On The Tee with Hank Johnson

Preparing for a “Major”
Prepare yourself mentally and physically
1) Be rested and refreshed
2) Get all distractions taken care of
3) Decide to enjoy the experience
Study the golf course and get to know it intimately
1) Walk the course backwards to evaluate the approaches to the greens and the landing area for your tee shots
2) Get acquainted with the speed of the golf course (ie. Putts, chips, pitches and run up shots)
3) Get a feel for the bunker sand from different types of lies
4) Practice chips and pitches from different lies around the greens
For your yardage book
1) Make sure you have lay up yardages
2) Chart the greens for general breaking patterns
3) Pick a driving target and a driving club for every hole
4) Have a strategy for the play of every hole
During the round
1) Hit the ball in the fairway - be willing to hit whatever club that requires
2) After a poor shot, come up with a conservative plan - the US Open is no place to try to be a hero
3) Be patient no matter what happens, everyone else out there will be struggling too
4) Expect to face more up and down situations
5) Expect to have to make more putts for par than normal
6) Stay focused on what you do want to do. Don’t let your mind wander on to what you want to avoid

Segment 4: Impact – The Moment of Truth

Clubhead Speed

I am covering this impact factor last because if you do not master the factors of on center face contact, path, clubface alignment and angle of attack, more speed will just make your bad shots worse.
Most average players have as much clubhead speed as the tour players. It is just not at the proper place in their swing so the ball never knows it.

The secret is to have the clubhead go fast but last. It is a matter of proper sequencing. Good swings involve a constant rate of acceleration which means that from the top, the hands move down toward the ball slowly in the beginning and accelerate all the way to impact.
This movement is created by the pull on the arms of a rotating body. The club is left behind until the forces of the swing literally cause it to swing itself. Any effort to make the clubhead start fast from the top will disrupt this sequence and result in a loss not a gain of clubhead speed.

All great players use the same downswing sequence. It starts in their feet, moves up to their legs, into their hips, then their trunk, then their shoulders, followed by their arms, hands and then finally by their club.
Remember, the clubhead needs to go fast, but last.

Segment 3: Impact – The Moment of Truth

Angle of attack
The clubhead’s angle of attack in relationship to the ground has a significant effect on the trajectory of the shot.
The more downward the clubface is traveling at impact the less effective loft the clubface will have and the lower the ball will fly.
That’s why ball position at address is so important. The farther the ball is positioned back in the stance the more the club strikes down on it. The club at this point will also be traveling more in to out which can cause a push.
Conversely, the ball farther forward in the stance causes a more level angle of attack and tends to cause the ball to fly higher because the clubface has more effective loft. If the ball is positioned too far forward along the clubhead arc, the club will be traveling more out to in which can cause a pull.
Use a consistent pre shot routine to properly position the ball at address. This will give you a more consistent angle of attack and better control of the trajectory of your shots.