The Sunday Bag: Slow Play, Keeping It In The Rails, Slow Motion Wedge Shots
7/26/2026
Happy Sunday everyone.
Let’s get into it.
Today’s quote:
“Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into an even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose.”
— Winston Churchill
Slow Play
Following Ryan Fox’s win at The Open last week, it seemed all anyone was talking about was how quick his pre-shot routine was. So I decided it would be funny to start posting the slowest pre-shot routines.
They both became my highest viewed posts to date… It seems golfers really don’t enjoy slow play. I’m assuming the views keep climbing because everyone can’t help but “hate watch” the clips lol.
I started with a video from Patrick Cantlay. And no, it’s not looped (I checked).
And then if you really want to torture yourself, you can watch the next one I posted of Brian Harman.
WARNING: This one is hurts.
The premium post this week will cover pre-shot routines, and why dialing in the exact same process every time is critical for consistent scoring. SPOILER: It’s detrimental to your game when the routine is >40 seconds. Shocker, I know.
Keep The Swing “In The Rails”
Luke Kerr-Dineen recently posted a question he asked Sam Burns about his golf swing, and I think his response is a really good reminder for those of us who can get obsessive over our swing mechanics.
I really loved the analogy Sam Burns used of keeping the golf swing “in the rails”.
A good reminder for us all. Your swing will have variability. Don’t obsess over it. Keep it within the rails, and try to control the things you can.
There is a time and place for shrinking “the rails.” But the course is not one of those places.
Side note: It’s much easier to keep your swing in the rails when it looks like this:
But I digress…
This Week’s Premium Post
This week’s premium post will be on the importance of consistent pre-shot routines.
A preview:
Many amateur golfers have a train of logic that goes something like this:
Bad shots come from bad swings. Pressure causes bad swings. Therefore pressure should be met with more attention to the swing — more thought, more care, more time to get it right. Stand over the ball a little longer. Think it through. Make sure.
This is wrong in my opinion. More thought, more care, more time — all that these things do is isolate and spotlight your swing, exposing your entire game to its natural variability.
This post will be for premium subs only. If you’d like to upgrade, I offer a special discount for The Sunday Bag readers HERE.
Slow Motion Wedge Shots
In a recent interview with the Short Game Chef, Michael Kim explained why he likes to practice slow motion full swings with wedges.
He says, “When your adrenaline is going, and I need to get up-and-down, it’s much easier to speed up. So training to be really slow I think is a great drill.”
Here is the full clip:
They later go on to talk about how these slower wedge swings help to soften ball speed, which is exactly what’s needed when playing on faster greens and short-sided positions.
Practice Tip:
Next time you go to the chipping green, copy what Michael Kim is doing above. See if you can take a full swing and have the ball carry 5 yards. He makes it look very easy, but I promise you it’s not…
That’s it for today. Hope you all have a great week and get out and play!
For Guides and Books click below:
If you have any questions, comments, or feedback, please don’t hesitate to email me at tourswingstommy@gmail.com. I read everything.
Social Media: Make sure to follow me on X here.
If you haven’t read them yet, check out some of the most popular Scoring Letter posts below:
