Piece by Piece it gets better

As the journey continues, I'm finding that improvement is coming more now in very small changes and adjustments. 2 years ago a simple swing change or adjustment would yield a score several strokes lower than was previously shot. Now each change or adjustment I make yields only a 1-3 stroke differential at best bringing to light the importance of attention to detail at this point and going forward. For example, this past Sunday was my first tournament since mid June, shot 87. Now I know that doesn't seem like a low score but consider that I had one birdie, was +5 on one hole and +3 on another and the score does not accurately reflect how I played. For the most part I was Playing very well, a few mental mistakes and a little too much on course tinkering cost me 80 or lower. Seeing that and knowing the difficulty level of the course lets me know that all the "changes and adjustments" I've been doing these past couple months and the embarrassingly low scores at times are all part of a larger goal, to finish top 5 at nationals this year. I found a second swing flaw during the tournament that really made the round. I was still having issues with slicing and no matter what i was doing I could not resolve it. During a few practice swings on the tee box before the disastrous +5 par 5, I happened to glance back as my shoulders were turning and there it was.......My left shoulder was lifting up instead of turning back, no rotation means an outside to in swing. I proceeded to smash the drive but unfortunately because I was playing for a slice I aimed at a sand trap on the right side of the fairway and crushed the ball dead straight about 270 and plugged into the sidewall of the trap. With that single shot I was able to then proceed to hit most of my iron shots with a draw and be able to better control the distance. More range time between now and september should result in a more consistant swing by the time Nationals rolls around!!!

stay tuned!

(side note):
Congratulations to Kevin who dominated the Hogan flight on Sunday, winning by 5 strokes with an 80!!

the quit line

Sometimes in any process, the idea of quitting when failure seems to become the norm as apposed to being the exception, starts to creep into your psyche. That has been the case for me the past couple weeks. With a lack of quality practice time and a swing that seems to resemble a runaway truck more than a steady sedan, those thoughts seem to creep up more and more. Each time I feel like I've found the "missing peice" I wind up taking two steps back. Each time I push through with positive thought, but as time goes by and progress is minimal it tends to lean on you heavily. I found myself contemplating retreating on my pursuit of these goals and simply going back to playing each weekend and having fun. I was at the range yesterday during a brief stop on my way to the airport heading home. Bought a large bucket and decided to focus on two fundamental swing thoughts, start from the ground up and swing inside out. Each swing felt like I was doing both, however, ball flight stated otherwise. with about 30+ balls to go, I had a swing that was more of a nice fade than a slice and as a posed and then looked at the finish, CHICKEN WING!!! Why you son of a bitch!!!!! where and when did you creep in there!!!??? once that "diagnosis" was complete I was striping shots down the range, 265, 275, 285 carries with my driver, switched to my trusty 8iron, 150, 155, 160, nice, high draws, each time! finished with my 3wood which has been my nemesis lately and........BLAM!! 250, 260 carries with the last 10 balls, most with a nice baby draw!!! I was not so much happy with the results as much as with the fact that I was able to diagnose the issue on my own, simply with feel and observation. that alone gave me new found hope and confidence!!!