The 2nd Cut Newsletter: Edition #46
Breaking Through, Bill Parcells, 7-Woods, 3-Putts, Trackman Data for the Pros, Shane Lowry Short Game and Poll of the Week
“You are what your record says you are.” - Bill Parcells
📰 Edition #46 📰
Welcome back to The 2nd Cut Newsletter!
📫 In today’s Newsletter:
Breaking Through, Bill Parcells, 7-Woods, 3-Putts, Trackman Data for the Pros, Shane Lowry Short Game and Poll of the Week
Breaking Through
I vividly remember a few years back, doubting whether I'd ever break 80. Countless times, I found myself teetering on the brink, only to stumble towards the end of my round, leaving me utterly frustrated and feeling the weight of the pressure. Strangely enough, once you accomplish it, you realize it's within reach, and the task becomes less daunting.
The obvious solution is to hone your technique. Many of us fall into the trap of believing that if we just executed that one chip better or avoided sending our drive into the woods, we could have achieved our goal. I certainly did.
As the great Bill Parcells once said, "You are what your record says you are." In other words, in golf, you are defined by your score. While there is variation, your game typically revolves around your average score, give or take a few strokes.
Breaking through requires a multi-faceted approach. Firstly, identify and improve upon the weak areas of your game—focus on the low-hanging fruit. Is it your putting? Your tee shots? Your chipping? Your approach shots from within 100 yards?
Next, prioritize course management. Enhance your odds by selecting smart targets, avoiding trouble spots, and minimizing the occurrence of double bogeys.
During your round, resist the temptation to check your score constantly. Instead, maintain focus on the present hole and shot. I used to either apply undue pressure when things weren't going well or start calculating multiple holes ahead when I sensed an opportunity to break 80.
Lastly, nurture your mental game. Embrace the possibility of setbacks, and don't succumb to pressure. Learn from each round, and trust that with perseverance, you'll reach your goal.
Once you break through, the burden is lifted, and the task suddenly seems more achievable because you've proven to yourself that it's possible.
🐦 Tweets of the Week 🐦
The rise of the 7-wood is here, and I’m on board. As I’ve mentioned, the pros are putting these in the bag. I did as well a month or so ago, and I’m loving it.
From my What’s in the Bag post:
7-Wood: Cobra Darkspeed X
As long-time readers know, I’ve wanted to add a 7-wood to the bag for a while now. This club immediately felt right. My carry was consistently around 210 yards, allowing me to replace my 3-Hybrid (which I hated) and my 4-iron (which I didn’t love either).
Kevin said that 7-woods are becoming hugely popular with customers, and for good reason. These clubs are forgiving, high launching, and can still stop on greens. A 9-wood might be in my future.
Check out Edition #30 for why more and more pros are putting 7-woods in the bag.
The graphic above is from Mygolfspy. This is for high-speed swings (115+ mph), but it is interesting nonetheless. Has anyone tried out the Left Dash yet?
📺 💻 T2C Media 📺 💻
Trackman released updated swing data for PGA Tour players from 2023. The total yards are all carry numbers, with Driver carry averaging 282 yards.
I’m actually kind of surprised these numbers aren’t higher. I guess that’s what happens when we see highlights of all the good shots from the greatest players.
Here’s a 25-minute video focusing on Shane Lowry’s short game along with coach Travis Fulton.
What I found interesting was how Shane didn’t explain any technical factors he just described his feels and emphasized visualizing the shot.
Shane uses two clubs to chip, mainly his Lob Wedge and sometimes his Pitching Wedge for bump and runs.
I’ve been struggling with bunker play, which Shane demonstrates at the 21:00 minute mark.
Check it out!
🔢 Stat(s) of the Week 🔢
Lou is dead on here. Speed control is #1. Most of us are too focused on reading the lines and our putting motion. When I’m not putting well, it’s almost always due to not focusing on the target and speed.
Two significant changes in my putting game were:
Visualizing my putt by looking at the target. The last thing I do before putting is just looking at the hole. I stole this from a TPI Chasing Scratch video a while back, where the coach said to think of it like a free throw. Would you look down at your feet and think about your stances, wrist, and elbow at the free throw line? Or would you focus on the rim, visualize the shot, and have maybe one simple shot motion thought?
Treating anything over 15 feet as a lag putt. Meaning, I’m not trying to hole it. I’m trying to die the ball in an imaginary circle around the hole. This will drastically reduce three putts.
The last time I played, I putted terribly. It was 95% speed control issues. Getting greedy with long putts and worrying too much about the line.
Remember SPEED, SPEED, SPEED.
📊 Poll of the Week 📊
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Til next time.
