March 2015
About Me
2015 began with a flurry of activity. My winter break was spent in Italy as has become a custom with me. Arriving in Florida in early January, I have had the pleasure of missing all the cold and snow in the northeast. Before our schools began, I played in a couple of tournaments in conjunction with the PGA show. I was again reminded that this game requires a continual, consistent commitment . All of the events were team events and, thankfully, I had good partners so we cashed in on 2 of the 3 tourneys. I have been concentrating on my iron play, and I also just ordered new irons from Taylor Made. I can’t wait to try them. My new R15 driver has been acting right lately so I’m allowing it to stay in the bag. I look forward to ge playing in more tournaments when I return to Maryland.
Florida Golf Schools
The Florida schools have been better than expected! We are always trying to improve the experience and this year is no different. We have added a few new golf courses to the rotation, we have improved the instruction portion of the day with new stations, and we have increased the evening activities to include a little rest and good food. In some of the weeks we rented a new 8 bedroom home with a theater and game room. It made the room situation very nice and incorporated Reunion CC as our instruction site. I am eager to see the schools continue to grow and improve. The students make them great, and, of course, it is easy to leave 20 degree weather for 75 and sunshine. I am presently working on a website that will include the next season’s Winter Schools.
Paint Branch Girls and Boys Golf Club
We welcomed two new juniors to the club this year. Tim’s wife Joy delivered healthy baby boys this January. Tim is still at Paint Branch once a week for the Development programs. Though the snow has not cooperated, we plan to be available for the programs on Tuesdays and Saturdays. When I return at the beginning of April we will return to 3 times a week for our development programs.
You can find information about our schedule and the programs at golfclubmd.com. There is more content to be added to the site but Lana has done an awesome job getting it up and running. There are a number of new features-- the student section has a sign in area where you can view your swings on line.; the Winter School Section is new with information about what we do in Florida; the Junior Golf section of the site will contain stories and information about our Junior Programs. We have an elaborate schedule of junior events this year
Tip Load and Lag
I want to give you a brief introduction to lag. We commonly talk about lag in terms of the relationship between the lead arm and the shaft. Most commonly it is referred to as wrist angle. But lag can be discussed in much broader terms, lag by definition is one segment moving slower or lagging behind the other segment. When it is mentioned in wrist angle what is actually happening is the lead arm (left for right handed players) is moving faster than the shaft. Consequently the shaft is lagging behind the lead arm. That happens between many of our segment relationships. For example if my hips start my downswing before my chest I can determine my chest is lagging my hips. I hope you get the picture.
Now the point I want to make is that if you create lag or wrist angle but you have not loaded your lead arm than the majority of your power is only going to come from the wrist (not a very powerful source). It is paramount that you get the other segments to load in proper sequence.
We have been using Kvest (3D) for years at the Performance Center and it is an awesome way to measure your sequencing. If you have proper sequencing and you are still not getting the appropriate power from your swing, get a TPI screen and work on the areas where you need improvement.
Find a TPI certified PGA member and take a few lessons.
Chris Oleson
PGA Teaching Professional, UMD and Paint Branch GC
2015 began with a flurry of activity. My winter break was spent in Italy as has become a custom with me. Arriving in Florida in early January, I have had the pleasure of missing all the cold and snow in the northeast. Before our schools began, I played in a couple of tournaments in conjunction with the PGA show. I was again reminded that this game requires a continual, consistent commitment . All of the events were team events and, thankfully, I had good partners so we cashed in on 2 of the 3 tourneys. I have been concentrating on my iron play, and I also just ordered new irons from Taylor Made. I can’t wait to try them. My new R15 driver has been acting right lately so I’m allowing it to stay in the bag. I look forward to ge playing in more tournaments when I return to Maryland.
Florida Golf Schools
The Florida schools have been better than expected! We are always trying to improve the experience and this year is no different. We have added a few new golf courses to the rotation, we have improved the instruction portion of the day with new stations, and we have increased the evening activities to include a little rest and good food. In some of the weeks we rented a new 8 bedroom home with a theater and game room. It made the room situation very nice and incorporated Reunion CC as our instruction site. I am eager to see the schools continue to grow and improve. The students make them great, and, of course, it is easy to leave 20 degree weather for 75 and sunshine. I am presently working on a website that will include the next season’s Winter Schools.
Paint Branch Girls and Boys Golf Club
We welcomed two new juniors to the club this year. Tim’s wife Joy delivered healthy baby boys this January. Tim is still at Paint Branch once a week for the Development programs. Though the snow has not cooperated, we plan to be available for the programs on Tuesdays and Saturdays. When I return at the beginning of April we will return to 3 times a week for our development programs.
You can find information about our schedule and the programs at golfclubmd.com. There is more content to be added to the site but Lana has done an awesome job getting it up and running. There are a number of new features-- the student section has a sign in area where you can view your swings on line.; the Winter School Section is new with information about what we do in Florida; the Junior Golf section of the site will contain stories and information about our Junior Programs. We have an elaborate schedule of junior events this year
Tip Load and Lag
I want to give you a brief introduction to lag. We commonly talk about lag in terms of the relationship between the lead arm and the shaft. Most commonly it is referred to as wrist angle. But lag can be discussed in much broader terms, lag by definition is one segment moving slower or lagging behind the other segment. When it is mentioned in wrist angle what is actually happening is the lead arm (left for right handed players) is moving faster than the shaft. Consequently the shaft is lagging behind the lead arm. That happens between many of our segment relationships. For example if my hips start my downswing before my chest I can determine my chest is lagging my hips. I hope you get the picture.
Now the point I want to make is that if you create lag or wrist angle but you have not loaded your lead arm than the majority of your power is only going to come from the wrist (not a very powerful source). It is paramount that you get the other segments to load in proper sequence.
We have been using Kvest (3D) for years at the Performance Center and it is an awesome way to measure your sequencing. If you have proper sequencing and you are still not getting the appropriate power from your swing, get a TPI screen and work on the areas where you need improvement.
Find a TPI certified PGA member and take a few lessons.
Chris Oleson
PGA Teaching Professional, UMD and Paint Branch GC