Open and shut

The recent (British) Open reminded me of something I read years ago in an instruction book. It was in the chapter entitled 'The Pause the Means Good Timing', in a book called 'How to Play Your Best Golf All the Time', written by the great Tommy Armour, and first published in 1954.

Tommy Armour was a marvel, a great golfer despite having lost an eye in the First World War, and a great teacher by all accounts. His little book contains some gems, including what he refers to at one point as 'the pause that refreshes'.

Armour advocates, and provides evidence referencing the swings of some greats of the early to mid twentieth century, the incorporation of a slight pause at the top of the backswing. His mantra is the count 'one, two, wait, three', the one and two being the backswing. He is clear that the tempo of the swing will vary from player to player, but that the pause can still be in place, fast or slow swing.

The reason I mention the Open is because the second placed player, behind the putting demon Cam Smith, was Cam Young, who has a distinct pause at the top of his backswing, much like Hideki Matsuyama. Young hits the ball a country mile and very straight.

I've been toying with this pause (or wait) and, surprise, surprise, it has improved my ball striking, especially with driver, quite noticeably. I had been on a downhill slide with my ball striking, especially as it's winter here down-under, but it's now on the improve. 

It should be said that it takes a little time to get used to the pause, to trust that the ball is still where you put it on the tee or where it lies. But over a round or two it gets easier. I wouldn't say it guarantees you will get more distance, a little perhaps, but it helps with consistency, which is after all the holy grail of golf.

Just an aside, it also helps to be very wary of and avoid swaying (back) when playing irons or woods from the fairway, particularly while developing the trust you need with the pause.

I should also mention one other 'discovery' of recent weeks, not directly related to Armour or pausing, that has helped me with chips and short pitch shots. I had been struggling with pure contact, so I needed some simple key to help me - and that was to be the simple thought: 'commit' - when over a chip or pitch.

The message here is the absolute imperative of accelerating through these short shots, rather than the absolutely disastrous deceleration of the club-head that mainly comes with uncertainty. Once you have taken enough loft and feel reasonably sure you are not going to fire the ball over the green, it is important to play these short shots with authority, not with timidity. 

You could probably apply this to putting as well, although some discretion is needed here. But taking enough break, something rarely done by the less skilled, does require a bit of this authoritarian attitude.

Enough lessons for today (not 'learnings' a non-word that is over-used to my distraction), go out and pause and commit. It's an open and shut case.