Happy Sunday everyone. Hope you’ve been enjoying some President’s Cup action this weekend. If you haven’t, the above photo should get you in the spirit.
Let’s get into it.
Today’s quote:
“The reason the pro tells you to keep your head down is so you can’t see him laughing.”
— Bill Murray
Always Practice Off of Grass
How many of you have ever had an amazing range session where you’re flushing one iron after another, only to find yourself chunking your irons the very next day on the course.
What happened?
Well, it could be any number of things, but maybe part of the reason is that you’ve become accustomed to hitting golf balls off of a mat.
A golf mat and the grass are not the same.
A mat allows the clubhead to slide or bounce off the firm surface. If you hit the ball "fat", the club still glides forward to launch the ball reasonably well.
Real turf allows the club to dig into the dirt (hence the divot). Hitting even slightly behind the ball on grass slows the club down significantly, resulting in everyone’s favorite shot — the chunk.
Obviously hitting off of a mat is better than not hitting balls at all. But if your local driving range offers grass and mats, please do yourself a favor and always choose the grass.
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Lining Up on the Tee Box
Most golfers I play with treat tee placement as an afterthought. "As long as it’s between the markers, it’s all pretty much the same shot, right?"
Wrong.
Where you choose to tee the ball up can have a significant impact on how well you hit the shot, and consequently how well you play the hole.
Below is a post from @drakesmith sharing some of his takeaways from his time caddying at Q school.
The scenario he uses is one where the players mistakenly set up on the side of the tee box that brings trouble into their vision.
I’ve written a lot about the power of vision in the golf swing. Where you look and what you see has a real impact on your golf swing.
So, the next time you walk up to the tee, step back for a few seconds and choose the angle that makes you feel the most confident. Just because you see tee markers, it doesn’t mean that every spot between them offers the same shot.
Bad Golf and Good Scores
Are good golf and good scores correlated?
Yes, but maybe not to the degree you think they are.
Generally speaking, good shots translate to lower scores. But golf sometimes defies logic. I’ve had plenty of rounds where solid ball-striking yields bad luck, and vice versa — days where repeated mis-hits somehow produce a respectable score (don’t ask me how).
Ultimately, cut yourself some slack if you’re striking it well and the scorecard doesn’t reflect it. And vice versa: if your swing feels off, don’t panic or overthink. Push through, make smart decisions, and you might still walk away with a personal best lol.
That’s it for today. Hope you all have a great week and get out and play!
If you have any questions, comments, or feedback, please don’t hesitate to email me at tourswingstommy@gmail.com. I read everything.
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