. Not the best format for trying a new swing.

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78 with nothing worse than a bogey. Some bad swings. 4 balls in bunkers and no sand saves. 3 over on par 5s. Still, it was progress. A chance I'll get to Pine Meadow after work on Friday to try to groove the iron play. I hit all 7 fairways on back nine which was helpful. I need confidence and a system to solid iron play. A process.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

As crisp as my last two rounds where, that is as sloppy as my most recent round was. 51-51 last week at a soggy Sanctuary. Other than a couple of solid drives on the front 9, just could not get anything together. Chunked a couple irons, four 3-putts, topped a couple drives, a real mess. Outside of parring three of the par 3's, I generally just played like an idiot. Probably not playing this week, but I might try and get to the range to hit a bucket and work on some chipping which has been positively dreadful for me this season.

Hoping the recent somewhat dry period will help these courses out. The rough has been terrible to hit out of most times because its so thick.

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48 in golf league, I suck. It's real simple...I can hit driver, 8i and anything higher than that. Can't hit any club 7i or longer except driver. And I can barely walk today because of low back pain.


Saturday at Shepherd's Crook. At this point Vegas has the following prop bet. What is more likely, I break 100 or I leave after 9 and go home?

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Might be tough to break 100 out there, especially if it’s wet. I’ll be interested to hear how the course is this season. Almost played when my mom was here but I had a free pass for her at my place. Hope you make it through 18 and also break 100. One of my favorite tracks in Northern burbs.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

Have a charity golf thing I gotta do today. Haven’t picked up clubs in 10 months. And I was bad when I put them down. Thank god it’s best ball and Most everyone who goes stinks so it won’t be too embarrassing. The goal is to avoid sun burn and heat issues and stay in single digits of balls lost while laughing at my ineptitude.

And not get tired. Hit balls on the range for the first time in many years yesterday. After twenty or so swings (and a cumulative 500 yards), I was plum tuckered out. Anyway, have fun out there--should be a nice day....

Playing Steeple Chase this morning. It is sure to be a shit show, but I do get to try out my mallet putter on a surface other that wood flooring. Hoping to be below 110, but likely in the teens.

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@audioidkid

Yeah. I’m probably going early to hit a half bucket which is needed but will be tiring.

Got to Shepherd's Crook and re-watched the video from my lesson in the parking lot. Something just clicked cause the lightbulb went off and I started figuring the swing out. 41-45-86 for the day. Hit the irons great. Driver was good not great.

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