Golf Tip Tuesday--Damage Control on the Golf Course

We all strive for perfection in the game of golf. But let's face it, perfection in golf will be a never ending pursuit, so mistakes will happen. The best players in the world hit errant shots even. So damage control is highly important in golf. Since we know we can't prevent bad shots from happening, damage control prevents further mistakes from those bad shots. How many of us play 14-16 great golf holes and have those 2-3 holes with large numbers? If you saved 2-5 strokes per round from those big number holes, how different would your handicap or golf game be?

Follow these steps to prevent those big numbers from happening:

1. Assess the situation:

--Check your lie. Is it a good or bad lie? Anticipate and imagine to the best of your ability the ball's reaction after you hit it. This will determine what type of club you should hit. If it is buried or nestled, take a club with more loft. If you have a lie that isn't too bad, then you can use whatever club the shot calls for.

--Check the scene. Where are you first of all? What is near you? Tree limbs hanging high, low? Hazards near? There are many things you should look at when you are in a trouble area.

--After checking the scene, think about your target. What possible shot can you hit when you look at each different target? Sometimes the flag is not always the best place to aim at. Where is your safest landing area? Maybe your best way out is backwards!! We hate that option, so it's hardly ever used, but it could possibly be your best bet!

2. Plan your shot:

--What type of shot should you hit? Does it need to be high or low? Short distance or middle distance? Most important...have you hit the shot that you need before? If the answer is no, then it might be a shot you shouldn't attempt.

--What type of swing do you need? This might depend on obstacles in the area that will affect your swing. This might depend on the type of ball flight you need to curve it around obstacles that are in front of you. A big key in getting out of any trouble with obstacles around you is that you almost never use a standard normal swing in these situations. You have to create and improvise sometimes very dramatically to even get the club on the ball! Don't let what your swing might look like hold you back from getting yourself out of trouble!

3. Practice the trick shots:

--Many times when we are playing by ourselves or playing in a practice round, we tend to take the ball out of the trees and throw it in the fairway or take our ball out of a buried lie in the bunker or rough and set it up on a nice piece of grass or even rake a better lie. Experiment with these and give yourself some extra practice. Preparation is the key. The main reason we are not good at getting out of trouble is because we never practice it!

It is simple...damage control is all about playing the percentages. What are the percentages of you pulling the risky, miracle shot off? What are the percentages of staying out of further trouble if you aim a more forgiving target where you know you'll get a good lie as opposed to aiming at the flag with giant trees in your way?

For more detailed information, I highly recommend the book "Damage Control" by Dave Pelz. Play the forgiving percentages and you'll be surprised at the shots that you cut from your score. This is an important tip when you're first getting back on the course after that long winter's break! Good luck!

Guest Blogger--Women's Golfer Hanna Ek on her First Two Weeks of School

Everything went well on the morning of January 10. We left my home town early in the morning and dodged the bad traffic on our way to the airport. However, my flight from Arlanda, Sweden, was delayed and the only thing I could do was to keep my fingers crossed. I was lucky this time. After sprinting through the airport in Köpenhamn, I made it on time for my transatlantic flight! I was so excited!

The plane was packed. I got to sit beside a sneezing, coughing man who blew his nose every ten minutes all the way to Washington DC. Lovely. But at least I was on the flight! We arrived early to Washington so I had plenty of time before the boarding for my flight to Cleveland would start. However, the flight from Köpenhamn was not the only international flight arriving at the same time in Washington. Immigration was a nightmare. It took me more than two hours to get through and I was running out of time. My only option was to run. Again! I made it to the final call! I was tired and I could barely keep my eyes open when I boarded my third and last flight for the day.

In Cleveland, my Coach and her husband picked me up, but unfortunately my luggage didn’t make it. I was really annoyed, but with classes starting the next morning I just wanted to get back to my apartment.

I got my luggage the next day. I unpacked, I went to my meetings, I practiced and worked out, and I ran back and forth with papers. Back to reality. When Friday came I was tired and I wasn’t feeling well. I had felt something in my throat the entire week but it wasn’t too bad, at least not at first. When I woke up on Saturday, I knew something was wrong. I got worse and worse throughout the day and I went to bed early. I was hoping to be able to sleep it away. The night between Saturday and Sunday was horrible. I had a very high fever and my bed turned into a pool of sweat. Lovely. To try to swallow was not an option; I could not even get water down because my throat was too swollen.

I had to go to the hospital the next day. I got an injection, some steroids, and penicillin. I’m still taking the penicillin and the only thing I have been able to eat for the past five days is yogurt. My throat is still swollen and I’m exhausted, but I feel a lot better than I did a few days ago. Hopefully I’ve had my share of illness this semester. From now on, things can only get better!

Go Zips!!--Hanna Ek

Golf Tip Tuesday--Stay Healthy for Optimal Performance!

We are having a rough start to week 2 of off season practice due to illness among the team, so I see it as very appropriate to discuss staying healthy as today's golf tip!

After a nice long break of relaxing and getting plenty of sleep, we returned to school last week which means the total opposite: fast paced schedule with much more stress added to the mind and body. That type of schedule can take a toll on your immune system and cause you to get sick more easy.

Not only will it affect their practice time, but it can also have a negative affect when they go to class...if they are well enough to go to class anyway!

So, when stressful times happen in your life take the following precautions to help prevent illness:

--Get plenty of sleep! You might have to sacrifice missing you favorite TV show or something at night, but that's what they created dvr for!!
--Drink plenty of fluids...mainly water! Your body is made up of 90% water, so an inactive person should drink half of their body weight in ounces of water each day! So, if you are 200lbs, then you should drink 100oz of water.
--Wash your hands! It's a no-brainer and it also keeps bacteria from spreading.
--Develop a regular exercise routine. If you don't have one, now would be the time to slowly get back into a routine or consult a personal trainer about that. Exercise strengthens the immune system, but it doesn't do much good when you exercise while sick...that could make it worse!
--Find time to relax each night. It's very helpful to find time for yourself and reflect on the day. That might seem more like mental health, but if you are having a stressful, fast paced week, then relaxing the mind and quieting your thoughts are just what you need!

This may not stop you from completely getting sick, but it sure does help! I am one of those rare people that never get sick and I highly believe it's because I stick with the above. I also think it's because I have this ability to mentally block sickness out! I feel when it's coming and I tell myself I will not get sick today or this week! Not sure that works, but I believe it, so I'm going with it...haha!

So, hopefully those tips help you out and keep you healthy so you can keep practicing your games :)! Hopefully in a couple of days, the team will be back to normal and feeling better again!

Good First Week

Our first week back to practice went great. Although we are in our off-season practice schedule, the team looked like they didn't miss a beat.

I met with everyone this past Wednesday and we discussed each individual's goals for the Spring season. I believe each player came in to the meetings very motivated about their games for the Spring and it will be fun watching them focus and work hard to achieve their goals.

So, right now the focus in practice is great!! I'm very satisfied with what I see so far and I'm looking forward to traveling very soon. We leave for our first tournament of the Spring in 34 DAYS!!!

Golf Tip Tuesday--Perfecting Your Putting Stroke

Again, there are many great ways to work on your game during the winter months. One way to perfect your putting stroke during those cold, snowy days can simply be done in your home on the carpet or hardwood.

All you need is three clubs...two clubs of any kind to lay down parallel and of course, your putter! Practice your putting stroke between the two clubs laying down. Keep your putter between the two parallel clubs throughout your stroke to ensure a consistent path straight back, straight through. You do not need a ball, but it is good to see how you are rolling it after several repetitions without.

This easy, simple drill will give you instant feedback on how the path of your stroke is looking. It will also be a great drill to help you gain a consistent stroke and more confidence with your shorter putts. Repetition is key as well as patience!!

And the Spring Semester Begins....NOW!!

Today is the first day of classes for the Spring semester at the University of Akron. And as you can imagine, campus is busy, busy, busy! I'm a little sad that the break went by so fast, but I'm also happy to get back into a groove with coaching and having more of a set schedule. I'm also really glad that the girls are all back on campus. Hopefully they are all feeling refreshed after break and they are ready to go!!

We'll have our team meeting this afternoon to talk about the upcoming semester, schedule, etc. I will also get with them individually to discuss their goals for the Spring season. And we will actually start our off-season practice schedule tomorrow!

We will be super busy until May, but it's a lot of fun! You really can't beat being a college golf coach or even a college golfer! I will also have more to write about now too :).

Golf Tip Tuesday--Indoor Practice Tip

With record snowfalls and low temperatures being recorded all over the world this winter, not much golf is being played in many areas. Right now in Akron we have about 6+ inches of snow on the ground, so we will be spending a lot of our practice indoors. Not many people are lucky enough to have an indoor golf facility complete with chipping, pitching, and putting areas, but we are and we will take full advantage of that this spring to prepare for our MAC Championship at the end of April.

You might not have an indoor golf facility available to you, but you probably have something in your house that could be a great help during the cold winter months. It is simply a mirror...a full length mirror is more preferred.

If you are making any swing adjustments, you can check and re-check your swing fundamentals in the mirror. Having a golf swing that repeats and holds up under pressure is a big key to being successful with the game, so what better way to accomplish this than by watching it in the mirror. Not only that, but you'll see and feel the club and your swing in the correct position.

Teaching your body the right moves will be highly beneficial and you will see great improvements in your golf game once the snow clears the course and the temperatures warm up!